Author: Reggie Jackson

I must acknowledge that the term “White Comfort bills” is not mine. I recently had the pleasure of meeting a brilliant scholar who made a point that resonated with me. As I have tried to say many times, the so-called “anti-CRT” bills really have nothing to do with critical race theory. She calls them “White Comfort bills.” I’m going to borrow her term because it perfectly articulates the essence of these new laws. If you read the text of the bills that are spreading exponentially across the country, one line you find in most of them is a line...

Nearly seventeen years ago my mentor Dr. James Cameron returned from a trip to the Senate chambers when they issued an apology for never passing an anti-lynching bill. As a lynching survivor and creator of America’s Black Holocaust Museum, he was center stage as the Senate did something to “make up” for never passing a federal law to make lynching a federal crime. That same year, 2005, I made the second of what would become three trips to Marion, Indiana, the site of the lynching Cameron survived on August 7, 1930. I visited the jail he was removed from...

First they came for the Blacks, and I did not speak out – because I was not Black. Then they came for the women, and I did not speak out — because I was not a woman. Then they came for the gays, and I did not speak out — because I was not gay. Then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak for me. This is a modern version of the famous lines by German Pastor Martin Niemöller. I changed the groups to represent current issues in America. Those who want to...

“Violence in all of its forms is poisonous and destructive. My behavior at last night’s Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable. Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally. I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.” – Will Smith...

“Truth-telling is not the cause of the divisions in the country. A refusal to accept the truth is the cause.” – Reggie Jackson 2021 “Legislators in Iowa and Florida have introduced bills that would install cameras in classrooms for parents to monitor what is being taught to children. A proposed Oklahoma law would allow parents to sue teachers for up to $10,000 for teaching material that is “in opposition to closely held religious beliefs of students”, which is generally believed to be a reference to LGBTQ content. A bill in Florida seeks to restrict in-classroom discussions of sexual orientation...

This article is one of a special four-part series for Black History Month 2022. Reggie Jackson paints a picture of how we got to our current state, detailing a people who have been treated as less than human beings, and then less than first class citizens throughout our time in America. Each weekly article looks at the forces, institutions, policies, laws, and social environments that have forced us to proclaim our lives matter, in a nation that has refused to even acknowledge our basic humanity. https://mkeind.com/BlackLivesBHM2022 “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health is the most shocking...