Featured

How Wall Street Funded Slavery. By David Montero / Time

In 1855, when Stephen Duncan, the largest enslaver in the United States, reaped a windfall from his cotton plantations across Mississippi, he tasked his banker to ship the crops North, to sell the cotton for cash, and to invest the proceeds into Northern corporate stocks, plucking up prized Manhattan real estate on the side. He had made such investments for almost 30 years. Duncan, who enslaved as many as 2,200 Black people, including many hundreds of children, died after the Civil War a very rich man, his reviled fortune handsomely intact, passed on to his heirs.

Duncan’s banker was Charles P. Leverich, Vice President of the Bank of New York, a Wall Street tycoon. In fact, it was Leverich who managed the sumptuous riches of Mississippi’s other leading enslavers, ensuring that their vast fortunes—the proceeds of slavery laundered into coin and currency—endured well after the war, into the 20^thcentury. Read more

Political / Social

Republicans amass a record of loss under Trump: “Democrats have been winning at an impressive clip.” By Chauncey Devega / Salon

By comparison, at Bloomberg, Nia-Malika Henderson neatly summarizes the differences between Biden and Trump and what is at stake in the 2024 election: “The choice in November isn’t between two old men. It’s between an unhinged, wannabe dictator and a stable, well-meaning leader who believes in America’s bedrock principals of freedom and democracy.”

In an attempt to gain some clarity about this bewildering “longest election ever”, what the early public opinion polls mean or not, and how many professional political observers and operatives are deeply concerned that the 2024 election is increasingly feeling like a repeat of the disastrous 2016 Election, I recently asked a range of experts for their thoughts and suggestions. Read more

If Democrats Were to Replace Joe Biden, Here’s How It Would Work. By Charlie Mantesian and Steven Shepard / Politico

So far, Democrats have vigorously avoided any discussion of a Plan B for their presidential nominee. But special counsel Robert Hur’s report may have forced their hand.

Because of procedural and political hurdles, it would not be easy to simply swap him out. The likeliest outcome is that Biden stays on the ticket. But it is also possible to envision different scenarios where the party does indeed nominate someone other than Biden at its August convention or even picks an alternative afterward to compete in a historic general election. Here’s how it would work. Read more

The sloppy case against Fani Willis. By Sabrina Haake / Salon

Fani Willis, the DA prosecuting Donald Trump, Michael Roman and 18 co-conspirators in Georgia’s 2020 election interference case, has filed her response to Roman’s motion to disqualify and dismiss the case on the grounds that Willis and her outside counsel are having a consensual affair. There is obviously no conflict of interest.

The bottom line of the disqualification motion is that Willis hired Wade because they were involved romantically, and she wanted to benefit financially from his hourly compensation. It’s a sloppy theory. Read more

Sen. Tim Scott rises to the top of Trump’s vice presidential possibilities. By Allan Smith / NBC News

Former President Donald Trump and his allies have been impressed by the South Carolina Republican’s role speaking on his behalf — and one ally said it’s “a real possibility” he’s picked.

Scott’s ascendance on the list of potential running mates comes as he endorsed the former president ahead of the New Hampshire primary and has quickly turned into a frequent surrogate, offering full-throated support on the trail and on television that has been so fulsome it’s caught the attention of Trump and his allies. Read more

Biden appoints Willie Phillips to be first Black chair of Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. By Gerreb Keith Gaynor / the Grio

President Joe Biden appointed Willie L. Phillips as chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Phillips, who served as acting chair since January 2023, is the first Black person to be named to the position.

FERC, an independent agency established in 1977, regulates the interstate transmission and wholesale of natural gas, oil, electricity, and other energy projects. Read more

Five Takeaways From the Democrats’ Recapture of a House Seat. By Nicholas Fandos / NYT

George Santos, snow and old-fashioned experience were factors in the special election in New York, but none was bigger than how Tom Suozzi responded to the migrant crisis. Tom Suozzi and his republican opponent Maze Pilip.

Tom Suozzi’s victory in a special House election in New York on Tuesday gave Democrats a badly needed dose of election-year optimism and a model for how to navigate one of their biggest political liabilities: the migrant influx overwhelming the southern border. Read more

Education Secretary Calls Diversity Program Cuts Latest ‘Boogeyman’ To Divide Schools. By

Miguel Cardona said he is concerned about the paring back of diversity, equity and inclusion programs at schools across the country.

“There are very deliberate attempts to seek division in our schools so that a private option sounds better for parents. So we created a boogeyman,” Cardona said. “Four years ago were the masks. [Critical race theory] was a year after that. [Now,] DEI, banning books. Every year, there’s something to stoke division in an attempt to disrupt our public schools and decrease the confidence in our public schools.” Read more

The GOP’s long game for winning the Latino vote. By Marie Arana / Wash Post

Increasingly, we are an unclassifiable, protean agglomeration of Americans — a web of contradictions — adrift in a purple sea.

This is where Democrats, who have assumed a lock on the “Latino vote” for almost a century, so often go wrong. And it is where Republicans, playing the long game, are placing huge bets on winning. It is far too early to know how the 2024 election will shake out. And polling, as history tells us, can be spectacularly unreliable. But it is nonetheless notable that in at least two recent surveys, former president Donald Trump was polling ahead of President Biden among Hispanic voters. Read more

Black women are six times more likely to be killed than white women, data shows. By Claretta Bellamy / NBC News

The paper included a decade’s worth of data from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention among Black women ages 25 to 44 across 30 states.

A paper published Thursday in The Lancet medical journal analyzed homicide rates of Black women ages 25 to 44 across 30 states. The data was collected between 1999 and 2020 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Vital Statistics System. Read more

Ethics / Morality / Religion

We need more Howard Thurman in our politics. By David B. Gowler / RNS

Howard Thurman was a theologian and mystic who taught at both Howard University and Boston University. (Photo courtesy of Emory University)

In his 1949 book, “Jesus and the Disinherited,” Howard Thurman, the theologian and mentor of civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., recognized Jesus of Nazareth as an impoverished, first-century Jew who was a member of a politically, militarily and economically oppressed minority. That book captured the essence of who Jesus was and what Jesus meant for those disinherited like him, with their “backs against the wall.” Read more

Large majorities of Americans say antisemitism is a serious problem. By Jason DeRose / NPR

Large majorities of Americans — both Jews and non-Jews — say antisemitism in the U.S. is a serious problem, according to a new report out Tuesday from the American Jewish Committee.

The study, called “The State of Antisemitism in America,” found that 93% of Jews and 74% of U.S. adults surveyed say antisemitism is a “very serious problem” or “somewhat serious problem.” The survey also found that American Jews are uncertain about their place in American society. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of respondents say that the status of Jews in the U.S. is less secure than one year ago. That’s up dramatically over recent years. Read more

Documentary “God & Country” dives into threats of Christian nationalism to democracy. By Russell Contreras / Axios

A new documentary examines how rising white Christian nationalism in the U.S. could upend democracy and impose theocratic rule at a time when the nation is becoming more diverse and less religious.

Why it matters: “God & Country,” set to be released in select theaters Friday, arrives as books published recently by former and practicing evangelicals have issued alarms about the Christian nationalism that has increased its presence in churches and Republican politics. Read more

With George Floyd in mind, Bible co-editors created Breathe Life Bible. By Adelle M. Banks / RNS

After the death of George Floyd, a Black man killed by a white police officer, the co-editors of the new Bible say they felt compelled to do something.

The result is The Breathe Life Bible, the title echoing Floyd’s repeated insistence “I can’t breathe” as he was restrained with the officer’s knee on his neck. The tome, set for release Tuesday (Feb. 13), introduces each biblical book with a “Breathe It In” segment and features “#Oxygen” tidbits that point to what they consider promises in the scriptural verses. The Bible includes devotions written by Christian leaders, including the Rev. Bernice A. King, daughter of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and CEO of the Atlanta peacemaking center named for him; NAACP CEO Derrick Johnson; and Thelma T. Daley, president of the National Council of Negro Women. Read more

For Black ‘nones’ who leave religion, what’s next? By Kathryn Post / RNS

When Black Americans leave religion, they rarely leave it altogether. But even as they retain elements of Christian culture, what other communities are they embracing beyond the church?

Of the roughly 20% of Black Americans who are religiously unaffiliated — or nones — about one-third believe in the God of the Bible, and over half believe in some other higher power, according to a January Pew study. Eighty-eight percent believe humans have a soul or spirit, 71% think of themselves as spiritual, and by nearly every other religious or spiritual metric — belief in heaven and hell, daily prayer — Black nones come across as more religiously enmeshed than other nonaffiliated groups. Read more

Historical / Cultural

Slave memoirs yanked the veil off of America’s facade. By Zahara Hill / MSNBC

In the everlasting faceoff between Black history and America’s self-conception, it’s worth revisiting one of the fight’s earliest and most valiant weapons of war: the slave memoir.

Narratives by formerly enslaved writers like Olaudah Equiano, Frederick Douglass and Solomon Northup were critical to shedding light on the otherwise unthinkable realities of enslavement. Whatever idea of civility and morality America wanted to project to the world, slave memoirs were gutting proof to the contrary. Read more

Rare 1892 Portrait Found Of Harriet Tubman At Age 70. By Stacy Jackson / Black Enterprise

Harriet Tubman Tours owner Alex Green told The Citizen that the rare portrait is from an 1892 edition of The Household Magazine. It depicts Tubman in a decorative dark dress with a pinned-up hairstyle. The accompanying caption identifies her as “Harriet, the Modern Moses, now living in Auburn, N.Y.“ Read more

Why Black Americans should commemorate the history of Liberia. By Roger House / The Hill

Illustration of families of African American refugees from Arkansas waiting for transportation to Liberia at the Mount Olivet Baptist Chapel in New York City. (Photo by © CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)

The Republic of Liberia was controversial when founded by free Black emigrants from America during the darkest days of slavery. Today, it stands as a symbol of a successful colonial experiment by African Americans. Yet the country holds little sway in the U.S. public imagination today, a neglect that needs correction during Black History Month — and all the more so during an election year when politicians neglect history for advantage. The history of Liberia should be honored as much as the independence holiday of Juneteenth, and the Congressional Black Caucus and Library of Congress should include it in commemorations. Read more

109-year-old survivor of 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre writes memoir ‘Don’t Let Them Bury My Story.’ ByMarc Cota-Robles / ABC News

It is one of the most disturbing chapters in Black history – the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. Now, at age 109, Viola Ford Fletcher wants to make sure the terror is not forgotten with her new book, “Don’t Let Them Bury My Story.”

“A group of people were killed, their homes were burned … businesses, churches and stores and theatres. Anything the Black people owned or operated was destroyed,” said Fletcher. Read more

Philadelphia’s ‘Black Shining Prince.’ By Menika Dirkson / AAIHS

Octavius Valentine Catto statue at Philadelphia City Hall (Shutterstock)

February 22, 2024, will mark the 185th birthday of activist Octavius V. Catto. Born in Charleston, South Carolina, and raised in Philadelphia, Catto was more than an educator at the Institute for Colored Youth (ICY) in South Philadelphia during his short life.¹He was a community activist who recruited Black men to fight for the Union Army during the Civil War, advocated for the desegregation of the streetcar system, and registered thousands of African Americans to vote following the passage of the Fifteenth Amendment. Read more

Tommy Orange Is Trying to “Undo the White-Dominant American Narrative” With His New Book, Wandering Stars. By Kate Nelson / Vanity Fair

The Native American author speaks with Vanity Fair about the current Indigenous renaissance, the importance of authentic representation, and the complexities of Indigeneity.

Tommy Orange wasn’t ready for the massive success that came with the 2018 release of his debut novel, There There. The 42-year-old Cheyenne author went from relative obscurity working within the thriving Native American community in his hometown of Oakland, California, to becoming a leading voice in contemporary Indigenous literature seemingly overnight. That New York Times bestseller weaved together the stories of 12 Native characters to masterful effect, earning Orange accolades like an American Book Award, the PEN/Hemingway Award, the John Leonard Prize, and a Pulitzer Prize finalist nod. His highly anticipated follow-up, Wandering Stars (out February 27), is at once a prequel and a sequel to There There. Read more

Tyler Perry inks first-look TV deal with Netflix. By The Grio Staff

The deal is one of many for Perry, who currently has a feature deal with the streamer, as theGrio reported last year. Under this new deal, Perry will bring TV shows to Netflix, including “Beauty in Black,” which was greenlit as part of the new arrangement. Perry will write, direct, and produce the 16-episode drama series.

“It follows two women leading different lives — Kimmie is struggling to make a living after her mother kicked her out and Mallory is running a successful business — who find themselves entangled in each other’s lives,” Deadline’s official description reads. Angi Bones and Tony Strickland will produce alongside Perry for Tyler Perry Studios. Read more

Beyoncé’s new country songs salute the genre’s Black cultural roots. By Janay Kingsberry / Wash Post

After teasing new music in a Verizon ad that aired during Super Bowl LVIII on Sunday, Beyoncé has dropped two fast-charting country- and Americana-inspired hits, “Texas Hold ’Em” and “16 Carriages.” The singles are the first releases of her long-anticipated “Act II” project, debuting March 29 as a follow-up to her acclaimed Act I “Renaissance” album from 2022.

“Texas Hold ’Em” is a beat-stomping, banjo-heavy track likely to inspire a new TikTok dance trend as Beyoncé sings, “It’s a real-life boogie and a real-life hoedown.” Meanwhile, “16 Carriages,” a soaring, intimate ballad about Beyoncé’s childhood, features steel guitar and a powerful organ that nod to Southern gospel influences. Read more

Usher’s Halftime Show Could Be the Best in History. By Emily Ferguson / Dallas Observer

It was agreed upon before the show was over: Usher‘s halftime performance was one of the best — if not the best — in Super Bowl history.

It wasn’t just the star-powered appearances from Lil’ Jon and Ludacris for “Yeah!” or Alicia Keys for “My Boo” that made the show such a unique Super Bowl performance: Usher actually seemed to be … singing? Where most artists opt for lip-syncing, Usher appeared to be using live vocals for the majority of the show. Sure, a friend commented, “He would sound better if he wasn’t” — but that’s some welcome authenticity in an often copped-out performance. Read more

Sports

Patrick Mahomes cements place in NFL history with third Super Bowl victory. By Jason Reid / Andscape

A strong argument could be made the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback is now second to only one

On Sunday night at Allegiant Stadium, the Chiefs cemented their place among the greatest teams in NFL history, repeating as Super Bowl champions and winning their third title of the decade with a 25-22 overtime victory over the San Francisco 49ers. Read more

How 2024 will be the Year of the Black Quarterback again. By Matenzie Johnson / Andscape

From the future in the draft to ultimate job security, a look at five classes of Black NFL QBs headed into the offseason

The 2023 kicked off with a record-breaking 14 Black quarterbacks starting Week 1: Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Deshaun Watson, C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson, Russell Wilson, Dak Prescott, Jalen Hurts, Justin Fields, Jordan Love, Desmond Ridder, Bryce Young, Joshua Dobbs (in place of the injured Kyler Murray), and Geno Smith. While some of those players will surely end up on the bench next season, possibly replaced by one of three exciting Black quarterbacks coming in April’s draft, the NFL clearly is still trending to something that could not have been imagined in 1968, when the first Black quarterback ever started a game: Over half of the starting quarterbacks in the league being Black. Read more

The Fritz Pollard Alliance’s new frontier. By William C. Rhoden / Andscape

Black quarterbacks are here. The organization and NFL must now protect and refine the Rooney Rule. San Francisco 49ers linebackers coach Johnny Holland (left) and defensive coordinator Steve Wilks (right) talk on the sideline before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Stadium on Nov. 12, 2023, in Jacksonville, Florida. Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images

While another NFL season has ended, the work of the Fritz Pollard Alliance continues, though the challenge to combat racism and advocate for a level playing field in the National Football League has become more complex. The Alliance was formed in 2003 to push the NFL to support the rise of Black quarterbacks and put African Americans in the pipeline to become head coaches and front office executives. During Super Bowl week, the Alliance hosted its 19th luncheon, the theme of which was the emergence of the Black quarterback. The panel was moderated by former NFL executive Michael Huyghue. The panelists were James “Shack” Harris, Doug Williams and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. Read more

Eric Bieniemy lasted one season with the Commanders. Here’s what went wrong. By Nicki Jhabvala and Sam Fortier / Wash Post

In one of his first major decisions as the Washington Commanders’ new coach, Dan Quinn fired offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy on Monday with a year remaining on his contract. The move seemed likely at season’s end and inevitable when the Commanders named Kliff Kingsbury their new offensive coordinator. But it was a significant turn for Bieniemy, who arrived a year ago to great fanfare.

Ultimately, Quinn, like many coaches, wanted his own guy, and knew he wanted to bring Kingsbury with him when he got another shot as a head coach. And Washington’s on-field results last season factored into the decision. The team tied for 23rd in offensive scoring and 24th in third-down efficiency and finished 30th in rush rate (38.2 percent) when the clock or scoreboard didn’t dictate run or pass. Read more

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