Empowerment

You're Too .......
Bald Head! I remember hearing those words in class. It was my second week at the high school in New Jersey. I was so young and naive that I did not understand the meaning of the term and thought that this boy was calling me bald headed. I responded that he needed to look at himself since he had no hair whatsoever. I later learned that the term Bald Head meant basically I was being told that I was too European and part of the establishment. I was so hurt by those words but I was not sure why they hurt so deeply.
By Cora4 years ago in Pride
The Rainbow Barn Owl
I lay here in the loft, breathing small white puffs that turn softly to wisps in the cold night air. They lay long, and distinct across the pin pricked blanket of blackness that is the night sky until the warmth that was within me becomes one with the frosty atmosphere and disappears. I wait in utter stillness. I imagine your wings opening wide for the first flight of evening, immense and strong, able to lift such a large animal into the air, but also agile; able to dive when your keen eyes spot some unlucky prey and make a swift, soft, and precise landing, and I wish you could fly farther, Dear Barn Owl.
By Ashleigh Miller4 years ago in Pride
I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO OUR CAUSE
My man Martin. He was the definition of “powerful” as it pertains to whipping up Black votes and stirring up some GOOD TROUBLE back in his time, and as he said in that candid speech on that faithful day in Washington D.C. on August 28th, 1963, I Have A Dream. It might as well have been his John Hancock on the bill Lyndon Johnson signed into law, The Civil Rights Act of 1964, because it was all of his hard work, organizing power, and efforts, to which the FBI assassinated him for. I feel like I’m a part of Martin’s dream. I see myself as a bit of Chairmen’s Fred Black Panther Party and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference members. I use my voice for change, for good trouble, maybe sometimes a little too much trouble, but speaking truth to power in 2022 feels like my man Martin….never even existed. I mean, what kind of crap are we even talking about right now, ACCESS TO VOTING RIGHTS!??! Cue my girl Stacey Abrams. She has been this generation’s version of Dr. King’s public fight to demand Black access to the southern ballots. I do tons of history about America, in my pursuits of understanding and educating Black America. I really am not sure which tribe I come from but here, we don’t even have time to go back to learn, to hear the stories of our truth, to find whatever it was that was stolen from Africans who were brought to America through slave migration because we are still fighting to be free. Y’all know we just got Juneteenth in 2021 right. Lincoln has been dead for decades.
By TREMG4 years ago in Pride
A Love Letter to my Changing Body
Author's note: I am non-binary and transgender, and in October 2020 I begun medical transition using testosterone. This piece examines the self love this choice has encouraged. Originally written in response to a Reddit thread where a young trans man said he was feeling discouraged by how so much discussion of testosterone HRT is just jokes about how sweaty or greasy or pimply we become, and he asked to see some romanticisation of the feelings.
By Will Savage4 years ago in Pride
SKIRT
BOY I’ve always liked skirts. But as I look at myself in the mirror now, I can’t help but feel panic climbing over my skin. I’m wearing a black skirt; it is cropped just above my knees.
By Maiya Steele4 years ago in Pride
A Brief Emancipating Moment
If you've ever gone out for a run or a jog underneath a blazing sun wearing too many layers, then you know the feeling of liberation well. It comes once you extricate your body from the clenching of the sweat-drenched workout clothes and your anatomy can finally appreciate a zephyr caressing your moist skin. You've been longing for that exact moment all throughout the treacherous workout and when it arrives, it's unfettering.
By Jose Antonio Soto4 years ago in Pride
Lifting Spirits
“Rei. Rei, open up.” Silence. “Rei Fortuna Letra if you don’t open this goddamn door right now, I’m gonna-” The door creaks open and the young woman slams it open, muttering half-hearted praises about being lucky. The woman is hispanic, her light brown skin contrasting the dark eyes that glared into the empty room.
By Edlyn Escoto4 years ago in Pride
Being Gay no longer has to be a secret
I have often said to a lot of my gay friends that I think there needs to be more open communication on how their half live. The gay community seem so afraid someone is going to ask question that they might not have and answer to. They are afraid to be ridiculed. They are so afraid others may judge them. Suck it up people! Communication is the only way to normalcy. Gay people use some traditions but their is no book on how to live as a gay couple. Being gay there is no format on how gay families conduct themselves in any type of relationship. I would like to see more relatable stories base on gay relationship and everyday daily situation so we can relate and share stories. We need to see the good, the bad and the ugly in gay families, gay relationships, gay dating, gay romance, and any other question straight people may have about gay people. Gay can no longer be kept as a well kept secret because we have people who need to be held responsible for unacceptable behavior.
By Peggy Whitaker4 years ago in Pride
Searching For My Word
There is a certain word that I find repulsive, and that is concerning. There’s nothing wrong with this word or its definition, it’s more so a personal reflection that makes me feel this disgust. In fact, it is a word that defines me, but the word, that which leaves a distasteful pallet, just sounds, well, gross. Trashy and tacky to my tongue, leaving the question as to if it is really the word or if it is that I am repelled by myself. If I am truly repulsed for being defined by such a harmless word, then what can I do to gain pride in this and have satisfaction in knowing that it describes me? Unfortunately, as I sit here writing this, admitting it to myself, the repulsion takes over. What if I could find a new word to replace this? Would that make it any better? Could it be, by writing this, by the end, that I will no longer feel this way?
By Stevi Vaughn4 years ago in Pride
This Is A Cause Of Worry For Thousands Of Female Athletes!
Women have for the past number of years moved hand in hand with the male partners in sports. Several years ago, men were the lone species allowed to take part in sporting activities for several reasons, until 1900, when tennis player Charlotte Cooper became the only female Olympic hero.
By Osei Agyemang4 years ago in Pride
The Less Spoken About Aspects of Coming Out "Later in Life". Top Story - November 2021.
The Less Spoken About Aspects of Coming Out "Later in Life" What you think coming out is like is only half rightFor anyone coming out after having built a life- career, marriage, kids- the process and feelings can be quite different from that of a younger person. The one thing that remains the same between the two age groups is the fear and the real possibility of rejection. Each age group faces distinct challenges to living authentically. This list of "Things I Was Not Prepared For" impacted me, and a few other later blooming queer women I have spoken to, but seemed to be less impacting to my loud and proud LGBTQIA daughter and her friends.
By Leigh Robbins4 years ago in Pride
What I am.
Hello. My Name is Sherrie-Skye. I know, it's a strange first name to most but, it's mine. My story's a bit simple if a bit cliché, as life hasn't just been 'difficult' for me, exclusively. I'll admit, I can't blame my childhood for all the ups-and-downs; because I'm an adult, and I am responsible for the decisions I make and the consequences I face!
By Sherrie-Skye B. Winterz4 years ago in Pride