A Letter To My Niece

Inspired by James Baldwin’s, “A Letter To My Nephew.”

Dear Sinclair,

About 60 years ago, one of my favorite writers wrote a letter to his nephew, with whom he shares the same name, James Baldwin. This piece was published on the 100th anniversary of Juneteenth. A celebration our ancestors created to commemorate their exit from American Slavery.

The thing is, it took Baldwin five tries to finish it.

And little niece, as I type on my iMac, I must confess this draft began when you were half your age. So I’m…