Simone Sebastian
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Above all else, Truth. Former @washingtonpost & @CapitalBNews. Xennial. SMBC. Blaxit ✌🏽🌍
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Articles by Simone Sebastian
White supremacist attack in Jacksonville, Florida, fueled by politics, ignorance of Black history
JACKSONVILLE — Just after 6 p.m. Monday, chants rang out from James Weldon Johnson Park. Black fists waved in the air as cheers and claps mobilized the crowd that had gathered downtown for a rally against white supremacy. “Black lives matter!” they yelled from underneath trees that provided little shade from Florida’s summer heat. It had been two days since a white gunman killed three Black people at a Dollar General in New Town, just a few miles away.
Three Black People Killed in Racially Motivated Attack Near Florida HBCU
Three Black people were killed in a racially motivated attack at a Dollar Store in Jacksonville, Florida, on Saturday afternoon, authorities said, sending a nearby HBCU into lockdown. The gunman was a white man in his 20s who “hated Black people,” Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters said at a press conference Saturday. The gunman was wearing a mask and tactical vest during the attack, and barricaded himself inside the store before killing himself.
How to deal with racial trauma, according to Black experts
This story was produced in partnership with Vox as part of the discrimination issue of The Highlight. As Black people, we are bombarded by instances of racism every day: Images of police and self-deputized citizens killing Black people. Hospitals shutting down in our communities. Negative stereotypes in media, microaggressions at work, suspicious treatment by store clerks and neighbors. All based on the color of our skin.
Racism In Collegiate Sports Is Taking an Alarming Toll on Black Athletes
LOS ANGELES — Sometimes, fans would hurl the N-word. Other times, they’d tell her how much she looked like a man. Occasionally, in less of a low blow, they’d talk down to her, calling her “girl.” The slurs are not uncommon to Koi Love. Playing college basketball in the Southeastern Conference meant traveling to majority white Southern towns. And as a Black woman, the team trips required being in a constant state of high alert.
The Climate Crisis is Colliding with the Criminal Justice System
Hurricane Ida was the second strongest storm to hit Louisiana over the last three centuries, dwarfing the beast that was Katrina. As virtually every Gulf Coast city was put under evacuation orders, thousands of incarcerated people were forced to stay put, some in flooded facilities that lacked electricity and running water, and had sustained intense rain damage.
‘Cop City’ Gets Approved By Atlanta Leaders
The Atlanta City Council voted early Tuesday morning to approve legislation to move forward with funding for a new public safety training center known as “Cop City.” The 11-4 vote came after more than 14 hours of public comment that stretched overnight — mostly from people in opposition. Less than two weeks earlier, Atlanta government officials confirmed taxpayers will have to pay more than twice as much — $67 million — as their leaders originally said they would to build the training facility.
‘Cop City’ Gets Approved By Atlanta Leaders
The Atlanta City Council voted early Tuesday morning to approve legislation to move forward with funding for a new public safety training center known as “Cop City.” The 11-4 vote came after more than 14 hours of public comment that stretched overnight — mostly from people in opposition. Less than two weeks earlier, Atlanta government officials confirmed taxpayers will have to pay more than twice as much — $67 million — as their leaders originally said they would to build the training facility.
Key Dates and Moments in Atlanta’s ‘Cop City’ Controversy
The latest chapter in Atlanta’s yearslong public safety training center saga begins this week and tensions at City Hall couldn’t be much higher.
What does the CDC’s Mpox Warning Mean for Atlanta?
Black community leaders who were on the front lines of Georgia’s mpox response are heeding the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s about a possible resurgence. The CDC released a health alert on May 15, warning that mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, could resurface in drastic numbers as people gather for summer festivities.
Mpox Could Surge Again in Georgia, Community Leaders Warn
Black community leaders who were on the front lines of Georgia’s mpox response are heeding the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s about a possible resurgence. The CDC released a health alert on May 15, warning that mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, could resurface in drastic numbers as people gather for summer festivities.
Justin Jones's Comments on His Expulsion From the Tennessee Statehouse
Politics Jones called his expulsion a power grab by Republicans and a lynch mob assembled to disrupt the democratic process. Thank you Mr. Speaker. The world is watching Tennessee. The world is watching Tennessee. What is happening here today is a farce of democracy. What is happening here today is a situation in which the jury has already publicly announced the verdict.
Georgia’s Legislative Session Is About to End. Here’s What We’re Watching.
The fate of several proposed laws that could impact the lives of Black Georgians will be decided on Wednesday, the 40th and final day of the state’s latest legislative session — aka Sine Die. The term “Sine Die” is that means “without assigning a day for a further meeting or hearing.” In Georgia, it’s the last day of the year for state government bills to be passed and signed into law by the governor. Measures that fail to receive Gov.
Georgia’s Legislative Session Is About to End. Here’s What We’re Watching.
The fate of several proposed laws that could impact the lives of Black Georgians will be decided on Wednesday, the 40th and final day of the state’s latest legislative session — aka Sine Die. The term “Sine Die” is that means “without assigning a day for a further meeting or hearing.” In Georgia, it’s the last day of the year for state government bills to be passed and signed into law by the governor. Measures that fail to receive Gov.
Black Families, Tell Us About Your Childbirth Experiences
Capital B is exploring why Black people are more likely to die and experience severe health complications related to childbirth, an issue we highlighted in our “Dangerous Deliveries” project. As we continue this coverage, we want to speak with Black parents across the United States about their pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum experiences. Your responses will inform our future reporting on maternity care, and we may reach out to interview you for a related article.
Brandon Tensley to Join Capital B’s National Team as Politics Reporter
We’re excited to expand our national reporting team with politics reporter Brandon Tensley. Brandon was most recently a national political writer at CNN, where he covered the intersection of culture, identity, and politics. At CNN, Brandon’s portfolio included a range of important stories, from gun policy to voting rights to LGBTQ+ issues, and he wrote the popular Race Deconstructed newsletter. Brandon has also been a co-host of Slate’s Outward podcast and a contributing writer at Pacific Standard.
The Reading List: How Black Buffalo Became the Target of White Supremacist Hate
The Tops grocery store where a gunman killed 10 people this month is now the site of one of the deadliest acts of racial violence in recent United States history. The rampage targeted a Black neighborhood in Buffalo, New York, that has suffered generations of segregation, pollution, and neglect.
The moment that launched the Black Lives Matter movement
People call for justice in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin during a press conference on the steps of New York City Hall on March 28, 2012. (Photo by Allison Joyce/Getty Images) Jerome Horton talks about the morning of Feb. 27, 2012, like he lived through it yesterday. It started with a call from his longtime friend Tracy Martin, who wondered if Horton had heard from Martin’s son, Trayvon.
EMILY's List's Laphonza Butler talks about winning the midterms and getting Black women in political office
Ahead of the midterms, Capital B is talking to newsmakers from across the country who want to reshape American politics or galvanize Black voices in government. Our “Voices of Change” series will update periodically with insights from the candidates, activists, lawmakers, and political insiders who you should know.
Simone Sebastian: Capital B Staff Q&A
What I do at Capital B I’m the editorial director and oversee Capital B’s newsrooms. I develop our journalistic vision and work with other editors to determine which issues we should cover. I ensure that our reporting meets high journalistic standards and reflects our editorial values.
Authorities probing Nashville blast converge on home in city’s suburbs
ANTIOCH, Tenn. — Authorities investigating the Christmas morning explosion in downtown Nashville converged on a home in Antioch, Tenn., about 10 miles southeast of the blast site Saturday afternoon, as law enforcement agents continued to gather evidence and run down hundreds of tips. Investigators think the person living at that address has a connection to the bombing.
Native voters struggle amid growing reliance on mail-in voting Original
Nicole Horseherder lives two miles away from her closest neighbor on the Navajo reservation in Black Mesa, Ariz. She has no mailbox and no street address. The nearest post office requires a 30-mile bumpy ride along unpaved dirt roads. So when Horseherder’s mail-in ballot had not arrived by mid-October, she was worried. “I was seriously thinking I’m not going to receive my ballot,” said Horseherder, who is 50 and head of the Navajo environmental justice nonprofit, Tó Nizhóní Ání.
Native voters struggle amid growing reliance on mail-in voting
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Oregon police to leave downtown Portland after DA declines to prosecute most protest-related crimes
Portland police and Oregon State Patrol officers arrest a protester in front of the Portland Police Bureau North Precinct on Tuesday. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images) Oregon State Police announced they will pull out of downtown Portland where nightly protests have continued for weeks, sometimes devolving into late-night clashes with law enforcement.
Gulf Coast refiners will stop light, sweet crude imports
Valero could stop importing light, sweet crude to its Gulf Coast refineries as soon as 2013 and fully rely on U.S. production, Chief Executive Officer Bill Klese said at a recent industry conference. With the rapid growth of domestic oil, Valero has projected that Gulf Coast refiners will soon run without foreign imports of light, sweet crude. Klese now says that moment could come by the end of 2013. “The amount of production coming on is huge,” Klese said during the conference this month.
Review | For black millennials, an endangered American Dream
Outlook Review Review Interpretation of the news based on evidence, including data, as well as anticipating how events might unfold based on past events January 25 It Was All a Dream A New Generation Confronts the Broken Promise to Black America By Reniqua Allen Bold Type Books. 368 pp. $28 Notorious B.I.G.’s 1994 hit “Juicy” encouraged young African Americans to “reach for the stars “ just as he did.
Acosta Epstein
Are you sure?This action might not be possible to undo. Are you sure you want to continue?CANCELOK
Charlie Byrd -- California's first elected black sheriff
Charlie Byrd, the sometimes crotchety Siskiyou County lawman who became the state's first elected black sheriff in 1986, was found dead in bed Tuesday at his home. Authorities said no foul play is suspected in the death of the 56-year-old former sheriff, who served 16 years in office and was considered unbeatable until he was upset by a challenger in last November's election.
What black men can learn from women's struggles in the era of #MeToo
About US is a new initiative by The Washington Post to cover issues of identity in the United States. Look for the About US newsletter launching this winter. Years ago, I was sitting in the office of a white pastor friend discussing race relations within his South Carolina church. The church was mostly white but had a not insignificant percentage of people of color.
Soft drink giants put new life into their containers
Soft drink giants put new life into their containers The decades-old duel between Coca-Cola and Pepsi has entered new territory. As the soda behemoths spar for world's top soft drink, the battle isn't just about what's in their bottles. It's about what's in their plastic. In 2009, the Coca-Cola Co. said the bottles in which it sells its Dasani water products would contain up to 30 percent sugar cane-based components. The bottles are made of a plastic called polyethylene terephthalate, or PET.
Donald Trump gets a basic fact wrong about black Americans
Over the course of the presidential campaign, Donald Trump has repeatedly used “inner city” as a synonym for black Americans — most recently during Sunday night's presidential town-hall debate. When James Carter, an undecided black voter, asked the Republican nominee and his opponent, Hillary Clinton, whether as president they could be devoted to all people in the United States, Trump immediately evoked the nation's urban centers.
Analysis: What Donald Trump gets about black Americans
Over the course of the presidential campaign, Donald Trump has repeatedly used “inner city” as a synonym for black Americans – most recently during Sunday night’s presidential town-hall debate. When James Carter, an undecided black voter, asked the Republican nominee and his opponent, Hillary Clinton, whether as president they could be devoted to all people in the United States, Trump immediately evoked the nation’s urban centers.
Donald Trump responds to Hillary Clinton's demands he aplogize
- In the second presidential debate, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton asked Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to apologize for the offensive comments he's said throughout the campaign. ()
Drivers cutting gasoline use, despite price drop
U.S. drivers are cutting their gasoline use, with demand for the fuel dropping 3.7 percent over the first week of December, according to MasterCard’s gasoline report. Despite lower prices during the past few months, motorists continue to reduce their reliance on gasoline. AAA shows a 12-cent drop in the average price for a gallon of regular over the past month.
Larry Summers: If we really valued excellence, we would single it out
Lawrence H. Summers, the Charles W. Eliot university professor at Harvard, is a former treasury secretary and director of the National Economic Council in the White House. He is writing occasional posts on Wonkblog about issues of national and international economics and policymaking. The Washington Post's Catherine Rampell wrote a column last week about grade inflation that reminded me of an issue that has long interested me as an economist and as a president of Harvard.
Tactics of Black Lives Matter are actually a lot like MLK's
Black Lives Matter protests have produced one spectacle after another. Peaceful demonstrations in Baltimore and Ferguson, Mo., were followed by riots in which police and activists clashed. Many Americans, weaned on tales of how 20th-century civil rights leaders used nonviolent resistance, criticize today’s advocates for “extreme” tactics and accuse them of inciting violence. Even the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s niece, Alveda King, called BLM’s methods inappropriate.
Sebastian: Civil rights movements and violence
Black Lives Matter protests have produced one spectacle after another. Peaceful demonstrations in Baltimore and Ferguson, Mo., were followed by riots in which police and activists clashed. Many Americans, weaned on tales of how 20th century civil rights leaders used nonviolent resistance, criticize today’s advocates for “extreme” tactics and accuse them of inciting violence. Even Martin Luther King Jr.’s niece, Alveda King, called BLM’s methods inappropriate.
Don’t criticize Black Lives Matter for provoking violence. The civil rights movement did, too.
By Simone SebastianOctober 1, 2015Black Lives Matter protests have produced one spectacle after another. Peaceful demonstrations in Baltimore and Ferguson, Mo., were followed by riots in which police and activists clashed. Many Americans, weaned on tales of how 20th-century civil rights leaders used nonviolent resistance, criticize today’s advocates for “extreme” tactics and accuse them of inciting violence. Even Martin Luther King Jr.’s niece, Alveda King, called BLM’s methods inappropriate.
Don’t criticize Black Lives Matter for provoking violence. The civil rights movement did, too.
Black Lives Matter protests have produced one spectacle after another. Peaceful demonstrations in Baltimore and Ferguson, Mo., were followed by riots in which police and activists clashed. Many Americans, weaned on tales of how 20th-century civil rights leaders used nonviolent resistance, criticize today’s advocates for “extreme” tactics and accuse them of inciting violence. Even Martin Luther King Jr.’s niece, Alveda King, called BLM’s methods inappropriate.
When she was charged with a sex crime, he got the blame
Cameron Clarkson was a 16-year-old football player when he suddenly landed in the middle of a sex crime investigation at Cretin-Derham Hall High School in St. Paul. Lawyers grilled him on the details of his sexual history.
He was abused by a female teacher, but he was treated like the perpetrator
Cameron Clarkson was a 16-year-old football player when he suddenly landed in the middle of a sex crime investigation at his St. Paul, Minn., high school. Lawyers grilled him on the details of his sexual history.
For battered NFL wives, a message from the cops and the league: Keep quiet
Whenever Dewan Smith-Williams sees Janay Rice on television, she feels like she's looking into a mirror. Smith-Williams, 44, remembers the denial, the secrecy, the sense of isolation, the shame. But most of all, she remembers the fear of ruining her husband's career as a National Football League player - the feeling that coming forth, or seeking justice, would destroy her four children's financial security.
Texas oil flowing nearly as fast as Iraq
HOUSTON — Texas now is pumping 36 percent of the nation’s oil, more than doubling its production in three years, according to new federal data. The Energy Information Administration reports that Texas oil production topped 3 million barrels per day in April, for the first time since the late 1970s. Nearly as much crude flowed from Texas as from Iraq, which was the second largest OPEC producer in April at 3.2 million barrels per day, according to estimates from Bloomberg.
Diesel demand projected to soar on economic growth
HOUSTON — Economic growth in the United States will cause demand for diesel to rise over coming decades, even as regular gasoline use continues a steady decline, according to a federal analysis released this week. The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects that growth in miles traveled by heavy-duty vehicles — such as buses, big rigs, and large pickup trucks — will outweigh improvements fuel economy, pushing demand for diesel higher.
Report: Chemical Safety Board in disarray, fostering abusive work environment
HOUSTON — A probe by two Congressional committees has found that the U.S. Chemical Safety Board is in turmoil and failing to fulfill its investigative duties for serious accidents at refineries and chemical plants, according to Reuters. The draft report concludes that leaders at the federal agency, which has criticized energy industry practices in the aftermath of the 2010 Gulf oil spill and other major accidents, have created an “abusive and hostile work environment,” Reuters wrote.
Poll: Majority supports Obama’s climate change rules on power plants
HOUSTON — More than two-thirds of U.S. adults support the Obama administration’s proposed restrictions on power plant emissions, according to an NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey released Wednesday. In the poll, 37 percent of respondents said they strongly support the limits on carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired plants and 30 percent say they somewhat support them. By comparison, 19 percent said they strongly oppose the policy and 10 percent somewhat oppose it.
North Dakota oil production surpasses 1 million barrels per day
HOUSTON — North Dakota’s oil production surpassed 1 million barrels per day in April for the first time in history, according to preliminary state data released Tuesday. Home to the prolific Bakken Shale, North Dakota pumped 1,001,149 barrels per day that month, jumping about 26 percent compared to a year earlier.
‘Big Men’ follows West Africa’s conflict over oil riches (video)
HOUSTON — Thursday is the final day to catch documentary “Big Men” at Sundance Cinema in downtown Houston. The film follows the conflict between militants, government and business for the riches that flow from West Africa’s oil wealth. Houston Chronicle entertainment writer Andrew Dansby reports that the film grew out of a chance meeting at the 2007 Offshore Technology Conference in Houston.
Ranked: Oil states lead among fastest growing economies in US
HOUSTON — The energy industry was a major driver of economic growth in several of the nation’s fastest-growing states last year, including Texas and the Rocky Mountain region, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The national gross domestic product, a measure of economic activity, grew 1.8 percent in 2013. Meanwhile, several states with thriving oil and natural gas industries, including North Dakota and Texas, saw economic growth of more than 3.5 percent.
U.S. is supplying more of its own energy needs
Pumpjacks work in North Dakota's Bakken Shale, one of the plays that helped boost U.S. energy production to 84 percent of the nation's demand last year. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images) The United States produced enough energy to satisfy 84 percent of its needs in 2013, a rapid climb from its historic low in 2005, according to a report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
North American refiners beating European profits by $6 per barrel
HOUSTON — North American refiners banked an extra $6 per barrel of oil processed compared to their European counterparts in the first quarter of 2014, continuing a three-year streak of significantly higher profits, according to a U.S. Energy Information Administration analysis of 26 companies. Refineries in North America have been reaping the rewards of cheaper crude, which they buy and process into gasoline and other fuels.
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