Food for Our Souls
by Dyann Logwood-Young

I grew up among black folks who loved to eat. As a girl, I was encouraged to get some meat on my bones. Filling up space was important to me. It meant that in a larger world that might want to keep a black girl silent, I could not be ignored.

Food has always been something of a status symbol in the black community, suggesting that a new day has arrived for African Americans to rejoice in abundant "health" and prosperity. I never thought for a moment that the hearty meals I enjoyed the most, meals taht were part of my culture, could be harmful to my body. I just thought I was eating well.

Black people have a way of discussing weight, I've noticed, as a metaphor for well-being. For us, "You're so thin" often translates into "Are you okay?" Usually, thinness is taken as a telltale sign of a sister who's overworked, burdened, burning out -- someone who's not quite holding it all together. Sure, black women come in all shapes and sizes, but it's no coincidence that what we call "healthy" is exactly what white America considers the opposite -- twenty pounds "overweight" and yes, "fat."

But what, really is a healthy African-American body? Somewhere in teh struggle to reclaim what is uniquely ours--black women have forgotten to define our health on our own terms. Even as we continue to embrace the diversity of sizes among us, we must ask, what does a healthy body feel like?

Being healthy may be the most rebellious act a black woman can commit. If we develop healthy body image without developing healthy bodies, it's a hollow victory.

Dyann Logwood-Young is an Ypsilanti, Michigan native and the co-founder of HUES magazine. The daughter of a Pentecostal preacher, she brings her inherited public speaking talents to numerous women’s conferences. Dyann has spoken on issues of race and gender at the National Women’s Studies Association, the YWCA and at other national forums. She is currently teaching women’s studies and African-American studies at Eastern Michigan University. She has a master’s Degree in women’s studies and communications from Eastern Michigan University and is working towards a PhD. in communications from Wayne State University.