Source: Courtesy of #ciroc/NABJ / #ciroc/NABJ
What does Black Excellence look like when it slides from Black History Month right into Women’s History Month? It looks like MJ Acosta-Ruiz and Cari Champion being the first Afro-Latin and Black women—respectively—to report on the Super Bowl, live from the sidelines.
It looks like MJ Acosta-Ruiz being the first Afro-Latin woman to host her own show on the male-dominatedNFL Network, and Cari Champion, a Black woman who got her start in sports media seated between two of the most opinionated men on ESPN, going on to become the host of her eponymous show, The Cari Champion Show on Amazon Prime.
Not familiar with MJ and Cari? No worries, we got you.
Over Super Bowl weekend MADAMENOIRE raised a glass to these powerhouse women as they spoke alongside Kelsey Nicole Nelson of the National Association of Black Journalists. Their panel, Black Women in Media, moderated by Elaine Welteroth, at the #CIROCStands/NABJ Black Excellence Brunch was a whole church service – a psalm, proverb and a revelation to anyone still wondering if Black women are all we say we are.
As Doja Cat says, get into it, yuh.
MADAMENOIRE: MJ, let’s start with you. What does it mean to you to be the first Afro-Latin woman to host your own show on the very white, male-dominated NFL Network? What does it mean first as an Afro-Latin person, and then as a woman?
MJ Acosta-Ruiz: I walk in the door as a whole human being.They’re going to get every bit of my identity – every bit of who I am. From every curl on my head to every piece of jewelry that I wear, and everything in between. And that’s been sort of the way that I’ve led throughout my entire career. I can’t say the same for my entire life because it took a long time to get into a space where I loved and accepted myself fully for all of the different parts of me. But I can certainly say that in my career, it’s been not just a motivator for me, but also a reason for my success. So to be able to represent us in this space where I was the first, and I was the only one at the NFL Network – it was monumental. And I never took it lightly. And then as a woman in that space, it’s very, very, very important for me to make sure that I take up the space, and that I’m speaking up. Especially in times whenI’m the only person in the room that can lend perspective. Black women in this industry have been the reason why I’ve stayed upright when I felt like collapsing, in many different moments. And so our group, our strength, has helped me to continue on. That’s what I want to do now, being in this position… to be able to lift as I climb and to help others find their way. Or at least at minimum, see themselves reflected in this space, and on the screen.
Yes ma’am. I heard that! Cari, you also started your career situated between two very opinionated men, Skip Bayless and Stephen A Smith, talking sports on ESPN. You mentioned during the Black Excellence Brunch that they made sure you know you were “the rookie.” How did you affirm yourself on a daily basis when you were immersed in that world?
Cari Champion: I had to learn to affirm myself. Those first six months, if not the first year, were very, very, very difficult for me. I think my self-esteem was really low in the beginning because… you have to imagine, I’m working with people who are (at the time) 20–30 years into a business that I had been onlytwo years into. And it’s hard to feel like you are worthy when you’re not being told you are, in a world full of men and a world full of people who feel like they’re one up on you because they know the storylines better. But I had a really good mentor. I remember when I got the job, he said, “you will win if you listen, just listen very carefully.” I think the more I listened, the more I learned, and the more confident I became. Eventually, I believe the fellas understood that I was trying to learn and I was trying to be a student… and I was watching the games. They knew that I wanted to be in on this conversation. So, once I became more comfortable with the work we were doing, I started to… I mean I already had the affirmation that I was great, but I started to believe it more and more because it’s repetition. It’s repetition, and like anything, reps make you better. I affirmed myself by studying, learning, pushing the envelope, questioning, and listening. That’s how I found myself. I didn’t look in the mirror and say “you got this”. I just did the work.
You both spoke to, at times, questioning how you show up in that space as your full, authentic selves. MJ, you, as an AfroLatin woman who embraces her full heritage and femininity, and you Cari, as Black woman who also fully embraces her Blackness and femininity. Like many of us, you both have, at times questioned how you show up in the workplace. How does each of you authentically navigate the spaces you’re in?
CC: I just leaned into who I was because I didn’t have a choice. Once I did lean into who I was just a tiny bit, whether it be my laugh, whether it be my skirt, whether it be my high heels, whatever it was, it made me feel comfortable. So, whatever that feeling I had, whenever I was being authentic, it felt right. It felt like I was at home. And the goal for all of us, in whatever workspace we are in, whatever presence we’re in, is to be athome within ourselves. I don’t buy into being uncomfortable inwork environments anymore. If I had any advice for people who struggle with Blackness in a white environment or struggle with Blackness in an environment where you’re the only one, or more importantly, are seeking validation from someone who doesn’t understand the culture – I ask you… are you comfortable? What makes you comfortable? What makes you comfortable, and then find that one thing and live there.
MJ: With sports specifically, I think when you come in and you look a certain way, you’re automatically discredited. Your credibility is called into question if you’re not one of the boys. If you come in as a tomboy, then it’s “we need you to really glam it up for television” and everything in between. And so for me, it was a struggle, because I felt like I’ve always been both, and I didn’t want to just be labeled as this or that. So what I always say is show up as who you are because there is somebody else out there trying to find that space, and trying to feel like it’s okay to come in the room that way. It’s okay to be whomever it is you are because it’s needed…that representation is needed.
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves – show up as your whole self – EVERYWHERE. Okay, ladies – last question. We’re here, at the invitation of the #CIROCStands initiative, and the National Association of Black Journalists,to recognize and celebrate Black excellence. How do you define Black excellence, and do you consider yourselves to be examples of Black excellence?
MJ: Black excellence is everywhere that we turn. Blackexcellence can be as simple as holding your head up in a space where you know others are bringing you down, or even just sharing a part of you with somebody else who is struggling at the moment. Black excellence is being the first and the only in a space. Black excellence is breaking records. Black excellence is being silent and at peace with yourself, knowing that you are resetting yourself so that you can go back out into the world and give the best of yourself. Or, conversely, just saving yourself a little bit, for only you and your family. It’s not just in the forward-facing things that we do or that I do in my job, but in the everyday moments – in your connections with people and certainly in the imprints that you leave with others. And yes, I do consider myself to be an example of Black excellence. It’s what I strive for every day.
CC: I don’t know anybody who is Black and a thriving working professional who is not excellent. That’s the first thing. The second thing is yes, I consider myself Black excellence because I hold myself to a standard that only wants to be the best; because I know it’s so important for our culture to see us in this way. We are not only proving it to ourselves, but we’re proving to the world that we not only belong, we demand, and we deserve, and you deserve. Black excellence is me saying “I’m coming in here. I’m doing what I want to do, unapologetically,in my greatness, because I deserve.” And it means that I can show up in a room and talk that talk, if you will, and back it up. This is “I’m not here to play.” I am here to demand what we deserve. And it’s not a cocky thing. It’s an “I’ve worked hard to be here” thing, and more importantly, it’s what I want to give. I want you to watch me on TV and be proud. I want to represent the culture in a way in which people are pointing and saying “Guess what? This is what we do. And we do it so effortlessly, and we do it in a space that we deserve to be here.” With everything I do I take to heart that I am trailblazing. I do know that. But I also do it with the expectation of “I deserve because I am excellent”.
And that’s on period.
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