Loving the Bodies We Are In by Amara

Loving the Bodies We Are In by Amara - October 2025 Scholarship Essay

Although Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates is nonfiction, I've always viewed Coates' son as a symbolic character. From the fathers words I learned that understanding who you are and loving the body you live in is an act of strength and resistance.

Coates's letter explores what it means to live in a Black body in a world that often devalues it. He doesn't sugarcoat the truth or promise safety, but instead teaches his son to find freedom through knowledge, self-awareness, and love of self. It reminded me that even when society tries to define or limit you, you can reclaim your power through pride, education and community. Reading this book made me reflect on my own experiences as one of the few Black students in my school. Like his son I've had to learn how to move through spaces that were not built with me in mind while still holding onto my identity. Coates helped me see that being proud of who I am isn't arrogant, it's survival. His lesson taught me that loving myself and my culture is a form of resistance against the world that doesn't always celebrate either. This perspective has shaped how I led my school's Black Student Union. I am a co-founder and co-president of my school's BSU going on four years now. Every meeting, event and conversation is a way of reminding others that our stories matter. When I encourage younger students to embrace who they are I think about Coates' message to his son. His words taught me that identity is not a burden, it's a source of power. That lesson will stay with me far beyond the pages of this book