culture
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The Bizarre Case of Meek Mill’s Incarceration, Explained
Let me make this clear: I’m not team #FreeMeekMill, but I am team #FreeRobertRihmeekWilliams. There is a difference. Meek Mill is a highly touted street dude-turned-rapper from Philly. Robert Rihmeek Williams is a Philadelphia man who many believe has been wrongly incarcerated by an overzealous judge who is using her influence and judicial power to…
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These Shirts Are Every Thought People of Color Have Refrained From Saying to White People
I recently recounted for some friends an incident that occurred on a Los Angeles train where a white woman sitting next to me could not resist the urge to try to touch my hair. She had not spoken a word to me after sitting next to me, but I could feel her burning a hole…
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Lubaina Himid Makes History as 1st Nonwhite Woman to Win Prestigious Turner Prize
Lubaina Himid is a visual artist whose drawings, paintings and installations reflect the African Diaspora, and on Tuesday she became the first nonwhite woman to win the prestigious Turner Prize, a British contemporary-art award. According to the New York Times, this year’s award was the first since 1991 to be open to artists over the…
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Miguel’s War & Leisure Is Not as Political as Initially Advertised, but It’s a Near-Perfect Listen
In the lead-up to Miguel’s fourth album, the newly released War & Leisure, fans were teased about a project that would ostensibly feature the singer-songwriter leaning into subject matter that was more outwardly political. That is not to say the discussion of sex, a topic Miguel has covered extensively in his career, cannot in and…
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Did Cornel West Come for Ta-Nehisi Coates?
A few months ago, I was at a Bernie Sanders rally in Birmingham, Ala., surrounded by white people excited to see their democratic socialist Santa Claus. After a mixtape filled with tunes by James Taylor, the Beatles and Bob Marley, a performance by a gospel choir and a short speech by the dynamic Nina Turner,…
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LaVar Ball Is Out of His Mind: He’s Sent Sneakers to Trump and He May Have Just Ruined LiAngelo’s Career
LaVar Ball may have really done it now. On Monday the senior-most Ball announced that he was pulling his middle son, LiAngelo, from UCLA. Big Ball was upset that the school had placed his son and two other students—Cody Riley and Jalen Hill—on indefinite suspension after the three student-athletes were caught shoplifting in China. “I’m…
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Meet ‘Angela,’ One of the 1st Slaves to Arrive in America
What if we could put names and faces to the Africans who were brought over to America as slaves in 1619? Would it humanize slavery instead of making it a category in American history that people love to conveniently forget or urge black folks to “just get over it”? The first Africans arrived at Point…
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Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson Says He Definitely Wouldn’t Pick Kevin Hart as His 2020 Running Mate
When Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle opens Dec. 20, you’ll be able to feast your eyes on Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson’s biceps and also the beautiful landscape of Oahu, Hawaii, where the film was shot. Several lucky journalists from various media outlets were given the opportunity to travel to Oahu, courtesy of Sony Pictures, to…