Black people – The News Desk

Faith Ringgold, pioneering Black quilt artist and author, dies at 93

14Apr

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Entertainment

Faith Ringgold, pioneering Black quilt artist and author, dies at 93

NEW YORK -- Faith Ringgold, an award-winning author and artist who broke down barriers for Black female artists and became famous for her richly colored and detailed quilts combining painting, textiles and storytelling, has died. She was 93. The artist's assistant, Grace Matthews, told The Associated Press that Ringgold died Friday night at her home in Englewood, New Jersey. Matthews said Ringgold had been in failing health.Ringgold’s highly personal works of art can be found in private and public collections around the country and beyond, from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American Art to New York’s Museum of Modern Art and Atlanta’s High Museum of Fine Art. But her rise to prominence as a Black artist wasn’t easy in an art world dominated by white males and in a political cultura...

In death, 3 decades after his trial verdict, OJ Simpson still reflects America’s racial divides

12Apr

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In death, 3 decades after his trial verdict, OJ Simpson still reflects America’s racial divides

For many people old enough to remember O.J. Simpson’s murder trial, his 1995 exoneration was a defining moment in their understanding of race, policing and justice. Nearly three decades later, it still reflects the different realities of white and Black Americans.Some people recall watching their Black co-workers and classmates erupting in jubilation at perceived retribution over institutional racism. Others remember their white counterparts shocked over what many felt was overwhelming evidence of guilt. Both reactions reflected different experiences with a criminal justice system that continues to disproportionately punish Black Americans.Simpson, who died Wednesday, remains a symbol of racial divisions in American society because he is a reminder of how deeply the inequities are felt, e...

Hundreds of photos from the collection of Elton John and David Furnish will go on display in London

24Oct

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Hundreds of photos from the collection of Elton John and David Furnish will go on display in London

Photos of iconic celebrities and historic moments from the collection of Elton John and David Furnish are set to go on display in London next yearByThe Associated PressOctober 23, 2023, 7:03 PMFILE - Icon award winner Elton John, left, and David Furnish attend the iHeartRadio Music Awards at the Dolby Theatre, May 27, 2021, in Los Angeles. Photos of iconic celebrities and historic moments from the collection of Elton John and David Furnish will go on display at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum next year. The museum said Tuesday Oct. 24, 2023, that the exhibition, titled “Fragile Beauty,” will include 300 images by more than 140 photographers, including Diane Arbus, Cindy Sherman, Robert Mapplethorpe, William Eggleston, Zanele Muholi and Ai Weiwei. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)The Ass...

Misty Copeland’s dedication to inclusion spans many projects — and her push for new dance emojis

10Oct

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Misty Copeland’s dedication to inclusion spans many projects — and her push for new dance emojis

NEW YORK -- NEW YORK (AP) — Misty Copeland has her hands (and feet!) in many different projects simultaneously, but all are motivated by her passion to use her platform to promote diversity in all the spaces she inhabits.The first Black woman to be promoted to principal dancer for the American Ballet Theatre in 2015, Copeland says she never takes that opportunity for granted. Beyond performing, she says she feels a responsibility to show the importance of representation, and work on projects that are an extension of who she is as a dancer.Her influence has transcended the stage to author, head of her own production company and charitable foundation, and now co-founder and designer of a new athletic wear brand, Greatness Wins, that focuses on clothing for women of all ages and body types.C...

Black Americans express concerns about racist depictions in news media, lack of coverage efforts

27Sep

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Black Americans express concerns about racist depictions in news media, lack of coverage efforts

NEW YORK -- In a new study, Black Americans expressed broad concerns about how they are depicted in the news media, with majorities saying they see racist or negative depictions and a lack of effort to cover broad segments of their community.Four in five Black adults say they see racist or racially insensitive depictions of their race in the news either often or sometimes, according to the Pew Research Center.Three years after George Floyd's killing triggered a racial reckoning in the news media, Pew took its first broad-based look at Black attitudes toward the media with a survey of nearly 5,000 Black adults this past winter and follow-up focus groups.The survey found 63% of respondents saying news about Black people is often more negative than it is toward other racial or ethnic groups,...

No longer stranded, tens of thousands clean up and head home after Burning Man floods

6Sep

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No longer stranded, tens of thousands clean up and head home after Burning Man floods

RENO, Nev. -- The traffic jam leaving the Burning Man festival eased up considerably Tuesday as the exodus from the mud-caked Nevada desert entered another day following massive rain that left tens of thousands of partygoers stranded for days.A pair of brothers from Arizona who took their 67-year-old mother with them to Burning Man for the first time spent 11 hours into early Tuesday morning just getting out of the festival site about 110 miles (177 kilometers) north of Reno. “It was a perfect, typical Burning Man weather until Friday — then the rain started coming down hard," said Phillip Martin, 47. "Then it turned into Mud Fest."Event organizers began letting traffic flow out on the main road Monday afternoon — even as they urged attendees to delay their exit to help ease traffic. The ...

Burning Man revelers begin exodus after flooding left tens of thousands stranded in Nevada desert

4Sep

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Entertainment

Burning Man revelers begin exodus after flooding left tens of thousands stranded in Nevada desert

BLACK ROCK DESERT, Nev. -- Muddy roads that left tens of thousands of partygoers stranded for days at a counterculture festival had dried up enough by Monday afternoon to allow them to begin their exodus from the northern Nevada desert.Burning Man organizers said they started to let traffic flow out of the main road around 2 p.m. local time — even as they continued to ask revelers to delay their exit to Tuesday to ease traffic. As of Monday afternoon, they said about 64,000 people remained at the festival site.Organizers also asked attendees not to walk out of the Black Rock Desert about 110 miles (177 kilometers) north of Reno as others had done throughout the weekend, including celebrity DJ Diplo and comedian Chris Rock. They didn't specify why.The festival had been closed to vehicles a...