Uptown Notes

Yesterday, protests at Ground Zero continued to gain international attention. What’s at issue is a figment of the American public’s imagination: the ground zero mosque. Herds of “well-intentioned” Americans flooded lower manhattan to chant down the construction of what they are calling a ground zero mosque, but what really is an Islamic community center. This case is a powerful lesson in framing, which I was first introduced to by the George Lakoff but you and I experience constantly. If we want to make sure The Community Center at Park 51 is built, we’ve got to re-frame the conversation, or else the Islamophobes have won!

“Justice for Oscar Grant!” As I sit in front of these keys I know that I could have written this [...]

Recently, a firestorm surrounding Shirley Sherrod erupted. A spliced video of her speech ended in her force resignation from the USDA and condemnation by the NAACP. Following the debacle, there were multiple editorials and comments about the failures of the NAACP. While I completely agree the NAACP and USDA failed to respond appropriately to Sherrod, I don’t think the picture that has been painted of the NAACP is accurate or contemporary. Beneath I offer some reasons why and what it means for movement building.

Let me get it out of the way: I wasn’t the biggest fan of Pac’s music. I am the dude [...]

Recently, I penned a piece discussing the need for Black folks to join in with the fight against Arizona’s racist immigration [...]

On next Monday the 17th at 7:30 pm there will be a panel on Black Male Privilege at the Brecht [...]

The term racial profiling has been part of my vocabulary and reality for nearly 15 years now, but it shouldn’t [...]

Originally published at The Atlanta Post The internet is a funny thing and Twitter is a funny place. I find [...]

Unless you have been in hiding, you have noticed the Census 2010 is in full swing now. From rapping commercials [...]

On Monday night, Tavis Smiley’s convening “We Count! The Black Agenda is the American Agenda” aired on CSpan. What? You [...]