The Southern Baptist Convention elected Rev. Fred Luter, Jr. on June 19 to serve as the first African American president for the nation’s largest Protestant denomination. The election by a unanimous vote of the 56-year-old Luter to succeed current president Bryant Wright marked a stunning break from the Southern Baptist Convention’s 167-year history, according to […]
Author Archives: Alexis Taylor
AFRO Staff Writer
Posted inAfro Briefs
HBCU “Equality Lawsuit” Far From Over
Both sides locked in a battle over proper funding for Maryland’s historical black institutions (HBI) have retreated to their corners to regroup and prepare for the next phase of the case. Lawyers for the Coalition for Equity and Excellence in Maryland Higher Education Inc., the plaintiff, and the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC), the defendant, […]
Posted inBaltimore News
Comptroller Claims Mayor Acted Improperly in Contract Award
Tension continued to build at Baltimore City Hall this week as city Comptroller Joan Pratt and Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake continued to lock horns over an upgrade to the telephone system used in City offices. Pratt said Rawlings-Blake’s information technology staff purchased 80 telephones, six video-phones, two servers and supporting equipment for technology renovations without going […]
Posted inHealth
Drug-Resistant Strain of Gonorrhea Found Overseas
One of the most common sexually-transmitted diseases in the world is speeding down the path to becoming incurable. Scientists are frantically trying to contain and treat an antibiotic resistant strain of gonorrhea that has already been found in Australia, France, Norway, the United Kingdom and several other countries. “We are very concerned about recent reports […]
Posted inAfro Briefs
N.C. Board of Elections Blocks Request to Ban Voting in Churches
The North Carolina Board of Elections upheld the practice of voting in church facilities, turning down a challenge by the legal arm of the American Humanist Association, the Appignani Humanist Legal Center. The decision comes amid a heated battle over voting rights and at a time when several states have already passed tougher restrictions on […]
Posted inAfro Briefs
Chicago Charter School Boasts 100 Percent Graduation Rate for Third Consecutive Year
For the third consecutive year, Chicago’s Urban Prep Charter Academy for Young Men saw every single member of the senior class at its’ Englewood campus graduate with acceptance letters to a four-year college or university. The accomplishment is no small victory for the original location of the charter school, which opened in 2006 with only […]
Posted inBaltimore News
Jailed
Judge Emmanuel Brown of the Baltimore Circuit Court sentenced campaign consultant, Julius Henson, to roughly two months in prison June 13. He was also sentenced to one year of probation and directed to serve 300 hours of community service within 24 months. A jury in May acquitted the veteran political operative of three other charges […]
Posted inBaltimore News
City Refunds Fines for More Than 3,000 Speeding Tickets
Heavy-footed Baltimoreans caught speeding down Wabash Avenue between December 2011 and April of this year will be getting a break from the city within the next three weeks. According to the Baltimore City Department of Transportation, 3,145 tickets in the amount of $40 will be either waived or refunded due to an error printed on […]
Posted inBaltimore News
Old Dunbar High School Quietly Becomes Local Historic Landmark
The building that first housed Paul Laurence Dunbar High School is finally getting the recognition it deserves—nearly a century after being created solely to serve Black students. As an East Baltimore institution, it has been a key stop on the academic path for generations of African American families. Now, it is a historic landmark, although […]
Posted inNational News
Harry A. Cole, First Black State Appeals Judge, First Black State Senator, Honored
The friends of Maryland Court of Appeals Judge Harry A. Cole June 6 hailed the late jurist, the first Black to serve on the state’s appeals court and the first Black to be elected to the state senate. Family and friends, including State Appeals Court Chief Judge Robert Bell, Maryland Court of Special Appeals Judge […]
Posted inARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Miss Pennsylvania Renounces Crown, Trump Threatens Defamation Charges
Things turned ugly in the beauty pageant world as Miss Pennsylvania USA not only denounced her new crown but made allegations of fraud against the Miss Universe Organization. Miss Pennsylvania Sheena Monnin claimed June 5 that other contestants had knowledge of the winners of the Miss USA pageant before they were announced on stage at […]
Posted inARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Amanda Bynes Asks for President’s Help in DUI Dismissal
Taking a cue from the auto and banking industries, former Nickelodeon star Amanda Bynes is seeking a bailout from President Barack Obama. Bynes asked Obama to dismiss a DUI charges against her, and made her Twitter plea simple. “Hey @BarackObama… I don’t drink. Please fire the cop who arrested me. I also don’t hit and […]