Hello Family,
I don’t know everything, but I know this: I’m glad y’all here.
I’m grateful that y’all stick around for my political perspectives, cultural critiques, comic-book geekouts, and overall lit-nerd rantings and ravings. I’m grateful for that because I know how particularly hostile the world is to the politics I advocate for, defend, and embrace as a part of my existence and human responsibility—these pro-Black, pro-LGBTQIA2S+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual, Two-Spirit, plus), pro-children, pro-marginalized people, pro-bodily autonomy, pro-environmental preservation politics (with the caveat that these terms are useful for describing, but can’t encompass all of what I mean) and more.
That’s not to say that delving into these matters—thinking about them and finding ways to write about them that honor my humanity and the humanity of others; explicating and interrogating them and sometimes drawing conclusions (but the vast majority of the time, no suitable answers come forth because all of what any of us knows can fit on the sharp point of a sewing needle, with room to spare)—doesn’t take its toll. It does take its toll; on my body, on my mind, and on my spirit.
And I’m sure that can’t be true of just me. As the late, great Toni Morrison once said:
“It’s not possible to constantly hone on the crisis. You have to have the love. You have to have the magic. That is also life.”
That resonates bone-deep with me. That’s why I make conscious efforts to share some good news in my newsletters. We have to be able to fill ourselves up with something blesséd, restorative. I don’t know that it’s healthy to simply keep imbibing the endless supply of toxicity that has become the beverage of choice for so many. Every headline or article seems to insist that we be terrified of everything and everybody, 29 hours a day, 11 days a week, 408 days a year. Beyond the practical nature of warning us of potential dangers (which I believe is reasonable), corporate-owned media seems to want us to believe that things are so dangerous (despite a contrary reality) that there’s essentially no point in us leaving our homes or, for that matter: living.
And yet, I leave my home all the time. I am living. And while the things media reports on may be happening, may be true, those things are not happening as frequently or as ubiquitously as media would have us believe.
Because scared people spend money and are beaucoup susceptible to manipulation, the wealthy people who own all of the major news sources have a vested interest in creating the optimal financial conditions for themselves and their shareholders, and have long recognized the economic and social benefit of instigating fear frenzies. They hyperfocus on negative stories and only begrudgingly report on positive ones. Even some of the journalistic institutions that I once thought were bastions of progressive ideals are starting to slide down the hill from attempts at wholistic analysis to bigotry disguised as reporting.
What it seems like I’m being told is that we’re supposed to be scared of family and friends and neighbors and kids and strangers and anyone marginalized…and our own shadows! And they’re all supposed to be scared of us. The most exasperating part is how effective this indoctrination is. But I, for one, am tired of having my perspectives warped so that I’m most ripe for exploitation.
I’m tired of being terrified.
I’m not saying that I want to live in a bubble, bury my head in the sand, or pretend that the world is some kind of Pretty Pretty Princess™ fantasyland. I’m not saying that I never want to think or write about the enormously wicked things happening in the world. I’m saying that I don’t want to allow it to become a kind of addiction/obsession that clouds my thinking and my knowing such that pessimism doesn’t simply become an honest possibility; it becomes my only principle. I’m saying that for my own well-being, I require consistent antidotes to the ongoing malevolence of heartless, gutless, ruthless, truthless people who use their power and platforms in service to local, global, and inner ruin.
And so joy, and the celebration of it, becomes revolutionary—especially for those of us whose misery is counted on.
While on the subject of joy…
Some of you have made pledges indicating that you would sign up for paid subscriptions to Witness. And you have said the kindest things about why.
“As a reader, writer, and trans man, I value your writing deeply. Thank you for sharing it with us.”
“I really want to support Witness because I so admire and respect your artistic talent and contributions to the art of literature.”
“Your work is valuable and powerful and I’m glad I’ve found you here.”
“After reading your top 5 book list that provided an honest, penetrating discussion, in itself worthy of a read, I now need to subscribe.”
Because of your encouragement, I have decided to begin paid subscriptions in the new year!
What will a paid subscription get you? Access to soon-to-be-exclusive longform essays (similar to the surprisingly popular Wonder Woman essay I wrote in September), behind-the-scenes footage of me at various events, chances to win signed merch, and more.
Paid subscriptions will cost $5 a month or $52 a year (a savings of $8). There will be additional discounts offered for group memberships and referrals. For subscribers wishing to show an extra measure of support, there is an option for a founding subscription at $61 a year.
To select a subscription tier (currently a pledge to pay; actual paid subscriptions will begin in February 2024), please click on the button below:
Don’t worry; I will continue posting free content as well.
Also, I have questions.
Because I don’t ever want to flood your inboxes:
Additionally:
Thanks for your feedback.
And because I can’t be out until I share some good news (shout out to
, whose newsletter, is one of the few places online I can go to read positive stories), BOOM:Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled that people have the right to determine what goes on with the inner workings of their own bodies.
A bold, grand, progressive, inclusive vision for Brooklyn.
Former leader of the Black Panther Party, Elaine Brown, is helping to develop affordable housing in West Oakland.
Marckus Williams, founder and co-operator of Indy Fresh Market in Indiana, is committed to social justice, giving back, and second chances.
Simone Biles is the G.O.A.T.
Fred Richard is on his way to becoming the G.O.A.T.
“In his lifetime, Ernie Barnes was largely dismissed and ignored by the industry. He became an icon anyway.”
Young Love is a great series for the whole fam.
These 16-year-old twins, Breanna and Brooke Bennett, were honored by the White House for their efforts to ensure menstrual supplies are accessible to everyone who needs them.
This young brother, Heman Bekele, developed a soap meant to aid in the treatment of skin cancer!
16-year-old Cayden Brown works as a juvenile defense attorney!
There are many ways to read this including some ways to find it faulty/problematic. Today, I’m choosing to read it under the lens of generosity and justice: Media mogul Tyler Perry is building a grand home for a nonagenarian woman who has been battling developers trying to swindle her out of what’s hers.
In the areas of hope, good sense, and surprise: Franklin, Tennessee, voters overwhelmingly reject a white supremacist/Christian nationalist candidate.
Andre 3000 is just the best.
The legendary LeVar Burton says: Read Banned Books! And the Baldwin & Co. Bookstore are among those who answered the call. They held an event for our babies and gave away over 700 books in danger of being banned from schools and libraries.
All Deesha Philyaw do is win!
Mateo Askaripour is THAT DUDE!
Danté Stewart is about to drop his next sermon from the mount!
Brian Broome finna hit us with some good good!
Cleyvis Natera is about to let us have it again!
finna drop an incredible book called Pansy: A Black American Memoir!is going on an award tour, like A Tribe Called Quest, at HBCUs!The Toni Morrison documentary, The Pieces I Am, is now available for free on YouTube!
Congratulations to the winners of the 2023 National Book Awards!
Y’all must wonder why my grown-ass still reads comic books. LOL! There are many reasons. One is that my father introduced me to them pre-school and it’s one of the ways I can still feel a connection to him since he’s been gone. Another is that they are the initial site of my literacy. Comic books had me reading at a college level in the fifth grade!
Quiet as it’s kept,
is one of the dopest comic book writers out here in these metahuman/mutant streets! She’s probably best known for her amazing tenure on Captain Marvel. But I’m telling you, she raised the bar with what she’s doing on Birds of Prey and The Cull. Both are an extraordinary match of prose and graphic art. Birds of Prey is currently my absolute favorite monthly comic book on the stands. It’s just so incredibly well-written, well-drawn, left-field, and most of all: just plain FUN! I’m telling you, seriously, buy this book. You can pick up both Birds of Prey and The Cull online or at your local comic shop. And be sure to subscribe to Thompson’s newsletter!A lot of great, new books out or out soon. From Teju Cole’s Tremor, to Christina Cooke’s Broughtupsy, to Tananarive Due’s The Reformatory, to Michael Harriot’s Black AF History: The Un-Whitewashed Story of America, to Amber McBride’s Gone Wolf, to Edwin Raymond’s An Inconvenient Cop, to Caster Semenya’s The Race to Be Myself, to Zadie Smith’s The Fraud, to Jesmyn Ward’s Let Us Descend, to Phillip Williams’s Ours, to Jacqueline Woodson’s Remember Us, and so many more. Bookshelves finna be on fire—and we don’t need no water!
But there’s one book in particular that I’ve been waiting for, as patiently as I could, for over a decade:
You might remember that Ayana Mathis burst onto the scene in 2012 with a book titled The Twelve Tribes of Hattie. You might also remember that it was immediately picked for Oprah’s Book Club; so immediately that the publisher had to move up the release date to meet demand.
Well, her latest novel finally dropped and it was the gift my mind needed this year. It’s called The Unsettled. And I can’t wait to dive in!
“Texas Court Sides with Authors Guild and Strikes Down Controversial ‘Reader Act,’ Protecting Free Speech Rights of Booksellers” (If you’re a writer, I encourage you to join The Author’s Guild. Tell ‘em Robert Jones, Jr. sent you.)
One of my favorite bookstores in the world, Loyalty Bookstores, needs your help. Please donate to their cause.
Thank y’all very, very much for helping my friend Darlene Okpo open her bookstore in its new location. Your incredible generosity went a long way.
And last but not least:
The Prophets has reached a milestone:
My debut novel has sold over 75,000 copies in the U.S. and Canada! This is not me bragging or boasting. There are books that sell twice that in a day and go on to sell millions. But the fact that The Prophets was able to achieve what it did is remarkable to me. I’m genuinely shocked and surprised.
Why?
Well, because The Prophets is a tough sell. It centers Black queer love. It’s directly critical of white supremacy, patriarchy, capitalism, colonialism, sexism, Western thought, Christianity, anti-Blackness, anti-queerness, and anti-transness. (Whew, that’s a long list. LOL!) It presents the lives of enslaved Black people with dimension. It links all members of the African Diaspora. It’s written in Black language and Black understandings from a Black point of view. It’s the story of a Black uprising. All of these things make it quite a jagged little pill for a lot of folks to swallow. Many people find it offensive; blasphemous, even; the kind of book that they would rather ban or burn than add to their bookshelves (wait ‘til they get a load of novel number two). So, the fact that my literary agent wanted to represent it, G.P. Putnam’s Sons agreed to publish it, booksellers and librarians throughout the country thought to carry it, and 75,000-some-odd of y’all decided to buy it means more to me than you could ever know. You helped my long-held dream, my very purpose, manifest in blessèd ways.
From the bottom of my heart: THANK YOU! Here’s to the next milestone of 100,000!
And thank you for continuing to be a member of the Witness community.
Happy holidays!
Blessings upon blessings,
Robert