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  • Black Lotus Is a Woman’s Search for Racial Identity in a Racist World

    “‘Passing’ describes the choice to identify as a member of another racial group rather than face social prejudice,” writes Sil Lai Abrams in her memoir, Black Lotus: A Woman’s Search for Racial Identity. “Today the term is used almost exclusively to describe black people who consciously adopt a white identity.” But for Abrams, born to…

    By

    Hope Wabuke

    Published

  • An Open Letter to Nate Parker

    Nate, I’ve always liked you. With interest and enthusiasm, I’ve watched your career evolve, and have been eagerly anticipating the release of The Birth of a Nation—both enthralled with the clips I’ve seen and kicking myself for not making it to Sundance this year. This is a story that has long needed to be told,…

    By

    Maiysha Kai

    Published

  • Democrats for Education Reform Seek to Empower Parents and Strengthen Black Communities

    In a piece entitled, “Democratic Political Infighting Over Education Harms Black Families,” which was published on The Root last month, Dr. Andre Perry claimed that our organization, Democrats for Education Reform, not only “attacked” Hillary Clinton—because our position on charter schools differs from that of the former secretary of state—but also that we have broken away…

    By

    The Root Staff

    Published

  • How to Explain Black Lives Matter to White People

    If you haven’t been there yet, you will. Sometime in the near future, you’ll be in the break room at work when Jennifer starts asking questions. (You know Jennifer. She works with all of us. She’s the too-friendly white lady who writes her name on her food, shows you pictures of her cats and touches…

    By

    Michael Harriot

    Published

  • A Black Man’s Coming of Age in the Age of Obama

    In the title of his first book, Invisible Man, Got the Whole World Watching: A Young Black Man’s Education, The Nation contributing writer Mychal Denzel Smith calls to mind three works: Ralph Ellison’s classic Invisible Man, Mos Def’s “Hip-Hop” and Lauryn Hill’s seminal album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. With the eloquence and beauty of…

    By

    Hope Wabuke

    Published

  • Marion Christopher Barry Overdosed After Smoking K2. Here Is What We Know About the Drug

    On Sunday, Marion Christopher Barry, son of the late Washington, D.C., political giant Marion Barry, died of a drug overdose. According to reports, the younger Barry was in a Southeast D.C. apartment drinking and smoking K2, a now banned synthetic marijuana that not only used to be legal but was also sold in just about…

    By

    Stephen A. Crockett Jr.

    Published

  • When Black Lives Don't Matter to Black Athletes

    There is a specific moment in my sportswriting career that haunts me with the slow-burning intensity of a friend’s betrayal: I was interviewing a black professional athlete for a profile over which he and his handlers had fairly tight control. At some point during what had been a casual, fluffy and pedestrian back-and-forth, I asked…

    By

    The Root Staff

    Published

  • How My Story on Black Students Surviving PWIs Led to Death Threats

    I was finishing an essay when I got the death threat. I usually ignore calls that are blocked or from unlisted numbers, but for some reason, I was feeling adventurous that day. “You’re trying to start a race war with your articles, Larry,” said the voice on the other end of the line. “You won’t…

    By

    Lawrence Ware

    Published

  • Om Space: 1 Man’s Mission to Heal His Community Through Yoga

    Imagine a small, sustainable farm in western Maryland, a safe space where black men come together to heal and connect with themselves. They are trained to become certified yoga instructors and are educated and empowered to go out and use what they have learned about the practice of yoga to change and empower their own…

    By

    Breanna Edwards

    Published

  • Why the Black Lives Matter Movement Has to Take on Charter Schools

    Black school systems are treated like black men and women in America. Urban schools are broken up, experimented on and policed in efforts to improve them. The reformers expect students, teachers and parents to be grateful and accept test-score growth in return, just as black communities were expected to be grateful when crime dropped even as…

    By

    Andre Perry

    Published