Remember the article about black women dating interracially while abroad, written by the talented Arielle Loren that I was quoted in a week and a half ago? If you read some of the atrocious comments left under the article, you probably felt like you had been transported by an emotional time machine to 150 years before today. Some of the comments were truly scary and plain ignorant. The article has been re-posted to NBC’s the Grio and the comments on that site are even worse! I don’t usually comment on blog posts, but one comment in particular beneath the article was so ignorant I could not stop my anger. I will share it with you below:

Ignorant comment written by Fognon: Reason for more black woman/white mail couplings in London is that there are a huge amount of light-skinned women there. It will never be like that in the US as most white men find dark skinned women the least attractive of the races. I am thinking we may see more interracial couples in the coming years but they will be of the white male/Latina woman variety. Not to mention, the culture is different & you have much less “ghetto” black women in London than US.

Even now in the US black women are bring pushed to make themselves appear less attractive by switching to ‘natural’ hair & no makeup. This will limit their options significantly if they want to pursue interracial dating. It makes a woman look like she doesn’t ‘take care of herself’

My response to the ignoramus: Oh, fognon. As the great William Shakespeare once said: “you speak unskillfully: or, if your knowledge be more, it is much darkened in your malice”

I’m sorry! I have to disagree with this comment on a MAJOR scale! Ever since I went natural, I receive attention from men of different races more so than when I wore my hair chemically processed! In fact, I am called beautiful all the time with my natural hair. And again, this is more so than when I was relaxed. Also, I am a brown skinned woman and all the guys I have been with who were of a different race than me had no problem with this.

Men of different races don’t only like light skinned black women. That is a way of thinking that is soooo archaic and just plain ignorant. What are we in 1965!? WAKE UP!!!! It’s 2012! It’s people like you who give people complexes about their beauty. It’s people like YOU who give me misanthropic tendencies! This goes beyond the topic of dating. Now you’ve made this about accepting ones beauty!

If there are any black women reading this I want you to listen to me and listen to me good: You were born to this earth EXACTLY the way you were supposed to be. Don’t let anyone tell you you’re not beautiful because you were born with dark skin or curly hair or any other venomous rhetoric used by some human beings to dishearten others. Choose a mate because he is a beautiful human being with integrity, regardless of if he is white, black, asian, yellow, purple, blue or green. Look at him as a man first and a color second. AND most of all, tell any opposing society that disagrees with the way you look or who you date to go dig a ditch and then fall in it, because they are not worth the oxygen that it would take for you to say KISS MY [CENSORED]. I don’t usually comment but this ignorant comment shifted me to a plane of anger that I just could not contain!

Fognon’s response to me: Actually you are very pretty & I rethink my comment somewhat.

What do you think of Fognon’s comment? What would you say to him?

NOTE: Photo of the beautiful Inna Modja found via. I do not own any rights.

Sam Cooke

This is one of my favorite Sam Cooke songs! I hope you enjoy! Happy Valentine’s day to all the couples and singles out there!

I was quoted in the article “Interracial Dating: Black Women Finding Love Outside America” in Clutch Magazine today! And boy did the conversation get heated! Check out the comments section and you will see what I’m talking about! Check it out here.

NOTE: Photo found via Clutch Magazine. I do not own any rights.

Please email me at jennifer@imported-chocolate.com with your shipping info! Congrats!!!!!

1. Who She Is: Rashida O. I’m a 24 year old travel addict, law student, fashion lover, idealist, self-improvement junkie, and foodie. I recently created a travel blog (www.blackwomenonthego) with the hope that it would inspire more women of color to do whatever it takes to get out of their comfort zones and make their dreams of travel a reality.

2. Imported To: (Nigeria, England, France, Brazil, The Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Italy, California, New York, and Florida.

3. Imported Wish List: Croatia, South Africa, Capri, Ghana, Kenya, Thailand, Japan, Rio, Greece, Seattle….I could go on and on, but those are my top choices for now!

4. Inside My Imported Chocolate Box: A journal- gotta write and reflect! A camera- have to capture all the beautiful images!
My iphone-need to stay in touch with family & it’s nice to have apps and internet access at my fingertips!

5. Top Five Places I Recommend You See: Barcelona; Spain-La Sagrada Familia; Granada; Spain-The Alhambra; Paris, France-Sacre Cour; San Francisco, California-Golden Gate Park; Lagos, Portugal-The Beach

6. First Three Hours In A New Country/Place I: I EAT! As I said before, I am a foodie, and I love trying out new foods! And I’m usually starving when I arrive due to long plane rides and bad airline food, so eating is a MUST!

7. First Three Days In A New Country/Place I: Eat, shop, go out, meet people, sightsee, sit, chill, relax. I like stay out late and wake up early when I travel so that I feel like I’m making the most of my days. I also like to wander and explore the different neighborhoods and see what I stumble upon.

8. How Do You Mane Tame Your Hair When Abroad: I usually wear braids or sew-ins when I travel, so maintaining my hair is pretty simple. I just get up, brush or comb it, and go! Taking care of my hair is the LAST thing I want to worry about and spend time on when I travel.

9. Chocolate For Your Thoughts On Women Of Color Traveling: I think more women of color NEED to get out of their comfort zones and make their dreams of travel a REALITY, because some of my best memories and most valuable lessons learned were experienced through travel. Whenever I try to convince my friends of color to come along on my adventures, I’m always met with reluctance. I think a lot of women of color have the idea in their heads that traveling is super expensive, but they fail to realize that by planning ahead and cutting back on unnecessary expenses while home, they can make their travel dreams come true too.

10. Best Imported Moment: This past summer I was in Rome, and on my first day there was supposed to meet up with a friend of a friend, so I shot her an itinerary of all of the things I wanted to do. The itinerary wasn’t very ambitious but needless to say I kept getting lost and got very little of it done. So my second day, after getting lost AGAIN and getting frustrated from going around in circles in the heat , I decided to take a step back, and instead of trying to get a certain amount of things done by a set time, I decided to wander around and see what I stumbled upon. And it wasn’t until then (when I relaxed and had no set plan), that I started hitting up all of the monuments I wanted to see. After I relaxed and stopped worrying about seeing everything, I really started to enjoy Rome, and I can’t stress enough how much of a BEAUTIFUL city it is. This was sort of my ” at one with the universe” moment in Europe because it made me realize that God/The Universe gives you everything you ask for as soon as you begin to enjoy the journey, relax, and stop trying to control everything.

11. How Do You Make Your Dream Of Travel Come True: Being the idealist that I am, I’m a firm believer in the idea that anyone can make any of their dreams come true, it just takes firm conviction, creativity, and guts! For example, I studied abroad in college, and I highly recommend studying abroad in college to anyone who wants to make their travel dreams come true. Although I studied abroad during the winter and summer sessions, I earned credit for the courses I took, which allowed me to cut back on classes (and tuition expenses) during the year. I also got a scholarship that covered my lodging expenses while abroad in Brazil. And for people who study abroad during the semester, it’s even better! The cost of living abroad and tuition (depending on where you study) is often the same as (or sometimes cheaper) than the cost of living and tuition at your home institution. Now that I’m in a grad school program that doesn’t have study abroad options, I get creative! For example, last summer I had a one month break between school and my summer job, so rather than stick around in DC and pay my ridiculous DC rent that month, I subletted my place and put the money I would’ve spent on rent/ living towards traveling abroad. Other ways I make my travel dreams come true are by booking flights early( 3 months in advance) ,using accumulated airlines miles( I recently paid for a flight from Chicago-Cali with miles), and staying at hostels or with friends (or friends of friends) when I travel.

NOTE: All photos are Rashida’s own. I do not own any rights.

If you’re an Imported Chocolate of the moment, or know one, I would love to profile you! Email me at jennifer@imported-chocolate.com

Check it out!

http://www.blackwomenonthego.com/post/16832569977/buenos-aires-argentina-twitter-jencpoe

I’m participating in the Black History Month Giveaway Hop! And what I will be giving away is…

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

I read this book when I was 16 years old and I remember being captivated by it! So much so, I had dreams about the characters, and thought about them constantly when I was not reading the book; I saw their faces on strangers in the streets and after I finished the book I still thought about them. That’s how obsessed I was with this story. The late, great Octavia E. Butler was one of the few African American Authors of science fiction. I read the book again last year and loved it just as much as the first time! And I am not a person who re reads books. So if I read a book twice — You know it’s good!

I thought this would be the perfect book to giveaway in this hop! I’m sure whoever wins will be very pleased. Here is the synopsis:

Dana, a modern black woman, is celebrating her twenty-sixth birthday with her new husband when she is snatched abruptly from her home in California and transported to the antebellum South. Rufus, the white son of a plantation owner, is drowning, and Dana has been summoned to save him. Dana is drawn back repeatedly through time to the slave quarters, and each time the stays grow longer, more arduous, and more dangerous until it is uncertain whether or not Dana’s life will end, long before it has a chance to begin.

To enter the giveaway, all you have to do do is leave a comment below this post saying you want to enter and I will add your name in the drawing! So easy!! Giveaway runs from February 1st-7th!

To view the other giveaways in the hop, check out Reflections of a Bookaholic’s giveaway hop page by clicking here

Let the hop begin!

NOTE: Photos found via here and here. I do not own any rights.

Unfortunately, I had to draw another name at random for this giveaway. I will shoot a video later on this week, when I have time, to discuss why. It will be my “Imported Chocolate Giveaways Entry Rules” video. I am also participating in a giveaway with another blog for Black History Month tomorrow, so I want to get this giveaway out.

The new winner is…Mochagirls Read! Mocha, please email me at jennifer@imported-chocolate.com with your name and address so I can send you the giveaway items.

Stay tuned for my Black History Month giveaway!