Debra Dickerson

Generations

Articles — Sun, 09 Sep 2001 00:00:00 -0400

Founded in 1881 in an Atlanta church basement by two Yankee missionaries, Spelman College is America's oldest school for black women. For decades, it turned out a steady stream of Latin-quoting teachers to staff America's segregated classrooms. In the parlance of the day, Spelman women were a credit to their race, lifting as they climbed. But like that of the larger African-American community it served, its vision grew grander over time. By the 1990's, Spelman was rated one of the best liberal arts colleges in the South and among the top 10 colleges for blacks.

Like invoking Harvard, Yale or… more

The Ripples of Race

Articles — Tue, 27 Mar 2001 00:00:00 -0500

Sometimes, it's easier to see the full implications of some of our race-related social problems by looking at them not directly but with our peripheral vision. Sometimes it's the ripples that tell the story and not the rock that set … more

The GOP's 'Good' Blacks

Articles — Tue, 13 Mar 2001 00:00:00 -0500

For all their scoffing at former president Clinton's "I feel your pain" oversentimentality, Republicans seem to have fallen prey to the same affliction. One can't help wondering, though, about this sudden respectful compassion for certain blacks … more

The Truth About Troops on Food Stamps

Articles — Tue, 27 Feb 2001 00:00:00 -0500

The current concern about those who serve in the military -- especially their pay and quality of life -- is a good thing, but also a little misguided in places. Sure, defending America is not a job to be foisted by the better-off … more

Are You For Us -- or Persecuting Us?

Articles — Fri, 02 Feb 2001 00:00:00 -0500

The Ashcroft nomination flap ushered in a new religious correctness.

Often and vehemently, Christians in public life bemoan the lack of respect--if not the outright scorn and persecution--they endure. The recent backlash against John Ashcroft, confirmed Thursday … more

Insulting Our Intelligence

Articles — Fri, 12 Jan 2001 00:00:00 -0500

Let's see if I've got this right: We're supposed to believe that the high-living Rev. Al Sharpton has little in the way of assets or income with which to pay the $ 65,000 judgment he owes the man he defamed, … more

Blacks Judging Blacks

Articles — Sun, 24 Dec 2000 00:00:00 -0500

When I was in Air Force Officers' Training School, we briefly hosted cadets from the Air Force Academy. We didn't get along well. Capping off the visit, we played a very strange baseball game. Both sides kept cheering, "Go Air Force!"

… more

An American Story

adminn — Tue, 19 Sep 2000 00:00:00 -0400

Selected reviews of An American Story are featured below:

The New York Times

Sunday, October 8, 2000 It is a startling thing to hear an American speak as frankly and un-self-servingly about race as Debra J. Dickerson does in "An American Story," her memoir of her first 35 years, in which she lurches from ghetto misfit and two-time dropout to Air Force trainee, Pentagon junior officer and Harvard Law School graduate. The book traces her journey across borders of class and race to the lonely promontory where she lands, and examines in astonishing detail the ambivalent relationship between… more

The Silence and the Fury

Articles — Fri, 01 Sep 2000 00:00:00 -0400

The Day after a jury exonerated the officers who shot Amadou Diallo, a group of women got together to make 100 black veils. Their quiet vigils have haunted the streets of New York ever since.

Managing to be at once ingenious … more

Balwant Singh for President! Inderjit Singh for Vice President

Articles — Fri, 18 Aug 2000 00:00:00 -0400

America is reveling in its open-mindedness in (more or less) embracing the Democratic vice-presidential candidate's Judaism, but is giving ketchup a chance after an entrenched tradition of mustard domination really so bold?

In a nation where the number… more