Author: Kwame

No one loses when we undo racist policies and practices that target black people in America. As we learn to reject our exclusionary habits and attitudes towards black people, we actually qualify ourselves to create a more just society. We pave the way for fairer treatment of all marginalized classes of people—Asians, the Indigenous peoples,… Continue reading No Losers

Change is a process. Having experienced the protest gatherings downtown this past Sunday (5/31/20), it seems our Muskegon community has had an essential moment of initial catharsis in response to the recent flare-up of racist policing (whether by officers or our fellow community members). What’s next? Since we’re all here and have each other’s attention,… Continue reading Do Our Non-Profits Realize #BlackLivesMatter?

It’s not just the times that are changing. Understanding racism and its impact first became important for me when I was about fourteen. I was riding in the car with my father, who had been playing a taped lecture by Yosef ben-Jochannan—a prolific author and teacher in African history. I think he was curious about… Continue reading Turning the Soil of Race and Racism

It was late—early, really—maybe around 3 am. I was leaving a new friend’s apartment, which was like a mother-in-law’s suite in the back of another house. As I stepped into the alley a police car shone it’s headlights on me and two cops jumped out of the car. I have to imagine they were waiting… Continue reading The Superpower of Forgiveness