For me, this recent HuffPo article really struck a nerve. Cleverly disguised as flattery, this article so effortlessly reduces Indian people to their “datability” and crushes a culture of 28 states, numerous faiths and hundreds of languages into one spiffy little assessment. The author, Andrea Miller, who is married to an Indian man, mentions 7 […]
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Not Beyond Perdition
Last night’s episode of The Rachel Maddow cemented her as a crunk ally. Although I generally eschew msm outlets, I do appreciate Maddow’s rare brand of journalism. Walking along the increasingly endangered marshland in southern Louisiana, Maddow remarked, “Beyond petroleum, my ass!” Maddow’s sentiment is more than a pithy jab at the behemoth oil company. […]
War(rior) Women: For Harriet, Shoshana, and All the Rest
When I think of Black women’s relationship to the military, to war, and to soldier narratives more generally, I’m reminded that our motivations are often times fundamentally different and that our stories, like our lives, are unfairly ephemeral, fading quickly into the background. Black feminism would not be the same without one Black female war […]
Heart Reached.
Dear Janelle Monáe, Wow. Your album reminds me of something Mdot always says: Black girls are from the future. I’ve been a fan since forever, like since before you and I existed in present forms. The dorm tour, Dark Tower days, a jam session at Chuck Lightning’s… for real a magical night that is the […]
For Elsie Lacks
Does anybody see the black women Bound and gagged In dirtied white gowns Hair disheveled and feet bare Climbing over one another Trying to get your attention Does anybody hear the black women Moaning muffled cries Kicking and wiggling Banging their heads against the floor Trying to get your attention I see them. I hear […]
“Damn, I Shoulda Said. . .” Vol. 1
Have y’all ever had one of those “Damn, I shoulda said. . .” moments? Generally this happens after someone has told you something totally unreasonable as though it were the most reasonable ish in the world. I had one of these conversations with my cousin recently. He told me he had been reading the blog […]
Daddy’s Little Girl
There are a few episodes of The Cosby Show that make me cry. Probably as much for their unrealistic portrayals of black life that looked nothing like my real-life experiences as for the happily-ever-after endings that concluded every 30 minute segment. The things I found most believable and desirable, however, were not necessarily the brownstone […]
She Just Wants to Dance, but She Can’t Fight the Rhythm
(A Performance Excerpt by Caitlin O’Connor) She just wants to dance. He just wants to groove In his fly dancin’ shoes. Seconds lapse between his favorite steps, Doin’ tha Ass tap, dip back, hip thrust, she like that. She dances because she can’t fight the rhythm. He grinds, he grins at the lyrics that he’s […]
The Twilight of Good Sense
Yes, this is a post about Twilight. Well, sort of. If you break out into hives at the mere mention of the series (ahem, “saga”) that has tweens, some of their older sisters, and a lot of their mamas enthralled, keep it moving. I understand your pain. I was anti-Twilight from the jump. I remember […]
A todas ellas…
Two weeks ago the flu colonized my immune system. I lay in bed for what seemed like an eternity. I cried for my mami each and every one of those days. I am nearly 30 years old and I’m not kidding. I cried for my mami…sometimes for hours. This recent incident and the many hours […]