Living in a Nation with no mirrors

Mirror:

a) something that shows what another thing is like in a very clear and accurate way

b) something that gives a true representation

In San Francisco there are no mirrors for someone like me. There are no things that show that I am like another thing in a very clear and accurate way. There is no true representation or resemblance of anyone or anything that looks like me. Often I hear other black citizens and minorities of San Francisco tell me they feel as if they have no real identity here. They believe they can’t grow in to the ways of San Francisco because nothing here feels like it is built for them. This made me ask the question: Is it San Francisco or is it America…and what are the causes?

Is it gentrification? Maybe.
Is it the tech industry’s indifference to change? Maybe.
Is it the way the system isn’t built for us? Maybe.
Is it due to the narratives that have been told for centuries about people of color and minorities in Western European cultures? Absolutely.

For far too long there have been voices that have been shuttered to an absolute mute. For far too long there have been narratives that never made it to the papers, the blogs, or the press. For far too long minorities have lived in the peripheral of America.

It’s time we refocus the vision.

I’ve reached the point where I couldn’t wait any longer for the American population to start seeing more perspectives on issues we face everyday. The system that benefits all of us isn’t broken, it was just never built. The perspectives of The Other Side need to be told in order to wireframe a system that could help us all. We need to hear the voices of the usually unspoken. We need to hear the narrative of those who usually aren’t given a pen to tell a story. It’s daunting to think that for how long the media has been around, it has still failed to provide an accurate, consistent, and nakedly honest perspective of minorities in America. Well, fortunately and unfortunately for them, I want to be a creator of change for this missing gap.

This is why I’m starting a new publication simply titled:

The Other Side

We need better representation than what the traditional media outlets have given us in the last 200 years. Let’s create mirrors for everyone. Positive representations to redefine the future for ourselves. The Other Side aims to provide narratives with honesty and accuracy, for different perspectives in America. I hope to focus this publication, but not limit it to: education, public policy, the politics of capitalism, science, and technology.

If you feel as if this is a platform you can help grow, feel to reach out here.

This is an open call for writers and their stories.

Also, if know anyone that you think should submit a piece to this publication, please send me their names and @ me on twitter. @chobberoni

Thanks.