The Abernathy contributor spotlight series shines the spotlight on our brilliant authors. If you’d like to write for Abernathy, please submit your best work here. Why is writing important to you? Writing has always been the way I share myself with the world. I’m a complete and total introvert. So when I write, I share… Continue reading Contributor Spotlight: Bethany Criss-June
Author: Bethany Criss-June
Bethany is a black woman. She is also a mother and a wife. She advocates and mobilizes around issues affecting black women and girls. Their stories, identities, representations, and overall flyness consume her. There's nothing she wants more in life than to see her daughter successfully navigate black womanhood in America.
The First Time
He was never my boyfriend, but he was my first. We met the first day of new student week, freshmen year. He helped my dad carry all my bags to the third floor of our dorm. He was tall, charming, funny, and incredibly handsome. As my parents kissed me goodbye, my dad said, “Be careful… Continue reading The First Time
The Black American Dream and Milwaukee
Milwaukee is my home. I was born and raised there. My family home is in the Sherman Park neighborhood, half a block from the location of the unrest that happened the weekend of August 12th, 2016. My parents still live there. Until recent history, Sherman Park was a bastion of black success, the heavily sought… Continue reading The Black American Dream and Milwaukee
My Daddy Said Shoot
W hat happens when your husband is just like your father? In June of 2003, Beyonce broke the internet/television/radio/album sales/etc with the release of her first solo album, Dangerously In Love. I just turned 20 years old when the album dropped, and as the saying goes, it gave me life. Here was this unabashedly beautiful,… Continue reading My Daddy Said Shoot
This, Too, Shall Pass
“The continued existence of our species is predicated on the fact that women are designed to withstand pain.” I’m not usually vain enough to quote myself, but I said that one night while otherwise inebriated and reeling from heartache, both personal and societal. But let me take a step back from that and paint a… Continue reading This, Too, Shall Pass
Perception is Everything
My little black girl is three years old, and I’m probably hyper concerned [1] about images of black womaness and their impact on her emotional and physical growth. For as long as I possibly can, I want some say over the representations that flood her developing psyche. That being said, my husband and I surround… Continue reading Perception is Everything
Rachel Dolezal and Defining Blackness
Outside of adoptions, “transracial” isn’t a thing, and race is not a social construct. Let me explain… By now, we’ve all heard of Rachel Dolezal. Yes, she is president of her local NAACP branch. Yes, she was recently outed by her white parents. Yes, she has been deceptive about her racial heritage. But transraciality doesn’t… Continue reading Rachel Dolezal and Defining Blackness