julianne escobedo shepherd

Everyone interested in hip-hop, feminism or women, period, needs to read this book. It is seminal.

Anyway, been thinking a lot about all the internet-speak about whether Beyonce’s new song/video is feminist, particularly with Natasha’s post I repubbed at Alternet and Nineteenpercent’s video [embedded and explicated in aforelinked link]. So I went back to Chickenheads to consider the context, and thought this quote was particularly relevant to the convo:

Just once, I didn’t want to have to talk about ‘the brothers,’ ‘male domination’ or ‘the patriarchy.’ I wanted a feminism that would allow me to explore who we are as women––not victims. One that claimed the powerful richness and delicious complexities inherent in being black girls now—sistas of the post-Civil Rights, post-feminist, post soul, hip-hop generation.

This book was published in 1999 and it’s still so relevant, important and powerful.

Also, how about Joan Morgan’s cute haircut in that book photo.