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Maya Griffin Preserves Black Literature with the BAAP Boutique  
LocalNews

Maya Griffin Preserves Black Literature with the BAAP Boutique  

Shelby Stephens, Contributing Writer April 17, 2025

Los Angeles native Maya Griffin has always lived her life in pursuit of her passion for art and literature. From a young age, she drew picture books, wrote fiction, and created magazines. She recognized the value of culture and community by visiting the African Marketplace as a child with her mother and participating in Kwanzaa celebrations at Lulu Washington. Those experiences laid the foundation for her journey into the arts. Griffin is now the proud co-owner of the Black Art and Philosophy (BAAP) Boutique in the Crenshaw District. 

The American Queen: Vanessa Miller’s “Love Letter to History”
Book ReleasesEntertainment

The American Queen: Vanessa Miller’s “Love Letter to History”

Nusaybah Al-Mansur, Contributing WriterFebruary 23, 2025

In a nation built on the backs of the enslaved, The American Queen unearths the extraordinary true story of a Black woman who birthed a kingdom that beamed with the light of freedom and hope amid the darkness of slavery and oppression. For author Vanessa Miller, this is more than a book: “I call The American Queen my love letter to history.”

FILM REVIEW: Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am
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FILM REVIEW: Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am

Dwight Brown NNPA News Wire Film CriticJuly 11, 2019

When she helped school her white editors on the power of her works and viewpoints on African American culture and experiences, she faced the same challenge that many African Americans encounter when dealing with their white counterparts in business, education, politics, etc. Resistance. As she recounts her experiences, Morrison is poised, resolved and reflective. Somewhat akin to an intelligent philosopher or an academic who patiently teaches a class of inquisitive but slow-learning freshmen.