Michelle A. Chikaonda
@machikaonda.bsky.social
Writer | Passport stamp collector | UEA MA '23 | Deborah Rogers Award Shortlist '23 | Toyin Falola Prize Longlist '20 | Al Jazeera, Business Insider, Catapult, Electric Literature + | Tin House, VONA, VQR + | More: www.michellechikaonda.work
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Postcolonialities: A Troubled View from the South
A masters degree course presentation for the University of East Anglia’s School of Literature, Drama and Creative Writing, delivered March…
machikaonda-work.medium.com
"...[T]here is no such thing as being external to the legacy of colonial empire. We all interface with this reality, and we are all interfaces of this reality."
Things I've been thinking about again with everything going on in the world this year:
machikaonda-work.medium.com/postcolonial...
Things I've been thinking about again with everything going on in the world this year:
machikaonda-work.medium.com/postcolonial...
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
I think the shortest version of why LLMs are an anti education technology is that education is fundamentally about making shared context to understand ourselves, each other, and the world
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
November 23, 2025 at 12:57 PM
I think the shortest version of why LLMs are an anti education technology is that education is fundamentally about making shared context to understand ourselves, each other, and the world
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
I really need to practice saying “what a weird, rude thing to say” to the people who say weird, rude things to me
November 24, 2025 at 2:07 AM
I really need to practice saying “what a weird, rude thing to say” to the people who say weird, rude things to me
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
"I KNOW a man that needs control top socks is not calling ME piggy. You look like your house got blown down by the wolf first. Running the country in the ground wit fresh dick on ya breathe. Eat glass."
Lissen, as a mouthy Black woman journalist, I would have lost my job and ended up in Taliban jail if the POTUS called me “piggy.”
open.substack.com/pub/drstacey...
open.substack.com/pub/drstacey...
“WHO YOU CALLIN’ PIGGY?” The Clapback That Would’ve Gotten Me Fired From Journalism Til Jesus Comes
This Substack is reader-supported.
open.substack.com
November 21, 2025 at 12:06 AM
"I KNOW a man that needs control top socks is not calling ME piggy. You look like your house got blown down by the wolf first. Running the country in the ground wit fresh dick on ya breathe. Eat glass."
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
download our app to buy coffee! get your coffee by simply entering your email! coffee is just one password containing a number, letter, and special character away! hey. fuck you
November 19, 2025 at 2:45 PM
download our app to buy coffee! get your coffee by simply entering your email! coffee is just one password containing a number, letter, and special character away! hey. fuck you
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
Amazing day to be a political writer without steady income.
November 18, 2025 at 2:13 AM
Amazing day to be a political writer without steady income.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
(spending 9 billion dollars to make a robot say "i have always loved you") hard times create strong men
November 16, 2025 at 9:35 PM
(spending 9 billion dollars to make a robot say "i have always loved you") hard times create strong men
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
Great week for people who are like once I saw a black person, therefore it’s time for martial law
August 12, 2025 at 12:34 PM
Great week for people who are like once I saw a black person, therefore it’s time for martial law
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
Look up the bombing of a Philadelphia block in 1985.
Resist. Will the military fire on its own people?
DC is the testing ground. Dont get it twisted.
August 11, 2025 at 5:49 PM
Look up the bombing of a Philadelphia block in 1985.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
On top of everything else, I gotta deal with y’all solemnly saying “the cruelty is the point” over and over and over again. Like, girl, WE KNOW. Shut up.
August 11, 2025 at 5:23 PM
On top of everything else, I gotta deal with y’all solemnly saying “the cruelty is the point” over and over and over again. Like, girl, WE KNOW. Shut up.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
Your "dumb little projects" are so important during this harrowing time. Don't forget that. Your creativity has value, for yourself and for the world.
April 15, 2025 at 11:09 AM
Your "dumb little projects" are so important during this harrowing time. Don't forget that. Your creativity has value, for yourself and for the world.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
When American citizens have to worry about returning to their own country from travel abroad, you ain’t living in a free republic.
April 16, 2025 at 12:04 PM
When American citizens have to worry about returning to their own country from travel abroad, you ain’t living in a free republic.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
I hope all of you are finding work to do in this time that feels meaningful, fills you with awe, gives you a chance to be a part of something greater than yourself.
April 16, 2025 at 12:46 AM
I hope all of you are finding work to do in this time that feels meaningful, fills you with awe, gives you a chance to be a part of something greater than yourself.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
I see it. I have lived it. 83 years ago, the U.S. government turned upon a group of its own citizens and residents and sent them to internment camps without due process. I was there among them. American fascism is back. It is here. It is now.
April 15, 2025 at 8:30 PM
I see it. I have lived it. 83 years ago, the U.S. government turned upon a group of its own citizens and residents and sent them to internment camps without due process. I was there among them. American fascism is back. It is here. It is now.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
Don’t shame people for not immediately reading all the books they buy. Some books aren’t made to be ready right away, okay? Some books need time to mature. Some books need to cure for a while. Some books are prosciutto, and don’t you forget it.
April 16, 2025 at 2:30 PM
Don’t shame people for not immediately reading all the books they buy. Some books aren’t made to be ready right away, okay? Some books need time to mature. Some books need to cure for a while. Some books are prosciutto, and don’t you forget it.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
What it feels like to be writing a novel on deadline right now
a man in a suit is playing a violin while another man plays a double bass
Alt: a man in a suit is playing a violin while another man plays a double bass *ON THE TITANIC AS IT SINKS (fixed this caption)
media.tenor.com
April 16, 2025 at 3:13 PM
What it feels like to be writing a novel on deadline right now
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
For the record, I’m always being nice when I say “we” in the political context. This is mostly a “yall” problem. I’m clear on that.
April 16, 2025 at 2:13 PM
For the record, I’m always being nice when I say “we” in the political context. This is mostly a “yall” problem. I’m clear on that.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
Can we stop calling these atrocities "deportations." These people sold to El Salvadorian prisons were not deported. Deportation is a process that did not take place. They were rounded up and removed with no process. They were kidnapped, not deported.
April 7, 2025 at 11:21 PM
Can we stop calling these atrocities "deportations." These people sold to El Salvadorian prisons were not deported. Deportation is a process that did not take place. They were rounded up and removed with no process. They were kidnapped, not deported.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
Revised National Parks Webpage Describes Harriet Tubman As Human Trafficker
Revised National Parks Webpage Describes Harriet Tubman As Human Trafficker
WASHINGTON—As the Trump administration continues to alter the version of American history that appears in government publications, sources confirmed Monday that a page on the National Parks website ha...
theonion.com
April 7, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Revised National Parks Webpage Describes Harriet Tubman As Human Trafficker
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
It's come to my attention that some people believe you can't buy a new book until you've read the books you already have. Let me assure you, as both a lawyer and a writer, that this idea is legally and morally WRONG and BAD. Buy more books.
March 18, 2025 at 2:12 PM
It's come to my attention that some people believe you can't buy a new book until you've read the books you already have. Let me assure you, as both a lawyer and a writer, that this idea is legally and morally WRONG and BAD. Buy more books.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
Many want to be comforted and entertained by black people, but do not respect us or think we are worthy of leading or even being treated as valuable peers. And that's where a disconnect occurs. Because what reason do I have to comfort someone who essentially views me--a fellow human being--as a pet?
March 18, 2025 at 2:24 PM
Many want to be comforted and entertained by black people, but do not respect us or think we are worthy of leading or even being treated as valuable peers. And that's where a disconnect occurs. Because what reason do I have to comfort someone who essentially views me--a fellow human being--as a pet?
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
This.
I strongly believe that part of the way out of this, if any, will involve tiny refusals in small spaces.
March 18, 2025 at 2:39 PM
This.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
I've been putting on makeup and getting dressed even though I am vibrating with anxiety and I don't really go anywhere since I work from home. But I like to look in the mirror and say to myself "hey, how you doing?" like Joey Tribbiani. It makes me feel better.
March 18, 2025 at 2:30 PM
I've been putting on makeup and getting dressed even though I am vibrating with anxiety and I don't really go anywhere since I work from home. But I like to look in the mirror and say to myself "hey, how you doing?" like Joey Tribbiani. It makes me feel better.
Reposted by Michelle A. Chikaonda
re the previous repost: if they can disappear permanent residents they can disappear citizens
March 9, 2025 at 10:25 PM
re the previous repost: if they can disappear permanent residents they can disappear citizens