#education By Aziah Siid, Word in Black Here’s what you probably know about school segregation in the United States: On May 17, 1954, the United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously that racially segregated public schools were unconstitutional in the Brown v. Board of Education case. Many cities across the Jim Crow South refused to comply […]
Author Archives: Word in Black
Posted inWord In Black
To improve our health, change our story
By Joseph Williams, Word In Black From disproportionately high rates of chronic diseases like hypertension and diabetes to women being three times more likely to die during childbirth than Whites, the data confirms a simple, indisputable, alarming fact: Being Black in America is hazardous to your health. Multiple studies have shown that structural racism — […]
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Debunking the human value hierarchy myth
By Joseph Williams, Word in Black As George Mason University’s “chief wellbeing officer,” Dr. Nance Lucas wanted to create a positive, healthy environment for stressed-out students. Along with classes on mental and physical health, Lucas’ Center for the Advancement of Wellbeing offered students specialized learning dorms and cultural enrichment programs on art and music. But […]
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Racial healing and sisterhood on two wheels
By Joseph Williams, Word in Black Growing up, riding a bicycle was one of Monica Garrison’s favorite summertime activities. The sense of excitement and freedom she felt on two wheels stayed with her into young adulthood when she commuted to and from work on her bike. Then, life happened — her career, a family — […]
Posted inOPINION
Draymond Green: The NBA’s Problem Child
By John Celestand, Word In Black It’s safe to say that in my days as an athlete, I’ve seen my fair share of scuffles, dustups, and physical altercations. With so much adrenaline, testosterone, and just macho chest-thumping behavior in team sports, it’s a given that tempers will flare, manhood will be tested, and competition will […]
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Confronting our silent killers
By Gwen McKinney, Word in Black Meet our silent killers. They lurk. They creep. Like assailants in the dark, they can quickly swoop down and consume us in a deadly clutch. They are sinister and sometimes strike without warning. For Black women, they exact incalculable harm to our bodies, our families, and our life chances. […]
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Joy DeGruy and Bahia Cross Overton: Leading a racial healing renaissance
By Joseph Williams, Word In Black It happens for Darrell Wade when he goes hiking in green spaces in and around Portland, Oregon, remembering to breathe. For Dr. Joy DeGruy, an internationally renowned researcher and educator and the founder of the Be The Healing movement, it can be spontaneous, like when other Black people “see” […]
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The library club helping teens reflect, read and heal
By Joseph Williams, Word in Black It’s easy to imagine that, for a Black teenager navigating a turbulent life — in juvenile detention, say, or attending a school for students with discipline, learning or behavior issues — racial healing might be the next to last thing on their mind. It’s easier still to think that […]
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The EPA almost did something to help Cancer Alley. But then they didn’t
By Willy Blackmore, Word in Black Last fall, the Environmental Protection Agency said something that many have long suspected to be true: an investigation of the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality found “significant evidence suggesting that the Departments’ actions or inactions” have harmed the majority-Black communities in Cancer Alley, as the refinery- and petrochemical factory-laden […]
Posted inHBCU
Morehouse men get $10 million in student debt forgiven by activist group
By Bria Overs, Word In Black HBCU students win again. Over 2,700 former students of Morehouse College had their debts canceled by the Debt Collective recently, totaling nearly $10 million in student debt. Thousands of accounts from the fall 2022 semester and years prior owed $9.7 million to the historically Black college. Morehouse College transferred […]
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Are you experiencing racelighting? Here’s what it means
By Joseph Williams, Word In Black If you’re Black, chances are you’ve experienced it. You’re in a mostly White space, maybe your workplace, a school classroom or perhaps a social event. A White person with whom you’re interacting will do or say something seemingly innocuous — a joke about your hair, a compliment on how […]
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Scholastic reverses controversial decision to separate books on race, gender and sexuality
By Aziah Siid, Word in Black At least once a year, students come to school with money they saved up, or a sealed envelope sent by their parents or guardian, for the annual Scholastic Book Fair. It’s an integral part of students’ yearly calendar festivities, giving them an opportunity to pick whatever their heart desires. […]
