Ask HN: Black bar?

I think it's an online version of the black arm band that's often worn to acknowledge the passing of a great figure in a community.

It's for mourning Dr. Motwani's passing.

My hunch is that it's like the black armband worn on professional sports teams when they suffer a loss of a loved one. (I'm sure this extends beyond sports, but that's the only place I've seen it)

I assume it got added at the same time the HN footer was added to the bottom of comment pages....

From a design point of view, I think it makes the page easier to read....