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White Anti-Racists Must Be ‘Stone Catchers’ for Oppressed People
White America, from Main Street to the nation’s capital, from our dinner tables to our textbooks, from the media to the religious pew, created Donald Trump. We must own him and everything he represents. He is a product of white supremacy, and each of us is not only complicit but also has benefited from a…
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The Story of Bresha Meadows: Who Will Sing a Black Girl's Song?
Bresha Meadows, 15 years old, sits inside an Ohio Juvenile Detention Center. On July 28, Bresha walked into her parents’ room and killed her sleeping father with a .45-caliber, semi-automatic handgun. Having enduring years of “mental, physical, emotional” abuse, Bresha—along with Brandi, her mom, and the entire family—lived in constant fear. Only two months earlier,…
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#BlackGirlsSwimFast: On Simone Manuel and Swimming to Freedom
Following their 1-2-3 finish in the 2015 NCAA 100 swimming finals, Mark Anthony Neal tweeted #BlackGirlsSwimFast to celebrate the magnificence of Lia Neal, Simone Manuel and Natalie Hinds. On Thursday night at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, it took 52 seconds for Manuel to swim the fastest. And when she touched first in a…
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Here’s Why the #AllLivesMatter Crowd Doesn’t Care About the Killing of an Unarmed White Teen by Police
Have you heard about what happened to Zachary Hammond? If you believe his attorney, the nation has been asleep about the fact that the 19-year-old was shot and killed by the police while on a date. If you believe his attorney, nobody has said his name or expressed outrage at yet another police killing because…
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Tom Brady and the Privilege of Whiteness
Editor’s note: This piece was first published at New Black Man (in Exile). Tom Brady demonstrates the unflinching power of whiteness in contemporary America. Black people are punished and demonized for cheating. White men like Tom Brady get to do all sorts of s—t for a competitive edge, and they are gaming the system. This…
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Explaining the Underwhelming Reaction When Black Women’s Nude Pics Are Stolen
The following is a sampling of headlines about the recent theft and illegal release of alleged nude photos of celebrities: “Jennifer Lawrence, Others Aren’t Just Hacking Victims” “Kate Upton, Jennifer Lawrence’s Hacked Photos to Be in Art Show” “Selena Gomez, Jennifer Lawrence Allegedly Targets of Massive Celebrity Hacking, FBI Has Launched Investigation” “Celebrities’ Leaked Nude…
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Frat Rap: Music for the New 'White Negro'
In a nod to author Norman Mailer’s 1957 description of whites who appropriate black culture as “white Negroes,” David J. Leonard writes at the Chronicle of Higher Education about a new subgenre of hip-hop called frat rap. It serves up rhymes about all things white and middle class, he says. Adele, Justin Timberlake, Eminem, Teena…
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Innocence in the Age of White Male Mass Shootings
As a white man, David J. Leonard writes on Gawker that when he’s wrong he’s been given ample opportunities to explain himself. And this American psychology, he argues, rears its head in the process of deciphering mass murderers like Aurora, Colo.’s James Holmes. The “its suppose to happen” in inner-city communities reframe is not surprising.…
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White Power in the Age of Obama
Writing at Ebony, David J. Leonard analyzes what he says are reactions to the “alarming message about demographic shifts and waning white male control” sent by the presidential election. The re-election of Barack Obama to the office of President of the United States prompted a wide range of hateful reactions. From tearful Romney supporters to…
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White Denial and the Demand for Solutions
In Part 1 of a series for the Huffington Post, David J. Leonard responds to those who want an easy fix for racial injustice by suggesting that reparations and prison reform could be the beginning. One of the common responses to discussions about racism and other forms of injustice is the demand for solutions. The…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
