“Femme Voices” Spotlight: Ya Gay Aunties Podcast

Ya Gay Aunties is a podcast hosted by Hanifah and Red, two friends who have taken it upon themselves to guide baby queer POCs in the right direction one episode at a time. They discuss topics such as relationships, pop culture, and politics and they also have special guest interviews. Their episodes are always thoughtful and sometimes controversial but at the end of the day, what’s important to them is reaching people by providing a different voice. This contribution to the community is priceless because many of us don’t have access to getting advice from those like us who have been in our shoes before.

Check out the interview below to learn about how Hanifah and Red began Ya Gay Aunties and how they deal with daily life as well as manage and curate such an important podcast.

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“Femme Voices” Spotlight: Island Couple, Shannon and Shanika

Shannon and Shanika, our next “Femme Voices” spotlight, are a femme couple living and loving in their native island, Jamaica. Shannon, a nursing student, and Shanika, a musician, are best friends and consider themselves to be twin flames after being reconnected via one fateful Instagram DM. They talk to us about their dreams and aspirations as individuals and as a couple. Their view on relationships and their energy-focused self-care methods allow them to have the capacity to love one another effortlessly, in the midst of an environment that isn’t exactly receptive to who they are. Shannon and Shanika share the things they are passionate about and their inspiring love story below!

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“Femme Voices” Artist Spotlight: Interview with Visual Artist, Avery Webster-Hobbs

Credit: Andre Cerezo

Avery Webster-Hobbs is our next “Femme Voices” feature interview. This artist uses bold colors to paint pieces that celebrate the feminine form. She focuses on a more natural aesthetic in her portraits, both with the backdrop and the figures that are the center of her “Femme Fuzze” designs. Avery’s art challenges the status quo on what is acceptable for those who possess a femme identity. As someone who values the support of a community, she uses her artistry to partner with small businesses in Brooklyn and encourages other artists to put their work out there as she has done.

Read below to learn more about Avery!

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“Femme Voices” Feature: Interview with Multifaceted Intern Doctor, Sipho-Sabo

This interview is very meaningful to me because when I came across Sipho-Sabo’s Instagram (@batwoman_z), I was struck with how confidently she embraces all aspects of her identity. I admired that and wished I had known someone like her when I was younger. This interview is important because although Sipho-Sabo is in the beginning stages of her career, and will no doubt change the world someday, right now I know there are other queer Black girls who need to hear that it’s OK to fully be yourself, on your own terms.

Read on to learn more about Sipho-Sabo!

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“Femme Voices” Artist Spotlight: Interview with Illustrator, Decolonial Killjoy

Nandi (aka @Decolonial_Killjoy) is a very talented and passionate queer artist in Vienna whose art immediately caught my eye on Instagram. When I saw how she seamlessly infuses her creativity with social justice and empowering others, I knew that I had to share her work and her story with The Glam Femme community. Click below for her full interview!

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“Chill out, it was Just a Joke.” – Is America Getting too Sensitive?

 

I get so annoyed when people complain that America is “getting too sensitive”. What does that even mean? Is it wrong to respect humanity so much that we get upset if anyone commits mental and emotional violence on others with their words and actions? Is it wrong to be concerned that negative ideologies, beliefs, and stereotypes are being reinforced by the media or people who simply like to hear themselves talk?

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy fun and “ratchet” music and TV or a (thoughtful) satire or a sarcastic joke as much as the next person but sometimes humor and entertainment value are used as excuses to continue to cast a blind eye on how marginalized groups are treated and viewed in this country. Sadly, the unwillingness to learn about others takes precedence over understanding others’ experiences in order to simply treat people better. And it doesn’t stop at entertainment and social media. There are many offensive things that take place in our everyday lives that have been so accepted that it is hard to convince people of their harmful nature. Things like work and school micro-aggressions, exclusionary practices, and cultural and ethnic erasure and homogenization are just a few ways we have ingrained ignorance into our existence.

 

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#MillennialGirlMagic

As far as I’m concerned, people in my generation are the only true millennials. I mean, I graduated from high school in the year 2000, the beginning of the new millennium (by popular opinion, if not the actual beginning). They said that those in my class represented the future. It was an honor, yes, but it also came with very high expectations. Apparently, now there are two decades of people, most of whom are younger than us, who have been dubbed millennials and for whatever their reasons, older generations look down on millennials as a whole today. I guess things have changed.

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Freedom: The Fight isn’t Over

I have been avoiding writing about this topic ever since November 9th. But in a few days, our nightmarish fate will be sealed. People say not to have a defeatist attitude but it’s hard not to.

After the election results surfaced I was devastated, as many of us were. I couldn’t express my feelings in full sentences but the one word that did come to mind was, “Angry.” I tried so hard to make some sense of what had happened by writing. All I could think of to write were these words, “An open wound, salt, never been more woke, beaten and beaten, we are being tested.” I couldn’t get any farther than that incoherent string of words. As I bring my mind back to that day and weed through the foliage of my thoughts, I think this is what I was trying to say:

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