Trump fires Librarian of Congress, Alabama discriminated against Black voters, Maya Cade takes Milestone Films
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What I’m Reading
How Ohio became a hotbed of white supremacism, spreading its tentacles globally, The Guardian
For the Guardian, Stephen Starr went to Hilliard to try and understand Ohio’s fall into extremism and how it became a hotbed of white supremacism and neo-Nazism. “The rise of a resurgent American white supremacism is reaching around the globe, often with deadly consequences,” he writes.
UVA Tried To Shut Down Its Historical Tours Discussing Slavery. These Students Resisted, Teen Vogue
The University Guide Services has led admissions and historical tours at the University of Virginia for years. The university recently shut down the group’s special status designation, which group leaders believe is part of a broader attack on history and truth-telling. Students are resisting by doubling down on their commitment to share the difficult parts of the school’s history.
At Milestone Films, Passing the Torch, but Keeping the Flame Alive, The New York Times
The incomparable of Black Film Archive will soon become the president and owner of Milestone Films, a distribution company that aims to restore works lost to history and present them to new audiences. Amy Heller and Dennis Doros have decided to retire and hand the company over to Cade, and it couldn’t be in better hands. Congratulations, Maya!
Read her letter here.
What’s In The News
Across America
Alabama: A panel of federal judges ruled that Alabama’s 2023 congressional map is unconstitutional, calling it “an intentional effort to dilute Black Alabamians’ voting strength”...
Florida: The family of Roger Fortson, the U.S. airman who was shot by a Florida sheriff’s deputy inside his own home, has announced a wrongful death lawsuit…
Georgia: The NAACP of Georgia has requested a formal meeting with Kennesaw State University after the school ended its Black Studies program…
Louisiana: The Justice Department ended a decades-old school segregation order in the Bayou State, calling its existence a "historical wrong”...
Massachusetts: A Boston-based nonprofit rejected a $250,000 federal grant so it can maintain its commitment to DEI in its hiring practices…
Maryland: A majority-Black community TV station in Prince George’s County is in danger of closing due to budget cuts. Please consider signing this petition to help keep it alive…
Minnesota: Supporters have raised more than $340,000 for the family of a 5-year-old who had racist slurs hurled at him in a park by a white woman…
Mississippi: A newly renovated Black-owned grocery store in Clarksdale is now able to carry fresh produce…
New York: One of the corrections officers involved in the killing of Robert Brooks has accepted a plea deal…
Ohio: Rodney Hinton, who fatally struck a deputy with his car after his teenage son was shot and killed by police, was denied bond this week…
Oklahoma: isn’t backing down from racists who send them threats and hateful messages…
Pennsylvania: Quinta Brunson is set to receive the keys to her hometown of Philadelphia on May 28…
Tennessee: Three Memphis police officers have been found not guilty of all state charges in the killing of Tyre Nichols…
What’s Happening
Trump has abruptly fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, the first Black woman to hold the post…
Several hundred protesters rallied outside the National Museum of African American History and Culture last weekend as the museum faces scrutiny from the Trump administration. The New York Times reported on how the museum is handling uncertainty without its director, who recently stepped down. For USA TODAY, Deborah Berry talked with organizers and protesters about their concerns for the museum.
Clyde McGrady for the New York Times: “Efforts to take the focus off the nation’s racial past in compliance with President Trump’s wishes face resistance from those determined to preserve it.”...
The Guardian: These activists are “flooding the zone with Black history” to protest against Trump’s attacks on DEI…
Tougaloo College has been receiving threats following Rep. Jasmine Crockett's commencement speech…
For Bloomberg’s CityLab, Brentin Mock talked with Bryan C. Lee Jr., president of the National Organization of Minority Architects, about a future after Donald Trump…
for Refinery29: Trump can’t put a $5,000 price tag on Black women’s bodies…
AP: A Black Denver community rallied to share flu shot experiences. Then the government stopped the study…
In an interview with “The Breakfast Club,” Wes Moore praised Black women and his wife of 18 years, Dawn…
Magic Johnson and Angel Reese have launched a new financial literacy program for high school seniors in Baltimore…
Entertainment News
You likely have seen all of the MET Gala fits by now, but ICYMI: Harper's BAZAAR compiled every celebrity red-carpet look at the star-studded event…For NPR’s “It’s Been A Minute,” listen to the experts break down best and worst looks of the night… talked with Black designers who reflected on this year’s theme…
Read this powerful essay in the New York Times from : Ryan Coogler’s movie deal made Hollywood lose its mind…
BET will celebrate the 25th anniversary of “106 & Park” with a reunion and tribute at the BET Awards on June 9…
Andre 3000, always keeping us on our toes, has released a surprise EP. But this time, he traded in the flute for the piano…
The 82-year-old genre-bending musician Swamp Dogg gave the Guardian a fascinating interview about his long life, turbulent career, and LSD…
"That's So Raven" actor Rondell Sheridan was hospitalized due to severe pancreatitis...
WATCH: The teaser trailer for Spike Lee’s “Highest 2 Lowest,” starring Denzel Washington, A$AP Rocky, Jeffrey Wright and more, is out…
Jury selection for Sean Combs’ sex trafficking trial got underway this week…
Smokey Robinson has been sued by former employees alleging sexual battery, assault and false imprisonment. The singer has denied the claims…
interviewed Mara Brock Akil, who is taking a new spin on Judy Blume’s novel in the new Netflix series “Forever”...
Ron Carter, one of the most recorded bassists of all time, is 88 years old. In an interview with the Jazz Times, he proclaimed he has no intention on slowing down…
Obituaries
Andy Bey, a prolific jazz singer with impressive vocal range, has died. He was 85…
Dr. Cameisha Clark, a Spartan College dean and graduate of Clark Atlanta University, was shot and killed by a security guard. She was 35…
Don’t Miss
Can you beat my time on Black Crossword? 37 seconds!...
The Detroit Free Press is seeking high school students to participate in its apprenticeship program. Deadline to apply is May 16…
The National Black Radical Organizers Conference will take place from May 30 to June 1 at Butler University…
Can’t get enough of “Sinners?” The African American Intellectual History Society released a movie syllabus inspired by the flick...
Katie Mitchell’s photo book “Prose to the People” received a strong review in the New York Times…