This Week's Opening Thought: February 23, 2026

This week’s opening thought: I find it very interesting that after what appears to be three instances of a particular Black-centric racial slur being shouted out by Tourette’s Syndrome activist John Davidson at this past weekend’s BAFTA Awards (when Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo stepped onstage to present an award, while Oscar-winning production designer Hannah Beachler was on her way to dinner after the show, and a third was aimed at another Black woman minding her Black business) that suddenly so many people of pallor are experts on Tourette Syndrome.

I’m not an expert on Tourette’s, but I do understand it. I understood it before these incidents happened this past weekend. Unlike the many “concerned citizens” out there who suddenly have an opinion on Tourette’s because Black folx are collectively side-eyeing John Davidson, I didn’t need to become a Google Scholar to understand how it manifests and the struggles that folx who have Tourette’s endure. Still, I know enough about the condition as well as white supremacy to understand that a word like the one John shouted out multiple times to multiple Black people has to be a regular part of your vocabulary to use it so effortlessly three times in one night, so clearly and pointedly during a tic.

Let’s not belittle those with Tourette’s like that.

Let’s not bolster stereotypes of people with Tourette’s as a cover for a person of pallor’s likely ingrained racist beliefs.

Tourette’s targets the neurological filters that restrain language, the same filters that allow people to make concerted decisions about how they word and say things. But Tourette’s is still governed by a person’s vocabulary: words they use casually, thoughts and ideas they routinely chat about with others, beliefs they have about people, race, gender, culture, you name it. Tourette’s affects inhibition, not whether or not saying racist things is something you have no issue with saying.

I’ve known people who have Tourette’s. I’ve known people of pallor who have Tourette’s. Some of them likely had Coprolalia as well. And none of them ever said to me or around me what John said to Michael B., Delroy, Hannah, or the other Black woman he verbally assaulted this past weekend.

John may or may not be racist. That ain’t for me to judge, regardless of how it feels in my brain and body. But let’s not use his disability status as a pass for absolution. He should still be held accountable, and BAFTA should’ve done better. As for the sudden experts? Don’t be hoppin’ online, trying to check Black folx for calling out what we see or act like we don’t understand Tourette’s Syndrome or other nervous system disorders. The majority of us speak truth to power based on facts.

And don’t expect Black folx to stop side-eyeing you if you want to keep throwing another racist apologist log on the fire.

On Dr. Davis, Domestic Terrorism, Misogynoir, and Wondering Where The Energy Went

TW: Mentions of murder, domestic terrorism, anti-Blackness, misogynoir, racism, xenophobia.

Dr. Linda Davis, a special education teacher in her first year at Herman W. Hesse K-8 School in Chatham County in Savannah, Georgia, was killed Monday morning on her commute to school by a person fleeing ICE agents in a high-speed chase. The Chatham County Police Department wasn’t part of—or aware of—the federal “immigration operation” happening in their county until after the crash.

Shocker.

This man, who crashed into and murdered Dr. Davis in an act obviously driven by fear and desperation, will bear the responsibility and burden of taking her life for the rest of his days. But this is not his burden and responsibility to carry alone. He shares that burden and responsibility equally with the ICE agents who initiated this high-speed chase and who have fomented over a year of violent domestic terrorism in this country disguised as immigration enforcement. But another group also bears some responsibility for this horrific incident: people who benefit from systems of pallor.

A whole bunch of y’all stormed the streets when ICE murdered Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Y’all marched and flooded your social media channels with every image and update you could muster.

But y’all are quiet as hell about Dr. Davis.

Where’s the outrage? Where’s the defiance, the marching in the streets? Where’s that “F--- ICE” energy now? Let me guess: most of y’all view Dr. Davis’ murder as something that was “ICE adjacent,” meaning that ICE didn’t directly kill her, so it “doesn’t count,” or you haven’t heard about Dr. Davis’ murder because your newscycle is somehow still centered on mainstream media outlets who have been practically silent about this incident.

Let’s say you didn’t know about Dr. Davis’ murder. Well, you know now. Where’s that anger you had when ICE murdered people of pallor? Does it not carry over to this? Is this not “directly ICE” enough for you to demand accountability like y’all did for Renee and Alex? Or is that your misogynoir and anti-Blackness talking?

Things that make you go hmm.

Rest well, Dr. Davis. I hope your family and community get the closure and justice they and you deserve.

[Image description: An image of Dr. Linda Davis, smiling while resting her face in her palms. A whimsical holiday wreath surrounds her.]

Image description: An image of Dr. Linda Davis, smiling while resting her face in her palms. A whimsical holiday wreath surrounds her.

This Week's Opening Thought: February 17, 2026

This week’s opening thought: I’ve spent this month trying to protect my peace, embrace rest, and take care of myself. That has primarily meant keeping my thoughts to myself, processing my feelings, and moving them out of my body. It’s gone fairly well, but honestly?

Being Black, legitimately trauma-informed, actively anti-racist, and actively anti-oppressive while working in HR is not helpful in my pursuit to prioritize all of the aforementioned things for myself.

Truth be told, the years I’ve spent developing and continually learning about my body, my brain, my emotions, my personal, professional, and generational traumas, and the weight of the world around me have lessened how much I end up carrying in my brain and body. But there are days where I watch Black and Brown folx, Black women, people of color, folx with disabilities, and folx from LGBTQIAA+ communities get mistreated or ignored and then get equally ignored, disregarded, or told I’m being “unprofessional” when I amplify their voices and stand with them in real time that literally make me want to punch the air like Tre in Boyz n’ the Hood. And some days it hits like a brick when I’m attacked or mistreated, and no one who witnesses my harm is willing to stand with me in solidarity.

Today has been one of those days.

Real talk? HR, when you’re not doing it “by the book” and upholding white supremacist workplace culture, is a lonely profession.

It’s doubly so when you’re doing it as an empathic, empathetic queer Black person.

If you’re marginalized, invisible, and/or melanated, and living authentically in a world where you don’t fit? I want you to know that I see you. I know there are many days when it’s hard, when this world seemingly finds glee in doing you harm. Please know you’re not alone. Please take care of yourself. Please do not prioritize these workplaces or anyone who claims to love and care about you over your health and well-being. You deserve to be able to be openly, verbally, and physically you. Don’t let them dim your light.

WHEW. Just needed to get that out of my system.

Back to mindin’ my Black business and resting as the ancestors would want me to rest.

Take care of yourselves and each other.

On Y'all's President, Racist Depictions of the Only Non-White U.S. President and his Wife, and Apologists

“I think the president might be racist.”

Oh, really? Y’think so? What clued you in?

“I’m sure the president made a mistake in posting that video.”

You sure about that? Are you new to the world of this man posting hateful and racist memes online? Did you miss the two other times he posted pictures of Barack and Michelle as apes?

“I’m not sure if I can support this administration anymore after seeing this.”

Oh, I see. This was your breaking point, huh? THIS was your breaking point after giving this man your vote for 12 years and watching EVERYTHING he has done to the country. THIS was your breaking point?

Y’all make my brain tired.

[Image description: a montage of pictures of the legendary musician Prince giving the viewer the side-eye. These images are captioned with, “Me, watching people of pallor and pallor apologists responding to the video y’all’s president posted of Barack and Michelle Obama being depicted as primates say things like, “I think the president might be racist,” “I’m sure the president made a mistake on posting that video,” and “I’m not sure if I can continue to support this administration anymore after seeing that.”]

Image description: a montage of pictures of the legendary musician Prince giving the viewer the side-eye. These images are captioned with, “Me, watching people of pallor and pallor apologists responding to the video y’all’s president posted of Barack and Michelle Obama being depicted as primates say things like, “I think the president might be racist,” “I’m sure the president made a mistake on posting that video,” and “I’m not sure if I can continue to support this administration anymore after seeing that.”

This Week's Opening Thought: February 2, 2026

This week's opening thought, directed toward people of pallor: It's Black History Month. I usually prepare some knowledge to drop all month, some calls to action, things of that nature. But this year?

Nah, I'm tight.

I don't feel like doin' this with people of pallor this year.

I don't feel like educating y'all, or correcting y'all, or dodging online "debates" with y'all, especially the "well-meaning liberals" out there. At this point, the white supremacy has been white supremacy-ing in such visceral ways on this stolen land that I'm not going to spend my Black History Month dealing with y'all and your "big feelings" and "hot takes" about the abuses even the nicest of y'all inflict on Black bodies, how U.S. history is legitimately Black history (whether y'all want to acknowledge it or not), and how y'all don't want to read a book but want to have us teach you for free about the same concepts over and over again.

Nah. I'm tight.

I've educated enough of you. WE have educated enough of you for centuries. We've shared enough of ourselves with y'all over the years with the hope of getting through to you, even during this most critical of times in this country's racist, hateful history, just to watch y'all butcher Martin Luther King, Jr. quotes while making the concept of "helping" melanated people oppressed by y'all's systems sound like a chore you deserve allowance or restitution for. And through all of that, we're expected to spend an entire month - the shortest month of the year - continuing to hold your hands and "giving y'all grace" as you don't learn or unlearn anything?

Nah. I'm good.

And I know I'm not the only one.

So instead of spending the month of February doing what is essentially unpaid outreach work with people of pallor, I'm gonna spend Black History Month chillin' in my beautiful Blackness and embracing joy, giddily bereft of the need to sit with y'all's messiness as the world burns. Maybe I'll see y'all in March? Who knows?

Try not to homogenize or water down any quotes from Black people to force them to appeal to pallor sensibilities while I'm gone.