culture
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Slavery Museum, Once a Dream, Plagued by Money Trouble
(The Root)—In late September, a TV news crew from Richmond, Va.’s WTVR cornered former Virginia Gov. Doug Wilder and his attorney, Joe Morrissey, outside a courthouse in Caroline County. The encounter was classic journalist versus dissembling pols—and by “classic” I mean sad and predictable. A circuit court judge had just ruled against Wilder’s United States…
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Back Off When Your Male Friend Has a New Woman
(The Root)— “Is there, in your opinion, an unspoken understanding that one should heed a certain discretion with friends of the opposite sex when they enter a relationship? For example, if I’m best friends with a guy that has a new girlfriend, does that mean I have to censor how often I contact him, especially…
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Howard University Morale Is Sinking
Howard University, one of the nation’s most-famed HBCUs, has not been having a good year, and some fear the faculty and university are losing their spirit. This comes as the school’s Faculty Senate voted no confidence on the school’s Board of Trustees, NPR reports. “All of the negative news has not been good for [the…
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NYU Student Trapped for 36 Hours
A 19-year-old New York University student who lay trapped between a two-foot-wide shaft between a building and a garage for almost two days yelled for help as he drifted in and out of consciousness. Asher Vongtau also had thoughts of the movie 127 Hours, about a man who, while hiking in Utah, gets trapped under a boulder…
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Study: Online Daters Look Outside Racial Group When Approached First
Online daters are more open to dating someone of a different race if the other person initiates contact, a study has found, according to New York’s Daily News. The study, published Monday in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, showed that the users of the free online dating site OKCupid were more likely to…
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Bodies Found in Mississippi Believed to Be Missing Family
Police found what they believe are the bodies of an African-American family that went missing on Friday, NBC10 reports. The three bodies, belonging to a man, a woman and a young male child, were discovered in an abandoned house on Tuesday close to the area southwest of Jackson, Miss., where investigators found the family’s burned…
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The History Channel Set to Remake 'Roots'
The History Channel is set to remake one of the biggest and most successful miniseries ever, Roots, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The cable network has acquired the rights to both the original miniseries as well as the book, Roots: the Saga of an American Family, from Alex Haley’s estate. Mark Wolper, son of the…
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Dolphins' Player Incognito Told to 'Toughen Up' Teammate
Miami Dolphins’ coaches reportedly asked the offensive line’s leader, Richie Incognito, to toughen up teammate Jonathan Martin, the Sun Sentinel reports. Incognito, who is currently suspended from the Dolphins for bullying Martin, may have taken those instructions too far. According to the Sun Sentinel, Incognito was given his missive after Martin had missed a voluntary…
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Jay Z's Luxe Gift-Giving May Violate MLB's Rules
Looks like Jay Z may be in hot water again. The Major League Baseball Players Association is reportedly investigating the rapper-turned-sports-agent for giving his all-star client Robinson Cano a $33,900 limited edition Shawn Carter Classic Fusion watch by Hublot, ESPN.com reports. According to the sports website, Cano received the exclusive watch, designed by Jay Z, as…
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How Diversity Will Alter Black History
(The Root)—This is part 3 of a three-part series. To see the previous stories, click here and here. Time was, the social construct of the one-drop rule made United States history either black or white. The rule emerged from the South as a way to facilitate slavery and implement Jim Crow segregation. But while the…