On my best days, I walk with my head held high—over or beyond the mystifying childishness that makes a white man wonder if I belong in the airport lounge sitting …
LATEST STORIES
How President Obama helped me embrace my Americanness
I have never felt classically “American.” As a child of Eritrean and Ethiopian immigrants, born in Arlington, Virginia, I grew up in a relatively diverse area just outside of D.C. …
The Birth Certificate
My birth certificate is a thin, yellow slip that states my name, Morgan Simone Regis Jerkins. Underneath my name are thirty-five dashes that reside in the place meant to indicate …
The Measure of Barack Obama
Now comes the time for us to submit Barack Obama for the judgement of history.
Decaying Hope
One writer explores the meaning of the word “hope,” and whether Obama’s presidency has added to that meaning or diminished it.
A Lament for Barack Hussein Obama
Now, it’s about time I admit that the faith I placed in Obama led me exactly where I always thought that type of faith would. Nowhere.
Race and Representation: Lessons From a Biracial Candidate’s Bid For President in West Africa
This year, 47 people ran for president in Benin, a country with a population of just over 10 million. In other words, a nation with less than half the population …
Puff…Puff…Passed?: Smoke, Mirrors and Marijuana Decriminalization
I was certain that I knew what to expect when D.C.’s eagerly anticipated marijuana legalization measure, Ballot Initiative 71, survived its Congressional review period and became law on February 21, …
Back to Campus, Back to Activism
Over the past year, America has watched with a unique mixture of awe and derision as protests over racial diversity and inclusion rocked college campuses across the country. We witnessed …
Affirmative Whiteness
For now, race-based affirmative action in US higher education remains constitutional, as the Supreme Court ruled in June via Fisher v. University of Texas II. Still, one fact remains evident: …