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Tuesday, September 8, 2020

Caster Semenya loses latest ruling appeal

Caster Semenya loses her appeal to Switzerland's Federal Supreme Court against the restriction of testosterone levels in female runners.

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How to Setup a Complete Mail Server (Postfix) using ‘SquirrelMail’ (Webmail) on Ubuntu/Debian

Creating a mail server on Linux powered machines can be one of the most essential things that every system administrator needs to do while configuring the servers for the first time, if you don’t

The post How to Setup a Complete Mail Server (Postfix) using 'SquirrelMail' (Webmail) on Ubuntu/Debian first appeared on Tecmint: Linux Howtos, Tutorials & Guides.



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Velcro-like food sensor detects spoilage and contamination

MIT engineers have designed a Velcro-like food sensor, made from an array of silk microneedles, that pierces through plastic packaging to sample food for signs of spoilage and bacterial contamination.

The sensor’s microneedles are molded from a solution of edible proteins found in silk cocoons, and are designed to draw fluid into the back of the sensor, which is printed with two types of specialized ink. One of these “bioinks” changes color when in contact with fluid of a certain pH range, indicating that the food has spoiled; the other turns color when it senses contaminating bacteria such as pathogenic E. coli.

The researchers attached the sensor to a fillet of raw fish that they had injected with a solution contaminated with E. coli. After less than a day, they found that the part of the sensor that was printed with bacteria-sensing bioink turned from blue to red — a clear sign that the fish was contaminated. After a few more hours, the pH-sensitive bioink also changed color, signaling that the fish had also spoiled.

The results, published today in the journal Advanced Functional Materials, are a first step toward developing a new colorimetric sensor that can detect signs of food spoilage and contamination.

Such smart food sensors might help head off outbreaks such as the recent salmonella contamination in onions and peaches. They could also prevent consumers from throwing out food that may be past a printed expiration date, but is in fact still consumable.

“There is a lot of food that’s wasted due to lack of proper labeling, and we’re throwing food away without even knowing if it’s spoiled or not,” says Benedetto Marelli, the Paul M. Cook Career Development Assistant Professor in MIT’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. “People also waste a lot of food after outbreaks, because they’re not sure if the food is actually contaminated or not. A technology like this would give confidence to the end user to not waste food.”

Marelli’s co-authors on the paper are Doyoon Kim, Yunteng Cao, Dhanushkodi Mariappan, Michael S. Bono Jr., and A. John Hart.

Silk and printing

The new food sensor is the product of a collaboration between Marelli, whose lab harnesses the properties of silk to develop new technologies, and Hart, whose group develops new manufacturing processes.

Hart recently developed a high-resolution floxography technique, realizing microscopic patterns that can enable low-cost printed electronics and sensors. Meanwhile, Marelli had developed a silk-based microneedle stamp that penetrates and delivers nutrients to plants. In conversation, the researchers wondered whether their technologies could be paired to produce a printed food sensor that monitors food safety.

“Assessing the health of food by just measuring its surface is often not good enough. At some point, Benedetto mentioned his group’s microneedle work with plants, and we realized that we could combine our expertise to make a more effective sensor,” Hart recalls.

The team looked to create a sensor that could pierce through the surface of many types of food. The design they came up with consisted of an array of microneedles made from silk.

“Silk is completely edible, nontoxic, and can be used as a food ingredient, and it’s mechanically robust enough to penetrate through a large spectrum of tissue types, like meat, peaches, and lettuce,” Marelli says.

A deeper detection

To make the new sensor, Kim first made a solution of silk fibroin, a protein extracted from moth cocoons, and poured the solution into a silicone microneedle mold. After drying, he peeled away the resulting array of microneedles, each measuring about 1.6 millimeters long and 600 microns wide — about one-third the diameter of a spaghetti strand.

The team then developed solutions for two kinds of bioink — color-changing printable polymers that can be mixed with other sensing ingredients. In this case, the researchers mixed into one bioink an antibody that is sensitive to a molecule in E. coli. When the antibody comes in contact with that molecule, it changes shape and physically pushes on the surrounding polymer, which in turn changes the way the bioink absorbs light. In this way, the bioink can change color when it senses contaminating bacteria.

The researchers made a bioink containing antibodies sensitive to E. coli, and a second bioink sensitive to pH levels that are associated with spoilage. They printed the bacteria-sensing bioink on the surface of the microneedle array, in the pattern of the letter “E,” next to which they printed the pH-sensitive bioink, as a “C.” Both letters initially appeared blue in color.

Kim then embedded pores within each microneedle to increase the array’s ability to draw up fluid via capillary action. To test the new sensor, he bought several fillets of raw fish from a local grocery store and injected each fillet with a fluid containing either E. coli, Salmonella, or the fluid without any contaminants. He stuck a sensor into each fillet. Then, he waited.

After about 16 hours, the team observed that the “E” turned from blue to red, only in the fillet contaminated with E. coli, indicating that the sensor accurately detected the bacterial antigens. After several more hours, both the “C” and “E” in all samples turned red, indicating that every fillet had spoiled.

The researchers also found their new sensor indicates contamination and spoilage faster than existing sensors that only detect pathogens on the surface of foods.

“There are many cavities and holes in food where pathogens are embedded, and surface sensors cannot detect these,” Kim says. “So we have to plug in a bit deeper to improve the reliability of the detection. Using this piercing technique, we also don’t have to open a package to inspect food quality.”

The team is looking for ways to speed up the microneedles’ absorption of fluid, as well as the bioinks’ sensing of contaminants. Once the design is optimized, they envision the sensor could be used at various stages along the supply chain, from operators in processing plants, who can use the sensors to monitor products before they are shipped out, to consumers who may choose to apply the sensors on certain foods to make sure they are safe to eat.

This research was supported, in part, by the MIT Abdul Latif Jameel Water and Food Systems Lab (J-WAFS), the U.S. National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Office of Naval Research.



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‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ drama reboot to stream on Peacock

Will Smith said the reboot is an ‘unprecedented two-season order based on a pitch.’

The dramatic reimagining of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air from director Morgan Cooper and executive producer Will Smith has been given a two-season order at Peacock. 

After a reported bidding war the streaming service is developing the hour-long series titled Bel-Air, which is based on Cooper’s popular concept trailer that caught the attention of Smith in 2019, Shadow and Act reports. 

The project is described as a dramatic retelling “that leans into the original premise of Will’s complicated journey from the streets of West Philadelphia to the gated mansions of Bel-Air. With a reimagined vision, Bel-Air will dive deeper into the inherent conflicts, emotions and biases of what it means to be a Black man in America today, while still delivering the swagger and fun nods to the original show.”

Read More: Will Smith to produce dramatic reboot of ‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’

Smith announced the news in a YouTube video on Monday, calling it an “unprecedented two-season order based on a pitch.”

In the video, he said, “We have just officially closed the deal with Peacock with an unprecedented two-season-order from a pitch,” the actor shared. “I’ve been in this business for thirty years and that does not happen. They ordered two full seasons of Bel-Air based on the quality of the pitch and the work that you guys have done. So I want to say congratulations. I am hyped.”

Watch Smith’s announcement via the clip above.

Quincy Jones along with show creators Susan and Andy Borowitz are onboard for the new series, theGRIO previously reported. 

Last year, Smith met Cooper and interviewed him for his YouTube channel.

“That’s an idea that is brilliant,” Smith told Cooper about the trailer.

When asked about his inspiration, Cooper explained, “I grew up watching the show since I was 5,” he told Smith. “I remember seeing what you did onscreen so it’s always been a part of me. I remember driving down 71 in Kansas City and I was just thinking about the show. I remember driving under this overpass and when I came out, I had the idea. It hit me like a ton of bricks and I knew I had to tell the story.”

Watch Cooper’s trailer below:

Bel-Air will be co-produced by Smith’s Westbrook Studio and Universal TV.

Smith’s Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air sitcom ran for six seasons in the 90’s on NBC. 

Have you subscribed to theGrio’s podcast “Dear Culture”? Download our newest episodes now!

The post ‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ drama reboot to stream on Peacock appeared first on TheGrio.



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Tiffany Haddish getting advice from Tyler Perry to realize dream of owning movie studio

The actress says she’s learning from mogul Perry to realize her dream

This week Tiffany Haddish revealed that she has aspirations of starting her own movie studio, and she’s reached out to none other than Tyler Perry to help her do it.

Monday, the 40-year-old actress revealed to Charles Latibeaudiere on TMZ Live that she hoped to branch out from acting and someday own her own studio like Perry.

The Girls Trip actress said she was inspired after it was announced that Perry has become a billionaire, in large part to his expansive Atlanta studio.

READ MORE: Tyler Perry officially becomes a billionaire, Forbes announces

Haddish also noted she’d already come up with a name, explaining, “Oh yeah. She Ready Studios. I would love to do that. I talk to Tyler all the time. He’s teaching me.”

"Nobody's Fool" New York Premiere
Tiffany Haddish, Whoopi Goldberg, and Tyler Perry attend ‘Nobody’s Fool’ New York Premiere at AMC Lincoln Square Theater on October 28, 2018, in New York City. (Photo by Dominik Bindl/Getty Images)

She said that she makes it a habit to talk to people, “who are doing the things that I want to do,” adding that just the day before, she “went on a hike with some billionaires.”

Haddish’s drive has always been a hallmark of her personality. As theGrio reported last month, during a sit down with fellow female comedian Luenell, she explained how she went from having trouble reading as a child to writing her book, “The Last Black Unicorn,” a New York Times bestseller in 2017.

The Night School star, in particular, pointed out the irony of getting a Grammy nod for book narration when there was one point she was unable to read at all.

“That was kinda cool to be nominated for a Grammy for reading out loud when I couldn’t read at one point in time in my life when I was in my teens,” she disclosed.

Read More: Legends Patti Labelle and Gladys Knight announced for the next Verzuz

“I thought I was stupid. Everybody would say to me, ‘You’re stupid, you’re stupid, you so stupid.’ At that time in my life, I took things literally,” Haddish said. “So if everybody’s telling me you’re stupid – my stepdad, my mom, grandma, everybody used to say, ‘You so stupid.’ So, I believed I was stupid and I can’t read and I can’t do these things because I’m stupid.”

Ultimately, a drama teacher helped her learn to read and the rest is Hollywood history.

Have you subscribed to theGrio’s podcast “Dear Culture”? Download our newest episodes now!

The post Tiffany Haddish getting advice from Tyler Perry to realize dream of owning movie studio appeared first on TheGrio.



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Utah police shot autistic boy, 13, after mom called 911 for help

The teenager reportedly suffered injuries to his intestines, bladder, shoulder and ankles.

The mother of a 13-year-old autistic boy is speaking out after he was shot by a police officer in Salt Lake City on Friday night.

Golda Barton’s son Linden Cameron has Asperger syndrome, and she told CNN that on Sept. 4, he was having a hard time coping with her going back to work after nearly a year. When he suffered a “mental breakdown,” Barton called the police and asked for a crisis intervention team to help manage the situation. 

“I said, ‘Look, he’s unarmed. He doesn’t have anything. He just gets mad and he starts yelling and screaming,'” Barton told CNN affiliate KUTV about her call to law enforcement. “He’s a kid, he’s trying to get attention. He doesn’t know how to regulate.”

Read More: White man blames autism for causing him to call police on Black women at pool

When police arrived, Cameron ran away. Moments later, Barton heard “get down on the ground” followed by several gunshots. A Salt Lake City police officer repeatedly shot the teenager, leaving him in serious condition. He reportedly suffered injuries to his intestines, bladder, shoulder and ankles. 

“Why didn’t they tase him? Why didn’t they shoot him with a rubber bullet?” Barton told the station. “He’s a small child. Why don’t you just tackle him? You are big police officers with massive amounts of resources.”

Salt Lake City Police Sgt. Keith Horrocks said in a news conference that officers had been called to the area because Cameron was having a “psychological episode and had made threats to some folks with the weapon.”

Barton says her son was unarmed during the shooting, and police reportedly didn’t find a weapon at the scene.

“Mom can say whatever she wants, but there’s this investigation that has to happen and this process that has to take place,” Detective Greg Wilking, a spokesperson for the Salt Lake City Police Department, told CNN.

Local autism advocates are calling for changes to how police handle crises involving individuals suffering from mental health.

“While the full details of this incident are yet to be released as an investigation takes place, I will say that I am thankful this young boy is alive and no one else was injured,” Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said in statement to KUTV. “No matter the circumstances, what happened on Friday night is a tragedy and I expect this investigation to be handled swiftly and transparently for the sake of everyone involved.”

Barton wrote in a GoFundMe page for her son’s medical bills that he is a boy who loves “video games, four wheeling, and longboarding” and “is always looking for ways to help people out.”

Have you subscribed to theGrio’s podcast “Dear Culture”? Download our newest episodes now!

The post Utah police shot autistic boy, 13, after mom called 911 for help appeared first on TheGrio.



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Legends Patti Labelle and Gladys Knight announced for the next Verzuz

Iconic vocalists Patti LaBelle and Gladys Knight will be the ‘competitors’ in the latest Verzuz event on Sunday

Soul queens Patti Labelle and Gladys Knight have been announced as the next ‘contenders’ in the Verzuz battle.

Verzuz broke Twitter by sharing the news on social media on Tuesday. The main event is scheduled for this Sunday at 5 p.m. PST, 8 p.m. EST.

Read More: Brandy, Monica take over 30 out of 40 spots on Apple Music chart after Verzuz battle

2014 Tony Awards - Show
(L-R) Gladys Knight, Fantasia Barrino and Patti Labelle perform onstage during the 68th Annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall on June 8, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions)

“The Master Class we’ve ALL been waiting for! @MsGladysKnight  vs. @MsPattiPatti,” the tweet began.

“🔥 This Sunday at 5PM PT/8PM ET. Y’all gotta get dressed up in ya Sunday’s best for this classic affair. Watch it on our IG or in HD on @AppleMusic. Drinks by @Ciroc,” the account tweeted.

The Empress of Soul, Knight is a seven-time Grammy winner who has belted out such classics as “Midnight Train to Georgia,” “Love Overboard” and “Superwoman.” LaBelle, the Godmother of Soul and two-time Grammy winner is a heavy hitter with anthems such as “If Only You Knew,” “New Attitude” and “You Are My Friend.”

It didn’t take long for reactions to start pouring in over the two icons who have multiple hits and awards between them.

Read More: Brandy, Monica Verzuz battle draws over 1.2 million viewers

During Monica and Brandy’s record-breaking Verzuz battle, Knight hinted that she was ready and willing to put her catalog up against other superstars, retweeting fans who wanted to see her in friendly competition with Chaka Khan and LaBelle.

Verzuz, the brainchild of über-producers Timbaland and Swizz Beatz, has become an unexpected go-to entertainment source during the pandemic. The hitmakers told The Associated Press in April that they simply wanted to give back to fans who were stuck in the house due to the coronavirus.

“We don’t really like to use the word ‘battle’ — although it’s natural to say battle when two people are playing songs with each other. But this is more of a celebration, an educational celebration,” Swizz Beatz told AP. “Me and Tim’s mission is to bring happiness, to help everybody get past this hard moment because we’re all being affected.”

Timbaland shared the effort involved in making these must-see cultural events happen.

“Me and Swizz sit down and we really kind of curate the matches well. We try to do the unpredictable, not what people predict. And that comes with a lot of work on me and Swizz’s part,” said Timbaland. “We have to make a lot of phone calls to get these celebrations lined up. It’s a process.”

Previous battles include Brandy vs. Monica, the most recent one, Erykah Badu vs. Jill Scott, DMX vs. Snoop, Beenie Man vs. Bounty Killer, and Babyface vs. Teddy Riley.

Here’s just one example of when the two living legends sang with another one – Dionne Warwick.

Have you subscribed to theGrio’s podcast “Dear Culture”? Download our newest episodes now!

The post Legends Patti Labelle and Gladys Knight announced for the next Verzuz appeared first on TheGrio.



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DOJ asks to defend Trump in rape accuser’s defamation lawsuit

The federal government, rather than Trump himself, might have to pay damages if any are awarded to his accuser E. Jean Carroll

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department is seeking to take over President Donald Trump‘s defense in a defamation lawsuit from a writer who accused him of rape, and federal lawyers asked a court Tuesday to allow a move that could put the American people on the hook for any money she might be awarded.

After New York state courts turned down Trump’s request to delay E. Jean Carroll‘s suit, Justice Department lawyers filed court papers Tuesday aiming to shift the case into federal court and to substitute the U.S. for Trump as the defendant. That means the federal government, rather than Trump himself, might have to pay damages if any are awarded.

The filing complicates, at least for the moment, Carroll’s efforts to get a DNA sample from the president as potential evidence and to have him answer questions under oath.

Read More: Why Trump really banned diversity training as ‘anti-American’

President Donald Trump, left, and his accuser E. Jean Carroll. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images, Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images for Glamour)

Justice Department lawyers argue that Trump was “acting within the scope of his office” when he denied Carroll’s allegations, made last year, that he raped her in a New York luxury department store in the mid-1990s. She says his comments — including that she was “totally lying” to sell a memoir — besmirched her character and harmed her career.

“Numerous courts have recognized that elected officials act within the scope of their office or employment when speaking with the press, including with respect to personal matters,” the DoJ attorneys wrote.

Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, called their argument “shocking.”

“It offends me as a lawyer and offends me even more as a citizen,” she said in a statement.

Read More: Trump pushes misleading claim China is interfering in election for Biden

Carroll, meanwhile, said the developments illustrated “that Trump will do everything possible, including using the full powers of the federal government,” to try to stop the case.

It will be up to a federal judge to decide whether to keep the case in federal court and to allow the U.S. to become the defendant.

Carroll is trying to get a DNA sample from Trump to see whether it matches as-yet-unidentified male genetic material found on a dress that she says she was wearing during the alleged attack and didn’t don again until a photo shoot last year.

Her suit seeks damages and a retraction of Trump’s statements.

The Associated Press does not identify people who say they have been sexually assaulted unless they come forward publicly.

Have you subscribed to theGrio’s podcast “Dear Culture”? Download our newest episodes now!

The post DOJ asks to defend Trump in rape accuser’s defamation lawsuit appeared first on TheGrio.



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How Sudan's rebel deal offers lifeline for peace

Promises to end the devastating wars in Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile come with a price tag.

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USPS mail dumped in California parking lot in viral video

Video footage shows unopened USPS mail being tossed from a truck into a California parking lot.

Bags of mail were dumped in a parking lot from the back of a Budget moving truck in Glendale, California and the United States Postal Service still searches for answers.

Read More: Black postal workers worry USPS changes could impact job security

According to KTLA5, mail was found in two separate locations in Glendale with one incident captured on surveillance video. Unopened letters and packages were released into parking lots in the early morning hours of Sept. 3. Glendale Police Department Sgt. Christian Hauptmann confirmed the events to the news outlet.

While there is no video of the first reported dump, taking place at around 7:30 p.m., the second reported occurrence happening around 5:40 a.m. was caught on tape.

Postal Service Works Through Coronavirus Pandemic And Lockdown
U.S. Postal Service workers monitor packages on a conveyor belt at a processing and distribution center on April 29, 2020 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Video footage from 7Q Spa Laser & Aesthetics shows a rented Budget vehicle pulling up to the location leaving bags of letters and packages.

“It happened early in the morning, 5:40, and it was a Budget rental — big truck — that backed up to the parking lot. And they’re like, slowly, one by one, they’re dropping the packages,” Lilia Serobian, an owner of the spa, told KTLA5.

Read More: House Democrats want to give the USPS $25 billion

According to CNN, Omar Gonzalez, the Western regional coordinator for the American Postal Workers, says USPS employees had nothing to do with the mysterious attempted mail disposals.

“We wanted to make sure it wasn’t a bargaining employee,” Gonzalez said to CNN. “We talked to the Glendale supervisor and the Glendale manager and asked from where the contractors would have received the bags. That’s when they responded, telling us the Union should not speak about it.”

He explains that some companies who ship in bulk have plastic bags with the USPS logo to bring to the bulk shipping department at the dock. Incoming mail is supposed to be placed into USPS trucks and transported to a processing center, according to CNN.

Whether the mail thrown from the truck was incoming or outgoing is unclear.

“If it’s outgoing, we don’t know how it got into the Budget truck, Gonzales said to CNN.

Read More: Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz prevented from entering mail facility

The Postal Inspectors office and local police are both conducting investigations. The mail will go through a verification process and be delivered.

Have you subscribed to theGrio’s podcast “Dear Culture”? Download our newest episodes now!

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TEDx Talks on YouTube

Los servicios deben llegar a la gente, no la gente a los servicios | Natalia García | TEDxBogota
El desarrollo social es una ruta de crisis, respuestas y preguntas. Si se formulan las preguntas adecuadas, esos escenarios de crisis se pueden solucionar. El trabajo social y con comunidades se enfrenta repetidamente a circunstancias que reclaman soluciones pertinentes y oportunas, por eso ha resultado importante la creatividad y el entendimiento de cada contexto para ayudar a salir adelante a las personas que los habitan. Directora de la Fundación Siemens en Colombia, con veinte años de experiencia en formulación, construcción de alianzas y evaluación de programas para el desarrollo social en América Latina y el Caribe, con organismos internacionales, sector privado y el Estado. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://ift.tt/102EAFM


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Akon Breaks Ground on the Construction of a $6 Billion ‘Wakanda’ In Senegal

akon city

Previously, BLACK ENTERPRISE reported on entertainment mogul Akon’s plans to create a Wakanda-like city in his home country of Senegal. This week, he announced that his company has begun to break ground on the construction of the $6 billion development project. He took to social media to unveil the first 3-D rendering of his Akon City.

 

“We are looking at Akon city to become the beginning of Africa’s future,” said the rapper at the special ceremony to celebrate the start of construction of the city, according to CNN. “Our idea is to build a futuristic city that incorporates all the latest technologies, cryptocurrencies, and also the future of how African society should become in the future.”

Numerous government officials attended the ceremony celebrating the new project, including the minister of tourism, Alioune Sarr, who praised the entrepreneur for making such an investment during the novel coronavirus pandemic. “At a time, in a context where national and international private investment is rare,” he said, according to CNN. “Akon, you have chosen to come to Senegal and invest $6 billion in the coming years.”

Akon’s hopes the city will bring new opportunities for the people of Senegal while also making a destination where African Americans can travel and be free from the discrimination they face in the United States.

“I wanted to build a city or a project like this that would give [African Americans] the motivation to know that there is a home back home… The system back [home in the US] treats them unfairly in so many different ways that you can never imagine and they only go through it because they feel like there is no other way,” he added.
“As you are coming from America or Europe, anywhere in the diaspora and you feel that you want to visit Africa, we want Senegal to be your first stop.”

 

 

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New York City politicians sue governor, mayor to end ban on indoor dining

Two GOPers have joined over 350 restaurants in the $2 billion lawsuit against Gov. Andrew Cuomo and NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Two local Republican politicians are joining a lawsuit filed by a group of New York restaurant owners to sue the state’s governor, Andrew Cuomo, and the mayor of its largest city, Bill de Blasio

State Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis, New York City Council Minority Leader Steven Matteo and hundreds of restaurants contend that they have “tried to reason with the mayor and the governor,” but have been left with “no choice but to proceed with legal action.” 

New York Governor Cuomo Holds Briefing In New York
In this July photo, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo takes off a protective mask during the daily media briefing at the Office of the Governor of the State of New York in New York City. (Photo by Jeenah Moon/Getty Images)

Malliotakis argued that “New York City meets the coronavirus reopening metrics like every municipality in the state, yet restaurants are being prohibited from having any indoor dining, and there’s no justification for this.”

Over 350 restaurants have signed on to the $2 billion lawsuit against Cuomo alleging irreparable harm. It demands that restaurants be able to open for indoor dining at a reduced capacity of 50%.

Read More: Meet the 3 women who created New York’s Black Women’s March

One eatery participating in the suit, Il Bacco, sits only 500 feet from the Nassau County border, where restaurants have been able to serve indoors at 50% capacity since June 24.

Robert Hanley, who manages a fine dining restaurant in Staten Island, told the New York Post that he had to “furlough or lay off” two-thirds of his staff. 

The 5,000-square-foot restaurant is currently only serving a handful of socially distanced customers in four outdoor parking spots. “It’s unsustainable,” he said, “no matter how deep your pockets may be.”

Read More: New York woman, son start movie rental company amid pandemic

If New York City restaurants are not allowed to partially reopen before winter, experts suggest that more than 75% of them could close for good. According to Eater, more than 1,000 restaurants and bars in the city have already permanently shut their doors due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

New York City was once the epicenter of the pandemic, with more than 23,000 deaths from COVID-19. Cuomo said Sunday that the state’s infection rate has been less than 1% for over a month.

Have you subscribed to theGrio’s “Dear Culture” podcast? Download our newest episodes now!

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Netflix on YouTube

Ratched | Final Trailer | Netflix
Looking good today, Mildred. Witness the origin of one of the world’s most iconic characters, Nurse Ratched. Sarah Paulson stars in Ratched, coming to Netflix on September 18. SUBSCRIBE: http://bit.ly/29qBUt7 About Netflix: Netflix is the world's leading streaming entertainment service with 193 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries and feature films across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on any internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without commercials or commitments. Ratched | Final Trailer | Netflix https://youtube.com/Netflix In 1947, Mildred Ratched begins working as a nurse at a leading psychiatric hospital. But beneath her stylish exterior lurks a growing darkness.


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Rebecca | Official Trailer | Netflix
A young newlywed arrives at her husband’s imposing family estate on a windswept English coast and finds herself battling the shadow of his first wife Rebecca, whose legacy lives on in the house long after her death. A modern adaptation of Daphne Du Maurier's gothic novel comes to Netflix: starring Armie Hammer, Lily James, and Kristin Scott Thomas. Rebecca: https://ift.tt/2DFTZ9J SUBSCRIBE: http://bit.ly/29qBUt7 About Netflix: Netflix is the world's leading streaming entertainment service with 193 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries and feature films across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on any internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without commercials or commitments. Rebecca | Official Trailer | Netflix https://youtube.com/Netflix


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Colorado school calls police on boy, 12, for having toy gun during virtual class

Seventh-grader Isaiah Elliott was participating in a Grand Mountain School art class when his teacher saw the toy gun onscreen.

A 12-year-old Colorado boy was suspended for five days from his school for “waving” a toy gun around during a virtual class. However, both he and his parents assert that the toy was moved from one side of his computer screen to the other.

Seventh-grader Isaiah Elliott was participating in an art class on his third day of distance learning with Grand Mountain School when his teacher saw the boy’s toy gun onscreen.

Seventh-grader Isaiah Elliott was participating in an art class on his third day of distance learning on Aug. 27 when his teacher saw the toy on the screen. The vice principal of Grand Mountain School in Colorado Springs sent an email to his parents saying that the boy was “extremely distracted.” The vice-principal also noted that there had been “a very serious issue with waving around a toy gun.”

Read More: Woman calls police on Black man using his phone, falsely claims he had gun

That vice principal, Keri Lindaman, informed the Elliotts that she had called school resource officers from the local county sheriff’s office to conduct a health and wellness check on the boy at the family home.

The original report by Buzzfeed notes that El Paso County Sheriff’s officers revealed footage of the incident to the boy’s father, Curtis Elliott, videotape that had been recorded by the instructor and shown to them in the vice principal’s office.

Read More: Black teenager attacked by corrections deputy

His official notice of suspension states “Isaiah displayed and waved a firearm facsimile during a virtual classroom on Aug. 27, 2020.” But his father, upon viewing tape, said the boy, sitting on their sofa, had merely moved the plastic toy — labeled “Zombie Hunter” — from one side to the other, not wave it in a threatening manner.

Also, the Elliotts said that they had not permitted for their son to be recorded, according to matriarch Dani Elliott. The school noted that it was not their “current practice” to record classes, but said they had just added a new platform and were still becoming familiar with the system.

The Elliotts are planning to remove Isaiah, who has attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), from the school district. They are currently considering a charter school more conducive to his needs.

Read More: Black jogger wrongfully arrested by San Antonio police: ‘I was guilty before proven innocent’

Grand Mountain School was aware of his diagnosis, and he reportedly has an individualized education plan there on file.

School officials wrote a statement on Facebook noting that “safety will always be number one for our students and staff.” They attested that the school follows “board policies and safety protocols consistently, whether we are in-person or distance learning.”

Dani Elliott expressed concern because young Isaiah’s suspension notice was written in a way that sounded like the incident occurred on school grounds, which could affect his future permanent records.

“God forbid something happens to my son down the road,” she said. “People could look at this and decide he doesn’t deserve justice. I know that sounds extreme … it’s a very real reality for us.”

The case inspired comments on social media that reminded the school of the police killing of Tamir Rice, who was playing with a similar gun in a Cleveland park when he was shot to death by police in 2014.

Like Isaiah Elliott, Rice was 12 years old.

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How to Make Black Economics Matter

Black economics

It has been over 150 years since slavery was legally abolished; 55 years since the Civil Rights Act was passed, yet our economic state has changed very little, if at all. Once we get past the façades of movements and causes, we must realize that we are and have always been in an economic war. Slavery was an economic war; the Civil Rights movement was an economic war; and today we’re in an economic war. Remember, we were allowed to ride at the front of the bus in Birmingham, Alabama, due to the economic effect of a Rosa Parks-inspired bus boycott—not a newfound sympathy for Black people.

While the Black community has many important causes to fight for, the state of the Black economy is the most important. All issues affecting our community, from healthcare to police brutality to voter suppression and beyond, revolve around economics. To help deal with these issues we must make our economy a priority. Here are four ways we can make Black economics matter:

1) Buy Black.

According to the Selig Center for Economic Growth, people of African descent spent over $1.4 trillion in 2019 in the United States. That’s more than the gross national product of Mexico. Yet, historically, we spend less than 5% of that money in our community. This must change if we are to build anything for our people. “To make Black economics matter we must strengthen our relationships in our own community and rebuild our trade zone and wherever possible practice the principle of buying Black,” says Phil Andrews, president of the Long Island African American Chamber of Commerce.

2) Own Black.

Buying Black and why we should buy Black are only the beginning. Recycling dollars in our community increases with owning businesses in our community. According to Black Men In America, a dollar circulates for 30 days in the Asian community, 20 days in the Jewish community and 17 days in the White community but only six hours in the Black community. To change this we must not only buy from Black-owned businesses. We must own distribution points, manufacturing plants and supply chains. This is how strong communities are built.

3) Sell Yourself.

We’re so used to working for others that we don’t know how to promote ourselves. “If you won’t promote you why should anyone else? It’s been my experience that some of the most talented people of color I know are afraid to promote themselves. No one will recognize our value unless we show it to them,” says Daron K. Roberts, Founding Director, Center for Sports Leadership & Innovation, University of Texas-Austin. People buy you before they buy your product or service, especially when you’re just starting your business. Also, we must stop running our businesses as if we’re working for someone else. We must know our value for ourselves.

4) Save For The Next Generation.

We have to reinvent the wheel every generation because we don’t build for the next generation. As a result, we have a tough time building wealth which hinders our ability to pay it forward. “The real test of all the new Black economic consciousness advocates will be the ability to remain consistent and disciplined. We must find a way to maintain the commitment to invest, elevate, support and remain intentional about collectively building Black wealth both online and by brick-and-mortar,” says Daniella Bien-aime, lead online content developer for Bien-Aime Post.

Making Black economics matter can’t be a fad. It must be a mission. While money isn’t everything, it’s an important part of the structure of communities. We must collectively invest in our communities so we can build wealth and pay it forward. I respect those, like Earl Graves, who built and held onto their thriving businesses and passed them on to their children. We need more of them.

When you take the first letter of each point you spell BOSS. Whether it’s a full-time grind or a part-time hustle, we must take control of our economic future before someone else does. Yes, Black lives should matter. But if we’re going to truly rebuild our communities, we must make sure that Black economics matter.


The ideas and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author’s and not necessarily the opinion of Black Enterprise. 



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Trump pushes misleading claim China is interfering in election for Biden

Trump’s echoing of potential Chinese interference while labeling Russian influence a ‘partisan hoax’ is causing concern.

President Donald Trump retweeted a baseless claim that China is interfering to help ensure a victory for former Vice President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election. 

Trump tweeted, “Of course they want Biden. I have taken $Billions from China and given it to our Farmers and U.S. Treasury. China would own the U.S. if Biden & Hunter got in!”

President Trump Holds News Conference At The White House On Labor Day
President Donald Trump takes questions after delivering remarks during a news conference at the North Portico at the White House on Labor Day. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

The tweet was accompanied by the sharing of an article about a radio interview of author and columnist Gordon Chang posted on Breitbart, during which he insinuates that the Chinese Communist Party is “trying to make life very difficult” for Trump by “fueling” violent Black Lives Matter protests. 

“From what little evidence we have about China’s troll-farm activity, with its bots and with all of its others, they seem to be favoring Vice President Biden, trying to make life very difficult for President Trump — as well as fueling the protests, of course,” Chang said on Sunday’s broadcast of “The Cats Roundtable” on New York’s WABC 770 AM. “I think that Beijing has decided that it’s voting for the Democratic Party candidate.”

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U.S. intelligence did assess last month that China and Iran both prefer that Trump loses in November, however, they have offered no evidence that either country is actively working behind the scenes to influence America’s election. 

In a public statement last month, Bill Evanina, the U.S.’ top intelligence official, wrote that while “China will continue to weigh the risks and benefits of aggressive action,” to date, the country is more focused on public efforts like criticizing the Trump administration. 

Read More: Michael Cohen says Trump once leered at his teenager daughter

The intelligence community maintains that Russia is still actively working to get Trump re-elected in efforts similar to 2016, which include the frequent use of social media bots and spreading misinformation, like describing Black Lives Matter protests as violent.  A report from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project released last week showed that nearly 93% of Black Lives Matter demonstrations decrying police shootings were peaceful. 

Trump’s amplification of potential Chinese interference while continuing to label Russian influence a “partisan hoax,” is causing concerns for Democratic leaders. Rep. Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, accused Attorney General William Barr of “lying” to the American public when he told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer that China is more actively meddling in the election than Russia. 

“Bill Barr is just flat-out lying to the American people,” Schiff said, “and it’s tragic, but it’s as simple as that.”

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A 28-year-old has sold his birthday whisky collection for $57,000 to buy a house

Matthew Robson's father gave him a bottle of 18-year-old Macallan single malt every year since his birth. 

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Zambia's president mourns death of good-luck fish

Students light candles and plan to embalm the 22-year-old bream which lived in a university pond.

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