About US: Forget the North Pole, Santa and Mrs. Claus live in Southern California

With tamales and Ponche Navideño, I'm recreating Mexican traditions for my daughter this Christmas; Why so many guns on Christmas cards? Because Jesus was 'manly and virile.'; Many juries in America remain mostly White, prompting states to take action to eliminate racial discrimination in their selection; Biden has installed a significant number of judges from diverse backgrounds — now comes the hard part; Doug Emhoff playing an age-old role with a new twist; All we want for Christmas is ... these songs. Here's why.; D.C.-area teens produce TV special on race in America — with more to come; 'Greatest Generation' survey on race, sex and combat during World War II runs counter to its wholesome image; Jason Isbell is tired of country's love affair with White nostalgia; Why red teaming while Black can be risky; WNBA athletes are destroying the traditional notion of coming out; How Black archivists are preserving Black culture on Instagram ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Sign up for this newsletter Read online Candid conversations about identity in 21st-century America.       By Vanessa Williams  Email As many of us prepare to host or visit family and friends for the holidays, we start this edition with a couple of stories about people who celebrate Christmas in their own unique ways — a retired couple that has launched a second career as Mr. and Mrs. Claus; a daughter keeping her mother's signature holiday treat alive; a segment of Christians who think Jesus wouldn't mind them brandishing guns on their holiday cards. Whether you embrace Christmas as a religious holiday or just as an excuse to be jolly, we wish you a happy and safe holiday. We will be off Friday, but back on Tuesday. Thank you for reading.  Judy and Mike Sullivan in their home woodshop in Desert Hot Springs, Calif., where they make 1,500 toys each year to deliver to kids in need. (Sheleilee Sullivan) This retired couple spends every day of the year making Christmas toys for kids in need 'My sales policy is not to collect a single penny,' Mike Sullivan said. 'Everything we make is given away.' By Cathy Free ●  Read more »   With tamales and Ponche Navideño, I'm recreating Mexican traditions for my daughter this Christmas By Betty Chavarria | The Lily ●  Read more »   Why so many guns on Christmas cards? Because Jesus was 'manly and virile.' Perspective ●  By Peter Manseau ●  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Many juries in America remain mostly White, prompting states to take action to eliminate racial discrimination in their selection By Emmanuel Felton ●  Read more »   Biden has installed a significant number of judges from diverse backgrounds — now comes the hard part By Seung Min Kim and Ann E. Marimow ●  Read more »   Doug Emhoff playing an age-old role with a new twist By Cleve R. Wootson Jr. ●  Read more »   All we want for Christmas is ... these songs. Here's why. By Bonnie Berkowitz, Chris Alcantara and Shelly Tan ●  Read more »   D.C.-area teens produce TV special on race in America — with more to come By Nicole Asbury ●  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   'Greatest Generation' survey on race, sex and combat during World War II runs counter to its wholesome image By Michael E. Ruane ●  Read more »     Attention please! Latinos, tell us about your experiences with colorism Latinos in the United States represent a diverse range of skin tones and racial identities, with about a quarter identifying as Afro-Latino. A recent survey by the Pew Research Center found that about 57 percent of Hispanics say skin color shapes their daily life experiences a lot or some, with about half saying discrimination based on race or skin color is a "very big problem" in the United States. These dynamics play out within Latino families, where family members often have different skin tones that may make one family member's life experiences drastically different from another. About US wants to talk with Latino families about their experiences with colorism. Fill out this form if you'd like to share your experience.   What we're reading Jason Isbell is tired of country's love affair with White nostalgia By Elamin Abdelmahmoud | BuzzFeed  ●  Read more »   Why red teaming while Black can be risky By Williesha Morris | Dark Reading  ●  Read more »   WNBA athletes are destroying the traditional notion of coming out By Juwan J. Holmes | Into  ●  Read more »   How Black archivists are preserving Black culture on Instagram By Houreidja Tall | Teen Vogue ●  Read more »     Word on the street   We think you'll like this newsletter Check out Must Reads for a curated selection of our best journalism in your inbox every Saturday, plus a peek behind the scenes into how one story came together. Sign up »

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