Parable of the Brown Girl: The Sacred Lives of Girls of Color

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Justification: I wanted to select a newly published book focusing on women, particularly marginalized women, and how they relate to the Christian faith. My librarian suggested I purchase Parable of the Brown Girl to use as my Christian pick for the blog. I read a couple of reviews and was intrigued. The book

turned out to be the perfect pick.

Reader's Response: First, I had to set aside many reservations and preconceived notions before reading this text. I am agnostic, therefore "I believe that you believe", but I myself do not have a faith in a God. I thought that reading a Christian text would just render me dubious and I would spend most of the reading refuting the text. Surprisingly, that's not what happened. I found myself identifying with Adams, and with the Black girls she writes so eloquently about.

Youth advocate and minister Khristi Adams shares seven stories of girls of color she met while working in a residential treatment facility for mental health and behavioral issues. She focuses predominately on how her clients cope with injustices and insecurities. I could really identify with Adams because I spent ten years in Washington, DC. working in a residential facility for homeless women. Approximately 98% of these displaced women were women of color. These women were marginalized, compromised, unseen and unheard. Some struggled with mental health and addiction issues. Many had complex health issues and were in dire need of treatment. Each woman was deserving of dignity and respect. Each woman had a voice, a purpose, and intrinsic value. Much like the young Black girls in Adams's stories, each woman needed to be seen, and to be heard.

Adams tell us that Jesus did his best teaching using the parables. In this text, she places Black girls in the gospel stories. She says that young Black girls desperately need their story told because their story is an integral part of who God is. In her creative retelling of the parables from the Bible, Adams uses this narrative form to tell the story of Black girls who are overlooked and unseen by society. She informs the reader that girls of color are perceived to be more mature and are often hyper-sexualized. These girls are looked at as strong, masking the ability to allow for vulnerability or weakness. She addresses the stereotype of the angry Black woman and how it trickles down to Black girls and how they are perceived: "Our society assumes black women and girls are always angry, but it rarely asks why black women and girls feel this anger or acknowledge it may be justified." (p.107)

The book talks about spiritually uplifting and empowering Black girls. Adams wants to know if we are capable of affirming these girls where they are at instead of placing a mantle of shame, stigma and judgment upon them. She tells the girls that they are important because they are part of God's story. On page 35, she invokes the concept of imago Dei---in the image of God. Adams believes God can speak through young Black girls, too. Young Black girls are made in the image of God. She tells the girls that who you are, is enough. Your hair and your skin are enough. What God gave you is not lacking. You are perfectly perfect the way you are.

One thing I wondered about was why the book is called Parable of the Brown Girl, when Adams refers to all of the young women in her text as Black. Through my reading of the text I've come to understand that here Black is purely a descriptor for race, and Brown speaks to the aesthetic appearance and variations in the girls' skin.

Conclusion: Adams's message is a beautiful one, and told through seven parables about seven Black girls struggling with issues like self-mutilation, eating disorders, family abandonment, racism, sexism, heritage and cultural identity. Adams argues that all issues can be overcome through faith. She advocates for addressing young adults with a level of respect and equality.

Although the facility where I worked was a secular non-profit, reading this text makes me want to connect Adams to the shelter to see if she'd be willing to speak for a life-skills workshop. I've already recommended the book to the life skills director to see if there would be interest in using it for a book club. Progressive, insightful, and beautifully written, I would recommend this book to teens, adults, case workers and ministers alike.

APA Reference: Adams, K.L. (2020). Parable of the Brown Girl: The Sacred Lives of Girls of Color. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press.