black Archives - Wear Your Voice

White People Don’t Feel Empathy For People Of Color And Here Is Why That Matters

Wear Your VoiceDec 13, 2018

The ability to feel empathy is shaped by our genes, and empathy is pretty fucking important. by Sherronda J. Brown and Lara Witt Whiteness is nothing but p...

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How White America’s Legacy of Voter Suppression Harms People of Color

Wear Your VoiceOct 22, 2018

Instead of blaming people of color who don't vote, white liberals need to take a closer look at their own communities. by Sherronda J. Brown and Lara Witt ...

News & Politics 0

N.K. Jemisin’s Third Hugo Win Should End the White Boy Era Of Sci-Fi

Donyae ColesAug 22, 2018

The gatekeepers of publishing keep marginalized people from getting their work out there. Jemisin is proof that this practice needs to end. N.K. Jemisin just ...

Culture 0

The Radical Act of Beyoncé Claiming Her FUPA

Donyae ColesAug 8, 2018

Beyoncé addressing this post-baby body reality is an important moment. I am not a rabid Beyoncé fan. I like Lemonade and a few more of her songs, but it would ...

Body Politics 0

Being Proud of my Blasian Identity Didn’t Come Without Some Pain

Latonya PenningtonMay 30, 2018

Despite the ongoing trauma I've experienced and the toxic things I've had to unlearn, I wouldn't trade being Blasian for anything. Until recently, I thought th...

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Nobody Believes That Black Women are in Pain, and It’s Killing Us

Guest WriterMay 25, 2018

My pain is real and the medical system is broken, misogynoir is more pervasive than what is generally perceived, and Black women deserve to been seen. By Jazmi...

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We Need Beyoncé’s Unapologetic Pro-Blackness in Mainstream Spaces

Guest WriterApr 20, 2018

Beyoncé creates space for Blackness regardless of her audience, and it's empowering to witness. By Jazmine Joyner Beyoncé officially changed the game, again...

Culture 0

6 BIWOC Comics Writers You Should Know

Latonya PenningtonMar 15, 2018

In honor of Women’s History Month, check out the work of these BIWOC comics writers. As a medium and an industry, comics aren’t always kind to women, especiall...

Culture 0

Octavia Spencer’s Pay Gap Win is an Act of Resistance Against White Supremacy

Guest WriterJan 27, 2018

Let’s be clear: Jessica Chastain helping Octavia Spencer is not the biggest story here. By Candice Frederick When I attended the fantastic “Women Breaking ...

CultureRace 0

I Have No Shame In My Difficult Black Girl Name

Sherronda J. BrownJan 2, 2018

I wish that my name, and the rest of my existence, was untouched by white colonialism. My name has nine letters and three syllables, and is an amalgamation of ...

Race 0

“Bitches Don’t Know What They Want”: On Unsolicited Dick Offers And Misogynoir

Guest WriterNov 8, 2017

We support and we march in support of black men, but we can't get to work or home without fighting through dick offers and bitch insults from them. By M. Shell...

Feminism 0

When Will I Let Myself Fall In Love With My Fat, Black Nonbinary Self?

When Will I Fall In Love With My Fat, Black Nonbinary Self?

Guest WriterNov 5, 2017

Fat, Black people with bodies like mine are ignored, fetishised or an unfortunate burden. By Mary Brighton I write this piece as someone who easily (and pai...

Body Politics 0

Dove’s Racist Advertisement, Like Most Racism, Wasn’t Accidental.

Lara WittOct 9, 2017

Dove, Nivea and a multitude of other companies aren't making mistakes, they're simply maintaining the order they feel most comfortable with. What image comes t...

Race 0

Removing Black Bodies From The Front Lines Of America’s Sins

Guest WriterAug 26, 2017

I’ve decided to remove my Black body from the war and reclaim my time. I care about the status of the country I live in, but this war is never-ending, and ultim...

Race 0

I Reconnected To My Blackness Through Hoodoo

Guest WriterJul 15, 2017

Learning about hoodoo has taught me that Black people lived normal lives and that has allowed me to connect with my ancestors in a way that all of the extraordi...

CultureIdentities 0

With “Lemonade,” Beyoncé Mixed an Elixir That Brought Me Back to Myself

Lara WittApr 21, 2017

Lemonade tore me apart and stitched me back together. I was enthralled. I was relieved. I was finally feeling something other than pain again. When Beyoncé rel...

Identities 0

Ashleigh Shackelford: not an angry black bitch

Angry Black Bitch: The Punishment for Being Too Real

Ashleigh ShackelfordDec 23, 2016

In organizing spaces and in social situations (sometimes they overlap), I’m constantly running into the same issue: being too real. In this identity of being to...

Identities 0

Why Black Women Must Wear So Many Faces

Guest WriterNov 28, 2016

by Leah Vernon When I was small, I was very watchful. Thoughtful. I’d watch Mom do everything. I wanted to know how she did it, how long it took her, her...

Identities 0

How Young M.A. is Queering Mainstream Hip-Hop

Ashleigh ShackelfordNov 10, 2016

Brooklyn-bred rapper Young M.A. took over the summer with her hit "Ooouuu" and changed the game up with her dope style and the queer representation mainstre...

Culture 0

Beyonce caused a stir at the country music awards

Attention Racist Rednecks: Country Music is Black

Heather JonesNov 4, 2016

To all the racists who hated on Beyonce's performance at the Country Music Awards: Have several seats and open up a history book, because class is now in sess...

Culture 0

But There’s Always Room to Be a “Coon”

Ashleigh ShackelfordNov 1, 2016

In Langston Hughes’ poem, "Warning," he writes: Negroes, Sweet and docile, Meek, humble, and kind: Beware the day They change their mind! Wind In the...

Race 0

Sampson on Being a Black Queer Comedian and the Time he Let the KKK Into a Show

Roni CaniesoOct 31, 2016

https://youtu.be/HreZy7ivBmg Sampson, the comedian, likes to go by one name "like Madonna!" He tells the story in the opening of A Tough Act To Follow, his d...

Culture 0

‘Moonlight’ Is A Masterpiece — And It’s the Film Many Black Queer Folks Have Been Waiting On

Michal "MJ" JonesOct 31, 2016

Trevante Rhodes in Moonlight. Content note: Contains spoilers Author's note: This is written from my perspective as a person who is Black, queer, light-s...

Culture 0

I’m Black, Female and Bisexual — But I’m Not Your “African Princess”

Guest WriterOct 31, 2016

Photo by Robb Hohmann. Creative commons license. I once had a couple tell me that they would put leopard-print bed sheets and animal furs on their bed to (and...

Identities 0

Fat. Black. And Muslim.

Guest WriterOct 17, 2016

by Leah Vernon I’m the unseen. The lost and broken. I’m the minority who is buried under media outlets like Fox News and CNN. You don’t see us on the cov...

Identities 0

Black Love is Hard AF When the World of Capitalism is Trying to Kill You

Ashleigh ShackelfordSep 27, 2016

Photo by Ashley Webb. Creative commons license. Many Black people say that Black love is hard to find, hard to maintain and hard to keep. These perceptions ar...

LGBTQ 0

Ask Ashleigh: Are You Really Broke?

Ashleigh ShackelfordSep 15, 2016

Photo by yatoobin. Creative commons license. Every time I write or post publicly about my pain with my depression, struggling with surviving antiblackness, ...

Race 0

Lena Dunham: Quit Co-Opting the Struggle of Actual Plus-Sized Women for Your Pity Party

Guest WriterSep 7, 2016

Lena Dunham at the 2016 Met Gala. Lena Dunham's latest attention grab is an insult to real plus-size and black women's struggles. by Liz Barlow To some, G...

Body Politics 0

10 Black Baddies to Follow on Instagram

Ashleigh ShackelfordAug 24, 2016

Get inspired with these 10 Instagram accounts. One of the best things in life for self-care as a Black femme is to surround yourself with the power, beauty and...

Identities 0

The Layers of Privilege Within My Oppression

Michal "MJ" JonesJul 27, 2016

“When are you gonna get some Black friends?” The question from my mother was routine and well-intentioned, but it bothered me. I had tried. In those midd...

IdentitiesRace 0

Close-up of a Black woman's face, showing depression.

When You’re Black and Depressed, It’s Even More Difficult to Get Help

Mickey ValentineJun 24, 2016

Photo by Sheena876. Creative Commons license. Content Warning: Suicide Depression sucks. It's the reason I've screwed up in the past and will screw up aga...

Ableism 0

Lessons From Black, Queer Love: ‘We are Wrapped up in Each Other’s Liberation’

Michal "MJ" JonesMay 24, 2016

Photo by Lauren Barkume. Creative Commons license. Of course it was Valentine’s Day when I first saw her. We had shared organizing spaces before, but this w...

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