Breaking News! History in the Making

Don’t Label Me Gay or African-American

Raven Symone discusses how labeling is a serious issue and how she doesn’t appreciate today’s society labeling her and her lifestyle choices.

MO Governor Declares State Of Emergency Ahead Of Grand Jury Decision

Gov. Nixon issued an executive order declaring a 30-day state of emergency in Missouri to protect the citizens and businesses from the potential “violence and damage” he presumes if the grand jury fails to indict Officer Darren Wilson. Wilson shot and killed unarmed teenager Michael Brown in August 2014.

EBONY To Honor Top 100 Black Influencers Of 2014

By Jessica Dickerson, thehuffingtonpost.com Ebony Magazine has a history of celebrating influential African Americans. As usual, the magazine’s annual ‘Power 100’ list of standout figures in the Black community does not disappoint. Fourteen categories from “Cultural Influencers” to “Community Crusaders,” list dynamite game changers who make it impossible to imagine 2014 without. Lupita Nyong’o, Ta-Nehisi…

NFL Commissioner Suspends Adrian Peterson Without Pay for Remainder of the Season

Football player Adrian Peterson was suspended without pay for the remainder of the 2014 NFL season for hitting his child with a switch. Peterson will appeal.

KKK Threatens ‘Lethal Force’ Against Ferguson Protesters

BY: LYNETTE HOLLOWAY, theroot.com As a nation awaits a grand jury decision in the Ferguson, Mo., police shooting case that has divided some Americans along racial lines, members of a Missouri-based KKK chapter have been distributing fliers that promise to use “lethal force” against “terrorists masquerading as ‘peaceful protesters,’’’ Vice News reports. The fliers, reportedly…

Why Do We Still Care About the Confederate Flag?

150 years after the Civil War ended, the Confederate flag is still one of the nation’s most divisive emblems. Is it treasonous or just hateful to display it?

It Looks Like the Ferguson Grand Jury Decision Will Be Announced Monday

BY: LAUREN VICTORIA BURKE, theroot.com According to sources familiar with a Wednesday conference call that included key elected officials, the St. Louis County grand jury’s decision in the case of Ferguson, Mo., police Officer Darren Wilson is expected to be announced publicly Monday. And sources close to the investigation state that they are not expecting Wilson to be…

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Who Were the Great Black Historians?

Meet the people to whom all black—and American—history buffs owe a great debt.

The 5 Worst States for Black People

Taking into account stats on education, health, incarceration rate, economics and general misery, these are some of the worst states for black people to live in.

The Birth Of ‘Dear White People’

First person narrative by Justin Simien on the process that lead to his movie ‘Dear White People’, the history behind the title, and intention behind the film.

Army Updates Regulation That Had Sanctioned The Term ‘Negro’

By Diane Jeanty, huffingtonpost.com The Army updated controversial regulations Thursday that had said it was acceptable to refer to African-American service members as “Negro.” As CNN first reported, the Army’s Oct. 22 “Army Command Policy” document contained a section on “race and ethnic code definitions,” which read, “A person having origins in any of the black…

Mia Love

Republicans’ First Black Congresswoman

In Utah, Mia Love became the first black Republican woman — and first Haitian American — elected to Congress.

Eighth grade students Mea Thompson and Zaria Daniel (WMAQ)

Students Ask Not To Be Called African-American; Teacher Allegedly Calls Them N-Word

A substitute teacher’s response to Black students asking not to be called African American was to use a racial slur multiple times.

Braving Ebola

Photographs and interviews by DANIEL BEREHULAK, nytimes.com The patients arrive, at first fearful of the people in spacesuits whose faces they cannot see. They wait for test results, for the next medical rounds, for symptoms to appear or retreat. They watch for who recovers to sit in the courtyard shade and who does not. They…

Chadwick Boseman Is Marvel’s ‘Black Panther’

BY: YESHA CALLAHAN, theroot.com On the heels of his breakthrough performance as James Brown in Get on Up, Chadwick Boseman has been cast as Marvel Studios’ first solo lead of color (not to be confused with Blade, which was co-produced with New Line Cinema). He will take on the role of T’Challa, the head of…

Search Resumes in DC for Missing 8-Year-Old Relisha Rudd

BY: LYNETTE HOLLOWAY, theroot.com Volunteers resumed searching Saturday for 8-year-old Relisha Rudd, who went missing seven months ago after her mother entrusted her in the care of a janitor, who worked at the homeless shelter where the family lived in Washington, D.C. Four teams scoured three areas near Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens in Northeast D.C. for…

DeShawn Currie was feeling comfortable and cared for by his foster parents, and then he was assaulted by police in his own home.

Black Teen with White Parents Mistaken for Burglar, Assaulted by Cops in His Home

Police respond to neighbor’s call about black teen entering a home in a white neighborhood. They attempt to arrest him for burglary and pepper-spray him. He was in his own home.

NAACP and Family Lawyers Are Looking Into Lennon Lacy’s Hanging Death

BY: DION RABOUIN, theroot.com On Monday night, lawyers Al McSurely and Allen Rogers met with Claudia Lacy and Larry Walton to discuss the next step in the investigation into what McSurely called “the probable murder” of Lacy and Walton’s 17-year-old son, Lennon Lacy. While the parents of boys like Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis waged…

Man gets life without parole for murdering Florida teen over loud music

By Ray Sanchez, CNN A Florida judge Friday sentenced Michael Dunn to life in prison without parole for the 2012 shooting death of 17-year-old Jordan Davis. The sentence, imposed nearly two years after Dunn shot and killed Davis during an argument over loud music, also carries an additional 90 years for three convictions of attempted…

I raised my sons to be racially neutral

Two mixed-race boys, one lighter skinned than the other. Their black mother asks, “Did I make a mistake telling them they were the same?”

Quvenzhané Wallis Looks Forward To (Hopefully) Being Nominated For An Oscar Again

By Leigh Blickley, huffingtonpost.com Quvenzhané Wallis has accomplished more than most kids her age. At 9 years old, she became a household name as the youngest actress ever to receive an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her role as Hushpuppy in the 2013 film, “Beasts of the Southern Wild.” Now, at age 11, she’s set…