Black Catholic books of note (2025 edition)
A sampling of new and upcoming texts written by Black Catholics in the past year.
Violence
Arrest made in fatal shooting of Wayne 'LOC' Shaw, brother of rap legend Too Short
The 61-year-old was killed at his business in Oakland, California, on Jan. 29 in what is believed to have been a robbery attempt gone wrong.
Review: 'I'm Still Here' brings government corruption home on the silver screen
Nate Tinner-Williams reviews the new film depicting a family interrupted by the machinations of a U.S.-backed military regime in 1970s Brazil.
New Orleans car attacker had Black Creole roots in Louisiana
Shamsud-din Jabbar descended from Louisiana African Americans and practiced Islam in his youth before being radicalized as an adult.
Black Beaumont native kills 14 in New Orleans car attack
The African-American perpetrator was radicalized in a form of Islamist extremism and had an ISIS flag on his rented vehicle.
Diddy hit with new sex abuse lawsuit, denied bail for third time
The Catholic-raised rapper-turned-mogul is behind bars on federal charges and awaits a May 2025 trial that could land him in prison for life.
Catholic with neo-Nazi ties sentenced to life in prison for murder of gay Jewish teen
The attorney for Samuel Woodward, who stabbed a former high school classmate at an Orange County, Calif., park in 2018, has said he will appeal.
'A black mark': Congolese cardinal on sainthood cause for Belgian king linked to colonialism, assassination
On King Baudouin, Cdl Fridolin Ambongo says Congolese bishops remain open, while noting an investigation will dig deeply into the royal's past.
'Dialogue has to happen': South Sudanese cardinal on conflict in the homeland
At the Synod on Synodality, Cardinal Stephen Ameyu Martin Mulla of Juba spoke on various issues in his region and the need for continued dialogue.
Catholic-raised urban fiction author Donald Goines to be honored with mural, biopic
A group of local artists, led by Robert "Seven' Shannon III, announced the news this month ahead of the bestselling author's 50th death anniversary.
Haitian archbishop calls for peace during Pope Francis' day of prayer
Archbishop Launay Saturné of Cap-Haitien is one of two Black Caribbean delegates to the Synod on Synodality, currently convening in Rome for the month of October.
Pope Francis signals sainthood for Belgian king tied to deadly Congolese coup
King Baudouin praised the "genius" of Leopold II's bloody Congo Free State and turned a blind eye to the 1961 assassination of Patrice Lumumba.
Poem: THE WORLD THAT WE LIVE IN
Dorothy Dempsey on shifting sands and the void of hope in a troubled American moment.
Sean 'Diddy' Combs arrested on federal RICO, sex trafficking charges in New York
The rap mogul is due to appear in federal court Tuesday morning to be arraigned on charges carrying a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Former President Donald Trump unhurt after second assassination attempt
It is unclear whether any shots were fired by convicted felon Ryan Wesley Routh, the lone suspect in the incident at Trump's Florida golf resort.
Never again a repeat of history: The scourge of Trump in an age of war
Dorothy Dempsey on the growing threat of a second Donald Trump presidency amid his continued defiance of the moral order.