Ashley C. Ford

Ashley C. Ford is an American writer, podcaster and educator who deals with topics including race, sexuality and body image. She is the host of the podcast 112BK and was the senior features writer at Refinery29. Forbes Magazine named her one of their "30 Under 30 in Media" in 2017.

Ashley C. Ford
Ford in March 2018
Occupationwriter, podcaster, educator
NationalityUnited States
Alma materBall State University
Website
ashleycford.net

Early life and education

Ford is a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, where she was raised by her mother and grandmother.[1][2] Ford graduated in 2011[1] with a degree in English from Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. Ford, who identifies as queer,[3] credits her time at Ball State as one of the places she was able to explore her sexuality.[4]

Career

Ford has written for publications including The Guardian, ELLE, BuzzFeed, and Slate.[5] Ford is the host of Brooklyn-based television program and podcast 112BK,[6] has hosted the BuzzFeed News podcast "Profile",[7] and was previously the host of the first season of Audible.com's interview series Authorized. In 2017, she was senior features writer at Refinery29, and in that year, she was named as one of Forbes Magazine’s "30 Under 30 in Media".[8][9]

Much of her writing covers personal topics, including her life as a black, queer writer; her history as a survivor of sexual assault; and her experiences with a family member in prison for most of her childhood.[10][3][7] Ford's essay "My Father Spent 30 Years in Prison. Now He's Out." was named on Longread's Best of 2017 list.[11] She considers the writer Roxane Gay a mentor.[12] As of December 2018, she was in the process of writing a memoir, Somebody's Daughter, forthcoming from Flatiron Books.[13]

In 2018, Ford played the Narrator in a stage production of The Nightmare Before Christmas, at the New York cabaret Feinstein's/54 Below.[14]

Activism

Ford has used social media to drive fundraising campaigns for charitable causes, being credited for helping to raise $450,000 for the Ferguson, Missouri public library in 2014 and over $100,000 to pay off school lunch debts in 2017.[15][16]

References
  1. Bailey, Leslie (2015-05-24). "Writer/lit lover Ashley Ford shares journey to memoir". Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2018-08-24.
  2. Fallows, James (2019-04-25). "Our Towns: On the Road, in the Air". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  3. "Writer Ashley Ford Speaks on Why She Identifies As Queer Even if She Has a Long-term Boyfriend". Fusion. Retrieved 2018-08-24.
  4. Hampshire, Kathryn (2014-11-19). "Ball State alumna works as staff writer at BuzzFeed". Ball State Daily. Retrieved 2018-08-24.
  5. "Bio". Ashley C. Ford. Retrieved 2018-08-24.
  6. Anthony, Jillian (2017-12-19). "Ashley C. Ford on writing with joy, turning thirty and finding her voice". Time Out New York. Retrieved 2018-08-24.
  7. "Ashley Ford, Professional Writer - Brief but Spectacular". PBS Newshour. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  8. "'Dear Sugars': How to Talk about Our Partners' Bodies". The New York Times. 2017-09-19. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  9. "Ashley Ford, 29". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-08-24.
  10. Galo, Sarah (2014-11-17). "Ashley Ford: 'I write for the girl I was'". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-08-24.
  11. "Longreads Best of 2017: Essays". Longreads. 2017-12-21. Retrieved 2018-08-24.
  12. Brown, Elisha (2017-09-15). "Roxane Gay and Ashley C. Ford on Mentorship and Coping with Critics". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  13. "1500 receive degrees at fall commencement". Ball State University. 2018-12-15. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  14. "Heath Saunders, Natalie Walker, and Ashley C. Ford To Lead THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS at Feinstein's/54 Below". BroadwayWorld. 2018-09-10. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  15. "Donors unite nationwide to pay off kids' school lunch debt". CBS News. 2017-01-31. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  16. Hess, Abigail (2017-02-02). "This writer's tweet raised over $100,000 to wipe out students' school lunch debts". CNBC. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
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