Breaking News! History in the Making
Fatal police shootings in 2015 approaching 400 nationwide
At least 385 people were shot and killed by police nationwide during the first five months of this year, more than two a day, according to a Washington Post analysis. That is more than twice the rate of fatal police shootings tallied by the federal government over the past decade.
How One Massachusetts Jail Cut Its Population By 30 Percent In 6 Years
By now the problem is well documented: There are far too many Americans behind bars, and it costs society far too much, in every sense, to keep them there. Less discussed, however, is what can be done about it.
Tortuous History Traced in Sunken Slave Ship Found Off South Africa
In 1794, a Portuguese slave ship left Mozambique for a 7,000-mile voyage to Brazil and the sugar plantations that awaited its cargo of black men and women. Shackled in the ship’s hold were between 400 and 500 slaves, pressed flesh to flesh with their backs on the floor. With the exception of daily breaks to exercise, the slaves would spend the bulk of the estimated four-month journey in the dark of the hold.
The journey lasted only 24 days. The São José Paquete Africa came apart violently on two reefs not far from Cape Town. The captain, crew and half of the slaves survived. An estimated 212 slaves perished in the sea. The remnants of the São José have been found, right where the ship went down. It is the first time that the wreckage of a slaving ship that went down with slaves aboard has been recovered.
The new National Museum of African American History and Culture, which will open in 2016 on the National Mall in Washington DC, will house an exhibit of the ship and its cargo.
It’s Time to Stop Blaming Black-on-Black Crime
For every unarmed black man, woman or child killed by unrestrained police officers, there’s an intellectually impoverished response when black people get visibly upset about it: What about black-on-black crime?
Longtime school benefactor meets with Obama, Biden
Some 80 years after graduating from school, Vivian Bailey has taken the field trip of a lifetime.
African-Americans Who Attended Desegregated Schools Have Better Language Skills Years Later
African-Americans who attended racially diverse schools have better cognitive abilities decades after graduation, according to a new study.
Tear down the ‘blue wall of silence’: New York Dem destroys sheriff who blames police violence on blacks
By Travis Gettys, RawStory.com A New York Democrat shut down a black conservative Wisconsin sheriff who blamed police violence on black criminality. David Clarke, the Milwaukee County sheriff, described “black-on-black crime” as the “elephant in the room” Tuesday during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on the rising tensions between police officers and African-Americans. “The conversation…
If You Type ‘N—- House’ Into Google Maps, It Will Take You To The White House
President Barack Obama is no stranger to Internet racism, but this is just ridiculous: typing “nigga house” into Google Maps can land you at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Military Weapons Used in Ferguson to Be Restricted by Obama Task Force
Civilian law enforcement will be prohibited from receiving certain military weapons—including tanklike vehicles, assault rifles and grenade launchers.
Post-Baltimore, Most Americans Believe Unrest Was Just One Big Criminal Act
The results are in: A majority of Americans think the Baltimore unrest was just another mad, black riot.
Legendary Blues Musician B.B. King Dead At 89
This tribute to the great blues musician B.B. King, who passed away on May 14, 2015, includes two videos: a trailer for a movie about his extraordinary life and another in which he performs one of his most iconic songs. King won the first of his 15 Grammy Awards in 1951 and joined the Grammy Hall of Fame 47 years later. He was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1980, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987 and the R&B Music Hall of Fame in 2014. Rolling Stone magazine also ranked him at No. 3 in its 2003 list of the 100 greatest guitarist of all time.
Black Man Found Hanging From Tree In Georgia Committed Suicide: Officials
The death of Roosevelt Champion III, the black Georgia man who on Monday was found hanging from a tree, has been ruled a suicide by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Michelle Obama Tells Grads Not to Let Hate and Insults Stand in Their Way
In her commencement speech to the graduating class, the first lady shared what she has overcome at the White House and encouraged members of the senior class to have faith in themselves.
Officer in Freddie Gray case demanded man’s arrest as part of personal dispute
Baltimore lieutenant Brian Rice used his position to threaten ‘heads will roll’ if officers did not arrest his ex-girlfriend’s husband, police report reveals.
The most senior Baltimore police officer charged over the death of Freddie Gray used his position to order the arrest of a man as part of a personal dispute just two weeks before the fatal incident, prompting an internal inquiry by Baltimore police department.
Baltimore mayor seeks federal investigation of police department
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake asked the Justice Department on Wednesday to conduct a full-scale civil rights investigation into the pattern and practices of the Baltimore Police Department — a probe that would examine excessive force, discriminatory harassment, false arrests, and unlawful stops, searches or arrests.
Baltimore Free Farm Feeds Protestors Through ‘Culinary Solidarity’
As protests enveloped the city following the death 25-year-old Freddie Gray, whose spine was severed while in police custody, the organization Baltimore Free Farm immediately began working around the clock to feed hungry demonstrators.
Baltimore Teen Encouraged by Parents to Turn Himself in Is Held on $500,000 Bail, Faces Life in Prison
Allen Bullock, the 18-year-old seen in photos smashing in a police car with a traffic cone, turned himself in after being encouraged by his parents. But now he is being held on $500,000 bail, an amount his parents cannot afford.
What’s Happening In Baltimore Didn’t Just Start With Freddie Gray
This week’s chaos on the streets of Baltimore has been decades in the making.
Violence erupted in the city on Monday after days of largely peaceful protests over the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who recently died of injuries he sustained while in police custody. But Gray’s death was just the latest point on a timeline stretching back generations, one that encompasses all manner of racial inequity and human indignity.
Loretta Lynch Sworn In As U.S. Attorney General
Loretta Lynch was sworn in as U.S. attorney general on Monday, becoming the first African-American woman to fill the position.
