Black Actresses in Hollywood

I know it's been a while since my last post... Not that you've been checking for me or anything. I wanted to touch on an important issue; the lack of roles for African American women in Hollywood. The majority of women we see in movies and on television shows are missing a key element: melanin. I understand that not all shows NEED a "token" black person, but why are we so under-represented these days? In an effort not to restate the multiple arguments that have previously been made by other concerned individuals, I'll focus solely on black actresses.

Can you name ten popular African American actresses in ten seconds? If you can then I applaud you. Now can you tell me which one of them gets paid (per film) as much as Julia Roberts, Katherine Heigl or Angelina Jolie? You may be drawing a blank or thinking of Halle Berry at best... With the lack of "successful" black actresses it seems impossible for someone like me to break into the field of acting. Due to the types of roles that are available, women of color are shaking their groove things in music videos or playing the girlfriend. We are rarely the star of anything nor are black films blockbuster hits. Tyler Perry has my utmost respect for producing films that show blacks in all aspects of life. But is one man enough? Should there be more "black" movies? I sure think so...

Think about the white actresses that are given all this money and end up in some type of scandal; Lindsay Lohan and Mylie Cyrus to be exact. It is just ridiculous the amount of chances(and money) these chicks are given. Keke Palmer, Monique Coleman and Kyla Pratt have never had bad press yet they aren't as sought after. I could SMH and blog all day to express my concerns but I'd rather share pictures of my three favorite black actresses.


Kyla Pratt is my absolute favorite due to her down-to-earth personality and overall beauty (she looks like me LoL).

Sanaa Lathan is just the epitome of bomb.com. I can't think of one role that she didn't do justice. She even had to kiss Wesley Snipes' ugly a** in Disappearing Acts and made that relationship look believable. Kudos to her!


Lastly, Taraji P. Henson because she has evolved so much since we first took notice in the John Singleton film, Baby Boy.

There are plenty of other actresses that I could've mentioned but you're probably tired of reading. What are your picks for the top three black actresses? Hmmm.