Seems Melyssa Ford's comments about ESSENCE Magazine set off a firestorm of controversy. Now Melyssa has released an official statement regarding the matter and we have it for you inside...
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Here's Melyssa Ford's 'official statement' regarding ESSENCE Magazine:
Let me begin by saying that like millions of other black women of my generation, I grew up on ESSENCE magazine. Throughout my life, it has served as a platform to celebrate women of color, committed to showing our beauty by our own standards. I know my candid criticism of the publication by my over use of profanity may have diluted my message, but in all honesty, I believed that I was speaking off the record and having "coffee table talk" with an old friend, who happened to be my former assistant, hence my uncensored frankness on the topic at hand.
However, I stand by my comments about black publications such as ESSENCE needing to be more careful about the messages they are sending. Suggesting that black women are responsible for keeping their men faithful is antiquated. The greater issue is about the pressure that we as African American women feel to perform above the level of expectation to keep a man happy and at home, as if a spousal union isn't based on any kind of reciprocal action. Is there as much of a focus towards black men on how to keep us happy? No, but numerous studies and features are written about 'Angry Black Women Syndrome' and the finger is clearly pointed in our direction as if to say we are the direct or indirect cause of why black men stray. This isn’t the sort of story I remember reading in the Essence of old - the very pages that made me and so many other women proud to be brown.
There's a reason black publications like ESSENCE Magazine have stood strong for decades. I simply wish to be able to one day hear my own children speak with the same fondness of black publications as I did growing up.
Well, there you have it. What do you think about this response?
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