news
-
#FreeBree Trending After Protester Arrested for Removing SC Confederate Flag
Updated Saturday, June 27, 2:20 p.m.: #FreeBree is now trending on black Twitter, and a bail fund has been set up to help Bree Newsome defray the legal costs associated with her arrest for removing the Confederate flag. Earlier: A woman identified as Bree Newsome was arrested Saturday after climbing the flagpole at the South…
-
Obama Delivers Stirring Eulogy at Funeral for SC State Sen. Clementa Pinckney
In a rousing eulogy punctuated by organ riffs, clapping and the occasional “Amen,” the president remembered and praised the life work of state Sen. Clementa Pinckney of South Carolina, who was also the pastor of the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston. “We are here today to a remember a man of God who…
-
Southern Wesleyan University Offers Full Scholarships to Children of Employee Killed in Emanuel AME Massacre
South Wesleyan University, the employer of one of the victims of the attack at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C., is honoring its fallen employee by offering full tuition scholarships to her four children if they wish to attend the school, USA Today reports. DePayne Middleton Doctor was an alumna of the…
-
5 Philadelphia Teens Are Arrested After Taped Attack on Student Goes Viral
A viral video of a 17-year-old Philadelphia teenager being brutally beaten by a group of teens has led to the arrest of five people. According to ABC Action News, 18-year-old Jerome Baston and four teen boys were arrested after someone brought the video to the attention of Martin Luther King High School, where the victim is…
-
Fire at Black Church in Ga. Ruled Arson
For the second time this week, a black church has reportedly been set on fire, this time in Georgia, The Telegraph reports. According to the report, arson investigators are still awaiting test results from the scene of the fire at God’s Power Church of Christ in Macon, Ga. However, fire Sgt. Ben Gleaton told the…
-
Baltimore County Police Fatally Shoot Unarmed Black Man
Baltimore County police fatally shot an unarmed black man after they were called to an Owings Mill, Md., home while responding to a domestic dispute. According to the Associated Press, Spencer Lee McCain, 41, was in a “defensive stance” when he was shot by police around 1 a.m. on Thursday, according to the police. Baltimore County…
-
Supreme Court Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage Nationwide
Same-sex couples can get married in all 50 states after a historic Supreme Court ruling on Friday struck down state bans, according to NPR. Gay marriage was already legal in 37 states and the District of Columbia, but now the narrow 5-4 ruling means that the remaining 13 states must stop refusing to marry same-sex…
-
DC Mayor Warns of Expense of Releasing Police Body-Camera Videos
As Washington, D.C., attempts to introduce body cameras to half its police force this year, Mayor Muriel Bowser has been pointing to the financial burden it could place on the city’s budget if footage is released to the public, the Washington Post reports. According to the report, Bowser told members of the City Council Tuesday…
-
Emanuel AME Pastor Clementa Pinckney to Be Laid to Rest
The life of South Carolina state Sen. Clementa Pinckney will be celebrated Friday morning, with President Barack Obama delivering the eulogy for the Democrat, who was also pastor of the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston. The Root will be live-streaming the event, which will begin at 11 a.m. at the TD Arena at…
-
Black Pastors Vow Acts of Civil Disobedience if Supreme Court Approves Same-Sex Marriage
Updated Friday, June 26, 11:40 a.m. EDT: The Supreme Court has ruled that same-sex marriage is legal in the United States. The ruling effectively ends the ban on same-sex marriage that was still in effect in some 13 states. Earlier: As the U.S. Supreme Court readied to announce its decision on same-sex marriage, a group of black clergy vowed to push…