As a Black woman, I know how hard it is to find language learners that look like you, whom you can connect with over mutual frustrations or mutual amusement. Like, brainstorming laughing about how to translate some vernacular into your shared target language conveying the same gravity and intensity.
This is exactly why I started Black Girls Learn Languages. I knew that there were other Black women like me who were just as passionate about their target languages as I am, but I never seemed to run into them. I remember the quote in the movie Field of Dreams , “If you build it, he will come”. So, I built it and since 2017, over 10K Black women have joined the community across various social media platforms, including 2.5K in the private Facebook group.
You may be wondering where my love of languages comes from? I’m from one of the most diverse cities in the world: New York City. From a very young age, I was partially immersed in the Spanish language, and was constantly in contact with people from different cultures, who spoke different languages and had different backgrounds. This sparked a lifelong passion for languages. Coupled with the experiences I made living a nomadic life and traveling frequently (thanks to being both a former military brat and airline employee), I developed wanderlust and wanted to go to different places and see different things.
Another one of my passions is for elevating the lives of Black women using language. I’m currently working to develop programs that I hope will change the trajectory of many Black women’s careers. It is my hope to see Black women who are unhappy with low-paying frontline positions (such as retail, food service, warehouses, etc.) and underemployment, leave those things behind. I want to those Black women move on to positions that utilize their gifts and talents, compensates them fairly and leaves them feeling fulfilled. I’m committed to the happiness of the Black women in my community.
If this sounds like your tribe, please join our private Facebook group for a sense of community and sisterhood amongst Black women language enthusiasts.
xoxo,
Language Bae
P.S. By day, I’m pursuing a career in project management and I’m a program owner for a mentoring program, by night I’m am working on my language goals and a global career coaching program for Black women…but I am is always eager to take on new endeavors and challenges. Send me an email to connect!
Awesome story! Good to see other Black women who are passionate about languages :)
ReplyDeleteI don't know why I'm just now seeing this, but thank you so much for taking the time out to visit my site and read. Come back soon!
Deletexoxo,
Language Bae
I am so happy to see this entire site! I am sure you have put a lot of time and effort into creating such an inspiring platform! I am so impressed by the amount of effort you put into your dreams and you are such an inspiration. I cannot wait to see more and expand with you.
ReplyDeleteHi Shantell, thanks so much for coming by and for your feedback. I love to hear that people are happy to see this site and be apart of our community. I hope you enjoy the recent changes and upcoming events & webinars that are coming up!
Deletexoxo,
Language Bae
Hi Shahidah! Love this page. Could you tell me where you found the info about Lupita Nyong'o speaking Italian? I'm working on some research and can't seem to find this information anywhere else. Thanks so much! Marina (a fellow Foreign Language Enthusiast.)
ReplyDeleteHi Marina, thanks so much for coming by! I'm just seeing this comment for some reason. I didn't get a notification when it was first posted.
DeleteRegarding Lupita's Italian, CNN reported she was conversational in Italian: https://edition.cnn.com/2014/01/10/showbiz/african-voices-lupita-nyongo/index.html.
xoxo,
Language Bae