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Obama: US Sen. Edward Brooke ‘Led an Extraordinary Life’
Updated Sunday, Jan. 4, 7:45 a.m. EST: While mourning the loss of former U.S. Sen. Edward Brooke, President Barack Obama and others praised him as a giant who left an outsized footprint on America’s political landscape. “Michelle and I were saddened to learn of the passing of former Senator Edward Brooke,” the president said in a…
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Mich. Cop Reinstated After Cutting Off Woman’s Weave
A police officer from suburban Detroit has been rehired against the wishes of her superiors, who fired her after she was caught on tape forcibly cutting a young hairdresser’s weave during an arrest, according to Raw Story, which cited a report by the Macomb Daily. Bernadette Najor was fired last year from the Warren Police…
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Mentally Ill Woman’s Death in Police Custody Ruled a Homicide
A mentally ill Cleveland woman died in police custody nearly two months ago because she was physically restrained in a prone position, a coroner announced Friday, the Associated Press reports. A heart ailment and bipolar disorder also were found to have contributed to her death, the report says. As a result, the medical examiner in…
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NYPD Chief Urges Cops Not to Turn Backs on Mayor at Funeral
At Saturday’s wake for the second of two New York City police officers killed in a surprise attack last month by a lone gunman, Police Commissioner William Bratton is urging officers to refrain from making political statements aimed at the mayor, the Associated Press reports. “A hero’s funeral is about grieving, not grievance,” Bratton says…
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Ariz. School District Accused of Violating Ethnic-Studies Ban
Citing a ban on ethnic studies, the head of Arizona public schools says the Tucson Unified School District is violating state law and risks losing funding because it offers courses with an emphasis on ethnic issues, the Associated Press reports. Superintendent John Huppenthal announced Friday that he would seek sanctions against the district if it…
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New Orleans Woman Loses Husband and Son to Gun Violence Nearly 10 Years After Youngest Son Was Shot to Death
The unimaginable happened to 65-year-old Leslie Lange just 12 hours into the new year, and nearly 10 years after she lost her youngest son to gun violence in the Gentilly neighborhood of New Orleans. According to the Times-Picayune, around noon on New Year’s Day, a “hail of gunfire” claimed the lives of “her husband and last…
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A ‘Good’ Friend Wouldn’t Do What You Just Did
My friend asked to spend one night at my place when she came to town for someone else’s birthday. I said yes. She said they would pick her up from the airport and bring her to my house. She asked for my address right before she left. I didn’t text her back because I didn’t…
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Did Trouble With Horse Rustling Do In My Texas Ancestor?
Many write to you seeking to find out where their ancestors were in the 19th century and earlier. In my case, I know where my ancestor was in the 19th century but have lost track of him in the 20th century. My great-grandfather was named Allen Mack (changed from “Arthur McDonald”). He was born in…
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NYPD Strategy: Be Strict on Small Crimes to Deter Major Ones; Critics Say Policy Targets Blacks
New York City Police Commissioner Bill Bratton is defending his department’s use of the “broken windows” strategy, which, as Al-Jazeera reports, is “the practice of cracking down on minor offenses” because if they go unchecked, the argument goes, “they create visible signs of public disorder that encourage more serious crimes.” Bratton co-authored a 4,500-word essay for…
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Iran’s Head of State Tweets Support for #BlackLivesMatter
If Iran’s head of state, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is truly operating the Twitter account @khamenei_ir, as is widely reported, then he’s an ardent supporter of the #BlackLivesMatter protests that have denounced the recent police killings of unarmed black people. On Sunday a series of tweets from the account made clear references to the ongoing movement in…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
