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What Detroit Needs Is an HNIC
(The Root) — In her best-seller Dead Aid, noted African economist Dambisa Moyo said that what is needed for many poor countries suffering from corrupt, incompetent or ineffective leadership is a “benevolent dictator,” whom she defined as someone who is brave and powerful enough to push through necessary reforms. Despite the debate that ensued after…
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Why the Onion's Crappy Apology Is Worthless
(The Root) — When I watched Quvenzhané Wallis telling the story of a little girl called Hushpuppy and her adventures living in a poor Bayou area in Beasts of the Southern Wild, I was enchanted by how well she articulated her life and the world around her. I had so much hope that she might…
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Hey, White Guys, It's Time to Share America
(The Root) — In December 1976, United Artists released Rocky, the story of an obscure, aging Philadelphia boxer, an underdog who challenged insurmountable odds to get his shot at facing a brutish, flamboyant champion. Sylvester Stallone never claimed that he intended any racial connotations in his now-beloved character, but it’s easy to see Rocky as…
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My Father's Beautiful Death
(The Root) — This is a story that begins with an end. To be specific, it is about the end of a life that was very special to me. A life that taught me many things, lessons that I’m still learning as I evolve. A life that could have only been lived by one person.…
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Black Christian Voters: Get Over It
When I watched President Obama speaking to ABC’s Robin Roberts about his position on same-sex marriage, I didn’t think about it being another moment in history so much as I thought of another historic figure: Bayard Rustin. Rustin, who died in 1987, is remembered as the principal organizer of the March on Washington in 1963.…
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Pat Robertson: Right About Legalizing Pot
Pat Robertson insists that he doesn’t smoke weed, and I believe him. Of all the wacky things the 700 Club televangelist has declared over the years — from the Haiti earthquake being the result of God’s retribution for a mythical Voodoo ritual to the recent tornadoes being the result of not enough prayer — he…
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When Beloved Icons Become Black History
In black culture, we do three rituals differently from other ethnic groups: get married, worship and bury our loved ones. And in those three, we express ourselves more vociferously than in just about any other aspect of our lives. When we get married, we party hard. When we go to church, we see middle-aged women…
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A 2012 Campaign Playlist With Soul
Four decades ago, when your parents placed a needle on the vinyl grooves that sounded out the chords of Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together” at a basement blue light party, it was unlikely that anyone dancing to the song in an applejack hat or platform boots would have imagined that this same tune would be…
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Black Conservatives Could Sink With Cain
Don’t tell anyone, but I’m envious of black conservatives. They can see America through a visor that was clouded for me many years ago. To them, this is a nation of opportunity for anyone who is willing to work hard enough. I believe that, too, but experience has taught me that such a concept must…
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Give Me Some Relevance on TV
One night recently I watched an episode of Good Times. The plot dealt with the 11-year-old militant yet cherubic character, Michael, being suspended from school for telling his teacher that George Washington was a racist slave owner. As his mother chastises him, he protests, “Mama, ‘boy’ is a white racist word.” The rest of the…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
