Fueled by a significant increase in attacks on women in the military ages 17-24, reports of sexual assault in the military soared by 50 percent in 2018 from the same period two years before, according to a Pentagon survey released Thursday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General William Barr portrayed himself as an apolitical elder statesman at his confirmation hearing. He declared he’d rather resign than be asked to fire special counsel Robert Mueller without cause and insisted the prosecutor he’d known for decades would never involve himself in a witch hunt as the president claimed.
But now Barr has emerged as arguably the most divisive figure in Donald Trump’s administration. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi accused him on Thursday of lying — a charge the Justice Department called reckless and false — and House Democrats are poised to hold him in contempt.
His appearance this week before the Senate Judiciary Committee accelerated calls for his resignation after he said Trump had been falsely accused and he spun politically damning episodes in Mueller’s report in the president’s favor.
Barr might have seemed an unlikely lightning rod given his long government career, his distance from Trump’s inner circle and his age, 68, that he said made him unconcerned with political advancement. But he had telegraphed his sympathetic view of strong presidential powers — surely a useful viewpoint for Trump — in a memo to the Justice Department last year that criticized Mueller’s Trump-Russia obstruction of justice investigation. His latest testimony, including that Trump’s actions weren’t criminal, reaffirmed that philosophy and, to critics, established Barr as the president’s protector .
“We have a chief law enforcement officer who is definitely the defense lawyer for the president,” Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii said Thursday.
The Senate testimony was the latest episode in a turnabout in public perception for Barr, whose selection was greeted by some with high hopes that he would return the Justice Department to stability following two years of leadership upheaval. He replaced an attorney general, Jeff Sessions, who was ridiculed by the president and ultimately pushed out, and an acting one, Matt Whitaker, who was dismissed by Democrats as unqualified and a Trump loyalist.
It’s the second time around for Barr, who was attorney general under George H.W. Bush between 1991 and 1993 and involved in some of that administration’s weightiest decisions. He was Mueller’s Justice Department boss back then, and at his January confirmation hearing he described the special counsel as a longtime friend and a “straight shooter” who’d be allowed to finish his Trump investigation without interference.
At the same hearing, he parried questions about his memo by saying it was written without knowing facts of the investigation. He also acknowledged constraints on presidential power, conceding that it could be a crime if a president granted a pardon in exchange for silencing someone with incriminating information. Even if most Democrats didn’t support him, they didn’t appear to dread his appointment.
“Confirmation hearings are easy in the sense that the smart nominee knows the right answer to all the questions, which is not to commit to anything but agree to consider everything,” said Greg Brower, a former assistant director in the FBI’s office of congressional affairs. “Now that he’s in the middle of the aftermath of the Mueller investigation, he’s obviously being pinned down to more specific answers to very specific questions, and that is obviously proving to be more problematic for him.”
While House Democrats have already asked Mueller to testify, Senate Democrats, as the minority in that chamber, are more limited. They don’t have the power to set hearing schedules or compel officials to appear. But they are trying to build a case in public opinion that it’s Mueller, not Barr, who needs to tell the investigation story.
Testimony from Mueller is especially in demand now that his apparent rift with Barr has been exposed. It stems from Barr’s decision to communicate Mueller’s main conclusions of his two-year investigation in a four-page letter. The letter said Mueller had not established a criminal conspiracy between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign and had not reached a conclusion on obstruction despite laying out evidence on both sides of that question.
The decision to avoid a determination on obstruction caught Barr by surprise, Justice Department officials said, and he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein resolved to reach a conclusion in place of Mueller’s team. They decided Mueller’s evidence didn’t add up to a crime, a decision that puzzled some Democrats and legal analysts given the vivid accounts of Trump’s conduct in the report.
Days later, Mueller complained to Barr that his summary letter had “not fully captured the context, nature and substance” of the special counsel’s work or conclusions. Barr said Wednesday his goal had been simply to release the report’s bottom-line conclusions as he readied the entire document for release. Neither Barr nor Mueller went public with their conversation.
When Barr was asked weeks later at an unrelated congressional hearing about reports of discontent within the special counsel’s team, he said he didn’t know what those reports referred to. Pelosi said Thursday “the attorney general of the United States was not telling the truth to the Congress of the United States — that’s a crime.” The Justice Department vehemently denied that.
House Judiciary Democrats now are poised to hold Barr, who skipped a hearing Thursday in a dispute over its terms, in contempt after the Justice Department missed a committee deadline to provide an unredacted version of Mueller’s report.
Even if Barr didn’t immediately acknowledge the disconnect with Mueller, his tone about the investigation did appear to evolve.
He told lawmakers at an April 10 hearing that he believed there’d been “spying” on the Trump campaign, echoing a common Trump talking point, and committed to investigating how and why the FBI began its probe into ties between Russia and the Trump campaign.
At a news conference shortly before the release of Mueller’s report last month, he repeatedly said Mueller had not found collusion between Trump aides and Russia, though the actual report pointedly noted that collusion is not a legal term. He praised the president’s cooperation, though Trump declined an in-person interview. He said Trump had a “sincere belief” that the investigation was undermining his presidency.
At Wednesday’s hearing, Democrats confronted Barr with a series of episodes from Mueller’s report, including the president’s directive to aides to lie on his behalf and for his White House counsel to seek Mueller’s ouster. But for each instance, Barr said Trump lacked the criminal intent required for obstruction and said there were alternate explanations for his behavior beyond trying to shut down the investigation.
Democrats were anything but persuaded.
“You have been very adroit and agile in your responses to questions here,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. “But I think history will judge you harshly and maybe a bit unfairly because you seem to have been the designated fall guy for this report.
____
Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro and Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.
HEAD BACK TO THE BLACKAMERICAWEB.COM HOMEPAGE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General William Barr portrayed himself as an apolitical elder statesman at his confirmation hearing. He declared he’d rather resign than be asked to fire special counsel Robert Mueller without cause and insisted the prosecutor he’d known for decades would never involve himself in a witch hunt as the president claimed.
But now Barr has emerged as arguably the most divisive figure in Donald Trump’s administration. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi accused him on Thursday of lying — a charge the Justice Department called reckless and false — and House Democrats are poised to hold him in contempt.
His appearance this week before the Senate Judiciary Committee accelerated calls for his resignation after he said Trump had been falsely accused and he spun politically damning episodes in Mueller’s report in the president’s favor.
Barr might have seemed an unlikely lightning rod given his long government career, his distance from Trump’s inner circle and his age, 68, that he said made him unconcerned with political advancement. But he had telegraphed his sympathetic view of strong presidential powers — surely a useful viewpoint for Trump — in a memo to the Justice Department last year that criticized Mueller’s Trump-Russia obstruction of justice investigation. His latest testimony, including that Trump’s actions weren’t criminal, reaffirmed that philosophy and, to critics, established Barr as the president’s protector .
“We have a chief law enforcement officer who is definitely the defense lawyer for the president,” Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii said Thursday.
The Senate testimony was the latest episode in a turnabout in public perception for Barr, whose selection was greeted by some with high hopes that he would return the Justice Department to stability following two years of leadership upheaval. He replaced an attorney general, Jeff Sessions, who was ridiculed by the president and ultimately pushed out, and an acting one, Matt Whitaker, who was dismissed by Democrats as unqualified and a Trump loyalist.
It’s the second time around for Barr, who was attorney general under George H.W. Bush between 1991 and 1993 and involved in some of that administration’s weightiest decisions. He was Mueller’s Justice Department boss back then, and at his January confirmation hearing he described the special counsel as a longtime friend and a “straight shooter” who’d be allowed to finish his Trump investigation without interference.
At the same hearing, he parried questions about his memo by saying it was written without knowing facts of the investigation. He also acknowledged constraints on presidential power, conceding that it could be a crime if a president granted a pardon in exchange for silencing someone with incriminating information. Even if most Democrats didn’t support him, they didn’t appear to dread his appointment.
“Confirmation hearings are easy in the sense that the smart nominee knows the right answer to all the questions, which is not to commit to anything but agree to consider everything,” said Greg Brower, a former assistant director in the FBI’s office of congressional affairs. “Now that he’s in the middle of the aftermath of the Mueller investigation, he’s obviously being pinned down to more specific answers to very specific questions, and that is obviously proving to be more problematic for him.”
While House Democrats have already asked Mueller to testify, Senate Democrats, as the minority in that chamber, are more limited. They don’t have the power to set hearing schedules or compel officials to appear. But they are trying to build a case in public opinion that it’s Mueller, not Barr, who needs to tell the investigation story.
Testimony from Mueller is especially in demand now that his apparent rift with Barr has been exposed. It stems from Barr’s decision to communicate Mueller’s main conclusions of his two-year investigation in a four-page letter. The letter said Mueller had not established a criminal conspiracy between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign and had not reached a conclusion on obstruction despite laying out evidence on both sides of that question.
The decision to avoid a determination on obstruction caught Barr by surprise, Justice Department officials said, and he and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein resolved to reach a conclusion in place of Mueller’s team. They decided Mueller’s evidence didn’t add up to a crime, a decision that puzzled some Democrats and legal analysts given the vivid accounts of Trump’s conduct in the report.
Days later, Mueller complained to Barr that his summary letter had “not fully captured the context, nature and substance” of the special counsel’s work or conclusions. Barr said Wednesday his goal had been simply to release the report’s bottom-line conclusions as he readied the entire document for release. Neither Barr nor Mueller went public with their conversation.
When Barr was asked weeks later at an unrelated congressional hearing about reports of discontent within the special counsel’s team, he said he didn’t know what those reports referred to. Pelosi said Thursday “the attorney general of the United States was not telling the truth to the Congress of the United States — that’s a crime.” The Justice Department vehemently denied that.
House Judiciary Democrats now are poised to hold Barr, who skipped a hearing Thursday in a dispute over its terms, in contempt after the Justice Department missed a committee deadline to provide an unredacted version of Mueller’s report.
Even if Barr didn’t immediately acknowledge the disconnect with Mueller, his tone about the investigation did appear to evolve.
He told lawmakers at an April 10 hearing that he believed there’d been “spying” on the Trump campaign, echoing a common Trump talking point, and committed to investigating how and why the FBI began its probe into ties between Russia and the Trump campaign.
At a news conference shortly before the release of Mueller’s report last month, he repeatedly said Mueller had not found collusion between Trump aides and Russia, though the actual report pointedly noted that collusion is not a legal term. He praised the president’s cooperation, though Trump declined an in-person interview. He said Trump had a “sincere belief” that the investigation was undermining his presidency.
At Wednesday’s hearing, Democrats confronted Barr with a series of episodes from Mueller’s report, including the president’s directive to aides to lie on his behalf and for his White House counsel to seek Mueller’s ouster. But for each instance, Barr said Trump lacked the criminal intent required for obstruction and said there were alternate explanations for his behavior beyond trying to shut down the investigation.
Democrats were anything but persuaded.
“You have been very adroit and agile in your responses to questions here,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. “But I think history will judge you harshly and maybe a bit unfairly because you seem to have been the designated fall guy for this report.
____
Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro and Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.
HEAD BACK TO THE BLACKAMERICAWEB.COM HOMEPAGE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Kamala Harris found her way back to the spotlight this week.
The Democratic presidential candidate and California senator won praise from liberals for seemingly stumping Attorney General William Barr during a contentious hearing over special counsel Robert Mueller’s report. Harris’s team quickly highlighted the exchange in a fundraising appeal and President Donald Trump seemed irked, telling Fox Business the senator was “probably very nasty.”
By late Thursday, more than 4 million people had viewed a C-SPAN video circulating on Twitter of Harris pressing Barr.
The moment was much needed. After launching her campaign in January before an adoring crowd of tens of thousands of people, Harris has largely been in the background in a presidential field that has ballooned to more than 20 candidates. While she has been a fixture in early states and on the fundraising circuit, former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders are sitting on top of the polls. Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, meanwhile, is shaping the policy debate and Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, remains the surprise underdog.
Some Democrats are awaiting Harris’ second act.
“I think she is at this moment being drowned out by other candidates unveiling and rolling out big policy positions and proposals,” said Democratic strategist Maria Cardona. “She needs to do the same to reclaim the robust conversation about issues that is being ignited by such a diverse— and big — field of candidates.”
Harris’s team has capitalized on exchanges like Wednesday’s hearing to bolster her oft-repeated argument that she is prepared to “prosecute the case against Trump.” In the four early states that are key to the Democratic nomination, voters frequently cite Harris’s role in the hearing to address sexual misconduct allegations against Justice Brett Kavanaugh, as a leading reason for supporting her.
But strategists say Harris has been missing opportunities. Her early campaign has been marked by caution, tight control of her message and a fairly traditional approach to media.
Harris “shouldn’t be afraid to be provocative,” said Ben LaBolt, who worked on both of Obama’s campaigns.
LaBolt suggested that her campaign could take a cue from Buttigieg, who’s become known for sitting for interviews with more traditional outlets along with more obscure podcasts and newsletters. Harris did some of that early in her campaign, but LaBolt said she could return to “unconventional platforms.”
Harris’ team sees the next phase of the race, which began at the end of the first fundraising quarter and ends with the first debate next month, as having three distinct priorities: Rolling out fresh ideas and policies, raising money and sustaining a travel schedule that includes frequent visits to key primary states.
Harris’s campaign views South Carolina, home to the nation’s first-in-the-South primary, as essential to its prospects. She has methodically campaigned there, visiting both urban centers and rural parts of the state. Her first campaign policy rollout, a federal investment in teacher pay, mentioned the state explicitly. And she returned to South Carolina for an education round table this week as teachers marched on the Statehouse.
She raised $12 million during the first quarter, cementing herself as a top competitor. Harris’s campaign spent much of the two years aggressively building her online donor list, but she is also finding support on the traditional fundraising circuit, in particular, among bundlers who amass big checks on behalf of presidential candidates.
The campaign already has nearly 200 former Hillary Clinton bundlers committed, according to a person with knowledge of the finance operations. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. The average Harris finance event pulls in $100,000, the person said.
Harris is set to return to the fundraising circuit in the months leading up to the Democratic debate, including in California where she’s cultivated donors for years.
“The insanely large field means that the next few months will be wildly unpredictable for everyone so you have to stay focused on creating the conditions to be relevant when it really matters,” said Brent Colburn, a veteran of the Obama administration and both Obama campaigns. “If she can stay in the top half-dozen or so in the polls and continue to raise money she will be a factor in January.”
Many voters and strategists draw comparisons between Harris and the most recent Democratic nominees. Like Obama, Harris is aiming for a similar ascent from first-term senator to president. And like Clinton, Harris is vying to be the first woman president.
Mary Jane Kimball, a retired federal government worker in New Hampshire, said she thinks Harris is “the strongest in terms of who can hold her own.”
“I absolutely love Kamala Harris,” Kimball said. “I think she’s great, she’s engaging. She doesn’t look angry. I think that’s one thing that kind of killed Hillary Clinton.”
In South Carolina, 66-year-old Joann Berry said that Harris’s candidacy filled her with pride as a black woman.
“I have faith in her just like I had faith in Barack Obama,” Berry, 66, said. “A lot of people said he couldn’t do it — and he won.”
___
Associated Press writers Julie Pace in Washington, Meg Kinnard in West Columbia, S.C. and Hunter Woodall in Manchester, N.H. contributed reporting.
PHOTO: AP
HEAD BACK TO THE BLACKAMERICAWEB.COM HOMEPAGE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Kamala Harris found her way back to the spotlight this week.
The Democratic presidential candidate and California senator won praise from liberals for seemingly stumping Attorney General William Barr during a contentious hearing over special counsel Robert Mueller’s report. Harris’s team quickly highlighted the exchange in a fundraising appeal and President Donald Trump seemed irked, telling Fox Business the senator was “probably very nasty.”
By late Thursday, more than 4 million people had viewed a C-SPAN video circulating on Twitter of Harris pressing Barr.
The moment was much needed. After launching her campaign in January before an adoring crowd of tens of thousands of people, Harris has largely been in the background in a presidential field that has ballooned to more than 20 candidates. While she has been a fixture in early states and on the fundraising circuit, former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders are sitting on top of the polls. Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, meanwhile, is shaping the policy debate and Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, remains the surprise underdog.
Some Democrats are awaiting Harris’ second act.
“I think she is at this moment being drowned out by other candidates unveiling and rolling out big policy positions and proposals,” said Democratic strategist Maria Cardona. “She needs to do the same to reclaim the robust conversation about issues that is being ignited by such a diverse— and big — field of candidates.”
Harris’s team has capitalized on exchanges like Wednesday’s hearing to bolster her oft-repeated argument that she is prepared to “prosecute the case against Trump.” In the four early states that are key to the Democratic nomination, voters frequently cite Harris’s role in the hearing to address sexual misconduct allegations against Justice Brett Kavanaugh, as a leading reason for supporting her.
But strategists say Harris has been missing opportunities. Her early campaign has been marked by caution, tight control of her message and a fairly traditional approach to media.
Harris “shouldn’t be afraid to be provocative,” said Ben LaBolt, who worked on both of Obama’s campaigns.
LaBolt suggested that her campaign could take a cue from Buttigieg, who’s become known for sitting for interviews with more traditional outlets along with more obscure podcasts and newsletters. Harris did some of that early in her campaign, but LaBolt said she could return to “unconventional platforms.”
Harris’ team sees the next phase of the race, which began at the end of the first fundraising quarter and ends with the first debate next month, as having three distinct priorities: Rolling out fresh ideas and policies, raising money and sustaining a travel schedule that includes frequent visits to key primary states.
Harris’s campaign views South Carolina, home to the nation’s first-in-the-South primary, as essential to its prospects. She has methodically campaigned there, visiting both urban centers and rural parts of the state. Her first campaign policy rollout, a federal investment in teacher pay, mentioned the state explicitly. And she returned to South Carolina for an education round table this week as teachers marched on the Statehouse.
She raised $12 million during the first quarter, cementing herself as a top competitor. Harris’s campaign spent much of the two years aggressively building her online donor list, but she is also finding support on the traditional fundraising circuit, in particular, among bundlers who amass big checks on behalf of presidential candidates.
The campaign already has nearly 200 former Hillary Clinton bundlers committed, according to a person with knowledge of the finance operations. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. The average Harris finance event pulls in $100,000, the person said.
Harris is set to return to the fundraising circuit in the months leading up to the Democratic debate, including in California where she’s cultivated donors for years.
“The insanely large field means that the next few months will be wildly unpredictable for everyone so you have to stay focused on creating the conditions to be relevant when it really matters,” said Brent Colburn, a veteran of the Obama administration and both Obama campaigns. “If she can stay in the top half-dozen or so in the polls and continue to raise money she will be a factor in January.”
Many voters and strategists draw comparisons between Harris and the most recent Democratic nominees. Like Obama, Harris is aiming for a similar ascent from first-term senator to president. And like Clinton, Harris is vying to be the first woman president.
Mary Jane Kimball, a retired federal government worker in New Hampshire, said she thinks Harris is “the strongest in terms of who can hold her own.”
“I absolutely love Kamala Harris,” Kimball said. “I think she’s great, she’s engaging. She doesn’t look angry. I think that’s one thing that kind of killed Hillary Clinton.”
In South Carolina, 66-year-old Joann Berry said that Harris’s candidacy filled her with pride as a black woman.
“I have faith in her just like I had faith in Barack Obama,” Berry, 66, said. “A lot of people said he couldn’t do it — and he won.”
___
Associated Press writers Julie Pace in Washington, Meg Kinnard in West Columbia, S.C. and Hunter Woodall in Manchester, N.H. contributed reporting.
PHOTO: AP
HEAD BACK TO THE BLACKAMERICAWEB.COM HOMEPAGE
The wine flowed, hors d’oeuvres were nibbled, and colorful fabrics abounded. The iconic Macy’s at Herald Square celebrated its latest class of diverse beauty and fashion entrepreneurs at the Workshop at Macy’s event on Wednesday.
Fifteen brands from around the country and Puerto Rico showed off their fashion and skincare products. The brands included:
Mare Cheia, a swimwear brand by Lorel Torres.
Footnanny, a skincare brand by Gloria Williams
Gunas New York, a vegan handbag brand by Sugandh Agrawal.
SUNDÃRI, women’s skincare.
Chen Burkett, an Africa-inspired fashion line
Chen Burkett (Photo: Kent Miller)
Parisian Pet, pet apparel
Solo Noir, men’s skincare
Tayion Collection, men’s suits.
Fe Noel, women’s clothing
Fe Noel (Photo: Kent Miller)
Nager by Nic Hyl, women’s apparel
Earth’s Nectar, haircare
MAIR, fragrance
The Workshop at Macy’s is a program the retailer launched in 2011. Its purpose is to diversify the supplier pipeline in the retail industry. Many of the brands that participate in the program have gone on to have their products sold at Macy’s.
Macy’s was recognized on Black Enterprise’s ‘50 Best Companies for Diversity List.’
The post Workshop at Macy’s Celebrates Diverse Beauty Brand and Fashion Founders appeared first on Black Enterprise.
Southwest’s Rapid Rewards credit cards aren’t necessarily the most rewarding airline credit cards out there for your day-to-day spend, but their lucrative welcome offers, anniversary points bonuses, and relatively low annual fees make them a great addition to any wallet, especially in the wake of the airline’s recent…
Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh has written herself out of her role as the city’s chief executive, announcing her resignation Thursday after coming under intense scrutiny about the sale of books she wrote to those doing business with both the city and the state of Maryland.
Georgia law enforcement officers have issued a felony arrest warrant for rapper Offset, also known as Cardi B-minus, one-third of the Migos.
He played Chewie in the original trilogy.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — In a squat office building not far from downtown, Esperanza Guevara is getting ready to look for people who might not want to be found. And her job could get a lot harder.
The immigrant-rights activist is leading a drive to reach tens of thousands of people who entered the U.S. illegally and persuade them to participate in the 2020 census, the government’s once-a-decade count of the population.
The Trump administration’s plan to use the census to inquire about each person’s citizenship has sent a chill through immigrant communities. Guevara and others fear the question could discourage participation and, by some estimates, leave millions uncounted across the country.
Such concerns are concentrated in Democratic-led states with large immigrant populations. An inaccurate count could have real-world consequences, since billions in federal dollars and seats in Congress are allocated according to population.
In immigrant communities often wary of government, a question about citizenship status will make people “less likely to fill out the census form or even answer the door when someone comes knocking,” said Guevara, who works for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles.
Those concerns have been heightened by Trump’s slashing rhetoric toward immigrants and by fears that census information could be used to find and deport people.
“Their first thought is, ‘Is this information going to be used against me?'” Guevara said, standing near rows of computers that will be staffed by volunteers trying to connect with prospective census participants.
Census Bureau chief Ron Jarmin said the agency is legally barred from sharing its information with law enforcement agencies, adding: “We are committed to ensuring that the data we collect are always protected.”
The U.S. Supreme Court is weighing a legal challenge seeking to strike the citizenship question from the census form. During oral arguments last week, the court’s conservative majority appeared ready to allow the question.
The Trump administration has argued that it has wide discretion in designing the questionnaire and that the citizenship question is clearly constitutional because it has been asked before — most recently, 1950 — and continues to be used on smaller, annual population surveys.
The Public Policy Institute of California has said that failure to accurately tally immigrants and other hard-to-reach groups could lead to an undercount of 1.6 million people, or roughly 4 percent of the state’s population. That would be enough to cost California one of its 53 House seats.
So California and other states are spending millions to persuade residents, legal and not, to fill out census forms, employing such means as public service messages, mailings, visits to people’s homes and informational gatherings.
“States are doing this because of the number of threats to a fair and accurate count,” said Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
Colorado’s House recently endorsed spending $12 million to encourage participation in the census. The governors of Kansas and Nevada have moved to create committees devoted to making sure everyone takes part.
In New Mexico, where the state has launched a multimillion-dollar effort to ensure an accurate tally, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has warned that a 1% undercount could translate into more than $700 million in lost federal revenue over a decade.
Perhaps no state has more at risk than California, where no racial or ethnic group constitutes a majority and Hispanics outnumber whites. More than a quarter of its residents are foreign-born.
Nearly 3 in 4 Californians belong to groups the census has historically undercounted, including Hispanics, blacks, renters, immigrants, children and members of multiple families that share a single home. The state also has an above-average poverty rate, and the poor — especially the homeless — are difficult to count.
With online surveys being widely used next year, people with shaky access to the internet also could disappear from the count.
The state has budgeted about $100 million for education and media campaigns to reach people, a figure likely to jump to $150 million later this year. Most of the money is going to hire field workers and to advertise the importance of participating, a message that will be printed even on lottery tickets.
The Trump administration’s “citizenship question has one purpose: to undercount our diverse communities,” Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom said. “Our state won’t be intimidated by the White House’s actions, and we aren’t going to back down from fighting for a fair count.”
The Census Bureau’s own plans call for hiring 450,000 to 475,000 temporary workers. Most of them will knock on the doors of people who do not fill out the questionnaires. That number is lower than it was 10 years ago because the bureau is counting on technological changes to make the job more efficient.
With a $400,000 contract from the state, Asian Americans Advancing Justice in Los Angeles is working to reach into immigrant communities where more than a dozen languages are spoken, including Korean, Vietnamese and Chinese. Southern California is home to the largest Asian population in the U.S.
An Le, the group’s statewide census manager, said census research has found that Asians who speak little or no English and were born outside the U.S. are fearful of repercussions from the government if they submit the information. The group is stressing the importance of the census to health and education funding.
Le said more money is needed to produce census materials in a greater range of languages. She worries, too, about the citizenship question.
Even for legal permanent residents, that would serve as “a deterrent and a barrier,” she said.
___
Mulvihill reported from Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
HEAD BACK TO THE BLACKAMERICAWEB.COM HOMEPAGE
LOS ANGELES (AP) — In a squat office building not far from downtown, Esperanza Guevara is getting ready to look for people who might not want to be found. And her job could get a lot harder.
The immigrant-rights activist is leading a drive to reach tens of thousands of people who entered the U.S. illegally and persuade them to participate in the 2020 census, the government’s once-a-decade count of the population.
The Trump administration’s plan to use the census to inquire about each person’s citizenship has sent a chill through immigrant communities. Guevara and others fear the question could discourage participation and, by some estimates, leave millions uncounted across the country.
Such concerns are concentrated in Democratic-led states with large immigrant populations. An inaccurate count could have real-world consequences, since billions in federal dollars and seats in Congress are allocated according to population.
In immigrant communities often wary of government, a question about citizenship status will make people “less likely to fill out the census form or even answer the door when someone comes knocking,” said Guevara, who works for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles.
Those concerns have been heightened by Trump’s slashing rhetoric toward immigrants and by fears that census information could be used to find and deport people.
“Their first thought is, ‘Is this information going to be used against me?'” Guevara said, standing near rows of computers that will be staffed by volunteers trying to connect with prospective census participants.
Census Bureau chief Ron Jarmin said the agency is legally barred from sharing its information with law enforcement agencies, adding: “We are committed to ensuring that the data we collect are always protected.”
The U.S. Supreme Court is weighing a legal challenge seeking to strike the citizenship question from the census form. During oral arguments last week, the court’s conservative majority appeared ready to allow the question.
The Trump administration has argued that it has wide discretion in designing the questionnaire and that the citizenship question is clearly constitutional because it has been asked before — most recently, 1950 — and continues to be used on smaller, annual population surveys.
The Public Policy Institute of California has said that failure to accurately tally immigrants and other hard-to-reach groups could lead to an undercount of 1.6 million people, or roughly 4 percent of the state’s population. That would be enough to cost California one of its 53 House seats.
So California and other states are spending millions to persuade residents, legal and not, to fill out census forms, employing such means as public service messages, mailings, visits to people’s homes and informational gatherings.
“States are doing this because of the number of threats to a fair and accurate count,” said Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
Colorado’s House recently endorsed spending $12 million to encourage participation in the census. The governors of Kansas and Nevada have moved to create committees devoted to making sure everyone takes part.
In New Mexico, where the state has launched a multimillion-dollar effort to ensure an accurate tally, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has warned that a 1% undercount could translate into more than $700 million in lost federal revenue over a decade.
Perhaps no state has more at risk than California, where no racial or ethnic group constitutes a majority and Hispanics outnumber whites. More than a quarter of its residents are foreign-born.
Nearly 3 in 4 Californians belong to groups the census has historically undercounted, including Hispanics, blacks, renters, immigrants, children and members of multiple families that share a single home. The state also has an above-average poverty rate, and the poor — especially the homeless — are difficult to count.
With online surveys being widely used next year, people with shaky access to the internet also could disappear from the count.
The state has budgeted about $100 million for education and media campaigns to reach people, a figure likely to jump to $150 million later this year. Most of the money is going to hire field workers and to advertise the importance of participating, a message that will be printed even on lottery tickets.
The Trump administration’s “citizenship question has one purpose: to undercount our diverse communities,” Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom said. “Our state won’t be intimidated by the White House’s actions, and we aren’t going to back down from fighting for a fair count.”
The Census Bureau’s own plans call for hiring 450,000 to 475,000 temporary workers. Most of them will knock on the doors of people who do not fill out the questionnaires. That number is lower than it was 10 years ago because the bureau is counting on technological changes to make the job more efficient.
With a $400,000 contract from the state, Asian Americans Advancing Justice in Los Angeles is working to reach into immigrant communities where more than a dozen languages are spoken, including Korean, Vietnamese and Chinese. Southern California is home to the largest Asian population in the U.S.
An Le, the group’s statewide census manager, said census research has found that Asians who speak little or no English and were born outside the U.S. are fearful of repercussions from the government if they submit the information. The group is stressing the importance of the census to health and education funding.
Le said more money is needed to produce census materials in a greater range of languages. She worries, too, about the citizenship question.
Even for legal permanent residents, that would serve as “a deterrent and a barrier,” she said.
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Mulvihill reported from Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
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Steve Canal was a star college athlete and now is a branding expert. He’s worked with an impressive list of companies including McDonald’s, Facebook, Coors Light, Delta, and Walmart. After some stumbles in his journey, he has learned many lessons of success in marketing and branding.
For example, Canal worked with the U.S. Army in its branding efforts. That work taught him the value of human connection. He led a national campaign that connected recruiters to potential soldiers looking for opportunities. The campaign involved wrapping hummers and jets in U.S. Army branding and turning them into interactive installations. It gave the brand identity, and made potential recruits feel invited and engaged.
His work has led him to other marketing and branding realizations from which other entrepreneurs and marketing and PR professions can learn.
-What leads the campaign is research. I need to know what you’re passionate about, what motivates you, and what you’re trying to accomplish. For example, even though they may offer similar products; Company A and Company B need a unique offering that must be brought to life. You have to understand what’s important to each brand and create a package that says I’m paying attention to you, I know what’s important to you. I don’t call them clients, I call them partners because it’s a two way street.
-Who is the brand? What are they offering, and who are the people who care? Some organizations do focus groups. Take that extra step to get that insight. Times are changing, people are changing, there’s a new mindset within age demographics that don’t think like you as the brand. That’s where localizing your brand comes to play. You must find advisers and champions within those communities to get you that information, and listen to them.
-It’s important to know what your strengths and weaknesses are, and find opportunities to make your weaknesses a strength. If you’re super passionate about something or you need to know something then do it. Either way, you must prioritize what’s important for you to be able to do versus what you can outsource.
-Brands need to stop thinking they have all the answers by coming up with campaigns within their walls, and not having any diversity of thought. Many times you get into these rooms to pitch, and across the table there are a bunch of like minded people coming up with campaigns without being where their customer is. Diversity of thought will make or break brands in the future. If you’re not aligned with consumers then they won’t mess with you.
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The post Four Things Steve Canal Wants You to Know About Marketing and Branding appeared first on Black Enterprise.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Facebook has banned Louis Farrakhan, Alex Jones and others from its main service and from Instagram, saying they violated the company’s ban against hate and violence.
The company said Thursday that it has also banned right-wing extremists Paul Nehlen, Milo Yiannopoulos, Paul Joseph Watson and Laura Loomer, along with Jones’ site, Infowars. Facebook has previously banned Jones from its flagship service, but not Instagram.
For years, social media companies have been under pressure from civil rights groups to clamp down on hate speech on their services.
Facebook says the newly banned accounts violated its policy against dangerous individuals and organizations. The company says it has “always banned” people or groups that proclaim a violent or hateful mission or are engaged in acts of hate or violence, regardless of political ideology.
For years, social media companies have been under pressure from civil rights groups to clamp down on hate speech on their services. Following the deadly white nationalist protests in Charlottesville, South Carolina, in 2017, Google, Facebook and PayPal began banishing extremist groups and individuals who identified as or supported white supremacists.
A year later, widespread bans of Jones and Infowars reflected a more aggressive enforcement of policies against hate speech. But Facebook instituted only a 30-day suspension (though Twitter banned him permanently).
It is not clear what events led to Thursday’s announcement. In a statement, Facebook merely said, “The process for evaluating potential violators is extensive and it is what led us to our decision to remove these accounts today.”
Facebook has been under heavy pressure to rid its service of hate and extremist content. Last month, it extended its ban on hate speech to prohibit the promotion and support of white nationalism and white separatism. It had previously allowed such material even though it has long banned white supremacists.
Asked to comment on the bans, Yiannopoulos emailed only “You’re next.”
Jones reacted angrily Thursday during a live stream of his show on his Infowars website.
“They didn’t just ban me. They just defamed us. Why did Zuckerberg even do this?” Jones said, referring to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Jones called himself a victim of “racketeering” by “cartels.”
“There’s a new world now, man, where they’re banning everybody and then they tell Congress nobody is getting banned,” he said.
Watson, meanwhile, tweeted that he was not given a reason and that he “broke none of their rules.”
“Hopefully, other prominent conservatives will speak out about me being banned, knowing that they are next if we don’t pressure the Trump administration to take action,” he wrote.
Farrakhan, Nehlen and Loomer did not immediately return messages for comment.
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Associated Press Writers Tali Arbel in New York and Michael Kunzelman in Silver Spring, Maryland, contributed to this story.
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\KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The attorney for Tyreek Hill sent a letter to the NFL on Thursday disputing child-abuse claims made by the wide receiver’s fiancee, offering a point-by-point response to a secret recording of the couple that was made public last week.
In the four-page letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, attorney N. Trey Pettlon also said Hill was willing to cooperate with the league’s investigation.
“(Hill) categorically denies he has ever ‘punched’ his son in the chest or anywhere on his body, or otherwise touched him in the chest in a mean-spirited manner,” Pettlon wrote, adding that the audio was recorded while Hills and his fiancee, Crystal Espinal, were considering separation.
The NFL has declined to comment on the case. The Chiefs also have declined additional comment.
The Chiefs suspended Hill indefinitely last Thursday, shortly after KCTV aired the recording in which the couple discusses injuries to their 3-year-old son. The following day, prosecutors in Johnson County, Kansas, reopened an investigation of Hill that had been closed just 48 hours earlier.
On the audio, Espinal asks why the boy “kept saying, ‘Daddy punches me,’ which you do when he starts crying. What do you do? You make him open up his arms and you punch him in the chest.”
Pettlon wrote there have been times that Hill has “tapped his son gently” and told him to “Man up, buddy,” or “Don’t cry, my man.” Pettlon also said Hill has always done so in a “calm voice” and that he has never punched or used his fist as a form of punishment.
“The only thing Tyreek does with his son that is close to what she is describing as ‘punching’ is when they are playing,” Pettlon wrote.
Espinal also claims during the recording, made as the couple was walking through a Dubai airport, that Hill’s son is “terrified” of him. Hill responds, “You should be terrified of me, too, bitch.”
“Instead of denying that his son was terrified of him a second time, something that has bothered him a great deal, he became frustrated and said she should be terrified, too,” Pettlon wrote. “That comment is inexcusable, of course, and he wouldn’t ask me to defend that here. That comment is also inconsistent with Tyreek’s conversations with Ms. Espinal over the past several months.”
Pettlon said a forensic examiner has looked through extensive text messages between the couple and that never once does Hill call Espinal a derogatory name.
In one exchange, according to Pettlon’s letter, Hill tells Espinal after their trip to Dubai: “Crystal you know I didn’t cause any bruising or harm to (our son) but for some reason I still may be charged.” Espinal replies: “I know you didn’t. I did. I hurt (our son). I’m the one that did it. I was hurt and mad you so I blamed you for everything.”
Pettlon also said that Hill is currently engaged in both family and individual counseling, “and he is committed to improving his life and becoming the best parent he can be.”
The Chiefs are in the midst of voluntary offseason workouts, and Hill has already been barred from attending, which is one reason why the NFL has not placed him on the commissioner’s exempt list.
Hill was drafted by the Chiefs despite a domestic abuse case in which he attacked Espinal while he was a student at Oklahoma State. Hill was kicked off the team there and wound up at West Alabama, and the Chiefs said at the time of the draft that he was undergoing counseling.
That background, combined with the audio revealed hours before the start of last week’s NFL draft, generated a substantial outcry that Hill should be released by the Chiefs. Some have even said Hill, one of the league’s best wide receivers, should never play in the NFL again.
Pettlon said Hill and Espinal continue to cooperate with investigators, and that District Attorney Steve Howe’s office has reviewed the audio tape and has yet to prosecute either party.
“It should be clear by now that there is a lot of information, including other compelling evidence that points to Tyreek’s innocence, that is not a matter of public record and cannot be addressed in this letter,” Pettlon said. “All indications are that the criminal investigation is over and Tyreek still maintains his innocence.”
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More AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL
PHOTO: AP
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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Facebook has banned Louis Farrakhan, Alex Jones and others from its main service and from Instagram, saying they violated the company’s ban against hate and violence.
The company said Thursday that it has also banned right-wing extremists Paul Nehlen, Milo Yiannopoulos, Paul Joseph Watson and Laura Loomer, along with Jones’ site, Infowars. Facebook has previously banned Jones from its flagship service, but not Instagram.
For years, social media companies have been under pressure from civil rights groups to clamp down on hate speech on their services.
Facebook says the newly banned accounts violated its policy against dangerous individuals and organizations. The company says it has “always banned” people or groups that proclaim a violent or hateful mission or are engaged in acts of hate or violence, regardless of political ideology.
For years, social media companies have been under pressure from civil rights groups to clamp down on hate speech on their services. Following the deadly white nationalist protests in Charlottesville, South Carolina, in 2017, Google, Facebook and PayPal began banishing extremist groups and individuals who identified as or supported white supremacists.
A year later, widespread bans of Jones and Infowars reflected a more aggressive enforcement of policies against hate speech. But Facebook instituted only a 30-day suspension (though Twitter banned him permanently).
It is not clear what events led to Thursday’s announcement. In a statement, Facebook merely said, “The process for evaluating potential violators is extensive and it is what led us to our decision to remove these accounts today.”
Facebook has been under heavy pressure to rid its service of hate and extremist content. Last month, it extended its ban on hate speech to prohibit the promotion and support of white nationalism and white separatism. It had previously allowed such material even though it has long banned white supremacists.
Asked to comment on the bans, Yiannopoulos emailed only “You’re next.”
Jones reacted angrily Thursday during a live stream of his show on his Infowars website.
“They didn’t just ban me. They just defamed us. Why did Zuckerberg even do this?” Jones said, referring to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Jones called himself a victim of “racketeering” by “cartels.”
“There’s a new world now, man, where they’re banning everybody and then they tell Congress nobody is getting banned,” he said.
Watson, meanwhile, tweeted that he was not given a reason and that he “broke none of their rules.”
“Hopefully, other prominent conservatives will speak out about me being banned, knowing that they are next if we don’t pressure the Trump administration to take action,” he wrote.
Farrakhan, Nehlen and Loomer did not immediately return messages for comment.
___
Associated Press Writers Tali Arbel in New York and Michael Kunzelman in Silver Spring, Maryland, contributed to this story.
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