HBCU grants cut, Sean Combs closing arguments, RIP Lynn Hamilton
Every time someone tells me they enjoy reading this newsletter, it keeps me going! Thank you for all of the support.
What I’m Reading
Harvard hired a researcher to uncover its ties to slavery. He says the results cost him his job, The Guardian
This was a very interesting read that sparked much conversation online. Richard Cellini was hired by Harvard University to uncover its links to transatlantic slavery. He claims he was told “not to find too many descendants” because it would “bankrupt the university.” Cellini was fired, and did not receive an explanation.
“As the country’s oldest and wealthiest university, Harvard’s history is inextricable from the history of transatlantic slavery. The enslaved labored in campus buildings, university presidents and professors owned people forced into bondage.”
From Watts to D.C.: How 500 Black neighborhoods vanished in 45 years, Capital B News
As hundreds of Black communities nationwide have been gentrified since 1980, more than 500,000 Black people have been pushed from their homes, according to a study. For Capital B, Adam Mahoney talked with Black people who have been directly impacted by gentrification — from Watts to the nation’s capital.
Trump is terrified of Black culture. But not for the reasons you think, The Guardian
Saida Grundy examined the 1960s Black arts movement to understand why Trump is obsessed with destroying Black arts and culture.
"The ideological through-line from the overt white supremacy of the past to today is crystal clear. [The Black arts movement’s] legacy can be found in the threat that Black culture and cultural institutions pose to new versions of old authoritarianism."
How to Steer People From Gangs to Colleges, The Nation
The Phoenix Scholars, a grant-supported program that found success steering young people connected to gangs into higher education, was changing lives — that is, until the money stopped coming.
What’s In The News
Across America
Alabama: Jabari Latrell Peoples was shot and killed by police in a soccer park. The police claimed the 18-year-old had a gun, but his family said he was not armed and did not resist…
California: 100 years after the first Black family to own a home in the city of Piedmont was driven out by a mob of 500 people, a memorial sculpture park in their honor is moving forward…
Florida: A brother and sister are running against each other in a race for a Florida state Senate seat (their mother has endorsed her daughter over her son)...
Georgia: The parents of a baby who was decapitated during birth were awarded $2.2 million in a lawsuit against the doctor who uploaded video of the autopsy to social media…
Maryland: The new roadside historical marker honoring Harriet Tubman has been unveiled on the Eastern Shore, near her birthplace…
Michigan: The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has rebranded its Office of Race, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion…
New York: The New York Times talked to Black city leaders who are concerned their influence is waning following Zohran Mamdani’s historic triumph this week…
North Carolina: A 7-year-old's parents were arrested after he was hit and killed by a car. Now they're speaking out from jail…
South Carolina: Natasha Alford got an advance look at the new Ma Daisy’s restaurant, which honors Gullah Geechee roots and Black pride…
Texas: Karmelo Anthony has been indicted for murder in the track meet stabbing death of Austin Metcalf, officials say…
What’s Happening
More than $140 million in grants at HBCUs have been terminated due to Trump's policies targeting diversity, equity and inclusion, Jasper Smith writes for The Chronicle…
A University of Florida student wrote a paper arguing that the U.S. Constitution only applies to white people. His professor gave him an award…
Shanteari Young, the daycare owner who shot her husband when she learned he was sexually abusing children at the facility, has been released from prison…
pulled out of the race for the top Democrat spot on the powerful House Oversight Committee…
Kyrie Irving donated $50,000 to the mother of Tamir Rice, who is fundraising to build a community center…
In Bloomberg, Moody Nolan CEO Jonathan Moody talks about his father, Curtis Moody, and how he built the largest Black-owned design firm in the country…
Newsone: Two North Carolina State troopers were fired after an investigation discovered they lied about their involvement in the crash that killed Tyrone Mason…
A mentoring program takes Black girls and young women on the “Journey to Freedom” tour, a 14-day tour that teaches them Black history…
Entertainment News
Closing arguments began this week in the trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, and a verdict is expected sometime next week…
The New York Times: Dominique Thorne, star of Marvel’s new series “Ironheart,” is ready for the spotlight…
The Grio’s Kay Wicker created a list of 9 new and upcoming books by Black authors you should add to your summer reading list…
Two more books to add to that: ’s book “Their Accomplices Wore Robes,” which Alta Journal called “a devastating critique and analysis of the Supreme Court’s role in preserving a racial caste system”... wrote about her book “Without Fear,” which aims to showcase how Black women in the United States redefined human rights as a lived practice of resistance and solidarity…
For The Atlantic, Clint Smith wrote about Dana A. Williams’ new book that examines Toni Morrison’s time championing a new generation of writers…
Brandy and Monica announced “The Boy Is Mine” tour with special guests Kelly Rowland, Muni Long and Jamal Roberts…
Big music news: Funkadelic’s catalog is being reissued…
For @Hearing Things, Dylan Green makes the case for why hip-hop’s embrace of generative AI is actually a bad thing…
Michael Trotter Jr. and his wife, Tanya, are the first Black duo nominated for a Country Music Award. Learn about their love story in the Chicago Sun-Times…
Lionel Boyce, known for his role as pastry chef Marcus on “The Bear,” shared his favorite spots to visit in Chicago for GQ…
Obituaries
Lynn Hamilton, actress on “Sanford and Son” and “The Waltons,” has died. She was 95…
Cavin Yarbrough, of the 80s hitmakers Yarbrough & Peoples, has died. He was 72…
Don’t Miss
Can you beat my time on Black Crossword? 1 minute and 20 seconds…
Speaking of Black Crossword, my organization is partnering with game creator Juliana Pache for a live puzzling event at Busboys and Poets in Washington on July 9. RSVP here…
Fans of Alex Isley have been waiting for her NPR Tiny Desk concert for years. It’s finally out…
Outdoor Afro is offering scholarships to cover the costs of anyone, at any age, interested in learning how to swim. The nonprofit told me they received 300 applications following my recent post…
The news compilation I want & need -- keep going, it's great
I'm a middle-aged white guy from Norway with many friends in the US. I need to get the perspective of black people to understand what I have never experienced myself. I have some black American friends I can talk to and if I have questions I can ask them.
One thing I have learned from a retired black teacher is that while segregation was still practiced. Black teachers got employment and this were people that could easily be engineers. They were overqualified so black children in many cases got a better education than those that started in mixed schools after segregation ended. Of course, that doesn't mean there should still be segregation. But just because segregation ended, racism never did. Unfair stereotypes, ignorance and hate affected the schooling those kids got. And probably still do.
So to stay on top of current news I started following you here. I believe I have shared every substack article after I started follwing you here.