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A Recommendation for Y’all. And Some Receipts.

Illustration for the New York Times Magazine by Clay Hickson. For the New York Times Magazine, I wrote a letter of recommendation for “y’all,” a word I shied away from in my youth as a transplant from Dallas to Miami and have since circled back to not once, but twice. Here’s an excerpt: Growing up in Miami, I dreaded being . . .

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Events in Miami and Beyond

Since Ancestor Trouble was published, old friends have been asking when I’d be in the 305 to sign books and answer questions in person, and now that’s happening. I’ll be at the Miami Book Fair on November 20! I’ll also be at the Southern Festival of Books, Six Bridges Book Festival, and more, including To the Lighthouse and the launch . . .

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Acknowledging Wrongs of Enslaver Ancestors

The Guardian U.S. has published my argument for what I’ve called acknowledgment genealogy, the importance of reckoning with our individual families’ participation in slavery. “Amid a rise of laws forbidding discussions of racist histories, sharing our ancestors’ shameful wrongdoings is more urgent than ever” is the subhead. Acknowledgement is a crucial first baby step toward the repair we need. The illustration above was . . .

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