I grew up in a world where a woman who looks like me, with my kind of skin and my kind of hair, was never considered to be beautiful.
Interpretation
This quote reflects on societal standards of beauty and the lack of representation for women of color.
Zozibini Tunzi's quote highlights the challenges faced by women who do not fit conventional beauty standards, particularly women of color. It emphasizes the internal and external struggles of growing up in a society that often excludes individuals based on their appearance, and calls for broader acceptance and recognition of diverse beauty.
In practice
In a speech about self-acceptance during a school assembly.
I think the most important thing... is leadership. It's something that has been lacking in young women and girls for a very long time, not because we don't want to but because of what society has labeled women to be. I think we are the most powerful beings in the world and that we should be given every opportunity.
I think we are afraid to take up space. We are afraid to be amazing. As soon as that fear leaves us and we start building that confidence of being unapologetic about being great, then i think we can get into that space of having a lot of women leaders who are just fearless.
People speak about diversity and representation like the world is ready. But when it actually happens, people can't take change. They can't deal with it. Which is why we have things like cyberbullying, which is why people will send you nasty DMs, say nasty things in your comments. Because they're just not dealing with it, they're not ready.
We should be teaching young girls to take up space. Nothing is as important as taking up space in society and cementing yourself.
Women are constantly being taught how to defend themselves against attack from men. I would like to shift the perception. I want to say that that responsibility should no longer rest on the shoulders of women alone.
I didn't enter Miss S.A. because I thought I was the most beautiful woman in S.A., I entered because it's one of the few platforms that give women the ability to lead and I knew I had a powerful voice and message to send out.
Girls see enough of this body that we can't imitate, that we'll never be able to obtain, these unrealistic expectations...it's better to look strong and healthy...
There is no shame in black beauty.
I never quite understand the way society decides who is beautiful and who is not. But an open face and a capacity for kindness always feel like reliable signifiers to me.
If you are ever wondering, 'If I have thinner thighs and shinier hair will I be happier?' you just need to meet a group of models because they have the thinnest thighs and the shiniest hair and the coolest clothes and they're the most physically insecure women on the planet.
I think beauty comes from actually knowing who you are. That's real beauty to me.
To be born woman is to know - although they do not speak of it at school - women must labor to be beautiful.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.