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Profiling the President
(The Root) — Anti-Obama demonstrators in Arizona taunted the president of the United States with racial slurs in Arizona this past Tuesday, the 50th anniversary of the historic Voting Rights Act. The sight of hundreds of protesters proudly raising hate-filled signs echoed anti-civil rights demonstrations of the 1960s, but with an ironic twist. Obama traveled…
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Obama, Black America and the Jobs Crisis
(The Root) — For African Americans, the Great Recession continues. This is both troubling and ironic because it coincides with the administration of the nation’s first black president. The black community’s understandable pride in President Barack Obama’s existence (and that of Michelle Obama and Sasha and Malia) has inoculated the president against constructive criticism in…
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The Strange Career of the N-Word
(The Root) — Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Riley Cooper’s recent apology for using the n-word during a confrontation with a black security guard at a country music concert last month exemplifies the power of a word rooted in racial slavery, Jim Crow segregation and racism. Cooper, a Kenny Chesney fan, presumably did not learn this…
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Jay Z-Belafonte Feud: A Generational Divide
(The Root) — Hip-hop mogul Shawn Carter, aka Jay Z, and legendary singer and human-rights activist Harry Belafonte have been recently embroiled in a highly publicized dispute over the responsibilities of black icons to the larger African-American community. Belafonte, who has effortlessly wedded a successful international career as a singer, dancer and actor with vocal…
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Don Lemon and the Complexity of Race
(The Root) —Don Lemon, one of CNN’s highest-profile black anchors, triggered a recent firestorm of anger and recrimination when he suggested that African Americans should alter their personal behavior if they want to achieve racial equality. Lemon’s efforts at tough love admonished young black men for wearing baggy pants, castigated hip-hop for romanticizing prison culture,…
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Obama and the Search for Racial Justice
(The Root) — President Obama boldly acknowledged the connection between institutional racism and economic injustice during an interview with the New York Times on Sunday. Obama’s robust comments on the links between racial justice and economic opportunity came on the heels of a week in which the president tried, once again, to shift the nation’s…
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Why National Dialogue on Race Is Needed
(The Root) — 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 touched upon the need for a national conversation about race but expressed skepticism that politicians might…
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The President Can Do, and Say, More
(The Root) — Barack Obama passed a crucial test of presidential leadership this past Friday by directly and forthrightly addressing the crisis of race and democracy that has gripped the nation’s attention in the wake of the George Zimmerman trial. In an impromptu address to the White House press corps, Obama adopted the role of…
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Trayvon, Race and American Democracy
(The Root) — Trayvon Martin’s senseless death and his killer George Zimmerman’s recent acquittal have roused the nation from its perpetual slumber regarding race matters, inspiring nonviolent protests that have run the gamut from old-fashioned street demonstrations to more technologically innovative dissent through social media. It has been an impressive show of unity, the marches…
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Why Is FBI Going After Assata Shakur Now?
(The Root) — The FBI’s recent addition to its Most Wanted Terrorists list has reopened long-dormant wounds from America’s racial past. Assata Shakur’s (formerly Joanne Chesimard) distinction of being the first woman on that list evokes the triumphant and tragic legacy of the black power movement. It was during an era whose high point, between…
Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude
