Breaking News! History in the Making

Black students in a classroom

Zero Math Proficiency: The National Impact on Black Students

Multiple factors have led to a frustrating lack of math proficiency by students at Baltimore public schools.

La'Tannya Banks

One year later, California’s system to find missing Black people is working through its challenges

While California implemented a system to track missing Black persons, who are often overlooked, there are still wrinkles to iron out.

Colman Domingo will co-chair the 2025 Met Gala which celebrates the Costume Institute's exhibition on the Black dandy. (Malike Sidibe for The Washington Post)

The 2025 Met Gala will honor the Black dandy and all his complications

The upcoming Met Gala will make history when stars grace the carpet in artistic fashions that recognize Black style.

Ernie Hudson

‘Ghostbusters’ Star Ernie Hudson Just Made RSV Vaccines Sexy  

The celebrated actor sat down with Word in Black to discuss the importance of the RSC vaccine for Black health.

Keturah Johnson, international vice president for flight attendant union AFA-CWA, poses by a decades old, outdated poster with rules and uniforms for flight attendants, at her headquarters office, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)

More Black and Latina women are leading unions — and transforming how they work

Black and Latina women are landing top positions at some of the biggest unions in the United States. Tackling both racism and sexism in their careers is motivating them to continue to step up as union leaders.

Risking Everything - We Want to Vote image

New Virtual Gallery: Risking Everything, The Fight for Black Voting Rights

The fight for Black voting rights can be explored through virtual and physical exhibits, as well as ABHM’s book club.

Angela D. Alsobrooks (D), candidate for U.S. Senate in Maryland; Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), who is running for a U.S. Senate seat; and Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) during the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s conference. (Courtesy of Lisa Blunt Rochester campaign)

The ‘pragmatic optimist’ set to make history in a divided Senate

Lisa Blunt Rochester is committed to become Delaware’s first Black woman in Congress.

The white supremacist group, The Patriot Front, in Boston in 2022. (Stuart Cahill / MediaNews via Getty Images file)

Black man details alleged beating at the hands of a white supremacist group in Boston

Charles Murrell III is suing a white supremacist group for damages and he claims they assaulted him in 2022.

In September 1992, thousands of off-duty police officers descended on City Hall to protest reforms proposed by Mayor David N. Dinkins, the city’s first Black mayor. (Keith Meyers/The New York Times)

Why Eric Adams Is Nothing Like David Dinkins

Comparisons between New York’s first and second Black mayor equate one’s corruption with the racism the other faced.

John Lewis during a sit-in in Nashville in 1964. (Danny Lyon/Magnum Photos)

How John Lewis Became a Moral Force in America

David Greenberg published a narrative about John Lewis’ life as an activist and later, in American politics.

Anisa Nyell Johnson as Detective Shaker, left, and Shanola Hampton as Gabi Mosley in NBC's "Found." (Matt Miller / NBC)

‘Found’ brings missing marginalized people into the spotlight

“Found” tells the story of a Black woman whose sister was kidnapped, an experience all too familiar to Black families.

Deadwyler: Dalvin Adams; Boyega & Godrey Peoples: Courtesy Images

John Boyega and Danielle Deadwyler to Star in Otis Redding Biopic ‘Otis & Zelma’

The upcoming film features John Boyega as Otis Redding, the talented singer-songwriter who tragically died young, leaving a family behind.

john amos

John Amos, veteran actor of ‘Roots’ and ‘Good Times’ fame, dies at 84

Amos, who spent fifty years on screen, will be remembered for varied roles over his long career and kind heart.

White perpetrators set the Greenwood district known as Black Wall Street on fire in 1921 (The Oklahoman/University of Tulsa McFarlin Library Archives)

US Justice Department launches first-ever federal review of 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre

Over 100 years after a prosperous Black neighborhood in Tulsa was burned to the ground and many residents murdered, the DOJ will investigate.

For Gadiel del Orbe, "things about me align with my ancestors. (Courtesy Gadiel del Orbe)

They’re uncovering their ancestry — and questioning their families’ racial narratives

Digitized archives and DNA testing prove what these Latinos suspected: Spanish ancestry can include African roots and the legacy of slavery.

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‘I see the apathy’: Saginaw city’s Black voters could be vital – if they vote

Less than half of registered voters in Saginaw city voted in the 2020 election, this predominantly Black county is critical for the result of the 2024 election.

Volunteer Jennifer Beil looks through books while filling book requests from prisoners Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023, in Madison, Wis. (Angela Major/WPR)

Wisconsin DOC: Nonprofit can no longer send used books to prisoners

Wisconsin prisoners will have even less access to education through books due to changes in the DOC’s guidelines.

Missouri Executed Marcellus Williams, Despite Evidence He Wasn’t Guilty

Throughout his decades on Death Row, Williams insisted he didn’t kill Felicia Gayle in 1998. Prosecutors believe he might have been telling the truth.

Elizabeth Way, the show’s curator, wanted to explore how designers used “their artistic practice to define what it means to be a Black citizen in this international world.” (James Estrin/The New York Times)

The Story of the African Diaspora, Told Through Its Fashions

One artist is using her platform to showcase how fashion represents culture and storytelling in the African diaspora.

Assembly member Reggie Jones-Sawyer, D-Los Angeles, speaks about a package of reparations legislation at a press conference at the state Capitol on Feb. 21, 2024. | Sophie Austin/AP

Gavin Newsom signs California apology for slavery and discrimination

The governor acknowledges how the state’s involvement in slavery hindered Black individuals and was racially motivated.

Lupita Nyong'o

Lupita Nyong’o brings her outsider experience to ‘The Wild Robot’

The actor draws on her experiences for a voice role in a new animated film that grapples with issues of identity, belonging, and nature.