Pushcart Prize Nominee: Jayy Dodd

Jayy Dodd wraps up our nominees from the annual essay series. Their work, "The Impossible Outside (Or, A Zumbi's Autopsy)" is a smart discussion of the experience of the Black body—"fashioned out of a colonial mutilation of humanity", where is it safe?, the criminality of Black joy, Zumbi as a metaphor.

This essay seems especially relevant considering events from this year both before and after the election. We are thankful for the opportunity to share Jayy's work!

Consider: Barak Obama’s presidency as anchor for the post-racial America myth. His occupation came with a lineage of terror against Black folks, here & abroad. Still, he presented a possibility. His subjugation was used as a way to placate Black dissent, to have Black folks invested & sedated. In these final days of his term, the political landscape has become avirulent backlash of all the “work” his election was to represent. Still, his presidency offered a never before seen joy & is critical to trajectories of race in this country.
— Jayy Dodd from THE IMPOSSIBLE OUTSIDE (OR, A ZUMBI’S AUTOPSY)
Been feeling antagonistically Black as of late. Feeling like each time I share a joy it is so susceptible to critique I arm the celebration tone of unsolicited defensiveness. My joy speaks with a switchblade tongue. Sure, there is an air of paranoia, why would my expression garner such response? Consider how Black joy is criminalized.
— Jayy Dodd from THE IMPOSSIBLE OUTSIDE (OR, A ZUMBI’S AUTOPSY)

To read the essay in full, go here.