By JONEL ALECCIA, Associated Press U.S. agriculture officials on Friday proposed new nutrition standards for school meals, including the first limits on added sugars, with a focus on sweetened foods such as cereals, yogurt, flavored milk and breakfast pastries. The plan announced by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack also seeks to significantly decrease sodium in the meals […]
Category: Afro Briefs
Posted inINTERNATIONAL
Pope says South Sudan’s future depends on treatment of women
By Nicole Winfield, Deng Machol, Trisha Thomas, The Associated Press Pope Francis warned Feb. 4 that South Sudan’s future depends on how it treats its women, as he highlighted their horrific plight in a country where sexual violence is rampant, child brides are common and the maternal mortality rate is the highest in the world. […]
Posted inNational News
At Nichols’ funeral, Black America’s grief on public display
By Aaron Morrison, AP National Writer The sound of the djembe drums started as a low tremble and grew more distinct as the musicians drew closer to the hundreds gathered inside the Memphis church. “We love you, Tyre,” the drummers chanted, referring to Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man whose beating by five police officers […]
Posted inMaryland Government
Maryland marijuana measure prioritizes social equity
By Brian Witte, The Associated Press Maryland is working toward creating a recreational marijuana industry with greater social equity, lawmakers said Feb. 3, with more licenses for minority-owned businesses and proceeds directed to areas adversely impacted by the war on drugs. The measure before the General Assembly, which is controlled by Democrats, will enable the […]
Posted inAfro Briefs
Family of Minneapolis man killed in no-knock raid sues city
By Steve Karnowski, The Associated Press The parents of Amir Locke, who was shot to death by a Minneapolis police officer when a SWAT team executed a no-knock search warrant one year ago, sued the city and the officer Feb. 3, alleging he was “gunned down in cold blood” in violation of his constitutional rights. […]
Posted inNEWS
Trump strategists scoff at Black voters, plan election stunts on audio recording
By Scott Bauer, The Associated Press A newly released audio recording offers a behind-the-scenes look at how former President Donald Trump’s campaign team in a pivotal battleground state knew they had been outflanked by Democrats in the 2020 presidential election. But even as they acknowledged defeat, they pivoted to allegations of widespread fraud that were […]
Posted inAfro Briefs
Maryland lawmakers propose choking off invasive running bamboo
By DOROTHY HOOD, Capital News Service ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Running bamboo grows so fast and is so invasive that it’s rooting up headstones in cemeteries, crossing neighborhood property lines and becoming a “major issue” in Maryland parks. Bamboo overgrowth was so bad for one Maryland resident that the constituent contacted Del. Linda Foley, D-Montgomery, for […]
Posted inNEWS
3 reasons the local Black press has a strong future
By John Celestand andRobert Walker-Smith Black History Month — which evolved from “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans — is known as the annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Although we mostly concentrate […]
Posted inWord In Black
The case for arts education
By Maya Pottiger, Word In Black Arts education changed the course of Fedrick C. Ingram’s life. In ninth grade, while living in housing projects in Miami, Ingram, a saxophone player, planned to enlist in the military. But his band director, William McKenzie, saw an “academic way” about him and encouraged him to go to college, […]
Posted inNational News
Tyre Nichols case shows officers still fail to intervene
By Jim Salter. The Associated Press As five Memphis police officers attacked Tyre Nichols with their feet, fists and a baton, others milled around at the scene, even as the 29-year-old cried out in pain and then slumped limply against the side of a car. Just like the attack on George Floyd in Minneapolis nearly […]
Posted inBaltimore News
Health Commissioner declares Code Blue Extreme Cold Alert for Baltimore City
By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, tmcqueen@afro.com On the evening of Feb. 3, Baltimore City will be under a Code Blue due to extreme cold weather. Frigid air is expected to come in, presenting estimated wind chills into the single digits. Letitia Dzirasa, the city’s health commissioner, declared a Code Blue Extreme Cold Alert from […]
Posted inWord In Black
Federal government invests $245 million into mental health
By Alexa Spencer, Word In Black As the country reckons with the psychological impact of an ongoing pandemic and back-to-back mass shootings, the federal government is releasing $245 million toward the mental health needs of Americans. Announced in January 2023 as part of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the funding aims to help healthcare providers, […]