“The Saddest Angriest Black Girl in Town” and “Your Black Friend”
Your white friends recommend a lot of black authors to your black friend and he’s starting to feel like they’re trying to “out black” him... More
Toward New Symbols and Platforms
Interrogating our national symbols is necessary to disrupting and dismantling power, but so is erecting new symbols and stories, or rather amplifying and holding space for stories that have… More
The PEN Ten with Sorayya Khan
I’ve always believed that writing is a political act, a way to explore injustice, a place to contemplate complicity, forgiveness, and the possibility of a better world. More
Dispatches From Civitella Ranieri: All Along the Watchtower
Underneath and alongside the stories we tell in our various mediums are ideas that may overlap with strongly held beliefs and ideas—or ideas that may drastically challenge them. More
The Invisible Work Around You
Those of us who are documented have a responsibility to put ourselves on the line, while still centering the stories and voices of those who are most at risk. More
The Customer is Always Wrong
I can't believe I've been caught up in this crap. On top of this, tonight I worked the worst shift in my life. More
The PEN Ten with William Brewer
For me, at the atomic level, the obsession around which all my other obsessions orbit is seeing and making others see… More
The M Word Stories: Bayan Abubakr
The number one weirdest question I get is do I shower with my hijab, and that's obviously reflective of the fact that I'm both Muslim and a woman. More
The PEN Ten with Ife-Chudeni A. Oputa
The problem is the crown, doesn’t matter who's wearing it. Without the crown…"cultural theft and appropriation" is just humans engaging with the world around them—studying, learning, and collaborating. More
Dispatches From Civitella Ranieri: Ways of Seeing
The long days of work and solitude, which are both powerful and frightening, have taken some getting used to. But slowly, routines are forming and work is progressing. More
