In this Based Camp episode, Malcolm and Simone Collins explore the sharp rise in Black women’s unemployment in 2025, the backlash against DEI initiatives, and why efforts to elevate specific groups as “minions” of dominant cultural powers often backfire—leaving the broader group to face the consequences.

They discuss OkCupid dating data showing Black women receive fewer responses than even many incel-labeled groups, cultural tropes and archetypes available to Black women, historical patterns of favored minorities (Tutsi in Rwanda, Protestants under Cromwell, etc.), and the personal essay by Sesali Bowen (”Black Women Aren’t Just Unemployed, They’re Being Erased”).

The conversation covers financial habits, work ethic signals, shifts from “Black Girl Magic” to post-DEI realities, AI automation, government job cuts, and why merit-based systems might ultimately benefit everyone—including those previously disadvantaged by tokenization.

Provocative, data-driven, and unfiltered—watch for a deep dive into how “well-intentioned” favoritism can intensify backlash and what this means for cultural resilience and family formation.

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Show Notes

* If I were a black woman in America, I’d be going off the grid

* Right off the bat, black women have the cards stacked against them the worst in dating markets

* And now, whether or not they ever bought into it, black women may have the cards stacked against them

* Here are some choice stats from an article I came across covering this:

* “In December 2025, “Black women were spending an average of 29.7 weeks, or more than seven months, unemployed—the highest rate among every group of women and among all men except for Black men, who had a slightly higher average,” The 19th* reports.”

* “At the height of the summer volatility, Black women accounted for 54.7% of all female job losses, despite making up only 14.1% of the female workforce,” according to an analysis by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research.

* What’s sick is that the racket that caused the backlash which may be hurting a lot of black women was due to special treatment that was largely exploited by a small subset of already-privileged women

* We’ll go through the experienced of one of those privileged women

* And look at examples of other instances in which well-intentioned efforts to help specific groups have backfired

One Women’s Experience of Lost Privilege

The Purse published a guest essay from Sesali Bowen titled Black women aren’t just unemployed—they’re being erased.

Choice quotes:

THE LANDSCAPE

* “Since last fall, general unemployment rates in the U.S. have ticked up to 4.4%, from 4% at the start of 2025. At the same time, the jobless rate for Black women has surged, from 5.4% in January 2025 to a high of 7.5% last September. Economist Katicia Roy estimates that “since 2020, the real unemployment rate for Black women is 10.23%.”

* “There have been several factors linked to this disproportionate destabilization. The huge AI push, which is automating jobs that humans were once paid to do, is one. Last year’s mass cut of government jobs—where Black women are represented at twice the rate as in the private sector—and the abrupt elimination of DEI programs under the current Trump administration are notable others. As one of those Black women sidelined from the job market, this crisis feels personal.”

* Why are black women represented in government jobs at twice the rate as in the private sector?

* Data from federal EEO reports and labor researchers show that Black women are roughly twice their share of the overall labor force in federal and broader public-sector employment—about 11–12% of the federal workforce versus roughly 6–7% of the civilian labor force—while their share in the private sector roughly tracks their population share.

* Public agencies can adopt affirmative action or “affirmative employment” plans, but these must be formal, justified programs aimed at correcting documented underrepresentation, not ad hoc preferences.

* Under federal guidance, race can sometimes be one factor among many in recruitment and outreach, or in limited remedial contexts, but blanket quotas or automatic preference for minority applicants are not permitted under Title VII.

* Title VII of the Civil Rights Act makes it illegal for any employer, including government, to make hiring decisions based on race, whether that is discrimination against or for a particular racial group.

HER PERSONAL EXPERIENCE

* “I’ve been self-employed since October 2019, when I was laid off as senior entertainment editor at NYLON following an acquisition and rebrand. I got lucky and sold my first book just months later—a collection of essays about Black feminism at the intersection of hip-hop, culture, and class. I spent the next year living on my advance and a few freelance commissions, and once my manuscript was done, I pivoted to copywriting.”

* Her book: Bad Fat Black Girl: Notes from a Trap Feminist

* 351 reviews

* “Bad Fat Black Girl offers a new, inclusive feminism for the modern world. Weaving together searing personal essay and cultural commentary, Bowen interrogates sexism, fatphobia, and capitalism all within the context of race and hip-hop. In the process, she continues a Black feminist legacy of unmatched sheer determination and creative resilience.”

* “The opportunity to transfer my writing skills to branding and creative strategy was afforded to me on the heels of 2020’s racial justice reckoning. Widespread reminders that Black Lives Matter forced white people to confront their own biases about people of color and actively move past them to be better allies. When it came to Black women, specifically, this was easy to do because we were in the final years of the #BlackGirlMagic era. Spanning the 2010s to early 2020s, this period amplified how important Black women are to American culture. The general sentiment during this era was to trust Black women, as we were venerated for our expertise on politics, education, beauty, entertainment, and so much more.”

* What was #blackgirlmagic?

* #BlackGirlMagic was a phrase and hashtag used to celebrate the beauty, strength, creativity, and achievements of Black women and girls, especially in the face of racism and sexism.

* The phrase began as “Black girls are magic,” coined by CaShawn Thompson around 2013 and quickly shortened to the hashtag #BlackGirlMagic on social media.

* “During this time, about 30% of my revenue came from speaking and book engagements at universities and conferences. The rest consisted of freelance copywriting and brand strategy for different agencies and clients. I was the quintessential “multi-hyphenate,” and I started bringing in six figures annually. I self-funded my podcast (about female rap, of course) for an entire season. I started working on my debut novel, and I paid off a good chunk of credit card debt.”

WHEN THE TABLES TURN

* “Following Trump’s 2025 inauguration and the string of executive orders that followed, I felt a shift almost immediately. Many of the institutions that are most likely to support my work fall under Trump’s DEI umbrella. With his executive order dismantling federal funding for these initiatives, the organizations and academic departments that would have hosted me are now trying to remain compliant. My bookings have slowed to a near stop.”

* “These limiting policies coincided with the great AI boom. While I was used to lulls as a freelance creative strategist and copywriter, I only worked on two projects last year, when I’m normally on six to 10. And while my career began as an entertainment journalist and culture critic, the continued deterioration of traditional media has also made this path unsustainable. So without any other viable options, I decided in late 2025 to start actively applying for full-time jobs.”

* “I was surprised at ...

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