culture
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Watch: Afro Pick Pops Up Near Philly’s Frank Rizzo Statue
For years, activists have pushed to remove Philadelphia’s Frank Rizzo statue. Now the Rizzo statue in Philly’s Center City section shares the floor with an 800-pound Afro pick, a new sculpture by black artist Hank Willis Thomas. The sculpture is part of a series hosted by Mural Arts Philadelphia’s Monument Lab, and it’s sparking a…
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Mobilizing Our Brothers Initiative: Empowering Black Gay Men to Tackle Trump’s America
Since Donald Trump was elected, marginalized communities have understood that life could become more difficult, but no one could have imagined just how difficult. From the moment Trump was inaugurated, we have borne witness to the ways in which his presidency has negatively affected our lives. From instituting a Muslim ban to emboldening and supporting…
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What to Say When Your White Friend Wants to Use the N-Word
On Thursday, the British blowhard with a face that looks like a half-filled Hefty bag, Piers Morgan, wrote a piece explaining why black people shouldn’t be mad when white people use the word “nigga.” It all started because of a video of a group of white sorority girls singing the song “Gold Digger” at some…
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Pumpkin Spice Brings My Inner White Girl to the Yard
It’s the first day of fall, and it’s time to bring back the only seasoning acknowledged by white people: pumpkin spice. Pumpkin spice is the official seasoning of the Caucasian, and my inner white woman, who didn’t vote for the dotard Donald Trump, celebrates when it starts to hit the shelves. Yup, I’m a black…
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Kingsman: The Golden Circle Turns the Drug War Into the Opioid Crisis for White America
If you found a way to enjoy Kingsman: The Secret Service when it sneaked into theaters back in 2014, you’ll like Kingsman: The Golden Circle, which drops this weekend. Golden Circle has the same over-the-top action, the same cartoonish sex and the great acting from lead Taron Egerton (Eggsy) that made the first film a…
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The Root’s Clapback Mailbag: A Teachable Moment
Welcome to the last Clapback Mailbag. We have thoroughly enjoyed sharing our reader correspondence with you, but since we will all most definitely be annihilated in a nuclear holocaust this weekend, let’s take these last few moments to do what makes us feel good: Being petty. From: Sarah S.To: Michael HarriotSubject: Shame on you! I…
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Tracing Your Roots: Where Did My Ancestor’s Freed Slaves Go?
A forebear emancipates his slaves in the 1840s, but “freedom” was a relative term in 1840s Kentucky. Dear Professor Gates: I’m trying to trace a family who was owned by my sixth great-grandfather the Rev. John Holland Owen. Their names were Christopher and Winney Owens and Winney’s children—Fanny, Edwin, Elijah, Andrew Jackson, Charles, America, Mary…
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Watch: Bullet Holes and Rosé: Exploiting Black Pain for Profit
Updated Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2017, 2:52 p.m. EDT: Becca Brennan, the owner of Summerhill, plastered over the holes in the wall that caused a storm of controversy when she referred to them as “bullet holes” in a press release, according to Gothamist. The repairs happened late Tuesday night. At a town hall in July, Brennan…
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An Open Letter to White Statues From Black America
Dear Statues, We know there’s been a lot of back and forth about our people’s efforts to eliminate your people from the planet, and instead of having you hear it secondhand, we thought we’d pen this open letter so you could get it straight from the source. It’s not that we don’t trust the filter…
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Dayveon: A Visceral Peek Into the Lives of Black Boys in Rural America
Editor’s note: Disclaimer: Some spoilers. As the phrase “representation matters” seeps through our veins, there is a slight odor of hungry desperation in the air that stems from lack. Because we have become accustomed to not seeing ourselves on-screen, we stretch ourselves reaching for the scraps that befall us. As soon as I saw the…