Race is a social construction. We have heard that phrase over and over again to the point that it has become a bit hackneyed. When I teach my sociology students, I tell them, “Sociologists study what people do together: we create families, schools, economic systems.” All of these things are social constructions that are produced, … Read more of Rachel Dolezal: ‘Negra Frustrada’ (Frustrated Black Woman)…
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Fiction: The Time It Never Happened
Oge had her very first ingrown hair, but she didn’t know it initially. Something was painful “down there” and it brushed against her panties every time she walked, stood, or sat. Curious to see what caused her so much pain, under the blankets at night, she touched those nether regions until she found the site … Read more of Fiction: The Time It Never Happened…
African Immigrants and the New Black Middle Class
Too often in our society, when the media links class and African Americans, they have their eyes on issues of poverty. Decades ago, William Julius Wilson described how class was increasingly bifurcating blacks into those with and those without. Over the last several decades, he has called for more policy consideration for those in entrenched … Read more of African Immigrants and the New Black Middle Class…
Paris During the Attacks
I went to a conference on “Mixedness” at the Sorbonne in Paris. On the last day of the conference, some of the conference participants and I decided to grab drinks to celebrate. We were a multinational crowd, although I was the only American. There were two Dutch people, an Italian, a Belgian, a French person, and … Read more of Paris During the Attacks…
“Loving Black Men (Adorar Negão): Brazilian White Wives of Black Men”
The plus-sized supermodel, Tess Holliday, told The Guardian newspaper, “Black men love me.” This sparked an online firestorm, leading her to issue an apology and try to offer more context to her statement. Holliday’s comments reminded me of comments that I frequently heard in Brazil while doing qualitative research on black-white couples. I am currently … Read more of “Loving Black Men (Adorar Negão): Brazilian White Wives of Black Men”…
Advice for the Young at Heart
Right now is not a good time to be in the U.S. We are watching how agents of the state kill unarmed African American men and get away with it time and again. It is too easy to argue that this is about “racist” individual white police officers and “thuggish” individual black men. However, this … Read more of Advice for the Young at Heart…