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Smollett back performing; talks about attack
“Empire” actor Jussie Smollett was blunt, emotional and defiantly determined last Saturday night at a Southern California concert some urged him not to play, telling the crowd before singing a note that he had to go on with the show because he couldn’t let his attackers win.
Want a job? Employers say talk to the computer
A day after her interview for a part-time job at Target last year, Dana Anthony got an email informing her she didn’t make the cut.
Critically acclaimed filmmaker John Singleton dies at 51
Director John Singleton, who made one of Hollywood’s most memorable debuts with the Oscar-nominated “Boyz N the Hood” and continued over the following decades to probe the lives of African-American communities in his native Los Angeles and beyond, died Monday, April 29, 2019, after suffering several strokes during the last two weeks. He was 51.
Washington NFL team drops racist name
The most polarizing name in North American professional sports is gone.
‘They tried to ban one. We’re coming back with a hundred’
Hundreds of pastors both rallied and prayed last week outside the trial of three white men charged in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. They gathered in response to a defense lawyer’s bid to keep Black ministers out of the courtroom.
Ella Mai sweeps 2018 Soul Train Awards
British singer Ella Mai won big at the 2018 Soul Train Awards, dominating in three categories during Sunday night’s telecast and taking honors for best R&B/soul female artist, and song of the year and the Ashford and Simpson Songwriter’s Award for “Boo’d Up.”
George Washington professor, who claimed to be Black, comes clean about her racial background
George Washington University is investigating the case of a history professor who allegedly admitted to fraudulently pretending to be a Black woman for her entire career.
Charlottesville roils with protests over Confederate statue
Protests reminiscent of Ku Klux Klan rallies are rattling Charlottesville over the city’s plans to remove a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee from a park in downtown.
Straight Outta Compton’ box office hit rakes in $60.2M over weekend debut
“Straight Outta Compton,” the N.W.A. biopic produced by Ice Cube and Dr. Dre, blew away industry expectations over the weekend with a $60.2 million debut.
Former prosecutor files lawsuit over Central Park 5 series
Within one week, former Manhattan prosecutor Linda Fairstein has filed and lost a libel suit against Netflix and film director Ava DuVernay over her portrayal in the streaming service’s limited series about the Exonerated (formerly Central Park) Five case, which sent five African-American and Latino teenagers to prison for a crime they were later absolved of committing.
White supremacist gets life sentence in Charlottesville rally death
An avowed white supremacist who deliberately drove his car into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer and injuring dozens, apologized to his victims before being sentenced on June 28 to life in prison on federal hate crime charges.
Trump denounces intel reports of damaging info from Russian hacking
A defiant President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday adamantly denied reports that Russia had compromising personal and financial information about him, calling it a “tremendous blot” on the record of the intelligence community if material with any such allegations had been released.
Justice Dept. opens investigation into Gray’s death; officers charged
There’s an uneasy quiet in Baltimore after six police officers were charged last week in the mysterious death of Freddie Gray while he was in their custody. Underneath the calm simmers apprehension and anger in the African-American community — ready to erupt again at any moment — if there’s another incident of police brutality against a black man in the town known as “Charm City.” That grim reality was clear Monday afternoon when angry community members and officers in riot gear quickly converged in West Baltimore after an erroneous TV report stated police had shot and perhaps fatally injured a young African-American man who was seen running away from pursuing officers.
’Emancipation’ project leaves Georgia over voter suppression laws
Will Smith and director Antoine Fuqua have pulled production of their runaway slave drama “Emancipation” from Georgia over the state’s recently enacted law restricting voting access.
’Empire’ star Taraji P. Henson hailed for mental health work
“Empire” star Taraji P. Henson has enjoyed wealth, celebrity, a Golden Globe win and an Academy Award nomination. But behind the scenes, she has battled anxiety and depression.
MLB moving All-Star game to Denver in response to Georgia voter suppression
Major League Baseball plans to relocate the All-Star Game to Coors Field in Denver after pulling this year’s Midsummer Classic from Atlanta over objections to sweeping changes to Georgia’s voting laws.
Idris Elba named sexiest man alive
Move over Barack Obama. Actor Idris Elba was named the sexiest man alive on Monday by People magazine. The London-born actor, 46, said he didn’t believe it when magazine officials told him.
Breakdancing an Olympic sport?
Breakdancing, an art form started by African-American teenagers that has spread all over the world, may break into the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris as a new sport.
Bruce Boynton, who inspired 1961 Freedom Rides after Richmond arrest, dies at 83
Bruce Carver Boynton, a civil rights pioneer from Alabama who inspired the landmark “Freedom Rides” of 1961, died Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. He was 83.
