It was sometime during the mid-1970s — an era when only a handful of female reporters had earned what was considered a plum post reporting politics from the Massachusetts State House.

It was also a time when the political power structure on Beacon Hill was all male — in every sense of that word. And so the tiny band of maybe three or four women reporters weren’t invited to then-Senate President Kevin Harrington’s all-male sail along the scenic North Shore coast.

Exclusion stings — even after all these years.

Segregation in any form, separating people based solely on the color of their skin, is wrong. No ambiguity; no context needed. 

If you’re throwing a party that Gov. George Wallace would approve of, you might want to think twice.

On Thursday, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu defended her decision to host an “Electeds of Color Holiday Party,” excluding the city council’s seven white members.

The race-based soirée came to light because an aide accidentally sent an invitation to every member, then awkwardly had to do some fast dis-inviting.

The president-bashing liberal media ignore a church shooting and distort constructive efforts in Puerto Rico.

As the nation reels from a series of high-profile fatal shootings of black men by police officers, many have decried the lack of readily available data on how racial bias factors into American policing. But while it’s true that there is no adequate federal database of fatal police shootings (F.B.I. director James Comey has described the lack of data as “embarrassing and ridiculous”), there exists a wealth of academic research, official and media investigations, and court rulings on the topic of race and law enforcement.

The United States has made significant progress in recent decades on eliminating racism and structural discrimination, but there is still a long way to go and much work to be done to combat all forms of racism and racial discrimination, from the criminal justice system and the housing market to the education system and beyond.

In less than two weeks, on September 24, the newest addition to the Smithsonian museum system will open on the Washington, D.C. mall. The National Museum of African American History and Culture will tell a story that reminds us of both our failures as a nation and our unique promise and ability to rise above our baser instincts.

America does not have a problem with racial tension. Racial tension is simply the fever indicating the disease. America has a problem with racism.

Events of the last week have made Cleveland, site of next week’s Republican National Convention, and Philadelphia, site of the following week’s Democratic National Convention, far more relevant to the nation’s political dialog than could have been anticipated even a month ago.

I don’t know what exactly to make of a report issued last week that described the Chicago Police Department as rife with racism. Is this news? Who didn’t know that cops in the Windy City and elsewhere have long declared open season on black residents?