Girls for a Change Historical Portrait Session - Fighting for the Forgotten Women

I thought I had paid attention. I hadn’t paid enough attention. There I was, in my naive cocoon, not even close to recognizing the full extent of my white privilege. 2020 was my wake-up call. Girls For A Change helped me see differently and gave me the opportunity to assist in the fight for the Forgotten Women.

A few years previously, I became involved with Girls For A Change Girl Ambassador Program by doing their headshots. I am a big supporter of empowering young women. I really enjoyed my collaboration and love the young girl’s energy. It is always neat to be around our future leaders. Girls For A Change offers many robust programs to support and foster each girl’s leadership capabilities.

Girls For A Change (GFAC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit youth development organization aimed at empowering Black girls in Central Virginia to visualize their bright futures and potential through discovery, development, innovation, and social change in their communities.

I’ll never forget, I asked one teenager, what she was going to use her headshot for and she said she was going to use it for the speaking at Virginia’s General Assembly. And then I asked her what she spoke about to the General Assembly and she said to get the Crown Act passed. I didn’t know what the Crown Act was and she shared with me that it gives African American people the right to wear their hair as they choose and no one can discriminate against them for it. That gave me pause, as I never have to think about how I want to wear my hair and who has a say about it. I’m happy to share that the Crown Act became law in July 2020.

There are so many rights I take for granted. It’s really heartbreaking that there is so much difference based on something as shallow as skin color especially when we don’t get to chose our skin color.

I had a conversation with Sistah Angela, CEO of Girls For A Change and we discussed how we could empower these young girls during this historical time. Their voice and their experiences matter and it was an opportunity to fight for the Forgotten Women. There were 3 major events going on in 2020 - 1) the COVID-19 Pandemic 2) The National Social Unrest & Protesting 3) Black Lives Matter being given great attention.

Black girls specifically have been at the forefront in the Fight for Racial Equality. Historically, Black women have been no strangers to the quest for social change.

We agreed to do a photo and video shoot by the Marcus David Peter Community Circle formally known as the Robert E. Lee Memorial. Many activists had transformed the plinth (the part where the large Robert E. Lee statue is resting on) with graffiti. The juxtaposition between how it was before and then after is vast. It was gray and now it is very colorful.

Currently, the Circle is enclosed by a large fence, making access to it impossible. Hopefully, Virginia will remove the statue soon.

Noelle Massenberg, Age 15, points out there is not only a COVID-19 pandemic but there is a pandemic called racism that needs to be solved.

iyanna Hardin, 11 grade wants to see 3 changes in our community - 1) gun violence 2) creating better opportunities for Black people 3) better nutrition to avoid diabetes especially for the Black community.

Synaya Johnson experienced COVID-19 first hand by her and her family having it. Fortunately, she is healthy again. Synaya also misses school and is one of many students who learn better with in-person instruction.

Jori Edmonston stands in front of a memorial for Breaonna Taylor who died tragically in the comfort of her own home. Jori was affected by COVID-19 by not going to in-person school and not seeing her friends/family. She has made the best of it by learning to paint.

Asani Ka-Re was really upset by George Floyd’s death and then saw disturbing meme’s. She really enjoys hearing more black voices which have been getting more exposure because of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Sanaa Glass found George Floyd’s death really upsetting and empowering at the same time. She doesn’t believe that all cops are bad, just those cops that killed Mr. Floyd. She felt anxious and didn’t feel like doing anything for a long time.

Angela Patton, CEO for Girls for a Change leads the girls towards an empowering future.

Iyanna, Sanaa and Nadia sit beside a memorial for Breonna Taylor, one of the Forgotten Women.

Nadia Fraser would like to see changes in our community that would still allow people to have fun while staying safe from the Corona Virus.

A group shot of all the Girls For A Change participants, Angela Patton, CEO Christina Clark, videographer, and myself.

It was an incredible experience for me to be able to participate and see firsthand the girl’s pride, passion, perseverance, strength, and grace. It seems Black girl’s voices are overlooked in our society. These young girls are making sure their voices are not overlooked yesterday, today, and for years to come!

I encourage you to get out of your cocoon. Engage people with different perspectives and experiences. This country is so polarized that it won’t be hard to find. Yesterday, I had a conversation with someone with completely different viewpoints on COVID-19. All I had to do was listen. She didn’t ask my perspectives. In the end, I thanked her for sharing and said it is always good to hear from someone that has a different point of view from me.

The real work comes from spending quality time with people that have different experiences than you and that you care about. I will always be grateful to Sistah Angela for allowing me to collaborate and create portraits that are both empowering and inspiring not only to the girls but to me as well.

I encourage you to donate, participate, or find your own way to support the amazing work of Girls For A Change.

Credits:

Christina Clark of iConcepts for Videotaping and Video Editing

Wardrobe Note: I asked that the girls wear primary colors to go with the bright colors of the graffiti. We did this session on a hot, humid morning in early September 2020.