Traditionally, African Americans have been denied individuality and were forced to hide their human flaws by the hegemony. However, at this point in history, we need to give abnormal psychology some due diligence. By the way, I do not own the copyrights to any of the music that you will hear, and I am not posting those videos just to make money or as click-bait. I am using them to demonstrate points in an educational manner.
Let me just start by saying this: Black Americans are human. Black Americans are individuals. Black Americans suffered a type of inhumanity that denied…
About five years ago, I realized that I had to make radical changes to my Composition II syllabus. Young people live in a digital bubble and are not always easy to reach.
When we think of people living in a bubble, we think Baby Boomers from the World War II/Korean War era who watch Fox News or CNN until the stories loop. We think about people who are set in their ways and TERRIFIED of trying something new. They have their opinions and their products and they ain’t budging one way or the other.
However, as a general education professor…
I am hearing a cacophony of anger. “Critical Race Theory.” “The 1619 Project.” “Real American History.” And my ear is tuned to language and how that language reverberates through the chambers of history. And in this case, the language comes to us from slavery. The restrictive Texas abortion law shows us that the tentacles of slavery still touch and taint every facet of American life. It gives the government unprecedented access to women’s wombs and turns every private citizen into a policeman. It could possibly force women to birth the children of their rapists. …
What do you charge someone with when the words that they use become deadly weapons? Every day, I see people in power use words as deadly weapons. I do not think our legal structure has the proper tools to handle those who would use words weapons of mass destruction.
When I was a little girl, we learned a jingle. It went like this: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” Growing up in the Pine Belt, in a world of Black lumberjacks, veterans, construction workers, and yeoman farmers, we were expected to be emotionally…
Though I do not agree with calling a woman out of her name, I have been reflecting on the angry incident between a Black man and a Black woman after the death of Kobe Bryant. What should have been a time of mourning became a media fiasco. Furthermore, when Snoop Dogg cussed out Gayle King, in our rush to defend either side, we missed something.
It’s Sunday and I have not written in a long time. I have been busy being Dr. Momma/Daughter/Niece over the summer. As the semester opens, I am back in the routine of juggling class preparations…
At times, I am simply outraged by our leaders’ refusal to call domestic terror by its real name.
I have a guilty pleasure: Adam Sandler movies. When I want to relax, I can pull on a pair of pajamas, grab a bag of Doritos, and watch Adam Sandler movies one right after the other. I have to admit that of the Sandler line-up, The Wedding Singer is my favorite. My second favorite is The Waterboy.
I have to admit, every time these two movies come on television, I watch them. There is one particular scene that was cut out of…
There are times when you have to reach waaaaayyy back and grab some of that Black, Gulf State speech for a just right word.
This is a post that I have been meaning to put up for a very long time. It involves Zora Neale Hurston, the Gulf State South, and words. Zora Neale Hurston was a novelist, Guggenheim Fellow, and folklorist. She collected hundreds of tales from the Gulf State South that remained in the basement of an institute for over 70 years. …
America is a schizophrenic country. We collectively attend churches dedicated to a savior from an impoverished background. Yet, we do not even have a language for white poverty. When and where we should talk about white poverty, we talk about race. And the consequences have been, are, and will continue to be disastrous.
White poverty. White. Poverty. Poor. White. Individual. Say that. Don’t say, “Poor white trash.” Say “poor white individual.” Say this. White underprivileged youth. Say, first-generation white college student. Say white working poor. Say affirmative action for white women. White poverty. White poverty. White poverty. white poverty whitepovertywhitepoverty…
For some strange reason, there is a misconception that Black people do not like or do science fiction. I am not sure where that stereotype came from, but if you follow Black popular culture, you know that Black folk do science fiction, but mainly through music. For the record, I do now own the copyrights to the music below and am not including the music so that I can make money. I actually teach with everything you are about to view!
Some stereotypes have a modicum of truth. Some are total fabrications. One of the fabrications that irks me is…
For almost 30 years, the GOP governing strategy has been “Just say no.” This makes for good sloganeering, but not alternative policies. As the GOP tries to regain power, they need voter suppression laws, because they are now a party without a platform.
Does anybody remember Nancy Reagan’s anti-drug campaign from the 1980s? It had a slogan, “Just Say No.” I was in elementary school and clearly remember our teachers warning us about drugs and how to say “no” to dealers. …
