Ethnically Speaking from Creators Syndicate

Dear Readers: Very early in this column's history, as a New Year's resolution, I wrote "My Wish for Black America." Since that time, it has been my most requested column for repeats and copies. In celebration of the new year, I would like to share it, wi for 01/05/2008

Sat, 05 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

My Wish for Black America

I wish black fathers would assume responsibility for the children they create and stop acting like some flying insect that goes from flower to flower trying to see how many blossoms it can fertilize.

I wish education, not sports, were considered the top priority for schools.

I wish the school systems would demand appropriate behavior and stop makin ...

Updated: Sat Jan 05, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, January 12 for 01/12/2008

Sat, 12 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Dear Larry: My black counterparts and I were seriously offended by your article "My Wish for Black America."

It seems to me that you are discriminating against blacks when you say that you wish black fathers would take responsibility for their kids. How about white fathers?

You say black people need to realize that no one owes us anything. I beg to differ. Barack Obama o ...

Updated: Sat Jan 12, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, January 19 for 01/19/2008

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Dear Larry: Because you seem like a sensible person, I thought I would ask you a question that I have been wondering about: Where did the word "lynch" come from, and when did it become racist? Has it always been racist?

I am not a racist person and thus don't keep up with the lingo. But this is the second time recently that something has come up in the news about this, and I've ...

Updated: Sat Jan 19, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, January 26 for 01/26/2008

Sat, 26 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Dear Larry: I have wondered for some time why Halle Berry, Barack Obama, and others who have one white parent and one black parent, identify themselves as black? If my memory is accurate, both Halle Berry and Barack Obama were raised mostly by their white parent because the black parent departed. If that is correct, why can't they celebrate the heritage of both sides of their families?

I ...

Updated: Sat Jan 26, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, February 2 for 02/02/2008

Sat, 02 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Dear Larry: I want to respond about people who are offended by the word "lynch." They may be offended by this word, but what about the other words that signify racism and slavery?

The Confederate flag: no stranger to this controversy. Some people think that flag represents Southern pride, while others say it represents hate, racism and slavery. If that is the case, maybe we sho ...

Updated: Sat Feb 02, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, February 9 for 02/09/2008

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Dear Larry: In a recent column you said, "Once that issue or irritation has been swaged, they will jump on the next great problem." I believe you meant to say "assuaged" which means to make milder or less severe; relieve; ease; mitigate.

On the other hand "swaged" is a metal-forming technique in which the dimensions of an item are altered using a die or dies ...

Updated: Sat Feb 09, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, February 16 for 02/16/2008

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Dear Larry: I am a white male registered nurse and respiratory therapist living in the Midwest. I provide care for elderly Southern black patients in a hospital near a Martin Luther King Drive.

I am driven by my conscience to treat patients as I would my own elderly mother by going beyond the minimal standard of care. When they arrive on my unit, I greet them by name and introduce myself ...

Updated: Sat Feb 16, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, February 23 for 02/23/2008

Sat, 23 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Dear Larry: Our African ancestors were the only group who did not come to this country voluntarily. They were enslaved for approximately 300 years. Being a slave meant that families were torn apart, education was illegal, and you could be raped whenever the mood struck the slave master. I could go on, but you know the story.

We only have been "free" for approximately 140 years, ...

Updated: Sat Feb 23, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, March 1 for 03/01/2008

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Dear Larry: I was raised by wonderful parents, who told me every day of my life they loved me. I thought I lived a great life. Everything around me crashed when I became aware at the age of 13 that I was adopted.

My adoptive parents are of mixed ethnicities — mother white and father black. I always thought they were my biological parents because it is obvious I am mixed.

At ...

Updated: Sat Mar 01, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, March 8 for 03/08/2008

Sat, 08 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Dear Larry: Please respond to my letter because I have a real problem and need your help in a hurry.

My daughter, who is white, happens to be living with a black man. She has been with him for eight years, and they have three children — two boys and a girl. They are impoverished, barely getting by even with her public assistance. Her boyfriend can't/won't keep a job. He always has ...

Updated: Sat Mar 08, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, March 15 for 03/15/2008

Sat, 15 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: I just had to comment on your column concerning domestic abuse that was being described as "a black thing." Of course you're right that domestic abuse isn't "a black thing." It cuts across all races and ethnicities, all income levels and economic classes, all levels of education, all lifestyles, all religions, all ages, all occupations, all geographic areas, ever ...

Updated: Sat Mar 15, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, March 22 for 03/22/2008

Sat, 22 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: I have a problem that needs your advice as a man. My wife of 16 years is obsessed about her weight. Fifteen of the 17 years we have been together have been a living culinary hell.

She watches everything she eats. We cannot go to a restaurant and enjoy a meal. Everything has to be cooked to certain expectations. She constantly argues with the servers about the food.

One ...

Updated: Sat Mar 22, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, March 29 for 03/29/2008

Sat, 29 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: Our teenage sons (ages 13 and 14) got into a fight with each other after a church-sponsored youth outing. According to adult witnesses, they were really going at it with each other. We have addressed their issue of fighting, and I know we need to deal with this problem somehow.

Their fighting at the church outing has created a real ethical dilemma for us. Another teen, about ...

Updated: Sat Mar 29, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, April 5 for 04/05/2008

Sat, 05 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: My father was murdered by his wife for his insurance money. She was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. The legal stuff is still going on because we are still in court trying to settle the money issues with my father's life insurance company.

Before my father was killed, I knew he had borrowed a large sum of money from his mom. He never repaid the money and only mad ...

Updated: Sat Apr 05, 2008

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Second Languages Are Worth the Effort for 04/07/2008

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: I'd like to hear your thoughts on a situation my husband and I have been debating. This concerns our 2-year-old daughter.

When it comes time for her to start kindergarten, we will have to make a decision whether to send her to the elementary school next door or drive her a few miles away to another school. Both schools are outstanding, however, the one farther away offers a S ...

Updated: Mon Apr 07, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, April 12 for 04/12/2008

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: I heard Barack Obama's speech regarding race relations in America, and I still am puzzled.

I do not understand how he can have hatred or latent hatred for a country that has been so good to him and his family. I could understand if a person who is poor and struggling to make ends meet thought that way, though I wouldn't agree with that person. I can see how a person who is at ...

Updated: Sat Apr 12, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, April 19 for 04/19/2008

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: I think the idea of offering Spanish in kindergarten is good. Spanish is a language that is very useful in this country and abroad. I think other languages should be offered, as well.

When I was a teacher about a year ago, the principal floated the pipe dream of offering Ebonics classes at a secondary school in Harlem. I promised to vote yes if she agreed to offer one of the ...

Updated: Sat Apr 19, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, April 26 for 04/26/2008

Sat, 26 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: I was appalled to hear the hateful words that came out of the mouth of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Barack Obama's former minister.

One of the things he said is Hillary never was called the N-word. Maybe not, but I'm pretty sure she has been called a whole lot worse. Words of any kind, when they are used to inflict emotional harm on a person, do hit harder than fists.

He ...

Updated: Sat Apr 26, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, May 3 for 05/03/2008

Sat, 03 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: As an adult man, how do you show to others that you are not racially biased? Especially when it is so hard to make friends in general, much less to reach out to others outside your circle.

It's very hard to have a diverse group of friends when people seem so busy with their own lives. And when you are a married man with kids, you are much more involved in group activities tha ...

Updated: Sat May 03, 2008

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Ethnically Speaking, May 10 for 05/10/2008

Sat, 10 May 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Dear Larry: I was reading your column this morning regarding the man who is trying to create minority friendships. I really liked your answer.

I don't have many minority friends, and I am not a racist. I don't have minority friends because those friendships just haven't blossomed because of my way of life.

I have home-schooled all three of my children since birth, and we just don' ...

Updated: Sat May 10, 2008

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