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How Did My Incarcerated Ancestor Die?
My paternal great-grandfather, Sylvester Collins, lived in Baker County, Ga., for most of his life. He was sent to prison in the late 1920s. He is said to have died in prison five years later. I have been unable to locate a death certificate for him. I wrote a letter to the Georgia Department of…
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Dispatches From NAN: Ripping Off ‘the Mask’ of Mental Illness
There was a packed house in the Empire Ballroom of the Sheraton New York Times Square for the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network’s silver-anniversary convention Wednesday. The panel, “I Don’t Need to See A Doctor: Mental Health in the African-American Community,” reportedly came about because Sharpton would repeatedly hear those words when he would try…
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The Battle to Close Wage Gap Between Men and Women
“Lots of people have heard the 79 cents on a dollar that women make on average compared to men,” says Emily Martin of the National Women’s Law Center. But the level of salary loss for a woman starting her career today is staggering. “Nationally, a woman stands to lose about $430,000 over a 40-year career…
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Farewell, Kobe, It’s Been Real
On Wednesday, Los Angeles Laker guard Kobe Bryant plays his last game in the NBA after a storied 20-year career. In that time, he became a five-time NBA champion, a two-time NBA Finals MVP, an 18-time NBA All-Star (with four All-Star MVP trophies) and one of the few players who easily fit into any conversation…
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Hillary Clinton’s NAN Speech Sounds Good, but Does Anybody Really Believe Her?
“She know she lying. F—k outta here,” Charles Johnson, 31, whispered as Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton spoke inside the Metropolitan Ballroom of the Sheraton Hotel in New York City for the National Action Network conference. Wearing a flattering red suit, the former secretary of state was met with a standing ovation from the predominantly…
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Rachel Dolezal Is Writing a Book on Race, so We’re Writing the Title
Rachel Dolezal found her way into all of our lives in 2015 when she was exposed as a white woman after pretending to be black—with HBCU attendance and NAACP-chapter presidency included. Dolezal is still making headlines these days because she’s writing a book. And that book is exactly what you think it’s going to be:…
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Marrying Young: Why the Worst Dating Advice in the World Actually Worked (for Me)
Chances are, if you were a normal college student, you were a terrible person to date. Who really knows anything about being a quality partner at 18, 19 or even 20, 21 years old? Most of us at that age were just trying to find ourselves (or find ourselves in someone else’s pants). Now that…
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Yoga Is for Everybody—and Every Body
Next up in The Root’s minority-health video series during National Minority Health Month is yoga. Yoga is not just about stretching. Beyond the intricate poses often associated with hatha yoga, the practice is about watching the breath, aligning the spine and clearing the mind. In 2003 Shelley Nicole learned that she had a hiatal hernia, which…
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If You’re Trying to Control Your Man Like He’s a Kid, He Might as Well Go Live With His Mama
Dear Demetria: I live with my boyfriend and I have a car that he drives. He mostly uses it to go to the store and such. No problem. This weekend, I asked him to go to the market with me. He didn’t want to go. I went with my girls and spent, like, four hours…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
