When grappling with a change (of space, of friendship, of love), it is easy to fall into the arts. You find something in everything, but especially the big forms: a song, a sentence, an image.

~   I wrote about some of my favorite small non-fiction books and why they are often more important than a traditional novel for WBEZ.  (via britticisms)

04.10.13 @ 16:39♥98

And the actual wind? The walk around the buildings and corners and sidewalks of this city is a testament to the power of nature and the forces that are out of our control. I have always struggled for a greater sense of control in my life. Why then do I stay in a city like Chicago, full of the intangible, the uncontrollable? Because it is all I know and what I know, I can accept.

~   My latest tumblr essay for WBEZ, on accepting the lack of knowledge and control in Chicago  (via britticisms)

03.24.13 @ 14:09♥26

Chicago turns something out of nothing. It is not the city itself that does this, but the people within it, homegrown or recently transplanted. Chicago gives artists and other creatives the opportunity to build from the ground up, allowing them to not only visualize their dreams but to actualize them.  A couple of weeks ago ago, I visited photographer Matt Austin to talk about his new project, The Perch. Part dinner party, part art experiment, the discussion was born out of a desire to uncover why Chicago artists stay and what they gain from creating in the city. You can read the story for WBEZ here. 

03.24.13 @ 14:09♥49

Weakness denies one their “blackness.” And maintaining that connection and identity of the community is critical, perhaps even necessary. I struggled with this from a young age. Am I black enough? Are these interests good enough? Am I denying who I truly am by “pretending” that my concerns were in any way similar to the girls around me? For what would I be if not a Strong Black Woman? A weak everywoman, a regular human being. These are not the things that will get one through the unique challenges of the world while black and female. It was strength over everything else, even when strength seemed out of grasp.

~   

I wrote about mental health, stoicism in the black community, and the Strong Black Woman trope. The statistics are not good. 

  • 63% of African Americans believe depression is a personal weakness versus 54% of the general population.
  • Only 31% treat it as a health problem.
  • Top barriers to seeking treatment include denial and embarrassment or shame. 

I’ve obviously been thinking about this a lot and believe that this is one of the most criminally-ignored issues in the black community. 

(via britticisms)

03.24.13 @ 14:08♥203

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