What I’m Reading
Attacks on Black citizenship are attacks on democracy, The Nation
Too often, Democrats reinforce Republicans’ lie that the language of racial justice is the problem—instead of the injustices the language is trying to name, Kali Holloway writes in The Nation.
Black colleges are building more dorms amid enrollment growth, Capital B News
Housing has long strained HBCUs, but this summer, several Black colleges have flipped that narrative. They are breaking ground on new dorms and announcing housing development as enrollment climbs, Alecia Taylor reports.
NAACP joins legal fight for answers in Nolan Wells’ death
The NAACP has teamed up with the legal team seeking answers in the mysterious death of Nolan Wells, a Black teen who was found dead after a boating trip in Mississippi.
What’s In The News
Across America
Alabama: Brock Morgan, a former Howard University student-athlete, is joining FOX54 in Huntsville after submitting 223 job applications…
District of Columbia: Students at HBCUs generally rely more on parent loans. They’re starting school under new federal loan borrowing limits set by Trump’s bill…
Florida: A police officer is accused of using Flock camera tech to track his estranged wife’s vehicle 717 times, according to an affidavit…
Illinois: Tiffany Walden spoke with Sharon Bush, the president of a Chicago-based philanthropy funding Black-centered, racial justice work throughout the state…
Indiana: Thousands of Gary residents will likely be without power until Tuesday, nearly two weeks after severe storms passed through. Maya J. Boddie also reported on the blackout for Black Information Network…
Massachusetts: Black Boston families have a median net wealth of $7,800. White families, on the other hand, have a median net wealth of $549,200…
Michigan: Jerome Vaughn is leaving WDET after three decades in journalism…
Mississippi: Nearly a year after 21-year-old student Trey Reed was found hanging from a tree, his family says attorney Ben Crump stopped responding to them…
Nevada: Alisa Goods vanished in Las Vegas on August 8, her family said. Now they’ve been receiving strange messages from her phone…
New York: Spike Lee’s annual Michael Jackson Block Party is returning to Brooklyn on August 29…
North Carolina: North Carolina Central University is now the first HBCU in the nation to launch a dedicated AI research center…
Ohio: Floun’say R. Caver, the deputy general manager of operations for Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, was found dead in Virginia…
Pennsylvania: Philadelphia officials are planning a citywide effort to recruit 1,000 Black men and allies to serve as mentors for Black boys and young men…
Texas: The judge has been removed from the case of Karmelo Anthony, who is seeking a new trial in the 2025 deadly stabbing at a track meet…
Virginia: Police have arrested a 19-year-old found hiding in a dorm closet at Virginia State University in connection with a shooting on campus that left five people injured…
What’s Happening
NABJ President Errin Haines explained why Stephen A. Smith got a “Thumbs Down” award, saying: “If NABJ is going to be serious about defending Black journalists and journalism itself, then sometimes we have to say their names”...
CNN: The Navy is weighing renaming an aircraft carrier under construction that was set to honor Doris Miller, a Black war hero, and potentially switching it to honor Trump…
BET Digital has launched a national community reporting initiative to expand local multimedia journalism...
Northwestern University is reportedly shuttering its 80-year-old Program of African Studies, laying off staff and keeping students in the dark. The school is pushing back against that claim…
The wife of a North Carolina mayor is facing backlash after her racist Facebook post that blamed Black residents for the city’s problems…
Meanwhile in Florida: Democratic socialist Angie Nixon defeated Trump impeachment whistleblower Alex Vindman in Florida’s Dem Senate primary, a major upset for the left…Trump ally Byron Donalds won Florida’s GOP primary and is one step closer to becoming the state’s first-ever Black governor…Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz won the Democratic primary in a new Florida district despite outcry from local and national Black leaders…
By disparaging the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests as “Woke 1,” liberals are following the right wing’s lead, andrejgee writes…
Danielle Belton wrote about the seemingly annual discourse around the so-called Black elite and Martha’s Vineyard…
The Fifth Circuit won’t stop until it has warped Supreme Court precedent enough to allow DeRay McKesson to be punished for being Black at a protest, G.S. Hans writes…
A Raleigh man has been charged with murder after Sheremy Gwenette Dillard, a beloved girls’ basketball coach, was found stabbed to death...
“Reading Rainbow” star Mychal Threets said he will check himself into a hospital, telling everyone he is “safe” but “not okay”...
Brooklyn White-Grier wrote about the products hairstylists use on their kids’ hair, like Luster’s Pink Hair Lotion, rat-tail combs, and Shine ‘N Jam…
The Justice Dept. is investigating the College of William & Mary over whether some of its scholarships and financial aid are discriminatory...
Entertainment News
Have you seen the new trailer for the “A Different World” reboot yet? Watch above…
GQ’s Frazier Tharpe talked with Druski about how he’s dominated social media with his viral videos. Now he’s eyeing Hollywood…
Trina told 99 Jamz Radio that her upcoming album will be her last…
TDE is bringing live performances, food, a mobile recording studio, and much more to HBCUs across the country…
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II spoke with Vanity Fair about Marvel canceling “Blade” and “Wonder Man”…
The American Black Film Festival is heading to Los Angeles from May 20-23, 2027…
Vogue: Coco Jones and Donovan Mitchell collaborated entirely with Black designers for their wedding wardrobe...
Dr. Erica Armstrong Dunbar, chair of the department of African American Studies at Emory University, is the driving force behind historical accuracy on “The Gilded Age”...
Colman Domingo told NPR’s Tonya Mosley in a new interview that he’s always up for new challenges. He’s also eyeing “Diarra from Detroit”…
Doreen St. Félix wrote about the disjointed performance of Usher and Chris Brown’s “R&B Tour,” and the future of the genre…
Obituaries
Rev. Cleveland B. Sparrow Sr., a pastor and civil rights activist who broke down barriers in Washington, has died. He was 89...
Don’t Miss
Can you beat my time on Black Crossword? 46 seconds!…
Looking for something to do in the nation’s capital this weekend? The Library of Congress National Book Festival will take place on August 22 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center…
“March on Washington 2026: Defend the Vote” is set to take place in DC on August 28…
Register to attend the Great Lakes African American Writers Conference. It will be held live and virtually on Sept. 5...
We need more Black animators and showrunners in kids TV. Sugar Snap Media, an animation studio, is looking for applicants for its creator program…
The National Museum of African American History and Culture is celebrating its 10th anniversary from Sept. 24 to 27…
Are you a senior with a story? NPR is looking for Americans age 65 and older to share their experiences for the Senior Podcast Challenge…