Yahoo Finance 'Share the Mic': USWNT stars will amplify black women's voices by handing over Instagram accounts
Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, Ali Krieger, Ashlyn Harris and Abby Wambach have a combined 13.9 million followers on Instagram. They are white women with a platform that gets viewed and amplified. And on Wednesday, they are handing that over to black women so that their voices, so often left behind, are heard too.
The current and former USWNT stars are taking part in the “Share the Mic Now” campaign to “center black voices” in discussions about race, equality and justice. Three-time Seattle Storm champion Sue Bird is also involved as one of the 46 white women sharing the mic.
What is ‘#Sharethe MicNow’?
The hashtag and campaign was designed, per Elle Magazine, by entertainment leaders, including author and Together Rising founder Glennon Doyle, who is married to the former USWNT star Wambach.
The goal of the campaign is “to magnify Black women and the important work that they're doing in order to catalyze the change that will only come when we truly hear each other's voices.” It will reach more than 300 million people on Instagram, per the campaign planners and include women from sports, fashion, politics as well as authors and actresses.
The organizers’ four goals are, via Elle:
“To form a social media campaign that magnifies Black women’s lives and stories. To form relationships among Black women and white women - so that our future activism is born from relationships. To create a network of disruptors who know and trust each other. To create action that could make change.”
The group is also encouraging anyone to participate by either not posting to their social media accounts, in turn further amplifying the voices by leaving less in people’s news feeds, or amplifying black voices with their accounts.
How does it work?
The USWNT stars and Bird are paired up with a black woman who will post from their account throughout Wednesday. It begins at 1 p.m. EST/11 a.m. PST. The groupings:
Alex Morgan and Ibtihaj Muhammad, the first Muslim-American to wear a hijab while competing for the U.S. at the Olympics and the first female Muslim-American to earn a medal. She won bronze as part of Team USA in the team sabre event.
Megan Rapinoe and Fresco Steez, a community organizer on the south side of Chicago who has focused on housing disparities, juvenile justice and the “disruption of the police state.”
Ashlyn Harris and Tiffany Aliche, a financial educator and No. 1 bestselling author who goes by ”The Budgetnista.”
Ali Krieger and Candace Marie, founder of Black in Corporate and head of social media and strategy at Prada.
Abby Wambach and Dr. Yaba Blay, respected as a foremost thought leader on black racial identity, colorism and beautify politics. Her client list includes top academic institutions and corporations such as Netflix and Procter & Gamble.
Sue Bird and Seun Adigun, a Nigerian-American bobsledder and track and field athlete who competed at the 2012 Olympic games in 100-meter hurdles. She founded the Nigerian bobsled team in 2016 and represented the country at the 2018 Winter Olympics in two-woman bobsled.
Journalist and TV personality Cari Champion will also take part, taking over the account of actress Busy Philipps.
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