Hi! My name is Nanea Woods and I am the Founder and President of the BEST Book Club of all time.
Prose Before Bros is a community made for Women of Color. Those last three words are so important. I realize how few spaces there are for women who look like me, to have agency over. Spaces where the function and the intention is to center our voices and make us the default rather than an afterthought.This idea is only heightened as I thought about the city I live in (Portland is still the whitest city in the U.S.) and how surrounded in whiteness we are in our everyday lives. How often we have to assimilate, and code switch to just blend in or to be accepted. For a person of color it can be exhausting, so I built this club, this platform, this space, as a reprieve, an oasis, and an exhale.
So I will say it again, Prose Before Bros is a community made FOR women of color. It is a space where their perspectives and views are valued and prioritized. We are not shy about stating who we are talking to, who we are for, and what voices we choose to amplify. BUT, this is not to say that PBB is exclusive to WOC only. All women are welcome. All women should feel like they have a place in this club. But we also understand that not all women are given that space in the outside world. PBB wants to change that narrative. Of all the millions of places in the world that’s designed for and prioritizes whiteness, PBB will be the one place that seeks to do the opposite. The black/brown woman is the leading lady, principal character, the director and the producer of this show. If you do not subscribe to these ideas and it makes you feel unwanted, or uncomfortable this might not be the club for you. If you are not a woman of color and hearing this makes you feel empowered to want to make room for those voices than by all means girl come on in! We need you. We want you here. This place is for you.
Prose Before Bros is a community made for Women of Color. Those last three words are so important. I realize how few spaces there are for women who look like me, to have agency over. Spaces where the function and the intention is to center our voices and make us the default rather than an afterthought.This idea is only heightened as I thought about the city I live in (Portland is still the whitest city in the U.S.) and how surrounded in whiteness we are in our everyday lives. How often we have to assimilate, and code switch to just blend in or to be accepted. For a person of color it can be exhausting, so I built this club, this platform, this space, as a reprieve, an oasis, and an exhale.
So I will say it again, Prose Before Bros is a community made FOR women of color. It is a space where their perspectives and views are valued and prioritized. We are not shy about stating who we are talking to, who we are for, and what voices we choose to amplify. BUT, this is not to say that PBB is exclusive to WOC only. All women are welcome. All women should feel like they have a place in this club. But we also understand that not all women are given that space in the outside world. PBB wants to change that narrative. Of all the millions of places in the world that’s designed for and prioritizes whiteness, PBB will be the one place that seeks to do the opposite. The black/brown woman is the leading lady, principal character, the director and the producer of this show. If you do not subscribe to these ideas and it makes you feel unwanted, or uncomfortable this might not be the club for you. If you are not a woman of color and hearing this makes you feel empowered to want to make room for those voices than by all means girl come on in! We need you. We want you here. This place is for you.
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