Emerson College's student newspaper

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College's student newspaper

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College's student newspaper

The Berkeley Beacon

Hadera McKay

Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor

Hadera McKay (she/her) is a junior Writing, Literature, and Publishing major at Emerson College. She primarily writes on the convergence of Blackness and popular culture. This is her fourth semester at The Beacon.

Latest from Hadera McKay
Pope and Cleo are the dark-skinned couple of my dreams

Pope and Cleo are the dark-skinned couple of my dreams

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
March 2, 2023

On Thursday, Feb. 23, the third season of the global sensation “Outer Banks” was released on Netflix. The action-packed family show follows a group of North Carolina teens led by protagonist John B....

An Open Letter to Emerson’s Social Media Manager

An Open Letter to Emerson’s Social Media Manager

By Hadera McKay , Content Managing Editor
January 25, 2023

Dear Emerson College Social Media Manager,  Did your finger slip on the post button? Were you only half-awake? Were you in a rush to get to the labor-free day that my ancestors paid for in generational...

Illustration by Hailey Akau

The original ‘Gossip Girl’ ate up Thanksgiving episodes

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
November 16, 2022

Thanksgiving—along with being one of the more deeply-offensive and antiquated colonial holidays celebrated in this God-forsaken country—is also a time for unbridled family chaos.  Drunk aunts overshare...

Illustration by Rachel Choi

Acknowledging Black rappers goes beyond listening to their music.

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
November 2, 2022

On Tuesday, Nov. 1, Kirshnik Kari Ball, better known as rapper Takeoff, was shot and killed outside of a bowling alley in Houston. As a talented technician and one-third of the popular rap group, Migos,...

Photo of Hayley Williams

Paramore is for the Blacks. Argue with the wall

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
September 28, 2022

On Sept. 28, punk rock band Paramore released its new single “This is Why,” after a five-year hiatus, ultimately signaling its reigning return with a quirky, upbeat and instant classic. Social media...

Photo by Hadera McKay

‘I’m Glad My Mom Died’ is Gen Z’s entrance to the celebrity memoir

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
September 7, 2022

On April 4, 2022, Entertainment Weekly released the first look of the cover of Jennette McCurdy’s memoir, “I’m Glad My Mom Died.” McCurdy, largely known as a star of the popular early 2000s Nickelodeon...

Illustration Lucia Thorne

What the hell happened to Wendy’s money?

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
April 13, 2022

“How you doin’?!” When I was 9 years old, my grandmother used to make me repeat talk show host Wendy Williams’ famous catchphrase. She assessed my voice for my ability to parrot the pure diva and...

Courtesy of Meryl Prendergasts Instagram.

Meryl Prendergast: The artist behind the new exhibit ‘Stitching Earthly Scars’

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
April 13, 2022

English indie-pop singer-songwriter Dodie is seen wearing Northeastern University student Meryl Prendergast’s clothing collection, “Stitching Earthly Scars,” on a late night of February this year Dodie...

Illustration Lucia Thorne

How you feel about the slap at the Oscars says something about your perception of Black men

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
March 31, 2022

“Keep my wife’s name out of your f—cking mouth!” Those were the words that— muted in the producers’ attempts to de-escalate the gravity of the situation for viewers—were unmistakably uttered...

Hadera McKay

Escapism or Erasure: the challenge of consuming white content as a Black person

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
March 17, 2022

This past spring break, I finally finished my three-month-long first watch of the late 90s classic, Sex and the City. As the end credits ran, I was more somber about it than I’d imagined I’d be.  Sex...

Super Bowl halftime show reflects the Black experience, but its efforts are performative

Super Bowl halftime show reflects the Black experience, but its efforts are performative

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
February 17, 2022

Barring Eminem—this year’s Super Bowl halftime show was an unequivocal celebration of the Black experience, from the tactful location of SoFi Stadium in the historically Black and Hispanic neighborhood...

Sam Levinson and Blackness: Did the white man get it right?

Sam Levinson and Blackness: Did the white man get it right?

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
February 10, 2022

BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) nominated writer, producer, and director of the hit HBO show “Euphoria,” Sam Levinson has faced controversy at all levels of his career. From his...

Why we still love Twilight

Why we still love ‘Twilight’

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
December 11, 2021

Why do the Twilight movies make us so intensely, undeniably uncomfortable?  Is it because we are instantly shown a problematic love story between an abusively gas-lighting 107-year-old horny vampire...

Is Taylor Swift revolutionary or is she just white?

Is Taylor Swift revolutionary or is she just white?

By Hadera McKay, Content Managing Editor
November 11, 2021

With the upcoming re-release of Taylor Swift’s award-winning album Red on Friday, it’s about time to investigate exactly why we love this white woman and her mediocre singing voice so much.  The...

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