Front and Center is a groundbreaking series of op-eds—published by Ms. and created in partnership with the Magnolia Mother’s Trust—which aims to put front and center the voices of Black women who are affected most by the often-abstract policies currently debated at the national level. The series highlights the success of Springboard to Opportunities’ Magnolia Mother’s Trust (MMT), which this year will give $1,000 per month for 12 months to 100 families headed by Black women living in federally subsidized housing.
What possibilities could open up for low-income families if financial survival weren’t always top of mind? What dreams would these mothers and families be able to pursue? What activism and community leadership might arise? The series will answer these and other questions, by placing one mother’s story front and center every other week. The first-person accounts in this series are available for reprint. Find additional guidelines at the end of this story.
My name is Kieria. I’m 29 and I live in subsidized housing in Jackson, Miss. I’m a single mom with one child who’s 6. This is our second year in our own apartment and it’s been our first time in our own space since she’s been born. Before this I was staying with my grandmother, my sister and her two kids. There was no personal space. Now that I have my own apartment, I have my own personal space and my child has her own personal space, and it feels good. It’s peaceful.
I work for Head Start through Hinds County Human Resources. I’m planning to go back to school to get my bachelor’s in science and early childhood education. I enjoy working in the classroom with 3- and 4-year-olds. I love teaching them their basics: the alphabet, numbers, how to write their name; and also good social skills, good table manners, and how to make friends and become a good friend to someone else.
I want to get back to school so I can level up in early childhood education. The challenge is being a single mom and needing to have someone there for my child when I’m not. I’d need someone at home to tend to her needs while I’m in class—either in the classroom or online. And when it comes to my job, I wouldn’t say it’s demanding, but it does take up most of my time. I’m providing childcare for other people’s kids, and at the same time, I don’t have the childcare I need to be able to do the stuff that I want to do.
Before Magnolia Mother’s Trust, I had just enough income coming in to cover my bills, but as far as extra money for me and my child to do something, it was challenging. She would want to go to different museums and different places like the zoo, and I wouldn’t have the extra money to expand her education in that way. I was DoorDashing every now and then so I could take her somewhere. She understood that I didn’t have a lot of money, so I would take her to the park or somewhere that didn’t cost a lot of money.
My biggest expenses right now are rent and my car note. I need to have a car to get to work because public transportation in Jackson is extremely unreliable. Food costs and the price of gas have been rising, as well as household items—they’re not the same price as they used to be.
I’m currently receiving SNAP benefits. It’s often enough to cover food for my child and me, because there’s just two of us, but I feel like they should give us a little more than they do. Just a tad bit more—I’m not greedy—just a tad bit! Sometimes I’m able to meet my needs, and sometimes I’m not. I’m lucky that I can go to my grandmother and ask for help if I need to.
Since receiving MMT, I’ve been sleeping much better at night. … I can plan out my bills more.
To the politicians who say programs like MMT encourage people to stop working, I would say that the money we’re receiving is not long term, it’s temporary. I’m not going to quit my job because I’m receiving this money. It’s given me a boost toward reaching my goals a little quicker than I would be able to without receiving them. MMT is helping families reach goals, and allowing us to provide for our families better than we were before.
One of my goals while I’m in the program is to move into a house—somewhere bigger that gives us more space. But when I think of all the bills that come with a house, I think I should just stay where I’m at until I have money saved up, so if I fall short, I can always go back to savings to get myself back to where I need to be.
Since receiving MMT, I’ve been sleeping much better at night. Now I know I have a guaranteed check from work, and another check coming from the Mother’s Trust payments. That makes me feel very excited because I can plan out my bills more.
Close to every payday, I sit down and write out all the bills that need to be paid and how much money I have left. This gives me a clearer idea of what’s mandatory.
Now that I’m receiving funds from MMT I want to let my daughter explore the different museums around Jackson. When I’m able to tell her we’ll be able to go do something, it makes her happy and she’ll be looking forward to it.
I’m excited about what MMT is offering us. When I first found out I was selected for the program, I was kind of nervous. I didn’t know what to expect. But now I try my best to sign up for any opportunity or event going on in the program. I feel like I can learn something new. And hopefully my child learns something new as well. I’m finding joy in seeing a smile on her face everyday.
Front and Center pieces are free to republish, under the following guidelines:
- To ensure context isn’t lost, at the top of your reprint, include a line that reads: “Front and Center is a series of op-eds—published by Ms. magazine and created in partnership with the Magnolia Mother’s Trust—highlighting the success of Springboard to Opportunities’ Magnolia Mother’s Trust program, which this year will give $1,000 per month for 12 months to 100 families headed by Black women living in federally subsidized housing. The series aims to put front and center the voices of Black women who are affected most by the often-abstract policies currently debated at the national level.” (You can use editorial discretion to alter or shorten the text slightly.)
- You may also republish the photographs included in this story.
- If you share republished stories on social media, we’d appreciate being tagged in your posts. You can find Ms. on Twitter @MsMagazine, on Instagram @ms_magazine and on Facebook. Springboard to Opportunities is on Twitter @SpringboardToOp, on Instagram @springboard_to and on Facebook.
Have questions on the series? Read more here, and direct specific questions to Katie Fleischer at kfleischer@msmagazine.com.
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