Seen Elsewhere: 4 Ways to Cope with Wanderlust

via Black Girl, Latin World

You did it! You went on an amazing study abroad trip to South Africa.  Or maybe you took a 2 week vacation in Spain.  Now, you’re back home reliving your experience through Instagram photos and conversations with your fellow travelers. It seems that your family and friends don’t understand and you are itching to see some place new and interesting.  However, you have to be responsible.  Either you haven’t racked up enough vacation days or you don’t have the funds at the moment. You can’t travel right now and it’s driving you loca!  Wanderlust is incurable.  You will always be tempted to spend your rent money on a plan ticket to India, but you don’t want to end up broke. Luckily, there are ways to cope.

Join a travel club

Did you spend a summer in Rio? Have an unforgettable vacay in China? You can connect with a travel club to cope with your wanderlust. Can’t locate one? Meetup.com is the perfect place to start your own. Nine times out of ten there are others in your city who share your passion for travel.

Embrace where you are

It has been said that we need to learn to be content with our present in order to be truly happy. It makes no sense to spend time wishing you could cuddle with your study abroad fling. Embrace your family, friends and current situation and use your experience to inspire their travel bug. Get them excited and on board to accompany you on your next escapade.

 Read more here.

© Black Girl, Latin World

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Seen Elsewhere: Our Big Afro-Descendant Sisterhood

Via Giphy

I remember sitting with a friend who identified as Afro-Latina.  She beamed with joy as she told me about her Afro-Cuban friend from class, her coworker from Guyana, and me, a Black American she met through a mutual friend. The bond that she felt with all of us was special. Despite our ethnic and cultural differences, we were all Black women. We may go by different names, speak contrasting languages and dance to separate music, but we all are apart of an unspoken sisterhood.

Black and Brown Love is Revolutionary

Via Quirky Brown Love

There is something about Black and Brown love that moves me. Perhaps, it is because I was always told to watch out for “those” people growing up. In the 9th grade, when you are the only Morenita girl in the Mexicana group, you see the truth in your loved ones warnings first hand.  Back-handed racist comments from can run wild in that situation.  Harsh comments about your hair, skin and culture surface.  And the sentiments run both ways: I’ve heard some pretty prejudice stuff come out of the mouths of Black people about Brown people too.

Let me clarify what I mean by “Black”.  I am fully aware that there are Black Latin@s but for the purpose of this narrative Black is “African American”.   “Brown” refers to non-black Latin@s. Now, that we have that out of the way…back to the narattive.

 In my high school’s lunchroom, the division between was evident.  Sure, Black folks and Brown folks inteacted a bit in the classroom, but the lunch room was a version of Mean Girls that Tina Fey did not write.  The Brown kids met up on the south side of the room and the Black people were on the north side. I, and a few others, disrupted all of that by hanging out with whatever group we wanted to. Our pioneering ways were met with resistance from our respective communities and sometimes the communities we were trying to be a part of.

Read more here.

Thank you to the writers of Diasporic Realness: A Guest Writer’s Month

Thank you to each of the amazing Writer’s who blessed Black Girlz, Latin World with their time and talent this month. Thank you for telling your truth and being apart of it.  Thank you to everyone who showed interest and submitted a piece.  I had no idea that this would end up touching so many people.

Just in case you missed them. Here are the brilliant pieces from this year’s Diaspora Realness Guest Writer’s Month.

Black Girls and Brown Boys: A Response to ‘Aye Papi’

Author’s note: This post was written in August of last year, but I remixed it a bit. Enjoy.

When I read Tracy Renee Jones’s “Aye Papi…………One Woman’s Love Affair With Latino Men” a year ago, I will admit, I was stoked.

An account from a Black Woman on her romances with Latino guys? I’ll read that.

Typing in “Black  woman  and Latino man” yields very few results.  I mean forums from the 2000s detailing someone’s experiences are fine and dandy pero dame mas.  So, instead of complaining about the absence of info on the subject, I decided to throw in my two cents on the Jones piece.

Diasporic Realness Guest Writer’s Month: Dear Girls

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Diasporic Realness is a Guest Writer’s Month dedicated to US telling our stories!

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By: Ishia Lynette

Dear Black Girl,

I love to see you smile and with so much joy in your eyes.

I know the world is cold and sometimes its hard to find the courage to stand.

Remember where you come from,

Remember all your ancestors endured,

Remember the purpose of this all.

You are not another “angry black woman”,

You are not another single mother statistic.

You are living proof that determination and perseverance always shine.

Don’t ever let anyone take away everything you have worked so hard to become.

Dont you dare fret when you stand tall against the powers that work diligently to break your revolution down.

Be about everything you stand for.

Be you! Thats all any of us can do.

Spotlight of the Month: Facebook Community Raising Afrolatino Kids

  

The Guzman Family: Shannon, Bernard, Matthew and Milagros

PHOTO CREDIT: Shannon Guzman

Every month, Black Girl, Latin World showcases awesome organizations that champion Afrolatinidad!   This month’s addition to the Spotlight of the Month is none other than the social media space Raising Afrolatino Kids. I came across this facebook group some months ago and I enjoy the discussions, resources and insight that the communidad shares on intercultural families and Afrolatino culture. No, I am not a parent but I do share many of the things that I learn with my own family when we discuss intercultural families/dating and the like.  Feel free to check out this interview where co-founder Shannon Guzman tells us why she is so passionate about Afro-Latino families, multicultural representation in the media and where she sees RALK going in the future. 

I am tired of being angry

PHOTO CREDIT: countercurrentnews.com

After the Sandra incident happened, a friend called me and expressed their feelings about the incident. They were upset about the injustices that Black folk are experiencing. I later had another conversation with another friend and while they were infuitated with the unfairness of the situation, they also noted that there are certain ways that Black folk should act to avoid police brutality.  At this moment, my facebook and twitter feeds are full of thoughtful responses to the event.

The question is where do I stand on the issue?