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Double Take
My son, Liam Kojo Johnson, entered the world pink and screaming, slate blue eyes squeezed shut. Peach fuzz covered his perfectly shaped head, a place-holder for the blonde hair that would soon grow there. His twin sister, Chloe Adjoa, came in peace. She was the color of gingerbread, with jet-black hair. Her calm, stoic face…
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Black Family Seeks Nanny
Some women think their kids can do no wrong, while others are brutally honest: “My kids are a pain,” began Rebecca Land Soodak, in the advertisement she recently posted on craigslist, in search of the perfect nanny for her Manhattan-based family of five. “If you cannot multitask or communicate without being passive aggressive, don’t even…
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Who You S'posed to Be?
Last Halloween, we were preparing for Election Day in the midst of much racial tension surrounding then-nominee Barack Obama. Here’s Meera Bowman-Johnson’s article, reprinted below, on the top five costumes that she doesn’t want to see at her door. Halloween has crept upon us and this year, I’m more afraid than ever before. After all, this…
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The Obamas' Class Struggle
For months before my family left upstate New York for Houston, I lay awake at night worrying about where our oldest child would attend school. Then I’d wake up from my scanty slumber to begin the daily Internet quest for the “perfect” school: one we could afford (tuition-free) that scored well on statewide tests, had…
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Clair Speaks Out
Dear Michelle, You may not remember me, but I’m Sondra Huxtable’s mom. I met you and your family during parents’ weekend back when you and Sondra were at Princeton together. Words can hardly express the type of joy I felt upon seeing you and Barack and your beautiful children walk onto that stage on Election…
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The Ultimate Black Santa Gift Guide
Dec. 10, 2008—Santa might be a little strapped for cash this year, but if your kids are anything like mine, they won’t be trying to hear that on Christmas morning. It’s true; it’s the thought that counts, and many Americans just might be on the verge of busting out the depression glass this year. But…
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The Ultimate Santa Gift Guide
Santa might be a little strapped for cash this year, but if your kids are anything like mine, they won’t be trying to hear that on Christmas morning. It’s true; it’s the thought that counts, and many Americans just might be on the verge of busting out the depression glass this year. But most kids…
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The Root's Black Love Gift Guide
Who will ever forget the first moment Barack and Michelle Obama took to the dance floor on the evening of the Neighborhood Inaugural Ball? Our president, dashing in his tuxedo, and our first lady, a vision of loveliness in white, were serenaded by Beyoncé to Etta James’ famous “At Last.” The rest of us reveled…
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Word to Your Mother
Mamas, let’s be honest for a minute: Although the card companies would have us thinking otherwise, just having a child of one’s own is a present in itself, right? Well, it is to me. The sound of my kids’ laughter is more melodious than anything I could download onto my iPod. And as much as…
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A Recovering Magazine Junkie
ABOUT Meera Bowman-Johnson I’m a wife, mother, writer and designer who’s lived, worked and played in Philly, Atlanta, NY, LA and currently Houston, TX. My love affair with magazines began as a five year old, when my grandfather gave me subscriptions to Young Miss and Seventeen. He wasn’t trying to encourage me to grow up too soon,…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
