Meet tamika!

Author Bio

Born to parents who migrated from Panamá, Tamika Burgess has always taken a particular interest in writing personal essays that explore her Black Latina identity. Her words have appeared in Cosmopolitan, xoNecole, and others.

Tamika has written detailed fiction stories from a young age that captivated readers, as indicated by her winning her elementary school's Young Writers Conference for three years straight. This planted a seed that never left Tamika. Although pushed to the back burner for some years, writing a fiction book would remain a must for her.

After receiving her Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Dominguez Hills, and a Master of Strategic Communication degree from National University, Tamika pursued a career in advertising. After a six-year stint in the industry, she realized her passion for writing and delved head-first into it by making a career change and moving to NYC.

The hustler's spirit of NYC reignited Tamika's desire to write a book. What started as a picture book quickly became the loosely-based story of Tamika's life, now known as Sincerely Sicily. During the ten years it took to write and shape the book, Tamika

created and produced Es Mi Cultura. The monthly newsletter was in production for five years and highlighted Black Latinas who proudly acknowledge their African ancestry while staying true to their Latina culture. The newsletters still live online, where they remain a resource and a source of inspiration for young Black Latinas to access.

Because of her passion for spreading knowledge of Black Panamanians, Tamika has been featured on various websites, podcasts, and panels, including Young Panamanians Around the Globe, Negrita's Afro-Latina documentary, and Ain't I Latina's "Disrupting Stereotypes: Images of Latinas in

Digital Media."