(CNN) You might remember actress Amandla Stenberg from her ill-fated role in the first "Hunger Games" film as Jennifer Lawrence's endearing sidekick, Rue.

The 17-year is stepping out of the franchise's shadow and using her star power to inspire other black women to embrace their identity.

Stenberg came out as bisexual in a Thursday Snapchat video for Teen Vogue. Stenberg is the subject of the magazine's February cover story, written by entertainer Solange Knowles about her budding career in social justice activism. A version on Teen Vogue's website is titled " How Our February Cover Star Amandla Stenberg Learned to Love Her Blackness ."

Teen Vogue's February cover features Amandla Stenberg.

Photos: Know your identity terms Photos: Know your identity terms New terms are entering the cultural lexicon as people endeavor to codify their sexual orientation or gender. These definitions, which have been edited, are primarily from the LGBTQ advocacy group The Trevor Project. The gender fluid definition is from Dictionary.com. Visit The Trevor Project for more details Hide Caption 1 of 10 Photos: Know your identity terms Hide Caption 2 of 10 Photos: Know your identity terms Hide Caption 3 of 10 Photos: Know your identity terms Hide Caption 4 of 10 Photos: Know your identity terms Hide Caption 5 of 10 Photos: Know your identity terms Hide Caption 6 of 10 Photos: Know your identity terms Hide Caption 7 of 10 Photos: Know your identity terms Hide Caption 8 of 10 Photos: Know your identity terms Hide Caption 9 of 10 Photos: Know your identity terms Hide Caption 10 of 10

"It's a really, really hard thing to be silenced, and it's deeply bruising to fight against your identity and to mold yourself into shapes that you just shouldn't be in. As someone who identifies as a black bisexual woman, I've been through it and it hurts and it's awkward and it's uncomfortable," Stenberg said , gazing into the camera

"Then I realized because of Solange and (director) Ava DuVernay and Willow (Smith) and all the black girls watching this right now, that there's absolutely nothing to change. We cannot be suppressed. We are meant to express our joy and our love and our tears and be big and bold and definitely not easy to swallow."

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