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Calling All White People, Part 58: The kids might not be as all right as we think

By Average White Guy | January 14, 2022 | 2 Comments

TODAY’S EPISODE: Looking to Gen Z to end racism? Maybe get your glasses checked There have been so many times that I’ve seen people post something online about social awareness or activism among younger people and talk about how they will usher in the end to bigotry and hate. But I’m not sure we should be so quick to assume …

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What the insurrection tells us about where we’re at

By Samuel James | January 9, 2022 | 1 Comment

So, it’s been a little over a year since January 6th . Think pieces bloomed. TV specials aired. Harris and Biden gave speeches. I couldn’t care less. In this country, racists rioting to get their way ain’t nothing new and how this particular example is being handled just feels like a distraction. That may seem callous, but plenty of people …

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Thank you for being a reader! Looking back on 2021

By Shay | January 1, 2022 | Comments Off on Thank you for being a reader! Looking back on 2021

It’s been a year! As I sit down to pen this, the news just broke of Betty White’s passing, days before her 100th birthday. In a world defined by our divisions, the collective love—and now collective grief—at the passing of a true icon oddly gives me hope. Perhaps all is not truly lost.  Betty, thank you for being a friend! …

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A double-dose of empathy?

By Samuel James | December 23, 2021 | 1 Comment

I used to get road rage. Like, real road rage. It was bad. I mean, I’ve never gotten into a physical altercation with another motorist, but I’d be lying if I told you there weren’t several occasions on which I’d gotten out of my car. Not my proudest moments, hypothetically. COVID means I haven’t been on tour and since I’m …

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Truth-telling, healing from whiteness and bell hooks

By Shay | December 19, 2021 | 2 Comments

I was born in the early 1970s, and despite having two loving parents—including a stay at home mother—I often felt a sense of discomfort in my body in my early years. My younger self didn’t understand that the unease I felt were the growing tentacles of white supremacy constricting around me.  Growing up Black and female in the ‘70s and …

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Finding courage

By Heather Denkmire | December 14, 2021 | 2 Comments

Last week, I saw a thread on twitter that got me thinking about Black people, white people (especially women), and the concept of courage. In the stream of tweets, Dr. Jenn M. Jackson wrote, “Courage and vulnerability require so much of us. And, I keep thinking about my Black foremothers and ancestors whose courage was about evading the noose or …

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Maine is changing and diversifying

By Shay | December 10, 2021 | 3 Comments

Over the years, people have asked many times what brought me to Maine. I used to tell folks that I was in the witness protection program, but when people started taking me seriously, I started giving the short answer: family reasons. Family reasons indeed are why I landed in Maine almost 20 years ago, but even that simple answer is …

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The process is bunk, but disengaging from it could be dangerous

By Samuel James | December 5, 2021 | 1 Comment

People are disengaging with the political process. It’s happening fast and it’s incredibly frustrating to me. Don’t get me wrong; I totally get it. The world is spiraling pretty quickly in multiple ways right in front of our eyes and the people in charge seem helpless to do anything about it. I can clearly see how easy it is to …

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No strings donations: Breaking the cycle of privilege’s rules

By Heather Denkmire | November 28, 2021 | 3 Comments

A few months ago as I was walking with a friend, she was telling me about people in her home country who had even less money than she does. She was telling me about them because I had given her some money and she wanted to tell me about who the money was helping. I had a physiological response to …

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Verdict is in, holidays are here: Live your values

By Shay | November 23, 2021 | Comments Off on Verdict is in, holidays are here: Live your values

As this country continues its racial awakening and reckoning, certain things have become almost predictable. It’s time to break that cycle of predictability, because that is part of what keeps us from mass movement and change.  The acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse may have been gut-wrenching and shocking to some, but for me—and many Black people and other people of color—it …

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Musings on the political and Graham Platner: Reflections on a conversation, Part 1

By Shay | December 13, 2025

One of the greatest gifts of aging is that with each passing decade, you start to realize that the world and the people in it are a lot more complex than you initially assumed. It often means learning that things are not nearly as straightforward and black-and-white as we assume when we are younger—that life …

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Musings on the political and Graham Platner: Reflections on a conversation, Part 1

By Shay | December 13, 2025

One of the greatest gifts of aging is that with each passing decade, you start to realize that the world and the people in it are a lot more complex than you initially assumed. It often means learning that things are not nearly as straightforward and black-and-white as we assume when we are younger—that life …

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Round Up

A curated list of relevant articles & a peek into what Shay's reading

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Sample Round Up

By Shay | May 29, 2022

Happy Friday! It’s a gorgeous day up in my corner of the world and way too beautiful to be writing a blog post today. So I present you with the Friday Round-Up a list of blog posts this week from other bloggers that blew my mind. Perhaps if you need to kill some time or have a quiet moment you can check them out. http://ravingblacklunatic.blogspot.com/ Check out this cat, I have been a fan of his work forever. http://www.whataboutourdaughters.com/ Good stuff here as well http://sweetersalt.com/ A Maine blogger who talks fashion and food…the best of both worlds http://paganchild-starmommy.blogspot.com/2011/03/keeping-focused.html A new blog that offers words of wisdom for all of us. http://mscleaver.com/ Another Mainer who for Lent is giving up pants, she is also a crafty gal If you have any links to good blogs, feel free to leave em. It’s my hope to make the Friday Round Up a regular feature at my new home specifically I would live to shine some light and love on smaller bloggers. It’s hard out here in this blogosphere with so many good blogs to choose from and so little time so let’s help everyone get a slice of the pie. I will be back on Monday, at that time I will unveil some ideas I have around monetizing things but You May Also Like: No related posts.

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