issue 6
Issue No. 6 | December 2021
sirens zine QTBIPOC ART AND WRITING
Editor Meilani Mandery (she/her) meilanimandery.com
Contact @sirenszine on Instagram and Tumblr sirenszine@gmail.com
Cover Credits Meilani Mandery
This publication was created on occupied Kumeyaay land.
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E L B A T
PHOTOGRAPHY cw: nudi ty
FEN POETRY
SOFÍA ARLEA FENCKEN PHOTOGRAPHY cw: ani mal bones
DANIELA MARIN PLATERO POETRY
CONTENTS
F O
3 8 10 13 16 17 20 22
DANIELA MARIN PLATERO
BASUNDHARA DRAWI NG
FIN S POETRY
SOFÍA ARLEA FENCKEN PHOTOGRAPHY
CREDITS ARTI ST BI OS
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DANIELA MARIN PLATERO
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Beware Empathy Fen
for entering another's mind and (re)writing the story is an act of POSSESSION
A Truth Fen
The unread, unsung, unpublished, unknown words of the marginalized voice will always harbor more meaning of/to humanity than the countless chronologies of corporation and capitalistic cataclysm and though the truth is unsustainable it persists
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Mediocre Fen
From Latin medius ocrus "Halfway up the mountain" For some of were born at the bottom, Sprinting toward the summit as soon as we were able, Our lungs unable to adjust to air so thin That only the whispered conversation could survive. And some were born at the top And lauded for climbing it. So I don't ask for a reward for making it Halfway up the mountain, But can you at least let me fucking live?
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SOFÍA ARLEA FENCKEN
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Strip Daniela Marin Platero
Strip off the doubts breathing across your body Your mind your heart Strip off that hurt and shame Strip off all that does not serve you That does not heal you That does not care for you Strip off old loves eating at your core Strip off cheap love And collected promises Strip off the sadness The wanting of them who could not hold you Of them who could not love you Strip off Strip off and breathe anew Breathe deep into yourself Into your core Your own love Breathe Deeper and harder
Break me Open Daniela Marin Platero
Break me open With the softness of your hand Over my heart Like the wind that meets water
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You Daniela Marin Platero
I draw imaginary lines to contain you within You become that which is hungry and needs to be apeaced Engaged Contained Erased Out of sight Out of mind Out of sight Out of mind Until you come back Out of sight Out of mind Outmind Out sight Out Mind Out Outmind Mind It Out Out
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Love Daniela Marin Platero I want soft love That feels like honey on my belly On my Spirit On my soul Love that feels like salve Smothered across my body In between my thighs Across my heart Like a prayer Answered Spoken Love That swings Across my valleys Patiently Covering every inch Every wound Every thought Love that moves at the pace of trust Feeding me life Planting sunflowers Mending Tending Unafraid
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BASUNDHARA
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Check, please fin S
check check check check
in the morning before eating after peeing before sleeping
check check check check
when when when when
I I I I
leave come walk run
check if I lose check if win wait a few hours and check again check when I’m certain check when in doubt check everyday until I check out
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[sic] fin S
I'm a sick [sic] puppy on a sick [sic] bend Ima be sick [sic] until my life fuckin ends So full of my own shit don't know when this all began Watch this sick [sic] girl become a sick human Like forreal how did I get this fucking far Like what's the deal, just need a little sidebar Cuz I been so damn gone ain't have the time to take stock Ain't realize to my surprise that I was on the damn clock But I digress, cuz we all know ya boi fin is sucha mess Told me to change my attitude so I repressed All the shit that was feeling Spending hours by myself just fucking staring at the ceiling And it's true I think that in the end they really never knew That my mind was shrinking as my body grew I was an expert at concealing If you dig a little deeper there's no wonder I'm not healing I'm so sick [sic] puppy drink my sick puppy juice Til I pass out on the floor in my sick puppy puke Cuz a puppy so sick just deserves the abuse Wrap my sick puppy neck with this sick fucking noose
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cont.
"So let's try, you say it candidly, that you always lie So offhandly, you say you wanna die This sickness brings me to my knees Always searching for the answer, miss the forest for the trees" Let me address, cuz I'm a walking contradiction I'll confess, this civil war of my attrition's got me stressed Just need to find the right position I keep dodging my own bullets wasting all my ammunition It's not fair Cuz I never feel that I'm all there And by there I mean here, or anywhere I try to stop myself from screaming But I fear in the end that all this shit just has no meaning I'm so sick [sic] puppy playing sick [sic] games Missing mad fuckin targets with my sick puppy aim Sick of playing sick [sic] cuz I'll always be the same But I ain really living if I can't fuckin change
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SOFÍA ARLEA FENCKEN
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ARTIST BIOS
Basundhara (she/her
sirens zine
IG: @simplydoodle Basundhara is an artist based in India who is still exploring herself and her art style through the artworks she makes. She engages in a relentless pursuit to reclaim the world that has often made her feel lonesome and misunderstood through the medium of her art. She often takes inspiration from her internal and external life experiences and tries to portray them in ways that feel the most honest to her.
Daniela Marin Platero (she/her) IG: @papalotl.mindemoyes Daniela is a queer, Salvadorian, feminist, immigrant who uses her writing and creative work as a medium for self-healing, and self-documentation. This portraits series has been an exercise of self-reclamation and self-exploration of desire, queerness, and self-love.
Fen (they/them) Fen is an artist who regretfully is also a STEM major.
fin S (they/them) IG: @obi.wan.foshobi YT: fin S a 30 something walking shitpost who loves Lee Hoseok and suffering.
Meilani Mandery
周秀明 (she/her)
IG: @chinatown.auntie Meilani is an artist and arts educator located on occupied Duwamish land. She works in photogrpahy, collage, and poetry. She is a community organizer within the Chinatown International District.
Sofía Arlea Fencken (they/she) IG: @sofiaarlea Sofía Arlea Fencken is a photographer raised in Arizona with American and Chilean descent. She began photography as a portrait artist in high school, then began to move into more independent creative work at Arizona State University. Sofia takes photos of things that represent home for them, and also enjoys connecting their work with influence from authors and musicians that have impacted and inspired them.
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