Breaking News! History in the Making
Politics Gets Its Own Cheerios Ad
The black son of a white candidate tackles stop and frisk in a campaign ad. By Keli Goff, theRoot.com Earlier this year, Cheerios generated extensive media attention — and countless racist comments online — for becoming the first major American brand to feature a mixed-race family in a television advertisement. Now an ad for a political campaign is poised…
NAACP: Stop-and-frisk Ruling a ‘Groundbreaking Victory’
By Lily Workneh, TheGrio.com Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled Mondy morning that New York City’s Police Department’s stop-and-frisk practice violated constitutional rights – and the NAACP is pleased with her decision. (…) “This is a groundbreaking victory,” said NAACP President Ben Jealous. “Judge Scheindlin recognized what the NAACP has been saying for years: the racial profiling tactic…
‘Race-switch’ Robbers Found Guilty On All Counts
By Selim Agar, Nypost.com The trio of black robbers who donned Hollywood-grade masks to appear Caucasian during the stickup of a Queens check cashing joint were found guilty on all counts in Brooklyn federal court today and each face life in prison. (…)Drawing their criminal inspiration from the Ben Affleck flick “The Town,” the crew…
On This Date in History: Alex Haley Was Born
From the African American Registry Alex Haley was born on this date in 1921. He was an African American author, whose books helped popularize the study of Black history and genealogy. Born in Ithaca, New York, Haley was educated at Alcorn Agricultural and Mechanical College and at Elizabeth City Teachers College. He served in the…
A Family Consents to a Medical Gift, 62 Years Later
By Carl Zimmer, New York Times Henrietta Lacks was only 31 when she died of cervical cancer in 1951 in a Baltimore hospital. Not long before her death, doctors removed some of her tumor cells. They later discovered that the cells could thrive in a lab, a feat no human cells had achieved before. Soon the…
Ohio Organization Raising Funds to Buy George Zimmerman a New Gun
By Carrie Healey, TheGrio.com The Buckeye Firearms Foundation started a fund to buy George Zimmermann “a new gun and fight attacks on the Second Amendment.” (…) “This move to prevent Mr. Zimmerman from claiming his property is an unacceptable abuse of power,” the Buckeye Firearms Foundation wrote in their post. ”And the threats of federal…
Oprah: Trayvon Martin The ‘Same Thing’ As Emmett Till
By Jack Mirkinson, HuffingtonPost.com In a brief clip that aired on Monday’s “Today”, Oprah Winfrey compared the killing of Trayvon Martin to that of Emmett Till, the young black boy whose brutal murderhelped fuel the civil rights movement. It was one of her first public comments about the case, which has seen African Americans and…
Ku Klux Klan Recruits Members for Neighborhood Watch Program
Lilly Workneb, TheGrio.com Members of the Ku Klux Klan in Springfield, Mo. surprised some local residents with flyers in their front yard promoting a Klan-sponsored neighborhood watch program. The flyers were discovered by residents on Sunday morning, who woke up to find the piece of paper in a plastic bag and weighted down by a small rock…
‘Fruitvale Station’ Shows Black Male Humanity
Jessie Washington, Huffington Post Oscar Grant did not deserve to die. This is the central message of “Fruitvale Station,” a film dramatizing the real-life case of the young unarmed black man shot in the back by a white police officer in 2009. It’s a common message, often heard in film and life in general. But…
Why ‘National Dialogue on Race’ Is Needed
Many have disagreed with the concept. But a dialogue could go a long way toward jump-starting healing. By Peniel E. Joseph, theRoot.com Trayvon Martin’s tragic death has inspired nationwide demonstrations and calls for action that have reverberated all the way to the White House. President Obama’s spontaneous and heartfelt words about the plight of race relations in America…
Holder Wants Texas to Clear Voting Changes With the U.S.
By Charlie Savage, the New York Times Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. announced on Thursday that the Justice Department would ask a court to require Texas to get permission from the federal government before making voting changes in that state for the next decade. The move opens a new chapter in the political struggle…
Zimmerman Verdict: 86 Percent of African Americans Disapprove
By: Jon Cohen, TheRoot.com,WashingtonPost.com African Americans have a mostly shared and sharply negative reaction to the shooting of Trayvon Martin and the not-guilty verdict in the resulting trial, while whites are far more divided, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll. (…) Among African Americans, 87 percent say the shooting was unjustified; among whites,…
‘The Snowy Day’: Children’s Book With Black Protagonist is Focus of Exhibit
By: Joann Loviglio, Associated Press, TheGrio.com PHILADELPHIA (AP) — During the height of the civil rights movement, a gentle book about a black boy in a red snowsuit crunch-crunch-crunching through the snow broke down racial barriers and now is the subject of an upcoming exhibit. Ezra Jack Keats’ beloved 1962 book, “The Snowy Day,” is credited…
2 Teens Rescue 5-yr-old Girl From Kidnapping
By: NBC News, TheGrio.com A 5-year-old girl is safe after police said she was the victim of an apparent abduction. The search is on for her alleged abductor. Joceyln Rojas had been playing outside her home when her mother was unable to find her. Police said two teenage boys on bicycles went searching for Rojas…
Obama: ‘Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago’
By Aaron Blake and Juliet Eilperin, Washington Post President Obama made a surprise appearance in the White House briefing room Friday to share his thoughts on the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, saying it is important to look at the case through the lens of past discrimination. “Trayvon Martin could have been…
No Déja Vu to Everyone
By Jerrianne Hayslett, Anatomy of a Trial Editor’s Note: Jerrianne is a long-time friend of the museum. For years, she served as Los Angeles Superior Court’s media liaison and information officer and coordinated media logistics for numerous high-profile cases, including the O. J. Simpson criminal and civil trials, the Menendez brothers, Heidi Fleiss, Rodney King beating, and two cases…
Florida ‘stand your ground’ law yields some shocking outcomes depending on how law is applied
An investigation into stand-your-ground laws shows the shocking ways they are invoked and applied to different Florida cases.
Fla. mom gets 20 years in jail for firing warning shots against abusive husband
By Richard Webster, examiner.com Marissa Alexander of Jacksonville, Fla. was sentenced to 20 years in prison on July 12 for firing warning shots inside her home in an effort to protect herself from her allegedly abusive husband. Alexander had requested a new trial based upon her state’s “Stand Your Ground” law, but was denied that…
Why the Zimmerman Jury Failed Us
Harvard professor Lawrence Bobo explains how the Zimmerman verdict reflects the racism at America’s core – leading to the continual dehumanization of blacks. When cultural racism is this deeply embedded in America’s basic cultural toolkit, it need not be named or even consciously embraced to work its ill effects.
Frederick Douglass: “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro”
On July 5, 1852, abolitionist and ex-slave Frederick Douglass gave this famously pointed speech at an event commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence. He told his white audience, “This Fourth of July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn.”
Joining Together in Justice
By Charles Blow, New York Times Proponents of equality have reason to both cheer and cry this week…. One movement for equality [Gay Rights] had its spirits lifted and another [Civil Rights] had them crushed. But the truth is that these movements are not wholly dissimilar. All combatants for justice are cousins. Jim Crow and…