These are the highs and joys we witnessed at Essence Fest 2025
The Essence Festival of Culture returned to New Orleans once again over the July 4th weekend, bringing a lively display and celebration of Blackness and Black womanhood. While many attendees were living it up, certain parts of your social media feed may have made it hard to see some of that joy. Since the festival […]
Target partners with Kai Cenat but continues to sidestep demands for justice from the Black community
Target is starting to feel like that toxic situationship we all warn each other about: the one doing the absolute most to win you back without ever apologizing for the damage they caused. Black communities across the country are still actively boycotting the retail giant over its rollback of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. […]
Meagan Good and Jonathan Majors launch ‘Honor Culture’—a wellness brand focused on health and fitness
Since the world learned of the relationship between Meagan Good and Jonathan Majors during his domestic violence trial back in late 2023—he was found guilty for two misdemeanor charges but not guilty for the more serious felony offenses and avoided jail time in the case—the couple has been very intentional about trying to protect their […]
Phylicia Rashad joins season 3 of ‘The Gilded Age’ as it explores the Black elite
HBO’s American historical drama television series “The Gilded Age” is spotlighting a new demographic in its storytelling: Black elitism. Season three of the hit drama introduces fans to new characters, storylines, and a piece of history that is often overlooked in the conversation. “We just got more and more interested in the history of the […]
Governor Wes Moore and First Lady Dawn Moore celebrate their ‘special’ 18th wedding anniversary at Essence Fest
Governor Wes Moore and First Lady Dawn Moore, radiated joy as they celebrated their 18th wedding anniversary while attending the 2025 Essence Festival of Culture this weekend. The Maryland Governor, who was a guest speaker on the panel “Power, Policy, and Possibility: A Conversation with the First Family of Maryland” on Sunday, July 6, also […]
Hacker leak shows Zohran Mamdani once checked “Asian” and “African-American” on college app—supporters say it’s a non-issue
Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for New York City mayor, recently made headlines for once marking ‘South Asian’ and ‘African American’ on an application. While applying to Columbia University as a high school senior in 2009, Mamdani completed a portion of the application by checking boxes to self-identify as both South Asian and African American. […]
American kids have become increasingly unhealthy over nearly two decades, new study finds
The health of U.S. children has deteriorated over the past 17 years, with kids today more likely to have obesity, chronic diseases and mental health problems like depression, a new study says. Much of what researchers found was already known, but the study paints a comprehensive picture by examining various aspects of children’s physical and mental health at the same […]
LL Cool J and Jazmine Sullivan drop out of Philadelphia 4th of July concert in solidarity with ongoing workers’ strike
This year’s Fourth of July celebrations in Philadelphia were a little different. As thousands of city workers continue to strike, notably affecting many city services like trash pickups, LL Cool J and Jazmine Sullivan supported the workers’ union by opting out of a 4th of July performance. Last Friday, both artists were scheduled to perform […]
Powerful MSNBC panel unpacks the racist history behind ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ and the normalization of violence
A recent segment on MSNBC’s The Weekend Primetime brought together a sharp panel of thinkers to discuss one of the most disturbing trends in right-wing political culture: the meme-ification of cruelty. The discussion, led by co-hosts Catherine Rampell, Antonia Hylton, and Elise Jordan, zeroed in on the viral nickname “Alligator Alcatraz”—a phrase being used to […]
‘Shamed’ Lady Liberty Mural Revealed In France In Response To America’s Current Climate
by Sharelle B. McNair July 7, 2025 Leeuw said revealing the work on the 4th of July was also intentional as the Statue of Liberty was a birthday gift from France to the United States on July 4, 1884. As America celebrated Independence Day, France revealed a bold depiction of the Statue of Liberty to […]