I've written before that words have power. I will no longer be calling it the war in Ukraine or the war against Ukraine. It's "Putin's War". It is true that the war is being executed by the Russian military, but it's at Putin's direction. It is Putin's pilots who are bombing Ukraine and Putin's military … Continue reading Putin’s War
Compassion
I just saw a note that said "Stock up on compassion". Frankly? I'd rather use it. Doesn't seem all that valuable otherwise. Be the Pebble Act
Safety
“The safest communities are not the ones with the most police, prisons, or electronic monitors, but the ones with quality schools, health care, housing, plentiful jobs, and strong social networks that allow families not merely to survive, but to thrive.” - Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Color Blindness … Continue reading Safety
Malcolm X
“The first thing I tell them is that at least where my own particular Black Nationalist organization, the Organization of Afro-American Unity, is concerned, they can’t join us. I have these very deep feelings that white people who want to join black organizations are really just taking the escapist way to salve their consciences. By … Continue reading Malcolm X
Killings by Police Continue
It didn't stop with George Floyd. It didn't matter how many of us protested, said enough is enough. "860 people have been shot and killed by police in the past year" "6869 people have been shot and killed by police since Jan. 1, 2015". Both statistics are from The Washington Post and are compiled from … Continue reading Killings by Police Continue
An Ugly Reality
In the end, realistically? I'll be no more than roadkill. Can you say you'll be different? Yet here's the thing. Roadkill becomes a bump in the road. It annoys. It changes. It's a pebble. Be the Pebble Act
Weirdness…
I've read several times about William Lloyd Garrison, who was a Massachusetts abolitionist. He founded The Liberator, an anti-slavery newspaper and the American Anti-Slavery Society. Think about that for a minute. Today we live in a world of acronyms. I'm guessing that he didn't. Today? We'd say he founded the "American ASS." Go figure. We … Continue reading Weirdness…
Which One Are You?
"Some people make things happen, some watch things happen, while others wonder what has happened" - Proverb Be the Pebble Act
That Word
In the biographical documentary Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am, Toni Morrison tells a story from when she was four or five years old. She was just learning to read and write. She and her older sister were playing with chalk in front of their house. They copied a word they saw written somewhere down … Continue reading That Word
The Lies We’re Told
Lincoln freed the slaves. How many times were we taught that in school? I can’t count. Can you? Except he didn’t. Slavery didn’t effectively end in this country until 1942.