black culture
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Judge of Characters: Learning to Share the Culture When Black Panther Goes Beyond the Black Community
Black Panther has revolutionized superhero movies—well movies in general. The film with the predominantly black cast has broken records, sparked community service and inspired STEM center openings around the United States, and with that greatness comes the responsibility of sharing the culture. It’s very obvious that black people experience T’Challa and his kingdom in a…
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Am I the Only Person Under 60 Who Still Carries Around a Crown Royal Bag for My Valuables?
In the black American community, there are a few cultural items revered historically and across regions of blackness without question: the Afro pick with the black fist on it, plastic coverings on furniture, pictures in Grandma’s house of white Jesus, and the Crown Royal bag. Yes, the Crown Royal bag. When you buy a fifth…
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Who Is Angela Rye? Her BET Specials May Let Us Know Exactly That
I met Angela Rye on Nov. 7, 2012. I was part of a group that put together an election night party at the Washington Post headquarters building in Washington, D.C., so we could all (hopefully) watch President Barack Obama be re-elected. Up to that point, I’d only heard of her. Black, young, college-educated, professional D.C.…
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Watch: The Last Dragon’s Taimak Talks Appropriation vs. Appreciation Within Black and Asian Cultures
The Last Dragon is a cult-classic film that features ridiculous stereotypes flipped on their head. We got to see Chinese men talking like they’re auditioning for the latest blaxploitation film, and Bruce Leroy himself adopt a quiet and quirky kung-fu-master attitude. With all of the culture swapping going on, my favorite video producer and editor…
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Watch: How Do Black People ‘Emoji’?
Unicode, the consortium responsible for creating new emojis, has released hundreds of new emojis, including a genie, breastfeeding, a woman in a head scarf—the works. If you use a humanlike emoji, like the thumbs-up, then you have to choose one of six skin tones. But how do black people choose the skin tones of their…
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Did Afropunk Lose Its Punk Roots?
This weekend, a sea of unapologetic blackness will descend upon Fort Greene’s Commodore Barry Park for Brooklyn, N.Y.’s 12th Annual Afropunk Fest. Instagram feeds and Twitter hashtags everywhere will be peppered with twist-outs and bold prints; your favorite vibe curator will inevitably make a thread of the best of the best of the audience’s fabulous…
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6-Year-Old Creates Coloring Book Series to Teach About Black Indigenous Cultures Around the World
A 6-year-old girl and her mother have created a coloring book that educates young children about black indigenous cultures around the world while exploring the histories of native-born black people in Africa and America. Vanae James-Bey and her mother, Veronica Bey, are originally from Florida but now live in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. They told…
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"Black People Would Be Wealthy If We Stopped Buying Jordans And Weave" Has Always Been And Will Always Be Bullshit
Whenever a large group of Black people happen to come together — and this could be on Facebook, at a BBQ, during a happy hour, or perhaps even while teaching a Kappa how to throw a football — conversations about economic empowerment are not particularly uncommon. They don’t always happen — sometimes you just want…
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An Ode To Donny Hathaway and "This Christmas"
If you know like I know you don’t want to step to this Christmas season doesn’t officially begin until the first time I play Donny Hathaway’s “This Christmas”, his 1970 single (that he wrote with Nadine McKinnor) that tanked upon release but over time has become as vital to the Christmas season as Mariah Carey’s “All I Want…