by William “Duke” Smither “We must challenge this statement and this sentiment that the news media is the enemy of the American people. This sentiment may be the greatest threat to democracy in my lifetime.” William H. McRaven, Retired U.S. Navy 4-Star Admiral, 9th Commander U.S. Special Ops Lessons Learned? From my childhood […]
Category: INVISIBLE CONVERSATIONS ON RACE
by William “Duke” Smither “The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me. The sunlight that brought life and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. This Fourth [of] July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn.” (Frederick […]
by William “Duke” Smither “We remain more than a collection of red states and blue states. We are and forever will be the United States of America.” – President Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States of America This post is not about NASCAR (“National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing”), nor […]
By William “Duke” Smither “I can imagine no more rewarding a career. And any man who may be asked in this century what he did to make his life worthwhile, I think can respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction: ‘I served in the United States Navy.” – John F. Kennedy, 35th President […]
By William “Duke” Smither “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore…” – from “The New Colossus,” written in 1883 by Emma Lazarus (American-born, Jewish Author, and Activist), displayed on the plaque of ‘Lady Liberty’, a gracious gift from France. […]
“A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus…” Martin Luther King, Jr.
By W. D. Smither “Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe.” (Frederick Douglass, Statesman, Abolitionist, Social Reformer, Former Slave) I’ve often imagined […]
“When white Americans frankly peel back the layers of our commingled pasts, we are all marked by it. Whether a company or an individual, we are marred either by our connections to the specific crimes and injuries of our fathers and their fathers. Or we are tainted by the failures of our fathers to fulfill […]
“…Our wretched species is so made that those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those who are showing a new road.” (Voltaire) Over the years, I have learned that real communications can take place when we allow others, with different points of view, to talk while we openly listen with ours hearts […]
"Talking Drum Dialogues" (formerly 'Backstreet Djeli's Blog') 
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