2022

Payton Gendron, 18, drove 200 miles to a Tops Friendly Markets in a predominantly Black neighborhood in Buffalo, NY and opened fire, killing 10 people, all but two of whom were Black. His 180-page manifesto cited the 'Great Replacement' conspiracy theory. The store was the only supermarket in a food desert created by decades of redlining. Gendron was sentenced to multiple life terms without parole.

Payton Gendron, 18, drove 200 miles to a Tops Friendly Markets in a predominantly Black neighborhood in Buffalo, NY on May 14, 2022, and opened fire with a semi-automatic rifle, killing 10 people and wounding 3. All but two victims were Black. Gendron wore tactical gear and live-streamed the attack on Twitch. His 180-page manifesto cited the 'Great Replacement' conspiracy theory promoted by Tucker Carlson and other right-wing media figures. The store was the only supermarket in a food desert created by decades of redlining and disinvestment. Gendron was sentenced to multiple life terms without parole.

The Supreme Court's 6-3 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization overturned Roe v. Wade. Black women faced disproportionate impact: they have abortions at higher rates due to lack of contraceptive access; they experience maternal mortality at 2.6 times the rate of white women; and they disproportionately live in the 26 states that moved to ban or severely restrict abortion.

The Supreme Court's 6-3 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization on June 24, 2022 overturned Roe v. Wade, eliminating the federal constitutional right to abortion and allowing states to ban it. Black women faced disproportionate impact: they have abortions at higher rates due to lack of contraceptive access and higher rates of unintended pregnancy rooted in health disparities; they experience maternal mortality at 2.6 times the rate of white women; and they disproportionately live in the 26 states that moved to ban or severely restrict abortion. OB/GYN deserts in Southern states with abortion bans primarily affected Black communities.

The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would have restored the preclearance formula gutted in Shelby County v. Holder, failed in the Senate unable to overcome a Republican filibuster. All 50 Senate Republicans voted against proceeding. Democrats failed to reform the filibuster. The bill had passed the House. Senator Raphael Warnock called the failure 'a shame and a sin.'

The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would have restored the preclearance formula gutted in Shelby County v. Holder and required states with histories of discrimination to obtain federal approval before changing voting laws, failed in the Senate on January 19, 2022, unable to overcome a Republican filibuster. The bill had passed the House. All 50 Senate Republicans voted against proceeding. Democrats failed to reform the filibuster to pass the legislation. Senator Raphael Warnock, a Democrat from Georgia who held the Senate seat previously held by John Lewis's ally, called the failure 'a shame and a sin.'

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed the Stop WOKE Act prohibiting mandatory workplace diversity trainings that included concepts such as white privilege, systemic racism, or ideas that any individual bears personal responsibility for past actions of other members of their race. Federal courts blocked portions of the law as unconstitutional. Florida also blocked AP African American Studies in January 2023.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed the Individual Freedom Act, known as the Stop WOKE Act, on April 22, 2022. The law prohibited mandatory workplace diversity trainings that included concepts such as white privilege, systemic racism, or ideas that any individual bears personal responsibility for past actions of other members of their race. It also restricted similar teachings in K-12 schools and public universities. Federal courts blocked portions of the law as unconstitutional infringements on free speech for universities; the K-12 and workplace provisions were separately challenged. Florida also blocked AP African American Studies as taught in its high schools in January 2023.

In late August 2022, Jackson, Mississippi's main water treatment plant failed amid flooding. The city — 82% Black and one of the poorest in the nation — lost water pressure for weeks, leaving 150,000 people unable to flush toilets, cook, or bathe. Governor Tate Reeves declared a state of emergency. Federal officials noted the city's crumbling infrastructure had been neglected for decades and that repeated requests for state funding were denied by the Republican-controlled legislature. Commentators contrasted the delayed federal response with the rapid federal action following the East Palestine, OH train derailment in February 2023, a predominantly white community.

President Biden signed the Emmett Till Antilynching Act into law on March 29, 2022, making lynching a federal hate crime punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Congress had introduced anti-lynching legislation over 200 times since 1900 without passing it. The law came 67 years after Till's murder and was named after the 14-year-old Black boy murdered in Mississippi in 1955.

President Biden signed the Emmett Till Antilynching Act into law on March 29, 2022, making lynching a federal hate crime punishable by up to 30 years in prison. The legislation was named after the 14-year-old Black boy murdered in Mississippi in 1955. Congress had introduced anti-lynching legislation over 200 times since 1900 without passing it. Representative Bobby Rush, Senator Cory Booker, and Senator Tim Scott were primary sponsors. The law came 67 years after Till's murder and covers conspiracies to commit hate crimes that result in death or serious bodily injury.

Dylann Roof, sentenced to death for the 2015 Emanuel AME massacre, repeatedly refused to allow mental health evidence to be presented at his trials, fearing it would undermine his stated white supremacist ideology. He became the first person sentenced to death for a federal hate crime. Roof represented himself at sentencing, offering no remorse. His case highlighted debates about capital punishment, mental illness, and the treatment of white mass shooters compared to the policing of Black communities. His manifesto, which cited the Council of Conservative Citizens, raised questions about the role of online radicalization.