#Mandisa Thomas

[kriswager]

Listen to the whispers

As PZ already has covered, there has been some revelations about problems with two former board members of American Atheists. One was Mandisa Thomas, who has been a major voice among Black American atheists, but whose behavior has caused major rifts in that community. I have little knowledge about neither Mandisa Thomas nor the situation, but I firmly support the people who have left Black…

[samantha-and-her-chaotic-desires]

Not sure if youre still doing this, but if you are

🖊 + Either James or Silas? I'd love to hear more about them!

HELL YEAH BABYYYYYYYYY THIS is gonna get long REALY quick. I want to talk about my murderous baby boy Silas, since I need to flesh James out more. I hope that's okay!

(TW: mentions for abuse, poison and murder)

Sweet like Sugar, Deadly like Poison: France's Adored Actor - Silas Tueuse:

FIRST IDEAS:

Baby!!!! Baby boy!!! He was actually the first design/idea I created before Mandisa, Raquelle, James, Lacrimosa and Celeste. He was also my first time trying to draw with the Lackadaisy character references! (i.e. the blue circles/heads, the sketching style, etc.)

He was a character that I just knew wasn't going to be a good guy. He just had the vibes of "antagonist" written all over him. Though he didn't always start out this way

His last name was originally going to be Mallory, meaning "unfortunate" in French. However, I switched it over to Tueuse, the meaning of quite literally "slayer" or "killer".

He was based off of a Savannah Cat breed! I didn't know which cat to do at first, but once I settled on it, I immediately had an idea and color palette in mind. Below is an example of the cat I referenced.

^this was the main design I used, but I wanted to keep it simplified.

Silas was purposely made to look feminine! He is not trans, but he is homoromantic demisexual! While his killing techniques include flirting and seducing, it is NOT out of pure love. It is only a manipulation tactic before he slips poison into someone's food or drink.

His voice claim, especially with THAT hair, is Daveed Diggs. He just RADIATES Thomas Jefferson/Lafayette-Hamilton vibes (since they're the same person lmaooo)

I also wanted a bit of a counterpart from the Savoy Siblings, I guess! That's why I made Silas and Raquelle :)

FACTS/HEADCANONS:

He is Raquelle Tueuse's older brother, and he takes after his father more than his mother. He speaks more English than French, but he is fluent in both.

He always had a passion for acting! He just knew it was his calling.

His father actually encouraged his passion for acting, and even gave him a few Shakespeare books, as well as other classic literature.

He is double jointed....self projecting here lmao-

He is travelling from France to all across America in search for "business", with his sister by his side. In reality, he's just going off, killing any target Lacrimosa gives him when in Hotel Maribel. (Mirabel Hotel?? HELP???)

When his father died, so did a piece of him, his sister and mother. His mother became rather abusive, and a belligerent drunk.

His first kill was unfortunately his mother one night, when she was hitting Silas and Raquelle, ultimately hurting them. When Silas killed his mother, it was fourteen years ago, when he was fifteen.

He is very protective of his sister, and very understanding to her mental struggles. He tries his best to be present.

His comfort food is Cassoulet! It's a French stew that includes Haricot beans with meat: you can use pork, sausages, goose, duck, lamb or mutton for the meat portion!

He would happily kill for his sister, and die for her too. That's just a given.

He collects daggers, classic literature, and also eyeliner.

ROLES/PURPOSE/OTHER STUFF:

He is the left hand man for Lacrimosa, and often works with Mandisa too.

He's the supporting antagonist, though I do see him more as an anti-hero.

Once he's in the right group of people, he is that ball of energy, yet at the same time he's such a sweetheart deep down...if it weren't counting on his multiple murders. While he's a sweetheart, this does NOT condone his behavior. He is still technically a bad person since he murdered a lot of people.

Cyanide is his poison of choice: quick, effective, deadly. He would then use any weapon (knife, gun, pool stick, any potentially dangerous object in the room) and kill his target.

If it were 2023, his song would be UH OH! by Sub Urban and BENEE.

^my entire thought process when Silas

buuuuut yeah!!! This is my boy Silas Tueuse, whom I love, and is near and dear to my heart. He deserves a good mother figure in his life :<

[in-sightpublishing]

Mandisa Thomas on Conversation Versus Debate and Their Uses

Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2024/07/09 Mandisa Thomas is the Founder of Black Nonbelievers, Inc. One of, if not the, largest organization for African-American or black nonbelievers or atheists in America. The organization is intended to give secular fellowship, provide nurturance and support for…

[aaronhillsworld]

🎹🎤 Honored to connect, work musically with & make history with founder and president of Black Nonbelievers Inc. Mandisa Thomas! …. This is Just the beginning! If you want to hear the “Godless Gospel” debut concert we did tune in to the Freedom From Religion Facebook page Wed. 11/2 @ 1pm EST. #blackatheist (at The San Antonio River Walk) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ckb2WYjJjc8/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[theshedding]

LEGACY 2021: S.I. Martin

Today for #LEGACY2021 live from Manchester we are joined by S.I. Martin who specializes in fields of Black British history and literature, archives and the education sector. We'll be exploring Black Georgians 🙌🏿. Please join us at noon (EST)! 

👉🏿 https://bit.ly/3lqTvY6 

[secularbynature-blog]

A Conversation with Mandisa Thomas, President of Black Nonbelievers, Inc.

A Conversation with Mandisa Thomas, President of Black Nonbelievers, Inc.

By Andrew J. Rausch (Listen to the interview audio here on our YouTube channel) Mandisa Thomas grew up in the early 1980s in Fayetteville, Georgia, in the home of a non-religious single parent. However, she says her grandmother was a devout Christian. As a result, Thomas sometimes attended church, even singing in the choir. She realized she was an atheist at a young age and has long been…

[to-be-frank-i-dont-care]

If you’re up for it, the name playlist thing with either rogue or erin? 💜

R- Remember You Young by Thomas Rhett

O- Overcomer by Mandisa

G- Ghost of a King by the Gray Havens

U- Unstoppable by Sia

E- wE Will Go Home by Aron van Selm (I have like no songs beginning with e so this'll have to do :,) (I could've done empty chairs at empty tables but nah I won't do that to ya)

Also, sorry if my music taste is interesting XD

[intheticklecloset]

2018 Tag

2018 Tag

Tagged by @crazyy-ticklishhh

TOP 5 FILMS YOU WATCHED IN 2018

( it says watched in 2018, not what was released in 2018 )

(also I’m really not a movie person so these are in no particular order) 1. Sherlock Gnomes

2. Avengers: Infinity War

3. The Grinch

4. Love, Simon

5. The Man Who Invented Christmas

TOP 5 TV Shows YOU WATCHED IN 2018

1. I

2. Also

3. Don’t

4. Watch

5. TV

TOP 5 SONGS OF 2018

1. Good News (Mandisa)

2. If You Ain’t In It (Danny Gokey)

3. Ready As I’ll Ever Be (Tangled: The Series)

4. Defying Gravity

5. Colors (Halsey)

TOP 5 BOOKS YOU READ IN 2018

1. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

2. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

3. Jackaby by William Ritter

4. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

5. Dracula by Bram Stoker

5 Good/Positive Things that Happened This Year

1. Saw Shakespeare’s Hamlet performed live (very rare where I live)

2. Moved into my first apartment

3. Earned a promotion at work

4. Attended a friend’s wedding

5. Got a new car

I’ll tag @switchyglitch (I would also tag @crazyy-ticklishhh but he already beat me to it so :P)

Happy New Year everyone!

[ketso]

Episode 21

Zari, Fifi, Khanyi and I are in Fifi's kitchen preparing breakfast for the men we love. We have set up a playpen for Fifi's twins and my Khumo. They are actually making a noise and having a full-blown baby language conversation amongst the three of them.

"Girl, a whole set of twins? You are brave", Zari says to Fifi.

"We are waiting for you and Ona now. We've done our part - two of the best." Fifi says.

"Are you planning to have more?" I ask her.

"More what?!" Fifi says in shock and we all laugh.

We see Khabane come down the stairs. We all look at Khanyi.

"We slept in separate rooms!" Khanyi makes it known.

We laugh.

"But what's happening? Are you guys dating or?" Zari asks.

"We like each other. When we can spend time together, we do. But that's about it." Khanyi says, but she's blushing from here all the way to her wedding day in Tholoana Kingdom.

"Good morning", Khabane greets us.

"Heeeeeeyyyyyyy", us ladies.

Khabane looks at us as if we are being weird.

"I'll go sit with the kids. Y'all look like you were having a weird conversation", he says.

We still stare at him.

He leaves the kitchen...

Then we all burst into laughter!

We are busy in the kitchen shame. The guys come down the stairs making a noise.

"Khabane, you are here?" Tee-le has to be the one to point out the obvious.

"He's driving back home with Zari and I", Ona says.

"I didn't know that Reahile and Khabane were close", Tee-le says.

We are all laughing now.

"I'm close to Khanyi. Why are you acting like you don't know?" Bane.

Okay he's going to hold his own. Good for him!

"Eh monna... this is my baby sister. Why are you trying to pull a Maboko Seete when he met Tebza Seete. She was a young sweet hun too. Have you been taking notes?" Mohato says.

The guys laugh.

"What can I say? He gave me his gift of picking the best flowers from any and all gardens. Just look at her." Bane.

Everyone looks at Khanyi.

SHE IS BLUSHING!!!!!

"Wait 'til Thomas Ramaru hears about this", Rea says.

The moment goes from cute to hilarious instantly!

Ngathi ngiyabona.

We are all having breakfast now around the dining table. Khumo is glued to her father. He is eating and feeding her too. Rea has Mulalo on him and Mohato has Mohau with him.

"We are not giving Bane or Khanyi a baby because we don't want them getting any ideas", Mohato says.

"Hai guys, yekan' i'ngane! Hai bo! Kunini?! Sekuhlabeka mina manje", I say.

They've been going at them. They need to relax now. Hai bo!

"I'm with Thuli on this one. Y'all are just jealous that when you were at Khabane's age, you didn't know what you wanted and you didn't have a Khanyisa!" Fifi says.

"Eeeeehhhhhhh!!!" The guys say at the same time.

Zari giggles.

"Speak for your own men. I've always had my Zari. Akere baby", Mohato.

Zari blushes.

"Oksalayo, you were not making moves the way that Bane is. He's putting all your game- all three of yours combined- to shame!" Fifi.

We all laugh.

"But in other news, Fifi and Rea, congratulations guys. Your home is beautiful. Your babies are cute. And you are perfect for each other." I say, taking the heat off Khanyi and Bane.

"Absolutely! You guys have done amazing and we will never stop being here for you." Tee-le says.

"Thank you, guys. And please never stop visiting us", Rea.

We all laugh.

I get a call from a number I don't recognize. Truecaller tells me that it is Mandisa Tloung calling. Tee-le looks at me, noticing how disturbed I am.

"What's wrong?" He asks me.

I show him my phone.

His eyes also widen.

I answer the phone and put the call on speaker.

"Thuli hello."

"Hi Thuli. It's Mandisa. Khosi's sister. How are you?"

"Ngiyaphila Mandisa. Wena unjani?"

"Uhm Thuli... I have a lead on Khosi."

"A lead?" Me.

"Yeah. She's been lost. Nobody knew where she was. I have a lead now."

"Oh..."

I'm not sure what to do with this information. Everyone at this table is focused on this call.

"Thuli, I know you guys are not friends anymore. But I know that of everyone Khosi has ever met, you are the one person that really cared about her. That's why I'm telling you this."

"Mandisa, this is just a bit awkward. I haven't spoken to Khosi in over a year. In fact, the last time we spoke, we spoke through lawyers because she defamed my husband and me on that reality show she was on. So, it's a bit difficult for me to really care at this point."

She's silent for a moment, then she says, "You are married to your best friend's ex. From where I'm standing, you are not as innocent as you would like to think you are in all of this. So mawuzenza ngcono ngodadewethu -

I hang up.

I'm suddenly so angry!

I'm breathing heavily!

"Sis'Thuli". Khanyi says.

I look at her.

"Don't be angry. Surely, you've always known that this is how Khosi and her family would always view you. It doesn't make their version of the truth worth it. It makes how they view you worth it... between Khumo and Bhut'Tee-le, is there anything you'd want to change?"

I smile at her. I can't help it. She's right.

"Bane, you got a real one." Tee-le.

"I know", Bane.

We laugh.

Then Bane says, "Also, if people couldn't date Khosi's exes, there'd be no one to date. She dates one man, and we know she'll finish the squad. Isn't she the girl that keeps loving the crew?"

Wow!

Everyone else laughs. I still kinda have a soft spot for her, so I'm a bit touched.

Fifi notices then says, "Anyway guys, thanks for staying after the bash. Yoh, dealing with clean up alone is a bit -

"Thank God for kazi! The cleaning service was here at 6am." Khanyi says and we laugh.

"After breakfast, we can go chill by the pool to give the cleaning company some space to finish. Is that okay?" Fifi says.

"Thank God we are all soccer players. The body allows." Mohato.

"Bane, can you go topless?" Rea asks him.

"I play rugby. Khanyi hasn’t made a mistake here. Believe that!" Bane mara.

"Wooooooohhhh!" Us ladies gush over seeing Bane topless.

"Ey!" Mohato.

Shame, it's a nice morning.

...

Dikwe is in Venda with Tshianeo. I never know what's happening with the first wife. She's always been a non-factor in my life. She literally lives away from us and refuses to associate with us, so nje, I'm not interested in anything that has to do with her.

I've packed my three daughters in my car - two at the very backseat and one right behind the driver's seat. She's seated next to my son who is strapped in his car seat. Next to me and in my passenger seat is my mom. We are bringing Khosi home. We are travelling in my BMW X7.

Khosi is famous so people know who she is. We saw someone posting that they had spotted her in South Africa and she was looking bad. I then DM-ed that person and asked for information - where she saw her and all. I then asked if she could please stop posting about her. The girl actually helped me locate Khosi and now I'm on my way to KZN to find her. I had to tell my mom. She's Khosi's mother. She's heartbroken of course, but the key thing is to find Khosi.

"Mandisa", my mom starts.

"Yebo mah?"

"Am I bad mother?"

I'm quiet. What is she expecting me to say really?

"Or uKhosi uyena ogulayo? What is it about the way that you grew up that made Khosi feel she has to live the way that she does? Or did I perhaps miss something?"

I get what she means. We didn't struggle. We grew up in a township, but we were the family that had the big corner house in the township. We went to good government schools. We never went to bed hungry. We were not millionaires, but we were okay.

"UNobukhosi kudala athanda izinto, mama. And you never said anything about it. You just let her be. I never understood why you were too scared to tell Khosi that the way that she lives her life is not okay. It was never okay for her to sleep with people's husbands - regardless of the status of the marriage - but you sat and watched her do it, enjoying the benefits that came from it. Khosi started this thing of hers years ago... in high school already. When I said something about it, I was the jealous ugly sister. So, I also let her be. Bheka manje ukuthi she's paying a price for hurting all of these people she's hurt just because she wanted a luxurious life, and affording life was never good enough for her. You are not a bad mother. But you could have done more to stop this."

She's quiet.

"But mom, it's not fair to expect ncane to respect people's wedding vows when they don't respect their own wedding vows", that would be Sethunya, my first born. She and my second born, Lerato, look up to Khosi with all of their hearts. They are the slay queens of today. Sethunya is already making a living out of it, calling herself an influencer. Lerato is well on her way.

"So that's normal to you? You make money off hurting people and just tenaciously bulldozing people's lives just to get money? You open your legs to the highest bidder - regardless of who you hurt in the process - and think that work is normal?" I ask her.

"The purpose of work is to make money. The idea of having money is to have as much of it as possible. And not every influencer is sleeping their way to riches." Lerato.

"That just sounds like prostitution to me. Maybe show me an analysis of how much you actually make influencing for brands or whatever else you influence for, then show me how much men give you just because you are beautiful and you open your legs for them. I might change my mind on what I think about this topic." I say.

"So mama, you are calling us prostitutes?" Sethunya.

I want to say yes, but I'll simply exercise my right to remain silent.

...

We arrive in KZN in the early hours of the morning. We check into the Oysterbox hotel. I'm staying in a room with Pheello. Lerato and my youngest daughter, Relebohile, share a room. Sethunya and my mom share a room. I did that on purpose. I want her to see my mom pray and cry for the life that Khosi chose.

Pheello is not asleep and I don't understand why.

"Pheello, why aren't you sleeping?" I ask him.

"I don't feel like sleeping", my twenty-month-old child says to me.

"Well, you have to sleep now. It's late." I say.

"Are we going to talk to dad?" He asks me. He's not used to being away from his dad and not speaking to him at the end of the day. Dikwe is consistent like that. But he did say that the network in Venda - where they are going - is messed up.

I try to videocall him anyway. It's 2am. He may be asleep. But I try my luck...

And he actually answers.

"Baby? Is everything okay?" He asks me. He doesn't even look like he was asleep.

"I'm fine. We just got to KZN and your son refuses to sleep until he speaks to you. Sorry to call you so late", I say.

"It's okay, my love. Where's my boy?" He says.

I give the phone to Pheello.

"Hello papa", he says.

"Hello my boy. Why are you giving your mom a headache? You know that's my wife, right?"

"I'm not giving her a headache. I just wanted to talk to you." Pheello defends himself.

"Okay. How was your drive?" Dikwe asks him.

"Long. Mom and Sethunya and Lerato were fighting about prostitutes."

This child!

"Ey wena, Pheello!" I shout at him.

"What?! I don't even know what a prostitute is. I'm just telling dad that -

"I told you to not listen to old people's conversations", I say.

"You were talking in front of me and you were talking the whole way. I can't block my ears for that long".

I actually step into the attached restroom because I need to laugh. I'm not doing it in front of him.

When I come out of the restroom, Pheello is dozing off. I hear Dikwe telling him a story. The storytelling always gets my baby boy dozing off. He's such an amazing dad. I'm falling in love all over again.

When Pheello is fast asleep, I take the phone from him.

"You are an amazing father, you know that?" I say to my Dikwe.

"You've blessed me with one hell of a child. Thank you for that", he says.

"How's Venda?" I ask him.

"It's extremely hot. I can't even sleep. Neither can Fenya. He's not used to the heat. So I'm being a grandfather and staying up."

"Oh my... you have Fenya with you? You are being a mkhulu? Does this mean things are better between you and his dad?" I ask him.

"We still fight a lot. But I'm hopeful. He picked a good wife and I think she will bring us closer. She left Fenya with Neo because she and Leruo were going through some stuff."

"Oh my... I hope they'll be okay", I say.

"They better be okay. She's a good wife for him and he better make it work no matter what." He says.

"Okay my love. Anyway, let me sleep. I have a big day ahead of me."

"Sleep well, my angel. I love you." He says.

"I love you, myeni wami." I say then hang up.

It is 7am. I am at this meeting place that I'm meeting at with this girl who knows where Khosi is. I left my mom and the kids at the hotel.

"Hi", a young lady gets to my window and says.

It's her.

"Come in", I say.

She hops into the passenger seat.

"You good?" I ask her.

She nods her head.

"Thank you for meeting with me. I really appreciate this." I say.

"Sure. She doesn't look good. I just thought I'd let you know". She says.

"Where is she staying?" I ask.

"Under a bridge", she says.

What the?!

"Do you know which one?" I ask.

She nods her head.

...

I don't know what to say. I really don't.

I came to KZN on holiday after shooting the reality show that I was on. Then Tyson decided to cut me off financially, threatened me that if I so much as step back into Tholoana Kingdom, he will kill me. This is all because I mentioned our relationship on the reality show and his wife got upset. I'm up to my neck with lawsuits that he's not prepared to help me with. My car was taken away from me. I don't have a house. I only had ten thousand rands cash on me and I stayed in a motel - not even a hotel - for as long as I could. I don't have qualifications so I couldn't get work.

My second instinct was to try and find a man who can get me out of this situation. But honestly, they are all so scared of Tyson that the people who were willing to bite didn't know Tyson. If you don't know Tyson Archibald, chances are you are not a candidate for dating me.

It got to a point where I had nothing. Zero. Then someone broke into my motel room and stole EVERYTHING! All I was left with were the clothes on my back. I got kicked out of the motel room. Now, I sleep under a bridge.

Bridge life is not easy. Apart from being cold and fighting for a spot every chance you get, you have to choose the right people to sleep next to or else you will wake up to someone raping you or trying to be violent with you. You also have to fend for yourself in the worst possible way. You have to go beg on the side of the road just so you can eat. I've gone to bed having eaten only had a sixty-cents stocksweet. I've also gone to bed having eaten nothing. I've gone to shelters before and they've let me stay from time to time, even fed me. But you cannot stay there forever.

It is 7:30am. I'm already up and am begging for money from the morning rush traffic. Everyone is headed to work and are in a hurry. So, they will either give you money to get you off their backs, or they tell you that they don't have money. They are too stressed to just ignore you. You need to be very close to the window. Don't touch it, but be so close that they cannot ignore you. Sometimes, they give me food. Sometimes I get warm clothes. Sometimes I get money. The money I hide. The food I share. The clothes I wear in front of them. Sometimes they steal them and sometimes they leave me alone.

A black BMW X7 approaches. It seems to be slowing down as it gets closer. Great. I'm going to get a good tip. Eish, it's a TK number plate. I really don't need those people to look down on me and remind me what my life was like when I was there. And -

Oh -

No-

It can't be -

If I had the energy, I'd run away. I'm so embarrassed. I just cry instead.

"Hi sisi", she says to me.

I just cry. I can't help myself. I just weep.

She steps out of the car and hugs me. I'm filthy right now. Why is she touching me? I smell! She is so clean. She smells so good. Why does she still want to be associated with me?

I'm weeping in her arms right now.

"Come nana, let's get you home." She says.

"I can’t. Tyson will kill me if I ever set foot back in Tholoana Kingdom." I say through my sobs.

"Khosi, I'm here now. Let's go home. I'll take care of everything." She says.

I haven't been inside a car in months. I'm not sure if I even remember how to climb into one.

...

I'm in a shower at the Oysterbox hotel. Me. Khosi Thabethe. I thought this life was over for me. I'm using Dior shower gel on my body after months of not seeing shower gel at all. I'm using Dior face products on my face. My skin is even doing a happy dance right now. I never thought that this would ever be me again. But I'm crying. I'm balling in tears. I don't understand how I got here. I really don't. A girl like me was never supposed to get here. My cry is getting louder.

"Khosi, are you okay?" I hear Mandisa ask me.

I just cry. I weep!

"Mommy, why is she crying?" I hear Pheello say.

I'm sharing a hotel room with Mandisa and Pheello.

I just hear them leave the room.

After some time, I just dry myself, step out of the shower and lotion myself with Mandisa's Dior products. She is really living it up. Who would've thought that one day she'd be bailing me out like this? That her life would be more worth living than mine? Maybe this is done on purpose because shame, if the shoe were on the other foot, I probably wouldn't help her out the way that she has helped me out.

When I'm done lotioning my body, I step into the room. There is a pair of new underwear for me. It feels amazing on my coochie. The bra hugs my boobs perfectly. Then I wear the jeans that I find here - black skinny jeans. I wear the yellow t-shirt I find too. It's pure cotton. I love it! I wear the socks that I find here and the Stan Smith Adidas sneakers.

I find a wig here... top quality I tell you. And it's a 12-inch wet curl wig. I love my sister so much! I also find a new Apple iPhone.

My heart!

Dear World, I'm back!

I'm at breakfast now where I find Mandisa, all four of her kids and my mother seated and eating. Sethunya runs to me first. She hugs me super tightly. I've always loved my sisters' daughters. I'm scared of their mother as they are, so we've always felt like sisters.

"How are you, Miss Thang?" She says as she hangs onto me.

"I think I'm going to be okay", I say.

She leads me to the table. But I decide to dish up for myself first. I haven't seen food this good in FOREVER! I'm having everything!

I'm now back at the table. Pheello and Relebohile keep looking at me. The babies. They don't know what to say.

My mother is looking at me with so much disappointment.

"Mama, when do we leave?" Sethunya breaks the silence.

"Tomorrow morning. I want to sleep in today. I'm tired." Mandisa says.

"Can we possibly go to the spa today? With ncane?" Lerato.

"No", my mom.

We all look at her. Even Mandisa.

"Khosi is not wasting another cent of my child's money", my mom says.

"But gogo she's our mother", Sethunya.

"You can go and spend your mother's money." My mom.

"And ncane is her sister", Lerato.

"They are both my children. And if it's okay with you, I'd like to exercise my right to parent these two." My mom.

I'm in shit. Mandisa is probably in shit for helping me. Mandisa and I look at each other.

Her phone rings.

"It's Dikwe. I have to take this", she says then leaves the table. Pheello runs after her. It's his dad and he never misses an opportunity to speak to him.

We stay here in silence. I just eat.

"Ncane, maybe after breakfast, we can go chill by the pool." Sethunya.

"Ncane will come to you when I'm done with her", my mom.

Ai!

Sethunya and Lerato both give up.

...

[in-sightpublishing]

Mandisa Thomas on Mental Health of Secular Leaders

Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2024/05/15 Mandisa Thomas is the Founder of Black Nonbelievers, Inc. One of, if not the, largest organization for African-American or black nonbelievers or atheists in America. The organization is intended to give secular fellowship, provide nurturance and support for…

[tata1q3]

Mandisa Thomas: Black Nonbeliever

[secularbynature-blog]

INTRO (listen to audio or read the full article at SecularByNature.com) By Andrew J. Rausch Mandisa Thomas grew up in the early 1980s in Fayetteville, Georgia, in the home of a non-religious single parent. However, she says her grandmother was a devout Christian. As a result, Thomas sometimes attended church, even singing in the choir. She realized she was an atheist at a young age and has long been interested in the historical ties between Christianity and the black community. She would come to realize that Christianity had been ingrained into the black identity in America by force. Although she came to these realizations at a relatively young age, she would quickly discover that many members of the black community saw such suggestions and observations a form of betrayal. This was a verboten topic for most black people in America. Hoping to expand the conversation about the effects religion has had on the black identity, she would eventually establish Black Nonbelievers, Inc. in Atlanta in 2011. Thomas serves as the non-profit organization's president. In subsequent years, Black Nonbelievers, Inc. has branched out significantly, and now has local chapters in ten U.S. cities. #atheist #atheism #secular #secularism #SecularByNature #freethinker #humanist  #godless #goodwithoutgod #atheistinterviews  #blacknonbelievers #agnostic #freethinker #interviews #logic #reason #humanist #Jesus #God #Bible #2016Election #Trump #worstpresidentever #Christianity #formerChristian @black.nonbelievers.orlando

[ivisitlondon]

iVisit... Barbican brings back Concerts On Demand and announces new films on Cinema On Demand alongside more digital content

With England currently in lockdown, the Barbican announces a new programme of music and films On Demand, alongside fresh and existing digital content, inspired by the Barbican’s international arts programme. A curated mix of streams, podcasts, playlists, films, videos, talks and articles enables audiences to continue to enjoy the Centre’s rich and varied programme from home or on the go during its temporary closure and beyond.

Digital content is available via the Barbican’s website through Read, Watch & Listen, Cinema On Demand, Concerts On Demand, Live from the Barbican and its social media channels (Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | Spotify). In addition, podcasts can also be accessed by subscribing to the Nothing Concrete podcast via Acast, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

Highlights of the Barbican’s current and upcoming digital content include:

Concerts as part of the acclaimed Live from the Barbican series in 2020 are available via Concerts On Demand from 9 Feb until 24 Mar 2021. Included are performances from celebrated artists who reflect the wide spectrum of the Barbican’s distinct music offer:

Nubya Garcia, The Divine Comedy, Emmy the Great, Richard Dawson, SEED Ensemble, Ian Bostridge and Dame Sarah Connolly, Shabaka Hutchings, Barbican’s Associate Orchestra and Ensembles BBC Symphony Orchestra, Academy of Ancient Music and Britten Sinfonia

Also available On Demand are two seminal performances by the Barbican’s Resident Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra recorded at the Barbican in 2015 and 2017

An excerpt from the Olivier-Award nominated work, Blak Whyte Gray, performed by Barbican Artistic Associate Boy Blue and filmed at the Barbican Theatre, will feature in a three-part boxset Dancing Nation, available on BBC iPlayer and Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage until Fri 26 Feb 2021

Inspired – the Barbican’s Theatre and Dance in-conversation podcast series – returns, with the latest episode just released. This sees some of the amazing artists who work with us paired with Barbican young artists, sharing their personal stories about the influences that impact their work creatively

A full programme of exclusive films and ScreenTalks on Cinema On Demand including Martine Deyres’s 2019 documentary Our Lucky Hours in anticipation of the Barbican Art Gallery’s exhibition Jean Dubuffet: Brutal Beauty

As part of the Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning’s programme Subject to Change: New Horizons, interdisciplinary artist Mandisa Apena and Tice Cin have released: "cos now im missing our touchhh", a new musical score and video exploring the loss of nightclubs and queer nightlife in the UK due to the Covid-19 pandemic

The annual literary festival New Suns returns entirely online from Fri 5 – Sun 7 Mar 2021 for a weekend of talks, workshops and a film centred around feminist storytelling

The Barbican believes in creating space for people and ideas to connect through its international arts programme, community events and learning activity. To keep its programme accessible to everyone, and to keep investing in the artists it works with, the Barbican needs to raise more than 60% of its income through ticket sales, commercial activities and fundraising every year. Donations can be made here: barbican.org.uk/support-us

Full details of digital content below.

MUSIC

Barbican Concerts On Demand available from Tue 9 Feb until Wed 24 Mar 2021

A range of concerts that have already taken place as part of the Barbican’s successful autumn 2020 concert series Live from the Barbican have just been made available to re-watch on Concerts On Demand until 24 Mar 2021.

Live from the Barbican was first devised during the summer of 2020 when it became apparent that, due to the pandemic, the Centre’s music season could not go ahead as planned in the autumn. A new series was born which, for the first time, made Barbican concerts accessible online for a global digital audience through a livestream and, also, for a reduced, socially distanced live audience in the Barbican Hall. This hybrid experience, developed and delivered entirely in-house, has enabled the Barbican to bring music to its audiences during a difficult year, and, to also support artists and partner organisations during the pandemic. The Barbican is now pleased to be able to bring back a range of these autumn performances as part of the On Demand offer at a time when it had to postpone its planned Spring 2021 series of concerts.

Tickets are £12.50 for new bookers and half price for those who booked tickets to watch the concerts originally. Discounted tickets at £5 are available to 14–25-year-olds through the Young Barbican scheme. Once tickets are bought, audiences have 48 hours to watch the concert.

Please find a list of Live from the Barbican – Concerts On Demand on offer in date order below

The Divine Comedy: Live from the Barbican

Original performance date: 14 Oct 2020, Barbican Hall, 8pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Produced by the Barbican

Emmy the Great: Live from the Barbican

Original performance date: 17 Oct 2020, Barbican Hall, 8pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Produced by the Barbican

Richard Dawson: Live from the Barbican

Original performance date: 25 Oct 2020, Barbican Hall, 8pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Produced by the Barbican

Nubya Garcia: Live from the Barbican

Original performance date: 29 Oct 2020, Barbican Hall, 8pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Produced by the Barbican

Ian Bostridge / Dame Sarah Connolly

Mezzo-soprano Dame Sarah Connolly, tenor Ian Bostridge, piano Julius Drake, Carducci Quartet

Original performance date: 1 Nov 2020, Barbican Hall, 8pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Produced by the Barbican

BBC SO/Oramo: Live from the Barbican

Soprano Anu Komsi, conductor Sakari Oramo, BBC Symphony Orchestra,

Original performance date: Fri 6 Nov 2020, Barbican Hall, 8pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Anna Clyne: Within Her Arms

Haydn: Symphony No 49 La Passione

Magnus Lindberg: Accused (world premiere of chamber orchestra version)

Co-produced by the Barbican and BBC SO

SEED Ensemble and Special Guests Celebrating the music of Pharoah Sanders: Live from the Barbican

Part of EFG London Jazz Festival 2020

Original performance date: 14 Nov 2020, Barbican Hall, 8pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Co-produced by the Barbican and Serious in association with EFG London Jazz Festival

Shabaka Hutchings with Britten Sinfonia: Live from the Barbican

Part of EFG London Jazz Festival 2020

Original performance date: 18 Nov 2020, Barbican Hall, 8pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Copland Clarinet Concerto

Stravinsky Three Pieces for Solo Clarinet

Copland Appalachian Spring

Co-produced by the Barbican and Britten Sinfonia

The Cosmos with Professor Brian Cox & BBC SO

presenter Professor Brian Cox, conductor Dalia Stasevska, BBC Symphony Orchestra

Original performance date: 13 Dec 2020, Barbican Hall, 8pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Sibelius arr. Iain Farrington: Symphony No. 5 Mov. 3

Ives: The Unanswered Question

Mahler arr. Michelle Castelletti: Symphony No.10 Mov. 1

Co-produced by the Barbican and BBC SO

Handel’s Messiah - Academy of Ancient Music / Egarr

Original performance date: 19 Dec 2020, Barbican Hall, 7pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Co-produced by the Barbican and the Academy of Ancient Music

London Symphony Orchestra

Barbican audiences get the chance to re-watch two great concerts by its Resident Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra, as part of its On Demand programme, which will be available till 24 March 2021.

Michael Tilson Thomas 70th Birthday Gala

pianist Yuja Wang, conductor Michael Tilson Thomas, London Symphony Orchestra,

Original performance date: Thu 12 Mar 2015, Barbican Hall, 7.30pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Colin Matthews: Hidden Variables

Gershwin: Concerto in F

Shostakovich: Symphony No 5

The LSO’s Conductor Laureate and former Principal Guest Conductor Michael Tilson Thomas celebrated his 70th birthday at the Barbican in 2015 with a pair of concerts focusing on British and Russian music, but with a nod to his native USA. In both concerts he was joined by the pianist Yuja Wang in Gershwin’s popular Concerto in F.

This is Rattle

conductor Sir Simon Rattle, London Symphony Orchestra

Original performance date: Thu 21 Sep 2017, Barbican Hall, 7.30pm

On Demand Tickets £12.50

Stravinsky: The Firebird (original ballet)

Stravinsky: Petrushka (1947 version)

Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring

An authority on Stravinsky, Sir Simon Rattle continued the 2017/18 season opening ‘This is Rattle’ celebrations with three of the composer’s revolutionary ballets. Stravinsky sent shockwaves through classical music in the 20th century. His first three ballets – The Firebird, Petrushka and The Rite of Spring, all composed between 1911 and 1913 – brought a new and frenzied sense of rhythm, so distressing to audiences that it caused uproar; The Rite of Spring even caused a riot.

From Barbican partners

British baritone James Newby’s song recital as part of the ECHO Rising Stars Festival is now available to watch again for free via Read, Watch & Listen on the Barbican’s website. James Newby is the Barbican’s ECHO (European Concert Halls Organisation) nominee. The recital took place at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg on 28 January 2021.

The Guildhall School alumnus, ECHO Rising Star, BBC New Generation Artist, Kathleen Ferrier Award winner and member of the Hanover State Opera’s ensemble presents a selection of atmospheric Lieder by Clara and Robert Schumann. He is accompanied by pianist Marcelo Amaral. James Newby’s debut album with pianist Joseph Middleton I wonder as I wander came out in 2020.

James’s London ECHO recital was due to take place at Milton Court Concert Hall in January this year but had to be postponed due to the current lockdown restrictions.

CINEMA

In February Cinema On Demand brings together an exclusive programme of worldwide, bold, independent films for audiences to enjoy at home, while the venues remain closed.

Preceding the Barbican Art Gallery’s exhibition Jean Dubuffet: Brutal Beauty, Barbican Cinema On Demand will host an exclusive presentation of Martine Deyres’s 2019 documentary Our Lucky Hours (19 Feb – 31 Mar), including a live ScreenTalk between art historian Sarah Lombardi, director of the Collection de l’Art Brut, Lausanne and Ben Platts-Mills, who works with artists with disabilities in London and has supported the development of Hackney-based inclusive art studio, Submit To Love. The live ScreenTalk will take place on Thu 11 Mar at 7pm.

In this thought provoking documentary, photos, archival footage and sound recordings tell the story of a pioneering psychiatric institution in 1930s France. The asylum was radically re-thought, with doctors, patients and nurses working side by side to run the facility, with the support of the local community. Patients were respected and integrated and individually supported. They took up roles in the hospital kitchen and on local farms, they published a newspaper, and many pursued flourishing visual art practices.

During the Second World War, the asylum also sheltered refugees and Resistance fighters, among them such figures from the Parisian avant-garde as Paul Éluard, Tristan Tzara, Georges Sadoul and Georges Canguilhem. At the end of the war, another visitor was Jean Dubuffet, whose discovery there of the sculptures by patient and artist Auguste Forestier supported his elaboration of the notion of ‘Art Brut’.

Other exclusive highlights on Cinema On Demand during February include:

Cat in the Wall (Dirs Mina Mileva & Vesela Kazakova), set on a South London council estate – in which a Bulgarian family gets into conflict with their neighbours due to an abandoned cat – it’s a striking and provocative drama about the aftermath of the Brexit vote. Screening as part of the New East cinema programme, the film is followed by a recorded ScreenTalk with directors Mina Mileva and Vesela Kazakova.

Screening as part of Forbidden Colours – a Barbican Cinema strand celebrating queer films from places where LGBTQ+ people continue to face oppression – is Several Conversations about a Very Tall Girl (Dir Bogdan Theodor Olteanu), a sensitive Romanian romance in which two young women – one out and proud, the other less confident – begin a tentative affair.

Following on from its sold out screening in Cinema 1 in December, as part of Barbican

Cinema’s Emerging Film Curators’ programme, Reframing the Fat Body (Dirs various) makes its online debut. In this programme of shorts, writer and curator Grace Barber-Plentie celebrates the bigger body; here fat bodies are freed from the constraints put upon them by modern society and allowed to be fluid, free, sexy and radical. This programme features a recorded ScreenTalk with film curator Tara Brown and co-founder of The Fat Zine, Chloe Sheppard, hosted by Grace Barber-Plentie.

Also available are The Capote Tapes (Dir Ebs Burnough) which explores the social rise and fall of Truman Capote, the infamous American writer; Song Without a Name (Dir Melina Léon), which follows a woman’s journey to get her stolen baby back, taken from her just after child birth; and Shahrbanoo Sadat’s tender film The Orphanage, about a young boy in 1980s Afghanistan, who is sent to a Soviet orphanage and finds himself in a complex social hierarchy.

For families and younger audiences there’s Creepy Crawly Films for Families (Dirs various), a compilation of fun shorts celebrating all that’s creepy and crawly in the ground.

Cinema On Demand is available to audiences across the UK with a rolling four-week programme of titles and events that reflect the Barbican’s international cinema programme.

Barbican Cinema has been supported by the Culture Recovery Fund for Independent Cinemas in England which is administered by the BFI, as part of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s £1.57bn Culture Recovery Fund supporting arts and cultural organisations in England affected by the impact of COVID-19. #HereForCulture

THEATRE AND DANCE

Inspired Series 2

Inspired is the Barbican’s Theatre and Dance in-conversation podcast series in which some of the amazing artists who work with us share their personal stories about the influences that impact their work creatively. Part of the Barbican’s Nothing Concrete podcast, the first Inspired series was released weekly in September 2020. This new Inspired series, released weekly from the beginning of February, pairs Barbican young artists with those that inspire them.

In episode 1 interdisciplinary artist Riwa Saab talks to writer and director Kirsty Housley about her extensive career in theatre, the craft of dramaturgy and directing, and the political nature of her work.

In episode 2 Barbican Young Poet Amani Saeed talks to storyteller Amrou Al-Kadhi about gender identity and drag performance.

In episode 3 sound artist and composer Rebekah Alero talks to vocalist, movement artist and composer Elaine Mitchener about improvisation, contemporary music theatre and performance art.

In episode 4 author Rogan Graham talks to actress and writer Susan Wokoma about acting and activism.

In episode 5 multidisciplinary practitioner Gabriel Akamo, and writer and performer Jeremiah Brown talk to actor Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù about his career, heritage and legacy.

Blak Whyte Gray

Co-commissioned and co-produced by the Barbican, Blak Whyte Gray by Barbican Artistic Associate Boy Blue premiered at the Barbican in 2017 and was restaged here in 2018 due to demand. Created by co-artistic directors Kenrick ‘H2O’ Sandy and Michael ‘Mikey J’ Asante, an extract from the piece, Whyte, is available on BBC iPlayer and Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage until Fri 26 Feb 2021. This fierce, bold and galvanising dance work, set to a multilayered electronic score, reflects themes of identity, oppression and transcendence. The time is once again right to ask questions, to break free from a system that isn’t working, to emerge on the other side to an awakening – a return to roots, a celebration of culture.

CREATIVE LEARNING

Subject to Change: January 2021 commission

As part of Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning’s programme Subject to Change: New Horizons, interdisciplinary artists Mandisa Apena and Tice Cin have released: "cos now im missing our touchhh", a new musical score and video exploring the loss of nightclubs and queer nightlife in the UK due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The audio of Mandisa & Tice’s track uses ASMR sounds of their own breath and laughter to create the drumline, mixed together with a collage of video snippets of clubbing scenes and people dancing. The piece aims to illustrate how nightclubs can be a vital space for deep healing, the excitement of being openly queer and feeling united through digital spaces, mutual love and understanding. Through this work, Mandisa & Tice hope to show queer club culture during lockdown and chatroom bonding, celebrate togetherness through technology, as well as making note of the physical spaces that they miss so much, and the way lack of touch has affected them.

The Subject to Change: New Horizons programme commissions a different young creative, each month for a year, to produce new and powerful artistic work responding to the uncertain times in which we are living. Mandisa & Tice’s piece is the seventh in the series. New work will be shared every month on the Barbican’s website and social media channels until June 2021.

LEVEL G

Experience the 2021 programme of the New Suns Feminist Literature Festival from home

The annual literary festival New Suns returns for a weekend of talks, workshops and a film centred around feminist storytelling. The weekend will feature acclaimed writers, activists, artists, and academics including adrienne maree brown, Season Butler and Dorothea Lasky. This third edition of the festival, running from Friday 5 – Sunday 7 March 2021, will take place entirely online for the first time. New Suns is a co-production between the Barbican and independent publisher and curator Sarah Shin.

This year’s New Suns will look to the legacy of eminent science-fiction author Octavia Butler, to explore the power we have to both sustain and change the world around us, and how to commune with others. In particular, New Suns will reflect on Butler’s prophetic, unfinished Earthseed series, which imagines Earth in the 2020s ravaged by ecological disaster and violent divisions.

The festival will navigate the books’ central themes, such as the inevitability of change, community-building, examinations of race and gender, and humanity’s relationship to the cosmos. For the first time, there will be a limited edition New Suns anthology booklet to purchase which includes an extract from Octavia Butler’s book The Parable of the Sower; poetry by Dorothea Lasky and Daisy Lafarge; guides for self-reflection and meditation; as well as herbal recipes for strength and healing to enjoy this spring and beyond. The anthology is accompanied by thyme seeds and instructions on how to use the herb beyond the culinary.

[aliceviceroy]

“New black atheists are not content to personally reject religion but instead have a goal of spreading freethought to the broader black community. For example, the author Sikivu Hutchinson and the founder of Black Nonbelievers, Mandisa Thomas, argue that religion hurts the black community by promoting sexism, patriarchy and homophobia. They claim that black churches have failed to address drug addiction, housing inequities, health disparities, lack of employment opportunities and other pressing social problems facing black Americans. Rather than adopting religious solutions such as abstinence-only education to a problem such as teenage pregnancies, black atheists call for more sex education and access to birth control.”