Dear White People Season 3 Finally Gives Us the Nerdy Black Gay Girls We Deserve
“Squeee!!! Little black nerdy girls in baby gay love!! IT’S SO CUTE!!”
the speakeasy
The Mexplainer: A History of Anti-Brown Violence in the American Southwest
Latinxs are under attack. Since gringos first decided to manifest their destiny on our land, Latinx people in the United States have been forced to live under a regime of fear and degradation: White Supremacy.
“A Black Lady Sketch Show” Is Queer, Brilliant and Ridiculously Funny
A Black Lady Sketch Show recognizes that “black ladies” come across a variety of gender identities and sexualities. Black lesbians are funny. Black queer women are funny. Black trans women are funny. And we aren’t going anywhere, any time soon.
When Your Face Reflects the Mirror
Traveling to see family in Taiwan, the sudden change in beauty standards forced me to contemplate my own. The same features that made me so ordinary at home made me extraordinary in Taiwan. The things that pushed me away from the American feminine ideal brought me closer to the “perfect” Taiwanese woman.
Toni Morrison Has Died at 88; When I Was 27, She Saved My Life
Maybe that’s why black women love Toni Morrison. She laid bare the kind of secrets that we barely even whispered to each other, the shames that we buried underneath our quick tongues and sisterhood hugs and fashion slays. She wrote for us, and for that she is ours.
12 Quotes About Freedom from Queer and Trans People of Color to Meditate on This Independence Day
Queer and trans people of color know more about the ugliness of America than most. But we’re still here. We’re still fighting for our liberation. Let us lift up those voices today.
Building An Altar to Honor Pulse on Its Third Anniversary
“Building ofrendas unite the living and the dead; they give space for our stories to be held. I light candles and kneel before them to say prayers because doing so reminds me, even when I’m my most lost – I’m never alone in this world.”
Going Back Outside After the Streetlights Come On
When you’re little, the backyard of your grandma’s house is an entire universe. Growing up is finding the kid in you and being brave enough to take them outside again – without warning them about coming home before the streetlights come on.
“She’s Gotta Have It” Season 2 Finally Gives Nola Darling The Bright Light She Deserves
“If Nola Darling is one of the most famous, even if uncomfortable, black queer women in pop culture – what does it mean for us that nearly everything about her is so closely tied to the man who created her?”
Vida’s Season Two Is a Triumph of Unapologetically Queer and Latinx Storytelling
Tanya Saracho demands more from her characters, from her audience. She requires our discomfort, our willingness to bring all of our messy selves in front of the television.
These Five Black LGBTQ+ Activists Are Literally Saving The Planet
Black LGBTQ+ people may not be well-represented in mainstream environmental organizations, but we’re creating our own interventions that center the most marginalized among us. If you’re wondering what true environmental justice looks like, meet these five Black LGBTQ+ people who put in MAJOR work to protect Earth.
“Someone Great”: Gina Rodriguez, Brittany Snow and DeWanda Wise Add a Lesbian BFF to the Gal Pal Comedy Formula
It’s like Girls Trip’s less raunchy kid sister who went to NYU and made some white friends.
Lena Waithe’s “Boomerang” Is Bringing a Gay Reckoning to BET
Not only has Boomerang proven itself to be one of the most cutting edge black voices on television, it’s also invested in showcasing a full spectrum of young blackness, including sexuality.
The Harassment of Young M.A. and Including Black Butches When We Talk About Violence
Jokes that make violence appear innocuous is how we get dead.
Reaching Out for My Queer Muslim Community to Hold Me After Christchurch
In times like these, when people don’t understand us and decide that this means we shouldn’t live at all, we need to connect with the people that do understand, even if just a little bit, even if peripherally.
A Playlist to End The Longest Black History Month EVER. Let’s Party.
I’m ready to kiss the last hours of the longest 28 days on record away with a f*cking party and a playlist full of bangers!
Four Black Queer Writers in Conversation About Jussie Smollett and Holding Up Space for Each Other
This piece was co-written by Natalie, Reneice, Alexis, and Carmen. We’re four of the black members of The Speakeasy, Autostraddle’s collective for its writers of color.
Proudly Black, Fat, Queer and Making a Home for Myself in Cosplay
People don’t realize how damaging it is to only acknowledge a part of someone instead of their entire being. I’m black and queer and fat and a woman. Yes, I love cosplay but please — don’t forget my “and.”
Lena Waithe’s “Boomerang” Has a Black Lesbian, Bisexual Representation and a Lot of Heart
Tia’s a complete scene stealer. She’s defies so many boxes or tropes of what we’ve been programmed to expect from a black lesbian on TV.
The Black Lesbian Movie Project
What if “Coming To America” starred Lena Waithe instead of Eddie Murphy? What if Sanaa Lathan and Gabrielle Union made out with each other at the end of “Love & Basketball”? What if black lesbians finally got to get the girl on the big screen? I’m buying the popcorn. You coming with?