There Is This We
Zaakiyyah Najeebah Dumas O’Neal
My Black womanhood has always felt like a cloak of safety in Chicago. I have been so fortunate to spend a lot of time watching people on buses and trains, and walking through neighborhoods that are not my own to write poems. As long as it isn’t too late, I feel that I can move freely in and out of any and all Chicago neighborhoods in search of a muse. I know that there are Black men in Chicago who do not feel that same freedom. My feminine energy and my empathy allow me to roam freely in this complex and beautiful city...
