| Black people aren't Americans? #MitchPlease! That was columnist Jonathan Capehart's reaction to the implication in Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's statement that people of color shouldn't worry about voting protections, because "African American voters are voting in just as high percentage as Americans." McConnell says he simply misspoke, but Capehart heard a painful truth in the slip: For too many Americans, Whiteness is the default in political discourse. As a result, Capehart says, Black people are made to feel they're not actually a part of this country: "Isn't it sad that really the only times I feel seen as an American are when I'm abroad?" In response, Capehart writes, Black people did what they've done over and over again, and reasserted that they're as much a part of the United States as anyone else. After Capehart tweeted a selfie captioned "I *am* American. #mitchplease" (with a flag in the background, to boot), copycat posts poured in from Black Americans across the country and from every walk of life, all reminding the world that they are American, too — and all with an exasperated #MitchPlease.  (C-Span) When you're Black in the United States, you grow accustomed to people denying that you make this country what it is. By Jonathan Capehart ● Read more » | | | | Covid finally hunted me down. Here's my story. By Kathleen Parker ● Read more » | | | | The president never called concerned parents "domestic terrorists." But don't tell that to Fox News. By Dana Milbank ● Read more » | | | | If Putin believes Ukrainians share his conviction that Russia and Ukraine are a single nation, he is wildly mistaken. By David Ignatius ● Read more » | | | | There's an obvious candidate missing. By Letters to the Editor ● Read more » | | | When I met Vogue's only Black creative director, I learned sad truths about his career. By Karen Attiah ● Read more » | | | | Enveloped in proper protocols, medical aid in dying can and should be a dignity-enhancing response to an especially harrowing rendezvous with the inevitable. By George F. Will ● Read more » | | | | This week's Senate action was about the most basic American right under siege. The media covered it like a horse race. By Colbert I. King ● Read more » | | | | The Supreme Court ruling conservatives aren't taking seriously By Ruth Marcus ● Read more » | | | | It's not only good for American workers, but also for national security. By Henry Olsen ● Read more » | | | At issue is the elasticity of the protections that allow news organizations to present tough coverage of public figures. By Erik Wemple ● Read more » | | | | He should "focus" on problems, they say, but not make any actual change. By Paul Waldman ● Read more » | | | | The court is dinging NPR for a lack of attention to detail. But when I once fact-checked one of the justices, he didn't seem to care. By David Von Drehle ● Read more » | | | | Maybe you have a group that meets every weekend for volleyball or soccer or pickleball or running or biking or taking a yoga class. The pandemic has hit these groups hard. But we need them. By James Boyle ● Read more » | | | |
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