Remember Hijarbie? Haneefa Adam has been styling Barbie dolls, often based on inspiring real-life women, with homemade doll-sized hijabs and sharing pictures on her Instagram account. She did it to address the overwhelming lack of representation and to inspire young Muslim girls. Now, Mattel is releasing its first-ever official hijab-wearing Barbie doll. The doll is…
The 2017 American Music Awards were hosted by Tracee Ellis Ross. The show began with a heartfelt speech by Jamie Foxx about the power of music in the wake of tragedy and how that was especially needed this year. The speech was a moment to honor the many brave first responders who have been called…
Glamour’s annual Women of the Year Awards has always celebrated the strong pioneer, including those who have set out on new journeys, played by their own rules and made significant progress in unchartered territories. The 2017 awards ceremony was recently held at Kings Theatre in Brooklyn, NY, and what a memorable event it was. From an…
Serena Williams has had a pretty amazing year. She won her 23rd Grand Slam, got engaged, and gave birth to a daughter, Alexis. On Thursday, she capped 2017 off in New Orleans with a beautiful, fairytale wedding to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, her beau of two years.The date for the nuptials was chosen because it was…
Libya has been at the center of the migrant crisis for the past several years. Migrants from sub-Sarahan Africa often travel to Europe by way of Libya. The United Nations estimates there are around 700,000 migrants in Libya. This week, CNN broke a devastating story about migrants being sold as slaves there. CNN acquired footage…
Nkosinathi Innocent Maphumulo is a legend in the South African music scene. Known by the stage name Black Coffee, he is a DJ and music producer, easily Africa’s most prominent electronic music producer. In the past few years, he’s gained a lot of international attention. He has collaborated with artists like Rihanna, Alicia Keys, Diddy,…
From a clerical role in the country’s state house to becoming the First Lady of Zimbabwe, Grace Mugabe, 52, has courted controversy at every turn. She rose to power after having an affair with embattled President Robert Mugabe who is 41 years her senior. The affair between the two started in the late 1980s and…
Robert Mugabe’s 37-year reign of power in Zimbabwe is over. In a quick and stealthy move that surprised observers around the world, the Zimbabwean Military took over and placed the 93-year-old dictator and his wife under house arrest. Citing a “search for criminals” around the geriatric leader, the Zimbabwean army dealt a swift and…
The 2018 Pirelli calendar is out and this year’s theme is Alice in Wonderland. The unique aspect of this year’s photo shoot is that it took a diversity approach casting an all-black cast featuring Naomi Campbell, Lupita Nyong’o, South African lawyer Thando Hopa, Whoopi Goldberg, Sudanese-Australian model Duckie Thot, and Sean “Diddy” Combs, among others.…
The most promising resource of the African region is also its greatest concern. In 2013, Africa Renewal, a news magazine published by the United Nations, characterized the more than 200 million young people between the ages 15 and 24 as either an opportunity or a “ticking time bomb.” At a time when developed nations in Europe…
Aamito Lagum’s mom was hoping her daughter might go to college and later become an attorney; she wasn’t wild about the modeling business at first. She wasn’t sure it was a solid career for Aamito to pursue. Aamito assured her mother that she just wanted one last chance to see if she could make it,…
When Vodafone and a team of mobile developers successfully launched the M-Pesa payments and money transfer system across Kenya in 2007, this African nation became a leader in the field of financial technology. M-Pesa has extended beyond Africa to India and even Eastern Europe, and this has prompted tech startups in Kenya to develop competing…
In a shocking turn of events, President Uhuru and Raila Odinga, head of NASA Coalition, met four days ago. They agreed to work together in a journey that will not only unite Kenya but also build its economy. In the meeting, it was discussed that Ambassador Martin Kimani will join Paul Mwangi to oversee the…
The first major visit to the African region from a high-profile American official in the troubled Trump administration was cut short due to diplomatic issues between the United States and North Korea. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, a former oil industry leader who has been at odds with President Donald Trump on various issues, participated…
