African American families African American children African American teenage girls African Americans African Americans Social conditions African Americans in literature African Americans in popular culture American essays American literature African American authors American literature African American authors History and criticism American literature History and criticism Black people Race identity Children of drug addicts Enslaved women Families Grandparents as parents Gulf Coast (Miss.) Hurricane Katrina, 2005 Mississippi Motherless families Mothers and daughters Poor Popular culture Racially mixed children Racially mixed people Racism Racism against Black people Rural poor Siblings Slavery