Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers, Black Fathers, and White Women
EIC Zoe Patterson weaves together an analysis of Kendrick Lamar's new album with grief over her relationship with an absent parent
Two Poems
With influences from Angel Nafis, queer Bangladeshi poet Amatan Noor spins an acerbic bite out of everyday realities and structures
Offscreen: Evading Whiteness in ‘Spring Breakers’
New in our b-roll column, writer Ben Lewelynn-Taylor takes a closer look at the 2012 film Spring Breakers, analyzing its undertones of racism through the lens of the current political climate
Sorry to Bother You: Reflecting on Modern Capitalism and Satirical Black Cinema
As part of our new "b-roll" film column, Vamika Sinha revisits Boots Riley's Afro-surrealist Sorry to Bother You, and why it offers important commentary on the intersections of race and late-stage capitalism in 2020.
My Skin My Logo
I’m sick and tired of the dehumanization of Black people and the exertion of control placed on our bodies. Our skin is ours, and our bodies are our own. We are not a vessel for your hatred and insecurity.
absence of the latina intellectual: some abstract theory for your ass
New in milk & vodka, a searing poem about agency, sexuality and discrimination of women, by Kim Morales.
Drag the Red
Zoe Jane Patterson prods at the misrepresentation of and violence towards Indigenous women in Canada, in this new poem.
When I Get Home: Solange's Cartography
In When I Get Home, a title itself implying a road and destination tied to self, Solange sketches a journey, maps out the paths that have led her to this exact moment as both artist and woman and black being.
We Take What We're Given
A powerful personal essay by Samantha Neugebauer about self-image, weight, travel, love, and body positivity.
The Islander
A short story set in downtown Abu Dhabi, about a lonely figure who lives with a local tailor.
The Dangerous Bodies of Others: Twilight’s New Moon
In this essay, Zoe Jane Patterson explores the problematic racialization of the werewolf characters in Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series.
Nantes is on Fire
Jordan McDonald offers a forgotten history of the African slave trade in the French city of Nantes, and its legacy today.
Going Black: The Commodification of Hip-Hop Culture
“The commodification of hip-hop leads to a watering down of its content. As corporations try to capture as much of the market as possible, they ‘tone down’ hip-hop’s radical aspects to make it as palatable for consumers as possible.”
Lady Tattooer
Tzy Jiun Tan writes about female agency over the body from a tattoo parlor.
A School for Little Witches
Giant toads, spell books, and a little girl. Zoe Jane Patterson’s new short story uses magical realism to unravel subtle political commentary.
The 126-Year-Old White Gaze of Vogue
Why does it matter so much to have a black photographer shooting the cover of Vogue? Tyler Mitchell is the first in the magazine’s long history.
I'd Love It If We Made It
“Hip-hop seems to be our protest music du jour but for another generation, it was rock ‘n’ roll” – Vamika Sinha unpacks The 1975’s songs as modern cultural commentary in the form of millennial rock music
A Documentary Poem: Stand Up Comedy is Not Funny.
A wry, formally experimental poem by Arthur De Oliveira.
whole foods
Vamika Sinha's new poem gets knee deep into the late stage capitalist American dream.
A KKK Kidnapping, The Love Laws, and The Shape of Water
Zoe Jane Patterson weaves together Arundhati Roy’s writing with the film The Shape of Water, to make a commentary about love, race and unspoken social laws.