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Until Justice Is Real: What’s Next After Chauvin Was Found Guilty of Murdering George Floyd
Hearing the guilty verdict handed down to Derek Chauvin last week brought up a lot of emotions for all of us. One of those emotions was relief—and nothing showed that relief more than the faces of the Floyd family. Despite the facts and video capturing all 9 minutes and 29 seconds of the murder of…
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We Need to Hold Corporate Enablers Accountable for the White Supremacist Insurgency at the Capitol
On Wednesday, our country witnessed what happens when we fail to address and reconcile a history of racial terror, white privilege and racial discrimination in our society. This brazen act of domestic terrorism further illustrates how corporate enablers and an out-of-control administration can create an incredibly dangerous climate for all Americans, and for our democracy…
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George Gascón Won L.A.’s District Attorney Race—and So Did Reform Activists
This Election Day, activists for justice reform and racial equity saw their vision for L.A.’s justice system come to life with George Gascón’s win in the Los Angeles County district attorney race. For eight years, racial justice advocates fought tooth and nail for reform, innovation and transparency at the district attorney’s office while the incumbent…
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We Won the Fight to be Heard. But We Still Have to Fight to Win Racial Justice
Today, we should celebrate. When I think about how our community pulled together—and what we achieved in terms of making our voices heard, despite everything stacked against us—I am joyful. I feel deep love for Black people, families and communities all across this country who showed up in record numbers to make their voices heard.…
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Locking Up Black People Is Big Business
Last week, I got to participate in American Injustice: A BET Town Hall. It’s a series of live conversations with leaders from Cory Booker to Kamala Harris about how we got into this crisis of mass incarceration. It’ll air this Sunday. If there’s one thing I want people to take away from it, it’s that…
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Congressional Black Caucus PAC Needs to Cut Ties to Companies That Benefit From Black Suffering
On Tuesday, Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.) lost her historic bid to become only the second black woman ever elected to the U.S. Senate. While there will be many takes on the implications of the election, as important as any is the inadvertent impact the campaign had in uncovering the unfortunate influence of corporate power over…
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#ByeAnita: Change the Prosecutor, Change How the Police Are Policed
In a presidential election jam-packed with theatrics, protests and even acts of violence, it’s easy to overlook the other races on a ballot, but on Tuesday we got a reminder that a powerful group of politicians are trying to defend their seats against the movement to reform our broken criminal-justice system. In an election that…
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Sam Dubose’s Death Shows Need for Body Cameras
“I want justice for my son!” Why are we here again? The police have taken yet another life, and now another parent is left mourning the death of her child at the hands of law enforcement, this time in Cincinnati. Sam Dubose—a father, a musician, an entrepreneur and a motorcycle enthusiast—was pulled over by University…
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Media’s Biased and Dehumanizing Coverage of Baltimore Fails to Tell the City’s Real Story
In what has become an all-too-familiar scene, America watched another of its cities erupt in protest this week, after yet another young black man died after interacting with police. This time the city was Baltimore and the victim was 25-year-old Freddie Gray, who suffered a severe spinal injury while in police custody on April 12.…
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Ferguson Is America and the Time to Act Is Now
Last week the Department of Justice released its report documenting the racial discrimination and bias that is endemic to policing in Ferguson, Mo. The deep problems unveiled by the DOJ’s investigation reflect a harsh reality that exists in many places across the country—not just Ferguson: At every level of our criminal-justice system, African Americans are…
