We at Busboys and Poets are distressed at the senseless violence against Black men, women, children, and Black people of all genders that has become all too commonplace in this country. Not a day goes by that we don’t see a video, a Tweet or a Facebook post of a Black person facing assault or possibly being shot or killed by a police officer, the very people who are charged to protect them. These police officers are not aliens from another planet, they are Americans like you and me and they breathe the same toxic fumes of racism that permeate government, popular culture, economic structures and social institutions.

We believe that Black Lives Matter not because we don’t believe that other lives matter too. That would be ridiculous.
We believe that Black Lives Matter because today in America, Black lives are still deemed less important.
We believe that Black Lives Matter because in America, institutional white supremacy has created a “casual caste system” that has eroded our social fabric and infected our collective psyche.
We believe that Black Lives Matter because today in America the New Jim Crow of mass incarceration has destroyed families and has had an enormous cost that has bankrupted the essence of our American dream.
We believe that Black Lives Matter because today in America Black people are more likely to be stopped by police, more likely to be arrested and more likely to be systematically killed than whites.
We believe that Black Lives Matter because today in America Black families still have to have “the talk” with their kids who continue to face racism on the sidewalks, on a playground, at a store, while driving and in the classroom.
We are at a moment in history where we can make a difference to create a more perfect union where every life truly matters.
And we believe that Black Lives Matter because when Black Lives Matter, then and only then will all lives matter.

PHOTO 2024 02 01 07 10 14

For Langston Hughes on His 123 Birthday

Speech given on February 1, 2024 in Havana, Cuba In 1927 Langston Hughes walked into a Cuba amid an emerging community of artists, intellectuals, and radicals.  He saw a “sunrise in a new land [– a day – in his words]sic – full of brownskin surprises, and hitherto unknown contacts in a world of color.”  … Continued

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Palestine Week 2024

January 18, 2024 – January 25, 2024 In keeping with our ongoing mission of uplifting racial and cultural connections, Busboys and Poets is hosting Palestine Week (January 18 through January 25, 2024). This week-long series of events will offer a diverse range of programming featuring Palestinian food, music, dance, poetry, discussions, and other enriching events. … Continued

Reflections on a Historic Week

Reflections on a Historic Week

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in a landmark decision the Facebook generation has quickly likened to the collapse of de jure segregation.

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What We Read This Month (July)

Looking for your next good read? Well you’re in luck…Busboys and Poets Books is full of busy little readers! Ellie, Bookstore Supervisor at 5th and K: It’s been a rough month for my attention span, so out of all of the books I started, I finished only two – Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain and The … Continued

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Split This Rock Poem of the Week: beyza ozer

When I Kiss You, A Casket Opens  — after june 12, 2016 this is not terrorism this is toxic masculinity  made in the USA when my mother hears  about orlando she doesn’t look at me the next day is three years  to the night we first kissed  & it actually meant something  to both of us … Continued