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#BLACKGIRLMAGIC: Amandla Stenberg Talks Black Culture With Solange In Teen VOGUE February 2016 Issue

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Amandla Stenberg graces the newest cover of Teen VOGUE. And for an epic conversation, fellow brown girl Solange Knowles Ferguson picks her brain about black culture. Get into the black girl magic inside and her flawless vintage photoshoot that will have you screaming "Yassss!"….

Hunger Games star and activist Amandla Stenberg is flossing her gorgeous curly 'fro and perfect skin on the cover of Teen VOGUE magazine’s February 2016 issue. And for the cover story, she was interview by fellow brown girl Solange Knowles Ferguson.

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Although she said she didn’t prepare for the interview, Solo guided the conversation with the socially conscious 17-year-old about all things black culture, chopping it up about hair, race and girl power. In the preface of the interview, Solange talked about the secret language shared amongst black women (and girls) that connects us all without even having to say a word. And we see that unfold in their discussion for the publication.

The YBF chicks open up about being a young black girl in America and how difficult it can be to navigate in a world that doesn’t necessarily love black people, but loves black culture. They talked about learning to love their natural selves in a world that teaches black women that they aren’t the ideal prototype of beauty. And lastly, just learning to accept one’s self and be unapologetic about who they are at the core.

Below are the highlights:

On learning to love yourself:

AMANDLA: “I think that as a black girl you grow up internalizing all these messages that say you shouldn’t accept your hair or your skin tone or your natural features, or that you shouldn’t have a voice, or that you aren’t smart,” she says. “I feel like the only way to fight that is to just be yourself on the most genuine level and to connect with other black girls who are awakening and realizing that they’ve been trying to conform.”

On being "the voice of the new generation”:

AMANDLA: “And then to have the label of “revolutionary” pinned on you afterward felt really daunting. I kind of had a moment with myself, like, “OK. Is this what you want to do? Do you actually want to talk about issues? Is it worth it?” There are still moments now where I’m like, “Whoa, this is a lot of pressure.” But it’s worth it because when people come to me and say, “I’m more comfortable in my identity because of you,” or “I feel like you’ve given me a voice,” that’s the most powerful thing ever.

On the fascination with black hair:

SOLANGE: Does it feel like sometimes you’re just exhausted talking about it?

AMANDLA: Yo — yes! It’s so funny. I have many white friends who come up to me and they’re like, “Amandla, so this weekend I’m going to go out, and I was wondering if it’s OK if I could wear cornrows just on Saturday?” [Laughs] I’m tired of talking about who can have whichever style. Because I’ve said my thing.

SOLANGE: Yeah, you made it clear in your video. It was so articulate and perfectly put!

AMANDLA: But I’m not tired of talking about hair in the sense of it being an empowering thing. I know when I used to chemically straighten mine, I did it because I wasn’t comfortable with my natural hair. I thought it was too poofy, too kinky. So for me, personally, when I started wearing it natural, it felt like I was blossoming because I was letting go of all the dead hair and all the parts of me that had rejected my natural state. But, you know, it’s not like that for all black girls. Some have their hair straight because that’s just how they like it, and it doesn’t mean that they accept themselves any less.

SOLANGE: Absolutely. I want to have the freedom to wear a long weave down to my ass tomorrow if I want to, and then wear it in crocheted braids, and then have it so straight that my edges are laid. [Laughs]

On conforming to fit in:

SOLANGE: So when was the moment that you realized exactly what you were taking on just by existing in this space?

AMANDLA: It was when I was 12 and I got cast in The Hunger Games, and people called me the N-word and said that the death of my character, Rue, would be less sad because I was black. That was the first moment I realized being black was such a crucial part of my identity in terms of the way that I was perceived and how it would affect any line of work that I wanted to pursue. I often find myself in situations where I am the token black person. It can feel like this enormous weight. I have definitely had moments when my hair felt too big or like I needed to make myself...

SOLANGE: Smaller.

AMANDLA: Exactly. Smaller and easier to digest. And that’s still something that I struggle with now, you know? But I think, honestly, social media has changed that in a lot of ways because in the past you could look only to movies or TV or music or celebrities in order to feel like you had representation. Now you can go on Instagram and you can see a girl who looks like you who is killing the game and expressing herself. Just being able to see that is so affirming.

On her friendship with YBF teen Willow Smith:

SOLANGE: Speaking of friends, you are basically living squad goals. You’re close with Kiernan Shipka, Willow Smith, Tavi Gevinson, Lorde....

AMANDLA: Oh, man. Well, Kiernan has been by my side since the beginning. Willow is amazing. I feel like we were just meant to be friends. We were kind of vibing off each other from afar, and then she hit me up and was like, “Let’s hang out!” She has the most magnetic, radiant energy ever. Whenever we hang out we just laugh and we sing and we dance and we go hiking.

 

Loves it! You can read the full interview here.

Peep the rest of YBF Chick Amandla's spread below:

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Werk!

 

Photos: Ben Toms via Teen VOGUE


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