The mother of Walter Wallace, the 27-year-old Philadelphia man who was gunned down by officers Monday in front of his family's home said police knew he was having a mental crisis because she told them and begged them not to shoot him.
Watch Mrs. Wallace's full commentd below:
In a "CBS This Morning" exclusive, two grand jurors in the Breonna Taylor case told Gayle King that the Kentucky attorney general never presented them with the option to consider indicting officers on more serious charges for Taylor's death.
Watch the entite interview below:
Lebron James's SpringHill Company is collaborating with CNN Films to create a documentary that examines the history of the 1921 Tulsa race massacre, according to news release.
Dubbed "DREAMLAND: The Rise and Fall of Black Wall Street," the film will look at the history of Tulsa, Oklahoma's Greenwood district -- better known as "Black Wall Street" -- and the devastating history of the race massacre that followed.
"We cannot move forward until we acknowledge our past and this is about honoring a prosperous, booming Black community, one of many, that was brought to an end because of hate," Jamal Henderson, SpringHill's chief content officer and one of the executive producers of the documentary, said in the news release.
"With the lack of historic journalism around 'Black Wall Street' and the Tulsa Massacre of 1921, we are honored to be partnered with CNN, which has a long-standing record of credible and groundbreaking journalism," he continued.
James will serve as one of the executive producers of the film, along with Salima Koroma who will be the director.
"CNN Films could not be more proud to partner with The SpringHill Company for this long-overdue recognition of the tragedy of what happened in Greenwood, and to contribute to the reconciliation that comes with the acknowledgment of history," said Amy Entelis, executive vice president for talent and content development for CNN Worldwide in a news release. "Salima Koroma's vision will yield a truly thoughtful film."
Sen, Kamala Harris released the follwing statement on the confirmation of Amy Barret:
Senate Republicans jammed through this nomination in the middle of an election where over 60 million Americans have already voted. Senate Republicans have ignored the will of the people, deciding instead to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg – who devoted her life to fighting for equal justice – with someone who was selected to undo her legacy.
President Trump repeatedly made clear that he would only nominate judges who would get rid of the Affordable Care Act. President Trump and Senate Republicans are determined to take away health care coverage and protections for people with preexisting conditions. On November 10, Trump administration lawyers will be before the Supreme Court arguing to strike down the Affordable Care Act in its entirety. This is a big reason why Senate Republicans rushed this confirmation. If they succeed, millions of people will lose access to health care in the middle of a devastating pandemic that has killed over 225,000 Americans and sickened millions more.
The American people see this confirmation for what it is: an illegitimate move that will set our country back for generations. Access to health care is now in jeopardy. Our voting rights are now in jeopardy. Workers’ rights are now in jeopardy. LGBTQ equality is now in jeopardy. The right to a safe and legal abortion is now in jeopardy. The ability to address a changing climate is now in jeopardy. And so much more.
I share the American people’s outrage at this rushed process to confirm a nominee who has the potential to do great harm.
Sen. Cory Booker released the following statement on the Senate comfirmation n of Judge Amy Coney Barrett
Senate Republicans have violated processes, violated rules, violated their word and, most importantly, violated the will of the American people
This will go down as one of the darker moments in the history of the United States Senate.
Pope Francis announced on Sunday that he would name Washington's archbishop, Wilton Gregory, a cardinal next month, making him the first African American to earn such a title.
Gregory will be one of the 13 cardinals in the new class, a promotion that comes at a time when he is also trying to rebuild trust in an archdiocese rocked by sexual abuse cases.
The move was widely anticipated, as Washington archbishops are typically named as cardinals after their appointments. But it is nonetheless symbolically significant in the U.S. Catholic Church, where Blacks have been underrepresented among the leadership.
Gregory, 72, was appointed as Washington's archbishop last year, taking over for Cardinal Donald Wuerl, who had been accused of mishandling clerical abuse cases.
In 1989 an ambitious young woman gets a weave in order to succeed in the image-obsessed world of music television. However, her flourishing career may come at a great cost when she realizes that her new hair may have a mind of its own.
Bad Hair is directed and written by Justine Simien. The movue stars Elle Lorraine, Jay Pharoah, Lena Waithe, Kelly Rowland, Laverne Cox, Chanté Adams James Van Der Beek,Usher Raymond IV, Blair Underwood, and Vanessa Williams.
Bad Hair premieres October 23rd on Hulu.
Richard Armstrong, Director, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and Foundation, and Yves Müller, CFO and Spokesperson of the Board of HUGO BOSS AG, announced today that Deana Lawson has been awarded the Hugo Boss Prize 2020. She is the thirteenth artist to receive the biennial prize, which was established in 1996 to recognize significant achievement in contemporary art. Selected by a jury of international critics and curators, Lawson receives an honorarium of $100,000 and a solo exhibition at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, opening in spring 2021. Administered by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, the Hugo Boss Prize and the exhibition is made possible by HUGO BOSS.
“On behalf of our jury, I am delighted to announce Deana Lawson as the recipient of the 2020 Hugo Boss Prize,” said Armstrong. “Lawson is the first artist working in photography to be recognized with the award in its history, and her contribution to the medium and the larger cultural landscape is indelible. We are grateful for our partnership with HUGO BOSS, which spans over two decades and has played a critical role in shaping the Guggenheim’s contemporary program.”
“The Hugo Boss Prize marks a highlight in our partnership with the Guggenheim Museum and we are proud that it has been at the core of our arts program for almost twenty-five years,” noted Müller. “We would like to extend our sincerest congratulations to Deana Lawson and express our gratitude to the jury and the Guggenheim Museum for their dedication and support in this project.”
For this year’s prize, in recognition of the remarkable achievements of the nominees and the challenges presented by the current global pandemic to the field, HUGO BOSS will award each of the remaining short-listed artists an extraordinary honorarium of $10,000.
The short list for the 2020 award comprised Nairy Baghramian (b. 1971, Isfahan, Iran); Kevin Beasley (b. 1985, Lynchburg, Va.); Deana Lawson (b. 1979, Rochester, N.Y.); Elias Sime (b. 1968, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia); Cecilia Vicuña (b. 1948, Santiago, Chile); and Adrián Villar Rojas (b. 1980, Rosario, Argentina).
The jurors for the current cycle are Naomi Beckwith, Manilow Senior Curator, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; Katherine Brinson, Daskalopoulos Curator, Contemporary Art, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; Julieta González, independent curator; Christopher Y. Lew, Nancy and Fred Poses Curator, Whitney Museum of American Art; and Nat Trotman, Curator, Performance and Media, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
Video profiles created on the occasion of the prize that document the creative process of each of the six finalists are posted on youtube.com.
“At the outset of our recent jury deliberations, we collectively acknowledged that each of the nominated artists is an extraordinary creative force whose work has deeply impacted our own curatorial perspectives. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to immerse ourselves in their respective practices in the year between the announcement of the short list and now, and commend their singular achievements. In this moment of accelerated cultural transformation, we were galvanized by the fact that the Prize and its associated exhibition have historically functioned as a platform for new artistic propositions and possibilities. With this in mind, we have chosen to honor Deana Lawson, an artist who offers compelling new modes of seeing and imagining.
“Lawson brilliantly negotiates the legacies of vernacular, documentary, and conceptual photography to create indelible tableaux of Black colloquial life. While appearing to be images of actual families, friends, and lovers, her large-format works are in fact highly staged, cast, and choreographed, grounding their subjects in aesthetically rich material environments even as they gesture toward an ethereal elsewhere—a deft, remarkable feat. Throughout her oeuvre, Lawson employs a number of formal and conceptual strategies that we believe will occupy viewers and scholars for generations to come. We are particularly excited that she is the first photographer to receive the Hugo Boss Prize, an indication that her singular approach, at once socially humane and technically incisive, is transformative of both the medium and the very concept of representation.”
Deana Lawson (b. 1979, Rochester, N.Y.) lives and works in New York. Her work has been presented in solo exhibitions including Deana Lawson: Centropy, Kunsthalle Basel (2020); Deana Lawson, Huis Marseille, Museum voor Fotografie, Amsterdam (2019); Deana Lawson: Planes, The Underground Museum, Los Angeles (2018); Deana Lawson, Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh (2018); Deana Lawson, Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (2017); Deana Lawson, The Art Institute of Chicago (2015); and Corporeal, Light Work, Syracuse, N.Y. (2009).
Nationally-syndicated morning radio host Charlamagne tha God said Trump is making effort to talk to black voters with ads and his "marketing" to young black men is working. He said he is excited for Biden running mate Kamala Harris because he is "tired of old white male" politicians.
Charlamagne made it clear that is voting for Biden mainly due to Harris, calling her the person to "lead us in the future.""I believe Kamala is the political change," he said. "I believe she is exactly the leader this country needs to lead us in the future. If she's not been, I'll just be wrong, because I am going to be honest with you, Don, I am just so tired of like old white male leadership in politics."
Former President Barack Obama blasted President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, his response to racial unrest and his fundamental unfitness for the job in his first in-person campaign pitch Wednesday for Joe Biden, his former vice president.
Watch his full speech below:
Washington, D.C. — Congressman Donald M. Payne, Jr. led a Congressional effort to support postal workers and the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) during the coronavirus public health crisis. The move comes at a time when letter carriers must handle a record-setting amount of mail-in election ballots despite efforts to undermine their effectiveness from President Trump and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy.
Rep. Payne, Jr. wrote a letter yesterday to express this public show of support to the presidents of the American Postal Workers Union, National Association of Letter Carriers, National Postal Mail Handlers Union, and National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association. The letter stated that the members of Congress wanted to “ensure that postal workers know that they have our support to do everything in their power to protect the sanctity of the postal service, especially in a time such as the present.”
“We need to let the patriotic men and women of the Postal Service know we support them during this public health crisis,” said Congressman Donald M. Payne, Jr. “They are doing everything they can to get our mail to us in a timely manner. We need them now more than ever to handle this unprecedented number of mail-in ballots to secure the integrity of the November election. I never thought I would see the day a sitting American President would attack the Postal Service.”
In the letter, Rep. Payne, Jr. outlined the lack of support from government officials and said that many “reports over the last two months… go into detail about Postmaster General Louis DeJoy actively sabotaging the USPS. Most shocking of all, President Donald Trump himself confirmed that these actions are intended to silence those who choose to vote by mail during a pandemic. While DeJoy has suspended further changes to USPS policies, he has yet to reverse any of the damaging policies he has already put in place.” The letter was co-signed by 19 members of Congress.
The full letter is listed below.
####
October 19, 2020
Fredric V. Rolando Paul V. Hogrogian
President National President
National Association of Letter Carriers National Postal Mail Handlers Union
100 Indiana Avenue NW 815 16th St, NW, Ste. 5100
Washington, DC 20001 Washington, DC 20006
Ronnie W. Stutts Mark Dimondstein
President President
National Rural Letter Carriers' Association American Postal Workers Union
1630 Duke Street 1300 L Street NW
Alexandria, VA 22314 Washington, D.C. 20005
Dear President Rolando, President Hogrogian, President Stutts, and President Dimondstein:
We write to express our support for the men and women of the United States Postal Service (USPS). We want to ensure that postal workers know that they have our support to do everything in their power to protect the sanctity of the postal service, especially in a time such as the present. The full functionality of the USPS during this pandemic has provided a critical lifeline for millions of Americans and will be essential to state and local governments having the necessary assistance to counter the unprecedented levels of mailed ballots.
Unfortunately, USPS leadership’s actions over the past three months have only increased concerns. Daily new confirmed cases of COVID-19 remain high, continuing to highlight the importance of allowing voters to vote safely and by mail if they choose. Many reports over the last two months also go into detail about Postmaster General Louis DeJoy actively sabotaging the USPS. Most shocking of all, President Donald Trump himself confirmed that these actions are intended to silence those who choose to vote by mail during a pandemic. While DeJoy has suspended further changes to USPS policies, he has yet to reverse any of the damaging policies he has already put in place.
These delays have forced Americans who rely on mail-order medications to wait weeks for deliveries that normally take 3-5 days to arrive. Mail-order prescriptions are an indispensable service that has saved some of the most vulnerable Americans from having to pick up prescriptions in-person, protecting them from exposure to COVID-19.
Ballots are already being mailed to voters nationwide, and it is no exaggeration to say that USPS workers are on the very front lines of the American experiment. We hope morale remains high amongst postal workers during this time. They are some of our most important essential workers and the work they do each day and will do in the coming months will help to protect or nation and our democracy.
Sincerely,
Donald M. Payne, Jr.
Member of Congress
Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden on Tuesday, saying the former vice president "will pursue options that work towards healing the divide" worsened by President Donald Trump.
Steele was the first African American to be elected to statewide office in Maryland, serving as lieutenant governor from 2003 to 2007. He was also the first African American to serve as chairman of the RNC.
"Many of Donald Trump's supporters bring legitimate concerns to the table. During my time leading the GOP, I endeavored to address these and other grievances through the lens of unity and growth. But Trump has energized the party through the exact opposite means -- by focusing on stoking division and eroding our core principles," Steele said in a statement issued by the Lincoln Project.
"Although Vice President Biden and I disagree on some policy points, I believe he will earnestly pursue options that work towards healing the divide exacerbated by Trump and his administration," Steele added. "My support for Biden is because we share an everlasting loyalty to what is ultimately best for our nation."
Looks like Kentucky Attorney General was less than honest when he said that a grand jury agreed with prosecutors that no one should be directly charged with killing Taylor.
A grand juror who won a court fight to speak publicly about the Breonna Taylor investigation took issue Tuesday with statements by Kentucky's attorney general and said the jury was not given the option to consider charges connected to Taylor's shooting death by police.
The juror released the following statement through an attorney:
Being one of the jurors on the Breonna Taylor case was a learning experience.The three weeks of service leading up to that presntation showed how the grand jury normally operates. The Breonna Taylor case was quite different. After hearing the Attorney General Daniel Cameron's press conference, and with my duty as a grand juror being over, my duty as a citizen compelled action. The grand jury was not presented any charges other than the three Wanton Endangerment charges against Detective Hankison. The grand jury did not have homicide offenses explained to them. The grand jury never heard anything about those laws. Self defense or justification was never explained either. Questions were asked about additional charges and the grand jury was told there would be none because the prosecutors didn't feel they could make them stick. The grand jury didn't agree that certain actions were justified, nor did it decide the indictment should be the only charges in the Breonna Taylor case. The grand jury was not given the opportunity to deliberate on those charges and deliberated only on what was presented to them. I cannot speak for other jurors but I can help the truth be told.
Anonymous Grand Juror #1
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) is displaying basketball icon Kobe Bryant’s basketball jersey in the “Sports: Leveling the Playing Field” gallery, beginning Oct. 15. Bryant wore this important piece of basketball history during Game Five of the 2008 NBA Finals, the year he won the league’s MVP award. Bryant’s jersey will be on view next to a pair of LeBron James 15 “Equality” sneakers by Nike.
As a five-time NBA champion, Bryant earned the NBA MVP in 2008 and NBA Finals MVP awards in 2009 and 2010 with the Los Angeles Lakers, where he spent his entire NBA career. Bryant was also part of the U.S. men’s Olympic basketball team that won gold medals in 2008 and 2012. The basketball icon’s life was tragically cut short in a helicopter crash Jan. 26, 2020.
The jersey is white with yellow panels and purple piping and accents. It features a sewn design across the front reading “Lakers/24” and on the back reading “Bryant/24.” The NBA logo is embroidered on the left shoulder. The display text accompanying the Bryant jersey reads: “In 1996, Kobe Bryant became the first guard to successfully make the leap from high school to the National Basketball Association. At the time, experts were skeptical that high school wing players could compete in the NBA. His success ushered in the modern era of younger players in the league.”
“Kobe’s contributions on and off the court are remarkable,” said Spencer Crew, interim director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. “As a founding donor, he understood the significance of this museum to the nation and the world. After postponing the March installation due to COVID-19, we believe now is the perfect moment in history to honor his memory by placing his jersey on view.”
As a founding donor of NMAAHC, Bryant urged his Twitter followers to visit the museum in 2016 by tweeting, “There is no greater testament to this country than the stories in this building.” The Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation contributed at least $1 million to NMAAHC, and in 2017, Bryant donated his 2008 jersey to the museum.
For those who cannot visit the museum in person, Bryant’s jersey and more information about his career can be viewed online at https://nmaahc.si.edu/. Free timed-entry passes are required to access the museum and are available on the museum’s website.
NMAAHC is open Wednesdays through Sundays 11 a.m.–4 p.m. To protect visitors’ and staff’s health, the museum limits the number of passes to 1,100 per day. During this time, the museum will not accommodate any walk-up visitors.
Hi, this is George Cook of African American Reports. Please check out my interview with Jerri Haslem, the founder of the 8:46 Breathe Series Race to honor George Floyd. Learn more and register for the event here: 846BreatheSeries
C. Vivian Stringer, the head coach of the Rutgers women’s basketball team was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame on Sunday.
Stringer was the first African American coach in college basketball to win 1,000 games as well as the first coach in basketball to take three college teams to the Final Four.“The greatest gift that I’ve had is the ability to do something that I really care (about) and love,” Stringer said, accepting the honor.
“To everyone that has been a part of this journey with me, I say thank you for helping me live my dream," she said.
[SOURCE NJ.COM]
Virginia State University, VA- Virginia State University (VSU) has announced a new venture focused on increasing African American political leadership across the Commonwealth of Virginia. During a press conference this the University announced the creation of the John Mercer Langston Institute for African American Political Leadership (JMLI).
The JMLI at Virginia State University is devoted to developing, empowering, and cultivating African American leadership in the Commonwealth of Virginia through innovative training, policy collection and assistance, programming, research, and networking.
Along with today’s announcement, the John Mercer Langston Institute kicked off the inaugural “Black Virginia Voters Poll”, which highlights the needs of Black Virginia voters from across the Commonwealth. The poll will be available on the VSU website.
According to Dr. Wes Bellamy, Chair of the VSU Department of Political Science, “This Institute will help develop a pipeline for Black political leadership across the state and ensure that the voices of those who are often unheard will be represented. We hear loud and clear the need for change, for new voices, a thirst for understanding political structures, and people eager to make a difference. The JMLI institute is here to do just that.”
VSU President, Dr. Makola M. Abdullah says “As we look at the current political climate, it is imperative that clear avenues for Black political development are available. VSU has consistently worked to ensure that our students are prepared and equipped to be viable assets to society in the Commonwealth and beyond. The JMLI will serve as an additional voice and pathway to make that happen.”
The JMLI will also host a formal institute to develop Black political leadership in February 2021. Registration for the institute will be available in December 2020.
John Mercer Langston was an American abolitionist, attorney, educator, activist, diplomat, and politician. He was the first president of Virginia State University and the first dean of the law school at Howard University.
The world witnessed a man’s Life end in 8:46 | Eight minutes and Forty-Six seconds. That man was George Floyd. This event is virtual and the entire world is invited to register. The location is where you make it, the distance is 8.46 miles or the time is 8:46 (eight minutes and forty-six seconds). Your choice for completing the distance is to run, walk, hike, skate, rollerblade, you can swim 8.46 laps the choice is yours. Your choice may be to address this event from a time perspective. What will you do in eight minutes and forty-six seconds to make difference in your life or in the lives of others?
Registered participants will be mailed, a tee shirt, a medal, and 8.46 breathe magnet. The date is October 25, 2020 it is your day to show from your location why you breathe. We hope to see you on social media; as on that day we will be live on multiple platforms, in a variety of times zones at 8:46AM. Participants that are registered by midnight October 15, 2020 will receive their race packets prior to the event date. Participants that register after this time packets will be mailed the first week of November.
Together we can make a difference and change the world. The 846 Breathe is not about every step that you make, it’s about every breath you take.
The race benefits the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, museum and educational research center. The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute brings the legacy of the struggle for civil and human rights into modern-day focus.
To find out more about the race or to register for the race click here: 846 RACE SERIES
A historically black university in Alabama has renamed a dormitory that honored a one-time governor who also led a Ku Klux Klan chapter nearly a century ago.
Workers at Alabama State University removed the name “Bibb Graves” from a residence hall on Wednesday. The building had carried Graves' name since 1928, when he served as the head of a state government that constitutionally mandated white supremacy.
Alabama State President Quinton T. Ross Jr. said the idea of replacing the building's name had been discussed at least as far back as when he was a student at the school, located a few miles from the Alabama Capitol.
“Many of our alumni have asked for this to happen," he said in a statement.
Alabama State trustees voted to rename the building earlier this year during the national discussion generated by the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. The school has yet to decide on a new name for the residence hall.
