Mistaken identity, it can happen to the best of us. In my lifetime, I get mistaken for two things which I've got nothing against ( but happen not to be ) almost on a daily basis. People think I'm Hispanic, and they also routinely ask me if I'm a lesbian. Apparently I have a certain "look". Seriously, what does a lesbian look like? I'm five-foot-nine, stocky...
Hijab-wearing Muslim girls can do all the things that "normal" girls can do, and so much MORE. If anyone tells you otherwise, don't believe them. Just ask me, Khadija Hussein, the Syrian Goddess of metropolitan Ottawa, province of Ontario. Don't believe me? Let me tell you about what I did last Friday after finishing my prayers in the Masjid. I finished my p...
This is a story about being 95% gay. It's that 5%... Everyone's 18, don't read if you're not allowed. ***** Nanc was sitting across from me at her place. She's about 5'10" and a runner. Thin as a rail. She keeps her hair cut short, sheared on one side, a bit longer on the right. Not much. "So you go to gay bars, right Ted?" I nodded. I'm 95% gay. "Do...
My name is Azhar Qadir and I understand that what I'm about to share with you is definitely shocking. Especially coming from a man who was born and raised in Amman, the biggest City in the Capital Region of the Kingdom of Jordan. I have lived in the Confederation of Canada for almost twenty years now. I moved to North America with my parents when I was much...
If you're Somali, and happen to be gay, lesbian or bisexual, it's probably a good idea to keep it to yourself. Well, if you want to live, that is. Sometimes, I wonder what brings more pain into my complex life, my sexual orientation or, ahem, the other thing. That which marks me as different from the rest of humanity. What am I talking about? I'll get to tha...
You come from a religious family. You have religious parents. You’re not sure about the whole thing yourself but you were raised to believe. To be honest you were always kind of skeptical about the idea of a higher power described in those old books. Especially after reading through many of the passages yourself. That is until the day you discovered somethin...
Meet Bartholomew "Bart" Jones, a big and tall young Black man living in the City of Ottawa, Ontario. Born in the City of New Orleans, Louisiana, Bart moved to the Canadian Capital to expand his horizons and explore new things. He had a Business Management degree from Louisiana Tech University, and felt like giving life in Canada try. Life in Canada had alway...
As Salam Alaikum, dear reader. My name is Yasmin Hussein, and I'm a young woman of Somali descent living in the City of Ottawa, Ontario. I attend Algonquin College, where I study accounting and I live in the east end with my boyfriend Steve Salomon. The big and tall young Haitian guy stole my heart a long time ago. I love this man something fierce and I woul...
Man, foursomes are simply the best. Trust me on that one. My name is Derek Saint-Augustine. A young Black man of Haitian descent living in the City of Ottawa, Ontario. I attend Carleton University, and I've lived in Ottawa since 2009. I moved there from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. My folks sent me to Ontario because I got in a lot of trouble in Chicago...
Man, every time I ran into her, the song "She's So High Above Me" starts in my head. I hope I'm not going crazy or anything. My name is Jalil Akbar. For most of my life, I've seen myself as the son of two worlds. My father Mohammed Abdul Akbar was born and raised in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. And my mother Aisha Tabaan hails from the great nation of Somali...