Writing — Reniqua Allen-Lamphere

All in Commentary

The American Dream already eluded millennials of color. Then came coronavirus. [The Washington Post]

Apr 28

Apr 28 The American Dream already eluded millennials of color. Then came coronavirus. [The Washington Post]

Commentary, Reporting

I also worry for the well-being of my millennial peers: We pursued higher education as its costs ballooned, and entered the workforce just when the recession hit. What used to be called a “career” has become a string of gigs. When our parents were our age, they owned over 20 percent of the nation’s wealth; today, we have just 3 percent. Now, just as many are starting families, the coronavirus threatens an economic downturn on a scale that this country hasn’t seen since the Great Depression.

But I’m especially worried about a particular slice of my generational cohort: young people of color, who are far more vulnerable than their white peers to crises like the coronavirus.

I Never Thought I’d Have to Fight Infertility and a Pandemic [Zora]

Apr 8

Apr 8 I Never Thought I’d Have to Fight Infertility and a Pandemic [Zora]

For months, I have felt like my future was uncertain. Panic attacks were routine. Tears, a daily event. Anger, mixed with doubt, fear, and sometimes a little bit of hope, filled my body. I seemed to have no control over the thing I wanted most in the world, and it felt like there was nothing I could do about it. Month after month, my body kept confirming that rejection, and month after month, I cried until my tears ran dry, trying to accept and live with the unknown while accepting the current reality: I may never be able to become pregnant.And then Covid-19 was thrust into the world. By the time the virus hit New York City, those uncontrollable feelings had tripled. The whole world was now in a panic, and the word “uncertainty” became a part of my daily vocabulary and everyone else’s. Life spun out of control, and no one knew what the future held. My problems with trying to create life suddenly felt small as the world’s focus turned to preserving life. Suddenly it seemed like everyone was facing a reality that was out of their control.

This Missing Black Millennial [The New Republic]

Feb 20

Feb 20 This Missing Black Millennial [The New Republic]

Commentary, Reporting

No generation has undergone such meticulous examination in recent years as the millennials. Yet our understanding of them contains a glaring gap.

My Boyfriend is White and Rich, I'm Neither [Glamour]

Jul 31

Jul 31 My Boyfriend is White and Rich, I'm Neither [Glamour]

'I was nervous about meeting his family for the first time, but as a woman of color with middle-class roots, I also worried how I would fit in with folks who were not just white but upper-class with Harvard Ph.D.s.'

Racism Is Everywhere, So Why Not Move South? [The New York Times]

Jul 8

Jul 8 Racism Is Everywhere, So Why Not Move South? [The New York Times]

Black people have been moving to the South for years, of course, and it’s not a trend reserved for the young. But to me it’s beginning to seem that black millennial culture — the center of black life — and the idea of black hope and opportunity are now squarely located in the South.

I’m Trying to Find Hope, but This Campaign Isn’t Helping [The Nation]

Sep 27

Sep 27 I’m Trying to Find Hope, but This Campaign Isn’t Helping [The Nation]

As I watched two presidential candidates outline their vision for America in one of the most hyped debates in history, after a week of unrest in Charlotte and deep pain in Tulsa following the deaths of two more black men, Keith Lamont Scott and Terrence Crutcher, at the hands of police officers, I confronted the reality that our future may be even dimmer than our past.

Dear America: What does justice look like for black people in a land that never loved us? [Quartz]

Sep 23

Sep 23 Dear America: What does justice look like for black people in a land that never loved us? [Quartz]

We’ve followed your rules and played by your system, even though it disproportionately penalizes us. We’ve put our hands up. We’ve run. We’ve pleaded with you to breathe, and you’ve still let us die. We’ve tried to gain access to what you said was our American Dream, and it has failed us.

Is Egg Freezing Only for White Women? [The New York Times]

May 21

May 21 Is Egg Freezing Only for White Women? [The New York Times]

A lot of people are talking about egg freezing: It’s the latest perk for professional women at companies like Facebook and Apple; it’s being marketed as a welcome solution for millennial women who want more control over their reproductive lives. It’s moving more mainstream. But few of the women having these conversations are black, and few of the discussions are geared toward black women.

Note to Media: Black Lives Matter Is Not a ‘Get Out the Vote’ Campaign [The Nation]

May 20

May 20 Note to Media: Black Lives Matter Is Not a ‘Get Out the Vote’ Campaign [The Nation]

Unlike white millennials, we aren’t allowed to deviate from norms, to be untraditional. We have to follow strict standards and conventions. We have to be acceptable and respectable. We can’t have nuanced views and ideology, and if we have the nerve, the audacity to be angry, we better have something to show for it.

Martin Luther King probably would have hated what his day has come to represent [Quartz]

Jan 18

Jan 18 Martin Luther King probably would have hated what his day has come to represent [Quartz]

Let me be clear: I have no problem with a holiday celebrating Dr. King. I deeply respect the man and his mission, and I think he deserves all the praise and holidays given to him. But I also wonder how the made-for-tv narrative that has become associated with King has impacted the way we look at leadership—especially in the black community.

Mar 6
Mar 6 Science Proves People Act More Racist Than They Think [Quartz]

It’s time we get over all that. White privilege is invisible, unearned and can include both societal, material or psychological advantages solely based on skin color. Specifically, white skin. Because it privilege is generally invisible, many refuse to believe it exists. As in the case of climate change, however, science continues to solidly disprove such denials

Will Hollywood’s White Allies Please Stand Up? [Quartz]

Feb 23

Feb 23 Will Hollywood’s White Allies Please Stand Up? [Quartz]

Despite the fact that I generally enjoy the annual awards show, I am increasingly frustrated by the lack of representation I see on stage. Stories about our contemporary struggles, our diversity, our “Boyhood” seem to be left for the Internet, BET, and the few networks trying to capitalize on the success of “newfound” ethnic audiences.

A Crowd Sourced Project of Beautiful, Historic Images of People of Color [Quartz]

Feb 2

Feb 2 A Crowd Sourced Project of Beautiful, Historic Images of People of Color [Quartz]

It’s a fantastic step in the right direction, but let’s not forget that their experiences are still largely left out of our popular culture.

A few days ago, the prominent blogger Mikki Kendall attempted to rectify the disconnect between the way people of color are viewed in popular culture and reality.

This Week Obama Stopped Being the President of One America [Quartz]

Dec 12

Dec 12 This Week Obama Stopped Being the President of One America [Quartz]

Instead, Obama teetered in walking the line between pop cultural icon, black man, and president. He faltered most in articulating an agenda that speaks broadly to all audiences about race and reform. Just what are his priorities? And what should ours be?

The black middle class failed Michael Brown long before a white police officer shot him [Quartz]

Aug 21

Aug 21 The black middle class failed Michael Brown long before a white police officer shot him [Quartz]

In the 12 days since the shooting of Michael Brown, I can’t help but think that I’ve failed him and the many young black men and women like him around the country. In a media culture that often portrays only the grimiest black characters or the ace students, I’ll probably never get to know who Michael Brown really was. I most likely won’t ever understand his complexities, his contradictions, or the myriad things that made him unique—the things that made him human—and some of that is my fault. Sure, I didn’t pull the trigger, but I worry that my lack of understanding—my lack of relationships with black youth, particularly poorer black youth, may have contributed to the disconnect and invisibility that surrounds so many black bodies in America.

It’s time to admit that America will never really include black America [Quartz]

Jul 22

Jul 22 It’s time to admit that America will never really include black America [Quartz]

Last week, after watching another black man die at the hands of the New York City police, I can’t help but wonder whether there will ever be true equality for African Americans. The number of African Americans that have been victimized, murdered, terrorized, shot, and left for dead seems not just to be a legacy of some bloodstained Jim Crow past, but a part of a present moment that seems just as bleak. While there has been some progress, the narrative of the black experience in America feels remarkably static, as if it’s just shaken up, flipped, and twisted for a new generation.

It’s making me question whether America is truly the best place for African Americans.

Why Blue Ivy’s Hair Matters [The Atlantic]

Jun 19

Jun 19 Why Blue Ivy’s Hair Matters [The Atlantic]

There are lots of things that black people in the US should be protesting right now. High unemployment. The extreme loss of wealth. The gutting of the Voting Rights Act. Gun violence. The entire state of Florida. Yet one of the main things to dominate the news lately is the hairstyle of a particularly famous 2-year old. It’s one of the few things I don’t think we need to worry about.

“12 Years” only proves that Hollywood is a slave to business as usual [Quartz]

Mar 3

Mar 3 “12 Years” only proves that Hollywood is a slave to business as usual [Quartz]

The Oscar ceremony is always a bittersweet event in my household, and this year was no exception. I like to think of the Academy Awards as a reflection of the beauty of art and a testament to the power of story telling. Yet by the end of the night, I always end the night angry over Hollywood’s challenges in depicting race and ethnicity. This year was no different, though host Ellen DeGeneres beat me to the punch in the first few minutes of the show: If 12 Years a Slave doesn’t win, she said, “you’re all racists.”

It's time to put a moratorium on the word 'racist' [The Guardian]

Nov 7

Nov 7 It's time to put a moratorium on the word 'racist' [The Guardian]

Racism has a specific definition. I refuse to lump people who make insensitive statements in with racial supremacists