By Dayvon Love We are in a moment where social justice issues are being commodified by those who are political and economic elites who have been drivers of oppressive systems. Joe Biden has attempted to style himself after FDR, in an effort to appear sympathetic to social justice issues. We all remember the ridiculous picture […]
Category: OPINION
Posted inCommentary
The Moore Report: A review of D. Watkins latest book, ‘Black Boy Smile’
By Ralph E. Moore Jr. D. Watkins may very well be the best-known writer on the Baltimore scene these days. I’ve read all his books: “The Beastside,” “The Cook Up,” “We Speak for Ourselves” and now just out “Black Boy Smile.” This latest book is different from the others. As a memoir, it is far […]
Posted inCommentary
The joyful justice of Ketanji Brown Jackson
By Margot Brown From the moment I met Justice Kentaji Brown Jackson, I embraced what so many Black women felt — I saw myself, my daughters, and the many generations of women who came before us all. An exceptionally qualified professional, wife and mother, Justice Jackson greeted me, my husband, and my children with grace and […]
Posted inCommentary
Why does the Black community oppose the menthol ban?
By BlackPressUSA Many in the social justice community and the Menthol Is Not A Crime network are opposed to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) proposal to ban menthol-flavored and other flavored cigarettes. Since 85 percent of menthol smokers are Black, at first glance, this might seem like a good way to curb smoking-related health […]
Posted inOpinion
Letter To Editor – SCOTUS SHOULD BE CHARGED / IMPEACHED?
Submitted by Sam Cox There is something about the recent SCOTUS ruling on abortion that puzzles me. Why isn’t every lawyer with half a brain clamoring to have every justice that voted to overturn Roe charged with the following violation of the US Code 923. 18 U.S.C. § 371 for conspiring to defraud the public, concerning the original intent of […]
Posted inEditorial
Editorial: America Has Two Law Enforcement Standards
by Dr. John E. Warren, Publisher, The San Diego Voice & Viewpoint The recent shootings by law enforcement of individuals being pursued by police have reminded many people of color of what appears to be an unwritten universal double standard. One would think that after the George Floyd murder and the subsequent murder of a […]
Posted inCommentary
Building Black America’s middle school to medical school pipeline
By Damien Myers and Khalid Rudo Smith It’s no secret that if White America gets a cold, Black America gets the flu. We accept that Black health outcomes are, across nearly every measure, worse than our White counterparts. Ever wonder why? Better yet, ever dream of what would happen if an army of over 100,000 […]
Posted inOpinion
Op-ed: Wes Moore: Baltimore’s Clear Choice for Governor of Maryland
Submitted by Fagan Harris Beginning July 7th, when early voting starts, Baltimore will join the rest of Maryland to answer the most critical question confronting our state: who will be our next governor? The answer will set our city and state’s trajectories for the next decade and beyond. We arrive at the question at a […]
Posted inOpinion
Op-ed: Maybe The Third Time’s The Charm
By Rev. Dr. K. A. Slayton There’s a familiar saying that suggests, maybe “the third time’s a charm.” While it’s still a very popular idiom in our Western culture it simply suggests that sometimes twice simply isn’t enough. I considered this when I focused on the upcoming Maryland Gubernatorial election and the potential promise of […]
Posted inMusic
The Moore Report: Rumor has it: a Black man showed Elvis Presley how to sing
By Ralph E. Moore, Jr., Special to the AFRO Otis Blackwell is one of the most famous songwriters, but most folks never heard of him. Blackwell wrote several bestselling songs for Elvis Presley. And admittedly, I never heard of Blackwell until Stevie Wonder received a Grammy Award for Best Male Vocalist in 1976 and acknowledged Otis Blackwell as a magnificent […]
Posted inOpinion
Op-ed: Start now to take back the Supreme Court
By Ben Jealous Did you ever wonder whether elections really matter? Well, the Trump Supreme Court majority has answered that question for good. Or, more accurately, they have answered it for bad. In the term that has just ended, the new far right-wing majority on the Supreme Court went on a rampage. They have torn […]
Posted inCommentary
TBE#26 – Essence Festival: A Birthday Party That Has Grown Into A National Cultural Touchstone
By Marc H. Morial, President and CEO, National Urban League “It’s within our DNA as black women, and some of it is within the historical evolution of who we are as black women, where we were trained and groomed to give so much of ourselves. Essence was specifically created to be a platform where we […]
