culture
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The Root 100 Gala Celebrates the Most Influential African Americans
The Root 100 annual gala is always a high-powered networking event, part family reunion, part revival. Throw in a photo booth and a great DJ, and it turns into one of the best parties of the year. Thursday night’s soiree at New York City’s Espace on West 42nd Street did not disappoint. Packed with movers…
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Michael Brown’s Mother Could Face Felony Theft Charges: Report
As the nation waits for possible charges to be brought against Darren Wilson, the police officer who killed Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., Brown’s mother may be facing charges of her own. Leslie McSpadden has been accused of leading others to attack and steal money from a group selling “Justice for Mike Brown” merchandise. If…
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Family Wants Answers After Police Fatally Shoot Illinois Man in a Hospital
An Illinois family wants answers after one of its members—a father of two—was shot and killed by police while at a hospital, reports the Chicago Tribune. Christopher Anderson, 27, was shot for allegedly refusing to put down a gun that police claim he drew after becoming irate with hospital staff. “It doesn’t sound right at…
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Chicago Election Judges Claim They Were Pressured to Vote for Republicans
Chicago election judges are crying foul on the Republican Party, Raw Story reports. Two Republican Party committee members who were selected as election judges say they were told whom to vote for if they wanted to retain their Election Day jobs. The judges said their selection was withdrawn when they objected to being pressured on…
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Code Switch: Black Emojis Are on the Way
Diverse emojis are finally coming our way. According to the New York Daily News, Unicode Consortium, the coders behind emojis, will introduce a skin-tone modifier to their system to allow users to change the shade of the emoji of their choice. Over the past two years, celebrities including Miley Cyrus and Tahj Mowry have voiced…
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Woman Abducted on Philadelphia Street Found Alive; ‘Dangerous Predator’ Arrested
The 22-year-old woman who was abducted Sunday in Philadelphia as she walked home from visiting her godson was found safe less than 72 hours after she was taken, and the man who police said took her has been arrested. According to NBC 10, surveillance video captured the nighttime abduction of Carlesha Freeland-Gaither. Freeland-Gaither fought her…
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The 5 Worst States for Black People
Progress, the story of black America. We started from the most bottom of bottoms (not having personhood) and worked our way up to the age of Obama, where we are leaps and bounds better than we were (hey, we have personhood now!) but are still struggling to make it to the middle, let alone to…
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Utah’s Mia Love Says Race Not a Factor in Her History-Making Election
On Tuesday, Utah Republican Mia Love made history by becoming the first black Republican woman elected to Congress after narrowly defeating Democrat Doug Owens 50 percent to 47 percent in a House race. “This is a great night for our nation. It is especially a great night for Utah,” Love told supporters shortly after her…
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Dallas Man Arrested for Stealing 160,000 Diapers
A Dallas man has been arrested in the theft of 160,000 diapers from a charity, Captain Hope’s Kids, reports the Dallas News. Roderick Phillips, 39, was arrested on Oct. 22 for theft and evading arrest. Phillips is a former employee of the charity, which lost roughly $34,000 worth of diapers in the theft, which occurred Oct.…
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Report: Mass Rape of More Than 200 Women and Girls in North Darfur Village
Sudanese soldiers reportedly raped more than 200 women and girls in a North Darfur village during an eight-hour attack last week, according to AllAfrica.com. According to the website, on Friday morning a Sudanese military commander, stationed close to the village Tabit, said that one of his soldiers went missing Thursday evening. The commander then reportedly…