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Harvard Students Get Litty at 1st Black Graduation Ceremony
Black graduate students at Harvard University—from the schools of law, business, education and government, among others—held their inaugural “Black Commencement” ceremony this week, a ritual to mark the end of their sojourn as black students at one of the world’s most prestigious institutions. Harvard Magazine reports that the ceremony was organized this year “against a…
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DC Sniper Lee Boyd Malvo Has 2 Life Sentences Thrown Out
A federal judge on Friday tossed out two life sentences without parole for Lee Boyd Malvo, one of two gunmen convicted in the “D.C. sniper” shooting cases in 2002. The Associated Press reports that U.S. District Judge Raymond Jackson in Norfolk, Va., said that Malvo is entitled to new sentencing hearings, based on the U.S.…
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Black Congressman Threatened With Lynching After Calling for Trump’s Impeachment
Deep in the heart of Texas, it can still be sketchy for black folks. Ask Sandra Bland. Or James Byrd Jr. Or the scores of others who lost their lives in acts of racial terror in the Lone Star State. Warning: The images in the video below are of a real-life lynching and are extremely…
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Words Shot the Sheriff? David Clarke Reportedly Plagiarized Parts of His Master’s Thesis
It seems as if everyone around our dear president is more sketchy and unqualified than the next. Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke, who rode his deep-seated disdain for black people to a plum position in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, reportedly lifted text without proper attribution in his 113-page master’s thesis. An investigative report…
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Yet Another Black Girl’s Hair Policed by Her School, Her Afro Called ‘Out of Control’
A 17-year-old high schooler from Florida is the latest black girl to be reprimanded for wearing her hair in traditional black style. All over the world, black girls have their bodies, words and, increasingly, hair policed by those who have no clue. WCTV reports that Jenesis Johnson, an 11th-grader at North Florida Christian School, a…
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#BringBackOurGirls: 82 Chibok Girls Finally Reunited With Their Families
More than 80 Chibok, Nigeria, schoolgirls were reunited with their families Saturday, about two weeks after their release by terrorist group Boko Haram, according to the Nigerian government. In April 2014, 276 schoolgirls were captured from their school by the militant outfit, which pledged allegiance to ISIS, or the Islamic State group, prompting the global…
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Yale Dean Placed on Leave for Calling Folks ‘White Trash’ on Yelp
A dean from Yale University has been placed on leave and will not participate in commencement activities for what the school terms “reprehensible” comments in several Yelp reviews. June Chu, dean of Pierson College, was officially reprimanded by Pierson Head Stephen Davis this week, according to the Yale Daily News. Last Saturday, Chu wrote to…
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Common Blood Tests May Be Dangerously Inaccurate for Lead Poisoning, in Yet Another Blow to #Flint
In the latest blow to the beleaguered but resolute city of Flint, Mich., the government confirmed this week that one of the most common lab tests for lead may have given falsely low readings. The Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday that children and pregnant may need to be retested for lead, NBC News reports.…
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Colin Kaepernick’s Jersey Donated to the National Museum of African American History and Culture
Looks like somebody appreciates Colin Kaepernick. Eminent sociologist, author and activist Harry Edwards, who helped to curate the National Museum of African American History and Culture’s most recent sports exhibit, “Game Changers,” feels that Kaepernick, too, needs pride of place at the Smithsonian. Edwards reportedly donated a collection of items relating to the former San…
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And Then There Were None … Statue of Robert E. Lee, Granddaddy of All Confederates, Comes Down in New Orleans
A crane removed the final homage to white supremacy in New Orleans on Friday when the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee was removed, the last of four Confederate monuments to go down. The statue of the general stood atop Lee Circle, a vaunted roundabout in the Crescent City. Since 1884, Lee had stood…
