culture
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Jesse Jackson Jr. Selling Home to Pay Debt
Disgraced former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. is set to sell his high-priced townhouse in the nation’s capital to pay back the $750,000 of campaign cash he spent on furs, vacations and a Rolex watch, the Chicago Tribune reports. Jackson, 48, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison Aug. 14, but he is…
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Women Atop Million-Dollar Companies
(The Root) — Nakia Stith has been running Top of the Clock, a security company, mostly on her own since she was about 23. Stith, who was tossed into the proverbial frying pan at such a young age, had little choice 12 years ago. Her father, who originally owned the company, was battling kidney disease…
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Street Harassment: What Men Can Learn
(The Root) — 1. “Smile, girl.” 2. “God bless you.” 3. “Slow down, I really wanna get to know you.” 4. “Hey, beautiful.” 5. “What that mouth do?” If you know that one of these expressions is not like the others, you’re a regular guy (correct answer is No. 2). If you can spot the…
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Single Moms With Family Values
University of North Carolina assistant history professor Molly Worthen writes a piece at the New York Times about single mothers who are changing the landscape by rejecting the politics of their liberal peers. When Jennifer Maggio was in her early 20s, she was raising two children by herself on the $750 per month that she…
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Time for Washington's Football Team to Change Its Name
“The name fails the most basic tests of acceptability,” writes Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson about the Washington Redskins’ team name. He joins a widening chorus calling for a name change for the football team based in the nation’s capital. I’m a bit late to the topic, but the Washington, D.C., professional football team really…
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'SNL' Parodies '12 Years a Slave'
Saturday Live tried to poke fun at 12 Years a Slave, the movie chronicling the brutal era of slavery in the United States. The sketch, “12 Days Not a Slave,” features Jay Pharoah, a regular, and Edward Norton, the guest host of the evening. While visiting with his friend, Norton, at an all-white saloon, Pharoah,…
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Trayvon Martin Halloween Costume Sparks Outrage
The world of social media erupted in outrage this weekend when white Twitter users posted a picture of themselves dressed as Trayvon Martin, complete with blackface and a hoodie, and George Zimmerman, Global Grind reports. The scandalous photo features a man pointing his fingers like a gun at the individual dressed to look like Trayvon.…
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Darrell Wallace Jr. Makes History With NASCAR Win
On Saturday, Darrell Wallace Jr. raced his way into cyber-encyclopedias and history books. The 20-year-old is the second black driver to win on NASCAR’s national level and the first in a half-century. He won the truck series race at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia, the Associated Press reports. Driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports, Wallace defeated Jeb…
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Chris Brown Arrested After Altercation
Chris Brown was reportedly arrested early Sunday in Washington, D.C., and charged with felony assault after a brawl outside of a hotel. Details are still being sorted out about exactly what happened at about 4:30 a.m. outside the W Hotel at 15th and K, but law enforcement sources told TMZ that Brown began punching an…
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Dancer Apologizes for Blackface Halloween Costume
Following an uproar, dancer Julianne Hough took to Twitter Saturday to apologize for donning blackface as part of an Orange Is the New Black Halloween costume. Good for Hough for apologizing. That was not a good look or a good choice for a costume, no matter the intention. Like The Root on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.