chicago
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Extreme Heat, Flooding and Public Health Issues: How Climate Change Is an Existential Threat to Black People
We should all be pretty familiar with the term “climate change” by now. But knowing buzzwords isn’t the same as understanding how the phenomenon affects black people on a global scale in more severe ways than other groups. The devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina. Political instability in sub-Saharan Africa. Heatwaves in Chicago. What do these…
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Homecoming: A Powerful Pair of Revivals Prove Chicago a Mecca for Black Theater
There was palpable energy in the theater on the opening night of Drury Lane Theatre’s revival of The Color Purple—and a hallelujah chorus of shouts and co-signs from the audience, no doubt a rarity in the predominantly white suburb of Chicago known as Oakbrook Terrace. But the black theatrical community was out in force to…
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It's the Refund to Ignition: Woman Who Paid $100,000 for R. Kelly's Bond Wants Her Money Back
Imagine treating a donation to an alleged pedophile/ephebophile like an incorrect Postmates order. Well, imagine not, as one woman is actually hoping to get a refund for her charity in connection with Robert “R.” Kelly’s recent federal indictment on 18 counts, including child pornography production, receipt of child pornography and obstruction of justice in New…
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Joan Johnson, Who Co-Founded Johnson Products and Thus Co-Helped Us Live Our Best Black Lives, Has Died at 89
Universal blackness suffered a tremendous loss last week when Joan Johnson—who along with husband, George Johnson, founded Johnson Products—passed away at age 89. Johnson Products, which brought to us such omnipresent hair products as Afro Sheen, Ultra Sheen, and Gentle Treatment, could (and actually, probably, still can) literally be found in black bathrooms, kitchens, salons,…
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R. Kelly Learns the Date He’s to Face the Music on Federal Sex Abuse Charges in Chicago
R. Kelly’s federal trial in Chicago on charges he sexually abused girls and paid off witnesses and victims to rig his 2008 child pornography trial is set to begin in April of next year, a federal judge decided Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber, however, said the April 27, 2020, trial date could change depending…
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Newly Appointed Special Prosecutor in the Jussie Smollett Case Will Reinvestigate the Actor’s Infamous Tale and the Saga That Followed
Talk about making a federal case out of something. A Chicago judge on Friday appointed a former U.S. attorney—a fed, y’all—as special prosecutor to investigate what one guesses should be referred to as “Jussie Smollett-gate.” Sigh. According to the Chicago Tribune, on Friday, Cook County Judge Michael Toomin appointed Dan Webb, a former federal prosecutor,…
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Just Pitiful: An ‘Emotional’ R. Kelly Faces New Civil Suit as He Sits in Solitary Awaiting Trial on Fed Sex Charges
Tsk, tsk, tsk. It’s a sorry state of affairs for Robert “R.” Kelly as he awaits trial in multiple jurisdictions on state and federal charges he sexually abused women and girls. According to his lawyer, the besieged R&B crooner is being held in solitary in federal prison in Chicago, with just a Bible the reportedly…
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Breakfast of Champions: Janelle Monáe and Belvedere Vodka Hosted a 'Night Brunch' in Chicago—and We Were There
“What does a beautiful future mean to you?” That was the question posed by entertainer and activist Janelle Monáe as she debuted her collaboration with Belvedere Vodka with a “night brunch” at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art on Thursday night. The name of her limited edition bottle? “A Beautiful Future,” of course. Those familiar with…
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R. Kelly Traffics in Victim-Blaming, Calling Sex Crime Accusers ‘Disgruntled Groupies’ Who Were ‘Dying to Be With Him’
Lawyers for accused pedophile Robert “R.” Kelly say the embattled R&B singer’s troubles are basically the result of groupie love gone wrong. Kelly, 52, faces federal charges in Chicago and New York, including allegations that he ran a sex trafficking ring targeting women and girls, produced child pornography, and paid off a girl and her…