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Illustration by Hannah Kaplan for Broad Street Review.

Are authors bound to write only within their own identities?

Rendering lives that aren’t yours

Writer Anndee Hochman—a queer Jewish white woman, the descendant of immigrants—grapples with which stories are really hers to tell.

Anndee Hochmanand Illustration by Hannah Kaplan

Mar 24, 2020 Essays 5 minute read

Loving the shiny costume: Melissa Strong (second from the right) at her first dance recital, in 1981. (Image courtesy of the author.)

One dance critic answers the eternal question: Are you a dancer?

So you think you can write about dance?

Does a dance critic need to be a dancer? Dance writer Melissa Strong has spent years answering that question for herself.

Melissa Strong

Mar 23, 2020 Essays 4 minute read

How about not? (Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash.)

Thank you for not hugging me— now or ever

No contact before it was cool

Everybody loves a hug! It's good for you! No so fast. Some folks, like Roz Warren, have been dodging hugs since long before it was the health directive du jour.

Roz Warren

Mar 17, 2020 Essays 3 minute read

What are you afraid of? Has it changed in recent days? (Photo by Sasha Hochman.)

Here’s what happened in my 2nd-grade classroom as COVID-19 became a pandemic

Poetry in the time of coronavirus

“We’re not closing,” a local K-5 principal told teaching writer-in-residence Anndee Hochman. But things changed more quickly than anyone could believe.

Anndee Hochman

Mar 17, 2020 Essays 5 minute read

Home is a normal, cozy place for us to be: writer Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer and her son George. (Image courtesy of the author.)

Here’s what family life with disabilities taught me about social distancing

Montgomery County parents calling shutdowns because of COVID-19 "hype" may not realize that fellow parent Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer is at special risk because she's living with Type 1 diabetes. She's also protecting a family member on the autism spectrum.

Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer

Mar 17, 2020 Essays 5 minute read

Who are we erasing when we focus only on famous women? (Illustration by Hannah Kaplan, for Broad Street Review.)

What happens when we appreciate women without valuing them?

Well-behaved women in the real world

We often spend Women’s History Month focusing on famous figures—but what could a more collective way of thinking bring to our sense of the value of women who aren’t making history, but who are making our society? Michelle Nugent considers.

Michelle Nugentand Illustration by Hannah Kaplan

Mar 15, 2020 Essays 5 minute read

Dreams of riding the train—for free. (Illustration by Hannah Kaplan for Broad Street Review.)

The life-changing magic of enjoying a free ride

Yippee! I'm old

Roz Warren just turned 65, and she’s thrilled. Here’s one reason why.

Roz Warrenand Illustration by Hannah Kaplan

Feb 18, 2020 Essays 2 minute read

How being both Black and white helped me embrace all aspects of myself

Loving my biracial identity

Daralyse Lyons grew up in a place with no flexibility for racial identity, but appreciating the duality of her own background opened the door for other kinds of radical acceptance in life and love.

Daralyse Lyons

Feb 11, 2020 Essays 4 minute read

Need advice from Cupid? Dana Suleymanova had plenty in her ‘Dear qupid’ at the 2019 Fringe. (Photo by Alaina Johns.)

A queer girl’s guide to love…for everyone

Five tips in time for V-day

For most of her life, Michelle Nugent was still in the closet, and dated accordingly. But exploring romance in the queer community brought her new perspectives on finding love (or being happy solo) that apply to people of all orientations.

Michelle Nugent

Feb 11, 2020 Essays 5 minute read

Better than alright. (Photo courtesy of the author.)

This Black History Month, I’m just saying it: I deserve to feel love and happiness

I’m alright

February is a good time to say it: we’re smart and assertive. We’re complete in our own selves. We’re striving for what we want. Andrea Smith stays honest.

Andrea Smith