culture
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Here’s Why That School Principal Tells Young Black Men to Wear Ties
If you want to read a compelling defense of the individuality of spirit and mind in young black men—and their right to choose the normal range of teenage self-expression—look no further than this week’s Race Manners column, in which The Root’s Jenée Desmond-Harris explains why she’s skeptical about a school principal who stresses “dress for…
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Aaron Hernandez Indicted Again—This Time for 2012 Double Murder
Former New England Patriot Aaron Hernandez has been slapped with two more homicide charges in the shooting deaths of two men in Boston in 2012, according to Yahoo Sports. A Suffolk County, Mass., grand jury returned the indictment against Hernandez, who is already in custody and awaiting trial on first-degree murder charges for the 2013…
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Texas High School Sophomore Turns Out to Be 31-Year-Old Woman
High school sophomore Charity Stevens wasn’t who she claimed to be. It turns out that 15-year-old “Charity Stevens” was actually Charity Anne Johnson, a 31-year-old woman. Jezebel notes a KLTV report that Johnson enrolled in New Life Christian School in Long View, Texas, in March, posing as Charity Stevens. Before enrolling, Johnson convinced Tamika Lincoln to…
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Rihanna Accidentally Smashes Police Chief’s Phone, Donates $25K to His Charity
Maybe there should be a Good Gal RiRi meme. The pop star shelled out $25,000 to a police chief’s charity after accidentally breaking his cellphone. According to Us Weekly, the Bajan songstress was sitting courtside at the Los Angeles Clippers’ playoff game May 9 when L.A. Police Commission President Steve Soboroff asked for a selfie…
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Georgia High School Seniors Declare, ‘N–ga We Made It!’
Neither South Forsyth High School officials nor many students were impressed or amused by a “senior prank” that involved hanging a sign declaring “N—ga We Made It!” from the side of the school building Tuesday night, Fox 5 reports. The phrase, linked to a lyric in a popular Drake song, was also drawn on some…
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Nigerian Soldiers Clash With Militants Near Village Where Girls Were Kidnapped
Violence erupted again near the Nigerian village where more than 200 schoolgirls were kidnapped, with the Associated Press reporting that gunfire between Islamic militants and the Nigerian military left 12 soldiers dead and led to some soldiers firing on a commanding officer as he left the scene. According to a witness who spoke to AP,…
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Pair Who Stole Luggage After Fatal Plane Crash Headed to Jail
A California couple who both worked at San Francisco International Airport were sentenced to jail for stealing passengers’ luggage in the aftermath of last year’s fatal crash of Asiana Airlines Flight 214. Sean Sharif Crudup, 44, and his wife, Raychas Elizabeth Thomas, 32, both of Richmond, Calif., were sentenced this week to nine months and…
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Oprah’s Network to Produce Michael Sam Docuseries
Michael Sam has to be the most celebrated seventh-round pick never to have played a single NFL game. As the first openly gay NFL player, Sam has signed an endorsement deal with Visa; his jersey sales have been second only to Johnny Manziel, aka Johnny Football; and now the Oprah Winfrey Network will be chronicling…
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Mother and Sons Earn College Degrees in the Same Week
Talk about a triple play: The Williams family of Chicago, a mother and two of her sons, all received their bachelor’s degrees during commencement ceremonies this week. Aaron Williams and his mother, Tonya Williams both received bachelor’s degrees from Chicago State University Thursday, while brother and son Evan Williams graduated from Eastern Illinois University earlier…