Winning Michigan
Winning is one of those funny words that people use when they mean another word. I mostly noticed this in connection with sports events. Someone would say a person or some team was winning after three quarters, after being up a set, or after having won more games in a series. But if winning means […]
How Women Taught the Poet
Taught by Women: Poems as Resistance Language, New and Selected is a love letter, a Black valentine, by Haki R. Madhubuti to women of all stripes who have contributed positively to the social being that he is. If his emotional capacity is vibrant, they primarily shaped it. If his understanding is now vast, they are […]
“Defund the Police”
Cold wind whipped across the masks of the two men as they passed the police station out on the boulevard. “They delved into that topic again last night on CNN. Defund the police,” said Junior Boyd, gesturing toward the building. “Came on late.” “I was knocked out by then,” replied Semple Jenkins. “Don’t defund sleep.” […]
Dr. Dr.
Semple addressed the man sitting on the park bench in weather too chilly for deep contemplation. “You look a little depressed, Junior Boyd. I know your favorite lunch spot is shut down again. But we haven’t been going there much anyway.” “It’s not the restaurant, Semple. People are saying they shouldn’t call my wife Dr. […]
Black American Sign Language
In a sociolinguistics class back in graduate school, Professor Roger Cayer told us about an article by James Woodward titled “Black Southern Signing.” I was fascinated that such a linguistic form existed, but I was more interested in the idea that those language practitioners were considered inferior and were discriminated against in schools. This boosted […]
Revolutionary Acts of Language
In 1986, approximately a decade before her death, Toni Cade Bambara declared at the National Black Writers Conference that African American writers are responsible for reminding people what they were pretending not to know. Her faith in archives that we can draw on, and her essential contribution to such archives, are central concerns in Thabiti […]
“A Walk in the Dark,” by Mudiwa Pettus
In 2017, while attending the Rhetoric Society of America’s Summer Institute at Indiana University, I took a long walk with a dear friend. After a day of participating in our respective workshops and grabbing dinner with a few of our grad school classmates, Emily and I made the trek back to our dorms together. Intuitively, […]
Next Steps for Bigger Thomas
On the occasion of my ENGLISH 467 class discussing Richard Wright’s classic novel, I post this review of the most recent film version. The review first appeared in Tribes. Review This is not your Richard Wright’s Native Son. In a sampling and remix world, director Rashid Johnson and screenwriter Suzan-Lori Parks jacked the novel for […]
On a Hill
Because he didn’t have speed and didn’t pinpoint well—touching the wrong letter a lot—Semple refrained from texting when he could get away with it. But Boyd had not fully recovered, so this was the best choice. He had to type carefully, though, to avoid becoming frustrated: Yeah, I’m out here. Wasn’t thinking much about the […]
David Was His Story
I never knew explicitly why David was my father’s favorite Biblical figure. But if you want an action hero, he’s as good as any. This is what Zora Neale Hurston found when she started reading the Bible. She learned how David “smote ‘em hip and thigh.” Just took out enemies without a whole lot of […]
