culture
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Texas Middle School Principal on Leave After Forbidding Students to Speak Spanish
A Texas middle school principal has been placed on paid administrative leave for allegedly forbidding the entire school to speak Spanish in order to prevent “disruptions,” KHOU reports. According to the news site, students at Hempstead Middle School have accused Principal Amy Lacey of telling them over the intercom on Nov. 12 that they could…
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Morgan State Fraternity on Probation for Rejecting Gay Student
A Morgan State chapter of the Kappa Alpha Psi has been placed on probation until fall 2015, university officials said Tuesday for discriminating against a gay student who wanted to join the fraternity, the Baltimore Sun reports. Senior Brian Stewart filed a formal complaint with the university, in late October claiming that the fraternity rejected…
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Charges Against NY Teens Waiting for School Bus to Be Dropped
Charges will be dropped against the three Rochester, N.Y., teens who were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct while waiting for a school bus to take them to a basketball game. According to USA Today, on Tuesday Monroe County District Attorney Sandra Doorley refused to prosecute the case. “After reviewing the facts associated with these…
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Memphis Officials Propose an African-American Trail
Memphis, Tenn., officials have pitched the idea of an African-American historical trail to the City Council, the Associated Press reports. The trail, which would be dedicated to black leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., would include new monuments around the downtown area, according to the AP. Housing and Community Development Director Robert Lipscomb reportedly…
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City of Miami Gardens Slapped With Lawsuit for Police Abuse and Racial Profiling
The mayor and police department of Miami Gardens, Fla., have been slapped with a federal civil rights lawsuit for police abuse and racial profiling, particularly against African Americans, Reuters reports. According to the report, Ali Amin Saleh, the owner of a convenience store in the predominantly black suburb, is leading the lawsuit’s 11 plaintiffs. His…
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Nigerian Tugboat Cook Survives 3 Days at the Bottom of the Atlantic Ocean
A dive team had gone to the sunken tugboat to retrieve bodies. What they found, 100 feet down at the bottom of the Atlantic, was a lone survivor in an air bubble in the sunken vessel. The diver saw a hand, which, he assumed, was that of a corpse, but when a diver reached out…
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Lee Daniels: ‘I Became Very Angry at White People’
Lee Daniels didn’t mince his words during his tribute speech to Forest Whitaker at the Gotham Independent Film Awards, Deadline reports. At one point, the director of The Butler told the crowd, “Forest would[n’t] like to hear all you talking through my speech, so shut the f—k up.” Once the crowd quieted, he commenced to tell…
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Don Lemon Plays ‘Knockout Game’ With ‘Black-Belt Rabbi’
Don Lemon, the highly controversial news anchor, volunteered his neck to Rabbi Gary Moskowitz, aka the “black-belt rabbi,” to demonstrate how helpless victims can defend themselves against rabble-rousers who prey on unsuspecting people in the “knockout game.” Brooke Baldwin, Lemon’s co-anchor, asked “Rambowitz,” as he is called, to demonstrate some of his defense techniques by…
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Detroit Is Officially Bankrupt
It is official: Detroit is bankrupt. On Tuesday, a federal judge gave Detroit the OK to proceed with the largest municipal bankruptcy in history, the New York Times reports. By allowing the city to qualify for bankruptcy, Detroit can dump billions in debt. Judge Steve W. Rhodes said that city met all of the qualifications,…
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White Teen, Black Guardians: Something Must Be Wrong
Landry Thompson has been dancing since she was 7. For the past few years she’s been practicing hip-hop routines in Oklahoma and dreaming about one day being able to travel to Houston to dance with Chachi Gonzales at the Planet Funk Academy. Her parents made that dream come true this past weekend when they allowed…