(Courtesy of Maryland Elections) By Jessica Dortch AFRO News Editor With the Nov. 3 election around the corner and the state of Maryland gearing up for the start of early voting on Oct. 26, it is important to have a voting plan. There are so many ways to vote this year, and if you’ve already […]
Author Archives: Jessica Dortch
Posted inNational News, NEWS, POLITICS, U.S. Government
Michelle Obama’s Closing Argument: ‘We Cannot Trust This President’
The video of Michelle Obama’s closing statement was released on Youtube, Oct. 6. (Courtesy of Youtube) By Jessica Dortch AFRO News Editor With less than a month to go before election day, Joe Biden’s campaign unleashed their not-so-secret weapon, Michelle Obama. In a closing statement released on Oct. 6, the former FLOTUS made her final […]
Posted inBaltimore Community, Baltimore News, Health, NEWS
AFRO Exclusive: Woman Sprayed With Unknown Substance Speaks Out
In this photo, the suspect can be seen pointing to the victim’s pants after spraying her with an unknown chemical substance that made her dizzy after making contact with it. (Courtesy photo) By Jessica Dortch AFRO News Editor (The subject of this story has chosen to remain anonymous and will be referred to as Marie […]
Posted inARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
AFRO Exclusive: Former AFRO Employee’s Legal Drama Series Picked Up by UMC
Writer, producer and former AFRO employee Katrina Nelson. (Courtesy Photo) By Jessica Dortch National and Local News Editor Baltimore’s own Katrina Nelson’s latest project “Lace” has been picked up by UMC and is set to begin production in March 2021. This legal drama series centers around a Black L.A. attorney named Lacey as she goes […]
Posted inNEWS
International Underground Railroad Month
The second annual Underground Railroad Month opened on Sept. 1 with the unveiling of the Frederick Douglass Park. (Photos courtesy of the Executive Office of the Governor) By Jessica Dortch AFRO News Editor The ceremony to celebrate the official launch of International Underground Railroad Month kicked off on Sept. 1 at the Frederick Douglass Park […]
Posted inCoronavirus
Dr. Wood Weighs in on COVID-19
By Jessica Dortch AFRO Production Editor #AFROCoversCOVID Dr. James E. Wood is a physician who was exposed to the Coronavirus by way of a family member in late July. Days later he tested positive and entered a fight unlike anything he’d experienced in his years. As a survivor, Dr. Wood outlined his experience with the […]
Posted inCoronavirus
Personal Trainer’s ‘Build Bodies & Bonds’
By Jessica Dortch AFRO Production Editor If you frequent Lake Montebello, then you can’t help but notice the group of men who use the provided equipment to work out. What you didn’t know is that some of these men are certified personal trainers who not only help to build bodies, but they build bonds with […]
Posted inStop Killing Us
Unrest in Kenosha Following Jacob Blake Shooting
By Jessica Dortch AFRO Production Editor Gruesome, horrific, outrageous and disgusting are a few words that describe the scene in Kenosha, Wis., on Aug. 23 in which an unarmed Black man, later identified as Jacob Blake, was shot seven times in close range by police officers. The video footage that later went viral showed 29-year-old […]
Posted inHBCU
The Great Debate: Booker T. Washington vs. W.E.B. Du Bois
This timeline reflects the founding of some of the world’s oldest historically Black colleges and universities, otherwise known as HBCUs. In 1867, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, Alabama State University, Barber-Scotia College, Fayetteville State University, Johnson C. Smith University, Saint Augustine’s University and Talladega College were founded in addition to Morgan State University, Howard […]
Posted inAfro Briefs
2 Found Dead in Baltimore Explosion
By Jessica Dortch AFRO Production Editor (Updated 08/11/2020) Firefighters and first responders were called to the 4200 Block of Labyrinth Road early on Aug. 10 due to reports of an explosion. Residents of the neighborhood suspect a gas leak caused the explosion that demolished three row homes, leaving many trapped and one dead. Early on […]
Posted inARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Lizzo is Bold, Black and Beautiful. Period!
By Jessica Dortch AFRO Production Editor There has been a lot of controversy around whether or not pop singer Melissa Jefferson, known as “Lizzo” is hurting the image of Black women. Unfortunately, in this country all Black women are involuntarily involved in the uphill battle of image acceptance in some way, shape or form, specifically […]
Posted inOPINION
Editorial Commentary: The Chi’s’ Yolonda Ross Talks Art, Creativity
By Jessica Dortch AFRO Production Editor jdortch@afro.com If you are a fan of one of Showtime’s top series, “The Chi,” then you are no stranger to Yolonda Ross who plays Jada Washington on the show. Watching her in her acting element, you might not know that Ross is also a quadruple threat as an actress, […]
