Friday Open Thread: What’s Motivating You and Getting You Through?
This is your Friday open thread for June 12!
One American Goes to See “30 Americans”
“And I thought how interesting is it that America can be this dark star, death star, and also at the same time this incredible shining light.”
Stonewall Was an Uprising: A Playlist for Finding the Joy in the Struggle
For Black queer and trans people, insisting on cultivating joy might be the most radical move of all.
My Top 10 Favorite Lesbian Movies: Carmen, President of the Dee Rees and Queen Latifah Fan Club
Hello! I’m here to swoon over Dee Rees, in my opinion the greatest queer filmmaker of our time. Alright. Let’s get started!
Yelling His Name: Black Trans Mourning and the Murder of Tony McDade
Friends and family lovingly called him Tony the Tiger and recalled that he was big hearted. Tony is not the perfect victim — no Black person is in this nation’s eyes. So again and again I add #BlackTransLivesMatter to every post and plea I make.
How to Talk to Your White Friends and Family About Racism
As annoying as it is, probably, to hear it, you really have to lead with love. It’s not our responsibility to love people who hate us or wish us ill, but if those people are your friends or family, it is yours. If you genuinely care about your family and want them to be and do better, let that ground your conversation.
Showing Up For Black People Is a Duty, Not a Transaction
Real commitment to Black lives requires us to consider why we’re fighting and for whom. It’s time we ask ourselves: if our liberation weren’t intertwined, if your well-being weren’t tied to that of Black people, would you still defend Black life?
As a Queer South Asian, “Never Have I Ever” Been So Let Down
The reason I didn’t like “Never Have I Ever” wasn’t because I didn’t feel seen. It’s because Mindy Kaling and I are clearly looking at the same world, but Kaling is expecting me to overlook all of its pain.
Lambda Literary Pride 2020 Brings Your Fave All-Star LGBTQ Authors to Your Living Room
See authors like Kristen Arnett, Nicole Byers, T Kira Madden, Chani Nicholas and Sam Irby LIVE and simultaneously contribute to an LGBT cultural institution!
Raising Anti-Racist Kids: A Guide and Book List for White and Non-Black POC Parents
Protecting our children from hard conversations about race is actively aiding and abetting white supremacy. We can’t afford to stay complicit.
Queer Horoscopes for June 2020: How Can You Answer to Both Grief and Joy?
June brings us restlessness, urgency, and no easy answers. Let the eclipses break you open so you can be more whole.
Foolish Child #73: All Houses Matter
You’re not worth my energy nor the years being shaved off my life from the stress of having to defend My Humanity.
My Top 10 Favorite Television Shows: Natalie, the TV Team’s Resident Bisexual
“Fire is hot, water is wet and ‘The Wire’ is the greatest television show of all time. Facts on facts on facts.”
Also.Also.Also: 2020 Black Lives Matter Protests Are “Unprecedented In Scope” and Just Getting Started
In today’s link roundup: Minneapolis will dismantle its police department, Trump truly could just refuse to leave office, justice for Breonna Taylor, #8toAbolition, more on what defunding the police means, an interview with the “I yield my time” guy and more from the thousands of really important stories in the world today.
MedSupplyDrive Relief Work Started with COVID-19, Now Includes Support for Protestors
We cold-called and emailed hundreds of places, heart in mouth, praying for someone to be generous. And people came through, offering gloves, masks, and more.
Resistance 101 Reading List: A Crash-Course for Aspiring Revolutionaries
You’re joining a fight that is by no means new, check out this list of books to make sure you come correct to the next rally.
Blood on the Dance Floor: “Killing Eve” Season Three’s Last Tango Is Sexy as Ever
“Killing Eve” is far from its cat-and-mouse beginnings. There’s the looming question of who’s in control. Villanelle and Eve are each other’s captors and captives. All at once.
Hurtling at Full Speed Toward the Present
Screams are often ripped from us, either through fear or fervor, but rarely does one think, soberly and with intention, “ I would like to indulge in a scream,” and then do it. This is a mistake.
How to Take Care of Each Other: Community Care In Times Of Crisis
“When we’ve all broken past the fear of being burdens on others, when we as communities learn how to ask for and give help and support, we’ll be able to take care of each other.”
Sunday Funday is Wishing Breonna Taylor a Happy Birthday!
Happy (belated) birthday Breonna Taylor, let’s celebrate you! Leave your birthday wishes in the comments, share your favorite videos of Black joy, drop a playlist, donate her family’s GoFundMe. Let’s show her, and Black girls everywhere just how much we love them.