Thoughts About Leveling The Playing Field.
Musings about the importance of putting community forward, authentically.
On a random day at the beginning of February, I routinely opened my email only to find out I had been scouted by The Break Fellowship to participate in their yearly cohort for women entrepreneurs.
The program consists of an entirely sponsored 24-day long retreat somewhere in the middle of Spain where you are assigned to a team with the goal to accelerate your business while taking part in a set of challenges to help local communities.
While the immersive experience starts once you touch down at Barajas (Madrid’s airport), your commitment to the incubator would begin weeks prior to your departure as a way to test your ability to juggle projects and maintain a good work-life balance.
A series of calls, assessments and mentoring sessions would precede the intense month-long program to prepare the candidates for whatever was expected of them once on the Iberian Peninsula.
Flattered, I promptly messaged back asking for more information.
A bunch of questions clouded my head. As a freelancer, did I actually qualify? What were the requirements? Did I have to prove I had a business idea? Am I even a woman entrepreneur?
After weighing the pros and cons of taking part in such an endeavor, I decided to go ahead and apply.
After all, I thought, we can all benefit from structured business guidance, especially when working on our own.
The application was fairly easy.
You had to insert a bunch of personal details – such as nationality, proof of residency, etc. – and submit a statement about the project you’d be working on during the programme.
As I have been trying to build a creative think tank with an editorial output for the past two years – with little advancement – I thought it was a good idea to put this idea forward.
To my surprise, given my scant progress, I got through the first two steps.
The prospect of joining a pool of other ambitious women from all different paths of life was enticing.
Over the course of the 10+ years I have been professionally active, I have never had the chance to take a step back and actually follow through with my dreams.
This would have been my chance for accountability and manifestation.
The third step of the application required deeper analysis and evaluation of the motives behind the project you’d be working on.
What industry would you operate in? Is it sustainable? Does it take modern issues such as diversity and inclusion into account?
Yes ✅, yes ✅ and YES ✅✅✅.
Then, I stumbled onto this question: does your business idea have a community approach?
I unglued the tips of my fingers from my keypad and looked away from the screen for a second. My mind started to wander.
I began to (mentally) browse through all of the projects I had been working on during my “career”.
When have I ever NOT kept community at the center of my work?
The answer to their question was a big, fat OF COURSE. Everything I do is community oriented.
If anything, my inclination – and expertise – for community-focused stuff was exactly what I was bringing to the table for others to learn from.
I continued with the questionnaire, completed it and submitted it.
Two days later, I found out I had passed that test too.
I had been selected for the final judgment: a 30-minute Zoom call with the fellowship-affiliated psychologist to understand how I’d manage to survive co-habiting with strangers and balancing the different activities, including working on my professional undertaking. I passed that too.
Now the ball was in my court: would I accept and join the cohort, or would I respectfully decline the invite?
I took a few days to research and ponder on the decision but eventually, I decided to pass on the opportunity.
As thrilling and fulfilling as the program may have sounded if I were to forgo a month of paid work to solely focus on my long-term achievements, I’d rather spend the time in solitude somewhere I pick. Definitely not Spain (sorry Spanish friends).
Knowing I had been taken into consideration for such a revered program provided a warm sense of accomplishment, which my boyfriend doubled down on by letting me know that both the people who graduate from Ivy League colleges and those who are accepted but choose against it, go on to make the same amount of money.
So really, the only thing that matters is getting into the program, not completing the course.
After sending in my refusal, one thing that stuck with me was that question about community.
What does it actually mean for a business to give back to the community?
“Community” has become a corporate buzzword just like KPI (Key Performance Indicator), ROI (Return On Investment) and DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion).
The term is easily thrown around and exploited by leadership teams, marketing associates and culture specialists, but how often do companies actually listen to the needs of their community and make it a point to give back in a selfless way? Very few times.
And that’s because the people in a position of power — who could actually make it happen — sit in their comfort at the mercy of capitalization and revenue (they luuuurve their salaries!).
Recently, I had the chance to collaborate with my (now) friend Olu Alege, founder of NoNoise, a cultural insights agency based in NYC but active globally, on an array of projects where community isn’t simply a catchphrase. It’s the whole pulp.
I had the pleasure to meet Olu during my time at Miilkiina (RIP).
He supported us through various projects and we kept in touch once I departed from the now-defunct platform.
We bonded over our brutal honesty and mutual interest for things that can truly change people’s lives and level the playing field for disenfranchised youth.
Professionally, both of us have had quite the journey.
Personally, our backgrounds couldn’t be any different.
Olu was born and raised in the Bronx by Nigerian parents.
He’s been a crucial fixture of the downtown NY scene that has inspired many of our present idols.
He didn’t go to a fancy university, yet he knows more about the culture sector and what it means to have an impact than most of those who comfortably sit at the apex of the companies that we look up to.
Spiritually, we are extremely aligned.
For this, we often find ourselves chatting about how artificial, superficial and performative corporate initiatives are.
The conversation leaves us with a sour taste in our mouths, but we energize each other to continue on our path.
Back in November, we worked on a proposal to make football accessible in underserved communities throughout the USA under the patronage of a global automotive brand.
In the US, a big chunk of talent comes from minority backgrounds – often they don’t have papers or the means to play – but the barrier of entry is so high due to the astronomical cost of football academies that they are forced to drop out of their passion once they reach adolescence.
Our idea was to leverage existing talent and futbol-crazy youth to increase attendance and grow the game in the country ahead of the 2026 World Cup while propping the commissioner up as a philanthropist, consequently increasing their brand awareness and sales.
We thought the concept was genius but the agency we were supporting in the pitch felt we weren’t answering the brief correctly.
Essentially they wanted to cater to the affluent communities that already have access to those spaces because of their spending power. Understandable but wack nonetheless.
We vocalized disapproval of their take various times but eventually gave up because fighting against a thick boulder is a losing game.
Needless to say, we didn’t win the presentation but this didn’t discourage us from discussing alternative ways to make shit happen regardless.
We began brainstorming, going through our contacts and making effort to come up with an improved plan to propose to somebody else – still in WIP (so if you know somebody interested in such perusals, hit my line).
Fast-forward to a few months later, it was time for the biggest spectacle of them all again: Women’s Fashion Week.
It is clear that the fashion industry has been preying upon subcultures and community-led movements for a while now, but during this fickle period of abundant waste and superficiality, the skeletons come out to play in plain sight.
Thankfully, I finally had the chance to distance myself from the circus and didn’t partake in the carousel for the first time in years.
However, thanks to my peers and social media, I wasn’t entirely able to free myself from the shackles of runway shows and snooty presentations.
That’s when I was made aware of Cormio’s Bend-It-Like-Beckham-meets-Betsey-Johnson-inspired FW23 collection.
Curious, I eagerly waited for images to pop up on my Instagram feed.
It didn’t take long to get acquainted with the girl-poweresque mis en place taking place on an indoor football pitch.
Influencers posed next to the goalposts in their over-the-top outfits while uninterested editors sat on wooden benches on the sidelines.
A squad of underaged girls vigorously engaged in a pickup game dressed in pink (how groundbreaking) uniforms in stark contrast with the cobalt blue turf.
A giant banner hung from the goals featuring a screenshot of an iPhone note – yes, exactly those that celebrities use to apologize when caught red-handed – that read: “I didn’t think it would be this hard to find 20 girls who play football for the intro”.
Skeptical, I checked the credits in the caption.
Familiar names were thanked for the production, yet not a name from somebody who deals with women’s football on the daily was mentioned.
Now, I appreciated the spirit behind this campaign. Unfortunately, the execution was completely wrong and it even set the conversation back in my opinion.
Women’s football has been growing exponentially since the 2019 World Cup that took place in France.
Matter of fact, it’s the fastest-growing sport worldwide.
Girls of all ages are finally able to come out as footballers without being ridiculed or judged.
In Italy, they finally acquired professional status.
It’s obvious football has become a girls’ game.
Plenty of football academies targeted toward girls have been popping up and DIY initiatives are just a google search away.
Naturally, I was rubbed the wrong way by the clear lack of research that led to the manufacturing of that silly banner.
What did they mean it was hard to find 20 female footballers?
They are everywhere in Milan if you know where to look.
And for “know where to look”, I don’t mean you need to go on a treasure hunt. They are one Instagram search away.
It takes less than 2 minutes to find the right people to contact.
Appalled but not surprised, I shared my disappointment with my following and moved on.
Until, last week, I was faced with that damn banner again.
This time it was an official post from the brand, complaining about certain things that happened on the day of the show and how the patriarchy is always at fault and yadda yadda yadda.
Naturally, I commented. Their answer to my critique was pitiful.
Familiar with the flippant methodology of fashion, I grumbled, sneered and shook my head. Then I refocused to remind myself I can’t save them all.
This unfortunate exchange reinforced the need for a radical subversion of the community activation strategies employed by those companies that operate in the culture sector and have the opportunity to trigger change at large. But if even the founders behind niche brands do not understand the importance of involving the said community in the process, rather than using them as a prop for their own feel-good messages, how will we ever be able to level the playing field for those who need a little hand in acquiring equity?
As an established freelance worker, I often find myself vetting projects based on their authenticity.
It’s a slippery slope because the economy is shaky and saying no or pushing back is truly a privilege reserved for a few.
As somebody who is naturally outspoken and opinionated, I have often faced friction and disappointment.
If you are not resilient or strong-minded, it’s easy to throw in the towel.
There have been plenty of instances when I could have easily folded and turned into a tool at the mercy of corporations.
It provides comfort, security, success even.
As a writer who sometimes doubles as a journalist, it’s easy to fall trap of false friendships and impartial reviews.
Those mild, impartial opinions are what bring you cash and accolades.
You don’t want to upset advertisers, you don’t want to sever ties. It’s become increasingly harder to speak out about injustice and wrongful behavior and find consensus amongst your peers.
People prefer to keep to themselves, to let others challenge the establishment and then jump on the winning bandwagon.
They are afraid to be seen as disruptors, and you know, safe money never likes rowdiness. It favors tepid commentary.
Too bad I haven’t given a fuck since high school.
When my mates would cry over our tyrannical Latin teacher and meekly accept her despotic misconduct afraid that speaking their minds would lower their grades, I would fiercely stand up against her and make myself the spokesperson of the class disapproval. Yet, even with me as the scapegoat for her wrath, they would keep quiet and allow the professor to keep at her erratic methods.
I frequently find myself in the same position nowadays, far removed from the Formica desks of my provincial high school, in the glamorous rooms of the industry I work in.
A big chunk of my colleagues publicly praise things that they privately despise.
They echo my sentiments behind closed doors but repost with hearts and kisses, frightened by the idea that criticizing ill behavior could sideline them.
But again, how can we create a truly equitable society if we don’t push the envelope, challenge vacuity, stick our necks out and swim upstream?
Echoing the spirit of my first essay of the month – Thoughts About Choosing Violence – I want to encourage people to not be afraid of being themselves, unapologetically.
Especially if you are in a decision-making position.
Open those gates, shatter those ceilings, and dare to put yourself on the line, as without us, the playing field will keep on being slanted.
Things I think people should be aware of:
1. Manifesto: On Never Giving Up by Bernardine Evaristo
2. Harlem Lamine’s work
3. The Blue Print: an editorial project I have had the pleasure to create for Ogyre.
4. This fundraiser I have been running in order to buy new equipment for Academia Juzepe in Guinea Bissau.
Florencia Galarza is opening a girls football academy in Mendoza, Argentina. Help her raise the funds needed to let the girls play.
This jolly Haitian record 💃🏻: