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Multiple Shades of You Online was founded in 2000 as an e-Zine for young women of color ages 5-25. Since then it has evolved into the MSOY NETWORK, founded by Lashanda Henry and created with the goal of producing and promoting positive web content for People of Color.

The MSOY NETWORK currently has over 15 websites and growing; the flagship sites being Multiple Shades of You Online, Black Business Women Online, and the Black Moms Club. With every new year the MSOY NETWORK grows. “From black e-Cards to black blogs, black shopping to black news, I’m always trying my hand at using the latest web technology to illustrate all that is positive about Black Culture Online”, states founder LaShanda Henry. “One day I have the urge to highlight Black Comics Strips and Black Cartoons, and the next day I’m working on Afrocentric Learning Tools or resources for Black Entrepreneurs. Not to mention all the different types of websites that you can find on the every growing Search Urban Directory“.

15+ BLACK WEBSITES AND COUNTING

I’ve been doing a few interviews this week, coming out of my shell *smile* and the question I often get is … “Do you really have over 15 websites?” Well … yes. I’ve been online for almost 10 years, and I’ve been designing what I call “positive websites for people of color” for a long time. I’m a typer not a talker, pr was never my strong point so I guess I’m one of those folks you might never see on the cover of Essence or Black Enterprise … well at least not any time soon. I’m a regular work at home mom. No corporate gig or high end connections, just hard work, dedication and a WHOLE LOT Of passion for what I do.

Why so many websites? Well I’ve been doing this for years, so I didn’t make these sites overnight. Plus, my websites are an extension of myself. When I got pregnant, I created the black moms club. When I was freshly out of my teens, I wanted to do an ezine for teens. When I turned my side hustle into a full time gig, I wanted to create a space to connect with women entrepreneurs of color. When my hubby said go turn your poems into a book, I made them books and then created the sites to match. *lol* Each website has a story. And clearly I don’t do it strictly for the money, cause I’m not quite a six figure sister yet!

But I make a wonderful living doing what I do. This is my dream turned into a reality, in spite of little support from others and even less start up capital to get me going. My shoe string budget was more like thread *lol*. 100% of my income comes from the internet, from people who find me, trust me, and respect what I do. Every dollar I earn is hard earned and I value that over anything else. I get to be a work at home mom. I get the blessings and wonderful emails from all my loyal readers and followers. I get the satisfaction of knowing that I am contributing to the betterment of the black community at large, in my own little way.

So yes, I’ve got over 15 websites today and you can expect 15 plus more in the future! PR or no PR, this is my story and I’m sticking to it!

1. Multiple Shades of You Online
http://www.msoyonline.com

2. LaShanda Henry
http://lashandahenry.com/

3. Black Business Women Online
http://sistapreneurs.ning.com

4. Black Moms Club
http://www.blackmomsclub.com

5. Black Hairopedia
http://www.blackhairopedia.com

6. SistaSense
http://www.sistasense.com

7. Business Women of Color
http://businesswomenofcolor.net

8. Web Tech Gurl
http://tutorials.webtechgurl.com

9. Mahogany Momma Magazine
http://mom.msoyonline.com

10. Black Girl Click
http://www.blackgirlclick.com

11. Black WomeNetwork
http://blackwomenetwork.com/

12. Work and Web Women
http://workandwebwomen.com

13. Black Parenting Blog
http://blackparenting.blogspot.com/

14. Black Entrepreneurs Online
http://urbanboe.blogspot.com/

15. Black Writers Connect
http://blackwriters.ning.com/

16. Women of Color Coach
http://womenofcolorcoach.org

17. Urban Chique Boutiques
http://blackgirlclick.com/boutiques/

18. Pretty Professional Websites
http://www.prettyprofessionalwebsites.com/

19. Successful Sista Profiles
http://successful.sistaprofiles.com

20. Local Black Classifieds
http://www.localblackclassifieds.com/

21. Lil Bits Kids Books
http://msoyonline.com/lilbits/

22. A Better Today Brings a Brighter Tomorrow
http://msoyonline.com/abtabt/

23. The eZine for Teen Girls of Color
http://www.msoyonline.com/theezine/index.htm

24. Smart Business Sista
http://www.msoyonline.com/theezine/index.htm

25. Startup Sistas
http://www.startupsista.com

26. Afrocentric Learning Tools
http://www.msoyonline.com/afrocentric-learning-tools/

27. What Black Women Think
http://blackwomenthink.ning.com

MORE WORDS FROM LASHANDA HENRY

Basically my reasons for creating this site are simple. One – I love doing it, I have loved all the hard work for years now. Two – I want to show more Black People, Black Youth specifically, that African Americans have made great strides in more areas than we give ourselves credit for. It’s sad that after over coming years of oppression and racism, so many of us think ‘Black People Don’t do this …’ or ‘I don’t hear about Black Folks doing that ….’ – When the truth is that we branch out in every field imaginable.

Hopefully as I create and collect more sites that showcase our talents and accomplishments, I can expose a few people to new aspects of Black Culture and inspire them to follow their dreams as others have before them. After all, that’s what Multiple Shades of You is all about.

Click here to review the current listing of websites in the msoy network.