Black women have been historically excluded from mainstream constructions of femininity and beauty. This exclusion can be traced back to colonial and slavery-era ideologies, where we were often depicted as physically strong, resilient, and suited for labour, but not as delicate, nurturing, or "feminine" in the traditional, Western sense.

In this context, our bodies were viewed primarily as instruments of physical labour, not as sites of beauty or elegance. We were dehumanised, our bodies objectified, and our womanhood stripped away in favour of a stereotype that positioned us as less than women in the ways that mainstream society defined.