Late-night talk shows are both news and entertainment. The opening monologues of #Kimmel, #Colbert, and the rest are particularly constitutionally protected speech as humor. Jokes, satire, and parody are strongly protected, even if they are offensive. #freespeech #firstamendment #fcc

The Right cites two contested lines in the Bible: Leviticus 18 & 19 as against male-male sex. Between the two? “When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself”19:33-34 #socialjustice

Art: A Bridge for Our Divides?
My new blog explores how art and beauty can heal, unite, and build community in a divided world. It's not just "nice"—it's essential for well-being and connection. Discover art's power.

Read more: sheriparks.com/can-beauty-h...

What are your thoughts?

Society's pushing us into old, rigid boxes. From gender & sexuality to rights & politics, we're being forced into false opposites. Discover why human complexity defies these narrow views. sheriparks.substack.com/p/blame-it-o... #SocialJustice #HumanRights #GenderIdentity

The backlash after #JenniferLopez kissed a female dancer in her opening of the #AMAs was mostly her fans and conservative media, not the general outrage as when Madonna kissed Britney Spears in 2008. My only thought: Kissing? Isn’t there a new strain of Covid in the West?
#SocialChange #PopCulture

This spring marks the 10th anniversary of the death of #FreddieGray. The #peaceful #protest organizers, many young #BlackWomen, worked out of the non-violent action playbook and staged days of large, well-coordinated #marches and #protests. Read more sheriparks.substack.com/p/the-voices...

During the “Red Summer” of 1919 alone, there were riots and massacres in more than 3 dozen communities. Hundreds of men, women, and children were killed, and 2000 were injured. Businesses and homes were burned, without prosecution. #redsummer #blackexperience sheriparks.substack.com/p/our-second...

By the early 20th century, there were well known Black Wall Streets in #Atlanta, #Chicago, #WashingtonDC, #LittleRock, #Jackson, #Richmond ,and #Durham. There were many more, smaller districts in towns across the country. sheriparks.substack.com/p/our-second...

In the aftermath of World War I, Black soldiers returned home. In areas with critical Black populations, they created clusters of enterprises. The most well-known were known as Black Wall Streets since they often included banks and insurance companies. sheriparks.substack.com/p/our-second...

In 1868, the US Congress passed the 14th Amendment that guaranteed citizenship and equal rights and protection under the law to former slaves. By 1868, 80% of eligible Black men were registered to vote. This is just part of a bigger picture. sheriparks.substack.com/p/our-second...

We have thought of progress as linear, as marching toward one end. In light of recent retrenchments, we can see that it is not always so. The latter 20th century was a second Reconstruction, when some, but not all, of the old strictures were temporarily removed.
open.substack.com/pub/sheripar...

My Black father earned a master’s degree in chemistry in the 1940’s, when only 4.6% of Americans had any higher education at all. Now, more than 10% of African Americans have graduate degrees. sheriparks.com/weve-come-to...

#We’ve come too far to turn back #We are amazing! #Black Achievement