Accountability for One Killer Cop Won’t Protect Our Kids From the Systemic Harm They Face Daily

Here’s where I am after all of the shit that went down this week … Black people aren’t safe and will never have peace under…

Following the Chauvin Trial Is Traumatic. Don’t Turn Away.

When we bear witness, when we become the situation—homelessness, poverty, illness, violence, death—the right action arises by itself. We don’t have to worry about what…

Here’s Why Dumping the Discipline Question on the Common App Really Matters

This is a year unlike any other. I am sure you have heard this over and over again as, over the past seven months, our…

Statues Are Only One Kind of Monument to White Supremacy

Every year, I ask my students to identify phenomena in our world that are both imagined and real. In other words, what are some things…

What If We Radically Reimagined the New School Year?

Monday night I sat on my back patio staring up into a rare, starry Chicago night. I squinted and made out each point of The…

Getting Pepper-Sprayed by School Police Shouldn’t Be a Part of My Job

I have only felt the terrible sting and discomfort of pepper spray one time, and that was when I was teaching and coaching teachers in…

What Does It Mean to Demilitarize Our Schools?

My son was eight when he told me he was going to “quit school.” At first, I laughed, but after he said it again and…

Now Is the Time to Remake Our Schools With Equity in Mind

This week, the school reopening conversation is largely about when we reopen schools. Some people, including our president, want schools to reopen widely, as soon…

Black Girls Need Police-Free Schools

We are at a precipice. Advocates and school leaders in nearly 100 districts all over the country have called for the removal of police in…