Bobby Brown is a terrible father. It may be too late for Brown to grow up, turn his life around, and be the father that his daughter, Bobbi Kristina, seriously deserves. Perhaps I’m expecting too much of Bobby Brown, former husband of Whitney Houston, drug user and alcoholic. But if Brown has any dignity left […]

Nathaniel B. White Jr. stepped into history simply by going to college. With little fanfare, he became part of a group now called the “First Five,” the first Black students to attend Duke University. It was 1963. Blacks were marching in Birmingham, demanding public facilities be integrated. When violence erupted, President Kennedy sent 3,000 troops […]

After more than 100 years, the U.S. Census Bureau will drop the term “Negro” from its race description and use the term black or African American. The term Negro was first used in the 1900 census, replacing the word “colored.” The term “Negro” originated with the Portuguese and Spanish explorers who used the actual word […]

The director is planning to make a post-slavery Black Western, likely because he hated “Django,” according to a report by The Root. “I was deeply hurt by the movie. I was deeply offended by the movie. The movie made me angry,” Daniels said. “[Quentin Tarantino] has no right to our word; he has no right […]

NEW YORK (AP) — Drummer-producer Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson of the Roots is adding “author” to his resume. Thompson announced Wednesday that “Mo’ Meta Blues: The World According to Questlove” will be released June 18 by Grand Central Publishing. The book includes the rap musician’s run-ins with “celebrities, idols and fellow artists,” including Stevie Wonder, KISS […]

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Las Vegas triple murder suspect Ammar Harris has a smirk on his face in a 90-second YouTube video that shows him flashing a thick stack of $100 bills. The video is just one of many online displays of bravado being examined by police in which Harris boasts of a high-rolling lifestyle […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama and congressional leaders unveiled a full-length statue of civil rights icon Rosa Parks in the Capitol Wednesday, paying tribute to a figure whose name became synonymous with courage in the face of injustice. Parks becomes the first black woman to be honored with a full-length statue in the Capitol’s […]

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The South Carolina Supreme Court on Wednesday overturned a settlement divvying up the multimillion-dollar estate of James Brown, saying a former attorney general didn’t follow the late soul singer’s wishes in putting together the deal. Attorney General Henry McMaster brokered a settlement in 2009 that split Brown’s estate, giving nearly half […]

DETROIT (AP) — A judge sentenced a member of gospel music’s Winans family to nearly 14 years in prison Wednesday for an $8 million financial scam that was promoted in church pulpits. Two of Michael Winans Jr.‘s victims spoke in federal court, telling a judge that the scheme to sell Saudi Arabian oil bonds robbed […]

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Former Motown vocalist Richard Street, a member of the Temptations for 25 years, has died. He was 70. Street’s wife, Cindy, says her husband died early Wednesday at a hospital in Las Vegas after a short illness. Richard Street sang as a young man with Temptations members Otis Williams and Melvin […]

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The substance found in Oscar Pistorius‘ bedroom after the shooting death of his girlfriend was identified by his representatives Wednesday as Testis compositum — an herbal remedy they said is used for “muscle recovery.” A product by that name also is sold as a sexual enhancer. Testis compositum is marketed by some […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court’s conservative justices voiced deep skepticism Wednesday about a section of a landmark civil rights law that has helped millions of Americans exercise their right to vote. In an ominous note for supporters of the key provision of the Voting Rights Act, Justice Anthony Kennedy both acknowledged the measure’s vital […]