Tag: Virginia

Finding Space to Thrive: Black Women Who Wine

Post author By Katrina Spencer
Post date July 7, 2023
No Comments on Finding Space to Thrive: Black Women Who Wine

Tasha Durrett, Founder and owner of Black Women Who Wine, photo provided by Tasha Durrett

by Channing Mathews

Black Women Who Wine is a love letter to Black women and our thriving. Initially a small meet-up between sisters and a niece, the group has expanded to connect Black women to explore Virginia wineways, and offer critical social support in the aftermath of COVID-19. “My favorite parts are my efforts to try and support more sisterhood,” notes founder Tasha Durrett. “I am so interested in seeing Black women coming together and supporting each other. I think that it’s so important that we build these spaces for each other and for ourselves.”

Operating since 2019, Tasha has a passion for the visibility of Black women in wine. A communications and marketing expert by training, she was struck by the limited representation of Black women as regular patrons of Virginia wineries, “When I came back here, I started going to wineries I liked on social media, but I found myself really frustrated by the lack of attention to Black women as patrons. I knew we were there, but I didn’t see us being re-shared on Instagram, or us being included in marketing, and I really felt some type of way about that.” Tasha leverages the group as a space to challenge stereotypes about Black people in wine, noting common stereotypes that Black people don’t drink wine or can’t afford it. Thus creating Black Women Who Wine was a space to cultivate her digital advocacy, to highlight beautiful and joyful Black women in spaces that are often both white and male dominated. Hosting monthly events at different wineries across Virginia, Tasha has used Black Women Who Wine as a platform for wine education and access to the wine industry, particularly wine incubators that serve to train the next generation of winemakers. “The wine space is just as male as it is white, so there is also a real gender problem there with women in winemaking.” Tasha’s efforts to shift this inequity take shape by bringing Black women to the table for both joy and education in Virginia wine.

a group of Black women — A group picture of Black Women Who Wine (BWWW) at one of its monthly meet-ups at Valley Road Vineyards. BWWW hosts monthly meet-ups to explore new wineries, receive wine education, and fellowship.

Black Women Who Wine focuses on three key goals through their events, namely, 1.) leveraging their spending to impact social change in the wine industry; 2.) educating members about wine; and 3.) forming sustainable partnerships with local wineries to promote diversity in both the hiring and marketing aspects of the wine space. Their most recent event, The Summer Kickoff, emphasized all three of these practices by hosting the event at Sweet Vines Farm Winery in Unionville, known as Virginia’s only Black-owned winery space. The owner, Seidah Armstrong, is an advocate for Black women to come and use the space as a point of connection and investment, and members of Black Women Who Wine have been repeat customers each year investing in the winery’s success. “Sweet Vines offers lifetime memberships for patrons who spend a certain dollar amount. Black Women Who Wine has nearly reached that goal, [as we look to be] key investors in this [Black-owned} wine and event space.”

When asked about her vision for the future of Black Women Who Wine, Tasha is focused on building out her brand while simultaneously creating investment opportunities for its members. “My ultimate vision is [that] we have ownership in something because that’s the way to have power in any space. Looking at what ownership looks like for us, ‘cause I think there is so much power in us coming together for something like that. I see wine and grape growing in [Virginia] as similar to growing any crop. It takes a while to get in there, it takes finances to get there. But there is a lot that is not being said about who controls land and how people got land, and how generational wealth plays into these spaces, in ways that Black people ultimately don’t have.”

a table set for wine tasting — The Workshop at The Wool Factory hosted Black Women Who Wine for a private tasting earlier this year.

Tasha looks to shift this narrative with future investments, particularly pointing to the recent success of well known and well loved Black woman sommelier Lee Campbell, who is a partial owner of the new Virginia wine incubator, Commonwealth Crush Co. that seeks to invest in the next generation of winemakers. “[Lee Campbell} is a sommelier coming from New York, but she’s been involved with Virginia wine for a very long time, taking wine from Virginia into restaurants in New York. Her first wine produced through Commonwealth crush is out. So not only are we growing people here, but we are attracting people from other spaces. And she is gonna be a great asset to the Charlottesville wine community.”

Alongside Lee and other Black women making moves in the Charlottesville wine industry, Tasha pushes Black Women Who Wine to be a space that brings Black girl magic to the forefront of an industry that often renders us invisible. “We are gonna be a wine group to be reckoned with because we are gonna know our stuff,” Tasha states. She thrives on the building the success of other Black women, particularly while curating spaces that cultivate Black Girl Joy.

Find Tasha and more Black Women Who Wine events on their website. Their next event will be a July 15, 2023 meet up at CrossKeys Winery and Marceline Vineyards. You can RSVP here to save your spot!

Tags community, Virginia, wine, wineries

National Headlines

Pharrell Williams Tells Graduating Norfolk State Class To Act Like The "Emerging Majority"

Post author By Vinegar Hill Magazine
Post date December 13, 2021

Okay Dr. Williams! – This weekend, super producer Pharrell Williams received an honorary doctorate from Norfolk State University after he gave the commencement speech to the graduating fall class.

“I didn’t attend Norfolk State, but I was always present,” Williams said. “I am honored to have made this part of my work, my story and still today, I can’t wait to see how far you amazing, impressive graduates of Norfolk State … how far you’ll go.”

He was also named an honorary member of the school’s marching band, an honor that brought the ‘Happy’ singer to shed a few happy tears, according to the

As a Virginia Beach High School graduate, Williams reflected on his memories of the

‘I wanted to be able to make people feel the way Norfolk State’s band made me feel,’ he said.

During his speech, Williams took time to acknowledge the ways in which the city of Norfolk recognizes and respects past and local heroes.

“Norfolk will not be the city that limits its peoples’ own potential, but instead, it will feed it,” he stated. He also urged graduates to patronize local businesses as a way of giving back, and to refrain from calling themselves minorities.

“We are the emerging majority,” he said. “Don’t wait until Election Day. Vote with your wallets today, tomorrow and the next day.”

Aside from the inspirational words offered this weekend, we’re also just happy to see Pharrell back in Virginia. His relationship with the city of Virginia Beach took a deep dive in the spring after his cousin was shot by police. It was only two weeks ago that In response to the handling of the investigation, the producer is refusing to bring back his annual music festival, Something In The Water, to the city’s beachfront. Neither officer present at the shooting had their body cameras turned on.

We’re pleased to see a sunnier side developing for the man who keeps our heads nodding through the decades.

Source: Pharrell Williams Tells Graduating Norfolk State Class To Act Like The “Emerging Majority”

Tags geography of the united states, human interest, musicians, no one ever really dies, norfolk, norfolk state university, norfolk virginia, pharrell williams, regions of the united states, remixers, Virginia

Politics

Election results show policing and public safety are top issues for Black voters

Post author By Vinegar Hill Magazine
Post date November 9, 2021

OPINION: David Love writes that the 2021 elections demonstrate why the time is now for Democrats to act on police reform

The 2021 election results have proven that policing remains a frontburner issue in light of the George Floyd protests last year. The efforts and failures to enact police reform, the pressing needs in the Black community, and the Republicans’ continued exploitation and racialization of the police all take place under the backdrop of Democratic inaction on policing on the federal level.

In New York City, Brooklyn Borough President and retired police captain Eric Adams won handily against the Republican candidate, Guardian Angel leader Curtis Sliwa, to become the second Black person elected mayor of the overwhelmingly Democratic and majority Black and Brown city. Sliwa had suggested Adams would abuse the police practice of stop-and-frisk against Black and Latino men.

Meanwhile, Adams said he “protected Black and Brown and low-income New Yorkers” from police abuse, and noted his son was a victim of the practice, adding that he calls for “appropriate police tactics” rather than “aggressive police tactics.” Adams — who took a measured approach to the issue of policing during the campaign and called for cutting waste in the department — said he would select a woman of color for the role of police commissioner.

New York City Mayor-elect Eric Adams holds his hands together as he takes the stage during his election night party at the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge on November 02, 2021 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Adams, who himself had been beaten by police as a teen and later became a critic of the police as an officer, did not endorse “defunding the police,” reducing police budgets, reinvesting in communities, and diverting resources toward social services and intervention.

Minneapolis, which was ground zero in the protests and where George Floyd was murdered by police officer Derek Chauvin, had the opportunity to vote for a ballot measure to replace the police department with a department of public safety and treat public safety as a public health matter. The measure was defeated by 56% of the voters — a blow to the movement for Black lives.

“Let’s work together for increased safety for all, instead of pursuing reckless policies which only empower criminals,” read a statement from the Minnesota Police & Peace Officers Association.

However, police reform was victorious in a number of races. For example, Pittsburgh just elected its first Black mayor, Ed Gainey, who advocates for police reform — including demilitarizing the police — and affordable housing, said he wants to make the city the most “safe, affordable and diverse” city in the country.

Further, in Cleveland, which just elected its first new mayor in years, outsider and nonprofit executive Justin Bibb, voters approved of a reform to the city charter which creates civilian oversight of the police. Bibb supported the measure and ran on police reform and accountability to “improve law enforcement, save taxpayers’ money, rebuild trust, and most importantly save lives.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mayor-Elect Justin Bibb (@bibbforcle)

However, the elephant in the room, other than the apparent nail-biting victory of New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, is the victory of Republican gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin over former Gov. Terry McAuliffe, and the apparent Democratic loss of the Virginia House of Delegates. The Trump-endorsed Youngkin — an Ivy League graduate who positioned himself as a reasonable Republican, albeit perhaps a white supremacist with a smile –nevertheless leaned hard on the Southern Strategy of boogeyman racial politics in the form of critical race theory.

Although Virginia Democrats have had months to strategize and counter the narrative coming from the segregationist astroturf campaigns descending upon school board meetings, they squandered their time and failed to craft a strong message. McAuliffe could not even effectively attack Youngkin’s leadership at the Carlyle Group, a private equity firm accused of predatory practices, because the Democrat invests in the firm. In addition, Youngkin, who received broad law enforcement support, opposes eliminating qualified immunity for police officers and profits from the sale of military weapons used by police. Support for more police funding was one of the issues that attracted voters to the GOP.

And Virginia, home of the Unite the Right rally, has some unaddressed problems around race and policing. Nikuyah Walker, the first Black woman elected mayor of Charlottesville, has resigned because she could not stand the white supremacy. This comes after the city manager fired Dr. RaShall Brackney, Charlottesville’s first Black female police chief who sought transformative change and racial equity.

Dr. RaShall Brackney, Charlottesville’s first Black female police chief. (Photo: Charlottesville Police Department)

However, the key takeaway from this election cycle is not to blame progressive Democrats such as ‘The Squad’ or Black voters for the election results in Virginia. Rather, the problem is white women, 57% of whom voted for Youngkin, and specifically uneducated white women, three-quarters of whom voted for the Republican. “WE are NOT the problem and pandering to white women AIN’T the solution,” said Danielle Moodie, host of WokeAF Daily.

Rather the problem is milquetoast moderates who do not respond to the needs of their strongest constituents such as Black folks, while always currying favor with white voters whose support they will never win. White moderates are perhaps in the worst position to save us from white supremacy, fascism and Jim Crow authoritarianism, even as they have had nearly 60 years since the 1964 Goldwater presidential campaign to learn and fight back against the Southern Strategy.

Kentucky Senate candidate Charles Booker summed up the election results with a tweet: “In all of the political analysis, there is a truth that must be understood. Republicans win by weaponizing racism, and Democrats lose by trying to ignore it.”

And as Charles Ellison, host of Reality Check on Black talk radio station WURD in Philadelphia noted, “The incompetence of Democrats, the cartoonish failure of those parading as capable (& well paid) strategists, & the lack of fight from those *calling* themselves warriors against racism, all on full display, is just …. Infuriating.” He added, “This isn’t a game, fam. Course correct in 2022.”

Louisville Police Officer Charged With Wanton Endangerment In Breonna Taylor's Death A protester raises his hands in the air during a standoff with law enforcement on September 23, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

The Democrats, afraid of their own shadow and compromising with themselves, have not enacted police reform, nor have they passed a number of measures including voting rights, infrastructure and the other elements of the Biden agenda that enjoy overwhelming support. Meanwhile, Trumpism is on the ballot in 2022 and 2024, and you should be afraid. As James Baldwin once said, “It is certain, in any case, that ignorance, allied with power, is the most ferocious enemy justice can have.”

On police reform, community control of law enforcement and so much more, the Democrats must reframe strongly and deliver a message for their constituents without compromise. They must have Black people’s back and speak out against racism, or there will be trouble with enthusiasm and turnout. They must support policies to make Black people safe and secure, with social initiatives that address the underlying issues of wealth and economic inequality — not more police, and not more police with weapons, but alternatives to police and a redefinition of public safety.

The protests last year were not for nothing, and the GOP only cares about law and order when it means more dead and imprisoned Black people. With the Republicans poised for a redistricting and voter suppression bonanza and the gutting of multiracial democracy in the midst of Democrats’ inaction, they will happily oblige.