racisms

Honoring Our Literary Ancestors: On Arcelia and Giovanni’s Room

by | November 11, 2021

Organizers of Giovanni's Room unite to honor literary ancestors

acelia portrait

On Toni Morrison’s Spiritual Vision: a Conversation with Nadra Nittle

by | October 26, 2021

Nadra Nittle takes meticulous inventory of the ingredients that enliven Toni Morrison’s spiritual vision.

Toni Morrison Book Cover

But You Don’t Look Asian: On Being Entitled to Pain

by | May 4, 2021

Who deserves to feel the pain of anti-Asian violence? Who deserves to take up space with their rage? As a mixed-race person, am I allowed to be here? Do I belong?

Asian protester in NYC

How to Break Up With the Non-Profit Pyramid Scheme. For Now.

by | March 4, 2021

I’ve only been out of work for 11 days at this point. Yet I awake each morning to an attached PDF, an embedded link, or a “heads up” on some new job. Through the morning haze, it’s typically the first alert I see on my phone. For some asinine reason, everyone finds grounding in their […]

smiling hip white professionals

Africa is a Continent, the United States of America is a Nation, but Blackness is My World

by | February 9, 2021

“African” and “American” do not define me. The words “African” and “American” seemed to be at war with one another. When I became a teenager, I started referring to myself as Black. Not African American, not Black American, just Black. To be Black is to be my own creation.

Black woman with sunglasses

This Isn’t My First Coup. But It Is the First One I Have A Problem With

by | January 19, 2021

It's no secret that the US has long undermined self-governance in Latin America while pretending to be the greatest exporter of democracy in human history. I recall an aphorism attributed to Porfirio Diíaz, "Mexico, so far from God, so close to the United States." With that lens, I see this coup attempt as evidence of how weak US institutions, beliefs, and democracy truly are.

Ecuador protesters

Don’t Call Me Resilient

by | January 14, 2021

Using the word "brave" exalts certain traumatized people as heroic and casts others as failures. All victims of assault deserve to have their experiences dignified with validation, not just those who earn it through "bravery."

AOC / instagram live