Lawrence Ross
The Root
Los Angeles, CA, United States
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Past articles by Lawrence:
The George Floyd Janga
George Floyd is dead. → Read More
Here's 10 Black-Ass Predictions to Consider Since No One Really Knows What the Hell is Going to Happen in 2019
When it comes to predicting the future, I tend to listen to the wisdom of the black women in my family. Grandmamas, mothers, aunts, play aunts, doesn’t matter, their dreams are damn near unassailable when it comes to predicting your impending future death (“Baby, I saw you on a train headed straight towards a mountain. I’m so glad that you’re still alive. But keep praying to Jesus because I… → Read More
Dear Ebony Magazine: FU, Pay Your Writers!
Illustration: Jim Cooke (GMG/The Root) “I write things for money.” There it is. My official slogan since I first started writing professionally back in 1996. Head over to my personal Facebook page, and you’ll see it written in my intro. If I were to get a hood tatt, that’s the phrase I’d have my cousin ink into my neck with his worst prison handwriting. Don’t come at me with… “We don’t have… → Read More
Welcome to the New Nadir
The impossible happened. Against all odds, against all prognostications, America elected a racist, xenophobic, and misogynist man in Donald Trump as President of the United States. → Read More
It’s Election Day; You Know What to Do
Today is the election, and like millions of other African Americans, I’m headed to the polls to cast my vote. I can’t really say who I’m voting for, but let’s just say that I’m voting for a woman, and her party symbol is a jackass donkey. → Read More
A Trump Loss Is Still a Win for the Alt-Right
The Donald J. Trump Traveling Crazy Circus will finally crash and burn on Election Day, when millions of sane Americans head to the polls and pull the lever for Hillary Clinton. → Read More
So, Richard ‘All Lives Matter’ Sherman, Now You Want to Speak Out on Police Violence?
Until the Seattle cornerback explains that he’s no longer Mr. All Lives Matter, black folks need to ignore his press conferences and focus on the black athletes who are risking it all for a cause. → Read More
Hey, Michael Rapaport: Liking Hip-Hop Doesn’t Mean You Get to Tell Black People How to Feel
You know how this goes. You’re chilling, waiting for the bread and circuses that are the start of the NFL season, when your homie forwards you a link on Twitter, along with his own commentary: “Did you read this b.s. → Read More
Donald Trump’s Factory of Ignorant Black Surrogates
For all the “woke” brothers and sisters on TV these days, the black surrogates of GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump are providing an ignorant balance to the universe. → Read More
2 Years After Ferguson, The Fight Grows, Goes on for Black Lives Matter
Two years after the death of Mike Brown in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson, Mo., a movement continues on, changing and expanding to fit our time. → Read More
2 Years After Ferguson, Mo., the Fight Grows, Goes On for Black Lives Matter
Two years after the death of Mike Brown in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson, Mo., a movement continues on, changing and expanding to fit our time. → Read More
The Mediocrity of Dope: How Donald Trump Hides His Averageness in ‘Crazy’
Donald Trump wants you to believe he’s a special snowflake when he’s really the “gentleman’s C” of politics, business and life. He’s average, woefully average, and without white privilege, he’d be nothing. → Read More
Democrats Will Unite After They Finish Self-Destructing Over Emails, Bernie-or-Bust Crowd
As the Democratic National Convention gets underway, it’s always good to remember what Will Rogers once said: “I am not a member of any organized political party. I am a Democrat. → Read More
The RNC Is Over, but Can We Talk About Pastor Mark Burns?
Look, I’m a simple black man. I only have a few rules in life. If you call it stuffing instead of dressing, like all right thinking black folks, don’t bother friending me on Facebook. → Read More
America, Bye: Why Black America Is Leaving While Staying Put
Author Lawrence Ross predicts that black people will eventually divest from an American dream never meant for us, and will, instead, invest in each other. → Read More
Dear White People, Muhammad Ali Didn’t ‘Transcend Race’
When famous African-American celebrities die, you can bet your bottom dollar that if white folks liked them, the word “transcend” is going to pop up in their obits like lies in a Donald Trump speech. → Read More
A Silenced Ali Was a Likeable Ali for White People
“I am the greatest.” There will be thousands of well-deserved tributes to Muhammad Ali, and all will talk about his transformation from heavyweight boxing champion to international humanitarian. And that is important to note. → Read More
Scold-in-Chief? The Love-Hate Relationship Between HBCUs and President Obama
His Lasting Legacy: Does the Hawaii-born, Ivy League-educated president “get” the Southern vibe and culture of HBCUs? → Read More