Wendi C. Thomas, a prolific reporter and the founder of MLK50, learned the limitations of a single narrative as a child. When her father would drive her to school, they would listen to NPR together in the mornings. After the story was over, her father would turn off the radio…
In my house in Poughkeepsie, which I miss very much and can never return to, there are plants lining almost every corner. A massive jade commands the living room, a tarot blooms sweetly by the kitchen table. Three succulents once sat on my bedroom window sill, though they’ve probably died…
As the child of immigrants, I was raised to be quiet—to keep my head down, work hard, and always be modest about my accomplishments. These are lessons that stuck with me even as I grew up and entered the workforce: I hated networking. I was deeply uncomfortable promoting myself. I…
This story is part of Know Their Names, a collection of articles illuminating and celebrating the lives of Black Trans women.
Houston is not where Itali Marlowe grew up, but it was the place she set out to make a home. It is seemingly where she moved when she…
This story is part of Know Their Names, a collection of articles illuminating and celebrating the lives of Black Trans women.
When Tracy Single took the floor at Houston’s Montrose Grace Place (MGP), an evening drop-in center for youth experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity, she owned it. The 22-year-old…
“I woke up like this — flawless.”
We all remember the iconic titular line of Beyoncé’s 2014 hit, “***Flawless.” The anthem, like other singles at the time such as “Run the World” and “Single Ladies,” encouraged women — and particularly Black women — to see and embrace their beauty, away…
