culture
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On the Rise, MMA Tries to Figure Out the Hip-Hop Generation
As throngs of former collegiate wrestlers, contact sportsmen and current street fighters look to the new beacon of athletic hope that is mixed martial arts, one must recognize the shift in the talent pool. It is a shift that, although gradual, came from a place of desperation once the prospect or at least the perception…
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The Culture of Disrespect, Race and President Obama
The following is an excerpt of Charles M. Blow’s column from Sunday’s New York Times: “In an interview with the BBC this week, Oprah Winfrey said of President Obama: ‘There is a level of disrespect for the office that occurs. And that occurs, in some cases, and maybe even many cases, because he’s African-American.’ With that remark,…
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Making the Case for the MMA
There was once a family that hailed from beautiful Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The family was surprisingly stocked with boys who all seemed to walk to the pied piper movement of their father, a martial artist. However, his form of combative exercise was not atypical to his surroundings, which spawned the fighting dance of capoeira.…
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Film Explores One Man’s Vision of Race, Culture and Identity
Lauded British-African filmmaker John Akomfrah’s aesthetically captivating and poignant homage to Jamaican polymath, cultural theorist and British intellectual Stuart Hall is a real must-see, and one that I am all the richer for having seen. Currently showing as a multilayered video installation at Tate Britain for the next six months, this three-screen film montage is…
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Mike Tyson's Undisputed Truth Set to Premiere on HBO
Mike Tyson is a walking, talking anomaly. People fitting the pedigree of the former heavyweight champion of the world rarely get to tell their side of the story. Their lives and tragic deaths are usually cautionary tales whispered by school teachers, guidance counselors and group-home workers to children in need of “straightening out.” At one time, he was…
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Scandal Recap: 10 Shocking Twists
Wow. Just wow. Last night’s episode of Scandal was packed with so many scream-worthy twists I’m sure most of you are hoarse. Today I can’t even whisper the word “gladiator” without feeling faint. Just when you thought Olivia Pope had the “My Family’s Secrets Are Worse Than Your Family’s Secrets” contest on lock, here comes…
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Sen. Cory Booker Said to Be Dating Entertainment Lawyer
As the mayor of Newark, N.J., Cory Booker was always protective of his personal life, particularly when it came to romantic relationships. In fact, he was so evasive that many questioned his sexuality, believing him to be gay. But he may not be guarding his relationships so heavily as the newly elected senator of New…
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Woman Gets Racist Text From Limo Company
A Detroit woman looking to get a party bus for her mother’s birthday instead got a huge dose of racism. Candis Doss, 25, told Fox 2 that she called Detroit Limo Party Bus—a company that she found on Craigslist—to get a quote while she was driving. Her phone dropped the call, she says. Before she…
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Zimmerman Destroys Video Evidence Against Him; Avoids Charges
Good thing George Zimmerman destroyed the iPad. As a result, Lake Mary, Fla., police could not salvage the video recorded by his estranged wife during a domestic dispute. With no video, there will be no charges filed against him, the police said and the Orlando Sentinel reports. Police on Thursday released their final 30-page report…
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Homeowner Charged With 2nd-Degree Murder in Teen’s Death
Updated Friday, Nov. 15, 2013, 11:45 a.m.: Theodore P. Wafer, a 54-year-old suburban-Detroit homeowner, has been charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of Renisha McBride, an unarmed black woman who Wafer claimed he believed was trying to break into his home. Wayne County, Ill., prosecutor Kym Worthy announced three charges against the…