Sunday, January 12, 2020

Jay-Z, Yo Gotti threaten to sue Mississippi over inhumane prisons

Rap mogul Jay-Z and hip-hop artist Yo Gotti wrote a letter to two top Mississippi officials Thursday, protesting the conditions of Mississippi prisons and demanding change.

The letter contained a threat — Jay-Z and Yo Gotti are ready to sue the state if prison conditions aren't improved.

An outbreak of deadly gang violence that left five dead in Mississippi prisons has brought the system's long-running problems into sharp relief and under national scrutiny.

The letter, addressed to Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant and Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Pelicia Hall, mentions frequent prison lockdowns, violence, a staffing shortage and inmates who "are forced to live in squalor, with rats that crawl over them as they sleep on the floor, having been denied even a mattress for a cot."

A spokesperson for the governor did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Alex Spiro, a New York lawyer representing Roc Nation, Yo Gotti and Jay-Z's company, signed the letter on behalf of Team Roc. He said he wrote the letter in collaboration with the celebrities.

Spiro told the Clarion Ledger Yo Gotti and Jay-Z have been involved with other social justice and civil rights cases in the past.

They have been in touch with "folks on the ground and people within the prison system," Spiro said.

"We are exploring a variety of civil rights claims and constitutional claims that the prison system and the government is violating the Eighth Amendment and the Civil Rights Act," he said.

Spiro said Jay-Z and Yo Gotti do not want to "remain idle spectators with something this inhumane."

"As the prison system continues to incarcerate more and more people, predominantly African American people down in Mississippi, the prison system becomes more crowded, more underfunded and more inhumane and you know what you see now is a system at its breaking point," the attorney said.

[SOURCE:USA TODAY]

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Air Force Names New Jet the T-7A Red Hawk in Honor of Tuskegee Airmen

The U.S. Air Force will call its new trainer the T-7A "Red Hawk."

Acting Air Force Secretary Matt Donovan announced the name of the jet, known previously as the T-X, on Monday, alongside retired Col. Charles McGee, who was a member of the Tuskegee Airmen.

"The name, Red Hawk, honors the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen, and pays homage to their signature red-tailed aircraft from World War II," Donovan said here during the annual Air, Space and Cyber conference.

"The name is also a tribute to the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, an American fighter aircraft that first flew in 1938 and was flown by the 99th Fighter Squadron -- the U.S. Army Air Forces' first African-American fighter squadron," Donovan said.

According to a video shown at the conference, the T-7 will have red vertical canted tails, mimicking those of the Red Tail Squadron's P-51C aircraft.

The Tuskegee Airmen defied the odds by becoming the first African-American pilots, navigators and support personnel to serve during World War II, often escorting and protecting bombers.

[SOURCE: MILITARY TIMES]

Domeneque Taylor is missing!

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Police are asking for help from the public to find a missing woman.

Domeneque Taylor, 32, is around 5’1″ and around 195 pounds.

If you have any information you are asked to call 501-404-3042 or 501-371-4829.

New book by Michelle Obama: Michelle Obama: Quotes to Live By

Michelle Obama: Quotes to Live By, a life-affirming collection of more than 170 quotes from one of the world’s most admired and respected public figures: Michelle Obama.

“People who are truly strong lift others up. People who are truly powerful bring others together.” —Michelle Obama, campaign rally, October 2016

As First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama used her platform to express her strongly held beliefs—and earned admiration for her intelligence, generosity, strength, bravery, confidence, and hard work. This collection of quotations, which covers topics ranging from education and equality to self-belief and success, helps cement her place as one of the strongest voices on the global stage today.

The quotations include:

“Every single child has boundless promise, no matter who they are, where they come from, or how much money their parents have. We’ve got to remember that.” —National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards, November 2016

“It is so important to remember that our diversity has been—and will continue to be—our greatest source of strength and pride.” —Annual Nowruz celebration, April 2016

“We shouldn’t be sending messages to girls that there are things they can’t do—because there’s nothing that a girl can’t do.” —The Guardian, interview, November 2018

“It is not about voting for the perfect candidate—there is no such person.” —Campaign rally, September 2016

“Success isn’t about how much money you make, it’s about the difference you make in people’s lives.” —Democratic National Convention, September 2012

“When you are struggling and you start thinking about giving up, I want you to remember something . . . and that is the power of hope. The belief that something better is always possible if you’re willing to work for it and fight for it.” —Final speech as First Lady of the United States, January 2017

BUY THE BOOK

Friday, January 10, 2020

Madam C.J. Walker mini-series coming in March 2020

Netflix's Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker will officially stream on March 20.

The four-part mini-series will star Octavia Spencer as Walker, and the cast includes actors like Tiffany Haddish and Blair Underwood.

The new limited series is inspired by the book On Her Own Ground: The Life and Times of Madam C.J. Walker, written by Walker's great-great-granddaughter, A'Lelia Bundles. It's set to chronicle her iconic rise to fame and fortune, telling the story of how her revolutionary products and brand changed the Black haircare industry as we know it.