Remembering September 12, 2001 (yes, the 12th)
This week we have begun the process of reflecting on the events of September 11, 2001. For many it is a far-removed event, and others still suffer the effects of PTSD and other emotional ailments. Critically for years now, men and women who assisted for days, weeks and months in the rescue, relief and clean…
Deconstructing MAGA: A Slave State of Mind
What I wanted for you was to grow into consciousness. I resolved to hide nothing from you (Ta-Nehisi Coates, 2015, p.111). Racial advocacy compels us to consider the work of promoting social justice in educative spaces and building community in an era of unprecedented moral warfare. The end game is to promote a socially just…
The Cost of Silence: Can You Hear Me Now?
This article is another installment in the difficult work of learning to talk candidly about race with those people whom we feel we differ with ideologically. Conversations of this sort are often the most challenging. We are socialized by our families to respond to race and racism in unique ways. Typically, White children are socialized…
Doing Work on Ourselves: Thoughts on White Activism
“In its function, the power to punish is not essentially different from that of curing or educating.”- Michel Foucault The work White of anti-racist authors and activists for social justice is critical for many reasons, one of which stands apart and above a plethora of pressing logic. One that is painfully obvious. Those of us…
The Conversation Chronicles I
Where do We Go from Here? On Monday, Donald Trump made history by becoming the first sitting American president to defend the actions of a foreign enemy on the world stage – and in real time. I won’t go into the politics of the presidential summit which took place in Helsinki, Finland between Trump and…
When In The Course of Human Events
Looking up at the fireworks overhead, I ruminated that I am usually am pretty siked to see them. Nostalgically, I used to sing the Star-Spangled Banner as I watched them (Whitney’s version of course). That was only a few years ago, but it feels like ages. On July 3rd, the light show was dull. The…
Between Hyper-visibility And Oblivion
Quick Intro to this site: I talk a lot about color-blindness. Here’s why… Race touches everything. Feigning ignorance is no longer an excuse in a world so technologically connected. Today there is an ideological canyon between people in support of and in opposition to social justice, equity, and inclusion. There has been a devastating and…
The Flag is Alright: It Just Seems a Little Bit Weird (original date 2017)
When the September 11, 2001 attacks occurred, it seemed as if collectively, the whole country gasped, exhaled, and gasped again before slowly beginning the years-long task of healing. American flags were back in fashion like it was the 1940’s and 50’s. The stars and stripes made its WWII come back appearance from the Atlantic to…
Putting Social Justice into Action: Helping Students to Develop the Capacity for Critical Thinking (original date 2017)
Currently in education, educators and researchers are being asked to consider the role of innovation in reforming education. We are encouraged to move beyond the endless rotation of ideas, strategies, and mechanisms traditionally used to guide decision making, in favor of authentic credible solutions for improving education. Reforming education will likely involve personalizing it to…
An Invitation to Youth (original date 2016)
In 2016, the world, as vast and old as it is, has become a lot smaller. The technological world has changed the conversation on – everything. Society’s values are actively marketed and heavily circulated through the use of mass media. It is reasonable to theorize that among a generation born into the most advanced technology…