Author: David S. Mitchell

The intersection of Politics, Race and Pop Culture
Popular Culture

Just Another Day at the Ball Park—Politics as Usual in America

The mainstream media is really having a tough time articulating and managing the phenomenon that is Cameron Jerrell Newton, isn’t it? For a good period of time now—at least since the early 1990s when I came of age in an era of American sports dominated by “His Airness” Michael Jordan—most of the mega-sports stars hailing from the African-American community have, for lack of a better … Continue reading Just Another Day at the Ball Park—Politics as Usual in America

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Race

Objects at Rest

It strikes me that over the course of history, American and otherwise, the success or failure of movements often turns on the precision with which the essential motivating problem is articulated. Today, we often frame the unique issues facing the African-American community within the familiar, and somewhat outmoded, infrastructure of civil rights. We have to stop doing this. By speaking of the challenges we face … Continue reading Objects at Rest

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Politics

The Strange Fruit of a Politics of Inaction

As I watched the 44th president of the United States deliver his final State of the Union address this past Tuesday, I found myself drifting back to the night of his first speech as president-elect.  Yeah…that night was different, wasn’t it?  For the millions of change agents who’d just voted him in, that evening took on the attributes of a nationwide, quasi-religious revival as we … Continue reading The Strange Fruit of a Politics of Inaction

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Popular Culture

Emily King

As I stand in a dark, obscure basement venue somewhere on U street in the District of Columbia surrounded by Asian and European and South American and African and African-American and so many other Americans, I see once again the immense possibilities for love-and loving-right here in our often divided nation.  Thank you Emily King for reminding us of what hope feels like.  Please continue … Continue reading Emily King

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Politics

The Fierce Urgency of Now

On Friday, June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States handed down a ruling that in all likelihood will be remembered as the greatest civil rights achievement of Barack Obama’s presidency. And as such, a strong argument can be made that his appointments of Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor to the Court are the seminal civil rights acts of his presidency. And yet, … Continue reading The Fierce Urgency of Now

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Uncategorized

Fiction for Action and Transformation—The Reasons Why I Write

As a student of history, as an African-American male, as a counselor at law, and now, as a writer, I’ve come to understand that nothing moves people, changes minds, and inspires action quite like art. My varied experiences have also taught me that change is never handed over freely; it is taken by folks who decide to reclaim what was theirs all along: justice. Change … Continue reading Fiction for Action and Transformation—The Reasons Why I Write

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