The great honor of being a threat to this president

For journalists, angry calls, thinly veiled threats, even outright threats, are a perverse kind of compliment. It’s not that we want to receive vitriolic, often drunken, screeds or threats. And, FYI — threatening people is illegal. But, when someone is opposed enough to the free expression of a free press to get hammered and leave …

Black Lives Matter and the Power of Mary’s Song

I had the opportunity to attend a beautiful and inspiring Black Lives Matter rally at Government Springs Park in Enid, Okla., on Saturday, with my wife Tammy. We have attended several of these events in recent weeks -- a youth march, an NAACP-sponsored march and rally, and a grassroots protest at city hall. All of …

It’s time to realize the promises of Juneteenth

Juneteenth is a day of celebration, and should be for all Americans. But, for white Americans, Juneteenth also should be a day of penitence, of commitment to change, and of reaching out in empathy and love to those who have been marginalized and oppressed to enable our privilege. Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery, and …

Listen to the voices of pain, anger and grief — Or, continue to be part of the problem

Last weekend, we all had the opportunity to attend two protests for racial equality and social justice in Enid, America. I attended both, with the understanding I would not cover either for the news section to maintain separation between news coverage and opinion writing. On Saturday, the Enid chapter of the NAACP hosted a march …

If we want peace, we must listen to the peaceful cries of the oppressed

When violence boils over as the inevitable response to systemic racism and injustice, white Americans rush to dust off quotes and images of Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi. “Look at King and Gandhi!” cries white America. “They were nonviolent and they changed the world!” There is some truth in that — but only …