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If i die in police custody…

If i was a pastor in Americaland this coming Sunday, my sermon would definitely contain the words 'If i die in police custody' which is a trending hashtag on The Twitterer right now. TAKE A MOMENT WITH THAT. #IfIDieInPoliceCustody Last Friday, a black woman was returning home from a job interview in Waller County, Texas, when she was stopped by police after failing to properly signal a lane change. Two days later, she was dead [...]

In the wake of Charleston

We are angry. We grieve, mourn, weep. But we also choose to remember these dear sisters and brothers. Rest in peace. Cynthia Hurd [54] Tywanza Sanders [26] Sharonda Singleton [45] Myra Thompson [59] Ethel Lance [70] Susie Jackson [87] DePayne Doctor [49] Rev. Daniel Simmons Sr [74] Rev. Clementa Pinckney [41] [From Eugene Cho, who is a man i greatly respect and admire:  @EugeneCho] i think it is strongly significant to start a conversation about the [...]

How to overcome our biases by walking boldly towards them [Verna Myers]

i know not everyone has the time or internet capacity to watch video clips online, but if you do then i encourage you to watch this one. It speaks directly into the Americaland conversation at the moment in terms of violence from police offers on black young men but also just a greater focus on the bias of society, and particularly white society when it comes to black young men. i believe it has a [...]

An open letter to my White friends, in South Africa and Americaland…

This morning i was browsing Facebook and i came upon a status from my friend Nkosivumile Gola [who has written a number of posts for this blog] that read like this: The land question is very personal, the land includes my whole being it is the very me. The land question is very emotional its not an intellectual talk. I don't have a nice way of saying we want the land, I can't smile when [...]

Oscar Pistorius, Mark Driscoll and i walk into a bar.

  There have been two stories dominating my Facebook feed the last day or so [i'm not even going to touch on the Renee Zellwegger face thing - we created that circus!] and they are both ones i have tried to keep largely clear of. Until now. OSCAR GOES TO... The Oscar Pistorius sentencing saga [because if the Twitterer is to be believed, it WAS that] which has been lurking on news headlines stuck to lampposts, [...]

i'm not sure you're against that thing you think you're against [Intro]

Sometimes two sides of a vociferous argument can both be right. A silly [but true] example could be someone from Americaland arguing that mayonnaise is horrible [i have lived here for three years and am still to find one i find overly edible] Whereas, having tasted South African mayo, and especially the no name brand big jar version, i might argue that mayonnaise is incredible. We would both be telling the truth in terms of [...]

#YesAllWomen: a lament

i go outside and sit on the top step in front of my apartment and look around... taking in the sights listening to the noise a family preparing for a celebration across the street the sound of a car backfiring, further down the road a laugh, an ambulance siren, a child's excited scream, the sound of two cats fighting, the music starting up and all seems normal this all feels right and good i pause [...]

Yesallmen should really pay attention to #YesAllWomen

There's a new hashtag in town.  Followed by a yawn right? Cos who cares about hashtags? Aren't they just like 'groups' on Facebook? What is a group on Facebook? Someone starts a group based on some topic they feel passionate about such as interesting shapes of clouds, bonsai tree gardening or stuffed animals - you get an invite, you join the group and... NOTHING ELSE EVER HAPPENS. I dunno, maybe you're in better groups than [...]

turns out Sharing IS Caring!

  [Tuesday May 13th] I am taking a break from a Share conference I am attending as part of Common Change... I really wish I could capture the heart and essence of the opening remarks and the morning's sessions, but I imagine I will fail dismally. But I will try out something together anyway because I really believe this is something we all need to be thinking about, reading up on, talking about and getting [...]

I will not apologise for my ‘white privilege’.

This feels like an important part of the conversation to spend some time on and i would love to hear your response to this. You may have seen the article by Princeton student, Tal Fortgang, titled 'Checking my Privilege: Character as the Basis of Privilege' that has been doing the rounds this week in which Tal [as an 18 year old, good to remember and hold in context] begins by explaining what his problem with [...]

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