From Near Death to a Better Life
When I was 4, I watched my father get arrested in our living room. I didn’t see or hear from him until five years later. My mom moved on to another man, and my sister and I got two little brothers. When my mom and their father broke up, the five of us moved to […]
Read MoreFor the New Schools Chancellor, Ending Segregation Is Job #1
In the summer of 2018, writers had the opportunity to interview newly appointed New York City Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza. Since assuming his role in March 2018, he has been outspoken about his commitment to end school segregation. During our conversation, he cited eliminating the single test admissions process for specialized high schools and funneling […]
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Smart AND Black—My Teachers’ Worst Nightmare
From a young age, I’ve been a smarty-pants. A family reunion is never complete without my dad bragging about how, at age 3, I figured out how to use our computer to get to his favorite chess website. I credit my big brain to my dad’s focus on nurturing my intelligence. Sadly, the intelligence that […]
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Living in Shelter
Before I went into the shelter system, I was confident. I wanted to try new things and I was very loud. No matter what I was saying, I had to be loud about it. “THERE’S THE ICE CREAM TRUCK! CAN WE GET ICE CREAM PLEASE?” I was 9 years old and in 4th grade when […]
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