Mayor Cherelle Parker was the first woman elected mayor in the history of Philadelphia. She vowed to voters that she will vigorously fight crime and believes she’s doing just that. She has a mandate to do so. Historically, Philadelphia has regularly contended with poverty and gun violence. While gun violence is down compared to last year, 2023 follows three of the most violent years in recent memory and the trauma remains something residents continue to navigate. According to a Pew Charitable Trust 2023 poll, Philadelphians from all backgrounds want their elected leaders to prioritize reducing the city’s crime rate in the coming years. According to the poll, those most affected are Black and Latino/a/x residents, who make up a majority of city residents.

DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) initiatives, have become a bad word (or properly speaking a bad acronym) amongst white people — specifically conservative Republicans. These various initiatives, e.g., training, hiring programs, and department creation, took place in government, for-profit, and nonprofit sectors. What precipitated these were the murders of Black people in 2020, most notably Ahmaud Arbury, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd. Following those deaths came a collective rush of an

I’ve spoken and written at length about the need for educators to speak out against racism in all facets… especially concerning the educating of Black children. I’ll continue to do so because the totality of Black lives—academic, personal, and professional interactions and experiences—of Black children depend upon it. Whether it is speaking out against disproportionate disciplining i.e. suspensions, expulsions, and arrest, of Black children in schools, the lack of Black teachers in schools, the

A few months ago, a teacher shared in an Education Week column that they were told by their eighth-grade student that they (the teacher) worked for them (the students). This came about as the teacher was cleaning up after students and reminding them (and I am paraphrasing) that they were too old not to clean up after themselves. The student responded with the comment without venom, but with a matter-of-fact-ness that embodies the current climate as to how education is perceived: as an industry

Education is a major aspect of the Black experience. The desire to learn is in our DNA. Policymakers and educators alike will point to the data points concerning Black student test scores and lament that Black People don’t care about education. I’ve heard with my own ears from “educators,” including some colleagues. They’ll say or have said that Black children don’t want to learn and that Black parents don’t care to make them. Nothing could be said further from the truth. The truth is that publ

According to a recent study, hiring managers pass over “names associated with Black people” in all 50 states when reviewing resumes. 1,500 people were surveyed as part of the study, and what was found was: “… names of workers perceived as Black, such as Shanice or Terell, were more likely to elicit negative presumptions, such as being less educated, productive, trustworthy, and reliable, than people with either white-sounding names, such as Melanie or Adam, or racially ambiguous names, such as

On Oct. 18, the United States was the lone member of the United Nations Security Council to vote against condemning civilian violence in Gaza resulting from Israel’s response to Hamas. The face of that veto was the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., Linda Thomas-Greenfield. On Dec. 9, the United States was the lone member of the UN Security Council to vote against a ceasefire in Gaza. The face of that veto was the U.S. Deputy Ambassador to the U.N., Robert Wood. The most recent vote on a ceasefire a

In 2021, a Utah school district was found ripe with racism. A federal civil rights investigation released in October 2021 found widespread racial harassment of Black and Asian American students at the Davis School District, located in Farmington, UT, including hundreds of documented uses of the N-word and other racial epithets over the last five years: “Black students throughout the district told investigators about similar experiences of white and non-Black students calling them the N-word, re

We’ve reached the midway point of the school year; the “dog days” of January, February, and March. This is the gritty portion of the year. There are few breaks, students are in the thick of their coursework while teachers are trying to keep students (and themselves) motivated, and for millions of students (and their teachers and parents), state assessments are looming. But as an educator, I’d be lying if I did not say that it wasn’t hard to push through. But push we must and we must continue th

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is all the rage these days. People are using artificial intelligence for all types of functions, including crafting resumes, analyzing data, and checking out shoppers at supermarkets. With all that AI has contributed to thus far, there’s even more that can be done. According to McKinsey’s research, we have barely scratched the surface; also suggesting generative AI could add the equivalent of $2.6 trillion to $4.4 trillion annually to the global economy.

It’s often said that Black history is American history. If that’s so, it should be thoroughly taught in schools across the United States. But it’s not. Most states don’t require that Black history be taught in public schools. The College Board, a nonprofit organization that develops curricula for K-12 and higher education systems, has attempted to inject Black history into high schools throughout the country by developing the framework for an Advanced Placement African American Studies (APAAS)

The Super Bowl last week was filled with cultural moments that blew people away. Usher provided one of the more entertaining halftime shows in recent memory. Beyoncé announced on a Verizon commercial she’s releasing new music . . . and of course, the NFL couldn’t get enough shots of Taylor Swift at the big game. However, there’s one act of the culture that took place that is hardly ever noticed these days, but is nevertheless a cultural touchpoint in the mainstream: the dap. Dap is a customary salutation or greeting amongst Black people. It’s a clasping of hands that can morph into additional hand exchanges and/or a bro hug.

When it comes to Black history and the city of Philadelphia, there is much to reflect on and celebrate. There’s the work of South Jersey-born abolitionist William Still, who was known as the father of the Underground Railroad, responsible for ushering African Americans safely through Philadelphia on their way to freedom. There’s also the work of groups such as the Agricultural and Mechanics Association of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, which purchased land and financed education for newly emancipated

History can teach us a lot about where we are as a society and how we got here. Some historical topics are uncomfortable to engage in: they can be both difficult to learn as well as painful to teach. One such topic is chattel enslavement. Let me tell you: Enslavement was wrong. And it cannot, and should not, be ignored in the curriculum or in our society. The unpaid labor of African people, as well as the exploitation of resources from lands where the descendants of formerly enslaved Africans

The teaching of Black history is currently under assault, and teachers, especially Black educators, find themselves on the front lines of this battle. We are often targeted simply because of the color of our skin. Nevertheless, I take pride in my Black identity, and I persevere, just as many other Black teachers do. To counter the relentless attacks by conservatives against Black history and its instruction, Black educators must adopt strategic approaches to subvert laws and policies intended

When advocating for Black children, the focus is usually on Black students in the city. It’s because Black students traditionally attend schools in the city versus anywhere else. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), more Black people attend school in the city (46%) than in towns, rural areas, and the suburbs. We often forget about Black students outside the city. But updated data from NCES beckons that we pay Black students more attention outside the city.

Considering the history of Black quarterbacks, are they not enough of an underdog? After Fritz Pollard, the first Black quarterback in football history, came a ban on Black players by the NFL from 1933 to 1946. When the NFL reintegrated in 1946, the prevailing assumption was that Black athletes weren’t intelligent enough to play quarterback. Whites even assumed that Black players lacked the physical stamina and emotional courage to excel at contact sports like boxing and football.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. addresses marchers during his "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial on Aug. 28, 1963, in Washington. Read more As another MLK Day arrives, politicians across the spectrum will post pictures with quotes by Martin Luther King Jr., using them as a veil to conceal all the ways their policies don’t align with his philosophies. Instead of, like King, advocating for voting rights, economic and environmental justice, and criminal justice, today’s legislato

The policy is part of a familiar playbook where governments enact racist fashion bans in the name of “curtailing crime.” The City Council of Philadelphia passed a ban in December on ski masks as a purported crime-fighting measure. According to the ordinance, wearing ski masks will be prohibited in parks, schools, public transit and other city-owned buildings, carrying with it a fine of $250 for each offense, and up to $2,000 if a mask is worn during the commission of a crime. The council bill

The Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. was born Michael King Jr. on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. His father, Michael King Sr., when inspired by a visit to sites associated with the German protestant reformer Martin Luther, changed his name to Martin Luther King Sr. and his son’s to Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. would become a scholar, a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and an activist on behalf of not only Black people but all of the oppressed. His efforts resulted