Cedric Lawson will be participating in the Beyond November Movement Convening, BYP’s inaugural convening of 100 Black youth leaders from across the country. He shares his hopes for the convening: More than anything, I want to become part of a deeper network of progressive African Americans who are working toward leveraging our individual and collective power to win real concrete improvements in the lives of young black people – including our own lives.
Rhymes and Reasons interviews Eve Ewing about the Hip Hop songs that changed her life: A Tribe Called Quest’s “I Left My Wallet in El Segundo,” M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes,” and Serengeti’s “Day by Day.”
31-year old Aja Brown is officially the youngest mayor in the history of Compton, California. She defeated former mayor Omar Bradley in a runoff election.
Lauryn Hill began serving a three-month jail sentence for tax evasion.
The Obama administration has a policy of force-feeding Guantanamo Bay detainees at night, and plan to continue to do so in spite of the month-long fast. Many Muslim leaders are calling on the administration to reconsider its tactics. Rapper and actor Yasiin Bey (formerly Mos Def) volunteered to appear in a short film made to shed light on the force-feeding process by undergoing that process himself.
A Fourth of July parade in a small North Carolina town took a disturbing turn when a “White History Month” float made its way into the parade procession.
Very big things are in store for 17 year-old cellist Angelique Montes. Hailing from New Orleans, Montes was chosen over 1,000 other young musicians for a spot on the National Youth Orchestra.
The Supreme Court has thrown out a lower court’s ruling blocking a Texas voter ID bill and redistricting plans for being discriminatory.
Like every other politic nerd I’ve been following what’s happening in Texas pretty closely. For those that don’t know, Texas’ legislator is trying to pass one of the strictest anti-abortion laws in the country; a ban on abortions past 20 weeks.
Rhymes and Reasons interviews Pugz Atomz about the Hip Hop songs that changed his life: Saafir’s “Light Sleeper,” Whodini’s “The Freaks Come Out,” “Spaceship” from Kanye West, GLC, and Consequence, and “Brooklyn Hardrock,” by Thurston Howell III.
Yesterday a mistrial was declared in the trial of Joseph Weekley, who is accused of fatally shooting 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones during a police raid that was being filmed for a reality show.
Happy Juneteenth, everyone! As many of you know, Juneteenth is a day that celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. What began in Texas in 1865 is now a holiday that many blacks commemorate.
