5627 Search results for "the new black"

Steve McQueen’s ‘Western Deep’ is a counter memory for Black miners during South African Apartheid
by Donnie Moreland Steve McQueen’s Western Deep is a horror film. Though McQueen’s 2002 dual video installation (presented with Carib’s Leap) is, in form, video art, I feel it is possible to understand Western Deep as genre cinema. An exploration into the TauTona Mine Shaft No.3 of South Africa—also known as Western Deep—it is a […]
Yup. Non-profit culture and performative activism perpetuate ableism and anti-Blackness
In May, I quit my paid job as a counselor/ organizer in Oakland, CA. I was burned out, depressed, and incredibly frustrated with the conditions that Black folks are exposed to and expected to accept while working within social justice organizations. I had health insurance, but my co-pay was $60 and it didn’t cover mental […]
Increases in police funding will not make Black people safe, it is time city leaders listened
by Philip V. McHarris Communities directly impacted by violence are starting to advocate for the diversion of funds from policing towards more community based solutions to violence and harm. Unfortunately, city leaders are not listening. Early in December, residents and community organizers attended the Minneapolis City budget hearing. They argued against allocating funds for […]
Black people aren’t resistant to mental health treatment. We’re resistant to framing it as a cure
I was stressed. I was broke. I’d just confronted my parents with my queerness, and they responded by refusing to support my education. And since enrolling at NYU’s film school, my film-maker dreams were eroding in the face of structural barriers erected by white supremacy. I was bouncing to and from mental health crises. Everything […]
The Housing Crisis is intentional and Black communities are fighting back
by Maximillian Matthews “It was a nightmare, worse than pictures of a war torn or burned out riot area.” – Barbara Perry, a Durham, NC resident reflecting on returning to her neighborhood Horrified and traumatized, Black residents of Durham, NC surveyed the remains of their neighborhoods and businesses following the urban renewal of the late […]
Combating colorism: All Black children are worth defending
This essay contains discussions of r/pe and sexual violence against and the trafficking of missing Black women and girls “One after another referred her to Missing Persons, to Juvenile Court, to her neighborhood service center, to family counseling. She was a customer come too soon to the new store, stock not yet in, sales personnel […]
The Revolution of Black Mothering: Confronting a future that doesn’t always include us
by Hess Love belly of boat dissolves you, precipitates you into nonword from which you cry out, generates clamor of your protests, boat is your womb, a matrix, yet it expels you- Edouard Glissant I always wanted to be a mother. I wanted motherhood’s playfulness, its duty, its imagination and selflessness. Like most people that […]
“Laughing barrels” and the defiant spirit of Black laughter
Seems like every year I learn some new factoid about how plantations operated during the time of chattel slavery of African peoples in the Americas. I inevitably come across another unfortunate piece of knowledge that I wish I never had to know. At the same time, I always understand how it’s of vital importance that […]
Millennials aren’t skipping church, the Black Church is skipping us
Washington Post columnist, Christine Emba, published a piece on Oct. 27, titled Why millenials are skipping church and not going back. Emba declared millennials were interested in gaming, ambitiously building their careers, or just too busy to make time to attend service. While Emba isn’t necessarily wrong in her assessment, I couldn’t help but notice […]
How Black Muslimas are transforming our communities and futures
Contrary to their portrayal in the media, Black Muslim women (also referred to as Muslimas), are powerful and active change agents in our communities. They are fierce advocates who regularly contribute their time, energy and service towards a more equitable world. New Jersey Muslimas, in particular, have a unique experience that rests at the intersection […]
Orlando Jones was fired from ‘American Gods’ because Black anger makes white people uncomfortable
by Andrew Keahey White supremacy doesn’t allow for Black anger. The second we get even mildly irritated in any way and make the mistake of actually showing it, we’re labeled as irrational, problematic, and even violent. You see it all the time. It’s one of the reasons twitchy white cops use to justify their brutality […]
Black and in Vietnam, my hair is not a spectacle
by Adam Mahoney I’ve been living in Vietnam for four months and from the first 30 minutes I arrived in the country, my hair was a problem. I’m a 20 year old junior in college, so when the opportunity to not be in a classroom full of wealthy, white peers presented itself, I jumped at […]