Social Justice
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In Cities Nationwide, Large Margins of Voters Approve of Increased Police Oversight Measures
While there has been plenty of hand-wringing by elected officials about efforts to defund and reform the police, voters have voiced their desire for change, as ballot measures to increase police oversight passed by large margins in cities across the nation. CBS News reports that cities like Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Portland all voted by large…
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‘You Age Like Trash When You're Racist’: Black Activist Vs. Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners. It Wasn’t a Contest
So… We really need to talk about this Black woman who somehow was not charged in multiple homicides after she bodied an entire Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners during a Tuesday meeting. From Newsweek: The board’s monthly meeting ended abruptly after a stream of activists, clergy and community groups demanded the board take a…
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Los Angeles City Council Votes to Create Crisis Response Team for Non-Violent 911 Calls
On Wednesday, the Los Angeles City Council took a notable step towards police reform by advancing a proposal that would create a crisis response team for non-violent 911 calls. According to CNN, the proposal, passed by a unanimous vote, will allow the city to court non-profits to execute the pilot program. The program will allow 911…
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Trayvon Martin to Be Honored With Street Named After Him
The death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin at the hands of neighborhood vigilante George Zimmerman was the first high-profile case to spark what would later become the Black Lives Matter movement. Now, the street outside of the high school Trayvon attended is set to be named after him. The Miami Herald reports that last week, Miami-Dade…
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The Sports World Reacts to the Breonna Taylor Verdict: 'We Will Not Be Silent and Accept State Sanctioned Murder'
We knew it was going to happen. Yet despite having months to mentally prepare ourselves for the inevitable, it still rattled almost every last one of us to our core: there would be no justice for Breonna Taylor. As previously reported at The Root: On Wednesday, a grand jury indicted former Louisville Metro police officer…
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LeBron James Claps Back at LA County Sheriff Who Came for Him: 'What's Right Is Right, and What's Wrong Is Wrong'
As arguably the most influential and astute athlete of this generation, LeBron James might be a lot of things, but stupid isn’t one of them. So last week, when Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva took a break from attempting to reinstate former deputies accused of domestic violence in order to issue a challenge to…
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Pittsburgh Steelers to Honor Antwon Rose Jr. With Helmet Decal This Season
In 2018, The Root reported on a recurring theme that we just can’t seem to escape: the fatal shooting of yet another unarmed Black person at the hands of police, but what made this particular instance so disturbing was that the victim, Antwon Rose Jr., was only 17 years old. Antwon was a passenger in…
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Dak Prescott Hopes Jerry Jones Doesn't Treat Cowboys Players Like Runaway Slaves When They Inevitably Protest the National Anthem
I know, I know, he means well. With professional athletes more expressive about social justice causes than ever before, NFL star Dak Prescott believes that Cowboys players will inevitably join the fray despite their plantation owner Jerry Jones’ wishes to the contrary. However, the two-time Pro Bowler believes that his teammates shouldn’t subscribe to groupthink,…
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Naomi Osaka Honors Breonna Taylor With Mask at U.S. Open, Has 6 More Masks Lined Up Because She Ain't Losing Any Time Soon
Just so we’re clear, Naomi Osaka has no intention of losing in the U.S. Open anytime soon. I say that because, on Monday night, she took the court at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City donning a black face mask with Breonna Taylor’s name on it. She then proceeded to stomp a mudhole in…
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Baltimore Ravens Apply Pressure, Urge Mitch McConnell to Do His Damn Job by Bringing George Floyd Police Reform Bill to Vote
In the immediate aftermath of the Milwaukee Bucks refusing to take the floor during Game 5 of their NBA playoffs series in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake, the Baltimore Ravens canceled practice on Friday and issued a statement demanding police reform and addressing systemic oppression in America. “This is bigger than sports,”…
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