As we’ve watched Donald Trump disregard the 300,000+ Americans who have died from COVID but still get support in trying to steal the election, brash villainy can make white mediocrity seem like a non-issue. However, white mediocrity has always been extremely dangerous. Trump became president because ordinary white people held themselves (and each other) to LOW standards, thereby failing to mobilize to stop him as soon as he called Mexicans “rapists.”

I’ve been highlighting the danger of white mediocrity for years, including here and here and here. This clarity puts me in conversation with people like Michael Harriot and Ijeoma Oluo, who just published Mediocre. Harriot and I caught up on camera around these issues. It was an honor, but the clarity is also important.