by Cecilia Barreto, Aditi Joshi, Alexa Kasner, and Ixchel Lopez The Women’s March on Washington, at its highest level was coordinated and led by women of color—many of whom are activists in their local communities. Women such as Linda Sarsour, a Muslim activist focuses her activism on the rise of Islamophobia in the United […]
by The Census Critics The U.S. Census is the way the United States collects population data from its citizens every ten years, and it uses racial categories set by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The census often shapes and reflects the way we talk about race, acting as a guide to what […]
by Sabrina Cadiz, Elizabeth Jimenez Fique, and Sydney Tischler Casta paintings, like the one depicted above, date back to the mid 1700s in Mexico, where they were used as visual “guides” to the names and attributes of offspring of interracial couples. Usually in a series of 16 paintings, each image featured a mother, a father […]
The Pseudo-Science of Race in the Enlightenment by Molly Hoyer, Shivani Dayal, and Rachele Byrd When studying the Enlightenment, the self-professed Age of Reason presents a challenge: because intellectual thought during this time period was based entirely around reason and objectivity, the era is associated with significant scientific and academic progress. Kant’s major works are […]
A Late Night Letter to the Electors by Cord J. Whitaker It is ironic that this election season and its aftermath have been permeated by the disbelief in and misrepresentation of facts. It is ironic because all the handwringing is motivated by a desire for facts to matter in the future, but this may […]
A Short Reflection on What Blackness May Be by Anjali Benjamin-Webb In the wake of #altonsterling and #philandocastile, we must all be aware of, call out, and work to reverse the narrowing of black and brown senses. Upon being asked to define himself, Fanon responds: “I am one who waits; I investigate my surroundings, […]
Some Reflections on Police Shootings and Shootings of Police by Cord J. Whitaker In the wake of this week’s biggest news items—Alton Sterling’s killing at the hands of Baton Rouge police; Philando Castile’s killing at the hands of Minnesota police; the retaliatory killing of five police officers and wounding of seven more and […]
by Cord J. Whitaker Since last Thursday’s Brexit vote, expressions of racism and incidents of hate crime have risen dramatically in England. This is in direct contrast to my experience in 1999 when I first walked the streets of London. I felt free. I felt freer than I had ever felt in the US. […]
by Lesley S. Curtis I’m a native North Carolinian who sits down to pee. And I use restrooms that are labeled for men. I’ve done this since I can remember—only when there’s a stall, I’ve never walked in on anyone with their pants down—but I’ve also never thought anything about it. Anytime I had […]
by Cord J. Whitaker The internet has been abuzz with commentary on Beyoncé’s new surprise video “Formation.” Critics have discussed it as Beyoncé’s most explicit proclamation of her blackness. In one lyric, she identifies carrying hot sauce in her bag as swag. One critic identifies this as not Pharrell’s “new black” but rather your […]
