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Screenshot: Andrew Johnson, a high school wrestler, was forced to cut dreads.

Hair Discrimination Is Alive And Well

By Dr. Julianne Malveaux

By Dr. Julianne Malveaux — Andrew Johnson, a high school wrestler, was forced to submit to the humiliating act of having his dreadlocks shorn or have his New Jersey team forfeit their match to the opposing team. A gleeful white woman seemed too pleased to invade the young man’s person, and his team won, but at what price? When this happened in December of 2018, there was a national outcry,…

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Modesta Irizarry, a community leader, in Loíza, Puerto Rico

In the Afro-Caribbean heart of Puerto Rico, locals fight erosion, government indifference

By News & Current Affairs

Loíza, Puerto Rico, is filled with palm trees, unassuming bars, bomba music, beautiful beaches — and strong-willed locals who refuse to be forgotten. LOÍZA, Puerto Rico — The waves crashed loudly on the collapsed ruins of the Paseo del Atlántico, a walkway that once partially protected residents here from the volatile ocean. Erosion along this northernmost coast of Puerto Rico, nearly 20 miles east of San Juan, precipitated the promenade’s destruction…

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artin Luther King Jr. stayed in the back bedroom of this house

N.J. historic preservation officials insult the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

By Commentaries/Opinions

N.J.’s refusal to list the Camden home where MLK plotted his first protest on the state’s Register of Historic Places insults the civil rights leader’s legacy. By Linn Washington Jr., — A significant “first” usually merits the designation of historic. For example, the first formal protest against racial discrimination by civil rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in June 1950 — an action that produced King’s first lawsuit…

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Chris Rabb

Philly lawmaker wants Pa. to pay reparations to the wrongly convicted

By Reparations

By John L. Micek, The Philadelphia Tribune — State Rep. Chris Rabb wants the state to pay reparations to people who are wrongfully sent to prison. In a memo seeking co-sponsors for his proposal, Rabb, D-Philadelphia, notes that Pennsylvania is one of 15 states without a law mandating compensation for innocent people for the years they lose behind bars. “Without a state compensation law, the only option for exonerees to…

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Lanaisha Edwards

‘This was supposed to be reparations’ Why is LA’s cannabis industry devastating black entrepreneurs?

By News & Current Affairs, Reparations

Black merchants affected by the war on drugs are denied licenses and thrown into debt as white owners thrive. By Sam Levin, The Guardian — A Los Angeles government program set up to provide cannabis licenses to people harmed by the war on drugs has been plagued by delays, scandal and bureaucratic blunders, costing some intended beneficiaries hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses. Black entrepreneurs and activists across LA told…

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