“It's About That G-Thang”Guest Writer: LaToya Hankins Happy 2016! I’m trusting all is well in your world.Please allow me the opportunity to introduce “my selves” to you. I may be an only child raised by an only child, but I feel I have a not-so secret identity I want to share with you.By day, I am LaToya Hankins, a 44-year-old polite woman who [...]
“WHAT DO THE LONELY DO AT CHRISTMAS?”Guest Writer: R. L. Norman It was so silent that we could hear every sound or movement in the house. We sat there as still and as quietly as we could, even though we were half asleep. We had waited until we thought our parents were asleep before we went on our undercover mission. It was about [...]
“Do You Know Your A, B and Cs?”Guest Writer: R. L. Norman On a sunny day in June, I was among what seemed to be hundreds of guests at this outdoor wedding. It took place in the backyard of a mansion in Bowie, Maryland. Rumor had it that a Washington Redskins football player owned it. But who knows if that were true. When I [...]
“HIV Taboo BS”Guest Writer: Bobby Smith Are our actions saying only the lives of celebs like #MagicJohnson or #CharlieSheen matter after a HIV-positive diagnosis? I “went straight” after the maternal matriarch of my family--my great grandmother--passed on to a higher plane. You see, I broke up with the high school crush I had connected with six years after graduating. Then, I entered into a [...]
“LaToya Hankins: Madame Triple Threat”Guest Writer: R. L. Norman LaToya Hankins is an author, poet and an activist. Upon graduating from East Carolina University, she earned a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Journalism and a minor in Political Science. Currently, she is the president of the Zeta Phi Beta Sorority graduate chapter in Raleigh, North Carolina (N.C.) As co-founder of the Shades of [...]
“Closeted Pride BS”Guest Writer: Bobby Smith Gays, Lesbians, Transgenders, Queers, Genderfluids, Bisexuals, Pansexuals, and Same Gender Loving people are no longer just the whispers coyly cultivated on lips shielded by mischievous hands. Freedom to Marry, an American coalition committed to winning and keeping the freedom to marry for same-gender couples, reports that 20 nations have approved the freedom to marry for same-sex couples. American [...]
“Stop, in the Name of Love…”Guest Writer: R. L. Norman "STOP!!!" I screamed. "PLEASE STOP." As I struggled to get loose but couldn't move, tears began forming in my eyes. The weight on top of me was way too heavy. As I struggled more and more, the grip around my body got tighter and tighter. His arms were wrapped around me, and the [...]
“The Ball is in Your Court”Guest Writer: R. L. Norman Not too long ago, I was reminiscing about this guy I dated years ago. It was a cool night in November: the breeze was rather inviting, and it wasn't too cold or too hot. Actually, it was just right as we sat at our dinner table on the restaurant’s rooftop overlooking the skyline [...]
“What Did You Just Call Me?”Guest Writer: R. L. NORMAN A few weeks ago on a Saturday evening, I was with a couple of good friends on the subway train, on route to Dupont Circle here in D.C. Even though it was a chilly night in June, we decided to hang out at a neighborhood bar, the Fireplace. It's the place [...]
