Sports, Entertainment, and Owning Your Stuff with Jaia Thomas

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Jaia Thomas is a sports and entertainment attorney. She obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree from Colgate University and her Juris Doctor from The George Washington University Law School. She primarily assists clients with transactional and intellectual property matters. In addition to her legal experience, she is an adjunct professor at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Prior to her appointment at UCLA, Jaia taught and guest lectured at American University, Georgetown University, Vassar College and Carnegie Mellon University. Jaia has been cited as a legal expert in such publications as The New York Times and USA Today and has had several scholarly works published in the American Bar Association, National Bar Association and various journals. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Jaia volunteers for several organizations such as the California African American Museum and is the founder of a free legal clinic in her hometown.

Brown Girls Rising is a partnership with Nylon Espanol to elevate the conversation of feminist action, leadership, community involvement, and culture

"I've always felt like women should receive equal treatment as men" - Jaia Thomas

In this episode, we chat with Sports + Entertainment lawyer, Jaia Thomas about talks about her surprising lack of having to deal with discrimination. She also, goes on to talk about how she encourages other young women to follow in her footsteps to change the lack of diversity in the academia world.

 “I grew up being taught the importance of self sustainability and owning your stuff”

 Jaia also discusses her relationship with feminism. She talks about how her definition of feminism differs from the “white” feminism and why that is.

 “Yes, I feel like women should receive equal treatment as men. However, my definition and the things I find important in feminism might be different than that of the white woman. Just because we have different needs.”

 Audrey and Yvette talk about how Brown Girls Rising was made for the women who couldn’t identify with White Feminism or Black Girl magic and why that’s important to them.

"Who is not worthy of a redemption story?" - Audrey Bellis

 This episode, Brown Girls Rising Episode 11, can be found at BrownGirlsRising.com or on iTunes.

 This episode was recorded in sunny Downtown Los Angeles at Maker City LA.