Black Girl Times

Our blog, Black Girl Times, offers Black creatives a platform to discuss their experiences and those of southern Black girls, women (in particular but not exclusively) and gender non-conforming people on The Lighthouse’s website. Through this project, creatives use writing, photography and other mediums to underscore the organization’s mission, further elevating those voices on matters ranging from reproductive justice to music, economic justice to pop culture. Additionally, we share information important to our community and those, likewise, disenfranchised. We proudly say our aim is not to break news–there are people doing that. We want to ensure people in our communities know how the news in traditional media impacts their everyday lives.

Editorial Team

Natalie A. Collier

Editor in chief

Alexis Hicks

Associate Editor

Imani Spencer

Digital and Online Editor

LaTanya Lane

Special Projects Editor

Joecephus Martin

Creative Director

Sirita Render

Lead Designer

Rose Parkman Marshall

Copy Editor

Haile Cole

Contributing Editor

Sykina Butts

Contributor

Danielle Buckingham

Contributor

Ashlee Kelly

Contributor

Perdita Patrice

Contributor

Jelisa Harvey

Editorial Assistant

Lighthouse Staff

Contributors

 

 

 

March 3, 2021

Black Power Revisited, Revised, Fried, Dyed & Laid to the Side 

It’s (Black) Women’s History Month for us, and politics is always a conversation on our minds, so let’s discuss the role of Black women in politics in 2020 this year so far. The Obama presidency was a historic event, but the campaign that preceded it was not all confidence and cheer.  Things weren’t going so well on a lonely campaign stop in Greenwood, South Carolina. The would-be president and his...
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February 23, 2021

Five Things to Know About Capitalism

I have spent the last 15 years unlearning capitalism and uncovering its influence on my behaviors and beliefs. I used to be hard on myself about spending money. If I wanted a treat, I’d go through all the ways I could justify my purchase. Then once the money was spent, I’d feel guilty. I should...
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February 19, 2021

Love in One Act

Imagine meeting someone and knowing they’d be imprinted on your soul forever—every encounter you’d have with them would be memorable. A sizzle in your spirit can’t be extinguished, despite circumstances like distance and the social construct of time. You two were written in the stars, instant folklore your descendants will recount on wraparound porches long...
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February 18, 2021

For the Love of Creativity and Healing

If you ask me what’s wrong, I can’t tell you just one thing. I would say, it’s this pandemic, the isolation, the deaths of friends my own age and younger from something we know so little about. It’s the inability to fully grieve. It’s the fear—not holding me hostage—holding me cautiously back. The isolation. Living...
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February 16, 2021

Practicing Intentional Self-Care Led Me to Therapy

In 2019, I realized I needed a little help. After a decade of working non-stop and unraveling the reasons behind some of my life choices, I finally felt at peace. My 20s were filled with romantic pursuits, moving across country, working low-wage office jobs, marrying and divorcing, earning a college degree, and starting a new career in a new industry. If I were to assign a theme to my...
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February 15, 2021

Biden’s First 30 Days a Whirlwind of Change

Good decisions rolling out of the White House are coming too fast to monitor these days, and labor rights is a good first example. After watching workers’ rights erode and die for four years, advocates are actually cheering some good news.  “Peter Robb” is a name that doesn’t ring many bells, but Robb first made a name...
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February 12, 2021

All’s fair in Love & Basketball, right?

If you ask any Black person between the ages of 25 and 50 one of their favorite Black love stories portrayed in film is, “Love & Basketball” will certainly be at the top of some of their lists. The film was released Spring 2000, and though it didn’t garner box office success, it has become...
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February 8, 2021

Vote Purges are Coming

Voters in the 2020 presidential election and the 2021 runoff for the Georgia Senate put Democrats in charge of the White House and both chambers of Congress, even if by a very narrow Senate margin. Increased voter participation in those elections, particularly among Black and brown people, had much to do with those wins. Republican...
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February 5, 2021

Sick and Tired: Fannie Lou Hamer & the Cost of America’s Sickness

Precious Lord take my hand. Lead me on. Let me stand. I am tired. I am weak. I am worn.  As I sat in my bedroom feeling heavy with the news of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, Fannie Lou Hamer singing “Precious Lord,” played on repeat in the background. In this recording, she recalls finding...
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January 29, 2021

Dear John | Come Correct

Dear 2020 and 2021, I’m writing to you in tandem now because for me you are inextricably linked. You both held and hold great hope and great fear I am doing my best to reconcile. You, 2020, opened the doors of opportunity for me. New city, new job, new apartment, new friends, new lovers, and...
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January 29, 2021

Dear John | Netflix and a Masters

Dear 2020, I have developed a love/hate relationship with you. Good things happened to me during your time, and also lots of anxiety, fear and hopelessness. At your beginning, I was finishing my master’s degree and super excited about the idea of having an American commencement—the cap and gown and having friends and family with...
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January 29, 2021

Dear John | Calm After the Storm

Dear 2020, We had a rocky start. You were cold and financially unstable. I was always dreading waking up to you. I worked hard to make things better, make them easier. You were a fortress of sadness for the first four months. I lost some family and friends. I lost my car. I drank too...
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January 28, 2021

Dear John | Still Alive

Bare feet on the cliffside wondering how it will all end, the darkness swallows me. Rocks and sticks pierce my skin, as I take another step, but the coldness has taken my will to feel. I dance carelessly along the edge, knowing I have to make a choice, hoping my careless character does it for...
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January 28, 2021

Dear John | We Gone be Alright

Dear Younger Self, It was a pleasure meeting you. You were there through it all. I will never forget how you had big dreams and goals for yourself, the ones you use to envision yourself doing. I hope this letter to you does not sound too harsh, but it is something that needs to be...
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January 28, 2021

Dear John | 2021, What I’ve Learned About Consent

Dear Diary, This month’s wellness theme at The Lighthouse is “consent.” I’ve challenged myself to learn more about this subject and find ways to practice it more often. I found a pretty good definition for consent. It’s “a clear, voluntary agreement from one person to another to engage in some form of activity.” So to give...
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