The First White President is an excellent piece by Ta-Nehisi Coates on how racism led to the election of Donald Trump.
In addition to every word being truth, Ta-Nehisi references Mark Lilla's New York Times piece which Andrew and I discussed in one of the past conversations, which we'll be including in our e-book.
After the events of Charlottesville were broadcast and shared, I received the most beautiful email from a friend.
She reminded me of the beauty of the world and how my very existence was part of that beauty. She ended her note with a clip of Bill Withers singing "Ain't No Sunshine".
My friend is a blind woman from Canada whom I met ONCE at a writing workshop in January.
This is how you ally.
In your outrage and disgust at what is happening, don't forget to show up for people of color. That, too, is your work.
Here is a post from the always excellent Ericka Hines with more tips of how you can help.
"Who needs yet another old white guy’s point of view?"
Peter Levenda is a Sekret Machines colleague of A.J. Hartley, and a passionate advocate of the "In Good Faith" race conversations project. Peter writes about Nazis and occultist subjects. As such, he was detained by Nazis in South America in 1979 and held at gunpoint by a Klansman in Pennsylvania shortly after.
In this blog post, Peter, a self-described "old white man" connects the dots and makes it plain for the many people who "still can't believe this is happening in 2017." For example, he writes:
"Although Jefferson had slaves, he had – consciously or not – penned the sentiment that would be used to free them almost a hundred years later. Does this excuse him from owning slaves? Of course not. That’s not the point. It doesn’t redeem him, but fighting to ensure those unalienable rights for others redeems us."
Read the post in its entirety.
It’s time for real talk about self-care.
Self-care has devolved from the radical notion that women can and should be their own source of happiness, fulfillment, and purpose to treating oneself to a pedicure and a massage. Self-care is not splurging $400 on a pair of shoes you’ve been eyeing. Self-care is not the same as self-indulgence.
Read my thoughts about self-care over on Sweatpants & Coffee.
I often get asked after a tragedy, "What can I do now? What do I do next?"
Diversity is an Asset is a comprehensive resource I recommend to anyone who's interested in taking part in a messy conversation about race.
How many of you struggled with how to talk to your children about the events in Charlottesville?
My friend Nicole Lee provides a blueprint... Read it here.
Female lifestyle empowerment and “you go girl” feminism keeps women asleep and drooling in our own sense of powerlessness. Women cried during the fight scenes in the Wonder Woman movie because they were mourning the loss of their own inner warrior. Women have traded their battle rattle for the promise of safety, comfort, and protection – mostly offered by men. Some women would rather be cherished than courageous. They would rather be princesses adored on their wedding day than queens of their daily lives.
This isn’t about blaming or abandoning men. It is about telling the truth about why we choose to remain asleep and in doing so bury our authentic, female activist expression under the tulle and cotton of our good intentions.
Read my thoughts on feminism and how to be woke over on Sweatpants & Coffee.