Black church wins Proud Boys trademark, Tulsa reparations plan, RIP Harry Stewart
Thank you for your continued support in making this newsletter one of the most engaged Black newsletters out there! And Happy Black History Month!
What I’m Reading
How Negro History Week Became Black History Month, The New York Times
We celebrate Black History Month every February, but how many of us know its origins? For the New York Times, Veronica Chambers created an interactive explainer detailing how Negro History Week evolved into the month-long celebration we know today.
ICYMI: I received an exclusive on NPR’s Tiny Desk lineup for Black History Month, which kicked off with Braxton Cook. I’m told the others will be Cordae, Leon Thomas, Marvin Sapp, Latto, Bartees Strange, Yasmin Williams and Revive Big Band! Also, learn more about the St. Louisan behind the NPR concerts…
Related: Clyde McGrady believes Black History Month has taken on a new meaning amid President Donald Trump’s anti-DEI efforts.
I want to give a special shoutout to my colleagues at HuffPost, many of whom were laid off or took buyouts this week. Many key teams were impacted — people I’ve worked with for years. What is happening to the journalism industry is deplorable. Please support them. is already over here on Substack!
A LOT is happening to the federal government right now, and much of it is illegal. I won’t be able to include *everything* Donald Trump plans to do in this newsletter (that’s not what this newsletter is for, anyway) — but there are sources you can read to keep up:
My colleague Liz Skalka reported on the chaos in the federal government and tried to clear up some confusion. WIRED is also doing phenomenal reporting. Other sources right here on Substack:
, , .Related: New Attorney General Pam Bondi has instructed the Justice Department to ‘criminally investigate’ companies with DEI initiatives…
The Race-Blind College-Admissions Era Is Off to a Weird Start, The Atlantic
The end of affirmative action was expected to cause a drop in Black and Latino enrollment at elite colleges. "And yet, when the numbers came in, several of the most selective colleges in the country reported the opposite results,” Rose Horowitch writes.
Related: The University of California has been banned from using race-based admissions for decades. Now that they are admitting more Black students, a new group has sued — arguing the university system is cheating…
What’s In The News
Across America
Alabama: The mayor of Montgomery is calling for the removal of a billboard depicting Selma’s Bloody Sunday overlaid with Trump’s campaign slogan…
California: Fremont is set to vote on an ordinance that would make it illegal for anyone to “aid and abet” people who are homeless…
District of Columbia: For the Washington Informer, Sam P.K. Collins reported that the D.C. Council voted unanimously to expel Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White…
Georgia: The owners of Fayetteville’s first Black-owned shopping plaza say their space is completely leased out…
Illinois: Chicago’s emergency response times are getting worse. A slain rapper’s mom wants to know why…
Maryland: Morgan State University has formed a presidential task force to address the decline in Black male enrollment at HBCUs…
Michigan: A Florida-based company that tokenizes properties in Detroit and sells to foreign investors, primarily in cryptocurrency, is taking advantage of residents…
New York: A new exhibit examines Brooklyn’s “long-neglected history of slavery — and the work ordinary people have done to help recover it”…
North Carolina: The legacy of Pauli Murray, a trailblazing lawyer and activist, is honored inside a historic home in Durham…
Oklahoma: Justice for Greenwood released a reparations plan that calls for direct payments, land return, a hospital in north Tulsa and more. The mayor of Tulsa supports “significant elements” of the plan, Deon Osborne reports…
Tennessee: Civil rights attorney Ben Crump will represent the family of Daevon Montez Saint-Germain, the 18-year-old who was shot to death by the Knox County Sheriff's Office SWAT team during a raid…
What’s Happening
A historic Black church in the nation’s capital now owns the Proud Boys’ name, which means it can seize any money the far-right group makes from selling merchandise…
Venture firm Andreessen Horowitz has hired Daniel Penny, the man who killed Jordan Neely on an NYC subway…
A judge has thrown out a felony indictment against an ex-prosecutor, ending her trial on charges that she abused her power to protect the men who killed Ahmaud Arbery…
LISTEN: The National Black Debutante Project is seeking Black debutante history for its archives…
AP: "Black women in the U.S. died at a rate nearly 3.5 times higher than white women around the time of childbirth in 2023"…
Jordyn Holman and Julie Creswell for the New York Times: “Black-owned brands got a foot in the door through accelerator programs at companies like Target and Amazon. Now they worry it might be closing”...
Former North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson has dropped his lawsuit against CNN, and said he does not “have plans to seek elected office in the future”...
Marcus Jordan, the son of NBA all-time great Michael Jordan, was arrested in Central Florida on a variety of charges…
LISTEN: Fellow Detroiter Tonya Mosley discussed her career in public media and her love for the city on Detroit Public Radio…
Entertainment News
Kendrick Lamar and Beyonce stole the show at the 2025 Grammys. With his 2024 anthem “Not Like Us,” Lamar swept five awards, including song of the year, record of the year, best rap song, best music video and best rap performance…Beyoncé won the album of the year Grammy for "Cowboy Carter," marking her first time winning the award…For HuffPost, my colleague Njera Perkins wrote about the magnitude of Doechii’s Grammys victory and how it’s breaking barriers beyond rap…
Beyoncé also released more details about her upcoming Cowboy Carter Tour after the Grammys…
My colleague Candice Frederick interrogates Drake’s real motives with his bizarre defamation lawsuit ahead of Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show this weekend…
The Met has announced the 2025 Met Gala dress code, “Tailored for You,” a nod to the “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” exhibit…
Tituss Burgess is set to star as Mary Todd Lincoln in “Oh, Mary!” on Broadway…
The Nation reviewed historian Sarah Lewis’ book, “The Unseen Truth,” which “examines how an erroneous 18th-century story about the ‘Caucasian race’ led to centuries of prejudice and misapprehension”...
New York Times book review: “A new biography of the ‘first Negro novelist,’ by Tess Chakkalakal, explains the friendships and tensions he had with his white literary contemporaries”...
“How to Die Alone,” the comedy series created by and starring Natasha Rothwell, has been canceled after one season on Hulu…
Many Black folk are finding joy, community and health benefits in stereotype-defying activities like scuba, skydiving and golf, Curtis Bunn reports for NBC News…
The NFL will remove the words "End Racism" from the end zones ahead of the Super Bowl on Sunday, which Trump will attend…
Dwyane Wade recently revealed that he had a tumor removed from his kidney that ended up being cancerous…
Coco Gauff has donated $100,000 to UNCF to give out scholarships for students playing tennis at HBCUs…
Obituaries
Lt. Col. Harry Stewart, one of the last remaining Tuskegee Airmen, has died. He was 100…
Irv Gotti, best known as the founder of Murder Inc. Records, has died. He was 54…
Alonzo Davis, a prominent artist who championed Black American art and culture over a six-decade career, has died. He was 82…
Olga James, the singer and actress known for her role alongside Harry Belafonte’s character in the 1954 film musical “Carmen Jones,” has died. She was 95…
Al Allen, a longtime reporter for FOX 2 in Detroit, has died. He was 79…
Overlooked no more: “Annie Easley broke barriers at NASA and contributed to its earliest space missions as a rocket scientist, mathematician and computer programmer”...
Don’t Miss
Can you beat my time on Black Crossword? 1 minute, 21 seconds…
Kendrick Lamar sat down with Nadeska and Ebro for an interview ahead of the Super Bowl…
If you’re in the DC area, Dr. Sherri Williams & Dr. Meredith Clark will hold a joint book talk at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library on Saturday, Feb. 8 at 3 pm…
Director EJ is hosting the first of many Black Studies virtual sessions. This free course will focus on the Maroons and the history of Black resistance. It takes place on Feb. 15th at 11:30 am EST…
Dr.
, a history professor at Harvard University, will discuss her new book “Night Flyer” at Metropolitan AME Church in D.C. on Feb. 18. The talk will also be held virtually…The Spelman Archives has announced the Audre Lorde Travel Grant, offering two $2,500 travel awards for PhD students interested in researching the famed poet. The deadline is March 1…
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Thank you :)