This week, I came across a headline claiming that over 600,000 Black women have been laid off this year. I don’t know if the number is exact, but I do know this: more than 340,000 have, and that alone tells a story.
A painful one.
Because behind every statistic is a woman holding a degree, a dream, a family, a mortgage… and a life she built with both ambition and sacrifice.
And if that many women are losing jobs, it means Black women–owned businesses are being hit too. When our target markets are unemployed… when tariffs and global instability shake supply chains… when economies shift overnight… we feel the squeeze first.
I’ve felt it.Directly.Intensely.
I’ve watched Black women–owned beauty brands shutter.I’ve watched corporations downsize departments where we were finally breaking through.I’ve watched friends question whether they could hold on to what they built (I am friends).
And what hurts even more?Many of these women didn’t feel like they had a community who understood the magnitude of what they were facing.
Sometimes not even their, our families.Because unless you’ve lived it, the pressure of holding up a dream while holding up everyone else, it’s hard to grasp what the fall could mean.
That’s where this story shifts.
Because I know what that feels like. I know what it means to lose footing.To pivot.To rebuild.To carry the weight of being the backbone in every room.
And that’s why I’m reimagining BESTIES.
Part selfishness.Part service.All heart.
Because I need community, too. I need accountability, soft landings, warm intros, and women who understand the emotional and economic tightrope we walk.
And after relocating from the U.S. to Europe… after restructuring a business…after building a tech company in an industry that isn’t native to me… I realized something big:
Black women around the world are experiencing the same struggle, and the same strength, no matter where we live.
From Atlanta to Lisbon.From Lagos to London.From São Paulo to Toronto.
We want to be seen for who we are, heard for the brilliance we carry, respected for the value we bring, and supported through the storms we didn’t ask for.
So I created a space for us.A space where someone can share a job lead.A partnership opportunity.A contract.A shoulder.A reminder that you are not supposed to carry everything alone.
This is why I restarted BESTIES. Because community is not a luxury.For Black women, it is survival. And if you’ve been waiting for your people, I invite you to join me.
If you need support, accountability, or connection, I invite you to join me.
If you are tired of walking the tightrope alone, this community is yours, too. Apply today!
Xoxo
-Yaminah
The Tightrope is where I write about the delicate balance between family, identity, and ambition, the emotional in-between spaces we don’t always talk about. It’s the series where I explore what it means to hold love and responsibility, hope and disappointment, support and silence… all at the same time.
If you’ve ever juggled your dreams while caring for everyone else, or tried to stand steady while the ground shifts beneath you, this is the place where you’ll feel seen.