Danielle Greene - Stanford graduation.Photo:Danielle Greene
Danielle Greene
“My freshman roommate and bestie made a gift registry to congratulate me for graduating with my PhD, because ‘we shouldn’t only reward women for marriage and babies’ and distributed it to everyone who RSVPd to my defense. Y’all… I…," Greenewrotein a Tweet earlier this month that has since gone viral.
“The way the people in my life love and show up for me. It’s truly unmatched,” she added.
“I was like, ‘Yeah, don’t do that,” Greene says. “I saw it as being associated with people who are getting married or having babies.”
“But we had a really good, genuine conversion about how there are other significant thing that happen in your life that you need support for from your community. It’s about transitions in your life, moving forward to the next stage,” she explains. “A doctorate is one of those things.”
Danielle Greene and college roommate Liz Powell.Danielle Greene
Greene worked toward her PhD for more than five years and her dissertation focused on majority-Black schools and why they are mired with a higher rate of closures.
Her years of dedication weren’t lost on Powell, who wanted to celebrate her friend’s massive achievement.
“I had put everything on hold. [Powell] wanted to support me. She said, ‘You worked really hard for this, what better way [to celebrate you] than to give you exactly what you want or need?'” the recent grad says.
Right away, the social media post got a big reaction.
“I tweeted it, put down my phone and walked away. When I came back, it was bananas,” she says, adding that while reactions have “overwhelmingly” been positive, some misinterpreted the intent behind Powell’s registry.
Danielle Greene graduating.Danielle Greene
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Greenetold Buzzfeedshe’s known Powell since 2008.
“She’s always been an incredibly sweet person,” she told the outlet. “So while I was surprised when she teamed up with another friend and my fiancé and asked me to make a list of things I wanted.”
Greene now believes launching a registry can be a concrete way to support anyone entering a new stage of life.
“There are big transitions in life that aren’t connected to marriage or babies; maybe it’s a degree or starting your own business,” she tells PEOPLE.
Danielle Greene and friend Liz Powell.Danielle Greene
“Giving people the things that they need in a really intentional way is one of the smallest ways that we can kind of show up and be in community together. So, I think that yes, if you get your doctorate, absolutely, gift registry. If you open a new business or close on a home or you know, anything, it’s really up to you,” she said during an interview withGood Morning America.
Greene hasn’t publicly shared the link to the registry, though well-wishers have asked for it.
“The registry is attached to my address and people on the internet can be extremely crazy,” she tells PEOPLE, adding with a laugh, “But if anyone wants to help me turn my dissertation into a book, let me know.”
source: people.com
