Author: Reggie Jackson

A Blueprint for Peace: Putting Milwaukee’s record year for homicides in perspective

The year 2020, a year where we faced a deadly pandemic, saw the city reach a grim record surpassing 1991 as the deadliest year in the city’s history with a record 193 homicides. It was devastating to lose so many Milwaukeeans to murder. Six children under the age of ten were murder victims in 2020. Fourteen-month-old Alonzo M. Lamar was beaten to death by the boyfriend of his mother while she was at work on January 1, 2020. According to the Milwaukee Police Department “the baby’s body had substantial bruising to the head and face and human bite marks...

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How not to be an ally: A list of rules for Anti-Racist advocacy

In the last year America has had an awakening about the extent of racism in this country’s past and present. Dozens of books, podcasts and articles have been written about being an ally in the fight against racism. They tell you how to be a good ally but they miss out by not telling you things that are counterproductive. There are things I’ve seen that are well meaning acts by racial justice advocates that seem well meaning but are a real turnoff and leads to frustration and burnout from those of us who are victimized by American racism. The...

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A Poverty of Color: Debunking the myth about disparities being more related to “Class” than “Race”

“The FHA viewed metropolitan growth with “black and white” vision in which race trumped all other factors in predicting the trajectory of a city and its neighborhoods.” – John Kimble The fundamental tool used by Americans to build generational wealth and all the successes that come with, it is the ownership of land and property such as homes and businesses. The American dream since the 1930s has been wrapped up in homeownership. Many of the huge disparities we see today are a direct result of White people being given access to homeownership which fostered generational wealth building to the...

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The untold privilege of White Women: Unmasking a secret army of Karens in American history

“Let each issue of your paper contain something telling of the bright side, of the com shuckings, the quiltings, the barbecues, the big meetings, the weddings’ etc., showing that the slaves enjoyed life and were not eternally skulking in dark corners dodging the whip of the brutal overseer, or quaking with terror at the bay of a blood hound. You advocate the building of monuments to our heroes.” – Confederate Veterans Magazine, January 1893 Over the past several years there has been a seeming rise in the case of racist White women becoming famous or infamous for calling the...

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Jury Nullification: More violent insurrections are expected if Trump is acquitted for his acts of sedition

As the U.S. Senate speeds toward an obvious Republican led acquittal of former President Donald Trump, Americans must be careful what they ask for. A not guilty verdict which is all but assured as only six Republican Senators even voted to rule the impeachment trial constitutional will lead to a new wave of violence by those who stormed the Capitol. Back in 1870 and 1871 U.S. Senators grappled with a menacing anti-government, white supremacist threat. The first iteration of the Ku Klux Klan had been founded by former Confederate veterans in Pulaski, Tennessee and swiftly went about the business...

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Reggie Jackson: My fading love affair with the National Football League

“The NFL Wants “Unconventional” Head Coaches: They just have to be white.” – Richard Johnson of Slate As I sat and watched the Packers lose a game to the Tampa Bay Bucs and Tom Brady I realized it might be the last game I ever watch. I did not watch Kаnsаs City defeat Buffalo to punch a ticket to the Super Bowl, even though I love watching their quarterback, Patrick Mahomes. For the first time in my adult life I intentionally skipped the Super Bowl. My wife watched it while I sat binge watching a show on Netflix. I...

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