Thirty years ago this week, Harold Washington was sworn in as Chicago’s first black mayor, so it’s a good time to assess more fully the import of his path-breaking tenure.read more

He appears ready to aid in the continuing economic destabilization of the community that voted for him in record numbers.read more

Do we have the guts and faith of Robinson and Rickey to see hope and seek justice?read more

This month marks the 30th anniversary of Alice Walker’s winning of the Pulitzer Prize for “The Color Purple,” the first for a novel by a black woman.read more

She was an extraordinary human being, and we’re all in her debt.read more

Here’s to hoping for tolerance no matter your sexual orientation, race, religion or lack of same.read more

Blacks still seem to have Obama’s back, but does he have theirs?read more

Where previous Democratic administrations have been neglectful of black communities, Obama’s policy has been that of absolute unconcern.read more

June 19, or Juneteenth, is independence day for many Americans of African descent. Also known as Emancipation Day or Freedom Day, it commemorates the end of slavery, the seminal event in black history.read more

Oct. 11 is National Coming Out Day, and I’m hoping more celebrities — especially African-American ones — will follow the example of Ellen DeGeneres.read more

I pay tribute to John Hope Franklin, the great African-American historian, in both senses of the term. He was an African-American, and he was the pre-eminent historian of African-American life.read more