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  • Police Shot Brendan Hester Because That’s What Police Do

    A 23-year old black man in Ashtabula, Ohio, was shot by police officers last week after officers responding to a 911 call found two men scuffling in a home, one holding a weapon. The police ordered the man to drop the gun, but when he refused, the officers shot him. After searching the home, police…

  • President Twitter Fingas Is Back Like He Never Left

    Well, you knew Ol’ Donnie Boy wasn’t going to stay off Twitter forever. It took the president of white nationalism only a day to tweet his thoughts about former FBI Director James Comey’s testimony. I will admit that this was an unusually short Twitter tirade, but it covered the usual tone-deaf bases that we’ve come…

  • Hey, Nike or Under Armour, Let’s Get This Kid a Sponsorship: Update

    Updated Friday, June 9, 2017, 12:59 p.m. EDT: Our sister publication Deadspin reports that the Baltimore Sun story on which our report was based is inaccurate. Cahree Myrick is not a national chess champion. Read the Deadspin story here. Earlier: In my almost 20-year career as a journalist, I’ve never used my platform to ask…

  • Chicago Residents Come Together to Send Teen to Prom

    Gage Park High School senior Shaday Gooden Brown of Chicago’s South Side was on a mission to get to prom. But she didn’t have the money to pay for her prom dress, so she decided to set up a stand to sell chips and snow cones to earn the cash. But she didn’t need to…

  • Louis Freeman, 1st Black Chief Pilot of a Major US Airline, Retires

    After 37 years of flying, Capt. Louis Freeman is retiring his stripes. Freeman became Southwest Airlines’ first African-American pilot in 1980, and in 1992 he became the first black chief pilot of a major U.S. airline. A celebration was held in Chicago Thursday for Freeman after he landed one of his last flights, Flight 412,…

  • Ind. Mother Sues Principal, Teacher for Forcing Son to Do Pledge of Allegiance 

    A Terre Haute, Ind., mother is suing an elementary school principal and teacher for forcing her son to participate in the Pledge of Allegiance. In March, Jamie Porter’s first-grade son at Fuqua Elementary School did not stand to salute the flag, and his teacher, Kelly McFarland, sent the student to the principal’s office, according to…

  • Weis Supermarket Employee Goes on Shooting Rampage, Kills 3 and Himself

    Randy Stair has been identified as the supermarket employee who killed three co-workers before turning the gun on himself at a Weis grocery store in Tunkhannock, Pa. Stair, 24, posted an ominous tweet just hours before the incident that read, “Goodbye humans… I’ll miss you…,” the Associated Press reports, before he packed a duffle bag…

  • ACLU Makes the Case for Giving Formerly Incarcerated a Fair Chance at Employment

    One in 3 American adults—70 million in total—have a criminal record, making it difficult for them to re-enter their communities, find gainful employment, build stability and find success after incarceration. A report from the American Civil Liberties Union highlights the benefit to all that comes when companies give such individuals a second chance. “Back to…

  • 12-Year-Old Cahree Myrick, Baltimore’s 1st-Ever National Chess Champion, Hones His Game Skills in Local Barbershop: Update

    Updated Friday, June 9, 2017, 12:59 p.m. EDT: Our sister publication Deadspin reports that the Baltimore Sun story on which our report was based is inaccurate. Cahree Myrick is not a national chess champion. Read the Deadspin story here. Earlier: At just 12 years old, Cahree Myrick is Baltimore’s first individual national youth chess champion—no…

  • Deputy, Husband Indicted on Murder Charges in Off-Duty Killing of Man in Houston

    Updated Thursday, June 8, 2017, 10:49 p.m. EDT: Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg and Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez announced Thursday afternoon that a grand jury indicted Deputy Chauna Thompson and her husband, Terry Thompson, on murder charges in the death of John Hernandez. According to Click2Houston, the charging document says Hernandez’s death was…