'Why I love black women:' noted men celebrate the beauty and sass of sisters
Let there be no doubt, Black men love Black women. Ask men what they love about Black women and some will say the love the many hues of a Black woman's skin--the reddish-brown cinnamons, the golden honeys, the milk chocolates and jet black coffees, no cream. Ask others and they will say they love the Black woman's inner temperament--fragile and pretty like a china teacup one minute and hard and complex like a Chinese puzzle the next.
Still others will say they love Black women because Black women are the epitome of beauty, the giver of life, a steadfash protector and a nurturer. They will say they love Black women because Black women continue to walk proudly, absorbing life's blows with grace and fortitude, serving as the glue that holds together an entire race of people.
Many men will say they love Black women, because, more than any other woman in the world, they are the easiest to love. And although Black men, like all men, sometimes have a hard time showing it, they will be the first admit they cannot live without Black women.
"Her being is to be loved and cherished by her man. She's a queen," says love maestro Barry White. "A true queen."
The Rev. Jesse Jackson says he loves Black women simply because: "My mother was Black and my grandmother was Black....[And because] there is a glorious heritage of Black women who were tough enough to resist their oppressor and tender enough to give birth to our families. That's why I love Black women."
On the following pages, White, Jackson and other well-known Black men reflect on why the love Black women.
Barry White, singer
What I love most about Black women is "their sensitivity," says White, who in an earlier interview criticized Black men, saying they are the reason "relationships are out of control. Until man knows how to make a commitment, until man knows how to communicate his true feelings, until man knows how to walk like one, talk like one and act like one, the war will continue. But so far man has been a destroyer, liar and deceiver of Black women.... all [Black men] are guilty."
Dexter King, Chairman, President, CEO, The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change
My mother epitomizes the reason I love Black women. They have the ability to rise above severe adversity and triumph over challenge. Black women in the face of double jeopardy [being both Black and female] have demonstrated a toughness to survive and a tenderness to inspire. I am in love with their elegance, perseverance and soulful style. They are all that!"
LL Cool J, actor, rapper
I LOVE Black women because a Black woman brought me into the world."
Jesse Jackson Sr., President, National Rainbow Coalition
I grew up under the influence of a mother and grandmother who sacrificed many things for me. Much of my training has come from Black women. I am married to a Black woman. My experiences have been shaped by the love and affection of Black women. I know the tough and tender sides of Black women .... There are Black women whom God has used as liberators--Sojourner Truth, Rosa Parks, Mary McLeod Bethune, Fannie Lou Hamer. But even with their struggles, Black women have been the stable forces of moral authority and spirituality, and have continued to bandage the wounds of Black men who have been broken by the oppressor's whip."
August Wilson, playwright
When you grab hold to a [Black] woman, you have something there. You got a whole world there. You got a way of life kicking up under your hand. That woman can take and make you feel like something."
Manning Marable, historian
Sisters have taught me that we should listen to the poetry within, capture and express our inner beauty as a part of our political and social being."
Andre Harrell, CEO, Motown Records
The Black women in my life have offered my mind strength and given my heart peace. In general, I love Black women because they exemplify all that is rich in our heritage: the soul, the passion, the attitude, the determination and, most of all, love."
D'Angelo, singer
I LOVE Black women because they are the mothers of our Black future. I love Black women because of their enduring strength, a strength that at times has risen above the failures of Black fathers. I love their curly hair, their braided hair, their straightened and even kinky hair. I love their full lips and, of course, their brown sugar skin. But most of all, I love Black women because I am the product of a Black woman. Black men are born of Black women and influenced by the Black women in their lives. I have to love Black women in order for me to love myself."
Still others will say they love Black women because Black women are the epitome of beauty, the giver of life, a steadfash protector and a nurturer. They will say they love Black women because Black women continue to walk proudly, absorbing life's blows with grace and fortitude, serving as the glue that holds together an entire race of people.
Many men will say they love Black women, because, more than any other woman in the world, they are the easiest to love. And although Black men, like all men, sometimes have a hard time showing it, they will be the first admit they cannot live without Black women.
"Her being is to be loved and cherished by her man. She's a queen," says love maestro Barry White. "A true queen."
The Rev. Jesse Jackson says he loves Black women simply because: "My mother was Black and my grandmother was Black....[And because] there is a glorious heritage of Black women who were tough enough to resist their oppressor and tender enough to give birth to our families. That's why I love Black women."
On the following pages, White, Jackson and other well-known Black men reflect on why the love Black women.
Barry White, singer
What I love most about Black women is "their sensitivity," says White, who in an earlier interview criticized Black men, saying they are the reason "relationships are out of control. Until man knows how to make a commitment, until man knows how to communicate his true feelings, until man knows how to walk like one, talk like one and act like one, the war will continue. But so far man has been a destroyer, liar and deceiver of Black women.... all [Black men] are guilty."
Dexter King, Chairman, President, CEO, The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change
My mother epitomizes the reason I love Black women. They have the ability to rise above severe adversity and triumph over challenge. Black women in the face of double jeopardy [being both Black and female] have demonstrated a toughness to survive and a tenderness to inspire. I am in love with their elegance, perseverance and soulful style. They are all that!"
LL Cool J, actor, rapper
I LOVE Black women because a Black woman brought me into the world."
Jesse Jackson Sr., President, National Rainbow Coalition
I grew up under the influence of a mother and grandmother who sacrificed many things for me. Much of my training has come from Black women. I am married to a Black woman. My experiences have been shaped by the love and affection of Black women. I know the tough and tender sides of Black women .... There are Black women whom God has used as liberators--Sojourner Truth, Rosa Parks, Mary McLeod Bethune, Fannie Lou Hamer. But even with their struggles, Black women have been the stable forces of moral authority and spirituality, and have continued to bandage the wounds of Black men who have been broken by the oppressor's whip."
August Wilson, playwright
When you grab hold to a [Black] woman, you have something there. You got a whole world there. You got a way of life kicking up under your hand. That woman can take and make you feel like something."
Manning Marable, historian
Sisters have taught me that we should listen to the poetry within, capture and express our inner beauty as a part of our political and social being."
Andre Harrell, CEO, Motown Records
The Black women in my life have offered my mind strength and given my heart peace. In general, I love Black women because they exemplify all that is rich in our heritage: the soul, the passion, the attitude, the determination and, most of all, love."
D'Angelo, singer
I LOVE Black women because they are the mothers of our Black future. I love Black women because of their enduring strength, a strength that at times has risen above the failures of Black fathers. I love their curly hair, their braided hair, their straightened and even kinky hair. I love their full lips and, of course, their brown sugar skin. But most of all, I love Black women because I am the product of a Black woman. Black men are born of Black women and influenced by the Black women in their lives. I have to love Black women in order for me to love myself."
to all my sisters i got nothing but love for you !