[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Patrice Campbell, the only Black staffer for Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) is suing her employer, claming her supervisor made a comment about lynching and reporting it led to race-based retialation against her.

In the suit, which Campbell, who serves as a constituent services representative, filed last Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, her supervisor Karyn Davidman, “created an intolerable hostile work environment” against Campbell due to her race.

Campbell’s lawsuit states in early March, Davidman was telling a story about constituents using lanyards to keep face masks around their necks and told Campbell, “You are going to have to get a rope and put it around your neck.”

The next day during a virtual meeting, Davidman told Campbell to turn her camera on and retold the story and “laughed hysterically,” according to the suit. Campbell added that Davidman called her after the meeting and made more comments telling Campbell “You should have seen your face when I told that story!”

Matt Fried, Schneider’s spokesperson released a statement to Patch saying Schneider took quick action to alleviate the situation.

“It is against office policy to discuss specific details about internal personnel matters. To be clear, the Office took prompt and appropriate corrective action to address Ms. Campbell’s initial complaint,” Fri However, the federal lawsuit filed today by Ms. Campbell does not provide a complete or accurate representation of the issues or her treatment by any office personnel.

“The Office looks forward to responding to Plaintiff’s allegations in Federal Court at the appropriate time and is confident that it will be exonerated in due course once all the facts are known,” Fried added.

According to Campbell’s suit, Davidman has a track record of racist behavior. Campbell said Davidman took few constituent requests frem minority communities and when Davidman did take requests from Black constituents, she assigned the work to Campbell, making her feel like the “Black people representative” in her office. The suit added Davidman favored White employees and made frequent “off-hand comments that are, at best, racially insensitive, if not outright discriminatory.”

Campbell states in the suit that Davidman was given a week of paid administrative leave after the March incidents, and was told she would no longer supervise Campbell. However, Campbell said Davidman assigned her work anyway with the office’s district director serving as an intermediary.

Campbell was so distraught by the situation and Schneider’s response to the incidents, she took a month of unpaid leave  in April and worked a reduced schedule the following two months, according to Politico.

• Lifestyle

by BLACK ENTERPRISE Editors

July 19, 2021

Naomi Osaka Blocks Megyn Kelly For Tweets That Mocked Her Mental Health

---

Disgraced former anchor on Fox News and NBC, Megyn Kelly, trolled Naomi Osaka and got curbed when the tennis star blocked her on Twitter because she was “spewing negativity.”

Kelly, who recently picked a fight with Nikole Hannah-Jones is now taking jabs at Osaka over her magazine covers, gracing Vogue Hong Kong and even Sports Illustrated and Time ahead of the 2020 Olympics.

Kelly, who seemingly doesn’t have a clue that magazines plan months and even years ahead of publication, decided she wanted to come for Osaka and play down her mental health issues after Osaka admitted that she suffers from debilitating anxiety that caused her to opt out of playing in the French Open because she didn’t want to face the demands of answering to press.

On Monday, Kelly was talking about Osaka on Twitter with Clay Travis, a conservative sports pundit.

“Since saying she’s too introverted to talk to the media after tennis matches, Naomi Osaka has launched a reality show, a Barbie, and now is on the cover of the SI swimsuit issue,” Travis tweeted.

“Let’s not forget the cover of (& interview in) Vogue Japan and Time Mag!” Kelly added.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sports Illustrated Swimsuit (@si_swimsuit)

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by 大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka)

Osaka got wind of Kelly’s insensitive comments and clapped back in a since-deleted post and wrote,  “Seeing as you’re a journalist I would’ve assumed you would take the time to research what the lead times are for magazines, if you did that you would’ve found out I shot all of my covers last year,” Osaka said.

“Instead your first reaction is to hop on here and spew negativity, do better Megan.”

Late last month, Osaka bowed out of the French Open to focus on her mental health.

“I think now the best thing for the tournament, the other players and my well-being is that I withdraw so that everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris,” she wrote in a statement. She also stated that some members of the media have “no regard for athletes mental health,” adding that it “rings very true whenever I see a press conference or partake in one.”

After Kelly got blocked she tweeted a salty message:

Poor @naomiosaka blocked me while taking a shot at me (guess she’s only tough on the courts). She is apparently arguing that she shot her many covers b/4 publicly claiming she was too socially anxious to deal w/press. Truth is she just doesn’t like Qs she can’t control. Admit it. pic.twitter.com/izyRzOrUVm

— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) July 19, 2021

Kelly’s former Fox News show was canceled in 2018 after she comments she defending blackface.

• Lifestyle

by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

July 19, 2021

Megan Thee Stallion Makes History As First Rapper to Cover the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue

---

The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue has been a mainstay for years and although the anticipation isn’t what it used to be, it has presented a historic cover this year with a popular rapper appearing on the cover for the very first time!

With the latest release of Sports Illustrated’s annual Swimsuit Issue, the publication has made history by featuring Megan Jovon Ruth Pete, also known as Megan Thee Stallion as the first rapper to ever grace the cover of the annual issue.

Sports Illustrated Swimsuit editor-in-chief MJ Day said, “Megan Thee Stallion doesn’t stay in one lane. In fact, she encourages everyone to be in multiple, and this is what we love about her. She captured the world’s attention with her music and style, but what caught our attention was her unfiltered approach to the way she makes you think. She uses her platform to push boundaries, dissect societal norms and encourage humans to think about the backward way our society continues to operate. Megan is a vessel for change, and we are honored to have her on our 2021 cover.”

🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵❤️‍🔥 https://t.co/iYkCaO6Fsk

— Normani (@Normani) July 19, 2021

Megan Thee Stallion wasn’t the only cover subject for this year’s swimsuit issue. Tennis professional Naomi Osaka also graces the cover for this year’s version. The 23-year-old, returning from a mental health break, will be at The Tokyo Olympics to represent Japan.

“What drew us to Naomi was her passion, strength and power geared toward consistently breaking barriers when it comes to equality, social justice and mental health. She is wholeheartedly dedicated to achieving the impossible and has succeeded time and again. We are so honored to have one of the fiercest female trailblazers in history as one of our 2021 covers,” says Day.

The third cover model, Leyna Bloom is the first transgender to appear on this historic Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover.

by Derek Major

July 19, 2021

Rev. Jesse Jackson To Receive France’s Highest Order Of Merit For Career Of Activism

---

Reverend and civil rights advocate Jesse Jackson was awarded the Legion d’Honneur, one of France’s highest honors by French President Emmanuel Macron Monday.

Macron said Jackson received the award for  “a long walk towards emancipation and justice.”

Jackson, 79, has been involved in the fight for civil rights since the 1960s and was part of Dr. Martin Luther King’s staff. Jackson was with Dr. King the day he was assassinated. According to the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, which was formed by Jackson in 1996, the civil rights fighter will be promoted to the rank of Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honor by decree of President Macron.

“From your earliest years, you were hungry for knowledge and justice, and you are a special friend of France, a brother for us,” Macron said in an address at the Elysee palace according to Reuters.

Jackson’s activism continues to this day.

Less than a month ago, Jackson and activist Rev. William Barber III were arrested during a Capitol Hill protest over voting rights, which are under attack by the Republican Party. Jackson was also part of a recent meeting between civil rights leaders and President Joe Biden. Civil right leaders and organizations are becoming increasingly frustrated with Biden’s lack of effort in stopping Republican-led states from passing these bills and his inability to pass the For the People Act,

In a statement, Jackson said the award means a lot to him and the fight for civil rights is not over.

“I am deeply honored and excited to be promoted to the rank of Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honor by decree of the President of the Republic of France, His Excellency Emmanuel Macron – the highest honor of all French military and civilian honors” Jackson said in a statement.

“The dignity and weight of this very special honor are fully recognized by me and I appreciate and am truly grateful to be honored by such a prestigious recognition by the great and beloved nation of France.
I have received several honors from countries around the globe, however, this one is among the very special ones because of France’s continuing courageous and moral leadership around the world – fighting poverty, promoting peace, recognizing and taking action to confront climate change, promoting diversity and racial tolerance.”