Politics
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Mother and Toddler Shot in Chicago Park
On Sunday evening, when a pair of gunmen fired at least a dozen shots at a van packed with women and children at Chicago’s Murray Park, Leslie Freeman, 27, and her 2-year-old son, Demonte, were both struck and now remain in the hospitalized, reports the Huffington Post. It’s not the first time this family has…
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Blacks and College Loans: A Cloudy Picture
(The Root) — When Congress left town on Thursday — marking the start of its Fourth of July holiday — the nation’s elected officials left one piece of unfinished business especially critical to black America’s financial health and well-being: Congress failed to reach a compromise on the best way to structure the interest rates that…
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Obama Administration Launches Attack on Childhood Obesity
Last week the U.S Department of Agriculture announced groundbreaking nutritional requirements for the food served in school, The Week reports. The “Smart Snacks in School” standards are the latest addition to the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, which mandates specific standards for all foods sold in schools. The standards also target snack-vending machines in…
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Nelson Mandela and President Obama
As President Obama tours South Africa while Nelson Mandela’s health is failing, Bill Keller at the New York Times compares the leadership styles of the two icons. Mandela, in his time on the political stage, was a man of almost ascetic self-discipline. But he also understood how to deploy his moral authority in grand theatrical…
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Obama Encourages Students to Follow Mandela's Legacy
During a speech at the University of Cape Town on Sunday, President Obama spoke about his personal introduction to politics, working against apartheid in college. He challenged students in the audience to fight for what they believe, reports CNN. Speaking at the University of Cape Town, Obama recounted how American college campaigns against investment in…
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Obama Family Visit Mandela's Former Prison
On Sunday, President Obama, along with his family, visited Robben Island and the prison where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned, reports the Los Angeles Times. Obama’s tour of the prison at Robben Island was something of a symbolic union between the first African American president of the United States and the first black president of South…
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Anti-Obama Protests in Johannesburg
In Johannesburg, anti-Obama protesters who had gathered in front of the University of Johannesburg, where the U.S. president is slated to receive an honorary degree today, were greeted with rubber bullets, reports USA Today. Protests have been planned at the university over Obama’s visit and the news that he is expected to receive an honorary doctorate…
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Obama Visits Mandela Family, Focuses on Icon's Legacy
President Obama was expected to visit the ailing Nelson Mandela during his trip to South Africa, but instead will meet with Madiba’s family, according to the New York Times. The presidential limousine slipped past a gate at the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory Saturday afternoon, leaving the media behind as Mr. Obama met for about…
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How Edward Snowden Is Helping Obama
(The Root) — In the annals of American political history, President Barack Obama’s droll remark that “I’m not going to be scrambling jets to get a 29-year-old hacker” isn’t going to rank with “Ask not what your country can do for you” or “Nothing to fear but fear itself,” but for a president looking to…
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No Affirmative Action for Clarence Thomas?
(The Root) — Something occult was taking place at the Home for Retired Racial Stereotypes. Smoky incense filled the air of a darkened room where Kingfish, the Frito Bandito, Charlie Chan, Tonto and the rest of the crew were gathered in a circle, chanting to the sound of exotic music. In the middle of the circle stood…