Tongue of Fire

When white denial slips, the truth burns through. This essay is a reflection on racism, silence, and the cost of looking away. The veil has fallen. What once softened the truth now lies in the dirt. When I became an educator, I caught my first glimpses behind the veil that white America has long employed to pretend we were living in a post-racist world. Until then, I could, if I chose, dismiss echoes of hate as jokes, misunderstandings, or euphemisms. Racial violence didn’t h

This post is being published on what much of the country still calls Columbus Day—a day that reminds us no one is illegal on borrowed land. It’s also a day to decide what kind of American one chooses to be: obedient or awake, fearful or free. As protests rise again, I’m writing about how peaceful resistance protects truth, community, and our collective calm.