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Rev. William Sterling Cary, first Black president of National Council of Churches, dies at 94
The Rev. William Sterling Cary, a pioneering minister and civil rights activist who was the first Black person in prominent church leadership roles including president of the National Council of Churches, has died, according to family members. He was 94.
Rest in peace, Ernie Banks
Ernie Banks, Mr. Cub, died at 83. Mr. Banks became the Cubs’ first black player on Sept. 17, 1953, six years after Jackie Robinson broke the modern day color barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1977. Mr. Banks played 19 seasons with the Chicago Cubs. He is considered by many to be the greatest power-hitting shortstop of the 20th century. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award from President Obama in 2013.
Loss of a legend
Julian Bond, warrior in the struggle for equality, dies at 75
Through the relentless struggles of the Civil Rights Movement, Julian Bond always kept his sense of humor. His steady demeanor helped him persist despite the inevitable difficulties involved, his wife recalled. Mr. Bond “never took his eyes off the prize — and that was always racial equality,” his wife, Pamela Horowitz, said Sunday. “He always ... in that hard struggle kept a sense of humor, and I think that’s what allowed him to do that work for so long — his whole life really,” his wife added.
Trump scraps program protecting young undocumented immigrants
President Trump on Tuesday scrapped an Obama era program that protects from deportation immigrants brought illegally into the United States as children, delaying implementation until March and giving a gridlocked Congress six months to decide the fate of almost 800,000 young people.
Vernita Lee, mother of Oprah Winfrey, dies on Thanksgiving
Vernita Lee, the mother of Oprah Winfrey, has died at age 83. A spokeswoman for Ms. Winfrey issued a statement on Monday saying Ms. Lee died at her Milwaukee home on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 22, 2018.
Baseball pioneer Ernie Banks dies at 83
Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks, the pioneering and famously affable slugger hailed by the team as “the greatest Cub in franchise history,” died Friday, Jan. 23, 2015, at age 83, the club announced.
'Hair Love' gives color to Oscar winners list
A touching story about an African-American father trying to do his daughter’s hair for the first time is an Oscar winner.
Former U.S. Sen. John Warner dies at 94
Flags are flying at half-staff over the nation’s capital in honor of former U.S. Sen. John W. Warner of Virginia who died Tuesday, May 25, 2021, at age 94.
Martinsville Seven pardoned
Gov. Ralph S. Northam uses his power to help right a decades-old wrong in which seven Black men from Martinsville were executed in 1951 without due process
It took 70 years, but the Martinsville Seven have finally been pardoned.
Out like Flynn
Concerns grow amid reports that Trump campaign aides were in frequent contact with Russian officials before Nov. 8 election
President Trump is facing a deepening crisis over the relationship between his aides and Russia, with senior Republicans vowing on Wednesday to get to the bottom of the matter and Democrats demanding an independent probe.
Confederate statues go black in Charlottesville
Workers in Charlottesville draped giant black tarps over two statues of Confederate generals on Wednesday to symbolize the city’s mourning for Heather Heyer, the 32-year-old paralegal who was killed while protesting a white nationalist rally. The work began around 1 p.m. in Emancipation Park, where a towering monument of Robert E. Lee on horseback stands. Workers gathered around the monument with a large black covering. Some stood in cherry-pickers and others used ropes and poles to cover the statue as onlookers took photos and video.
Local couple in Paris bears witness to Notre Dame fire
George K. Martin of Mechanicsville and his wife, Anita, arrived in Paris on Sunday night and made a sightseeing list that included some of the top tourist spots in the City of Lights, including Notre Dame Cathedral.
Bruce Boynton, who inspired 1961 Freedom Rides after Richmond arrest, dies at 83
Bruce Carver Boynton, a civil rights pioneer from Alabama who inspired the landmark “Freedom Rides” of 1961, died Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. He was 83.
Melvin E. Banks, whose publishing company revolutionized Bible study by incorporating positive images of Black people, dies at 86
Melvin E. Banks, whose company portraying positive images of African-Americans in the biblical experience has grown from its start in the basement of his Chicago home into the largest independent Black Christian publishing house in the United States, died Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021. He was 86.
Justice denied
Ferguson, N.Y. cases expose injustices, spark change
A national movement is underway to address police brutality against African-American men and the criminalization of communities of color.
William F. Brown, co-creator of ‘The Wiz,’ dies at 91
William F. Brown, an author and illustrator who was best known for writing the book of the Tony Award-winning 1975 musical “The Wiz,” died Sunday, June 23, 2019, at a hospital in Norwalk, Conn. He was 91.
Abortion battle erupts with leaded U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion
America’s decades-old battle over abortion rights exploded anew on Tuesday as the U.S. Supreme Court authenticated a draft opinion leaked to the news outlet Politico that signaled the court will soon overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion nationwide.
Sidney Poitier suffered from multiple health problems
Academy Award-winning actor Sidney Poitier, who died Jan. 6 at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif., at age 94, suffered from several health issues, according to information listed in his death certificate that was obtained Tuesday by TMZ and several other media outlets.
Della Reese, star of TV show ‘Touched by an Angel,’ dies at 86
Actress and singer Della Reese, best known for her role as Tess, the wise angel in the long-running television drama “Touched by an Angel,” has died at her California home.
Dr. Edith Irby Jones, first female president of the National Medical Association, dies at 91
Dr. Edith Irby Jones, one of the first African-American students to enroll at an all-white medical school in the South and later the first female president of the National Medical Association, has died.
