Pointe Black News Today

Our picture editing team highlights the work of a selection of photojournalists working for news agencies worldwide whose images have stood out throughout 2023

Alishia Abondunde photographed London’s Pointe Black ballet school, a “safe space” empowering young Black dancers to be themselves.

By Muvija M LONDON (Reuters) - It was a pointed comment about her Afro-braided hair that spurred Ruth Essel to carve out what she calls a safe space f...

By Muvija M LONDON (Reuters) - It was a pointed comment about her Afro-braided hair that spurred Ruth Essel to carve out what she calls a safe space f...

By Muvija M LONDON (Reuters) - It was a pointed comment about her Afro-braided hair that spurred Ruth Essel to carve out what she calls a safe space f...

It was a pointed comment about her Afro-braided hair that spurred Ruth Essel to carve out what she calls a safe space for Black dancers. The founder of Pointe Black Ballet School in London said when she was a child, teachers and assistants all but punished her for not fitting the traditional ballerina mould, as if she was using her race as some kind of rebellion. "I'll never forget my first time about to dance on a West End stage," said Essel, describing when, aged 10, she start...

By Muvija M LONDON (Reuters) - It was a pointed comment about her Afro-braided hair that spurred Ruth Essel to carve out what she calls a safe space f...

By Muvija M LONDON (Reuters) - It was a pointed comment about her Afro-braided hair that spurred Ruth Essel to carve out what she calls a safe space f...

Chests must be de-fuzzed, armpits shaved, legs waxed. But as dance becomes more diverse, should it stop policing what grows naturally? Top performers speak out about their body hair