#black muslim

Nadia.

Over the past few weekends I’ve been teaching a photography workshop in the esplanade with a group of young women wanting to learn more about photography and using cameras, and man. It’s been such an eye-opening experience just listening to the young girls, and women tell their stories on what it’s like being a woman, especially a black woman in today’s society. The whole point of these workshops is to not only arm them with the power to tell stories through imagery but to control their own narratives. I really hope at the end of this they leave feeling empowered and knowing just a lil bit more about photography. I’m not the best teacher and I don’t know it all, but this is so dear to me and I hope I’ve made some sort of impact.

byBrianna Roye

Today is my 30th birthday.

I had a whole spiel planned thanking God (Allah) for allowing me to see this many moonrises and sunsets. And, prayed that he allowed me to see many, many more. Because I got work to do. WE got work to do.

But, when my friend posted this photo with the caption #FuckWhiteSupremecy oh, the hatred reared its ugly head. Now mind you, some fucked up shit just happened in the last 48 hours. White terrorists are beating people to a bloody mess, marching for systematic oppression of POC and queers, and people lost their lives. People are hurt. People are tired. WE are angry!

And, this woman had the audacity to tell me that there is ‘no such thing as white supremacy’ and that 'All lives mattered’. When I tell you I went off, I went OFF.

Does she understand that her very mentality is why we are in a bad situation right now? A damn racial war with Number 45???

I told her that my goal, from here on out, with the 30+ years that I have on this earth remaining, with the platform that I’ve built, the people I touch, who listen and are intrigued by my fat, black, and very much so, Muslim body is to dismantle this oppressive behavior and educate on tolerance.

Black Lives Matter doesn’t mean white lives don’t.
LGBTQIA Lives Matter doesn’t mean anti-white.
Muslim Lives Matter doesn’t mean white lives are less.
Immigrant Lives Matter doesn’t mean white hatred.

Stop making everything about YOU! And, listen to what we’re saying. We are hurting. We are dying. This isn’t a joke.

Photo: Velvet D'Amour
Location: Paris, France

IG: Lvernon2000
www.beautyandthemuse.net

“I’m so tired of hearing about race.” “Black this. White that.” “I have black friends…” “I’m from the hood, too.” “See the problem is with you people…”

See, I’m also tired of talking about race. I’m tired of being paid 30% less than a white dude. I’m tired of being profiled because of the body I was placed in at birth. I’m tired of the “You People” statements. I’m tired of the I-have-black-friends and the my-child-is-bi-racial statements as if that meant shit. As if that meant you weren’t a culture vulture, bigoted, or still racist to infinity and beyond.

You know what else I’m tired of? Seeing my black boys and girls shot in the face, necks strangled, suffocated, beaten to a bloody pulp, and out of all that, justice still not served in their honor.

I’m tired of the systematic oppression that most of y'all don’t like to see, uncomfortable with talking about and acknowledgement of an oppressive, bloody, capitalist, slave-based system that brings us to today and other troll like comments from so-called Americans.

So, before you feel tired of People of Color talking about race relations, human equality, and/or other struggles, step into my shoes of living in fear, or better yet, step into my great-great grandmothers slave shoes and keep your mouth shut.

IG: Lvernon2000

www.beautyandthemuse.net

Photo: @remy_me
Location:@orleansandwinder (Detroit, MI)

I’m emotional (tears + snot nose). So, I’m the winner of the 2017 Gilda Award for my work in creative nonfiction by @kresgeartsdet

I started writing when I was 6. Reading Rainbow was my shit. I entered my first contest then lost, but Levar Burton sent a cool rejection letter so I wasn’t going to stop. In my teen years, my father was never there. Mom was juggling 5 kids from different fathers and no help from family. I sought refuge in stories and other worlds. I was homeschooled, weird and thoughtful, more advanced than the kids my age. My friends were librarians. I’d sit in the library nook for hours and just read and dream of a life different from my own broken home.

I started entering contests. Won a few. I loved Sci-Fi but noticed the lack of black heroines and writers. I set out to be the first and wrote my first novel in college at 17. It was rejected. I wrote 2 more novels and they were also rejected. I blamed it on my color and socioeconomic status. All the successful writers were white and female. There was no room for my fat, black ass. So I stopped and never wrote again…
It was the toughest five years. Can you imagine not fulfilling your purpose? Then one day, when I almost admitted myself to a psych ward, I thought about my life. Like really dug into my core. My passions and talents. I asked myself, “who the fuck are you? Without your ex-husband? Your family? Your friends? Who are YOU?” The response: YOU are words. Stories. After that day, I’ve never tried to get rich or popular from writing. I was going to write for me. To uplift and to make change. If I had to write for free for ever and ever then that was what I was prepared to do.

Now, here we are. Making waves This white photo represents purity, an awakening, a new beginning for me in my career to change the narrative. @Remy_me MUA: @Being_madinah
Dress: @chubbycartwheels

IG: Lvernon2000
www.beautyandthemuse.net

I get a lot praise for being brave. When in retrospect, I’m often times very much afraid, rigid in my thoughts, teetering on the edge of ‘you’ll never make it’. The word 'can’t’ floats around on repeat. I make my own self upset with the negativity. But, on social media everyone looks so happy. Their lives so amazing. A nice, little curated world of fun and adventure and perfectly angled selfies. When I look at the statistics, someone like me should’ve never made it this far…

Yesterday, I had a convo with one of my bros. He told me that he was too old and that most people his age couldn’t achieve what he wanted to achieve. He said that his journey was the beginning of the end.I thought about my own self. And my own negative thoughts I’d been having lately.

I replied: don’t place yourself in a box with other people, with norms or statistics. How do you know you aren’t an anomaly, that you aren’t the one whose gonna change the world? Stop thinking on such a small level. A closed minded level. This isn’t the beginning of the end. It’s the start to the beginning. @yannazazu

IG: Lvernon2000
www.beautyandthemuse.net

I’ve wanted to do this parody for soooooo long ever since I saw a comedian do a different version… Here’s a snippet of “S**t White Girls Say to Muslimahs”

Unfortunately a lot of these questions are ones I’ve actually been asked, and a few I added for comedic relief because I’m extra. So, fight me.

Muslimahs, y'all know what I’m talking about.

What are some questions you have gotten that made you go ugggggh?

P.S. Don’t get butt-hurt it’s all in good fun

P.S.S. It’s my first time so don’t Kathy Griffin me

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Full Video: https://youtu.be/srpCH1lAh9k