cemetery, Buffalo soldier — Photo by Steve Selwood/Flickr

by Nahlah Abdur-Rahman

June 23, 2024

Buffalo Soldier Identified Nearly 80 Years After Disappearing In Battle

Lemuel Dent Jr.'s remains, previously marked as 'unknown' in the Florence American Cemetery, were recently identified.

The remains of a Buffalo soldier have finally been identified after decades missing. Pfc. Lemuel Dent Jr. was part of the African-American 92nd Infantry Division for World War II when he died in battle.

Dent Jr. hailed from Charles County, Maryland, when he went missing after a February 1945 battle at the Cinquale Canal in northwest Italy. His remains, which amounted to half a body, were discovered three months later by the U.S. Army’s Graces Registration Service. However, limited technology left the remains, which lacked a chest, head, and arms, unidentified for over half a century.

It was not until nearly 80 years later that the missing soldier’s name resurfaced. Before this, his body was laid to rest as an “unknown” in the Florence American Cemetery. The Washington Post reports the 30-year-old remained one of 13 men lost that day. He currently hails as only the fourth of recovered names.

His body was exhumed from the grave in June 2022 for the forensic analysis that led to his identification. DNA from Dent Jr.’s thigh bone matched with his family’s samples, providing closure to the loved ones who lost him long ago.

Generals considered the battle against the Nazi German soldiers a failure. However, they failed to acknowledge that racially-motivated inept training was a significant factor.

Moreover, Dent Jr. was not the only soldier part of the Buffalo division deemed missing in action. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) launched a project to recover the lost names of 50 men.

“These individuals were serving in a segregated military, in which they were not treated as the other soldiers,” said forensic anthropologist Traci Van Deest at DPAA. “They were not treated with the same type of honor and respect.”

The division’s namesake derived from a cohort of Black American soldiers who served in the late 1800s. The 16th division project aims to recover all missing from the cohort’s last battle.

Barry Sanders, statue, NFL legend, heart, health scare — Barry Sanders is honored during the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Detroit's Ford Field on September 17, 2023. (Photo: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

by Nahlah Abdur-Rahman

June 23, 2024

NFL Legend Barry Sanders Speaks On Heart-Related Health Scare

Sanders did not disclose exactly what happened, but did note that it was related to his heart.

NFL Hall of Famer Barry Sanders revealed a recent health scare concerning his heart. The former running back detailed the incident over Father’s Day weekend.

Sanders, known for his legendary stint with the Detroit Lions, revealed the health issue to social media on June 21. Sanders remained tight-lipped on the “unexpected” ordeal but encouraged his fans to remain “vigilant” on their health.

.@Lions @NFL @NFLPA @ProFootballHOF @HeismanTrophy @okstate pic.twitter.com/1fGb790PlK
— Barry Sanders (@BarrySanders) June 21, 2024

“Over Father’s Day weekend, I experienced a health scare related to my heart,” began the 55-year-old. “It was unexpected and served as a reminder of the importance of staying vigilant about our physical well-being, even when we are feeling fine.”

Sanders did not disclose what exact heart condition he suffered from but expressed his gratitude for the medical professionals who cared for him.

He added, “I am grateful for the amazing doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals for providing me with needed care. My family and I are thankful for your prayers and support during this time.”

His finished the statement by emphasizing this focus on his health as he recovers from the illness.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, Black men remain at a higher risk, 70% exactly, of heart failure than their white counterparts. They are also twice as likely to be hospitalized for heart issues.

The Detroit Lions also expressed their well wishes for the beloved athlete, stating “Get well soon, Barry” to the Heisman Trophy Winner. Sanders’ induction into the NFL’s Hall of Fame occurred in 2004, with his No. 20 jersey also retired by the franchise.

Many consider Sanders one of the greatest running backs in NFL history. He acquired 15,269 rushing yards in 10 seasons during his professional career, placing him with the fourth-most ever. As reported by ESPN, he took home the co-awarded Most Valuable Player in 1997.

Sanders also made sports history last year. In September 2023, the Lions unveiled a statue of him outside Ford Field. Sanders remains the first and only player in the franchise to be honored in this way.

Naomi Osaka, French Open — (Photo: Andrew Henkelman, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons)

by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

June 23, 2024

Naomi Osaka’s Hana Kuma Production Company Secures Investment From The Players Fund

Hana Kuma is in partnership with LeBron James and Maverick Carter’s SpringHill Company.

According to SportsProMedia, tennis phenom Naomi Osaka has received an investment from The Players Fund for her production company, Hana Kuma.

Hana Kuma, which means flower bear in Japanese, is in partnership with LeBron James and Maverick Carter’s SpringHill Company, and was launched in 2022. The company said that the investment will provide “essential production, development, and strategic resources” to Hana Kuma. Other partners involved in the company include Stuart Duguid, founder of sports talent agency EVOLVE, Boston Red Sox owner Fenway Sports Group, and Epic Games, the owner of Fortnite.

“We are thrilled to welcome The Players Fund as an investor in Hana Kuma,” said Osaka in a written statement. “Their extensive network of elite athletes from all backgrounds aligns perfectly with our mission to uplift diverse voices and perspectives through innovative storytelling.”

Last year, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Osaka raised $5 million in a fundraising round for Hana Kuma.

Fergus Bell, managing partner at The Players Fund, said: “What Naomi, Stuart [Duguid, Osaka’s agent], and the team at Springhill are building with Hana Kuma shall be the framework for diverse storytelling for years to come. We have waited a long time for a female athlete-led content platform and believe that with The Players Fund’s global network, we can truly accelerate the Hana Kuma roadmap alongside partners such as Epic Games, Fenway Sports Group, Nike, and LeBron James.”

The Players Fund was launched last August, according to SportsProMedia, with England men’s cricketers Ben Stokes, Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler, and Jofra Archer among its backers. In December, female athletes were added as partners, including Olympic gold medallists Jessica Ennis-Hill and Allyson Felix, and English soccer players Nikita Parris and Danielle Carter. More than 50 athletes are involved.

According to Tennis.com, Osaka was one of four former Grand Slam champions awarded wild cards for the upcoming Wimbledon tournament, which starts on July 1. Caroline Wozniacki, Angelique Kerber, and Emma Raducanu were the other players.

Amandla Stenberg, diss track, The Acolyte — Mae (Amandla Stenberg) in Lucasfilm's 'The Acolyte.' Christian Black/Lucasfilm/Disney+

by Mary Spiller

June 23, 2024

Amandla Stenberg Releases Diss Track About Racist Response To Star Wars ‘The Acolyte’

Stenberg dropped the diss track on Juneteenth.

Los Angeles-born actress Amandla Stenberg responded on June 19 to the conservative backlash and “intolerable racism” that they’ve been dealing with as a lead star in the new Star Wars series. The 25-year-old The Acolyte actress, who uses she/they pronouns, dropped a diss track after critics slammed the series as being too “woke” and progressive. Stenberg released the diss track on Instagram and directed it to the critics who attacked her online, bringing up old interviews from her past.

The Bodies Bodies Bodies star brought up the negative attention that she’s been getting from watchers in her new song. As the Black queer lead of The Acolyte, the homophobic and racist Star Wars fandom members have been “review-bombing” the show.

The track, titled “Discourse,” delved into the hatred and prejudice that Stenberg has received throughout their accomplished career. Stenberg posted the song on Instagram with a self-directed music video. They captioned the post, “Happy Juneteenth and to those who are flooding me with intolerable racism— since it took me 72 hours on my laptop to make this song and video, u got 72 hours to respond. and I expect choreo!!”

The song started by referencing a 2018 interview with Trevor Noah discussing her feature in The Hate U Give. In the interview, Stenberg stated that “white people crying actually was the goal” of the film.

In the song, they sang, “They splice lines, make hate they recognize, make it look like the same propaganda that they spew/ Cuz they conflate our pain with violence and try to weaponize everything that we do.”

Stenberg continued in the song, “They spinning WOKE, bastardize it and appropriate it/Last I recall, WOKE was something we created, speak truth to power, keep an eye out for you silly racists. And now they use it to describe anything they threatened by/Remember when Gambino put it in the zeitgeist?”

Stenberg’s song has been well received on Instagram, with her supporters hyping up her self-produced song.

Breast Cancer, study, Black women — (Photo: iStock / stefanamer)

by Stacy Jackson

June 23, 2024

$1.58M Grant Funds Study On Cancer Among Black Women In Mid-South

The study is an extensive qualitative evaluation of socio-cultural and structural factors that affect cancer patients in the Mid-South.

A potentially groundbreaking study, funded by a $1.58 million grant from Gilead Sciences, Inc., aims to uncover the root causes of breast cancer disparities among Black women in the Mid-South.

Led by health communication expert Dr. Janeane Anderson and medical oncologist Dr. Gregory Vidal, the research will explore sociocultural and structural factors contributing to these disparities, according to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. The study’s significance is underscored by alarming statistics.

“In the South, we see delays, access issues, and unnecessary burden at every step of the cancer continuum for Black women,” said Anderson, an assistant professor and social scientist at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center’s College of Nursing.

Recent data from the American Cancer Society reveals that Black women face a 40% higher breast cancer mortality rate compared to their white counterparts. Additional research found that Arkansas and Mississippi rank among the top 10 states with the highest overall cancer rates.

This qualitative exploration will involve three distinct groups: Black women with metastatic breast cancer, those at high risk for breast disease, and healthcare providers in the Mid-South region. The research design incorporates the Socio-Ecological Model and Critical Race Theory to provide a comprehensive framework for analysis.

“This study would be the most extensive qualitative evaluation of how social, economic, and health factors affect cancer patients in the Mid-South,” Vidal said.

By examining multilevel factors influencing outcome disparities, the researchers hope to identify actionable insights to address this pressing health issue. This new study builds upon Anderson’s previous work, which has focused on patient-clinician communication and its effects on health outcomes for Black adults.

Set to commence on July 1, the three-year project will recruit participants from various clinic sites across Arkansas, Tennessee, and Mississippi.

American Airlines, lawsuit, racial discrimnation — (Photo: Nikita Grishin/Pexels)

by Mary Spiller

June 22, 2024

American Airlines CEO Condemns Employees Who Removed Black Passengers From Flight

CEO Robert Isom said the behavior is not in line with the airline's values.

The CEO of American Airlines has condemned the employees responsible for removing several Black passengers from its plane over alleged complaints about their body odor. In a note to staff obtained June 20 by the Associated Press, Robert Isom called the incident unacceptable by their guidelines.

American Airlines has put an undisclosed number of employees on administrative leave for their involvement in the removal incident.

“I am incredibly disappointed by what happened on that flight and the breakdown of our procedures,” Isom wrote. “It contradicts our values. We fell short of our commitments and failed our customers in this incident.”

The incident that Isom referenced in his note occurred in January and resulted in three Black male passengers suing the airline last month. The passengers claim they were removed from the flight due to clear racial discrimination. The lawsuit stated that a white male flight attendant began complaining about an “unidentified passenger’s body odor.”

The men who were removed from the flight were not seated together and did not know each other before the incident. As they were waiting for their flight to New York to depart, eight total black passengers were told to get off the plane.

When the removed passengers confronted the American Airlines employees about their removal, they were told that they were ejected due to the complaint about body odor. However, an employee at the jet bridge was seen on camera during a recorded video of the incident seeming to agree that the men were discriminated against because of their race.

According to their lawsuit, the men were allowed back onto the plane after an hour’s delay.

The number of suspended employees has not been disclosed.

Isom announced American Airlines is putting together an “advisory group” to focus on improving the flight experience for customers of color. The group would handle reports of discrimination allegations and also focus on improving diversity training for employees to better “focus on real-world situations to help recognize and address bias and discrimination.”

Tennessee State, Hockey Jersey — (Photos: Tennessee State University Athletics)

by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

June 22, 2024

Tennessee State Reveals Official Hockey Jersey

What do we think?

Last year, Tennessee State University became the first historically Black college or university (HBCU) to welcome men’s ice hockey as one of its athletic programs.

On June 21, the coach of the newly formed team revealed the player’s official home jerseys.

According to NHL.com, the royal blue jersey made its debut at the 67th annual Tennessee State University National Alumni Association Convention at the Nashville campus when Coach Duante’ Abercrombie unveiled it for the crowd.

Head Coach Duante’ Abercrombie @blkhky unveiled our 2025-26 home jerseys during the Roar City panel at the 67th TSUNAA Convention on campus. pic.twitter.com/mxk2MzDJCg

— Tennessee State Hockey (@TSUTigersHockey) June 21, 2024

Last June, before the 2023 NHL Draft, it was announced that Tennessee State would have a hockey team. Earlier this year, the school got its first commitment: transfer student Xavier Abel from from Drury University in Springfield, Missouri, where he played for the American Collegiate Hockey Association Division II team.

He told The Tennessean that he always wanted to play for an HBCU.

“The community and the culture at an HBCU is everlasting,” he told the newspaper. “The friends that you make here come with a lifetime bond, and that is what attracted me. It was an experience that I just wanted to go through, and now, not only do I get to go through it, but I get to do something historic while I’m at it.”

NHL.com reported that Abercrombie was named head coach in April. Abercrombie previously coached Stevenson University, an NCAA Division III school near Baltimore, and the Washington Little Capitals. He was also a coaching development associate or guest coach for the San Jose Sharks, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Arizona Coyotes—all NHL franchises.

The team will debut in the 2025-26 season.

Douglas County Probate Court- Judge Christina J. Peterson, arrest, Atlanta — (Photo: Facebook)

by Mary Spiller

June 22, 2024

Judge Allegedly Assaults Police Officer, Faces Felony Assault Charges

Christina Peterson was arrested in Atlanta after allegedly striking an officer in the head.

A controversial Douglas County, Georgia, probate court judge faces a myriad of charges, including felony obstruction of a police officer by using threats or violence and simple battery against a police officer.

Judge Christina Peterson was arrested June 20.

According to FOX 5, which obtained an Atlanta Police report, an officer was allegedly assaulted while working at the Peachtree Road Red Martini Restaurant and Lounge.

The report stated that the officer went to speak with Peterson, who looked to be upset and crying in the valet area of the restaurant and lounge in the early morning hours. However, after the Atlanta officer approached Peterson, he said he was reportedly struck in the head by her.

Peterson “appeared to be under the influence” and repeatedly refused to identify herself to the arresting officer, according to court records. Even after she was brought into jail, Peterson didn’t tell officers her name. She only revealed her identity after telling the arresting officers to notify a different officer to come and receive her statement.

Peterson also waived her first appearance in front of the Fulton County Magistrate Court on June 20.

This is not the first time Peterson has found herself in hot water. In April, Peterson was investigated and subsequently found guilty of “systemic incompetence” by a Judicial Qualifications Commission panel, which recommended she be removed from office.

After facing 30 separate counts of misconduct, the panel determined Peterson consistently ignored the rules of the courthouse and “abused courthouse personnel, made inappropriate posts on social media and, in repeated cases, failed to do her job.”

Before her Judicial Qualifications Commission panel investigation, Peterson was additionally the “subject of several FOX 5 I-Team investigations” after she took her position in late 2020.

Keffe D, Tupac, bond, house arrest — Photo by JOHN LOCHER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

June 22, 2024

2Pac’s Accused Killer Keefe D Secures $750,000 Bond, Hearing Set For For Possible Release

Keefe D is seeking to be placed on house arrest.

In January, a Las Vegas judge set a bail amount of $750,000 for Duane “Keefe D” Davis, a former Los Angeles-area gang leader accused of killing hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur in 1996. The attorney for Keefe D has filed paperwork asking the judge for permission to post a $750,000 bond to free his client so he can be placed on house arrest with electronic monitoring.

According to The Associated Press, Keefe D’s defense attorney, Carl Arnold, filed documents on June 20 as the judge scheduled a hearing for June 25. Arnold will ask the judge to allow the suspect to be on house arrest as he prepares for his trial scheduled to take place on Nov. 4. If convicted, Keefe D faces life in prison for his alleged involvement in helping orchestrate Tupac’s killing on Sept. 7, 1996, in Las Vegas.

The former gang member has been in jail at the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas since he was arrested last Sept. 29. He has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder.

The bond was secured by Crum & Forster Insurance and North River Insurance Co. and prosecutors have asked Clark County District Court Judge Carli Kierny to have a “source hearing” to show how Davis was able to obtain the necessary money to secure the bond legally.

Prosecutors say they have strong evidence that Keefe D incriminated himself in a book he released in 2019, as well as during police and media interviews since 2008.

Tupac was shot in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas after attending a Mike Tyson fight on Sept. 7, 1996. The controversial rapper died six days later on Sept. 13. Keefe D, who wrote the book Compton Street Legend and did many interviews over the years, initially said that the killing of the “Me Against the World” lyricist was done by his nephew, Orlando Anderson, who was killed two years later. Anderson was seen on surveillance video having an altercation with the entertainer before the “All Eyez On Me” emcee died.

Reggie Jackson, baseball, racism, MLB — (Photo: Public Domain)

by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

June 22, 2024

Reggie Jackson Discusses Racist Treatment Received During Playing Days In Alabama

During a televised interview, the Yankee great talked about the racism he faced in his early playing days.

Major League Baseball celebrated Juneteenth by having a game on June 19 at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama. During an interview with former baseball player Alex Rodriguez on the Fox Network, Yankee great Reggie Jackson was asked about his playing days at the ballpark and gave an emotional recollection about dealing with racism during that time.

The famed baseball field was home to the Negro League where many players, including Hall of Famers, Willie Mays, who was born in Birmingham, and Mobile’s own Hank Aaron starred before making it to the Major Leagues. Jackson stated that returning to Rickwood Field brought back memories of the type of racism that plagued the country in the 1960s.

“Coming back here is not easy. The racism that I (faced) here when I played here, the difficulty of going through different places that we traveled,” Jackson said. “Fortunately, I had a manager, and I had players on the team that helped me get through it. But I wouldn’t wish it on anybody. People said to me today and I spoke on it ‘Do you think you’re a better person, do you think you won, when you played here…’ And I said, you know, I would never want to do it again.”

He goes on to speak on some of the issues he had to deal with regarding racists targeting him whenever he was out in public — being called the N-word and having people refusing him service just because he was Black. He expressed some of the things he experienced during that time.

He also stated that if it wasn’t for his white friends, he would not have made it. He felt if he had succumbed to his emotions, he would have been killed.

“I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. At the same time, had it not been for my white friends, had it not been for a white manager and Rudi, Fingers and Duncan, and Lee Meyers, I would never have made it. I was too physically violent. I was ready to physically fight some — I would have got killed here because I would have beat someone’s ass, and you would have saw me in an oak tree somewhere.”

“Coming back here is not easy… I wouldn’t wish it on anybody.”

Powerful words from Reggie Jackson on the racism he went through at Rickwood Field.

(via @MLBONFOX) pic.twitter.com/H9sXKSAfkU

— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 21, 2024