I recently did some research on magazines to potentially contact them to share my latest post, “The Images of the “Perfect” Male Body.”
As an African American man who lives for fashion, music, and pop culture it is becoming more and more disturbing for me to see fewer and fewer black men gracing the cover of the magazines that I love.
I believe that my recent post is a topic we have to start examining and discussing as a society. I believe once we start discussing the issue we will begin to accept that we need to empower our young men, black and white alike. Today men are feeling worthless and not good enough which all starts at a young age. These feelings slowly become a greater, unbearable issue in adulthood. Our society focuses more on women rather than the male population. Men in general and their issues are being ignored and not addressed or talked about.
Sadly what prompted me to write more about the empowerment of men in our society and the lack of images of African American men is unsettling. It’s also unsettling to know that one of my favorite magazines, “DETAILS” has not had an African American on the cover in years. Strangely, I am someone who enjoys reading the magazine but after clicking on the press page of their website the proof was right in my face. It was a shock to me and a slap in the face that an African American has not been on the cover in a while.
As I scrolled down the “Magazine” cover page (http://www.details.com/magazine) and viewed the various covers I could not grasp the horrible truth. It wasn’t something I was expecting to find. From October 2009 to August 2012 there has not been one African American celebrity on the cover. Does the publication not think that an African American is captivating enough for their cover. My question, why has there not been an African American on the cover of DETAILS magazine in such a long period of time?
As a business owner, professional, and African American male I understand marketing and knowing your audience and demographic but it’s frustrating when you cannot find one image of yourself on the cover of one of the most popular men’s magazines in the country. In my opinion, we have to start as a society to question these seemingly small issues which potentially become larger ones when our young men turn into adult men. They grow up having little self-esteem and can seek out attention in harmful acts because they have not been empowered or shown images of themselves in mainstream media.
Just food for thought!
Photo Credit: africmodel.com – Model: Cherif Ndiaye
Corey Wesley
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I could not agree more Corey. Stereotypes seem to reign supreme on the covers of magazines, and in Pop Culture overall. I have personally been affected by the lack of African American men gracing the covers of Details, GQ, and Esquire alike. My esteem was directly impacted by the lack of African American exposure. Something will change, and soon. Thank you for voicing your astute opinions. Well stated!
Thank you Michael. It’s unfortunate that media has a hold on our youth like no other time period and I felt it was time for me to speak up. I have forwarded my post to DETAILS and other magazine outlets. Although, I will not get a response, I did what I could to make a small difference.
Corey Wesley, you are ON POINT with this article! The sad truth is African American men are not considered role models because of a few bad role models. All faults are displayed but the positive nature of black men are not displayed. I think all of my FB friends should read and absorb this article! Corey is a fantastic writer as well as a positive role model! My friends, I consider him a man that not only breaks barriers, he smashes the hell out of em!!
Thank you Entric. I appreciate your kind words and for believing in the power of my words. What I am trying to do is make a difference in this world and save lives. “The children are our future.”
Reblogged this on Corey Wesley.