When it comes to rationalizing the mistreatment of people of color, there are few who manage to do it better, or more consistently, than syndicated columnist Mona Charen. So, for instance, when officers from the NYPD’s Street Crimes Unit were acquitted of any wrongdoing after killing Amadou Diallo — whose wallet they mistook for a […]
Here is a three-part video of my presentation from a few months ago, at a Boston Public Health Commission Event, in which I discuss, mostly, racism and its connection to health. Part I Part II Part III
Imagine for a moment that any Democratic Party candidate, especially a black or brown one, were to invite members of the Bloods, Crips or MS-13 (a notorious Salvadoran-American street gang) to attend one of their campaign events, or to provide personal security for that candidate during an interview. Or imagine that the candidate of color […]
Prominent white conservatives are angry about racism. Forget all that talk about a post-racial society. They know better than to believe in such a thing, and they’re hopping mad. What is it that woke them up finally, after all these years of denial, during which they insisted that racism was a thing of the past? […]
It is understandable that honest and decent people may disagree about the circumstances surrounding the arrest last week of Henry Louis Gates Jr. in Cambridge. For some, Gates was to blame for what happened. He became belligerent with Sgt James Crowley, and thus precipitated his arrest on charges of disorderly conduct. Others point out that […]
If you wish to gaze upon the depth and breadth of America’s racial divide–particularly the canyon-like gulf between white folks and black folks–you need look no further than the recent incident involving Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., Cambridge police officer James Crowley, and now, President Obama who weighed in on the matter a few […]
Surely by now you’ve heard the news. Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. — who TIME Magazine has named one of the most influential persons in the United States, and who is arguably the most cited black scholar on the planet — was recently arrested. This, after breaking into his own home, in Cambridge, Massachusetts […]
Envision the following, if you can. Imagine that a group of black youth were to descend upon a college town, take to an open field and proceed to smoke pot–lots of it–just as they had announced they would, at the very time they had promised to be there. Thousands of them, lighting up, virtually daring […]
Not long ago, after I had written an article in which I discussed white denial–the tendency for most white folks to reject the notion that racism is still a significant obstacle for people of color in the U.S.–I received an e-mail from a white man who insisted that my argument was itself racist. His reason? […]
Here’s a sentence I never thought I’d write, at least not as soon as I am now compelled to write it: It may well be the case that the United States is on its way to electing a person of color as President. Make no mistake, I realize the way that any number of factors, […]
