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Man Set Free After 30 Years in Prison
A man who spent 30 years behind bars walked out of prison a free man and into the arms of his two daughters, lawyers and friends earlier today, the Associated Press reports. Fifty-nine-year-old Stanley Wrice has maintained his innocence since he was arrested in 1982. Wrice was accused of rape, yet he claimed he had…
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Photographer: Obama Selfie Not What It Seems
A picture may be worth a thousand words, but in the case of the “selfie seen round the world”—which showed President Obama taking a cellphone photo with British Prime Minister David Cameron and Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning Schmidt, while the first lady looks away in apparent disgust— it wasn’t so. “Photos can lie,” wrote…
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Senate Confirms Rep. Mel Watt to Head FHFA
Rep. Mel Watt (D-N.C.) has finally been confirmed to lead the Federal Housing Finance Agency after months of filibustering by Republicans, who claimed that the North Carolina Democrat didn’t have enough experience. Democrats argued that Republicans were using the stall tactic to undermine the president, who nominated Watt some seven months ago to head the…
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McCain Likens Obama-Castro Handshake to Hitler Moment
“Handshake-gate” took an even stranger twist as John McCain compared President Obama’s two–second handshake with Cuban dictator Raúl Castro to British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain’s handshake with Adolf Hilter at the start of World War II, the Washington Post reports. “It gives Raúl some propaganda to continue to prop up his dictatorial brutal regime, that’s…
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World Leaders Join South Africa to Say Goodbye to Nelson Mandela
Updated: Tuesday, Dec. 10, 7:20 a.m. ET: While it’s likely that much will be made of the president’s handshake with Cuban President Raul Castro, Fidel’s brother, during the memorial to late South African President Nelson Mandela, it is best to put the exchange into context. Obama was greeting all of the speakers who were seated…
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‘Bill of Rights’ to Fight ‘Shopping While Black’ Outrages
On Monday, retail executives and civil rights leaders met to hash out a shopper’s “bill of rights,” New York’s Daily News reports. The list of rules—created after a rash of racial-profiling incidents in which black shoppers claimed that they were arrested, accosted or both after making purchases at Barneys New York and Macy’s—was created to…
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Who Profits From Mandela’s Brand?
The face and name of Nelson Mandela are powerful branding tools that can help sell everything from sweatshirts to kitchen aprons. With the recent death of the former South African president and national treasure, there is a scramble as to who gets to control the Mandela brand and legacy, which are potent commercial and political…
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Herbie Hancock, Carlos Santana, Martina Arroyo Receive Kennedy Center Honors
Herbie Hancock, who discovered jazz in high school and would later join Miles Davis’ band and single-handedly revolutionize the early hip-hop landscape, received the nation’s highest tribute for influencing American culture through arts, the Associated Press reports. Hancock joined Carlos Santana, Billy Joel, opera star Martina Arroyo and actress Shirley MacLaine in receiving the Kennedy…
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Jesse Owens’ Gold Medal Fetches Record Price
A 1936 Olympics gold medal won by Jesse Owens sold for $1,466,574 early Sunday morning, the highest price ever paid for a piece of Olympics memorabilia, ESPN reports. Owens won the gold medal at the games in Berlin and later gifted it to his good friend, entertainer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, who died in 1949. The…
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President Obama and the First Lady Will Attend Mandela’s Funeral
President Obama and the first lady will make the trip to South Africa to pay their respects to the memory of former South African President Nelson Mandela and to his family, the White House announced on Friday. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney did not say what day the Obamas planned to be in South…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
