My closest friends know I have a running joke about how in my next life I want to be reincarnated as a white man. I’d like to be 6’3″, fine, with thick, jet black hair, milk pale skin and blue eyes. I mean blue! That spooky, piercing Chris Pine/Paul Newman blue. The rest of me …
Pinterest Settles Big Discrimination Lawsuit, Ignores Key — Black — Players
So, Pinterest settled a huge discrimination lawsuit this week. Francoise Brougher, its former chief operating officer, received $22.5M. It’s big. But what’s interesting is that the women who initially brought the discrimination to light received virtually nothing. “Ifeoma Ozoma and Aerica Shimizu Banks went public in June with allegations of racial and gender discrimination, two months before …
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People Change. We Need to Let Them
One of the saddest things about being a Black person in America, probably a Black person almost anywhere actually, is that you tend to think about things through a colored lens. If something happens, the first question to come out of your mouth is, “Is she/he white?” Or, “were they black?” because chances are high …
Another Small Ode to the Late Toni Morrison, and the Importance of Word Choice When Blogging
I had de ja vuh like for real this week. But it was nothing new, nothing unfamiliar. Sadly, this won’t be the last time someone says something stupid to me about something race-related. I apologize in advance if that word stupid seems harsh, but it’s getting boring, you know? Well, I guess you don’t know, …
Celebrate Stonewall, Celebrate Change
Yesterday New Yorkers celebrated the 50th anniversary of Stonewall, the uprising credited as the beginning of the LGBTQ liberation movement. I wasn’t aware of it until my friend Kate told me about it, and like so many movements, this one appears to have started by accident. On June 28th, 1969, patrons at an unlicensed, speakeasy …
Beyonce, Pharrell, Please Cancel Adidas
So, Adidas is in the news for diversity problems. Employees at its Portland headquarters say they’ve been marginalized and discriminated against. Apparently management perpetuates a high school clique type environment, and ignores minority voices in favor of more familiar faces, often to the detriment of the business. Like having to pull your all white sneaker offering …
You Could Be the Editor of Vogue and Still Become a Hashtag
It’s a story I’ve heard more than once, more than twice even. In fact, my own sister has told me tales of #ridingwhileblack at least three different times over the years. Cabbies or Uber drivers would drive her to some completely foreign location, and then order her out of their car, threaten to call the …
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When Life Becomes a Meme
I’d like to talk today about privilege. Specifically, how utterly and completely ridiculous it is when you don’t realize you have it, you behave irrationally, and the media retaliates by turning you into a living meme. In the past few months there have been a rash of video-based stories all over social and traditional media …