culture
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About 100 People Linked to US Ebola Patient Are Being Screened by Health Officials
Approximately 100 people received word from Texas health officials that they need to come in for questioning, and possibly an examination, because they may have had contact with Thomas E. Duncan, the New York Times is reporting. Duncan is the only known person to have been diagnosed in the U.S. with the Ebola virus. The people being…
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No, a Boyfriend Doesn’t Have to Pay Bills Like a Husband
My best friend, who lives with her boyfriend, got into a car accident. Via mass email, she asked all her friends for money to help with the expensive repair. I said to her privately that her boyfriend should be handling that, not us. She called me judgmental and unrealistic, then we fought about my high…
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Obama and the Conundrum of Not Being a Post-Racial America
Left of Black host Mark Anthony Neal is joined by Karla FC Holloway to talk about her new book, Legal Fictions: Constituting Race, Composing Literature, and the question of whether we are on a path to a post-racial America. She also weighs in on President Barack Obama’s ability to serve the interests of African Americans while…
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Ariz. Teacher Fired for Defending 9-Year-Old Against Students Using N-Word
Teachers are normally lauded when they defend their students, but in Phoenix-area elementary school teacher Pam Aister’s case, she was given the boot after she backed up a 9-year-old who was allegedly being tormented and called racist names by some peers, the New York Daily News reports. Fourth-grader Malachi Gillis was called a n—ger and…
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US Ebola Victim Made Several Stops on His Way to Texas
The man who became the first person in the U.S. to be diagnosed with Ebola made quite a few stops around the world before reaching his final destination in Dallas, the Associated Press reports. Thomas Eric Duncan’s 28-hour trip from Monrovia in Liberia to Dallas involved flying on two airlines and taking a total of…
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Report: Civil Rights Charges Against George Zimmerman Unlikely, Officials Say
Because of a lack of evidence, the Department of Justice is unlikely to bring any civil rights charges against former Florida neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman for the death of unarmed teen Trayvon Martin, three law-enforcement officials have told the Washington Post. Accusations that Trayvon’s death was racially motivated were what prompted the DOJ to start…
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Jahi McMath’s Family Wants Teen Declared ‘Alive’
Jahi McMath, the 13-year-old Oakland, Calif., teen who became the center of a national debate last year regarding end-of-life decision-making after doctors declared her legally dead when her family believed otherwise, is reportedly showing signs of life. According to CBS San Francisco, Jahi’s family is petitioning the courts to have an Alameda County judge declare…
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Calif. Equalizes Prison Sentencing for Crack and Cocaine Drug Crimes
Attorney General Eric Holder is probably smiling at this news. Critics of the criminal-justice system often call on the federal government to fix the prison-sentencing disparities that exist between black and white defendants convicted of drug crimes, but last week California showed that states have the power to correct that kind of racial discrimination, too. According to…
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NFL Player Accused of Sexual Assault Investigated by Police
A day after NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell held a news conference to address the numerous accusations surrounding domestic violence and NFL players, the New York Daily News is reporting that a “Dallas Cowboys special-teams player was accused of sexually assaulting a woman at the team’s hotel in Texas” and was still allowed to play. According…