Faye McCray

Last week, my family and I said goodbye to my grandfather just a week shy of his 100th birthday. I didn’t know him well – he lived hundreds of miles away when I was growing up, and my dad is one of ten so I am one of many, many (many) grandkids. But every action…

Like so many Black women, my hair journey has been a winding road. My hair has accessorized every phase of my growth from Jheri curls in Kindergarten (thanks again for that, Mom 🥴) to long box braids in college to processed, straight hair in my twenties. No choice, however, proved to be as significant and…

I walked into my first job interview holding a Sprite can. My hair was spray dyed blue, I wore shorts I cut with scissors, and I giggled before answering each question. Judy, my prospective boss, stared at me over the rim of her glasses sizing me up. The look she gave me was a mixture…

When I was a baby lawyer, I had the honor of working with an intern who was attending law school at night. He was a father, a husband, and worked full time as a court officer. You only had to spend five minutes with him to know one day he was going to also be…

I remember getting feedback from a colleague once that I was too quiet in a meeting. I was new the team and the dynamics were even newer to me. I pride myself on listening first when I enter new setting because I’ve rushed to formulate opinions in the past and it frustrated my learning. This…

Four years ago today, I woke up with my face smushed inside my elbow on my mother’s light oak kitchen table in Queens wondering if the previous ten hours had been a dream.  My head hurt and old tears stained my face.  There was a knock at the door.  I wiped the residues of my hour of sleep…