A year ago, a line in a piece from Saki Benibo—an assertion also articulated a year before in a tweet from Mela Machinko—inspired me to write something of my own based on that statement. The result (“Straight Black Men Are The White People Of Black People”) was my most read VSB piece of 2017.

If you grew up a lover of soul music, you know that today, Aug. 16, 2018, is a day to honor the memory of the undisputed Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, who died on Thursday at age 76 of pancreatic cancer.

Finally, some good news to come out of Black Women’s Equal Pay Day: On Tuesday, the Ms. Foundation for Women announced a new strategic plan (PDF) which “will route $25 million to grassroots organizations led by, or serving, women and girls of color over the next five years in an effort to improve outcomes for all…

One of what?

Now, this is what we call pretty in pink: Perennial fave Yara Shahidi looks poised to take flight on the cover of June’s Harper’s Bazaar Arabia, wearing powder-pink-feathered Chanel, with her glorious curls teased to voluminous perfection by go-to stylist Nai’vasha Johnson.

If the future is female, what of the present? Former editor-in-chief of Teen Vogue and now Black-ish writer and Ms. Foundation Gloria Awards honoree, Elaine Welteroth says, “As millennial women, we exist in this interesting intersection between the past and the future and we bridge generations. On one side, you have…

Here’s a conversation we don’t want to miss: Black-ish actress and all-around brilliant bae Tracee Ellis Ross will interview our forever first lady, Michelle Obama, this Saturday, May 5, at the United State of Women Summit at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles—and we officially know how we’re spending this weekend.

Women’s History Month may have ended for the year, but women are still making history all over the world. To elevate and celebrate these all-too-often underrepresented voices, editor, activist and philanthropist Deborah Santana harnessed the talents of 69 diverse women writers for a new anthology, All the Women in My…

For Women’s History Month, Jezebel and The Root are partnering for JezeRoot, a series that focuses on women of color, domestic workers and sex workers.

Author, intellectual and educator Brittney Cooper is a Black Feminist; capital “B,” capital “F.” It’s a distinction so important it’s the title of a chapter in her latest book, a groundbreaking work titled Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower, out now on St. Martin’s Press.

Seventy-nine cents on the dollar: That’s the number we’ve become accustomed to hearing when discussing the gender wage gap. But grim as it is, further research has revealed that that number applies only to the wage discrepancy for white women. Despite now being the most educated population in America, black women earn…

Each year on March 8—including last Thursday—the world celebrates International Women’s Day. The holiday dates back to 1911 and is the origin of Women’s History Month, which we also celebrate in March and which The Root is celebrating in tandem with our sister site Jezebel.

Symone Sanders loves a good rant—which is great, because we love a good rant from Symone Sanders. The political strategist, former press secretary for Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and current CNN commentator has become well-known for her show-stealing, straight-shooting, mince-no-words…

The first paragraph of Brittney Cooper’s Eloquent Rage lets us know she’s not playing with or scared of you motherfuckers:

Currently, I am navigating a depressive episode. While I have access to the resources (therapy, medicine, communal support) to ensure my wellness, living with depression can be difficult. The triggers come fast, and when it hits, all you can do is ride the wave. But while I was talking to one of my best friends this…

Golden Globe-winning actress Jessica Chastain is well-known as one of the most vocal women in Hollywood when it comes to demanding equity, insisting that she be paid on par with her male co-stars. As she told Newsweek in 2017:

Fashion has always been a frontline method of communication for me; it’s one of the ways I telegraph my mood, my power and my place in the world. And fashion was one of the many weapons used by women during the 2018 Women’s March, where marchers were clad in everything from baby booties to jackboots.

If you’ve followed Lupita Nyong’o’s career since her breakthrough Oscar-winning role in 12 Years a Slave, you know she’s more than an ingenue—or four-time Vogue cover model. The Yale-educated actress, writer, producer and director is the product of a highly artistic, academic and political upbringing, and has long…

2018 is off to a pretty interesting start. At the conclusion of the painful year that was 2017, various women of assorted celebrity backgrounds assembled to simultaneously weaponize their privilege and latch onto the momentum and resurgence of Tarana Burke’s “Me Too” movement. This gave birth to a new movement on Jan.…