It's been called "the most polarizing parenting essay ever." On September 20, 2026, The New York Times Magazine published a story by Nikole Hannah-Jones with the eye-popping headline, "In Fighting for Every Black Child, Did I Betray My Own?" This was a surprise sequel to her blockbuster essay from 2016, "Choosing a School for My Daughter in a Segregated City." Nikole and her husband Faraji played an important role in School Colors Season 1, and her ideas deeply shaped our reporting. So after four years of radio silence, we convened to discuss her latest dispatch, and the public's response to it.
Let us know what you think! Send us an email at contact@brooklyndeep.org.
This episode was hosted by Mark Winston Griffith and Max Freedman and produced by Max Freedman. Music from avery r. young and de deacon board. Special thanks to Morgan McGuire.
Further reading:
Hannah-Jones, Nikole. “Choosing a School for My Daughter in a Segregated City.” New York Times Magazine, June 12, 2016.
Hannah-Jones, Nikole. “In Fighting for Every Black Child, Did I Betray My Own?” New York Times Magazine, September 20, 2026.
“An Argument.” This American Life, episode 898, featuring Chana Joffe-Walt and Nikole Hannah-Jones. Aired September 25, 2026.
Hannah-Jones, Nikole. “Nikole Hannah-Jones Worries You’re Missing the Point.” Interview by Nia Prater. Intelligencer, New York, October 2, 2026.
Cheney-Rice, Zak. “No One Can Fix School Segregation Alone.” Intelligencer, New York, September 23, 2026.
Devenny, Jenny. “What Nikole Hannah-Jones’s Essay Means for White Families.” Integrated Schools, September 23, 2026.
Kahloon, Idrees. “Nikole Hannah-Jones Faced Too Much Apathy to Win.” The Atlantic, September 24, 2026.
Kamenetz, Anya. “The Most Polarizing Parenting Essay Ever?” Intelligencer, New York, October 2, 2026.
Pondiscio, Robert. “The Lessons We’re Not Learning from Nikole Hannah-Jones.” The Next 30 Years (Substack), September 29, 2026.
Young, Damon. “Every Choice a Parent Makes Is Ideological.” Ennui by Damon Young (Substack), September 21, 2026.
