The rent was due, and I wrote the check for my family of four at 19.  During that time, I was the primary breadwinner for my parents and my little sister. I was thankful to help, but it also opened...

Being a Black woman in America is a journey – one where love, identity, and self expression are constantly in conversation with society’s expectations. I’ve had people judge me for who I date...

Two of the scariest moments of my life happened not on a hospital bed while I was getting surgery -- a fairly common part of my childhood -- but when I was vacationing with my family. I was born with...

My mother was the heart of our family. She provided the love, care and strength that held  us together. She provided positivity to us no matter the circumstances. No matter what we did, she saw the light...

After five years of college, I’m at the end of my journey, the precipice of my climb. I’m graduating with a BA in English , after countless classes, numerous essays, and working as an University Times...

It was a few days before Christmas when my grandmother realized that she did not have nearly enough time nor the ingredients to prepare her homemade tamales. Nearly 50 guests would be expected for the...

  Many people grow up being fed the beliefs of a certain religion, but I was not. My mother is a Jewish-Atheist and my father, an Atheist. I am also a Jewish-Atheist, which some people find confusing.  As...

Growing up, you start to keep a hold of something you’re passionate about. No matter what it is, you strive to keep that passion even in your adult years. I have always thought of collecting, but...

I have always felt like my Jewishness confuses people. I am genetically half Jewish and half not. My mother is of European Jewish descent and my father is mostly Norwegian. According to Jewish law,...

My entire life, I was very insecure about my body. Being Mexican meant I had more body hair, which is where my insecurities really stemmed from. I have had bad acne since the fifth grade. I had big,...

As a young girl growing up in Tanzania, a developing country, the idea of attending a four-year U.S. university was almost as mythical as an old African folktale. The fact that neither of my parents...

My mom has a good heart and she shows it by teaching my brothers and me how to be good people. When I was growing up, she used to take me to volunteer at my dad’s temple and various events.  Sometimes,...