Rights and Democracy
The Blind Spots of Dead White Men
As the rest of the nation celebrates Black History Month this February, I’m taking a graduate level course I call “Dead White Men.” It's actually a classic theory class that covers a number of influential thinkers, like free market theorist Adam Smith and the famous...
Billionaire vs. Billionaire
Political Poison
One big difference between the rich and the poor in our country is that the rich don't tend to have their drinking water poisoned by their own governor. Not that Republican Governor Rick Snyder personally dumped poison into Flint, Michigan's water. But by dumping his...
We Still Need Black History Month
America’s racial disparity won’t disappear if we simply ignore it.
The Election Moves On
Before the Iowa caucuses were mercifully laid to rest, I predicted that the surging Donald Trump — he of what George H.W. Bush called "the Big Mo" — would win the Republican contest handily. Bernie Sanders, I believed, would be confounded by the complexity of the...
Let’s End Torture in U.S. Prisons
Solitary confinement is exactly what it sounds like. A prisoner is kept in a small cell — usually 6 feet by 10 — alone, for 23 hours a day. For one hour a day, he or she may be taken into a small cage outside, with the opportunity to walk in circles before being taken...
The Sanders Sensation
When I crossed paths with a Democratic campaign consultant in Austin last March, I suggested he come to the local International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers hall to hear Bernie Sanders speak. The Vermont senator, I added, was pondering a presidential run. “You...
I’m Skipping the Oscars
For two years in a row, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences — the organization behind the Oscars — failed to nominate a single actor or actress of color in the lead and supporting acting categories. Not one. Meanwhile, though women earned...
Somebody Will Win
The Iowa caucuses are upon us. Hooray, whoopee, and two cheers. The contests mark the official beginning of the 2016 presidential campaign, which already feels like it’s been going on for two years (because it has). Some polls say that Donald Trump is going to be the...
An Assault on Justice
Two federal prison guards in Florida recently agreed to plead guilty for beating a prisoner and then covering it up. One officer faces up to three years in a federal prison, while the other is looking at a year. The Justice Department issued a press release that cast...
