The New, Improved, Empathic Sarah Silverman By Krista Stevens Highlight Formerly controversial comic Sarah Silverman is “on a campaign to neutralize her haters with a weapon more powerful than a million burns: empathy.”
Terese Marie Mailhot on the Personal Cost of Speaking Out Against Racism By Krista Stevens Highlight Terese Marie Mailhot knows from experience that speaking out against racism can come with a cost. But it’s a cost she’s ready and willing to pay.
‘Open Casket’ and the Question of Empathy By Longreads Feature Did Dana Schutz’s painting engage with her subject, Emmett Till, ethically and responsibly?
Politics and Prose By Marie Myung-Ok Lee Feature Marie Myung-Ok Lee finds herself conflicted about attending a controversial author’s reading and wonders: what does “speaking up” actually mean?
You Can’t ‘Never Forget’ the Holocaust if You Haven’t Learned About It By Sari Botton Highlight A new study shows that knowledge about the Holocaust is dangerously at an all-time low.
One Georgia Farmer’s Experiment in Racial Equality By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight Minister Clarence Jordan founded Koinonia Farm in 1942 to be, in his words, a “demonstration plot for the kingdom of God.” Can it endure in our racially charged modern climate?
How to Write a Memoir While Grieving By Nicole Chung Feature Nicole Chung contemplates loss, adoption, and working on a book her late father won’t get to see.
How Lead Poisoned People of Color in East Chicago and Beyond By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight How lead contaminated the soil under East Chicago’s black and Latino communities.
Little Führers Everywhere By Aaron Gilbreath Feature Vegas Tenhold spent six years covering the disorganized chaos of hate groups, and watched as they began to gather around a few media savvy voices.
The Making of a Black Fortune By Aaron Gilbreath Feature America’s first black millionaires were born into slavery — and built wealth alongside political power.
Politics as a Defense Against Heartbreak By Minda Honey Feature Minda Honey assesses the deliberate choices and external factors affecting her dating life.
The Dangers of Renting While Black in Gentrifying Cities By Sari Botton Highlight Joseph Williams reports on the increasing vulnerability of renters like himself.
Changing My Mind About Pig’s Feet and Cornrows By Dara Lurie Feature Dara Lurie reflects on what she discovered about her own racism while living at a state-run home for disadvantaged children.
What It Means to Be ‘The First’ By Sari Botton Highlight Nicole Chung talks with Kristi Yamaguchi about the cultural significance of her figure skating victory at the 1992 Olympics.
How Angry Racists Plotted to Kill Somali Refugees in Kansas By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight A small town welcomed hundreds of Somali refugees. A militia splinter group wanted them dead.
The Other People in Springfield By Imran Siddiquee Feature Imran Siddiquee considers the ways in which his identities — as a Bangladeshi-American and as a man — were shaped by growing up in the shadow of The Simpsons.
The NFL Has Pimped Its Players for Too Long By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight The disturbing parallels between professional football and the business of pimping
Finding My Identity By the Light of My Mother’s Menorah By Santi Elijah Holley Feature The African American son of a white mother, Santi Elijah Holley revisits Hannukahs past with his Jewish forebears.
Assertiveness Training By Susan Sheu Feature Susan Sheu considers her estrangement from her conservative mom, who tried to teach her to stand up and be heard in a male-dominated world — but not to be too unladylike about it.
Can Portland’s River Cleanup Correct Environmental Injustice? By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight The Willamette River, a superfund site, was once Portland’s lifeblood. A massive cleanup project could restore it for the communities of color that had long relied on it for food, work, and leisure.
The He’s-Got-to-Be-the-Help-Because-He’s-Brown Mistake By Sari Botton Highlight Patrick Rosal writes an open letter to a woman who mistook him for a waiter at the National Book Awards.
Uncovering Hidden History on the Road to Clanton By Lance Warren Feature Documentary filmmaker Lance Warren interrogates the silence around lynching in the American South.
The Secret Women’s Organization Providing for Black Communities By Sari Botton Highlight Founded 150 years ago by two former slaves, the United Order of Tents has come through for black communities when white-run organizations have failed to.
On American Identity, the Election, and Family Members Who Support Trump By Nicole Chung Feature Nicole Chung reflects on the burden of engaging with racism and educating white people, including some in her own family.
Harvard’s About-Face on Michelle Jones’s Acceptance By Sari Botton Commentary The ex-convict, who became a history scholar behind bars, prepares to start classes at NYU instead.
Raising Brown Boys in Post-9/11 America By Sorayya Khan Feature Sorayya Khan recalls racist threats to her young sons after the 2001 attacks, and worries about them as young men living in ‘Trumpistan.’
Weighing Justice With a Jury of Her ‘Peers’ By Susana Morris Feature While serving as foreperson on a grand jury, Susana Morris confronts power and privilege in the criminal justice system.
Building a New Society for Black Americans, First in Mississippi By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight A movement in Jackson, Mississippi is working to remake the way the city governs, feeds, and runs itself in order to serve the black community.
On NYC’s Paratransit, Fighting for Safety, Respect, and Human Dignity By Britney Wilson Feature An incident on lawyer Britney Wilson’s ride home from work exposes her vulnerabilities as a Black disabled woman.
