CONTENTS
3 Feature | 5
Letter from the Editors “It’s very clear what the students are asking for: “ Sylvia Spears talks about how Emerson College is hurting students from marginalized communities Zines and Pen Pals: Methods of Resistance Against Ableism in the Criminal Justice System The Reimagined Series: Acting is for marginalized people too
Culture | 15 The Sudden Highs and Many Lows: Black Creators in the Beauty Community There is no right way to be sustainable Why Your For You Page is Overwhelmingly White Identity | 24 Dear White People: Part 2 Rising Tuitions, Deeper Debts A Book We All Judged by Its Cover
ISSUE NO.2
The Intersectionalist Mel Curry
Eryn McCallum
Ziqi Wang
Shruti Rajkumar
Emily Cardona
Tivara Tanudjaja
Jilly Towson
Christine Park
Ricky Kalayci
Sonali Anand
Liza Xiao
Damica Feliciano
Co-Chair
Co-Chair
Identity Chair
Features Chair
Culture Co-Chair
Copy Editor
Graphic Design Chair
Social Media Chair
Head Photographer
Magazine Designer
Staff Writer
Magazine Designer
Special Thanks to Contributers Katiana Hoefle
Leah Jablo
Joseph Nalieth
Irka Perez
Letter from the A lot has changed for us since the first issue of The Intersectionalist. We’ve realized how much we love what we do after immersing ourselves daily into our publication’s creation. This has caused us to spend more time planning out the inner workings of the magazine, expanding our team, and gaining more of an understanding of how to unlearn the discriminatory teachings of journalism and media that have been ingrained into us. We have been told that journalism can only be done one way and that anything outside the “norm” of objectivity and seeing stories through the lens of whiteness isn’t journalism anymore. You’re “veering off ” into “activism” and “bias,” as if these concepts are not allowed to be a part of journalism. We are young Black women growing into ourselves. We continuously reinforce that we are not less than and that our experiences don’t need to be silenced. And yet, we believe in different journalism philosophies.
Graphic by Christine Park/The Intersectionalist
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We are endlessly grateful to the Emerson community for embracing The Intersectionalist and uplifting our platform to spread awareness about the underrepresented stories that exist not only on campus but around the world. When working against oppression, discrimination, and prejudice, it can feel like a losing battle. But, we will not give up and we know none of our readers will either. This is just the beginning, but there is so much love and support within our communities to carry us all along the way. Until next time, Mel & Eryn
Feature By Ziqi Wang
“It’s very clear what the students are asking for:” Sylvia Spears talks about how Emerson College is hurting students from marginalized communities
Raised in Narragansett, Rhode Island, Sylvia Spears has fond memories of her childhood from bathing in sunshine during the summer to splashing water at the beach with her siblings. And yet, despite these memories, one feeling remained the same: being othered. Her family was one of four families of color in Narragansett, so she wasn’t a stranger to microaggressions or overt racism. But her mother, she said, validated her experiences and taught her about oppression, helping her understand what it meant to be Black in America. This sparked Spears’ realization that she wanted to help students of color in white spaces just like her mom helped her. Spears is currently the Vice President for Equity and Social Justice at Emerson College. Hired in 2012, Spears’ primary responsibility is to provide broad institutional influence and leadership to advance the College’s diversity and inclusion. And yet, the position has never had any authority or direct power to create actual institutional change, she said. After decades of inclusivity and diversity work, she said it’s hard to say if institutions and the people who benefit from these existing systems actually have the ability to make the kind of transformative change that is necessary. Spears said she thinks her role
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The Intersectionalist is grounded more in providing support systems to advocate for folks who are marginalized at Emerson than changing the system itself. She sees herself as a translator for the students, voicing their concerns and demands to the administration. “‘Well, what do students want?’ They want you to decenter whiteness, they want you to address racism,” Spears said. “You know, they want you to address classism. They want a college that affirms who they are, rather than tells them that they have to be something different in order to be successful in their fields.” This interview has been edited for clarity and style. The Intersectionalist: You said that you really enjoy the environment here at Emerson, and that’s one of the reasons you decided to take this job. How would you describe the Emerson community? Spears: I think people at Emerson perceive themselves as liberal and progressive, an environment in which people would think there's great, rich diversity. So there's this sense that it’s this really robust, vibrant environment. Some of that is accurate. And some of it is in pockets. There are parts of Emerson that function much like any other small, private college. So if you can travel through Emerson, as a student, staff, or a faculty member, you actually discover multiple Emersons coexisting at the same time. I think sometimes for people who are outside, that's challenging.
The Intersectionalist: Over the years you’ve been at Emerson, what are some of the positive changes towards social justice you’ve seen?
I think some of the most important things are often the most invisible. Spears: For instance, the college made a decision after lots of encouragement to go test-optional two and a half years ago. Incoming students don't have to take standardized tests, and that is really one of the things I'm very proud of. I believe standardized tests create a barrier because not every student tests well, and those tests are actually often culturally bound, Eurocentric in their underpinnings. As a result, anybody who's not a certain class or race, doesn't come
from a certain background, is going to be at a disadvantage at taking those tests. I think the steps that I've been able to take to monitor some aspects of the hiring process for faculty has been important. It's really powerful to see an applicant pool for a faculty member that is richly diverse. There are folx from historically marginalized groups who actually get hired because they're talented, edgy, and committed to social justice. Also, what I've enjoyed over the entire eight years is really being in the community with students, especially students of color. I pride myself on those relationships that actually extend after students have graduated.
The Intersectionalist: You
Sylvia Spears, the Vice President for Equity and Social Justice at Emerson College, speaks on the obstacles she faces at creating institutional change to advance diversity and inclusion.
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The Intersectionalist talked about working with the community. What are some of the most memorable stories, cases, or concerns that you've heard from the Emerson community? Spears: I will never forget the protests. From the first protest in 2015, to the second protest, as well as Protesting Oppression with Educational Reform (POWER) emerging as an organization. Even the most recent Emerson Student of Color (ESOC) Week Of Action has been really powerful. My really fond memory is actually sitting with the students. In the just the days after both protests in the old Cultural Center, while it was in the basement with no windows and kind of sad and tired space, students had created something really special. We would have these private meetings about their concerns and even strategies for next semester. I always felt honored to be in their company, because it was work that they shouldn't have to do. And for students who literally sacrifice themselves to try to make Emerson better for students who come after them is really important work. So when they are willing to step into that role, for me, it's really important to be an intense listener, and then to move from listening to action. The Intersectionalist: Would you describe your role as the action part of the process? Spears: I think part of the role is action. The challenge is that so much of what needs to be changed is not under my purview. The position has influence, but has
no power. So, in many ways and especially in the past six months, I feel like I'm a translator. To me, it's very clear what students are asking for, and it's much richer than just a list of demands. The list of demands are important, the college should address those things, but as I've said to President Pelton and to other folx, you have to read between the white spaces—you have to read what is in the silence. And what is in the silence, what I hear, is that there are aspects of Emerson that are actually hurting students of color, and international students and students who might have other identities. It's our responsibility to not only prevent harm, but to make it an environment in which students can thrive rather than simply survive. The Intersectionalist: Would you say one of the drawbacks to social justice at Emerson is the barriers placed on your role that make it difficult to actually accomplish your goals? Spears: It's the biggest challenge because people want to look to the person in this role as “Oh, this person can fix it.” I can tell people what's wrong, I can tell them what they need to do, but oftentimes it requires a vote of the faculty or it requires rethinking the way we do as a college. It requires a willingness on the part of other people to think about how we can do all the things that we do and retain the best parts of Emerson, and actually let go of all of the practices that we know are harmful. And for some people, that's really scary. The Intersectionalist: Do you
sometimes feel lost, or frustrated when dealing with actual administration? Spears: I think I don't feel lost, but I can feel really frustrated because I can see what the issues are. And I see the barriers. Sometimes the barriers that students run up against and I run up against are actually in the heads of people.
We are supposed to be a creative and innovative environment, but if we can't bring our creativity and innovation to actually transforming the culture of Emerson, then that's really scary for me. That suggests, if this group of creatives cannot do it, cannot imagine an Emerson [at] the best version of itself, then what does that mean about society? So, I have to believe that it's possible, although there are many, many days where I'm frustrated, or where I'm just at a loss for what can I say that will help affect change. And, that's the challenge. The Intersectionalist: You talked about all the “-isms” in your bio and how you come to understand these terms as you grow up. When was the first time that you started to understand that all these “-isms” that you talked about are obstacles
The Intersectionalist on your road to success? And how do you cope with that? Spears: I don't think I ever didn't know it growing up in a pretty white, middle class community. We were one of four families of color in the whole town, so I always knew that there was this weird dynamic. I think my parents were pretty good at naming it and labeling it, and instilling in me that my capacity for who I could be, and what I wanted to be, couldn't be limited by what people thought. For my parents, it was all about education. After I got my doctoral degree, my mom would introduce me to people: “This is my daughter, Dr. Spears.” And it means something out in the world that people think you're a medical doctor. The Intersectionalist: How are you implementing what you learned from your parents into your work? Spears: My parents taught me the importance of speaking the truth, what we now call speaking truth to power. They also taught me that having empathy for others is not enough and that I have a responsibility to advocate for what is right and just despite the consequences. And despite those consequences, my life's work requires me to stand in the truth every day even in places where the truth is not valued or wanted. The Intersectionalist: So what does “intersectionality” mean to you? Spears: [Intersectionality] is used much more informally to really lift up the ways in which overlapping
identities kind of sit [and] the ways in which society interacts with those overlapping identities, and can cause multiple layers of oppression on a single person that's greater than if they were just one. I think it's really important for people—even those at the highest levels of the institution—to understand that. You just don't put all students of color in a bucket and kind of flatten their identities. I think the students have a much better understanding of intersectionality than some faculty, staff, or administrators might unless they are impacted by it themselves. The Intersectionalist: What kind of suggestions would you give to those people who have very limited understanding of intersectionality or the “-isms” that exist in our society? Spears: They have to do some work, because it is a privilege. I would say to those people [that] it's never too late to begin to do the work. And doing the work means understanding who you are, understanding what privilege you have, understanding how you can use your power to actually advance and give voice to issues as appropriate. Sometimes people can suddenly get “woke,” and then actually take up so much space that they neglect to actually take the lead from the people who are most affected. What is challenging to me is when there are people who refuse to actually begin to do that work. But once you see it, you can’t unsee it. For me and other folks in the Social Justice Center that just calls
8. us every day to continue to do the work. The Intersectionalist: Like you said, educating people is a lot of work. And it's a lot of work that we should not have to do. But what do you want to say to those who get tired and frustrated, and just feel like there's just too much burden on them?
I think it's so important to have places where you can just be yourself and you don't have to educate. Spears: To me, this is the only way you can sometimes survive environments. You've got to sometimes step away. And so, one of the things I often say to the staff in the SJC is: yes, our work is often harm reduction, we're advocating and running interference. We're trying to help people make their way through Emerson. But there also has to be spaces in places where we are just holding space for people, centering folx of color and folx who are on the margins, so that they can have rest.
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Zines and Pen Pals: Methods of Resistance Against Ableism in the Criminal Justice System By Eryn McCallum The movement for prison abolition often leaves out the experiences of the disabled incarcerated community. That is why New York City-based disabled artist and organizer Matilda Sabal had the idea to start Sick of It, a disability justice and prison abolition project based around a quarterly zine and pen pal program, in October 2019.
as a digital copy on their website. Printed copies can be sent to incarcerated individuals for no cost via a request form on the website, according to their website.
to advertise the Sick of It zine to spread the word.
Similar to requesting a zine, there is also a form to become an outside pen pal. An outside pen pal must The first issue of the zine was self-identify as someone with a released on Oct. 15 and included the chronic illness or disability, be 18 definitions of disability, disability or older, and write to their assigned justice, principles of disability justice pen pal once or twice a week for at and its relationship to abolition, least six to 12 months, according to along with excerpts chosen by the their website. organizers about related topics from writers and activists. Incarcerated people can sign up by The purpose of Sick of It is to amplify writing a request to the Sick of It the voices of incarcerated disabled “In choosing vocabulary, I tried to P.O. box. people and provide education about pick things that I had learned by the relationship between disabled being in community with other “Sometimes, they provide extra liberation and prison abolition, with disabled people and reading work information about who they would emphasis on connecting the free by disabled writers—both things like to talk with, like someone world disabled community with that are harder to do in the isolation with a similar impairment or age those that are incarcerated, according of prison,” Sabal said. “Being able group,” Sabal said. “We do our best to the website. to name your experiences is really to match inside folks based on empowering, and I wanted people their requests, but if we can’t fill a “Dealing with isolation is a huge to have the language to do that.” specific request, we assign someone part of being disabled, and this available from the list.” is infinitely compounded by Sabal said Sick of It currently has incarceration,” Sabal said in an 20 zine subscriptions, but have sent The zine was funded through web interview with The Intersectionalist. out 30 to 40 zines because some hosting and the program’s P.O. box, incarcerated people requested Sabal said. However, the printed Sick of It was officially launched extra copies to be sent to their copies were covered by donations. in October 2020 by Sabal and incarcerated friends. They have alo Sabal said they are currently prison abolitionists Rachel Kuo and sent copies to some mainstream working on creating an emergency Monica Mohapatra. The project has zine distributors, such as Quimby’s fund sourced from donations. two components: a zine and a pen Bookstore in Brooklyn, and pal program. The zine is released asked other prison publications Kuo said they chose a pen pal
The Intersectionalist program and a zine because prisons and jail systems make it difficult for free people to communicate with incarcerated people due to limited internet access or high charges for phone and email. “Writing to people inside helps them stay connected to the outside world and communicates to corrections officers that the person has a community who cares what happens to them,” Sabal said. Sabal was motivated to create Sick of It by the disproportionately high incarceration rate of disabled people in the United States and social justice project Too Young To Be Sick. Founded in 2018, Too Young To Be Sick is a peer support group based in New York City for young adults with chronic pain, illness, and disability. The disabled community Sabal found at Too Young To Be Sick had a positive impact on their mental health and ability to self-advocate. Sabal said they wanted to create a project that would have a similar impact on disabled people dealing with the violence of incarceration. “You cannot create a therapeutic setting in a prison,” Sabal said. The disabled community in the United States is overrepresented, not only by rate of incarceration, but also in all interactions with the criminal justice system, such as arrest and murder by police, according to the Prison Policy Initiative. According to the Sick of It website, equal rights for disabled people and prison abolition need
to go hand in hand. Sabal said the zine and pen pal program are tools for community building and political education. “Without building solidarity with people inside who are disabled, we're never going to reach a majority of the people who will be down for the fight for abolition,” Mohapatra said. Sabal said the next issue is scheduled to come out at the end of January, but the deadline is only a goal. They may push back the release date, so they do not overwork themselves and assure their network is receiving adequate care and attention.
10. The next issue of the Sick of It zine will include written pieces from some incarcerated pen pals, along with elaboration on concepts mentioned in the first issue, such as institutionalization and prisons as a cause of disability, Sabal said. “We're really excited about the letters we've been getting from folks inside and are looking forward to publishing them,” Sabal said.
“We want to make sure that we are helping people to form meaningful connections, and support penpals both inside and outside, so we want the program’s growth to be slow,” Sabal said. Courtesy photo by Hex Harris.
Disabled artist and organizer Matilda Sabal, one of the main organizers of Sick of It, aims to center the voices of the most marginalized within groups they work and advocate for.
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The Reimagined Series: Acting is for marginalized people too
By Katiana Hoefle Junior Rachel Perkins grew up realizing that she can never act as some of her favorite critically acclaimed characters because she is a Black woman. "The industry is so cruel to anyone who is not straight, white, and cisgendered,” Perkins said in a Zoom interview with The Intersectionalist.
“If someone is good for a role, they should just have it. It shouldn’t matter what they look like or how society expects to see them." She resolved to create her own space instead and developed The Reimagined Series, a five-episode Youtube series casted and produced by a majority of students of color and members of the LGBTQ+ community. Scenes from the series are inspired by Perkins’ favorite television shows, movies, and plays, which consist of mostly straight and white casts.
Courtesy/Rachel Perkins
The Reimagined Series crew in face masks shooting scenes in the Boston Common.
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The Intersectionalist "It's my way of telling Hollywood, ‘I love you so much, but you hurt me so deeply because you don't see me,’” Perkins said. “It's because I love it so much that I want to reinterpret it in the first place." The episodes include scenes from “Silence of the Lambs,” “Romeo and Juliet,” “Big Little Lies,” “Good Will Hunting,” and “Pride and Prejudice,” each with a different cast and crew. The directing, acting, editing, audio recording, and filming have all been reinterpreted. Only the script is exactly the same as the original, which Perkins said is important so that the audience knows where the scene originates from. "We're not copycats, we're artists,” Perkins said. “I told [the cast and crew] we can make this our own. Whatever idea you have, bring it to me. I encouraged them to look through the script at things they don't like and the things they do like. Let it come from you." Sophomore Dante Cokinos directed the “Good Will Hunting” episode and said he wanted to stay as true to the text as possible. He also said he wanted the actors to reimagine their characters based on how connected they feel to the characters.
"It's important to look at the character as your own iteration of the character and not just watch what people in the past did and copy that,” Cokinos said in a Zoom interview with The Intersectionalist. “Be yourself and be the character." Perkins conceptualized the idea in June 2020, planned in July and August, and filmed the first shoot in September. Currently, the team is in post-production and hopes to release the episodes in early spring 2021on Youtube. Filming the series during the COVID-19 pandemic was not too challenging because most episodes involved only two characters, Perkins said. The crew followed health standards including mandatory testing before filming, social distancing, and wiping down equipment. Perkins said a big help for producing the series was the crew’s quick fundraising. The first fundraiser took two and a half weeks and the second took a day, reaching a total of $1,721, according to their Patreon. "It gave me a lot of hope because I was like, ‘wow, people want to see this,’” Perkins said. “People actually
believe in this, which encouraged me even more.” Perkins said this project was particularly important to her to create at Emerson because she sees a lot of white students who claim to be “woke” and pose as white saviors, but in reality, they only work on projects with the majority of the cast being white; there’s usually only one or two people of color on set.
Like many of her friends of color, she felt invisible for her first few years at Emerson and questioned if she was talented enough. "That really, really pissed me off because it was actually really hard for me to get involved in projects at Emerson,” Perkins said. “I got turned down a lot, and I noticed that the groups that turned [me] down were all white. Just because we're not in the room, that doesn't mean that we're not good enough, it's just no one is making space." Junior Demiah Crawford, who played Hannibal Lecter in the
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The Intersectionalist “Silence of the Lambs” episode, said she had never felt as connected to any other Emerson production as the Reimagined Series. She noted that it was particularly due to working under Perkins, a creator who looked like her and also wanted to make a difference. "I'm not just valued because I'm a person of color and we need diversity,” Crawford said in a Zoom interview with The Intersectionalist. “I'm there because of my talents, which was pretty great." An argument Perkins said she has seen frequently is that the roles often given to white people can only be played by white people, which she believes is a complete lie. Most of the only white-given roles experience love, hate, betrayal, and relationships, which are universal experiences. “These roles that white men get to
play aren’t race-specific, genderspecific, or sexual orientationspecific, so why can’t anybody play these roles?” Perkins said. “Straight white men get to play the roles that are humanized. [For] people of color, LGBTQ actors, [and] even female actors, whenever we play roles, our identity is the forefront of the plot.” Sophomore Isabella Escobedo, who was the director of photography for the “Romeo and Juliet” episode and chief lighting technician for the “Big Little Lies” episode, said she appreciated the cultural awareness that came with having a more diverse cast and crew. “I think it's important to create spaces where people are more aware of the cultural identities that are being represented and how they are being represented and how it could be reinforcing a negative stereotype,” Escobedo
said in a Zoom interview with The Intersectionalist. While Perkins is unsure if the series might face copyright claims after speaking with three lawyers, she hopes it is up long enough for people to see it and spark conversation—good or bad. She said she would love it if it inspired people to create more inclusive environments within these industries and helped people of color and people from the LGBTQ+ community feel more represented. "This project meant a lot to me because this was a version of film that I've always wanted to see,” Perkins said. “Thank you to every single person who was involved in this or contributed to this or even came up to me and said this is a cool idea. It means the world to me and I will never forget that."
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Courtesy/Rachel Perkins
Demiah Crawford acting as Hannibal Lector for the “Silence of the Lambs� scene at the Boston Masonic Building.
Culture The Sudden Highs and Many Lows: Black Creators in the Beauty Community By Damica Feliciano Kristin Ferguson watched her profile on Instagram skyrocket from 4,000 followers to 20,000 in less than two weeks during the Black Lives Matter trend last summer. This growth was attributed to Ferguson’s continuous work of uplifting and recognizing Black and Bahamian makeup creators on her platform. When the trend died down, however, the make-up industry returned to their usual content creators: white people. “I was getting so much attention, and I finally felt like I made it to where I wanted to be,” Ferguson said in a Google Meets interview with The Intersectionalist. “Then I realized the likes stopped coming in, and it’s not like I need the likes to feel good, but
people only appreciated my stuff because [at] that moment ‘Black Lives Matter,’ and then all of a sudden all
of our engagement died down, brands stopped noticing us, and people stopped coming to our pages.” The Black Lives Matter protests in the summer of 2020 sparked initiatives across the United States to support Black makeup creators and acknowledge the racism in this long-held industry. One initiative was the “Pull up for Change,” also known as “Pull Up or Shut Up.” Created by Sharon Chuter, this social media campaign called upon major commercial brands to reveal statistical data of how much Black representation is in their executive
leadership level. Some of the most popular brands such as Lime Crime, BH Cosmetics, Sephora, and Morphe all reported a dismal amount, between zero to three percent, according to the initiatives Instagram page. Ferguson said she always knew that there was a marginal gap between
Courtesy/Kristin Ferguson
Kristin Ferguson, @itskaijasmine, is a distinguished makeup creator who uses her platform to uplift and create more spaces for Bahamian and Black creators.
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The Intersectionalist the appreciation of white versus Black creators, which is a reason why she initially began working with other Black creators to elevate their voices. As one of the few Bahamian creators in the makeup community, she wished to see more people like her in the beauty world.
“I’ve walked into so many circles where people would say very racist and xenophobic things to me and that kind of opened my eyes to seeing that the beauty community is not what I thought it was,” Ferguson said. “You have to be in it to know what’s really going on.”
released their updated diversity data as of yet. “A lot of the brands that actually tried to reach out to me didn’t necessarily keep up with me or work with me,” Ferguson said. “I would see brands who would notice me or other creators [and] get PR in [June and early July] and then never hear from them again. They stopped engaging with our content.” Ferguson said that the broken promises from the brands echoed similar responses from most famous beauty influencers. Creators such as Jeffree Star, Nikita Dragun, and James Charles have an extensive track record of being racist and exploiting Black content creators—but with one Notes app apology or tearful video later, they’re back on top as they continue to benefit from Black makeup artists.
Many of the brands exposed for their lack of diversity in leadership released public statements, committing to increasing their Black leadership roles and showcasing more Black creators throughout their social media. Ferguson said this initiative was short-lived, however; by mid-July, she saw most beauty brands return back to posting primarily white people, sprinkling in Black creators every 20 posts.
“A lot of influencers do the same things that brands do. They’ll do something racist, homophobic, or xenophobic, then pull it back and say ‘we all make mistakes,’” Ferguson said. “There are millions of creators who deserve that platform, but there’s no space at the top because [it’s] the same people who keep circling out the same scandals every week.”
Only a handful of beauty brands, such as Milk Makeup, reported a progress update to the “Pull Up or Shut Up” initiative. None of the companies mentioned above have
Haddy Badjan, also known as @baddyhadjan on Instagram and TikTok, said she noticed that as engagement from major
brands decreased, so did the users. “Around that time when everybody wanted to be part of ‘Black Lives Matter’ and push to support Black people within our communities, engagement was a lot higher, follower counts were going up, and I was like, ‘wow, this is getting a lot easier,’” Badjan said in a Google Meets interview with The Intersectionalist. “But now, everybody’s gotten tired of it after only a few weeks and Black creators are just going down the algorithm again.” Badjan said it’s not only the performative allyship that upsets her, but when white and non-Black creators who’ve publicly advocated for more representation of Black creativity in the makeup industry also steal looks and ideas from
Courtesy/Haddy Badjan
Haddy Badjan, @baddyhadjan, is a content creator new to the beauty community who is concentrating on increasing Black representation in cosplay.
The Intersectionalist smaller accounts run by Black users. Stealing looks and claiming them as your own original idea is a disturbing norm in influencer culture because of inherent entitlement, as Ferguson describes it. Ferguson herself designed and posted two distinct makeup looks that were stolen by two creators with larger platforms. She said that the two creators went on to do sponsored posts because of her original idea. “When they steal looks, that’s insulting,” Ferguson said. “Because if someone took their time to look at colors, study concepts, and spend two, three, or four hours for that person to do [the makeup look] and edit the post, then to see someone to profit off of your hard work—that doesn’t sit right with me. When they get called out, they gaslight the person.” The stolen looks and performative allyship are only a part of the problem. Badjan said Black creators repeatedly struggle to obtain followers on social media, especially Tik Tok, because many Black, Indigenous, and other creators of color are constantly shadow banned and their content are being pushed further down the algorithm. Additionally, the privilege of white creators adds to this lack
of engagement. So many white creators and influencers in the makeup community grow overnight while Black creators work repeatedly to be noticed, Badjan said. “I feel like for smaller TikTok creators, especially smaller POC, we have to do looks [that are] out of this world or something nobody’s seen before,” Badjan said. “Whereas a lot of white creators don’t have to work as hard. They can get away with doing one cut crease or a basic liner look and it’s like, ‘oh wow, now they have 100,000 followers and have so many brand deals.’” “I felt like my content wasn’t as good as I thought it was. I began questioning myself, I began questioning my work, and I just started questioning—should I even be in this at all?” Ferguson said. “But [this] definitely helped me to build a backbone and say: ‘whether people mess with Black Lives Matter or not, you should be comfortable in your work to know that you will get noticed when it’s your time.’” Ferguson and Badjan said they both experience a mental toll from toxic social media. They said they both rely on their respective communities as pillars of support in getting through the plights of the beauty community. For Ferguson, the Bahamian
17. community is a significant part of her identity that she shares extensively on her social media. Although she feels united with the Black beauty community, her aspiration is to provide more representation for the international beauty community. “My purpose right now is to find more Bahamian creators, develop that community, and let them know that we’re here—we have talent too,” Ferguson said. “People vacation here, but they don’t actually think people live here, work here, and have talent here.” Badjan aspires to experiment with more cosplay-based looks and continue building more Black representation in the cosplay makeup community. It’s her hope to collaborate with more Black creators and brands that care about BIPOC communities and creators. “For all small Black and [people of color] content creators, try to keep going and be as positive as possible,” Badjan said. “Unfortunately, we can’t change everything. It’s going to take one day at a time. To the white creators, use your platform for good. You have privilege even if you don’t think you’re the best out there—you should still be helping out smaller content creators within these marginalized communities.”
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Graphic by Ricki Kalayci.
Disabled and low-income people are excluded when mainstream environmentalism is pressured on to people as an universal concept instead of intersectional environmentalism that centers the marginalized.
There is no right way to be sustainable By Emily Cardona and Shruti Rajkumar Reduce, reuse, and recycle are the three steps most people were taught in grade school to help the environment. But with the increasingly pressing issue of the climate crisis in the past decade, environmental education has evolved from these three mere
words to bans on plastic straws without thoughts of accessibility or the disabled community. Environmentalists have urged the greater population to make drastic and sustainable lifestyle changes such as transitioning away from plastic straws. However, many of these mainstream alternatives and
steps pose accessibility challenges for people with disabilities and low-income households and should therefore not be pushed onto everyone universally. Annie Segarra, a disability activist, said that plastic straw bans are dangerous for disabled people because plastic straws are medical
The Intersectionalist equipment, and alternative options have proven to be inaccessible for some disabled people. In an IGTV video, they talk about how creating legislation around plastic straws is dangerous for communities that rely on them, and the campaigns against plastic straws have actually created stigma for disabled people and thus made them targets of harassment. “I have some personal examples in my life of people who sometimes cannot lift a heavy glass, that includes myself because I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, and I have chronic joint and muscle pain,” Segarra said in an IGTV video. “Oftentimes, it is very difficult or very painful for me to hold a cup, so in those moments, I do need a straw to drink.” This ban on non-plastic straws has become one of the major sustainable practices in recent years. According to a 2018 article by Business Insider, California became the first state to ban plastic straws at restaurant tables in 2019, and Seattle became the first city to ban single-use plastic straws and utensils entirely. Corporations such as Starbucks have recently replaced single-use plastic straws with recyclable, strawless lids. Many environmentalists support plastic straw bans and encourage people to transition to
alternative non-plastic straw options such as metal, paper, or bamboo straws. However, Segarra said that these alternatives to plastic straws don’t suit all needs or all disabilities, and many of them are injury risk, allergy risk, choking hazards, and difficult for disabled people to clean. “Plastic disposable bending straws are the most accessible due to their sterilization, their adjustable positioning, durability, and safety,” Segarra said. “Reusable straws also require the cognitive ability to be able to remember them when going out. But someone not having a straw on their person when out at a restaurant shouldn’t mean they can’t be a patron. Does that happen when people forget their reusable coffee mugs at home?” Organizations such as Lonely Whale have openly expressed their support for a transition to non-plastic straws. In 2017, they created a movement and social media challenge called For a Strawless Ocean and #StopSucking to encourage people to stop using plastic straws. Such environmentalist groups and individuals believe that these actions can contribute to a larger impact, and they emphasize how easy and small these lifestyle changes are. However, this one-dimensional perspective––promoted not only by Lonely Whale but many other organizations and campaigns–– overlooks accessibility for the disabled community and results in new methods of discrimination.
19. In 2016, a Twitter post of a photo of pre-peeled, plastic-packaged oranges with the caption "If only nature would find a way to cover these oranges, so we didn't need to waste so much plastic on them," went viral and prompted online controversy. According to an NPR article, Jennifer Hacker, a woman with peripheral neuropathy and poor grip strength, said that prepared foods are a lifesaver for people with mobility issues, noting that she had to stop cooking anything that involves cutting or chopping due to pain. Hacker said she got angry that people online attacked disabled people for wanting prepared foods. “I had people on Twitter tell me that I had gotten along without peeled oranges before," Hacker said. “I had another person tell me that I should just ask someone else to peel an orange for me."
While reducing plastic consumption is essential in combating climate change, it shouldn’t come at the expense of disabled people’s access to daily necessities. Additionally, pushing a universal concept of what sustainability is or should look like has been proven by the disabled community to be harmful because it fails to consider
The Intersectionalist various disabilities and conditions that may not be able to commit to such a lifestyle. Many mainstream environmentalists and individuals also encourage veganism as a sustainable practice because of the excess carbon emissions caused by meat consumption. However, this is inaccessible for some. In 2020, a TikTok creator known by the user @thatveganteacher, started making videos promoting veganism and denouncing those who aren’t vegan. According to a recent article on Medium by writer Zo Sajjad, the delivery of the TikToker’s message is very aggressive and doesn’t acknowledge people who have spoken out against her, saying that they can’t be vegan due to health conditions. Although veganism is possible for some people, others within the disabled community are unable to take up this lifestyle or even incorporate a meatless meal plan; therefore, nobody should be pressured into it. Another mainstream sustainable trend that gained popularity in recent years is thrift shopping. Thrifting has many environmental benefits such as the reduction of mass production and reusing items that would otherwise end up in landfills. Sustainable shopping practices such as thrifting are difficult for disabled people to partake in when they rely on online shopping and affordable clothing. Mainstream sustainable clothing stores are typically more expensive, which creates inaccessibility for
disabled people and low-income people. Reusable fashion and other sustainable fashion practices at the forefront of the environmental movement are not affordable for everyone. There isn't just one universal way for disabled and low-income people to be environmentalists. Instead of pushing these practices universally and policing others on how to be sustainable, it's important to educate people on alternative practices that deviate from mainstream trends and are accessible to more people.
Intersectional environmentalism allows for out-ofthe-box thinking in reducing plastic consumption, which can replace pushing potentially inaccessible mainstream practices on to people. Legislation—such as a plastic straw ban—that would deny a disabled person accessibility on the basis of environmentalism shouldn’t exist. Instead, plastic cup alternatives could be encouraged, as that would reduce the amount of plastic waste and consumption more than a ban on plastic straws. If a disabled person can’t switch over to non-plastic straws, they can do their part to help the
20. environment in other accessible ways such as by ordering groceries from a zero waste online grocery store.
Additionally, period panties are another sustainable environmentalism practice that are significantly more accessible for disabled people who struggle with dealing with menstruation hygiene. Environmentalism shouldn’t exclude certain communities, and they should be able to partake in the movement in whatever ways that are accessible to them. If an individual is capable of doing mainstream environmental practices such as reducing meat consumption or switching over to non-plastic straws, then they should. However, these practices shouldn’t be pushed on people universally with no consideration for potential inaccessibility.
At the end of the day, everyone should be on their individualized sustainable lifestyle journey, and every contribution, no matter how small, counts towards a greater impact.
The Intersectionalist
Why Why Your Your ForYouPage ForYouPage is is Overwhelmingly Overwhelmingly White White
By Shruti Rajkumar, Melanie Curry, Eryn McCallum
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The Intersectionalist In early February 2020, TikTok star Charli D’Amelio profited off the “Renegade” dance that was originally created by Black teenager Jalaiah Harmon. While D’Amelio apologized to Harmon and eventually gave her the full credit she
tent because content creators and viewers are scared to see the app transition from trending dances, cooking videos, and fashion into a space where marginalized people talk openly about their experiences with oppression.
aren’t allowed to call them white girls because it’s racist, or the example of white girls making fun of the way Black girls dance,” Demiah Crawford, a junior at Emerson College, said in an interview with The Intersectionalist. “It’s just super
Graphic by Ricki Kalayci
The anti-Blackness on TikTok is being exposed as Black creators speak out about overt racism, shadow banning, and censoring of their content.
deserved, profiting off of Black creators is a common example of the anti-Blackness that thrives on TikTok. Popularized during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, TikTok, a social media platform that allows users to create up to 60-second videos, has become an app that perpetuates oppression, racism, and the silencing of marginalized voices. TikTok star Anania Williams, a junior at Emerson College who has almost 2 million followers, said he thinks TikTok has anti-Black con-
“People are scared of change, and people are scared to tackle their implicit biases,” Williams said in an interview with The Intersectionalist. “I just wish Black people and Black women especially didn't get punished for being different and needing different things from [TikTok].” Anti-Black content on TikTok consists of video creators name-calling Black women, saying the n-word, shadow banning Black people, and more, according to Williams. “I have seen a lot of videos where white girls [are] saying Black people
sad because it’s a space for people to be openly racist and [white people] do get a lot of support which is also sad to see.” Shadow banning is when a user’s content is taken down or suppressed on the basis that they have violated community guidelines— without notifying the original creator, according to Refinery29. Shadow banning occurs more frequently to Black creators than their white counterparts, even if the Black creator’s content does not violate the guidelines. TikTok creator Jordan Simone, who
The Intersectionalist has over 200,000 followers, said she experiences shadow banning frequently because of TikTok’s algorithm and how it’s tied to banning anti-racism content. “Once I posted “don’t be anti-[Semitic]” and my post was taken down for hate speech, which is why I censor my captions so intensely, so I don’t tip off the algorithm,” Simone said in an interview with The Intersectionalist. “It’s really annoying and makes it hard for me to want to post content, because it can be so time-consuming and energy-consuming.” Simone also said that shadow banning isn’t solely tied to anti-racist content but also any content featuring Black creators. Her friends on TikTok are shadow banned even though their videos are not political. “Someone else had their video taken down for dangerous content, even though she was doing an Us cosplay with a very large and obviously fake pair of scissors,” Simone said.
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videos less than two months ago and yet, her views remain low, something she believes may be from the algorithm. “I know that my views aren’t a lot, and I’m not sure if that’s because of this idea that [TikTok] has where they don’t advertise a lot of Black content or if it’s just because my content may not be appealing,” Crawford said.
TikTok users are white, according to Business Insider. This leads to the algorithm featuring more white creators on the For You Page. “I think [TikTok] is just a way to be openly American in a sense. America is built on racism,” Crawford said. “[TikTok] does not care [and] they support these racist ideals. If they wanted to do something about [it], they would. And they don’t.”
Crawford also said it’s frustrating to see white creators receive thousands of views for doing little to no work while Black creators continuously exhaust themselves producing content and see limited viewership compared to their whiter counterparts.
While giving a platform to white people and simultaneously censoring Black people, TikTok has facilitated racism and hindered anti-racist work. While TikTok hasn’t been transparent about how the algorithm works, users speculate that this is another way that racism has presented itself within the app.
The recurring racism within TikTok has impacted Black creators’ autonomy and the way they produce content. For Williams, this impact is shown through his less frequent posting. “It's tiring to fight something you can't see,” Williams said. “I try my best to turn on the camera when I'm inspired to, though.”
“They “They don’t don’t even even post post political political content, content, they’re they’re just just existing existing while while Black. Black.””
The anti-Blackness on the app has encouraged Simone to create anti-racist intersectional videos aimed at addressing the issue at hand.
Not only are Black creators shadow banned more frequently, but they face additional barriers with receiving higher viewership because the algorithm purposefully uplifts white content, according to Forbes.
“Seeing anti-Black content inspires me to do more and educate more because I feel [like] so much racism stems from ignorance. After I’m finished being angry of course,” Simone said.
Crawford began making TikTok
The majority of the most-followed
To combat the anti-Blackness on the app, Crawford encourages people to support Black creators by following and liking their content to increase visibility and amplify their voices. Williams has found that using the “not interested” feature, blocking, and reporting racist content has changed his For You page significantly, and he recommends this to other Black users. “I know for myself as a Black, queer kid, it's nice to see people like me doing what they love. Whether it's comedy or advocacy, it matters to see people doing well that look like you,” Williams said. “I'm lucky enough to be doing well on the app, myself. And hopefully, I'm inspiring others to speak their minds and find humor in everything that seems scary.”
Identity
Dear White People: Part 2 By Mel Curry
The Intersectionalist Dear White Liberals, Do you remember the plot of “Get Out” by director Jordan Peele? On the surface, this horror film focused on family and relationships seems just that: horror. But at second glance, the once hidden clues— missing Black men, auctions of Black people, and “wokeness”— slowly piece together, and you realize that this thriller was never about mundane things but rather the complexities of modern day racism and the flames fueling its fire: white liberals. It is white liberals that are the worst group of all, I believe. The voters of Barack Obama, protestors at Black Lives Matter, and champions of antiTrump progranda are the “good” white people. The liberal white people. The dangerous white people. I argue that “good” white people are the Amy Coopers, liberal whites who voted “blue” but use their white fragility as weapons of power whenever convenient. It is their tears, anger, resentment, dismissiveness, and more that are the weaponization of whiteness, according to Very Well Mind. And these weapons—while seemingly innocent—are the biggest perpetrators of racism itself. The fact is you never know what you’re going to get with white liberals. With outright racists, their confederate flags, Trump propaganda, and Blue Lives Matter t-shirts make it easy to determine who and what they support. There is no need to question their racism—it’s blatant and overt. But
with my dear white liberal people, your invisible racial biases are so deeply entrenched in yourself that you (and sometimes I) can’t even see it, which leaves the question:
how can we address racism when it is something many of you white liberals refuse to believe exists within you? Your denial is so stagnant that your blatant refusal to acknowledge your racism is a continuous lie to me, and most importantly, yourself. You use your liberalhood to hide your alter ego—the hidden, racist monster—and act like they never existed in the first place. But, that monster was always there, simmering inside you, impacting your thoughts, decisions, and actions. That monster is you—not a part of you or half of you, but you— because you are racist. No matter how lefitist, marginalized, or anti-racist you may be, you are still white. And all white people— including liberals—are racist. I know not all white people are bad, and truthfully, that’s not what I’m saying. Racism is more than just intentional acts of prejudice and discrimination toward people of color. And it’s too complex and nuanced to be labeled in arbitrary terms such as good or bad. But it is a harmful system that’s a part
25. of our country—our founding founders built it after all. We—both white and Black—are products of our environment and racism is the root of this country’s foundation, sprouting and seeding its vines into generations after the next. So, yes, my dear white people, you are racist because you are conditioned to be. You can’t help it. I’m not upset that you’re racist, and I’m not writing to explain why you are. I am writing to my white liberals to say that your facade of progressiveness—one hidden with ignorance or cowardness— doesn’t hide your racism, but instead makes it more invisible and therefore dangerous. In a Medium post, author Shya Scanlon, a white liberal man, wrote that he is racist. His racism lives because he, like everyone else, exists within our racism vacuum—a continuum that socializes racial prejudices, white supremacy, and anti-Blackness into all of our minds. “I’m not one of those brazen neoNazis or outspoken “alt-right” assholes,” he writes. “I’m the kind of racist often only dimly aware of his racial bias, the kind guilty of perpetuating stereotypes and systems of injustice by dint of doing little if anything to counter said indignities. I’m part of the fabric of racism, a small strand to be sure, but a crucial strand nonetheless, a strand that like any other would, if pulled, begin to unravel the whole.”
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The Intersectionalist
I know you white liberals mean well, and I graciously accept your intentions toward solving a problem you created. But, intentions cannot solve white supremacy, and neither will your apologies or pleadings.
You must begin to look inward, hold the mirror to yourself, and ask the questions Black, Indigenious, people of color have been waiting for: what does it mean to be white, and how does my whiteness impact others? The signed petitions, posts on social media, and attendances at protests mean well—they truly do. But, they change nothing if you, my dear white liberals, are still the problem. As I said before, white liberals are the biggest problems of all.
and festering. So, if you’ve learned anything dear white people, learn this: your liberalism never excused your racism and never hid it either. The racist monster is always there, feeding and growing, but it’s time to take them out of their hidden closet and begin the real work. Turn on the lights, look them in the eye, and say their greatest fear: “I am a white liberal, and I am racist.” Was that so hard?
You are a part of the fabric of racism. Your actions, no matter how big or small, contribute to it. You wish to escape it—just as I do—but it’s always there, alive
Christine Park/The Intersectionalist
Liberalism never separated you from racism; you only thought it did.
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The Intersectionalist
Rising Tuitions, Deeper Debts By Joseph Nalieth Last March, like millions of people, my mom lost her job. Her company repeatedly told her that she’d soon be hired again and this pandemic would be over. By September, they said things would be back to normal and she would have a job again. September came and went. They assured her that by January she’d be employed again. Yet, here we are. Ten months into a global pandemic and finally, in a brief, unceremonious Zoom call, she was told that there would be no job for her to return to. My story (or others) are not for sympathy points, but rather to show that my family’s financial situation was very different when I first committed to attending Emerson College. It’ll be hard to find a student whose family’s financial situation hasn’t changed as a result of this pandemic. And while it looks like I will be able to come up with the funds for this year’s bill, what about the next one? Every summer, students receive that dreaded email informing them of another tuition increase, and I’m not sure how long I can keep up. I’m frustrated because as a student, there is nothing I can do to oppose
the endless slew of tuition hikes. Perhaps, if the student body rallied around a collective action, something could be done. While democracy and inclusion are some of the values most prominently touted by Emerson College, they are hardly evident in its decisionmaking process. As students, we have no direct influence over how decisions are made. Hiring, curriculum, policy, and budget decisions are carried out with little to no regard for student opinion.
is made to hike tuition another 5%. The student contribution becomes 89% when you factor in tuition and housing costs. We are, quite literally, bankrolling the school through our minimum wage jobs, our parents’ life savings, and borrowed money from predatory
While we trust that these decisions are made with our best interest in mind, the administration often fails to consider the impact that their actions have on the day-today lives of students. Even a 2% increase accounts for 70 additional hours of minimum wage work, assuming you’re paid a living wage of $15 an hour.
Most offensively, despite tuition funding 76% of the annual revenue, we have no seat at As Emerson’s tuition increases, students are the table when the annual decision way to combat this trend is for there to be s
The Intersectionalist lenders, yet each year they have the audacity to ask us for more. While I am beyond grateful for my scholarships, the aid remains stagnant while tuition rises. The specter of debt already haunts me, and I hate to think that I will only be plunged deeper into it by forces outside of my control. I feel alienated from the decision-making process. I feel less like a student and more like a customer. The question arises: who really calls the shots at Emerson? Who is responsible for the notion that no matter how much we give, it is never enough?
The answer is a little complicated. It is easy to identify school administration: President Lee Pelton and his small army of vice presidents and Deans. They are largely responsible for the day-today functions of the College. Above them, however, is the elusive Board of Trustees. They are only required to meet three times per year, but their decisions hold more weight than anyone else on campus. They approve the annual budget, manage the endowment, and vote on the increase of our tuition. A quick look at the members of the Board of Trustees shows that they’re not the most appropriate representatives of the student body of Emerson College. A quick LinkedIn search displays that this list of alums and nonalums consists of some of the most powerful and established people in their respective fields. They run massive entertainment conglomerates, make large contributions to Super PACs, and are
Graphic by Christine Park
e driven deeper into debt or pushed out of college. One student representation on the Board of Trustees.
28. disproportionately old and wealthy. I doubt they are still paying off their student debt—not to mention, tuition was a lot cheaper in their heyday. While we are grateful for their guidance and wisdom as industry pros, they are due for a reminder that their annual decision to raise tuition has a direct impact on the hours we work, our families’ finances, and an already insurmountable debt burden. While we struggle to break into the industries that they run, we’ll be shackled to the debts they imposed on us. I am a theater major. With the pandemic, I am studying to enter a field that currently has a 0% employment rate. Even in the pre-COVID world, the likelihood of finding any monetary success in my field was already slim. The debts that I am taking on are going to be an extra hurdle on my path to financial security. The high interest rates and monthly payments will loom over me as a young struggling actor—a constant voice whispering in my ear, encouraging me to give up on my dreams. This is the reality for every art major coming from a middleor lower-class background. Art should be for everyone, but with the ever-rising cost of an arts education, it increasingly becomes a luxury for the privileged few. In broader trends, this applies to our whole generation. Millennials are struggling to buy homes and secure full-time employment due to massive student debt and barren hiring markets. This will be the fate
The Intersectionalist of Gen Z, too, unless we confront the problems now—for us and for the generations to follow. The problem of raising tuition is hardly limited to Emerson. This is nationwide. Federally-backed student loans, predatory lending practices, and debts that don’t disappear with bankruptcy have enabled colleges to increase their tuition prices at unprecedented rates. Tuition has outgrown inflation and wages, so it has become harder than ever to pay back what is owed. I believe it is fair to say that there is a disconnect between the trustees and students. They pass tuition increases that bolster the clout of the college they run but cause the students to take on extra jobs and work longer shifts. Whether they realize it or not, they are gatekeeping the industries they run by making bachelor’s degrees more and more expensive. And they wonder why those industries are disproportionately white and upper-class.
the relationship between student and administrator. The power dynamic needs to be made more equitable, and I hope the college’s next president recognizes that. There needs to be at least one voting student trustee. Any tuition increase ought to be at the very least consented to by a student before it is imposed on the whole of the student body. If we can lay the groundwork for institutional change at Emerson, then we can inspire our peers at neighboring institutions to follow suit. This is how grassroots movements arise. This is an opportunity for Emerson to lead by example, and prove that its commitment to progressive values goes beyond virtue signaling. I call on administrators and trustees to consider allowing us some semblance of self-governance. If you truly believe that you are preparing your students for the real world, I would hope that you consider us mature enough to play a role in the decision-making process.
29. create policies that actually impact the status quo at Emerson College. While Protesting Oppression With Educational Reform acknowledges that Emerson is moving in the right direction, the slow rate of change can be attributed to the administration's lack of understanding of the perspective of its BISOC. By elevating one of our own to the highest board of oversight, we can finally trust that policy is being shaped with our interests in mind. Until then, the extent of our activism is an appeal to systems of power that fail to adequately represent us. As long as we are disenfranchised from these decision-making systems, the policies they produce will fail to represent our needs. The push for a student Trustee can start today. The seeds are planted in conversations with our fellow students, our families, our faculty, our administration,f our trustees, and our future president. They need to understand the hardships that we are subjected to by the rising tuition. The systems of power in academia need to change. And if Emerson wants to call itself a progressive institution, if Emerson wants to prove its commitment to democratic values, if Emerson wants to be actively anti-racist, then Emerson needs to elevate its students to positions of actual leadership.
Beyond tuition and budget The gatekeeping began with students allocation, I believe that a not having a vote in the trustee student trustee would put the meetings, thus making us powerless administration in the position in resisting the increases. Even to finally create truly equitable though 89% of the budget is our policies at Emerson College. money, we are powerless to shape Time and time again, we have it. But if there is one thing I have watched the administration fail learned from my Emerson education to meet the needs of Emerson’s thus far, it is that it is the student’s students of color. Their response responsibility to stand up to power to #ESOCWeekOfAction was and to challenge the status quo. lackluster, but a student Trustee Remember, our money funds would be able to effectively Emerson. Let’s create an Emerson As President Lee Pelton steps down, communicate the needs of the that is truly ours. the transitionary period poses a student body that they represent, unique opportunity to reimagine and work with the administration to
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The Intersectionalist
A Book We All Judged by Its Cover ByIrka Perez
Haiti is often associated with destruction, strikes, and poverty. Media representation has focused negatively on this country and has created a misleading book cover to what I like to call, the Book of Haiti. I have reclaimed this book and changed it to reveal the beauty of the enchanting country. Before visiting Haiti in 2018, I didn’t know much about the country. I grew up in the Dominican Republic and
constantly heard negative comments about Haiti and its people due to the existing rivalry among the neighboring countries. However, my perspective changed after the 2010 earthquake. I was at home when my mother told me the earth was shaking. I didn't feel anything at first. But then our chandelier began rocking back and forth, and my mother and I quickly hid until the earth no longer shook beneath our feet.
After the magnitude 7 earthquake, I remember watching the news and hearing testimonies from my teachers from Haiti who had survived the natural disaster. As a 9-year-old, I was deeply touched and haunted by the images of postearthquake Haiti. Even though I knew almost nothing about Haiti, I felt a connection with the country powered by sympathy and love for my island. In December 2018, I visited my
Photo by Irka Perez
Two young boys chase the camera with warm smiles and friendly waves while playing near Furcy, Haiti.
The Intersectionalist
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uncle who lived in Haiti. I had been living in the United States for six years and had not lived in or visited the Carribean since 2013. I was excited, not only to be back on the island but also to experience new people, places, and cultures on the side less familiar to me. Before the plane landed, I didn’t know what to expect. I kept picturing the disastrous images frequently shown on the news. Little did I know that once I saw Haiti for myself, I would fall in love with it. Every place I explored in Haiti was even more breathtaking than the previous one. My uncle took my mom and I around the island, and I was captivated by the infinite mountain landscapes and the warm smiles on the faces of everyone around us.
I quickly realized that the negative media portrayals weren’t wrong; they were just intensified and portrayed as Haiti’s single story. Once I returned to the United States, I began looking through the photos I took in Haiti. Among them were landscapes and portraits that showcased the beauty of the island, which got me wondering: “Why didn’t I know about any of this? Why is it that Haiti is so unfairly and horribly portrayed to the world?”
Photo by Irka Perez
A young local stands over the tourist-empty Cascade Touyac in Port Salut, Haiti. That moment of realization inspired me to create my first project on the beauty of Haiti. I made a portfolio that narrated Haiti’s often unexplored allure through my images. Currently, I am planning on going back to Haiti with the goal of telling more diverse stories, ones that aren't the single frame of
poverty and tragedy traditionally shown by the media. I want to tell stories of the people that live on that side of my island. Stories that aren’t drowned with negativity and will help fill the Book of Haiti with positive chapters and personal stories, uplifting narratives
The Intersectionalist that will hopefully be featured as the treasures that I have been lucky to representation of Haiti. see and others I hope to find. Maybe then, I could help reveal the Haiti It’s best to say that I, along with book cover I see for myself so the many others around the world, had rest of the world may see it with me. fallen for the single story that is often narrated of Haiti. The story I hope that one day Haiti stops that writes about ugliness, illness, being a country that many connect poverty and has become the book only to danger and disaster; and that cover that the media has given its misleading book cover ceases to Haiti. The cover to what is now my exist. To turn this dream into reality, favorite book. I invite you to ignore that innate feeling to judge a book by its cover, Though often unopened, the Book because you’ll never know what of Haiti is filled with immense words you might find inside.
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Maybe then, I could help reveal the Haiti book cover I see for myself, so the rest of the world may see it with me.
Photo by Irka Perez
A woman tends to her street-side market post. These markets are located all throughout Haiti, with one of the largest market areas being in the country’s capital of Port-Au-Prince.
