zakkiyyah najeebah dumas o'neal

When I was the one who was supposed to create a safe space of openness and comfortability, Z took on the role for me instead—and she did so unknowingly. It’s just the way she is, and maybe that reflects her role as creator and educator, as she creates a space where the personal and social can intersect in a beautiful recognition of past trauma and the current reality. But, she lent me insight as to how one can live a life as a Black queer woman, amidst all this chaos and trauma, in an unapolagetic and truly honest way.