news
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NYPD and NYC Transit Used Undercover Officers to Monitor Black Lives Matter Protesters: Report
Plainclothes New York City transit and police officers were used to monitor Black Lives Matter protesters who staged die-ins at the city’s Grand Central Terminal, the New York Daily News reports. Surveillance included live updates with details such as the number of protesters and the officers’ locations at the several protests that occurred between November…
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The Most Influential African Americans Tweet Their Excitement at Appearing on This Year’s The Root 100 List
It’s becoming such a prestigious and exciting honor to hear that one’s name is on The Root 100 list. The list is The Root’s annual ranking of the 100 most influential African Americans who have gone above and beyond the call of duty (in fields such as politics, entertainment, philanthropy, technology, sports, education and social justice) to…
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Family of Diabetic Man Questions His Treatment After Death in Mo. Jail
The family of a 33-year-old Missouri man is demanding answers after he died just hours after being transported in an ambulance from the Pemiscot County Jail, KFVS reports. Michael Robinson, according to his family, was a severe diabetic and would have needed at least two insulin shots a day. The Robinson family is questioning whether…
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Tenn. Prison Officials Reportedly Forced Inmates to Make Woodshop Items and Then Sold Them at Flea Markets
Several Nashville, Tenn., jail employees at a privately run prison reportedly started a company to sell goods created by prisoners who weren’t paid, creating what some consider a slave-labor environment in which officials profited from prisoners’ work. According to the Associated Press, Stand Firm Designs took prisoners’ creations, including “beanbag cornhole games, plaques shaped like…
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Google Brings Low-Cost Smartphones to 6 African Countries
A typical smartphone without a contract can run anywhere from $500 to $800, and Google is hoping to change that for countries where technology is lagging and access to affordable smartphones is almost impossible. On Tuesday, Google announced sales of its new, low-price smartphone in six African countries “where most people still can’t afford an Internet-connected…
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NY Prisoner’s Death Ruled Homicide After Reported Beating From Prison Guards
Samuel Harrell, 30, was reportedly beaten by as many as 20 guards April 21 at the Fishkill Correctional Facility in Beacon, N.Y., about 60 miles north of New York City. Harrell, who suffered from bipolar disorder and was serving time in the prison for a drug conviction, was pronounced dead at a local hospital shortly…
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Former Tuskegee Airman, 93, Robbed and Carjacked in North St. Louis
A veteran from the iconic Tuskegee Airmen who fought in World War II was carjacked and robbed while on his way to visit his daughter, KTVI reports. The 93-year-old reportedly got lost while driving to his daughter’s home around 11:30 a.m., and so pulled over to call her. A man then approached the elderly man…
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Texas Men Face Federal Hate Crime Charges After Allegedly Raping, Torturing Gay Black Man Over $5
Two Texas men have been indicted on federal hate crime charges for allegedly brutally beating and raping a gay black man in 2012, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday in a press release. Jimmy Garza Jr., 32, and Ramiro Serrata Jr., 22, are facing charges of conspiracy to commit hate crimes, a hate crime…
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George Zimmerman Teams Up With Fla. ‘Anti-Muslim Zone’ Gun-Shop Owner
You really can’t make this stuff up. George Zimmerman, the former neighborhood watchman who was acquitted in 2013 in the killing of Trayvon Martin, is reportedly teaming up with a Florida gun-store owner who wants to make his shop a “Muslim-free zone” to sell prints of the Confederate flag with the slogan “The 2nd protects…
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Watch: Black Lives Matter Activists Confront Hillary Clinton
Black Lives Matter activists have now become infamous for rushing the stages of presidential hopefuls and turning what would have been a rally for votes come election time into a rally for justice. Turns out, Black Lives Matter activists who were denied entrance into a New Hampshire event featuring Hillary Clinton Aug. 11 got a…