With Liberty and Justice for All

By: Marvin DeBose "When a population appears as a direct threat to my life, they do not appear as lives... [Therefore] those we kill are not quite human... which means that we do not feel the same horror and outrage over the loss of their lives as we do over the loss of those lives …

Starbucks & The Problem with Diversity Trainings

Many of us have heard of the recent controversy with the Starbucks in Philadelphia. Long story short, last week, at a Starbucks in my hometown of Philadelphia, a manager called the police on two black men who were waiting for a friend in the cafe's seating area. None of this surprises me, especially considering where …

What Dr. King’s Death Taught Me About Life

“ Did you ever notice who [we assassinate]? Stop to think who it is we kill. It's always people who've told us to live together in harmony and try to love one another. Jesus, Gandhi, Lincoln, John Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, John Lennon, they all said, ‘Try to live …

3 Things I Learned From Catching A Greyhound Bus at 3am in Baltimore

So, recently I made the decision to travel on a Greyhound bus. The reason for this is that I was coming back from vacation and I was trying to save money (late planning/being cheap). I realized that If I flew into Baltimore and got a bus back to New York, I wouldn’t break the bank. …

My 10 Thoughts on Black Panther… A Month and a Half Later

Spoiler alert: Honestly, if you haven't seen it at this point, it's your fault. The plot is good, but it's not THAT groundbreaking- Black Panther was good for many reasons, but personally, I didn't find the plot to be that different than most hero movies... Or most Disney-affiliated movies for that matter. For example, did …

4 Lessons I’ve Learned Since Moving to NYC

(Note: this post contains explicit language) Things cost a lot of money- Method Man said it best, "Cash Rules Everything Around Me". I listen to that song almost daily because it's pretty much the gospel. From rent, to commuting, to the midday coffee, to having a social life, New York is not a cheap place …

Men, we’ve Gotta do better… Yup, ALL of us.

(Content Warning: This post includes some explicit language as well as references to current events regarding sexual misconduct) For much of my adult life, I've considered myself a "good guy" when it came to my interactions and relationships with women. I was polite to women, I rarely used disparaging sexist language , I understood consent, …

Eminem Invented Political Rap (apparently)

(Note: This post includes some explicit language) On October 10th 2017, Marshall Mathers, commonly known by the stage name Eminem, in his BET Hip Hop Awards cypher, invented a new form of hip-hop music in which he provided social and political commentary. It was a major step for a genre that had otherwise been dominated …

Nah, This IS us: 25 Things that Contribute to Racism too

(Note: This post contains some explicit language) "Different toilet, same shit... And I'm sick of explaining it." -Jay Z By now, most of us have heard about the white supremacist violence down in Charlottesville, VA this past weekend. For me, it was sad, frustrating, but not surprising. Yet, what was surprising was the fact that …

The 7-Reason Theory on Why I think “All Eyez on Me” will be Trash

So, I tried to not write about this film to avoid sounding like a hater, but hey, writers gon' write, right? Those who know me well know that I'm a big Tupac fan and I've been a fan since I was about 13 years old. I've read and written about him many different times. So …