Repost in honor of Butler’s birthday, and her selection for a Google Doodle: The late, great Octavia Butler was best-known as a rare black female superstar in a genre –science-fiction –largely dominated by white men.[…]
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Category: Social Issues
Wokepedia: Justice Trilogy
Fourth in my “Wokepedia” series of case studies of consciousness-raising Wikipedia edits. The Justice Trilogy: This week’s entry, the “Justice Trilogy,” is a little more involved, because it included not only creating a brand-new page[…]
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An Open Letter to Franklin Park Conservatory
To: Franklin Park Conservatory cc: Scotts Miracle Gro Foundation Columbus Underground Franklin Park Neighborhood Association Dear Franklin Park, How do you make a beautiful thing turn ugly? Put a fence around it. I think it’s fair to assume, when the Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation contributed the money for Franklin Park Conservatory to build a wonderful new children’s garden, they[…]
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WC Handy: That Random Minor Note Part II
Last time, we looked at Janelle Monae’s self description as “the random minor note you hear in major songs” and hinted that was somehow related to the artificiality of the even-tempered Western European scale. But[…]
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Wokepedia: This is Us, Dudley Randall
The idea of Wokepedia is that ordinary people, working with intent, can make lasting changes to Wikipedia that will lead in more equable and less biased coverage of topics of minority interest, and promote a[…]
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Django Jane’s African Beat
Perhaps to showcase her many sides, the incomparable Janelle Monae released two very different songs/videos in advance of her hotly anticipated new album, Dirty Computer. A few weeks ago I showcased her funky, bubbly, sex-drenched[…]
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Presidential Portraits
Everything President Obama has done since first taking office has been viewed with particular scrutiny, and his and Michelle’s selection of portraitists was no exception. Each took the opportunity provided to raise the profile of[…]
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ECOT and the Columbus City teacher layoffs
Below is my letter to the editor, published recently in the Columbus Dispatch. Let me connect the dots for Dispatch readers. Columbus City Schools are laying off teachers. The layoffs are from a budget shortfall.[…]
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Stevie Wonder: Philosophical Music
It occurred to me recently that in my survey of philosophical music I had too long overlooked perhaps the premiere philosopher of transcendent pop music, Mr. Stevland Wonder (an artist I had the exquisite pleasure[…]
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2018, 2020, 2022: Third Party Strategies
If you’re like me, you’re thoroughly sick of both major American political parties, and ready for a change. Is it a pipe dream? No. American political parties have typically gone through a major realignment every[…]
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