Affirmative action hits Brazil’s runways
Bold styles are usually the talk of the town for Sao Paulo Fashion Week. This year, cou- ture connoisseurs in Brazil’s most cosmopolitan city have focused on the models—more specifically, the color of their skin.
Comedian Sinbad recovering from stroke
The family of Sinbad says the comedian-actor is recovering from a recent stroke.
Alex Trebek remembered for grace that elevated him above TV host
Alex Trebek never pretended to have all the answers, but the “Jeopardy!” host became an inspiration and solace to Americans who otherwise are at odds with each other.
Chesterfield County resumes in-person classes amid pushback
The final cohort of students in Chesterfield County Public Schools began in-person classes Monday amid pushback from teachers and staff about the decision.
Whitney Houston, Notorious B.I.G. among inductees into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
In a normal year, the newly inducted Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class would have hit the stage to perform the well-known songs that made them famous and helped them enter the prestigious organization. Not in 2020.
Barrier-breaking golfer Lee Elder being honored by the Masters with scholarship
In a year marked by racial injustice, Augusta National announced Monday it would honor Lee Elder with two scholar- ships in his name at Paine College and an honorary tee shot next year for the first Black player in the Masters.
McDonald’s hires new diversity chief
McDonald’s is hiring a new chief diversity officer as it struggles with charges of harassment and racism at all levels of the company.
Drake sets Billboard record previously held by Aretha, Stevie Wonder
Earning his 21st No. 1 hit on Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop songs chart, Drake has bested a record previously held by icons Aretha Franklin and Stevie Wonder.
William Blinn, screenwriter of miniseries ‘Roots’ and film ‘Purple Rain,’ dies at 83
William Blinn, a screenwriter for the landmark TV projects “Roots” and “Brian’s Song” and the Prince film “Purple Rain,” has died. He was 83.
Ousted president sues Liberty University over damaged reputation
Jerry Falwell Jr. has sued Liberty University, alleging the evangelical school founded by his late pastor father damaged his reputation in a series of public statements that followed his resignation as president and chancellor in August amid a series of scandals.
Chef Marcus Samuelsson celebrates Black chefs, food in new book
If anyone asks chef Marcus Samuelsson what African food taste like, he has a ready answer: Have you ever had barbeque? Rice? Collard greens? Okra? Coffee?
Prince Harry says ignorance no excuse for unconscious bias
Britain’s Prince Harry says it took him many years and the experience of living with his wife, Meghan Markle, to understand how his privileged upbringing shielded him from the reality of unconscious bias.
Pope makes D.C. archbishop first Black cardinal in U.S.
Washington D.C. Archbishop Wilton Gregory is now the first Black U.S. prelate to assume the rank of cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church, a historic appointment that comes months after nationwide demonstrations against racial injustice.
Woman’s obituary: In lieu of flowers, ‘do not vote for Trump’
An obituary for a Minneapolis-area woman who died at age 93 included one specific request for her mourners: Do not vote for President Trump.
’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.
Lawyer who successfully argued Loving case legalizing interracial marriage dies
Bernard S. Cohen, who won a landmark case that led to the U.S. Supreme Court’s rejection of laws forbidding interracial marriage and later went on to a successful political career as a state legislator, has died. He was 86.
Catholic Diocese of Richmond to pay $6.2M to sexual abuse victims
The Catholic Diocese of Richmond announced last week that it is paying $6.3 million to 51 people who experienced sexual abuse as minors by clergy.
Va. company switches from e-cigarettes to manufacturing PPE
A Virginia-based company that makes disposable face masks and surgical masks plans to create 180 jobs and invest $5.3 million to grow its operations in the area.
Alabama governor apologizes to 1963 church bombing survivor
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has apologized to a survivor of a racist 1963 church bombing that killed four Black girls, calling the blast an “egregious injustice.” But the governor declined on Sept. 30 to pay restitution without legislative involvement.
“Wanton murder”
Breonna Taylor’s family attorney decries the decision of a Kentucky grand jury to absolve 2 white police offers in her shooting death, while charging a third with endangering Ms. Taylor’s neighbors
Two white policemen who fired shots inside the apartment of Breonna Taylor, a Black emergency medical technician, will not be prosecuted for her death because their use of force was justified, while a third police officer was charged with endangering her neighbors, Kentucky’s attorney general announced on Wednesday.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg remembered as an agent of change
Jennifer Carroll Foy remembers the moment that U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg changed her life.
Kool & the Gang co-founder Ronald ‘Khalis’ Bell dies at 68
Ronald “Khalis” Bell, a co-founder, singer and producer of the group Kool & the Gang, died Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2020. He was 68.
Kerby Jean-Raymond, Gabriela Hearst win top fashion awards
NEW YORK The Council of Fashion Designers of America gave its top fashion awards on Monday to Haitian-American Kerby Jean-Raymond for menswear and Gabriela Hearst for womenswear.
Say her name
City of Louisville to pay the family of Breonna Taylor $12M to settle the wrongful death lawsuit filed after she was shot to death by police during a late-night raid of her home
Months after the police killing of Breonna Taylor thrust her name to the forefront of a national reckoning on race, the City of Louisville agreed to pay the Black woman’s family $12 million and reform police practices as part of a settlement announced Tuesday.
Rosa Parks’ home displayed in Italy amid racial justice backdrop
The rundown, paint-chipped Detroit house where civil rights icon Rosa Parks took refuge after her historic bus boycott is going on display in Italy in a setting that couldn’t be more incongruous: The imposing central courtyard of the Royal Palace in Naples.
Lt. Gov. Justin E. Fairfax launches campaign for governor
Lt. Gov. Justin E. Fairfax formally kicked off his campaign for governor last Saturday, a year after facing two allegations of sexual assault.
Bloomberg gives $100M to historically Black medical schools
Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is giving about $100 million to four historically Black medical schools over the next four years, with students getting up to $100,000 apiece.
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.
Families decry ‘two systems of justice’ at D.C. march
Standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. famously laid out a vision for harmony between white and Black people 57 years ago, his son issued a sobering reminder about the persistence of police brutality and racist violence targeting Black Americans.
Falwell being investigated after resigning as president of Liberty University
Liberty University is opening an independent investigation into Jerry Falwell Jr.’s tenure as president, a wide-ranging inquiry that will include financial, real estate and legal matters, the evangelical school’s board announced Monday.
Athlete power: ‘Shut up and play’ is tossed from the game
The sports world came to a halt last week as leagues postponed professional men’s and women’s basketball games, football practices, soccer matches, baseball games, hockey playoffs and tennis competitions as players protested the shooting of a Black man by police in Kenosha, Wis.
Not again
Wisconsin man, 29, paralyzed after being shot in the back Sunday by police as his children watched
Suddenly there is a new name and a new face to remind people that the lesson of George Floyd has not sunk in among many in the police rank and file.
Petersburg native Joseph B. Jefferson, whose songs gave The Spinners big hits, dies at 77
Petersburg native Joseph Banks Jefferson, a self-taught drummer and organist who went on to co-write hit songs for The Spinners, has died in his adopted city of Philadelphia.
Ambassador Zindzi Mandela, anti-apartheid activist and daughter of Nelson and Winnie Mandela, dies at 59
Zindzi Mandela, the daughter of South African anti-apartheid leaders Nelson Man- dela and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and South Africa’s ambassador to Denmark, has died at age 59.
Walmart, Target quit Thanksgiving shopping cold turkey; Black Friday still looms in the air
Forget about rushing out this year on Thanksgiving Day to get a jump on Christmas shopping. Target is joining Walmart in closing its stores Thanksgiving Day, ending a decade-long tradition of jumpstarting Black Friday door buster sales.
Beyonce’s new ‘Black Is King’ premieres July 31
Social media is buzzing in anticipation of Beyoncé’s new visual album, “Black Is King,” that premieres Thursday, July 31, on Disney+.
Oprah’s O magazine to end monthly print editions after 20 years
O, The Oprah Magazine is ending its regular monthly print editions with the December issue after 20 years of publication.
WNBA opens shortened season with tribute to Breonna Taylor
WNBA players opened their season last weekend wearing uniforms featur- ing Breonna Taylor’s name to honor the 26-year-old emergency medical technician and former high school basketball player who was shot and killed by plainclothes police who broke down the door of her Louisville, Ky., apartment on March 13 to serve a narcotics search warrant.
Rev. C.T. Vivian, Freedom Rides organizer and key adviser to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., dies at 95
The Rev. C.T. Vivian, an early and key adviser to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who organized pivotal civil rights campaigns and spent decades advocating for justice and equality, died Friday, July 17, 2020, the same day as fellow civil rights leader Congressman John Lewis of Georgia.
Ashe statue to stay put
On Richmond’s Monument Avenue, the collection of towering statues honoring Confederate veterans was interrupted by one noticeably different: A monument to hometown tennis legend and human rights activist Arthur Ashe Jr.
Tearful, rambling Kanye West launches presidential campaign
In his first rally for his last-minute presidential campaign, rapper Kanye West ranted against abortion and pornography, argued policy with attendees and at one point broke down in tears during rambling remarks Sunday at a Charleston, S.C., wedding venue and convention center.
Wilder claims racism in state library lag in processing his gubernatorial papers
Former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder is accusing the state library of racism for its slow pace in processing and publicly presenting records from his tenure as the nation’s first elected African-American governor.
Rudolfo Anaya, ‘godfather’ of Chicano literature, dies at 82
Rudolfo Anaya, a writer who helped launch the 1970s Chicano Literature Movement with his novel, “Bless Me, Ultima,” a book celebrated by Latinos, has died at 82.
Turmoil at EBONY and Essence magazines prompts changes at top
EBONY and Essence magazines are in trouble.
Black lives celebrated and mourned at emotional BET Awards
Black power, suffering and the fight for justice took center stage at the BET Awards on Sunday, the first Black celebrity event since recent nationwide mass protests broke out over systemic racism.
NASA names D.C. headquarters for engineer Mary W. Jackson of ‘Hidden Figures’ fame
The early African-American women at NASA will not be hidden anymore.
Actor Jamie Foxx to play heavyweight champ Mike Tyson in biopic
Jamie Foxx is in the gym muscling up for what he hopes will be a knockout performance.
FBI finds no hate crime in old noose in Bubba Wallace’s NASCAR garage
NASCAR went to Talladega Superspeedway last weekend on heightened alert after Bubba Wallace, its only Black driver, took on an active role in a push for racial equality.
Feds sue Stafford County over law blocking Islamic cemetery
The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against a Virginia county for “imposing restrictive zoning requirements” that blocked an Islamic nonprofit from building a cemetery.
