How we use the term ‘hater’ to avoid reflection and self-improvement
One of the greatest R&B lines ever delivered is “don’t need no hateration, holleration, in this dancerie.” The Queen of R&B, Mary J. Blige gave us that one in...
Author: Jenn M. Jackson
On ‘4:44’, maleness, and the performance of the public apology
Recently, rapper Jay-Z released his thirteenth solo album 4:44. The album details his infidelity to his wife, mother of his three children, and perhaps the biggest superstar in the world, Beyoncé....
It’s even harder to watch ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ when you know Black women’s history
“I love you. Mommy loves you, Charlotte.” I watched a character named “Ofwarren” speak those words to a rosey-cheeked baby before jumping from a bridge. She was attempting to end...
It’s time to stop trying to integrate ‘SNL’
Saturday Night Live is what happens when white people enjoy something that’s anti-Black, systematically bigoted, and generally exclusionary to non-whites. SNL producers thought that throwing in a few Black people who we...
Why I never expected Kára McCullough, the new Black Miss USA, to be feminist or even slightly woke
Sometimes we, meaning the collective we of Black folx, are confronted with the fact that every single Black person is not committed to our mutual uplift and liberation. People like...
The loneliness of the Black Millennial Mother
“It’s not my fault you’re pregnant,” a male coworker said to me when I raised an issue with how infrequently people would give up their seats on our company...
What Nicki Minaj’s ‘official charity’ to pay student loans means for Black wealth
I’m so salty that I missed the Nicki Minaj tuition and loan payment party on Twitter last week. At the same time though, I am hoping it becomes a thing. More...
Why mass media’s fixation on respectability is killing Black and Brown people
Jordan Edwards, 15, was killed on Saturday night while riding in a car with friends. The teenager was unarmed and was not suspected of any crime. Yet, police authorities in...
John Ridley, Idris Elba, and Tyrese Gibson are all in the sunken place
There’s not enough fine or success in the world to save hoteps from the sunken place. And Idris Elba, John Ridley, and Tyrese Gibson are evidence of that fact.
I tweeted about Janet Jackson’s flawlessness and the trolls came out
I rarely pay attention to celebrity Twitter. Not because I have some type of moralistic claim to do so. It takes too much work to know what is going on...
Stop Giving Yourself Away: On Millennials, Depression, and Personal Growth
I give myself away all the time. To my children. To my partner. To mom. To my friends. To my job. My boss. My peers. My couch. My studies. My...
April Ryan’s face after Spicer’s Hitler comments is every Black person enduring bigotry in the workplace
It’s not easy being the only or one of the few Black people in a predominantly white space. Press correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks and new CNN commentator April...
There’s a deeper message behind that Kendall Jenner Pepsi ad
What do you get when you mix a thin, pretty, young, celebrity model (from the Kardashian brood no less) with a corporatized imaginary protest? If you guessed trash, congratulations. That’s what...
This is the Maxine Waters Moment
We all watched last year as it became clear that an inexperienced, failure of a man would be following President Obama into the White House. As we struggled with that...
The Paradox and Power of the Black Professional Ball Player
Professional athletics have long been riddled with controversy and scandal. But, there are some particularities facing Black professional athletes in the NFL and the NBA today that must be called...
I’m a Black, Millennial, Academic, Mom. Yes, it is harder than you think.
I was born in 1984. While I wasn’t really allowed to watch popular television shows for almost a decade, I vividly remember seeing TLC’s “What About Your Friends” video on...
Four Signs That You Might Subscribe to the Politics of Respectability
One of the most irritating byproducts of this new era of being “woke” is the increased numbers of people who read one Martin Luther King, Jr speech or saw one...
Anxiety, Death and The Moments When ‘This Is Us’ Gets It Completely Right
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a conflicted piece about NBC’s “This Is Us.” Befuddled by the dissonance I experienced between the show’s resounding praise and my own thoughts...
Why saying ‘the Oscars are about the white gaze’ misses the point
I have long been critical of national awards shows. I have also long been critical of the white gaze. I learned in my twenties that neither of them were for...
Why White Guilt Is The Least Important Consideration In My Work
One of the most common refrains I hear from white readers of my work is, “I really liked this piece because it didn’t make me feel bad about being white.”...
Daren W. Jackson
Jenn M. Jackson
Staff