My friend Tanya Ballard Brown posted an article from Marie Claire on Facebook the other day. The essay by journalist Helena Andrews is titled Setting The Record Straight. Read the short piece here.
In her essay Andrews dispels the myth that 70 percent of Black women are single and vows to declare war on this widely spread statistic. She points to the numerous articles that have been written about the single Black woman in recent years and the books that have come out of our "dire situation," including the bestseller Act Like a Lady, Think Like A Man, which has been turned into a blockbuster movie. But Andrews says, "It's time to revolt."
"As a 31-year-old college-educated black woman who's never been married,
everywhere I turn, the odds of finding a good man are against me," the author writes.
But Andrews points to her own relationship as evidence that reality may be different than what the media is portraying. She is dating a college-educated Black man who "isn't a felon, a deadbeat, a father of illegitimate children, or a cheat." She talked to other Black women, who happen to be single, but who also refuse to buy into the "epidemic of singledom." TV producer Nyree Emory, 38, noted that the number of unmarried women in her social circle was very low.
That's what Ivory Toldson, a psychology professor at Howard University, has been trying to get across over the past few years. He analyzed
census data between the years 2000 and 2009 and found that "most black women eventually do marry" and, he told Andrews, "75 percent of black
women older than age 35 have wed at least once." (My step-sister is on her fourth marriage.)
Now, a lot of people like to beat me up about what I want, calling me unrealistic and all that other stuff. But I like what Tina Wells, CEO of Buzz Marketing had to say in the article: "The statistic that the media love to hype means nothing to me," she
says. "I'm focused on living my best life, and — by doing that, I'll
attract the right guy."
Amen Sista! Keep Hope Alive !
Thoughts?
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1 comment:
I'm one who has really stopped paying attention to all these articles. They continue to be drafted with subject matter that uplifts or deflates our self esteem. I can only concentrate on becoming a better me so that I will be ready for the man that God has for me. Statistics be gone! Each person/relationship is unique. Helena makes a very valid argument; however, she is much younger than I am and a different stage in her life. Also, I always tell myself that I meet many guys who look awesome on paper (as Helena's guy does), but their personalities/attitudes tell another story (can't speak on Helena's beau). Read these articles with a grain of salt. Glean from them what you will and then continue to live YOUR life.
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