4 days agoThe WalkImmediately after graduating college, I spent the summer interning with the St. Louis City Fire Department in their ride-along program. St. Louis city fire’s work schedule is 24-hour shifts on and 24-hours off. I spent much of that summer working in the busiest engine houses in the city — which…Abortion6 min read
May 27In Order to form a more perfect UnionOn April 29th, 2014 in Waseca, Wisconsin a concerned citizen called 911 to report that she noticed a young man in an unusual manner walk through her backyard and into a storage locker nearby. When officers arrived to the storage locker to investigate the 911 call, they found seventeen-year-old John…School Shootings4 min read
May 18It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird“My tv still works. I don’t know how. It has a bullet in it.” Joy cometh in the morning. “I can’t even go to work — my daughter told me she doesn’t want me to leave the house.” Joy cometh in the morning. “Summer hasn’t even started yet.” Joy cometh…To Kill A Mockingbird1 min readPainting by Meg RoyIt’s a sin to kill a mockingbird“My tv still works. I don’t know how. It has a bullet in it.”Joy cometh in the morning.“I can’t even go to work — my daughter told me she doesn’t want me to leave the house.”Joy cometh in the morning.“Summer hasn’t even started yet.”Joy cometh…----
Mar 31What are we treating exactly?Author notes. On Monday I published a piece titled, Just 10 minutes… In response to the publication a reader asked, “if we are to address gun violence as a health crisis what is the diagnosis?” Below is my attempt to answer that question. The underlining diagnosis is historical racism: slavery…Crime3 min read
Mar 29Just 10 minutes…Last night’s incident at the Oscars captured the attention of the entire world — or at least my social media channels made it feel that way. After watching reruns of what happened and then today watching Will Smith’s acceptance speech for Best Actor, I immediately remembered a physical altercation from…Mentorship3 min read
Jan 27Time Is NeutralI have for many years been of the strong opinion that writing from a place of anger is foolhardy. The fear is that the anger would cloud how I articulate my thoughts and structure my sentences. The fear is that the reader would liken me to a madman versus an…Peace4 min read
Jan 4I’m Beginning to Hate This TownLast Tuesday morning I found myself sitting in the waiting room of a local neighborhood muffler shop. A typical mom and pop car repair waiting room with a handful of mismatched chairs, a small tv blaring daytime commercials, tile floor with a third of the tile missing, and brown wooden…Chicago4 min read
Nov 20, 2021Trial In AmericaEarlier this week the above photograph was trending on twitter and other social media platforms of Kyle Rittenhouse selecting which jurors would be removed from the jury pool of his homicide trial. It’s a fascinating photograph that I am sure will soon be utilized in school textbooks across the…Justice3 min read
Oct 19, 2021There are some men who will live foreverYesterday I awoke to a short text message from a friend that read, “Colin Powell!!”. During a late brunch just days earlier the same friend had inquired about who I drew inspiration from and whose life work guided my own work and passions. Without hesitation, I said Mother Teresa of…Colin Powell3 min read
Sep 11, 2021Even in our darkest hour there is always a light20 years ago I was in 5th grade sitting on the classroom floor listening to my teacher, Dr. Jones lead us in reading our monthly book. After awhile Dr. Jones stopped reading and told us that she had something we needed to hear but that we might not fully understand…September 113 min read