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Why the date August 28 has special significance in American history

A number of events important to the Civil Rights Movement — from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech to Emmett Till's murder — took place on Aug. 28.
On Aug. 28, 2008, Barack Obama accepted the Democratic nomination for president at the DNC in Denver, Colorado.
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The team owner who fought for civil rights

Apr 23, 2024
Effa Manley, owner of the Newark Eagles, firmly believed her team’s success was tied to the ongoing struggle for justice in her community.
Effa Manley mixed business and activism as co-owner of the Newark Eagles, a Negro National League team.
Mark Rucker/Transcendental Graphics, Getty Images

How the family of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is working to protect his legacy

Apr 4, 2024
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. worked to safeguard his intellectual property before his death. Now, his family continues to protect his works and impact.
"Many people would ask, 'What is your legacy?'" said Bernice King, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s youngest child. "I tell them, 'Look, I don't have to discover a legacy — I was born into a legacy.'"
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The life and legacy of A.G. Gaston: a man who quietly helped fund the Civil Rights Movement

Feb 1, 2024
A.G. Gaston was a Black entrepreneur who invested millions of dollars into the Civil Rights Movement and Black America.
Entrepreneur A.G. Gaston, right, alongside Birmingham Mayor George G. Seibels Jr., in front of the the Citizens Federal Savings bank.
Birmingham, Ala. Public Library Archives

If reparations aren't politically viable, what's the next best thing?

Jan 5, 2024
Scholars say local action directed at improving access to housing, health care and education are more likely to pass than cash payments.
Many Black families were excluded from suburbs that were rapidly growing in the '50s and '60s.
Illustration: Dylan Miettinen/Marketplace | Photo: Courtesy USC Libraries. “Dick” Whittington Photography Collection

In "Black Folk," the history of the Black working class is a family story

Jun 14, 2023
Historian Blair LM Kelley traces that evolution through her own family roots.
According to historian Blair LM Kelley, as Black women moved to Northern cities during the Great Migration, many found domestic work that took them away from their families — but led to the creation of new communities. Above, a woman and child in Harlem, New York City, in 1946.
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Banking law rooted in civil rights era gets a 21st century update

May 5, 2022
Federal regulators propose new rules for the Community Reinvestment Act, which requires banks to invest in low- and moderate-income communities.
The Community Reinvestment Act, which aims to close the racial wealth gap, may be updated to cover financial firms that don't rely on neighborhood branches.
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How promises to fix income inequality have played out after elections

Oct 28, 2020
Income inequality is on the minds of many voters right now, much like in the run-up to the 1968 presidential election.
We know from the Nixon White House tapes that he didn't really believe in wage and price freezes to get roaring inflation under control.
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Here's what civil rights leaders want from Facebook

"It shouldn't be my nonprofit that has to be monitoring and focusing its energy on a corporation that makes $70 billion a year," said Color of Change President Rashad Robinson.
Many of the companies boycotting Facebook are major brands with big budgets.
Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP via Getty Images