Featured
Why Black Men Face So Many Barriers to a College Education. By Allison Wiltz / Level
Some assign personal blame and overlook systemic barriers
Black students are more likely to attend underfunded primary schools. And face disciplinary actions more frequently than their White peers. This deprives them of an equal opportunity to succeed, and position themselves as prime candidates for college. Beyond this racial injustice, another disparity exists. Black men are the group least likely to earn a college degree in America.
Even among those without a college degree, racism persists. Indeed, one study found that Black men without a college education earn “barely half of what their Asian American and white counterparts make.” This indicates that they are uniquely vulnerable to financial hardship without a degree. We must address this gap to ensure that Black men have an equal opportunity to become doctors, lawyers, and teachers. To do this, we must avoid falling into the trap of blaming Black men when systemic factors are clearly at play. Read more
Related: The right’s 60-year war on higher education. By James Thornton Harris / Salon
Political / Social
Trump Just Bet the Farm. By Thomas L. Freidman / NYT
Donald Trump is not known for doing his homework — he’s more of a go-with-my-gut kind of guy.
What I find most terrifying about what Trump is doing today is that he seems to be largely relying on his gut to bet that he can radically overturn how America’s institutions have operated and the way the nation relates to both its allies and enemies — and get it all right. As in, America will become stronger and more prosperous, while the rest of the world will just adjust. Next question. Read more
Related: A Cowardly Congress Is Letting Trump Crash the Economy. By Jett Heer / The Nation
Black veterans sound the alarm over military DEI purge. By Cheyanne M. Daniels / The Hill
Black veterans are warning that the Trump administration’s effort to purge the Defense Department of its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) content is sending a negative message that could impact recruitment efforts.
“The President does not put forward an executive order like that, and then also have his Secretary of Defense strip all of this Black history from these websites without this being an aligned effort. These are not isolated things that are occurring in a vacuum.” Bibby added that the idea of DEI is not new to the military, but it wasn’t always known as DEI. Rather, it was equal opportunity. Learning about other service members’ history and culture was also a natural occurrence. Read more
Related: New York Warns Trump It Will Not Comply With Public School D.E.I. Order. By Troy Closson / NYT
Thousands protested Trump nationwide in towns big and small. By Sarah D. Wire / USA Today
Thousands protested Trump nationwide Saturday against Musk, budget cuts, tariffs; in favor of democracy, immigrants, empathy
People were waving American flags and Ukrainian flags. They carried signs protesting cuts to the Education Department and Social Security, supporting trans rights and urging people to vote and defend the Constitution. Some played drums and shouted from bull horns. Toddlers rode tricycles or their parents’ shoulders. Dogs wore shirts declaring themselves “dogs against DOGE.” Read more
Related: A Different Kind of Anti-Trump Resistance Is Brewing. By Micah I. Sifry / NYT
Obama calls on citizens, colleges and law firms to resist Trump agenda. By Frances Vinall and Justine McDaniel / Wash Post
Former president Barack Obama called on universities and law firms to stand up to intimidation from President Donald Trump’s administration and urged Americans to prepare to “possibly sacrifice” in support of democratic values.
In a speech Thursday night at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York, Obama also accused Trump’s government of working to destroy the international order created after World War II. Read more
Why This Unending Purge of Media Leaders of Color Hurts Us All. By Keli Goff / The Daily Beast
Media watchers have already devoted extensive ink to on-air voices of color who have departed high profile roles including Joy Reid and Eugene Robinson, I am more concerned about what’s happening off air.
An abbreviated list of high profile departures includes: Kevin Merida, the Black Executive Editor of the Los Angeles Times, Danielle Belton, the second Black woman to helm HuffPost, Nekesa Moody, the first Black Editorial Director of The Hollywood Reporter, Rashida Jones, the first Black female president of MSNBC, Kimberly Godwin, the first Black president of ABC News and Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews, the first minority female president of CBS News. (Across the pond, but also within Condé Nast, like Jones, Edward Enninful left after becoming the first Black editor-in-chief of British Vogue.) Read more
Civil rights groups sue Trump over executive order requiring citizenship proof in registering to vote. By Deena Zaru / ABC News
Civil rights groups, including the NAACP, filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday challenging President Donald Trump’s effort to overhaul the election system.
The executive order, which Trump signed on March 25, requires stricter voting regulations in federal elections, including showing proof of citizenship when registering to vote. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is among the groups representing the plaintiffs in the complaint. “We know that providing documentation in general tends to fall more heavily on people who are already having so many obstacles thrown in their lives at them,” ACLU attorney Sophia Lin Lakin told ABC News. “These are real barriers for populations that unfortunately intersect very much with voters of color.” Read more
The Top Goal of Project 2025 Is Still to Come. By David A. Graham / The Atlantic
The effort to restore traditional families has been less prominent so far, but it could reshape the everyday lives of all Americans in fundamental ways. Its place atop the list of priorities is no accident—it reflects the most deeply held views of many of the contributors.
A focus on heterosexual, married, procreating couples is everywhere in Project 2025. “Families comprised of a married mother, father, and their children are the foundation of a well-ordered nation and healthy society,” writes Roger Severino, the author of a chapter on the Department of Health and Human Services and a former HHS and Justice Department staffer. Read more
World News
This Is Not the Right Way to Curb Migration. Rebecca Hanson, David Smilde and
The Trump administration last month deported scores of Venezuelan men to El Salvador, sending them to a maximum-security prison for gang members.
The administration claimed that most of the men were members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, a group that, according to the executive order decreeing the deportations, is “conducting irregular warfare and undertaking hostile actions against the United States.” The exaggerated government claims and ensuing public concern about the group’s activities in the United States amount to a classic moral panic, in which a handful of crimes are cited by politicians as evidence of an urgent threat to society. Read more
What to Know About Trump’s Tariffs and the Global Trade War. Ana Swanson, Danielle Kaye ,Lazaro Gamio, Jeanna Smialek and Martin Fackler / NYT
Since re-entering office, President Trump has issued a flurry of tariffs in an effort to rewire the global economy.
On Wednesday, Mr. Trump unveiled his most aggressive policies to date, sparing few countries around the world. A 10 percent base line rate for the world went into effect on Saturday, with much higher ones for dozens of counties coming next week. Mr. Trump’s moves have caused financial markets to plummet, foreign leaders to issue condemnations and officials to warn about inflation and slowing economic growth. Read more
Haiti taking more steps against gangs after thousands of protesters demand security. By AP and NBC News
The demonstration on Thursday was the biggest protest held since the council was installed a year ago.
The leader of Haiti’s transitional presidential council tried to allay surging alarm among Haitians over rampant gang violence by acknowledging Thursday that the country has “become hell for everyone” and promising new measures to stop the bloodshed. Read more
No wigs please – the new rules shaking up beauty pageants (Africa and the Caribbean) By Anita Nkonge / BBC
Long, flowing wigs and weave extensions have dominated the catwalks of Ivory Coast’s massively popular beauty pageants for years. Contestants in the West African nation often spend a huge amount of money on their appearance, from outfits to hairdos – with very few choosing the natural look.
Changes are slowly creeping in – last December Angélique Angarni-Filopon, from the French Caribbean island of Martinique, made headlines when she was crowned Miss France, mainly because of her age – she is 34 – and she also sported short Afro hair. But this year the organizers of the Ivorian competition are shaking things up right from the start. Wigs, weaves and hair extensions have been banned from the preliminary stages of the competition, which are held in 13 cities across the country (as well as two abroad for those in the diaspora). Read more
Ethics / Morality / Religion
The Christian right has set the US on the road to Gilead. Without a fight, other nations may follow. By Deborah Frances-White / The Guardian
With Donald Trump as president, there is now a heavy strain of Christian nationalism driving the US political agenda. From draconian abortion policies to ending birthright citizenship, some of Trump’s first executive orders sound startlingly like something out of Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, the dystopian novel turned TV show set in Gilead, a fundamentalist, fascist version of the US where women have no rights.
But it is urgent we understand that what is happening in the US could happen here. This road to Atwood’s Gilead is charting a course straight through the UK and Europe, and we may well be sleepwalking on to it. Read more
American hell. In the last year of his life, Martin Luther King Jr.’s confidence in the politics of progressivism dimmed. Judgment became his refrain. By Isaac S. Villegas / Christian Century
On April 4, 1968, hours before his assassination, from room 306 at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Martin Luther King Jr. phoned the office at Ebenezer Baptist Church back home in Atlanta. It was a Thursday, and he had to let the church secretary know his sermon title for Sunday’s service: “Why America May Go to Hell.”
He never had a chance to preach that sermon, but his title comes to mind whenever the injustices of this country feel overwhelming—when things go from bad to worse, from ordinary cruelties to unhinged brutality. Read more
Tax Breaks, Tithes, and Turnoffs-Is the Black Church Chasing Profits Over People? By Jasmine Browley / BET
I once visited a church years ago and didn’t feel the familiar warmth of the place I grew up in. I felt like a customer. A stage had replaced the pulpit. The pastor, dressed in designer clothes, paced like a motivational speaker. The message? Give more. Expect more. Pray for abundance. And don’t forget to download the church’s app on your way out.
Once a fringe theology, the prosperity gospel is now mainstream in many pulpits. It teaches that wealth is a sign of divine favor, and that tithing (often generously) is the key to unlocking blessings. But the message has lost its anointing for those of us watching our pastors pull up in Bentleys while families in the congregation are choosing between groceries and rent. Read more
Historical / Cultural
Honoring Dr. King’s Legacy In A Time Of Continued Resistance. By tiffany Hamilton / Newsone
April 4, 1968, is forever etched in history as the fateful day a bullet pierced not only the body of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., but the soul of a nation already on edge.
The man who had become the face of a nonviolent revolution — a movement rooted in justice, faith, and the unshakeable belief that Black people deserved to live with dignity — was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. His death was meant to silence a movement and paralyze hope, but instead, it became the birth of a martyr, nourishing the very soil from which future movements would rise. His murder, while devastating, became a catalyst—igniting generations of Black leaders, organizers, and everyday people who have committed themselves to a fight that continues today. Read more
From the Confederacy to the Gilded Age: Manisha Sinha on the “sorry history” that inspires MAGA. By Charles R. Davis / Salon
America has always been like this: a place of immense contradiction, promise and disappointment, where noble, progressives ideals are embedded in a founding document written by men who purported to believe that all are created equal, even as most claimed the right to treat other human beings as property and to kill and displace the original tenants of the land.
“It can be a depressing story if you look at the downfall and the kind of backlash and reaction to progressive change,” Manisha Sinha, a history professor at the University of Connecticut, said in an interview, “but it can also be inspiring to think about all the people who fought against injustices and inequality — and ultimately prevailed.” Read more
Related: Savannah Renames Square Honoring America’s Chief Racist. By William Spivey / Level
Why the Court Hit the Brakes on School Desegregation. By Louis Menand / The New Yorker
On February 14th, a letter went out from the Department of Education to educational institutions that receive money from the federal government, which most do. The letter gave schools fourteen days to eliminate “the overt and covert racial discrimination that has become widespread in this Nation’s educational institutions.” Such discrimination, it warned, violates the equal-protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
After 1972, it was plain that busing mandates had made court-ordered school desegregation explosively unpopular among white voters. Read more
How Newspapers Struggled to Cover Segregation in the North. By Jeanne Theoharis / Time
While the New York Times did occasionally cover New York’s myriad civil rights protests, the paper typically did so without acknowledging a systemic problem.
In treating Northern so-called “de facto” segregation as distinct from Southern de jure segregation under Jim Crow, newspapers obscured the range of state policies including school zoning, busing, teacher placement, disparities in school resources, decrepit school buildings, and double session days that all worked to maintain school segregation in schools across the Northeast, Midwest, and West (or what King and most Black activists at the time called “the North”). Read more
Maryland Reparations Bill Head To Gov. Wes Moore For Approval. By Kandiss Edwards / Black Enterprise
The Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland has passed a landmark bill that would provide reparations to individuals impacted by slavery and racial discrimination. The legislation, Senate Bill 587, now heads to Gov. Wes Moore’s desk for final consideration.
The bill passed the Maryland House of Delegates with a 101-36 vote. It defines eligible recipients as individuals whose ancestors were enslaved in the state or who have been affected by inequitable policies. Read more
Tracy Chapman Wants to Speak for Herself. Lindsay Zoladz / NYT
For years, the singer and songwriter has avoided the spotlight. But she is breaking her silence to look back on her self-titled debut and its powerful hit “Fast Car.”
Chapman, 61, agreed to this interview because she wants to talk about something she is particularly excited about: the vinyl reissue of her multiplatinum self-titled debut, which arrived on Friday. “This is an opportunity for me to be able to say why I wanted to do this project and what it means to me,” she said, “instead of letting the chatter speak for myself.” Read more
Sports
The Dodgers Are Planning to Visit the White House. It’s a Disgrace. By Dave Zirin / The Nation
To meet with Trump now is to defile the memory of Dodgers great Jackie Robinson and to humiliate many of team’s own players. Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, right, greets Rachel Robinson, wife of Jackie Robinson, before a baseball game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Los Angeles Dodgers in Los Angeles on April 15, 2022.
Instead of saying no, the Dodgers have made the coward’s choices. The team is acting furtively, with no one on the team saying if there was even a discussion as to whether to decline the White House invite. No player will respond to questions about the insult to Robinson’s legacy or if they are concerned about the dangers of the ICE kidnappings. Read more
Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Sue Bird, Maya Moore headline 2025 Hall of Fame class. By Rob Peterson, Jenna West and Rebecca Tauber / The Athletic
Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Sue Bird, Maya Moore and Sylvia Fowles capped off their illustrious careers by being named to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the 2025 class announced at the men’s Final Four in San Antonio on Saturday.
“It’s such a big honor. I’m just so happy, man, this is crazy. I made it to heaven,” Howard said as he teared up in an interview on ESPN after the announcement. Read more
BAL to honor Dikembe Mutombo throughout 2025 season. By Marc J. Spears / Andscape
Teams will wear ‘DM55’ patch and observe moment of silence for late Hall of Famer, African basketball ambassador
The Basketball Africa League plans to honor late African basketball and NBA legend Dikembe Mutombo throughout its upcoming fifth season. The BAL announced Thursday that it will honor the Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer with a “DM55” jersey patch on all players jerseys worn this season. Mutombo, who died from brain cancer on Sept. 30, 2024, wore No. 55 and his number was retired by the Denver Nuggets and the Atlanta Hawks. Read more
Duke faces fallout of epic meltdown in ‘heartbreaking’ Final Four loss to Houston. By Paul Myerberg / USA Today
The lead was nine points with 2:15 remaining, and even as Duke struggled to convert on the offensive end there was no thought given to the idea the Blue Devils might actually lose to Houston in this battle of No. 1 seeds in the national semifinal at the Final Four.
The lead was down to seven points with 1:26 to play. To six points at the 42-second mark. Again, the very idea the Blue Devils’ season would end before the national championship game was ridiculous, ludicrous, preposterous. But it’s called March Madness for a reason. Trailing 64-55, Houston outscored Duke 15-3 over the final two-plus minutes to reach Monday night’s matchup against Florida. No team had ever given away so much in so little time on college basketball’s biggest stage. Read more
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