Nearly 20 years later, we still take off our shoes at the airport because 3,000 Americans were killed in a terrorist attack.

100,000 Americans--and counting--have died in this crisis, but staying home and wearing a mask in public is considered too big a sacrifice to make.

Some folks are pointing out that it was because of the Shoe Bomber, and what I'm saying is that if 9/11 hadn't happened, there is no way in hell that we're still taking off our shoes because of one instance of an unsuccessful attempt to detonate a shoe bomb.

And my underlying point here has more to do with America's obsession with xenophobia. When we're the source of our own trauma, no one gives a shit. When it's the alleged threat of Brown and Black people, suddenly this country gives a damn about "safety". It's bullshit.