The Firestarter Five with Zerlina Maxwell

Five quick questions to dig a little deeper

Zerlina Maxwell, age 42, Virginia
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Zerlina Maxwell is the Senior Director of Progressive Programming for SiriusXM. She is the host of “Mornings w/ Zerlina.” on SiriusXM Channel 127 and hosted “Zerlina.” on MSNBC on PeacockTV for 2 seasons. She is also the author of the book The End of White Politics: How to Heal Our Liberal Divide (Hatchette, July 2020).

She was an MSNBC Political Analyst for a decade. She has worked on 2 presidential campaigns: Obama 2008 and Hillary 2016.

Zerlina is a keynote speaker and writer. She’s written for numerous national publications. Her writing focuses on national politics, candidates, and specific policy and culture issues including race, feminism, domestic violence, sexual assault, victim blaming and gender inequality.

She has a law degree from Rutgers Law School–Newark and a B.A. in International Relations from Tufts University.

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Is your life what you thought it would be? Why or why not?

No, but I'm on a journey to build the life of my dreams. For too long I've focused only on work and professional achievements but after my mom passed away in 2022, I realized that work is not everything and I've started to work on cultivating A LIFE outside of my career. I want everyday to be full of joy even if it's cultivated through small moments, sunsets, Kpop concerts, and dance parties in my living room.

What are you most proud of so far in your life?

I am proud that I am unafraid to speak truth to power when it matters. My late mother raised me to be outspoken and everyday I show up and tell the truth she's smiling down on me from heaven.

What worry do you carry around that doesn't serve you?

I'm a 42 year old woman who has never been married and I don't have any kids. I sometimes worry that I spent too much of my adulthood focused on my career and that I won't have time to find love but throughout the past year I've done a lot of inner work and healing and I realized that I am worthy of love and affection and will get to experience true love in this lifetime.

What is one thing you want to achieve before your life is over?

I want to travel more! I love traveling and there are so many places I haven't been! It's not necessarily about achieving anything. I've achieved enough professionally. I live everyday now to seek out joy and experience happiness as much as possible. Life isn't about trophies or awards. It's about remembering those moments that made you smile and laugh until your stomach hurt.

What do you want your legacy to be?

I want little black girls out there to know that the world doesn't want them to be confident and love themselves. Do it anyway! I want my legacy to be one of a truth teller and someone who was kind and passionate about creating a world that treats everyone with dignity no matter who they are.