“Are you sure, sweetheart, that you want to be well? Just so’s you’re sure, sweetheart, and ready to be healed, cause wholeness is no trifling matter. A lot of weight when you’re well.” Toni Cade Bambara I try to stay out of social media mess. Truly, I do. Social media can be so beautiful, bringing […]
“There was so much diverse black masculinity in the world of our childhood that it would have been impossible for any of us to have a one-dimensional understanding of black life. We knew from experience that some black males were kind and gentle, others cruel and indifferent, that some fathers were present, and some fathers […]
Days bleed together in a pandemic. We are still in the midst of one—aren’t we? Contrary to popular belief, and a world that seems to have just moved on with COVID, a pandemic grips us. Sickness has struck this globe in a way that will probably impact us for decades. As we come to grips […]
As I ease into the cool, black seat of the barber’s chair, I take a deep breath. For just one moment, I close my eyes and allow the tension and anxiety that are weighing so heavily upon my shoulders to ease. I look around the barbershop and smile. Snippets of conversations float to my ear […]
My formative years taught me that emotions were chaotic and wild. I learned that if I wanted to be a man, I needed to have a strong grip on things, to detach if necessary.
Note: This article contains descriptions of Bridgerton that some readers might consider to be minor spoilers and links to articles that contain spoilers.Can Black folks get a moment of peace? Can we exist without always having to address our collective trauma? Since the start of the pandemic, I have found myself implementing every imaginable method […]
Good day everyone. There has been a lengthy break in my writing, but now I am back. I pray that you all are in good health and prospering in the ways that are meaningful to you. I must confess that sitting down to write something on Kevin Samuels, particularly after his death, feels strange. I […]
Last November, we collectively offered up prayer and fasting for the life of Julius Jones, a Black man wrongfully convicted of murder who was set to be executed. At the eleventh hour, Jones was granted clemency by the Governor of Oklahoma. Jones’ sentence was reduced to life without parole. It is not ideal that Jones’ […]
Brown skin, you know I love your Brown skin. I can’t tell where yours begins. I can’t tell where mine ends. -India Arie A new day begins Breathe The exhaustion of thousands of stressors pull me (us) in every direction. I have waited this long to explicitly think about my maleness out loud, to […]
It feels like yesterday (It just happened in March. What is time anymore?!) that we were minding our own business trying to navigate the ever-changing nature of this pandemic and people who didn’t want to wear their masks and…I digress…when social media lit up with a video from Kirk Franklin’s son, Kerrion Franklin. The video […]
Comedian and actress Mo’Nique recently posted an Instagram saying she was in an airport in ATL when she saw sistas with bonnets, scarves, slippers and blankets wrapped around them. She felt that what she saw was somehow robbing us of our pride. I’m here to reshape the narrative and tell y’all this couldn’t be further […]
“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” Alice Walker By now, I am sure you have heard that Naomi Osaka withdrew from the French Open [Please take some time to research her full background before coming to strong opinions on her…some of the loudest voices have […]
In November 2020, the American Psychological Association reported that depression and anxiety were at an all-time high last year because of the pandemic. I don’t know how it was for y’all, but 2020 seemed to reveal issues that had long been hidden and to resurrect problems that we thought were dead. For me, the past […]
“Meditate and learn to be alone without being lonely…Learn to be quiet enough to hear the sound of the genuine within yourself so that you can hear it in other people…A few minutes every hour, a half-hour every day, a day a month, a week a year-in dedicated silence-is a goal to pursue.” Marian Wright […]
I rest in confidence that raising and guiding my Black children is the most significant form of antiracist activism that I will ever engage in. I also rest in confidence that I have equipped my children with the tools to go into the world and treat their neighbors with genuine concern, showing particular care for […]
I think that it is very hard to know where or even what our next step is when we #LeaveLOUD. Many of us find ourselves wandering in the wilderness; the space between our previous spiritual community and our next church home. Leaving an unhealthy church and entering into the wilderness gives a sense of freedom, […]
Read the Introduction, Part Two, and Part Three. During my fifth pregnancy, I contracted a rare infectious disease that made it necessary for me to abandon my plans for giving birth with a midwife at a birthing center and to find a doctor who would take me at seven months pregnant. You would think that […]
Read the Introduction and Part 2. For my first three pregnancies, I had the luxury of receiving care from a Black OB/GYN. My family relocated toward the end of my fourth pregnancy, which resulted in a struggle to find a care provider. Most of the practices that I contacted would not take me because I […]
According to the National Institute of Health, severe maternal morbidity (SMM) rates have nearly doubled over the past decade. The incidence of SMM was 166% higher for Black women than white women from 2012 to 2015. To be clear, it is racism—not race—that impacts prenatal care and maternal outcomes. This post is part of a […]
Black Maternal Health Week is April 11-17 each year. Advocacy for Black maternal health should be a regular part of our advocacy work and not just during this designated time. The purpose of Black Maternal Health Week is to bring awareness to the systemic disparities stacked against Black women, center the voices and experience of […]
