The Curse of the Black In-Laws

Welcome to the first episode of Black trauma no one wants to talk about

It's Ericajean

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Photo by Alex Green

You just got married.

It’s a beautiful thing. You met your soul mate and the both of you agree on so many things and connect on so many levels. There is only one percent of what you disagree upon.

That one percent?

Where to spend the holidays.

Your sibling is on their 5th child out of wedlock and constantly begs for money, but when you declared “I do” to the love of your life, something surprising happens. It’s like everyone’s mask comes on, or becomes granite. Your mother doesn’t accept your mate. Your sibling hates your mate, and there is just too much funniness going on.

What happened? Do other cultures experience this?

I don’t know about other cultures, but one day while I was cashiering, more than a few years ago — an older woman and younger woman, both white, were in my line and they seemed like the nicest, closest family ever.

Suddenly, the older woman collapsed, and we all tried to catch her, but the younger woman caught her first, she said: “My mother-in-law. She is the closest person to me, I don’t know what I would do if something were to happen to her.”…

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It's Ericajean

Essayist and poet | Author of Rumors of Ouroboros . Learn more about Erica at https://linktr.ee/itsericajean/