Conversations about racism should not be getting stuck on ‘not all white people’

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Anyway, the other subset of people were white people who generally agreed with what I said about Bodega Bro, but they were given pause because in my headline I said “Bodega Bro is the epitome of everything white people do wrong on a daily basis.” They all got stuck on the “white people” part, and they all wanted to lecture me about how I shouldn’t lump everyone together in one category. 

Selective offense and ‘not all white people’: We shouldn’t have to keep coddling y’all 

Why is Josh Hawley always being a goofy?

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At this point, he should have realized he was in over his head, but you know white people, they gonna keep pushing it. He didn’t even really have anything “good” to say back, so he just stammered, “Uh, so, uh your view is that the core of this right then is about what?”

Josh Hawley messed around and found out, or how to ‘professionally’ read someone who is playing in your face

Black people with guns is scary business, apparently

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Except as we all know, people’s attitudes about who should and shouldn’t be able to bear arms and carry them in public tend to shift greatly when it comes to Black people owning guns. And we all know this is due to the implicit bias buried deep in this country’s DNA that causes white people to view Black people as some sort of ongoing threat. 

Why is open carry only an issue when it comes to Black folks? 

Some of our favorite songs have some really wild lyrics

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Because of my close relationship with music, I have had the opportunity to repeatedly listen to songs and analyze their lyrical content. I have to say, what passed for good music back in the day would really get the side-eye today—not because the music is bad, but because at times the subject matter or the lyrics raise some eyebrows and questions.

So-called ‘romantic’ songs with very questionable lyrics

When will the truth about Uvalde come out?

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This is the problem when outlets simply report what the police are saying and use that as the narrative. The police don’t always get it right, and as stated earlier, sometimes they flat out lie. The narrative from law enforcement in Texas has shifted so many times, it’s almost as if they are making it up as they go along. 

What Really Happened in Uvalde?

This summer’s anthem is…

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Listen. If Kandi doesn’t do anything else, she is going to give you a catchy bop to sing along to. After all, this is the woman who penned “No Scrubs,” “Bills, Bills, Bills,” “Tardy for the Party,” “The Ring Didn’t Mean a Thing,” and who has writing credits on “Bug a Boo,” “There You Go,” and “U and Dat.” She knows her way around a hit.

‘Legs and hips and bawdeeeeee’: Kandi Burruss has given us our summer earworm

Michael Harriot always nails it

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If what Whitlock believes is true, then my eyes have been opened. If fact-based criticism is offensive enough to make cops abrogate their professional duties and the very foundation of why they exist, then I finally understand why America is like this. According to Whitlock, it is crazy to expect police officers to live up to their pledge to protect and serve and be held responsible by the people who pay them. Next, you’ll be telling me that Black people want this country to live up to its pledge that “all men are created equal” and treat them equally, too!

What Jason Whitlock can teach us about white people, cops and America 

When I tell you O-T Fagbenle is a delight, please believe me

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“I’m a man whose greatest wealth and honor is my family. That’s number one. I’m a person who cares a lot about young people,” he says. “…I guess I’m an artist. I’m a person who is driven to contribute stories to people, and I think in some ways the job of the artist is to reflect the most intimate parts of themselves to others.”

O-T FAGBENLE IS SHOWING US A DIFFERENT SIDE OF BARACK OBAMA ON THE FIRST LADY

I have a new weekly column at DAME

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I’m not saying that journalism as a whole is completely fucked up, but it is trending in that direction. And this is scary because journalists are supposed to be the watchdogs of society. We have an obligation to be truthful and tell the people what is happening. That doesn’t always happen these days. 

U.S. Journalism is a Hellscape Right Now

America doesn’t care about Black women

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“About a third of our population is African American; African Americans have a higher incidence of maternal mortality. So, if you correct our population for race, we’re not as much of an outlier as it’d otherwise appear. Now, I say that not to minimize the issue but to focus the issue as to where it would be. For whatever reason, people of color have a higher incidence of maternal mortality.”

Sen. Bill Cassidy proves America doesn’t care about Black women

Why are Black women always expected to be the bigger person?

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Black women are always expected to turn the other cheek when it comes to the people who mistreat them. We are always expected to be the bigger person, to rise above it all and act like we are indifferent to the hateful speech, abusive behavior and gaslighting that goes on in situations like this. 

Black women don’t owe Kevin Samuels anything

For theGrio, I wrote about how Black women are being asked to show grace to Kevin Samuels in light of his death, despite the fact that he had none for Black women when he was living.

WTF, Netflix?

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“In a Business Insider article published in February, employees said that Netflix wooed them with the promise of more stability and higher wages than journalism has offered in recent years: If Netflix says “We’re going to pay you a more-than-livable wage and let you continue to write about the things that you write,’ honestly, why wouldn’t you want to do that?,” one writer told Insider.”

Netflix Lays Off the Journalists It Just Hired
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30 years later, policing in Los Angeles is still a problem

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“Both the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department have horrible reputations and track records when it comes to their interactions with the residents of the city. The sheriff’s department, in particular, is known to be filled with internal gangs that target the city’s residents of color. The county sheriff himself is currently embroiled in a scandal in which it is alleged he attempted to cover up a video of a deputy kneeling on a handcuffed inmate’s neck—a case reminiscent of the murder of George Floyd.”

30 years after the 1992 Los Angeles Rebellion, policing in the city hasn’t changed much

Today is the 30th anniversary of the Los Angeles Uprising

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“In April 29, 1992, the city of Los Angeles erupted into a state of civil unrest following the not guilty verdict in the trial of the Los Angeles police officers charged with the brutal beating of Rodney King. For six days, people angry about the trial’s outcome took to the streets, businesses were looted and the city burned. While the verdict was the final straw for many, the fuse for their anger was lit years before.”

30 years after the 1992 Los Angeles uprising, not enough has changed

Let’s celebrate 4/20 while remembering those held hostage by antiquated ‘drug’ laws

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So I’m going to leave you with this: As you spark up today, put one in the air for brothers and sisters still locked down because they sold a dime bag. Blow one for the ones who just had a joint on them and got the most extreme forms of “justice” just because some judge could. Light one for all the soldiers in the struggle who are still serving time for the same thing a lot of white people are making millions off of now and getting away with it because they have a storefront. 

As we celebrate 4/20, let’s remember that the ‘weed man’ has been gentrified by white people

It’s all about the way we see ourselves

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“First of all, I realize that my body is mine and mine alone. This means that no amount of outside messaging should be able to impact how I feel about myself. Coming to that realization was a process, and we all come to it at different times, but once you get there, it is the most liberating feeling in the world.”

I no longer wish to be ‘at war’ with my body
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White people lose their shit every Black History Month. Why?

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The problem is that whiteness is centered so much in our world, people like this don’t know how to respond when it isn’t. White people don’t have to worry about their “culture” being left out of anything, because it’s always present, but they still complain when they can’t see themselves in something. They will even go so far as to insert themselves where they don’t belong.

Why Can’t We Just Enjoy Black History Month?

I’d be willing to bet everyone loves Set It Off

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“Cleo leads the police on a high-speed chase that ends with her being cornered by them. She lights a cigarette, takes a few pulls, and then gets out of her car and starts shooting at them. This is where my favorite phrase “Going out like Cleo” comes from because the police light her up, but she went out like a GANGSTER, OK?!”

28 Days of Black Movies: ‘Set It Off’ depicts a perfect example of what we mean by ‘ride or die’ friendships
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If you have never watched Sprung, it’s time you did

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“Before we go any further, can we please talk about how underused Paula Jai Parker has been in the film industry? She is hilarious and generally eats up every scene she is in. She has a way of emoting and expressing things with her voice that makes her hysterical to watch. Her attitude, the way she rolls her eyes, rolls her neck and generally gives you that good hood sister attitude is something we got a peek of when she played Joi in Friday. In Sprung, she steals the show in my opinion.”

28 Days of Black Movies: ‘Sprung’ is a hidden gem among ’90s Black rom-coms
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