What I’m Reading
A lawsuit says Missouri squeezed a land-grant HBCU, The Chronicle of Higher Education
Students and alumni of Lincoln University have filed a $549 million lawsuit against Missouri, accusing the state of decades of underfunding. Jasper Smith, one of the top reporters covering HBCUs in the country, reports on the growing legal battle over underfunding of the nation’s land-grant Black colleges.
Trump’s deadly invasion of Memphis, Hammer and Hope
Donald Trump created the Memphis Safe Task Force last September, and it is “a sprawling multi-agency operation that includes officers from 31 federal, state, and local agencies” in the majority-Black city. Lisa Armstrong reports on the deadly occupation of Memphis, and the families it tore apart.
William Owen Hanna has been bowling since he was a teenager. That was over several decades ago. He just turned 100 years old on Sunday, and he’s still hitting strikes. Watch above.
The African American Civil War Museum Reopens To Honor The Black Soldiers Who Changed History, HuffPost
I attended the grand reopening of the African American Civil War Museum in Washington, DC and the timing was just right — its mission to preserve Black history is more relevant now than ever.
What’s In The News
Across America
Alabama: Three University of South Alabama students have been arrested and charged with making threats on social media toward Trump…
California: A nurse who rammed her vehicle into a crowded intersection at about 130 miles per hour, killing six, has been convicted of murder…
Colorado: A Black teen who says his white peers wrote “slave auction” in their school bathroom is suing his former charter school in Lakewood…
District of Columbia: Amazon is set to pay $7.25 million directly to customers in Black neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River…
Florida: Republican Byron Donalds faces skepticism as he seeks to win over Black voters during his campaign for governor...
Georgia: Barack Obama has endorsed Keisha Lance Bottoms in the heated governor’s race…
Kansas: Black farmers fought the USDA and won. Some families are still waiting for their money…
Maryland: A Baltimore teenager spent seven months on house arrest before prosecutors dismissed his carjacking charges…
Massachusetts: Boston’s Museum of African American History CEO Noelle Trent recently discussed the institution’s future amid layoffs and financial uncertainty…
Michigan: A free tuition program for Kalamazoo students will now expand to include HBCUs, according to Know Your Neighbor…
Mississippi: Public universities across the state are expanding food pantries as rising costs squeeze students…
New Jersey: Rep. LaMonica McIver recently announced the birth of her second daughter…
Oklahoma: The Supreme Court declined to hear an ex-Tulsa police officer’s appeal of a ruling, allowing a civil rights claim over the killing of Terence Crutcher to move forward…
Pennsylvania: Restoring Black Bottom’s name is a step toward justice for the West Philadelphia neighborhood, according to longtime advocate Walter Palmer…
South Carolina: After nine months, residents stopped a proposal for a massive data center. A gas plant still threatens the community, however...
Tennessee: An 87-year-old former civil rights activist is recovering after a brutal attack during a robbery inside her home in Ripley...
Texas: Jamaal Howard became the first person executed in the country since Tennessee’s failed attempt to administer a lethal injection to Christa Pike...
What’s Happening
Opal Lee, the Grandmother of Juneteenth who helped make it a national holiday, celebrated her 100th birthday this week…
A major collaboration between several news sites reveals how the mass federal layoffs devastated the Black women who have often been the backbone of their families and communities…
The NAACP is suing the Trump administration over its plans to deploy “a historic number” of election monitors to polling stations during the midterm elections…
The Trump administration is launching an investigation into Wells Fargo over commitments the bank made to increase homeownership among Black Americans…
The Guardian spoke to nearly a dozen Black voters about their perceptions of the Democratic Socialists of America…
Bobbi Booker wrote about her son, Hannibal, who died of sickle cell disease. She wants to raise awareness about the disease…
Earl Caldwell of The New York Times was the only reporter at the Lorraine Motel when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. Here’s what he did when he heard the shot…
The Nation: Justin Leroy’s “The Lowest Freedom” points toward the limits of liberty under racial capitalism…
Black women are more likely to die of breast cancer even though they’re less likely to have it. Kenya Hunter asked a doctor why…
Jessica Watkins just became the first Black woman to lead a crew to orbit, and set a speed record to boot...
Protesters shut down a proposed data center moratorium vote by the city council in Memphis...
Researchers uncovered the graves of more than 1,000 children next to juvenile detention facilities in 29 states, and at one Maryland gravesite, 230 Black boys are buried…
Three young men have filed a defamation lawsuit against former NFL star Terrell Owens in the wake of the death of Nolan Wells, Ashlee Banks reports…
Daniel Grimes asked Trump if he planned to push the FBI to launch an independent investigation into the death of Nolan Wells…
Entertainment News
“A Different World” stars Darryl M. Bell and Kadeem Hardison have launched a weekly rewatch podcast…
TV So White, Again: After a couple years of major progress, creators of color are seeing “real regression,” the president of the TV Academy told The Hollywood Reporter…
Brian Josephs spoke with filmmakers about the influence of Barry Jenkins’ “Moonlight” as it celebrates 10 years…
Chris Rock sat down with The New York Times for a long-ranging discussion about comedy, forgiveness, and what the future holds…
Christopher Jackson was recently profiled in The New York Times as he reprises his Tony-nominated role of George Washington in “Hamilton”...
For Andscape, David Dennis Jr. implores everyone to stop minimizing dead Black folks with memes...
Coco Gauff said she had received an “insane” amount of racial abuse on social media after winning at the China Open…
The early life and career of Will Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff is set to become a new scripted series…
After a 16-year hiatus, Anthony Mackie is returning to Broadway to play Macbeth…
Michael Jordan gave $10 million to the University of North Carolina’s School of Social Work in honor of his mother. It is the school’s largest ever donation…
In this review of “How Bright the Path Grows,” historian Marcia Chatelain places overlooked Black women at the center of the 1963 March on Washington…
E-40 and his son, chef Emari Stevens, delivered the recipe for their Hot Honey Chicken Wings for Delish...
Obituaries
Freddie Jackson, the RnB legend known for multiple hits, including “You Are My Lady,” has died. He was 69…
Curtis Flowers, an innocent man who was wrongfully convicted after being tried for the same murders several times, has died. He was 56…
Reggie McFadden, the actor and stand-up comic best known for his time on “Def Comedy Jam” and “In Living Color,” has died. He was 57…
Verne Allison, a founding member and longtime second tenor of legendary soul group The Dells, has died. He was 90…
Mary Brown, a longtime Gary, Indiana councilwoman whose decades spent in public office made her one of the most enduring political figures in city history, has died…
Don’t Miss
Can you beat my time on Black Crossword? 43 seconds!...
My organization, the Washington Association of Black Journalists, recently reached 600 members. It’s been an honor to work with such incredible individuals…
Thank you, NAACP, for naming me to its inaugural Advancement List…
Word In Black is hosting its State of Black Businesses Symposium on October 14 via livestream. Register here...
I am a board member with DMV Does Good. Please help us support veterans experiencing housing and food insecurity. Purchase essentials from our Amazon wish list…
Angela Rye has launched “Cite Your Source,” a new YouTube series aimed at tackling misinformation ahead of the midterms…
Incredible job opening: A curator of fashion position is currently open at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture…
Delores Jordan is still alive! "...the late mother of Michael Jordan"
You attended the grand reopening of the African American Civil War Museum. What did you stand in front of longest?