culture
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Lamar Odom Out for the Season in Spain
Struggling ex-NBA player Lamar Odom’s stint as a European basketball player has come to an end, after a back injury has him sidelined for the remainder of his two-month contract, the Spanish club said Sunday, Yahoo Sports reports. Laboral Kutxa Baskonia, the team that took a chance on the two-time NBA champion, reports that Odom’s…
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The Root Recognizes: Volunteer De’Von Cross Helps Uninsured Get to the Finish Line
When De’Von Cross is volunteering on a college campus in his home state of Alabama, he sets up a booth in the student union center and lures students over with boxes of hot pizza. In exchange for a slice, students must answer one simple question: “Do you have health insurance?” A pivotal deadline is approaching for…
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‘Black Twitter’ Changed My Life
When it comes to the question of whether “black Twitter” should be called black Twitter and whether there are too many (or any) articles written about it, I really couldn’t care less. Whatever it’s called, however it’s covered (even if it does sometimes feel as if reporters are observing exotic animals and describing their findings), this…
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GOP Congressional Candidate Apologizes for Slavery Comments
Arizona Republican congressional candidate Jim Brown, who was roundly criticized last week for comparing modern-day “entitlements” to slavery, has issued an apology, the Huffington Post reports. Brown, who is running in for a seat in Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District, said in the apology on Thursday that he cares “about every human being on this planet.”…
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Lupita Nyong’o: Her Father Says Family Suffered Torture and Brutality in Kenya
The family of Academy Award-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o reportedly experienced similar abuse as that depicted in 12 Years a Slave, her father told the Independent. The actress has garnered widespread praise for her performance in the film as Patsey, who was subjugated and dehumanized by her owners, earning her an Oscar for best supporting actress.…
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Watch: Chicago Youth Poetry Team Knocks Mayor ‘Wreck-It-Rahm’
“Hide your schools. Hide your homes. Hide your children ’cause he’s wrecking it all,” TEAM Englewood, a Chicago youth-poetry group, warns in a poem directed at Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his policies. The youth-poetry group recited the poem earlier this month during the semifinals of the youth-poetry competition Louder Than a Bomb, the largest youth poetry…
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Chris Brown to Spend More Than 30 Days in Jail
Chris Brown is likely singing the jailhouse blues instead of his usual hip-hop and R&B tunes. The embattled 24-year-old singer will spend more than one month behind bars, TMZ reported Saturday. He was arrested Friday on a warrant after he was kicked out of a rehabilitation center in Malibu, Calif., where he was being treated…
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Fla. Worker Allegedly Kills Boss for Posting His Photo Online
A Florida man reportedly fatally stabbed his boss because the man took a picture of him and posted it online, according to NBC 6 Miami. Tilus Lebrun, 36, was arrested Thursday and charged with first-degree premeditated murder and murder while engaged in a certain felony offense. He was ordered held without bail until his arraignment.…
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Social Media Turns 1 Woman’s Tragedy Into Triumph
It all started in late February while she was out for a drive with her boyfriend. They got into an argument on a road in Belleville, Ill. He accused her of cheating, and then, she says, he hit her and pushed her out of the moving vehicle. “He hit me first before he pushed me…
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Woman Arrested After 6-Year-Old Cousin Found Frozen to Death
A 22-year-old Minnesota woman has been arrested and charged in the death of her 6-year-old cousin, who was found frozen to death outside her home in temperatures below freezing, the Daily News reports. Rachel Downer is expected to be charged with second-degree manslaughter and felony neglect of a child, according to a statement from the…