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  • Introducing Shuffalo, Our New Word Game

    Anagrams hold a special place in the annals of wordplay. Although dismissed by some as “intellectually frivolous” (A. E. Housman) or a mere “trifle” (Ben Jonson), the art of anagramming—rearranging the letters in one word or phrase to form another—has provided plenty of writers with literary inspiration. The metaphysical poet George Herbert, for instance, observed that the letters in MARY can be shifted around to spell ARMY, taking this to be a sign of the Holy Mother’s mysterious power. For Vladimir Nabokov, who created the alter ego Vivian Darkbloom—see what he did there?—anagrams were metaphors for the unconscious: “All dreams are anagrams of diurnal reality,” he wrote. And any genealogy of letter-scramblers must include the poet Jim Morrison, who unforgettably nicknamed himself “Mr. Mojo Risin’.”

    You don’t have to be a writer, or on psychedelics, to enjoy the power of the anagram. Most puzzle fans know the rush of extracting a word from alphabet soup, or the delight of realizing that, say, the letters in BRITNEY SPEARS can also spell PRESBYTERIANS. If this kind of thing lights your fire, then The New Yorker’s new daily game, Shuffalo, is for you.

    Shuffalo is an anagramming challenge with a twist: your goal is to unscramble a set of letters to make a word—but every time you do, an additional letter gets added to the set. As you play, the words get longer and the game gets tougher, culminating in an eight-letter scramble. (If you get that far and want to really show off, play on to the nine-letter bonus round.) Those who get stuck can always use a hint, but keep in mind that your final badge is determined by the number of hints you used. To see how it’s done, watch this video featuring the comedian and self-proclaimed vocabulary whiz Kate Berlant.

    Part of the fun of Shuffalo—which was based on a game created by the New Yorker crossword constructor Adam Wagner—lies in the surprising transformations that you discover as you play. It calls to mind the Surrealist parlor game Exquisite Corpse: tack on one thing, and you get another thing entirely. Add an “I” to SOLVE, it turns out, and you can make OLIVES; then add a “T” to make VIOLETS; an “N” to make NOVELIST; and another “N” to make INSOLVENT. (Well, maybe that last one isn’t such a big leap.)

    You can play a new Shuffalo every day in our Games hub, or by signing up for the Puzzles & Games newsletter. Is it intellectually frivolous? Depends who you ask. Either way, we hope it will add some delight to your diurnal reality. ♦

    Liz Maynes-Aminzade

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  • PRESS ROOM: Inaugural HBCU Hoops Invitational Coming to Walt Disney World Resort in December

    By Stacy Brown
    Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

    As Trump Attempts to Minimize Slavery, Book Details the Consequences of the Transatlantic Slave Trade

    New York, NY—Civil Rights icon and National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. and renowned journalist and NNPA Senior National Correspondent Stacy M. Brown collaborated on the groundbreaking book The Transatlantic Slave Trade: Overcoming the 500-Year Legacy, which is now available from Select Books (ISBN 978-1-59079-569-9). Released on October 8, 2024, this work explores the brutal legacy of the transatlantic slave trade and its ongoing impact on African people throughout the world.

    This searing book offers an unflinching account of the 500-year legacy of the transatlantic slave trade, beginning in 1500 with the abduction of millions of Africans and following the historical arc through centuries of oppression, Jim Crow-era terror, and modern systemic racism. The book is an unapologetic examination of how the horrors of the past—rooted in slavery—continue to manifest in present-day America through police brutality, mass incarceration, economic disparities, and educational inequality.

    Chavis, a central figure in the civil rights movement, draws on his decades of activism and personal experiences in the fight for equal justice. As a young activist with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), Dr. Chavis worked under Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and later became a prominent leader within the United Church of Christ Commission for Racial Justice, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA). His wrongful imprisonment as the leader of the Wilmington Ten in 1971—a group of political prisoners falsely convicted and imprisoned for untruthful allegations of arson during the civil rights movement in North Carolina—serves as a vivid reminder of the institutionalization of racial discrimination in America that continues to suppress the human rights of communities of color.

    “This book does not simply chronicle history; it challenges readers to face the lasting consequences of the transatlantic slave trade,” says Dr. Chavis. “The blood, sweat, and tears of enslaved Africans laid the very foundation for the American experiment in democracy, yet their descendants are still fighting for equality and justice in every facet of American life.”

    Isiah Thomas, a legend in the NBA, highlights the importance of this work in his stirring words, which support Dr. Chavis’s call to action:

    “Dr. Ben Chavis must continue to fight and tell this story, not just for our generation, but for future generations who must understand the truth about our history if they are to finish righting the wrongs that began over 400 years ago,” Thomas emphasizes that this book is a vital tool in paving the way for future generations, ensuring that they are armed with the unvarnished truth.

    Arikana Chihombori-Quao, African Union Ambassador to the United States, underscores the importance of the book’s message:

    “Dr. Chavis connects the dots from the slave ports of West Africa to the present-day struggles of Black Americans. The transatlantic slave trade was not just a historical event—it laid the groundwork for centuries of racial oppression. The fight against that legacy is still ongoing.”

    The Transatlantic Slave Trade: Overcoming the 500-Year Legacy digs deep into the trauma of the Middle Passage, where millions of Africans were stripped of their dignity, crammed into ships like cargo, and forced into lives of unimaginable brutality. Yet, as Chavis and Brown remind us, the legacy of slavery is not confined to the past. The authors draw powerful connections between historical atrocities and modern-day issues such as redlining, environmental racism, economic injustice, and mass incarceration.

    The book pulls no punches in confronting America’s hypocrisy: while African slaves built the economic foundation of the nation, their descendants are still treated as second-class citizens. From the auction blocks of the 1700s to the prison industrial complex of the 21st century, The Transatlantic Slave Trade unveils the continued systemic structures designed to oppress Black communities.

    As legendary hip-hop icon, Chuck D of Public Enemy passionately states in the foreword, “The chains of slavery may have been broken, but the shackles of systemic racism are still very much intact. If you’re not angry, you’re not paying attention.” His call to action resonates throughout the book, echoing the urgent need to confront this history and dismantle the systems of oppression that have evolved from it.

    Public Enemy’s track “Can’t Truss It” is a thematic thread in the book, with its unfiltered depiction of the slave trade’s legacy. The song’s haunting lyrics—“Ninety damn days on a slave ship / Count ’em fallin’ off two, three, four hun’ed at a time”—capture the rage and pain of an entire people. This visceral connection to history is what makes The Transatlantic Slave Trade a powerful rallying cry for justice and equity.

    Brown, an award-winning journalist and Senior National Correspondent for the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), brings his keen insight into this exploration of history. Brown has relentlessly advocated for justice and equity, using his platform to shed light on systemic injustices nationwide.

    In The Transatlantic Slave Trade, Chavis and Brown challenge readers to reckon with the uncomfortable truths of America’s past—and to acknowledge how those truths continue to shape the realities of today. The authors highlight how the scars of slavery persist in police violence, economic disparity, and the underfunding of Black communities. They demand we face this history head-on without sugarcoating or sanitizing the truth.

    This book is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the historical roots of modern-day racism and the enduring fight for equal justice. As Public Enemy famously said, “Fight the Power.” The Transatlantic Slave Trade is a potent weapon in the ongoing battle for racial equity and justice, reminding us that the struggle continues—and so must our resistance.

    The Transatlantic Slave Trade: Overcoming the 500-Year Legacy will be available at major book retailers and online platforms beginning October 8, 2024.

    About the Authors

    Dr. Benjamin Chavis is a civil rights leader, author, and former Executive Director and CEO of the NAACP. Known for his relentless fight against oppression and his leadership in environmental justice and economic empowerment, Dr. Chavis is a lifelong warrior for social justice. Currently, Chavis is the President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA).

    Stacy M. Brown is the Senior National Correspondent for the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) and an acclaimed journalist renowned for his in-depth reporting on racial and social justice issues.

    For review copies or to schedule an interview with the authors, please contact: Kenichi Sugihara, Select Books, http://www.kenichi@selectbooks.com.

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  • Magical Thinking in Milwaukee

    Magical Thinking in Milwaukee

    One couldn’t help but pity the dutiful campaign staffers and surrogates who trickled into the spin room in Milwaukee last night. They arrived with an unenviable task: to convince reporters that their respective candidates had won the first debate of the Republican presidential primary.

    To anyone who had watched, it was plain, of course, that none of the eight Republicans onstage had won in any meaningful sense. Donald Trump—facing four indictments and leading in the polls by 40 points—didn’t even bother to show up. And with many voters tuning in to the race for the first time, Trump’s rivals struggled to show they were equipped to take him down. In fact, few even tried. The former president’s name barely came up in the debate’s first hour—and when the conversation did turn to the subject of his growing rap sheet, most of the candidates defended him. All but two pledged to support Trump as the party’s nominee even if he is convicted. By the end of the evening, Trump’s path to renomination looked clearer than ever.

    So how to spin this state of affairs if you work for one of the also-rans?

    The answer, it turned out, was simple: Ignore it.

    In multiple interviews after last night’s debate, I asked GOP campaign representatives how they planned to win the primary if their candidates were unwilling to directly confront Trump. Some offered platitudes—“This is a marathon, not a sprint.” Others gestured vaguely at plans to criticize the front-runner in the future. Most flatly refused to acknowledge the reality of Trump’s current dominance in the race. They preferred to pretend.

    Representative Chip Roy of Texas, a supporter of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, scoffed when I mentioned Trump’s lead in the polls. “Go back and look at where Ted [Cruz] was in the numbers in 2016,” Roy instructed me.

    “But … Cruz didn’t win the primary,” I replied, confused.

    “Well, but he won Iowa!”

    Matt Gorman, a spokesperson for Senator Tim Scott’s campaign, complained that reporters and pundits were overstating the likelihood of another Trump nomination. “Too many people think it’s inevitable,” he said. But when asked how that outcome might be avoided, Gorman had only wishful thinking to offer: “We hope that [Trump] debates. That’s our hope.”

    Read: A parade of listless vessels

    It’s easy to see why, in an ideal world, Trump’s rivals would want to get him back on the debate stage. Several of the candidates managed strong moments last night. Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley earned loud applause after calling out Republicans in Washington for adding trillions of dollars to the national debt: “Our kids are never going to forgive us for this.” Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie offered a passionate defense of former Vice President Mike Pence for refusing to go along with Trump’s ploy to overturn the 2020 election on January 6, 2021: “He deserves not grudging credit. He deserves our thanks as Americans for putting his oath of office and the Constitution of the United States before personal, political, and unfair pressure.” And the 38-year-old entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy successfully made himself the evening’s main character with a rat-a-tat of Trumpian talking points, one-liners, and comic insults that aggravated his opponents as the debate wore on.

    Some of the debate’s sharpest moments came when the candidates were tangling with Ramaswamy. Christie derided him as an “amateur” who “sounds like ChatGPT.” Haley, a former ambassador to the United Nations, snapped at him, “You have no foreign-policy experience, and it shows.” Even Pence, who typically affects the manner of a sleepy Sunday-school teacher, seemed to repeatedly lose his cool with Ramaswamy. “Now is not the time for on-the-job training,” Pence said at one point. “We don’t need to bring in a rookie.” (This counts as a harsh burn for Pence.)

    On social media and in the press room, theories abounded as to why Ramaswamy seemed to be getting under so many of his opponents’ skin. Maybe it was generational—the know-it-all Millennial with the irritating high-school-debate patter disrespecting his Boomer elders. Or maybe it was his “Ted Cruz energy”—that signature blend of arrogance and smarminess that seems calibrated to repel. Certainly it didn’t help that Ramaswamy insisted on dismissing his opponents as “super-PAC puppets.”

    Read: Vivek Ramaswamy’s truth

    But perhaps the onstage hostility had less to do with Ramaswamy than with that other blustery political neophyte who cartwheeled into GOP politics one day on a whim and promptly overshadowed the rest of the field. With Trump refusing to participate in the debates, Ramaswamy made for a serviceable proxy. (Certainly, his campaign seems to share Trump’s taste for trolling: When I asked Chris Grant, a Ramaswamy adviser, about Pence’s repeated outbursts at the candidate last night, Grant laughed and then giddily compared the former vice president to the grandpa on The Simpsons yelling at a cloud.) Still, sinking Ramaswamy—who currently polls in the high single digits—won’t meaningfully change the shape of the field. The only way to pull that off is to take votes away from the front-runner. And no one seems to have a clear plan to do that.

    Back in January, I wrote about the “magical thinking” that pervaded the GOP ahead of 2024. Virtually everyone in the party I talked with—donors, strategists, elected officials—wanted to move on from Trump, but no one was willing to do anything about it. Instead, they all seemed to be waiting for the problem to resolve itself, whether via criminal charges or death or some other miraculous development. “There is a desire for deus ex machina,” one GOP consultant told me at the time. “It’s like 2016 all over again, only more fatalistic.”

    Seven months later, on a debate stage in Milwaukee, we witnessed the natural consequence of this attitude. Trump—still alive—is gliding toward his third consecutive presidential nomination while his rivals squabble with one another.

    McKay Coppins

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