Editor at The Root. Writer. Producer. Visionary.
But while this spat fueled outrage from Darden’s detractors, what was lost in this battle of wills is that even in the era of aggressive political correctness and #MeToo, hip hop has still proven itself incapable of administering proper accountability in regards to the countless incidents and allegations of violence and sexual misconduct perpetrated against its very lifeblood—black women.
Despite everything you face in this country—from the perilous minefield of race and gender that you tiptoe across on a daily basis, to your beauty, your value, and your health under constant siege from those entrusted to protect you, to the crippling realization that “doing everything right may never be enough”—you flourish.
People of color are under relentless siege from our first gasp of air to our last. We’re locked in a perpetual waltz of paranoia and prejudice with a dance partner named racism. It’s infuriating. It’s exhausting. It’s survival. And as James Baldwin once so eloquently stated: “I can't believe what you say, because I see what you do.” So with hope as our only recourse, we cling to the notion that while all white people benefit from racism, not all of them are practitioners of it. And that the ones who understand the difference use their privilege to make our daily waltz a little less torturous.
It was in that exact moment that Judge Brett Kavanaugh became the latest bastion of blindingly white male privilege and hypocrisy. Otherwise known as a long-standing precept in which black men are married to our pasts, even if unrelated to our own victimhood, while our white counterparts are routinely afforded the luxury of dissociating themselves from their own, despite their role as a perpetrator. This is best exemplified in the deluge of prominent support that Kavanaugh received prior to his confirmation, in which his behavior was either minimized or outright dismissed as youthful folly.
Over the course of the past year, a disturbing trend has found a home on the cultural refuse receptacle know as YouTube. Pranks centered around men seemingly spiking the drinks of unsuspecting women, then filming the chaos that ensues as they make sexual advances toward them afterwards, have generated millions of views on the popular platform.
Instead of turning a blind eye to artists who are spiraling ― or worse, profiting from their suffering ― labels should take a compassionate stance and help them seek treatment.
Yet be it pride, narcissism, mental illness, or otherwise, Kanye genuinely believes he’s somehow acting in the best interest of black progress while basking in his starring role as Trump’s ventriloquist dummy.
While we have yet to receive confirmation if the Dora Milaje is standing guard while Shuri fits the 85-year-old Ginsburg with brand new Vibranium-laced ribs, her age translates into increased concerns about her long-term health. Especially considering that according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one in four adults age 65 and older fall each year. Resulting in injuries that are both severe and expensive as hell.
To anyone on the receiving end of abusive behavior, her words are a familiar refrain. There’s an unholy alliance between anguish and accountability that is not her own. There’s the genuine belief that her pain, her plight and her victimhood congealed into a scarlet letter of her own design. It’s a relationship eerily similar to the one black women share with hip-hop culture.
One of my heroes died yesterday. Yes, losing Prince hurt. As did the death of luminaries such as Dick Gregory and Maurice White. But for all their contributions in moving black culture forward, their statuses as legends were solidified prior to their passing. My fear is that Reggie Ossé, better known as Combat Jack, who at 48 years young succumbed to colon cancer months after announcing his diagnosis, was denied a similar fate.
What exactly is "soul food"? It has become a blanket term to describe African-American cuisine although its origins pre-date slavery. It's culled from European, indigenous and African influences but many of its key ingredients are rooted in the inhumane rations provided to African slaves by their masters. From the undesirable parts of pigs came neckbones, chitterlings and other mainstays, while meager amounts of cornbread were used to bread and fry catfish and other meats.
Unfortunately, our responses to sexual misconduct are governed by the prism of patriarchy and toxic masculinity in which men are meant to be sexually dominant, not sexually dominated. We often assume that men ― especially those built like Terry Crews ― can’t be sexually assaulted. But if they are assaulted, the preservation of both their manhood and their heterosexuality requires their silence. This creates a culture of outward skepticism and internalized shame in which black men especially are deterred from revealing their abuse.
On August 3, 1995, amid rising tensions between Sean “Diddy” Combs’ burgeoning Bad Boy empire and Suge Knight’s menacing collective of Death Row inmates, literal outcasts André “André 3000” Benjamin and Antwan “Big Boi” Patton had the audacity to desecrate New York soil by winning Best New Rap Group at the second annual Source Awards.
As the national dish of Vietnam and the source of unspeakable joy for millions of empty stomachs around the rest of the world, pho (pronounced "fuh") has seen its popularity skyrocket since arriving in North America in 1975. Consisting of rice noodles in a beef or chicken broth and garnished with cilantro, basil, onions and meat, the dish's origins are far murkier than its crisp, clear broth.
Though we’ve made tremendous strides to address and de-stigmatize the umbrella of mental health within our community, it’s important that we specifically address the plight of those who suffer from anxiety. Just as we single out disorders such as clinical depression, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia, it’s equally important that we not only identify the unique obstacles that anxiety presents, but that we actively pursue the means to diminish its prevalence.
He left a legacy that consists of a commitment to black culture, respect for his listeners, uplifting black-owned businesses, amplifying the voices of black women, providing relevant information that empowers the black community, producing high-quality content and being utterly groundbreaking. In honor of his legacy, The Root created a list of black podcasts that display some of the notable qualities The Combat Jack Show embodied.
For all his popularity, he felt short-changed. He knew the musical maturation found on 1979's Off the Wall had manifested into a newfound independence that was neither rewarded nor properly recognized by the establishment. The high sales figures for the album and its singles had resulted in only two Grammy nominations for "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough," and none in the major categories (he won for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male). He was also angry that Rolling Stone passed on putting him on the cover.
Here were the most mentioned among the hundreds of responses we received.
Each week on "The Extraordinary Negroes", writers Jay Connor and Alex Hardy delve into pop culture, current events, and humorous explorations of relevant issues within the African-American community.