Diary of a plus size blogger - Plus size black women in the media

A post in one of the newsgroups that I am in raised a question in my mind. The article basically talks about plus size black women and there portrayal in the media. I must say that I have become quite desensitized to this particular aspect of advertising and other forms of entertainment. It more than like likely stems from the vehicle as to which these images are being delivered to me are not things that I support therefore I don’t pay attention to the images regardless as to there size.

This brings me to the thoughts does America as a whole think that big black women are brash, crude and full of attitude? I think that in some cases the answer to this question is yes. When it comes to most form of entertainment that are out today when a big black woman is portrayed in the spotlight it is because she is a “no holds barred” type of person that on one side of the fence makes most laugh and think about the situation and how she handled it. Personally I don’t know any ladies like the over the top character Medea made popular in the Tyler Perry plays and movies. As long as characters like this are created in the black community and widely accepted then when it comes to white media there will be a thought that big black women are some sort of monster waiting to be released if the wrong thing is said.

In some cases I am sure when it comes to commercials a plus size black woman was the best person for the roll and the stereotypes that have been attached to black women of size played no part at all in how the ad was written and cast. But it also makes one think are there roles out there in advertising, television and movies that are written specifically for fat black women because they are funny over the top and not very smart.

The part of me that knows that racism is still very much alive in America says yes there are very deliberate actions being taken to demoralize plus size black women. The other part of me that is an educated consumer says that advertisers are out there to do one thing, sell products. If a black woman of size will increase there profits margin more than a small woman of another race then they are going to go where the money is.

The plus size advocate and supporter of black women that I am, it makes me feel good to see more plus size black women being portrayed across the board, but at the same time as a black man in America with it’s history regarding blacks then it makes me pause for a moment to think about is there something more sinister brewing in the background. I would be very interesting to hear your thoughts on this issue.

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