Tupac Shakur, Malcolm X, masculinity, and the importance of fatherhood

LeRon Barton
Tupac Shakur, Malcolm X, masculinity, and the importance of fatherhood

June 16th was the birthday of Tupac Amaru Shakur. Everyone was celebrating his life and the release of the film “All Eyez On Me”: the biopic about the rapper, activist, actor, and icon. There was the usual praise lavished on Shakur – greatest rapper ever, legend, brilliant actor, and symbol of Black male excellence. While I agree with everything that has been stated about Shakur, when I think of him two things come to mind: a life unrealized and the importance of fatherhood. Tupac was like a lot of young…

Pushing The Boundaries of Creativity

LeRon Barton
Pushing The Boundaries of Creativity

  In 2017, technology is making a permanent place in our lives. What was once optional, tech has now become almost as important to our everyday lives as water, food, and sleep. Leaving house without your smart phone is unthinkable. Airport check-in kiosks have replaced clerks, Email and text messaging are the preferred mode of communication, and instead of purchasing a physical magazine or newspaper, a periodical can simply be downloaded. In other words, technology has changed our lives forever. With tech being nearly irreplaceable, it is only logical that…

The dark turn of the immigration fight…

LeRon Barton
The dark turn of the immigration fight…

  In light of the current immigration raids, I thought of a conversation I had with a good friend of mine. When he was a child, his parents smuggled him into the United States in a trunk of car. Growing up, he and I did the same things as any other young man – went to school, played video games, read comic books, and talked about girls. It wasn’t until the Immigration Customs and Enforcement raids started to happen around our city that he told me how he arrived here….

Only in America: What a Donald Trump presidency means to me Pt. 1

LeRon Barton
Only in America: What a Donald Trump presidency means to me Pt. 1

  I am not surprised, in shock, or disappointed. The 2016 election unfolded the way I thought it would. Donald Trump: real estate mogul, reality television personality, bigot of all things not white, and possible sexual abuser has won the presidency of the United States. It’s weird; even as I type this, it is weird. In what land can you spout economic inaccuracies, hurl racial insults at large groups of people, cheer on Black protestors being assaulted at his rallies, make light of womens’ health issues and ascend to the…

The Day After: What a Donald Trump Presidency Means To Me Pt. 2

LeRon Barton
The Day After: What a Donald Trump Presidency Means To Me Pt. 2

  The day after the election I was trying to wrap my mind around the fact that reality TV host and professional blowhard Donald J. Trump was going to be the 45th President of the United States. In the first installment of this series, I gave my analysis of why I believed Trump cruised to victory, crushing Hillary Clinton 304 to 227 in the electoral poll. As I wrote in “Only in America”, I was not surprised that Trump beat Clinton. There was an earthquake of racism, anti-establishment, and absolute rebuke…

Black, While Using Uber

LeRon Barton
Black, While Using Uber

Originally printed at The Good Men Project  As a Black man, I am used to poor treatment and being denied service. I have been ignored by retail store clerks, stalked by department store security guards, made to wait an unusually long time for my order to be taken at a restaurant, and have a sometimes incredibly hard time hailing a cab. Ah yes, catching a taxi – one of the many challenges of being Black. My friends used to trade stories of what strategies worked when getting a cab driver…

My integrity is not for sale: Why I am not voting for Hillary Clinton

LeRon Barton
My integrity is not for sale: Why I am not voting for Hillary Clinton

While the numbers of Super Tuesday are being reported, it seems the inevitable conclusion is that the presidential hopeful and professional campaigner Hillary Clinton will seal the Democratic nomination for the top office. It is a slow and painful truth that many supporters of Bernie Sanders do not want to face, but will have to accept. There is a saying I live by, “Don’t fight reality” because you will never win. When Clinton does accept the nomination, there will be an expectation of Sanders supporters to turn and vote for…

Bay Area Voices on Racial Injustice: “Heads I live, tails I don’t”

LeRon Barton
Bay Area Voices on Racial Injustice: “Heads I live, tails I don’t”

This originally appeared at Kalw As the Bay Area marks the two-year anniversary of Michael Brown’s death, demands for police accountability continue in the aftermath of major scandals that rocked the Oakland and San Francisco police departments. When the East Bay Express invited Bay Area residents to submit personal reflections on racial injustice, dozens wrote in. Among them was writer LeRon Barton, who’s struggled with staying true to himself as a black man. LERON BARTON: If I come in contact with a police officer, it’s a flip of a coin. You…

The Grind

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The Grind

This originally appeared on The Good Men Project My days and nights are consumed by one thing: how to make it pop. There is not a moment that goes by that I am not thinking about how to get my writing and myself in front of people. It is a constant cycle of ideas, triumphs, failures, out-of-the-box thoughts, and strategies. There is another word for it: The Grind. The Grind requires anyone who is an entrepreneur or has an idea and wants to see it come to fruition to work…

Why I am voting yes on Prop 57

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Why I am voting yes on Prop 57

This originally appeared on Glide.org When I learned that the California Parole for Non-Violent Criminals and Juvenile Court Trial Requirements Initiative, otherwise known as Prop 57, would be on the ballot this November, my curiosity was immediately piqued. I am a writer who has published essays on the destruction of mass incarceration. I am a co-chair of the Glide Memorial Church Racial Justice Group, a team devoted to fighting racism/white supremacy. Most importantly, I am a Black man in America. I see the importance of Prop 57. In a report…