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Ghana to Ban Skin-Bleaching Products in August
Colorism, which privileges lighter skin over darker, is an issue that not affects not only African Americans but pretty much all people of color around the world. From India to Brazil to Belize, one of the ways in which colorism rears its ugly head is in skin bleaching. We have all seen photos of celebrities…
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Top NFL Draft Pick Eli Apple’s Mom Snags Gig at ESPN
Annie Apple could not be more proud of her boy; but her boy may be even more proud of her. Eli Apple, who was drafted by the New York Giants as the 10th overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft in April, got some good news about his mom as he was finishing up his first…
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NBA Star Bryce Dejean-Jones Reportedly Killed for Entering Wrong Home
New Orleans Pelican player Bryce Dejean-Jones died Saturday after reportedly entering the wrong home in a Dallas apartment complex, according to ESPN. According to police, Dejean-Jones, 23, was shot after the resident of the apartment he entered heard someone kick open his front door. The occupant “called out to the individual, but was not answered.” The person…
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Kerry Washington: Not Only Are #OscarsSoWhite, but So Is Every Industry
Actors Kerry Washington and Aziz Ansari had a candid (well, as candid as one can be in front of an audience) conversation Friday for the fourth season of Variety and PBS’ 0Actors on Actors series Friday. The two actors of color discussed diversity in television and the possible reasons that the medium is more diverse…
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LeBron James Goes to His 6th Straight NBA Final
LeBron James had words of humility and emotion in the early-morning hours on Saturday after he and his Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Toronto Raptors 113-87 in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals, sending Cleveland to their second consecutive NBA Finals. James scored 33 points. “We’re not entitled to anything,” said James. “We work our tails…
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Ex-NFL Player Ricky Williams to Open Weed-Based Gym
What’s the point of going to the gym if you scarf down a bucket of brownies after your workout? No matter. We suspect that former NFL running back Ricky Williams has an answer for that. In fact, the onetime professional athlete feels so strongly about marijuana and its benefits that he plans to open the…
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Watch: It’s All About Bossing, Branding and Building When You’re Young, Fabulous and Female in NYC
It was an evening to remember as women of diverse professions and educational backgrounds came together to talk “bossing, branding and building” at The Root’s Young Fabulous and Female event in New York City on May 25. The event featured panelists Tricia Clarke-Stone, co-founder and CEO of Narrative; Caralene Robinson, senior vice president of VH1’s…
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Former Deputy White House Counsel Cassandra Butts Dies at 50
Cassandra Quin Butts, the former deputy White House counsel and a nominee to the ambassadorship to the Bahamas, died suddenly Thursday. She was 50 years old. A statement from Butts’ family says that she suffered from a “brief illness” and that she was found by her sister at her Washington, D.C., home. Butts attended Harvard Law…
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Roots, Past and Present: A Look Back at the Original Cast and a Sneak Peek at the New Stars
Nearly 40 years after Roots made its epic network-television debut, the History Channel, along with Lifetime and A&E, is set to air a four-night reboot of the epic slavery saga based on Alex Haley’s book for today’s generation. In 1977, nearly 100 million people tuned in to the eight-part miniseries on ABC. It went on…
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The Lynching of My Husband’s Ancestor Shocked a Nation
Dear Professor Gates: I am seeking help with finding the parents of my husband’s four-times-great-grandmother Leanna Donegan Knox (born in 1794 in Hopkinsville, Ky.). She was mulatto and, according to an Illinois Servitude and Emancipation record, the daughter of a white woman. She owned land in Todd, Ky., until 1847, when she was “removed” to Illinois. I found…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
