Inside the Explosive Delineation Debate Picking Apart Black Folk’s Identity, History, and Who ‘Belongs’
The Root’s Ultimate Guide to Holiday Dos and Don’ts!
Forget What JD Vance Said — Here are 13 Times White Folks Never Apologized For Bad Behavior
NFL Might Tax Steelers’ DK Metcalf’s This Eye-Watering Sum For His Sideline Move
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History Making Gymnast Simone Biles Learns Her Sexual Assault Claims Were Swept Under Rug by USA Gymnastics Officials
In another example that there are systems in place to protect evil power wielders, Simone Biles has expressed “pain” in learning that her initial sexual abuse claim against team doctor Larry Nassar was basically ignored. The 22-year old gymnast—who made history on Oct. 13 as the gymnast with the most medals earned at the world…
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In a New Revival of Oedipus Rex, Ancient Greek Gets a Relevant Refresh
It’s been a year full of revivals in Chicago, and in an era where the Greek chorus has been replaced by the legions on Black Twitter, some might wonder what relevance a revival of Sophocles’ circa-429 B.C. tragedy, Oedipus Rex, holds for contemporary audiences. But as a new production at the University of Chicago-based Court…
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21 Bridges: Yes, Chadwick Boseman Was Conflicted Portraying a Black Cop
Throughout their careers, actors tend to portray characters that challenge their beliefs and/or have morals that they might not necessarily agree with. To some extent, however, most actors tend to at least attempt to connect with their character. So what happens when the character represents a larger sociopolitical structure, especially from the perspective of a…
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Africa's the Future: Why Akon Says That African-Americans Should Invest in the Continent
“When you combine African-Americans and diaspora Africans, that unity itself is what’s gonna make Wakanda actually possible.” —Akon text After his his single “Locked Up,” Akon was determined not to be your run-of-the-mill one-hit wonder. The artist and producer had some foresight, understanding that the shelf life of an artist in a super-fickled entertainment industry…
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5-Year-Old Drumming Prodigy Receives Scholarship Offer From HBCU Alcorn State University: 'It's Mind-Blowing Every Day'
Musical prodigies showcase their otherworldly abilities at a young age, but Jeremiah Travis is unlike anything we’ve ever seen before. And the historically black Alcorn State University apparently feels the same way, as it has offered the 5-year-old wunderkind a full band scholarship well over a decade before he even graduates high school. USA Today…
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Here’s the Waiver Colin Kaepernick Was Asked to Sign to Get Back on the NFL’s Plantation
Shortly before the NFL held a sham one-man slave auction combine for Colin Kaepernick, the league presented the embattled activist and quarterback with a waiver that essentially torched the prospect of Kaepernick participating in the public relations hoax reportedly concocted by Jay-Z, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, and NFL owners. To be clear, this was a…
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Amid Criticism and Controversy, the Guggenheim Museum Hires Its First Black Full-Time Curator
Eighty years after its inception, New York City’s Guggenheim Museum has hired its first full-time black curator. Last week, Ashley James joined the famed museum as its new associate curator of contemporary art, after having been the assistant curator of contemporary art at the Brooklyn Museum, where the New York Times called her “a moving…
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Colin Kaepernick’s Bait & Switch With NFL Sparks Twitter War Between Stephen A. Smith and Eric Reid
Who’s zooming who? Colin Kaepernick’s highly hyped “tryout” event for NFL scouts caused football fanatics to go apeshit yesterday. On one hand, the modern-day folk hero (who actually sacrificed his professional career in the name of black people killed by police) made a last-minute switch of venue from the Atlanta Falcons compound to Charles Drew…
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Lena Waithe Comes Out About Secret Marriage to Longtime Partner Alana Mayo
Hold the “mayo,” please! Lena Waithe has come out of the closet … with news that she is a married woman. The screenwriter, producer, and actress revealed that she married her longtime partner Alana Mayo during an interview on Friday’s episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show. “We snuck and did it, you know,” the Emmy…
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Bill Russell Ends 44-Year Basketball HoF Boycott—but the Backstory Proves He's the G.O.A.T.
Ask anyone who is the greatest basketball player of all time, and you’ll surely get a diversity of opinions—including Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Magic Johnson and that dude who played for your cousin’s high school in 1987 whose jump shot was wet but he got shot in his layup leg running from the police his…