Three Netflix Shows That Empower Black Women

Looking for a show that will have you on the edge of your seats this summer and keep you empowered? Grab your popcorn, bag of chips, and all your snacks for these binge-worthy shows. 

These 3 shows are not only meant to empower just black women but many other groups of women who seek empowerment. The leading roles within these shows are all women of color who are all seeking acceptance by searching for their inner selves, fighting for respect, seeking loyalty and love, and desiring a better life for themselves as women. It can be hard to seek these things from others and for themselves, but these women overcome these obstacles within the shows and come out winning at the end.

Being Mary Jane

Being Mary Jane is about a beautiful, young, local cable news anchor with goals to be one of the top successful female news anchors while representing the African American community. Throughout the show, she struggles to find herself and satisfy, her love life, her family, and her job. She eventually juggles everything between her life inside and outside of her job and conquers the obstacles that get in her way of becoming a successful news anchor.

The main character, Mary Jane, is played by the beautiful actress Gabrielle Union Wade. The four-season show, Being Mary Jane, premiered back in 2013 on the BET network and is now available to watch on Netflix. If you are really into the show, the fifth season premieres in the Fall of 2018, so be on the lookout for that.

Greenleaf

The show, Greenleaf, is about the Greenleaf family having a church in Memphis called Calvary Fellowship World Ministries. The family and their church appear to be a loving and a caring group of people but behind closed doors, there are a lot of scandals, secrets, and lies that are within the family and ministry.  Throughout the show, the main character Grace returns home after running away almost 20-years ago. Grace “Gigi” Greenleaf is played by Merle Dandridge, and she uncovers a lot of the scandals after the mysterious death of her younger sister, Faith. Her findings eventually help or hinder the relationship with her family, brings clarity to the death of her sister, and opens her eyes to her past and her identity as a Greenleaf. 

This show originates from the famous Oprah Winfrey network OWN, and she plays a regular role in the show as Mavis McCready, also known as Grace’s aunt. If you love Oprah, love the show, and get through the two seasons on Netflix, you can catch the third season on OWN this summer. 

She’s Gotta Have It

Nola Darling, played by the Dewanda Wise, is struggling to find herself while trying to pursue her dream of becoming a successful black female artist. Throughout the season, she jugglings having three lovers, and woman on the side, and each one of them brings out a different side in her. Her art speaks on behalf of all women and portrays the essence, beauty, and resilience of the black woman. Towards the end of the season, she has to choose a lover that brings out her true self while figuring out her next steps to becoming a successful African-American female artist.

This TV-series comes from Spike Lee’s 1986 film, She’s Gotta Have It, which portrays the same themes, ideas, and scenes as the 2017 version. However, the 2017 version talks about the American issues of today’s time. Although there is only one season available on Netflix, Spike Lee is currently working to get the second season out sometime this year on Netflix. He plans on incorporating underground artists’ music within the soundtrack for the show. So, maybe your song can be on his show next season.

Check these drama, love, sex, and empowerment filled shows this summer.