Sr Teresita Weind, first Black superior of a global women's religious order, dead at 81
The Ohio-born Black Catholic nun and activist was infamously ousted from a pastoral role in a parish in the 1990s, only to be rehabilitated decades later.
Activism
St. Louis to fete 100th birthday of Sr Mary Antona Ebo, 'Sister of Selma'
Black Catholic groups in Missouri will celebrate the late African-American nun and activist with a centennial Mass and honorary presentation.
Raquel Willis, Catholic-raised Black trans activist, promotes memoir in San Francisco
The former Bay Area resident spoke of the travails of transgender life in the current U.S. climate, and the irresistible urge to be one's true self.
Black groups react to controversial new U.S. census guidelines
Afro-Latino advocates and those fighting for descendants of American slavery have found fault in the new changes from the Biden administration.
A museum on a former plantation shut down. These environmental activists have a plan to transform it.
Jo and Dr. Joy Banner, co-founders of The Descendants Project, have purchased what most recently operated as the 1811 Kid Ory Historic House museum.
St. Sabina Catholic Church unveils anti-gun violence sculpture in Chicago
The life-size bronze designed by Timothy P. Schmalz depicts a weeping Jesus over the lifeless body of a slain Black youth.
Review: 'A Symphony of Tiny Lights' illuminates Dr. John H. Francis, eco-justice pioneer
A new short doc on a planet-walking environmental activist—who once considered the monastery—does right by its subject and his love for the earth.
'Cancer Alley' polluter wins appeal in Louisiana court
The ruling is one of multiple recent blows to environmental protections in a region that sees sky-high cancer rates due to airborne carcinogens.
Assata Shakur wrote to the pope 25 years ago. Her letter still resonates.
Efran Menny resurfaces an oft-forgotten letter from a famed Black activist (and lapsed Catholic) to John Paul II, urging him to act for Black liberation.
Larry Payne, Houston activist and churchman, dead at 73
Payne first envisioned the creation of the National Black Catholic Congress and was the first lay or Black vicar in the U.S. Catholic Church.
Baltimore group meets with Vatican officials to urge canonization of U.S. Black Catholics
The activists have long called for an exception to the notably unwieldy canonization process—which has yet to produce a single Black American saint.
A call for intercession: the need for healing from persisting racism
Lydia Ocasio-Stoutenburg recounts a racist incident this year involving a Philadelphia Catholic school, chronicles the response, and urges the Church to act.
Ending the death sentence: Black maternal health and the Catholic Church
Efran Menny breaks down the ongoing crisis of medical racism and the Catholic call to support Black mothers in need.
Black Catholic couple honored for work on Underground Railroad
After gaining freedom in Louisville, Kentucky, James Madison and Catherine “Kitty” Smith harbored Black fugitives on their farm in Southern Indiana.
Holy Rosary & St. John to celebrate 125 years in Columbus as closure looms
The historic Black Catholic parish has been slated for closure since May, though the bishop—who has faced mounting controversy—has yet to issue an official decree.
'Not the way forward': Amanda Gorman speaks out on Scholastic segregating banned books
The bestselling Black Catholic author is one of dozens whose works are now merely optional in the company's popular elementary school book fairs.