by Lynx M’Chea
Tossing my head back in the wind, I take in the ecstasy of being neither here nor there. As the wind takes me to that place of being here, everywhere, and anywhere in between; I see that which goes unseen, I see me.
Love Me Baby: Chapter I
by Lynx M’Chea
Seeing yourself making the same mistakes you have made before, is synonymous to watching the rain falling around you like a sunrise. No matter how hard you try to fight against the rain it falls; hitting the ground with a sort of musical laughter at your futile attempts. Sometimes, I think with a sigh, mistakes must happen. For reasons I neither know of nor can precisely understand, mistakes are the only way I learn anything. I can hear the protests all around me. Foolish loved ones desperately trying to stop me, yet I persist and fight until I have dug yet another hole of which I cannot leave.
Playing by the Rules: The Myth of Surviving Racism
by Ryan Moody
My whole life I have been indoctrinated into playing by the rules. I truly believed that as long as we all mastered living within the arbitrary boundaries of what a Black person “could” be, we would be protected because of it. But that just isn’t true. These white lies just try to hide the fact that under white lies one thing: fear for white lives. But instead of challenging this pervasive, irrational reaction, we systematically assuage it at the expense of my people.
{R}evolution
by Tawana Petty
How are we defining revolution? If we look at the etymology of the word, in the 14th century, revolution spoke of celestial bodies. The very nature of the word addressed the revolving door of living beings throughout the history of the earth. Revolution was not an individual concept. It wasn't about humans dominating other species, the planet or each other, for survival. It wasn't about a race to the top, or about race at all. In its raw form, revolution was about our interdependence with all living beings, as well as the inevitable extinction of most.
Spectator Sport: African World Festival 2015
by Zuri McWhorter
On one end of the block were the food vendors. Surrounded by jerk chicken, grilled corn cobs, oxtail, meat pies, mac and cheese, I unconsciously spent $15 on meal tickets. Though, when I walked around again to check prices, I noticed my tragic defeat: a jerk chicken combo was 19 tickets, and my $15 had only bought me 18 tickets. With stank face and all, I ordered mac and cheese and a meat pie.
To Be Young, Gifted, and Black
by Eric Riley
“Its just, I’m sick of dealing with their bullshit. I just want to work on my own stuff, but I keep getting pulled in to do everyone else’s job. ‘Luke do this, and Luke do that’ And on top of that I have to listen to a bunch of absent minded white old people talk about a city they’ve never lived in. If Jen says one more thing about the homeless scourge in Downtown…I don’t know, I mean the money is good but I get fed up with all this sometimes.” After I finish my rant, I throw my head back onto the headrest and look out the window.
Dressed
by Zuri McWhorter
The seventh summer breeze scattered magnolia petals around Queen’s perfectly primed bun. She wore a pretty periwinkle dress and peep toe pumps. No make-up today, though; she wanted to be au naturel.
The Worm
by Jessica Reese
The soil was tough to break through. I bent the handle of
the first trowel. I worked a little more of the soil,
turning it and turning it, readying it for the plants. East
Memphis. Some hated the driving, others the crime, I hated
the soil.
Resting Bitch Face
Suzie made her way through Donors’ Court, where giant slabs of marble were carved to depict the white faces that kept the University financially afloat. She hated those cold, pompous eyes that followed her, but she always turned her Naomi Campbell on when she passed so they could watch her work.
The Shrink Dance
"I don't like people."
"Do you want to?"
“I would love to like people. It's just so hard to give a rational shit about irrational things."
"There's not one person you care about?"
"My dad. My mom is alright."
