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Pandemic forcing Black morticians to bury their own in profession
When the last mourners departed and funeral director Shawn Troy was left among the headstones, he wept alone.
Critically acclaimed filmmaker John Singleton dies at 51
Director John Singleton, who made one of Hollywood’s most memorable debuts with the Oscar-nominated “Boyz N the Hood” and continued over the following decades to probe the lives of African-American communities in his native Los Angeles and beyond, died Monday, April 29, 2019, after suffering several strokes during the last two weeks. He was 51.
McDonnell, wife free; facing $10M legal bill
Former Gov. Bob McDonnell is officially a free man, but he paid a heavy price to get there. Federal prosecutors announced late last week they will not pursue a second trial against Mr. McDonnell or his wife, Maureen McDonnell, on corruption charges. The decision, announced Sept. 8, comes more than two months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned his conviction.
#MourningWhileBlack
Social media blows up after white priest kicks black family out of funeral
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington has apologized for a white priest kicking an African-American family out of their loved one’s funeral.
‘They tried to ban one. We’re coming back with a hundred’
Hundreds of pastors both rallied and prayed last week outside the trial of three white men charged in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. They gathered in response to a defense lawyer’s bid to keep Black ministers out of the courtroom.
Coco wins first WTA title at 15; Osaka gives up U.S. citizenship to play for Japan in Olympics
Coco Gauff is still just 15. She also is already the owner of a WTA singles title.
’I have lived through the massacre every day’
She was just 7 years old when the white mob stormed through her neighborhood, killing every man they could find, raping defenseless women and burning to the ground virtually every building in a 35-block area.
bell hooks, writer and groundbreaking feminist thinker, dies at 69
NEW YORK bell hooks, the ground- breaking author, educator and activist whose explorations of how race, gender, economics and politics intertwined helped shape academic and popular debates over the past 40 years, died Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021.
Yvonne Staples of Staple Singers fame dies at 80
Yvonne Staples, whose voice and business acumen powered the success of the Staple Singers, her family’s hit-making gospel group that topped the charts in the early 1970s with the song “I’ll Take You There,” has died. She was 80.
Serena Williams wins Auckland Classic; donates money to help bushfire victims
Former world No. 1 tennis star Serena Williams won the World Tennis Association’s Auckland Classic last Sunday — her first title since 2017 — and immediately donated her prize money to aid victims of Australia’s deadly bushfires.
Former U.S. Rep. Carrie Meek of Florida being remembered
Former Congresswoman Carrie Meek, who died Sunday, Nov. 28, 2021, is being remembered as a trailblazer, a descendant of a slave who became one of the first Black Floridians elected to Congress since Reconstruction.
Suicide takes Miss USA 2019
Cheslie Kryst, who won the 2019 Miss USA pageant and worked as a correspondent for the entertainment news television show “Extra,” reportedly committed suicide Jan. 30.
Personality: Julie Anderson
Spotlight on 2017 Star of Life Award winner
Growing up as the child of a paramedic and a firefighter, Julie Anderson says she never worried about her parents’ safety, even after her father was burned and hurt his back in two separate incidents
Alabama governor apologizes to 1963 church bombing survivor
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has apologized to a survivor of a racist 1963 church bombing that killed four Black girls, calling the blast an “egregious injustice.” But the governor declined on Sept. 30 to pay restitution without legislative involvement.
Rep. Conyers resigns amid allegations of sexual misconduct
Democratic Rep. John Conyers resigned from Congress on Tuesday after a nearly 53-year career, becoming the first Capitol Hill politician to lose his job in the torrent of sexual misconduct allegations sweeping through the nation’s workplaces.
Beyonce makes history with 28th Grammy Award; whole family wins, too
Queen Bey is the Queen of the Grammys now.
Kanye taking ‘church’ to Coachella this Easter
Since the beginning of the year, Kanye West has been hosting a mysterious variety show of celebrity performances featuring both new and old music, complete with a gospel choir, that he calls “Sunday Service.”
Golden Globes so white? Critics blast lack of diversity among winners
The 2020 Golden Globe Awards, presented Sunday by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, drew criticism this week for its lack of winners of color.
Youngster who interviewed President Obama at White House dies at 23
The student reporter who gained national acclaim when he interviewed former President Obama at the White House in 2009 has died of natural causes, his family said.
Wanda Young, member of Motown’s The Marvelettes, dies at 78
Wanda Young, a member of Motown’s chart-topping The Marvelettes, died Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021, in suburban De- troit. She was 78.
