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Featured Writers

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Rimsha Syed

Rimsha Syed is a Houston-based Pakistani Muslim daughter of fierce immigrants. In Urdu, her name means a bouquet of flowers. Rimsha is a journalist, community organizer, and currently works within …

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malika mohan

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Deepshikha Sharma

You ever meet someone who's so good at getting things done that you can't imagine your life without them? That's me. I'm a University of Pittsburgh grad with a writing …

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ANGELICA SILVA

ANGELICA SILVA

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Riddhi Kanetkar

Hi I'm Riddhi.I'm currently a startups and tech reporter at Business Insider. This portfolio displays a selection of some of my work; I am particularly interested in writing about technology, …

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Amani Salahudeen

Hi, I'm Amani! I'm a writer for Culturess.com, Pop-culturalist, and other digital media companies. I have a B.A. in Journalism and Professional Writing from The College of New Jersey. I'm …

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Latest Articles

Allies to Advocates: Desi Rainbow Parents and Allies Empower Transformation

For many South Asians, a child’s queerness invariably becomes a family identity. Navigating the complexities of a family can be contentious — and few know that better than Aruna Rao, Founder of Desi Rainbow Parents & Allies. Rao’s desire to create a community for parents of queer, desi children was …
By Deepshikha Sharma
• Brown Girl Magazine

A Theory on Why Contemporary Indians Are Obsessed With Reputation

Among the global South Asian population, many, including myself, have noticed the particularly brown brand of obsession with reputation. From childhood to now, I have felt like a prop used by my parents to show off their success as guardians. Their motivations to push me in terms of my education …
By Ryan Gaur
• Brown Girl Magazine

Op-Ed: Representation in the Newsroom Cannot Be Ignored

Journalism is revered for its claim of being the “people’s advocate.” As journalists, we go after the truth, investigate wrongdoings, hold our leaders accountable, ask the tough questions on everyone’s mind and do our best to shed light on our fellow citizens’ stories. Yet, when you sit down to turn …
By Juhi Doshi
• Brown Girl Magazine

10 West Indian Influencers you Need to Follow to Diversify Your Newsfeed

Our feeds are flooded with content creators focusing on topics ranging from beauty to fashion, activism, social justice, parenting tips, and travel escapades—you name it, there’s bound to be a blogger, public figure, or influencer who has a platform dedicated to that niche. Here at Brown Girl Magazine, we are …
By Juanita D
• Brown Girl Magazine

Why the Fight Against Coronavirus is the Fight of all Ethnic Minorities

I opened Instagram to a flood of posts of freshly baked banana bread and newly painted canvases. Though a visually pleasing productivity spike, I stopped after seeing a girl’s typical mirror selfie. “Coronavirus is taking over the world, and it’s all because of idiots in China eating bat soup.”
By ANGELICA SILVA
• Brown Girl Magazine

Exploring the Link between Masculinity, Menstruation, and Nationalism

In recent years, the association between right-wing nationalism and masculinity has strengthened—particularly, national strength and hyper-masculinity have long been united by a shared foundation in chauvinism. Therefore, it is not surprising that certain right-wing nationalist movements have utilized this in order to gain momentum from their male supporters and in …
By Riddhi Kanetkar
• Brown Girl Magazine

'You’re Pretty for a South Indian Girl': How Colorism Divides Parts of India

I remember I was at a family friend’s wedding overseas, talking to an aunt I had never met before, when she said the following to me. “No, my family are from South India.” “You’re so much lighter for a South Indian girl? Aren’t South Indian girls darker?” “You don’t look …
By ANGELICA SILVA
• Brown Girl Magazine

Breaking Barriers by Choosing a Degree Outside of the South Asian Norm

My parents never pressured me into choosing a profession from a list of engineering, medicine, or law, which goes against the stereotypical image of South Asian parents. There are so many standards of what it means to be successful, many of which are socially within South Asian culture.
By ANGELICA SILVA
• Brown Girl Magazine

An Apology to our Daughters-in-law: Patriarchal Family Dynamics in South Asian Households

It is a tradition in Asian families that after marriage, the bride goes to live with her husband and in-laws. This can include grandparents, parents, siblings and their children all living under one roof. A Japanese study found that women living with an extended family have higher risks of heart …
By Kanika Banwait
• Brown Girl Magazine

6 Presidential Candidates Young Desis Want to Run in 2020

On Election Day in November, we witnessed the Republicans keep a stronghold on the Senate and the Democrats take over the House. Many South Asians, Arabs and women ascended to office and we witnessed many “firsts.” Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez became the youngest person elected to Congress. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib …
By Ravleen Kaur
• Brown Girl Magazine

United Sikhs Request for Ethnic Designation Sparks Confusion and Debate

After years of discrimination, murders, and attacks on Sikhs, United Sikhs, a U.N. affiliated organization has asked the Department of Education to consider Sikhs as an ethnic group. At first, this seemed wrong to me. Conflating my religion with ethnicity would seem to alienate converts from different racial backgrounds. The …
By Ravleen Kaur
• Brown Girl Magazine

"Cracking India" to "Earth" — A Look at the India/Pakistan Partition Onscreen

The long-lasting treacherous and heart-wrenching effects of the India and Pakistan partition are embedded in the hearts of South Asians everywhere. Whether it was our grandparents or great-grandparents caught in the midst of British colonial sanctioned segregation, the violent legacy of 1947 and beyond comes with trauma, hegemonic nationalism, hatred, …
By Rimsha Syed
• Brown Girl Magazine

The Long Standing History of Ahmadi and Shia Apartheid in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD — In the latest of mob attacks on minority Muslim sects in Pakistan, Sunni extremists demolished a historic mosque belonging to Ahmadis in the city of Sialkot. The plan was orchestrated by Hafiz Hamid Raza, a member of Pakistan Tehrik-e-Inshaf, during the night and early morning. No worshippers appeared …
By Rimsha Syed
• Brown Girl Magazine

The Long Standing History of Ahmadi and Shia Apartheid in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD — In the latest of mob attacks on minority Muslim sects in Pakistan, Sunni extremists demolished a historic mosque belonging to Ahmadis in the city of Sialkot. The plan was orchestrated by Hafiz Hamid Raza, a member of Pakistan Tehrik-e-Inshaf, during the night and early morning. No worshippers appeared …
By Rimsha Syed
• Brown Girl Magazine

Here's How One Indo-Caribbean Model Turned Her Creativity into a Business

I remember growing up and going to the grocery store with my Guyanese mother. As we would wait in line to pay, my young, excited eyes would gaze at the supermodels who graced the covers of magazines like “Vogue,” “Glamour” and “Elle” etc. There was a trend in the 90s …
By Juanita D
• Brown Girl Magazine

Learning About Female Power at Ohio's Women's Leadership Summit

Dim lights, candlelit tables, and an endless supply of coffee. Hafsa Khan, the staff assistant in the U.S. Senate office in Columbus, Ohio, and her team had outdone themselves with the planning of the Third Annual Ohio Women’s Leadership Summit. I settled into my seat at a table at the …
By Ravleen Kaur
• Brown Girl Magazine

President Donald Trump Reinstates Anti-Abortion Rule Endangering the Lives of Women Globally

Conservatives welcomed a policy that prevents U.S. foreign aid from aiding nongovernmental organizations (NGO) that administer abortion services, distribute contraception or even advise patients on family planning. Trump has previously stated that he will appoint Supreme Court justices in favor of overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, potentially making …
By Rimsha Syed
• Brown Girl Magazine

An Open Letter to Stanford University Rapist, Brock Turner

TW/ ra*e The following letter is written in response to former Stanford University swimmer Brock Turner’s intent to commit rape of an intoxicated/unconscious person in January 2015. The controversy around this case has led to widespread outrage over California Judge Aaron Persky’s decision to give Turner a six-month jail sentence …
By Rimsha Syed
• Brown Girl Magazine

One Sikh Girl’s Struggle of Becoming Accepted as an American

The following piece is a part of the “Act to Change” initiative, a public awareness campaign working to address bullying, specifically in the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. The campaign website, ActToChange.org, and its social media tag #ActToChange provide AAPI youth and community members with platforms to share …
By Ravleen Kaur
• Brown Girl Magazine