black history month
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My Black History: The Case for Black Art in an Anti-Presidential Era
Editor’s note: During Black History Month, the focus is usually on historical figures who loomed larger than life, paving the way for the progress we experience today. But black history isn’t just about telling stories of our past. History is being made every day and has been made throughout our lives; it’s not just in…
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Watch: James Baldwin, in Our Words and His
James Baldwin is unequivocally one of the most prolific writers of his time. A queer black man, he brought life to the African-American experience through his novels, essays, debates and public lectures. And now a new generation is getting to experience the power of those words in the Oscar-nominated documentary I Am Not Your Negro.…
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Black Travel: A Tradition and Rite of Passage
I was 14 years old when my parents took me to Costa Rica, and I was kicking and screaming the entire way. It was my first time abroad, and America Online had just established a monthly flat rate for unlimited usage. But instead of starting conversations online with the requisite “age, sex, location,” I ended…
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Watch: I Love My Black Skin
For Black History Month, The Root is celebrating blackness in a new series called I Love My Blackness. In the series, we will celebrate black skin, black style, black friendship and black love. The first video in this melanin-rich celebration features our readers explaining why they love their black skin. One of the men featured…
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Living With History: The Descendants of Ida B. Wells Believe Everyone Has the Potential for Greatness
Editor’s note: For Black History Month, The Root is speaking to the relatives of our most cherished African-American heroes in a series called Living With History. To open the series, we interviewed a descendant of Frederick Douglass and Booker T. Washington. Today we feature Michelle and Daniel Duster, the great-grandchildren of Ida B. Wells-Barnett, renowned…
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Department of Education’s Twitter Account Just Quoted Some Man Named W.E.B. DeBois
One has to wonder if Betsy DeVos has taken over the Department of Education’s Twitter account, because someone just used a W.E.B. Du Bois quote but attributed it to some dude named W.E.B. DeBois. Now, before you go and blame an intern, nowadays most social media is actually run by full-time staff at government agencies.…
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Actress Kali Hawk Celebrates Black History Month and Gives a Lesson in Johnny Depp’s ‘Black’ History
In 2013, during promotion of Johnny Depp’s flop, I mean film, The Lone Ranger, it was alleged that Depp was a descendant of Elizabeth Key Grinstead, the first slave in the American colonies to sue for her freedom and win. Now, when you go to check the original Ancestry.com article that supposedly posted the findings,…
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Ga. Mom: Son Expelled After She Questioned ‘American History’ Display During Black History Month
It seems as if #PenceBlackHistory is catching on in the schools. On a serious note, a Georgia mother says that her son was kicked out of school after she questioned an “American history” display that featured white historical figures, along with black history icons, during Black History Month, WSBTV reports. Kendra Molden, of Lithia Springs,…
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VSB Profiled for BET.com's "Great 28" Black History Month Campaign
Last month, Damon and I had the pleasure of visiting BET to be interviewed for a Black History Month campaign they’re running called, “Great 28.” Our profile dropped yesterday on BET.com. Thanks to BET for bringing us up and giving us an additional platform to share the VSB word. For the culture, for the community. Peep…
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Watch: My Black History: Michael Eric Dyson on How MLK’s Assassination Opened His Eyes
Editor’s note: During Black History Month, the focus is usually on historical figures who loomed larger than life, paving the way for the progress we experience today. But black history isn’t just about telling stories of our past. History is being made every day and has been made throughout our lives; it’s not just in…