Tag: Activism

Every October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month reminds us that behind every statistic is a story, and behind every breakthrough, someone who dared to push the conversation forward. Black pioneers have helped transform breast cancer research, challenge disparities in treatment and make space for the voices too often left out of the narrative. From groundbreaking scientists like Dr. Jane Cooke Wright and Dr. May Edward Chinn to fearless advocates like Audre Lorde and Richard Roundtree, their impact reaches far beyond the clinic.

For Bernice King, the unanswered questions surrounding Nolan Wells' death have a painful familiarity. They take her back 57 years to the death of her uncle and Martin Luther King Jr.'s only brother, the Rev. A.D. King, who was found dead in his swimming pool in July 1969. Both were strong swimmers with bruised foreheads and no water in their lungs.

Black women have always been at the center of movements, even when history did not give them credit. For many Black LGBTQ+ changemakers, the intersectionality of race and sexuality creates even greater barriers. Women like Barbara Smith and Stormé DeLarverie turned identity into power, while others like Lori Lightfoot, Laphonza Butler and Karine Jean-Pierre wielded visibility into political action. These disrupters, activists, artists and politicians expanded what leadership can look like.

Colin Kaepernick says he refuses to watch the NFL, accusing the league of blackballing him and targeting other players who protested alongside him. The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback has been out of the NFL since the end of the 2016 season, when his decision to kneel during the national anthem in protest of social injustice became a national controversy.

A. Philip Randolph was one of the most influential Black labor leaders and trade unionists in American history. He founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first major Black-led labor union, and used organized labor as a vehicle to fight both workplace discrimination and racial inequality.

A growing number of influential Black celebrities have publicly voiced their support for Palestine as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues. Actors, musicians, filmmakers, comedians and athletes have used their platforms to spotlight the global crisis and show solidarity with the Palestinian people. From signing high-profile open letters demanding a ceasefire to leveraging content on personal social media channels, these artists are drawing parallels between international human rights movements and global fights for racial justice. By doing so, these Black celebrities build upon a historical tradition of Black-Palestinian solidarity linking domestic racial equality struggles to global movements for justice.