Meet Phay Dee of Black Women of Arizona in Central Phoenix

Today we’d like to introduce you to Phay Dee.

Phay, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’m originally from Florida. When I moved to Litchfield Park, Arizona, I was all alone. I didn’t have any family, friends her and didn’t even know what the culture of Arizona was like. After being homeless for a brief period, I moved to Central Phoenix. It was at that point I realized that I was probably not the only woman here from a different state without a sense of community. I reached out on social media to see who else was interested in creating a Sisterhood in Arizona.

The Black Women of Arizona was created soon after that with just a handful of women through a group chat. We hosted our very first meetup in Phoenix at a local restaurant. The amount of women that actually showed up to this event actually surprised me. I’ll never forget a conversation I had with one of the women who attended. She had been here for years and told me that this was the first time she had ever left the house since living here. I knew then that this was something that Arizona needed. I never thought that so many women would support my vision. Our platform has grown tremendously since then and we are just getting started.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely has not been easy running this platform. For many years, I was doing everything on my own, so I was dealing with burnout. Coordinating events, in general, is not an easy process, but I was also dealing with (and still to this day) the hateful comments about how I was a racist and that I should not have created such a platform that didn’t include everyone. Even with the success that I had, I was still dealing with fear. I was scared to fail. I was scared to disappoint others. Even with all of these struggles, I wouldn’t change anything. I’m grateful for the team that I have build to help better serve the community and for the unwavering support that I have received from members.

Please tell us about Black Women of Arizona.
Black Women of Arizona, which is also known as BWA or BWAZ, is an all women’s social group that was created in 2016 and is based in Phoenix, Arizona. We host various events (virtual and in-person) all around Arizona, from Buckeye to Tucson, curated specifically for black women.

The black population makes up approximately 4% of the entire population of Arizona. Considering the size of this state, creating a positive and safe place for black women to connect with each other is what I’m most proud of. The friendships, business networking opportunities, and the lifelong memories that have been created because of this platform is truly what sets us apart from others.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
There’s so many to choose from, but I think the most important is consistency. Success isn’t supposed to be easy. You have to grow through what you go through. Most of the time, success comes from preserving through the uncertain moments. Remaining consistent on my dreams for this platform is what kept me going when I only had 2 or 3 people show up to an event, or when I would feel overwhelmed about planning an upcoming event, or even when I got the random messages from strangers telling me how much this platform was “wrong.” It always seems impossible until it’s actually done. Black women living in Arizona deserve to have a safe place to connect with each other. That’s what has kept me consistent.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.blackwomenofarizona.com
• Phone: 4803896611
• Email: info@blackwomenofarizona.com
• Instagram: @BlackWomenOfArizona
• Facebook: @BWA- Black Women of Arizona
• Twitter: @BlackWomenOfAZ

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