>
Harlem-born Sam Pollard, a filmmaker and Oscar nominated editor, has spent his entire career chronicling the Black American experience. Pollard, now a professor of film at New York University for the last 27 years, found his passion for movies by watching the works of Howard Hawks, John Ford, and Alfred Hitchcock. He credits them for […]
Social Justice
How Will Reparations Move Forward In America?
A bill that would advance the fight for reparations is moving up the legislative ladder in Congress, opening the door for a national conversation about how America will finally address reparations after 400 years of enslavement of African Americans. Since slavery’s abolishment 150 years ago in the United States, a path to carrying out overdue […]
Dianne Morales’ Community-Based Approach to Defunding the Police
For New York City Mayoral candidate, Dianne Morales, calls to “Defund the Police” is more than just a slogan — it’s her campaign promise to the city. Morales, former counsel to Mayor Bill de Blasio, has laid out a multi-prong platform to reform how the city approaches policing in the city. “We’ve got to move […]
Sports in Boston: racism, wrongful accusations, and a renewed hope
Boston is anything but a sports backwater. Since 2000, the city has had more playoff wins than any other city or region in North America. As far as championship wins go, Boston boasts 12 in 20 years between the Celtics, Red Sox, Patriots, and Bruins. These franchises have produced legendary dynasties, cementing Boston’s position at […]
Racism in the cheerleading world and the effects of cheerleading on Black and African American women’s racial identity
Kennedy Providence, who is on the cheerleading team for the University of Toronto, recalls a time where she was reprimanded for her natural hair. “When I first began cheerleading in 2013, I had an afro. The team manager for my high school team had told us that the hairstyle would be a high ponytail with […]
How Can Social Media Companies Prevent Racist Abuse Directed At Players?
How Can Social Media Companies Prevent Racist Abuse Directed At Players? After his team labored to a 0-0 draw against Arsenal in the final week of January, Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford went on Twitter to announce that he had been racially abused online. “Humanity and social media at its worst. Yes I’m a Black […]
NFL Player Injuries: Intersection with Medical Racism
Examining the NFL’s Treatment of Black Players and their Injuries Kevin Lerell Henry, a former defensive lineman who played eight seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1993 to 2000, suffers from memory loss, headaches, depression, and extreme bouts of anger. He suspected these symptoms were due to injuries he sustained while playing in the NFL. […]
NFL Head Coaches: A Culture of White Elitism
The NFL has a race problem. Four years ago, when 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick took a knee protesting police brutality, the NFL remained silent. In May 2020, after protests raged across the country over the death of George Floyd, the NFL admitted they were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier. In the league […]
NYC Mayoral Candidates Vow to End Exclusive Admissions Tests
New York City’s leading Democratic mayoral candidates are pledging to end the use of all exclusive admission screens at Thursday’s Teens Take Charge forum. And NYC’s teens, who attend high schools among the most segregated in the nation, plan to hold them to it. Students, experts, and advocates have worked for years to dismantle the […]
The Vaccine Race Shows Again The Deep Roots of Inequality
It took nearly three weeks for East New York, Brooklyn resident Jason Minnis to get his mother-in-law a vaccine appointment in their majority-black neighborhood. Many others aren’t as lucky. Since the first vaccine rollout late last year, the widening disparity in the vaccination rates among Black communities in New York has only worsened. Part of […]