At the Hollywood premiere of They Cloned Tyrone on June 27, 2023, actor John Boyega said he had spoken to Jamie Foxx and that Foxx is still recovering but better, Rolling Stone reported.

Boyega said, “He’s doing well. And then, you know, we just giving him the privacy, and we can’t wait for his return. I gave him the well wishes directly. I gave him all the well wishes. So I’m just gonna be waiting until he comes back out here. So take your time, Jamie. We love you, bro.”

In case there’s any doubt, Datari Turner, who co-produced the Netflix film with Foxx, shared, “He’s doing amazing. I promise you. Doing really, really good. [Director Juel Taylor] talked to him yesterday.” Turner added, “John Boyega talked to him yesterday. He’s in really, really good shape and spirits. And he’ll be back on the screen. He’ll be back to work very soon.”

According to Billboard, actress Porscha Coleman, who co-starred with Foxx in Netflix’s Dad, Stop Embarrassing Me, said while at the BET Awards, “I’ve talked to people very close to Foxx; he is doing well.”

Black Enterprise previously reported that Foxx was hospitalized, and no details were given about his condition. At the time, Boyega said Foxx was not answering any of his calls. He said, “I’ve been calling. I’m just gonna keep on calling. He better pick up. Come on, Jamie!”

While Foxx posted to his Instagram on June 13, 2023, people were still left to speculate as to why the Academy Award-winning actor was hospitalized. The post read, “It’s about to go down. #TheyClonedTyrone coming July 21, only on @netflix.”

In May 2023, Foxx’s daughter, Corinne, tried to quell public concerns over her father’s health, Black Enterprise reported. She posted on social media, “My Dad has been out of the hospital for weeks, recuperating.”

Our continued well wishes to the multifaceted star as he continues his recovery journey.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is one of the greatest track and field athletes of all time. Now she’s sharing how she gets the job done.

Sitting down with BLACK ENTERPRISE (full video below), Fraser-Pryce talked about her long list of record-breaking titles, serving as a hometown hero to Jamaica, inclusion of women in professional sports, and how her role as a “Mommy Rocket” comes before everything.

Just ahead of her big race at the World Athletics Championships in August 2023, Fraser-Pryce shared how she’s preparing for the competition mentally, physically, and spiritually.

“No two years are ever the same. You plan and you work and you just hope that everything falls into place,” Fraser-Pryce said.

But there is a small “hiccup” this time around. The knee injury she suffered while training in Kenya sent Fraser-Pryce “back to the drawing board.”

 

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A post shared by Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (@realshellyannfp)

But her coaching team has her prepared for another big race against global competitors, while her faith has her ready for whatever obstacles come her way.

“Spiritually, I really just trust that God will always work things out for His good, and I always have to trust that,” she declared.

Challenges are clearly surmountable for the “Mommy Rocket” who has broken a number of world records. In 2019, Fraser-Pryce became the first mother in 24 years to claim a global 100m title. In 2022, she became the oldest world champion sprinter at the age of 35.

Fraser-Pryce, who also holds more global 100m titles than any other sprinter in history, is a leader of Jamaica’s current golden era in sprinting.

“It definitely feels good,” Fraser-Pryce said of being a hometown hero in Jamaica. “To be one of the icons of our country is really phenomenal.”

Growing up in Jamaica and unsure of her future, Fraser-Pryce admits she didn’t take her track-and-field career seriously until after college. Now that she has multiple gold medals and titles under her belt, the Olympian works to remain humble and unfazed by outside chatter by continuing to lead on the field, all while managing her entrepreneurial endeavors which include the Shelly Beauty company and the Pocket Rocket Foundation.

 

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But both business and sports come second to her primary role as a mother.

“Motherhood is the primary focus,” Fraser-Pryce said, noting how “intentional” and “balanced” she has to be with everything while raising her son.

In addition to touching on the nonstop comparisons to other Jamaican sprinters like Elaine Thompson and American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson, and if the ladies will ever beat the 1988 world record of the late Florence Griffith Joyner, Fraser-Pryce touched on the importance of women in professional sports and how the next generation can champion women on and off the field.

“Yeah it’s ok to include us, but I want us to occupy the same space and have the same equality,” she said.

Press play below for the full interview, and be sure to tune in when Fraser-Pryce competes in the World Athletics Championship in Hungary on August 19, 2023.

RELATED CONTENT: Usain Bolt Fires His Business Manager, And It Was Not An Amicable Split

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by Stacy Jackson

June 29, 2023

Five Deputies Cause A Community Uproar After Alleged Sexual Assault Of Two Black Men During Home Raid

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The Rankin County Sheriff’s Department has cleaned house after Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker said they were shot and sexually assaulted in a January 2023 home raid by deputy sheriffs in a Jackson, Mississippi, residence. 

Rankin County Sheriff Bryan Bailey announced on June 27, 2023, that the deputies involved in the episode had been fired and some had already resigned. Bailey would not provide the names of the deputies who had been terminated or say how many law enforcement officers were fired.

“Due to recent developments, including findings during our internal investigation, those deputies that were still employed by this department have all been terminated,” Bailey said. 

The Black community has been left defenseless against police brutality too many times. Decades before the murder of George Floyd, trust between the Black community and police officers was already extremely broken. 

“We understand that the alleged actions of these deputies has eroded the public’s trust in the department. Rest assured that we will work diligently to restore that trust,” Bailey said, according to the Associated Press.

The incident took place on January 24, 2023, in Parker’s home. A total of six officers, who entered without a warrant, were present. The Associated Press identified one deputy as Christian Dedmon from police records. Another deputy, identified as Hunter Elward, reportedly shot Jenkins in the mouth.

The two Black men filed a lawsuit for $400 million for federal civil rights violations, according to the Mississippi Free Press. Jenkins and Parker also claimed that deputies handcuffed them, repeatedly used a stun gun, and poured milk over their heads. 

“This incredible, nasty, violent ordeal exposes that Rankin County deputies and the Department have had a long pattern and practice of deadly excessive force and hate crimes against its African American citizens,” said Malik Shabazz, one of the attorneys for the men.

The other officers involved were not identified by name, according to the Associated Press.

Keke Palmer‘s latest achievement solidifies her nickname as the “Big Boss” after being among hundreds of respected artists invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS).

The Nope star joins Taylor Swift, Oscar winner Ke Huy Quan, and Stephanie Hsu as the artists and executives “who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to motion pictures,” CNN reports. The new additions are a start for the Academy’s push for diversity and inclusion, with 40% of the 2023 invitees identifying as women, 34% coming from underrepresented ethnic and racial communities, and 52% being international.

Many of the artists who received invitations have ties to the prestigious award show, with 22 being Academy Award winners and 76 being Oscar-nominated.

“Membership selection is based on professional qualifications, with an ongoing commitment to representation, inclusion, and equity remaining a priority,” the Academy stated.

The move comes after years of #OscarsSoWhite trending during the annual awards show due to a lack of diversity among nominees and winners. In 2012, an analysis from the Los Angeles Times revealed that Oscar voters were 94% white and 77% male.

In 2021, an investigation found that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the small group that hands out the Golden Globes, had no Black members. That disclosure led to NBC pulling the awards program off the air in 2022.

This year’s invitees include more women than men this time around. Actors, musicians, casting directors, costume designers, makeup artists and hairstylists, and marketing and public relations are all branches of AMPAS.

Within the director’s branch, invitees include Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, who took home Best Director this year for Everything Everywhere All at Once. The music branch includes Swift and David Byrne, and the executive branch invites include Warner Bros. Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav and Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria.

“The Academy is proud to welcome these artists and professionals into our membership,” academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang said in a joint statement.

“They represent extraordinary global talent across cinematic disciplines and have made a vital impact on the arts and sciences of motion pictures and on movie fans worldwide.”

RELATED CONTENT: Keke Palmer Has A Word With Vice President Kamala Harris On Maternal Health and Women’s Rights

• News

by Sharelle B. McNair

June 29, 2023

NYC Mayor Eric Adams Claps Back At A White Woman, Comparing Her To A Plantation Owner A Over Rent Question

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New York City’s mayor Eric Adams is working hard in the fight against rising rent, but he doesn’t take too kindly to threats.

During a community conversation event at Gregorio Luperon High School for Science and Mathematics in Washington Heights, Adams got into a showdown with a white woman who interrupted him with a rent question, the New York Post reports. Adams reiterated that he “does not control the Rent Guidelines Board” after the board voted last week that they will allow rent hikes of up to 6% on the city’s one million rent-stabilized apartments. The woman continued her rant into a microphone saying, “You said that before and after that, you supported those rent increases!”

.@NYCMayor went off on a woman during his town hall tonight: “I’m the mayor of this city and treat me with the respect that would deserve to be treated. I’m speaking to you as an adult. Don’t stand in front like you treated someone that’s on the plantation that you own.” pic.twitter.com/Qwn8TgYFD1

— Myles Miller (@MylesMill) June 29, 2023

As the woman stood up and pointed her finger at the Democratic mayor, Adams said he felt “disrespected.” “I’m the mayor of this city and treat me with the respect that would deserve to be treated. I’m speaking to you as an adult,’ Adams said. “Don’t stand in front like you treated someone that’s on the plantation that you own.”

His response was met with loud applause, prompting him to keep going. “I’m a grown man. I walked into this room as a grown man and I’ll walk out of this room as a grown man,” he continued. “I answered your question – go to the next table.

With the video circulating across social media, New Yorkers are weighing on whose side they are on, more so on the woman who was identified on Twitter as the co-founder of the Riverside Edgecombe Neighborhood Association. One Twitter user said, “Grown men don’t state that they are grown men. He has the thin skin of an awkward teenage… boy. Grow up, Mr. Mayor.” Another posted, agreeing with the woman who questioned Adams, saying, “She was 100% correct and he deflected. Adams don’t care about us. He’s got to go.”

• News

by Atiya Jordan

June 29, 2023

Affirmative Action Is Dead: Supreme Court Shuts Down A Pathway To Equity In Higher Ed

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With one ruling, the Supreme Court has reversed decades of efforts to eliminate unlawful racial discrimination and to increase the representation of minorities in higher education—aka affirmative action. 

On June 29, the Supreme Court decided that the race-conscious admissions systems of Harvard College and the University of North Carolina (UNC) are unconstitutional. This marks the end of affirmative action admission policies at colleges and universities.

According to CNBC, Chief Justice John Roberts delivered the majority opinion with the help of concurrent options of all five of his fellow conservative justices, including Black Justice Clarence Thomas. Eight months after the initial argument, Roberts wrote that Harvard’s and UNC’s highly selective admissions process “unavoidably employ race in a negative manner, involve racial stereotyping, and lack meaningful endpoints.” As a result, the decision indicated that these policies “cannot be reconciled by the guarantees of the Equal Protection Clause” in the 14th Amendment. 

“Many universities have for too long wrongly concluded that the touchstone of an individual’s identity is not challenged bested, skills built, or lessons learned, but the color of their skin. This Nation’s constitutional history does not tolerate that choice,” Roberts wrote.

Liberal Justice Kentanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman to serve on the top U.S. judicial body, was one of three justices who filed a dissenting opinion. Though she recused herself from Harvard’s case last year, Brown Jackson gave weight to America’s legacy of slavery.

“With let-them-eat-cake obliviousness, today, the majority pulls the ripcord and announces ‘colorblindness for all.’ But deeming race irrelevant in law does now make it so in life,” Brown Jackson wrote.

She added: “No one benefits from ignorance. Although formal race-linked legal barriers are gone, race still matters to the lived experience of all Americans in innumerable ways, and today’s ruling makes things worse, not better,” Jackson wrote.

Similarly, fellow liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor hit back hard against the majority’s decision. She implied that it is “entrenching racial inequality in education” and “rolls back decades of precedent and momentous progress.”

However, Thomas, who in 1991 became the second Black person to sit on the bench in the nation’s highest court, blasted Brown Jackson in his concurring opinion. He has acknowledged that he made it to Yale Law School due to affirmative action but claimed that Jackson’s arguments “lock blacks into a seemingly perpetual inferior caste.”

In the aftermath of the decision, BLACK ENTERPRISE obtained a statement from the office of Barack and Michele Obama. The former first lady recalled her experience in college as one of the few Black students on her campus. Though she felt a sense of belonging, she always wondered if students were “granted special consideration for admissions” through affirmative action.

“My heart breaks for any young person out there who’s wondering what their future holds — and what kinds of chances will be open to them. Today is a reminder that we’ve got to do the work not just to enact policies that reflect our values of equity and fairness, but to truly make those values real in all of our schools, workplaces, and neighborhoods,” she wrote.

In an accompanying statement, the former president posed a call to action: “Now it’s up to all of us to give young people the opportunities they deserve — and help students everywhere benefit from new perspectives.”

A new season of “The Bachelorette” is underway and the show’s lead Charity Lawson is carrying on the torch as the fourth Black woman to star on the popular dating competition show.

“The Bachelor” franchise has a long history of controversy stemming from issues involving race and alleged racism. Lawson already knew what she was getting herself into after she was selected to star in Season 20 and have 25 male singles compete for her love.

Coming out of her standout role on season 27 of “The Bachelor,” Lawson became a fan favorite with her natural confidence, compassion for others, and magnetic smile. But the family and child therapist faced new battles once the spotlight was on her.

Starring as only the second monoracial Black Bachelorette to lead the series, Lawson knew the show was making “strides,” but still had a long way to go, she told Insider.

The Columbia, Georgia native opened up about the advocating she was doing behind the scenes to make sure she was represented properly.

“With the people that work on the show and everything… I had to have moments where I advocated for things,” she explained.

“Just speak[ing] up about certain things that they were — I don’t wanna say oblivious to — but maybe just not on their radar, because they don’t necessarily have to think about these things.”

Some of the things she advocated for included securing a hairstylist “who can treat African-American hair,” and “makeup artists, all those things that we’re just not really always aware of that are needed differently when it comes to women of color.”

It also included “having important conversations regarding race on the show,” where Lawson made sure the men on the show were “aware” of the challenges she faced as a Black woman.

Lawson follows Rachel Lindsay who made franchise history as the show’s first Black Bachelorette in 2017. Michelle Young took the lead in season 18, and Tayshia Adams replaced Clare Crawley on “The Bachelorette” midway through season 16.

REDLATED CONTENT: Report: The Bachelor Creator Left Hit Show After Racial Discrimination Revealed in Investigation

• News

by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

June 29, 2023

Ex Marine Charged With Jordan Neely’s Death Released After Pleading Not Guilty & Bailing Out For $100k

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Daniel Penny, the former marine who placed Jordan Neely in a chokehold that led to the 30-year-old’s death while on an NYC subway train, has pled not guilty to charges of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide.

According to ABC News, the 24-year-old Penny has been released after paying the $100,000 bail. He’s next scheduled to appear in court on October 25, 2023.

Court documents reveal that Neely, who was homeless, entered the subway at the 2nd Avenue station. After getting on the F train, he allegedly threatened several people, but no one in particular. As seen in several videos capturing the incident, Penny placed Neely in a chokehold for several minutes, even after the homeless man went limp.

Penny said to police officers after the incident, “He came on, and he threw s—, he’s like ‘I don’t give a s—, I’m going to go to prison for life’ and stuff, so I just came up behind him and put him in a chokehold. He was threatening everybody.”

Police officers allowed Penny to leave the scene and did not make an arrest until two weeks later. Critics blasted police officials for allowing Penny, a white man, not to be detained for killing Neely, a homeless Black man. The incident made headlines nationwide, and Penny wasn’t immediately questioned or taken into custody despite the outrage.

Penny’s attorney, Thomas Keniff, is confident his client will walk away a free man. “We are a long way off from trial, but all the evidence we’ve seen is that our client acted under the law.”

Meanwhile, family members of Neely were seated in the courtroom. Seated behind them were family members of Penny.

“Daniel Penny did not have the courage to look Mr. Jordan’s father in the eye,” Dante Mills, Neely’s family attorney, said.

Penny faces five to 15 years in prison if convicted of the second-degree manslaughter charge.

We stan Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and Kelly Rowland’s new initiative to help tackle homelessness in Houston.

On June 27, 2023, Harris County announced its partnership with the two former Destiny’s Child members to create 31 housing units for people experiencing homelessness in Houston.

According to the Houston Chronicle, the Knowles-Rowland House will offer permanent resources for future residents. The paper reported that county records indicate the housing project will provide transportation, mental health resources, and health services. Additionally, case managers and peer specialists will be available.

“We just did the homeless count again, so it’s initiatives like this one I certainly will be supportive of it no matter who’s behind it, but it’s especially interesting, I think, because there are these names of Beyoncé and Kelly Rowland, who, of course, have been supportive of the community for a very long time,” said Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo in a press conference. 

The project will be located at the Bread of Life gymnasium, the Houston Chronicle reported. Rudy Rasmus, executive director at Bread of Life, noted the Knowles-Rowland project began years back. According to Rasmus, Destiny’s Child members built a youth center with funds from their hit song “No, No, No.”

The American Rescue Plan will contribute $7.2 million toward the housing project Architectural Digest reported. Other entities will fund the remaining $1.2 million.

The $8.4 million project will roll out another bigger launch during two of the last few stops on Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour. The Chronicle reported another announcement would be made when Queen Bey is in the city on September 23 and September 24, 2023.

There’s no denying Beyoncé’s impact will be felt in her hometown of Houston. The superstar’s presence has already caused a stir in Stockholm, Sweden. Economists said the singer-songwriter has increased inflation in the European country by 0.2%. AfroTech reported hotels and restaurants bumped up their prices by about 3.3% as a result of Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour.

• News

by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

June 29, 2023

10-Year-Old Black Girl Cries, ‘I’m Scared Mommy’ As Police Officers Place Her In Handcuffs, A Civil Rights Violation

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According to CBS News Sacramento, a recent audit revealed multiple civil rights violations in California’s capital, including one where police officers handcuffed a 10-year-old Black girl. 

City officials admitted that someone so young should not have had to experience an ordeal. The video showed the girl crying for her mother as she was being placed in cuffs. It was one of several that showed the racial bias and misconduct that Sacramento police officers many sadly consider standard operating procedure. .

“I wish I could say ‘shocked,'” said Meg White, the co-founder of Justice Unites Individuals and Communities Everywhere. “Unfortunately, Sacramento has a history of being very brutal, specifically with Black residents.”

The audit, compiled by The Sacramento Office of Public Safety, includes more than 100 complaints filed against the Sacramento Police Department over two years.

According to Inside Edition, Police Chief Kathy Lester admitted the young girl should never have been handcuffed, telling council members “there is no circumstance where it’s OK to handcuff a 10-year-old, regardless of race.”

The video shows several police officers, all white males, screaming at people to open the doors while shaking the front security door. They alleged that the resident had weapons, a stolen car, and was a “known gang member,” according to police officials.

“Come outside right now,” an officer yells. “You don’t get to go and hide and turn off the lights. That’s not how this works.” The young girl comes out crying and tells the police officer, “I’m scared, I’m scared, mommy,” she cries. “I’m scared I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what to do.”

She was immediately handcuffed following this incident. 

“She should not have been handcuffed even for a second,” City Inspector General Dwight White said. “If this girl was another race, she likely wouldn’t have been handcuffed.” Lester said the department does not have a policy about handcuffing children but will work to develop one.