Having been criticized throughout my adolescence for using it, I’ve done my fair share of research about what the word “like” means.

The only positive aspect of these events is that an issue that had previously been little debated now has national visibility and is being taken seriously by many politicians.

The Keeper of Night tells the story of Ren Scarborough, a half British Reaper and half Japanese Shinigami who always feels as if she must find a delicate balance between the two parts of her identity.

The disturbing and pervasive truth is that Black girls haven’t been afforded childhood during the pandemic, but that had also been true well before COVID-19.

Papillon’s debut novel, An Ordinary Wonder tells the story of a pair of twins named Otolorin and Wuraola as they come of age. But Oto has a deeply held secret — she was born intersex and has always been told she must never tell anyone the truth about her identity.

Culture and attitude must shift to a place where cis and trans Black women and girls always feel safe, where we are given credit for our immeasurable contributions and we are valued for who we are.

The silencing of women online goes beyond trolling.

That experience opened my eyes to how vulnerable young women are in so many situations.

At 9 years old, I should not have been concerned with whittling down the space I took up just so I could blend in with the beige expectations of my classmates. But external and internal pressures had succeeded in convincing me otherwise.

Not only can the inability to bear children have a profound impact on Indian women’s identities — childless women’s very femininity is questioned — but it can also threaten their relationships, particularly their marriages.