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How People Understand Racial Inequality Shaped By Black Lives Matter Protests

2Apr

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SOCIAL JUSTICE

How People Understand Racial Inequality Shaped By Black Lives Matter Protests

Considered to be the largest social justice movement since the civil rights era of the 1960s, Black Lives Matter is more than the scores of street protests organized by the social justice group that attracted hundreds of thousands of demonstrators across the world. From its early days in 2014 after Officer Darren Wilson killed Michael Brown, Jr. to the protests following the murder of George Floyd in 2020, Black Lives Matter has opened the door for social change by expanding the way we think about the complicated issues that involve race. As sociologists who study how protests lay the groundwork for social change, we understand their necessity as a tactic to draw attention toward a movement’s broader agenda. In our study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, ...

During The Civil Rights Era Black College Presidents Had A Tough Balancing Act

30Mar

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SOCIAL JUSTICE

During The Civil Rights Era Black College Presidents Had A Tough Balancing Act

Historians have documented again and again how college students contributed to the civil rights movement. Less attention has been paid to the role college presidents played in the fight for equality. Here, Eddie R. Cole, author of the book “The Campus Color Line,” discusses various ways these leaders contributed. 1. What pressures did college leaders face in the civil rights era? College presidents between 1948 to 1968 had to deal with different segments of society that were at complete odds with one another. On the one hand, they oversaw schools where students were increasingly protesting segregation. But they also had to deal with segregationist politicians who controlled state funding for their institutions. Some of those politicians were not shy about their opposition to the civil rig...

It’s No Laughing Matter For Millions Of Black American Women – But What Is Alopecia?

2Apr

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HEALTH & WELLNESS

It’s No Laughing Matter For Millions Of Black American Women – But What Is Alopecia?

The Oscar slap that overshadowed the Academy Awards ceremony was sparked by a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith’s lack of hair – with husband Will Smith objecting violently to comedian Chris Rock mocking the actress’s shaved head. Away from the recriminations over what could be perceived as a mean-spirited jibe and a disproportionate response, many people will sympathize with Pinkett Smith. As millions of women in the U.S. will attest, hair loss is no laughing matter. The Conversation asked dermatologist Danita Peoples of Wayne State University’s School of Medicine about alopecia and why certain forms of it can disproportionately affect Black women. 1. What is alopecia? Alopecia is a medical word that refers to hair loss generally. And there are descriptors added which can refer to where the...

A Historic Black Community Races To Save Its Future Six Months After Hurricane Ida

2Apr

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IN OTHER NEWS

A Historic Black Community Races To Save Its Future Six Months After Hurricane Ida

Briana Flin Residents of Ironton, Louisiana are rallying for their share of recovery funds. Audrey Trufant Salvant has deep roots in Ironton, a close-knit, majority-Black community 25 miles downriver from New Orleans. Her great-great-great grandmother, who had been enslaved, is buried here, and her descendents kept the unincorporated town in Plaquemines Parish alive, despite near-impossible circumstances. Founded by formerly enslaved people in the late 1800s, Ironton’s residents have since endured racial terror, segregationist parish leaders, and decades without even the most basic services. But they fought to survive. They gained access to running water in 1980 and rebuilt the town after Hurricanes Katrina and Isaac in 2005 and 2012, respectively. Today, residents say devastation from...

Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Allies Were Prepared, A Black Women’s Qualifications Have Long Been Questioned

18Mar

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POLITICS

Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Allies Were Prepared, A Black Women’s Qualifications Have Long Been Questioned

In the days and weeks leading up to the announcement that Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson would be the first Black woman nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court, the White House and groups supporting her nomination prepared for potential lines of attack. The possibilities were fairly predictable, with many of them rooted in tropes pushed on Black women for decades: Is she even qualified for this position? Are her views too radical? Is she too angry? Does her race make her biased? “Vicious, racist, sexist tropes have long been levied against Black women,” said Karen Finney, a Democratic strategist and member of the Black Women’s Leadership Collective, which has worked in tandem with the White House on messaging efforts around Jackson’s nomination. “These are outlandish tropes, but they’re designe...

Does Computing Technology Oppress Or Liberate Black Americans

3Apr

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TECHNOLOGY

Does Computing Technology Oppress Or Liberate Black Americans

In 2015, two colleagues—Deen Freelon and Meredith Clark—and I set out to better understand how Black Lives Matter emerged. Our report, Beyond the Hashtags, the Online Struggle for Offline Justice, crystalized then-NAACP president Cornell Brooks’ sentiment: “This isn’t your grandparents’ civil rights movement.” Our study showed us that Ferguson, Missouri birthed Black Lives Matter. It told us that Twitter named Michael Brown for the world. Traditional news media outlets were a day late, and when they did arrive, Twitter was their primary source for information. It afforded a 24-hour glimpse into a radical new way of making news, of telling stories—giving unfiltered voice to those whose voices are traditionally unheard, ignored, or silenced. Digital media—social networking platforms, b...

Joe Biden And The Politics Of Black Womanhood

14Mar

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POLITICS

Joe Biden And The Politics Of Black Womanhood

On Feb. 25, the last Friday in Black History Month, President Biden made good on his public promise when he did what none of his 45 predecessors had done by nominating Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, a Black woman, to fill the soon-to-be-vacant seat on the Supreme Court. Nominating Jackson was hardly a surprise, inasmuch as she is already a Biden appointee in her current position on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and she had been considered a front-runner since discussions began around who Biden might select. However, for as historic a moment as Biden’s pick is, it is not without its own complexities. There is an elephant in the room around America’s tenuous relationship with Black women’s physical and intellectual labor, and this current milestone is a new c...

Black Youth Yearn For Black Teachers To Disrupt The Daily Silencing Of Their Experiences

2Apr

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EDUCATION

Black Youth Yearn For Black Teachers To Disrupt The Daily Silencing Of Their Experiences

The annual Black History month school assemblies is fading away with February. The 2022 theme picked by the Canadian government for Black History Month, “February and Forever: Celebrating Black History today and every day,” itself is an admission that Black history month is currently a performative annual ritual. Yet the realities raised in Black History month assemblies are year-long priorities requiring proactive enduring action. Black students and families continue to urgently express concerns about something education scholar George Dei documented over 25 years ago: the marginalization of Black youth in schools, absences of Black and African Canadian history and an absence of Black teachers in the classroom. My research drew from data from a study that used Afrocentric approaches to...

In 19th-century America A Black Writer Used Humor To Combat White Supremacy

4Apr

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IN OTHER NEWS

In 19th-century America A Black Writer Used Humor To Combat White Supremacy

Any writer has to struggle with the dilemma of staying true to their vision or giving editors and readers what they want. A number of factors might influence the latter: the market, trends and sensibilities. But in the decades after the Civil War, Black writers looking to faithfully depict the horrors of slavery had to contend with readers whose worldviews were colored by racism, as well as an entire swath of the country eager to paper over the past. Charles Chesnutt was one of those writers. Forced to work with skeptical editors and within the confines of popular forms, Chesnutt nonetheless worked to shine a light on the legacy of slavery. His 1899 collection of stories, “The Conjure Woman,” took place on a Southern plantation and sold well. At first glance, the stories seemed to mimic...

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Goes Down In History As The First Black Woman Nominated To The Supreme Court

4Apr

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IN OTHER NEWS

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Goes Down In History As The First Black Woman Nominated To The Supreme Court

President Joe Biden nominated Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, a historic choice that could fundamentally change who helps to protect and interpret the Constitution and ensure equal justice under the law. If confirmed, Jackson will be the first Black woman — and the first former federal public defender — on the nation’s highest court in its 232-year history. While she would not shift the Supreme Court’s ideological makeup, she brings a distinct life experience and professional background to the court that serves as the final arbiter of law. Of the 120 justices who have served in its history, 115 have been men, and 117 have been White. Now, with Justice Stephen Breyer set to retire at the end of the court’s term in early summer, Jackson will have the opportunity to make h...