Category: News and Views
I have to admit I was really happy to see Melissa Harris-Perry acknowledge the legacy of Notorious B.I.G. on her show today - I didn't realize it's been 15 years since he was murdered, it doesn't seem that long ago ...
29 Days on Drugs – Day 20: Blind Eyes and Deaf Ears
I started writing this post about one week ago and didn't finish it because I don't want to come off like an angry black woman and yet in fact that's what I am. I thought if I waited a while ...
29 Days on Drugs – Day 18: The Forgotten Children
The U.S. still has the highest incarceration rate in the world and we’re still responsible for the greatest separation of children from their parents since the end of chattel slavery. One of the many tragic consequences of mass incarceration in ...
29 Days on Drugs-Day 17: No Place for Children
Today's topic is the "justice" system we have in place for children. It is a topic of particular concern to me because I recently became the grandmother of an African-American male. If things continue on their current trajectory and my ...
29 Days on Drugs-Day 16: Prison Nation – Occupy4Prisoners!!
"You Can't be a black man in America and not have a criminal record....." Malcolm X http://youtu.be/cyNf4xia4Bo The statement, made by Brother Malcolm more than 50 years ago is more true today than it was then. It is an astounding fact, ...
29 Days on Drugs – Day 15: Prison Nation – Our Sisters in Bondage
Almost 50 years ago, acclaimed jazz artist Billie Holiday collapsed in her apartment and was rushed to Metropolitan Hospital in New York, where she was diagnosed with cardiac failure and serious liver disease, both the result of a long history ...
29 Days on Drugs – Day 14: Message to Prisoners – You’re on Your Own!!
Imagine this - you're walking down the street near your home on the way to the local market to buy some food. It's hot so you're wearing a short-sleeved shirt that shows off your muscled arms and colorful tatoos. The ...
29 Days on Drugs – Day 13: Slavery by Another Name
Most people think slavery in the U.S. ended with the passage of the 13th Amendment right after the Civil War. The 13th Amendment is short and sweet in its Declaration: "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime ...
29 Days on Drugs – Day 12: Addiction – a Good Relationship Gone Bad
What is addiction? Chemical, behavioral, normal, deviant? Consider the possibilities - one can be addicted to an illicit substance - cocaine, heroin; a form of behavior - gambling or sex; some addictions are considered normal and accepted - caffeine, nicotine; ...
29 Days on Drugs – Day 11: The Performer is not the Person
I remember clearly an incident that occurred about 10 years ago. I was in a hotel in D.C. - having come down from New York City to speak at a criminal justice conference - meeting with my estranged husband who ...
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