Sunday, July 14, 2013

Race at Payton

Just a few weeks ago, I graduated from high school. Our community was rocked when media outlets published stories that implied racism on the part of my peers and others that represent Payton. Payton students spoke out via our resident newspaper, The Paw Print. With the news regarding the ruling in the Trayvon Martin case, I have been shocked and disappointed by the youth responses, particularly my classmates, I have seen all across social media. All in all, there seems to be lack of sensitivity on both sides. Everyone has a reason for opposing or defending the court ruling; that in itself cannot be used as an ultimate judge of character or morality. Respect, yo -- that's key.

Me & Baraa.
Together we can do anything.
Below is my response to the baseball controversy, previously published in the Paw Print, however it aims to get at the larger issue of the role that race plays at my high school. A role that I'm sure is not unique to Payton. Yeah, this blog usually deals with lighthearted things, but I feel compelled to share this article. Out of everything I've ever written (and that's a lot), this is the one thing I hope Payton kids read and, ultimately, seek to converse with. Share your opinions in the comments section, email, twitter, what have you. I'm open to hear everyone's thoughts. Also, share this article if you're vibing with my message.

Here we go:

"Address issues head on"
By Stephanie Greene
Staff Writer

It is nearly safe to say that the situation involving Payton’s and Brooks’s respective baseball teams was not racially charged. So, now that that has been figured out we can continue to pretend that race is simply a social construct that every Payton student (and their mother) chooses to ignore. It has been resolved: race is a non-issue at Payton.

Provided that it was unfair for the media to paint our school in such an unpleasant light, this was an opportunity lost. In response to the implicated racism on the part of Payton parents and students, we toted facts about how our school is so diverse, how we pull kids from all over this segregated city, and how we are a majority-minority school. While all of that sounds great, we can throw a bunch of kids that look different into a room together, but that does not mean that prejudices are thrown out of the window.

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Monday, July 1, 2013

Cheap Monday: Rag & Bone

I'm bringing back All Worn Out for summer. It's been much too long since I've made an appearance in the blogosphere. This week (and maybe going into next), the posts are going to be focused around my end of senior year events: prom, luncheon and graduation. So sad, but it was also a great time to see everyone all dolled up. Today, it's all about da luncheon.

For about three weeks, I had been eyeing these Rag & Bone pants at Neiman Marcus Last Call. Like, eyeing. It was the only pair they had and they were in my size. Match made in heaven. Not to mention Rag & Bone is one of my favorite designers and the pants are made in America.
Photo credit to Emily H. 
Literally in love with these pants. They originally retailed around $325, I picked em up for around $80. Best 80 bucks I've ever spent. And I must say, these pants make my booty look good. Win, win. You can really see how nicely they fit in the picture on the right. I paired them with a shirt from my mom's closet and shoes from my best friend's closet. $80 for a nice outfit, sounds good to meh. The lovely lady next to me is muh main chick Rocio who is killing it in pants from Anthropologie. Absolutely killing it. And the lovely gent is muh main man Denny. He opted for a standard khaki, shirt, and boat shoe outfit. He played it safe, but that look will always work for guys.

Now on to more pics of my friends looking gewd.


Chinue and Malcolm.
Photo credit to Trystan G.

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