A fragmented essay. “Did the law firms you applied to in Dubai call you?” I asked Zema. Teaching Black girls how to build their confidence is part of my job. Zema is a 21-year-old Black girl who lives in Tiya, a small town in the southern part of Ethiopia. Every day, after graduating from Wolkite …
Tag: racism
Courageous Discomfort, Journey to a Promised Land, and 13 Months in a Year
Reading lists. Favorite Book on Race I Read This Month: Courageous Discomfort: How to Have Important, Brave, Life—Changing Conversations about Race and Racism. Books like White Fragility and How To Be An Antiracist discuss how to have uncomfortable conversations with white people. But there is something unique about Courageous Discomfort, a book on race and racism written by a Black …
I’m Exhausted by People Thinking the Reason I’m Sitting in a Senior Room Is That I’m Black,
NOT That I’m Excellent At My Job At Beshale hotel, in Addis Ababa, I met a Friend of a friend for Ethiopian Coffee. This Friend of a friend was a white man in his late 30s. In our conversation, what position I am at the institute I work for came up. When I said I’m …
A Letter To My Black Friend Crumbling Under the Weight of the ‘Strong Black Woman’ Cape
And to you if you’re carrying the pervasive stereotype on your shoulders. You’re crumbling under the weight of the ‘strong black woman’ cape. Your colleagues didn’t ask you, “How are you doing?” They heard about your recent online sexual harassment. And yet. How you are sleeping at night and if you’re even sleeping at night, …
11 Thought-Provoking Gems From Black Writers For Any White Person Committed to Antiracism Work
Sometimes words can help you put words to action, which might be exactly what you need. Sometimes words can be daggers that pierce through injustice. They can disarm you with love. When tackling such a thorny issue of race and racism, words are powerful. They can unify or divide us. Sometimes words can cut through …
When Your White Bosses Are Just Not That Into You
You’re left behind. On the way to our boss’s office, my friend, Haddish, asked, Do you think we will get a promotion this year, Olou? I hope so, I answered. In the law firm we worked, we were the only two black women. We were lawyers who wanted to one day get a seat in a …
Reasons To Love The Dark Skin You’re Born With
Inspired by a post from the Isolation Journals newsletter. Last Sunday, I read a beautiful piece from the Isolation Journals newsletter. Nikita Gill, a contributor to the newsletter, wrote, “Reasons to Live Through the Apocalypse”. After reading this lovely piece, I was inspired to write lists about why I love my dark skin. I hope you’re …
The Violence We Silently Endure As Black Women
When you’re a black woman, sometimes protecting someone you love takes over your pain. Leave him, I begged. A few years ago, I lived in a tiny apartment next to a young couple. They were black and in their late 20s. They were always fighting. For one year, I heard the woman’s screams, her pleadings, …
This Precious Dark Skin, my new newsletter
Hi friends, Just wanted to let you know I’m super excited to create a newsletter for my black women stories. I named my newsletter, This Precious Dark Skin. A fitting name for a black woman’s skin, which is precious. Here’s my first post: The ‘Confidence Gap’ Continues Keeping Black Women Away From Professional Advancement If …
Black Girls Deserve To Be Children
They deserve to rest and play, justice and equality, safety and opportunity, and protection. A friend of mine sent me a link to a New York Times article with a headline, ‘No Time to be a Child’. Until I read this article I didn’t realize it was possible for my heart to break more than …