16 Search results for "allure"

Keeping Black history will always be necessary, but it takes a toll
I imagine that I would be a historian, a social librarian of sorts, whenever Black liberation is realized, and I imagine that my role wouldn’t look much different from the work I am already doing: Helping to keep Black histories. For as long as I’ve been aware of my Blackness as a threat to whiteness […]
The myth of “progress” helps to obscure the truth—we are still marching for civil rights
“What is it you want me to reconcile myself to? I was born here almost 60 years ago. I’m not gonna live another 60 years. You always told me it takes time. It’s taken my father’s time, my mother’s time. My uncle’s time. My brother’s and my sister’s time. My nieces and my nephews time. […]
How defiant Black women athletes like Surya Bonaly and Serena Williams inspire me and help lay the groundwork for the future
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. Last month, […]
It’s not just white incels. We need to talk about the Black Manosphere, too.
Mainstream conversations about online misogyny keep neglecting The Black Manosphere, and it’s because of misogynoir by Aaron Fountain On his weekly podcast, The Brother Pill, Sacramento-native and now Poland-transplant, Oshay Duke Jackson, conducts segments, interviews, and discussions about the issues faced by Black men. Occasionally, he talks about these things alone, but on most episodes […]
10 body affirmations for Black girls when the world tells us we’re too much
By Salaam Green Dear Black Girl, While tutoring an eight year old girl, she looked down at me and stated, “We have the same bodies.” This young girl attends a predominately suburban white school, and as we were doing homework she observed the notable fact that we were shaped alike. The look on her face […]
What do we need for a new freedom?: A proudly fat, disabled, bisexual enby’s vision for #Juneteenth
By Denarii Grace Some days I wonder if the work that I do is worth it. On the surface, Black artists/cultural workers, healers, teachers and activists who live most on the margins have the least to gain in their lines of work. And in a society based on the allure of social and financial capital, […]
Zoe Saldana on race and criticism: ‘I am Black. I’m raising Black men.”
Nina, the film that stars Zoe Saldana as Nina Simone, had a long, hard journey to making it to the big screen. It initially went from office to office and couldn’t pin a lead actress until Saldana joined on. But when the trailer was released, it was the target of a multitude of negative criticisms […]
Harvard Graduate Gives Powerful Spoken Word Poem at Graduation
Donovan Livingston, Ed. M. ’16, performed a spoken word piece at the Harvard School of Education graduation ceremony this week that is absolutely riveting. In it, he addresses this country’s very ugly past and present with institutional racism and what it means to be a Black person in education at this moment of history.
“The Hair Tales” Reminds Us of the Magic of Black Hair
People who don’t understand Black hair want to talk about it without saying anything worth hearing. For example, recently, instead of concentrating on filing for bankruptcy, rapper 50 Cent had the time to insult a woman on Instagram because of her natural hair. However, “The Hair Tales”, a video series created by writer and […]
The Problems With Zoe Saldana’s Casting As Nina Simone Are More Than Skin Deep
On Tuesday, we learned that the embattled biopic loosely based on Nina Simone’s life, simply called Nina, will be released on April 22. On Wednesday, the trailer was released. And, while all the sentiments against Zoe Saldana’s blackface (or “mud face”) and fake accent are correct, there’s a bigger reason why Saldana never should have […]
10 Black Queer Artists to Watch
The independent music world is a treasure trove for radical artists and revolutionary tastemakers. While the mainstream picks up some gems and over rates mediocrity, the Internet has provided ample support for dope artists on the rise. Independent Hip-Hop, in the Internet age, has brought collectives of amazing rappers, writers and producers together. However, and […]
How To Understand "Acting White"
How To Understand “Acting White” Richard Thompson Ford, Slate, July 5, 2o1o Some black students in the 1990s had a derisive name for their peers who spent a lot of time studying in the library: incog-negro. The larger phenomenon is all too well-known. Many blacks—especially black young men—have come to the ruinous conclusion that academic […]