When we blame Black women for our failure to be seen as “real men” in a White racist society we only show ourselves to be immature. Our mothers, our sisters, our aunts, our girlfriends, our wives, and nieces are not our enemy.
Every week, the Black Youth Project collects the top news stories about black youth from across the country. Click here to check out our archive of weekly news round-ups, and check back every Monday for a new roundup of headlines about young black America.
I’ve spent the last week treading in the liquid of a queer-flavored ambivalence, trying to determine why the Anderson Cooper and Frank Ocean coming out announcements mean less to me than other people. I have seen enough episodes of Coming Out Stories and foolishly subjected myself and my partner to the awkward anti-climax of telling my father […]
According to the New York Times, black and Latino New Yorkers are nine times more likely than whites to be “stopped and frisked,” but once stopped, they’re no more likely to be arrested. How do we put an end to this unjust program?
How Can I Celebrate Independence Day in Good Faith? Every year, I find myself questioning the merits of celebrating the 4th of July as a young Black woman in America. In my more, critical/cynical days it was a mockery. How dare we burn fireworks and have barbecues in celebration of a day that was never […]
17 tear-old Lia Neal has become only the second African American woman to make the U.S. Olympic Swim Team. Our swim team is now more diverse than ever before. Congrats to our Black swimmers!
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60cvtxwlJr8 A friend of mine, of both Black and White heritage, brought the above video to my attention. The video features rapper A$AP Rocky and artist Lana Del Rey portraying president JFK and Jackie-O respectively, while also playing a bit on Marilyn Monroe’s famous singing of Happy Birthday to JFK. The song’s superficial lyrics seem […]
As the political spheres argue the residual effects of the healthcare bill being upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court yesterday, I think one of the worse things one can do is make “health” a red and blue political issue. Health: the general ability to have the soundness of a physical body and mental mind. I […]
According to a new report, Black Youth engage in participatory politics online at rates equal to or slightly higher than white, Latino, and Asian-American Youth. Check out the report – Participatory Politics: New Media and Youth Political Action – at BlackYouthProject.com!
Bon Qui Qui The role of humor in the race conversation has been on my mind lately, namely because humor often becomes a covert way of masking deeply laden societal sentiments. Under the shroud of humor, shows like Family Guy or even the above clip gains license to propagate stereotypes, racist tropes, and ultimately becomes […]
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alice Walker has forbidden the printing of a hebrew translation of her famed novel The Color Purple. Citing the treatment of Palestinians, Walker asserts that the Israeli Government is guilty of a “worse apartheid” than the United States.
The most sobering moment in Paul Beatty’s satirical novel, The White Boy Shuffle (1996) occurs just before the L.A. Riots are about to begin. The book’s protagonist, Gunnar Kaufman and his best friend Nicholas Scoby are on their way home from a strangely long basketball practice. During their walk, Gunnar immediately senses something different happening in his […]
