How do we end poverty? Those in power must first be willing to acknowledge their unearned privilege. Then, they must be willing to share by dismantling the systems they run which only work to their advantage. I know. It's a lot to ask. And super overwhelming. I mean, what's a guy or gal to do when…Read more Consider It
equality
Push-ti
Push: Exert force Pushti: ConfirmationA potted plant can only grow as large as its container. Denied proper opportunities to expand, it will eventually begin to shrivel up and die as its roots are starved of nourishment and the space to flourish. In my kitchen, you can't open the fridge and the drawer at the same…Read more Push-ti
Mortal Garden
Two roads diverged in an Uber wood We took the path Untralleved by A thoughtless daughter and invisible son To meet agents of change For melted rice and revolt A pastoral professor, street prophet, cat woman, stray man and hungry ghost Seeking more than fajitas and reign We, the parched people Do disdain Injured injustice…Read more Mortal Garden
Use Your Illusion
Back in the day I was known for my Axl Rose impressions. Girls would stop bullying me for at least a week before their slumber parties so I'd come with my red bandanna and entertain them. Apparently I have or at least had an appetite for self destruction. Thankfully, I'm not ten or codependent anymore.…Read more Use Your Illusion
Chicken Shit
Chickenshit: i: WWII troop slang for military bureaucratic bullshit. The word implies the regulations in question are so silly and trifling they don't measure up to the level of bullshit. ii: Cowardly, a wimp. -Urban Dictionary Last week U.S immigration officials raided seven chicken processing factories in Mississippi and arrested 680, mostly Latino workers. Families were ripped apart and stuffed…Read more Chicken Shit
Thick
When I was listening to the audiobook I knew I’d need the hard copy because these are stories I will read again and again with a pen; as if underlining consecrates ideas, like lighting a candle at church, so the words know I feel them. The first essay I re-read is Girl 6 because “Sure,…Read more Thick
#bebrave
Confession. I am not a Brenè Brown devotee. I cringe when I hear her name and didn’t fully understand why until today. So many people, including Oprah, adore her. If Oprah likes her I should be more open to the experience, right? Turns out I have my own thoughts, perspectives, experiences and a clinical license…Read more #bebrave
Undone
Enduring the prick Pangs of bloody of accusation Point to life, death and ribbed cages Birthing hips For her pleasure I can't believe it's not better Than cook, clean, rinse, dry, curl, repeat Vile bile and the ironed John sheets Leaving the cleavage of hook, Line and sink her Go Fish Designer Vagina Blues Bedazzling…Read more Undone
Sojourn
It's not like You're gonna rise up singing Cradle cap and rocking Horse Back and forth Between hungry mother and child She never was Cooing in her Baby Face Offering oysters of Truth Walking off to the sentiment of freedom It's not like They can read your mind The carts coming up the aisle Knocking…Read more Sojourn
Somebodies
I followed MSN's series on Poverty in America. Article after article shared depressing, definitive data pointing to the growing effects of systemic oppression, the desperate need for affordable housing, healthcare, living wages and a revision of where the government draws the arbitrary poverty line. Maybe it's an imaginary line on the white sandy beach between…Read more Somebodies