The Center for “Race,” Culture and Social Justice at Hofstra University

PLEASE ACCESS VIDEO HERE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=8&v=uPKZbejuHMs&feature=emb_logo (Words, music and production by Daniel Alexandre) QUESTIONS BY  TERENCE RYAN Music/melody or words come first? The melody came first. I remember it sort of buzzing in my head. It was very dramatic and heavy but I didn't have the words just yet. I will say that the words came almost immediately after the melody. What was going through your mind at the time of creating? I was feeling overwhelmed by all the videos and images of police treating civilians like prey. I was tired of answering text messages from my well-intending white colleagues. I was surprised to find out how many of my Facebook friends were asking "Why is it 'Black Lives Matter'? Why can't we say All Lives Matter?" What was your goal in releasing the song?  When we started putting the video together, it became so much more about sharing the video...

The terms “white supremacy” and “white privilege” are not meant to trigger people into being defensive; it is just a fact, a system we inherited. It’s a lie we have all been told, and this lie impacts each of us, but how we deal with and react to those lies vary based on how much we have internalized the feelings of superiority and inferiority. Realizing all the ways in which our lives do not matter in this country is a secret rite of passage for black Americans. Like us all, my children will have to deal with the trauma of being black in America. They will have several options. Option 1: They can become citizens diligent in their desire to dismantle every oppressive system. They can be persistent and unapologetically proud of their ethnicity and contribution to their country and recognize that they are in no way inferior; they can commit to the fight for justice and stand against injustice; they can vow to judge people by their character, to see different et...