What's in a Name?

Ebony Griffith

Ebony Griffith- Barbadian/Grenadian ancestry; Ebony is an intelligent, bold, and lively person with a courageous and determined spirit. Caring and often friendly, she is a queer student Daniela Nichols meets during her time at Northeastern University. A student who is studying Early Childhood Education at the university, Ebony is a young black woman of Barbadian and Grenadian descent who is known both for her signature box braids and impeccable amount of sass. She is one of the few black students at Northeastern University alongside her longtime "on-again, off-again" girlfriend Imani Carmichael, whom is of partial African American descent. On an average day, she spends her time on schoolwork, hanging out with her friends, dating her girlfriend, tending to her vegetable garden, shopping, and catching up on the latest gossip. She is confident, energetic, and fearless, as she claims to go a bit "freaky" when in the presence of the full moon or something resembling it, such as a spotlight. Ebony often ends up using this to her advantage however and is fiercely loyal and protective of her friends and family. She can be incredibly fierce and opinionated and can prove to be bossy, confrontational and brash under certain circumstances. Strong, boisterous, and assertive, she tends to be very loud and talkative when in a group setting, a habit that often overwhelms Daniela and made it difficult for her to befriend. She was first introduced to her by her good college friend Imani Carmichael at the university's queer alliance group. Ebony could prove to be incredibly antagonistic toward Julia during their initial encounters and seemed to exhibit somewhat of a jealousy towards her due to her features and the positive way in which others perceived her. 

With her calmer, more mellow personality, Daniela often felt uneasy when around Ebony and felt her initial time at the university was made harder through her encounters with her. She was taken aback by her criticism of Daniela's past queer-platonic relationship with her childhood best friend and roommate, an Italian-American girl named Paola. She nevertheless made efforts in trying to get to know her to please Imani, who was dating and involved in a lesbian relationship with Ebony at the time. Daniela immediately noted that Ebony can be very vocal and sometimes struggles to know the appropriate time to tone down her vociferousness and simply listen to others. She can also be sarcastic and has an enormous amount of candor that can sometimes appear rude and inconsiderate to some people. She can be quick to anger when her loyalty feels threatened, a trait she shares with Daniela's mother, a Puerto Rican woman with a similarly feisty demeanor. She has a bad temper that often leads her into trouble, but cares about her friends and is always ready to stand up for them. Despite seeming overly direct, Ebony is often a sweet and kindhearted person and can prove to be fiercely loyal to those she trusts, whom she will willingly support and nurture if needed. This selflessness can be interpreted as being pacifist, although she can be reactive and will recognize even the smallest slight against her. As soon as she feels someone is slipping away from her, she might start to become slightly possessive and fight to keep that person in her life. Friendly, tireless, creative and with a great sensibility to the arts, she is always willing to lend a hand and wise words to her friends. 

Ebony feels inspired by her harsher experiences growing up in a working-class, single parent household without a father in the outskirts of Miami Gardens back in her native Florida. She also uses her past need to grow up at a quick pace and serve as a mature role model to her three younger siblings as motivation to help others. Although they initially disliked each other and did not see eye to eye due to their clashing personalities, Daniela eventually befriended Ebony and found a softer side to her demeanor when Ebony advised and consoled Daniela during her momentary break-up with her long-distance boyfriend, Jorge. She and Ebony never become exceptionally close even in later years, but still manage to bond and find redeeming qualities in one another over this experience, being able to find a common ground with one another. Ebony claims her brutal honesty comes from a good place, in her wanting to encourage others to have a strong demeanor and help them actualize themselves. She hopes to help others see reality and the truth for what it is, as well as prevent her friends from being taken advantage of. An "out-and-proud" lesbian, she is in a committed queer relationship with Daniela's college friend, Imani Carmichael. She claims to have known she was queer ever since she was 5, when she developed her first subconscious attraction to another girl in kindergarten. A verbal tic she has is that she uses the word "baby" a lot, particularly in reference to her female girlfriends and current romantic partner, Imani. As an education major, she hopes to teach and mentor young children at elementary schools, having had significant experience in caring for young children from looking after her siblings while growing up. 

Ebony still remains close with her siblings and the rest of her extended family despite living off-campus apartment with her girlfriend. She is also a self-described feminist who supports female rights and causes. She is very spiritual as well and has a strong Christian faith, attending a non-denominational church that has influence from the Church of Christ and finding acceptance and true friendship among the people she meets there. She is characterized for her thick lips and "winning smile", as described by Imani. Ebony has almond-shaped brown eyes and a caramel complexion and is moderately tall at 5 ft. 5 ½ in. with a curvaceous figure, being considered someone who has a "slim thick" body type. She describes herself as a "blue-jeans femme", with her love of wearing comfortable, flowy shirts with a pair of jeans and sandals or high-tops. While she sometimes prefers to wear sweatshirts and tomboyish clothing during her downtime, she can also be somewhat of a fashionista and owns a large amount of designer clothes that she purchases from all over the world. She is a fun, fresh, and fashion savvy young woman with a love of mixing and matching outfits. Coming from a big family, Ebony has mostly had to fend for herself, which has created a streak of resourcefulness in her. She prefers to wear only a modest amount of makeup as well and claims to like the "natural look" for her face. She is not above taking hand-me-downs despite being a self-proclaimed "fashionista" and even runs a DIY craft video blog. She is also the founder of the Northeastern Shoe Swap and is not averse to wearing a dress if the occasion calls for it, although she generally prefers to sport a pair of jeans in her downtime. ESTP 8w7