Gina Murrell
LightNews LightNews
banner
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Gina Murrell
@ginamurrell1.bsky.social
5K followers 400 following 2.8K posts
Librarian. Copy Editor. Writer. Zine and Graphic Novel Enthusiast. View-Master Reel Collector. Burrito Eater. Reader. Bi. Femme. She/her. All Black Lives Matter✊🏾🌈
Posts Replies Media Videos
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
OK, but this looks like my Bowie 😆😭

Fun fact: Bowie likes to stand at my bookcase like he’s trying to decide which book to read. One of these days, I’ll be quick enough to snap a pic of him doing this lol 📚🐈‍⬛🐈‍⬛ #cats #BlackCats #CatSky #CatsOfBluesky #IggyAndBowie
A big fluffy black cat curled up on an orange and green fleece hoodie on a caramel-colored faux leather sofa. With bright yellow eyes, the cat, named Bowie, is looking at the camera.
November 11, 2025 at 3:41 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
My fave work in the exhibit: “Three Figures,” 2014, which incorporates the famous May 4, 1963, news photo of three Black teen schoolchildren holding hands to stay together while being blasted by high-powered fire hoses during an anti-segregation children’s march in Alabama. Powerful. #art #Blackart
Lorna Simpson artwork “Three Figures,” 2014, ink and screenprint on 12 Claybord panels. The artwork is black and white, same as the image it incorporates: a black and white photograph of three teen schoolchildren holding hands while being sprayed with high-power fire hoses amid a Civil Rights demonstration in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1963.
November 11, 2025 at 3:15 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
“Lorna Simpson: Source Notes” has over 30 works, many being a blend of painting and collage that made me think of Romare Bearden-meets-Andy Warhol, though Simpson’s aesthetic is uniquely her own. The “source notes” are “found images” from vintage Ebony and Jet magazines that were her grandmother’s.
Entrance to “Lorna Simpson: Source Notes” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Nov 10, 2025.
November 11, 2025 at 2:58 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Taking today off, I went to the Met Museum to see “Lorna Simpson: Source Notes.” After hearing the artist speak last month, I eagerly returned to check out the exhibit, which closes Nov 30. With a Culture Pass reservation made through my public library, I enjoyed free admission. #art #BlackArt #NYC
Entrance to the exhibition “Lorna Simpson: Source Notes” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Nov 10, 2025.
November 11, 2025 at 2:49 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
TODAY! Lavender Literary Society: "Gender Queer: A Memoir" with Maia Kobabe and Mey Rude in conversation about Kobabe’s “groundbreaking and widely challenged graphic memoir.” Virtual, starting at 6:30PM EST. RSVP: www.eventbrite.com/e/october-la... #books #memoir #GraphicNovel #LGBTQ #LGBTQIA
Color headshots of (left to right) Maia Kobabe and Mey Rude against a blue background. An illustration of a brown person holding a book is on the lower left. Text says: Lavender Literary Society. The American LGBTQ+ Museum.”
November 10, 2025 at 3:53 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
The second, and final, day of the virtual #ZLuC25 was today. My favorite session I attended today was lightning talks that included Palestinian zine makers who use #zines to talk about what's going on in Gaza. The session's focus was using "zines to bring people together and enact change." #activism
Screenshot, taken during a #ZLuC25 session via Zoom, of "Someone's Daughter: Lives on the Shore Series: Part One," a zine by Ahmad M. Elkhuwaja. Next to an image of the zine (on which I blurred out the names of attendees who reacted via applause emoticons) is a pull quote by Ahmad from "Someone's Daughter": "When you wake, let your hand rest over your heart, feel it whisper back to you. That sound is your first home."
November 10, 2025 at 1:53 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Seeing "Butch Cassidy" on the big screen, I noticed nuances (in facial expressions, etc.) and other tiny details for the first time. And there were bits I hadn't remembered at all (it's been a while since I saw it). Today's showing was part of MoMI's tribute to Robert Redford (R.I.P.). #movies #60s
November 9, 2025 at 9:46 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
On this rainy Sunday, I returned to the Museum of the Moving Image for an early afternoon screening of “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” (1969). Though I’ve seen it a number of times on the small screen, today was my first time seeing it in a theater. movingimage.org/event/butch-... #movies #60s
Inside a dimly lit blue-and-aqua screening room at Museum of the Moving Image, my left hand holds my ticket for today’s 1PM show of “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.” Nov 9, 2025.
November 9, 2025 at 9:33 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Love that Secret Riso Club, which I visited in #Brooklyn over the summer, made limited-edition prints of the Nov 5 New York Post cover of Zohran Mamdani's head on a red figure raising a hammer and sickle (on brand for the Post), with profits from the prints going to #MutualAid. #activism #DIY #NYC
From @secret_riso_club's IG Stories, a color photo of someone holding a a print of the New York Post cover featuring Zohran Mamdami's head on a figure raising a hammer and sickle. The headline: "The Red Apple." The sub-headline: "On your Marx, get set, Zo! Socialist Mamdami wins race for mayor."
November 8, 2025 at 8:28 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
TODAY in #Oakland: FREE groceries ("No SNAP-No Problem") at Freedom Farmers' Market, a Black farmers' market in my former neighborhood, North Oakland/Temescal. Fresh produce, live music and community at 4521 Telegraph Ave, 10AM-1PM. www.farmstogrow.org/freedomfarme... #MutualAid #BayArea #California
Screenshot of a Nov 7, 2025, Instagram post by @farmstogrow: "Freedom Farmers' Market - FREE GROCERIES - No SNAP - No Problem - LIVE MUSIC & Community - Sat, Nov 8th, 10 - 1 pm - 4521 Telegraph Ave, Oakland. FRESH NON GMO, PESTICIDE FREE PRODUCE." The visuals are two color photos: top photo are predominantly Black shoppers at an outdoor farmers' market; bottom photo is an arrangement of fresh produce.
November 8, 2025 at 2:52 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Happy #Caturday from this cuddly cozy pair! Bowie sometimes doesn’t tolerate being the “little spoon,” but this time he’s OK with it. Iggy, the “big spoon,” looks back at the camera. ❤️🐈‍⬛🐈‍⬛ #cats #BlackCats #CatSky #CatsOfBluesky #IggyAndBowie
Two fluffy black cats cuddling, big spoon/little spoon style, on top of a cream colored fleece pet blanket on a sofa.
November 8, 2025 at 2:27 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Always weird to be alone in a #NYC subway car during rush hour. 😬 I don’t advise being alone in a subway car (admittedly my mindset on navigating New York public transit is largely stuck in ‘the 90s), but I was getting out at the next stop and it ended up being fine. #transportation #PublicTransport
Interior view of an empty subway car on the 3 line of the NYC MTA subway system.
November 6, 2025 at 6:28 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
THURS Nov 6 @ 6:30PM: "MARSHA: The Joy and Defiance of Marsha P. Johnson." Tourmaline, author of "the first definitive biography of the Black trans activist and icon," will chat with C. Riley Snorton at Barnard College. FREE! bcrw.barnard.edu/event/marsha... #activism #QueerHistory #LGBTQIA #NYC
Color image of Marsha P. Johnson, smiling with red lipstick and flowers in her hair.
November 6, 2025 at 2:00 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Awwright, New York! #MayorMamdani #ZohranMamdani #NYC
November 5, 2025 at 2:46 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Not subtle at all 😂🐈‍⬛🐈‍⬛

#CatSky #IggyAndBowie
A light turquoise slow-feeder cat dish pushed far beyond the kitchen, past the welcome mat at the front door. The dish contains roughly four bits of kibble. Nov 4, 2025.
November 5, 2025 at 1:58 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
THURS, Nov 6 @ The Cooper Union: Public Art Fund Talks: Torkwase Dyson and Daphne A. Brooks. "Artist Torkwase Dyson and scholar Daphne A. Brooks discuss 'Akua,' the artist’s first public project in New York City." 6:30PM. FREE! cooper.edu/events-and-e... #BlackWomen #BlackArtists #PublicArt #NYC
Graphic for the Thursday, Nov 6, 2025, event at the Cooper Union: "Talks: Torkwase Dyson and Daphne A. Brooks," featuring an outdoor art piece, Akua, in a Brooklyn Bridge Park and an inset of a black-and-white photo of the artist, Torkwase Dyson, standing with her arms crossed.
November 5, 2025 at 1:49 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Someone left a bunch of “Zohran Mamdani Democrat for Mayor” door handle flyers on a fence. I took one. If his canvassers were out, I was hoping for a Zohran poster or button (both sought after), but I guess this is the next best thing. Saw A LOT of people going to vote in #Queens this morning. #NYC
Door handle flyer promoting “Zohran Mamdani - Democrat for Mayor.”
November 4, 2025 at 7:10 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Walking to the train this morning, I was hoping to see canvassers for Zohran and saw none. (Maybe they figured he’s got it in the bag.) Instead, I saw sidewalk messages drawn in chalk, saying: “Vote Zohran Mamdani for a City We Can Afford.” #voting #ElectionDay #ZohranMamdani #NYC
City sidewalk on which a message is drawn in multicolored pastel chalk. The message: Last Chance. Vote Zohran Mamdani for a City We Can Afford. Polls Open Til 9PM.” The morning sun is bright, casting my silhouette (with tote bag and holding my phone high to take the pic of the sidewalk message). Nov 4, 2025.
November 4, 2025 at 7:02 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
Color photo of a spinach croissant—more accurately spinach and feta filling in a puff pastry with lattice design on top. The pastry is golden brown, and the entire thing was quite delicious. Nov 4, 2025.
November 4, 2025 at 6:52 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
November 3, 2025 at 9:03 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
If you have library access to Kanopy, you can watch at home the Sanchez #documentary "BaddDDD Sonia Sanchez," showing at BLP on Nov 16. But know that Talib Kweli, who's engaged in years-long online harassment of Black women, is featured throughout the doc. www.bklynlibrary.org/calendar/lit... #NYC
A color photo of Sonia Sanchez, draped in a purple wrap over a black top, holds a microphone will looking outward.
November 3, 2025 at 5:33 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
IN-PERSON Nov 11: Raoul Peck, in a talkback conversation for LitFilm 2025 keynote film "Orwell: 2+2=5." FREE to attend, but reservation required. Location: Brooklyn Public Library-Central Library, 10 Grand Army Plaza. Dweck Center, 6:30PM. www.bklynlibrary.org/calendar/lit... #movies #libraries #NYC
Black and white photo of George Orwell, sitting at a typewriter with cigarette in his mouth next to a color photograph of director Raoul Peck, resting his chin on his right hand.
November 3, 2025 at 5:26 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
LitFilm 2025: A BPL Film Festival About Writers, Nov 10-16. FREE showings (RSVP required) of documentary films on literary figures, incl Edna O’Brien, Sonia Sanchez and Mario Vargas Llosa. Where: Brooklyn Public Library-Central Library, Dweck Center. www.bklynlibrary.org/event-series... #movies #NYC
Screenshot, from https://www.bklynlibrary.org/, of three author portraits highlighted in green, red, and blue (left to right): Edna O’Brien, Sonia Sanchez, and Mario Vargas Llosa.
November 3, 2025 at 5:18 PM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
This little girl steals the show. The director shoots her so lovingly, I thought: “He MUST have a daughter.” Turns out, she’s Burnett’s real-life daughter, Angela. Killer of Sheep features naturalistic performances and is unforgettable. Music by Dinah Washington, Elmore James, and more. #movies #70s
A little Black girl wearing a rubber mask in the shape of a drooping dog’s head in the film Killer of Sheep.
November 3, 2025 at 3:09 AM
ginamurrell1.bsky.social
The worlds of the adults and children are often separate, but sometimes overlap, such as when a boy is chastised for not protecting his baby brother or a daughter is comforting her father. CW: Some scenes do take place in an actual slaughterhouse, where sheep are killed and sliced open. #movies #70s
A shirtless Stan (Henry G. Sanders) and his wife (Kaycee Moore) slow-dance in front of a window in their living room in the film Killer of Sheep.
November 3, 2025 at 2:59 AM