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Black Lives Matter Activists Got Beyoncé’s Dancers to Hold Up ‘Justice’ Sign They Snuck Into Super Bowl
Here’s the story of how a couple of Black Lives Matter activists got Beyoncé’s dancers to hold up a “Justice 4 Mario Woods” sign after her Super Bowl halftime performance. Mario Woods was a 26-year-old man who was shot more than a dozen times by San Francisco police, a killing that many Black Lives Matter…
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Rihanna Is 1st and Only Artist to Surpass RIAA’s 100 Million Cumulative Singles Threshold
I was worried that Beyoncé’s comeback would overshadow Rihanna’s new album, Anti, and the Anti World Tour. Beyoncé’s “Formation” single, released on Saturday, made a heck of an impact, but Rihanna has celebrating of her own to do. Back in July, the Recording Industry Association of America announced that Rihanna was the first and only…
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The Savagery of Apartheid Remembered in the Callous Destruction of District 6
Fifty years ago today, on Feb. 11, 1966, District 6—an iconic, densely populated, predominantly Coloured, working-class neighborhood on the outskirts of Cape Town, South Africa—was reclassified as a “whites-only area,” a result of the infamous Group Areas Act introduced by the odious apartheid government. With that piece of pernicious legislation began the relocation of some…
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Should 18-Year-Olds Be Allowed to Use Curse Words in a Conversation With a Parent?
Aliya’s turn: My daughter Lauren, who will be 19 next month, is a first-year college student. She’s incredibly mature for her age and always has been. From the time she was a very young child, I noticed that she saw the world differently from most kids in her peer group. She was incredibly self-possessed and…
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Filmmaker Looks to Blaxploitation Classic to Craft Strong Black Characters for New Generation
Editor’s note: This short-film series is a collaboration between The Root and El Rey Network to support, elevate and promote African-American filmmakers throughout Black History Month via on-air, digital and editorial platforms. Filmmakers were contacted and recruited through film festivals and industry partnerships in December, with finalists selected by both El Rey Network and The…
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Watch: Omari Hardwick Says Denzel Washington’s Family Looked Out for Him When He Was Homeless
They say that when you make it, you should be sure to send the elevator back down for those who are trying to come up, too. Power actor Omari Hardwick is incredibly grateful to Denzel Washington and his entire family for looking out for him when he was a struggling actor. During an interview with…
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Jada Pinkett Smith: The Academy’s Solution to #OscarsSoWhite Implies That Black People Only Vote Black
Jada Pinkett Smith brought up a good point during an impromptu interview with a TMZ reporter Tuesday. It’s a point that bears a resemblance to Chris Rock’s scratch-and-sniff joke he made several years ago: Black people don’t always vote for other black people. We are discerning people who seek out high-quality performances at award shows…
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The Clinton Legacy Is Black Impoverishment—so Why Are We Still Voting for Hillary?
Hillary Clinton loves black people. And black people love Hillary—or so it seems. Black politicians have lined up in droves to endorse her, eager to prove their loyalty to the Clintons in hopes that their faithfulness will be remembered and rewarded. Black pastors are opening their church doors, and the Clintons are making themselves comfortably…
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Pro-Beyoncé and Anti-Beyoncé Protesters to Face Off in Rally at NFL Headquarters in NYC
Look at what sweet Beyoncé done went and started. She thrust herself right smack dab in the middle of the Black Lives Matter movement with her Super Bowl halftime performance. Now she has to put with nonsense from people who think that BLM promotes reverse racism. Someone got on Eventbrite to promote news of an…
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The People v. O.J. Simpson Recap: The Infamous Bronco Chase
The second installment of FX’s The People v. O.J. Simpson covers familiar terrain to most viewers: the infamous Bronco chase. Or, as one character in Tuesday night’s episode describes it, “the world’s longest Ford Bronco commercial.” On one surreal Friday night in 1994, Simpson and his high school bestie, A.C. Cowlings, kept police in an…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
