RACE
Why Fani Willis Pays with Cash
Spoiler alert: It’s a Black thing.
Back when I worked in Arkansas, I dropped by the home of an aunt and uncle for lunch. The pair lived across the Arkansas River in a town once called Argenta, now known as North Little Rock.
The trip was a five-minute drive from my job, and the ham sandwich and syrupy-sweet glass of tea that awaited me was well worth the trip. As I chatted with my uncle, my aunt entered the room, with a request. “I need you to help me move some things in the bedroom,” she said.
Upon entering the bedroom, my aunt motioned to a chest of drawers against a wall. I assumed she needed a strong back to rearrange the item of furniture. Instead, she opened one drawer, then another, revealing their contents. The dresser drawers were stuffed with draw-stringed bags of coins, each labeled with the denomination of its contents.
Some contained nickels, others dimes or quarters. Several were stuffed with Kennedy half-dollars. “Would you carry these bags to the car?” my aunt asked. “They’re too heavy for me and your uncle.” They planned to exchange the coins for dollars at a nearby bank.
Once I lugged the cache of coins to the trunk of their Lincoln Town Car, I cautioned my aunt on the wisdom of keeping more than a thousand dollars…
