11 Sep 2015

Formerly Incarcerated Black Youth Face Extremely High Mortality Rates in Chicago

Young black men detained in Cook County, Chicago, face a higher mortality rate than the general population of the county, according to a bulletin published by the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) as part of their “Northeastern Juvenile Project.”

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10 Sep 2015

From Weeksville To Today: Why Black Land Matters (VIDEO)

From The Laura Flanders Show: The history of the US is packed with people of color and poor people who’ve been stripped of their rights — to vote, to wages, to housing or even just the right to stay in the country — through incarceration, segregation, slavery and deportation. For just as long, black communities have created safety, and won a say in democracy, through buying and keeping land cooperatively.

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01 Sep 2015

776 People Killed By Police So Far in 2015, 161 Of Them Unarmed

So far in 2015, U.S. police killed 776 people, 161 of whom were completely unarmed at the time of their death. The data was compiled by The Guardian for a project called “The Counted,” a continuously updated, interactive database of police killings in the United States.

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24 Aug 2015

Protest Song of the Week: ’28 Hours’

For this week’s protest song, Alec Hall submitted a piece created as a comment on the criminalization of black bodies in the United States and how black life is often erased from American culture and society. The 11-minute string quartet composition, “28 Hours,” is the first reader-submitted protest song featured here at Shadowproof.

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17 Aug 2015

Protest Song of the Week: ‘Alabama Blues’

J.B. Lenoir’s “Alabama Blues” is a rather well-known blues protest song. It stands out because, by the 1960s, it was increasingly rare for blues musicians to sing about poverty, despair, and social injustice. And, fifty years since the tune was recorded under the supervision of Chicago blues master Willie Dixon, its lyrics still carry a deep resonance.

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16 Aug 2015

Podcast: Chicago Organizer Shares Outrage Over Stop And Frisk Deal

The ACLU of Illinois announced a “landmark” agreement with the Chicago Police Department and City of Chicago over stop and frisks earlier this month. However, soon after, there were multiple activist groups, which were upset with the ACLU because they believed the settlement undermined their efforts. In particular, local groups

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14 Aug 2015

Janelle Monáe, Wondaland Records Release Black Lives Matter-Inspired Protest Anthem

In Philadelphia, musical artists Janelle Monáe and Jidenna led a rally and march on North Broad Street on August 12. The demonstrations were in support of the movement for black lives, and they were intended to complement the release of a new Black Lives Matter-inspired protest anthem. The anthem is called

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09 Aug 2015

Podcast: Bernie Sanders, Black Lives Matter & Problem of Identity Politics

Two Black Lives Matter activists interrupted a Saturday afternoon rally in Seattle, where Senator Bernie Sanders, a Democratic presidential candidate, was scheduled to speak. It was a rally held to celebrate the anniversary of Social Security and the need to expand social welfare programs. The activists took the stage and grabbed

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