Politics
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Miss Ann’s Revenge
It’s time to talk about the “Miss Ann effect.” In the wake of the stunning news that more than half of white women who voted on Nov. 8 opted for Donald Trump, I have concerns—and questions. I’m aware that not all white women are racist. But given the significant number of white women who supported…
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The Black Press Faces New Reality in the Era of Trump
“Twitter is blowing up about this.” I can’t count the number of times I’ve heard people utter this phrase, calmly walking back to the greenroom at CNN, MSNBC or Fox, heads craned forward to look at their phones. Twitter responses, especially negative ones, are like a rite of passage when you do television commentary. It…
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Omarosa Manigault, 4 Other Blacks Who Love Trump and the Jobs They'll Hold When He's President
They all look like oracles now, cinnamon-colored soothsayers, thick-haired prophets, those lone black folks who stood early and alone for the orange man with the wistful comb-over and the penchant for vile, racist comments. He’s our president now, whether we like it or not, and like obedient slaves before them, those black folks are surely…
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After a Trump Victory, Black People Will Need Much More Than ‘We’ve Been Through Worse’ Language
As a 30-year-old black queer man working in majority-white spaces, I am no stranger to indescribable trauma requiring emotional check-ins: sexual assault, homophobia, racism, incessant microaggressions and other forms of institutional violence. To help cope, I frequently told myself, “Black people have been through worse; you will get through it.” It was a temporary help…
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We Owe Donald Trump as Much Respect as He Gave Us During His Run for President
In a concession speech that was exceptionally gracious, given the behavior of her political opponent throughout this abysmal and subsequently catastrophic election season, Hillary Clinton declared, “Donald Trump is going to be our president. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead.” Clinton is a consummate professional, and though she deserved a…
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No, Patton Oswalt, America Is Not More Sexist Than It Is Racist
On Tuesday night, as the world watched in shock and horror with the realization that Donald Trump had, in fact, won the presidency, it didn’t take long for a new narrative to take hold. A tweet by Patton Oswalt, in which he stated that the election results affirmed that America is far more sexist than it is racist,…
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RIP, Obamacare, We Hardly Knew Ye
Obamacare has officially moved into hospice. I think the best thing we can all do now is try to make President Barack Obama’s life work, and arguably the most controversial and effective piece of legislation during his two-term presidency, as comfortable as possible, because the end is near. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act,…
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Black Women Were the Only Ones Who Tried to Save the World Tuesday Night
With dust settling on the biggest political upset in U.S. history, the hazy day after is an atom-bomb-drop mess of circular firing squads, blame games and armchair-quarterbacking analysis of what just happened. And while the top-line analysis pretty much points to white America’s collective anti-black streak as the primary culprit, we are now getting a…
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#WeOutOrNah? The Internal Conflict of a Conscious Black Person Postelection
“Ohio. North Carolina. Florida. My God. This is really happening.” As last night’s results rolled in, I was hunkered down in a war room with colleagues. Together we watched our greatest fear, and that of millions of others around the country, be actualized in real time. My body stiffened as state by state, vote by…