October 11, 2025

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Author DeWayne Wickham created this photo illustration to show, from left, Trevillian Wickham, John Trevillian Wickham and DeWayne Trevillian Wickham (himself). Photo courtesy of DeWayne Wickham

National

A VETERANS DAY READ: Aaron Burr’s lawyer owned my family. It has been a long, tragic journey from slavery.

November 10, 2023
By DeWayne Wickham
USA Today

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Nurse Corean McClinton, left, talks about pain management with Sherry Webb at the Sickle Cell Center in the Truman Medical Center, Wednesday, March 7, 2007, in Kansas City, Missouri. After having been ill for a couple of days, Webb presented at the clinic with what was described as a full-blown sickle cell crisis. The Sickle Cell Adult Provider Network, a network of health care professionals and researchers from Missouri and 35 other states, is developing what its members say will be the first-ever set of universal practices for doctors and nurses to follow when treating adult sickle cell patients. Photo credit: Dick Whipple, The Associated Press

Health & wellness

Gene therapy might cure sickle cell disease

November 2, 2023
By USA Today

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Leaders from countries with the largest tropical forest basins are meeting in the Republic of Congo on Thursday to work together to protect the forests from deforestation and destruction. Delegates from Brazil, Indonesia, Republic of Congo and dozens of other countries at the Three Basins Summit in Brazzaville are hoping to form a coalition of leaders from the basins of the Amazon, the Congo and Borneo-Mekong in Southeast Asia to discuss how to finance the protection of their wildlife-rich regions, which are also major sites for storing planet-warming carbon dioxide. The countries in the three basins have 80% of the world’s tropical forests and two-thirds of the Earth’s biodiversity, according to the World Wildlife Fund. But logging, forest degradation, loss of native species and extreme weather events fueled by climate change have the forests under enormous pressure that’s putting local economies and food security at risk. Despite pledges by governments and businesses to stop forest loss, deforestation continues around the world: A total of 4.1 million hectares of tropical forest was lost to deforestation in 2022, according to a report released Monday by the Forest Declaration Assessment, a group of civil society and research organizations. The vast majority of deforestation in the world – 96% – occurs in tropical regions, the report said. Agriculture, including cattle ranching and smallholder farming, is the leading driver of forest loss across the tropics, said Fran Price, a global forest practice leader at WWF. Other causes include road expansion, fires and commercial logging, which also destroy and degrade the forests, she added. Swathes of the Amazon and Indonesian rainforest are regularly up in flames — often started deliberately by those clearing land or burning felled trees — that can sometimes spread uncontrollably. Climate change and other factors have also led to drought and wildfires in forest regions. Just this week, public authorities in Brazil scrambled to deliver food and water across territories around the Amazon river where El Nino and warming are fueling a record drought. The three basins have experienced different trends over the years. The Amazon, the world’s largest tropical forest basin, saw an 18% increase in forest loss from 2021 to 2022, much of that driven by Brazil – where deforestation has since reduced in the first six months of this year. Forest loss has decreased significantly in Indonesia and Malaysia in recent years and remained relatively consistent in the Congo, according to analysis by the World Resources Institute. Over the years, countries have announced many initiatives and commitments to ending deforestation, including one at United Nations climate talks in Glasgow in 2021, but implementation has been slow. In August this year, a planned meeting between leaders of Brazil, Indonesia and Congo in Kinshasa to discuss the preservation of tropical forests failed to take place. Forest experts say the three-day summit in Brazzaville is a critical opportunity to act on and finance plans to protect and restore vital forest ecosystems. Fran Price, global forest practice leader at WWF, wants the summit to go beyond “countries discussing as they have been” and for governments to present concrete and actionable plans that show accountability and transparency. “It is imperative that all governments in the regions and outside of the regions use this platform to work together,” she said. She also called on the private sector and civil society "to change the business-as-usual trajectory that we’re on.” Emmanuelle Bérenge, sustainable forest management lead at the Rainforest Alliance, said the summit provides a vital chance to translate the multitude of commitments that have been made in the past around preserving and restoring the world’s forests into “initiatives and policies that can genuinely make a difference.” The summit is an important step in bringing together countries to preserve their forests and improve the livelihoods of people who depend on them, said Mikaela Weisse, director of Global Forest Watch. “There is no keeping climate change to 1.5 degrees (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) without protecting tropical forests,” she said, referring to the global goal of capping warming to protect the world from harm caused by climate change. With the right actions, she added, the summit could help countries build an inclusive coalition where Indigenous Peoples and local voices are valued, and learn from each other on the most effective strategies for ending deforestation. The gathering is the second Three Basins Summit, building on the first meeting held 12 years ago, when governments and other parties in the basin regions agreed to work together to protect resources. ___ Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Global

As rainforests worldwide disappear, burn and degrade, a summit to protect them opens in the Republic of Congo

October 26, 2023
By Carlos Mureithi
The Associated Press

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San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama brings the ball up against the Dallas Mavericks during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Antonio, Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023. Photo credit: Eric Gay, The Associated Press

Sports

NBA winners and losers: Victor Wembanyama finishes debut with flourish after early foul trouble

October 26, 2023
By USA Today
NABJ Black News & Views

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Richard Roundtree attends the premiere of "Shaft" at AMC Lincoln Square on Monday, June 10, 2019, in New York. Roundtree died Oct. 24, 2023, at age 81. Photo credit: Charles Sykes, Invision/The Associated Press

Arts & culture

Richard Roundtree, ‘Shaft’ action hero and ‘Roots’ star, dies at 81, reports say

October 24, 2023
By Edward Segarra
USA Today

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Police walk outside the Tops grocery store on Sunday, May 15, 2022, in Buffalo, New York. Payton Gendron was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023, for killing 10 people at a Buffalo supermarket in an attack fueled by racist conspiracy theories he encountered online. Photo credit: Joshua Bessex, The Associated Press

National

FBI: Most hate crimes target Black people and Jewish people

October 17, 2023
By Aysha Bagchi
USA Today

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