american

The Census is not just about facts, it's also about what we call ourselves and how we're represented.

Who Put The 'Hispanic' In Hispanic Heritage Month?

6:18am September 23, 2017

by Shereen Marisol Meraji

As Hispanic Heritage Month gets under way, it's worth noting that the idea of people from the Latin American diaspora referring to themselves as 'Hispanic' or 'Latino' or 'Latinx' is a fairly new one.

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Melisande Short-Colomb, 63, is a descendant of slaves sold by the Jesuits to fund Georgetown University. She's enrolled as a freshman there and plans to major in African-American studies.

Starting School At The University That Enslaved Her Ancestors

8:28am September 19, 2017

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talked to Mélisande Short-Colomb, whose family was once enslaved by Georgetown University. Now, at 63, Short-Colomb has enrolled as a freshman there.

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Chairman and CEO Linda Johnson Rice speaks at Ebony magazine's Power 100 Gala at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif., last December.

#EbonyOwes: 99 Problems And Money Is One

8:17pm July 17, 2017

by Karen Grigsby Bates

A number of writers, editors, photographers and illustrators are still waiting to be paid by the magazine for work that was published in February. The owners say they will "honor [their] commitment."

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Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speaks at a rally in Omaha, Neb., on April 20. Sanders has been criticized for a recent line of questioning toward a Trump administration nominee, which focused on the man's religious beliefs about damnation.

Is It Hateful To Believe In Hell? Bernie Sanders' Questions Prompt Backlash

3:41pm June 09, 2017

by Camila Domonoske

The senator challenged a Trump nominee over his belief that Muslims are condemned, calling his statements "Islamophobic" and "inflammatory." Evangelical Christians say that's a troubling argument.

Troizel Carr, "The Black Public," performed as part of EMERGENYC, New York City, 2017.

In NYC, Activism Begins With Lessons In Theater

8:46pm May 31, 2017

by Roxana Saberi

Wielding techniques from the global Theatre of the Oppressed movement used to train activists, one group challenges people to think beyond labels.

"What the American Founding Fathers understood was that institutions were built for human imperfection, not human perfection," Condoleezza Rice says.

Condoleezza Rice: Institutions Aren't Perfect, But They're The Bedrock Of Democracy

1:30pm May 08, 2017

by Rachel Martin

Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice tells NPR that America is still a "bright, shining city on the hill, not because we're perfect but because we struggle in our imperfections every day."

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Two reconstructed buildings stand in the former Manzanar War Relocation Center. Once, 10,046 people were imprisoned here.

Walking In Their Footsteps At A Former Japanese Internment Camp

4:01am April 29, 2017

by Melissa Hung

"I wanted to see Manzanar with my own eyes, so that my understanding of history might feel deeper through the experience of place."

U.S. artist Ryan Mendoza poses for a photo next to the former house of Afro-American human rights figure Rosa Parks on Mendoza's property on April 6, 2017 in Berlin, Germany. Mendoza bought the house, which was slated for demolition in Detroit, took it ap

This Week In Race: A House That Flew Over The Ocean And A Man Who Didn't Get To Fly

5:22am April 14, 2017

You could say it's been a pretty turbulent week on the race beat.

Starsky Robotics is retrofitting large trucks to make them driverless. The startup hopes that by the end of the year, it will be able to operate a truck without a person physically sitting in the vehicle.

How Driverless Vehicles Could Harm Professional Drivers Of Color

4:32pm April 05, 2017

by Vignesh Ramachandran

African-American professional drivers earn a median annual wage nearly $2,500 higher than in nondriving jobs. For Hispanic drivers it's a $5,800 premium, and Native American drivers earn $2,000 more.

What do mixed-race Americans mean for the future of racism?

Why Mixed-Race Americans Will Not Save The Country

5:34am March 08, 2017

by Alexandros Orphanides

Realizing that a mixed-race society can also uphold racism is crucial to a nuanced understanding of the challenge of recognizing and overcoming racism and bias.