(PHILADELPHIA, PA) – WURD Radio welcomes media and broadcast veteran Paul O. Robertson as its new Director of Sales. The station, which is Pennsylvania’s only independent Black-owned talk radio station, and one of only a few remaining in the country, looks to expand its business and media partnerships in 2020. Robertson, who is new to […]
The City installed speed cameras along a deadly stretch of Roosevelt Boulevard this week. Is it Black and Brown Philadelphians, WURD’s afternoon host wonders, who will pay for them? The Philadelphia Parking Authority’s decision to test speed cameras on Roosevelt Boulevard is in many ways a sensible thing to do. After all, the notoriously deadly […]
In the city of Philadelphia, young Black entrepreneurs often take leaps into entrepreneurship and struggle to achieve their dreams while battling a culture of poverty. In Trial By Fire, the short documentary produced by WURD Radio in partnership with the Poverty News Network and MSN, two entrepreneurs share their stories. Looking towards a solution, WURD’s […]
Arguably the biggest difference between the 2016 presidential election and now in 2020 — minus impeachment and general angst over the current Tweetalomaniac residing in the White House — is that candidates are finally having a national conversation on K–12 education. The Democratic party went so far as to dedicate a forum to it (one Saturday night when […]
Some might say Philadelphia feted its new City Council, re-elected mayor and other political luminaries in proper Broad Street-style at the Met on Monday. Some might say they could have done away with all the pomp and just carried out the ceremony at City Hall. But, one thing most seem to agree on is that […]
Not that she had much Black voter support while in it, but others did make gains once she left Since no one else is going to look at it, we’ll do it. Two of the latest major 2020 Democratic nomination polls offer us a glimpse in to sudden shifts in the primary landscape after the […]
A decade ago, before #BlackLivesMatter, before Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown, before camera phones immortalized the deaths of unarmed black people at the hands of police, there was a Philadelphia narcotics squad that allegedly ran amok in black and brown communities. Officer Thomas Tolstoy was a key member of that narcotics squad, and their exploits […]
The Philadelphia Citizen’s Ideas We Should Steal Festival™ is an annual full-day convening that brings the most innovative urban thinkers and global thought leaders together to share and discuss bold ideas that can transform our city. This year’s Festival features bold-faced names like HBO’s John Oliver, New York Attorney General Letitia James, Dayton Mayor Nan […]
(EDITOR’S NOTE: On Dec. 3, Sen. Kamala Harris of California announced that she was suspending her bid for the 2020 Democratic nomination for president. This story, which chronicled a late November push by black women to build support for Harris in Iowa and South Carolina, has been updated to include Harris announcement and otherwise reflect […]
When I convened over 400 people to announce an antigun violence effort called #ManUpPHL last Monday at the Community College of Philadelphia, I knew our effort would be bigger than our own work. It would also be about supporting the work of others. That’s why, on Saturday evening, a little more than two weeks after 10-year-old Semaj O’Branty […]
Philly Thrive activists, filling up seats in yellow shirts along the red velvet carpeting of Philadelphia City Council’s main chamber Thursday, felt a bit cheated. What had originally started out as a much more strongly worded resolution on the future of the shuttered Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES) refinery site—authored by outgoing Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds-Brown—ended up […]
MEDIA ADVISORY November 14, 2019 Contact: Solomon Jones pipedreamer19141@yahoo.com (215) 837-4325 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CLICK HERE TO FILL OUT THE HELP FORM! #ManUpPHL challenges black men to take on gun violence Dozens of black male organizations convene to stop the shooting PHILADELPHIA— As Philadelphia’s children are increasingly caught in the crossfire, #ManUpPHL, is bringing together hundreds […]
In a Black community dealing with the shooting deaths of numerous children in recent months, another story is vying for top billing — the proposed boycott of the Civil War-era biopic, “Harriet.” It seems to be part of a disturbing pattern of Black folks telling each other not to support Black films. And not just […]
By KELLY MACIAS Senior Editor, Black Women Unmuted Anoa Changa is trying desperately to kick off a frank conversation among Democrats about the electability of their current frontrunner for president, former Vice President Joe Biden. Changa, an Atlanta-based political analyst and attorney, argues frequently on social media that if Democrats select Biden to go up […]
Wake Up With WURD host Solomon Jones spearheaded efforts to hold police accountable for racist Facebook posts after disturbing findings released in the Plain View Project. Over 300 police officers were investigated and over a dozen officers were fired. Jones and other leaders in the city formed the Rally for Justice Coalition and they have been persistent […]
October 22, 2019 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: YaYa Horne yhorne@wurdradio.com WURD Radio’s “ecoWURD Environmental Justice Summit” featured an array of ideas, cultural expressions, and solutions to better the environment (PHILADELPHIA, PA) – On Sunday, October 20, 2019, WURD Radio held its first ever ecoWURD Environmental Justice Summit in partnership with Bartram’s Garden. Amidst the […]
This past weekend in Philadelphia a 2-year-old was shot in the head and died. Just a day before, an 11-month-old baby was shot four times and lived. And while my prayer is that something good can come from this assault on our children, reality says prayer is not enough. Philadelphia’s black and brown community — […]
By Nicki Mayo Black Women Unmuted From reproductive rights for women of color to a “say her name” moment for Atatiana Jefferson, the latest Democratic debate gave Black women plenty to consider as we weigh who to support in the bid to unseat President Donald Trump. A dozen Democrats vying to go up against Trump […]
Once harassed for golfing while Black, Ojo is now the first Black mayor of Hanover, Pennsylvania. But can she get re-elected? Editor’s Note: In April 2018, five black women were asked to leave a golf club near the majority-white borough of Hanover, Pa. The problem? They were accused of playing too slowly. Words got exchanged, […]
I was at home when my wife told me that Amber Guyger, a white former Dallas police officer, was found of guilty of murder for killing a black man named Botham Jean while Jean was at home in his apartment. “Good,” I said flatly. But that single word doesn’t capture the relief that comes with […]
By David A. Love Climate change and environmental issues are impacting the Black community in a disproportionate fashion, a reality which gave birth to the environmental justice movement. Despite the increased importance of environmental issues in Black America — with a heightened level of consciousness on climate issues and African Americans taking a central role in that […]
In this week’s episode of WURD Show on the Go, Dr. Aaron Smith visits New Covenant Church for the Poor People’s Campaign Hearings. The goal of the hearings are to lift up the voices of poor and dispossessed directly-impacted people, and the faith leaders who are on the side of the poor, to demand that […]
Young Black Women Want Atlanta’s Keisha Lance Bottoms to Bring More Than Her Black Womanhood To City Hall ~~~ EDITOR’S NOTE: According to the Center for American Women & Politics, seven of the United States’ largest 100 cities are run by Black women mayors. Two of these cities are state capitals, one is the nation’s […]
Charles Ellison, host of ecoWURD radio on WURD’s Reality Check, presents the ecoWURD Food Lab. In this installment, experts discuss the widespread and very localized impacts of climate change and crisis on food insecurity. ecoWURD Food Lab is a weekly exercise on Reality Check, in partnership with Resolve Philadelphia and Broke in Philly (a project of Resolve), to spotlight food insecurity and how […]
In August 1619, English pirates landed at Point Comfort, Virginia with more than 20 Africans they’d taken captive from a Portuguese slave ship. The pirates traded the Africans for food, and thus began the African slave trade in what would later become the United States. So 400 years of discomfort began at Point Comfort. Four […]
In a shocking turn of events, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross resigned Wednesday, just days after Mayor Kenney called him the best police commissioner in America. I’m saddened by it, because I respect him. There were certainly times when I had to speak, write and protest against systemic racism in the police department. In doing […]
I remember the scene vividly. Eric Garner, surrounded by police officers on a Staten Island street corner, with then-Officer Daniel Pantaleo’s arms locked firmly around Garner’s neck. “I can’t breathe,” Garner said 11 times in a videotaped tragedy viewed by millions. At the end of it, Garner lay motionless on the ground, and the breath […]
The shootout with city police yesterday was in a struggling stretch of North Philly that has too often seen violence. WURD’s afternoon host wonders if now the neighborhood will get some help As worried Philadelphians and the world were gripped by images of a fierce, 8-hour standoff of gun battles and crouching police, many Philadelphians […]
by Sincerely Syreeta Host of The Lounge on WURD RADIO The 4 part series aired nightly on The Lounge from July 29-August 1st “Hearing a mom’s cry, a dad screaming, ‘not my son,’ or a little [child] crying, ‘I want my brother.’ These are sounds we hear when we go home. They never leave you. […]
The mothers of Tamir Rice, Sean Bell, Eric Garner, and Sandra Bland (Samaria Rice, Valerie Bell, Geneva Reed-Veal, and Gwen Carr), join Brother Shomari to talk about violence in our community, where they are in the fight for justice for their children, and to talk about the movie Jason’s Letter. Jason’s Letter, written by Terrance […]
CBCF will host a ceremonial swearing-in for current and newly-elected Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) members of the 116th Congress. Fifty-five (55) members will take the oath of office – the largest in the CBC’s history. The event honors the legacy of the CBC and marks the installation of its new and re-elected members. The ceremonial swearing-in […]
The winds of change blew briskly – and profoundly – through WURD in 2018. In case you missed it, this was a year marked by morning show shifts, the introduction of the all-women lineup – The Source (10am-1pm) — and the growth of our millennial focused show, The Lounge.. Yes: we got off to a […]
Dear WURD Family: Thank you for coming out — in force – last Saturday for the 2nd Annual WURD Empowerment Experience! You showed up and showed out. And we deeply appreciate it. Your presence is the fuel that powers our work. If you were there, I think you would agree that we lived up to […]
As we officially celebrate our 15-year anniversary, I have been reflecting on WURD’s evolution and our journey forward. As the only African American talk radio station in Pennsylvania – and one of the few remaining in the country – WURD is carrying on a unique and powerful legacy of conscious Black radio. We are part […]
In 1996, hip-hop trio De La Soul released their third studio album, “The Stakes Is High.” Fans weren’t sure whether to embrace the album because it marked such a dramatic departure from the lighthearted lyrics of their previous body of work. But a good artist is always committed to evolving. The group prided itself […]
As we officially celebrate our 15-year anniversary, I have been reflecting on WURD’s evolution and our journey forward. As the only African American talk radio station in Pennsylvania – and one of the few remaining in the country – WURD is carrying on a unique and powerful legacy of conscious Black radio. We are part […]
If there’s anything the past two years should have taught us is that the American public should be a bit more imaginative when it comes to its politics. These days, anything goes. Anything is possible in an election and in battles over Supreme Court nominees, too. We should have long ago thrown out the conventional […]
With the most crucial set of Congressional midterm, state legislative and gubernatorial elections in modern American political history happening in 49 days, it is still unclear to many observers how mobilized an equally crucial Black vote will be when November 6th arrives. The mood in what is a very noisy Black cultural moment, further lit […]
What Philadelphia Lost When it Lost Dr. Walter P. Lomax Jr. 10 things you didn’t know about one of our city’s great men. On this past Thursday at 8:30 a.m., 81-year-old Dr. Walter P. Lomax Jr. passed away. “So what?” you ask. “What’s the big deal?” you ask. “Don’t old men die every day?” you […]
The mothers of Tamir Rice, Sean Bell, Eric Garner, and Sandra Bland (Samaria Rice, Valerie Bell, Geneva Reed-Veal, and Gwen Carr), join Brother Shomari to talk about violence in our community, where they are in the fight for justice for their children, and to talk about the movie Jason’s Letter. Jason’s Letter, written by Terrance […]
For Michael Cogbill, getting engaged in the electoral process is the best way an individual can help to eliminate community violence. Cogbill, a resident of the Mount Airy section of Philadelphia, was one of many that attended WURD’s Transmit Transform event held at Bartram’s Garden highlighting the documentary “Quest” about life in North Philadelphia. “I […]
“TRANSMIT/TRANSFORM,” was a two-day event celebrating the lives of community members lost to violence in the Fairhill-Hartranft neighborhood of North Philadelphia. Done in partnership with the Village of Arts and Humanities, this project, timed to coincide with Memorial Day, was a part of the WURD on Violence Collaborative. Using the Village’s ArtBuilt Mobile Studio, WURD […]
Contact: Kwasa Mathis 1341 N. Delaware Avenue, Suite 300 Philadelphia, PA 19125 215.425.7875 ext 121 kmathis@wurdradio.com #WURDWELLNESS PAVILION AT 11th ANNUAL PARKWEST FESTIVAL Black Talk Station Presents Health Conscious Information & Activities in West Philly (PHILADELPHIA, PA) – Today, WURD Radio (96.1FM / 900AM / WURDRadio.com / WURDApp), the only African American owned […]
Contact: Kwasa Mathis 1341 N. Delaware Avenue, Suite 300 Philadelphia, PA 19125 215.425.7875 ext 121 kmathis@wurdradio.com http://wurdradio.com #BEINGWHILEBLACK: WURD HOSTS FIRST LIVE RADIO BROADCASTED FORUM ON RACE, RACIAL TRAUMA and HEALING First Big Philly-based Community Event Since Starbucks Incident to Examine Routine Racism Faced by Black America (PHILADELPHIA, PA) – Today, WURD Radio […]
Another Democratic primary in Philadelphia, another year where voter turnout was pitifully below even the lowest standard set by the city officials who oversee our elections. Races from local to state to federal were crowded and contentious this year, especially in Pennsylvania’s post-gerrymandered era. New Congressional districts offered new plot twists. Nowhere was the political […]
Starbucks COO Rosalind Brewer sat down with the Wake Up With WURD morning team to address the controversial arrests at the Starbucks location at 18th and Spruce Street in Philadelphia, PA.
Wake Up With WURD, hosted by Christopher “Flood the Drummer” Norris Audit gun owners quarterly and create a registry. “You have to renew your firearms license. When it’s time for it be renewed, you should have to prove you actually are in possession of the guns.” – Terrez McCleary, Co-Founder of Moms Bonded by Grief […]
W.E.B. DuBois once famously framed the duality of being Black and American as a “two-ness” or “double consciousness.” “An American, a Negro,” he wrote, “two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body, whose dogged strength alone keeps it from being torn asunder.” Building on Dr. DuBois’s brilliant analysis, as […]
Before you make your way to theaters for the historic opening weekend of Disney/Marvel's BLACK PANTHER, it is worth it to refamiliarize yourself with the voices, works and vision of some of the film's leading characters.
No spoiler alerts necessary. I am merely here to sing praises and offer a Wakanda-style crossed arm salute to Ryan Coogler and any member of the Disney team who had the good sense to hire him to direct this stupendous Black superhero tale. Full disclosure: I am a lifelong, unabashed animated film nut. This means, […]
Created in celebration of WURD’s 15th anniversary and W.E.B. Du Bois’ 150th birthday, the program explores The Philadelphia Negro, a sociological study written in 1899 by Du Bois and commissioned by the University of Pennsylvania. A panel led by scholar Anthony Monteiro will look at Du Bois’ findings then and discuss where Philadelphia as a […]
THIS WEEK’S HIGHLIGHTS: On average, 10.2% of Black voters nationally approve of President Trump (a 0.9 point increase or 9.7% rise since the 1.25.18 NBVA) President Trump’s favorability rating among Black voters is, on average, 9% (a 1 point increase or 12.5% rise since the 1.25.18 NBVA) On average, 70% of Black voters would vote […]
Shavonne Robbins & John Pace, who were both sentenced to life as juveniles, share their story of how they ended up incarcerated and offer solutions to violence on Wake Up With WURD.
That’s actually been a daunting question through a blend of several decades of white Irish and Italian descended Congressmen ruling the Philadelphia political machine despite the heavy residential composition of diverse, primarily Black voters. It’s been barely tolerated for as long as anyone growing up there can remember, even as its shape — through dramatic, questionable redesign — has […]
Anti-Violence Partnership of Philadelphia http://avpphila.org/contact-us/ 2000 Hamilton Street, Suite 204 Philadelphia, PA 19150 Phone: 215-567-6776 Fax: 215-567-6775 Center City Crime Victim Services http://www.cccvs.org/contact 1315 Walnut Street, Suite 320 Philadelphia, PA 19107 Phone: 215-665-9680 Email: info@cccvs.org The Charles Foundation https://www.thecharlesfoundation.com/ 605 N. 52nd Street Philadelphia, PA 19139 Cradle2Grave https://www.cradletograveprogram.com/content/about_cradle2grave.htm Temple University Hospital 3401 […]
The Office of the Pennsylvania Attorney General will no longer be investigating the fatal police shooting of David Jones. 1.23.18: Philadelphia – (Politics): Ms. Tiffanie Luke recalls seeing at least three missed calls on her phone Tuesday afternoon from the Office of the Pennsylvania Attorney General. For months, Ms. Luke has called that office seeking […]
WURD Radio is amplifying points of view in a new solutions journalism campaign that solicits and publishes responses to violence and in order to do this, we want to hear from YOU! Visit WURD Radio on our social media pages or just add your comment to the above question, directly on this page! RESPONSES Mick […]
WURD Radio is amplifying points of view in a new solutions journalism campaign that solicits and publishes responses to violence and in order to do this, we want to hear from YOU! Visit WURD Radio on our social media pages or just add your comment to the above question, directly on this page! RESPONSES […]
Philadelphia and the Denver suburb of Aurora, CO might be over 1,700 miles apart, but there are some distressing similarities in the way they’re both treating the ugly social trend of bullying. In Aurora, 10-year old Ashawnty Davis died from complications of an attempted suicide two-weeks earlier, the terrifying result of overwhelming stress due to constant harassment […]
WURD Radio is amplifying points of view in a new solutions journalism campaign that solicits and publishes responses to violence and in order to do this, we want to hear from YOU! Visit WURD Radio on our social media pages or just add your comment to the above question, directly on this page! RESPONSES Michell […]
https://youtu.be/7k4374j_a0o At WURD’s Empowerment Expo a panel was convened to discuss violence in the community. Moderator: Christopher Norris – WURD Radio Guest Host, Wake Up With WURD Panelists: Victoria Greene – Founder and Director of EMIR Healing Center Scott Charles, M.D. – Trauma Outreach Coordinator, Director of the Cradle to Grave Program, Temple University Hospital […]
WURD Radio is amplifying points of view in a new solutions journalism campaign that solicits and publishes responses to violence and in order to do this, we want to hear from YOU! Visit WURD Radio on our social media pages or just add your comment to the above question, directly on this page! SCROLL DOWN […]
A measure of a city’s character hinges on how well it treats its senior citizens. In Philly, one aspect of that is how easy it is for senior citizens to travel from their homes to the rest of the city. And on that front, Customized Community Transportation, the elderly-focused paratransit service supervised by SEPTA, leaves […]
Despite a torrent of horrific headlines regarding the pedophiliac tendencies of Alabama Republican U.S. Senate nominee Roy Moore, many observers still believe that as embattled by embarrassing national headlines as he is, Moore will win on Dec. 12. And that eventuality is nearing even as some believe Black voters are in a prime position to […]
WURD Radio is amplifying points of view in a new solutions journalism campaign that solicits and publishes responses to violence and in order to do this, we want to hear from YOU! Visit WURD Radio on our social media pages or just add your comment to the above question, directly on this page! SCROLL DOWN […]
Losing one mentee to Philadelphia violence was hard. Losing two is just unbearable. And losing a third will simply be unacceptable. By Alex Peay 11.20.17: Philadelphia – When I met Philadelphia 4th grader Azim Chaplin, he was too young to participate in Rising Stars, the afterschool mentoring program that Rising Sons – the organization I […]
With Philadelphia now in the post-School Reform Commission world and headed rapidly towards local control of its schools, the question turns to something city officials have given little thought to: How to pay for it. Forget, for the moment, whether a new school board should be appointed by the Mayor or if it should be […]
The Philadelphia District Attorney-elect said his campaign relied heavily on neighborhoods where politicians don’t even go to lie. 11.8.17: Philadelphia – (Politics): Positioned under a big umbrella held by a close associate, Mr. Larry Krasner on Tuesday night took a short stroll from his victory party, where he had to navigate through a crowd of […]
This election season could prove that “the resistance” is really all bullshit. On Tuesday, in states like Virginia, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and on Dec. 12 in Alabama, there are big chances to begin striking back—and in a language that can scare people like White House chief of staff John Kelly, his boss, Bannonites, congressional […]
Let’s first kick this off by saying that I’ve got nothing against Democratic District Attorney candidate Larry Krasner. In fact, it would be nice if Krasner won simply because, not unlike many others, the Philly D.A.’s race is emerging as something of a barometer for the general state of national competition between Democratic and Republican […]
Wake Up With WURD Hosts Mark Kelly Tyler, Denise Clay and Chris “Flood the Drummer” Norris spoke with activist and journalist Marc Lamont Hill about current issues and his return to Philadelphia.
Jeffrey Tokazewski, M.D. of Penn Medicine speaks with WURD President and CEO Sara Lomax Reese about the free Medicare Annual Wellness Visit. This benefit includes a FREE annual wellness visit every 365 days and does not require a co-pay and does not apply to an annual deductible.
Of the many questions surrounding the routinely bizarre public conduct of President Trump, one of the more perplexing is his recent entrance into national anthem protests from Black National Football League players. That reached a fevered pitch in the recent week as the president launched into another tirade blasting players and the league, directed his […]
CALLING ALL OF THOSE WHO CAN GIVE! With the help of our new and renewed ForWURD Members, WURD was able to raise over $2k for those impacted by Hurricane Harvey in Texas, however we CANNOT FORGET about the hurricane victims in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. During these trying times, we ask that you give […]
The featured chef for WURD’s Independence LIVE Chef Series cooking demonstration was Naimah Rutling, proud owner of the catering company, H.E.R. by Chef Nai. She showed us how to make a quick, nutritious, and delicious meal for the whole family using her signature spices and sauces.
Click the link to see WURD Radio's video highlight reel from the Oct 4 ceremony, featuring footage of some of Philadelphia's most beloved musical legends receiving their just due.
Nationally, we’ve pretty much got used to the routine of reaction to mass shootings. Once the shock wears off, we’re grappling with a mix of heartbreak and outrage. Soon after, we’ve launched into a full blown debate over America’s obsession with guns and, naturally, reflexed into a conversation about gun control. One side of the […]
We caught up with Rev. Joe Williams at the Philly Music Walk of Fame ceremony. Hear what he had to say about 2017 inductee Sister Rosetta Tharpe, her connection to Philadelphia, and her influence on gospel music.
Former judge admits concealing payments he got from Brady campaign; Supreme Court kicks off blockbuster term; Russian Facebook Ads Turned Over To Congress; Sandy Hook senator has a blunt message; Lone gunman kills 59, injures hundreds, in Las Vegas concert attack
As we enter October, month of surprises, one thing is becoming abundantly unsurprising: Philadelphia forgot it has elections coming up. That was the unfortunate thing about the Democratic primary for city District Attorney in May. It became so contentious, so politically caustic, that it gave residents the impression that this was the final election to […]
WURD Radio was the only media outlet to capture this historic moment in its entirety. Watch as Catto's legacy receives recognition and his statue is unveiled.
Each time I think of Donald Trump’s remarks about black professional football players kneeling in protest during the National Anthem, I vacillate between anger and sadness. Not just because Trump reduced a protest involving the value of black lives to a political publicity stunt. I am angry because Trump may have manufactured this tiff to […]
While they might seem miles apart, they’re very much interconnected: Parking tickets and poverty. The former may be feeding off the latter like a parasite, yet there’s not a whole lot of conversation about it beyond the mix of shrugs, the sound of tickets being ripped up in anger, and the quiet epidemic of low-income […]
ICYMI: Philly's DJs share insight on how to grow audience, remain relevant and push the nightlife/music culture of the city forward during the 2017 Philly Fringe Festival. Hear their thoughts and make plans to go shake a tailfeather soon.
Description: In the season finale, former Philadelphia police officer and whistleblower Rochelle Bilal shares her views on the Thin Blue Line, the legacy of Frank Rizzo, double standards among police based on race, and why she ventured into law enforcement despite negative experiences with police growing up. Bilal is president of the local chapter of […]
