culture
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Starting Fresh: 5 Things I’m Leaving Behind in 2017
New year, new me. People make fun of that saying, but if you think about it, it is a mood, a message and a lifestyle. Each year on Dec. 31, we shed at least some part of our old selves and take on new habits, ideas or mantras. For me, Dec. 31, 2017, was no…
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With Bright, Will Smith Misses an Opportunity to Launch a Real Afrofuturistic Revolution
My friends and I constantly talk about how we want a bunch of black movies across the spectrum, from romance to science fiction. White actors get all the fun and we get all the supporting (and usually dying) sidekicks. Will Smith has been serving us all those movies we crave for years. He took a…
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Living Single Cast and Creator Reflect on Legacy 20 Years After Series Finale
Since leaving the air 20 years ago today, Jan. 1, Living Single continues to resonate in the hearts of loyal fans. Its legacy alone has dismissed critics (i.e., Newsweek’s 1993 article with its “booty-shaking sugar mamas” comment), paving the way for shows like Insecure, and still reigns as a beloved fixture of black entertainment and…
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For, by and About Black Women: Charlie Is a Reflection of How We All Deal Differently With Grief
What happens when you lose the person you care about the most? How do you deal with that grief? How does it express itself? How does it change you, and how does it keep you the same? How do the bonds of sisterhood hold us together? These are the questions the film Charlie answers and…
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The Biggest Winners of 2017
With everything—and everyone—we lost in this past year, there were some big wins. Black women showed up and showed out in various ways. Black men put their careers and livelihoods on the line to speak out against racial injustice, police violence, and sexual assault and harassment. Creative artists experienced amazing glow ups, and black teenagers…
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Erica Garner: ‘I’m in This Fight Forever’ [Retracted]
RETRACTED (6/12/18): This story has been removed because we have discovered it was in breach of our editorial standards. If you’d like to know more, you can read an editor’s note here. A cached version of the story is available here for transparency.
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In Memoriam: Remembering Those We Lost in 2017
We laid many of our beloved black icons, role models and pioneers to rest in 2017. From legends such as Chuck Berry, Fats Domino and Della Reese to modern-day stars like Charlie Murphy and Prodigy; from unsung heroes like civil rights activists and black firsts to men, women and children killed by police, and to…
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The Biggest Losers of 2017
As the year comes to a close, The Root takes a look back at those who took an L. We aren’t talking the kind of loss you feel sympathy for—or the kind of losses you point a finger and laugh at or shake your head in shame and secondhand embarrassment. Let’s review everyone—and everything—that caught…
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How to Have a Sexy and Happy New Year’s Eve
Sunday night will be the last Sunday night of 2017. For some, it will be the last night they can stay up as late as they want before starting out a new year at work Tuesday morning. They say the way you bring in your new year is indicative of how you will spend the…
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Umar Johnson Is the Black Church
The Hoteps are hilarious. We should all make fun of them. I still find it hard to believe that people actually cape for Umar Johnson. I’d never fall for it. I’m too educated to buy into that illogical nonsense. I pray to God that I would never be that stupid. The Bible says we need…