But rarely have I made choices that made me feel I was really compromising what I believe.

Im a child of the Civil Rights Movement.

I was a member of the Black Student Union, part of the central committee at San Francisco State. During the 1968 strike there, I was certainly very much involved in the activities that occurred on campus. It was part of an extraordinary period in my life

It's also important for those who promote those issues within the white community - the somewhat privileged community - to talk about issues affecting people of color.

President Obama is a man who had certain advantages because of the civil rights movement. He had the opportunity to go to some of the best schools in this country - schools that train you how to run the political paradigm, not challenge it. The leaders of the Black Power Movement were challenging that paradigm.

The black power movement was not a separation from the civil rights movement, but a continuation of this whole process of democratization.

Popular literature and culture used to reflect people's aspirations, pain, and passion. All those particular things are no longer available to us.