African American moms in the media

Transcription:

Mothers of color in the media are non-existent. When you're talking about the national debate on motherhood, we are never called to the conversation. So you can pick up a parenting magazine or a parenting book and read 250-300 pages worth of information and pictures and not see a woman of color or a child of color. As an African-American mother, that makes me feel invisible. And no one wants to feel invisible. Everyone wants validation. Everyone wants to know that they not only exist, but they matter. And so it doesn't feel good to know that when mother are talking about motherhood that you don't exist. Or when they do talk about motherhood when it pertains to being an African-American that the only thing anyone wants to talk about is the negativity. So you try your best to connect with other mothers who understand that. You try to exchange information with them. You try to go to sources that understand what it means to be a black mother in America. It's not easy to find, but they're out there.

Video Categories: ALL PARENTS, Family Life, Racial and Cultural Differences

Denene Millner, Bestselling Author & Founder of MyBrownBaby, discusses the lack of positive exposure of African American moms in the media and its effects

Transcript

Expert Bio

Denene Millner

Author & Founder of MyBrownBaby.com

New York Times best-selling author Denene Millner is a hotly sought after award-winning journalist whose insightful and captivating pieces have secured her foothold in the entertainment, parenting and book publishing industries. Millner spent the last decade working as a columnist, contributing editor and blogger for Parenting, a national magazine for which she provided witty, engaging, mom-to-mom advice on ethics and etiquette in everything from childrearing and marriage to work and friendship. Currently, she also is the founder and editor of MyBrownBaby.com, a critically acclaimed, award-winning blog that examines parenting and motherhood through the multi-cultural experience. Millner frequently contributes as an entertainment writer for Essence, the most well-read and respected magazine for African American women, and has written for a plethora of national publications and prestigious websites, including Parenting, Health, Ebony, Jet, Heart & Soul, Real Health, Money, iVillage, Parenting.com, TodayMoms, and The Root, among others. Her extensive television experience includes regular appearances on the The Today Show, CBS Early Show, The Nate Berkus Show, HLN, CNN, MSNBC, VH1, and the Rachel Ray show. Millner also is the author of 21 books. The former political reporter and entertainment journalist lives in the Atlanta area with her husband and their two daughters.