“If Reality Is Altered, What Can We Believe In?” In 1994, that was the headline of the first column I ever wrote about the manipulation of images and words — digital lies that made it difficult to know what was really real. Small wonder, I said, we were a nation “paralyzed by cynicism.” Twenty-four years […]
Leonard Pitts Jr.
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Do we really need to ‘understand’ Trump supporters?
This is for Rose. She is a nice lady who wrote me a nice email in which she spoke about the need to try to understand Donald Trump’s supporters. As Rose put it, “We need to not close ourselves off to how the other side thinks.” It’s a sentiment I hear a lot from progressives, […]
advertisement
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
A continuing conversation with Sen. Marco Rubio
Dear Sen. Marco Rubio: You didn’t answer the question. Questions, plural, actually. As a result, I find myself addressing you for the second column in a row via open letter — and feeling not unlike Glenn Close in “Fatal Attraction.” That is to say, “I’m not going to be ignored, Mario.” But first, let me […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Where is your spine, Sen. Rubio?
Dear Sen. Marco Rubio: So I see where you came after me on Twitter. I’m flattered. Never knew you cared. “This well known national writer,” you tweeted about my last column, “states very clearly that the 63 million Americans who voted for Trump are haters who should not be heard from or engaged in dialogue. […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Shania Twain’s comment points to America’s divide
Dear Shania Twain: I used to love “Roseanne.” I don’t know if that show aired in Canada, where you’re from, but here in the States, it was considered appointment TV, groundbreaking and mercilessly funny. That’s why I welcomed news of its reboot. But the show ended up sitting on my DVR for weeks. See, I […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Racism in America is a white problem
Racism is a white problem. I know that many white people will instinctively and emphatically resist that observation. They’ll note the self-evident truth that prejudice is confined to no one culture or color. Having known more than a few African-American bigots, homophobes and anti-Semites, I’ll be happy to concede the point. But racism is more […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Shameful story doesn't end with Starbucks incident
I don’t drink coffee, so I can’t boycott Starbucks. But I wouldn’t if I could. Yes, I understand — and share — the national anger over viral video of last week’s arrest of two African-American men at one of the company’s Philadelphia stores. The men, who have yet to be identified, were reportedly doing nothing […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Followers fail to hold Pres. Trump responsible
“We kind of gave him — ‘All right, you get a mulligan. You get a do-over here.’” — Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, on the white evangelical response to Donald Trump’s alleged tryst with a porn star “He’s new at government, and so therefore I think that he is learning as he goes.” […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
‘Routine inspection’ was certainly not routine
Shaun King is a controversial guy. As an activist and journalist, he’s been prominent in the Black Lives Matter movement, defended the Palestinians and attacked the Republican Party. On Monday, apparently as a result of his politics, King was briefly detained at JFK Airport by an agent of U.S. Customs and Border Protection while returning […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Put down the phone, take a breath and look up
Have you ever seen the moon? You will likely answer that you have, many times. But a new short video by filmmakers Wylie Overstreet and Alex Gorosh may have you reconsidering whether you’ve ever actually seen it at all. Their names will be unfamiliar to you. A check of the authoritative IMDb website turns up […]