Synagogue of blood and the warlock’s spell of hatred

The warlock’s latest spell — cast since June 16, 2015 — of manipulating hatred, paranoia, and economic exclusion, remains intact. This spell, like the others, can easily integrate with each other to present society with more complexity and danger. And extensibility. We saw evidence of this on November 11, 2016. We see additional proof today […]

When the beat stops dropping — marching after Trump

The synchronized goose-stepping to President Donald Trump’s White-America-First drumbeat seems highly familiar to many of you. And this is the point where most media analogies between Trumpism and Nazi Germany stop short. I want to go deeper and explore the policy and moral ramifications of Trumpism’s eventual end — and what will happen once the […]

Here we go again: Permit Patty summons police and joins in Becky-drenched assaults on benign moments in Black life

Do you know why no one can call me Kupkake Kwame or Cookie Cassius? Because when I walk around my neighborhood and see eight-year old White boys or girls selling cupcakes, checking these kids’ merchant credentials to sell merchandise — or calling the police if they say “What’s a credential, sir?” — is the furthest […]

Unstable mixtures and missing chapters — Chekesia Clemons’ beef about plastic forks at Waffle House ends with being stripped and arrested by Alabama police

Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson’s arrests at the Philadelphia Starbucks and the story I just read about the Black woman who was choked, stripped and arrested by Alabama police officers — more on that in a moment — reminds me of a late-night encounter I saw in a downtown New York City diner from the […]

Starbucks, racist Holly Hylton and magic training

Do you think we’re anywhere near through discussing this racist, Central City Philadelphia Starbucks incident that resulted in the coffee shop’s manager, Holly Hylton, siccing police officers on two African descendants — Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson — for sitting in the café for just two minutes without buying anything? Hell. Naw. Starbucks could repeat […]

Something to think about when the sight of two Black guys sitting in Starbucks makes you call the police

Unless you really dislike Black people, the video shared by author Melissa DePino of two African descendants being arrested by Philadelphia police officers for simply sitting in a Starbucks in advance of a business meeting should be uncomfortable to watch. @Starbucks The police were called because these men hadn’t ordered anything. They were waiting for […]

Bruno Mars and cultural appropriation, part 2: the bake

The fried-rice-and-chicken-wing-theory of Blackness gets too much shine at times. We’ll dig deeper into that point later. I want to continue my thoughts from earlier today about Bruno Mars and cultural appropriation by asking a silly question: what is Blackness? Also, what credentialed person or process gets to determine someone else’s Blackness? No, this isn’t […]

Bruno Mars and cultural appropriation, part 1: the shake

To the folks who continue to drone that performer Bruno Mars is guilty of cultural appropriation — leave him Alone. Yeah, I always thought Bruno Mars played Cruise Ship Funk — the safe stuff that’s deodorized to a sucralose state of Middle-American acceptamce where listens invoke Peoria-grandma-approved happy faces, trying hard to keep a beat. […]

That day the NRA pulled the (Black) race card — and everyone lost it

Okay — it’s time to deal with the National Rifle Association’s Dana Loesch and her days-ago quote that still has people arguing. Many in legacy media love mass shootings. You guys love it. She then creatively teased the race card … Now I’m not saying that you love the tragedy. […]

NAACP’s “Feared but forgotten” Robert F. Williams — a Negro with a gun

I want to rap about the latest National Rifle Association’s disingenuous stroke of rhetorical jiu-jitsu brilliance, as exhibited by their spokesperson Dana Loesch, but I think it’s a good idea to share a prerequisite piece about the late Monroe, North Carolina NAACP branch president, Robert F. Williams. Besides, today is Williams’ birthday. I’m not surprised […]