Ebony Tomatoes Collective is a literary and arts magazine for personal and political liberation—by a Black, intersectional collective.
Featured Writing
Fresh new pieces, hand-picked by our editors
The Village
A Conversation with Saffy Osei on “Deeper: A Collection of Offerings”
I wanted to craft it in a way to tell the story of who I am. I have always considered myself to be a writer…Having a pre-med/public health background, [I wondered] “How can I take a step back from the science side and be more intentional with the human side?” That’s when I started to write more personal essays. That’s how this memoir began.
By Sophie Koutsoftas
The Village
Meet Pucker Up! The punk band for bad bitches
When Pucker Up! was still in the works, Shug and Demi—the band’s lead singer and bassist respectively—sipped on drinks at The Bog, a beloved local bar in their hometown, Scranton, Pennsylvania. A man approached them soon after sitting down.
By Ava Pauline Emilione
The Self
You and I in Technicolor
They tell me in the moving pictures
that boys like you need girls like me
to grow them up into men who save people;
to grow them up into men who love people.
By Cadence Beck
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Against the Tide
Against the Tide: Community Care in the Collapse of Empire is a testament to the power of grassroots organizing and resistance. Featuring essays and interviews with U.S.-based activists in the wake of the 2024 election, Against the Tide is a freedom cry and a call to action. Our editors went to The Free Black Women’s Library in Bed-Stuy, to enviornmental land trusts in New Mexico, to raves led by Black queer DJs, to non-profits in Texas, and beyond to connect with community leaders building a liberated future. Our 23rd issue reveals that oppression is not the end of our stories. With imagination and action, it is only the beginning.
The Village
The stories across the Black Diaspora
lovely specimen
The SelfLovely SpecimenBy Ava Emilione Issue 17 Photo by Zelle Westfall every hand that touches my hair doesn’t love me most of the time, they’re just fascinated. this is what i learn the summer before i turn 17 when the jersey heat made my head expand like discount...
Beauty Is A Burden
The SelfBeauty Is A BurdenBy Angel Oduko Issue 18 Artist's Statement: This piece is a love letter to myself, a starting point for self-discovery, self-acceptance, and transformation. Over the past year, I have looked at fear in the face, acknowledging the place it...
ROLL CREDITS
The LoversRoll CreditsBy Leslie Vargas Issue 17 Lyrics: Break when the day's full of light But it makes me feel better, when the windows are bright And hey, I know that it's cold, but it makes me feel better when I do it alone The better days ahead, only better when...
Love Letter to Saffy
The SelfLove Letter to SaffyBy Saffy Issue 18 Saffy Dear saffy, Have I told you how much I love you lately? The way you show up to the best of your ability. The way you’ve learned to handle conflict. The way you speak up for yourself. The way you love fiercely. The...
Flight
The SelfFlightBy Cecilia Innis Issue 17 I used to believe that the North American viceroy butterfly was a batesian mimic of the monarch butterfly, which is to say that it evolved to copy the monarch’s warning signals in order to deter its bird predators In order to...
The Triangle Hair Debacle
The SelfThe Triangle Hair DebacleBy Defne Egbo Issue 17 Startled by the sharp shriek of my younger sister, I jumped out of the shower and ran out, still soapy and dripping in my bright pink towel. In the upstairs family room, I witnessed my then nine-year-old sister...
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