December 21, 2022
A coalition of leading civil rights organizations released a report urging Congress to take immediate action and prevent millions of families from losing health care coverage.
Coalition group members include UnidosUS, the NAACP, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum, the Coalition on Human Needs, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and the National Urban League, according to a release.
When the Biden Administration formally declares an end to the Public Health Emergency–which could happen early next year—Medicaid programs will be allowed to terminate beneficiaries’ coverage for the first time since February 2020. The report describes how Congressional inaction could lead to the largest Medicaid loss in American history, disproportionately harming people of color and causing a civil rights and equity crisis.
Based on reports from the Biden Administration, 15 million people are expected to lose Medicaid when the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency ends and states are no longer forbidden from terminating families’ Medicaid. That will be more than seven times the largest previous one-year drop in Medicaid coverage in American history, when the number covered by Medicaid fell by 2.0 million in 2018 and again in 2019. More than half of the 15 million people are expected to come from communities of color, including almost 5 million Latinos, more than 2 million African Americans, and nearly a million Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. An estimated 5.3 million children will lose Medicaid, three-fourths of whom will remain eligible but be terminated for administrative reasons.
The report calls on Congress to reform Medicaid by cutting paperwork burdens that prevent eligible families from keeping their health care.
“We’ve achieved remarkable progress in recent years expanding health care coverage to those who need it most. Since 2020 alone, the number of uninsured has fallen by 5.2 million people and more people have their own health insurance than at any previous point in American history. Those hard-won gains could disappear and our progress could be erased if Congress fails to enact reforms that keep millions of eligible families from losing health care because of nothing more than missing paperwork,” said Sonia M. Pérez, Chief Operating Officer and Acting CEO at UnidosUS.
“When the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency ends next year, 15 million families are expected to lose Medicaid coverage. This is a cause for alarm,” said Marc H. Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League. “As we look to recover from the pandemic, we cannot afford to go back to pre-pandemic inequities as usual. The reforms outlined in this report will help keep millions of eligible families from losing health care. We must remain vigilant and steadfast in our approach to ensure every American has proper healthcare coverage. We urge Members of Congress and the Biden Administration to reform the Medicaid statute and save eligible families before it’s too late.”
“During the pandemic, Medicaid has been a lifeline for over 90 million Americans, including nearly a million Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, providing coverage and access to health. Yet, many eligible families are at risk of losing Medicaid coverage once eligibility redeterminations resume because of needless red tape and paperwork. Our organizations speak with one voice on this issue, and we urge Congress to adopt statutory changes that protect eligible families from losing Medicaid coverage,” said Juliet K. Choi, President & CEO of the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF).
December 21, 2022
A former Texas police officer was sentenced to over 11 years in prison on Tuesday for shooting and killing a Black woman in her home in 2019.
Aaron Dean, the former Fort Worth police officer, was sentenced in a Tarrant County court to 11 years, 10 months in prison, a court clerk said. He had been convicted last week by a jury in the killing.
Atatiana Jefferson, 28, was shot dead by Dean, who is white, while standing in her home with a handgun after hearing noises outside. Afterward, Dean resigned from the force and police later charged him with murder.
Dean and his partner had gone to Jefferson’s home after a concerned neighbor called police to say her front door was open.
She was playing video games with her 8-year-old nephew when Dean arrived and crept around the back of the home, gun drawn, according to his arrest warrant and bodycam video.
Jefferson heard noises, pulled her handgun out of her purse and pointed it at a bedroom window, her nephew had told police at the time, according to the warrant.
Jefferson’s death took place about seven months before the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer who knelt on his neck for over eight minutes. Floyd’s death led to global demonstrations against racism and police brutality.
Fort Worth Police Department had said in 2019 that Dean violated a series of police policies.
Dean‘s attorneys said he fired in self-defense, but prosecutors had argued there was no evidence of him seeing a gun in Jefferson’s hand before firing through the bedroom window.
(Reporting by Brad Brooks in Lubbock, Texas; Editing by Stephen Coates)
December 21, 2022
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December 20, 2022
With 11 children to care for, Nick Cannon admits he’s spread too “thin” when it comes to spending quality time with all of his children. It might be why one of his baby mamas issued some subtle shade in response to his recent holiday family photos.
Lanisha Cole, who shares three-month-old daughter Onyx with Cannon, took to her Instagram Story on Sunday to seemingly respond to the “fake” photo opps Cannon had with two of his baby mamas, Page Six reported.
“There’s no need to mention me or send anything to my dms. It has nothing to do with me…and no need to be messy. It’s all love over this way 🙏🏾 Happy holidays to you and your family! ❤️❤️❤️❤️,” Cole captioned her post.
“It’s important for me to keep things positive and maintain my peace in the midst of it all,” she wrote in a separate post.
Cole went on to seemingly share how she’s making it through the holiday season with her infant daughter.
“It’s not easy but I have to do it for my daughter,” she wrote. “She is incredibly blessed and is surrounded by so much love–and it’s not fake IG photo op love–it’s real day in and day out love.”
Cole’s post came after Abby De La Rosa, who shares twin boys Zion Mixolydian and Zillion Heir, 1, and daughter Beautiful Zeppelin, one month, with Cannon, posted her “Christmas 22” family photos with The Masked Singer host.
View this post on Instagram
Elsewhere, Bre Tiesi shared a family photo showing her, Cannon, and their five-month-old son, Legendary Love, posing for photos with Santa over the weekend. Cannon also celebrated his other children by reposting a photo of his newborn son with Brittany Bell, Rise Messiah, wearing a Santa costume, and a snap of Monroe, 11, shared with singer Mariah Carey, singing with her mom, to his Instagram Story.
Cannon recently appeared on the Paramount+ series The Check-up with Dr. David Angus where he opened up about the challenges of being a present father to his 11 children.
“Being a father of multiple kids, it’s always the biggest guilt on me is that I don’t get to spend enough time with all my children,” Cannon said. “One ’cause I’m constantly working and two because I’m just spread thin.”
Cannon is expecting his 12th child with model Alyssa Scott in 2023.
December 20, 2022
Maybe his recent troubles with police officers steered him toward this decision: Afroman said that he will be running for the land’s highest political office in 2024.
According to TMZ, at a recent concert in Poplar Bluff, MO, the weed-loving recording artist (real name: Joseph Foreman) told the audience that he plans on running for President of the United States. He made the announcement at the Black River Coliseum over the weekend. The artist told the crowd right before he performed one of his songs, so no one might have actually believed him.
He mentioned, of course, that if he was elected president that he would make sure that all weed is legal.
TMZ reported that sources have informed the gossip outlet that Afroman is serious about running, and he would be running as an independent. There is no record that he filed the intention with the Federal Elections Commission, but the information is supposed to be forthcoming.
See the video where Afroman made the announcement. It’s unlikely this will be replicated by any candidate.
Afroman was in the news a couple of weeks ago when he claimed that police officers stole $400 from his house in a raid that produced nothing illegal. According to WXIX, police officers removed evidence in the summer when they raided the recording artist’s home. They were looking for drugs and paraphernalia that were supposedly on the premises. The officers were also told that trafficking and kidnapping had occurred there. However, no drugs or paraphernalia were reported to be found.
December 20, 2022
Beyoncé is hailed for being one of the best performers to ever do it, and it’s thanks in part to the serious training she endured throughout her youth.
Queen Bey’s mom, Tina Knowles-Lawson, recently opened up about one of the “tough lessons” she had to teach her daughter early on when it came to perfecting her singing ability and stage presence.
While appearing on Michelle Obama’s Cross-Generational Conversation with Revolt, alongside singers H.E.R. and Kelly Rowland, supermodel-activist Winnie Harlow, and moderator Angie Martinez, Knowles-Lawson recalled her experience when teaching a young Beyoncé a lesson on how hard life can be despite the hard effort you put in.
“I remember Beyoncé being in the group at first…and someone coming in…she bought the other girl in, and the girl was older, like, stronger, and had a better voice at the time than her,” Knowles-Lawson recalled.
Martinez jokingly interjected that it was “not possible, not possible,” for there to be a better singer than Beyoncé, but Knowles-Lawson doubled down saying the former group member “was much older and stronger” than Bey.
Knowles-Lawson recalled Beyoncé “coming home and saying, ‘that’s not fair because I brought her there and, you know, they’re not even telling me thank you, and now she’s just singing all the lead.’”
Instead of coddling her daughter, the fashion designer encouraged Bey to take work harder and perfect her craft.
“And I’m like, you know what, I would go get in those voice lessons, and I’d just work twice as hard because the world ain’t fair,” she told her daughter.
“That was a really tough lesson for that age.”
However, Knowles-Lawson recalls how upset Beyoncé became over the advice.
“I hate you,” the young aspiring singer told her mom. “You not my best friend, and I hate you.”
Obama jumped in and shared how she told her two daughters, Malia and Sasha Obama, to “go in your room and say that because I don’t want to hear that. You can feel it.”
Tina replied: “But you know it’s not real, it’s just like when your kids say ‘you are not my best friend,’” she said. “Well, I don’t want to be your best friend.”
December 20, 2022
Singer Trey Songz has more legal trouble to tend to after turning himself into the New York Police Department for allegedly punching two people at a bowling alley in October.
Songz turned himself into the NYPD after being detained in November, TMZ reports. The “Bottoms Up” singer is accused of striking two people and hospitalizing one alleged victim.
The Virginia native was booked and given a desk appearance for assault and released. He’s accused of punching one woman inside the bathroom of the bowling alley.
A second victim, a male, claims Songz also punched him in the eye but he refused medical attention.
“We have been proactively communicating with NY law enforcement, the DA, and all those involved,” Songz’s attorney, Mitch Schuster said.
“While we will respectfully and proactively work through all the appropriate channels we are confident that Trey will be fully cleared of any wrongdoing.”
The charges come after a woman first claimed in November that she was attacked by Songz at the bowling alley the month before. The unidentified woman claims the singer dragged her by her hair, leading to her going to the hospital for minor, albeit visible injuries.
The singer is no stranger to violent run-ins. In September, rapper 50 Cent claimed Songz was “banned” from his Tycoon events for “acting crazy,” Vibe reports.
“Last TYCOON he crashed a Wraith, this TYCOON he was acting crazy, wanting to fight and sh*t over the girls. He broke some sh*t up in his room,” 50 quipped. “Nah tell @treysongz he can’t come. smh.”
In November, Songz’ sexual assault case was dismissed due to the statute of limitation, LA Times reports. The claims stem from an anonymous woman who claims Songz raped her in 2016.
“After entering the bedroom, Trey Songz turned, almost immediately, into a savage rapist,” the lawsuit stated.
“Trey Songz threw Plaintiff Jane Doe to the ground, ripped Plaintiff Jane Doe’s pants off, pinned Plaintiff Jane Doe down face first and forced Defendant Trey Songz’ penis into Plaintiff’s anus without Plaintiff Jane Doe’s consent.”
The suit continued: “Plaintiff Jane Doe screamed in pain and begged Defendant Trey Songz to stop.”
December 20, 2022
When Dionne Warwick isn’t dropping trademark hilarity and sass online, the Queen of Twitter is preparing for the release of her award-winning documentary with CNN, Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over.
The highly-anticipated film, which premiered at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival and earned first runner-up for the People’s Choice Award for Documentaries, is bringing Warwick’s iconic story at the top of the new year, according to ET.com. It is also a special nod to the songstress’ “Don’t Make Over,” one of her 1960s hits that led to her induction in the Grammy Hall of Fame.
The six-time Grammy Award-winning singer, who also earned a special tribute award for the documentary, is excited to tell her story on her own terms through archival footage, personal photographs, and newsreels of her six-decade career in music and Black and LGBTQ activism.
“I am exceptionally excited, for many reasons,” Warwick told ET. “But the basic one is that finally people are gonna get to know me and know me through me, as opposed to old suppositions, you know? All those things that they thought or had opinions about? Now, they get the real deal.”
https://twitter.com/dionnewarwick/status/1601336579846393856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Directed by Dave Wooley and David Heilbroner, Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over tells the story of the New Jersey native’s legacy and story beyond her musical endeavors. From her start singing in gospel groups with family members to becoming an internationally-renowned pop music icon, the film took five years to come together.
“It was like, do we include this or do we talk about that? But I simply said the genesis of this entire thing happens to be my book and all the information you need is right there,” said “The Walk On By” singer about her 2011 book, My Life, as I See It: An Autobiography. “I spilled my guts in that book!”
In recounting Warwick’s journey, the film will also feature exclusive interviews with Warwick’s sons, Damon and David Elliott, and music idols such as Cissy Houston, Quincy Jones, Alicia Keys, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson, Carlos Santana, and Stevie Wonder.
Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over will stream live Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023 at 9 p.m. Eastern exclusively on CNN. Following the film’s broadcast on CNN, it will be available via HBO Max and On Demand the next day.
December 20, 2022
Janet Jackson is just mom to her five-year-old son, Eissa Al Mana. But leave it up to Eissa’s friends to “put it together” and figure out Mama Janet’s superstar status.
Jackson, 56, appeared on the Today show on Friday to promote her “Together Again” world tour that kicks off in spring 2023. While there, the Grammy Award-winning singer was asked if her son has figured out how famous she is, People reports.
“I think his friends are starting to put it together for him,” JaCKSON said. “Because I’ve kept him away from it, actually.”
Jackson welcomed Eissa with her ex-husband Wissam Al Mana in January 2017. She has been private about her motherhood journey. But, insiders say she takes the role just as seriously as she does her career in entertainment.
“While a career entertainer and workhorse, she has taken to being a parent with the same passion,” a source said. “She is so happy and has found new meaning in her life.”
Jackson and Al Mana announced their divorce in 2017, just four months after welcoming their son. Her brother, Randy Jackson, revealed the alleged “abuse” Janet dealt with while married to the Qatari billionaire businessman.
“It was quite an abusive situation,” Randy told People at the time.
He touched on the “verbal abuse and being [made to feel like] a prisoner in her own home. No pregnant woman needs to go through being called a b*tch everyday…That’s what she went through.”
In 2019, Janet appeared on Good Morning America where she opened up about being a single mother to a young child while maintaining her busy career.
“It is hard being a working mother. I don’t have a nanny. I do it all myself,” Jackson shared at the time. “If my mother did it with nine children, there’s no reason I can’t.”
December 20, 2022
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the expiration of Title 42 may force him to cut public services as more than 1,000 migrants are excepted to arrive in the Big Apple every week.
According to Fox News, the city’s annual “State of the City’s Economy and Finances” report was released last week by city Comptroller Brad Lander. It projected $1 billion per year in spending to cover housing, food, education, and other costs for migrants.
“Our shelter system is full, and we are nearly out of money, staff, and space. Truth be told, if corrective measures are not taken soon, we may very well be forced to cut or curtail programs New Yorkers rely on, and the pathway to house thousands more is uncertain,” Adams said in a statement Sunday, according to Fox News. “These are not choices we want to make, but they may become necessary, and I refuse to be forced to choose new arrivals over current New Yorkers. I’ll say it again—we need a plan, we need assistance, and we need it now.”
Title 42 blocks migrants from seeking asylum in the U.S. The restriction was put in place by the Trump administration in March 2020 to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
The policy was extended by the Biden administration and was set to expire this week, but Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts has temporarily paused the expiration of Title 42, granting an 11th-hour request made by more than a dozen Republican-led states.
States on the border have made several moves to bring negative attention to the border crisis. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott made headlines earlier this year when he began sending busloads of migrants to New York and Chicago. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis sent migrants by plane to Martha’s Vineyard earlier this year and outgoing Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey has been placing shipping containers with barbed wire on top across the Arizona-Mexico border, which the Biden administration has sued him over.
In addition to Mexican citizens trying to get into the United States, residents from Guatemala and Honduras have also been seeking asylum after walking thousands of miles.
