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Limit(less) Reminds Us That Africans Can Be Queer, Too, and Debunks Stereotypes
For centuries, U.S.-based evangelical Christians have traversed the continent of Africa spreading messages of homophobia and transphobia against the LGBTQ community. People like Scott Lively, an anti-gay extremist, for example, who was subjected to the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts (pdf) because of his travel abroad to promote Ugandaās anti-gay propagandaāthe Anti-Homosexuality…
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Remembering the Pulse Nightclub Tragedy: 1 Year LaterĀ Ā
One year ago June 12, I awoke to a flurry of text messages and missed calls from friends demanding that I turn on my television. It was a Sunday morning, and like many black gay men who reside in the nationās capital, I was in hibernation, sleeping off one too many Jack and Cokes. When…
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Public Service Announcement: āBlack Prideā Is for Black People Only
If you reside in the nationās capital and, at the end of every May, donāt notice thousands of black LGBTQ people descend from the gay clouds in their fiercest outfits to slay the weekend away, then you may be living under a rock. To be sure, Memorial Day weekend is certainly when we honor those…
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The 2017 Miss USA Is a Proud, Black HBCU Graduate, and Sheās Also Problematic as HellĀ
For the second consecutive year, Miss District of Columbia, a black woman and HBCU graduate, has been crowned Miss USA. Outgoing 2016 Miss USA Deshauna Barber crowned her fellow Washington, D.C., resident, KĆ”ra McCullough, 25, Sunday night in Las Vegas. McCullough is a chemist working for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Two black women were…
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Why I Wonāt Cry Over or Celebrate the Dylann Roof Death Sentence
On Tuesday a unanimous jury sentenced Dylann Roof, a 22-year-old white supremacist who killed nine churchgoers in Charleston, S.C., to death. This sentence made Roof the first person in United States history to be given the death penalty in federal court for a hate crime. It only took three hours of deliberation for the jury…
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Reclaiming My Body During the Month of My Rapistās Birth
January is usually a time of celebration. Itās a time when people can revisit goals from the previous year, create new ones, craft vision boards and determine our course for the year, all while anticipating some unexpected hurdles along the way. I, too, can always appreciate how important celebrating the new year isāa time with…
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Kim Kardashian Should Not Be Blamed for the F–kery of Kanye West
When Kanye āHeāll leave your ass for a white girlā West and Kim Kardashian married in May 2014, the world knew that it would be a match made in heaven: two egos finally becoming one in holy matrimony. Kanye West, a man who has had an infatuation with stereotypically beautiful womenāread: women who have a…
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Choosing Family:Ā Stop Telling LGBT People We Need to Go āHomeā During the Holiday Season
Each December, I get excited about the idea of the upcoming holiday seasonāfrom Christmas music to baked goods to buying presents for loved ones; it is an enjoyable time for many people. This year has beenĀ no different. But it also does not escape me that the holiday season can be a difficult time for many…
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Donald Trump, Racist-in-Chief: Here Are the 10 Most Racist Things Heās Done So Far
We know that President-elect Trump is a racistāor, at the very least, racist-adjacent. Like no other before him, Trump won the 2016 presidential election because much of white America underestimated the level of white supremacy on which this country was founded. It is this supremacy that allowed Trump to claim that he didnāt know David…
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On World AIDS Day, Letās Talk About How HIV-Criminalization Laws Wonāt Lead to an AIDS-Free Generation
On Dec. 1Ā of each year, the global community celebrates World AIDS Dayāa day that provides an opportunity for people to unite in the fight against HIV, show support for people living with HIV and to commemorate those who have died from AIDS. This year marks the 28th anniversary of the first-ever global-health day, which started…
