Tag Archives: barack obama

Saying Goodbye to President Obama

Posted on by January 21, 2017

Barack Obama is no longer the president of the United States. That sentence carries a disquieting and heavy truth for many Americans.

While putting my 9-year-old to bed last night, I thought it fitting to read one of our children’s books about Obama. It’s “Barack Obama Son of Promise, Child of Hope” by Nikki Grimes. It tells Obama’s life story, touching on his experiences that are familiar to us: His roots in Kansas, his biracial background, and his time in Chicago.

The Jackie Robinson movie and a case of deja vu when it comes to change in America

Posted on by May 1, 2013

Sitting there with fingers buttery from the popcorn, I watched the new Jackie Robinson movie, “42,” and it struck me how many parallels his rise to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers mirrored Barack Obama’s rise to the White House.

We all know their stories: A black man works hard, fights the racism monster and breaks the color barrier to arrive at the major leagues.

That was not the part of “42” that resonated with me. It was the whispers in the subplots showing us the … Read more ...

Talking About Race With My Biracial 5-Year-Old

Posted on by January 21, 2013


It’s interesting being a parent of biracial children in that like with most things with motherhood, I’m fumbling around in the dark.

Digging through my 5-year-old’s backpack, I ran across a worksheet on Martin Luther King, Jr.  Curious, I asked him what he learned about King in school.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Image from mattlemmon.

He told me that white people used to not let brown people do things and King made a lot of white people mad because he was helping the brown people.

Hmmm. Well, kinda.

Since … Read more ...

Back To The Future: My Binders Full of Women

Posted on by November 29, 2012

I love Halloween. And I don’t mean in the wild-about-zombies kind of way. I just like to dress up and see other people’s costumes. My faves are the homemade ones.

I have a friend who makes these crazily intricate costumes for her whole family. One year, they were characters from Toy Story and I remember her trying to think of different ways she could make Buzz Lightyear’s space helmet. This year her son is going as a turtle and according to Facebook, she turned to … Read more ...

Race 2012: A Conversation About Race & Politics in America

Posted on by October 9, 2012

Ya’ll know I’m not a political blogger. Of course I’ve got my opinion and all, and I even delve into race issues every so often. But I was given the opportunity to be one of the bloggers for an upcoming PBS documentary called Race 2012: A Conversation About Race & Politics in America .

And I thought, meh, why not?

The Politics

There’s plenty out in the blogosphere about Barack Obama not doing anything during his four years, and there’s also tons of chatter about … Read more ...