culture
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Why Fox News, Littlefinger and Horse Twitter Are Beefing with The Root, Explained
Of course I do. You look concerned. Is something wrong? Oh, that? Yeah, Tucker Carlson is beefing with The Root for being racist against white people. Tucker Carlson is a white man. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to minimize Tucker Carlson. Tucker Carlson is not just a white man; he’s the white man. When…
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Vagina Valuation: What Is Yours Worth?
Last week on Twitter, I saw a tweet from a young lady bragging about how she had the Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and HBO apps on her phone, and she wasn’t paying for any of them. “Let me tell about this good pussy,” she crowed. All I could think was, “Sis, that sounds like some…
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The Root’s 2018 Horoscope and Prediction Guide for Black America
As we embark upon a new year, instead of looking back at the dumpster fire that was 2017, The Root has decided to look forward at what lies ahead for black America. To help us with our predictions, we contacted our own psychic and fortune-teller, LaQuanda “Punkin’” Damus, a distant relative of the heralded French…
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Starting Fresh: 5 Things I’m Leaving Behind in 2017
New year, new me. People make fun of that saying, but if you think about it, it is a mood, a message and a lifestyle. Each year on Dec. 31, we shed at least some part of our old selves and take on new habits, ideas or mantras. For me, Dec. 31, 2017, was no…
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With Bright, Will Smith Misses an Opportunity to Launch a Real Afrofuturistic Revolution
My friends and I constantly talk about how we want a bunch of black movies across the spectrum, from romance to science fiction. White actors get all the fun and we get all the supporting (and usually dying) sidekicks. Will Smith has been serving us all those movies we crave for years. He took a…
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Living Single Cast and Creator Reflect on Legacy 20 Years After Series Finale
Since leaving the air 20 years ago today, Jan. 1, Living Single continues to resonate in the hearts of loyal fans. Its legacy alone has dismissed critics (i.e., Newsweek’s 1993 article with its “booty-shaking sugar mamas” comment), paving the way for shows like Insecure, and still reigns as a beloved fixture of black entertainment and…
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For, by and About Black Women: Charlie Is a Reflection of How We All Deal Differently With Grief
What happens when you lose the person you care about the most? How do you deal with that grief? How does it express itself? How does it change you, and how does it keep you the same? How do the bonds of sisterhood hold us together? These are the questions the film Charlie answers and…
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The Biggest Winners of 2017
With everything—and everyone—we lost in this past year, there were some big wins. Black women showed up and showed out in various ways. Black men put their careers and livelihoods on the line to speak out against racial injustice, police violence, and sexual assault and harassment. Creative artists experienced amazing glow ups, and black teenagers…
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Erica Garner: ‘I’m in This Fight Forever’ [Retracted]
RETRACTED (6/12/18): This story has been removed because we have discovered it was in breach of our editorial standards. If you’d like to know more, you can read an editor’s note here. A cached version of the story is available here for transparency.
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In Memoriam: Remembering Those We Lost in 2017
We laid many of our beloved black icons, role models and pioneers to rest in 2017. From legends such as Chuck Berry, Fats Domino and Della Reese to modern-day stars like Charlie Murphy and Prodigy; from unsung heroes like civil rights activists and black firsts to men, women and children killed by police, and to…