Michael Foster has always seen pathways others can’t. After failing the bar exam three times and facing crushing student debt, this Columbia Law graduate can’t land a job despite his exceptional mind. When a chance encounter introduces him to the lucrative world of “creative legal consulting,” Michael finds himself on a slippery slope, using his remarkable talents to help criminal enterprises navigate regulatory loopholes.
MaryJo (Jacqui) is not merely a writer; she is a chronicler of truths forged at the intersection of systemic pressure and personal resilience. With a career spanning decades in social services, nonprofit leadership, child welfare, and juvenile justice, she brings an authoritative, insider’s lens to the complexities of equity, power, and organizational dynamics. Her expertise is not theoretical—it is carved from the front lines of advocacy, where she has served as the voice for vulnerable communities while navigating the very biases she works to dismantle.
DISTINCTION is a seismic memoir written from the crossroads of race, gender, and spirit. It is the unvarnished testimony of MaryJo (Jacqui), a woman who learned to navigate a world that often viewed her brown skin as a question mark rather than a period. This is not a simple story of overcoming. It is a raw, rhythmic mapping of what it means to persist, evolve, and lead while being systematically defined as “too much” and “not enough.”
The narrative moves from a childhood of profound love and scarcity in a one-bedroom Chicago apartment to the polished, paradoxical battlegrounds of nonprofit boardrooms and philanthropic dinners. Jacqui meticulously documents the coded language of modern workplaces, the crushing weight of the “angry Black woman” stereotype, and the spiritual anchors, including ancestral whispers and the recurring angel number 731, that guided her through immense personal loss and professional sabotage.
For leaders of color, the traditional path to authority often comes with a hidden requirement: assimilation. You are told to soften your voice, to mute your cultural identity, and to adopt the mannerisms of the dominant culture to be seen as competent and professional. This is a losing bargain. It trades your authentic power for mere positional authority. True leadership is not about fitting into a mold. It is about
For many professionals of color, the workplace demands a double life. There is the voice you use with family and close friends, full of cultural rhythm and familiar ease. Then there is the voice you switch to at the office. It is often more measured, more formal, and carefully stripped of any regional or cultural inflection that might mark you as “other.” This practice is called code switching. It is
Society often paints a very specific picture of Black women. She is resilient. She is a pillar of strength. She can handle anything life throws at her without breaking. She is the “strong Black woman.” While this archetype comes from a real history of incredible endurance, it has hardened into a prison. It is a myth that denies a fundamental truth: Black women are human. They need space to be
What is Lorem Ipsum?
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s standard dummy text ever since the 1500s
What is Lorem Ipsum?
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s standard dummy text ever since the 1500s
What is Lorem Ipsum?
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s standard dummy text ever since the 1500s