Does My Neighborhood Want Me to Drop Out of College?
A Student in Watts Asks Why She’s Spent a Decade Choosing Between Survival and Her Degree
Zócalo celebrated its 20th birthday recently! As part of the festivities, we’re publishing reflections and responses that revisit and reimagine some of our most impactful stories and public programs. Watts resident and student Shanice Joseph revisits her own essay “Does My Neighborhood Want Me to Get Pregnant?” and pens an update on her journey—and struggle—to get her college degree.
Over a decade has passed since I published my first-ever viral essay.
I was struggling to make ends meet while pursuing my journalism degree at Long Beach …
