Sep 30, 2021‘Keeping Up with the Joneses’: Money & Mental HealthOver the past five weeks I’ve had a financial awakening of sorts. My husband and I started an e-commerce business. I ‘hired and fired’ a financial planner aka insurance salesman; and started to educate myself about personal finance. …Social Media5 min read
Published in An Injustice!·Feb 8, 2021Have I Bought into ‘Whiteness’?: A Candid Look at Interracial RelationshipsThe question every Black person in an interracial relationship should ask themselves… — Close your eyes and imagine a perfect morning. You wake up in a comfortable bed, as the subtle smell of breakfast foods waft in. You stretch your arms overhead and look over to your right. The sun dances on your significant other’s skin, who is still fast asleep. Who is…Racism11 min read
Dec 17, 2020‘Reclaiming My Time’: Leisure, Black Women, and White SupremacyWith the holidays rapidly approaching, people are looking forward to having some time off from work. Typically, the last few weeks of the year are a time to rest, to reset and to reconnect with friends and loved ones. This year, however, for myriad reasons some people may feel uncomfortable…White Supremacy3 min read
Nov 16, 2020Blackness without Boundaries: A Pan-Africanist PerspectiveKamala Devi Harris: the first female vice president, is a woman of Jamaican and Indian heritage. She was born more than a half century ago to immigrant parents, in Oakland, California. Madame Vice President Harris, chose to attend an HBCU and to pledge a black sorority. She is as multifaceted…Black Women4 min read
Sep 30, 2020Black and Carefree: How HBCUs bolster mental healthIn the spring of 2004, as I walked across the vast expanse of Duke University’s great lawn, I observed the undergraduates huddled together. Some were studying, while others lay on the grass tanning. As we moved across the campus, Lauren, my guide for the Black student weekend, pointed out important…Black Women5 min read
Aug 11, 2020Life or Death: On Being Pregnant and BlackIn 2018, tennis star Serena Williams, while recovering in the hospital from delivering her child via C-section, began to experience shortness of breath. Due to her history of pulmonary embolism, she explained to the nurse that she needed a CT scan and possibly IV anticoagulant medication. The nurse dismissed her…Black Maternal Health5 min read
Published in Age of Awareness·Jul 28, 2020Breaking the Chains on Black Female SexualityHow many lovers are too many for a woman over the course of her lifetime? How many sexual partners label her promiscuous and a woman of ill-repute? Who defines a harlot, a slut, a ho, a thot? And why do most women spend years of their life avoiding these labels? …Relationships5 min read
Jul 17, 2020The Beauty Queue and Dark Skinned Women as Love InterestsSeveral times when I have walked down the street with my husband, the visible ire of strangers becomes almost palpable, when they realize that we are a couple. Sometimes, a shadow clouds their faces or a sneer contorts their lips: all manifestations of the ugliness that only racial prejudice can…Colorism4 min read
Jul 17, 2020What’s Your Type: Preferences or Prejudices?So, what’s your type? Everyone has a type or a preference in a mate. Some like tall and athletic, others prefer teddy bears. Some like very pale skin, whereas others are attracted to highly melanated skin. However, one must be mindful that these preferences don’t exist in a vacuum. The…Beauty5 min read
Jul 17, 2020Shining Light: My Quest to Research ColorismDuring my third year of residency, an attending said to me, “You only care about beauty because you’re beautiful.” She had at once complimented me and insulted me. I was seeking a mentor on the faculty to assist me in conducting research on the perceptions of beauty and skin color…Colorism3 min read
