Recently, a journalist, Satoshi Kanazawa, published an article in Psychology Today to push a study on “Why Black Women Are Rated as Less Physically Attractive Than Other Women” and I, among many others, was extremely shocked. First there was the sign hanging in New York saying that the most dangerous place for an African-American child is in the womb. Now this?! So I’m here to reject all that racist and stereotypical article. I will share why in my social and psychological judgment, BLACK WOMEN MAY BE RATED MORE ATTRACTIVE.

I am sick and tired of all the stereotypes trying to bring down our entire race of women by throwing negative connotations our way. To be honest, black women have been through a lot and have built a lot of strength over the years. We have been beaten and abused by men of our race and other races, stolen of our identities and stripped of our pride. For many years, centuries even, we have had to overcome so much adversity, pain and misfortune. They have taken our children from us, kidnapped us from our native lands, forced us to live alternative lifestyles, and sold us as property. We had to have children, raise them alone, watch them get killed, were rejected by our own people, devalued by other races, and continue to fight for a better way of life for the next generation of African Americans. .all while finding ways to maintain a healthy and stable mind. So with that, I’m here to talk about myself…

Now, I can’t speak for all black women, nor can I speak for all men who rate us. But for those I know, I have shared my views with them and they have shared theirs with me. I have realized the best attributes of our people and I am very proud. We are not perfect, no race or gender is, but we have so many unrecognized qualities and we deserve our platform to show it off. That being said, black women can be rated as the most attractive because:

1) Our STRENGTH. We have endured so much and still persist in doing better. We do not give up in the face of adversity and we face life without fear, no matter how much they have threatened and devalued us.

2) We are so VARIED. We come in all colors, shapes, and sizes. Black women are blessed with all different shades, all types of hair, we do not have a standard size and we can be as small or as big as we want, we are thick, curvy, thin, petite, slender, large, medium and petite. We are proud of who we are, unique and wonderfully made.

3) We have a unique sense of STYLE and we wear our fashion with boldness and pride. We invent new ways to innovate our style. We change the game on so many levels, adding new colors, jewels, accessories and more.

4) Our SKIN is strong and doesn’t just crack. We can certainly keep our youth.

5) We are BOLD and outgoing. We are not afraid to be honest and say what we think.

6) Our HAIR can do anything and everything. We are the only breed that can achieve any type of hairstyle, whether it is cut, curly, dyed, straight, kinky, braided, bobed, twisted, long, short, weaved or not, we can do it all.

7) We are professional LEADERS. People of color have led so many industries… from entertainment, athletics, politics, science and more, we’ve been innovatively changing the game for years and years. We are creative thinkers who never let anything get in the way of our success.

8 ) We are MOTHERS and LOVERS and we always keep that as our priority. No amount of money or level of our career can take away from us the invaluable role of being a mother or lover. We understand the value of keeping family first and living to keep that in our blood for years to come.

9) We are as SEXY and SOPHISTICATED as we want to be.

10) We are CONFIDENT, no matter who tries to bring us down, we never stay down.

11) We are FIGHTERS. No matter what challenges come our way, we fight to find a way to overcome them. We don’t settle and we certainly don’t back down.

12) We value our LOOK. We are always researching new ways to keep our body, skin, nails, clothes, weight and hair in shape. We place great value on our fashion and appearance by making sure to achieve the look that best represents how we feel on the inside.

13) We LOVE our men. No matter what we’ve been through with black men, we can’t help but love the fathers, brothers, sons, and male partners in our lives. We honor them and hold them in high regard, until they screw it up, of course, and still, we love them unconditionally. Even without the looks, money, time, and physical or emotional attention we demand of them, we can’t help but love the men in our lives. We understand their struggle and we try very hard to be the support and strength they need.

14) We find ways to EDUCATE ourselves even when education is not available.

15) We find ways to MAKE MONEY when we hit our lowest points. We use our heads and never settle for being broke.

16) We live, we love and we LAUGH. We like to hang out, be with family, go out on the town and enjoy the joys that life has to offer in our various forms.

17) We have FAITH. Although we may all have chosen different paths to our faith, we have a spiritual relationship with God that gives us the strength to continue to persist through every challenge that comes our way.

18) We are TALENTED. We sing, we dance, we act, we play instruments, we play ball, we write, we draw, we walk, we swim, we design, and we basically find some valuable skill in ourselves that we can someday call talent.

19) We are OPEN MINDED and have no prejudice towards other races of shows, music, movies, books, people, etc. We weren’t raised to be like this, but we understand how we are viewed by others and are always aware of that. We keep an open mind towards everyone else while trying to maintain our pride and defenses in the midst of other races.

20) We RESPECT ourselves. We will never allow anyone to demean our race in our face. We respect ourselves and our people and will always defend our cultural rights. We love ourselves no matter what we were conditioned to think and feel about being black. We honor our ancestors and all their visible and invisible struggles. We believe in our achievement, our success and our career one day overcoming all our adversities. We know what respect is and we demand it.

What do you think makes black women attractive? Feel free to agree or disagree with me here…