-
Celebs Wish Barack Obama a Happy Birthday
(The Root) — It’s the president’s birthday, and he’s getting well wishes from everybody from your cousin Greg to Gladys Knight. Even Tavis Smiley hit pause on his bitterness long enough to wish him a happy birthday. There was also a bit of electronic PDA from the first lady, which was just the cutest thing…
-
Rush Limbaugh: Why the GOP Carries His Baggage
America’s political arena started to become polarized nearly 25 years ago, after conservative talk-show host Rush Limbaugh syndicated his act, L.Z. Granderson writes at CNN. It also marks the time when Republicans began carrying the talk-show host’s literal and emotional baggage. If you want to know why there’s little cooperation in Washington these days, I’d…
-
Will Sybrina Fulton Be Remembered?
Mychal Denzel Smith writes a penetrating piece at the Nation about black women activists, through the prism of Sybrina Fulton and her life after George Zimmerman’s acquittal in the shooting death of her 17-year-old son, Trayvon Martin. In the country’s effort to “address the problem of anti-black racism, we neglect to consider the experiences of…
-
A To-Do List to Avoid Rape?
While it’s important for all women to take precautionary measures to avoid attacks, not enough men are being trained not to rape in the first place, Christiana Mbakwe writes in a piece at XOJane that tackles rape culture in America. Like many woman, I’ve bought into the fallacy that by adhering to a list of…
-
MHP: Washington Needs a Safety Net to Fight Poverty
On her MSNBC show on Saturday, Melissa Harris-Perry slammed Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.), chairman of the House Budget Committee, for refusing to allow a former guest to testify about anti-poverty programs. She penned a letter to the congressman explaining that Washington need a safety net to fight poverty. Dear Congressman Ryan, It’s me, Melissa. Look,…
-
President Obama Celebrates 52nd Birthday
President Barack Obama turns 52 today and is spending part of the day at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland, the Associated Press reports. The White House said little about how he’s celebrating. He played golf Saturday with friends from his days in Hawaii and Chicago. Some of them joined him at Camp David.…
-
5 Ways 'Poetic Justice' Predicted the Future
(The Root) — John Singleton’s Poetic Justice was released in 1993 during a watershed period that saw a number of black films entering theaters. Janet Jackson starred as Justice, a poetry-loving hairstylist (the works of Maya Angelou were prominently featured), and Tupac Shakur played Lucky, a postal worker with dreams of making it big as…
-
Quote of the Day: Martin R. Delany on Nationhood
Read the quote in context here. Henry Louis Gates Jr. is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and the director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African-American Research at Harvard University. He is also the editor-in-chief of The Root. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. Like The Root on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.
-
Florida Cops 'Followed Standard Protocols' Shooting Unarmed Black Man
Florida’s Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan said his officers followed protocol when they fired 15 shots at unarmed Roy Howard Middleton, 60, because he failed to comply with their commands, according to Salon. During an interview on Thursday with CNN’s Chris Cuomo, Morgan said that the officers saw a metallic object in Middleton’s hands as…
-
Florida Lawmaker to Hold Hearings on 'Stand Your Ground'
The Miami Herald is reporting that Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford has announced plans to order hearings this fall on the state’s controversial “Stand your ground” law. It is considered a victory for the Dream Defenders, a group of activists and professionals who began protesting at the capitol after George Zimmerman was acquitted in the…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
