VisibleWomanOnline

I made speech my birthright. . . talking back became for me a rite of initiation.

bell hooks

Who We Are

VisibleWomanOnline is an online magazine geared to women of color over forty.

Why the need for such a magazine?

The facts are unfortunate, but clear. All women tend to be ushered into invisibility after the age of forty: we don't often see ourselves reflected favorably in popular media, and despite pronouncements that fifty is the new thirty, we are bombarded with reminders that after forty, our currency has been spent.

For women of color, already pushed to the edges of society, the road to invisibility is even more subtle, and more insidious. We're expected to continue our roles as nurturers, workers, and backup support to the men who can still hope to lead and conquer.

For many of us the dictates of custom and culture add to our dilemma. How can we fulfill the expectations of our forbears and at the same time realize our own sometimes very different dreams?

VisibleWomanOnline is our attempt to give voice to women of color who have long wanted to remove the cloak of invisibility. We're here dammit! We are no longer content to sit quietly on the sidelines if indeed we ever have. We claim the right to be heard and seen, to become, in a word, visible. Published bi-monthly, each issue will deal with a single topic from many different perspectives.

Through articles, essays, short stories, poetry, art, photography, and interviews, we will explore the topic inside out. We will cover the big ones: aging, relationships, race, class and identity, the impact of beauty and fashion, health and well being, the conflict between traditional cultural roles and modern expectations, and more.

We will feature women we think you should know about: women who work tirelessly on behalf of others; women who have overcome enormous obstacles or have accomplished much; women who quietly (and sometimes not so quietly) are changing the world.

We will keep you up-to-date on news items of importance to us, and we will keep you in the mix, giving you the latest on women who are breaking down barriers, shredding sterotypes, ripping apart the status quo--in short, women who are happily shaking things up. 

And checkout our Market Place items (goods and services) from women who are striking out on their own to bring their vision of self-sustaining businesses to life.

Perhaps we will reach new conclusions, perhaps we'll just have new questions. Above all, we hope to create a global community of women coming together to share ideas, experiences, and insights as we continue to make ourselves known.