Opinion
Philly Politicians Are Condemning Derek Chauvin. Why Are They Silent on Local Police Brutality?
In the wake of the emotional testimony at the start of the Derek Chauvin trial, some of Philadelphia’s most influential and powerful politicians made sure […]
My Vaccination Card Makes Me Feel Like a VIP
As vaccinations have continued to increase, so has the number of people testing positive for COVID-19. Right now, daily cases are rising by at least […]
Why Is Larry Krasner Still Tight With Shaun King?
As the Democratic primary race for DA begins to heat up, the incumbent is off to a rocky start. Last Tuesday, community activists disrupted a […]
The Pandemic Made Me Realize I Hate Everything About My Old Social Life
As vaccinations accelerate across the region, I received my first invitation to a “vaccinated-only” private, in-person networking soirée scheduled for next month. The promise of […]
The Black Doctors Consortium Is Totally Self-Funded. Imagine What It Could Do With City Support
Black people have always had to make the most with the least. Disenfranchisement in education, health care and social services has historically put us in […]
Vaxathon Reveals There’s More to the Narrative About Black Americans and the COVID Vaccine
As the saying goes: If you build it, they will come — and last weekend, with its 24-hour “Vaxathon,” the Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium built […]
Kenney Must Do More Than “Acknowledge” Philly’s Gun-Violence Emergency
A lot was made of Mayor Jim Kenney’s meeting with anti-gun-violence hunger striker Jamal Johnson this past Friday, and I’m still wondering why. The scene […]
Don’t Abuse Identity Politics to Defend Danielle Outlaw
Right now, I can’t get the words of legendary Black writer and Harlem Renaissance fixture Zora Neale Hurston out of my head: “All my skinfolk […]
Why Is Philly In Such a Mess Right Now? Because Our Politicians Have Lost Their Souls
“We need leaders with the courage to risk the thing that matters most to them: their own jobs,” former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell wrote in […]
One Reason I Hope We Never Stop Wearing Masks
Last year, I opened an email from someone I had met in person exactly once. She was responding to a work-related inquiry I’d sent. “I […]
New Report Makes It Crystal Clear: Kenney and Outlaw Both Need to Resign for Violating Human Rights
When I first called for Mayor Jim Kenney to resign last summer following initial revelations that the city mishandled Black Lives Matter protests, I was […]
I Learned to Love Outdoor Winter Dining — and You Can, Too
For the most part, the rhythms of life that defined my pre-COVID existence have disappeared, suppressed by months of anxiety, grief, frustration and restaurant shutdowns. […]
I Took a COVID-19 Vaccine Selfie. Then the Questions Came Pouring In.
On Saturday, I walked into Deliverance Church in North Philly and got my first of two injections of COVID-19 vaccine. A few days earlier, I […]
After Trump Insurrection, the Need for Newsroom Diversity Couldn’t Be More Obvious
It’s been a week and a day since a mob of domestic terrorists stormed the Capitol Building. Six people died as a result of the […]
I’m Bad at Journaling, but a Memory Jar Helps Me Stay Grounded
Welcome to Ritual, Be Well Philly’s column of essays about the low-tech, inefficient things we do that pleasurably slow us down. From taking the long […]