Visiting my grandfather in North Carolina was nothing short of a civic wonderland. Before my feet had even crossed the flaxen welcome mat, I was being ordered, per our routine, to list each U.S. state and capital in…
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It wasn’t easy growing up so far away from close family. All of my mother’s siblings and her parents lived below the Mason-Dixon line. We’d do our best to stay in touch between the long car rides or flights that…
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“You were ashes.” As I stood in the doorway of my sister Everette’s bedroom just past midnight, tears were warm and sticky on my…
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It’s here – midnight & indigo issue no.11! Featuring new short stories and essays by 10 emerging and established Black women storytellers from the…
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At first, there was only the Sun. Shining brightly, he illuminated powerfully in space. Sun knew he was a burning ball of gas…too hot…
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It is a Saturday, and the sweltering Nigerian sun seems to have a point to prove, or a vendetta. I walk toward the cavernous hall, following my mother’s…
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Monday, August 29, 2005; 6:45 AM The vibrant, psychedelic colors of a long-forgotten Spongebob Squarepants episode draining into a black void were the first signs that something was…
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The first time my white neighbor called the police it was during the renovation of our historic house in the deed-restricted neighborhood where we live. This is my…
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The leaves on the two maple trees in the yard beamed a spectacular fiery red as the blue bottles that hung from them shimmered under…
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When Sunduq was four she got stuck in the hope chest in her grandmother’s bedroom. Her family looked for her for hours, eventually calling the…
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Melam partially unzipped the full body control unit and took a deep breath. It was crafted from lightweight fabric, yet designed to fit snuggly enough…
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I am embarrassed to admit that I loved Levittown even when it didn’t love me. It was my first home, and like my first love,…
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The tap is leaking. I know this is not the first words I should say to you. ‘The tap is leaking’ is not a conversation…
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My body never belonged to me. It belonged to birthing pains and bloodstains, entry and exit wounds. It started as something someone didn’t want. Therefore…
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“Mannn, the things I could say about my boy, Romeo.” Chuckles rippled through the great hall; some tinged with nerves, others with anticipation. No one…
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