The Sick Issue

Unsalved Mysteries: The Case of the Heternormative Healthcare

photo of a Black person's legs and feet with their underwear pulled down by their ankles
by Rachel Charlene Lewis
September 23, 2020 at 9:00am
Many queer women are forced to navigate a queerphobic and nonaffirming healthcare system without any support. 
Photo of Annie Segarra, an American YouTuber, artist, and activist for LGBTQ and disability rights, in a wheelchair wearing a rainbow skirt next to a doorstep and door that reads Make Pride Accessible”

(Un)safe Refuge: The Built-In Ableism in Queer Spaces

by Ace Tilton Ratcliff
June 19, 2020 at 9:47am
There’s still a huge chunk of the population who have trouble accessing Pride events and LGBTQ safe spaces: disabled queer people. Read more »
illustration of four fictional Black characters from time travel-related films and TV shows

A Wrinkle in White Supremacy: Even Time Travel Can’t Stop Police Brutality

by Cate Young
June 9, 2020 at 12:27pm
Time lines merge into an inescapable eternity; there’s no reprieve from injustice. Read more »
illustration of wellness motifs like turmeric lattes, Guatama Buddha, Deepak Chopra, among images of brown and white people

Continental Grift: Wellness and the Western Consumption of India

by Mallika Khanna
June 1, 2020 at 9:00am
A cultural obsession with Indian-centered wellness also comes from a place that acknowledges that everyone, sick or not, is in some way fundamentally broken. Read more »
a close-up, soft focus portrait of author Caroline Reilly looking off to the side with her hand touching her face

Come as You Are: Orgasms Prioritize Pleasure in the Midst of Pain

by Caroline Reilly
May 4, 2020 at 10:33am
Orgasms can be restorative for pelvic-pain patients because orgasming helps them experience a “healing trust” that reconnects them with their need for sexual pleasure and intimacy. Read more »
mixed media painting featuring a black and white shirtless portrait of Danez Smith and black and white shirtless portrait of author George M Johnson surrounded by colorful patterns, strokes, and color blocks

Intimate Access: Danez Smith on Poetry as Purpose, Thriving with HIV, and Blackness as Home

by George M. Johnson
April 28, 2020 at 9:00am
Blackness is everything to me. Read more »
Traci Medeiros-Bagan, an Asian therapist with short black hair, sits cross-legged and holds a coffee mug toward the camera

Traci Medeiros-Bagan Wants to Uncouple Sickness from Otherness

by Marina Watanabe
April 15, 2020 at 9:56am
Your therapist isn’t necessarily going to know more about you than you know about yourself. You’re the expert about yourself. Read more »
photo of Lizzo posing on stage wearing an embellished red body suit with two curvy back-up dancers standing behind her

Truth Hurts: Fat, Black, and Too Good to Cancel

by Keah Brown
April 14, 2020 at 9:00am
In every industry Black women have to work four times as hard for less than half the credit.  Read more »
illustration of a brown femme crying on the back of a large shedding bird flying over a shark-filled ocean

Good Grief: Why Does Mourning Have an Expiration Date?

by s.e. smith
April 6, 2020 at 9:00am
The raw reality of a grief that cannot be muffled after some quiet crying in the bathtub is disruptive to a world where discussions of mourning often include the phrase “moving on.” Read more »
abstract illustration of a figure's blue face with tears that fall and transform into burning money. blocks of single crying eyes are spread out across the image.

Trial by Firing: Are Unions the Cure for Post Traumatic Press Disorder?

by Caitlin Wolper
April 3, 2020 at 9:53am
The vulture capitalists currently doing their damndest to gut and consolidate the media cannot be trusted. Read more »
collage image of astrology-related elements with bruja, Valeria Ruelas, in the center wearing sunglasses and holding a fan of tarot cards in front of her face

A $2 Lifeline: Astrology Apps Give a New Meaning to Universal Healthcare

by Gina Escandon
March 30, 2020 at 9:00am
The planets and stars function as a lifeline for many of those who can’t access traditional healthcare. Read more »

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