Social Media Reacts to Nia Long Recalling 30-Year-Old Man She Dated In High School
An old Nia Long interview from six years ago has the streets talking about the 30-year-old man the actress revealed dated while in high school.
The Shade Room shared the interview clip of Long’s sit down with the Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) in 2017 where she recalled not attending her high school prom because she was dating a 30-year-old man.
“I wasn’t the girl that ever went to prom. Like, my boyfriend was 30 when I was in high school.”
The Best Man star elaborated how her “artist” mom allowed her to date an older man as a way to find herself.
“My mother was crazy…I mean that in a good way. Like, she was an artist. She was like, ‘Well, if that’s who you love, baby,'” Long recalled.
The You People actress noted her ex-boyfriend’s Oman heritage while crediting him for doing “it the right way,” by asking for her mother’s permission to date her.
“He was so good to me and kind…Listen, he did it the right way,” Long told the crowd. “He was from Oman. He went to her and was like, ‘I love your daughter, and I want to date your daughter.’ And he asked permission!”
She also touched on the hair salon her former beau owned, which had a benefit: “But you know what he taught me?” she asked the crowd. “He taught me how to do my own hair and makeup, so I got that!”
After posting the clip on Instagram, many criticized Nia’s mom for allowing her daughter to date someone so much older than her.
“Yes nope 👎 30 year old coming to me saying he loves my daughter in high school? i’m callin 911,” one user wrote.
“That man needs to explain what he saw in common with a 17 year old girl as a 30 yr old man😵💫,” added someone else.
This Black Woman CEO is Working to Fix the Prison System: ‘We Have Witnessed Hope Renewed’
Re-establishing life after incarceration comes with continuous challenges, especially for Black communities, who face major economic difficulties beyond the prison walls.
Alisa Malone, CEO of the national non-profit Persevere, works to provide quality job resources, training, and tools for inmates to become productive members of society post release.
Malone has worked across the public, private, and non-profit sectors in healthcare, labor, and workforce development, the carceral system, and social services.
She shared her research with BLACK ENTERPRISEand how she used technology to provide access to resources for successful reentry and reintegration to society through education, vocational training, rehabilitation, and substance abuse treatment services.
What is the mission behind Persevere?
Persevere’s mission is to disrupt the cycle of poverty and incarceration through technology education, life skills development, employment, and wraparound services.
Persevere is committed to providing justice-impacted individuals with access to resources, education, and career opportunities that lead to financial security. The goal is to empower people to change their lives, their families, and their communities.
Post-release, we offer 12 months of wraparound services such as employment support/mentorship as well as other wraparound services such as assistance with healthcare, housing, and transportation.
Persevere is committed to breaking the intergenerational cycle of poverty and incarceration, ending mass incarceration, and forging new pathways for access to economic opportunity for those who have traditionally been denied that access.
Why is it important to have such support available for current and former inmates?
Approximately 700,000 to 800,000 people are released from incarceration annually. As they are reentering society they are faced with a multitude of obstacles with restarting their lives, including finding employment.
This is a serious problem because we know without employment basic human needs are unable to be met.
A major contributor to recidivism rates is the lack of resources or connection to resources that aid prisoners’ prosocial integration into the community.
A study that further emphasizes the value of Persevere and similar programs is one published by Deutsche Bank in September of 2020 titled America’s Racial Gap and Big Tech’s Closing Window. They conducted a bottom-up societal study and it showed that 76% of Blacks and 62% of Hispanics could get shut out or be under-prepared for 86% of jobs in the U.S. by 2045.
In order to defy this projection, it is critical to offer technology education to those reentering society to equip them with the skills necessary for current and future career opportunities.
What specific training and tools does Persevere provide?
Persevere teaches computer coding classes that lead to six levels of certification, including Front End and Full Stack Developer certifications which take place inside correctional facilities and in the community. We are also expanding our curriculum to offer additional technology education. including data analytics, project management, and cyber security just to name a few.
In addition, we offer reentry services to our program participants including; a career readiness curriculum, life skills, financial literacy, case management both during the program and for a year post-release. Post -release, we also assist with transitional housing, job placement, and mentorship.
With finding employment being one of the greatest challenges for former inmates of the Black community, how does Persevere work to provide job resources?
At Persevere, we have specific team members, called Technology Employment Specialists (TES), who prepare program participants to enter the workforce as confident professionals through career readiness training.
For example, TES team members assist with activities such as developing a resume and cover letter, providing interviewing skills training, and supporting participants in developing strategies for a healthy work-life balance. [They] also serve as a liaison between businesses, educators, and program participants to identify employment opportunities and help our participants succeed in their new careers.
Through the Persevere Volunteer Program, some volunteers offer mentorship to Persevere graduates.
What are some of the challenges you face with providing these resources?
As we continue to scale, securing sufficient funding for programming is one of our biggest challenges. As a 501(c)3 non-profit, above and beyond our contracts and grants, we rely on charitable contributions. If you’d like to support us in this work of empowering justice-impacted individuals through technology education, life skills development, employment, and wraparound services, please donate to Persevere.
What advice would you give to those trying to re-establish their lives after prison?
Considering the fact that criminal justice involvement is not a part of my lived experience, I consulted with a member of Persevere’s leadership team, Stacey Books, who fully appreciates the experience of reentry and reintegration. Stacey advised that you create a plan prior to your release and work the plan upon release. She also advised that you be patient [and persistent].
We have seen these strategies work for our program participants. We have seen families reunified, relationships restored, and employment opportunities gained that lead to a livable wage. We have witnessed hope renewed.
How do you plan to expand your mission and work with Persevere?
In 2022 Persevere was awarded a Good Jobs Challenge Grant from the Economic Development Administration to support the work of the Tennessee Technology Alliance, which is comprised of over 72 partners. Over the next three years, the Tech Alliance will provide technology training, career readiness instruction, wraparound case management, job placement, and long term follow up and support services to over 1,700 Tennesseans. We expanded Persevere programming in Tennessee to justice-impacted individuals, individuals, and families living in poverty, youth 16-24, who are out of school and out of work, and youth aging out of the foster care system.
Furthermore, in 2022, the Unlock Potential Initiative was launched. UP is a partnership between Persevere and the Responsible Business Initiative for Justice (RBIJ), funded through Walmart.org Center for Racial Equity. The mission is to break the cycle of incarceration by providing meaningful employment opportunities to a statistically at-risk group of young people.
Demetrius Gray Explains How He Raised $107M for His Startup, Gives Advice to Black Tech Founders
Being a successful founder in tech isn’t easy. Add being Black on top of that, it’s deemed impossible.
Demetrius Gray is on the long list of Black tech gurus who are changing that narrative. Recently, TechCrunch reported that Gray raised $107.3 million for his company, Captain. The startup helps homeowners advance money to contractors for home repairs following natural disasters. The customer then receives reimbursement from insurance companies or the government.
The website states that claims are funded in 72 hours or less. Contractors who use Captain to pay for their material, supplies, and labor costs can complete their home repair projects in 30 days, which is “six times faster than the industry average.”
Captain isn’t Gray’s first company. His first startup, WeatherCheck, didn’t pan out the way he expected, but he feels the experience helped Captain’s success. “The incentives weren’t aligned,” Gray said. This time, Captain was able to raise $100 million in venture debt and $7.3 million in private equity. While not all founders are able to achieve this feat, there are some nuggets the Silicon Valley exec feels others should follow.
In an interview with Forbes, Gray said one way is not to bombard investors. Back-to-back pitches can be exhausting, so he he advised them take a moment to “breathe” and use a script as temperature check. “Hey, I understand that you’ve had a busy day. I can’t imagine how many meetings you’ve had so far,” Gray begins. I’ll give you 30 seconds to just take a breath. And then I’ll start.” He also feels Black founders stop fundraising too soon. Getting “no” over and over again doesn’t mean you stop – something he learned while raising for Captain, as he says his idea “resonated” with investors.
The seasoned founder advised up and coming gurus to put on a show when pitching. He told TechCrunch that making a great first impression and performing generally leads to a “yes” from investors, taking a lesson from celebrities we expect first class performances from. “The Black community is a community of a lot of entertainers and athletes,” Gray said. Take a cue from Serena Williams, Mike Tyson, Floyd Mayweather, LeBron James — the greats — and treat it like it’s a performance.”
Will Smith, George Clinton and Bishop T.D. Jakes Helped Raise $10M for the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law at St. Thomas University
After the announcement of St. Thomas University renaming their institution after attorney Ben Crump, word has come out that three well-known individuals raised funds to support the university.TMZ reported that the newly-named Benjamin L. Crump College of Law at St. Thomas University, located in Miami, received some financial blessings from the pockets of Bad Boys star, Will Smith; music legend, George Clinton; and Bishop T.D. Jakes. A total of $10 million was raised for the school through the contributions from these three figures.The amount donated from each individual was not disclosed, but Smith did make an appearance at the naming ceremony that took place last week. The Wild, Wild West actor expressed the importance of being there with Crump when the school was renamed in his honor.“Ben has been an absolutely spectacular friend and guide, and that’s why it was important for me to be here with him today,” Smith said as he stood by Crump at the podium.“There are very, very few people in the world with a heart like this; so it is my deepest honor and my deepest pleasure to be here to support and to show some love. Congratulations on this historic honor.”Crump acknowledged the donations that will change lives.
“I was proud to share the stage with @willsmith – a benefactor of the groundbreaking Benjamin L. Crump College of Law at @stumiami – during the naming ceremony. It’s not an overstatement to say that lives will be changed because of the selflessness of the college’s donors.”
BLACK ENTERPRISE previously reported that the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law at St. Thomas University was the first law school in the country named after a practicing Black attorney. There is another law school named for a Black person, Crump’s personal hero, Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.
Patti LaBelle’s STILL Mad and Wanted to ‘Slap the Heifer’ Who Thought She Would Eat Cupcake Paper
She’s the “Godmother of Soul” who will get a hater together real quick.
During a recent appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show, singer and songwriter Patti LaBelle shared a particular situation with cupcake baker, Lisa Lillian, that had the audience rolling with laughter.
According to the interview, LaBelle recalled the memory with the cupcake baker when she was a guest on TheTyra Banks Show years ago.
“Then there was the one with the cupcake,” LaBelle said to Hudson. “The girl thought I was going to eat the paper. Woo-wee…I wanted to slap that heifer so hard,” LaBelle told the Hudson talkshow audience, waving her hand in a slapping motion as everyone burst into laughter.
During the baking segment, LaBelle stood with Lillian and Banks in front of a batch of the baker’s cupcakes. Grabbing one and holding it up to the audience, LaBelle told the audience the cupcake had paper on it. As she preceded to smell the baked good, the baker turned towards her and said, “Yeah, you can’t eat the paper.”
“Nope, but you can touch it with your hands,” LaBelle responded, confused at Lillian’s remark.
As the baker continued to talk to Banks, LaBelle rolled her eyes, questioning why the woman would think she would eat the cupcake paper.
“‘You can’t eat the paper.’ Girl, I know you can’t eat the paper,” LaBelle said towards the audience, before Banks interrupted Lillian to see what LaBelle was saying.
“She is causing trouble,” Lillian said before LaBelle checked her on the comment.
Patti Labelle was just on Jennifer Hudson’s talk show and talked about that infamous cupcake/“eating paper” moment with Tyra Banks and that random woman in 2008 lol
LaBelle told the Hudson audience that she was happy with so many of the fun moments in her life.
As previously reported by BLACK ENTERPRISE, LaBelle is ready to add to the fun and make more memories, revealing that she is ready to start dating again at 78 years old. “I think in life I need to find happiness for myself,” she said, adding that she is “too good to be solo.”
Black Developer Accuses Fresno Mayor and City Officials of Racial Discrimination Toward His Businesses
A Black developer in Fresno, CA is accusing city officials of racial discrimination in a recently revamped lawsuit filed against the California city.
According to The Fresno Bee, Terance Frazier, a developer based in Fresno, stated that Mayor Jerry Dyer and city officials intentionally discouraged several organizations from doing business with him. He stated that these actions fit into a pattern of racial discrimination he has routinely faced in the city.
Frazier filed an amended complaint in federal court against Fresno. On Feb. 7, a federal judge allowed Frazier and his attorneys to amend the original complaint to include specific instances of violations of state law, in addition to federal.
He alleged that he and the sports foundation he runs, Central Valley Community Sports Foundation, has lost more than $11 million due to the discriminatory practices that he has encountered from the city of Fresno.
Defendants named in the lawsuit include former Mayor, Lee Brand; current mayor, Jerry Dyer, former city manager, Wilma Quan; former city manager, Tom Esqueda; current city manager, Georgeanne White; former assistant city manager, James Schaad; former chief of staff, Tim Orman; and councilmembers Garry Bredefeld and Mike Karbassi.
The developer is suing for financial damages, alleging retaliation, breach of contract, discriminatory business dealings, and discriminatory denial of contract and equal protection rights.
Frazier stated that city officials, in the past and currently, have repeatedly treated him unfairly because of his race, and added that he is being treated this way due to him being a frequent critic of their actions.
“No other developer, and certainly not one of another race who has declined to exercise his protected First Amendment rights to criticize and petition for redress, has been treated similarly,” according to the lawsuit filed in court. “No other developer has been publicly undermined and had issues pertaining to him referred for federal and local investigations, much less publicly.”
White Woman Claimed She ‘Feared For Her Life’ While Black Volunteers Passed Out Water During 2020 Election
Another day, another Karen on the loose.
This time in Albany, GA, where a white woman claimed she was “intimidated” when she pulled up to her voting location back in 2020. The Daily Beastreported Sarah Webster said, “I was completely, absolutely in horror when I pulled up to the polls,” and saw voters wearing “Black Votes Matter” shirts and handing out bottles of water. So, she felt the need to protect herself by bringing a gun within 150 feet of a voting poll – a crime for Georgia residents.
Witnesses said the assailant was making odd remarks to volunteers, saying, “Communism is great until you have to cook your puppy for dinner.” Webster claimed she was in “fear for her life” as hip-hop music played and the arguing escalated. She is now under investigation after an unanimous vote by the state’s election board.
According to GPB News, during the board hearing, Webster took the floor to compare members affiliated with Black Voters Matter group to armed Black Panther Party members. “I remember the Black Panthers that stood in front of the polling place with their guns, that’s how I felt when I pulled up to vote in Albany, Ga.,” Webster said. “That’s what I felt. 71 years old, I don’t run as fast as I used to, and I was totally intimidated. I’m still intimidated and shaking.”
Webster compared volunteers with @BlackVotersMtr to armed Black Panther Party members; accused the state election board of covering up election fraud in the 2020 presidential election and said she feared for her life because of the volunteers’ presence.https://t.co/VfjfRxUuCm
She also accused the state election board of covering up election fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
Demetrius Young, a present volunteer, told the board her claims are far from the truth. Young said there was never any illegal campaigning and his group was simply being targeted. Webster was even one of the voters to receive water from them. “I spoke to Ms. Webster and explained to her what we were doing,” Young said, as reported by GPB News. “I was simply trying to help people who were in 90-degree heat, standing in line for six hours trying to cast their vote, many of them passing out on the sidewalk.”
After waiting two years, GPB News reported the board found no wrongdoing by the Black Voters Matter group.
John David Washington Discusses the ‘Magic’ He Felt Seeing His Dad Denzel Perform for the First Time
Not every child gets to see their parent on the job. But if your parent is an actor, that may be a different story.
John David Washington made a recent appearance on the PBS podcast, American Masters: Creative Spark, to talk about the first time he saw his father, legendary actor Denzel Washington, act on stage.
The award-winning actor reminisced about seeing his dad perform at Delacorte Theater in Central Park in New York City. “Richard The Third. I saw my father on stage for the first time. I was a kid and it was like a magic trick,” Washington remembered.
“He didn’t talk like that at the house and then he just got on stage and transformed into this other being with his words.”
It was in that moment the 38-year-old knew he wanted to follow in his Oscar-winning father’s footsteps. He went on to receive his first role, according to Variety, as a student in a classroom in Spike Lee’s 1992 film Malcolm X, with his father playing the title role.
Growing up, he graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta, where he was a star football player, even making it to the NFL, signing with the then-St. Louis Rams as an undrafted free agent. On the podcast, he talked about how playing football compares to the world of acting.
“There is quite the correlation. In football, there is preseason so previews is served as preseason. Before preseason, there’s training camp and I feel like rehearsals is like training camp,” Washington said.
“So it was a lot like learning your playbook, learning your teammates and leaning the language. Developing a way of thinking and a way of being for this play.”
John David’s been bit by the acting bug.
He starred in critically acclaimed films such as Netflix’s Malcolm & Marie, Tenet and worked again with fellow Morehouse alum, Spike Lee, in the lead role in BlacKkKlansman. Washington just wrapped up the theater production of August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson. Before taking on the role, Washington told podcast listeners some advice on how to see theater differently than film. “My pops told me its a full context sport,” Washington said. “And I tend to agree with that statement.”
As the caption stated, her baby was heading to the PICU (pediatric intensive care unit) – a section of the hospital where critically ill children, from newborns to 21 years of age, are taken for specialized care.
This is not the first time that she has had to take her infant child to the hospital’s intensive care unit. Last September, Wyatt had to transport her, then-13-week-old son, Ke’Zyah Jean Darring, back to the hospital.
On Sep. 20, she posted about it on her Instagram account. She captioned the post, “In the ICU again but still making it. 13 weeks old and doing GREAT!!! #GODISGOOD. #Ke’ZyahJean #babyboy #mommyanddaddysbaby. We love u so much!!!”
When Wyatt was pregnant with Ke’Zyah, she revealed that her baby was diagnosed with Trisomy 13 or Patau Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes severe intellectual disabilities and physical defects. Wyatt discussed her son’s condition previously, and has been open about the status of her baby’s health. She also mentioned before that she was encouraged to terminate the pregnancy, but she ignored that advice.
“Most of you are familiar with the challenges I faced during this pregnancy. My husband & I made the decision not to accept the Medical Specialist’s suggestion to terminate our baby early despite the positive trisomy 13 test results. We appreciate and thank God for all of the Dr’s [sic] in the medical field. However, I can’t stress enough to all mothers & couples, when the Dr gives you life changing information about your unborn child …. pray about it, use faith & follow your spirit before making ANY final decision. We believed the report of the Lord and after holding our beautiful healthy baby boy Ke’Zyah & looking into his eyes, I’m glad we did. We are both believers and know that God has & will continue to have the final say. Thank You to my nurse Ebonie. Thank you ALL for the prayers & support ShugaS.”
A.G. Gaston: From Log Cabin to Funeral Home Mogul Who Amassed a $130 Million Fortune
Born in a log cabin, the grandson of a slave, on July 4, 1892, Arthur George Gaston Sr. prevailed over the barriers of the Jim Crow South to emerge as one of America’s most multifaceted and dynamic black businessmen.
His example of strategic brilliance and unyielding tenacity served as a model of inspiration for generations of African American entrepreneurs—from John H. Johnson, the media giant who founded Ebony and Jet magazines, to Henry “Hank” Aaron, the baseball legend who created his own empire of automotive and fast-food franchises and the most recent recipient of BE’s highest business honor which aptly bears Gaston’s name.
“I wanted to be similar to Mr. Gaston,” Aaron told BE.
“I watched him and tried to find out what it took for him to be the kind of man that he was. I said, ‘This man is very successful, and not just because he’s making money but because he’s able to share it with other people.'”
Building His Business Kingdom
Receiving only a 10th-grade education, Gaston joined the Army during World War I. After his military service, he worked for a Birmingham, AL coal company. He was determined to become an entrepreneur.
“Start somewhere” he would say decades later. He did that and much more, accumulating a fortune of more than $130 million by 1996, the year he died, at the age of 103.
Gaston’s vast business kingdom included a savings and loan bank, business college, construction company, motel, real estate firm, burial insurance company, two cemeteries, and two radio stations The founder and chairman of BE 100s companies Citizens Federal Savings Bank and Booker T. Washington Life Insurance Co. in Alabama, A.G. Gaston has been the only entrepreneur to earn the distinction of BLACK ENTERPRISE Entrepreneur of the Century; earning the honor in 1992—the 20th anniversary of our ranking of the nation’s largest black-owned businesses. In his interview with BE for the appropriately titled article, True Grit, he maintained that getting rich was “accidental.” He simply tried to fill the needs he observed in the community, according to that article.
Gaston’s entrepreneurial journey began in 1923 with his launch of the Booker T. Washington Burial Society, offering affordable funerals to co-workers. The business grew fast as Gaston formed ties with local black ministers who sent their members to the business. The pioneering businessman also attracted customers by sponsoring gospel singers and Alabama’s first radio program aimed at African Americans.
Economic Self-Determination
Gaston started the Booker T. Washington Insurance Co. in 1932—named after his hero, the proponent of “black economic self-determination” who founded Tuskegee University and the National Business League in 1881 and 1901, respectively, and served as an adviser to presidents—as a vehicle to sell life, health, and accident insurance. Using his business savvy, he created new revenue streams by adding burial insurance, undertaking, making caskets, and selling burial plots. Seeing a lack of skilled clerks and typists in his daily business operations, in 1939 Gaston started the Booker T. Washington Business College.
He spotted other niches and added companies to fill them. They included Vulcan Realty and Investment Co., the A. G. Gaston Home for Senior Citizens, WENN-FM and WAGG-AM radio stations, and S & G Public Relations. Fueled by blacks having trouble gaining loans, in 1957 Gaston opened the Citizens Federal Savings and Loan Association, the first black-owned financial institution in Birmingham. About 30 years later, at the age of 94, he still had the spunk to develop the A. G. Gaston Construction Co., to his holdings.
It was, however, no cakewalk for the versatile entrepreneur. Gaston, who used his wealth to back the civil rights movement, even downplayed accusations of being an “Uncle Tom.” During the peak of the civil rights struggles in Birmingham during the 1960s, he was considered too cautious and moderate. Gaston responded that what black people needed was “a Martin Luther King of economics who will fire the people up like they are being fired up for civil rights.” “It doesn’t do any good to arrive at first-class citizenship if you arrive broke.”
Paying It Forward
He launched his ventures, in part, to design platforms to teach African Americans about business and finance, since for years such training had not been available to them. In fact, BE recognized Booker T. Washington Insurance Co. as the most innovative company in the management category when the 95-year-old Gaston, who held a 97% controlling interest in the firm, sold the company, which had $35 million in assets and $276 million worth of insurance in force, and all of its subsidiaries to its 400 employees for $3.5 million —a fraction of its value.
At the time, such a move was virtually unheard of for founding entrepreneurs, black or white. And by 2003, Atlanta-based Citizens Trust Bank merged with Citizens Federal Savings Bank in a deal that created a larger institution and retained black ownership under the parent company, Citizens Bancshares Corp.
Today, No. 5 on the BE Banks list with assets of nearly $396 million, the transaction would have most assuredly put a smile on the trailblazer’s face had he been alive to see the merger between two black institutions.
Gaston earned many accolades during his life. Each year, BLACK ENTERPRISE presents the A. G. Gaston Lifetime Achievement Award, our top honor, to a groundbreaking African American entrepreneur and philanthropist. It’s fitting that it is named after the icon who once said, “Money is no good unless it contributes something to the community…unless it builds a bridge to a better life. Any man can make money, but it takes a special kind of man to use it responsibly.”
