Week of Coverage Called “After the Fire” to Include a Collection of Articles and Digital Initiatives Curated by Black Lives Matter’s Patrisse Cullors and The Root’s Danielle Belton
WASHINGTON, D.C. – AUGUST 6, 2015 – The Root, the home of news, opinion and analysis for African-American influencers, announced today that it will commemorate the events of last summer that propelled the Black Lives Matter movement into public consciousness with “After the Fire,” a comprehensive examination of the ongoing fight against injustice in America. Beginning Friday, August 7th and continuing over the next week, The Root will feature articles, guest posts, videos and social media initiatives discussing inequities in the country’s criminal justice system, around the anniversaries of the deaths of Michael Brown (Ferguson), John Crawford (Cleveland), and Ezell Ford (Los Angeles).
The Root’s guest editor, Patrisse Cullors, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement, has amassed a selection of content from leading African-American activists including Bree Newsome, most recently heralded for bringing down the Confederate flag in South Carolina.
“The events of last summer, in which there was a spate of deaths of unarmed black Americans, mobilized a movement focused on the injustice in law enforcement that we haven’t seen in this country in decades,” said Lyne Pitts, managing editor of The Root. “America can’t ignore it. ‘After the Fire’ is The Root’s way of acknowledging the significance and broader impact of this wave of social activists, who have forged a national dialogue and are influencing political agendas.”
As part of “After the Fire” coverage, a four-part series beginning Sunday, August 9th will feature interviews by The Root’s Associate Editor, Danielle Belton, with more than 30 prominent figures in the movement including Umi Selah (Phil Agnew), Al Sharpton, Ashley Yates, and many more agenda setters from the African-American community. The series will look at the history of this new social justice movement going back to Jenna 6, its roots in online activism, its relationship with the old guard, how it will be led and what power it will wield around the 2016 Presidential election.
“We are honoring the lives that have been taken prematurely and celebrating the individuals in the Black Lives Matter movement who have forced our nation to re-examine itself,” said Donna Byrd, publisher of The Root. “These are young people who have stood up and cried injustice. We want to highlight the role these individuals played in the movement, and delve into how digital technologies and social media have been used to fuel awareness.”
The Root will present the following content curated by Patrisse Cullors:
- “When Oppression is the Status Quo, Disruption is a Moral Duty” – Bree Newsome, Activist, Black Lives Matter
- “Why #BlackLivesMatter is a Global Movement” – Janaya Khan, Black Lives Matter, Toronto
- “How Art Has Been Influenced by a Movement” – Tanya Bernard, Art and Cultural Lead, Black Lives Matter
In addition, on Friday, August 7th The Root will feature a Twitter takeover on @TheRoot hosted by Patrisse Cullors, with activist Nyle Fort in a live Q&A from Ferguson. Tweet with us from 11AM- 4PM ET with #TheRoot4Justice on the following topics:
- 11:00AM ET: Brittany Packnett, Executive Director of Teach For America – St. Louis (@MsPackyetti)
Topic: Ferguson: 1 year later. Has anything changed?
- 12:00PM ET: Patrisse Cullors, Co-Founder #BlackLivesMatter (@osope)
Topic: What’s next for the #BlackLivesMatter movement?
- 1:00PM ET: Nyle Fort, Minister/Activist (@NyleFort)
Topic: The importance of faith during crisis: How the black church plays a pivotal role in our modern day civil rights movement.
- 2:00PM ET: Danielle Belton, Associate Editor: TheRoot.com (@blacksnob)
Topic: A look at criticism around #BlackLivesMatter. How can Black Americans pick up the pieces of the devastation that we’ve faced?
- 3:00PM ET: ACLU of Texas (@ACLUTx)
Topic: What rights do we have when being stopped by police?
For more information on “After The Fire,” please visit The Root’s website at www.theroot.com, and stay connected via @TheRoot on Twitter and on Facebook.com/TheRoot.
CONTACT: Carolina Valencia 212.455.4712 cvalencia@univision.net @UCIPRTeam
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