FDA approves treatment for sickle cell disease

A woman sitting on the bed with her hand under her chin.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved two treatments for sickle cell disease that the medical community ignored because most of the patients are Black and because there was little money for treatment. Sickle cell is an inherited blood disorder affecting more than 100,000 in the U.S. Most of those afflicted are African American…

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Gay hangs on

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The Harvard Alumni Association threw its support behind President Claudine Gay, but we will have to wait until Tuesday when The Harvard Corp. announces its decision. The decision concerning Gay follows Liz Magill, president of the University of Pennsylvania, and Scott Bok, Board of Trustees president, to resign following comments Magill made by a House…

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Dick Gregory urged the mainstream press to dig deeper into the Kennedy assassination, and it got results

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As we mark the 60th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, comedian Dick Gregory did not believe that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in murdering the president.  Gregory challenged the mainstream press, which had bought the lone gunman narrative hook, line, and sinker, a narrative that was presented to the nation by…

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South Africa wants Benjamin Netanyahu arrested for war crimes

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The South African government has called on the International Crime Court (ICC), which handles war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity, to issue an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by mid-December.  Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said if the ICC did not do this, it would signal a “total failure of…

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High school student develops soap to treat skin cancer

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A 14-year high school student won a major award for developing a soap that treats skin cancer, which affects all people, including Blacks. Heman Bekele, a freshman at Woodson High School in Northern Virginia, spent his summer break working to cure skin cancer. Bekele was named “America’s Top Young Scientist†for creating a bar of soap…

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Blue Wall of silence begins to cave

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Tyree Nicholas, 29, was kicked and beaten by five Black Memphis police officers following a January arrest involving a traffic stop during which cops charged him with speeding and reckless driving. As a result of being beaten, Nicholas suffered brain injuries and cuts and bruises to his head, face, and other parts of his body,…

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Black unemployment remains high

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The jobless rate in October for Black men and Black women was 5.8 percent, the highest among all other groups surveyed. Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 150,000 jobs in October, and the unemployment rate changed little at 3.9 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. Job gains occurred in health care, government,…

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