Sunshine on a rainy day

It’s the inclusion of Storm. (Storm? Pretty sure that’s Storm.) And in a way where, yes, representation saves lives.

See, here’s a weird medical fact: black women are more likely to get breast cancer and nobody knows why. It’s a medical mystery. Now, I want you to do a fun exercise: tell me the last time you saw a breast cancer awareness campaign that included black women. Go on, I’ll wait. Speaking as someone active with the cause whose aunt is even more active with the cause, here’s my answer: In eight years of working for awareness across four states, I have never seen a single black woman in any breast cancer campaign. Ever.

Black women are also more likely to die of breast cancer because they’re less likely to catch it early. That’s not genetics, that’s math. The sooner you begin treatment, the better your prognosis. Black women are less likely to know how to do self-exams and because of the socioeconomic divide, less likely to see an OB/GYN annually. And they’re ignored by awareness campaigns.