U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida won the Aug. 18 Democratic primary for the state’s historically Black 20th Congressional District — besting contenders including a hip-hop icon, a former congresswoman accused of stealing disaster funds, a Jamaica-born former mayor, and a progressive educator. Beneath some of the drama that’s captured headlines lie real stakes […]
Florida
Posted inNews, Partner Content
Angie Nixon Notches an Upset Victory in Florida’s Democratic Senate Primary
This story was originally reported by Mel Leonor Barclay of The 19th. Florida Democrat Angie Nixon, a progressive who recently joined the Democratic Socialists of America, won Democrats’ nomination for a U.S. Senate seat in a stunning upset that gave progressives a win in a highly unlikely state. Nixon, a Florida state representative and community […]
Posted inHealth Equity, Partner Content, Public Safety
Florida Hospitals Act Fast to Discharge Gun Victims — Especially if They’re Not Insured
This story was originally published by KFF Health News and The Trace. Alea Bates wasn’t ready to leave Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare’s main hospital four days after a stranger shot her seven times at close range. Miraculously, hospital records show, none of the bullets damaged her internal organs. But after surgery, Bates said, she couldn’t get […]
Posted inEconomic Development, Politics & Policy, Rural Issues
One of America’s Last Black Homesteads Is Fighting to Preserve Its Full Story
Beverly Steele didn’t realize her hometown could be recognized for its historic significance. It’s one of the only two African American homesteading communities left in the nation. In Royal, Florida, Black families are still holding onto the inherited 40-acre plot passed down nearly two centuries ago. It’s a rare reality in America today, given the […]
Posted inBlack Migration, Climate Change, Economic Development, Environmental Justice, Housing, Politics & Policy
As the Sea Rises and Rents Triple, Miami’s Black Neighborhoods Are Disappearing
This is the second story in a series on “climate gentrification.” 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. MIAMI — By the time Latonya Floyd came outside, the photographer’s lens […]
Posted inHBCUs, Politics & Policy
After FAMU Signed ICE Deal, Students Demanded Answers, and Were Met With Silence
The signs read “ICE OUT,” “REFUSE RESIST FIGHT FASCISM,” and other slogans common at protests against the federal immigration crackdown. But the protest was not in the streets of one of the U.S. cities where residents were turning out by the thousands for days on end to demand an end to the crackdown. It was […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Employment
‘Clean Slate’ Laws Could Help Millions of Black Americans Clear Their Records
The 11th day of April means more to Elvina Smith than her daughters will ever know. For 17 years, a shoplifting conviction that led to six days in a Wayne County, Michigan, jail and a year of probation impacted every aspect of Smith’s otherwise law-abiding life. From 2006 to 2007, Smith traveled for miles outside […]
Posted inCOVID-19, Health
COVID Hits Black Americans Harder. New Vaccine Limits Increase the Risk
Upheaval at the country’s top public health agency has left millions of Americans uncertain about access to the updated COVID-19 vaccines at a moment when rising case numbers threaten to disproportionately harm Black Americans. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the new shots in August. But it narrowed eligibility to people who are 65 […]
Posted inEducation, HBCUs
Despite Pushback From Students and Alumni, DeSantis Ally Picked to Lead FAMU
The Florida A&M University Board of Trustees on Friday picked Marva Johnson as the school’s 13th president in an 8-4 vote. Her selection is subject to confirmation by the 17-member Florida Board of Governors, which oversees the state’s public university system. This decision comes as a blow to many students and alumni. Over the past […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
For Black Immigrants, a Second Trump Term Hits Different
In a matter of weeks, everything changed. A trip to the grocery store. Going to Mass. Meeting with recent arrivals from her native Haiti, or asking them to meet her. It all suddenly feels too risky for Farah Larrieux. Now that Donald Trump has returned to the Oval Office with a compliant Congress and what […]
