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Trust Black Women: On Celebrating Pride Amid Racism in the LGBTQ+ Community
Editorās note: For Pride Month, The Root and Jezebel are teaming up once again for JezeRoot, with content by writers of color around everyday life for LGBTQ individuals. You remember, back in the day, when your mama would tell you some crucial information in order for you to live your best life, but you thought…
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#28DaysOfBlackCosplay: Cosplay Is for Everyone (but Itās Nice to Have Options)
In 2002 I hopped a Greyhound bus from my Iowa State college campus to get back home to Illinois for my first anime convention. I had no idea what to expect, but more important, I had no idea what to wear! I was going to a place where being a geek was highly encouragedāand I…
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Canāt We All Just Get Along? Black Panther Is Revisionist History
Editorās note: There are spoilers here. I admittedly missed a couple of key details during my first trip to Wakanda. Something about a nerdtastic property holding such cultural significance put me in a state of bliss. So I made a return trip, you know, to make sure I didnāt miss anything. (Yeah, sure. Thatās the…
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Donāt Play With Our Emotions: Black Panther and Queer Representation
Itās been a while since I was so excited for a movie that I saw it twice in its opening week. While waiting to prepurchase tickets for Black Panther, I developed an unhealthy obsession with Fandango, and my wallet wept when the Funko POP! figures were released. I was excited to go to Wakanda, yāall,…
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#28DaysOfBlackCosplay: Too Black for the White Geeks
I was 6 years old when my mama educated me in the ways of saving princesses by touching flowers and shooting fireballs at turtles. Four years later, a kid in my class revealed a juicy bit of gossip: There were adult cartoons that aired way past our bedtimes. I stayed up and discovered āJapan-imationā (or…
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#28DaysBlackOfCosplay: Learning to Love Myself by Playing Dress-Up
Iām a cosplayer. A black geek. A black, queer, cosplaying geek in a plus-size body. I conduct a body-positivity panel at conventions called āLove Your Cosplay Body.ā For about an hour, I wax philosophically about accepting yourself and ignoring the randos of the internet who comment on fat-black-girl pics with witty remarks like āwhaleā or…
