
Anala Awake
The Truth As I Understand It
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The Infrastructure of Silence: How Trafficking Stays Hidden
Trafficking. Sex trafficking. These are trigger words for certain institutions, including too many that are supposedly designed to help. From what I’ve witnessed, it seems like institutions such as police… Read more ⇢
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Why Does the Military Side With the Man in Divorce?: The Hidden Psychology Behind How Women Are Pushed Out of The Military After Difficult Divorces
When a man and woman serve in the military and go through a divorce, the system often sides with the man, and ostracizes the woman. Not just legally, but psychologically.… Read more ⇢
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Living With Two Realities: Love and Exploitation in the Same Breath (The reality of loving a man with a lineage that exploited/exploits Black women)
There’s a tension I carry inside my life and lineage, one that I’ve had to face over and over as a Black woman. It is the reality of living with… Read more ⇢
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No One Had Sex With Me — But I Was Still Trafficked
I want to make one thing very clear: no one had sex with me during the events I’ve been sharing. On this spiritual and personal growth journey I’ve been since… Read more ⇢
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I’ll Tell You in Pieces: Part 2 of My Story
“I’ll tell you in pieces ‘cause it’s way too heavy” (Kendrick Lamar, [Mr. Morale]) Some of you who I’ve told what happened — or who have read my recent blog… Read more ⇢
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What Happened to Me: The Trafficking I Survived
I need to write this because there’s no way to explain what happened to me without writing it all the way through. It wasn’t simple. It wasn’t neat. And it… Read more ⇢
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Why Do Some Black Men Stay with Racist White Wives — Even When Their Kids Are Hurt?
I’ve been asking myself this question for years: Why do some Black men marry white women who fetishize them, even when those same women are racist? And worse — why… Read more ⇢
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Loving Differently: What My Relationships Looked Like As a Woman with Mild, High Functioning Autism
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how I’ve loved and been loved throughout my life. Looking back at my first love in high school, and every relationship since, there’s… Read more ⇢
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🎼 9th Grade Drumline Scars and My Silence Around The Trauma: A 35-Year Reckoning
My first drumline director was Mr. Clayton Paul, with the Colony High School Band. We were a very competitive drumline, and the directors treated us like military recruits. They wanted… Read more ⇢
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25 Years of Sisterhood: A Reflection from the Pink Panther
Next year marks a milestone that fills me with gratitude, pride, and deep reflection: 25 years as a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. I crossed in college as part… Read more ⇢

