traveling assaults:
c.r. glasgow (doc/she/we) is a non-binary, queer, first-generation Afro-Caribbean-American. c’s work has been supported by fellowships and workshops through Jack Straw, Hugo House, Wild Seeds, VONA (2021 Haitian Heritage Scholarship), Hurston/Wright, and The Watering Hole. c’s work has appeared or forthcoming in the Arrow Journal, Killen’s Review, Jack Straw Anthology, and Black Lawrence Press. c has also had several live performances including Brooklyn Yawp, LitCrawl Seattle, and Seattle Public Library.
By c.r. glasgow
none of the above.
pat down please.
female assist!
the AIT only gets looked through
as i track the day pack to the end of the steel lane
is this yours?
i nod, hugging the wall of the x-ray machine as two male tsa agents look at me. i wait. and i wait.
excuse me?
yea?
is there a problem?
we’re waiting for a female assist.
female assist!
can i ask you something?
yea.
is this pat down a procedure?
yes.
do you know the procedure?
yes.
oh good, then i consent to you doing the pat down procedure then. i have a plane to catch.
they froze and their eyes rolled to respective corners. the bottom lip of one slid with a tremor to the side and hovered over the walkie talkie on his shoulder...
female assist!
i supposed 1 of 3 things:
1) my consent doesn’t matter
2) they were disgusted by the androgyny of my junk
3) they were repulsed by this Blackness
but, that’s my voice. a female finally arrived & i chose a public display so all could
witness the humiliation of the Black non-conforming jewel: brush my wings to flare, smooth the wrinkles of my scarred chest, shave cane stalks up and down, each ending with a crash against my roots, glide across each gnarled protrusion & invite my hands to surrender. if only the cookie cut of the AIT fit. expanded. if only one more bubble...or two.
yes, now we are all safe abroad flight 769 with destination to Mexico City, Mexico.
as the 1% of the 5% of the 50.52% bodied beings that may board.
all clear.