culture

Say what? A Canadian teen whose studio name is WondaGurl has been credited as a producer on “Crown,” a track on Jay-Z’s new album, Magna Carta Holy Grail, according to Jezebel. Ebony Oshunrinde, who just finished the 11th grade, has an inspiring story. Earlier this year, she sent the beat to a friend, a young…

In examining media coverage of Nelson Mandela’s illness through the eyes of his eldest daughter, the Independent‘s Minna Salami concludes that race and matters of ethics are not as separate as they seem. People have repeatedly disrespected him by reporting his early demise, she says, because he is African. In an interview on South African…

(The Root) — “Creepy-ass cracker.” These words have been on my mind since Rachel Jeantel spoke them on the witness stand in the trial of George Zimmerman. As a prosecution witness, Jeantel testified that shortly before Zimmerman killed Trayvon Martin, her friend told her by phone that some “creepy-ass cracker” was following him. Her appearance…

With the economy on a steady but slow increase and employers now paying minimum-wage employees in pre-paid debit cards, banking fees can drain your account — especially if you don’t have sufficient funds. So how to rectify this problem? Writing for Slate, Matthew Yglesias suggests an alternate banking system that could move us into the future and allows for…

Brittney Cooper tackles racism, weightism and stereotypes in a gut-wrenching blog post at Salon. During a flight home over the holiday, the woman seated next to her was still texting — rapidly — after the call had gone out to turn off cellphones. Cooper glanced over and caught the last few words of the text: “On the…

He loves the Fourth of July, writes The Root contributor Edward Wyckoff Williams in a blog post at Salon, but what is independence if full freedom still doesn’t exist for everyone in this nation? Comedian Chris Rock sparked a debate a year ago today, when he tweeted: “Happy white people’s independence day! The slaves weren’t free…

(The Root) — When I heard the news that morning, it whacked me in the chest like the kickback of a sudden and screeching stop. On Wednesday, June 26, the Supreme Court of the United States struck down the Defense of Marriage Act. No longer would a legally married, same-sex couple be denied federal benefits…

(The Root) — After calling nearly three dozen witnesses over nine days leading up to the dramatic moment when Trayvon Martin’s mother took the stand, the prosecution on Friday rested its second-degree-murder case against George Zimmerman.  Did the state prove Zimmerman’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt? That seems as improbable as parts of his account…

Friday, July 5, 5:22 p.m. EDT: Judge Debra Nelson has dismissed the defense’s request for acquittal in George Zimmerman’s second-degree-murder trial. Prosecutors argued against acquittal, saying, “One of them is dead and one of them is a liar.” The defense then called its first witness, Zimmerman’s mother, who identified the scream on the 911 call as…

The Labor Department released its June jobs report today with news that the economy added 195,000 jobs last month, while the national unemployment rate held steady at 7.6 percent. The good news is that the numbers were higher than the 165,000 a Bloomberg survey of economists had estimated. But some of the report’s numbers give pause:…