Prof J

Feminist 250 America turns 250 this year. Who actually built this democracy? Founding Feminists centers the women and gender-nonconforming people written out of the origin story—from Phillis Wheatley to Ona Judge ...

I'm happy to share with you the new launch of a @msmagazine.com series on "Founding Feminists" that I guest-edited to mark this 250th anniversary year:

Who’s American? Whose America? Bad Bunny’s Radical Halftime Message ICE raids intensify, Donald Trump circulates racist videos of the Obamas; Bad Bunny’s Spanish Super Bowl halftime show asked, who is America?

I had the pleasure of writing this with a mentee at @msmagazine.com, Simone Jacques, about the halftime show. Enjoy!

2025’s Top Feminist Moments in Pop Culture This year’s top feminist pop culture moments show artists, storytellers and creators faced regressive politics with imagination, joy and anger.

My latest with @msmagazine.com

Octavia Butler Saw This Coming A conversation with "Positive Obsession" Octavia Butler biographer Susana M. Morris explores the writer’s process, imagination and lessons.

My @msmagazine.com Q&A with Susana Morris on her biography of Octavia Butler:

Through Art and Storytelling, Artist Harmonia Rosales' First Book Brings African-Centered Myths to Life Through Art and Storytelling, Artist Harmonia Rosales' First Book "Chronicles of Ori" Brings African-Centered Myths to Life

Enjoyed this conversation!

'Freeing Black Girls' and 'Loving Black Boys': Tamura Lomax on Revolutionary Mothering During Troubled Times Black Feminist in Public: Author of Freeing Black Girls and Loving Black Boys Tamura Lomax in Revolutionary Mothering During Troubled Times

In her latest works, Tamura Lomax reimagines mothering as a radical act of Black feminist love. @profjch.bsky.social spoke with her about her latest works and the radical vision that guides them.

A Conversation with Mary N. Elliott, Curator of American Slavery at the Smithsonian Museum The Harriet Tubman Bicentennial Project features Mary N. Elliott, museum specialist and curator of American slavery at the Smithsonian Museum.

In light of current news (which I should be digesting less of), I'm recycling this great interview I did with Mary N. Elliott, who curated the "Slavery and Freedom" exhibit at Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture:

White Femininity Is Still the Poster Girl for American Capitalism The Sydney Sweeney American Eagle campaign shows how capitalism still packages whiteness as purity and sells it as Americana.

Had the opportunity to meet and work with a young intern at @msmagazine.com this summer: Simone Jacques, a Spelman grad, doing that great Black feminist work. Check out her take on the "great jeans" debate:

The Great American Jeans Debate: Racializing Beauty and Democratizing ‘Good Genes’ in Commercial Media A viral American Eagle ad pits Sydney Sweeney against Beyonce, revives eugenicist undertones and reignites questions about beauty in America.

My @msmagazine.com article's take on the jeans/genes debate:

Our Graduates' Successes: What the Data Tells Us About the Value of Cultural and Gender Studies Degrees Claims that degrees in fields like gender studies are “useless” directly conflict with the government data collected on our graduates.

FYI

LET'S GO!!!!

Artist Autumn Breon’s Requiem for Reproductive Freedom: Honoring Adriana Smith Through Performance Autumn Breon is using performance and mixed media art to both celebrate Black women's achievements and honor their struggles. Her latest performance, Dignity Denied, shines a light on the case of Adri...

In light of the news of Adriana Smith, I want to share my interview with artist Autumn Breon who created a performance art around her situation:

A'Lelia Bundles Claims Family History and Black Cultural Legacies With New Book 'Joy Goddess' 'Langston Hughes called the 'Joy Goddess' of Harlem's 1920s,' said A’Lelia Bundles, great-great-granddaughter of Madam C.J. Walker and author of Joy Goddess: A’Lelia Walker and the Harlem Renaissance...

I had a great conversation with A’Lelia Bundles about her new book Joy Goddess about her great-grandmother A’Lelia Walker: msmagazine.com/2025/06/11/a...

Documenting Harriet Tubman’s Leadership: Pulitzer Prize-Winning Edda L. Fields-Black on the Combahee River Raid Historian Edda L. Fields-Black and Janell Hobson reflect on Harriet Tubman’s revolutionary Civil War raid and the power of preserving Black history in the face of political pushback.

Today marks the 162nd anniversary of the Harriet Tubman-led Combahee River Raid. I'm proud to have interviewed Edda L. Edda Fields-Black who won the Pulitzer Prize in history for her book Combee about this historic milestone, featured in @msmagazine.com:

Blood Money, Blues Women, and the Power of Price: How 'Sinners' Rewrites the Gothic South Sinners is rightly recognized as a Black Southern gothic tale, with a plot driven by its male characters. Indeed, the film highlights the camaraderie and community of these men as sharecroppers workin...

I finally wrote about #Sinners. Here's my @msmagazine.com article:

"Last year, the Heritage Foundation, the think tank responsible for the Project 2025 roadmap for Trump’s second term, recommended that the government defund higher education, claiming that more educated women tend to have fewer babies."

Screenshot of a map of the USA showing places where academics have been targeted by ICE and the State Department.

Did a quick map of academics targeted by ICE/State Dept wtih @lindsaythomas.net this morn. @goldfarb.bsky.social was there in spirit. We're gonna hand this over to We Are Higher Ed and contribute to them going forward. More polished version might follow if it becomes useful to y'all.

The klan, the police, the butcher, baker and candlestick maker in every little Southern hamlet used to disappear Black people too.

When they didn't step off the street.
When they whistled.
When they bought a new suit and stood too straight.

Fascism isn't new here. It's coming for you too.

😄😆😃

"I don't know anything about it"

In a functioning democracy, Hegseth would resign and Trump would be impeached over this.

OVER JUST THIS.

If the Democrats don’t make an absolute buffet out of this group chat national security scandal, primary each and every one of them. It’s literally on a silver platter.

Damn!

Remember that this is where his discussions with El Salvador began. The migrant detentions there are the dry run. He wants to ship U.S. prisoners to El Salvador.We cannot sleepwalk through this.

Now this is sweet!

Absolutely pathetic caving in is what's to be expected. And the sad thing is: they will undergo abject humiliation, and orangenini still won't give them back the $$!

Decades Ago, Columbia Refused to Pay Trump $400 Million. Note That Number. A quarter century ago, the university was looking to expand. It considered, and rejected, property owned by Donald Trump. He did not forget it.

I should have known there was a back story:

Lauryn Hill, Wyclef Jean, and Stevie Wonder perform at Roberta Flack's Homegoing Service 3/10/25 YouTube video by Sed Et

This did make me tear up. Beautiful rendition of "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and nostalgic recreation of "Killing Me Softly."🥲

It’s International Women’s Day!

Remember, the president does not have the authority to unilaterally shut down the Education Department. Doing so would require an act of Congress and at least 60 votes in the Senate.