Growing up in inner-city neighborhoods, there's a particular structure, which I'm sure is true of most social contexts. The type of person you are determines the role you play.

My stepdad didn't have a father growing up, so he didn't know how to have a father-son style conversation. Plus, we had a tense relationship in which he never really offered me advice.

My graduation was an amazing moment for my family, my community. In my early childhood, we lived on a subsidized income, with government assistance - at one point when I was growing up, my mother was making $14,000 a year. Now I had made it out of the hood, so to speak.

Moving forward, hopefully the platform my career has given me will allow me to continue to be a voice in culture, whether that's doing lectures on campus or writing books or whatever that looks like. I feel like that's really the lane that I uniquely connect with.

I'm glad people think that I can do well. I always say I would rather that be the scenario than on the other end of it saying, 'We thought she'd be real crappy.' I'll take the side that I'm on. I'll take that people think that I'm going to do well; they have faith in me and believe in me, and that makes me feel stronger.

Beyond being Jewish, I've always found myself to be very much in tune with spirituality.

In truth, it's not anyone else's job to care about you. Only you should care about yourself, and let God take care of you.

Visit those who are sick, or who are in trouble, especially those whom God has made needy by age, or by other sickness, as the feeble, the blind, and the lame who are in poverty. These you shall relieve with your goods after your power and after their need, for thus biddeth the Gospel.