The Root

From the moment Jill Scott hit the scene nationally in 2000, she was a force. While she got dropped into the earthy-crunchy, neo-soul bucket of the late 90s and early aughts—I think being both from Philly, the epicenter of the movement if it had one, and the “sound” of her music helped this categorization—Jill to me…Read more...

Kenya Barris and Pharrell Williams are in the developmental stages of a full-fledged Juneteenth musical, which will have a home on Netflix.

If you’ve never heard of Robert Kiyosaki or his Rich Dad Poor Dad empire of financial advice, I want you to stop reading this, I want you to get on your knees, and I want you to thank God for granting you such luck. You are blessed. You are highly favored. Unfortunately, many of us are not as fortunate, as this book…Read more...

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic ensured that this year’s ESPYs would be radically different than any of its predecessors. And to the surprise of no one, there was no red carpet, no gaudy venue or lengthy monologue taking unsolicited jabs at some of the biggest names in sports. But for what it lacked in tradition, it…Read more...

There is a popular misconception that the death of George Floyd has ignited Black America to finally unleash the pent-up frustrations we have swallowed for lo so many years.Read more...

Last July, President Trump made headlines by lashing out at a group of progressive congresswomen—among them Representative Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), the first Somali elected to Congress—and told them to “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came.” Days later, crowds at a Trump…Read more...

For Father’s Day on Sunday, social media was flooded with declarations of love for the father figures in our lives. Musician and actress Kelly Rowland wrote a heartwarming account of the day she first met her biological father two years ago to commemorate the occasion.

Minority corrections officers at the Ramsey County Jail filed a lawsuit with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights Friday alleging that they were barred from performing their duties anywhere near the vicinity of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer charged with the murder of George Floyd. The eight…Read more...

On June 6, Oluwatoyin “Toyin” Salau just wanted rest: a shower, a soft bed, a chance to get clean and maybe even sleep. The 19-year-old student and Black Lives Matter activist was exhausted: she had played an active part in the anti-police brutality demonstrations in Tallahassee, Fla., where police executed three…Read more...

Maybe Dave Chappelle summoned this in his latest special by making a reference to his classic joke—or maybe this is just 2020 being 2020—but Ja Rule is trending again.Read more...

In the end, Trump’s Tulsa rally on Saturday turned out like most of the president’s tenure on the job; there was a lot of hype, a show, and a depleted and bombed out crowd. What was supposed to be a packed house of 19,000 turned out to be about the same amount of people who could fit into a Ford Crown Victoria. The…Read more...

On Sunday, as Juneteenth celebrations drew to a close, a noose was found in the garage stall of Bubba Wallace at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Ala.Read more...

The Big Style Sale | Amazon

New reports have revealed that both the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security were using spy planes and other airborne surveillance technology to monitor the protests for black lives that have been taking place across the country.

Comedian D.L. Hughley has COVID-19. He was diagnosed with coronavirus after being tested at a hospital in Nashville where he was taken after collapsing on stage at a comedy show on Friday, Hughley revealed in a video on Instagram over the weekend.

Today—June 21, 2020—is Father’s Day. My goal on today was to feature an iconic music video about black fathers and fatherhood. And you know what feels like damn near an impossible task? Finding a music video for a song celebrating black fathers and black fatherhood. In fact, there were so few videos in this particular…Read more...

You’d think Trump and his personal enforcers—aka, the police—would celebrate any legitimate ticket holder seeking to attend his woefully underwhelming rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma yesterday.

Protestors in the nation’s capital ended Juneteenth on an appropriate note yesterday by toppling the statue of a Confederate general.

Updated: 6/20/2020 4:24 p.m. EDT: Attorney General William Barr said in a letter on Saturday that the President has terminated Geoffrey Berman’s post as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.Read more...

Juneteenth, the holiday recognizing the end of slavery in the U.S., was marked by widespread celebrations across the country yesterday—bringing a bright spot of joy in a year that’s left the Black community experiencing more than its fair share of sorrow.

I cannot tell you how much I love Stephanie Mills’ video for “(You’re Puttin’) A Rush On Me” so I won’t even try. I love it a lot lot, though. What I will attempt to explain is why I love this video so much. For starters, I’d be willing to bet good money that a significant amount of people haven’t seen this video. It…Read more...

Happy Juneteenth, everybody! And what a special Juneteenth it is.Read more...

It ain’t nearly enough...but it’s a start.Read more...

Father’s Day is upon us and even before COVID-19, the sock aisles at your favorite retailers (that also sold groceries!) were probably almost bare, but now they are probably empty. Socks and ties are the Father’s Day staples near and far, to and fro. But is that what the father in your life really wants for Father’s…Read more...

I have a dilemma:Read more...

AmeriKKKa gaslights black people.Read more...

On June 18, 1865, Union Army General Gordon Granger and 2,000 troops, many of whom were black, arrived at Galveston Island to occupy the state of Texas after the last army of white supremacist army of the Confederacy surrendered.Read more...

June 19, known as Juneteenth in the black community represents the day that the word about the end of slavery finally reached Galveston, Texas, which at the time was the furthest part of the United States. Today, we celebrate the holiday by sharing our favorite jams in the spirit of Juneteenth, freedom and blackness.Read more...

Doing “the work” is an oft-used phrase in social justice circles, arguably overused to the point that it can include everything from reading a poem to starting a movement.

Here are a couple questions: Why is y’all’s president so raggedy? Why can’t literally anybody in this ghetto ass administration keep him off social media?Read more...

My mother hated to cook.

I believe words matter...sometimes.

John Legend’s latest musical offering Bigger Love couldn’t have come at a better time. The EGOT-winner’s 16-song album, which officially drops today, invokes the timelessness of his debut, 2004’s Get Lifted, with an updated flair fitting the vein of 2020’s versatile musical landscape.

Have you ever wondered what social media would have looked like on the first Juneteenth?Read more...

The other week, I cried.Read more...

What does freedom look like?Read more...

U.S. Sen. Corey Booker’s support for ending qualified immunity for police officers is one of the strongest calls for tackling police brutality by a high-profile elected official yet and he will join The Root on Instagram live Friday, June 19, at 2 p.m. ET to explain his stance in detail.Read more...

For a song that came out over 30 years ago, Public Enemy’s “Fight The Power”—created for the soundtrack to Spike Lee’s 1989 classic film, Do The Right Thing—remains remarkably resonant even in 2020. We’re still at war with structural racism and all of the issues that existed at the time of the song’s creation are…Read more...

I wouldn’t know Juneteenth without my father.

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams is not, by any means, a prison or police abolitionist. But you may be forgiven for thinking so if you listen to some of the language he uses to describe his vision of what the future of public safety could look like.Read more...

White people, on the whole, haven’t been doing too well this last month. If it’s not going full tilt Karen at black people for just existing, or having breakdowns over not getting a McMuffin, it’s going onto social media and saying some truly wild shit.Read more...

For people who want so badly for black people to just forget about slavery, conservative white people sure seem bound and determined to hold on to the very monuments that immediately remind black folk of what our ancestors endured. Many of us were beside ourselves with joy after we learned that the 130-year-old statue…Read more...

Somewhere I imagine there is a man at his computer utterly livid at the fact that Aunt Jemima and Uncle Ben have changed their brands due to perpetuating racist imagery. That man is going to be big mad at the news Cream of Wheat has joined those brands in reevaluating its packaging.Read more...

LeBron James is a freak of nature.Read more...

Over the last week a disturbing pattern has emerged of black men being found hanged in trees. As a result, a series of nooses found in an Oakland park are being investigated as a hate crime.Read more...

Tick Tock, tick tock… the clock will be ticking starting June 19.Read more...

As we’re all perfectly aware, there’s a clear distinction between being co-workers and actual friends. Just because we exchange pleasantries at the water cooler doesn’t mean my black ass will be at your wedding, and vice versa. So while NBA superstar Kevin Durant and former teammate Kendrick Perkins might’ve shared…Read more...

8:46.

In 2018, after a long and hard day of writing blogs about white privilege and gluten-free pancakes, I drove to the Wendy’s a few blocks from my house to get a Baconater, a frosty, and some fries. When I pulled up to the drive-thru window, the cashier said it might be a while because they ran out of bacon and needed to…Read more...

The Roots Picnic, which was supposed to be held in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park on June 3, was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the 13th annual celebration is going to be livestreamed via YouTube on June 27, and it will be co-hosted by none other than Michelle Obama. She and her nonpartisan…Read more...