YES! Must-Reads: Black History Now
Explore these stories from the YES! archives to understand why Black history—and Black futures—are essential to building a better world.
Racial Justice
Race, Caste, and the Model Minority Myth
White supremacy and caste-based supremacy are two sides of the same coin, Dalit writer Yashica Dutt shows in this excerpt from her new book.
Global Protests for a Free Palestine: Photo Essay
Voices are echoing worldwide as tens of thousands of people take to the streets to demand an immediate cease-fire and an end to Israel’s war on Gaza.
Don’t Let Zionists Weaponize Jewish Suffering
Ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day, it’s essential to remember that “never again” means for anyone.
Writers of Color Are Redefining Nature Writing
A new generation of poets, essayists, memoirists, and novelists is narrating stories of severed connections and exploitation—both their own and the Earth’s.
Practicing New Worlds with adrienne maree brown and Andrea Ritchie
In this exclusive conversation, two visionary abolitionist authors and reflect on the how the newest book in the Emergent Strategy series came to be.
How Philadelphia Disrupted the School-to-Prison Pipeline
Research on a police diversion program implemented in 2014 shows a striking 91% reduction in in-school arrests over less than 10 years.
A Jewish American Says “Not in My Name!”
Many Jewish Americans—including the thousands who have been arrested protesting Israel’s war on Gaza—consider solidarity with Palestinians to be a moral imperative.
Actors Mature. Hollywood Hasn’t.
Women are offered far fewer opportunities on screen as they age—especially if they’re Black.
Is “From the River to the Sea” Antisemitic?
A scholar of Palestinian history offers critical context for the now-controversial slogan “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
Indigenous Gardens Cultivate Healing
To decolonize college campuses, BIPOC students, allies, alumni, and faculty are reintroducing Indigenous growing practices.
The Roots of Black-Palestinian Solidarity
Black Americans have long expressed solidarity with Palestinian people, going back to Dr. King and the Black Panthers.
We Must Be Relentless in Humanizing Palestinians
We live in an era where, in theory, we have accepted that all human beings are deserving of equal treatment—that skin color, national origin, language, accent, clothing, and other markers
The Deep Medicine of Rehumanizing Palestinians
After three weeks of Israel’s war, the devastation in Gaza has surpassed anything I have seen in 30 years as a plastic and reconstructive surgeon working in conflict. The sheer
Police Diversion Programs Work. Here’s Why
Treatment programs rather than incarceration are far more effective for drug-related offenses.
Taking Back the Power (Literally)
Frontline communities from California to Puerto Rico lead the fight for energy democracy.
American Carnage: To Be Black in Trump’s America
Trump is not the origin of America’s violent racial history, but he is its gleeful instigator.
Surviving Birth
Birth workers are helping Black parents navigate overlapping crises.
Black Growing Traditions
Black farmers are reasserting themselves in food cultivation and building on the practices of earlier generations.
Seeking Safety as a Black Woman in New Cities
After moving to several unfamiliar cities in the past year, author and scholar Norell Edwards asks: “What does allyship look like while protecting my own safety?”
How Black Lives Matter Changed the U.S.
In the decade since it began, #BlackLivesMatter has shifted the nation's collective consciousness, whether we wanted it shifted or not.
Becoming Abolitionist: A Lawyer’s Radical Vision
“The only way that we are going to get people to have a decent, equitable future is to completely re-envision this entire rubric that is suffocating and killing our people,” says lawyer Noelle Hanrahan.
Using White Privilege to Ban Guns
A gun control organization run by women of color is putting white women on the frontlines of demanding a ban on guns.
How to Build Solidarity Across Difference
“Deep canvassing” offers a model for how anti-racist Americans can practice what they preach and work to promote racial justice narratives.
Reversing the Damage of Cannabis Criminalization
People of color were the most harmed by the war on cannabis, but we can heal the damage of prohibition and ensure a fairer future.
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