Rights and Democracy
I Can’t Watch Another Police Killing
Philando Castile and Alton Sterling became the latest black Americans to turn into Twitter hashtags when videos of their deaths at the hands of police circulated on social media. But I couldn't bring myself to watch them. I still remember the helpless frustration I...
Trump Isn’t the Only Republican with a Woman Problem
Long before he set his sights on the White House, Donald Trump was showing his misogynistic colors. He became notorious for using the press and social media to publicly attack women, calling them "dogs" and "fat pigs." He objectified and degraded women while making...
Loving America Means Finding Fault With It
I was sitting on a bus one summer, chatting with a man behind me who'd worked all over the world in the U.S. foreign service. Like many conversations today, ours turned eventually to the many problems with our country. That's when his companion, who'd been silent so...
Still Second-Class Citizens
When I heard about the police shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, I thought back to another name etched into American history: Dred Scott. In 1857, the Supreme Court was tasked with deciding whether Scott, an African American man born into slavery,...
It’s Not Just Trump Who’s Confused About Racism
Donald Trump, you might have heard, recently called Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren "racist" for claiming her Native American heritage. I believe the appropriate response to Trump can be expressed by a quote from The Princess Bride's Inigo Montoya: "You keep...
Trump U’s Alumni Network
The Media Has a Huge Blind Spot on Terrorism
Shortly before the United Kingdom's "Brexit" vote, the shocking murder of Jo Cox — a member of parliament and a vocal Remain supporter — exposed the racist roots of elements in the victorious Leave campaign. That much you may have heard. What you might not have heard...
There’s No More Denying It: Trump Is Openly Racist
This year's freakish presidential election has now devolved into an ethnic brouhaha between two foreigners: A Mexican and a German. The "Mexican" is Gonzalo Curiel, a U.S. federal judge who was born, raised, and educated in Indiana. The "German" is Donald Drumpf —...
They’re Killing Us. Help Us Stop Them.
The weekend of June 12 sent me on a rollercoaster of emotions I never thought possible. The previous Friday, I was an invited participant in the first-ever White House Summit for African American LGBTQ Youth. I felt amazingly supported, empowered, and valued — by my...
Tech Companies Need to Stop Bankrolling Hate
It’s common for major corporations to sponsor political conventions to buy favor with political parties. But what about when the convention nominates a presidential candidate who’s an out-and-out racist? That’s a deal breaker, right? For some big tech companies,...
