Eboni K. Williams has welcomed her first child, a daughter Liberty Alexandria Williams.
Williams shared the news on Instagram on Monday, Sept. 23, posting adorable photos of her newborn.
“My daughter was born in New York City in August 2024,” she wrote. ” Forevermore, I’m changed. I’m responsible for ensuring her wellbeing and that Liberty enhances the spaces she occupies. This little girl has been born into significant privilege. Thus, she holds significant responsibility. As her ancestor, Toni Morrison tasked her… Since she has been born free, her birth assignment is to now free somebody else .”
Why the name Liberty?
In her Instagram post, Williams revealed the inspiration behind her daughter’s name. Liberty’s name is tied to the Statue of Liberty, a symbol of freedom and history. “Young Liberty has arrived on divine time,” Williams wrote, explaining how the monument originally served as a tribute to freed Black Americans after the Civil War.
“Lady Liberty came to New York City in 1886. She came as a symbol of liberty and freedom two decades AFTER the American Civil War. While most people associate the monument with immigrants arriving at the New York Harbor, this was a secondary narrative. The French creators behind the statue originally wanted to honor the newly emancipated and formerly enslaved Africans/Black Americans.”
The post closed with a powerful wish for her daughter’s future: “Should she choose to accept it, Liberty’s work will far exceed my own and I pray, so will her impact. Welcome to the world my beautiful baby girl….The world is ready.”
Williams’ Journey to Motherhood
Williams’ journey to motherhood is as inspiring as her daughter’s name. In a past interview with People, the reality star shared her decision to become a “single mom by choice.”
“I have wanted to pursue the single motherhood by choice journey for the past two years, and I’m so blessed to be here now. but I’m also not deft to how extraordinarily stigmatized it still is,” the 40-year-old said.
However, she noted that being a single mother in 2024 is no longer seen through the same lens of shame as it was in the past.
“It is not the shame-ridden narrative that it used to be; that’s steeped in poverty, that’s steeped in scarcity, that’s steeped in rejection — that’s steeped in all of these heartbreaking, sad trauma points. That is not this story. These innocent, little babies are so desperately and lovingly wanted that they have mothers who invested exorbitant resources (by way of money, by way of time, by way of what we put our bodies through, etc.) to bring them to this Earth, and to shower them with all the things that all sweet babies deserve. That’s love.”
