Bernie Sanders’ campaign had energy, positivity, and youth—then the primaries started. Since then, Joe Biden has taken a healthy lead toward the Democratic nomination. Now Sanders’ top aides and allies say the problem may have been a problematic chain of command.
According to a NewsOne report, Some of Sanders’ top aides and allies say losses in Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia were predictable because of bad decisions made at the top.
“I knew that our campaign had not done the work it needed to do,” Donald Gilliard, the deputy state political director for South Carolina told The Washington Post.
Gilliard added that he felt the campaign’s strategy was “geared toward white progressives,” which left black voters behind.
Ivory Thigpen, the co-chair for Sanders in South Carolina, believes that it was Sander’s delivery that hurt him in the state.
“I think the distinguishing attitude for Sanders, that you didn’t see associated with Biden, was an angry white man,” Thigpen told The Post. “In the African American culture, nonverbal communication and body language is huge and I think being accessible would have made up for it.”
Others believe the biggest issue was a disconnect between local and national leadership. One of the most visible figures taking harsh criticism is Nina Turner, the national co-chair for the campaign.
Turner became one of the most prominent black allies in the campaign by traveling across the country, introducing Sanders at rallies and helping him shape the campaign’s African American voter outreach in states like South Carolina.
However, some in the campaign felt she was wrong for the job when it came to outreach in the state. “She didn’t know the state,” said Gilliard, who parted ways with the campaign after South Carolina’s Feb. 29 primary.
Other complaints included not advertising enough on local black radio and television stations, unseasoned strategies, and missed opportunities to bring Sanders in for face-to-face meet-ups with black leaders and voters in southern states.
Mal Hyman, a former congressional candidate in South Carolina, argued, “Inexperienced state leadership was very slow to respond and to take any risk or broaden our base or to push for some of the what we thought were common-sense suggestions.”
After being deadlocked in African American voter support, Sanders suffered defeats in the South to Joe Biden, who campaigned heavily in the southern states.
Sanders’ campaign tried its hardest to do damage control. Phillip Agnew, a prominent black activist and campaign surrogate, was brought in as a senior adviser. Additionally, Turner worked hard to gain the endorsement of Rev. Jesse Jackson, but it may have been too late.
Judge Jeanine Pirro is being accused of slurring her words and coming off toasty during her Saturday’s episode of her Fox News show, Justice with Judge Jeanine, sparking her name and #DrunkJeanine to trend on Twitter Sunday morning.
The controversy started after Pirro arrived late to her show Saturday evening, appearing about 15 minutes after the episode began. Fox News anchor Jackie Ibanez filled in during the first quarter, The Wrap reported. When Pirro finally appeared, her hair was disheveled, which some pointed out was of the character for the host.
As Pirro apologized for what she deemed “technical difficulties,” it was hard not to notice that her words were slurring as she spoke.
“Just the other … day the president talked, or was hoping, about the possibility of reopening everything on Easter Sunday, uh, in a way where we could kind of come out of this quarantine, as loose as it may be, that we’re involved in,” she said in a clip.
Many people on social media had a lot to say about Pirro’s appearance and speculated that the Fox News personality was intoxicated.
Vox journalist Aaron Rupar took to Twitter last night to share his thoughts about the state Pirro was in during the broadcasting of her show.
“OMG. What is Fox News doing putting someone on the air in the condition?” He tweeted.
Judge Jeanine missed the first segment of her show tonight because of “technical difficulties” and then hosted the rest of it in this condition pic.twitter.com/KxGGBXUkly
“Has anyone noticed that a number of Trump’s most passionate fans (“Judge” Jeanine, Giuliani, Kudlow) often appear to be drunk as a skunk when they defend him on TV?” The Nation correspondent, Jeet Heer tweeted in response to Rupar.
Has anyone noticed that a number of Trump's most passionate fans ("Judge" Jeanine, Giuliani, Kudlow) often appear to be drunk as a skunk when they defend him on TV? https://t.co/mlKghFoKSB
The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation is joining forces with several national and state organizations to launch a social media campaign to get African Americans to fill out the 2020 census.
The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation’s Unity Diaspora Coalition, the National Urban League’s Black Census Roundtable, and more than 40 national and state-based partner organizations have launched Black Census Week. A weeklong social media initiative focused on promoting and encouraging the black population (native and foreign-born) to participate in the 2020 Decennial Census by being counted via online phone or mail before Census Day on April 1.
“Count Me Black!” is the theme for this year’s initiative and it aims to aggressively utilize a variety of social media platforms to get African Americans to fill out the census.
The initiative originally contained door knocking and getting in front of people but turned to social media due to social distancing guidelines set due to the coronavirus outbreak.
African Americans, immigrants, LGBTQ+, children, and the elderly have been historically undercounted in past census counts. This has led to millions of federal dollars diverted away from hundreds of programs that support African Americans.
It wasn’t until 2013 that the census included same-sex couples living together on the form. Before 2013, same-sex couples counted as unmarried partners, even when couples reported themselves as spouses.
Melanie Campbell, president and CEO of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, believes African American participation in the census is a must.
“These are indeed trying times for our nation, as we endure the uncertainty of the COVID-19 global pandemic, Campbell said in a press release. “It is times like these that stress even more that each and every person needs to be counted so that we receive the resources and assistance that are due for our communities.
“For that reason, we all MUST participate in the 2020 Decennial Census. Despite the challenges each of us are personally facing, participating in the census has been made much easier for us through the use of social media and digital technology. We must take the time and make sure we are counted and say ‘Count Me Black!'”
The campaign formally launched Monday via teleconference and Marc Morial, National Urban League president and CEO, stressed, “This pandemic is as bad as we feared it would be, but we must move forward. We must encourage our people to fill out the forms online. The census is power and we must be counted.”
Morial said earlier this year that African Americans need to be more aware and woke in 2020.
The NCBCP Unity Diaspora Coalition will focus on encouraging “undercounted” groups to be counted online, by phone, or mail, including focusing on seniors and African American workers, men, women, and immigrants.
Now it’s even easier for folks to make an impression from home in order to make it in front of one of the toughest crowds in the world. For the first time ever, the famed Harlem-based Apollo Theater is having prospective amateurs audition exclusively online for its prestigious and most famous talent show, Apollo’s Amateur Night!
Apollo Theater has announced that for the first time in its 86-year history, Amateur Night auditions will be done exclusively through online submissions. The auditions will be for the upcoming summer and fall 2020-21 season. The auditions are switching to the online format due to the ongoing concern with the rapidly spreading coronavirus outbreak.
Starting immediately, contestants who can display whatever talent, be it singing, dancing, rapping, playing an instrument, or performing stand-up or spoken word can submit a pre-recorded audition clip up to five minutes in length. The hopeful performers will get the opportunity to take on the world-famous Apollo stage later this year and compete for the Grand Prize of $20,000.
“Digital technology has enabled us to stay more connected than ever before, and during these uncertain times it is incredibly vital for the Apollo Theater to continue to engage with artists and audiences around the world,” said Kamilah Forbes, Apollo Theater executive producer in a written statement. “We’re devastated by the loss the pandemic has had on the arts community, and we want to celebrate the talent and hard work artists have put into their craft. Amateur Night represents this, and we want to keep the spotlight shining on these talented individuals.”
In 2017, the Apollo Theater first incorporated online auditions to extend access to artists from all around the globe and diversify the talent featured in the original, large-scale talent show. Now they receive thousands of online auditions on a yearly basis. Still, the majority of contestants who make it to the Apollo stage still do so the traditional way.
Contestants who are under the age of 17 can also submit their digital audition to compete in the Child Star of Tomorrow category and a $5,000 prize. More details on the online audition process can be found at https://www.apollotheater.org/amateur-night/auditions/.
In a video that has gone viral, a Georgia nurse with pre-existing conditions quit her job at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital due to concerns over the coronavirus.
Melissa Thomas Scott is a nurse in Albany, GA and is currently receiving widespread support on the internet after she shared her breaking point. On Wednesday, she took to Facebook Live after being assigned to the “Corona floor” for a 12-hour shift at Putney.
Scott, who worked in the hospital’s acute care area, is a triple-negative breast cancer survivor and was diagnosed in 2012 at age 31. She explained having to put her safety and health first, especially for her children who are between the ages of 1 and 17.
“I just quit my job. I clocked in. I find out that I’m being sent to a Corona floor when they know that I have kids at home, who I can’t send away, to you know, get away from me,” Scott said.
The 39-year-old added that her supervisor was aware of her concerns, but it was not taken into consideration.
“My managers sent me to a floor that is being tested for Corona. She knows my health history. She knows all of this. I quit. I care about the patients and all but my family and my life, they matter. They come first. She knows my health history. I told her that my kids don’t have anybody to go to. I can’t send my kids away like everybody else. I’m done. I’m leaving,” she said.
The hospital announced in a press release Wednesday, the same day that Scott quit, that they were caring for “critically ill Covid-19 patients” and reached capacity in three intensive-care units. 357 patients have tested positive thus far.
“As this public health crisis in southwest Georgia gets more severe, we have been reaching out to other hospitals in our part of the state,” the system’s CEO, Scott Steiner, said. “I am pleased that every one of our regional partners we spoke to in the last 24 hours agreed to assist by accepting patient transfers from us.”
Watch Scott’s Facebook Live video below.
Nurse quits after a supervisor attempts to send her to the Covid-19 floor knowing her previous health conditions. 👑📸 Melissa Thomas Scott/FB
Myron Rolle has gone from Tennessee Titans safety to doctor on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. The former Florida State football player and Rhodes scholar is now a third-year resident at Massachusetts General Hospital.
Rolle, a neurosurgery resident, is now in the position to help during the pandemic since operating rooms are being turned into ICUs because of the increasing number of coronavirus patients.
“I went down to the emergency department, and as I was walking through the emergency department I was seeing so many individuals with respiratory distress and respiratory compromise, and the numbers are staggering,” Rolle told ESPN. “Our neurosurgical floor has been transformed into a floor just full of COVID-19 patients.
“It is hectic, that’s for sure.”
After graduating from college in 2 1/2 years, Rolle spent his senior year at Oxford University after receiving one of the 32 Rhodes Scholarships awarded each year. Rolle earned a Masters of Science Degree in Medical Anthropology. He was then drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the sixth round in 2010, but never played a regular season game. In 2013, Rolle decided to retire and pursue a medical degree.
“There were lots of emotions rolling through my body while counting down the hours, waiting to open that envelope,” Rolle told the Miami Herald. “I felt much more anxious than I did during the draft.”
In 2017, Rolle was accepted into the Harvard Medical School neurosurgery program at Massachusetts General Hospital.
“Football has never left me,” Rolle said. “I still wake up in the morning and think of the operating room like a game, like it’s showtime, let’s perform. I gotta do what I gotta do because people are counting on us right now. This is our time to help very sick people. So that motivation continues to drive me every single day.”
Former Titans DB Myron Rolle left the NFL to attend medical school back in 2013.
Now, Rolle is a neurosurgery resident who is seeing the impact COVID-19 is having on the healthcare industry. pic.twitter.com/hGj9B8mJva
Essence Fest 2020 becomes the latest event forced to switch gears due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Earlier in March, organizers planned to continue with Essence Fest, which was originally slated for July 1-5, 2020. Recent developments, however, have resulted in a change of plans.
On Friday, it was announced that the 2020 festival has been postponed until a later date this fall.
Anofficial statementavailable on the Essence Fest website states that although an official date has not been confirmed, the lineup will remain the same. Ticketholders, if able, will have the opportunity to attend the rescheduled event.
A view of the audience during the 2019 ESSENCE Festival Presented By Coca-Cola at Louisiana Superdome on July 07, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
“Based on developments over the past couple of weeks, including updates from our city and health partners, we are officially announcing that we will move the 2020 ESSENCE Festival of Culture closer to the fall,” the statement said.
“As we previously indicated, we were already moving forward with identifying and securing alternate dates and will be prepared to announce those shortly. We are excited to share that previously announced talent will remain in our line-up for the postponed dates, and we will honor all tickets sold for prior scheduled performances. Continue to visit www.essencefestival.com for new updates.”
Bruno Mars and Janet Jackson were the booked headliners for the event. Janelle Monae, Summer Walker, Ari Lennox and more were also scheduled for the cultural event. Comedian and actress Loni Love was set to emcee the festival.
This year commemorates the 50th anniversary of ESSENCE magazine. The platform’s longtime CEO Michelle Ebanks recently stepped down. New Orleans, LA, the home of ESSENCE Fest, recently became a United States hotspot for COVID-19, the deadly illness caused by the novel coronavirus.
According to CNN, New Orleans is facing critical shortages of protective equipment and ventilators as positive cases continue to rise.
In a matter of weeks, more than 25,000 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in New York City, making the Big Apple the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States. And, according to officials, this is just the beginning. Although Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued a statewide stay-at-home order on March 22, New York is not expected to reach its peak in coronavirus cases for at least another three weeks. Meanwhile, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio predicted earlier this week that half of the city’s 8 million residents should expect to contract the novel virus before it is contained. While the entire city is being impacted by the outbreak, one organization is stepping up to make sure that the most vulnerable New Yorkers are not forgotten in this crisis.
United Way of New York City (UWNYC), a nonprofit dedicated to helping low-income New Yorkers, launched the COVID-19 Community Fund on Wednesday to provide those in need with crucial resources such as food and tools for virtual learning. The COVID-19 Community Fund will provide support for 600 community-based local partners that work with communities that are disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus and the economic consequences of the outbreak.
“United Way of New York City has always been committed to supporting our communities during our City’s most critical moments,” said Sheena Wright, the first woman to be named president and CEO of the organization in its 80-year history, in a statement. “Through the COVID-19 Community Fund, we are going to provide a backbone of support to our 600 community-based organization partners who are managing this crisis throughout our great City.”
According to a press release, the organization’s network of community partners will provide direct services through UWNYC’s ReadNYC, FeedNYC and StrengthenNYC programs, which include connecting hungry New Yorkers to emergency food providers through the Plentiful App as well as providing food for low-income schoolchildren. The fund will also support remote learning programs for students by providing them with books, laptops, and tablets. In addition, it will help local organizations distribute safety supplies like masks, gloves, and bags.
To help support the Fund’s initial kickoff, The New York Jets and the Johnson family made a $500,000 donation while National Grid offered $250,000.
“The United Way continues to improve lives around the world, and we need community-based organizations more than ever at this moment,” said Jets CEO Christopher Johnson in a statement. “Everyone has been impacted by this invisible enemy, and the United Way is meeting it head-on at home, helping those disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and the economic consequences of the outbreak.”
Individuals, businesses, and community groups interested in supporting New Yorkers in need can contribute to the Fund directly by clicking here.
The Rev. Joseph E. Lowery fought to end segregation, lived to see the election of the country’s first Black president and echoed the call for “justice to roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream” in America.
For more than four decades after the death of his friend and civil rights icon, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., the fiery Alabama preacher was on the front line of the battle for equality, with an unforgettable delivery that rivaled King’s — and was often more unpredictable.
Lowery had a knack for cutting to the core of the country’s conscience with commentary steeped in scripture, refusing to back down whether the audience was a Jim Crow racist or a U.S. president.
“We ask you to help us work for that day when black will not be asked to get in back; when brown can stick around; when yellow will be mellow; when the red man can get ahead, man; and when white will embrace what is right,” Lowery prayed at President Barack Obama’s inaugural benediction in 2009.
Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Chairman U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II (D-MO), U.S. President Barack Obama, U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), Reverend Joseph Lowery, first lady Michelle Obama and CBC Foundation Chairman U.S. Rep. Donald Payne (D-NJ) stand for a photo at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Annual Phoenix Awards dinner on September 24, 2011 in Washington, DC. This is the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s forty-first annual legislative conference. (Photo by Chris Kleponis-Pool/Getty Images)
Lowery, 98, died Friday at home in Atlanta, surrounded by family members, they said in a statement.
He died from natural causes unrelated to the coronavirus outbreak, the statement said.
“Tonight, the great Reverend Joseph E. Lowery transitioned from earth to eternity,” The King Center in Atlanta remembered Lowery in a Friday night tweet. “He was a champion for civil rights, a challenger of injustice, a dear friend to the King family.”
Tonight, the great Reverend Joseph E. Lowery transitioned from earth to eternity. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. He was a champion for civil rights, a challenger of injustice, a dear friend to the King family.
Lowery led the Southern Christian Leadership Conference for two decades — restoring the organization’s financial stability and pressuring businesses not to trade with South Africa’s apartheid-era regime — before retiring in 1997.
Considered the dean of civil rights veterans, he lived to celebrate a November 2008 milestone that few of his movement colleagues thought they would ever witness — the election of an African-American president.
At an emotional victory celebration for President-elect Barack Obama in Atlanta, Lowery said, “America tonight is in the process of being born again.”
An early and enthusiastic supporter of Obama over then-Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton, Lowery also gave the benediction at Obama’s inauguration.
“We thank you for the empowering of thy servant, our 44th president, to inspire our nation to believe that, yes, we can work together to achieve a more perfect union,” he said.
In 2009, Obama awarded Lowery the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.
In another high-profile moment, Lowery drew a standing ovation at the 2006 funeral of King’s widow, Coretta Scott King, when he criticized the war in Iraq, saying, “For war, billions more, but no more for the poor.” The comment also drew head shakes from then-President George Bush and his father, former president George H.W. Bush, who were seated behind the pulpit.
The Rev. Joseph Lowery speaks during the Let Freedom Ring ceremony at the Lincoln Memorial August 28, 2013 in Washington, DC. The event was to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech and the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Lowery’s involvement in civil rights grew naturally out of his Christian faith. He often preached that racial discrimination in housing, employment and health care was at odds with such fundamental Christian values as human worth and the brotherhood of man.
“I’ve never felt your ministry should be totally devoted to making a heavenly home. I thought it should also be devoted to making your home here heavenly,” he once said.
Lowery remained active in fighting issues such as war, poverty and racism long after retirement, and survived prostate cancer and throat surgery after he beat Jim Crow.
His wife, Evelyn Gibson Lowery, who worked alongside her husband of nearly 70 years and served as head of SCLC/WOMEN, died in 2013.
“I’ll miss you, Uncle Joe. You finally made it up to see Aunt Evelyn again,” King’s daughter, Bernice King, said in a tweet Friday night.
It’s hard to imagine a world or an Atlanta without Reverend #JosephLowery. I’m grateful for a life well-lived and for its influence on mine. I’ll miss you, Uncle Joe. You finally made it up to see Aunt Evelyn again. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/WZK10uKjeY
Lowery was pastor of the Warren Street Methodist Church in Mobile, Alabama, in the 1950s when he met King, who then lived in Montgomery, Alabama. Lowery’s meetings with King, the Rev. Ralph David Abernathy and other civil rights activists led to the SCLC’s formation in 1957. The group became a leading force in the civil rights struggle of the 1960s.
Lowery became SCLC president in 1977 following the resignation of Abernathy, who had taken the job after King was assassinated in 1968. He took over an SCLC that was deeply in debt and losing members rapidly. Lowery helped the organization survive and guided it on a new course that embraced more mainstream social and economic policies.
Coretta Scott King once said Lowery “has led more marches and been in the trenches more than anyone since Martin.”
March 1965: American civil rights leader Martin Luther King (1929 – 1968) (centre) with his wife Coretta Scott King and colleagues during a civil rights march from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital in Montgomery. (Photo by William Lovelace/Express/Getty Images)
He was arrested in 1983 in North Carolina for protesting the dumping of toxic wastes in a predominantly Black county and in 1984 in Washington while demonstrating against apartheid.
He recalled a 1979 confrontation in Decatur, Alabama, when he and others were protesting the case of a mentally disabled Black man charged with rape. He recalled that bullets whizzed inches above their heads and a group of Klan members confronted them.
“I could hear them go ‘whoosh,'” Lowery said. “I’ll never forget that. I almost died 24 miles from where I was born.”
In the mid-1980s, he led a boycott that persuaded the Winn-Dixie grocery chain to stop selling South African canned fruit and frozen fish when that nation was in the grip of apartheid.
He also continued to urge Blacks to exercise their hard-won rights by registering to vote.
“Black people need to understand that the right to vote was not a gift of our political system but came as a result of blood, sweat and tears,” he said in 1985.
Like King, Lowery juggled his civil rights work with ministry. He pastored United Methodist churches in Atlanta for decades and continued preaching long after retiring.
Born in Huntsville, Alabama, in 1921, Joseph Echols Lowery grew up in a Methodist church where his great-grandfather, the Rev. Howard Echols, was the first Black pastor. Lowery’s father, a grocery store owner, often protested racism in the community.
After college, Lowery edited a newspaper and taught school in Birmingham, but the idea of becoming a minister “just kept gnawing and gnawing at me,” he said. After marrying Evelyn Gibson, a Methodist preacher’s daughter, he began his first pastorate in Birmingham in 1948.
In a 1998 interview, Lowery said he was optimistic that true racial equality would one day be achieved.
“I believe in the final triumph of righteousness,” he said. “The Bible says weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”
A member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, Lowery is survived by his three daughters, Yvonne Kennedy, Karen Lowery and Cheryl Lowery-Osborne.
Aubrey “Drake” Graham is set to release a new series based on TheNew York Times best-selling book 48 Laws of Power, on Quibi, a new subscription-based streaming service designed specifically for smartphones.
Quibi announced Thursday that the new series, also titled 48 Law of Power, will bring Robert Greene’s wildly popular book to life, detailing the nature of power as well as the art of securing and maintaining it. Each episode will focus on a different law of power, reads a press release.
The series will be produced in partnership with Graham’s production company Dreamcrew and Anonymous Content. Greene and the hip-hop superstar’s co-manager, Adel “Future” Nur, will also serve as executive producers on the project. In addition, the multiplatform rapper is set to direct an episode.
“When Drake and I sat down with Robert Greene, it was incredibly inspiring. The laws allow for a wide range of dynamic storytelling, and Quibi allows us to tell these stories in bite-sized chapters similar to the book,” Nur said in a statement.
Greene added that he always envisioned a visual adaption of his book, but he was waiting for the right opportunity.
“I have always thought that The 48 Laws of Power would be a perfect fit for a series, bringing to life the timeless Machiavellian game of power as portrayed in the book,” Greene says. “But it was not until Drake and Future with Anonymous Content approached me with their unique cinematic approach to the laws that I knew I could join forces with them and go all in for a filmed interpretation of my work.”
Quibi is a short-form video mobile entertainment platform set to launch April 6 and debut 50 shows. A number of black content creators will release content on Quibi, including Lena Waithe, who is executive producing a show about sneaker culture called You Ain’t Got These, and Curtis“50 Cent”Jackson, who is executive producing an animated black superhero series titledTrill League. In addition, Quibi acquired Will Parker’s docuseries about former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling.
The mobile-centric platform will charge users $5 monthly for an ad-supported version and $8 per month for viewing without ads.
Artificial intelligence has already played a vital role in the outbreak since day 1—a reminder for the first time in a while that it can be a tool for good.
The widespread outbreak of COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, has cost many American workers their jobs and sent them to the unemployment line. The economy has been deeply damaged due to businesses having to shut down their operations and large event cancellations under new, strict laws to combat the virus from infecting more people. As a result, the government has been at work trying to come to an agreement on a stimulus that would help American citizens weather out this public health crisis. One California mayor wants to offer every person $500 a month with no strings attached.
Michael Tubbs, the 29-year-old mayor of Stockton, California, has been a longtime supporter of a universal base income. He has already been conducting a trial of a guaranteed income in his city since February, giving 125 residents—all of whom live at or below the city’s median income level of $46,000―$500 a month in cash funded by the Economic Security Project.
Under the stimulus plan recently approved by Congress, individuals would receive one-off payments of $1,200 for individuals and $2,400 for couples in addition to an extra $500 for each child 16 or younger for those earning under $75,000 annually. The payments would be scaled down for those earning between $75,000 to a maximum of $99,000 annually. While it’s estimated that about 90% of Americans would qualify for this relief, many feel that a one-off payment will not suffice.
“I’m happy that our federal government has shown a willingness to understand… that during times of crisis, the best thing you can do is to give folks cash to navigate through.” He said to the Huffington Post. “It has to last at least as long as the crisis.”
While the crisis has brought to light the many economic inequalities people deal with, Tubbs argues that the universal income plan needs to become a permanent fixture in our government. “Even before this catastrophic disruption, a lot of folks were living in economic crisis,” said Tubbs, “and our economy was not working for the vast majority of people. It behooves all of us to ensure that everyone at least has an income floor.”
Former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers warns that trying to restart the US economy too soon would put countless lives in danger and risk far more economic damage.
While the rest of the country is on self-quarantine and avoiding physical contact, one callous Amazon delivery driver in California was caught on video spitting on a package and smearing his saliva all over the top of it.
According to TMZ, the disturbing footage was taken Thursday evening at a duplex residence in L.A.’s Hancock Park neighborhood.
The outlet reports, “the delivery guy sets the package down on the porch, leans over and spits … then catches some of the spit and appears to wipe it on the package as more saliva falls out of his mouth. He then stands up as if nothing gross just happened, and takes a photo to verify the delivery.”
A neighbor of the person whose package was spit on contacted Amazon to report the incident and had a customer service rep watch the clip. After the rep gasped in dismay, they then confirmed the man in the video was an employee from a third party service. Although he was reported, they warned there was a possibility that he might be back on the job today.
“This is clearly not representative of drivers who deliver for Amazon and the care they take for customers around the world every day,” an Amazon spokesperson responded to TMZ when reached for comment.
“We are aggressively investigating to understand what may have occurred in this situation. If it truly was a malicious act by the driver, we will be sure he is held accountable, up through and including law enforcement action.”
Given the current health crisis and the fact that America now has the highest confirmed cases of coronavirus in the world, federal law enforcement is considering classifying acts of people intentionally spreading COVID-19 as a form of terrorism.
If you haven’t seen Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness yet on Netflix, you’re gonna want to take some time this weekend and get ready for your jaw to hit the floor.
The latest true crime docuseries from Netflix has helped the quarantined time fly by for viewers like 2 Chainz and Cardi B who can’t rip themselves away from the unimaginable trainwreck that proves white folks are into some really crazy sh*t.
We won’t give away too many spoilers because the nonstop twists and turns are part of the fun of this mind-blowing tale. Below should entice you to give it a try.
— Ms. Scarlett Vanderbelt (@SHAYSrebellionn) March 25, 2020
One thing you will NOT see in this docuseries? Black folks. Nowhere. None. (With the exception of a very small and insignificant snippet of SHAQ) You know why? This level of foolishness is reserved for the white folks of the world. Tigers as pets?
2. Pettiness at its peak.
Joe Exotic when he finds out Carole is making money off of tigers, not paying her staff, AND making music videos #TigerKingpic.twitter.com/OdfPvvXnWZ
The central plotline (although there are thousands) revolves around Joseph Maldanado-Passage aka Joe Exotic, who is currently behind bars. He’s convicted of a murder-for-hire plot against his cat-loving rival (and fellow wackjob) Carol Baskin. Joe Exotic owns a big ass zoo in Florida where he breeds big cats and he may be the pettiest person in the history of ever.
Joe Exotic's staff watching him get dragged around by tigers has me in tears #TigerKing
Joe: screaming and shouting
His staff silently watching the liger attempt to maul him: pic.twitter.com/H42GShkkTb
— #justiceforShukriAbdi (@Mariam55600951) March 22, 2020
Granted, many of the tigers are stuck in cages, but it’s still kind of incredible to see so many variations of big cats. Even more amazing is the fact that these enormous, deadly animals act like house pets more often than not. But also, sometimes they rip off people’s arms and attack their owners. White tigers, ligers, lions, leopards, black panthers, and cheetahs are just a few of the guest stars of this wild ride.
4. There are no good guys.
When a documentary starts out with:
“The monkey people are a little bit different. You know, their kind of strange, but the big cat people are back-stabbing pieces of shit.”
The details of this story are so wild, it’s hard to believe they could be true. But they are. Even after binging this show for hours, you won’t have any idea who you’re actually rooting for. Just when you think you’ve solved a piece of the peculiar puzzle, someone will step into the next scene and stomp all over your theories.
5. It’s funny as hell without trying to be.
After finishing up #TigerKing, everything I wanted to watch next seems to pale in comparison. I never knew a doc series about a fringe-jacket-wearing frizzy-blonde-mullet-haired psychotic gun-toting gay polygamist exotic animal zoo owner would ruin me. I'm flabbergasted. pic.twitter.com/RFP48jZ6XA
— J.B. Hamilton will get better eventually. (@StorySorcery) March 23, 2020
The idea of gorgeous, majestic animals being abused by the literal scum of the earth is not funny, per se, but the crazy cast of characters we meet in these mind-blowing series will make you bust a gut or two. The realization that these people are actual humans and not part of some hilarious skit about the depths of stupidity is actually baffling.
SO much so, you’ll ask yourself, What in the hillbilly hell is going on?
Last year, rapper T.I. has sparked public backlash after admitting in an interview that he accompanied his 18-year-old daughter Deyjah Harris to her gynecologist to make sure her “hymen is still intact.” Now, we finally get to hear what the 18-year-old at the center of this heated debate really felt about the media firestorm.
While the Harris may have been tight-lipped up until now, there was no way they wouldn’t address the pink elephant in the room on the family’s successful reality show, T.I. & Tiny: Friends and Family Hustle.
WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA – NOVEMBER 15: Rapper T.I. and Tameka “Tiny” Cottle-Harris attend the VH1 Big In 2015 with Entertainment Weekly Awards at Pacific Design Center on November 15, 2015 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic)
T.I may love his child but that still doesn’t negate the impact of him boasting about his overzealous ways in public.
“I came to clear up any misconceptions that have been surrounding how we interact and parent and what is appropriate and inappropriate,” Tip began while appearing on Red Table Talk to address “Hymen-gate.”
“From a place of truth, I began to embellish and exaggerate and I think a lot of people took it extremely literal,” he added, admitting that at the time he didn’t understand the sensitivities surrounding the topic at hand.
He also clarified that the visits to the gynecologist were made when his daughter was 16. He had both her and her mother’s consent to join them during the visits but was never in the room during her actual exams.
“She did have a problem with me talking about it however, and I understand that, and I am incredibly apologetic to her for that,” he conceded. “She understands my intentions and she knows who I am, who I’ve always been.”
Lawmakers and officials all over the country have made businesses shut down to prevent the spread of the coronavirus but when mayors in Mississippi attempted to follow suit, Gov. Tate Reeves issued an order overruling them.
“There’s no question that the purpose of the order was to keep businesses open, which is good for the economy,” Tupelo Mayor Jason Sheltontold the Mississippi Free Press. “It’s definitely putting protections in place for the state’s economy. The flipside is that it’s doing that at the expense of human lives.”
Mario King, who is the mayor of Moss Point, previously closed restaurants for dining in, salons and barbershops, houses of worship, and more. But now Reeves’ order completely makes those measures order null and void.
“So barbershops and salons are open today. People are actually at church making up Bible studies lost on Wednesday, so they’re having Thursday Bible studies. There are restaurants that re-opened their dine-in services today,” King told the publication.
“I understand they’re just trying to make a dollar, but if one person sneezes who has COVID-19 and someone else comes in, they’re possibly exposed to that. So his order puts our people at risk.”
The dismayed mayor also slammed Reeves’ actions as “complete foolishness and foolery” also noting he was “embarrassed not just as a mayor, but as a citizen of Mississippi. We are the laughingstock of the country because our governor has enacted an order that does not only protect the safety and welfare of the people, but puts Mississippians in harm’s way.”
Cardi B is hoping to influence her fellow New Yorkers to fill out the U.S. Census.
The “Bodak Yellow” rapper is starring in a new PSA that encourages New York City residents to step up to the plate and do better than they did 10 years ago when only 62 percent of residents responded to the Census, which is important in determining community resources and the number of congressional seats for each state.
NYC! Proud to work with NYC Census & @JulieMenin This census is IMPORTANT, now more than ever, to getting the resources we NEED in our communities. Fill out the census at – https://t.co/G7bn9SKWm9 or call 844-330-2020 to fill out the census. IT ONLY TAKES 10 MINUTES Thank You ❤️ pic.twitter.com/fWrqjj8BEU
Cardi told her followers they had no need to fear any negative repercussions by filling out the 10-minute Census survey because a citizenship question is not included in the survey and the responses are confidential.
“New York City 2020 is a huge opportunity to make our voice heard. This year we have the power to decide our city’s future, not just for the next four years, but for the next 10, by getting counted in the census,” the rapper says in the PSA.
“The census is about power, money, and respect for our communities. If our city is undercounted, we risk being underrepresented, especially our communities of color. In 2010, only 62 percent of New Yorkers responded to the census, with the lowest response rates in our Black and brown communities. In 2020, I’m going to tell you something, we can’t let this happen again,” Cardi B said.
Cardi said people should not allow anyone to “silence” them from getting their fair share of federal and state resources, which are allotted by the results in the questionnaire.
“The census is safe, easy for everyone. And remember, the citizenship question is off the census, no matter what anybody tells you. Immigrants with or without papers count too,” the rapper said in the video.
Cardi B captioned her video, which she included in English and in Spanish, “NYC! Proud to work with NYC Census & @JulieMenin This census is IMPORTANT, now more than ever, to getting the resources we NEED in our communities. Fill out the census at – http://2020census.gov or call 844-330-2020 to fill out the census. IT ONLY TAKES 10 MINUTES Thank You.”
The decennial census occurs every 10 years. It is mandated by the U.S. Constitution for each household to fill out the Census. This year’s deadline has been extended to August 14 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The coronavirus outbreak has crippled multiple industries including travel, hospitality, and restaurants. However, the gun industry is thriving as many are stocking up.
Purchases of guns and ammunition have skyrocketed in pro-gun states such as Utah, North Carolina, and Tennessee, according to Mic. Wake County Sheriff Gerald Baker believes it’s all due to fears from the coronavirus.
“Our staff has been inundated with high volumes of gun permit applications that has made it impossible to process by law,” Baker said. He added that his office will be suspending pistol and concealed-carry permit applications until April 30 due to demand skyrocketing amid the coronavirus outbreak.
“It’s really just a matter of, if things go bad in the next couple weeks to couple of months and people are panicking and rioting and looting, the government and the police will not have the ability to protect us,” a Los Angeles gun buyer told NPR. “That’s really the main issue, it’s not really out of fear, it’s just out of being prepared.”
The surge in gun purchases comes at the same time organizations in the fight against domestic violence warn that the quarantine measures taken to protect against coronavirus could bring harm to victims.
Since quarantine restrictions have been implemented in more than 20 states, the national domestic violence hotline has seen an increase in incidents. Some are even reporting their abuser is threatening to throw them out into the street if they get sick.
The spike in gun purchases also comes at a time when the National Rifle Association is struggling to stay afloat due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The organization is planning to cut 20% of the pay for staffers and forcing employees to work four days a week to deal with the financial effects of the coronavirus outbreak. A pay cut is also expected for NRA Chief Executive Wayne LaPierre. LaPierre was paid $2.1 million in 2018, according to the organization’s most recent tax filing, which showed it has more than 800 employees.
Others, however, believe the NRA’s financial problems are an effect of the country watching children being killed in schools and being forced to take active shooter drills. Shannon Watts, the founder of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, believes the NRA’s problem stems from an agenda that is out of line with the minds of the majority of Americans
“I offer NRA leaders my thoughts and prayers as our organization prepares to outspend and outwork them yet again this election season,” Watts told NPR.
The NRA has been attacked for years by politicians and parents alike who continue to wonder why every school shooting doesn’t bring a change in gun purchases. In an effort to raise its participation numbers, the NRA began running ads directed toward minorities, but the campaign did not help boost revenue.
