slavery
-
Exclusive: Oprah Winfrey, Nikole Hannah-Jones, Lionsgate and The New York Times to Adapt The 1619 Project Into Film, TV Programming and More
On August 14, 2019, on the 400th anniversary of the first enslaved Africans’ arrival into the English colonies that would become the United States, The New York Times launched The 1619 Project. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and 2019 Root 100 honoree Nikole Hannah-Jones is the creator and architect of the historic initiative and incorporating contributions by…
-
'All of These Guys Are Complicit in the Brutal Practice of Slavery': The Cast and Crew of Hamilton Have a Reckoning
The filmed version of the original Broadway hit Hamilton is coming during a timely moment—not just because we’re stuck in our homes during self-isolation amid a pandemic, but because it allows us an opportunity to revisit and reckon with the history of this nation’s founding fathers during a national uprising. So, as we watch this…
-
Ohio Lawmakers Seek to Remove Slavery as a Punishment From State Constitution
Slavery, for the most part, has been abolished in this country. I say for the most part because the 13th Amendment allows for slavery to be used as a form of punishment. Some states have already elected to remove that clause from their local constitutions and Ohio is working to be next on the list.…
-
Democratic Senators Will Introduce Legislation to Make Juneteenth a Federal Holiday
Happy Juneteenth, everybody! And what a special Juneteenth it is. This year, our holiday commemorating the end of slavery is happening right in the middle of a time when the Black Lives Matter movement is receiving the most widespread attention and support, possibly, since its inception. Now, four Democratic senators are introducing legislation that would make…
-
The Timeless Freedom of Miss Juneteenth
What does freedom look like? When you’re a black person in America living in a post-civil rights era world, currently suffocating from the smoke in a racist climate as the words “I Can’t Breathe” echo in the sky, the answer to that question is…complicated, to say the very least. June 19, 2020 marks 155 years…
-
Emancipation: Will Smith to Star in Film Based on Historic Photo of Enslaved Man 'Whipped Peter' Gordon
Will Smith has a new upcoming project and it appears to be a brutally honest look into America’s history. According to Deadline, Smith will be starring in Emancipation, an action-thriller chronicling the escape of enslaved man Peter Gordon, who is “forced to outwit cold-blooded hunters and the unforgiving swamps of Louisiana on a tortuous journey…
-
DeAndre Hopkins, Deshaun Watson Petition Clemson to Remove John C. Calhoun's Name From Honors College
Outside of chin-checking racists and forgetting what I look like with a haircut, one of my favorite pastimes is spending exorbitant amounts of time devouring Wikipedia pages. And a cursory glance at John Caldwell Calhoun’s page reveals that our former vice president is remembered for “strongly defending slavery,” marrying his cousin and inciting the Civil…
-
‘The Past is the Past’ They Say. Yet, the Last Survivor of Slavery Has Just Been Discovered
“Slavery was such a long, long time ago. Why can’t you people just forget about it?” —Wypipo proverb. The legality of chattel slavery ended just over a century and a half ago in the U.S. Many white Americans want it to be regarded as distant history, not worth unearthing since “the past is the past”…
-
Best Gift Ever: Charlottesville to Celebrate End of Slavery Instead of Thomas Jefferson's Birthday
For the first time since World War II, guess who won’t be getting a birthday party in Charlottesville, Va.? If you guessed Thomas Jefferson—the same guy who once wrote “all men are created equal,” yet somehow owned over 600 of our ancestors—you’d be correct. The Washington Post reports that despite Jefferson’s name being on everything…
-
Minnesota Lawmakers Seek to Amend State Constitution to Remove Slavery Punishment
I feel like if one were to go through the lawbooks of their state you would find many odd things you didn’t know were criminal. Conversely, you may also find unusual punishments for a crime. Typically, these laws and punishments are mildly amusing at best. In the case of Minnesota, well, not so much. CNN…