Category: KOLUMN Magazine

The three-room, 660-square foot clapboard house had fallen into disrepair when four Black artists purchased the property in 2017 to ensure its legacy. — Associated Press, Chicago Sun Times TRYON, N.C. — The childhood home of iconic musician and civil rights activist Nina Simone will be indefinitely preserved in North Carolina. The National Trust for […]

Bell wrote and composed hits like “Celebration,” “Cherish,” and “Jungle Boogie.” — Jonathan Landrum Jr., AP, HuffPost LOS ANGELES (AP) — Ronald “Khalis” Bell, a co-founder and singer of the group Kool & the Gang, has died. He was 68. Bell died at his home in the U.S. Virgin Islands Wednesday morning with his wife […]

As Audible releases Shabazz’s memoir, along with The Autobiography of Malcolm X, the activist discusses the importance of structural change. — Abrar Al-Heeti, CNET As the Black Lives Matter movement gained momentum earlier this year following the killings of Black Americans including George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, many people found themselves looking for answers and a way to better understand […]

—  David Dahmer, Madison 365 For Everett Mitchell, a Dane County Circuit Court Judge since 2016, one of the traits that he says makes a good judge is curiosity. “It’s never rubberstamping what people do, but rather be curious upon every hearing that you have. As long as you remain curious, you continue to ask […]

— Staff, New York Amsterdam News This year’s Goethe Medal has been awarded to African writer and publisher Zukiswa Wanner, Elvira Espejo Ayca of Bolivia and Ian McEwan of the U.K. for their commitment to international cultural exchange. Zukiswa, a writer, journalist and publisher, is the author of the novels “The Madams” (2006), “Behind Every […]

— Brendan Kiley, The Seattle Times When people talk about Rahwa Habte, it sounds like they’re talking about the sun — that she was powerfully bright, a center of gravity with an almost alchemical ability to make things grow. “It’s almost like the word ‘community’ is too trite to describe the foundation she built just […]

A new generation of leaders is leveraging both the power of office and the power of the street. By Adam Harris, The Atlantic Steven l. reed smooths his gray suit jacket before he grips the podium. The mayor of Montgomery, Alabama, Reed has seen the coronavirus tear through his city faster than anywhere else in the […]

Jeanette Epps will take part in a six-month expedition set to launch in 2021. By BET Staff, BET Set to make history as the first Black woman astronaut to live and work on the International Space Station for an extended period of time, Jeanette Epps, has been assigned to NASA’s Boeing Starliner-1 mission.  Epps will take […]