slavery
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'It Should Cost You Something': Playwright Jeremy O. Harris Sets the Record Straight on Slave Play as It Debuts on Broadway
Black art rarely emerges without controversy. Our creations are inherently political, specifically because this country never intended for them to exist in the first place. In fact, 400 years after the start of the transatlantic slave trade, our trauma is still so present, many of us would prefer to distance ourselves from that history altogether.…
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The Liberator Unearths the Forgotten Triumphs and Chronicles of Early Black Los Angeles
For 14 years, Jefferson Lewis Edmonds helmed one of the first black newspapers in Los Angeles. Introduced in 1900, the Liberator touted the importance of black ownership, challenged political candidates to prioritize the needs of their black constituency and implored other black aspirants to defy the status quo. With limited options for early black Angelenos…
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Breaking: Something Bad Is Happening in Virginia [Updated]
To commemorate the quadricentennial anniversary of the arrival of enslaved Africans in America, we imagined what it would be like to cover that late August day when the first slave ship landed on the shores of the place now known as Hampton, Va. 8/20/1619 2:27 P.M. Earlier: A few hours ago, The Root received several…
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White Guy Spits on Black Girlfriend After Her Bizarre Request for Slavery Role Play
I don’t judge what anyone else does in their bedroom, but some of y’all are out here really whylin. Take for instance interracial couple Kenneth Atkins and Ashley Edwards, who according to the Smoking Gun, got into a lover’s quarrel over Atkins’ refusal to partake in some rather questionable role play. From the Smoking Gun:…
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White Tears Attempt to Drown Out the True History of Louisiana Plantation: 'Very Racist. If You're White, Don't Go'
In today’s edition of white people whitepeopling, I’d like to introduce you to the Whitney Plantation in Wallace, La., where visitors are encouraged to partake in a guided tour of “the only plantation museum in Louisiana with an exclusive focus on the lives of enslaved people,” according to its website. Yet despite its obvious premise,…
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I'm Glad the Harriet Tubman Biopic Is on Its Way, So Some of You Can Finally Learn About the Underground Railroad
The trailer for the biopic about Harriet Tubman—called Harriet—recently hit the internets; the movie hits theaters in November. The film (perhaps controversially) stars Cynthia Erivo in the role of the most famous Harriet of all time. I have no facts to back up that statement but I feel it in my soul so I’m going…
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I'm My 'Ancestors' Wildest Dreams?' Nah, Bruh. I Ain't That Special
Maybe 15 years ago, upset that I couldn’t remember the details of these epic dreams I kept having, I started leaving a notebook at my bedside to jot them down. “Ha!,” I thought to myself, as I believed I finally found a method to capture my subconscious. “I’m clever as fuck!,” I also thought to…
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Nike Drops Sneaker Featuring Betsy Ross Flag After Colin Kaepernick Is Said to Complain It Invokes Slavery
Just in time for the Fourth of July comes a report that Nike yanked a sneaker embellished with a Betsy Ross flag after NFL footballer-turned-activist Colin Kaepernick complained the image conjured up slavery and all its ills. According to the Wall Street Journal, which attributes its story to “people familiar with the matter,” Nike’s Air…
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A Black Revolutionary War Hero Finally Gets the Military Burial Honors He Deserved
James Robinson was a black Revolutionary War hero who also served during the War of 1812 under Andrew Jackson. During both of those wars, he was promised his freedom by those who enlisted him (and other black men turned into soldiers); but when it was time to collect on that freedom, he was returned to…
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Ta-Nehisi Coates Clapped Back at Mitch McConnell for Saying ‘No One Alive’ Is Liable for Reparations. So We Came Up With a List
On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties held a hearing about H.R. 40, a proposal from Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) that would authorize a national apology and study reparations for slavery and racial discrimination against black people in America. Among those testifying before the subcommittee was…