With a month left before the 2016 presidential election, a sobering topic has emerged to dominate national discourse: rape and sexual assault. Angry at what they perceived as the lack of box office success for Nate Parker’s film Birth of a Nation, some Black men have blamed Black feminists for dampening enthusiasm and turnout of… Continue reading The Rape of a Nation and the Reconstruction of Black Masculinity
Year: 2016
Make America Great A̶g̶a̶i̶n̶
“They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying ‘Peace! Peace!’ when there is no peace.” Jeremiah 6:14 We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. —… Continue reading Make America Great A̶g̶a̶i̶n̶
Contributor Spotlight: Bethany Criss-June
The Abernathy contributor spotlight series shines the spotlight on our brilliant authors. If you’d like to write for Abernathy, please submit your best work here. Why is writing important to you? Writing has always been the way I share myself with the world. I’m a complete and total introvert. So when I write, I share… Continue reading Contributor Spotlight: Bethany Criss-June
For The Black Men I Love In America
“Sun don’t shine, and we all know why. Bullets be flying, so many shooting. Through the darkest times, through the darkest nights. We war, we war.” —Bullets by. Kaytranada ft. Little Dragon I have a legitimate fear for the lives of the black men that I love. A fear that I wish was irrational—however it’s… Continue reading For The Black Men I Love In America
The Sword And The Sermon: A Review Of The Birth Of A Nation
In the course of time Moses grew up. Then he went to see his own people and watched them suffering under forced labor. He saw a Hebrew, one of his own people, being beaten by an Egyptian. He looked all around, and when he didn’t see anyone, he beat the Egyptian to death and hid… Continue reading The Sword And The Sermon: A Review Of The Birth Of A Nation
Kanye West, the Serial Misogynist
Kanye West serves as a particularly fruitful starting point for examining the intersection of race, masculinity and misogyny. Intentionally or unintentionally, he’s always reflected Americans as they truly are. When he needs attention he whines on Twitter. He defends Bill Cosby, a rapist. He tells us he’s going to make clothes a poor kid can… Continue reading Kanye West, the Serial Misogynist
you first
This magazine was launched to surface narratives reflecting real, lived experiences and targeted at a professional black male demographic—narratives that aren’t typically found elsewhere. We’ve since published more than 250 articles, poems, interviews and profiles that have reached hundreds of thousands of people, and no one has benefited more from the content than me. But… Continue reading you first
Get Woke or Die Tryin’: The Revolt of the Black Athlete
“This win hopefully brings hope and change to some of the issues that are going on.” —Simone Manuel Prelude From Black Lives Matter protests in the streets to Donald Trump becoming a hero for working class whites, 2016 has been one of the most racially charged years in recent memory. For most Americans sports provides… Continue reading Get Woke or Die Tryin’: The Revolt of the Black Athlete
here and now
There’s a palpable tension in workplaces across the nation right now. For many, the police shootings of unarmed black men, protests, and unrest spilling into the streets is hard to make sense of. With each passing day, it becomes harder and harder to separate work from life outside of work. One of the challenges with… Continue reading here and now
Epilogue: After We Smash Patriarchy, What Comes Next?
This is the final article in a patriarchy series—from the mouth of a Black man to the ears of Black men—written by the multi-talented Daniel Johnson. Subscribe via email. A common question from Black men when the topic of patriarchy is broached is the question of “What will we replace it with?” I read this… Continue reading Epilogue: After We Smash Patriarchy, What Comes Next?