2020 has been a difficult, heartbreaking, and tumultuous year in so many ways. The toll COVID is taking on our communities, especially the most disenfranchised among us (disproportionately poor and working-class people of color), remains heartbreakingly gut-wrenching. Governments across the globe have violated the rights of their people repeatedly, from the ongoing police … [Read more...]
10 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Calling the Police on Black and Brown Bodies
Serve and protect. That’s the phrase we most commonly associate with police. So how do we deal with the reality that so many Black and brown people live in constant fear and terror of blue uniforms? Thanks to modern-day Black liberation movements like Black Lives Matter, the reality of police violence against marginalized communities is frankly undeniable. We no longer live … [Read more...]
7 Ways Non-Black People of Color Perpetuate Anti-Blackness
It's well-known that the common enemy among communities of color is white supremacy. Due to the wide-reaching impacts of institutionalized white supremacy, many communities of color fail to examine their own problematic behavior towards each other, especially towards the Black community. With that in mind, it's important to better understand how anti-Blackness functions even … [Read more...]
Listen to Our Foremothers: Why Black Women Deserve To Balance Our Rage With Our Joy
It is a sad time for Black women in this country. I would love to say that this time is unique and unlike that which our foremothers faced after being stolen and brought to this country, holding onto their souls and the shreds of their dignity they were determined never to give up. But we know this is not true. Today, as we carry our rage and sadness, feeling an … [Read more...]
3 Tips for Practicing Self-Care When Grieving
My mother was killed on August 1, 2014 while driving to her final teacher recertification class. She was about to start teaching in a new county and had to take courses in preparation for the fall school start. The person who hit her car, resulting in her hitting a beltway lane divider, was a Maryland State Police cadet. My mother was killed a week before Michael Brown. Other … [Read more...]
4 Ways Sick and Disabled White Folks Can Show Up for Anti-Racism
I know that navigating intersections is hard, especially when you have privilege in one area and are oppressed in another. First, we need to remember it is not nearly as hard as living at the intersections of oppression. We also need to be excruciatingly honest with ourselves (and each other) about how these factors influence us at each time and place we occupy. As a white … [Read more...]
Why Black History Needs To Matter to Everyone Else, Every Month
Let me start by saying that I have Attention Deficit Disorder. It's hard for me retain anything at all without a lot of repetition. Unless I’m continually reminded of something, I inevitably forget it. It’s for this reason that I have come to value Black History Month on a personal level. Totally by accident, it provides for my disability. But, as is often the case, my … [Read more...]
“We Stand With Cosby”: Rape Culture and Victim-Blaming Among America’s Heroes
It's an easy thing to say: just tell the truth. Tell it immediately, without bias, lacking emotionality, to everyone. Easy, right? Even in our daily interactions, we do not always tell the truth. Often in fear of hurting others, being hurt, getting fired, being told your truth was never worth sharing. However, when it comes to people in the public eye, it has become all too … [Read more...]
5 Ways to Respond to Racism While Online Dating
Online dating has become less of a taboo in recent years. With society’s rising dependence on technology and social media, it was only a matter of time before we collectively became more comfortable with the idea of meeting our potential soulmates and "friends with benefits" online. For some of us, it’s even become fun. There are bars that dedicate nights for people to come in … [Read more...]
6 Ways White Folks Can Support Black Lives Matter, Even If You Can’t Leave Your House
The Body Is Not an Apology’s goal is to share the myriad ways human bodies unshackle the box of “beauty” and fling it wide open for all of us to access. Our goal is to redefine the unapologetic, radically amazing magnificence of EVERY BODY on this planet. When we do, we change the world! Join the movement and become a subscriber today! bit.ly/NoBodiesInvisible. As someone … [Read more...]
Black Liberation Demands Queer Liberation: How the Black Community Must Step Up to Support the LGBTQ+ Community
I’ve been an activist with Black Lives Matter for two years now. My inspiration to found the second Black Lives Matter chapter in Canada stemmed from a desire to bring the lives (and deaths) of Black folks into the Canadian imaginary; to encourage white Canadian settlers to acknowledge their ancestors’ involvement in slavery, colonialism and segregation and to celebrate … [Read more...]
A 1-On-1 With BLM: Is Black Lives Matter a Radical Self love Movement?
By: Jaime Grant Jaime M. Grant, a white lesbian organizer who grew up in Boston in the 60s, interviews Daunasia Yancey a Black queer, femme leader of Black Lives Matter Boston as their conversion reveals the unapologetic work we all strive to do within ourselves and our community. Jaime: One of the things that’s striking about BLM is the emphasis on love and the body and … [Read more...]
Police Brutality, Transphobia and Mistrials: 5 Terrible Ways America Impacted Masculinity in 2016
The year of 2016 sure has been volatile and terrifying for many folks. It’s safe to say that no one in the world, let alone the United States, was not affected by the throws of what many folks would call, of course, “the worst year ever!” While the validity of that statement may be more than questionable, there’s no doubt that we have seen some grave examples of just how deep … [Read more...]
Blue Lives Matter?: When Police Policy Protects the Wrong Person
On July 7th 2016 protesters in Dallas, Texas peacefully rallied against the killings of black people at the hand of the police. It was in this week that Alton Sterling had been shot dead by the police in Baton Rouge. Philando Castile's death immediately following just days after upon being shot by the police in the front seat of his car, his girlfriend watching in horror. The … [Read more...]
