culture
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Nicki Minaj and Women Like Her Are No Friends of Mine: The Politics of Defending Real-Life Monsters
This week, pop megastar Nicki Minaj’s brother Jelani Maraj, 37, was back in court to answer to charges that he sexually assaulted his stepdaughter multiple times a week. If convicted, he faces a possible life prison sentence. The allegations, first reported by the preteen’s brother, who said he witnessed the abuse firsthand, testified that he…
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The Black Renaissance Is Real: HBCUs See Record Growth in 2017
Last week I went to Howard University’s homecoming, and like Deon Cole, Chance the Rapper and Malia Obama at the 2012 inauguration, I was reminded that once you see the bands stomping, the music playing and the quad popping, you know that nobody throws a party like an HBCU. In between panels on the future…
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Why Is Virginia Tech Silent About a White Supremacist Instructor Threatening and Harassing an Undergrad?
Under the guise of protecting “free speech,” a top university has allowed one of its instructors to teach students and work at the college, even though the school has received substantial evidence that the employee is an active white supremacist who has engaged in a campaign to threaten and harass an undergraduate student enrolled at…
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Fats Domino, Rock ’n’ Roll Icon, Dead at 89
Music, specifically rock ’n’ roll, has lost another great. The legendary Fats Domino of New Orleans passed away Tuesday at the age of 89, surrounded by friends and family. According to TMZ, the Jefferson Parish, La., Coroner’s Office said that Domino died of natural causes, noting that no autopsy was performed and his body has…
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Bloomberg’s Megan McArdle Can’t Tell Me Shit About White Supremacy
Here’s a joke: Q: What did the Nazi say to the segregationist? A: You’re doing a great job over there. While that joke may not make you burst at the seams in laughter (I admit that I haven’t properly cultivated my cache of Nazi material), it raises an interesting question: Are there varying degrees of…
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Life Lessons: Eat a Booty, Save a Life
While promoting her new book, We’re Going to Need More Wine, last week, actress Gabrielle Union chatted with Sway in the Morning about sexual desire and, more specifically, sexual gratification and reciprocity. The Being Mary Jane star discussed why people are sexually repressed; she also broke down why experiencing one’s own pleasure should be a…
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NFL Executive Troy Vincent on Football, Leadership and Why the Player Protests Actually Worked
If you could choose one person who understands the controversy surrounding the NFL protests for justice and equality, someone who played more than a decade and a half in the NFL might have insight into the issue. If that person’s résumé included a stint as the head of the players union, a job working in…
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The NFL Protests Are a Perfect Study of How White Supremacy Works
Y’all’s president is tweeting about the National Football League again. Shortly after that guy who lives in the White House woke up, submerged himself in a vat of Cheetos dust and ate his leftover KFC thigh and wing (Original Recipe, of course—not those newfangled crispy or spicy concoctions made after America stopped being great), Donald…
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The Black Person’s Guide to The Walking Dead
Because The Walking Dead returns Sunday night and it always makes me a little upset. Although I love the show, I always get sad because every season splits everyone into two factions. In my opinion, there are only two kinds of people in the world: 1. People who watch The Walking Dead. 2. People who…
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Being Insecure in Harvey Weinstein’s World: On Mayim Bialik, Rape and Concern-Trolling
Over the past two weeks on the heels of the Harvey Weinstein travesty, I’ve noticed a trend. And I have a question and am in need of an answer. Why is that some white women are incapable of focusing on a topic without shitting on someone else? I say this because I thought I was…