I have long considered myself a reluctant Mainer. I often refer to myself as a Chicagoan exiled in Maine. I never set out to be known for anti-racism work; I never set out to become someone known as a local leader, an activist, an organizer, or even a ...
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Black Girl in Maine - 5 new articles



Black in Maine during an ICE surge

I have long considered myself a reluctant Mainer. I often refer to myself as a Chicagoan exiled in Maine. I never set out to be known for anti-racism work; I never set out to become someone known as a local leader, an activist, an organizer, or even a social justice writer. Rather, life dealt me ...

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The post Black in Maine during an ICE surge appeared first on Shay Stewart-Bouley.

 

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.