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Baton Rouge Police Chief Apologizes for the Hiring of Alton Sterling’s Killer. Sterling Still Dead
In what could only be described as a grievous insult on top of deadly injury, the Baton Rouge police chief apologized for the hiring of the officer who killed Alton Sterling more than three years ago. Police Chief Murphy Paul apologized on Thursday, saying in part, “We are sorry Baton Rouge. I want to apologize…
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White Man Wrongly Branded as Killer of 7-Year-Old Jazmine Barnes Dead of Apparent Suicide
Many hearts shattered with the news of the tragic shooting death of 7-year-old Jazmine Barnes, the little girl who was gunned down in a Houston-area Walmart parking lot in December 2018. Initially thought to be a racially motivated crime, an innocent white man whose photo went viral soon after the incident has died of an…
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Eric Garner’s Daughter Meets With NYC Mayor, Says Not Firing Officer Daniel Pantaleo Is ‘Unacceptable’
Though at this point it should be expected, it’s always a gut punch when a police officer takes a life—on video—and said death is ruled a homicide by an independent professional and yet, not only does the officer responsible remain unjailed but gainfully employed and defiant about their actions And so we took another one…
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We Are Meharry, Not Juul’s Marionette
When my alma mater—Meharry Medical College (one of only three historically black colleges and universities that produces physicians, dentists, and biomedical researchers)—welcomed a $7.5 million donation from Juul/Altria, the world’s leading e-cigarette company, it felt like we had accepted Kryptonite. The unpopular decision connects two diametrically opposed missions: one that seeks to improve the health…
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Stonewall Activist and Trans Matriarch Miss Major Recovering From Stroke
Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a rabble-rousing, bad-ass warrior woman who is ever liberal with the word “motherfucker,” and has been instrumental in demanding dignity and resources for black trans women, suffered a stroke on July 4 but is recovering in a rehab center, according to spokespersons for her Griffin-Gracy Educational Retreat & Historical Center. Last week,…
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Gay History Is Black History: These 10 Icons Prove It
LGBTQ African Americans have always been here. (Drag) Kings and Queens, dykes, homos, gender nonconforming, same-gender loving, queer and trans folk populate our history and have been foundational to every single emancipatory movement we’ve ever had. But often, they are erased for their sexuality or their gender. Gay folx been here. And they’ve been doing…
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For World Pride, Andre J. Pays Homage to Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera With Excuse Me, Hello
Today is the kickoff to World Pride weekend, which just happens to be hosted in New York City this year, coinciding with the 50th Anniversary of the Stonewall Inn rebellion in New York’s Greenwich Village. Finally, the entire story of those black and brown folks who were at Stonewall but scrubbed from the historical narrative…
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We Dream a World: Black & Queer in Milwaukee
On any given day, my partner, Lynnae* and I will be driving, engaged in our usual griping at the utterly reckless ways some Milwaukee drivers shit on safety laws while behind the wheel. It’s become a game of sorts; I’m usually the one who points out the utter disregard for red lights and how cars…
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Nothing but the Truth: A Q&A With Bryan Stevenson, Subject of HBO’s True Justice
Montgomery, Alabama, exists as a paradox. It is here that slavers sold other human beings at market, and where a young Rosa Parks set off a campaign that eventually desegregated a nation. In Montgomery, in the shadow of the state capitol building, there is a haggard monument to Robert E. Lee sitting directly across the…
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#BeBest? Melania Trump’s Spokesperson Tapped to Replace Sarah ‘Suckabee’ Sanders
In the revolving shitshow known as the Donald Trump White House, yet another liar press secretary has been chosen after current mouthpiece Sarah Huckabee Sanders, aka “Suckabee,” announced in mid-June that she was leaving. This is the third press secretary in as many years. “I am pleased to announce @StephGrisham45 will be the next @PressSec…
