Cultural Competence Only Goes So Far. Kids Need Teacher Diversity.

I am a middle school science teacher. When covering the laws of physics, I teach that “every action has an equal and opposite reaction.” This…

Breonna Taylor Didn’t Get Justice, But It’s Not Too Late to Save Our Kids From a Country Set Out to Kill Them

Before we even get started, I just wanna say that the Grand Jury ruling Breonna Taylor’s killing justified is bullshit.  Now that I’ve gotten that…

Creating Equitable Learning Environments Doesn’t Mean Reinventing the Wheel

The dueling crises of COVID-19 and systemic racial injustice have created a pivotal moment that not only demands a transformation of our school system, but…

Will We Still Fight for Racial Justice in Schools This Fall?

Parents, I can say with confidence the classrooms your children left in the spring will not be the same one they will return to this…

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…

Kamala Harris Has an Opportunity to Stand Up for Black Kids

After months of speculation in what I personally believe is the least covered presidential campaign in modern history, Joe Biden announced Senator Kamala Harris as…

I Desperately Want to Get Back to School, But My Students’ Safety Is My First Priority Right Now

I desperately want to return to school in the fall and be with my kids. In the most non-melodramatic, non-trivial way possible—I am lost without…

James Baldwin’s ‘Talk to Teachers’ Is Just as Relevant Today

As I sit here, processing my thoughts on the severity of events that are currently grappling our nation, I reflect on the historical circumstances that…

It Will Take More Than a Name Change to Rid Your School of White Supremacy

There is a myriad of disparities and gaps that exist in our society, placing people of color at a disadvantage. We are seeing this play…

Education Advocates Need to Look in the Mirror When It Comes to Equity and Racial Justice

As protests give way to policy debates in the wake of George Floyd’s murder, while a true and full reckoning with our country’s original sin…