The Dawn of Tomorrow: A Reflection from the Canadian Journal of History's 2015 Graduate Essay Prize Winner

I have a PhD from McGill University in Communication Studies. My interdisciplinary research includes Media Studies and Visual Studies, Consumer Culture, Black Canadian History, and Racial and Gender Stereotyping. In 2015, after the initial submission of dissertation on Canada’s black beauty culture history, I stumbled upon the Canadian Journal of History’s (CJH) Graduate Essay Prize. At first, I worried that I did not fit the criteria as a true historian. This thought, however, was soon replaced by belief in my topic. I was truly passionate about my article and the fact that it explored an area in Canadian historical studies and media history that has been overlooked. If I focused on that, I thought, I could win the prize.