Uncommon Bonds ― Women Reflect on Race and Friendship

UnCommon Bonds: Women Reflect on Race and Friendship is a collection of essays written by women from across the United States. The essays unapologetically explore the challenges of developing and maintaining cross-racial female friendships. One of the primary goals of UnCommon Bonds is to resist simplifying cross-racial friendships. Instinctively, we believe there is unique joy and pain in these relationships that is never easy to summarize. Thus, we invited authors to submit narratives that challenge assumptions, disclose struggles, and celebrate the complex sisterhood between women of different races. UnCommon Bonds will entice a broad audience, ages 18-75. The essays in this book are written by women from various races, ethnicities, economic classes, sexual orientations, religions, and geographic areas. We believe many women will relate to the ideas and experiences explored in this book, as well as, men may also find these essays interesting windows into understanding the give and pull of cross-racial friendships.

Kersha Smith, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in Psychology at the City University of New York, Queensborough Community College. Kersha has been published in Pedagogy, Culture & Society, The Journal of Social Issues, Transformative Dialogues, among other journals. She is a recipient of the Spencer Foundation’s Discipline Based Studies in Education Fellowship, Calvin W. Ruck Award, and The Larry Murphy Award by the Adult Higher Education Alliance.

Marcella Runell Hall, Ed.D. is Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students at Mount Holyoke College. Marcella has a doctorate in Social Justice Education from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, a Masters of Arts in Higher Education Administration from New York University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from Ramapo College of New Jersey. Marcella has previously edited four books, and contributed chapters to several book projects, as well as published her work in VIBE, Equity & Excellence in Education, and the New York Times Learning Network. Marcella has received numerous awards from NASPA (Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education), and was the recipient of the K. Patricia Cross Future Scholar’s Award given by the AAC&U (Association for American College’s and Universities).