I Tried It
-
On Finding Joy Where You Can During This Pandemic, Despite These Less Than Ideal Circumstances
I think it’s safe to say that it’s been a challenging year. Unlike countless others, I’ve been extremely fortunate to remain gainfully employed and have somehow eluded the coronavirus entirely as it continues to wreak havoc upon so many I hold dear. But while I’ve made it a point to count my blessings and remain…
-
I Didn't Intend to Do This Product Review But Rescue!'s Fly Traps Work Like a Mug and Sharing is Caring
Do you need to get rid of some flies? I did. Wrote a song about it; like to hear it, here it go. A few weeks ago I started noticing random posts on my social media platforms about the aggressive amount of flies in the Washington, D.C. area. While I wanted to scream at them…
-
The Apollo Theater Is Holding Online Auditions So I Decided to Shoot My Shot
The Apollo Theater is a church. Opened in 1914 as a burlesque theater, for the first 20 years of its existence, Black people were banned from performing at the venue or even attending a production. After changing its name to the Apollo Theater and opening its doors to African Americans in 1934, the Harlem monument…
-
Aunties Don’t Sleep, Black Girls Are Not Magic and Other Things I Learned During CBC Week
I’ve known about the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Annual Legislative Conference for years, but I have never attended because a very close friend of mine went one year and came back infected with a disease from which she still suffers to this day. I know it makes no sense, but even after people told me…
-
CBC Week, Explained
The Root’s Senior Writer Michael Harriot will be documenting his first time attending the Congressional Black Caucus’ Foundation Annual Legislative Conference in Washington DC, colloquially known at CBC Week. What is CBC Week? According to the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s website, the CBCF Annual Legislative Conference is “the leading policy conference on issues impacting African…
-
I Took a Healthy Cooking Class Because I Haven’t Made a Proper Meal Since Thanksgiving…2016
So, I’m not a cook. Or an epicurean. Definitely not a chef. I do know how to prepare food, and there are certain dishes that I am repeatedly complimented on: my arroz con gandules, my collard greens, my homemade apple pie. But because I don’t do it often enough, it can be hit-or-miss, because, like…
-
Fat Tuesday in Mobile: Like Regular Mardi Gras … But Blacker
The citizens of Mobile, Ala., know it’s the birthplace of Mardi Gras in America. If the subject of New Orleans comes up, they might mention the Big Easy’s Fat Tuesday party. Anyone who has attended the twin bacchanalian Fat Tuesday celebrations in New Orleans and Mobile, Ala., will testify that the real Mardi Gras takes…
-
Awkward Black Guy: I’m Not Nigerian But I Played One for a Whole Weekend
“You’re totally Nigerian,” Nkechi Nneji said, holding her hands out in a frame like she was sizing up my face for a photo. “And you’ve got an Igbo head!” This was uttered to me in a vaguely complimentary way by my friend, Nkechi (pronounced EN-KAY-Chee), as she and fellow Nigerian Omarosa (yes, that Omarosa), tried…
-
What I Learned From My Week as a Conservative
Two years ago, as part of an assignment, I was white. I didn’t change my skin color or anything, but I drove across country for three days into Mexico in a van with eight white men. After three days, we camped out in a remote, untouched wilderness for 12 days, hiking 75 miles total, with…
-
America: Wakanda for White People
Before most of black America pulled their dashikis over their head and threw kente cloths over their shoulders for the Black Panther premiere, they had collectively anticipated the premise of the movie with an unnatural excitement. Much of the hype had nothing to do with the storyline or the fact that the Marvel Universe had…