LeRon L. Barton

LeRon L. Barton is a writer and speaker from Kansas City who lives in San Francisco. He has published essays and articles about race, mass incarceration, politics, and dating. He has appeared in Al Jazeera, TEDx, Salon, Black Enterprise, The Good Men Project, and Raconteur. Watch his TEDx speech here.

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Articles by LeRon L. Barton

• Racism amidst the pandemic: 3 Asian Americans’ experiences during COVID-19

  Thursday, April 09, 2020

  Through panic and hysteria related to the coronavirus pandemic, racism has reared its ugly head. Because the virus originated from China, Chinese American and other Asian American communities have been experiencing racist, verbal, and physical attacks. Stop AAPI Hate, an online incident report from the Asian Pacific Policy & Planning Council, states that there have been over 650 reports of discrimination against Asian Americans. Below is an interview with three Asian American women: Annalise, 35, accountant; Vivian, 29, entrepreneur; and Queenie, 32, healthcare worker. They share their experiences on how race has shaped the way we view the pandemic.

• Fair Pay to Play Act promises a better deal for the black college athlete

  Wednesday, October 23, 2019

  It is no secret that the black male has been the engine for collegiate sports for many decades now. African American athletes make up about 60% of all college football and college basketball teams. Football and basketball are the two revenue sports that dominate college sports. That dominance has created an incredible source of revenue for the biggest schools. As part of the podcast "Gangster Capitalism," a program dedicated to examining the college admissions scandal that has rocked the news this year, sports journalist Kevin Blackistone examined the racial overtones existing in the matter of high-level college sports.

• What makes a good speaker? The buy-in

  Tuesday, August 27, 2019

  In business, the presentation matters. How an idea is conveyed, communicated, and relayed is important. For example, there could be a scheduled department meeting focusing on the most mundane concept, and it can become captivating. As I have learned and believe in — it is all in the delivery. Corporations, universities, and organizations often hire speakers to present a new idea, facilitate workshops, and entertain audiences. With speakers becoming ubiquitous in corporate culture, the question becomes: What makes a good speaker? As a writer who is an up-and-coming speaker, I wanted to find the answer.

• Nutrition initiatives, educators aim to make food deserts history

  Thursday, May 09, 2019

  Eating the proper foods, drinking plenty of water, and taking the correct vitamins are incredibly important to survival. These take on greater importance when children are involved. Having access to healthy foods is a very important component to this. Grocery stores that sell vegetables and fruits are necessary to aid kids and teenagers as they grow up. Unfortunately, in many communities, nutritious food options are scarce, creating challenges for finding balanced meals. These areas are called food deserts.

• Climate change and the price of being poor

  Friday, March 29, 2019

  If you were to ask most people in low-income communities where climate change would rank in degree of importance, I would wager that it would be pretty low. This is not to say that folks living in these neighborhoods don't care or have no knowledge about the issues that affect the environment, it's just that paying the rent or mortgage, getting to work, and the stress of living in poverty take precedence. However, in 2019, there may be a change in how climate change is viewed, due to new legislation, research, and outreach.