A ctivists, allies, and cultural creatives continue to advance strategic actions to chip away at systemic institutional social injustices based on race/ethnicity/culture. In that spirit, we must remain mindful of the legacies inherent in American history and do not overlook ancestors who were drenched in and willing participants in furthering racial animosity. Some folks may wonder what has changed over the subsequent centuries. I wonder, what are the descendants of avowed racists doing to passionately reject their family’s past? Are they concerned that a racist gene may lay silently in their DNA? Do white folks ever question that their basic societal privilege is a consequence of simply being white and not due to any innate personal abilities?   In August and September, once again, Americans will be cloaked in significant historic anniversaries. These recognitions are not embedded in fiction or poetic imaginary or artistic explorations. As historic reality,  activists, alig...

For several days, these six words have haunted my memory bank. Six words seeping and cajoling my sensibilities, my reflections on the state of how people in various parts of the world are confronting a variety of social injustice issues. Six words that continuously permeate my thinking regarding the socio-economic-racial-political divide in the United States.   I know where the six words come from.   In 1953, at 23, Barbadian writer George Lamming chronicled aspects of his life to document the Black colonial experience in the small Caribbean island of Barbados where he was born and raised. The novel won a Somerset Maugham Award; its title, In The Castle of My Skin . *   I read his work sometime in the early to mid-Sixties. That book is a vital intellectual part of my Black “revolutionary” library that remains the foundation of my political/cultural thinking. Interestingly, the book’s themes and title still have a hold on my perspectives in 2020.   As we prese...