Politics

Former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel will be remembered in Washington for two notable quotes: One was a response to pressure put on President Obama by the Congressional Black Caucus. That quote was short and Anglo-Saxon, starting with the letter “f.” The other quote was simple yet eloquent in its political point: “Never…

As much as The Root’s readers love expressing their views about President Barack Obama and his administration through article comments, we love reading them. Now nearly two years into his presidency, we’d like to get those opinions “on the record” in a more formal way: The Root Survey: Your Opinion of President Barack Obama Are you ready…

Sarah Palin finally made a public statement about the Arizona shootings this week and the criticism directed at her role in creating an atmosphere of incivility and outright hostility in the American political discourse. It wasn’t her finest moment. She included an obscure anti-Semitic reference to “blood libel” in her meandering, nearly eight-minute video. “Vigorous…

One of the most challenging roles that American presidents must play is that of national healer in times of great tragedy. Barack Obama fulfilled that mission last night, perhaps as well as any U.S. president ever has, with a remarkably touching speech that echoed the redemptive tone of an earlier president from Illinois without quoting…

By Al Sharpton The senseless violence in Arizona this past weekend left all of us stunned, but this devastating act hit home for me more than most. I have been a victim of violence that could have cost my life, and I have been involved in controversies that led to violence in which my words…

Getting the nod as the black consensus candidate for next month’s Chicago mayoral election worked like a charm for Carol Moseley Braun — the third time around. The first time the coalition of the Windy City’s self-appointed black power elites met to bless one of the half dozen or so African Americans vying to replace…

We were warned by Rep. John Lewis two years ago. He took John McCain and Sarah Palin to task during the 2008 presidential campaign for “sowing the seeds of hatred and division.” Lewis knew well the consequences of political violence; he was badly beaten during civil rights protests in the South a half century ago.…

JUBA, SUDAN — Just as important legal precedents often result from cases involving inconspicuous individuals, sometimes big human events happen in obscure places. This week, much of the world is learning a lesson about the drive for self-determination from watching events in a town called Juba, a dusty boomtown full of paradoxes, home to the…

They have returned to this part of Africa from all over the continent and abroad, traveling via every type of transport or simply on foot. After decades in exile in foreign lands or displaced internally from their own homelands, Southern Sudanese have begun to claim their own future. Their stories are familiar — tales of…