OpEd
The Danger of Black Forgiveness
I’m increasingly disturbed at the immediate thirst of a vast portion of the white American public. Not from the fountain of youth or the pool water at the peak of the mountain of success. But by the thirst they shamelessly, day in and day out, command be quenched from the chimerical white gold-trimmed bottomless well […]
Bullet Proof Vests and Diversionary Journalism: Protecting Dylann Roof and White Supremacy
Grasping at straws to humanize terrorists like Dylann Roof is a dangerously divisive defense mechanism that’s particularly unacceptable when coalesced with his racism. Some mainstream media outlets are characterizing Roof as an “introvert” living a ”life that had quietly drifted off track”, an oft-used twist of white extremism that depicts the shooters as “lone wolves” […]
#NotJustUVA: Martese Johnson and the American Norm
20 year old Martese Johnson’s unprovoked beating by police was yet another example of the brutality that’s become America’s norm. Over the past couple years, our community has become almost numb to the consistent attack on Black life. Not only are the police abusing their authority, they’re doing it with impunity. Every instance of […]
Its #NotJustSAE, it never was – Its America
When @OH_UnHeard, an equal rights group at University of Oklahoma, posted a video depicting members of the University chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon meerily bellowing a racist chant, University and Fraternity officials quickly moved to expel visible members and distance themselves from the very apparent display of anti-Blackness. To: All Student, Faculty, and Staff “To those who […]
Racism, Not Hoodies: The Real Menace to Society
Three years ago today, Trayvon Martin was murdered for no other reason than being a Black male. As much as detractors try to play up ambiguities in that night’s circumstance or justify George Zimmerman’s actions, we know what it was about. The criminalization of Black men by our society has embedded an innate fear in […]
Why Zendaya’s Refusal to Be Diminished is Important For Us Black Girls
In order to understand why Zendaya’s appearance at the Oscars is important we have to understand the daily slights Black women have to contend with about their hair. My best friend’s mother had a live-in boyfriend who would frequently refer to me as a “wild child” because of my hair. Boys would constantly make fun […]
History of Lynchings in the South Documents Nearly 4,000 Names
An updated report on the brutal history of lynching and white terrorism experienced by Blacks in America. A block from the tourist-swarmed headquarters of the former Texas School Book Depository sits the old county courthouse, now a museum. In 1910, a group of men rushed into the courthouse, threw a rope around the neck of […]
Reclaiming ALL of Black History
You cannot add a “but” onto Black Lives Matter. You can’t align yourself to a multi-faceted, all-inclusive movement and still carry prejudices that put you at odds with it’s leaders. You can’t claim to want to fight against white supremacy while harboring the exact patriarchal, misogynist, homophobic, hetero-normative beliefs that characterize their oppression. While Black […]
A Letter to Marshawn Lynch
I get it. You just don’t want to fucking talk. Despite the media’s best efforts, I won’t sip their koolaid and attempt to demonize you because you don’t want to answer their inane questions. I’m not going to compare following rules at an anonymous 9 to 5 to caving to the demands of an […]
Black Robes, White Justice: An Open Letter to the St. Louis County Circuit Court
To the Honorable Maura McShane, Justice, St. Louis County Circuit Court: Greetings. I recently learned that you denied the request of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund to convene a new grand jury in the Ferguson case and appoint a neutral, special prosecutor to independently oversee the grand jury process. I write this missive to […]