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Editor’s Letter: Taking Up Space As A Black Woman

So, here it is.

The first editor’s letter of Black Ballad 2.0. I would be lying if I said I didn’t feel nervous, anxious, worried and all the feelings that flirt with fear. However, this would not be an editor’s letter if I wasn’t completely transparent in my feelings and tell you, the women that have brought this vision, this business to life - exactly how I feel in the moments of writing these words. 

During the past year, as you know, Black Ballad has prepared for this moment and in the process I have learnt many valuable lessons. However, the most important lesson I have learnt is that it is critical that black women take up space. Black women must assert themselves and occupy places online and offline. For so long, black British women have deserved a space on the internet to call home. Yes, our American counterparts such as Ebony, Essence and Blavity speak to our racial issues, but they don’t quite speak to the polylithic cultural experience of black Britons. So for me, reading those publications haven’t quite always felt like home.