“I can’t even tell something true unless it has a punchline behind it. You guys aren’t ready. You’re not ready for this. You don’t know how to survive yourselves. Black people, we are the only ones who know how to…

This is not the time for me to make white comfort a priority as per societal norms of old, so I’ll be direct: like many African-Americans whose ancestors were stolen and dragged to this nation that they built, I tire…

To the 53 Percenters, MAGA fans, and everyone else with common sense,

I know, y’all. I know.

I looked at the title of this blog the way a drunkard would stare at a toilet after an evening of overindulgence and…

The first film this country ever created made it clear to me what America thought of me.

On February 8^th, 1915, the silent film Birth of a Nation debuted. The movie (originally titled “The Clansman” after the novel…

Dear Major League Baseball,

Every April 15^th, you honor a pioneer of your fabled pastime, Jackie Robinson. You spend what I am assuming are generous amounts of money holding ceremonies at every stadium with players adorning the now-forever-retired…

When I arise this morning

I’ll brush my teeth without trepidation

Drink my tea with defiance and take my grits with butter

Unfettered

Back stiffened

Eyes forward

Teeth gleaming

Ready to stare into Hatred’s familiar eyes

And say, “Yes. I’m…

Yesterday was my birthday. To say I was overwhelmed by the outpouring of well-wishes, stories of things I had done to help others, comical recollections of days past, or simple “I love you”s from family and friends would be a…

I’m not the biggest baseball fan in the world, admittedly. I generally cheer for the New York Yankees, since Derek Jeter is from Michigan and during my teenage years is when I truly started paying attention to baseball. Growing up…

To call the last eight days of my life an arduous, traumatic, anxiety-filled, life-changing rollercoaster still doesn’t quite put it all in its proper prospective. Three deaths within a week’s time transformed me from a full-time performing artist, grad student…

Racism

Feels like acid burning your skin

causing tears deep enough to swim in

Just for swimming

they drowned their all-white pools

Told us we didn’t belong

But you tell her all lives matter

You tell her

black girls worry…

1) Stop confusing “She didn’t deserve to be shot and killed” with ” I agree with the manner in which she handled the situation.” Or “She shouldn’t have been arrested.” Countless times armed individuals with mental illnesses (as many of…

To My 27 (Yes, 27) White Friends Who Recruited Me To Fight Their Battles For Them On Facebook:

We have a problem. Part of the problem we both see already: despite repeated evidence of actions towards unarmed blacks, from…

On Nixon & Nepotism

Years ago,

they told me

wars on blacks were make believe.

Yet, in some Tricky way,

tracks in arms

occured while Liberty looked elsewhere.

Today,

while waiting hours to be heard

they tell me yesterday’s words…

Whatever happened to standards? I’m not old by ANY stretch of the imagination, but this new trend of calling everything “shaming” has reached epic levels of annoyance, at least with me. The term “slut-shaming” is the single most bothersome term…

Steph Curry’s shooting ability is ridiculous. So ridiculous, in fact, that he has delayed the release of a video game for confusion on high to rate his skill set. Think about that: his gameplay as of late has been so…

Apparently, loving your culture and yourself is still something only white people can do in this country without being perceived as a threat. Exhibits B & C of this continuing trend of making white privileged-based thinking uncomfortable occurred this weekend…

It’s been about seven weeks since that Tuesday afternoon in December when I finally went through the not-so-small ordeal of cutting my locs off. At eight years, maintaining my locs (also referred to as “dreadlocks” and the less attractive term…