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Black Girl Magic ✨ || Interview with Niimah Inuwa on “Girl on Girl Hate”.

Girl Hate is tearing down fellow women for reasons related to insecurity, competitiveness and jealousy. Girl Hate is internalized misogyny and acrimony. Girl Hate is, “Oh my God, do you see what she’s wearing?” or “Does she honestly think she looks good like that?” Girl Hate happens everywhere and all the time.

– Madison Mignola


As a girl, you must have experienced hatred from another girl at one time or the other. You must have been a victim of Girl Hate, where a lady or a group of ladies just choose to dislike and detest you. They may have been jealous or felt like they were in a competition with you.

You’re not alone.

I’m writing from the stand point of someone who has been and still is a victim of Girl Hate. It has become a norm for ladies in institutions, classes, workplaces, churches and the society and large to feel like they’re in a competition with other ladies which makes it difficult for them to uplift or learn from them.

The sad reality is that girl-on-girl hate is such a big issue in schools, at work, or online, and it never made any sense to me because, as women, we know how awesome other women can be. Lilly Singh

Our Black Girl Magic, Niimah Inuwa speaks with us on girl on girl hate and her experiences.

Enjoy…

Welcome to Dupe’s blog ma’am. It’s so great to have you here.

My pleasure.

Can we meet you?

My Full name is Inuwa Niimah. I’m a 400 level Architecture student, 21yrs old, a die hard anime otaku, hiker, and a badminton lover.

Do you love being a black girl?

Niimah: Of course! Saves money on sunscreen. *laughs*
I think (and I say this with the least amount of racial stereotype) I like the sauciness. Black people have attttiiituuude…
The pride, “Extraness” for no reason. Quite fun.

Have you ever experienced girl on girl hate?

Sweetie I’ve lost count.

Can you share an experience or two?

Oh wow uhm let’s see…
Excluding the general eye rolls in public places.
There was this one time back in my 200level, a girl came up to me complimenting my makeup and asking about what products I was using and stuff.
I of course was flattered and gave her the info she needed. But den I felt these eye beams of negative energy flying straight at me so I looked behind this nice lady and her friend was giving me cold stares, so I look up and I’m like “Hello?”
This friend then goes “Hi” And I’m like “Any problem?”
And she goes, “I’ve seen you before and you always seem to be made up all the time”
I’m like “Yes, why?” She then replies how she was just wondering if it wasn’t too much seeing as she wears only mascara and gloss daily.
My mind took a double take at that point.
I’m ashamed to say I lost my temper.
But this was just one of the many occasions I’d received random “Don’t you think that looks too much?” or “I prefer” or “Caked up girls have attitude
Basically that day a random stranger just looked me straight in d face and told me she had a problem with my face.
Lord!
I have literally had a girl tell me she believes girls that dress a certain way are conceited.
It’s ridiculous how much shade women throw at each other for no apparent reason.

It’s quite disappointing that girls hate on fellow girls so much. There seem to be an unspoken default competitive character in ladies that make them tear other ladies down. What’s your take on girl on girl hate? What do you think is responsible for it?

Low self esteem definitely.
‘Cause I have noticed when girls spit hate grimes they do it to make themselves feel better and it’s sad. Very sad.
Confident women don’t step on others.

You mentioned Low self-esteem as one of the reasons girls hate. Does this imply that it’s not entirely their fault?

Logically, you may want to think so
But I like to hold everyone accountable for their lives.
Yes, they may have gone through stuff beyond their control but when you wake up in the morning, young woman look in the mirror, you have a choice.
And most of us make the wrong choice everyday.

What are the choices we have?

To err is human, to forgive is divine”
Forgive.
Be a better person.
Smile.
Be NICE, be positive.
Most women feel like everyday is war and that very woman is the opposition to beat not an ally.
And I think this is the central backbone of the brainwashing society that has put in this place for centuries.
Men aren’t perfect but the man to man relationship is way better than what we have as women.

So true!

Why do you think this problem is peculiar to women?

*laughs* Now here’s the twist.
I blame the men actually.
Of course women play a part but a smaller one.
Throughout history, we were dominated, enslaved, shut down by most civilizations in the ancient world and literally brought up to please the man.
It’s the 21st century yet women still haven’t gotten over it.
Domestic violence, sexism, misogyny and all forms of discrimination.

Interesting.

How can the black girl get rid of the unhealthy mindset of jealousy, competition and hate on other girls?

Now this is like trying to get a kid to stop chewing his nails.
You can advice all you want but until they reach that point where they mentally go beyond it, there isn’t much we can do.
Of course words of encouragement, spreading girl on girl love (no homo) *laughs*.
These would be of great help.

Girls that are victims of the hate could get depressed and sad. What would you advice a lady that gets hateful remarks from a fellow girl?

Brush it off honey.
Always remember that the person bullying you is coming from a lower point in her spiritual energy.
Do what makes you happy.
Exercise, hydrate eat well, love well and live long enough to prove people wrong.

Thank you so much for your time Niimah, it was such a great time with you. I hope to have you here again.

You’re very welcome the pleasure is all mine. I’m glad I could help.

Spread Love. Incredible things happen when women support other women.

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Black Girl Magic || Interview with Grace Onu on Friends.

“True friends are like diamonds—bright, beautiful, valuable and always in style.”

-Nicole Richie

How do you identify your friends, what are the benefits and how do you maintain them?

Learn these and more on this amazing interview with Grace Onu.

Dupe : Welcome to Dupe’s Blog ma.

Thank you so much for having me, it’s an honour ?

Dupe: Can we meet you?

My name is Grace Egbi Onu, I’m currently an Msc student with the Department of Crop protection ABU but I also work part time with an Agricultural research firm that works with rural farmers across Northern Nigeria. I’m from Benue state.

Dupe: Do you love being a black girl?

I absolutely love being a black girl, there is just something unique about it.

Dupe: Can you mention one aspect of the black girl you love?

Our resilience, our ability to get back on our feet, no matter what life throws at us. This is one quality that stands out the most for me.

Dupe: Would you describe yourself as someone who has friends?

Yes I would, I love people, I always enjoy getting to meet new people.

Dupe: Do you think the black girl needs friends?

Absolutely, friends make things easier. As social beings, we thrive on relationships.

Even God desires a relationship with us, how much more we who where created in His image. We were created for relationships and friendship is one of those.

Dupe: What are the benefits of friendships?

There are lots and lots of benefits that one derives from genuine friendships.

  1. There is the support system that friendship gives, you have a shoulder(s) to cry on when the days are tough and also someone to rejoice with you when things are going well.
  2. Also friends challenge you to be a better person.
  3. Companionship is another benefit.

There are so many benefits of friendship
Especially when the friendship is a genuine one, where you both have the best interest of each other at heart.

Dupe: How does one win friends? How did you win yours?

Well the Bible speaking in the book of Proverbs 18:24a (KJV) says “A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly”.
To win friends, you must first be a friend. I don’t think friendship is about yourself, it’s all about the other person, you have to care about people and be really concerned about them.

When people know they can trust you and you care about them, their hearts are automatically opened to you.
As my spiritual father and Mentor Apostle Joshua Selman says “the highest psychological need of man is to feel loved,valued and appreciated”
This is truly the crux of friendship.

Dupe: How does one maintain friendships?

To maintain friendship you have to be aware first of how friendships functions.
My Spiritual father taught on this in a message titled “Understanding people, maintaining relationships” but I’ll just try and say a little
We have friends who are just “everyday acquaintances” these are people we see everyday, say “hi” to them and it ends there.
Then we have the “special interest friends“, these ones are people who are probably in the same unit with you in church, or you work in the same fellowship or have similar hobbies.
And then the “intimate confidant”
Friendship with the intimate confidant is one that requires you to intentionally maintain it.
This requires time, trust and commitment.

Dupe: How does one identify an “intimate confidant” and separate that relationship from others?

The intimate confidant is that friend the Bible says “sticketh closer than a brother” you can have the highest level of intimacy with these ones and share your deepest thoughts and concerns.

Like I said, this type of friendship requires time, commitment and trust. It’s not something that is built over a short while.

I’m personally of the opinion that God just connects you to these ones. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that you won’t have to work to maintain this kind of friendship it just means your hearts are naturally inclined to them.
Some friendships are also for seasons, God brings them into your life for a season and a reason.. It’s important to know so we don’t overstretch it.

Dupe: How do you handle conflicts with your friends?

Your friends will hurt you, so be prepared for it. When this happens, express your feelings honestly and without resentment and then forgive them. Also be humble enough to ask for forgiveness when you know you have hurt their feelings. A proud person CANNOT keep friends. So when conflict happens, just forgive.

Dupe: Finally, can you highlight 3 major things close friends have helped you with?

Yea,

  1. My relationship with God: they have challenged me to seek and know God better.
  2. They rallied around me when I had a life challenging experiences.
  3. They also helped me be a better person and also let me understand the value of having good people around you

Dupe: Thank you so much for your time. We hope to have you again.

Thank you also for having me, I had so much fun and I’m looking forward to it. God bless you.

What lessons have you learnt about friends? Leave comments and let’s discuss.

Share this post with your friends if you loved it.

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Black Girl Magic || Interview with Deborah Shaibu on Money Management.

People say that money is not the key to happiness, but I always figured if you have enough money, you can have a key made.” -Joan Rivers

A woman’s best protection is a little money of her own.” -Clare Boothe Luce

Financial independence is of utmost importance, even to the black woman and today, Beauty Queen Debbie Shaibu shares with us on finances. It is no rocket science; she shares simple tips that’s are easy to adopt.

Enjoy the read.

Dupe: Welcome to Dupe’s Blog ma’am

Deborah Shaibu: Thank you, it’s wonderful to be here.

Dupe: Can we meet you?

Deborah Shaibu: Ok, I’m Debbie Shaibu, a final year English major, beauty queen, breast cancer ambassador, writer, beauty enthustast and budding entrepreneur, well, I’m quite a Jack of all trades.

Dupe: Tell us a little about yourself.

Deborah Shaibu: I’m a focused, passionate and ambitious person who commits herself totally to whatever she envisions which has had its pros and cons. I’m a God lover, currently on a quest to know God personally and I’m also very passionate about women and women’s rights which lead me to pageantry. I love to eat(I bet you’ve never heard a beauty queen say that lol), read, write, do DIY projects, travel and spend quality time with myself and those I love.

Dupe: Tell us about the pageant you won.

Deborah Shaibu: Ok, well, Miss Comely Queen Nigeria is an annual pageant which equips its queens with resources they need in order to take giant strides against cancer, especially breast cancer. I’m currently working on my pet project which is going to be a concert to raise awareness for cancer among youth through entertainment.

Dupe: Do you love being a black girl?

Deborah Shaibu: Whoo-hooo!!! I’m literally screaming right now because I can’t find words to quantify how much I’m grateful to be a black woman. I love everything from our thick hair to our shiny ebony skin, curvaceous hips and strong character. I think God made black women to show off his creative skills.

Dupe: Let’s talk about money. How important is financial strength to the black girl?

Deborah Shaibu: Extremely important, like Robert Kiyosaki said “Money isn’t the most important thing but it sure affects everything that is important”. Financial strength makes us better people, better Girlfriends, better wives, better mothers, etcetera. And I’m really glad that our generation of women have realized this and are no longer sitting lethargically, waiting on a man to provide their daily bread.

Dupe: So you’re saying the black girl needs financial independence not just a man to take care of her bills?

Deborah Shaibu: Exactly.

Dupe: How bad is financial stress?

Deborah Shaibu: I think almost every adult knows just how terrible it is to be under financial duress. It reduces people into nagging, worried shadows of themselves. The love of money might be the root of all evil, but the lack of it is definitely the mother of all distractions.

Dupe: What simple habits can be practiced to avoid financial duress?

Deborah Shaibu: READING!!! Read read read!! Read, Watch and listen to things that improve your financial knowledge. The goal is to know more today than you did yesterday.

Also, knowledge isn’t power, applied knowledge is power so if you don’t apply the knowledge you acquire, it’s simply as good as no knowledge at all.

Work on your inner self, examine your core beliefs because like Oprah Winfrey said, “Our doing is fueled by our being“. Check your daily habits and learn to be an excellent money manager which simply means master the art of budgeting your money, saving to invest and pay for your future. Also, take time to learn about investing and make investments because passive income is real wealth. Most importantly, follow your dreams, seek out what sets your soul on fire because you can only be truly successful when you love what you do and finally, none of this will be possible without discipline and gradual self mastery. Oh! And never, ever ever ever give up and quit.

Dupe: You mentioned budgeting. How do you track where your money goes?

Deborah Shaibu: Ok, some people suggest making out time at the end of every day to write down everything you spent your money on that day and that’s fine if you can keep up with that daily and also remember everything you purchased that day down to even a lollipop.

That doesn’t work for me so I practice monthly and weekly budgeting which to me is more flexible and time friendly. Every month, I divide my money in respective percentages to different bank accounts which gives me a clearer view of how much is for what and weekly, I write down my wants and needs plus miscellaneous because I can be quite impulsive sometimes and allocate certain amounts of money to each so I know how much my spending limit on e.g. fast food is for that week and it sort of functions as a mental compass for me.

Dupe: How do you identify your needs and differentiate them from your wants?

Deborah Shaibu: Needs are things you can’t live without like food and rent, while wants are things that you can forgo without any consequences.

Dupe: How much shopping is too much shopping?

Deborah Shaibu: Shopping that exceeds the amount of money budgeted for shopping is too much shopping.

Shopping for things we don’t need or sometimes even want is impulsive & shopping to impress or intimidate people we don’t even like is plain stupidity.

“Stop buying things you don’t need, to impress people you don’t even like.” -Suze Orman

Dupe: What should be our attitude to borrowing and lending?

Deborah Shaibu: Well there’s good debt and bad debt. Good debt is money you borrow to finance an investment that will produce more money e.g. buying a rental property or acquiring land while bad debt is money we borrow to squander e.g. a car or house loan. My advice would be to steer clear of bad debt. If you must borrow, keep it small and if it’s a large sum, make sure someone else is paying the debt back (e.g. tenants pay back the owner’s loan on a rental property). Lending is okay if you know how to do it right, you trust the person you’re lending money to and you don’t stretch your purse too thin.

Dupe: Thank you so much for your time. We hope to have you here again soon.

Deborah Shaibu: Thanks for having me, I’m truly honoured.