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News & Current Affairs

September 24th Edition of Vantage Point Radio

By Vantage Point Radio, Video/Audio

TOPICS: Connecting the African Diaspora to the Motherland • The Future of Labor in the Era of Trump • The Iron Coffin Lady: A Window into Early Black Communities in New York • The Fate of Judge Brett Kavanaugh. GUESTS: H.E. Arikana Chihombori-Quao (African Union Ambassador to the U.S., Washington, D.C.), Barbara Madeloni (Education Coordinator, Labor Notes, Boston, MA) and Rev. Kimberly L. Detherage, Esq. (Pastor, St. Mark AME Church, Queens, NY).

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Arthur Mitchell dancing with New York City Ballet, 1963.

Arthur Mitchell obituary

By News & Current Affairs

The first African American principal dancer to star in a major ballet company. By Wendy Perron, The Guardian — A star of New York City Ballet and the co-founder of Dance Theatre of Harlem, Arthur Mitchell was also the first African American principal dancer in any major ballet company. Mitchell, who has died aged 84, had classical lines, buoyant energy and a palpable joy in movement. In NYCB, where he danced from…

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Michelle Obama, seen in New Orleans in June.

‘I am frustrated too’: Michelle Obama urges voters to register ahead of midterms

By News & Current Affairs

When We All Vote kicks off in Las Vegas with a nonpartisan aim – registration and participation – in highly partisan times. By Dan Hernandez, The Guardian — A star-studded voter registration drive launched by Michelle Obama kicked off its national week of action this weekend with events across the country, including a rally by the former first lady on Sunday at Chaparral high school in Las Vegas. The drive, When We All…

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Some Puerto Ricans had to restore downed power lines themselves after Hurricane Maria.

Puerto Rico has not recovered from Hurricane Maria

By News & Current Affairs

By Lauren Lluveras, The Conversation — Puerto Rico was in crisis long before Hurricane Maria hit on Sept. 20, 2017. For years, this U.S. territory had been struggling with debt, economic crisis and drought. In May 2017, the government defaulted on US$73 billion in loans and declared bankruptcy. Then Hurricane Maria slammed the island with 155-mph winds and coastal flooding that rose to 6 feet within 30 minutes of landfall. The storm caused the longest power blackout in…

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Jair Bolsonaro is seeking to lead the world’s fourth-biggest democracy. Photograph: Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters

Trump of the tropics: the ‘dangerous’ candidate leading Brazil’s presidential race

By News & Current Affairs

Jair Bolsonaro has openly cheered dictatorship and publicly insulted women. Now he’s deploying Trump-like tactics in his race for the presidency. By Tom Phillips, The Guardian — Jair Bolsonaro’s disciples had packed the arrivals hall of this far-flung Amazonian airport, united by their contempt for the left and an unbreakable determination to score a selfie with the man they call “the Legend”. “He’s Brazil’s hope! A light at the end…

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The University of Glasgow has examined the historical slave-holding record of benefactors. Photograph: University of Glasgow

Glasgow University to make amends over slavery profits of past

By News & Current Affairs, Reparations

University received ‘significant financial support’ from slavery in 18th and 19th centuries. By Martin Belam, The Guardian — Glasgow University has announced a programme of “reparative justice” after a year-long study discovered that the university benefited from the equivalent of tens of millions of pounds donated from the profits of slavery. The report states that although the university itself “adopted a clear anti-slavery position”, during the 18th and 19th centuries…

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'Don’t want to let schools off the hook': Considering reparations in higher education

‘Don’t want to let schools off the hook’: Considering reparations in higher education

By News & Current Affairs, Reparations

Scholars tackle the topic at Duke U. panel By Xinchen Li, The Chronicle — Reparations for African Americans are crucial to fight white supremacy and compensate for slavery’s consequences, scholars said at a town hall forum Monday, but they aren’t enough. Racial inequality and discrimination are so engrained in diverse aspects of the American society that no single measure would solve all the problems, said Wahneema Lubiano—associate professor of African…

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Should there be reparations for African Americans? Scholars tackle the topic at Monday panel

Should there be reparations for African Americans?

By News & Current Affairs, Reparations

Scholars tackle the topic at Duke U. panel By Xinchen Li, The Chronicle — Reparations for African Americans are crucial to fight white supremacy and compensate for slavery’s consequences, scholars said at a town hall forum Monday, but they aren’t enough. Racial inequality and discrimination are so engrained in diverse aspects of the American society that no single measure would solve all the problems, said Wahneema Lubiano—associate professor of African…

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African Union Ambassador Calls for closer ties with the African Diaspora in the Americas

By PAUD News, Video/Audio

In a recent address to the Pan-African Unity Dialogue in New York, the African Union’s Ambassador to the USA, H.E. Dr. Arikana Chihombori-Quao, called for closer collaboration between the countries on the African continent and the growing African Diaspora communities in the Americas. She argued that a fully engaged diaspora holds the key to the future development and empowerment of Africa which, in turn, will result…

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