President Donald Trump may have announced a temporary ceasefire just 90 minutes before his deadline that the U.S. would annihilate Iran if it didn’t reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Still, hours earlier, Black political and community leaders criticized the president’s handling of the war in recent weeks. Some had called his most recent comments about […]
Politics & Policy
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Politics & Policy, Unsafe Water
In Roseland, Black Residents Were Told They Were Safe as Toxic Chemicals Spread
ROSELAND, La. — First came the oily sludge that spotted homes, waterways, and gardens. Then the stomach aches, headaches, nosebleeds, brain fog, and dead chickens and fish that pastor Marvin Vernon began tallying in his notebook. Vernon joined other residents this past Saturday morning to protest what they describe as official neglect and a “cover […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
2 Live Crew’s Uncle Luke Is Running for Congress and Calling Out Black Trump Supporters
The 2 Live Crew: Remember them? Led by Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell, the hip-hop group pioneered the Miami bass genre and Southern rap more generally in the 1980s and ’90s, as they rattled car trunks and scandalized censors with lyrics that implored women to pop that … well, you know. Fast-forward a few decades, and […]
Posted inHistory, Politics & Policy
The Supreme Court Fight That Could Unravel Who Gets to Be American
With birthright citizenship — which was enshrined in the 14th Amendment to clarify the legal status of Black Americans following the Civil War — on the chopping block, civil rights groups are on high alert for threats to all rights, even those long seen as safe. There’s concern that a decision undermining birthright citizenship “could […]
Posted inAir Pollution, Environmental Justice, Politics & Policy
An Oil Explosion in a Black Texas Town Traces Back to Trump’s Iran and Venezuela Crises
John Beard takes no pleasure in being right. In January, he told Capital B that he feared U.S. military action in Venezuela, which ultimately gave America preferential access to the South American nation’s vast oil reserves, would lead to disaster in southeast Texas. “The chickens have come home to roost,” Beard said over the phone, […]
Posted inHistory, Politics & Policy
U.S. Votes No as UN Calls Slave Trade ‘Gravest Crime’ and Backs Reparations
The United States joined Israel and Argentina on Thursday in voting against a Ghana-led resolution that declared the transatlantic trafficking of enslaved Africans the “gravest crime against humanity” and urged countries to pursue reparations. The nonbinding measure, backed by more than 120 nations, calls for formal apologies, compensation, and other forms of reparatory justice for […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Politics & Policy, Unsafe Water
This Black Town Has E. Coli in Its Drinking Water, but Feds Just Cut Support
At 76, Patricia Greenwood has given up on trying to name whatever now grows in the yard. It isn’t grass, she said. That died many floods ago and never returned. The water in her kitchen has never run clear in her memory. Even the dog refuses to drink it. She is one of many Cahokia […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Voting
Black Elders Without Birth Records Could Lose Vote Under SAVE America Act
When Courtney Patterson was born on his family’s farm in Lenoir County, North Carolina, 80 years ago, he was fortunate that a country doctor recorded his birth, ensuring that he would have a document later. “But many other people who grew up with me didn’t even have that,” Patterson recalled. Babies were usually delivered at […]
Posted inBlack Migration, Climate Change, Economic Development, Environmental Justice, Housing, Politics & Policy
The Black Mecca’s Climate Plan Is Costing Black Atlanta Residents Their Homes
This is the first story in a series on “climate gentrification” in Black neighborhoods. Support for this series was provided by The Neal Peirce Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting journalism on ways to make cities and their larger regions work better for all people. ATLANTA — By the time Atlanta hosts a World Cup […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy, Voting
‘Jim Crow 2.0’: Civil Rights Leaders Sound Alarm on SAVE America Act
Despite facing long odds, Senate Republicans on Tuesday voted to begin debate on the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act. The bill, also known as the SAVE America Act, is a deeply controversial proposal that civil rights groups say could disenfranchise millions — particularly Black Americans — by creating new barriers to the ballot box. The […]