Within the last 2 months, I have taught myself how to "roleplay" or makebelieve characters in fictional genres. My characters are invariably strong women, who have undergone such strife and are battling to remove themselves from their strife to lead more meaningful lives.
The historical background of my characters resonates from my life, the feminine side of my family--ancestors who made a way out of no way--who endured, suffered, humiliated, demeaned and oppressed so much, that I FEEL their stories must be heard! Moreover, my characters have the names of Goddesses because that is how I see my characters and the composite feminine energies they rightfully deserve.
In 2009 I read so much on domestic violence against women and heard extraordinary triumphs overcoming tough situations from women that I decided to create my characters that emulated that. I used names that MEN worshiped and died for--Goddesses!!!
NEVER thought men would be intimidated by that notion--the very presence of a self-assured, highly accomplished and powerful woman. Men attempted to dominate, even on Twitter over women, subjugating them to profanity, spreading gossip and rumors to beholding a strong woman into their will! Another name is cyberbullying.
What shocks me it is thought that the Goddesses would women who once existed and overtime they became legendary and transcended to the rightful Deities that humans around the world still worship!
Here are the Goddesses names I have chosen as my characters:
AST = Au Set = Isis: the Goddess of motherhood, magic and fertility. She recreated a humanity in such a way out of no way, in honor of her husband, Osiris. Through her love she immaculately conceived Heru = Horus. Today she is the framework of Mary the Mother of Jesus based on the alters that were spread throughout the Greco-Roman empire...
Yemaja: is an orisha, originally of the Yoruba religion, the ocean, the essence of motherhood, and a protector of children.
Osun'oya: is the combination of 2 Orishas, Osun: a spirit-goddess (Orisha) who reigns over love, intimacy, beauty, wealth and diplomacy; and Oya: the warrior-goddess of wind, lightning, fertility, fire, and magic. She creates hurricanes and tornadoes and guards the underworld.
In the Star Wars Universe:
AST (the spelling I use): The creation of my character fits the following description She is bringing about stability to the Yuuzhan Vong loss of their Warrior Caste Creches as a Concubine to the Commander Zhat Lah who loves her deeply. At first she does not love him, but as she gets older it is through her love that she brings forth his heir to the Lah Domain Worldship...
I think that is fair to do with this character because as Black women have been denigrated, it has been through us our communities do survive and thrive. It is through us that our sons live for some time. It is through us that once enslaved Africans will find our solace and freedom and resiliency. The Star Wars Universe does not have ANY Black women except Adi Galli who dies in the Jedi Purge. A Black female character is deserved and she deserves to be classy. Rather than asking permission, I made it happen.
The other issue is that it is nice to have a "Black Princess" like the princess and the frog, but the reception has been cool. Reason is that of the historical struggle, the images of Black women as to what is beautiful in womanhood, and how ignored we have been until First Lady Michelle Obama... Goddesses represent Black Women well, they always have.
Yemaja character can be read here. The thing about Yemaja when she is home, she is well-grounded and can thrive to her success. But when she is elsewhere, she is humiliated, harmed, demeaned and oppressed. To take control of her life she uses the only strengths she perceives she has: sex and pregnancy. She succumbs to the rigors of perversion and fallen prey to repeated pregnancies without male support. She does it because she thinks she has found "love", not realizing that she has an impassioned biological need that she can overcome through wisdom and guidance by a someone besides her mother to assist her.
First let me say, women are intimately tied to their biology. When feminists say that we are not, that is a denial of our Goddess. Our biology plays such a huge role in our lives that without it, it is not to be indoctrinated into womanhood. ALL women know what a menstrual cycle is. ALL women will know what menopause is. A billion dollar industry is devoted to observing these biological systems at play here. Finding control over these so intimately tied to our sexuality--meaning the expression our sexual self with our partners is about touching our Divinity rightfully owned by us... The pleasure of having a daughter is to see our Divinity. SOME cultures get that... NOT American culture, though as shown through the media and most Christian churches.
The Star Wars Brand was the first movie to show an empowered women handling villainous men. And then all the other women became super-sexualized and stylized in such was that quite frankly are weakened by their inappropriate use of their sexual nature to basically rule the Universe. A Goddess would have NEVER allowed her man to kill her...
The Age of the Goddess is upon us. There will be a shift in the balance of power. It is thought to occur in 2012. A new understanding of life. Women will have their rightful place in the Universe, demolishing old perceptions of "out of wedlock, illegitimate children", the only way to be a powerful woman is by being highly sexualized dominatrix, or become an ugly rebellious feminist with real same-sex preference... Look at Rachel Maddow! Homegirl has a PhD from Oxford and still Bill O'Reilly is intimidated by her... Ass!
Yes, I think it is time. And I'm taking numbers to board this change of the wave of novel women to come forth into this brand than diminutive weaklings I have read and seen so far.
