culture

Fresh on the heels of the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington when the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech, his personal secretary is set to auction off a page from the iconic address, along with more than 100 other items, the Associated Press reports. Maude Ballou…

With all of the bad news making headlines these days, Glen James represents a welcome change. You see, James has been homeless since 2005. He made news this week when he returned a lost backpack containing $2,000 in cash, almost $40,000 in traveler’s checks, Chinese passports and other personal papers despite his harsh situation, ABC 7 reports. He…

(The Root) — One week after it was revealed that the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority at the University of Alabama didn’t allow a biracial student into its organization because of pressure from alumnae members, members of the university at large are now speaking out in protest.  The New York Times reported from Tuscaloosa, Ala., where…

(The Root) — “My husband is working overseas on business for several more months. He keeps asking me to make a sex tape for him so he can watch it and think about me over there. I am afraid he will either show it to his friends or lose control of it. But I don’t…

“The forward movement” on Obamacare is “not unqualified good news,” Imara Jones writes in a piece at Colorlines that examines the pros and cons of the linchpin of the Affordable Care Act — millions of uninsured Americans’ ability to sign up for plans on their own or through Medicaid — which takes effect on Oct.…

In a compelling piece at Ebony, Keith Reed writes about his grave distrust of law-enforcement officials. He recounts tales of flagrant police negligence during times of crisis in his youth. I’m not sure when I realized my distrust of police officers. Maybe it was at about 12 or 13, when my best friend and I had…

(The Root) — Do young black men know that people want to see them at the table making decisions about their communities? Do young black men know that society wants to see them do well and values their contributions to the world? Do young black men feel empowered and excited about their futures? The death…

Bea Hinton, who is of biracial heritage, explores and denounces the stereotyping of black men as violent, lazy and unlovable in a piece at Filthy Freedom. Dating black men is a choice that she accepts wholeheartedly. The black man occupies a unique space in American culture. He is an aggressive and inherently violent threat to society.…

(The Root) — Months ago, hip-hop mogul Jay Z sparked a fierce debate with his comments on charity. Responding to criticism by civil rights legend Harry Belafonte that Jay and his wife, superstar Beyoncé, could and should do more in terms of activism and philanthropic giving to benefit the black community, Jay Z had this…

The New York Times is reporting that private-equity mogul Glenn Hutchins on Wednesday is expected to announce a gift of more than $15 million to create the Hutchins Center for African and African-American Research at Harvard University. He was inspired to make the gift after striking up a friendship about 10 years ago with The…