Recently on SNL Octavia Spencer...I mean Leslie Jones ( found my mistake, my apologies for the years of sharing misinformation) sat on a park bench talking a white jobless Republican about his atrocities committed under the ruling of Donald Trump. Through this she played the maid that is often seen as an asexual, church going, all knowing black woman that is there for all people in a jovial and dismissive way. She is usually seen as putting everyone else's needs above her own.
Inserted in history during the 1890's, this became a stereotype for most older, dark, and loyal black women that worked in a home and served a White family. This stereotype was instilled into American and African-American culture during the Jim Crow slavery days. This is the when the condemnation of White men tried to justify that because some black women were dark skinned, fat and domesticated workers, this meant that they were undesirable to anyone. These women are often times seen as asexual and noninclusive in searching for relationships with partners of any kind, "their daily work, helping others, and the self-sacrifice provides for them". This is further listed in the bible as women who give themselves up for the betterment of their families. How could a mammy go wrong?
Since this and other black female stereotypes have been accepted into out community, I would like to focus on how this begins to dishonor the self care that black women need in order to preserve their life and not cause health limitations.
The highest illnesses among Black Women are
1. Heart Disease
2. Diabetes
3. High Blood Pressure
4. Stroke
5. Cancer
Let us not focus on the what could happen but rather how to prevent it. The first is always diet and the second is always exercise. Even I have fallen wayside to these simple solutions to life. So this month I am taking the self-care challenge provided by:
Here are other articles I found about self care during my search: