2025 is here, horror in New Orleans, Va. landlord sentenced
Welcome to the new year! Excited to continue providing the headlines and stories you find interesting.
What I’m Reading
My Gun Culture Is Not Your Gun Culture, The New Republic
Chantal James, a Black Southerner, explains for The New Republic why her gun culture is different. "Black Southern gun culture is a response to violent white supremacy and a defense against it, not a colonial offensive against marginalized groups to subjugate them,” she writes.
Infrastructure neglect and poverty lead to parasites in the Mississippi Delta, The Guardian
Parasitic infections such as hookworm, roundworm and tapeworm are widespread across the South because water and sewage infrastructure have long been neglected — purposefully — as a result of structural racism.
Southern women are shaping the sound of hip-hop's future, NPR
For NPR Music, Sidney Madden wrote about GloRilla, Latto and Doechii — rappers from Memphis, Atlanta and Tampa, respectively — and how these three Southern women “have fought for their place at the center of the [hip-hop] conversation in ways that will dictate where it goes next.” Jewel Wicker, expert on all things ATL, is also quoted…
What’s In The News
Across America
Alabama: The mother of Randall Adjessom, a 16-year-old who was shot by SWAT police during a no-knock raid, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against police and the city of Mobile…
Arizona: A TikTok prankster walked into a Walmart, picked up a can of bug spray, and started spraying food, authorities said…
California: Sacramento Police Department has released footage of 66-year-old Nyota Koya's arrest, where she became unresponsive after being handcuffed…
District of Columbia: The Midnight Basketball program provides young boys and men safety in local gyms and a way to avoid violence on the streets…
Florida: The "Bookleggers Library" is the first of its kind in Miami: A bookstore that is totally free…
Georgia: “While scores reveal Atlanta Public Schools’ Black students continue to struggle with language arts, one elementary school has found a formula for success,” Sydney Sims reports for Capital B…
New Jersey: Police officers in Monmouth County sent racist texts to each other, records show…
New York: The state attorney general is investigating correctional officers’ use of force in the fatal beating of Robert Brooks. The horrific body cam video shows them repeatedly beating the handcuffed man…
Massachusetts: A white 15-year-old teenager accused of attempting to drown a Black boy in Goose Pond in Chatham has pleaded guilty…
North Carolina: Authorities have arrested and charged 23-year-old Jami Raiziah Griffin, who they say poured gasoline on Ashanti Downey and set her on fire…
Ohio: Late last night, Gov. Mike DeWine signed a bill into law that would allow police to charge the public for footage from law enforcement, including body cams. Extremely sketchy…
Pennsylvania: Empowering story — A group of retired Black women in Philly gather weekly to sew period pads for girls in Africa. They've also built a community…
Virginia: A monument to the county’s 70 Black soldiers who fought in the Civil War will be unveiled later this year at the former First Baptist Church in downtown Rocky Mount…
What’s Happening
Horror on Bourbon Street: At least 15 people were killed after a man drove his truck into New Year’s revelers down New Orleans’ famous Bourbon Street. The FBI is investigating the attack as an "act of terrorism." 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar, identified as the perpetrator, was killed by police. Here’s a list of the victims, which will be updated as more details are available…Local news outlets The Times-Picayune, Nola.com and The Advocate have lifted their paywalls to provide more details about the attack…
Homelessness in the United States is up 18% as the housing crisis worsens, federal officials said…ProPublica asked people who lived in homeless encampments that were cleared out in city “sweeps” to write about what object was the hardest for them to lose…
Congratulations to 104-year-old Katherine Carson and 101-year-old Martha Jones, who celebrated with a double birthday bash…
A Virginia landlord has been sentenced to nearly two decades in prison for harassing Black tenants with racist slurs, stealing their identities to obtain COVID relief benefits, and then evicting them…
A white judge who threatened to shoot Black teenagers at a party and abused her position of authority has resigned…
The Mean Green Marching Machine of Mississippi Valley State University was selected to perform at Trump’s inauguration…
New York Amsterdam News: The NYPD gang database took his future. Kraig Lewis remains determined to give back…
The Washington Post: “Zann Nelson worked almost 20 years to shed light on three lynchings more than a century ago in Culpeper, Virginia. A judge just deemed the men innocent”…
New York City jail staff repeatedly blocked medics from treating Charizma Jones, a severely ill woman held at Rikers Island. She fell into a coma and later died…
Two Omega Psi Phi fraternity brothers who haven’t seen each other in over 60 years reunited recently…
Entertainment News
Next Act Cinema, the only Black-owned movie theater in Maryland, closed its doors this week. I wrote about the theater for HuffPost back in 2019…
Kendrick Lamar’s hit diss track, “Not Like Us,” appears atop Variety’s 50 best songs of 2024 list…
OffBall asked me for my sports and culture prediction for 2025…
Probably not a surprise: “Little progress has been made for women and people of color as directors in Hollywood,” a new study by USC‘s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found…
Morgan Freeman took the stage to sing “Let’s Stay Together” alongside Al Green at his venue in Clarksdale, Mississippi…
The iconic gymnast Simone Biles has been named Sports Illustrated’s 2024 Sportsperson of the Year…
In the world of football: Essence Sports host Sharí Nycole sat with Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson to talk about his life off the field…Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter is signing with Lil Wayne’s sports agency for on-field NFL representation…Former NFL receiver DeSean Jackson will become the new head football coach at Delaware State, following Norfolk State’s hiring of Michael Vick…
LeBron’s youngest son, Bryce James, has committed to the University of Arizona, he announced…
Petey Pablo sat down with North Carolina Public Radio’s podcast, Due South, to discuss his Greenville roots and career…
For Harper’s Bazaar, Bianca Betancourt spoke with Beyoncé stylist Shiona Turini about how she curated looks for nearly 500 individuals for the Christmas Day NFL Halftime show…
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor spoke with the Guardian about her role in the film “Nickel Boys” and why she chooses roles that align with her activism…
Obituaries
Greg Gumbel, the renowned CBS Sports anchor and commentator, has died. He was 78…
Sugar Pie DeSanto, Oakland's queen of R&B known as an electrifying performer and a larger-than-life personality, has died. She was 89…
Lenny Randle, a “versatile major league ballplayer whose career was defined by unusual events,” has died. He was 75…
Don’t Miss
Can you beat my time on Black Crossword? 28 seconds! (For real!)...
The 2025 Golden Globes is set to air this Sunday, Jan. 5, at 8 p.m. EST. Viola Davis, Colman Domingo, Morris Chestnut, Kerry Washington, and more will present…
“Sing Sing,” starring Colman Domingo and Clarence Maclin, will be back in theaters starting January 17. I loved the film and wrote it about it…
The Urban Journalism Workshop is still accepting applications for 2025. We teach DMV-area high school students the fundamentals of print, broadcast and digital journalism. Tell your students or loved ones to apply! The Jan. 8 deadline is fast approaching…
You can get up to $40,000 in funding if you apply for the Black Teacher Archive microgrant program…
DineNoire, a platform highlighting Black-owned restaurants and food brands, is seeking brand ambassadors and social media influencers…
Brown University doctoral student Mickell Carter interviewed historian Crystal Sanders about her new book, “A Forgotten Migration”...
Roy Wood Jr’s latest comedy special, “Lonely Flowers,” premieres on Jan. 17 on Hulu. It’s hilarious; I saw it live in DC some months ago…
Henry Louis Gates’ PBS series, “Great Migrations: A People on the Move,” premieres January 28…
9 across stressed me out, CLEARLY i don't know how to spell LOL