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Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.): “This deal is a sugar-coated Satan sandwich. If you lift the bun, you will not like what you see.” Captions by Jenée Desmond-Harris Rep. Allen West (D-Fla.): “Tonight’s passage of the Budget Control Act will assuredly lead to long-term sustainable economic growth and American jobs.” Holly Robinson Peete: “Maybe Rep. Gabby…

Date of birth: April 3, 1961 Obama connection: Murphy, the second-highest-grossing actor of all time, recently cut a check for more than $30,000 to attend a Democratic National Committee fundraiser. A portion of the dough goes to the Obama 2012 campaign. Captions by Lauren Williams Date of birth: July 30, 1961 Obama connection: Count the…

Throwback listen: “Come See About Me“ Their hip-hugging, floor-length dresses, simple choreography and feminine voices boosted the Supremes from a Motown act to a household name. In the late ’60s, Berry Gordy changed the group’s name to Diana Ross and the Supremes; shortly after, Ross went solo. In 2000 a reunion was scheduled but fell…

At the start of the 21st century, members of the Divine Nine began reaching their 100-year anniversaries — Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity in 2006 and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority in 2008. This year, both Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity join the Century Club. By 2022, eight of nine black fraternities and…

Married to Milwaukee Bucks point guard Keyon Dooling, Dooling is the founder of a nonprofit that supports disadvantaged young women, the editor-in-chief of an online sports magazine and a published author. Dooling says that she wrote My Eyes & My Hair, My Journey Overcoming Challenges of Daily Endeavors to encourage and motivate every young woman…

After playing Rudy on The Cosby Show, Pulliam found her own Different World when she was initiated as a sister of Delta Sigma Theta at Spelman College in Atlanta. Captions by Lawrence Ross CNN’s most outspoken commentator and the host of Washington Watch With Roland Martin on TV One, Martin has also been a member…

Same-sex couples packed clerk’s offices in New York early Sunday to tie the knot on the first day of New York state’s official recognition of same-sex marriage. Mayor Bloomberg’s office estimated that almost 500 gay couples got hitched in the city on Sunday. Same-sex couples from across the Empire State also jumped the broom. New…

Lauren is a former Deputy Editor of The Root. “Being here at the convention as a member of the United States Air Force Academy is relevant, because for me it’s a chance to give back to my community and talk to young adults about the opportunities I got to have. The NAACP convention was really…

Agbodjélou photographs the people of Porto-Novo, Benin (formerly the Republic of Dahomey), in a studio that has been the family business for decades. He chooses as his subjects friends, family and studio customers. Using only daylight, he often poses them against backgrounds of locally designed, brightly patterned Dutch imported textiles. For many of the subjects,…

Even if the recent headlines about Mathew Knowles allegedly pilfering Beyoncé’s profits are true, any potential conflict that could arise during a Carter-Knowles gathering would cease the minute Mathew appeared with a bucket of Popeye’s chicken — Bey’s favorite — as a peace offering. Unfortunately for Jay-Z, Solange and Tina, she probably wouldn’t share. Captions…