culture
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Twin Plays in Honor of Brother Who Died to Save Him: ‘Issy Would Want Me to Play Ball’
Demacio Bailey, the twin brother of 15-year-old Demario Bailey, who died when the pair were attacked by armed robbers in the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago, played in his Monday-night high school basketball game, dedicating it to his twin, the Chicago Tribune reports. “He said, ‘Mama, Issy would want me to play ball,’ ” the boys’ mother,…
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Outpouring of Kindness Continues for Grandma Caught Shoplifting to Feed Family
On Dec. 6, Tarrant, Ala., police Officer William Stacy got a shoplifting call from Dollar General. Stacy gets such calls all the time. When he got to the store, he was shocked by what he saw: Helen Johnson, 47, was short the money she needed to get a carton of eggs, so she had stuffed…
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6 Dead in Philly-Area Killing Spree
Police officers were stationed on Monday outside the home of a Pennsylvania man who may have been involved in “a killing spree” in which six people were shot dead and one person severely injured, Al-Jazeera reports. “The [alleged] gunman was identified as 35-year-old Bradley William Stone and described by authorities as being armed and dangerous,” the…
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Families in Sandy Hook School Shooting Sue Gun-Maker
The families of nine of the 26 victims of the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., have filed a lawsuit against “the manufacturer, distributor and seller” of the rifle that was used by the gunman, Al-Jazeera reports. “The negligence and wrongful death lawsuit, filed in Bridgeport Superior Court on Monday, asserts…
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Let’s Get Rid of the Myth That Success Conquers Depression
When I told a friend I was writing a story on depression, he asked, “What about it?” I elaborated. “People can look outwardly successful and still struggle internally with chronic feelings of despair and unworthiness.” To that, he balled up his face in skepticism. “How often does that really happen? What do they even have…
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Report: NC Teen’s Relationship With White, Crack-Addict Girlfriend May Have Led to Hanging
Friends and family of Lennon Lacy, the 17-year-old North Carolina teen found hanged, believe that his death may have been connected to a relationship he had with a 32-year-old white woman who, they say, turned to prostitution to support her crack habit, according to a New York Daily News report. Lennon’s body was found Aug.…
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Chicago Family Mourns Loss of Twin Who Died Protecting Brother From Armed Robbers
Their family had just given the 15-year-old twins permission to be out on their own together more often when Demario Bailey was shot dead by armed robbers while trying to protect his brother, Demacio, the New York Daily News reports. According to the news site, the boys were walking to a basketball game at Englewood High…
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76-Year-Old Texas Man Reportedly Tasered by Officer During Traffic Stop
The Victoria, Texas, Police Department is conducting an internal investigation after one of its officers allegedly used a stun gun on a 76-year-old man during a traffic stop, the Victoria Advocate reports. Officer Nathanial Robinson, 23, is reportedly on administrative duty following the Thursday incident, during which, it is alleged, he violated the department’s policy…
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Sharpton Responds to Criticism That His Movement Excludes Younger Activists
Within social-justice movements, tensions often surface between older and youngster activists—that’s hardly new. But the Rev. Al Sharpton says that recent criticism that he isn’t doing enough to groom younger, up-and-coming activists within his civil rights tradition is simply not true. “This is more about ideology than it is about generational differences,” Sharpton told The…
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NC Teen Lennon Lacy Was Lynched, Mom Believes
Lennon Lacy’s mom, Claudia Lacy, is willing to believe that her 17-year-old son committed suicide back in August in Bladenboro, N.C., if it is proved and explained to her, but so far the grieving mother isn’t seeing the evidence or the pursuit of justice that she needs, CNN reports. “That’s all I’ve ever asked for:…