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![4 Days Into Their Effort to #TakeBackEssence, the Collective Known as #BlackFemaleAnonymous Declares Success [Updated]](https://www.theroot.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/ibdgsduolu9wfvedrmmp-1024x576.jpg)
4 Days Into Their Effort to #TakeBackEssence, the Collective Known as #BlackFemaleAnonymous Declares Success [Updated]
After a barrage of accusations and threats to publish incriminating evidence to support their claims, the group of current and former Essence staffers who comprise #BlackFemaleAnonymous say their conditions have been met. The announcement, made via a tweet on Thursday night, came a day ahead of the collective’s pronounced July 3 end-of-day deadline, after a…
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Court Documents Claim That a Pregnant Meghan Markle Felt 'Unprotected' and 'Silenced' by the Royal Family
The dynamics that led to what commonly became known as “Megxit” perhaps became a little clearer this week. Court documents produced during Meghan Markle’s copyright infringement and breach of privacy trial against several British tabloids indicate a culture of suppression within the monarchy when it came to allowing the Duchess of Sussex to publicly defend…
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EMILY's List Names Ohio House Minority Leader Emilia Sykes Its 2020 Gabrielle Giffords Rising Star Award Winner
The nation’s largest resource for women in politics is recognizing a rising force in the political world. On Thursday, EMILY’s List announced its 2020 recipient of the Gabrielle Giffords Rising Star Award is Ohio House Minority Leader Emilia Sykes, who represents Ohio’s 34th House District. The award, due to be presented at the virtual We…
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Amid a Firestorm, Essence Appoints an Interim CEO, Promising an Independent Review and 'Transparency' [Updated]
The pioneering and still most prominent media brand for Black women will once again have one at the helm—at least, for the immediate future. This is just one of the announcements Essence Communications made in a statement emailed to The Glow Up on Tuesday night, just two days after a now-viral open letter was published…
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Mr. America: Billy Porter Covers Essence's July-August Issue [Corrected]
It’s unfortunate that in the midst of celebrating its 50th anniversary, Essence has also been implicated in a rising controversy as past and current Black female staffers have anonymously launched a campaign to #TakeBackEssence. But as we also commemorate 50 years of Pride and the closing of Pride Month, we can simultaneously celebrate another milestone…
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Big Beauty Tuesday: Supermodel and Activist Joan Smalls Explains Why She Launched 'Donate My Wage'
If pretty is as pretty does, perhaps we should expect exceptional behavior from the women who hold that rare title of “supermodel.” But in the wake of the protests that have swept the country and the resulting calls for accountability across industries, Joan Smalls asked her industry to think bigger than the performative black box.…
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As Pride Month Comes to a Close, Google Honors Pioneering Activist Marsha P. Johnson With Her Own Doodle
If you happened to venture to Google this morning, no doubt you caught a glimpse of an American hero—one who is largely responsible for instigating the LGBTQ+ liberation movement as we know it today. Marsha P. Johnson was one of the leaders of the Stonewall uprising in 1969—50 years later on June 30, 2019, she…
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Yeezy's Collaboration With Gap Grabbed Headlines—but Its Other Black Designer Collab Has Sadly Been Shelved
When Kanye West’s clandestine 10-year deal with Gap for an ongoing Yeezy collaboration (which was reportedly years in the making) was announced last week, it seemed like a match made in overpriced basics heaven. The fact that Nigerian-British female designer Mowalola Ogunlesi is onboard as design director of the upcoming Yeezy Gap line (due out…
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#TakeBackEssence? As Essence Celebrates 50 Years, Explosive Allegations Against Its Leadership Spark Controversy
This past weekend was intended to be a landmark one for Essence. The beloved Black legacy publication celebrated its 50th anniversary amid a pandemic, pivoting its 26th annual Essence Festival of Music and Culture to a virtual format spanning over not one, but two weekends, culminating in its traditional Fourth of July weekend festivities. Instead,…
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From Black Designers to Drugstore Brands, Meg Thee Stallion and Amanda Seales Served Accessible Beauty for the 2020 BET Awards
The culture could not be canceled on Sunday night, as the 20th—and entirely virtual—BET Awards set a new standard for quarantine entertainment. As was to be expected from the pioneering Black entertainment network, the evening was Black Lives Matter-themed—and the stars did not disappoint. Perhaps the best example of social justice-meets-social distancing came from 2020’s…
