Bellas, I can’t even really wear heels, but today on Afrobella I’m proud to represent and rock these fly Alexander McQueen red pumps online all day!

Today is National Women & Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. One year ago, Karyn and Luvvie founded The Red Pump Project — an enthusiastic non profit organization which has tirelessly worked to raise awareness both online, and with a series of awesome events around the country. Today marks the celebration of the 500 in 50: Rock the Red Pump campaign — where fellow bloggers are encouraged to be part of the movement and show solidarity by featuring a Red Pump badge on their blog. And to write about what National Women & Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day means to them.

When I look at the statistics of women and girls with HIV/AIDS, it terrifies me. And when I look at the women and girls who seem to live their lives completely ignorant to the ongoing threat of HIV/AIDS, it astounds me.

Every 35 minutes, a woman tests positive for HIV in the United States.

Black women make up 66% of all new diagnoses of HIV in women.

These are statistics that should resonate with anyone who’s reading this. So how can you support the cause, and do your part to raise awareness?

If you’re a blogger, you too can participate in the 500 in 50: Rock the Red Pump campaign – it’s not too late!

You can become a Red Pump Ambassador and help to raise HIV/AIDS awareness in your own community.

You can seek out local HIV/AIDS charities in your neighborhood and offer to volunteer time, money, or supplies.

Or at the very least you can wear your favorite pair of red shoes today, to show your solidarity with the movement.
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And this time I wrote all about body scrubs for gorgeous skin.

I gave a long overdue shout out to one of my besties in the beauty blogosphere, Julia of All About the Pretty. I’ll tell ya, I touched her arm when we were at Fashion Week in September…her skin is like silk and velvet and all things soft and sumptuous because of the body scrub she’s been doing for years now.

Some of the hubbub and criticism of Vogue Italia’s new additions have died down, since Vogue Italia’s editor in chief wrote her rebuttal (in which she quoted ME! In Rachel Zoe’s words, I die!) And also, the announcement that the legendary Bethann Hardison is now the editor-at-large of Vogue Black quieted some naysayers.

Some of the hubbub has died down, but not all. And my attitude towards it can best be described as resigned bemusement.

I realized something recently — almost every website I write for has a variation of the word black in the title. Black Voices, Black Atlas, Afrobella, and now Vogue Black. It’s not that I’m exclusive about what I write about, I’m just passionate about celebrating our unique beauty.

Most of the time, when I read criticism of the sites I write for, it’s from white supremacists who are mad that black people have their own channel on the teevee and are living in the White House and going on fancy vacations and whatnot. To paraphrase. So I was kinda surprised that this time, the shrill voiced outrage was coming from women of color — about the fact that Vogue made a site dedicated to black beauty. I’ve come to the conclusion that I must be clueless.
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I’ve been looking everywhere online for the perfect pair of flat red boots. And I need them soon — because on Thursday, March 25th I’ll be wearing them at the Red Pump Project’s Rock The Red fashion show!

If you’ve been reading my blog for the past few months, you already know I have much love for Luvvie and Karyn, founders of The Red Pump Project.

This month is a big month for them — not only does March mark the awareness-raising non-profit’s first anniversary, but March 10th is also annual National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.

So March 25th, please join us at the Bottom Lounge (1375 W. Lake St. Chicago). The event will begin with a happy hour at 6:00pm, and the Rock the Red fashion show beginning promptly at 7:00pm. There’ll be special guests of honor and some of your favorite bloggers will be in attendance.

My friends at The Red Pump Project are still seeking sponsors for this event, so if you’re interested, e mail sponsorships@theredpumpproject.com.

If you’re in Chicago, please come and celebrate a fabulous and fashionable evening with us! Click here for all the details — early bird tickets are just $20!

Every year we talk about Black History Month, what it means, should we still celebrate it, how do we celebrate it…the debate goes on. This year, instead of just talking about it — I got the chance to BE about it.

For Black History Month I was invited to speak at the University of Notre Dame by an amazing student group called Shades of Ebony. These girls were so inspired, so brilliant, so genuine…being around them made me yearn for academic life and that kind of environment of constant mental stimulation. Erdina Francillon, the current president of Shades, is the opposite of me in college. She is motivated, ambitious, organized, and amazing. I can’t wait to see what she does after she graduates!

Shades of Ebony planned a special event for Black History Month, titled BeaUtiful. The idea was to discuss and celebrate black beauty. The event was thrown by and for the members of Shades, and the intention was to also reach out to young girls from the community of South Bend, Indiana — girls from local high schools and even a few middle school girls came out despite the intense cold and deep snow, to participate in the event. My friends at Carol’s Daughter and Dr. Miracles very generously donated gift items for the girls who participated.

BeaUtiful was intended as a multifaceted event. Outreach to the girls of the community, a chance to speak and consider some of their own self-esteem and self-worth issues, and a chance to inspire (and in turn, be inspired by) each other.

I was brought there as a special guest speaker, along with amazing artist Dawn Okoro. Dawn’s art is incredible just on the computer screen. In real life? Oh WOW. I just want to decorate my whole living space with her work. Click here to buy prints!

We were both asked to deliver speeches about what inspired us to do what we do, and what beauty means to us. I shared my background, my ideas about the beauty icons who have inspired me, and my suggestions for living a life that’s filled with beauty.

It was an incredible experience for a few reasons. First, I was just honored to be invited to such a prestigious institute of learning. And second, this was a big first for me. Please be gentle. This is the first public speaking I’ve ever done.

As you can hear from the response, they liked me. They really liked me! The feeling of that applause at the end…I can’t quite put it into words. It was a very, very proud moment. Could this be the beginning of a new chapter, where I do more public speaking appearances? I hope so. I feel so much less fearful than I did in the past.
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I’ve hemmed and hawed about having big news and the best being yet to come…this is one of the things I’ve been talking about.

I’m a contributor to Vogue Italia’s new site, Vogue Black!

*cue fireworks and the chorus of Hate Me Now*

And I’m not the only one! Andrea of Fly is also contributing to Vogue Black, and Gabi of Young, Fat, and Fabulous is contributing to Vogue Curvy, the new destination for full figured fashionistas.

For me this all began last November with an exciting e mail. And I kinda feel like I’ve been holding my breath the whole time. I didn’t tell my friends, or most of my family. And if you know me, you know HOW HARD THAT WAS. OMG.

Now finally, I can exhale and share the happy news.

When I was originally approached, it felt like someone told me I’d won the lottery or something. And today, to see it’s actually come to fruition…it’s amazing and overwhelming.

Vogue Black launched just yesterday and clearly the site’s got some kinks to be worked out. I have nothing to do with the photos or layout chosen for the posts — I’m sharing and creating original content and it’s as much of a surprise to me to see what photos accompany my words, as it may be to anyone else. Author bios haven’t been posted yet. The posts right now are very photo-heavy and content-light (as my friend Claire of the Fashion Bomb correctly pointed out). But it’s up, and I may be biased but I think it’s awesome. And of course, already the blogosphere is full of opinions about it.
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I should have never turned on the TV this morning.

All the news channels were reporting on, had to do with the upcoming Tiger Woods press conference — you can read the highlights here. And now that it’s over, all the news channels are reporting on STILL has to do with the Tiger Woods press conference. Literally, right now CNN Headline News is replaying the whole statement in its entirety.

I am SO OVER THIS NON-STORY. And I really really want to know why, and when this became stop-the-press news.

I am a news junkie. I love knowing what’s happening, as it happens. But somewhere along the line, celebrity updates became part of the news. It is endlessly frustrating to me that Sarah Palin’s every pop-culture related Facebook rant, Heidi Montag’s every plastic surgery revelation and Tiger Woods’ descent into a downward spiral of sex and shame has become headline news that is more reported on than the two wars we’re currently in. I’m mad that stories about trivial things become the headlines, while stories like this go largely unreported.

Rant over. Off soapbox.

What do you think?