Aja Barber

Hiiiiii people! These issues aren’t going away. And neither am I. So scroll on by if it bothers you.

In 2015, to be a woman (and a black woman at that) among the general public means having to keep your defenses up.

We can never get enough handy gift guides, so we asked our lovely writer Aja what she has planned for her holiday shopping this year.

Whenever Lena Dunham starts trending on Facebook or Twitter, it’s become this thing where I suddenly morph into Angry Tyra.

I am shocked, perplexed and a little bit dismayed over the amount of “good liberals” who have pushed my friendship to the point of no return over the term “white feminism." As a matter of fact, I would go so far as to say the cries over white feminism vs. intersectional feminism is the new #BlackLivesMatter vs #AllLivesMatter. You might not see it that way now but you will by next year. Trust me. I’ve been through this before and damn, am I tired.

I first met Darlene Howell McNerney through my sister.

Hugh Hefner - people either love him or hate him, and there doesn’t seem to be a lot of room for middle ground. He was an abuser and civil rights advocate.

In fashion, the mantra is “never say never.” Never claim that you’ll never wear it, because that's the easiest way to end up eating your words, prancing about in a style you once referred to as “unsuitable.”

Recently I went through another round of unfriending on Facebook. It keeps things tidy, the arguments thoughtful and my head from exploding. This time around I just got rid of any white person that felt passionate about "certain political topics," but wasn't showing up for people of color, as we watch the meteoric rise of fascism in America and police violence. I’m not obligated to educate anyone for free, especially if they don’t appear to be absorbing what I’m saying or having the tough conversations on their wall with their peers.

There are so few people in this world who can bring very many strong, stoic people to their knees in the hour of death.