Top Online Reads & Sees From The Root

I know that I haven't written in several months, but I found these articles from The Root so interesting, I thought I'd share them with you. The Root describes itself as "a daily online magazine that provides thought-provoking commentary on today's news from a variety of black perspectives." Enjoy!

The New Middle Passage
By: Malika Saada Saar Posted: June 17, 2010
Think Abraham Lincoln freed all the slaves back in 1863? Think again. And then get angry. Very, very angry.

On this Juneteenth, I am thinking of those who are not yet free. Most of them are girls. Born in America.
Every year in this country, between 100,000 and 300,000 children--most of whom are astonishingly between the ages of 11 to 14 years old-- are sold for sex by pimp-captors, according to government statistics. ...

Photo courtesy of ThinkStock.com

What Will Happen to Juneteenth?
By: Erin Evans Posted: June 18, 2010
Gen Y seems less than enthused about the day that slaves in Texas found out they were free. How will Black Independence Day fare in 2050?

"So how do you celebrate Juneteenth?" I asked my Twitter friends a few weeks ago. After a dead-tweet silence, I retweeted myself for emphasis. Even then, just a handful of my 300 or so Twitter friends responded with a few half-baked answers. "Go to some crappy festival," one Californian said. "I celebrate by doing nothing," said a childhood friend from Texas. ...

The Miseducation of Texas Schoolkids
By: Afi-Odelia Scruggs Posted: May 26, 2010
There's a reason why Carter G. Woodson established a Negro History Week in 1928.

See, a bunch of guys needed something to do in 1865 and 1866, right after the Civil War. It wasn't like they could go back to their plantations; Northerners had seen to that. So these good ole boys amused themselves by dressing up in sheets and riding through the countryside pulling pranks. Just good, clean hijinks, until they discovered their antics terrorized former slaves. Then, things turned naughty and nasty. But in the beginning, the Klan was just a social club. ...

Single-Minded: Sending My Mom Love on Father's Day
By: Helena Andrews Posted: June 18, 2010
No one can be both a 'mother and a father' to their kids. I'm so glad that my mom knew this.

I don't get those single women who say they've had to be ''the mother and the father'' to their kids. Nobody can be two people. Not even Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde could pull it off, and they had mad science on their side. Thing is you're either someone's mother or father, the two roles are mutually exclusive for a reason. ...

Florida Christian-School Teacher Fired for Premarital Sex
By The Buzz Posted: June 14, 2010

Fresh from our "Wow file," a former fourth-grade teacher at Southland Christian School in St. Cloud, Florida, was fired for conceiving several weeks before getting married. Oh, the shame -- getting pregnant by your fiance a few weeks before the actual marriage. ...

The Myth of Black-on-Black Violence
By Natalie Hopkinson Posted: June 16, 2010
As we head into another long, hot summer, the media -- and black folks -- need to retire this loaded term.

This year's Black History Month was a particularly bloody one in Shelby County, S.C. Sergio Leary, Ja'cole Wilson, Karon Barrow and Leon Thurman Jr., all young people in their 20s, were all shot dead, according to local news reports.

The Shelby Star's analysis of the burst of violence, hit on all the usual crime reporting clichés: ''black,'' ''at-risk youth,'' ''subcultures that don't value'' life. And then, there's the clincher. ''Despite overall crime numbers falling in recent years, black-on-black [emphasis added] violence remains a prevalent issue,'' the newspaper reported. ...

Top Online Reads & Sees

Vatican Paper Says 'Simpsons' Are Okely Dokely
Associated Press, updated 7:21 p.m. ET, Tues., Dec . 22, 2009

VATICAN CITY - To put it as the devout Ned Flanders would, the Vatican's newspaper thinks "The Simpsons" are an okely dokely bunch. L'Osservatore Romano on Tuesday congratulated the show on its 20th anniversary, praising its philosophical leanings as well as its stinging and often irreverent take on religion. Without Homer Simpson and the other yellow-skinned characters "many today wouldn't know how to laugh," said the article titled "Aristotle's Virtues and Homer's Doughnut." ...

AT&T to NYC: No iPhones for you!
Posted by Elizabeth Strott to MSN Money
Monday, December 28, 2009 10:32 AM

Apple (AAPL) sold 7.4 million iPhones in its most recent quarter, making the device extremely popular and profitable, as well as a boon for exclusive service provider AT&T (T). So why, then, is AT&T not selling the smart phone in New York City? Well, "because New York is not ready for the iPhone." ...

Does Your Name Spell Success?
By M. Wolfe for AOL Find A Job
Posted February 2nd, 2009 12:00 PM

"What's in a name?" a man named Shakespeare asked long ago. Potential employers may ask this same question of you. After all, your name is the first thing on your resume. Along with your appearance, it's one of the things most people use to form a first impression.

Much effort goes into understanding the power of names-ask anyone having their first baby. Some believe a name is the single most important influence on development of our personality and helps create our destiny. Can your name help you succeed? What can you do to increase your chances of success in the name game? ...

Notable Deaths of 2009
The New York Times Obituaries
Slide Show Photo: Gary Hershorn/Reuters

Michael Jackson, who went from boy wonder to global pop superstar to sad figure haunted by lawsuits, paparazzi and failed plastic surgery, died June 25 in a Los Angeles hospital. He was 50.

Farrah Fawcett, an actress, television star and pop-culture phenomenon whose good looks and signature leonine hairstyle influenced a generation of women, died on June 25 in Santa Monica, Calif. She was 62. ...

Ad Rant: The 10 Worst Ads of the Decade
Posted by Jami Bernard to WalletPop Blog
Monday, December 28, 2009 10:00 AM

The decade was awash in such truly awful commercials that we were hard pressed to choose just 10 of the best (worst) from this embarrassment of riches. Please join us now as we lose our appetite entirely for fast-food sandwiches and candy. You'll never feel comfortable again in a shower or hotel room. You'll realize what a dupe you've been by relying on credit cards, you'll feel insulted by the very brands you've come to trust, and you'll never take your big toe for granted again.

Here, then, are 10 of the worst ads of the past 10 years: 1. White Castle: Pole-Dancing Pig ...

Top Online Reads & Sees

Students See Hard Future if Free Fares Are Ended
Sharon Otterman, December 17, 2009, The New York Times

When Alejandro Velazquez, 15, was selecting a high school last year, he decided on Washington Irving in Manhattan because of its strong Spanish-English bilingual program. It was a 40-minute trip from his home in the Bronx, but his mother assented, in part because he could travel free.

His family’s calculus, he said, would have been different had he needed to pay $40 a month or more to get to and from school, a reality that will begin next fall if budget cuts passed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board on Wednesday are carried out. ...

7 Soldiers Cited in Pregnancy Ban on Soldiers in Iraq
MSN Lifestyle, msnbc.com staff and news service reports, December 22, 2009

Four female and three male soldiers in northern Iraq have been reprimanded for disobeying a ban on pregnancies, but the general in charge of troops there has backed off an earlier threat of courts-martial and prison time for such cases. ...

Hairstyle How-To: Sleek Evening Ponytail
By Danilo, Pantene celebrity hairstylist

This no-fuss, sophisticated style is easy to create at home and works well for both the office and all of your after-work events. Get more hair inspiration here.

A ponytail is a quick style that can be enhanced with jeweled combs or decorative pins. Since more attention will be drawn to your face, compliment this simple style by playing up your eyes. ...

DirecTV Thrives On 'Deception,' Lawsuit Alleges
By Bob Sullivan, Friday, December 18, 2009 MSNBC The Red Tape Chronicles

A lawsuit filed this week by Washington state against DirecTV could have a secondary purpose: It could serve as a textbook for consumers on tricks companies play to take their money.

The suit filed by Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna alleges so many forms of misbehavior that he thinks DirecTV, the nation's largest satellite TV provider, has "built deception into their business model." ...

Food History: How Your Favorite Foods (and One Appliance) Were Invented
By Lauren Donaldson, MSN Delish

Did you know one of your beloved candies was intended as an anti-smoking treat? Or that chocolate chip cookies were discovered by mistake? Check out the strange beginnings of some of your fave foods and one appliance you probably wouldn't want to live without. ...

XAM: Top Online Reads

Sparkling Holiday Displays Worldwide
Slide show text by Sonja Groset, Bing Travel; photo editing by Connie Ricca.

Spectacular light displays are a hallmark of the holiday season in many locations around the globe. Amusement parks, gardens, piazzas and plazas all glow under the flicker of thousands of lights. For shoppers in the world’s top cities, window displays are another herald of the holidays, as children and adults alike press their noses against the windowpane to view animated figures and wintry scenes. Christmas in the Philippines is symbolized by "parols," or star lanterns. ...

Cozy-crazy couple makes tight all right in the city's tiniest studio
By ANGELA MONTEFINISE, Posted: 4:01 AM, December 6, 2009

If they can make it there, they can make it anywhere. Zaarath and Christopher Prokop -- and their two cats -- live in the smallest apartment in the city, a 175-square-foot "microstudio" in Morningside Heights the couple bought three months ago for $150,000. At 14.9 feet long and 10 feet wide, it's about as narrow as a subway car and as claustrophobic as a jail cell. But to the Prokops, it's a castle. ...

Beyonce Takes a Dive at London Concert
PopEater, Posted Thursday 19 November 02:45 PM By: Megan Rumph

Beyonce made an unexpected leap at a free concert in London Sunday night. During her performance of 'Halo,' she took a daring head-first stage dive into the audience of screaming fans, in nothing but a sequined leotard. Watch the video.... ...

New Minute Maid juice packaging-- can it avoid the Tropicana disaster?
Wallet Pop, Tom Barlow, Nov. 19th, 2009

In the world of advertising, the Tropicana disaster of 2008-09 is already legendary. The orange juice container redesign by controversial brand guru Peter Arnell eliminated the familiar straw-in-an-orange image in favor of a photo of a glass of OJ. This killed the brand recognition developed over many years, resulting in a 20% drop in sales and the loss of millions of dollars within two months. Tropicana beat a hasty retreat to the old design. Now, according to Advertising Age, Coca-Cola is taking a similar risky step, re-branding its Minute Maid line of juices. ...

Green Car of the Year 2010
By Josh Condon of MSN Autos

Walk around the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show for any length of time and you'll start to hear the same buzzwords and phrases over and over again. "Moving forward" is the first one that comes to mind — after all, pretty much every company wants this financially dismal period to end. With at least as much frequency, however, you'll hear a spate of environmentally pointed terms: "eco-friendly," "reduced emissions" and the most heinously overused of eco-conscious idioms, "green." Being green seems to be the way automakers plan to climb in their customers' hearts — and wallets - in the future. Some already have the eco-friendly bona fides and are making a difference, right now, on a road near you. Here are the five finalists for the Green Car of the Year, an award given out by the Green Car Journal. Who won? Read on to see. ...