By Gwendolyn Carole Tipton, The Cincinnati Herald Here in 2026, we must not forget His benefits from 2025. We have already received and continue to receive Spiritual Blessings. Apostle Paul declares that God has blessed believers with “every spiritual blessing.” They encompass gifts of redemption, including forgiveness, grace, and the promise of eternal life. These…
Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media A question recently emailed to the office of Assemblymember Tina McKinnor (D-Inglewood) was not about legislation, policy, or governance. Instead, it asked whether the “Louis Vuitton bag McKinnor was wearing last night “real or fake?” This wasn’t just a casual inquiry. Stella Yu, the CalMatters reporter…
by Seth Wispelwey Abolishing ICE, defunding and abolishing the police…this is the *moderate* position. Whether it’s ICE, Border Patrol, the city, county or state police or your local sheriff, their purpose is to be the violent, front-line stranglehold on a wholly unsustainable status quo that protects the few (white and wealthy) at the expense of…
by Tashi McQueen AFRO Staff Writer As the fight for civil rights continues to evolve, activists of today are raising questions about how far the nation has come since the era of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and where progress has stalled. Advocates, scholars and policymakers are assessing voting access, economic equity, education and criminal…
by Megan Sayles AFRO Staff Writer More than five decades after his assassination, King’s words still shape how the nation talks about justice and equality. Three activists shared how they believe King would respond to the challenges confronting Black Americans today. “It’s important to remember that Dr. King spoke of the three evils: racism, militarism…
By Charlene Crowell As 2026 unfolds, affordability, which emerged as a critical issue last year, will become a more pressing concern for most people in America. A comment by a respondent to a recent student loan borrower survey by The Institute for College Access & Support (TICAS) summarized the complexity of the affordability problem for…
Donna Bollinger This past year I continually heard myself repeating the same phrase: “My bar is really low.” I was describing advocacy work at the United Nations and the multiple issues confronting the world: conflicts and wars, gender-based violence, climate change, racism and incitement to violence, food insecurity, economic instability, rising nationalism, eradication of religious…
By Alice T. Crowe Imagine trying to take out $40 from an ATM, but the machine won’t give you cash. Instead, it’s a cryptocurrency ATM that only lets you buy bitcoin, and it charges a high fee. These machines allow you to buy or sell cryptocurrency using cash or a debit card. You have no…
By Stacy M. Brown Black pop culture in 2025 did not chase attention. It set terms. Across music, television, film, fashion, and sports, Black creators tightened control over narrative, ownership, and meaning at a moment when the country itself felt unmoored. Hip hop provided the year’s clearest line of separation. “Not Like Us” by Kendrick…
Amy Johnson As we move into another new year, I find myself with an ear worm of lyrics from O Holy Night, hearing it more as a modern-day folk song for the whole year, rather than a Christmas carol. “Long lay the world, in sin and error pining….” We are again and still in a…
By Kevin Harris and Richard McDaniel (TriceEdneyWire.com) – As families struggle with rent, groceries, and health care costs, Donald Trump is once again trying to drag the national conversation off course – this time with the dramatic capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Maduro has ruled Venezuela as an authoritarian dictator, rigging elections, imprisoning political…
THE HUTCHINSON REPORT: By Earl Ofari Hutchinson, Contributing Columnist Los Angeles Wave Mayor Karen Bass called the report “disturbing.” It was more, much more, than that. It was appalling. The Los Angeles Police Department continues to be the runaway leader among the nation’s police departments in the use of deadly force. Other reports show that…
By: Jaidyn McKinnie, Joint Center Research Intern and UCLA Student American democracy is entering a dangerous stage of decline. While coverage focuses largely on the most recognizable signs of democratic backsliding, such as attacks on free speech and the use of state force against peaceful protesters, a quieter crisis is reshaping the foundation of representation…
by The Rev. Dorothy S. Boulware On the night of Dec. 31, 1862, under cover of darkness and winter cold, groups of Americans of African descent — some free, others still enslaved — gathered quietly across the country. As the Civil War raged and their fate hung in the balance, Black men, women and children…
By Stacy M. Brown Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent Tom Brady stepped into the broadcast booth and, without saying a word, said everything. One glove. Not a gimmick. Not nostalgia cosplay. Just a quiet, unmistakable signal that even in a football game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Buffalo Bills, the most famous silhouette…
Hannah Santos 2025 was a long year. For many of us, looking back over the past months repeatedly prompts the question, “that happened this year too?” The pace has been relentless and when the world keeps moving without pause, numbness becomes tempting. We scroll through headlines of injustice, go through the motions, and learn how…
by Tashi McQueen AFRO Staff Writer Amid the holiday cheer, many Americans are juggling financial stress or navigating grief, whether from the loss of loved ones, strained relationships or broader social and communal challenges. And, the uncertainty and divisiveness of the current sociopolitical environmental climate have likely only exacerbated those feelings. An online survey of…
By Ben Jealous America has a big birthday this year. Here’s a hint: The celebration will not feel much like the last big one in 1976. I still believe our nation’s best days are ahead. But our history—and our headlines—suggest we are facing a familiar test. Another fraught fight for freedom and democracy is already…
by Frances Toni Draper AFRO Publisher As we close the pages on 2025, we do so clear-eyed about the moment we are living in and grounded in the responsibility we carry. Journalism, especially Black journalism, is not simply about recounting events. It is about memory, witness and insisting that what happens in our communities is…
By Constance Carter/Wealth Advocate Einstein called compound interest the eighth wonder of the world. Those who understand it earn it. Those who do not pay it. That is why the Trump administration is floating a 50-year mortgage. They are betting that we will not see the true cost. He, him, and they are framing this…
Sarah Lund In the beautiful diversity of humankind, we are invited to celebrate diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. This is especially true when it comes to the holy work of disability and mental health justice. Alice Wong, disability activist and author who died on November 14, at age 51, felt like a friend to me,…
By Stacy M. Brown Joy Reid had finally had enough. After Stephen A. Smith went on his show and tried to frame her departure from MSNBC as a failure of ratings rather than a collision with an administration working to silence Black voices, she laid out the truth without ceremony. “You got one hundred million…
Bentley deBardelaben-Phillips One of my favorite seasons of the year is Advent, which often falls on the first Sunday after Thanksgiving and lasts about 25 days. A reason for my excitement is the annual spiritual reminder that something highly valued is on its way, arriving on Christmas Day. Hence, I, along with other humans worldwide,…
By Stacy M. Brown As millions of Americans brace for health insurance bills that will soon double or worse, the coming crisis is not the result of confusion or accident. It is the consequence of a long campaign that treated health care not as a human necessity, but as a battleground for grievance, race, and…
By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire The battles over the Affordable Care Act were never only about policy or the price of insurance. They were never simply arguments about federal subsidies, individual mandates, or the markets that hold the system together. From the moment America elected a Black president and that president dared to place…
