Black culture leaders call to end racial injustice in letter

LOS ANGELES (AP) — John Legend, Gabrielle Union and Ava DuVernay are some of the many black cultural leaders who have signed a letter to fight against racism, promote equal pay and ask industries to disassociate from police. The letter was released Friday by a new organization called the Black Artists for Freedom, which describes itself as a collective of black workers in the culture industries. The letter was published to celebrate the Juneteenth holiday that has long commemorated the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. The organization said the letter was inspired by the recent protests against police brutality and systemic racism.