Clare Consultation, LLCWhy Write?
I’m sitting in a coffee shop. It’s high summer in Portland. There’s the usual backdrop: coffee beans surrendering their abundance to the grinder, barista utensils clattering into motion and that burst of steam that, today, sounds most like the explosive exhale of a kid who’s held her breath as long as she can. Threading through is the canned music. The current crooner observing: “Everyone is lonely.” I’ve just looked back on my… Read More
The justice possible with knowing we (white people) do not know as much as we think we do.
We know Roy Moore is a monster, a total embarrassment to our state. But in the eyes of black voters, what makes him more of a monster than the parade of sleazy politicians who have stood against black interests for generations? So yes, I’m voting for Doug Jones but only because it’s a vote against Roy Moore. And that’s not good enough to rally a base of voters who are already stricken… Read More
A Protest Vote Decades in the Making
“White people elected Trump.” Over these last 10 days, these words are showing up everywhere. Mostly because they’re true. And white progressives actually helped. Among most white people I know who think of themselves as social progressives and who, like I, have had loads of access to privilege – aka education, careers, financial literacy, problems of identity that way outnumber problems of monetary survival – reactions to the election of Donald Trump… Read More
Indians. Current Events. NO, REALLY. PAY ATTENTION.
Breaking news – The moment I posted the last blog*, the news came through of acquittal of the white, male, armed and militant protestors who occupied the federal lands of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge last winter. That same moment, the news emerged of another round of arrests of Dokata Access Pipeline protestors, most of them Native Americans, and most of them peaceful. Coincidence? Yes, likely. Hipocritical and racist? Well, you judge for… Read More
Slow Down. Learn. Wake Up and Do What ONLY YOU Can Do to Save the World.
Brussels is in lockdown following explosions that killed dozens last night. ISIS is claiming responsibility. This morning, The Dallas Morning News reported on a Frisco, TX football coach who resigned in January after threatening black and Latino athletes: “You see that rope over there, you see that tree back there? I’m going to hang you in that tree. I’m going to hang you by your toes.” And throughout the day, the most hostile presidential race in my… Read More
Thanksgiving was Yesterday
And, today Americans awaken to what the commercial conglomerate has named “Black Friday.” The term originated in 1951 in relation to industry and business owners noting the tendency of workers to call in sick the day after Thanksgiving in order to have a four-day weekend. By the 60’s the term was a derogation on the part of law enforcement officers in Philadelphia who had to deal with significantly increased pedestrian traffic on… Read More
Halloween, 2015: Brought to you by…
A few days ago, Governor Kate Brown issued a proclamation designating November as National American Indian Heritage Month in Oregon. With that proclamation, she urged citizens of Oregon to join in observances of the vast contributions of American Indian peoples to the well-being of the state and country. Essentially, this is a reminder. Each state’s governor may issue state-specific proclamations related to designations of months to honor groups of people. November has… Read More
Privilege Highway
Recently I had the chance to visit with a long time friend, colleague and leader in the African American community. We found ourselves speaking of the urgently needed, but still largely inactive national dialogue on America’s race history and relations. He told me this story: “My friend was working with a group of teens at a local high school. There were black, brown and white students in the group. My friend had… Read More