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No More Secrets, a Mount Airy-based nonprofit, is doing the work to combat Philadelphia's period poverty.

Founder Lynette Medley (right) and her No More Secrets team are working to end period poverty in Philly at a grassroots level. | Photos courtesy No More Secrets.

I realize Im getting my period when I go to the bathroom with cramps and find that quite suddenly, Im bleeding heavily. I grab two Midol, a tampon that Ill have to change soon, and, depending on the pain level, a heating pad, and get on with my day. Some days, the pain is debilitating, and my body feels weak and woozy. Some days, I can tolerate it well. Regardless, I never have to worry about blood leaking everywhere. I can afford the tampons I prefer, the size that works for me, and pads for extra lining when I need it.

For much of Philadelphia, the reality is different.

Women all over Philadelphia wake up with their periods their uteruses contracting, often painfully, to help expel their lining and no supplies to help them manage the pain or the blood flow. Theyll miss work or school, or try to manage the bleeding in other ways, like by using kitchen towels or old rags. Theyll ruin clothes and underwear because of this. Theyll ration pads and tampons to get through. And theyll do it again next month.

This is period poverty: the inability to afford products for dealing with menstruation. Its an issue most often associated with developing countries (a UPenn sophomore won an Oscar last year for her work depicting the issue in New Delhi), but its actually common throughout the United States.

One local organization is trying to change that reality here in Philly. No More Secrets, a sexuality awareness and counseling organization, was founded in 2012 by Mount Airy-based sexual health counselor Lynette Medley, 51, who delivers daily care packages with her daughter, Nya McGlone, 28.

Medleys nonprofit delivers almost 200 three-month supplies of menstrual products in the Greater Philadelphia area each week, undaunted by thunderstorms, 95 degree weather and COVID-19. A normal day for the No More Secrets crew means upwards of 50 deliveries of menstrual products in the city and suburbs.

And what theyre doing is sorely needed. A 2019 study of American cities found that two-thirds of low-income women didnt have the resources to buy menstrual products at some point within the past year. In Philadelphia, almost a quarter of our citizens live in poverty, with Black Philadelphians being about twice as likely to live in poverty as white Philadelphians. And, for some reason, period products which are a human necessity for health, sanitation, and attending work or school arent covered by Medicaid or SNAP. Theyre also not uniformly available in our public schools. In addition to the years of work by No More Secrets, newer organizations like the teenage-run Menstrual Equity Project have been seeking to fill the gaps in Philly schools recently, but this problem mostly continues, as it has for years, without a government solution in sight.

In July, No More Secrets launched its latest social action campaign, #BlackGirlsBleed, to help raise awareness of and end period poverty, address systemic racism in the menstrual health space, and decrease stigma about menstruation in Black communities.

I chatted with No More Secrets founder Lynette Medley to find out more about #BlackGirlsBleed and period poverty in Philadelphia and what we can do about it.

Lynette Medley delivering supplies in the Philly area. | Photograph courtesy of Lynette Medley

Philadelphia magazine: How did you decide to launch your latest social media campaign?Medley: With #BlackGirlsBleed, we are really intentional about entering a space that is not really welcoming to Black bodies and Black organizations. We are really trying to push the envelope and get donations that are actually going to do good. We are trying to ask people to be inclusive of our efforts. Its funny, because we are small very small and we have been doing a lot, because it is our passion.

How did you first become aware of the extent of period poverty in Philadelphia?Im a therapist and sexual awareness counselor. I got into this space because of a situation with a client who was referred to me for acting out sexually. This 13-year-old young lady was sent to me for help.

I asked her, What is going on that you are acting this way? She said, Its just that I will do whatever I can to get a pad or tampon for me and my siblings! My mouth dropped. I was shocked.

I said, What are you talking about?! She said she would do whatever she could everything from stealing to selling her body. I said, You are kidding me!

I said we could fix it. We could call somebody. I told her, Im sure there are resources out there let me call these people. She told me, There are no resources.

Of course, I said we could fix it. We could call somebody. I told her, Im sure there are resources out there let me call these people. She told me, There are no resources. I said, Well, lets call together.

We start calling. I start calling my friends and the city and the health department and the schools. They said they could give her one pad or tampon, but not multi-day supplies. I told her, Dont worry, I am sure there is a bank somewhere. There was no bank. There were no resources. I said Well, doesnt public assistance cover it? She said no. I started calling the government, the state, and to my surprise, nothing covered it. I was shocked. And that is how I got into this space.

So there were no government resources, and you had to take matters into your own hands?Yes. I started collecting and distributing menstrual product donations immediately. I started with saying we were gathering toiletries for teens to raise money. I was aware that there is a stigma, and I didnt want to ask directly for funds for tampons. I didnt know how the community was going to donate, you understand? I wanted to keep it soft so it wouldnt shock them.

We started small, giving out small care packages, and worked our way up to having a menstrual supplies bank that we manage. Everything is still organic. We still have dont have a corporate sponsor; we dont have brands that are funding us. Everything has been from donations and marketing what we do ourselves. When we created the menstrual supplies bank, the people that need these supplies told me that they dont have money to travel to even pick up these supplies they need them delivered. Thats how we started the delivery service.

There is a stigma, and I didnt want to ask directly for funds for tampons. I didnt know how the community was going to donate, you understand? I wanted to keep it soft so it wouldnt shock them.

That is fascinating. I think many people dont understand that this problem isnt only happening in developing countries its a Philadelphia issue.Thats very true. I get frustrated sometimes, but at the end of the day, I think there is really a lack of education and awareness about it. I feel like we arent talking about it enough. I dont think women talk about it enough in general. I started this #BlackGirlsBleed campaign because I really think there is a deficit in communities of color. The purpose was to amplify the voices of Black women, and also to reach out to different brands and suppliers and say, I see your pages, but I dont see people that look like us talking about our experiences. I really just want to decrease the stigma in the communities of color specifically.

For example, not everybody dealing with this is living in total poverty. Many women who ask for donations are hourly wage earners struggling to meet their families needs. Usually when people find me to get products, I find out that their attitudes towards their periods are generational. Theyll say, My mom did it, and my grandmother did it. We all stayed home, couldnt go to school, and we just used this or that. People are still using pieces of rag and pieces of comforter and socks and thinking that its okay. I have had parents and they work, and they are just trying to buy food, and they are trying to pay for utilities, and they and their children use paper towels because there isnt another option for them. Its so much deeper than people imagine, because we really arent talking about it. People dont have a space to talk about it.

What is period poverty, by your definition?Menstrual equity and period poverty are two different things. A lot of large organizations say they address period poverty. If you are giving someone a lunch bag with three tampons and two pads, that is not period poverty; that is menstrual equity. Its, I am giving you this for a moment until you can get other things.

Period poverty is, I dont have any pads; I cant get access to pads or tampons; me and my family need monthly supplies. Period poverty is when you are rationing pads between your sisters every month. That is a whole different conversation. But all these organizations are saying period poverty. So you give me two tampons in the little brown bag , and they are talking about solving period poverty! That is for what, one day? A half-day of my cycle?

What can change at a policy level? In the majority of the United States, these items are still taxed. I dont really get into that conversation about the Pink Tax, because the populations we serve whether its taxed or non-taxed, they still cant pay for it. A dollar or two is not going make a difference for them. These people have stood in lines all summer in the heat trying to get food. Some people would call me and say they need period supplies so they can go get food, because they are bleeding and they dont have toilet paper or paper towels. They cant go get supplies because they are bleeding.

I have had meetings with city officials and with the Department of Human Services and the Department of Public Health. I have gotten rebuttals like, This is not an issue in the community. How can you prove it? Where is the research? There does need to be more research so we have the evidence to show. I think this needs to be on the risk assessment for the Department of Human Services as risky behaviors, like housing insecurity and food insecurity.

Tell me more about the #BlackGirlsBleed Campaign this past month.#BlackGirlsBleed is a movement that we started in July of 2020 addressing the systemic racism in the practices of the menstrual space. The menstrual space is really a white space. There are not many people of color in these commercials and at these companies. We realized because of that, menstrual brands and menstrual movements have not historically uplifted Black communities or Black organizations. They dont like to give us resources even though we are on the ground doing the work. I want to highlight the disparities. I want to highlight that Black girls bleed and share their stories. We realized that women in our communities dont see people like them talking about their menstrual cycles, talking about their periods. Its not just menstrual equity its self-esteem-building, and changing the conversation and helping to empower young women to love themselves.

Their experiences are different than they might see in ads. Ill ask girls, What do you see in the commercials? They talk about people who are surfing and swimming and high-diving, but they say, That is not my experience.

We need to get to reality and be able to get to talk about these issues and not feel shame. It is really just a way of highlighting their voices and amplifying how they feel in our community. We want to get rid of the generational stigma within communities of color. I want women to start seeing more people talking about it. Women in our communities often suffer in silence.

Not everybody dealing with this is living in poverty. Many women who ask for donations are hourly wage earners struggling to meet their families needs.

Photograph courtesy of Lynette Medley.

Do you partner with schools or other local organizations?We do all the deliveries. We delivered to the School District of Philadelphia when it was open. When we delivered to them, they were called RED boxes resources for education and distribution. We would give a huge bin filled with pads, tampons, wipes, whatever the school requested. The school system only supplies feminine products to a very small number of our hundreds of schools. And, they only distributed size-one pads. Nurses who got these supplies told us, We need heavier; we need thicker; we need this size; we need variety.

Thats true. A thin size-one pad would be useless for me and many women I know.Yes. Its not like anyone is asking for a certain brand. I am trying to fit the needs of the people that I am serving. If you are giving size-one pads to a child in poverty who already has an irregular or heavy period, and they are having clots and they are in class, they cant use it. They will tell me, I am still not going to go to school, because I will be there bleeding over this size-one pad on the one uniform I have, and my mom doesnt have regular running water, so I dont know when it will be washed.

I have women who have been in the EARN program. They tell me, I get fired every time because I dont have pads. I only have one outfit to wear to work, and two pairs of underwear, and the boss will ask, Why do you keep going to the bathroom? Its because I have one dollar-store pad and I leak through it every five minutes. These are conversations we just dont have. People are really suffering, and it is actually keeping some people in poverty.

I dont feel as though it is a handout, because I feel that its a disgrace and discriminatory in nature to not address menstrual rights in our communities. I feel it is a human rights issue. Im just giving them what they need to live their lives.

Is there any ever hesitation or shame from people about receiving these boxes of pads and tampons from you?We used to be like thieves in the night and go out to deliver at night, in the dark. Then one day, one of the recipients in our community, Amirra Jenkins, asked me, Why are you not thinking business? Why are you not posting this on IG so people know what you are doing? We took a picture, and soon we started seeing all these girls posting it on social media. So now, people all want to take a picture with us. They want to change this perception.

It was so surprising to me, but the girls feel proud that this is a movement. Its a movement for these girls and women to say, This makes no sense that this happening, and to take a stand. I dont feel as though it is a handout at all, because it is a disgrace and discriminatory in nature to not address menstrual rights in our communities. I feel it is a human rights issue. Im just giving them what they need to live their lives.

To donate to No More Secrets, visit their website here. You can also follow them on Instagram here.

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Not Everyone in Philly Has Access to Pads and Tampons. Thats a Problem. - Philadelphia magazine

The outrage was instant and loud. And warranted.

No Latinx creatives appeared in any of the major categories when nominations for the 72nd Emmy Awards were announced earlier this week. How is that even possible, people raged, especially given One Day at a Times tongue-in-cheek laughs, Vidas queer joy and Los Espookys oddball humor?

The erasure of Latinos is not exactly news, though. Over the last five years, 82% of nominees in 19 Primetime Emmy categories were white. A mere 1% were Latino.

As the subsequent backlash to this years nominations reignites debate about Hollywoods failure to represent Latinx characters on-screen, a movement toward inclusion behind the camera is taking place behind the scenes.

One morning in 2015, about 20 Latinas took up every single chair on Gloria Caldern Kelletts patio and she had made turkey burgers for everyone.

The Latina TV Writers Brunch Group began that very day at the One Day at a Time showrunners house, and today it includes about 155 members. Co-founder Judalina Neira is amazed that the group has multiplied fivefold.

The cast of One Day at a Time includes, clockwise from bottom left: Justina Machado, Isabella Gomez, Rita Moreno and Marcel Ruiz.

(Adam Rose / Netflix)

I think thats such a testament to the explosion of growth and the representation that were gaining, she said recently on a Zoom call. Its still not enough, but were gaining.

Neiras group, which she co-founded with fellow TV writer Diana Mendez, was inspired by Black Women Who Brunch and a similar group for Black men in the industry. In turn, La Lista, the Latina TV Writers Brunch Groups online talent directory developed by Mixed-ishs Emilia Serrano, inspired the Latinx Directors co-founders who recently launched their own database.

From La Lista to the Latinx Directors database to the inaugural Latinx TV List, the vastly underrepresented community is collaborating throughout Hollywood to bridge Latinx talent with executives and producers and to foster solidarity among one another.

Our purpose is really to get us into the rooms where our voices can be heard, where our unique point of views can be heard, where our experiences can be heard, Mendez told the L.A. Times in the same Zoom interview with Neira. And keep us in those rooms and keep us moving up the ranks long enough to take ownership of those stories and be in charge of the rooms.

Diana Mendez co-founded the Latina TV Writers Brunch Group in 2015.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

La Lista answers the question Where are the Latino/a writers?, which the duo often hears floating around the industry. The list began as an internal resource to keep the group organized, but soon enough others began to ask for it.

Although the list has led to getting Latina writers in the room where it happens, in front of showrunners, the women still see a trend: Black and brown writers are asked to repeat the same level over and over. That is, theyre barred from climbing the ladder toward becoming showrunners.

At the same time, just 4.7% of screenwriters are Latinx, even though Latinos make up 18.3% of the U.S. population. A solution to that disparity lies in whos hiring.

We feel that putting writers of color in positions of authority, and in hiring positions specifically, leads to more people of color being hired regardless of their ethnicity, Neira said. When I staff my room, whatever show I have in the future, I will absolutely make sure that theres a wide spread of representation.

Neira works as a co-executive producer on the upcoming Netflix show Girls on the Bus. Mendez is a co-producer on The Rookie. Neither one is interested in perpetuating Latinx stereotypes on-screen. According to a USC Annenberg report, 24% of all Latino characters in the top films of 2017-2018 were depicted as lawbreakers across a range of violent and non-violent crimes.

Judalina Neira has been told not to write about Mexican families, to keep it generic, keep it general. Today, she says, that would be unheard of.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

The whole reason why I wanted to become a writer was because I was sick of seeing the same cholos, vatos, the maid, and thats it, as far as Latino characters, Latinos being the criminals, Mendez said. There is a very strong activist blood running through the veins of all of our members.

After the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25, empathy permeated the group. A sense of solidarity exists among them, they said, and the need to uplift all people of color is built into [their] DNA.

While Brunch Group members were protesting in the streets and calling the L.A. City Council, top entertainment companies were declaring their support for diversity and inclusion again. Alberto Belli, a Latinx Directors database co-founder, isnt seeing results from studio diversity and inclusion programs.

They were committed to diversity, he said. And then they just released another letter after Black Lives Matter that theyre committed to diversity. And youre like, wait, werent you committed to diversity 10 years ago?

Belli was selected for the Sony Pictures Television Diverse Directors Program. Hes from Mexico, based in L.A. and comes from a computer-science engineering background all traits that appear in bright blue when you search his name on the Latinx Directors site.

The database itself comprises an accordion of nine filters, from cultural identity/heritage to self identification, including gender and sexual identity. Those categories brim with intention: The team scratched nationality in favor of chosen cultural identity, and chose self-identification to allow directors to showcase their perspectives.

Clockwise from top left, directors Joel Novoa, Diego Velasco and Alberto Belli, co-creators of the Latinx Directors database.

(Joel Novoa, Diego Velasco and Alberto Belli)

No more stories about us, without us, they say. And with good reason: Between 2007 and 2018, only 4% of top films were directed by Latinos. Just one of those directors was Latina.

But co-founder and Arrow director Joel Novoa pointed out that, because the L.A. Latinx community spans so many cultural identities, those differences can cause friction at times.

Its such a diverse culture that I think thats one of our strengths, and at the same time, its one of our weaknesses, he said. Because what can become a strength of all of us being united, at the same time, makes us all work separated.

But those facets are beginning to draw together. When writer and producer Carolina Paiz, the wife of third Latinx Directors co-founder Diego Velasco, showed him La Listas website (shes a member), the Orange Is the New Black TV director was inspired. He took the idea for a related database to Belli and Novoa in April 2019, and Latinx Directors was born.

Just open the door, Velasco said. Im not asking for anything extra. Just give us a shot and I promise you will not you wont realize the spice you didnt have in your life until you work with us. And let us bring our spice to the work that weve done.

One way to crack that door ajar is through amplification and tantalizing deals. Hulu, the Black List and an array of partner organizations did just that with the inaugural Latinx TV List, which was announced at the end of June.

Writer and producer Paloma Martinez frantically revised her TV script, checking it for grammar in the passengers seat as her mom drove them home from Northern California. Three months after submitting it (and two other pilots), her family gathered around at lunch to hear her announced as a winner.

Martinezs script, El Borde, or The Edge, a story about the environment, mutation and cultural fusion was one of 10 selected. Beatrice Springborn, Hulus vice president of content, reached out to propose that the streaming giant meet with all 10 writers and offer a script deal to two of them.

The first word that comes to mind is recognition, Martinez said. Weve been there: Weve been writing, weve been hustling, weve been working our way up in the ranks, from assistants up to executives. Especially being a woman of color, being BIPOC, LGBTQIA, is like when if youre not what the industry is used to, they tend to want someone to vet you.

And vet the scripts they did. Latinx writers submitted scripts through the Black List, a screenplay-rating platform, which read them for quality then passed on a select group to the Latin Tracking Board, the National Assn. of Latino Independent Producers (NALIP), Remezcla and the Untitled Latinx Project (ULP) to evaluate.

Boom, said Black List founder Franklin Leonard. Heres a bunch of great scripts. Not only can the Black List validate their quality, but these other organizations in the Latinx community can vouch for their excitement about this version of representation in the community.

The Black List founder Franklin Leonard.

(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Among those organizations, the ULP, an offshoot of the Latina TV Writers Brunch Group, reached out to champion latinidad in the industry. Just as the Black List released the first Latinx List for feature screenplays last summer, the ULP hopped on board to partner for the subsequent Latinx TV List.

Vida writer and ULP member Lindsey Villarreal wanted to see stories about identity, sure, but she also wanted to see Latinos doing normal stuff usually attributed to white people.

If you really read the scripts on this list, theyre not falling into these stereotypes, she said recently over FaceTime from a cabin in Big Sur. Nobodys in the cartel, nobodys doing a drug run, nobodys crossing the border. Its all just slice of life stuff, thats [what] we want to be in those stories that are populating network shows right now.

Those winning scripts were announced at this years NALIP Media Summit. Spearheaded by NALIP President Ben Lopez, the association joined the other judges to score scripts.

Think of it as like the perfect alliance, United Nations, almost like the Avengers coming together for a very specific subject, he said. And here we are; it was successful.

It was successful, perhaps, because it was deeply intentional. Each of these organizations and groups places intersectionality front and center: NALIP made sure that queer readers read stories about LGBTQ identities, for instance.

And each piece of the Latinx TV and film community centers the Black entertainment community first. Members of the Latina TV Writers Brunch Group look up to Black writers as an example and protested on their behalf in the recent demonstrations. The first category under the Latinx Directors Cultural Identity/Heritage filter is Afro-Latinx (the second is Indigenous-Latinx). NALIP has been pushing to increase access for Black and Afro-Latinx communities.

Many folks from our community identify [as] Black first, rather than Latino, or they identify as both, Lopez said. And thats important: to listen to that community, our community.

The Latinx community in Hollywood is multifaceted, but it shares a common goal: to uplift creatives of color.

Fundamentally, the goal of the film industry is to make film and television about everybody, the Black Lists Leonard said. And if youre not doing that, youre failing. So this industry has been failing for as long as its existed. And its long overdue for us to stop failing on this front.

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How Latinx creators are blazing their own paths in Hollywood - Los Angeles Times

The census happens every 10 years and is the federal government's process of data-gathering that guides all sorts of decisionssuch as how federal funds are allocated, and how congressional district lines are drawn and how much representation a region gets in Washington. And given those high stakes, President Donald Trump's efforts to exclude undocumented immigrants from the count have drawn immense backlash.

First, there was a proposal to include a new question:"Is this person acitizenof theUnited States?" Dozens of cities counties and states sued, arguing the question was contrived just for the purpose of intimidating non-citizens and discouraging them from completing the census. In June 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the plaintiffs' favor, and the question was dropped.

Fast-forward to July 21, 2020, with the census in full swing.Trump issued a memo that would alter the definition of "whole persons" used in census-based calculations, excluding undocumented immigrants.

Cue another round of lawsuits, again filed by a large coalitionnine cities and six countiesagainstPresident Trump, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Census Bureau, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, and Census Director Steven Dillingham.

On July 28, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors voted to join that lawsuit.

As we continue to work hard to get an accurate count in the 2020 Census, we want to send a clear message to our communities: if you live here, you count, Chris Lopez, chair of the Board of Supervisors, said in a statement. Intentional and unconstitutional efforts to deter legal participation in the census will not go unchallenged. Our fair representation and equal access to funds depends on the census, we encourage every person living in Monterey County to stand up, log on, and get counted.

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Monterey County joins in suing Trump administration over exclusion of undocumented immigrants in census. - Monterey County Weekly

It was just the worst experience of my life. And its not funny. Its nothing to joke about. It was nothing for yall to start going and making fake stories about, said Megan Thee Stallion on Instagram Live, holding back tears as she addressed her shooting injuries. I didnt put my hands on nobody. I didnt deserve to get shot.

The men in the hip-hop community have failed Megan Thee Stallion. On social media she was mocked and memed, diminishing the gravity of the violence enacted upon her. It points to a larger problem: the sadistic nature of misogynoir in hip-hop, an industry stained by the blood of violence against Black women by its forefathers.

Hip-hop, a genre born from the overt abuse and brutality Black communities have suffered by law enforcement, upholds the patriarchy. Its one of the few spaces where Black men can emulate the power ideals of whiteness. It's a developed framework that justifies Chris Browns existence on Billboards chart despite his physical assault of Rihanna in February 2009; instead of being held accountable by his peers, he was welcomed into a fraternity of success and masculinity built on the dehumanization of Black women. Its often said that Black women are fighting two wars based on the intersections of race and gender. Misogyny is institutional oppression against women at large, but misogynoir is the dehumanization of Black women perpetuated through individual, societal, and cultural violence toward Black women. Until men in hip-hop show genuine support and investment for Black women in hip-hop, Black women will never be granted justice, not even in death.

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As Black women took to the streets to protest the death of Breonna Taylor, social media and blogs reduced their calls for justice to a superficial meme, a trend void of the richness and complexity of her life. When news broke about Megans attack, Twitter erupted with misogynistic memes from Black users centered on her ass, boobs, and knees, implying that the loss of her sexual appeal mattered more than her actual life. Her face was superimposed on Ricky Bakers (played by Morris Chestnut) when he is shot in the film Boyz N The Hood and Madame Vera Walkers (played by Della Reese) when her pinky toe is shot in Harlem Nights. The migration of memes across social media platforms reinforces the devaluation of Black women in celebrity and hip-hop culture, where their full humanity is reduced, sexualized, and rendered one-dimensional.

One of the most compelling emcees and lyricists of her generation, Megan Thee Stallion is hip-hop's biggest star. She has accomplished world-wide success and renown for her explicit lyrics that put women in power, catering to their satisfaction and fulfillment as she raps about her player ways and skimpy clothes. Shes the Houston hottie with a model body, yet through a patriarchal lens, men in hip-hop seek to reconstruct her lyrics of empowerment as justification for objectifying her body as a holding place of male desire, rage, and violence.

Who hears a Black womans cries of fear and pain if their personhood is stripped away?

Who hears a Black womans cries of fear and pain if their personhood is stripped away? If Black women are no longer regarded as human, then their bodies are deemed deserving of disproportionate amounts of pain. If Black women are no longer granted femininity, then their bodies are subjected to transphobic attacks in an attempt to validate the violence they endure. Camron responded to Megans attack by reposting an Instagram post that said her shooter "saw that dick and started shootn..IDC what no one say. His commentary reflects a double standard in hip-hops misogynistic framework, one that awards male rappers for protecting themselves against an aggressive assailant but blames women for behavior that results in gun violence. 50 Cent, who survived being shot nine times (he references the attack on his hit Many Men (Wish Death) from his debut album Get Rich or Die Tryin), posted a meme about Megans injury, which he later apologized for and deleted after her Instagram Live session.

Megan Thee Stallion didnt deserve to get shot. Liza Rios didnt deserve to be hit by Big Pun. Dee Barnes didnt deserve to be attacked by Dr. Dre. Steph Lova didnt deserve to be harassed by DJ Funkmaster Flex. Linda Williams didnt deserve to be punched by Damon Dash. Lil Kim didnt deserve to be in a violent relationship with The Notorious B.I.G. Drew Dixon, Sil Abrams, Sheri Sher, and others didnt deserve to be sexually assaulted by Russell Simmons. (Simmons has denied the allegations.) Misogynoir is an intracommunal pandemic.

Its not the responsibility of Black women in hip-hop to address the racialized and sexual violence towards their community.

Oppressive structures are maintained by the erasure and intentional neglect of individuals who are disregarded and marginalized. In a white supremacist society, hip-hop is unique because of its existence as one of the few influential structures where cisgender heterosexual Black men can be in positions of power, but their silence toward Black women is reflective of the patriarchal systems they have upheld. Hip-hop has provided a space for Black men to build empires and legacies; Def Jam Recordings, Roc-A-Fella Records, and Bad Boy Records have affirmed Russell Simmons, Jay-Z, and Diddys places as worldwide ambassadors for hip-hop culture. Where was Jay-Z following Megans attack? She signed to Roc Nation management and collaborated with Beyonc on the Savage'' remix, but he said nothing. Where was Diddy? He featured her on his COVID-19 Dance-a-Thon, but he also said nothing. Though some men like Wale and 21 Savage showed their support, the majority of voices in hip-hop who displayed comfort and support for Megan Thee Stallion were Black women, who historically have shown up for themselves when no one else would.

Before the age of 25, Megan Thee Stallion had publicly lost her mother and grandmother. Yet during her ascension to stardom, and through her grief, she still continued to reach out and support Hotties with engagements on social media, charitable donations to her hometown of Houston, and a CashApp campaign. On her July 27 Instagram Live, her first appearance since the shooting, she continued to show that resilience, assuring us, A bitch is alive and well. Strong as fuck. Im ready to get back to regular programming with my hot girl shit.I cant keep putting my energy in a bunch of you motherfuckers.

Its not the responsibility of Black women in hip-hop to address the racialized and sexual violence towards their community. Black men in hip-hop need to participate in the disinvestment of misogyny in the culture, instead of silence. In order for Black women in hip-hop to live and thrive, the structure of misogynior must be abolished.

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Women in Hip-Hop Cannot Thrive While Misogynoir Exists - HarpersBAZAAR.com

Pittsburghs first experiment in creating an ecovillage is starting to take shape on the Eden Hall campus of Chatham University in Gibsonia.

Named after the schools most renowned student and environmental pioneer, the Rachel Carson EcoVillage is based on the concept of intentional community and is designed collectively by its residents.

Its a community of people who care about both living lightly on the planet, living with nature and also living with their neighbors, says Stefani Danes, an architect and Carnegie Mellon professor whos helping to guide the project. That idea of community is really at the heart of an ecovillage.

Also known as cohousing, an ecovillage typically includes 20 to 30 units of housing, in which everyone has a private house. However, theres also a common house with a large dining room where residents take turns preparing meals for one another along with guest rooms. There can also be everything from shared childcare space to shared tools and/or office equipment.

Theyve launched a website, and the first four homebuyers have committed, out of a core group of 30 to 40 people who are involved with the project. Construction is expected to start soon, once there are 15 homebuyers. More than 100 people have inquired about the project.

The plan for many years was to build an ecovillage in a walkable part of the city of Pittsburgh, but that never panned out.

Ive been attracted to ecovillages, intentional communities, and the like for about 25 years and have always wanted one in Pittsburgh, says Grace Astraea, who plans to move into the Rachel Carson EcoVillage. Having kept an eye on the Pittsburgh Cohousing Group for the last 20 years and their efforts to create something in the city has been akin to watching the worlds longest seed sprouting take place.

One would think that the pandemic would have dampened the interest in this sort of common, shared use of space. But that hasnt been the case.

Having neighbors you know is the best way of seeing through any emergency, says Danes. A community can thrive through all kinds of tough times There is a very strong interest now in intentional communities. Many people have seen the isolation that this pandemic has brought to the surface. Many people live alone, without knowing their neighbors.

The common dinners that are a primary and beloved feature of ecovillages might not happen in a pandemic. But knowing all your neighbors means knowing if someone has a special skill for making masks or knowing that someone is at-risk so a neighbor can shop for them.

The core planning group has even committed to learning a different style of collaborative decision-making called dynamic governance or sociocracy. Theyre taking an online course together to learn about the process.

Rendering of the Orchard Commons at the Rachel Carson EcoVillage.

The Eco part of the Rachel Carson EcoVillage is bound up in the notion of community, too.

Just like friends exercise better when they do it together, a community composts regularly, adopts sharing strategies that reduce the consumption of things and uses things more thoughtfully, explains Danes.

By sharing so much, people can live in a more sustainable, affordable way, notes Danes. Research done on an ecovillage in Ithaca, New York, indicates that ecovillagers average a 40% smaller carbon footprint than most American families.

The houses will be built according to passive house standards, designed with computer modeling to have ultra-insulated walls and windows that waste the least amount of energy possible.

Lots of collaborations are planned with Chathams environmental researchers at the Falk School of Sustainability & Environment, which is based at the Eden Hall campus. Everything from rainwater to trees will be carefully considered.

The trees we plant will become part of a maturing native forest, says Danes. Well be working closely with Chatham on this process of regenerative planting of the landscape.

When fully built out, the Rachel Carson EcoVillage will have 35 units and a common dining house. Two small units will be located above the dining house to provide affordable options. The other 33 will be built in clusters around three courtyards and will range from studios to 3-bedroom houses. Each will have a front yard and a backyard and share a common courtyard. The community will connect to the heart of the Eden Hall campus via a five-minute walk along a wooded trail.

Astraea says that a lot of things have attracted her to the project.

To name a few, the governance model that weve adopted (dynamic governance) is probably the best method available for efficient and effective governing, she says.The location is absolutely gorgeous. The meadow that the village will be built in has a wondrous trail around it that inspires and nurtures and has space enough for many people.

The prices arent out of the ordinary, even with the common facilities included. Studios range from $160-$180,000 and the 3-bedroom houses are in the $400,000 range. Most units will be $200,000 to $300,000.

Youre not paying for the developer who walks away with a pocket full of profit, says Danes. Were selling all of these at cost.

Rachel Carsons nephew gave the Rachel Carson EcoVillage permission to use her name, and is eager to attend the ribbon-cutting celebration, says Danes.

On Sunday, July 19 at 10:30 a.m., there will be a free guided tour at the Eden Hall campus which is open to anyone, including children, whod enjoy learning about our woods and meadows while having a fun walk, says Danes.

Chatham UniversityecovillageEden HallRachel Carson EcoVillage

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Pittsburgh's first ecovillage moves forward with four units sold. Tour the site on Sunday - NEXTpittsburgh

Every year, extreme heat kills more people in the United States than any other weather-related event and hospitalizes thousands more, disproportionately burdening communities with the least resources.

With fewer parks, trees, and open green space, many under-resourced Black and Latinx neighborhoods will swelter this summer as they continue to fight the pandemic. Findings from the Healthy Neighborhoods Study show that residents in our nine partner communities in Eastern Massachusetts will experience scorching heat with temperatures up to 20 degrees higher than in other parts of the region.

Thats not an accident. Its the result of decades-old racist policies and current development practices.

For years, majority Black and brown communities have been marginalized on many fronts because of intentional disinvestment, redlining, the location of brownfields a site targeted for redevelopment though it may be contaminated with hazardous waste and development that added gray surfaces at the expense of green spaces.

These are the communities that suffer from worse health over time and are most negatively affected by changes like climate disasters and gentrification.

In fact, research has found that communities across the United States that experienced redlining the formerly legal practice of restricting home loans for people of color to certain areas are hotter and have worse air quality.

Typically, cities provide resources like cooling centers at libraries or malls or splash pads during heat waves. But social distancing and state-mandated closures make that challenging this summer. Further, in-home air conditioning isnt an affordable option for many who have lost their jobs because of the pandemic.

It doesnt have to be this way. Communities and elected leaders can do something.

The COVID-19 recovery process offers an opportunity to prepare high-risk communities for the climate challenges they will disproportionately face as temperatures rise. In the short term, cooling plans need to support social distancing, and over the long term, equitable development plans need to green, cool, and resource Black and brown communities. There are practical solutions in the work our community-based partners have been leading for decades.

Recovery and resilience funds must be directed toward at-risk neighborhoods, including support for increased energy efficiency, green infrastructure, flood mitigation, and expanded public transit.

State and city governments must invest in the equitable development of parks and urban green spaces so that all residents have access to safer, cooler, and less polluted environments and a better quality of life. Parks and trees not only cool the environment, but they also create opportunities for people to exercise and play, reduce stress, and socialize.

Additionally, residents should help determine how to expand green space, whether its for a community garden or a park or a playground to mitigate heat island effects over the long run. They should have ownership over what happens in their communities which not only leads to more effective solutions but also meaningfully contributes to better health.

Thats why its essential to center plans and responses for heat and climate impacts on those living and working in the places most impacted. Leaders must spend time in these communities to learn about the unique challenges people face; meet residents where they are, when theyre available, in the languages they speak; and listen. Developers and decision makers need to commit to full community engagement on important infrastructure decisions, such as the proposed effort underway to build a power substation in East Boston.

Society cant continue to tolerate the same kinds of inequities that make some areas more vulnerable to both COVID-19 and extreme heat. Justice demands that policy makers correct generations of discrimination and work to create a future where health and well-being for all are prioritized.

Climate change and COVID-19 are everyones problems. Communities of color should not continue to bear the greatest burdens for our entire region.

Reann Gibson is a senior research fellow at the Conservation Law Foundation and manager of its Healthy Neighborhoods Study.

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Communities of color hit hardest by heat waves - The Boston Globe

With their major institutions founded on white European models and obstinately focused on the distant past, classical music and opera have been even slower than American society at large to confront racial inequity. Black players make up less than 2 percent of the nations orchestras; the Metropolitan Opera still has yet to put on a work by a Black composer.

The protests against police brutality and racial exclusion that have engulfed the country since the end of May have encouraged individuals and organizations toward new awareness of long-held biases, and provided new motivation to change. Nine Black performers spoke with The New York Times about steps that could be taken to begin transforming a white-dominated field. These are edited excerpts from the conversations.

The first step is admitting that these organizations are built on a white framework built to benefit white people. Have you done the work to create a structure that is actually benefiting Black and brown communities? When that occurs, diversity is a natural byproduct. There needs to be intentional hiring of qualified Black musicians who you know are going to bring the goods to your audiences. Intentionally adding qualified Black board members to your organization: Thats going to allow access to these communities you need to bring into the circle. Administratively, people who are in the room will bring different perspectives. Chamber groups like mine, Imani Winds, have the ability to be more nimble; we can make our own rules and make our own platforms. As a chamber presenter, you can support groups that bring blackness and diversity in their programs.

Its incumbent upon leadership from the podium to be part of this: who gets hired, what repertory gets played, where the orchestra plays. If youre not willing, for example, to have minority music interns playing subscription concerts because they didnt take the audition, that doesnt make any sense to me. This person needs the opportunity to play this repertoire; you have to be willing to let that happen, and you cant bow to blowback from the full-time players.

In Philadelphia, for a community concert, they once found a high school that was acoustically inferior; aesthetically no comparison; the chorus in the audience behind me. It made no sense, except for the joy it brought to that community to have the Philadelphia Orchestra in their backyard. They want some sense that they count and they matter, and by going there its us saying yes, you do.

Composer

Im in my fifth year on the board of Chamber Music America, and more than half the board is people of color. Its very evenly balanced as far as gender and race; those changes were implemented through consulting work and training, and facilitated discussions among the board to make sure everyone was on the same page. Going through that process has been eye-opening, and proves how much time it takes. Now we are equipped to have these discussions about how this can trickle down to membership and granting opportunities. And I think presenting organizations need to take the time to get to know the artists. Getting to know new artists takes time and commitment; its a commitment to widen your perspective.

Conductor

I would like changes to be made in how we train musicians in conservatories and universities. A lot of our thinking, and our perceptions of whats good music, becomes indoctrinated at that stage. I say this because even though Im a person of color, I was guilty of not being accepting of new voices and styles outside of Beethoven, Schumann, all the usual music of the past. When we start with preconceived notions, we limit ourselves. People are afraid of being uncomfortable, but with discomfort comes growth. If students learn about composers like William Grant Still or Florence Price and their approaches to making music then they will become more versatile. And we will see that change taking place in our programming; schools wont just be producing conductors who want to do Wagner, Strauss and Mahler. I love these composers. But there are more voices to hear.

Clarinetist

Over the last month, youve seen all these outpourings, and its in these moments when you see: Are we really connected with the communities were doing this work in? At the New York Philharmonic, where I am principal clarinet, I think theres been incentive to partner up with the Harmony Program, which does after-school music education. Im doing the Music Advancement Program at Juilliard; the mission revolves around students from underserved communities. Its being a citizen in that way. The new way is actually getting on the ground and teaching, getting on the ground and having tough conversations about the state of our field and who were trying to reach. Being there to help people understand that the orchestra is there for them.

Singer

Artistic institutions need to be focused on representing and really serving the communities that theyre in. There needs to be community engagement, not community outreach. Outreach is something you do occasionally. But youre always in the act of engaging; its a constant effort. If there are changes in the administration, and the makeup of the board every level of every artistic organization that will spill into how this stuff is packaged. This is the beginning of change that can be meaningful. If we reinvent what the opera or classical music audience is, we wont have the disparities in people hired, people attending, even whats presented, because you will have different people coming up with new ideas.

Composer

Its like anything else: The organizations need to represent what America looks like. Well-intentioned people can just have blinders on. I dont look at it like a sinister plot; I look at it as people are going with what theyre comfortable with. If we had more representation in the leadership, in terms of who is signing off on projects, youll have more people bringing things to the table. What I saw at Opera Theater of St. Louis where I did Champion and Fire Shut Up in My Bones, which is going to the Met is those people are open to a lot of ideas. But we have to bring the ideas to them. We have to open their eyes. I really think in the art music world, people are clamoring for something different. When we did Champion in New Orleans, this African-American guy in his 70s said, If this is opera, I will come. Thats a new audience member we didnt have before. La Bohme doesnt mean anything to him. But these contemporary stories do.

Singer

Please, in the future, cast with your heart, not just with your eyes and your ears. Who gives you the goose bumps? Pick them. Some people see a Black tenor, and they think Otello. Or they see a Black soprano and they think Aida. Who wants to see a Black Cio-Cio San? Youll hear that. But yes, opera is a suspension of disbelief. When someone does Eugene Onegin, they will often cast someone Russian or fluent in Russian. It doesnt have to be who you expect. There are other people who can sing it. When it comes to Otello, you could paint everyone blue and paint Desdemona green. When it comes down to it, its not about color; its about difference.

Composer

Certain groups of people have felt that they did not belong, because most of the time they didnt see people who resembled them onstage. But even if things look good onstage, internally is that what is happening in the institution? Its a family type of thing. That person working in the office goes home and tells the people at home, and they usually have other friends. That is how audiences change. It has to be from the inside out. And if the stage reflects the society, you can find the best artists to be the ambassadors to those coming, and put them in front of the people. It could be the administrator, the person in charge of programming or a member of the orchestra. People have to address the audience, to let them feel I am one of you. And you will see: The whole thing will change like you have no idea.

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Black Artists on How to Change Classical Music - The New York Times

The first word, Black, was designed by Tijay Mohammed, a Ghanaian-born artist, and used vibrant Kente fabric design and Adinkra symbols, which represent concepts like royalty, unity and legacy.

Sophia Dawson, a Brooklyn-based visual artist, took the second word, lives. The L contains the faces of the mothers who have lost their children to police killings. The I uses imagery inspired by Emory Douglas, an artist for the Black Panther Party; the V highlights the culture of the African diaspora; the E contains faces of Black Panther Party members who are currently in prison; and the S carries a passage from the Bible.

The street painting at Foley Square resembles many that have been done around the country in its word choice and placement, but part of what has been lost in the national debate over the art and the political statements they make is the logistical care, intentional placement and artistry that went into the creation of many of them.

While some like those at Trump Tower and near the White House are primarily stencil work in the blazing yellow paint typically used for road markings, and are known largely for their challenging placement, others have been fully realized works of art that went through rigorous processes of design and planning.

This month, the Foley Square street art in Lower Manhattan and the one in Harlem were unveiled, with the multicolored letters of Black Lives Matter replete with imagery related to Black people who were killed by the police, as well as vibrant symbols of freedom, hope and joy.

In Cincinnati, the art appears in the red, black and green of the Pan-African flag, with silhouettes, phrases and textured designs filling the letters. In Jackson, Mich., it was designed it in a graffiti-style font. In Portland, Ore., the letters contained a timeline of historical injustices in the state.

The purpose of the Fifth Avenue project at Trump Tower was clear: to rile up the president, who called it a symbol of hate. The street painting was intended to get the message up quickly; the stenciling and outlining was done by the Department of Transportation, and roughly 60 volunteers helped lay down 100 gallons of traffic paint.

The other artworks in Manhattan were intended not as a political statement meant for President Trump to see but as an opportunity for local artists, community togetherness and discussions about race and policing. The outlines of the enlarged Black Lives Matter letters are filled with intentionally placed symbols and colors.

I wanted the design to embody our experience as a whole as a Black community and what we strive for, said Patrice Payne, one of the artists involved with the work at Foley Square.

Justin Garrett Moore, the executive director of the citys Public Design Commission, said that there is a clear difference between the street paintings borne from mayoral decision making, which serve as an acknowledgment that public officials have heard the calls of racial justice protesters, and the community-driven murals, where theres a deeper connection to the space and the message.

These are Black communities that are really wanting to have an expression for this historic moment that were in, he said.

It happened to be a work near the White House, spearheaded by the mayor of Washington, Muriel E. Bowser, that set the groundwork for the countrywide spilling of paint on the ground.

After the Washington painting made the news, an organization representing small business owners in Harlem, called Harlem Park to Park, started discussing what their version of a Black Lives Matter artwork would look like.

There was a certain expectation that Harlem, known as the epicenter of Black culture, needed to take the trend a level up, said Nikoa Evans-Hendricks, the groups executive director. The result was two sprawling sets of words on either side of Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard, between 125th and 127th Streets. On the northbound side, eight artists had creative control over two letters each. The southbound side was painted red, black and green by a collection of community groups.

We wanted to make sure the mural didnt just represent words on the street but embodied the Harlem community, Ms. Evans-Hendricks said.

The artists were chosen by LeRone Wilson, the artworks curator, who also designed the first two letters. The B that he designed depicts the Ancient Kemetic goddess Maat, with feathered wings reaching across the curves of the letter, and the bird deity Heru, welcoming the spirits of those who have died at the hands of police into the universe.

Within the L, he painted the names of 24 Black people killed by the police, including George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Michael Brown and Amadou Diallo.

Within the outlines of several other letters, the artists painted images associated with the outrage over the treatment of Black people by the police: The faces of Ms. Taylor and Sandra Bland and Mr. Floyds daughter occupy the two Ts in the word matter. The I in lives contains the badge numbers of the four police officers charged in connection with Mr. Floyds death.

The artists received advice from the citys Department of Transportation on what materials to use on the asphalt. They took the agencys recommendation of using road line paint used for markings on streets and sidewalks, which many artists right now are doing to make the street art more durable.

The act of painting the work in Harlem was designed as a community event, with catering from local restaurants and help painting from the Boys and Girls Club of Harlem and Harlem Little League.

Every day we were out there, hundreds of people wanted to be involved, Mr. Wilson said.

And after the unveiling, the space became a gathering place for people, as well as a space to appreciate art at a time when museums are shut because of the pandemic.

The creators are hoping that the city agrees to a request to keep the street closed to traffic until the end of the summer, as the city did with a street painting in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, which was created with the yellow traffic paint and contains the names of Black people killed by the police.

The location for the Harlem work was chosen because it was at the heart of a Black community. In Lower Manhattan at Foley Square, it was because of a nearby cherished national monument: It draws meaning from its proximity to the African Burial Ground, which contains the remains of New York Citys colonial African-American community.

Amina Hassen, an urban planner with WXY, an architectural and urban design firm that worked on the project, said that the location along Centre Street, near the state and federal court buildings, was also significant because of its connection to the policing and incarceration of Black people.

As with the Harlem work, the artists of the Foley Square project had control over the designs within the outline of the Black Lives Matter letters, but the city still had to review the designs to make sure they complied with safety standards. (This time the artists were chosen by the Department of Cultural Affairs, and the project was shepherded by Gale A. Brewer, Manhattan borough president, and Black Lives Matter of Greater New York.)

They first blocked out the artwork in 3-D software, carefully avoiding any street features that the Department of Transportation said they couldnt paint over, said Jhordan Channer, the architectural designer for the project. When it came time to install the 600-foot-long painting, they first painted a white canvas and a drop shadow to make sure the letters stood out. Tats Cru, a group of professional muralists in the city, executed the artists designs with heavy-duty traffic paint, exterior-grade enamel paint and spray paint. They were assisted by youth from Thrive Collective, an arts mentoring program that works with New York public schools.

For the last word, matters, Ms. Payne started in the M with the image of a Black woman as an ancestral figure and nurturer. The design progresses to images of broken shackles, a raised fist, a sun peeking out behind storm clouds, with a tattered American flag at the forefront.

Since the first street painting was unveiled in Washington, some segments of the Black Lives Matter movement have criticized them as being purely symbolic gestures from politicians at a time when activists are calling for the defunding of police departments.

The artists and designers behind the community-driven works say that there are important uses for this symbolism, like education and providing meaningful public art commissions by Black artists.

Ms. Evans-Hendricks remembers seeing a mother walking her son down the letters of the Harlem street art, which run between 14 and 16 feet wide, and explaining the meaning of each word.

It has come alive in a way that the community really needed, she said.

But they also recognize the limits of the works and hope that the solidarity coming from politicians goes beyond paint on the street.

Im very interested in the art going up and taking my child to visit it and discuss it, Ms. Dawson said. But Im more interested in the tangible change that must come from this.

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The Black Lives Matter Street Art That Contain Multitudes - The New York Times

Just a couple blocks west of Mill Creek Park the center of recent Black Lives Matter protests near the Country Club Plaza 3DHQ hopes youth tech outreach now can build a more inclusive future for creative problem solvers in Kansas Citys Black and urban communities, said Fabian Conde.

3DHQ

We want to be more intentional about our Black Lives Matter commitment and our partnership with Urban TEC gives us that opportunity to take direct action and invest in the next generation by teaching them 3D technology skills, said Conde, co-founder and CEO of 3DHQ, which launched in Kansas City as Doob in 2018.

A workshop Friday with Urban TEC a nonprofit digital literacy education organization led by Ina P. Montgomery that provides tech and soft skills training for future technology careers sought to introduce and engage a new generation of creators to 3D technology.

Click here to learn more about 3DHQ, which specializes in rapid prototyping and 3D-printed miniature statues.

By focusing on the potential for 3D printing to overcome a wide variety of challenges facing humanity from use cases in apparel, artificial organs and even mid-trip production of items while journeying through space Conde hoped to inspire young people with the opportunities that await in the industry.

Fabian Conde, 3DHQ

3D printing is just a tool that allows us to do cooler things, he told students at Fridays workshop, acknowledging a steep learning curve that ultimately creates an even better outcome. Conde specifically described 3DHQs own effort to craft a 3D-printed mask modeled by staff Friday at the Plaza shop that met the needs of the pandemic era.

It didnt come easily, he said.

You have to get all that stuff out of the way. Its OK to make mistakes as long as you use it as a lesson, Conde said. Then youre solving two problems at the same time.

Are you starting to see how you can make a difference with your ideas? he continued.

3DHQ recently designed and is now selling a Black Lives Matter keychain, proceeds from which go to support Urban TEC.

We are excited about this partnership and the funds that will go toward Urban TECs STEAM in the Streets program. It will be an opportunity for us to deliver our STEAM activities to different neighborhoods throughout greater Kansas City, said Montgomery, founder and executive director of Urban TEC.

Click here to learn more about Urban TEC.

This story is possible thanks to support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a private, nonpartisan foundation that works together with communities in education and entrepreneurship to create uncommon solutions and empower people to shape their futures and be successful.

For more information, visit http://www.kauffman.org and connect at http://www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdnandwww.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn

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More than statues: 3D printer on the Plaza showcases Urban TEC opportunity amid BLM movement - Startland News

By now, youve seen or heard the word privilege in myriad contexts: trumpeted from megaphones at city protests, stamped across aesthetically pleasing Instagram infographics, italicized and bolded in op-eds. In the context of recent race relations, the notion of privilege has been widely discussed and viewed as an exclusively White phenomenon that runs rampant in affluent, predominantly Caucasian, suburban neighborhoods, school districts, and job markets. However, while an emphasis on White privilege is certainly warranted, it egregiously neglects another facet of the conversation surrounding demographic entitlement: privilege in financially secure diverse communities and the blissful oblivion of first and second-generation immigrants.

As a first-generation Ethiopian American who, while not overtly wealthy, has never worried about the status of her familys financial stability, and as a resident of one of the most diverse regions in the country, racism had always felt like a distant concept. To my erroneously superficial understanding, while it did not seem as archaic as a mere relic of a bigoted history, I didnt perceive racism to be of significant pertinence to our world. My neighbors thought I was Indian; waiters spoke to my mother in Spanish at restaurants, and more than half of my high school identified as a person of color, so for years, Id unassumingly bubbled Black into standardized tests without truly internalizing the struggles that came with that label. Having never experienced or personalized the notion of racism and infrequently having been considered Black by my community upon first glance, I found myself in desperate need of the very re-education catered to many as Dear White People.

The inner dissonance I felt was not an individual occurrence. For a number of my close friends many Black, all minorities we collectively found that each of us felt relatively divorced from the intrinsic fear and dissatisfaction almost universal in the movement for racial justice. That is not to say that we were not angry we were, but as objectively privileged spectators and critics of a blatantly unjust institution, rather than as victims of racially motivated prejudice.

To look at racism as an outsider, though, is to exclude oneself from a narrative that cares very little about personal experiences or perceptions. In truth, although relatively affluent people of color and children of immigrants may be brought up in environments starkly juxtaposing the African American canon, it is only a matter of time before one comes face to face with the experiential component of racial injustice. By then, every facet of the privilege found in such immigrant communities exclusive cultural distinctions, communal disassociation, and microaggressive ignorance will have been undermined by the harsh realities of a society that not only sees color but vilifies it.

Growing up, race was an almost nonexistent part of my socialization; after all, how could my parents teach me about a construct with which they, at least at the time, could not identify and were unfamiliar? As a second-generation immigrant, I had been conditioned to view myself as an exception to the racial rules that governed America. At home, I spoke Amharic with my parents, often ate traditional Ethiopian cuisine, wore uniquely habesha clothes on special occasions, and endured years of Amharic music blaring through our living room stereo. When out in public, there was an unmistakable camaraderie between my family and the odd Ethiopian passerby to whom we called Selam in unison. It would not be an understatement, then, to say that Black culture vernacular English, hip hop, soul food had no presence in my house, not out of intentional avoidance but because, truly, Ethiopian American and African American mean very different things.

This same cultural disconnect extends itself to the millions of other Black immigrants in the United States, a divide that continues to widen as the non-American-born Black population grows exponentially. As a result, key statistical differences arise between immigrant communities and their African American counterparts. The Pew Research Center found that Black immigrants are 37% more likely to have earned a college degree than African Americans. They are also 29% less likely to live in poverty, with incomes exceeding those of African Americans by an average of $10,000. These disparities are certainly not due to intrinsic racial inefficacy in the African American community, as has been falsely and maliciously suggested by proponents of race science for centuries. Instead, they can be extrapolated to indicate discrepancies in socioeconomic status, societal respect, and even deliberate moves by immigrants themselves to distinguish their communities from what Americans might view as conventionally Black.

Many immigrants and their children naturally segregate themselves in what are known as ethnic enclaves a phenomenon that contributes to the perpetuation of both intentional divisions from mainstream America and subliminally developed prejudices against American-born Black people. On several occasions, Ive heard immigrant-born adults in my own life simultaneously delineate themselves from and speak pejoratively against African Americans, resorting to the stereotypical and substanceless derogations pinned on the Black community by centuries of de facto American culture: lack of education, cyclical poverty, unkempt hair and dress, salacious and libertine lifestyles.

Due to their disparate cultural environments and tendency to self-isolate, many immigrants are often wealthier, unaccustomed to racial friction in their home countries, and unable to own the history of Black America, from slavery to segregation. Such differences, however, become problematic when used as justification for actively pandering to and perpetuating negative societal perceptions of the African American community. In doing so, immigrants, especially African immigrants, become free riders on the wave of progress towards equality, failing to recognize the grave threat racism poses to their livelihoods as people of color. Unfortunately, whether it manifests itself as higher socioeconomic status, elevated expectations of achievement, or subconscious biases developed against those also considered Black, privilege blinds many to the inescapable truth that racism and societys resultant discrimination of BIPOC, ironically, does not discriminate.

Image Credit: Privilege is when you think something is not a problem because it is not a problem to you personally by Tony Webster is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

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The Other Face of Privilege - Harvard Political Review