Jaylah is a multifaceted artist who engages the world through poetry, design, and performance. A teen boss, and co CEO of Honey Cosmetics, she visualizes and represents possibility through her work. Her signature style features characters with sharp edges, bold looks and swagger to boot. “I’m sooo blessed to be a part of the design team at @trad_magazine . We …
Aki
When Uncle Sunny asked Ogbonna to come home for Easter, it was not a request, and there was no talk about human sacrifice. Now he is kneeling here, in the middle of a forest, beside his family house, with a sharp cutlass piercing through his chest, a gallon of blood gushing through his veins, and he cannot help but know, this is exactly where he is supposed to be.
The Only Way Out is Through
“Memory sifts. Memory lifts. Memory makes due with what it is given. Memory is not about facts. Memory is an inconsistent measurement of the pain in one’s life.” – Brandon Taylor ————————————————————————— One of the most painful things that no one talks about growing up is coming to face the humanity and mortality of your parents. As a first-generation Canadian …
Overcoming Imposter Syndrome through Introspection
I started therapy to help me with the anxiety I had playing varsity basketball, and I gradually realized how many more areas of my life I needed to unpack continually.
A Chosen Path
It might be too personal to ask a friend if they had a decent childhood, but I am often curious to hear about the childhood experience of my peers and how their society impacted their upbringing. Unfortunately, for some societies, including my country, upbringings and childhood are complicated subjects and exceedingly difficult to explain.
12,636 km away
I often find myself speaking and envisioning a point in my life when I will return to Zimbabwe and settle. However, there seems to be a gap between my vision of returning to the motherland and my parents’ vision of returning. I do not want to dismiss my parents’ sacrifices to give me better opportunities in North America. Still, I believe all the knowledge I have acquired can be re-invested into Zimbabwe or the continent at large.
I spoke to seven young adults about travelling to Africa and the Caribbean during the pandemic. Here’s what they had to say.
As the world begins to transcend to a new kind of normal, many people in the western world feel as if it is safe enough to connect to our roots once again. However, the question of whether we should be travelling during a pandemic, which is not truly over, is on my mind.
Who did the Year of Return Forget ?
The Year of Return was a collaboration between the Ghanaian Tourism Authorities, the Panafest Foundation and the Adinkra group in the U.S. The mission was to “celebrate the victims of the Trans-Atlantic slave Trade who were scattered and displaced throughout the world in North America, South America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia.” The Year of Return took place in Ghana, …
My Privilege to Return was my Grandfather’s Ultimate Sacrifice
In 1993 my grandfather, Kasenda Mpinga, stood up at the National Assembly in the United Nations and quoted this parable “When our neighbour’s house is on fire, we must not ignore the flames, we must go and waft them out to avoid the flames coming to our own house.” A mere year later, he was killed in a plane crash …
Returning When you Never Left
My relationship with my culture can be compared to a healthy body being infected with cancer cells. As with most illnesses, through help and support, this relationship has returned to its original state and continues to thrive.
