100 Women of Virtue Photoshoot
Houston, Texas — It is Monday, October the 3rd and as the campus clock strikes 2:00 p.m. and students pick up the pace to quickly to escape the blazing 90+ degree heat; a select few very well garmented women move sophisticatedly as well as noticeably against the crowd.
These young ladies would be later observed forming a collective outside of Texas Southern University’s Sawyer Auditorium, their numbers swelling into the hundreds.
What compelled them to don their stuffy blazers and uncomfortably high heels in this stifling Texas heat was a cause deemed wholly worthy by these young queens who voice no complaints as they unite almost instinctively into an organized mass.
This gathering, although unsystematic, is not at random. This assembly has been organized and formally advertised as a photoshoot for 100 Women of Virtue hosted by Texas Southerns very own Student Government Association.
It is also not the first, the movement is reported to be inspired by and also to be in support of the 100 Men of virtue photoshoot that took place the week prior, a campaign is alleged to have started in Prairie View A&M and has now found its way to the heart of Houston.
Except this gathering is no cheap imitation, more than 100 women of all shapes, sizes, colors, ages and studies answered the call to come together, not just for the sake of parading frivolously in front of the camera in fancy garb but with each of their own purpose and beliefs they wish to represent by participating in this momentous instance.
For some Women it is about exhibiting their business style savvy and decorum as a strong woman of color, for others it is about women coming together to weld an unspoken alliance of sorts in this time of social duress, for an insightful few it is much more than suits and a picture.
“It is more than a picture, it is a symbol of women empowerment, its bringing women together” says Kymera Fox, a Journalism Major at the communication school of TxSU
The main point being emphasized is about the representation of the true essence of a Woman of color at a HBCU that often receives negatives criticisms based on unwarranted images portrayed by media “We have so many stereotype about us, but we’re collegiate, we’re here and were educated” says Senior and Broadcasting Major Jojie Steward.
Kyeris Johnson, Texas Southern University’s Miss Senior laments on the deeper meaning such a gathering means for her.
“It is basically all the beautiful queens of Texas Southern coming together to show force, show that we are able to be intelligent, and strong and supportive of each other, we don't knock each other down, we want to encourage each other.”
Johnson, a Psychology major is inspired most by this act of unification as it portrays the strong sense of support and sisterhood in a black community, something she cherishes heavily as she mourns the anniversary of her son’s passing. “Just to be able to be around beautiful women who support each other was really important to me” says Johnson with a light smile as uninhibited tears escape her eyes.
These wonderfully ambitious women individually and collectively display their virtue, making this very first shoot, one for the books.