For generations—for most of its existence, in fact—the United States promoted itself as a beacon of light and hope, a place where all would be welcomed and all could achieve success if they worked hard. “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled ...
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Black Girl in Maine - 5 new articles



The American Dream was never real; They lied

For generations—for most of its existence, in fact—the United States promoted itself as a beacon of light and hope, a place where all would be welcomed and all could achieve success if they worked hard. “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” The United States lifted itself up as ...

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The post The American Dream was never real; They lied appeared first on Shay Stewart-Bouley.

 

Whose voice you listen to…and our collective survival

Since day one of Trump’s second term, it has been a non-stop year of really bad things happening in the United States. Horrible and previously unimaginable things have become our new norm. To recap: The administration kicked off 2025 with rolling back diversity, equity and inclusion efforts—and while the executive order Trump signed was initially ...

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The post Whose voice you listen to…and our collective survival appeared first on Shay Stewart-Bouley.

 

AI slop got me! Let’s make it stop

On Christmas Day, after the holiday hijinks had settled down, I—like millions of others—got on social media to “check in” with the world. A cute and heartwarming story about a guy paying for groceries for others at one of the Maine grocery stores popped up in my feed. Given the holiday season, it was the ...

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The post AI slop got me! Let’s make it stop appeared first on Shay Stewart-Bouley.

 

Musings on the political and Graham Platner: Reflections on a conversation, Part 1

One of the greatest gifts of aging is that with each passing decade, you start to realize that the world and the people in it are a lot more complex than you initially assumed. It often means learning that things are not nearly as straightforward and black-and-white as we assume when we are younger—that life ...

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The post Musings on the political and Graham Platner: Reflections on a conversation, Part 1 appeared first on Shay Stewart-Bouley.

 

It’s already happening: Whites only

The official end of Jim Crow in the United States happened between 1965 and 1968. Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and in 1965, they passed the Voting Rights Act, and then in 1968, the Fair Housing Act. These efforts effectively ended Jim Crow in the United States, though the lingering racial animosity ...

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The post It’s already happening: Whites only appeared first on Shay Stewart-Bouley.