Imposters Syndrome & The Pursuit of Excellence In A White World

LeRon Barton
Imposters Syndrome & The Pursuit of Excellence In A White World

Many times before I write a piece, speak in front of a crowd, present at a meeting, or even talk about a project that I aspire to do, I feel like I am a fraud. I feel like someone is going to call me out, find out I don’t know what I am talking about, or just look at me and say, “That sounds stupid.” Mind you, even if I am well prepared, researched, have the data, confidence in my abilities, and know 100% what I am talking about, I…

A Black Guy and A White Guy Walk Into A Bar and Talk About Sexual Harassment

LeRon Barton
A Black Guy and A White Guy Walk Into A Bar and Talk About Sexual Harassment

A Black guy and a white guy walk into a bar…. Men of today are feeling the pinch. I hear the talk in the locker rooms, at lunch, or at the bar. “They’re getting everybody! You can’t look at a woman, pay her a compliment, or even try and talk to her without someone saying “sexual harassment.” Men are scared, feeling as if their rights are being taken away from them and the olden days are far in the rear view mirror. When I listen to these conversations, I chuckle…

Traveling Doesn’t Make You Better Than Anyone

LeRon Barton
Traveling Doesn’t Make You Better Than Anyone

When I first started traveling 16 years ago, it wasn’t solely because I wanted to see other parts of the world. Yes, I was fascinated by foreign countries I had only seen on TV and cities I’d read about in school, but the real reason is because I was ashamed of where I came from. I grew up in the Southside of Kansas City, Missouri, a poor and violent neighborhood. We were raised on food stamps and second hand everything. I saw the rich and successful doing things like traveling…

We Need To Practice Self Care (Erica Garner, RIP Alton Sterling, and Philando Castille)

LeRon Barton
We Need To Practice Self Care (Erica Garner, RIP Alton Sterling, and Philando Castille)

Dear Black, Brown, Asian, and Other People of Color: In the past 24 hours, we have witnessed two Black men murdered by the Baton Rouge and Falcon Heights Police Departments, respectively. Watching the videos of these Black men being lynched, many of us are in disbelief, saying, “This can’t be!” In 2016, Black men are given no judge, jury, or trial; only execution. I know that many of us are going through a myriad of emotions: anger, sadness, hurt, despair, and I am here to tell you that it is…

The Game changer: Why I Wear My Trayvon Martin Hoodie

LeRon Barton
The Game changer: Why I Wear My Trayvon Martin Hoodie

There are certain points in a person’s life that leave a permanent mark on who they are. These events change who we are and can move our lives in different directions. For myself, one of those moments was the death of Trayvon Martin. Racism was something that I knew about, but wasn’t discussed in depth within my family. Growing up I was told: “Be home before the street lights come on,” “When you are driving in these little towns, be careful because they may have their own laws,” “You have…

Musings on survival: Living In The Ghetto and the Near Inevitability of Prison

LeRon Barton
Musings on survival: Living In The Ghetto and the Near Inevitability of Prison

I recently read Blood in the Fields: Ten Years in the Nuestra Familia Gang and was taken aback by one of the main characters in the book. Mando was a young guy who grew up in a violent household who joined a gang, and ended up committing a murder that would net him a sentence of 29 years to life. I became very sad and thought of one of the young men I met in San Quentin, Efrain. While visiting San Quentin, California state prison for an educational panel, I…

Men and the need to be vulnerable

LeRon Barton
Men and the need to be vulnerable

I have been pondering a question for some time: what if we let men be themselves? Without any of the societal pressures, role assuming behaviors, or passed down expectations? What if we did not force men to succumb to any of the actions or conventional behavior of what a man is supposed to be? What if we just let men be free from all the identity destroying expectations we have placed on manhood? As I ask myself that same question over and over in my head, I have come to…

I don’t care about a statue: Pacification in the fight against racism

LeRon Barton
I don’t care about a statue: Pacification in the fight against racism

Pacify – [pas–uh-fahy]  verb (used with object), pacified, pacifying. to bring or restore to a state of peace or tranquillity; quiet; calm: to pacify an angry man.   In the last few weeks, the spotlight on America’s white supremacy has been magnified tenfold with the events at Charlottesville, Virginia. What began as a rally of Neo-Nazis and different factions of the far right movement now known as the “Alt-Right”, complaining of America’s treatment of the white man, and proclaiming this to be a time to “return to what the U.S. is supposed to be”, has morphed into a battle of free-speech, anti-fascism, racism, and where America is headed to. The response from…

Race Baiting and white America’s response to the Procter & Gamble commercial

LeRon Barton
Race Baiting and white America’s response to the Procter & Gamble commercial

  I, like millions of people, saw the Procter & Gamble commercial. In it, there were various Black children and teenagers of various ages talking with their parents about the everyday rigors of racism. A little girl sits with her mother looking in a mirror as she is told she is beautiful; a young boy talks to an older relative about being called a racial slur; a young man is counseled by his mom to get home safe; a teenage girl driving for the first time is given advice by…

Thoughts on the Google memo

LeRon Barton
Thoughts on the Google memo

I am not surprised at the Google memo that has been leaked. If you have worked at any tech company in Silicon Valley, you will know it is rife with sexism. People often ask, “Why aren’t there more women in tech?” I have a theory – Tech companies are extremely sexist and anti-female. Women are talked over, their input is disregarded, and they are thought of as “too emotional” to do IT. When women are our superiors their directives are ignored or questioned more than men. When a woman is…