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David Lee gives behind the scenes look at brother Spike in new book
When David Lee was growing up in Brooklyn, his older brother would drag him out of the house whenever he got the urge to make a film.

Ousted president sues Liberty University over damaged reputation
Jerry Falwell Jr. has sued Liberty University, alleging the evangelical school founded by his late pastor father damaged his reputation in a series of public statements that followed his resignation as president and chancellor in August amid a series of scandals.

Henrietta Lacks estate sues company using her ‘stolen’ cells
COLLEGE PARK, Md. The estate of Henrietta Lacks sued a biotechnology company on Monday, accusing it of sell- ing cells that doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital took from the Black woman in 1951 without her knowledge or consent as part of “a racially unjust medical system.”

President Obama inspires Class of 2020, adroitly criticizes current leaders for mishandling pandemic crisis
Hours after former President Obama delivered two measured and inspiring na- tional commencement speeches to the Class of 2020 college and high school graduates last Saturday, social media lit up with comments of “Great speech, Mr. Obama. We miss you!” and “That’s what a president should be like. November 2020 can’t get here soon enough.”

Class of 2020 has hope in President Obama
Could Barack Obama deliver a national graduation address to students? Stay tuned.

Nice guy Russell Wilson helps teammate make $100,000 bonus
The Seattle Seahawks had the lead and the ball with less than 30 seconds left on the clock Sunday, Jan. 3. All they had to do was take a knee to lock up a 26-23 victory against the San Francisco 49ers.

tear those
A monument to a deadly white supremacist uprising in 1874 was removed under cover of darkness by workers in masks and bulletproof vests Monday as New Orleans joined the movement to take down symbols of the Confederacy and the Jim Crow South.

Good preaching attracts congregants
Top-notch preaching most attracts people looking for a new place to pray. That’s the conclusion of a new Pew Research Center study released Tuesday that asked 5,000 people about their search for a new church or other house of worship.

Trump rejects invitation to speak at NAACP convention
The NAACP says Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has declined an invitation to address the group’s upcoming convention, flouting established precedent and highlighting anew the GOP standard-bearer’s struggle to attract support from non-white voters.

High school coach portrayed in ‘Remember the Titans’ dies
Obituaries
With his health declining, Herman Boone was still mapping out football strategy as if he were about to walk the sidelines one more time.

Dr. William E. ‘Bill’ Ward, former mayor of Chesapeake, NSU professor dies at 84
Dr. William E. “Bill” Ward, the first African-American mayor of Chesapeake and the only official to serve the longest in that role, has died.

Kings Dominion changes name of roller coaster
Kings Dominion amusement park is changing the name of a roller coaster named after the war whoop of a Confederate soldier.

‘Y&R’ actor Kristoff St. John dies at 52
Kristoff St. John, who played the struggling alcoholic and ladies’ man Neil Winters for 27 years on “The Young and the Restless,” has died. He was 52.

Dominion to ask U.S. Supreme Court to hear pipeline appeal
Dominion Energy said Tuesday it will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to hear its appeal after a lower court refused to reconsider a ruling tossing out a permit that would have allowed the Atlantic Coast Pipeline to cross two national forests, including parts of the Appalachian Trail.

Pope makes D.C. archbishop first Black cardinal in U.S.
Washington D.C. Archbishop Wilton Gregory is now the first Black U.S. prelate to assume the rank of cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church, a historic appointment that comes months after nationwide demonstrations against racial injustice.

Lessons taught at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
Nine teams passed on Paul Pierce in the 1998 NBA draft, and if you think he doesn’t remember each and every one of them, then you don’t know Paul Pierce.

Two men exonerated in assassination of Malcolm X after more than 50 years
More than half a century after the assassination of Malcolm X, two of his convicted killers were exonerated last week after decades of doubt about who was responsible for the civil rights icon’s death.

French honor for Josephine Baker stirs conflict over racism
On the surface, it’s a powerful message against racism: A Black woman will, for the first time, join other luminaries interred in France’s Pantheon. But by choosing a U.S.-born figure/entertainer Josephine Baker—critics say France is continuing a long tradition of decrying racism abroad while obscuring it at home.

Police chief out amid protests of teen’s murder in Chicago
Chicago’s police chief was ousted on Tuesday following days of unrest over video footage showing the police shooting of a black teenager and the subsequent filing of murder charges against a white police officer in the young man’s death. The white officer, Jason Van Dyke, was charged Nov. 24 with first-degree murder in the killing of Laquan McDonald, 17, who was shot 16 times. The video of the killing was released on the day the former officer was charged.

Former President Obama to speak at Sen. McCain’s funeral
Former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush will deliver eulogies Saturday at the funeral of U.S. Sen. John McCain, a former prisoner of war during Vietnan and six-term Republican senator from Arizona whose reputation as a maverick is causing a stir even after his death.