Back when I was binge watching episodes of ‘Scandal’ – after coming to the party two years too late – I remember sighing with relief when Olivia took Jake’s hand and finally decided to run away with him in order to “live in the sun”. All this Fitz and DC political stress was just too […]
“Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever?” – 2 Corinthians 6: 14-15 It has always astonished me: That as much time as the […]
Before my self-imposed exile from Twitter this week (inspired by threats of physical harm against my family and a story for another day), one of the last stories I read was an opinion piece written by Siyanda Mohutsiwa entitled I’m Done with African Immigrant Literature. Here she describes her frustration and angst about having to […]
There are certain givens that I have always assumed would remain givens. You know what I mean? Don’t you have those for your own life? Like, as a woman of faith, there are certain variables I have expected to remain constant for as long as I drew breath. The sun would always rise in the […]
Happy Friday, MOM Squad! Under normal circumstances, we’d be chatting about frivolous topics in recognition of Frivolous Friday; but there’s a disturbance in the Force that has to be addressed. I do hate it when folks won’t let the Force remain in balance. Someone is always throwing a monkey wrench into the Force! I deliberately […]
*Warning: This post contains vulgar language… You know, the type of language women and girls are subjected to every day, several times a day. Occasionally, women’s magazines, glossy journals and quirky BuzzFeed videos address the issue of gender-based harassment and violence against women using provocative imagery and devastating statistics that it sets concerned tongues wagging…for […]
“Are you sure you want to do a video chat? I’m only wearing my bra.” “Girl. That’s okay. I’m about to take my bra off.” The tone for our conversation has been set: Hilarious, honest and real. After a whirlwind month of shooting, sneak peaks and promotion, Noella Wiyaala still made time to give us […]
Marley Dias is an 11 year old 5th grader who saw a gap in what she was exposed to in her literary world and decided to fill it. When the New Jersey student expressed her frustration about the types of books crowding her curriculum – books about “white boys and dogs” – her mother gave […]
It is only in a country like John D. Mahama’s Ghana that two former Gitmo detainees will find themselves better housed, fed and with greater access to healthcare than the average Ghanaian citizen. After all, should some calamity befall these two, the government will have to answer and give an account to the international community. […]
There’s something about politics and political allegiances that turns otherwise rational people into absurd versions of themselves. Something in the brain just switches off and confusion sets in. Fealty coupled with credulity renders these individuals like the proverbial bull seeing red: It robs them of their intellect and reduces them to an undignified spectacle. I […]
Ask any artist or person who makes a living from creative endeavors what their greatest fear is. Seven times out of ten, they will say it’s the terror they feel knowing that some faceless entity or individual will and can steal their work. It’s a personal violation that guts an artist to their core. The […]
As much of the viewing public prepares to consume another episode of #OscarsSoWhite, there are a number of people – myself included – who will be abstaining from the ocular throwback to the Jim Crow Era when Black people had to enter the premises through the back door and in their servant livery. I suppose […]
There are things that grieve me – matters of such grave concern that they rob me of sleep when I should be resting at twilight and continue to plague my thoughts during the day. I obsess over these affairs incessantly. I have questions. Questions like: “Is God pleased with my life?” “Will the price of […]
This Sunday my Bishop (yes, David. I have a Bishop!) mentioned in passing that the wife of a certain predominant preacher was at a conference and decreed that the gathering of the saints was for our personal pleasure, not for God’s. He intimated that she intimated that our happiness was of greater import than that […]
David Bowie passed away today and the tributes to his memory and his art are rushing through and flooding the Internet like a tidal wave. I still remember the first David Bowie song I ever heard. It was Let’s Dance…a song that is actually incredibly difficult to dance to (if you’re Black). While we had […]
Two summers ago my husband built an aquaponics system in order to grow fruits, vegetables and herbs. He was inspired by several medium-to-small scale operations that we saw while on vacation in South Africa and decided to give it a try at home. In that time, he’s grown peppers, spring onions, lettuce, mint, basil, thyme, […]
Ever since news broke last night that two detainees of Yemeni origin have been resettled in Ghana after spending years in Guantanamo Bay prison, tongues have been wagging about what the Ghanaian government might have taken in return for harboring the two men. Why Ghana? Why not Oregon? After all, Mahmud Umar Muhammad bin Atef […]
This is a story about the importance of condom use. Yes, some may interpret is as primarily being the sad tale of a young woman who’s bright future was dimmed over a decade ago – the wretched result of straying from the good and godly path for the sake of dick – but it’s mostly […]
2015 will end in just two days. Incredible! It feels as though it was just a few weeks ago that we were doubled over in laughter in response to Two Thoozin’s hopes and prayers that “evultin will be vibely on Nachurrr Gawd!” – and yet a whole year has gone by! This year has been […]
*Warning: This post contains gratuitous (and crude) references to the male reproductive organ. If you take offense to the words “penis”, “dangle” and “cock”, you should probably stop reading right abooouuuut…NOW. It would appear that we’re all going to have get comfortable with seeing penises in places we are not traditionally accustomed to encountering […]
Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, Merrrrr’ Kritmah! This is a special time of year for most people. For others, the holidays can be very hard for myriad personal reasons. They are a reminder of people whom have been lost, or of broken relationships, or that one crazy aunt who handcrafted pink bunny pajamas and who truly […]