African American Interest

Being African American, understanding African American, celebrating African American. Black culture.

By Micrenspe

A Gifted High Jumper Gets Set To Leap Onto The World Stage
NPR - Melissa Block
Editor's Note: Vashti Cunningham made the U.S. Olympic team by finishing second in the high jump at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Ore., on July 3, clearing 6-foot-5 (1.97 meters). Her brother Randall
In Its Retelling, 'Roots' Is Powerful, Must-See Television
NPR - David Bianculli
The original Roots miniseries, based on the 1976 Alex Haley novel tracing his own family tree from African tribal life to American slavery and freedom, was a phenomenon. ABC showed it over consecutive
West Point Cadets At Center Of Storm After Raising Fists In Photo
NPR - Dana Farrington
West Point is investigating whether black female cadets violated any rules by raising their fists in a photo. The 16 women, following school tradition, posed in historical-style uniforms ahead of graduation
Fashion (India)
Born With No Hands, This 7-Year-Old 'Stunned' Judges To Win Penmanship Contest
NPR - Laura Wagner
Seven-year-old Anaya Ellick, who was born with no hands and does not use prostheses, recently won a national penmanship contest. Holding the pencil between her wrists, the first-grader at Greenbrier Christian
Churchill Downer: The Forgotten Racial History Of Kentucky's State Song
NPR - NPR Staff
Every year at the Kentucky Derby, crazy hat-wearing, mint julep-guzzling horse-gazers break into a passionate rendition of Kentucky's state song, "My Old Kentucky Home." As tradition goes, the University
Water
The faces of the Flint water crisis
CNN - By Mallory Simon, CNN
Flint, Michigan (CNN) — When President Barack Obama visits Flint today, he will find a community that has been through strife and tried to find the positives -- but is struggling to see progress. In the
Larry Wilmore On 'Breaking Taboos' At The White House Correspondents' Dinner
NPR
LANGUAGE ADVISORY: This interview contains language some readers may find offensive. The reviews are mixed for Larry Wilmore's performance Saturday night at the White House Correspondents' Association
If 'Carmichael Show' Topics Feel Uncomfortable, That's Because They're Real
NPR - - Jerrod Carmichael
When comic Jerrod Carmichael moved from his hometown of Winston-Salem, N.C., to Los Angeles in 2008, he was 20 years old and without any stand-up experience. Still, that didn't stop him from jumping into
Beyonce Returns To The Spotlight With New Album, 'Lemonade'
NPR
NPR's Audie Cornish talks to Treva Lindsey, an assistant professor of women's, gender and sexuality studies at Ohio State University, about Beyonce's new album Lemonade, which was released as a visual
What Harriet Tubman, Prince And Beyonce Can Teach Us About Politics
NPR - Sam Sanders
The types of conversations I saw online about Harriet Tubman, Prince and Beyonce over this past week have yet to be duplicated in our nation's discussion of politics. I think that's a bad thing. And I
When Personalization Leads To Discrimination On AirBnB
NPR - Maggie Penman
In the sharing economy, the goal to personalize the exchange can have some unintended consequences. The Hidden Brain podcast explores how discrimination plays out on AirBnB. Transcript AUDIE CORNISH, The
'James Brown: Live At The Apollo Vol. 4' Is A Marvelous And Mysterious Time Capsule
NPR - Oliver Wang
The names James Brown and Apollo Theater have practically become synonymous; it's hard to think of one without the other. Beginning in 1963, Brown released three albums recorded there. But there was a
Women of Color
Before Diving Into The Raging Flood Of New Beyoncé Thinkpieces, Read This
NPR - Gene Demby
The "monoculture" has supposedly been dead for at least a decade, but it ain't necessarily so. World-devouring pop music phenomena do still exist, but today that universe is made entirely of Beyoncé —
30 Most Promising Young Entrepreneurs In Africa 2016
Forbes - Mfonobong Nsehe
Identifying African entrepreneurs below the age of 35 who are building thriving million-dollar businesses is not as difficult as it used to be. There is an incredible wave of entrepreneurship transforming
Soul Singer Billy Paul is Dead at age 81
chicagodefender.com
By Kai EL’ Zabar R&B Singer Billy Paul dies at 81 Known best for the all time favorite, “Me and Mrs. Jones,” vocalist Billy Pul has passed making his …
Beyoncé's 'Lemonade' Is Defiant In The Midst Of Upheaval
NPR - Kiana Fitzgerald
On Saturday night, Beyoncé shook the music world with an hourlong feature on HBO, and then a surprise album — Lemonade. Beyoncé couldn't have produced a body of work this defiant, or blunt, two years Lemonade
Still Would Stand All Time: Notes On Prince
NPR - Jason King
Something tells me that 300 or maybe even 3,000 years from now — if we still have breathable air and if we haven't relocated to Mars, and if super-intelligent robots haven't colonized us Matrix-style we'll
Chess
Chess For Progress: How A Grandmaster Is Using The Game To Teach Life Skills
NPR - Maquita Peters
A few "short" years ago, during my sophomore year at The City College of New York, some fellow Caribbean classmates told me that the education department was offering a "free" course, called Thinking for
After Very Visible Roles, Lupita Nyong'o Looks To Disappear Into Character
NPR - Neda Ulaby
Lupita Nyong'o lives in a sunny apartment high above the East River in Brooklyn. Black-and-white photos of African wildlife hang on orange accent walls, near a collection of pretty blue pottery. The actress
New York City
'Awoken' By N.Y. Cop Shooting, Asian-American Activists Chart Way Forward
NPR - Hansi Lo Wang
The lines were stark outside the courthouse. A bustling street in downtown Brooklyn, N.Y., separated two groups. Each was fenced in by stone-faced police officers and steel barricades: an Asian-American
Misty Copeland on her collaboration with Prince
Marketplace
Is Donald Trump A Modern-Day George Wallace?
NPR - Debbie Elliott
Donald Trump's enduring appeal in the Republican presidential contest has the GOP in a quandary, as it's forced to contend with voters fed up with party politics. Some 50 years ago, another vociferous
Jessica Alba
Entrepreneurs Recall Prince as Strong Spirit, 'Creativity Unleashed'
Inc Magazine - Helena Ball
Entrepreneurs expressed their sadness at the passing of Prince's death through their tweets, calling him an idol, a visionary, and a creative genius. Mark Cuban says he grew up listening to Prince music
Reflecting On The Death Of Freddie Gray, One Year Later
NPR - Leah Donnella
It has been a year since Freddie Gray died from injuries sustained as Baltimore police transported him to a station. The 25-year-old was arrested after running from police; officers later found a small
Underground Railroad
You have no idea how hardcore Harriet Tubman really was
The Washington Post - By Ana Swanson
The woman who will be the face of the new $20 bill, Harriet Tubman, was a daring and principled fighter. Her dramatic career included defying slaveowners, smuggling dozens of slaves to freedom as part
A 'Once In Forever Artist': Celebrities Pay Tribute To Prince
NPR - Laura Wagner , Merrit Kennedy
Musician and performer Prince, whose work awed and inspired many other artists, has died at the age of 57. Our story about his death is here. The news has drawn shocked, sad reaction from the music industry
Pop Culture Happy Hour Small Batch: Remembering Prince
NPR - Stephen Thompson
When Linda Holmes and I jumped in to the studio to record this Pop Culture Happy Hour Small Batch on Thursday afternoon, news of Prince Rogers Nelson's death was less than an hour old. So if we seem a
Prince: A Life in Pictures
flipboard.com - Flipboard Photodesk
Freddie Gray
1 Year After Freddie Gray's Death, Baltimore Is Still In Turmoil
NPR
The young African-American man was taken into policy custody and died a week later in a hospital. David Greene talks Reverend Jamal Bryant, a pastor at the Empowerment Temple AME Church in Baltimore. DAVID