by Kya Warnsley Once upon a time, there seemed to be a widely-shared norm among Black families in America in which children were being forced to abide by the “What goes on in this house, stays in this house” ideology. No matter what was going on behind closed doors, it had to be handled amongst the […]
by Josie Pickens I first met my good friend—my sister—Hadeel through another mutual friend some years ago. Around that time, I was researching Black American towns destroyed by White vigilantes, and who were often aided by local and national governments. She was a shorty like me, of five feet and a few inches. Wild, […]
By Ashley Young A narrative was erased for me in the summer of 2017 when I was informed by a new doctor that I had been misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder. It was my mental illness narrative, one with which I had become so strongly identified that, when it was stripped away, it occurred more as […]
by Tonya McKenzie This essay contains discussions and descriptions of sexual violence, child abuse, and murder There are some things that you never forget, like the sound of a car screeching down the street and slamming into one of your neighbors or the bombastic sound of a gunshot and the sight of the damage that […]
by Kathleen Anaza Drawing in viewers with juicy telenovela-style drama, star-studded casts and curated soundtracks, MTV Shuga has become a favorite among the scandalous and socially-conscious television viewer on the African continent. Over five seasons, Shuga has operated as three self-contained miniseries, each set in a unique country and with a distinct cast. The stories […]
Editor’s Note: May is Mental Health Awareness Month and National Masturbation Month. This is also the month that we celebrate Mother’s Day. At BYP, we will be exploring these topics alongside the theme of Imagination and the Arts, and we are interested in publishing works that address these topics and the things surrounding them. By Antoine […]
by Wanda X. Lust There was a time in my life when I had no idea what an orgasm was or how I could experience one. Over time and throughout encounters with different partners, I eventually learned how it feels to climax and how to get myself to do so. Even better than learning how […]
Living Single began streaming on Hulu at the beginning of this year, but I have only recently had the chance to start re-watching the 90s sitcom. Throughout the show’s five seasons, I identified with each of the main characters at various moments, but there was only one episode where I was able to find any […]
The Devos era at the United States Department of Education is continuing the trend of Trump era rollbacks by marginalizing, reassigning or refocusing a team previously dedicated to the investigation of abuses by for-profit colleges, according to the New York Times. This move serves to kill ongoing or preliminary investigations into former employers of Devos’ top […]
Junot Díaz, the award-winning author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, has been accused of sexual harassment and misogyny in the literary world by fellow woman authors Zinzi Clemmons, Monica Byrne, Carmen Maria Machado, and others.
Heroes are basically destined to fall, and so I’ve made an effort to resist bestowing that honor even upon people I admire the most. Still, the recent antics of Kanye West, inarguably one of the most influential hip-hop artists of the last two decades whose music has played a huge role in my life, have […]
In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, singer/rapper Janelle Monae revealed that her sexuality is fluid, telling the magazine, “Being a Black queer woman in America-someone who has been in relationships with both men and women–I consider myself to be a free ass motherfucker.” Monae continued, “Later I read about pansexuality and was like ‘Oh […]
