24 May 2013
Kristen E. Nelson is the author of Write, Dad (Unthinkable Creatures Press, 2012). She has recently published work in The Volta, Denver Quarterly, Drunken Boat, Tarpaulin Sky Journal, Trickhouse, and Everyday Genius, among others. She is a founder and the Executive Director of Casa Libre en la Solana, a non-profit writing center in Tucson, Arizona; a production editor for Tarpaulin [...]
22 May 2013
By Elizabeth Dorssom I first started referring to myself as a feminist when I was 17. Even though I didn’t identify as a feminist until I was older I was definitely a feminist from a very young age. When I was in elementary school I enjoyed playing with Hot Wheels cars instead [...]
20 May 2013
By Molly Baker On April 23, University of Arizona student Dean Saxton, better known as Brother Dean, stood on a bench brandishing a sign that bluntly stated in bold, black letters “You Deserve Rape.” Saxton proceeded to verbally harass many women that walked by on their way to class, calling them [...]
15 May 2013
By Mohadesa Najumi When I think about what modesty means in today’s political, cultural and religious environment, I am inclined to believe that the concept itself does not involve choice, or any dimension of freedom or independent thought. Rather, modesty constitutes a dictatorial concept forced upon women whether they agree [...]
7 May 2013
*Trigger warning* Sometimes I feel like the NRA is actively just trying to lose all the credibility it has left in this world. Just when you thought the NRA’s annual convention in Houston this weekend couldn’t draw any more negative attention, it goes out and casually promotes a company selling a product [...]
29 Mar 2013
By Monica Torres When I sign my name, it’s Monica, not Mónica. When I order pupusas at my favorite restaurant, the waiter will give my accent an approving nod, as if to say, you’re one of us. But it will only take a harder question for me to reveal the [...]
18 Mar 2013
By Alexa Lambertis At an early age, I was exposed to a woman who essentially changed my life. A sweet lady with a southern background, she was introduced to me as a family friend. I met her in her own home, where we would spend a majority of our time [...]
Kaila Adia Story (Ph.D., African American Studies & Women’s Studies Temple University M.A., African American Studies Temple University; B.A. Women’s Studies DePaul University) is an associate professor and currently holds the Audre Lorde Chair in Race, Class, Gender and Sexuality in the Departments of Women’s & Gender Studies & Pan-African Studies at the University of Louisville....
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Dr. Van Bailey is the inaugural director of the Office of BGLTQ Student Life at Harvard College. He was the assistant director for education at the University of California, San Diego, from 2010-2012. Dr. Bailey has overseen and implemented educational outreach programs at the Resource Center. Dr. Bailey has also advised several student organizations,...
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The B52 bus picks up passengers on the corner of Gates and Lewis Avenue in the mostly working poor to middle class, black Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. This particular bus stop, which is a few blocks south of the famed Marcy Projects of Jay-Z’s past, is visited by hordes of black residents of various...
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In recognition of International Women’s Day Lord, I hear of showers of blessings Thou art scattering full and free Showers thirsty souls refreshing Let some drops now fall on me… But the most pronounced drops were far from sacred gifts, indeed. My mama, black and young, and woman and love, experienced the...
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Enter Scene: I am walking in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn—where we do more than die, by the way—rocking a close fade with two parts on the side, a full beard and mustache lined up perfectly, eyes protected by a pair of fresh chocolate browline frames (I was two blocks from Malcolm X boulevard, after all). I...
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Rahiel Tesfamariam is an activist, writer, social commentator and public theologian. She is the Founder / Editor-in-Chief of UrbanCusp.com, a cutting-edge online lifestyle magazine highlighting progressive urban culture, faith, social change and global awareness. Rahiel is also a columnist and blogger for The Washington Post. She holds a B.A. in American Studies from Stanford University and a Master of Divinity...
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Jamilah Lemieux is the News & Lifestyle Editor for EBONY.com. In 2005, she created the award-winning blog, The Beautiful Struggler, where for more than six years, she published meditations on race and relationships. Jamilah has contributed to a host of publications including Essence, JET, Clutch, The Loop, Madame Noire, Black Enterprise Online, and Jezebel. She has appeared on a number of radio...
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DM: At present, you hold a primary appointment as a Professor within the Center for African American Studies and a secondary appointment in Law and Public Affairs at Princeton University. You hold a Ph.D. (Harvard University) and J.D. (Harvard Law), and your interdisciplinary research focuses on race and African American culture. You describe yourself as...
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Today marks the conclusion of our Forum on World AIDS Day, but we are committed to making space for critical conversations on HIV/AIDS throughout the year. Indeed, we must remember, as writer and visual artist Ted Kerr reminds us: ”Every day is World AIDS Day, once a year the media remembers.” As we bring this...
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I was in my early teens when an aunt shared that an estranged and presumably “gay” cousin, one whose name was the same as mine, had died of an AIDS-related illness. Our names were not the only similarity we shared, it seemed. I also recall the mysterious and hurried death of an older second...
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22 May 2013
By Aditi Rao Dear Mr. Yadav, I too am an Indian Woman “Referring to the recent ‘Slut Walk’ held in the Capital, Mr. Lalu Prasad Yadav said we had naked women walking down the streets with tattoos on their cheeks, whereas Indian women did not even look up while [...]
17 May 2013
Assata do not dry like dissipated plums under castro’s bronzing sun you mural fortress you live memorial spirited artifice rouged sea salt that marinates america’s wound Assata you like stripped bone road unaware of which exit is free birth brown coagulated rhythm redefined reborn rumba queen Assata dusk breath [...]
16 May 2013
“Affirmation” by Assata Shakur* ___ I believe in living. I believe in the spectrum of Beta days and Gamma people. I believe in sunshine. In windmills and waterfalls, tricycles and rocking chairs. And i believe that seeds grow into sprouts. And sprouts grow into trees. I believe in the magic [...]
7 May 2013
7 May 2013
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