Jabari Asim
Jabari Asim is a writer and multidisciplinary artist. He directs the MFA program in creative writing at Emerson College, where he is also the Elma Lewis Distinguished Fellow in Social Justice. His nonfiction books include The N Word: Who Can Say It, Who Shouldn’t, and Why; What Obama Means... For Our Culture, Our Politics, Our Future; Not Guilty: Twelve Black Men Speak Out on Law, Justice, and Life; and We Can’t Breathe: On Black Lives, White Lies, and the Art of Survival. His books for children include Whose Toes Are Those? and Preaching to the Chickens: The Story of Young John Lewis. His works of fiction include A Taste of Honey, Only The Strong, and, most recently, Yonder.
“Asim delivers a fresh, sweeping, must-read tale.” - The New York Times
"Jabari Asim has written a compelling collection of stories that take us inside the life of a family and community in a tumultuous time." - Chicago Tribune
"These tails are characterized by a winning lightness of touch and tone." - The Washington Post
"A sharp-eyed musing on the history of the word and how it bears, or should bear, on a media-driven culture that is dangerously ahistorical, especially in matters of race." - Los Angeles Times Book Review