Yasmine Tadross

I sit and get coffee with you, that is how every cheesy love poems go right? All of my worries seem to fade and the notion of being present occurs to me Within millions of people, that is NYC, you feel alone the wounds that bear my soul starts to rapidly grow like a wildfire in a dry heat wave whenever my light is submerged in a fog of eternal darkness, I think of you, the kindness and warm heart the ability to listen the infectious laugh the thought of you lets me feel complete I want to tell you and be vulnerable but I don't my internal fears of misogyny and the question of "Am I woman enough?' surges I want to be able to love you though you may not give the favor back Though you may not feel the same, I will still be there when needed Hopefully in the future, I will tell you how I feel to be fully vulnerable to gain strength and love on our own terms

Seeing Myself within spaces Once we have one of me in the mainstream Everything is better right? I don’t have to be scared no more I am safe from harm I can just roam free like Neil Patrick Harris And his adorable family Listen to this straight white folks This is my letter to you, I am a pissed off Trans Woman of color That is breaking the flow what is going on I will not be erased I will not be normative My body is here to stay The death stairs and Being called disgusting countless times I would rather not leave my cubicle But what would I do for my community? Hiding leads to the violence of others Sheltering leaves others vulnerable So I make my presence I strut to my own rhythm wear my makeup, skirt, facial hairs and brown skin on my sleeve, though the odds are against me My QTPOC siblings are here Honey, you are just going to live with us

In my little black dress, it symbolizes part of my feminity my happy place and the fluidity of myself in moments of sorrow and pain the moments that I build myself from a stroke of a brush to a dress that fits me In that black dress, my future flashes right in front of me my career my partner my future apartment everything that I hoped for is captured in this single image Though I may be called disgusting or dirt, this dress is what I look back to the makeup, the shade of lipstick the things remind me of what I am fighting for the liberation QTPOC