Bessie Akuba

Name: Bessie Akuba

Age: 31

College: Georgia State University

Major: Political Science with a minor in Sociology

Grad Year: 2004

Awards: ESSENCE, EBONY, AFROELLE Magazine, Atlanta Power 30 Under 30; Stiletto Women 2012 Brand of The Year, Applause Africa Magazine 40 Under 40


About Bessie: A former beauty queen turned photographer and social artist, Bessie Akuba Winn-Afeku is on a purpose driven mission change the world through photography, new media, and the arts. This former Miss Black Georgia USA has truly breathed life into the clichéd beauty pageant phrase, “Make the World a Better Place”.

A native of Ghana West Africa, Bessie Akuba moved to Georgia at the age of seven. After several years of spending time in front of the camera, and on stage as an actor and through pageantry; Bessie decided to create art and inspire from behind the camera lens and specializes in lifestyle and portraiture photography.

When she is not shooting images of beautiful people or documenting stories with her camera she can be found blogging for the Huffington Post or giving back through her non profit The She is Me Program™. TSIMP is a 501c3 non-profit organization that empowers young women through the arts, positive role models, and by giving them the power and resources to create their own media. Bessie Akuba also launched I Am The Change in 2011 which is a social good photography campaign, brand, and soon to be book that captures the images of everyday people visually declaring their purpose in life. My biggest obstacle have been getting over other peoples opinions about my chosen path. I believe once we know that the opinions of others have nothing to do with us..we then become limitless.

What is your life's mission?

My life's mission is to show people the good and the beauty in everything.

What does being a black woman mean to you?

Being a black women mean defining ourselves for ourselves and not leaving it up to the world to define us.

"I believe once we know that the opinions of others have nothing to do with us..we then become limitless"

Contact Bessie:
Website
She Is Me Program Website
Email
Twitter

Brittney Greene

Name: Brittney A. Greene

Age: 24

College: Georgia State University

Major: Sociology

Grad Year: December 2010

About Brittney: I consider myself to be a passionate young adult inspired by the ills of the world, with a serving heart. I take to challenging social structures in the world through various community initiatives. Attending school and majoring in a social service field takes passion and commitment. Not labeled with the six figure salary like other majors, I have always chosen to work with the people and not against them. I've always had my hand in the community passionately providing service to the people who need it most. My endeavors with Black Positive Image, Inc. directly reflect my commitment to the community. Although Rochester, New York is home, my heart is global and expanding to places were many may not pay attention. I'm seeking to help those who need help the most, by connecting with them on a personal level, establishing trust, the one element no relationship can go without. 

In 2009 I was working as a legal secretary where I had to read the Daily Report (the legal newspaper for Fulton County GA) everday. The paper Provided all legal news and happenings in the County as well as new businesses that were registered with the Secretary of States office. This section became of great interest to me as I noticed that several businesses were registered daily and I looked into the process of starting a business myself. At first I didn't have a clear direction in the field that I would like to go into, but as a person of service, I knew I wanted to help people. I decided to register as a non-profit corporation, knowing that in the future I would love to operate a nationwide non-profit organization. The name of the organization had to be strong and very relevant to the target group that I wanted to address. As an advocate for the black community and with direct emotional connections to the care of my people I decided to name the company Black Positive Image. With all the negativity that surrounded the image of Blacks in America on the television, newspapers and other media outlets I decided to combat this image by providing a social enterprise where people could unite together and become the positive force that our community needs.

Initially Black Positive Image, Inc. was a social enterprise that utilized various social media outlets such as facebook and twitter to connect with people in the community and begin opening a dialogue to combat the negative images in the community. By providing positive imagery through music, books, pictures, etc. We were going to be the alternative source to help people find positive information and resources for the community. Although this is still primarily our focus, the company has expanded beyond social enterprises and has begun to infiltrate the community with various programs. We support college students through our College Care Program, fight illiteracy and bring the joy of reading through our Home Library Campaign and help spread the stories of the people in our community through our Literary Series 'You Don't Know My Story'. Through our various initiatives we have begun to make a direct impact in the community by actively creating the image we would like to see in the community. The social media aspect of our organization is still very relevant and we will be expanding our initiatives to become the Community Resource Center for various topics and issues in relation to our community.

  

What is your life's mission?
My life's mission is to help guide people to love. My current work is reflective of community activism in various ways, but my true mission is to change the face of intimate relationships between individuals and open the sexual dialogue amongst Americans. I am a sexual liberation reformer committed to helping others understand sexual relations and helping individuals cultivate meaning relationships. This is matched with my plans to further my education and become a Relationship/Sex Therapist.

What does being a black woman mean to you?
To be is a linking verb by definition, so for me to be Black is linking me to the power in what has been identified as my color. To label an entire race based off the variation in hues of skin and label them as Black, a word that is negative in context in contrast to the purity of the color white may seem fleeting to many; but not my people. In the direct face the negative definition of soiled, wicked, dirty, sullen and a host of other names that have been marked with negativity, to be Black in regards to my people mean none of those things. Even with the filth that surrounds the term Black and how the world may relate to it, we have defined Black in our own terms, beyond the definitions in dictionaries. To be Black is to be defiant, to be non-complying to the unjust impositions that have been placed on us. To be Black links me to an ancestry of perseverance and undoubted self pride. To be Black links me to all that I know and that is proud!

"To be Black is to be defiant, to be noncomplying to the unjust impositions that have been placed on us"

Contact Brittney:
Twitter

Facebook

Youtube

Website
Email

Address:

Black Positive Image

P.O. Box 15356
Atlanta, GA 30333

Phone: 404-507-246

Monique Hicks

Name: Monique Hicks

Age: 24

College: California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB)

Major: Sociology

Graduation: December, 2010

Highlights: Sociology club, MAC peer advisor

GPA; 3.2

About Monique: I'm the only girl, born in a family of three boys. Growing up, I've always seen my dad work hard to get what he wanted and to provide for his family. I promised myself that I would do the same for my family. A quote that always sticks in my head from my dad is “I just want your kids to have a better life than you did.”

My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer at the tender age of 29, just a few years after I was born. While growing up, I didn’t know that my mother had any type of disease. She didn’t seem sick; she seemed like everyone else’s mom. When I was in about 8^th grade, that is when things started to take a turn for the worst. My mom was getting smaller, her hair was falling out, and she had to resort to the infamous wigs. I was scared. Even though I was still young, I knew that things weren’t looking good. My mom was in the hospital for a week or two, and I thought everything would be okay. She then returned home, and was confident that everything was much better, until her bed was now in the living room, and she had a walker & a wheel chair. I remember the day my mother passed as if it happened yesterday. When I arrived home from school, I went to speak with my mother, and she was lying in her bed, breathing heavily. I just figured she was taken a nap, from a long day at home. A few hours later, she was in the same state as she was when I came home from school. My family all remained calm, and I just knew that something was not right. I sat at my mom’s bedside from then on out. I asked my dad hundreds of questions, wanting to know the status on my mom, and he just told me “it’s not looking good”. I couldn’t take it! No, my mom was just breathing, up & her normal self a few hours before I went to school. How could this all happen within a matter of hours? At around 9pm, she took her last breath.

I was 15 years old, I had to step up and become the woman of the house. That meant that while my dad attended work (24 hour shifts) I cooked for my younger siblings, cleaned the house, and looked after them. I was forced to grow up before I wanted to. While attending community college, I wanted to give up. I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life, I was discouraged and I felt that it was too much work to get to where I wanted to be. I then thought about the promise I made to myself, and also the promise I made to my mother the day that she passed away, and I pushed forward. Graduating from community college with a 3.0+ GPA, and being admitted into a university was the happiest day of my life. Before arriving at the university, I didn't realize how close I was to having my bachelor’s degree. A year and six months later, I am a college graduate with my bachelor’s degree! I'm glad I never gave up, and I pushed forward. My goal when I return back to San Diego is to work in Social Services. I really want to work with kids/teens in helping them to learn about STD's & HIV. I think it's really important for people to be aware of this, especially African Americans. My ultimate dream that I want to accomplish in the future is to participate in the Susan G Komen 3 day walk, in memory of my mother who passed away from breast cancer, and to help find a cure for breast cancer.

What is your life's mission?
My mission is to successfully support and empower women and families that have been affected by breast cancer and continue growing, learning and motivating.

What does being a black woman mean to you?
Being a black woman means to be great and powerful! 'Black is Beautfiul'

"I thought about the promise I made to myself, and also the promise I made to my mother the day that she passed away, and I pushed forward"

Contact Monique:
Email