Michelle T. Johnson on
The Fatigue of Discomfort
Unless you often enter a space where you need to do an instinctive assessment of your environment based on race, you may not get why I’m so tired. This past weekend, between errands in another part of town, I spent a couple of hours knitting in a coffee shop. It was a hopping place. But…
It’s Time to Rebrand the Block
Not to get remotely biblical, but for me, it all started with a rib bone. OK, there was more than one rib — a couple of side dishes might have been involved, too. That’s how I discovered my new favorite block near downtown Kansas City, Kansas: Fifth and Central Avenue in Wyandotte County. Before the…
Let’s Put a Priority on Doing Good Work
Society does a real number on us regarding what the “important” professions are in the world. As with many beliefs we are indoctrinated with, they’re not always true. That’s why when I look at the budget threat to the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s theater department, including the potential cut of four more faculty members, I…
How Our Grocery Stores Connect to the Great Health Care Debate
When my grandmother was alive we had a running joke that if she wanted something from the grocery store she had to give me plenty of notice so that I could get it from a store near me, not the one close to her. My grandmother is gone, that store is closed, and I now…
Flexing Our Communal Protest Muscles
In our own way, America is at war. It may seem dramatic to say, but it’s the truth. Not against a foreign enemy. Not with guns and tanks and nukes. We’re at war with our fellow Americans, with our sense of communal normalcy. Right now the weapon is everything we can lay hands on —…
This Inauguration Will Have no Hive Mind
Resistance is futile, according to the Borg from the late, great television show “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” The Borg, a group of aliens who wanted to assimilate every being they encountered, aimed to create a hive mind, telling those who fought back, “resistance is futile.” And that, boys and girls, is the incomparable beauty…
Media: Meet Us Where We Are
I’m long overdue, but I just got around to watching the 2015 Oscar-winning film “Spotlight” this weekend. As much as I enjoyed the movie, it increased my conflicted feelings regarding today’s reliance on social media and my anger at how far we’ve strayed from traditional media. “Spotlight” was about a Boston Globe investigative team defrocking…
Cliffie’s Final Chapter Isn’t Her Last Story
This past November was probably my toughest month. The election, of course. But I also lost my grandmother exactly two weeks later. There are a lot of people I love in the world, starting with my first love, my mother, but my grandmother and I always had a special kind of love. Our communication dimmed…
Commentary | Post-Election Public Relations Obscures Real Issues
The further we get away from the presidential election, the better position I’m in to settle on what most gets under my skin. Am I incredibly nervous about what a Donald J. Trump Presidency will look like? Yes, and I get more nervous with each cabinet appointment. But what I’m in full-fledged annoyance about is…
Let’s Not Quiet the Conversation
Sexual harassment isn’t something that just happens in Hollywood, in the halls of Congress, and major television networks. It happens close to home, no matter where home is. This past week, a local actress friend posted about a Kansas City theater writer/producer who harassed her by private Facebook messages. She posted screenshots of his…