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Judy Helfand

Balm for Trying Times

by Judy Helfand Recently various friends have asked me if I’m scared about the upcoming presidential election, which prompted some self-reflection as to why I’m not. There’s nothing surprising to me about the outpouring of hate and racial invective. Trump does not seem like the devil incarnate, simply another manifestation …

The Perfect Book for July 4th

by Judy Helfand An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz sat on my bookshelf for months. I’d picked it up because I admired the author, having read her memoir Red Dirt: Growing Up Oakie, which seriously grappled with whiteness. When I finally took the history off …

Soulsville USA

by Judy Helfand Musicians seem to me better able to work across ethnic and racial boundaries than most folks, exploring, adapting, and changing music springing from various cultures. Respect Yourself: the Story of Stax Records surprised me by exploring, not only the music recorded at Stax, but the racial history …

Oregon Standoff

by Judy Helfand The “Oregon Standoff” seems to me a blatant illustration of the white supremacist foundations of the U.S. I wake up every morning incredulous that it’s still going on. That law enforcement allows the occupiers supporters to come and go, bringing supplies, setting up “perimeter reinforcements,” talking with …

Wine Train Norms

by Judy Helfand Ever since hearing about the Napa Valley Wine Train incident where a group of black women were thrown off the tourist wine train for loud laughing I can’t get it out of my mind. Of course it illustrates the racism so much in the news lately. But …