From Flo Jo to Sha’Carri Richardson, Black Women Athletes Have Always Broken the Beauty Mold

When I think back on the pop culture beauty icons who shaped me as I came of age, there are, of course, girl groups like Destiny’s Child and fictional characters like Zaria from The Parent ’Hood and Moesha. But there’s a group of talented women who, despite being featured prominently in the public eye, don’t always get their due: athletes.

When I first made the varsity track team, I was elated that my coach saw my talent and trained diligently to ensure I could compete at my best. But one thing was missing from my black-and-white tracksuit: oomph like Flo-Jo’s. Thumbing through the pages of Running for Dummies by Florence Griffith Joyner in the Media Play book store during one of my weekly strolls with my sister and mom, I knew I wanted to be her—not just as an athlete but also as a beauty icon. The nails, the hair, the lipstick: She was Black Girl Magic before we, as a community, had even coined the term. But I was a 13-year-old girl whose mom would only let her wear her hair up (because anything else was “too grown”) and a swipe of clear MAC Cosmetics Lipglass. So I opted for a pair of Nikes with neon-colored spikes and wore my hair in a carefully coiffed doughnut bun like Dominique Dawes for each meet.  Read More