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Joe McKnight Is Dead And His Killer Is Free Because His Life Didn't Matter Enough For Him To Be Alive
Birthday parties for babies tend to be more for the adults present than the actual baby celebrated, and my daughter’s first birthday party — which, due to rush of people who happened to be in town Thanksgiving weekend, was pushed up to the Saturday after Thanksgiving (the 26th) instead of her actual birthday (the 30th) — was…
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This Clip Of Zara Larsson Covering Beyonce Is Peak Mayonnaise, And Harper's Bazaar Is Petty For Sharing It
Surprisingly, the worse part about this video isn’t actually Zara Larsson’s attempt to cover Beyonce. It was bad, of course. It looks and sounds like a professionally edited clip from karaoke night at Mayonnaise Caribana. But although I was tempted to coin her “Darth Mediocre” after first watching it, that would be unfair because she…
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Join Us #AcrossTheFence: A Day Of Family Healing, In Connection To August Wilson's Fences
Today, the #AcrossTheFence interview series with my dad culminates with two segments — one where I explain how and why I began to think and write about race, and one where my dad shares a story about his Uncle Wilbur, the first Black fireman in New Castle, Pa (and the man my dad is named…
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More #AcrossTheFence (This Time, Damon's Parents Start A Race Riot)
Couple things about this video: 1. I’ve heard this story somewhere between 40 and 640 times, and it gets better every time I hear it. 2. I actually do incorporate it in my book. (My version of the story is much, um, different though.) 3. If this happened today — a Black couple and a Black…
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Why So Many Liberal White Guys Just Can't Admit The Election Was About Race, Explained
Who are liberal White people? Liberal White people are somewhere trying very, very hard. Where can you find them? Trader Joe’s parking lots. Inner-city bike lanes. Jason Derulo listening parties. Giving TED Talks about couscous. Writing for Slate. Producing feminist porn. I see. So, how are liberal White people taking Donald Trump’s election? Well, I’m not…
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11 Questions You Probably Don't Have About VSB's Washington Post Profile But I'm Answering Anyway
Last week, The Washington Post ran an extensive profile of VSB. Below are answers to some questions you might have had about it. Wait, what? The Washington Post ran a feature on VSB? Yes. When did this happen??? Um, last week. Just like I said. How come you all didn’t say anything about this? I’m…
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On Insecure's Revolutionary (And Real) Depictions Of Young Black People Having Sex
Last night’s Insecure finale ended with both a bang (Lawrence finally deciding to take Tasha the bank teller up on her, um, offer) and a whimper (Issa’s couch cry in Molly’s arms); culminating a season unlike any other I’d seen on network or cable TV. Of course, we’ve seen shows where friendships between Black women served…
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Introducing #AcrossTheFence: A National Conversation Between Family (Based On August Wilson's Fences)
The screen adaptation of August Wilson’s iconic Fences — starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis — comes to movie theaters on Christmas Day, 2016. This is a historic moment, the first major August production on the big screen. The play (and the movie) of course, centers on a father, a mother, a son, and their extended…
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Mark Lilla's "The End Of Identity Liberalism" Is The Whitest Thing I've Ever Read
A predictable but still fascinating byproduct of the election is the emergence of a new sub-genre of discourse and literature solely comprised of White people attempting to explain Trump’s win without saying the words “race” or “racism.” Its almost as if they’re engaged in some sort of devolved, pre-racial game of Taboo. “Quick, explain what happened…
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Those "I'm Not My Grandparents; You Can Catch These Hands" Shirts Are Disrespectful As Fuck (And Wrong)
I was invited to New York City Friday evening for an advance screening of the screen adaptation of Fences — August Wilson’s iconic play. Afterwards, the cast — including Denzel Washington (who also produced and directed the film) and Viola Davis — took part in a panel discussion about the story the film told, August Wilson’s genius, Pittsburgh…
