The Exceptional Negro: Racism, White Privilege and the Lie of Respectability Politics

Lawyer. Mother. Elected Official. Target. Traci O’Neal was thrust into the national spotlight in 2017 when local threats grew into a national racist outcry after a former GOP Presidential candidate singled her out on social media. What followed was a deeply disturbing and widespread campaign of hatred and egregiously racist attacks. The death threats, harassment, and vitriol reinforced what Traci had always understood – there’s no room in white America for an Exceptional Negro.

The Exception...