By Red Sagalow

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Ruth Bader Ginsburg #RBG (March 15, 1933-September 18, 2020)

Rest well. Thank you for all you have done. 

By Alex Carrigan

 Carlos Alazraqui has probably one of the most colorful careers in entertainment. Over the last few decades, he has played everything from a fast food mascot to a spider monkey at summer camp to a wallaby trying to make it in his 20's. If you can think of an animated series or movie, Alazraqui has likely lent his unique voice style to the work, having appeared in hundreds of projects over the last thirty years or so.

By Christine Sloan Stoddard

Quail Bell Magazine founder Christine Sloan Stoddard reads her poem "Doña Azucena," one of two pieces she has appearing in the forthcoming Written in Arlington anthology edited by Katherine E. Young.

By Gretchen Gales

The Americans with Disabilities Act, or the ADA, celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. While it is a significant landmark in disability rights, it only goes so far for the disabled community. If you're one of many people going undiagnosed, it can't protect you at all. 
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I didn’t know I qualified for protections under the ADA until I was finally diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome at the age of 22. Sure, I had pediatric records indicating I was diagnosed with a tic disorder and “OCD traits” at eight years-old, but my neurologist was focused strictly on eliminating tics and the anxiety that caused them. He never offered resources or ways to cope with them on my own. For four years, my treatment only targeted eliminating bothersome symptoms so that I could appear more “normal” during my daily activities. This was ultimately a reflection on how I learned to live in a society as a disabled person: don’t tell anyone about your disability at all costs, or be treated as subhuman.
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By Melissa Schack

GOODW.Y.N is a poet, author, podcaster, and performance artist based in New York. Her book, Warcries, is a collection of poems that will celebrate its 4th anniversary this year. She’s keeping busy with a podcast coming out this summer and a collection of poems that she shares a glimpse. You can catch up with her on Twitter and Facebook, or catch a reading with her on Instagram.
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By Christine Sloan Stoddard

Guess who just got her author copies of Heaven Is a Photograph?! Yes, THIS curly girl! This collection of poems and photographs is all about a young artist's journey with photography. At first hesitant—even timid—she becomes increasingly bolder in her love affair with the lens.
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I recorded a reading of a poem from the book and am happy to share it with you:

Order your copy of the book here.

By Ghia Vitale

Jacob Moses is a poetry wizard and spoken word artist from Staten Island, NY. Seance provides such an intimate glimpse into his mind, spirituality, and personal background, reading it feels as though you’re learning someone’s sacred secrets. It’s a psychology assessment, grimoire, and personal diary all at once.

By The Editors

Disnie Sebastien is an artist from the beautiful island of Dominica in the Eastern Caribbean, now based in New York City. A Jane of all trades, she dabbles in many aspects of art, from acting and directing to video editing and house managing. Disnie has a B.F.A in Multimedia Performing Arts from Lehman College-CUNY in the Bronx. She has been fortunate to work with influential people in the entertainment industry, such as Trezana Beverly, Tony Award-winner, and George Lefferts, an executive producer for NBC & ABC. Recent credits include Google, Condé Nast, and Urban Stages’ Tourist Traps Theater festival. She hopes to continue to excel in her craft and touch lives through her artistry.

We asked Disnie, who stars in our poetry film "Butterflies" (and has appeared in a few other Quail Bell video projects!), some questions about what it's like to be a NYC artist for stage and screen, before and during the pandemic. Here's what she had to say:

By Gretchen Gales

A quick poetry reading from Quail Bell Magazine's new anthology, Her Plumage.

By Alex Carrigan

​There are many roles women are expected to fulfill in their lives, whether it's being a good wife, a loving mother, a hard worker, etc. But what's really upsetting is how much of it comes from relinquishing control over their role to others. Whether it's having to listen to older women for advice on marital roles, or putting faith in doctors in regards to bodily autonomy, it's shocking how much women must fit into a box, but also how much responsibility they are left to bear if they fail to live up to expectations.