Author: Dr. Ariana Brazier and Kelsey Smoot

Kelsey Smoot (they/them/he/his) is a PhD candidate in American Studies. Their work and writings explore the process of identity formation at the nexus of race, gender, and sexuality. He is a cultural and gender theorist, an essayist, an advocate, and a poet. Having grown up bicoastal and spending the majority of their adult life in a state of transience, they draw from their eclectic life experiences both deep fear and great optimism regarding what people are capable of. Kels seeks to illuminate the experiences of Black queer folks, navigating the contemporary US sociopolitical landscape. In the end, he would describe himself as ‘a part-time lover, and a full-time friend’." Ariana Denise Brazier, Ph.D. is a Black queer feminist-theorist and writer based in Atlanta, Georgia. In her academic work, she documents how Black child play functions as a grassroots method of community-based storytelling, teaching, and organizing. In her personal work, she enjoys writing against the archive, speaking truth to power, and parenting her toddler.