She Shares Stories of Black Joy in BHAM & Beyond

Jonece Starr Dunigan’s commitment to storytelling has catapulted her journalism career in ways she never imagined. When she was a night reporter for AL.com, Starr quickly learned that many members of the Black community felt local media had failed them, only coming to their neighborhoods to report on crime.

“It was eye-opening to me, and I felt a duty to the community to fix it,” she says. So, in February 2017, she did a series of stories about Black magic in the Magic City, highlighting things Black residents were doing to improve their neighborhoods. A Facebook community called the Black Magic Project was born shortly after. When AL.com’s project Reckon became a website, Starr joined the team, and in the fall of 2020, she created a series inspired by the Black Magic Project called Black Joy.

In April of 2021, Black Joy launched its own weekly newsletter, which has become wildly popular. In fact, from September 2021 to March 2022, the newsletter’s number of subscribers grew by 964 percent! Today the newsletter has more than 22,000 subscribers from across the country. Black Joy will soon have its own vertical, social media channels, and virtual and in-person events. We’re excited to introduce our newest FACE of Birmingham, Starr Dunigan of Reckon’s Black Joy newsletter.

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Why do you think the Black Joy newsletter has been so successful?

Multiple things played a role in that. And I think the number one thing is the consistent attention to Black stories and doing it in a way that empowers and inspires people instead of draining them and exploiting them for their trauma.

It shows that people are hungry for stories like these and have been craving a space like this. We see this in its growth, but we also see it in the talent that’s attracted to Black Joy … I also feel like Black creatives need a space where they don’t feel like their authenticity is being questioned. It’s not tolerated; it’s accepted. I don’t feel like I have to water myself down. I feel empowered by this space and want other people to feel empowered too.

The Black Joy brand is so popular you’ve had to hire more writers to help create content. Can you tell us about the team?

Six people recently started with Reckon, and half were for Black Joy. Reckon got hundreds of applications, and a lot of them were for Black Joy. People want to work here and are inspired to work here. That just shows how powerful it can be to focus on Black people in a way that is for us and by us.

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When did you know you wanted to be a journalist?

I knew I wanted to be a writer in fifth grade. I wrote a short story about a little girl who had this magical necklace, and whenever she rubbed the beads, the angels would come and help her. She goes to a sleepover, and one of her bullies steals the necklace and goes to Paris. So, she has to go to Paris to get the necklace. At the end of the story, she realizes that the angels were still with her the whole time, whether she had the necklace or not. As an adult, I realize that I wrote a story about how your higher power is always with you, regardless of what you’re going through — bad times and good times.

Later, I got into the creative writing program at my high school and got better at writing. Then, in the middle of my junior year, I moved from Huntsville, Alabama, to Canton, Mississippi. I noticed that the school I went to in Canton, Mississippi, was getting different resources and less attention than other schools — bigger schools, whiter schools. I wanted to know why, so I started learning more about journalism. That got me on track to go to journalism school and become who I am today.

Did you see journalism as a way to shed light on the disparities you saw in Mississippi?

I saw journalism as a tool to lift the veil and show what was really happening in the background — to amplify the voices that had been speaking for a long time but no one was paying attention to.

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What are some things you’ve learned from the growth of Black Joy?

I’ve learned not to dream small anymore. For everything I thought Black Joy could be, it has become 10 times grander. I feel like I shot for the moon and landed on Mars.

What’s the best advice you have to offer?

Our mistakes are fertile grounds for growth. I see that happening over and over again in my life, professionally or personally.

It’s a privilege to know me even when I do make mistakes. It doesn’t make me any less loving, kind, and brave. Because I haven’t given up, I feel grateful that despite my dark days, my brightest moments are still shining.

Name three things you can’t live without.

Headwraps from Ferril African Wear, my dog, and spending time in nature.

Thank you, Starr! Photos provided by Starr Dunigan unless otherwise noted.

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Meet more inspiring women from Birmingham and across the South by visiting our FACES archives.