Free Republic

Ncuti (pronounced Shooty) Gatwa, the first black “Doctor Who,” complained, “There’s so much white mediocrity that gets celebrated,” in a new interview. Gatwa, an LGBTQ* Rwandan immigrant to the U.K., spoke out about a variety of identity-related grievances as the cover model of the “best-selling gay magazine” Attitude for its May/June issue. When asked about whether he received backlash for being cast as the Doctor, who has primarily been played by white men throughout the decades, he responded that his critics need a better hobby, but also suggested his casting is part of a global shift, “[W]e do see a...

MSNBC host Joy Reid lamented that black Americans have not received sufficient reparations for “literally, physically” building this country, believing that former President Barack Obama’s eight-year tenure is the best they will get. Reid issued her comments during an interview on Salon Talks with writer Dean Obeidallah wherein she said that black people “literally, physically, built this country” and therefore deserve much more than a two-term black president.

An Egyptian lawyer has filed a case with the Public Prosecutor to close the Netflix platform after the trailer of “Queen Cleopatra" was released, which depicts the Greek historical figure as a black-skinned woman. According to Egypt Independent, Mahmoud al-Semary demanded that all legal measures be taken against those responsible for the documentary and the management of the streaming platform for its participation in “this crime.” He also called for an investigation and for Netflix to be blocked in Egypt. The complaint submitted against the streaming platform said that "most of what Netflix platform displays contradicts Islamic and societal values...

Actress Drew Barrymore is being accused of cultural insensitivity toward “black creators” for posting a video of herself enjoying the rain, which at least one critic says is an appropriation of the “black men frolicking” trend. Many social media users were confused by the criticism posted by TikTok user amushroomblackly, who chastised Barrymore for the video clip by saying she was a “colonizer” who made it possible for millions of her followers to “dismiss and disrespect the boundaries that black creators have set.” The TikTok user was upset because she saw Barrymore’s video as an extension of a TikTok trend...

Alec Baldwin’s wife Hilaria Baldwin is responding to accusations she faked her Spanish accent and lied about her heritage for years. The Daily Beast reports a Twitter user named @lenibriscoe shared a long thread raising questions about Hilaria, who claimed she was born in Mallorca, Spain, and has given Spanish names to her five children with Baldwin (Carmen, Rafael Thomas, Leonardo Angel Charles, Romeo Alejandro David and Eduardo Pau Lucas). Tweets include footage of Hilaria’s accent fluctuating, including when she said she couldn’t remember the English word for “cucumber” during a “Today” show appearance, and evidence (including her yearbook and...

Sen. Elizabeth Warren — the subject of “Pocahontas” taunts from President Trump due to her once-claimed Native American ancestry — is looking to turn a weakness into a strength. As part of a prospective 2020 presidential run, she hopes to present herself to the American electorate as a champion of Native Americans and the unique issues affecting them.

There’s a ghost haunting Elizabeth Warren as she ramps up for a possible 2020 presidential bid and a reelection campaign in Massachusetts this year: her enduring and undocumented claims of Native American ancestry. Warren says now, as she has from the first days of her public life, that she based her assertions on family lore, on her reasonable trust in what she was told about her ancestry as a child. “I know who I am,” she said in a recent interview with the Globe. But that self-awareness may not be enough, as her political ambitions blossom. She’s taken flak from...

What if it really was Adam and Steve? That’s what the Out Front Theater Company in Atlanta, which stages shows created only by people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning, will set out to answer for audiences during a three-week run of “The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told,” starting April 27. However, its decision to do so has provoked a torrent of criticism over the play, which has been called “blasphemous.”

....., according to Bloomberg, she sold a painting by Gustav Klimt for $196 million to an unnamed Chinese buyer.... ....Oprah purchased the painting at a Christie’s auction in 2006 for $115 million....

According to Misao Dean, Professor of English at the University of Victoria, the canoe can be a symbol of colonialism, imperialism and genocide due to history. She also accused the canoers of cultural appropriation because they are primarily white men and have a privileged place in society. In a radio interview for CBC Radio, which wasn’t picked by the Internet until several months later, she claimed “we have a whole set of narratives that make the canoe into a kind of morally untouchable symbol, something that seems natural, that seems ordinary, and seems to promote values that we ascribe to.”