culture
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Officer Who Threatened Ferguson Protesters Suspended
Lt. Ray Albers of the St. Ann Police Department in Missouri has been indefinitely suspended from the force after video footage showed him pointing his semi-automatic assault rifle and threatening to kill protesters during Tuesday night’s demonstrations in Ferguson, Mo., the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. Albers, who was identified by St. Ann Police Chief Aaron Jimenez,…
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Black Former Editor at People Mag Says She Was Told to Change Her Speech: ‘You’re Not at Essence Anymore’
Tatsha Robertson, People magazine’s only black editor until she was fired in May, has filed a lawsuit against the magazine alleging that the publication is biased against blacks and that she was treated like a second-class citizen. According to New York’s Daily News, which has viewed the lawsuit, Robertson, 48, alleges that there were only…
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Ala. Teacher on Leave After Having Students Re-Enact Michael Brown Shooting
An elementary school teacher in Selma, Ala., is under scrutiny after having students research and re-enact the death of unarmed Ferguson, Mo., teen Michael Brown, the Selma Times-Journal reports. The unidentified teacher was placed on administrative leave on Wednesday after a Facebook post by an angry parent blasted the lesson. According to the Times-Journal, Jessica…
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US Ebola Patients Released From Emory University Hospital
Nancy Writebol, one of two U.S. citizens airlifted from Liberia to Atlanta’s Emory University Hospital after contracting Ebola, was released Tuesday morning after testing free of the deadly virus, WSOC-TV reports. The hospital held a news conference on Thursday to talk about the release of Writebol and of the other American, Dr. Kent Brantly. Brantly,…
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Step Aside, Iggy Azalea, It’s Time for Nicki Minaj to Appropriate … Herself
At midnight Wednesday, Nicki Minaj dropped the full video for “Anaconda,” an ode to bodacious booties with a heavily sampled shoutout to Sir Mix-a-Lot’s 1992 signature “thickums” jam “Baby Got Back.” What’s endearing, in an “Oh, the ’90s” kind of way, is remembering how “Baby Got Back” and its video were highly controversial at the…
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Report Claim: Darren Wilson Was Beaten Up and Got a Fractured Eye Socket Before Shooting
(Editor’s note: CNN source refutes this report from Fox News) Ferguson, Mo., Police Officer Darren Wilson reportedly suffered severe facial injuries from being beaten up before he shot and killed unarmed teen Michael Brown, a new report from an unidentified source claims, Fox News reports. The source, who Fox said was close to Ferguson Police…
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‘Affluenza’ Teen’s Father Arrested
This may be a clear case of “police-enza.” Fred Couch, the father of Ethan Couch, the Texas teen who made national news after his attorneys argued an “affluenza” defense for a drunken-driving accident that killed four people and seriously injured two, has been arrested for impersonating a police officer, the Dallas News reports. According to…
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Calif. Highway Patrol Officer Suspended in Beating of Homeless Woman
The video footage was violent. A California Highway Patrol officer straddling an older woman rained down punches, all of them closed fist, to the woman’s face. The July 1 video of the incident went viral. On Wednesday the CHP released a statement noting that Daniel Andrew, the officer who is reported to have been involved…
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6 Arrested in Quiet Night of Peaceful Protests in Ferguson
Speaking at an early-morning press conference Thursday, Missouri Highway Patrol Capt. Ronald S. Johnson noted that the 11th night of protests in Ferguson were mostly peaceful as protesters gathered calmly and police did not use smoke, tear gas or pepper spray, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. Johnson credited the police, community leaders, clergy and the…
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Am I Yelling About Ferguson—or Are You Just Not Listening?
As a lawyer and radio host, I’ve been fortunate to have the opportunity to serve as an on-air commentator for CNN, HLN and other outlets on legal cases and social issues that are of particular interest to the challenges facing African Americans and, more particularly, African-American men. And recently I’ve offered my thoughts on Michael…