Tag Archives: race

Booker T. Washington Checks Out of a Hotel…

1903 was a particularly difficult year for African Americans, as described in Douglas Blackmon’s book, Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II. In that year alone, at least 85 African Americans were … Continue reading

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Some Thoughts About Intersectionality

Intersectionality has been on my mind a lot lately. It’s an important concept in my scholarly work, but it is having a larger cultural impact right now, I think, and it might be instructive to consider this impact more closely. … Continue reading

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Making Black Lives Matter

I don’t have a lot to say in this post this week–last week was a very difficult week for the US, and for our nation’s Black citizens in particular. At this point, it seems incomprehensible that concepts like white privilege, … Continue reading

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On Lemonade, Part I

I, like everyone, can’t stop talking abut Beyoncé this year. I wrote about her “Formation” video and Super Bowl Halftime performance here and here. I’d like to add to the excellent conversations that are happening everywhere online right now about … Continue reading

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Introducing Allen Iverson

I recently watched Zatella Beatty’s documentary Iverson, available on Netflix streaming. When he was playing in the NBA, I never really knew much about Allen Iverson, except that he was something of a “bad boy” of basketball. After watching the … Continue reading

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Apres Hamilton, Le Backlash

When a cultural artifact becomes a certified phenomenon, as Hamilton has, the backlash is inevitable. Invariably, someone will shout “I don’t like thing! For reasons!” into the Internet ether, and will gain clicks or infamy for their bold stance against … Continue reading

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Thinking About a Global Blackness

Now, before you read further, I need to make it clear that I am not thinking about Blackness in terms of myself. I am a white woman who happens to be a scholar of African American literature and theater, with … Continue reading

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On The Nightly Show and Diversity

With all of the talk and arguments over diversity within entertainment, one theme has emerged, time and again: it is incumbent upon the producers, creators, and makers out there to deliberately hire more women and more people of color (POC) … Continue reading

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OK, Scholars, Let’s Discuss “Formation” (Part II)

In part two of this blog post, I’d like to talk about the Superbowl halftime show featuring Beyoncé and her coterie of backup dancers. (Part I is here) Much has been made of their outfits, which echo components of the … Continue reading

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OK, Scholars, Let’s Discuss “Formation” (Part I)

After a hiatus, the blog is back. And I, like everyone else, want to talk about Beyoncé’s new song and video, “Formation.” But before I do, I’d ask readers to first read/listen to the following: Yaba Blay’s article about the … Continue reading

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