culture

Last Halloween, we were preparing for Election Day in the midst of much racial tension surrounding then-nominee Barack Obama. Here’s Meera Bowman-Johnson’s article, reprinted below, on the top five costumes that she doesn’t want to see at her door. Halloween has crept upon us and this year, I’m more afraid than ever before. After all, this…

You don’t have to have firsthand memories of the T-formation or of the American Football League to recall vividly when the regular season game between the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts amounted to a playoff preview. These two teams meet on Sunday night, but anyone calling it postseason precursor is either wildly optimistic or…

Lehman Brothers. When we hear of rich corporate giants going down, it’s easy to forget that these are institutions where thinking, feeling human beings work. People who face the same problems we all must deal with. I was reminded of a story I did last year about a woman who battled breast cancer and how…

Black women talk so much about the lack of “good” black men, but what I want to know is, who’s screening these applications? You know—who’s making sure the men you think are so hot actually past muster? Seems like a lot of young ladies end up with down-lows or fresh-outs, putting them up in some…

“Your hair looks very nice today.” “Thank you, Grandma. How was your day? Grandpa said you two went to church this morning. How was the sermon?” “…Oh, I can’t remember, but it was nice. I like your hair. Have I told you that already?” “Yes, Grandma, you did.” “Oh…sorry.” “It’s okay.” My grandparents raised me…

Even if they don’t have a gun, it seems as if the men who run baseball will find a way to shoot themselves in the foot. The 2008 World Series should have been a showcase for a plethora of new stars, a platform for two emerging powerhouses, and a chance for the sport to display…

It will be interesting to see how people reflect on this economic crisis in years to come. Will it be remembered for the trillions of dollars the government will likely throw at the problem before it’s over? Will it be remembered for the failures of financial industry giants like Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers? Will…

The end of this presidential campaign is giving me fits. During the day, I believe Barack Obama might just win this thing. At night, I’m scared sleepless that he might not.

For much of this decade, the Eastern Conference of the NBA has been called the Leastern Conference, due to the rather severe inferiority of eastern teams when compared with their Western Conference counterparts. It wasn’t a myth. From 1999-2003, the Eastern Conference representatives managed just six wins in losing five straight finals to either the…

Chris Rock has a classic bit in his 1999 HBO special “Bigger and Blacker” where he documents his father’s obsession with Robitussin as a cure-all remedy. “Daddy I got asthma! Robitussin. I got cancer! Robitussin. I broke my leg! Daddy pourin’ Robitussin on it.” When it’s time for me to ponder the complex and nuanced…