About Us
New Description Coming Soon. In the meantime, please have a look at ‘OUR MANIFESTO’page.
My dear friend got me thinking last night. She asked, “Are you going to post positive stories about race, too?” That’s an important question, and the simple answer is, yes. But, this is not one of those sites that seeks to “end intolerance” or “end racism” in America. From where I sit, that’s simply unrealistic. The goal here is to talk about race in America with renewed energy, compassion and candor.
The truth is in our stories. I have happy stories, funny stories, and stories with unexpected outcomes. These stories will post side by side with the angry, sad and troubling ones. The last thing I want is for you to dread clicking on allaboutrace.com in the morning. It’s okay if you leave moved or angry sometimes, but sometimes I hope you’ll click off just shaking your head and smiling. And other times, I hope you see something on this site that motivates you to respond in a new way to incidences of inequality or injustice you see around you.
I have a lot of stories, but you out there have plenty, too. And I bet you know people who have even more. So, tell them about our site and encourage them to comment. I encourage all to comment early and often, and to share your stories, observations and questions. We’re starting a community here and that means everyone
Are you in?
Hey Carmen! My mom linked me to your site. I think this is a very interesting concept, I like it. I don’t think we should be afraid to talk about things like race. You had a very good point in your “First time readers” section… it’s funny that generally, we aren’t uncomfortable talking about sexuality or politics, but when race comes into play, everyone shies away from it. Hope your site starts up some good discussion!
March 13th, 2007 at 10:52 am -Hi Stef! So glad you like the site. I’m calling your mom this weekend, she’ll fill me about what you’re up to. Please tell your friends about the site. I want their input too. Big hug and kiss.
March 15th, 2007 at 6:47 am -Carmen!… I have to say that this is the first time in a couple of months I’ve logged onto allaboutrace.com. WOW! WO! and holy ish! You don’t mess around girl, INCREDIBLE!
November 17th, 2007 at 11:28 am -Thanks Tony! I am so glad to hear you like what we’ve done with the place. I hope you come back by often.
November 17th, 2007 at 5:29 pm -But, this is not one of those sites that seeks to “end intolerance” or “end racism” in America. From where I sit, that’s simply unrealistic. The goal here is to talk about race in America with renewed energy, compassion and candor.
I think many people enter into conversations about race hoping that they will end it. To me, that is unrealistic and disheartening; it leads to people becoming frustrating and not wanting to have the discussion anymore. There is no quick fix to making things better and there is no fix to ending intolerance and racism.
I’m glad I found your site (through the NPR link from Jack and Jill Politics).
December 31st, 2007 at 8:20 am -Hi Tanisha! Welcome to the conversation. Yes, it’s a uncomfortable thing for me to interact with people who aspire to “colorblindness”. Why would that be necessary if there was no hierarchy of skin color in the first place? And when you talk of dismantling that hierarchy…well, some folks get real fidgety. So much work to do in 2008. I will check out your site and I hope you stop by frequently and comment freely. Happy New Year.
December 31st, 2007 at 9:41 am -Carmen, you are not going to end racism in America? Well if you don’t, who will?
February 24th, 2008 at 5:58 pm -JeJe RC! How are you amigo?
February 24th, 2008 at 6:56 pm -i am a fairly recent listener. i’ve been listening to and enjoying your comments on news and notes since relocating to jackson, ms from n.o., la due to hurricane katrina. i’ve always been a fairly liberal person – a free thinker so to speak. i get excited about intelligent discourse.
March 28th, 2008 at 8:52 pm -Hi Terry. Welcome to the conversation. I hope you will visit AAR often and comment frequently. I bet you have important stories to tell. We would love to hear them.
March 28th, 2008 at 10:35 pm -Hey Carmen,
Hello from River Terrace! Val and Lacey say hey, and we miss you. We love your site. You’ll have to let us know if you’re going to come back for a visit.
I watched Reverend Wright at the Press Club yesterday and was really feeling good about it until the Q&A. It became apparent to me at that point that this was about Wright, not his church, or moving the conversation forward. I am really hoping he hasn’t derailed Barack’s campaign completely.
If Barack can secure the nomination I think there is hope for moving issues of race forward. If he doesn’t get the nomination because of this controversy, I’m afraid the conversation is going to move from something positive to something different altogether.
The ignorance of some is breathtaking.
– The Joneses
April 29th, 2008 at 6:35 am -Chuck, Val and Lacey – I MISS YOU! Welcome to the conversation. I am so touched that you like the site. I think about you all the time. I am so glad to hear from you. I have not been back to New York (or the East Coast) for that matter since we moved. But I hope to get east this summer. A visit with you guys will be at the TOP of my list. You guys should come out and visit – I mean it. Hugs and love to you. Thank you for reaching out!
April 29th, 2008 at 7:34 am -My thought on Black people.
We are very powerful if we know it, we as black people are some of the most creative people, but we don’t know it. We need to regain our roots, self respect, culture, moral values, self-worth back. We must give our self and children and community a sense of you are somebody. We must clean up our neighborhoods, schools, chruches so that we will regain our self-respect and we can become more valuable to this world
August 5th, 2008 at 2:22 pm -Good work. Count me in.
October 4th, 2008 at 7:16 pm -I would really like to share my stories about my white relatives – who I dearly love. They will remain highest on MY heirarchy because I believe the whites were technologically superior and that lead to their feelings of superiority in general.
November 6th, 2008 at 9:13 am -They were also so much deeper as far as written history and the exploration of their own feelings. They wrote diaries and left us all a legacy in that respect.
Even now, a well-educated person of color feels superior to a worker in the fields. This is just natural as there are differences in IQ, etc.
Even races have IQ averages. Something not popular with races who have lower IQ averages. But, apparently, in the last election, the educational level, and one could presume IQ, of Obama was something to tout – as superior to his opponent.
You’re right. There are many things that people THINK about that they can’t say.
I think there is too much prejudice against whites because of envy.
Whites adopted children through the years – Asians so much here in the west, and then later children of all colors.
November 6th, 2008 at 9:21 am -Even now, they sponsor programs to help educate children overseas – in desperately poor countries – like Rwanda. I send money to an African child through a program sponsored by a white man. He doesn’t ask us what race we are when we sign up to give. He doesn’t seek public recognition – and neither do we. We just all send money as these children are suffering from AIDS and other problems.
I ask all of you to contribute to children’s programs – not because of YOUR race, but because of ALL children. Nearly all these children are children of color. They are living in shacks and cannot go to school. The children’s program I contribute to does give the child the opportunity to go to school.
SC girl uses Heimlich to save friend’s life | WCBD Oct 13, 2008 … SC girl uses Heimlich to save friend’s life. Video; Photo … Her best friend, Kendyl Gray-McDonald came to the rescue, …
http://www.counton2.com/cbd/news/state_regional/article/sc_girl_uses_heimlich_to_save_friends_life/15477/ – 53k
NBC News
Published: October 13, 2008
It was a scary moment for two sixth graders at Alice Drive Middle School in Sumter, South Carolina.
Brianna Gandy was enjoying her lunch when she began to choke.
“The first thing that came to my mind was, am I going to die?” Brianna said.
Her best friend, Kendyl Gray-McDonald came to the rescue, by using the technique her mom taught her weeks before.
“If it wasn’t for her, I probably would have died,” Brianna said.
“I’m not a real life-saver to be honest,” Kendyl said. “I don’t go around saving people’s lives everyday.”
While Brianna ate her beef stew and potatoes, she began choking during regular lunchtime conversation.
“Someone made a joke and I kind of laughed,” Brianna said. “It was just stuck in there and I was just trying to cough it up and everything.”
Kendyl said she looked over to see Brianna red-faced and unable to talk.
“I just kind of felt dizzy, I remember one point it was just like black,” Brianna said.
Kendyl said she was scared, but she quickly leapt into action.
“I hesitated for like two seconds, then I did the Heimlich,” Kendyl said.
Her Mom taught the Heimlich Maneuver to her just weeks before.
“She told me to put my hands like this, like a fist and my hand over it, and right here where your ribs, right there, put it there and then go like that because it pushes it up and out,” Kendyl explained as she demonstrated the Heimlich.
Brianna says she felt arms around her trying to push the food out.
“With here doing that and me coughing, it just kinda like plopped up in my mouth, and then I had to spit it out,” Brianna said.
Kendyl said she heard Brianna take a deep breath and she knew she was okay.
Brianna’s mother, Lorie Gandy, says she’s extremely grateful.
“I thank the lord that Kendyl was there able to do that, because my daughter didn’t know what to do,” Lorie said. “I don’t know what I would do without her.”
Marcia Gray, Kendyl’s mother, couldn’t be prouder of her.
“I was surprised and extremely proud of her,” Marcia said.
Pride aside, Marcia just hopes Kendyl’s brave act gets parents to teach their kids about the Heimlich.
“Hey, if you know the procedure, definitely show your kids,” Marcia said.
Kendyl says she doesn’t think of herself as a hero. She’s just glad to be best friend.
“She’s basically the bestest friend I’ve ever had,” Brianna said.
***********************************************
Brianna’s is White. Her “bestest” friend, Kendyl,
is Black. Not too long ago Brianna and Kendly would not have been allowed to attend school together, in South Carolina.
That’s change we can believe in.
November 24th, 2008 at 8:01 am -is not one of those sites that seeks to “end intolerance” or “end racism”
LOL. having realistic goals is a good thing so I’m applauding that statement.
Frankly I ABHOR the word “tolerance:.
December 27th, 2008 at 11:28 am -All it really means is.. I notice, I don’t like it, I won’t bother trying to understand it but I promise not to beat you up..
[...] aka African American Political Pundit from his site of the same name and Carmen D. from the blog All About Race. I’ve contacted a representative at NPR and Farai to let them know we plan to “take [...]
March 31st, 2009 at 10:53 am -This is in response to Leilani88’s comments:
“I believe the whites were technologically superior and that lead to their feelings of superiority in general.”
“They were also so much deeper as far as written history…”
White people were technologically behind Asians and Africans for centuries. Africans–that is, Egyptians–are the first people known to have created a written alphabet. The two oldest known mathematical artifacts–the Lebombo Bone and the Ishango Bone–were also created by Africans. Arabs living in what is currently Iraq created Algebra.
Although the last six centuries of white imperialism would predispose one to think it was white people who were technologically advanced in warfare, it was the Chinese who invented gun powder.
The point is that none of this was done by white people. While white people have made significant technological advances, many of these have been at the expense of people of color who have been used as test subjects or who have seen the wealth of their countries used to advance the interests of the west or what we now call the global north. Obviously, it is so much easier to produce great inventions when you have the resources at your disposal.
I firmly believe that, given the contributions that Africa has made to human progress, that were we not burdened by the yoke of neocolonialism–in the form of illegitimate debts to the IMF and World Bank and trade policies that favor the rich nations, you would see more African doctors, scientists and other scholars.
June 20th, 2009 at 12:55 am -Again, in response to Leilani88’s comments about “adopting” children of color. Don’t you think it would be so much better if these children’s parents could take care of them? As Paul Farmer notes, HIV/AIDS is not a randomized phenomenon–it does not strike all people equally. Poverty and the degree of poverty coincides with one’s likelihood of contracting HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and a number of other diseases that are much rarer in rich countries.
If you really want to help black children in Africa, work to eradicate the unfair trade policies that force poor farmers all over the world to compete with farmers in the US who receive subsidies. Or work to end the predatory lending practices of the IMF and World Bank.
It’s great that you send money to help children in need. I get the impression that you think people of color don’t. This is strange since remittances–that is, money sent from people from a country who have emigrated to another country back to their home country–account for a large portion of the GDP of most developing nations.
It isn’t that you should stop sending money to help these children, but that it would be good to also look at how you can address the root causes of these problems so that there will come a time when there will be no need for you to send your money.
June 20th, 2009 at 1:05 am -Welcome Annah! Thank you for you thoughtful comments. You bring up many good points. That is why I saw red when Pat Buchanan suggested American blacks should be “thankful” for being enslaved. I will never forget that one. I look forward to your participation here.
June 20th, 2009 at 4:37 am -