New Digs.

Whaddaya think?
As the end of my college career grows ever-closer — three weeks, and counting — it’s become apparent to me that the old blog, which defined so much of my life as a college student, needed to be refashioned. For one, “HarvardHair” would be rendered inappropriate as of June 4.
For another, I didn’t want [...]

"Little Nigger."

This is what the older members of my family call little black boys when they’re being socially or morally deviant — “little nigger” if they’re acting bad, “little faggot” if they’re not bad/’boyish’ enough.
It’s interesting, how stuff like this take us aback when we’ve been socially and geographically displaced from our families-at-large since leaving for [...]

The Color Wheel.

My Aunt says young people don’t see color.
I was a Hillary supporter, but I voted for Obama because I couldn’t see Hillary beating McCain. When I explained this to my Aunt, she said she was once a Hillary supporter, too — until Obama came around. If I’d grown up in the South when she did, [...]

How to Say "Nigger" in the Classroom.

1) Don’t.*
* Even if you’re black.**
** But especially if you’re white.
Pretty simple.
Let’s keep in mind that when I use the verb “to say,” I’m being fairly literal and referring mostly to the cases in which the person has the most agency over what they’re saying.
I’m excluding those instances where you’re reading aloud from a book, [...]

A New Hope.

It occurred to me tonight, after watching Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope for the first time since middle school, then putting my iPod on shuffle and being hit with the one-two punch of “Message in a Bottle” and “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” — songs I grew up listening to, even if they [...]