Arts
The Arts
Artist’s Black Wall Street Project Is About Tulsa 100 Years Ago — And Today
Artist Paul Rucker is fearless when it comes to taking on terrible moments in American history. One of them, in Tulsa, Okla., was destroyed by a white mob 100 years ago, on May 31, 1921. The catastrophic attack on what was known as Black Wall Street might be the worst single episode of racial violence in American history, with 35 city blocks of Black community destroyed and flattened. Continue Reading Artist’s Black Wall Street Project Is About Tulsa 100 Years Ago — And Today
A Moment Or A Movement? Black Bookstore Owners On Business One Year Later
With the sale of print books rising just over 8% and all unit sales of books surpassing 750 million, Black bookstores would play an integral role in feeding the nation’s “sudden” appetite in the plight of Black people. Continue Reading A Moment Or A Movement? Black Bookstore Owners On Business One Year Later
Amazon Makes A Deal To Buy MGM For Nearly $8.5 Billion
Amazon has made a deal to buy Hollywood studio MGM for almost $8.5 billion. It’s the second-largest acquisition for the company after purchasing Whole Foods. Continue Reading Amazon Makes A Deal To Buy MGM For Nearly $8.5 Billion
BOOK REVIEW: A Bullied Kid Finds Unconventional Freedom In ‘Heaven’
Heaven is a raw, painful, and tender portrait of adolescent misery, reminiscent of both Elena Ferrante’s fiction and Bo Burnham’s 2018 film Eighth Grade. I cannot, in good conscience, endorse it without a warning: This book is very likely to make you cry. Continue Reading BOOK REVIEW: A Bullied Kid Finds Unconventional Freedom In ‘Heaven’
‘Traverse Talks’ Episode 10: Ryka Aoki On Culture, Transphobia And Giving It Your Best
In this episode of “Traverse Talks with Sueann Ramella,” author Ryka Aoki shares how growing up in the U.S., she had a hard time seeing what happens on a societal level, but still wants it to be better, as well as her personal experiences as a transgender woman. Continue Reading ‘Traverse Talks’ Episode 10: Ryka Aoki On Culture, Transphobia And Giving It Your Best
How ‘Shuffle Along’ Changed Musical Theater 100 Years Ago
Not only did Shuffle Along bring jazz to Broadway, it was the first African American show to be a smash hit. Its composer Eubie Blake recalled on WNYC in 1973: “When we put Shuffle Along on, on Broadway, we put negroes back to work again.” Continue Reading How ‘Shuffle Along’ Changed Musical Theater 100 Years Ago
‘Nobody Does A Comeback Like The Movies’: Beating Drums For The Blockbuster’s Return
With just two weeks to go before A Quiet Place Part II makes your local multiplex a less quiet place, Hollywood has started the back-to-cinemas drumroll. Continue Reading ‘Nobody Does A Comeback Like The Movies’: Beating Drums For The Blockbuster’s Return
The Story Of ‘Sesame Street’: From Radical Experiment To Beloved TV Mainstay
For generations, Sesame Street has been a mainstay of American children’s television. But when the show premiered more than 50 years ago on Nov. 10, 1969, it was considered controversial, even radical. Continue Reading The Story Of ‘Sesame Street’: From Radical Experiment To Beloved TV Mainstay
TV REVIEW: ‘Underground Railroad’ Is A Hard But Beautiful Reflection On Black Pain
For this Black TV critic, completing Barry Jenkins’ ambitious, beautifully brutal, 10-episode adaptation of Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad was an emotional journey that touched every nerve of what it feels like to be a person of color striving to matter in America. Continue Reading TV REVIEW: ‘Underground Railroad’ Is A Hard But Beautiful Reflection On Black Pain
Engaging With Asian American And Pacific Islander Heritage Month: A Reading List
In the past year, and throughout history, narratives surrounding Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have been rife with violence, hardship and grief. Yet they are so much more than their experiences of suffering — beyond tales of war and isolation, there is joy, confusion, anger and relief. Continue Reading Engaging With Asian American And Pacific Islander Heritage Month: A Reading List
The Artist Behind A George Floyd Mural Reflects On How It Became A ‘Ubiquitous Icon’
One of the most recognizable images of Floyd sits just above the spot where he drew his last breath – at the corner of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in South Minneapolis. It’s a haunting, 12-foot mural of Floyd, painted in black and white by Minneapolis-based artist Peyton Scott Russell. Continue Reading The Artist Behind A George Floyd Mural Reflects On How It Became A ‘Ubiquitous Icon’
BOOK REVIEW: ‘Son Of The Storm’ Explores Power And Its Transformations
“Son of the Storm” defines these tensions clearly from the start, as a prologue whirls readers into a society already at a dangerous crossroads, at once reaching for new levels of power, and busy walling itself off from risk. The effect is rich, wild, and occasionally dizzying. Continue Reading BOOK REVIEW: ‘Son Of The Storm’ Explores Power And Its Transformations
