Opinion & Analysis

[Opinion] On-Screen and Off, Chadwick Boseman Was a Hero

Wednesday, Sep 30, 2020

Julia Chaffers

Boseman's influence extended beyond the industry. Through all of his movies he inspired moviegoers around the world, challenging preconceived ideas about who we could be. The countless stories of Black children elated by seeing Black Panther on screen reflect the power and potential of cinema. Boseman represented that power and that potential.
The Players' Revolt Against Racism, Inequality, and Police Terror

Wednesday, Sep 16, 2020

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The New Yorker

It would be easy to underestimate the significance of the actions taken by these athletes because of their wealth and celebrity. But it is simply incredible that many players, for some during the playoffs for their various leagues, have violated their contracts, withdrawn their labor, and demanded that this country change.
Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and the Limits of Representation

Wednesday, Aug 26, 2020

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The New Yorker

Joe Biden began his speech to accept the Democratic Party’s nomination with a quote from the civil-rights radical and Black revolutionary Ella Baker: “Give people light and they will find a way.” Though Baker may have been commenting on her particular approach to organizing, Biden used the line as an analogy for his campaign to replace Donald Trump.
We Should Still Defund the Police

Monday, Aug 24, 2020

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The New Yorker

Cuts to public services that might mitigate poverty and promote social mobility have become a perpetual excuse for more police.
[Opinion] Until Black Women Are Free, None of Us Will Be Free

Friday, Jul 24, 2020

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The New Yorker

Barbara Smith and the Black feminist visionaries of the Combahee River Collective.
[Opinion] Reclaiming History

Friday, Jul 10, 2020

Julia Chaffers

Confederate statues represent the myths and lies that underlie the persistent racism in American society. To tear down these symbols of historical oppression is to declare a new age, one in which we confront—rather than glorify—our history and confront the reality of who we are in the present.
[Opinion] We Are Still Charged With Meeting the Challenge That Frederick Douglass Issued

Friday, Jul 10, 2020

Imani Perry, The Undefeated

I ask of this Independence Day: What to Black Americans is the Fourth of July?
[Opinion] Mama and the Confederate Flag

Tuesday, Jul 7, 2020

Wallace Best

When my thoughts turned recently to the renewed debate about the Confederate flag and its place in American life, I did what I often do in times of intellectual perplexity. I called my mother.
[Opinion] The End of Black Politics

Monday, Jun 15, 2020

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The New York Times

Black leaders regularly fail to rise to the challenges that confront young people.
[Opinion] How Do We Change America?

Monday, Jun 8, 2020

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The New Yorker

The quest to transform this country cannot be limited to challenging its brutal police.