What’s the Difference Between White Liberal Rhetoric and True Advocacy?

One of my oldest friends has a service job, work truck, hard hat, uniform, the whole bit. He often has to visit people at their home to do prep work before they start major projects that require digging and potentially hitting power, gas, and cable lines. He’s told me stories about white women watching him …

You Want an Immediate Way to Fight the Battle for Black Lives? Buy Black

I don’t like protests. I understand them, the rage, emotion, the history and everything else that fuels such demonstrations. They do create awareness and solidarity, and I believe they have some value. But I don’t want Black people to focus their energy there. The country is up in arms right now because of George Floyd’s …

Ahmaud Arbery and the Legacy of Inaction, Injustice and Tragedy Porn for Black People

So, the past week has been interesting. I say interesting because everything that's been happening should have already happened on or immediately after February 23, 2020. That's the day Ahmaud Arbery was murdered while taking a jog in Georgia. But it was only this week that his murderers, father and son Gabriel and Travis McMichael, …

In the Age of the ‘Rona It’s Mask or Die: But If You’re a Black Man, Apparently It’s Complicated

I was out for one of the two walks I’d take yesterday when I saw an older black man get extremely startled. He was edging his lawn and didn’t see a woman walking behind him in the street until she was quite close. Not too close, mind, but he jumped so hard, I was startled, …

Sarcasm, Bleach and Sunlight: I Think I’ll Just Sleep Until Times Get Better

So, I saw an article on Fast Company today, “5 reasons we need emotionally intelligent leaders in times of crisis.” Are you nodding? Yeah. Me too. Day to day people are struggling. I mean, they’re really struggling. At last count, some 26 million Americans applied for unemployment in the month or so. It’s bananas. Almost completely out …

What to Do When You’re #blackAF and a Walking, Hilarious Stereotype

Okay, so I started watching #blackAF because who wouldn’t want to watch a Netflix original series about a family of black people struggling with something other than sports injuries, being broke, abuse, being chased by police, drugs, booze, sex or gambling addiction, and/or trying to survive in the face of unreasonable and irrational hardship. Yeah! …