The Curiously Brief Life of Integrated America At its core, integration was a social policy designed to end the brutal racial caste system that locked Black people into the bottom rungs of American society. The policy was codified into law 53 years ago (yes, integration is that young) in the 1964 Civil Rights Act. That law banned race and other forms of discrimination in … [Read more...]
White Supremacy: What it is and How it Operates
“If you don’t understand white supremacy, what it is and how it operates, everything you think you understand will only confuse you.” Neely Fuller, Jr. I’ve heard the words “White supremacy” more in the past week than at any point in my life. Which is saying a lot, since I majored in Africana Studies in college. Most people have no real idea what the phrase means or how it … [Read more...]
4 Lessons Shea Moisture’s Fail Can Teach Black Businesses Owners
Shea Moisture is a Black owned hair care company in the middle of a racial identity branding crisis. It’s a racial identity branding crisis of such epic proportions that Rachel Dolezal is breathing a sigh of relief (and possibly seeking new employment?). When Black business owners build their foundation on a Black clientele, it's likely that they will one day ask: should … [Read more...]
Why Integrated Schools Don’t Solve Black Student Problems
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I wasn't surprised to read New York Daily News reporter Shaun King’s heartbreaking article about Jaylon Sewell. Jaylon is a Black student who “wasn't allowed to attend class with dyed hair — ‘when white students with dyed hair were allowed to attend class.’” Nor was I surprised to read that: “Jaylon and more than 20 other black students at Neville High School have … [Read more...]
I Took Hundreds of Students to See The Birth of a Nation. Here’s How it Went.
Last week Breaking the Cycle Consulting Services (BCCS) screened The Birth of a Nation with over 500 high school students in New York and Washington DC. BCCS is a consulting company I co-founded with my husband several years ago to work with educators, parents, students and agencies to break the cycle of academic and social underdevelopment in communities of color. We've been … [Read more...]