More Than A Magazine, A Movement
Tishaura Jones was elected Tuesday as the first Black woman mayor of St. Louis, the latest in a recent surge of Black women running for and being voted into positions of power in major U.S. cities.
“The phenomenon of Black women winning mayoral seats isn’t happening in a vacuum. There’s this real surge of Black women and women of color more broadly in city-level elected offices across the country.”
“Black women’s bodies are a site for state-sponsored violence.”
A growth in Black women’s representation in statehouses and other levels of government in recent years has increased their political power. Black women elected officials often are the ones who challenge policies over issues like police killings, racist monuments and voting restrictions.
It has also led to increasingly visible resistance, with several Black women being arrested or facing criminal charges in the midst of their work in statehouses or in their communities.
For women in academia, the Wall Street Journal op-ed about the future first lady’s title struck a nerve.
“From an early age, girls are socialized to downplay their accomplishments,” said Dr. Zyer Beaty.
The Latina electorate has the potential to flip swing states and congressional districts. This may be the year it does.
“I truly do believe that Latinas can be the deciders this election,” says Stephanie Valencia, president and co-founder of Equis, a Latinx research firm.
