Joan Morgan (American author) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Joan Morgan
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Joan Morgan, 2025
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| Born | May 25, 1965 |
| Nationality | American/Jamaican |
| Occupation | Author Journalist |
| Years active | 1993-present |
Joan Morgan (born May 25, 1965) is an author and journalist from Jamaica and the United States. She was born in Jamaica and grew up in the South Bronx area of New York City. Joan Morgan is known for creating the term "hip hop feminist."
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Early Life and Education
Joan Morgan was born in Westmoreland Parish, Jamaica. Her father helped start the Jamaica Labour Party. He later led the Jamaican Freedom League in the Bronx. In 1968, when she was two years old, Joan moved to the South Bronx in the Bronx, New York.
Her father worked in security at Montefiore Medical Center. Her mother, Maud Morgan, was a nurse at Montefiore. She also taught at the Clermont Center, a community center.
School Days
Joan Morgan went to PS 2, an elementary school, and then to a junior high school. During this time, she also spent time at the Clermont Center. In 1979, she attended the Ethical Culture Fieldston School in the Bronx. She had gone to a summer program there before. She finished high school at Fieldston in 1983.
College and Beyond
In 1987, Joan Morgan earned her bachelor's degree from Wesleyan University. She also studied for a semester at Howard University. Later, she was a Scholar in Residence at Vanderbilt University. In 2020, Joan Morgan earned her PhD in American Studies from New York University. Her important paper was about Black feminist thought.
Career as a Journalist and Author
Joan Morgan has been a freelance journalist since 1988. This means she writes for different publications without being tied to one company. She worked as a columnist and editor for SPIN magazine. She has also written for many other magazines. These include Working Mother, More, Ms., and Essence.
Early Journalism Work
Morgan started her journalism career at The Village Voice. One of her first articles there was about a serious case called the Central Park jogger case. In 1991, she reported on the Mike Tyson trial for The Village Voice. She received an award for her excellent reporting from the National Women's Political Caucus.
From 1993 to 1996, Joan Morgan was a writer for Vibe magazine. This magazine focuses on music and culture.
Key Ideas and Books
In 1999, Joan Morgan introduced two important ideas. She coined the phrases "Black girl magic" and "hip hop feminist." She did this through her influential book, When ... Come Home to Roost.
From 2000 to 2002, Morgan was a top editor at Essence magazine. This magazine is well-known for its focus on Black women. From 2008 to 2010, she was the editorial director for SET Magazine.
Discussions and Teaching
In 2012, Joan Morgan took part in a series of discussions. These discussions were called "Does Hip-Hop Hate Women." They were held at colleges across the country. Some of the colleges included Brown University, Harvard Law School, and Spelman College. Other experts joined her on these panels.
In 2013, she taught a class at Stanford University. The class explored Black feminist ideas related to pleasure. Morgan has also taught at other schools. These include Ethical Culture Fieldston School, The New School, Duke University, and Vanderbilt University.
In 2020, Morgan appeared in a documentary film. The film was called On the Record.
Books by Joan Morgan
When ... Come Home to Roost
Joan Morgan's most famous book is When ... Come Home to Roost, published in 1999. In this book, she looks at how complicated feminism can be. She writes about women who grew up with hip hop music and culture. She explores how someone can support feminism while also enjoying parts of culture that might seem to go against it.
Morgan asks questions like, "Can you be a good feminist and still like some things about traditional male-led culture?" She talks about how people balance these different ideas. She uses music artists like R. Kelly, Jodeci, Lil' Kim, and Queen Latifah to help explain her points.
She Begat This: 20 Years of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
In 2018, Morgan released another book. It is titled She Begat This: 20 Years of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. This book looks at the cultural impact of Lauryn Hill's famous 1998 album. It was published 20 years after the album first came out.
Personal Life
Joan Morgan has a son.
Awards and Recognition
- National Woman's Political Caucus, Excellence Merit Media Award (EMMA) for her reporting on the Mike Tyson trial.
- 2013: Stanford University, Dr. St. Clair Drake Award for Outstanding Teaching. This was for her class "The Pleasure Principle."
Images for kids
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Joan Morgan, 2025
