Social Justice
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Nipsey Hussle’s Community Legacy: 10 Hip-Hop Artists Continuing The Marathon
The life of Ermias “Nipsey Hussle” Asghedom was celebrated Thursday before a crowd of over 21,000 at the Staples Center after he was fatally shot in South Los Angeles on March 31. Following his tragic death, the Eritrean-American who was born and raised in L.A. has been praised as a local philanthropist who was heavily…
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Stop-and-Frisk Policing Can Make Criminals of Black and Brown Boys, Study Finds
If you treat someone like a criminal, he’s more likely to act like one later in life and commit a crime. That’s among the findings of a New York University study that looked at the impact of “proactive policing” policies—initiatives like stop-and-frisk and police stops that have cops “engaging” with those most likely to be…
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'If They Can Have Her, Why Can't We?': New Report Details How Police Rape, Torture Women Sex Workers in the Dominican Republic
Sex work is legal in the Dominican Republic. But despite this, sex workers are still vulnerable to abuse—particularly at the hands of local law enforcement, who know they can torture women who engage in sex work with impunity. After all, who do you go to when you’re raped by the cops? A new report released…
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Body Recovered From Ohio's Scioto River Identified as Missing Social Justice Advocate, Amber Evans
The body of a young woman recovered from the Scioto River in Ohio on Saturday has been identified as 28-year-old community activist Amber Evans by Columbus Police. She had been missing since Jan. 28. Columbus Police released the news on Sunday, sharing a statement on Twitter. Evans’ body was found by Columbus Police Special Victims…
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'Lady Liberty' Patricia Okoumou Will Not Go to Prison for July 4th Protest
A federal judge ruled Patricia Okoumou, known around the world as the “Statue of Liberty Climber,” will not spend any time in jail for her bold July 4 protest. Okoumou climbed the Statue of Liberty last year to draw attention to inhumane U.S. immigration policies. At the time, the Department of Homeland Security’s practice of…
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An Exclusive Interview With the Jaguar Who ‘Attacked’ a Woman at an Arizona Zoo
After a woman was injured after crossing a barrier to take a selfie with a jaguar at an Arizona zoo, The Root negotiated an exclusive one-on-one interview with the jaguar. Michael Harriot: Hi, how are you? I want to thank you for taking some time out of your schedule to do this interview. What would…
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The Key to Genuine Equality? A Union Card
Whenever I face adversity—when my faith is shaken or my confidence falters—I turn to a woman I carry in my heart every day. Too often forgotten in Dr. King’s shadow, Coretta Scott King embodied everything at the core of an intersectional fight for justice. Above all, she recognized that the movement for civil rights could…
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Kanautica Zayre-Brown and the Cold, Routine Cruelty of How the Criminal Justice System Treats Trans Women
Kanautica Zayre-Brown is a woman. Kanautica Zayre-Brown was convicted of a crime. Kanautica Zayre-Brown ought to be in a women’s prison. But since 2017, she has served the beginning of a 9-year, 11-month sentence in Harnett Correctional, a men’s prison in Lillington, N.C., despite her repeated pleas to be transferred. The state has yet to…
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Why They Kneel: Everything We Said About Police Brutality Was Wrong
To examine the injustice and inequality that prompted some NFL players to protest during the national anthem, each week during the 2018 regular season, The Root explored the data behind racial disparities. As America enjoys the Super Bowl, the Root Partnered with Fatal Encounters to examine what we don’t know about police brutality in America.…
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Cyntoia Brown Granted Clemency
Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, in one of his last acts in office, has granted clemency to 30-year-old Cyntoia Brown, who has spent the last 14 years behind bars for shooting and killing a man. Brown, who was tried as an adult as a 16-year-old, said she was forced into sex work and feared for her…
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