The stark contrast be tween Hanif Abdurraqib’s early life and his current literary celebrity is not lost on him: He spent part of his younger years in and out of Ohio’s jails and courtrooms before publishing a series of critically acclaimed books and, in 2021, winning a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship. Abdurraqib is a “system-impacted” writer, a term that refers to people who have been negatively affected by the criminal justice system, although he does not typically apply that label to himself.
“Let’s be real: If I didn’t win the MacArthur or write some shit that people like, I would have a hard time getting a job because I have a record,”
