56 Search results for "self advocacy"

Why the plan to replace Rikers, or reform any prison, is doomed to perpetuate the problem
By Ragini Srikrishna and Monica Mohapatra Before the controversy around Amazon coming to New York dominated the headlines, the mayor and city officials were quietly working on opening four new skyscraper jails within the city. Although the city’s plan to close the Rikers jails complex solicited initial excitement within criminal justice communities, it has since […]
How targeting Ilhan Omar instead of white supremacy furthered both anti-Semitism & Islamophobia
By Su’ad Abdul Khabeer, Chanda Prescod-Weinstein, Margari Hill, Rakel Joseph, Asha Noor, and Rebecca Pierce Last week, House Democrats passed a resolution condemning anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and white supremacy. As Black women, Muslim and Jewish, we agree that anti-Black racism, anti-Semitism, sexism and Islamophobia must be condemned. Reports of anti-Semitism are on the rise: according to the FBI, […]
A meditation on intergenerational trauma and how we raise Black children
This essay contains discussion of suicide. by Donnie Moreland On the other side of her beautiful and hardened, bulging belly, I can feel them. My baby navigating the uterus of the woman I love, curious to the pressure of my palm on the soft brown flesh between them and I. I imagine their curiosity, or […]
The bar for white “allies” is absurdly low and I’m tired of watching them be praised for reaching it
by Tynesha M. McCullers Ellen Pompeo talked about representation in film and television in a recent interview with Porter magazine, expressing the ways she recognizes her whiteness and uses it to be an “ally” to actors of color, particularly women of color. I watched a clip of the interview and felt nothing. Unmoved, if you […]
Canada is still not a “Plan B” for Americans when our country is going to sh*t
by JaLoni Amor Owens For many Americans, one of the only days that left the nation feeling as hopeless and defeated as it did on November 8, 2016 was the day after. Those on the left, whether or not Secretary Clinton was their first choice for President of the United States and whether or not […]
8 ways to exist in white spaces when setting them on fire isn’t an option
by Briyana D. Clarel This summer, I attended a conference for community-minded artists in New York City. Despite the conference’s commitment to activism, days passed without any Black presenters and the few presenters of color spewed dangerous rhetoric like “We’re all immigrants” and “It’s about class, not race.” Of course, the Black contingent came through, […]
Black educators and administrators, let’s remember to center and uplift Black children as they return to school
by Maximillian Matthews After arriving on the campus of Elon University in the fall of 2005, I instantly sought out the Black community in an effort to not feel isolated and misunderstood. I knew I would need Black folks in order to thrive at predominantly white institution. My need for kinship led me to Alpha […]
The “positive outcome” of the Starbucks arrest won’t save us because it didn’t save Chikesia Clemons
By L.N. Lewis I visit a certain website almost monthly, reading names and cross-checking news stories. It is a stark spreadsheet, a database of nightmares reaching back to May 1, 2013, titled killedbypolice.net. For April 2018, it lists 418 names. Among them: Shukri Ali Said, aged 36; Elijah James Smith, 20-years-old; and Brenda Jenette Harrison-Bumbray, […]
13-year-old #1000BlackGirlBooks creator interviews 11-year-old March for Our Lives advocate about honoring Black girls
The ancestors must smile at Black girls like 11-year-old Naomi Wadler and 13-year-old Marley Dias. Both used their creativity and access points in challenging society to ask, “What about the Black girls?” Many activists, commentators and policymakers lauded Wadler as the most compelling speaker at the recent gun control demonstration March for Our Lives for critiquing […]
Black Mamas Matter Alliance launches first national Black maternal health week
Editor’s Note: April is Black Women’s History Month. Throughout this month, Black Youth Project is celebrating Black women. This month is also National Minority Health Month, Autism Awareness Month, Sexual Assault Awareness Month, Child Abuse Prevention Month. We are interested in publishing works that address these topics and the things surrounding them. The Black Mamas […]
Bioethics prof Deleso Alford explains why MLK calling healthcare inequity the most ‘inhumane’ injustice matters today
Healthcare equity is indivisible from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy. In fact, in a phone interview on the 50th anniversary of Dr. King’s assassination, critical race theorist Deleso Alford pointed to his quote, “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in healthcare is the most shocking and inhumane.” In addition to being a time to […]
Sen. Kamala Harris could be a 2020 Democratic presidential nominee
With much of the nation counting down the days until Donald Trump’s impeachment or the end of his presidential term (and hopefully avoidance of a second term), many members of the electorate are getting a better look at their 2020 presidential options. As the Hill recently reported, Sen. Kamala Harris is expected to be one […]