To the Defenders,
I will not name the best authors from Africa, my favorite singer from Syria, or enumerate the languages my friends from Haiti speak.
I won’t read about your future son the engineer, your daughter the doctor, how high the grades are and how they are admired by all.
The memories you have swallowed, the roughness of your hands at some tiring labor, your clean record cannot be the reasoning.
I won’t count the PhD’s in Nigeria, Kenya or Syria.
The articles on VOX, Buzzfeed, twitter feed: economic analysis, levels of wealth, volumes of accomplishments are clicked off, not clicked. …
Trigger Happy
“I thought it was a mosquito bite, and when it hit me I had my hands in the air, and I’m thinking I just got shot! And I’m saying, ‘Sir, why did you shoot me?’ and his words to me were, ‘I don’t know.’ ” (exchange between Charles Kinsey and police officer)
Make a good decision
lie on the ground
reach your arms skyward
keep your legs straight
beg
the police officer to see
you supplicant, to recognize
your companion as care-free —
a boy on the ground holding
a toy truck
continue to counsel
toward safety, use…
Why I want you to know #iamaffirmativeaction
And why others need to tell you too.
Dear Justice Scalia,
I went to high school in rural Pennsylvania, a coal mining town with few resources and no support for education. At the time, some of our high school teachers had never been to college, others came and went. We had no Math beyond Algebra II, I never took Physics or Chemistry and I knew nothing about studying or learning. When I took my SAT’s the first time my combined score was 710. …
The news of Jeb Bush and Ted Cruz proposing Christianity tests to the refugee Syrians before letting them into the USA is a proposal that they feel will assure us of their suitability to being in our country. These families are seeking solace and new beginnings, seeking safety and compassion. In response to this proposal by Bush, I have reflected on Christianity: its roots, beliefs and basic principles. While I’m not a theologian, and no longer a Christian, years of a Catholic upbringing engraved the teachings onto my brain and into my heart. And without religion, I follow many of the precepts, just kind of automatically, like many of us do. …
In the last two days, I have followed my Facebook feed on the latest terror attacks on Beirut, Paris and the world. Because I keep my community closed, connecting with like-minded people, who share my political and moral beliefs, many articles from the Arab world, from Muslims, progressives and those invested in peace-seeking, come onto my screen.
Among the items on the feed are articles that show Gazans lighting candles for Paris and Beirut, Muslim video clips condemning the attacks, other Americans pointing out the ignorance of wide sweeping Islamophobia, and threats to turn the US into a Christians-only nation (re: Jeb Bush). …
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