Shannon M. Houston

Shannon M. Houston is Assistant TV Editor and a film critic at Paste Magazine, and a writer for Pink is the New Blog and Heart&Soul. This New York-based freelancer probably has more babies than you, but that’s okay; you can still be friends. She welcomes almost all follows on Twitter @shannonmhouston

Ryan Coogler
Fawning over the male feminist: When Ryan Coogler says "women are better filmmakers," people actually listen Shannon M. Houston
Loretta Devine, Lena Waithe, Regina King
5 Black women who profoundly changed TV in 2015 Shannon M. Houston
Transparent
"Transparent" tells the truth about being a mom: Motherhood is just as performative as gender Shannon M. Houston
Rachel Dolezal
Of course Rachel Dolezal isn't black: Her sympathetic comeback media tour proves it Shannon M. Houston
Creed
White “Creed” fans, pay attention: This is not just another feel-good, underdog sports movie Shannon M. Houston
We could black out Black Friday: I dream of a national boycott that demands black lives matter as much as black money Shannon M. Houston
Living Single
The best Friendsgiving on TV: "Living Single" made spending the holidays with your chosen family fabulous Shannon M. Houston
Chi-Raq
The Spike Lee “Chi-raq” trap: For black directors, even a film trailer is an impossibly high-stakes release Shannon M. Houston
Nikki Minaj
"Just plain ignorant and stupid": The New York Times trolls everyone, again, with Nicki Minaj piece Shannon M. Houston
Ta-Nehisi Coates
My mother, the drug war and me: Reading Ta-Nehisi Coates and forgiving my own black family in the age of mass incarceration Shannon M. Houston
Empire
Cookie Lyon is a national treasure — but Taraji P. Henson shouldn't win an “Empire” Emmy just yet Shannon M. Houston
Don Draper
Jon Hamm's make-up "Mad Men" Emmy: Why a last-ditch honor for the unforgettable Don Draper would feel like too little, too late Shannon M. Houston
Sandra Bland Demonstration
Black Lives Matter needs womanism now: A case for opting out of — or adding to — a [white] feminism that often fails us Shannon M. Houston
IOU Blocks
Broke mom with expensive taste: I wanted to be the kind of parent who paid for Montessori — whether I could afford it or not Shannon M. Houston
Black Lives Matter
Respectability will not save us: Black Lives Matter is right to reject the "dignity and decorum" mandate handed down to us from slavery Shannon M. Houston