A Juneteenth Post: How DEI Initiatives Are Stripping Black People of Dignity and Safety

It was Juneteenth on Monday and as far as I'm concerned, we are celebrating all week long. As I said in a previous post on this blog, these past couple of  years, more than ever, I have learned more and had more conversations about emotional safety, belonging, and vulnerability in the workplace. More importantly, I started to better understand that vulnerability needs to be earned; that you deserve a right to protect yourself if you don’t feel “safe”: and that—this is the biggest—vulnerability without boundaries is NOT vulnerability.

Through these conversations, I found that there are places that just expect Black people to remove our armor without sufficient assurance or commitment to our safety. Let me give an example: person X is the “only Black person” in a room and then all of a sudden, they are deemed the race expert. They expect X to open up at every meeting or during every “tough conversation” about the Black experience or about racism. They want X to share their experience of microaggressions, and prejudice, and racism. But what about if X doesn’t want to be vulnerable? Especially if there is no guarantee of protection when X does share something they don’t want to hear. Forget the fear of reprisal; sometimes, people haven’t earned the right to our mind, thoughts, and opinions. So, to not guarantee any safety, yet expect a Black people to speak for all Black people is just wrong.

Why Silence Can Be Ineffective

When Chimamanda Adichie wrote the masterpiece, "It is Obscene", one line stood out and has stuck with me since then. Okay, more accurately, I recently found it again and posted it on Instagram. 

"Sometimes, silence makes a lie begin to take on the shimmer of truth."

On Serving and Being a Part of Something Bigger

There was a time I was so particular (I don't want to say obsessed) about serving in my community. I truly believe in service. I believe every single person should be a part of something (or some things) bigger than themselves. Normally, this is work. But work sort of feels like work. In any case, I think that being a part of something bigger than you can bring immeasurable purpose. I also think this is a kind of purpose that is good for the soul. The kind that allows you feel like you have a well-rounded life, you know? In any case, I wanted to serve. I also know that if our community is going to progress, then all of us have to be involved. 

Friday Reflections

 1.) The Netflix show, "Indian Matchmaking", tells women to compromise, but this woman refused to do that. 

2.) Sorry, but Nigerian parents can be UNHINGED. My God. This man sexted his daughter's boyfriend because he wanted to set a trap and catch her in the act. 

3.) I saw this old article about a Christian gay woman who married a man and how she never really became straight, and maybe that was never God's goal. I don't know whether it's right for me to call her gay since that may not be how she still identifies herself. What stood out in the article and what I think more Christians need to emphasize more is the goodness of God and how more than anything else, we are called to be faithful to God. 

Book of the Month: Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

Welcome to the Book of the Month! Let's get into it. One important thing you need to know about the book of this month is that it is about time travel. Yes. I will be honest that I didn't know that before going in; I knew nothing about the book before going in. If I knew it was about time travel, I am not sure I would have gone ahead with it. There are also some other things that made me a little uncomfortable but I'm getting ahead of myself.

In Honor and Memory of Tim Keller

On Friday, May 19, 2023, I was writing about something else and was about ready to hit publish when I heard that beloved pastor, mentor, preacher, and teacher, Timothy Keller had passed away. He was 72.

Tim Keller, as he was often called, is the kind of man you write about. So here we are.

Book of the Month: Verity by Colleen Hoover

Welcome to Book of the Month. The book of this month is Verity by Colleen Hoover. I cannot possibly continue with this post without acknowledging the HOLD Colleen Hoover has on the reading community. If this woman was Nigerian I would legit accuse her of using some sort of spiritual power to captivate people, because people LOVE her. She has a large cult following and you literally cannot walk any airport, train station, bookstore without seeing the array of her books. They are everywhere. This is only the second book of hers that I'm reading. I read It Ends With Us and I HAD thoughts but it was so emotionally intense that I decided against making it book of the month despite my feelings.

Anyway, Verity is about a writer, Lowen, on the verge of financial ruin when she accepts the opportunity of a lifetime. She has been hired by the husband of a much more famous writer, Verity Crawford, to complete the series Verity started before she became unable to continue due to an injury. The said husband, Jeremy Crawford, invites Lowen to their home to sort through Verity's notes and outlines and such, which is opportune, because Lowen has just been kicked out of her apartment. What Lowen did not expect to find in all the chaos was an unfinished autobiography by Verity. And that's where crap hits the fan. Somewhere along the line, Lowen's feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify. And as I said, crap hits the fan.