Black voters were at the center of legal disputes and polling-site confusion on Election Day, as voting rights advocates responded to allegations of intimidation at the polls and Republican interference in ballot counts. In Philadelphia, election officials made a last-minute change to the ballot-count process on Tuesday that could delay the vote tally for days, […]
Margo Snipe
Margo Snipe was a health reporter at Capital B. Twitter @margoasnipe
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy
The Black Candidates to Watch on Election Day
The Nov. 8 elections have the potential to be historic, as a record number of candidates are running to become the first Black woman or Black man to hold their office. With diverse faces on ballots nationwide — from governorships to school board races — Tuesday’s midterms could increase Black political power across layers of […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Extreme Weather
How Natural Disasters Create Voting Crises
Voting has often been inconvenient for residents of Florida’s Dunbar community. For decades, they fought to get an early-voting site in their Gulf Coast neighborhood. It finally came to fruition ahead of the 2020 election, but now, just two years later, that polling site has shut down. The story is similar for many in this […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Extreme Weather
FEMA Sent Disaster Relief to Fort Myers’ Black Neighborhoods. Where Is It?
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Volunteers tossed cases of water off the back of a truck from Tennessee outside of First Assembly Cornerstone Church. Inside, a group of women filled to-go containers with macaroni and cheese, pulled pork, sandwich buns, and corn. It had been a week since Hurricane Ian devastated this Gulf Coast city, uprooting decades-old […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Extreme Weather
In Fort Myers, Black Residents Fear Hurricane Aid Will Bypass Their Neighborhoods
Editor’s note: Following Capital B’s story, Federal Emergency Management Agency spokesperson Jaclyn Rothenberg tweeted on October 3 that the agency is providing resources to the Dunbar neighborhood. “We are aware of the needs in Dunbar and sent teams to the area yesterday. Our @FEMA disaster survivor assistance teams are going door to door again today […]
Posted inHealth, Health Equity
Clinicians Dismiss Black Women’s Pain. The Consequences Are Dire.
This story contains discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, call the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. The bottle of vodka sat unopened. It was the largest one Cheryl McJoy could find. If she drank it, she thought, maybe the stabbing sensations in her body would stop. “I […]
Posted inCOVID-19, Health
Diabetes Diagnoses Doubled for Black Youth During the Pandemic
Diagnosis of type 2 diabetes doubled among Black children during the first year of the pandemic but decreased among white youth, according to a new study. The first year of the COVID-19 pandemic also saw a higher proportion of young diabetes patients with severe symptoms compared to years prior. The trend suggests that the racial […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Officials Withheld Funds Over an Abortion Ban. Black Louisianans Are Most At Risk.
Sitting in the Louisiana Senate chambers last week, Democratic Sen. Jimmy Harris received a text alert: A brewing storm heading toward his New Orleans district had prompted a flood advisory. Moments later, the state’s all-male bond commission voted 7-6 to temporarily block a $39 million loan that New Orleans planned to use for a power […]
Posted inHealth, Health Equity
Black Americans Are Disproportionately Affected By Monkeypox. U.S. Officials Failed To Mention It.
The Biden administration declared monkeypox a public health emergency on Thursday, but during the 40-minute media call for that announcement, federal officials never mentioned the virus’s disproportionate impact on Black Americans. It’s an absence that harks back to the first weeks of the coronavirus when, in the spring of 2020, Black people were dying at […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voices of Change
Meet Maxwell Frost. He May Be the First Member of Gen Z in Congress.
Ahead of the 2022 midterms, Capital B is talking to newsmakers across the country who want to reshape American politics or galvanize Black voices in government. Our “Voices of Change” series will update periodically with insights from the candidates, activists, lawmakers, and political insiders whom you should know. Progressive activist Maxwell Alejandro Frost wants to […]