I believe that the most horrifying thing about the genocide in Palestine is that it displays how easily a country and a people can be overlooked and even erased by the world. We have known about Israel’s land theft, but the propaganda that this is the rightful land of all Jewish people in the world has enabled people to be silent and write it off as a religious conflict. The Israeli government and all its entities practice blatant land theft. Palestine was a country, and their land has been stolen over the course of 76 years since the first Nakba in 1948 where Zionist militias forcibly removed 85% of Palestinians from their land and homes, killing thousands of men, women, children, and elders. It’s bewildering to grasp that Israel is only 76 years old, meaning if you are older than this, you have lived in a world where Israel never existed.

Many of us first learned about Palestine through our social media feeds. We were confronted with horrifying footage of buildings decimated by 2,000-pound bombs, the haunting cries of people cradling their deceased loved ones, and speechless children covered in ash being pulled from the rubble of their demolished homes. As we scrolled, reacted, and reposted, we oscillated between anger and defeat, torn between the need to bear witness and an overwhelming feeling of helplessness that threatened to choke us into indifference.

On October 15, 2015, HBO picked up Insecure, a comedy-drama created and starring Issa Rae. The show is based on Rae’s award-winning web series The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl, which ran for over five seasons. Insecure has become a significant representation for young Black women, portraying authentic depictions of friendship, career failures, goals, and relationships. However, what makes Insecure such an iconic show and adds to the canon of Black television is the inclusion of awkwardness as a Black woman.

I attended the Let’s Talk Sisterhood event hosted by Spelman College’s Social Justice Program, an empowering experience highlighting the solidarity among the women of Spelman. The esteemed panel, including SGA President Breah Banks, Bonner Scholar Aleisha Sawyer, and Spelman alumnae Venetta Coleman and Patrice Williams, discussed the unique sisterhood fostered at Spelman.

Rolling out of bed, I tie my tangled mess of curls into a loose bun on my head. I prepare for the long hours ahead, gathering my complex collection of detangling creams, oils, curl-defining puddings, soufflés, and gels. Next, I organize my styling tools into a line on the bathroom counter: a wide-tooth comb, an afro pick, a detangling brush, and a fine-tooth comb. Today is Wash Day. It is the day women of color set aside for washing, moisturizing, detangling, and styling their hair. It’s a process.

On Sunday, September 24, Spelman College’s Social Justice Program greeted Dr. William A. Darity Jr. and Ms. A. Kirsten Mullen, co-authors of From Here to Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the 21st Century. Dr. William A. Darity Jr. is a professor of public policy, African-American studies, and economics at Duke University. Ms. A. Kirsten Mullen is a writer, folklorist, consultant, and lecturer. The panelists were greeted by the Quarterman-Keller Scholars, which is the first educational initiative established by the Reparations Project. The Quarterman-Keller project is a nonprofit managed by the descendants of an enslaved coastal Georgia family and the descendants of their enslavers. The Quarterman-Keller scholars have been engaging with the text written by Dr. Darity and Ms. Mullen as a part of their research into the social, historical, and political impact of slavery.

The name Slutty Vegan is not the typical name for a vegan restaurant, but if you ask anyone in Atlanta looking for a vegan option, Slutty Vegan tops the list. The restaurant’s popularity grew, not simply from their famed vegan burgers and fries, but as a result of the name itself.

As The Blue Record enters our fourth year of elevating the voices and stories of Spelman students and marginalized folks, we want to take a moment to pay homage to the woman who inspires our work and guides our mission: the iconic Ida B. Wells.

The AUC remains a place grappling with respectability and revolution, if the divided response to Spelman and Morehouse's recent collaboration with Ralph Lauren is any indication. The collaboration, which is centered in, “the esteemed network of historically Black colleges and universities”, is both something we have seen before and something entirely new.

Every feeling of "missing out" is understandable, but recognize the fact that you have been gifted with the opportunity to be still. Focus on you and your journey without getting caught up in other people's ways of navigating this dormant period. After all, when the inactivity of winter melts away, it nourishes the blossoms of spring.

As February comes to an end, we start to see the end of this “trend” of celebrating Black History Month with some institutions, businesses, and corporations. Target’s ‘Celebrate Black History Month’ section will disappear (and probably go on sale), Bath and Body Works kente cloth candles will disappear (and probably go on sale as well), and the month will disappear. Another February in the books for us to chalk up, another month out the way, and another obstacle gone. We’re one month closer to spring break, and most importantly, summer vacation.

There's no better place to spend the month of February than on Spelman's campus. In a month dedicated to celebrating black history and love in all its forms, being surrounded by Black excellence and the care of my Spelman siblings is the perfect combo to be reminded of. I’d like to take this time to share my love for the campus as a whole and the underrated spaces and elements that I indeed would not be able to function without.

Discomfort, stress, disappointment, loss and pain are all part of the human journey. If we are not able to enter into a space of kindness and love with ourselves, we’re putting ourselves at odds with the reality of life.

One of the most captivating moments of this past fall season was awaiting the release of Netflix's original film The Harder They Fall. The trailers and promotional media gave consumers what felt like an unveiling of previously-erased history. It was a film that promised to center the lives of Black people in a realm that is usually associated with whiteness. The history of cowboys is often seen through the lens of old-western-style films that center white characters.

Today I wanted to take a moment to celebrate the siblinghood of Spelman. It's one of the best things the campus has to offer... Everyone has their own story of a Spelman sib coming in clutch, whether it's someone going out of their way to help you bring in your groceries up to the dorm, or treating you while out somewhere ‘because Spelman.’

A short film by TBR Archivist Elizabeth Gowans, created for her African Diaspora & the World Class. This short film examines the omission of Fannie Lou Hamer and other revolutionary Black experiences from the historical record.

As we welcome in this New Year, we have concerns about things like politics and things we are excited about, like all of the possible opportunities of a New Year, especially after an extraordinarily difficult one. There is still much to look forward to, but also things to brace ourselves for.

While the movement has brought about rapid progress in how government, police departments, and corporations tackle racial injustice in this country, one major flaw becomes blatantly clear as time goes on: BLM continuously leaves Black, queer, and Trans women out of the conversation. 

Being Black in America is a horror show in itself, and Lovecraft Country takes that concept to a whole new level. It knows white supremacy is our boogeyman, and there ain’t nothing scarier than that.