Today we meet Katie Johnson, a bisexual Muslim who wears the niqab (hair and face covering). As a person of devout and outward signs of faith, Johnson sometimes gets erased from what we think of as queerness. I was excited to speak with her about how her faith and sexual orientation have impacted who she is today, as well as to expand the conversation on queers who cover.…
Last month, I began a journey to tell the stories of fellow LGBTQ people who follow the religious practice of hair covering—an exploration that was born from the need to find and connect with others who are both queer and called to outwardly express their deep-faith practice. I was overwhelmed with the response to my first article on Bailey Gammon, a young, disabled, queer Quaker who covers—numerous other queer folks across the faith spectrum reached out, wishing to share their…
I have always loved God. Yes, at times, I couldn’t stand to be around organized religion. And yes, at times, I even wanted to embrace Agnosticism or Atheism, simply because of the pain I felt from having religion weaponized against me. But even still, I could not escape the joy and validity of my relationship with the divine. As I have made peace with my queerness, I have also begun to re-embrace those aspects of religion and the church that…
Representation matters. The way we and our communities are portrayed matters. In observing queer characters in books, movies, and on television, we see options for who we can be and validation of who we already are. As human beings, we are in constant need of affirmation that we are not alone—that our thoughts and experiences aren’t isolated.…
Self-care is not just Instagram fodder, Lush bath bombs, aromatherapy, and crystals. It’s not selfies, expensive beverages, salads, yoga poses, or even spa services. Self-care is actually work. And it often can be free. It’s akin to the psychological concept of re-parenting, or self-stewardship. It is adulting 2.0. It’s an essential skill that combats the effects of living in the relentless consumerist culture we’re steeped in. But don’t let that discourage you, because here are my top 5 self-care tips…
As teachers, we come into this vocation knowing we will love and part ways with many students throughout our career. At the start of the school year, we meet dozens of new shining faces, and like a parent, we love them all equally. But every year we also find a certain special bond with some students over others. This has nothing to do with favoritism, it is simply the human nature of finding common connection. When I meet certain students…
I’m standing in line to check out at my local grocery store. COVID-19 is breathing down my neck: as an entity, as a presence, as an atmosphere. Behind my homemade fabric face mask and my meticulously sanitized disposable gloves, I’m buying two weeks of groceries for my queer household. …
The season of the witch has arrived. Simply scroll through Instagram and see for yourself: crystals, herbs, spell recipes, aesthetic posts of perfectly curated altars, candles, witchcraft 101 tips and tricks, the list goes on. Walk the aisles of any bookstore, and they’re front and center: books on witchcraft, magic, the moon, astrology. Tarot is experiencing a rebirth, a reinvigoration.…
For the last month, I’ve been on tour for my first book, Dear Twin, a queer Asian young adult novel about twins and childhood trauma. The book centers a queer Asian romance between Poppy, a half-Chinese, half-Japanese queer teen and her girlfriend, Juniper, a self-identified butch Korean girl. When audiences ask me about the characters’ relationship, I say that, when writing this book, instead of envisioning a queer future, I instead envisioned a queer past—one in which I could have…
Happy new decade, queers! We can’t believe this is Spectrum South’s third annual Year in Review. While it truly feels like 2019 flew by, we’re taking a moment to slow down, reflect, and give gratitude for all of the wonderful happenings over the past year.…
