Rights and Democracy
How Did ‘Don’t Mess with the Money’ Become the NSA’s Motto?
Imagine we had a brazen and powerful gang stealing trillions of dollars from the American people. Then imagine that our law enforcement folks knew the identities of every one of that gang's ringleaders. Wouldn't it be great if the government of the United States had...
Crushing Cantor by Dissing Wall Street
Restoring the Right to Vote
Last year, the Supreme Court decimated one of the civil rights movement's crowning achievements. Now, it's time for Congress to pick up the pieces, put it back together and make our laws strong enough to protect our most important right: our vote. Many folks who lived...
Remembering Dr. Maya Angelou
I was traveling when Dr. Maya Angelou died, away from my poetry community in Washington, D.C. But my Facebook feed was crowded with tributes and powerful remembrances, as writers, survivors, and truth tellers chronicled the impact of Dr. Angelou's life and words on...
Stalled at the Starting Line
"Gentlemen, start your engines." That message, played repeatedly in a commercial beamed on the Jumbotron at this year's Indianapolis 500, had nothing to do with racecars. A coalition of faith, business, and law enforcement leaders used the iconic event to launch their...
Therapy Benefits Us All
In 2008, I went to therapy. By then, I'd needed it for a long time. I had a terribly difficult, incurable condition — one I'd had for 28 years without treatment. My condition? Being human. Like many "normal" people, I felt I didn't need therapy when I went. But my...
The Manning Up Problem
Rape 101
Prospective female students may have a new question for admissions counselors as part of the college decision-making process: How likely am I to be raped on your campus? This is no idle inquiry. According to new statistics, women have a 1-in-5 chance of being the...
The Snide World of Sports
When Michael Sam became the first openly gay football player drafted into the NFL, he also made sports TV history by kissing his boyfriend on camera. And he has no harsher critics than his fellow athletes. The public is rapidly growing more tolerant of LGBT Americans,...
Saved by Swing
Fifteen years ago, I'd boxed myself into a job and lifestyle that didn't suit me. Lindy Hop legend Frankie Manning led me to dance my way to a better place. I was covering global crises as a financial reporter. Writing snappy articles about soulless International...
