WINTER 2016
ZINE 1
ABOUT US
Young women’s leadership program combines sex education with the Arts, bridging the gap between how information is learned and retained. Workshops include healing circles, LGBTQ sex education workshops, creative writing classes and more! Women identified youth of all cultural backgrounds who wish to empower themselves and their community are encouraged to join. 2
POP ZINE
POP Zine is a quarterley zine that members of the women’s group create the content of the zine. POP focus on social injustice women of color deal with daily. 3
FEATURING
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Artwork
By Ru & Melissa Street Harassment
By Women’s Group Poetry
By Shanice & Paris Meet the Members
Photography Cultural Appropriation
By Ashanti 5
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Illustration By Ru Tirado
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Illustration By Melissa Costa
I’ll love you but only for a week, Nice ass You’re beautiful Can I walk with you?
God Bless you beautiful Ew you stank anyways Damn ma smile Can I walk in your direction?
Aye mami Oye preciosa Bring that ass here Damn ma come here I can make you smile
THINGS WE HEARD MEN TELL US OR OTHER WOMEN IN THE STREETS
Yo mama Sexy Bring that ass here Let me holla!
Hey you, no, not you, the skinny one, No, not the fat friend, the cute one, Why does she look like that, Why, she’s not cute?
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Body parts that are expected to be a certain way 9
BY SHANICE
When I go outside or just outside of my house I’m always the fat one Like I don’t have a name Like I’m not good enough If you don’t like me Or you don’t find me attractive Just don’t say anything to me It’s not like I asked you to come over and talk to me Like your 30 seconds in my life is not going to determine how I’m going to feel Or what I think about myself So yes I am fat Maybe I’m ...
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BY PARIS
I’m more than just a face I’m a heart and soul I’m a person I’m someone with a story to tell and I won’t be silent I will be heard by someone in the world I know I’m not perfect but I’m worth being heard by someone and I will make sure I am You look at my face and only see the cover but why not look within to see what really lies inside
Sometimes they say when you lose It’s hard It’s even harder when what you lost meant everthing to you I know life goes on but it’s hard to see your picture on my phone and your name is in my heart and soul I know things are different now but it’s hard not to see your smile and hear the sound of your voice when we would see cartoons together hearing mom yell at us fighting over the TV I miss you every day of my life
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MEET
ad o
r
RuTi 12
MEET
e
T ri m
c
Shani 13
MEET Paris
M
iranda 14
Cultural Appropriation By Ashanti Meade
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frican American culture seems to the number one appropriated culture. African American culture has been looked down upon and has been ridiculed for centuries. Celebrities, models, and non African Americans have found ways to take something such as cornrows and say it is just a style. Let’s take a quick trip into the past in Africa where cornrows had a lot of significance. The length of the braids can symbolize your status whether it’s marital or even class. It could also mean things such as religion and even age. In Africa cornrows were a meaningful thing and it was said that sometimes cornrows tell stories. When the “new world” became “discovered” land was stolen and the “new” landowners founded
plantations containing things such as: sugar, tobacco, cotton, rum and other commodities. These landowners made the decision that African slaves were the most suitable to harvest these commodities. So upon capture for “sanitary” reasons heads were shaved. Therefore the significance of those braids was gone in a blink of an eye. Now let’s fast forward to the 1970’s to 2000. Cornrows began to make a comeback but that didn’t stop the torment of African Americans. Women and girls were looked down upon, called less than, said their hair was nothing and that they’ll never 15
be anything in life. African American caused a heap of controversy between the two teen pop stars. But whose women have gone through all of this side do you think everyone went on? and more; but that didn’t stop white celebrities from representing this style If you guessed Kylie’s you are correct. The fact that not a single person, and called it their own. Last year there were numerous including Kylie was able to recognize counts of appropriation by her wrong is completely absurd. celebrities that weren’t African In the article, “ Kylie Americans. Celebrities such Jenner accused of ‘cultural as Gwen Stefani, Heidi Klum, appropriation’ for wearing Jared Leto, Lena Dunham have all cornrows” by Diana Falzone, demonstrated or exhibited cornrows. she reported that: “Bravo But the biggest controversy would personality Andy Cohen, blasted be when both Stenberg, 16, Kylie Jenner “In Africa cornrows were a his ‘Jack hole and Katy Perry of the Day’. “ meaningful thing & it was said This comment exhibited cornrows. came from that sometimes cornrows Kylie Jenner, a a white tell stories.” white american American female, male in his posted a picture of herself in 40s, bashing a 16-year-old for standing cornrows and quoting Beyonce’s up for what she believes in. This, along song Flawless saying: “I woke up like with another comment by publicist this”. Amandla Stenberg, an African Sparkle Callahan was reported by American female actress who in the Falzone. Falzone reported: “’Kylie past pointed out numerous things is expressing herself by wearing involving African American culture cornrows. Just because Kylie did not and activism in general spoke out mention or hashtag #blacklivesmatter about this. Outraged by Kylie Jenner’s it’s an issue”. “ This comment would post Amandla commented: “When be considered fucked up, due to the u appropriate black features and fact that this woman does not know culture but fail to use ur position of what she’s talking about. The topic of African American culture and the power to help black Americans by directing attention towards ur wigs topic of #blacklivesmatter are two instead of police brutality or racism different topics. The whole hashtag and movement for black lives matter #whitegirlsdoitbetter”. This statement
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was started due to the amount of lives lost in the hands of police brutality. That hashtag has nothing to do with appropriating a culture. Comments such as these are made all the time towards the people standing up for their culture and this is what adds on to the fact that cultural appropriation is a major problem. Now Cultural Appropriation doesn’t only stop at these two cultures. Any culture can be appropriated but it seems to be only the cultures of people of color. Cultures such as Indian cultures and celebrities wearing bindi’s, to Islamic culture and people wearing hijabs, to celebrities such as Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj representing Chinese culture in video’s and live performances. Things like this will never stop until cultural appropriation is realized as a problem in the world. Cultural appropriation will begin to become a problem once
someone mocks something of white culture and calls it their own. This is connected to the systemic structure of racism. There is a time and place to be a part of a culture that isn’t your own. For example if you’re not part of the Indian culture but you’re invited to an Indian wedding that is when it would be appropriate to participate in a culture that isn’t your own for you were invited to be apart of it. With the amount of appropriation made by people appreciations should be overshadowing it but until that happens cultural appropriation is a major problem.
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MEET af
Tr
Starr
ton 18
MEET R iv
a
Teres
era
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MEET E ffi
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u G es
n
Da
s
Alexi
vila
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MEET Ash
ti
Meade
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Rossem
a
ary
Remi C
Gomez
ollazo 21
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W.O.M.E.N.’S GROUP Spring 2016 Thursday 6:30-8:15pm www.thepoint.org
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