Afrostetrics

Content warning : This article discusses reproductive coercion, sexual assault, nonconsensual condom removal, forced pregnancy and abortion, miscarriage, physical violence, and sexually transmitted infections.  Today, I will be sharing my dear friend's story with her permission. To conceal her identity, I will refer to her as M. M was a freshman in college who saw college as an opportunity to explore her identity and sexuality after growing up in a heavily religious household. She was cautious about her sexual health and clearly told a man she met that they would not have sex together unless he used a condom. Although he initially agreed, he later removed the condom without her knowledge or consent and continued having sex after she told him he was hurting her. Bleeding and overwhelmed by feelings of disgust, emptiness, and betrayal, M went to the ER for testing, emergency pregnancy prevention, and treatment for her injuries. She later had an IUD inserted because it was the only th...

  Content warning: This article discusses femicide, intimate partner violence, and violence against women. Most people would probably be spending their evening relaxing at home, watching television or scrolling through their phones from the comfort of their beds. On the evening of June 29, 2022, Azsia Johnson was doing something completely ordinary: taking a walk with her infant child. That simple moment became the last walk of her life before she was killed, leaving her family and children behind. Azsia was an aspiring pediatric nurse and a mother of two children. She was tragically killed by her former partner, Isaac Argro, in what prosecutors described as a deliberate act of violence. According to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office (2022), Argro arranged to meet Azsia under the claim that he would provide items for their infant daughter. After arriving without the promised items, he allegedly shot Azsia in the head before fleeing the scene. At the time of her death, Azsia ...