I used singing as a safety measure. I would pay attention to what songs the popular girls liked, learn those songs from the radio or library cassettes, and then "accidentally" sing or hum these songs in class. This would impress the girls, who would then defend me from the boys.

Writing about racism requires a directness that writing a love story does not.

As a brown artist, I have mixed feelings about my relationship to art and my "responsibilities" post-Trump.

If anything, I have witnessed the ways my art travels, or is rendered more accessible, when sanctioned by or connected to white artists.

As a person of color, I know race can't be stripped from admiration or preference.

I used singing as a safety measure. I would pay attention to what songs the popular girls liked, learn those songs from the radio or library cassettes, and then "accidentally" sing or hum these songs in class. This would impress the girls, who would then defend me from the boys.

I have been and continue to be committed to art as a tool to ignite, comfort, and discomfort.