Recently, I saw a meme with a list of old banned books, saying, “kids, read these!” But I’d bet none of those are the books people are afraid of today. Kids see through this. No one stares in fear when you pull out Catcher in the Rye, or pulls…
Last fall, I co-led a biweekly reading group on race and procedural justice for my local community. Our participants included a pastor, scientist, software engineer, writer, librarian, mathematician, and startup employee—a range of Asian and Anglo middle class folks
For hundreds of years, influence has circulated among affluent European folk, highly educated and living in cities. These guys formed our laws, built networks of influence, ran companies and nonprofits, and produce creative works that influence us today. And often, it’s hard for others to really be heard until people…
As you might know if you’re… an ancient history scholar… there are three major branches of Christianity. First, the Eastern Orthodox, who developed out of the ancient Byzantine Empire and live mainly in Eastern Europe, Russia, Greece, and parts of Asia. Next, the Roman Catholics, who inherit a 2000-year…
Researcher and Assistant I first watched the film The Tale of Despereaux while en route to fieldwork as an assistant to a beautiful blond woman whose nickname means “princess” in the local language. Incidentally, my local nicknames were something along the lines of “carrot-top” and “submissive-daughter-in-law-who-serves-everyone-around-her.” I did not…
I’ve been talking with my friend Hannah again about race. She’s a white student in Africana studies, and talks to me about how race works in our society and what can be done to transform difference to a positive experience for us all. Some of that comes from facing ourselves. Hannah read about whiteness…