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Black Girl Magic: The Message and the Movement – then, now, and beyond.

Sat, March 19, 9:00 to 10:15am, Omni Charlotte Hotel, Floor: Main Floor, Magnolia Room

Abstract

If one has a significant number of Black women followers or "friends" on any one of their social media lists, and they are to scroll down their timeline long enough, eventually, one's eyes will be met with the term 'Black Girl Magic’ a term that is often used to label a photo of a Black girl or woman looking captivatingly elegant, undeniably strong, or vibrantly comfortable in her own skin. Sometimes the term is used to label a picture or video of a Black woman or girl doing something brilliant or newsworthy.

CaShawn Thompson, the one who started using #BlackGirlsareMagic in 2013, is the originator behind the now condensed phrase. As for her reasoning behind this powerful creation, she relays, “I say ‘magic’ because it’s something that people don’t always understand. ..Sometimes our accomplishments might seem to come out of thin air, because a lot of times, the only people supporting us are other black women” (Thomas, 2015).

Her statement is as true now as it was nearly 100 years ago in the nineteenth century when “Black women birthed their own movements through Black woman’s club movement and the anti-lynching movement” (Waters & Conaway, 2007). Tellingly, the anti-lynching movement can be seen as a precursor to Black Lives Matter, another movement that was started and sustained by the inexorable efforts of Black women.

Furthermore, while this phrase’s prominence is contemporary, it appropriately describes countless black women from every epoch in history. With the seemingly perpetual oppression toward Black women – in and outside of the black community, it is imperative that Black women are able to create spaces and movements for themselves where their personal and public accomplishments, agendas, and aspirations are not only recognized but also honored and celebrated.

That said, this paper is about highlighting three contemporary black women and analyzing how they, like black women leaders of the past are able to succeed exponentially, in a world that constantly tells them that they are second place. This paper will use three methods to gather data -1) semi-structured qualitative interviews 2) Literature

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