Bring These Delicious Drinks to Your New Year’s Eve Celebration Tonight!
This is How You Must Address Idris Elba From Now On…
Save Room For These Black-Owned Restaurants in NYC!
Isiah Whitlock Jr. and Other Black Celebs We Lost In 2025
-
When Paranoia Goes Wrong: Unpacking COVID-19 and Conspiracy Theories in the Black Community
“Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you.” — Professor Patricia A. Turner text Let’s talk about conspiracy theories. As COVID-19 cripples the world, so spreads some pretty outlandish ideas about the virus—its origin, who’s it set out to target and its mode of transmission. These beliefs are unproven, caused by…
-
The Coronavirus Crisis Forces Pastors to Examine the State of the Black Church
As social distancing to end the spread of COVID-19 continues to impact the ability of black congregations to engage in their traditional forms of interaction, conversations about the future arise. Undoubtedly, recovery from the coronavirus pandemic will create economic hardships that will impact the work many churches are doing on all fronts. Additionally, the pandemic…
-
Maybe We Don't Celebrate DC's Emancipation Day Because We're Not Actually Free
Today, April 16, marks the date 158 years ago, when Washington, D.C., became the only American jurisdiction to end slavery by paying $1 million in ransom to slaveholders to free the 3,100 people enslaved in the nation’s capital. This holiday may be D.C.’s best kept secret. Public commemorations have been shrinking every year. Perhaps we…
-
No Ballparks, No Problem: Jackie Robinson Day Will Be Celebrated Across Every Major League Baseball Platform
For 364 days out of the year, I ignore Major League Baseball entirely. But every April 15, I make it a point to partake in Jackie Robinson Day, which commemorates the historic moment that Robinson became the first black player to integrate the major leagues in 1947. Since officially becoming a thing in 2004, the…
-
Vanessa Bryant Reflects on Life Without Kobe, Gianna on Mamba Day: 'Life Truly Isn’t Fair'
Monday marked the fourth anniversary of Kobe Bryant’s final NBA game. And to commemorate what’s gone on to become Mamba Day, Vanessa Bryant paid tribute to her late husband’s life and legacy with a touching Instagram post. “My husband worked his ass off for 20 years. Gave it his all,” she began. “All he wanted…
-
The Root Joins PBS' Independent Lens and the film Bedlam for a Discussion on Mental Health and Mass Incarceration
The numbers are staggering. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, more than one in five adults—essentially 40 million Americans—are living with mental illness, including severe mental illnesses like schizophrenia, severe depression and bipolar disorder, of which I, too, am a sufferer. But when it comes to me, someone who enjoys a great career…
-
In the Midst of Their Feud, Shaquille O'Neal Once Offered a Teammate $10,000 to Beat Kobe Bryant's Ass: 'I Couldn’t Believe It'
For years, the feud between frenemies Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal dominated headlines, and for those interested in knowing just how nasty that beef was, former teammate Isaiah Rider has the scoop. On a recent episode of the All the Smoke podcast, hosted by NBA alumni Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes, the former NBA Slam…
-
The Official Guide to #BlackEasterAtHome
Giving honor to Editor-in-Chief Danielle Belton, Managing Editor Genetta Adams and all of the saints at The Root Apostolic First Nazareth Pentecostal Church of Blackness. Because of the increasing threat of the coronavirus global pandemic, we have created this handy guide with suggestions for how you can celebrate the risen Christ while still observing black…
-
As Easter Approaches, Black Pastors Cope With the Weight of Coronavirus
In a pivotal scene from the 2000 film Remember the Titans, team captain Gerry Bertier confronts new teammate Julius Campbell. Bertier, in awe of Campbell’s talent, believes he’s throwing it away with his unwillingness to be a team player and his bad attitude. After chronicling all the ways Bertier failed to step up as team…