And then there are the ones we left behind…
“This shit is so hard, babe. People think it’s easy but it isn’t. It is so so hard,” I told my partner through tears this morning. I was standing in...
“This shit is so hard, babe. People think it’s easy but it isn’t. It is so so hard,” I told my partner through tears this morning. I was standing in...
Culture / Love and Relationships
by Jenn M. Jackson · Published July 10, 2017 · Last modified July 13, 2017
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....
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...
Gender & Sexuality / Motivational / Race
by Jenn M. Jackson · Published April 20, 2016 · Last modified October 5, 2020
Almost every morning for the past two years, I have found myself sitting in my car on this predominantly White campus playing Tasha Cobbs or Kendrick Lamar or BJ the...
Culture / Race / Reflections
by Jenn M. Jackson · Published March 7, 2016 · Last modified December 16, 2016
The other day, as I was driving and watching his little puzzled face in my rear-view mirror, I told my son how Lauryn Hill’s experience having her son Zion was so similar...
Recently, the Movement for Black Lives convened in Cleveland, Ohio. Activists, organizers, writers, community leaders and concerned citizens alike gathered for three days to engage one another on the important issues facing...
by Jenn M. Jackson · Published August 11, 2015 · Last modified December 17, 2016
There have been few constants in my life. But, as I was reflecting today, I remembered a daily, weekly, monthly occurrence throughout my childhood that often left me questioning my...
by Jenn M. Jackson · Published June 27, 2015 · Last modified December 17, 2016
This morning, Bree Newsome climbed a 30-foot flagpole in Columbia, South Carolina. I repeat. Bree Newsome climbed a 30-foot flagpole. I repeat. Bree Newsome. Again. Bree. Newsome. Some of y’all...
When I was 15 years old, I had what any level-headed person would call a stalker. Let’s just call him “Mike”. He was at least ten years older than me...
Gender & Sexuality / Lifestyle / Race
by Jenn M. Jackson · Published August 14, 2014 · Last modified December 17, 2016
Being a six-foot-four inch tall black woman often precludes me from being mistaken for other people. Growing up, I was almost never told “Hey, you look just like my friend,”...
It goes without saying that miscarriages are difficult to endure. They wear heavily on expectant mothers whose hopes commonly end both abruptly and painfully. Feelings of disappointment, guilt, and fear...
Gender & Sexuality / Lifestyle / Parenting / Race
by Jenn M. Jackson · Published November 15, 2013 · Last modified April 14, 2017
My husband and I have three gorgeous children. Our oldest will be six next month. Our youngest just arrived last month. We were married in 2006 after dating for three...