By Natalie Edmond
The dime, cold and metallic, melts onto her tastebuds. As she swallows the flat cent down her throat, her thoughts dim and her breaths slow
Mutilated Wings
By Laura Tobón
A paralyzed woman, a lover of books, who had sewn her mouth shut so she would not utter a single word. Her mother tongue had decayed, and worms had begun to escape through the holes of her torn skin.
Art Showcase
By Fernanda Contreras
I wanted to challenge social expectations and give the child the freedom to make their own decisions in a world that often overlooks them.
Art Showcase
By Natasha Muriel
It is hard to live in a world
With many barriers and stigmas about
Gender everywhere
In the Forest
By Asia Marie Charles
When darkness creeps across the islands, you do not notice from the corner of your eye the way birds contort into something larger or the crickets quickly running sweat from something in the forest that wasn’t there a few hours before.
A Student’s Guide to Writing Essays Like a Pro!
By Mike Ladzinski
Step 7: Now start writing the first body paragraph
Step 8: write the first body paragraph
Step 9: write the first body paragraph
Step 10: write the first body paragraph
Bells
By River Ordóñez
Look into my eyes not the cross on my neck
God would cry if he heard what I’d said
I would drink his tears nonetheless
Photo Showcase
By Shadai DeJesus
My work is inspired by documentary storytelling, hip hop history, and the connection between music and community.
Love, Nanay
By Janella Katapang
I am sorry
I lied when I told you were born from love
It’s not in our blood to lie
Tacos
By Natalie Edmond
Tacos race across my mind
An aphrodisiac I hold onto
That mirrors the desire that aches for you
Let Them Be, Finally, Free
By Khalil Herrera
Blood in us all; boys in blue — green with greed —
Continue to unweave divided threads.
Let us be, finally free.
Easter in Ohio
By Annalee Hardison
No amount of my grandmother’s exceptionally yummy mac and cheese will be enough to cancel out the impending terror that awaits me at the kid’s table.
To the Black Girl Who Breathes Fire
By Natalie Edmond
all the wounds hidden within your heart.
for the younger version of you that never felt seen
We The People
By Brooke Watkins
We the people, long for an undying peace that is deceased, for it is buried in graves, on a tombstone labeled slaves.
Six Craftsman Athletes
By Deter Feliz
She waited until that final piece was laid down to call ICE.
On websites and where ever you get your news they will call these men
Saying “the six illegal aliens were arrested”
Photo Showcase
by Sead Cena
A young woman holds her infant wrapped inside a blanket during a Red Cross distribution of food and supplies at a Romani camp in Albania.
The Myth of Self Love
By Natalie Edmond
Self love is a lobotomy
Self love is gospel
Two Poems
By Arben Alovic
My heart, it sits tucked away in a book
on the shelf to collect dust. Tickets for two to
Tokyo, unused. I never brought myself
to ask for a refund. Expensive bookmarks
to remind me of
what could have been.
A Meeting with Stanco Rockplace
By Roseirene Kalogianopulos
You know, I really thought I did a good job on that story, but I’m thinking back on my meeting with Rockplace.
The Knight, the King, and the Fool
By River Ordéñez
The knight kills for the many
Or so he says as he marches
Through the fields of red wheat
The bodies all counted
Black is Beautiful
by C. Amour
Black is beautiful, a truth so divine,
A melanin magic that’s simply sublime.
Photo Showcase
By Takashi Nakagome
Still Here
By Dorjee Gyaltsen
He waved a final goodbye to his family,
Not knowing if he would ever see them again.
Six Senses?
By Kiera Dennis-Espinal
You smack your lips and taste your own saliva. It probably tastes like nothing but blood from your fingers. What did you eat today? You bring your finger back to your mouth to try to sneak your finger under the nail
My Sanctuary
By Lianna Bonilla
The people here come and go every day. The plants die and grow back. Time continues and change is inevitable, but memories are always present. It was time for me to go home.
Castle on a Hill
By Adrija Vecenaite
The glistening of a star in the quiet sky,
The stinging pain in his left eye
For how long must he live in anticipation
Of when it will sting again?
My Poem
By Lejla Krasnic
And why is it not me instead, why him,
Mother always said I was the brave one
He’s too soft, truly his mother’s son
Sisyphean Task
By Michael Ladzinski
Thinking maybe the stars will align,
I entertain myself and bide my time
Digital Admirer
By Mila Diaz
I watch the same 15-second TikTok over 50 times. I notice every little detail, down to the chipped black nail polish she sports carefree.
Time Not
By Tima Smallwood
Morning held hostage by time
Afraid of being late
No time for calls, dinner waiting
You rushing out the door
You Might Refuse to Stay, So The Best That I Can Do Is Pray
By Raysa-Marie LeMelle
How misfortunate am I
to have known her so intimately,
Yet kept at such a cruel distance.
Sparrow’s Morning Song
By Annajean Morales
The sparrows’ morning song recites without cease till
the night quiets the melody as the sparrows rest in their dreams.
June
By Phoenix McKinnon
If life has taught me anything, it’s that gravity bends for certain strangers
Just a Fairytale
By Shaneire Dames
Go on Rapunzel,
let down your hair,
for you’ve been captured your whole life.
It is only fair.
Between Shadows and Light
By Sebastian Ortiz (Vitale)
There are many things inside me
that I have yet to discover,
many flaws and gifts
that I still don’t see.
Interview with Tima Smallwood
Interview by Ivana Lin
I’m drawn to poetry because it lets me say things the way they actually make me feel, not just the way they sound.
Interview with Janella Katapang
Interview by Charles Falivena
The masks can appear fun, charming, alluring, and/or hopeful but a part of you knows there’s something superficial about it.
Interview with Annalee Hardison
Interview by Laura Tobón
I think it was part of her generation and upbringing that mothers were expected to put others’ needs ahead of her own, and that makes me unbelievably sad for her.
Interview with Asia-Marie Charles
Interview by Angelina Esguerra
I came across this new concept floating around called ‘the tropical gothic’. I always liked darker and macabre things, especially when it juxtaposed something that is seen as innocent and non threatening so I immediately loved the idea.
Interview with Shadai DeJesus
Interview by Asia-Marie
I’m most interested in capturing culture, community, and real moments in people’s everyday lives that are normally overlooked.
