Civil Rights Activist Found Dead

Staff / Truthdig Mar 13, 2010 Juanita Goggins, a trailblazing civil rights activist and the first black woman elected to South Carolina's state Legislature, was found dead in her Columbia, S.C., home last week after dying there sometime last month. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Jesse Helms Dead at 86

Staff / Truthdig Jul 4, 2008 White separatist, U.S. senator, GOP darling and otherwise racist stalwart Jesse Helms died Friday after a bout with both metaphorical and actual heart problems. For his supporters and detractors, Helms' persona as a race-baiting Southern politician defined many debates around civil rights in the 1960s. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Survivors Sought After Deadly Storms

Staff / Truthdig Feb 7, 2008 President Bush offered prayers and government assistance Wednesday to the Southern communities hit hardest by devastating storms Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. At least 50 people were killed, twice as many were injured and crews rushed to try to save others trapped in the rubble. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

On Being ‘Black Enough’

Ellen Goodman / Truthdig Jan 24, 2008 Barack Obama, once dismissed as not "black enough," seems to have been embraced by South Carolina, but his personal journey, one Americans are increasingly familiar with, cannot best be described by a single hue. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Southern Black Voters Split Between Obama and Clinton

Staff / Truthdig Jan 18, 2008 The subject of race has gotten major -- some would say excessive -- play in recent Democratic debates, but judging from this New York Times report, we can expect more on this matter from Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in coming weeks. That's because, as the paper put it, "If any election can prove that Southern blacks are not a monolithic voting bloc, it is this one." Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Disappointment Doesn’t Have to Be Normal

Eugene Robinson / Truthdig Dec 11, 2007 Is it foolish to think that a nation stained by centuries of slavery and racism is prepared to elect a black president? Rarely phrased so bluntly, that's the central question posed by Barack Obama's candidacy -- especially for many African-American voters, whose doubts are informed by having seen many an oasis turn out to be a mirage. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Dodging the ‘B’ Word

Eugene Robinson / Truthdig Nov 16, 2007 "That's an excellent question" normally doesn't make the list of utterances that can get a candidate in trouble on the campaign trail. But this presidential campaign isn't what anyone would call normal. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

DNA Could Exonerate ‘Satanic Murderers’

Staff / Truthdig Nov 5, 2007 Fifteen years ago, the "West Memphis Three" were convicted of the torture and murder of three Cub Scouts in Arkansas. New DNA evidence has bolstered the argument, laid out in two HBO documentaries and an upcoming movie, that the three teenagers convicted -- one of whom was sentenced to death -- were victims themselves of a community more concerned with their taste in music than evidence. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Genealogists Uncover Al Sharpton-Strom Thurmond Connection

Staff / Truthdig Feb 26, 2007 The Rev. Al Sharpton is descended from a slave once owned by Strom Thurmond's family, according to genealogists working on behalf of The New York Daily News. Sharpton called the revelation "probably the most shocking thing in my life." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Virginia House Finally Regrets Slavery

Staff / Truthdig Feb 4, 2007 Stopping short of a full-blown apology, Virginia's House of Delegates voted unanimously on Friday to issue a statement of "profound regret" over the state's role in the slave trade, "the historic wrongs visited upon native peoples" and "all other forms of discrimination and injustice". Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

U.N.’s Ban Is Heading to China

Staff / Truthdig Oct 23, 2006 For his first outing as the United Nations' newly elected secretary-general, South Korea's Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon will visit China to discuss the situation in North Korea. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

North Korea ‘Reserves Right’ to Preemptive Action

Staff / Truthdig Aug 22, 2006 In response to an ongoing military drill organized by South Korea and the U.S., Pyongyang has said it "reserves the right to undertake a preemptive action for self-defense against the enemy, at a crucial time it deems necessary to defend itself." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )