I Won't Shut Up
Finding Your Voice When the World Tries to Silence You
About
"Your voice has unimaginable power, and you have every right to use it. This book will show you how."--from the foreword by Danielle Coke, illustrator, advocate, and entrepreneur
Being Black in a society developed by white men to benefit white men means constantly pushing back against systems that were not constructed for your flourishing. You're made to feel that your life doesn't matter, your opinions aren't valid, and your entire existence is too loud. It can feel like the whole world is telling you to shut up.
To these forces, Ally Henny is here to say, "No. I am a loud Black woman, and I won't shut up." Ally knows what it's like to navigate racism and racialized sexism. She's not taking it anymore, and she's calling you to join her in resisting racism by speaking the truth--no matter the cost.
If you're tired of feeling silenced, misunderstood, and abused by society, you'll find here powerful words of liberation that will empower you to find--and use--your voice.
Endorsements
"Your voice has unimaginable power, and you have every right to use it. This book will show you how."
from the foreword by Danielle Coke, illustrator, advocate, and entrepreneur
"With candor, wit, and wisdom Ally Henny breaks it all the way down in her debut book, I Won't Shut Up. Through an exploration of her life and experiences, Ally offers a glimpse of what it looks like to be your full self in a way that will not be silenced by the racism that often prefers that Black people be neither seen nor heard. I Won't Shut Up isn't just about finding your voice but amplifying it to create a more just and inclusive world."
Jemar Tisby, PhD, New York Times bestselling author of The Color of Compromise and How to Fight Racism; professor at Simmons College of Kentucky
"This book is a love letter to every Black woman and girl who has been told that we are too loud, too angry, too intimidating, too outspoken, too nonconformist, too Black, too feminist . . . too much. Ally Henny draws deep from the well of her own experience to show us that we do not have to silence, shrink, or contort ourselves to fit a world that was never made for us. We can live loud, love loud, and even leave loud."
Dr. Chanequa Walker-Barnes, clinical psychologist, public theologian, and author of I Bring the Voices of My People and Too Heavy a Yoke
"Ally Henny has given us a timely gift: a brilliant but humorous prophetic testimony and a road map for freedom in a world that often seeks to silence our voices. For every Black voice that has struggled to speak of freedom, this will loosen up your vocal chords."
Tyler Burns, president of The Witness: A Black Christian Collective and lead pastor at All Nations Worship Assembly Pensacola
"I Won't Shut Up is a powerful and bold declaration that reminds us of just how sacred Black women's voices are--especially when they're loud and proud and unapologetic. In her refusal to let white supremacy shut her up, Ally Henny gives us permission to do the same: to not let white supremacy dictate how we live, move, and have our being in this world. This book is a true gift--a guide while on this journey of collective healing and liberation. To those who have ears to hear, let them hear."
Kat Armas, author of Abuelita Faith and host of The Protagonistas podcast
"Thank God Ally Henny won't shut up. In this honest, provocative book, written in the spirit of liberation and love, she speaks the kind of truth that can set us free. Like the prophets of old, she invites readers to experience transformation, hope, and the possibility of a better future, if only we have the wisdom to listen."
Phil Snider, pastor and editor of Preaching as Resistance
The Author
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Roxanne Engstrom with Hawa Images Ally Henny
Ally Henny is a writer, speaker, advocate-minister, and vice president of The Witness: A Black Christian Collective, an organization committed to encouraging, engaging, and empowering Black Christians toward liberation from racism. She completed her MDiv from...
Continue reading about Ally Henny
Reviews
"Throughout, Henny is candid about her own path to self-acceptance. . . . Readers will be empowered."
Publishers Weekly