• News

by Andrea Blackstone

July 9, 2021

76-year-old Grandmother Released From Prison After Being Sent Back for Not Answering Phone

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Gwen Levi, a 76-year-old woman who was taken back into custody, due to failing to answer calls while taking a computer class was released on Tuesday,” according to The Baltimore Sun’

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‼️ #BREAKING ‼️ GWEN LEVI IS COMING HOME. The judge has ordered her compassionate release. IMMEDIATE!!!

Folks, the fight is NOT OVER. Let’s get the other 4,000 home permanently.#KeepThemHome pic.twitter.com/YIhD2W4fEC

— FAMM Foundation (@FAMMFoundation) July 6, 2021

According to the article, court documents showed that a federal judge grant the grandmother a “compassionate” release and a reduced sentence to time served. WTOP further stated that Levi and some “24,000 nonviolent inmates were  permitted to serve the remainder of their sentences in home confinement last year,” to prevent the spread of  COVID-19 in prisons. It was under a decision which was made via the Trump administration. Levi was an inmate who had been selected to do so, according to WTOP.

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According to the outlet, in Judge Deborah Chasanow’s compassionate release request which was filed by Levi’s lawyer, the judge “noted that Levi had done well in home confinement previously,” while considering “Levi’s age and medical history as a cancer patient in her decision.” Levi’s lung cancer is in remission, per USA Today’s report.

The woman’s lack of phone response was due to her belief that approval was given for her to attend the class, Levi’s attorney said, according to USA Today. When she powered off her cell phone, she was “unaware that officials at her halfway house would be calling her.” As a result, the incident was regarded as an “escape,” so “Levi was arrested four days later.”

According to The Washington Post, Levi served “16 years of a 24-year sentence for conspiracy to sell at least one kilogram of heroin,” upon being sent to home confinement in June.

Baltimore Mayor’s Brandon M. Scott agreed with the judge’s decision to release Levi.

“The criminal justice system is designed to rehabilitate offenders for successful reentry to society, yet individuals like Gwen Levi are regularly confronted with the burdens of their faults after serving time. Following Gwen’s early release from prison last year, the 76-year-old chose to rewrite her story by volunteering for advocacy organizations around Baltimore. But while grace is a rare occurrence, judgment in America flows abundantly. Gwen recently made national headlines after being sent back to prison for failing to answer her phone during a computer class,” Scott said in a statement. “This lack of patience and empathy was wrong, and I am overjoyed that a U.S. District Judge ordered Gwen’s release this afternoon. I look forward to welcoming Gwen to City Hall in the near future and encourage everyone to keep fighting to build a government that truly sees the good in its people sentence to “time served.”

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Gwen Levi’s heartwarming reaction to being released from jail and also her message to her many supporters. pic.twitter.com/mrhcsINt3W

— Ray Strickland (@realraystrick) July 7, 2021

• News

by Andrea Blackstone

July 9, 2021

Nick Cannon, Father of Seven, Says He’s Shooting His ‘Cannons’ and Having So Many Kids On Purpose

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Nick Cannon reportedly became a father to a baby boy named Zen recently which makes Cannon’s new son “the fourth child the 40-year-old ‘Drumline’ star has welcomed in under a year,” per New York Daily News. Alyssa Scott—who is  a model— is supposedly the mother of Zen.

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A post shared by Alyssa (@itsalyssaemm)

When The City Girls were interviewed on Nick Cannon’s radio show recently, the conversation began to take a drastic turn, when the father of seven began to open up about his personal life.

“Sometimes I have a little too much fun in my life,” Cannon admits. “It gets me into a lot of trouble, but I embrace it.”

Then, during his “Advice for Nick” show segment, Cannon opened up to his guests, admitting that he was “like a seahorse out here, the way he is procreating.” JT coolly gave a piece advice to Cannon. She said that he should “stay true to himself and to wrap it up.”

“I’m having these kids on purpose,” Cannon said in response. “Trust me. There’s a lot people I could’ve got pregnant that I didn’t. The ones that got pregnant are the ones that were supposed to get pregnant.”

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In the midst of a mixture of comments and laughs during the casual conversation, serious questions came back into view. The Things posted an old video of Cannon speaking in a clip which was re-shared by The Shade Room. In it, Cannon  talked to Howard Stern about experiencing “life threatening situations” and having Lupus.

“I’m probably gonna die sooner than most people… that’s what the doctor said,” Cannon said.

Cannon ended with commentary about how he is living life, while dealing with a health challenge.

“Why wear condoms, since he might not be here tomorrow,” Stern said, summing up the segment. Watch the Nick Cannon Radio interview with the City Girls by clicking here.

• Health and Wellness

by Andrea Blackstone

July 9, 2021

Jada Pinkett Smith Reveals She Passed Out on the ‘Nutty Professor’ Set After ‘a Bad Batch of Ecstasy’

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Jada Pinkett Smith aired out her own indiscretions at the Red Table on the latest episode of her hit Facebook show Red Table Talk.

Pinkett Smith has made some shocking admissions before, including involvement in an entanglement, but this time the Matrix star opened up and shared how a bad batch of ecstasy pills had her passed out on the set of The Nutty Professor.

“I had one incident on Nutty Professor. I passed out,” Pinkett Smith began.

“I went to work high, and it was a bad batch of ecstasy. And I passed out, and I told everybody that I must have had old medication in a vitamin bottle.”

The actress also opened up about her struggle with drinking too much hard liquor and wine, and dabbling with drugs including a combination of ecstasy, and even weed, during a recent show. She spoke about the discipline she ultimately exercises to curtail the temptation of binge drinking.

“But it never got to the point where it interfered with your being able to go to work?” Pinkett Smith’s mother, Adrienne Norris asked.

“There was one incident,” Pinkett Smith’s daughter, Willow, said before Jada replied.

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Then, Pinkett Smith provided details about the personal story which dates back to the time she was on set of the 1996 movie The Nutty Professor.

Per Pinkett Smith’s account, she ultimately got herself together and showed up to work on the set. She informed Willow, “That is why I stay on you, Jaden and Trey (Willow’s siblings), because I grew up with my mother who was a heroin addict,  and still it didn’t sink into me that any mind-altering substance — I don’t care what it is. All y’all young people talking about weed is from the Earth…and I’m like this. It’s a gate,” meaning it’s a gateway drug to using another even harder drug.

Megan Lewis — who is an award-winning artist from Baltimore — designed a limited-edition Doritos SOLID BLACK™ bag.

Doritos picked a Black artist to create limited-edition Dorito bags and the snack brand is also helping Black creatives and innovators through a new campaign.

Doritos is amplifying the voices of more Black creatives and innovators who are seven members of Doritos SOLID BLACK’s Inaugural Class of 2021.

They include:

• Anthony and Janique Edwards: co-founders of EatOkra
• Ari Melenciano: a Brooklyn-based artist, creative technologist, professor and researcher
• MsAshRocks: a California-based gamer, Twitch streamer and mental health awareness advocate
• DeForrest Brown, Jr.: a New York City-based musician, writer and lecturer
• Eric Williams: the founder and owner of Baltimore-based Nacho Bangers restaurant
• Nic Stone: an Atlanta native who is a New York Times best-selling young adult literature author and Spelman College graduate
• and Sara Trail: a sewing teacher, author, and founder of the Social Justice Sewing Academy.

Lewis was previously “featured in Doritos 2020 #AmplifyBlackVoices campaign where she painted a “Protect Blk Women ” mural in response to the killing of Breonna Taylor,” according to WUSA 9.

Doritos partnered with Lewis to create a visual element for the initiative. Per WUSA 9’s report, she “designed two limited-edition bags, the first, with the face of a Black woman and the second with the face of a Black man.”

“They gave me the words resilience, bravery, joy and strength,” Lewis said in WUSA 9’s interview. “I took those words and created the work that you see on the bag. Not only are Black women resilient but we are soft and gentle. We are all of these things.”

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Doritos also announced that it is launching SOLID BLACK™ — which is “a new multi-platform initiative backed backed by action and funding designed to bolster the voices of Black innovators and creators”— to provide resources for them “to continue driving change.” Per the press release, the company committed to investing over $5 in the SOLID BLACK™ campaign. The snack maker is striving to “amplify stories of Black joy, strength, and resilience.”

Doritos announced that the first 1,000 individuals who make a $10 or more donation to National Urban League will receive this limited-edition bag. Raised funds will be used to “support minority-owned businesses.” Doritos committed to making a $100,000 donation to the National Urban League, but the company is presenting a call to action for fans to get involved through the SOLID BLACK™ campaign, according to the announcement.

As stated in the announcement, the inaugural class’ stories will be highlighted on Doritos’ public channels and in advertisements and receive $50,000 to help continue their change-making work.

“Doritos has long been a brand that believes in igniting and championing bold self-expression and authenticity,” Stacy Taffet, vice president of marketing, Frito-Lay North America, said in the announcement. “We are proud to provide a platform and resources to innovators and creators who are making a lasting impact on culture and hope that their stories can inspire the next generation in the continued effort to create a more equal and diverse world.”

Click here to learn more about SOLID BLACK.™

• Technology

by Black Enterprise Shop

July 9, 2021

Back Up Your Data With Lifetime Access To 15TB Of Cloud Storage For $150

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In today’s world, your data has been made one of the most valuable commodities. But if you’re juggling enough of it, it can be difficult to ensure that none of it is lost over time, especially if you aren’t backing up your data using a secure and trustworthy platform.

Most platforms limit the amount of storage space you have available, meaning certain users will have to use multiple platforms at once to fully store their data. Instead of doing all that, why not use a simple and efficient cloud-based platform with all the storage you’ll ever need? The Degoo Premium Mega Backup Plan: Lifetime Subscription gives you lifetime access to 15 terabytes of cloud-based storage space, and it’s on sale now for $149.99.

The subscription comes with industry-standard safety measures, ensuring the safety of your data with ultra-secure 256-bit AES encryption. And Degoo implements AI to help you manage and share your files through suggestions which help to maintain order and tidiness within your stored data. You’ll also get high-speed transfers via email or links that make it simple to share, whether for business or your personal life, with the added benefit that Degoo allows access and the ability to create backups on as many of your devices as you want, whether its only your home devices or an entire office.

Not only will you get top-notch security and an easy-to-understand, AI-based interface, but this plan also offers more storage than Dropbox, OneDrive, & Google Drive combined. By paying just one time, you’ll never have to worry about your data storage again, saving you headaches for the rest of your life. That’s the kind of investment that you’ll always feel great about.

The current options on the market for data storage leave a lot to be desired. Whether it’s a lack of security, storage space, or interface usability, discerning customers will desire a better choice. You can’t go wrong with the Degoo Premium Mega Backup Plan: Lifetime Subscription for just $149.99.

Prices subject to change.

Zaila Avant-garde of Louisiana just made history as the first African American person to win the Scripps National Spelling Bee. She claimed her victory in round 18 after she correctly spelled “murraya,” a genius of tropical Asiatic and Australian trees.

As the national champion, Avant-garde is walking away with a $50,000 cash prize, medal, Scripps Cup, the official trophy, and other sponsor prizes. 

The 93rd competition took place at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida on Thursday evening. Eleven students from seven states and the Bahamas competed during the final event. 

“Zaila demonstrated incredible mastery of the English language with poise and perseverance,” said Adam Symson, president and CEO of The E.W. Scripps Company, in a statement. “The excellence of all of our competitors, their hard work and commitment to learning, and their distinct stories, capture hearts and minds across the globe.”

Launched in 1925, the Scripps National Spelling Bee is the longest-running educational competition in the country, Symson noted. Every year, millions of students across the country come together to compete for the coveted spelling bee title.

Road to Scripps National Spelling Bee

Zaila Avant-garde, an eighth-grader attending Clover Lane Homeschool, was one of 209 national qualifiers. With the sponsorship of the New Orleans Chapter of The Links, she was able to excel in three virtual competitions in June to secure her spot at the national competition. This was Avant-garde’s second time competing in the Scripps bee, starting her journey in 2019 after she requested to participate in a spelling bee for her 12th birthday, Nola reported. 

Although she didn’t make it to the finals in 2019, Avant-garde was determined to compete again. In 2020, she took home the grand prize at the Kaplan Virtual Spelling Bee. She used her $10,000 cash prize to purchase study materials and hire 2015 Scripps runner-up Cole Shafer-Ray as her private tutor.

“For spelling, I usually try to do about 13,000 words (per day), and that usually takes about seven hours or so,” Avant-garde told Nola. “We don’t let it go way too overboard, of course. I’ve got school and basketball to do.”

Her hard work paid off. Avant-garde achieved her goal of winning the Scripps National Spelling Bee this year. This means that she’s adding another accolade to her collection of awards. At only 14-years-old, she’s already set three Guinness world records. In 2019, she earned her first record for the most bounce juggles with three basketballs.

What’s next for the young spelling bee champ and basketball phenom? She aspires to attend Harvard University and play in the WNBA. She’s also considering a career at NASA. With a multitude of talents on her resume, Avant-garde’s career options will be plentiful.

• Politics

by Derek Major

July 8, 2021

Democrats To Invest $25 Million In Voter Education And Registration Efforts

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Reuters – The Democratic party will invest $25 million in voter registration and education efforts, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will announce on Thursday, as the Biden administration tries to combat restrictive rules passed by Republican-led legislatures in some states.

Harris, who was assigned by the president to lead the administration’s efforts on voting rights, will make the announcement at her alma mater, the historically Black Howard University.

“This campaign is grounded in the firm belief that everyone’s vote matters,” Harris will say, according to remarks provided by the White House. “We are fighting back.”

Harris and President Joe Biden will meet with civil rights groups later on Thursday including the NAACP, National Urban League, National Action Network and others to “discuss the fight to protect the constitutional right to vote,” the White House said in a statement.

Biden’s fellow Democrats have struggled along with civil rights groups to fight a spate of voting restrictions including measures like Georgia’s ban on providing food or water to voters in long lines and a Florida measure giving more power to partisan election observers. The measures can hamper efforts to vote by Black, Latino and younger voters who have helped elect Democrats.

“Democracy is under attack in states across the nation, and we must act with great urgency to protect the American people’s most fundamental and sacred right, the right to vote,” NAACP President Derrick Johnson, who is attending the meeting with Biden, said in an emailed statement.

Last month, Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic-backed national election reform bill that would have expanded opportunities to vote before Election Day, made certain campaign contributions more transparent and reformed the process for drawing of congressional districts. Republicans said it violated states’ authority to set their own election laws.

(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt, Steve Holland and Merdie Nzanga; Editing by David Gregorio, Heather Timmons and Dan Grebler)

• News

by Derek Major

July 8, 2021

Haiti Police Apprehend Additional Suspects In Killing Of President Jovenel Moise

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Reuters – Haiti’s police seized on Thursday at least two more suspected members of the gang of assassins that killed President Jovenel Moise, following a fierce battle that left bullets strewn in the streets of the capital.

Hundreds of residents clamored outside the police station where suspects were being held in Port-au-Prince, shouting “burn them” and setting fire to a vehicle they presumed was that of the assassins, according to footage streamed by Haitian media outlets.

Moise, 53, was shot dead early on Wednesday at his home by what officials said was a commando of trained killers, pitching the poorest country in the Americas deeper into chaos amidst political divisions, hunger and widespread gang violence.

Haiti’s police and army quickly tracked down and encircled the presumed assassins, who included foreign mercenaries, officials said in a briefing late on Wednesday.

By then, security forces had already killed four suspects, apprehended two, and freed three police officers taken hostage.

On Thursday, one livestream showed a police van carrying away two weary-looking suspects, handcuffed together and guarded by balaclava-clad policemen wielding automatic rifles.

Another video shared on social media, that Reuters was unable to immediately verify, showed two suspects, one of whom was spattered with blood, tied up with rope and being corralled by a mob of angry citizens.

Officials have not given a motive for the killing so far. Since he took office in 2017, Moise had faced mass protests against his rule – first over corruption allegations and his management of the economy, then over his increasing grip on power.

VACUUM OF POWER

Moise’s death has generated confusion about who is the legitimate leader of the country of 11 million people, which shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic.

That does not bode well in a nation that has struggled to achieve stability since the fall of the Duvalier dynastic dictatorship in 1986, grappling with a series of coups and foreign interventions.

“I can picture a scenario under which there are issues regarding to whom the armed forces and national police are loyal, in the case there are rival claims to being placeholder president of the country,” said Ryan Berg, an analyst with the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS).

Haiti’s 1987 constitution stipulates the head of the supreme court should take over. But amendments that are not unanimously recognized stipulate it be the prime minister, or, in the last year of a president’s mandate – like in the case of Moise – the parliament should elect a president.

Adding further complications: the head of the supreme court died last month due to COVID-19 amid a surge in infections in one of the few countries worldwide to have yet to start a vaccination campaign.

There is no sitting parliament as Haiti failed to hold legislative elections in late 2019 amid political unrest.

And Moise had just this week appointed a new prime minister, Ariel Henry, to take over from interim prime minister Claude Joseph, although he had yet to be sworn in when the president was killed.

Joseph appeared on Wednesday to take charge of the situation, running the government response to the assassination, appealing to foreign governments for support, and declaring a state of emergency.

Henry, however, told Haitian newspaper Le Nouvelliste that he did not consider Joseph the legitimate prime minister any more and he should revert to the role of foreign minister.

“I think we need to speak. Claude was supposed to stay in the government I was going to have,” Henry was quoted as saying.

The Dominican Republic said on Wednesday it was closing its border with Haiti and bolstering security amid fears of a breakdown in order in the country.

The United Nations Security Council is due to hold a closed-door meeting on the situation in Haiti on Thursday.

A U.N. peacekeeping mission – meant to restore order after a rebellion toppled then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 2004 – ended in 2019 with the country still in disarray.

“There are many unknowns about what happens next,” said Jake Johnston, a senior research associate at the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington. “But it is important to remember that that was also the case before the assassination of Moise.”

Moise, backed by the international community, had been pushing to hold both elections and a constitutional referendum in September, efforts that were vehemently opposed by Haitian civil society, he pointed out.

(Reporting by Andre Paultre and Robenson Sanon in Port-au-Prince; Additional Reporting by Stefanie Eschenbach in Mexico City Writing by Sarah Marsh Editing by Daniel Flynn, Mark Heinrich and Rosalba O’Brien)

by Derek Major

July 8, 2021

Congressman David Scott Introduces Legislation Making Scholarships For 1890s Land Grant Colleges Permanent

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House Agriculture Committee Chairman and Georgia Congressman David Scott has introduced legislation to make scholarships for 1890s Land Grant Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

Leaders from the 19 Land Grant HBCUs laid out to Congress how a fresh infusion of funding provided by Congress will help educate and train the next generation of agriculture workers. Scott said the testimony will help members of the committee work to make the $80 million scholarship program permanent.

“We are moving to make this scholarship program permanent and in order to do that we want to make sure we have the evidence to present that,”  Scott said in a release. “I want to be able to get on the record, all of what this scholarship program means to each of you.”

Currently the funding for scholarships for 1890 Land grant HBCUs are reauthorized through the farm bill every five years. 1890 Land Grant HBCUs span 18 states and were designated land grant schools under the Morrill Act of 1890.

Scott’s bill is co-sponsored by House Budget Committee Chairman John Yarmuth (KY), House Rules Committee Chairman Jim McGovern (MA), House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture Chairman Sanford Bishop (GA), House Agriculture Committee Vice Chair Alma Adams (NC), Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (MO), Senior Member,  Financial Services Committee, House Agriculture Subcommittee on Biotechnology Chair Stacey Plaskett (VI), House Agriculture Subcommittee on Nutrition Chair Jahana Hayes (CT)
and Congressional Black Caucus Chair Joyce Beatty (OH).

Virginia State University President Dr. Makola Abdullah said the scholarships have allowed for generation students to earn a degree in the agriculture industry without taking out student loans.

“This program has allowed us to recruit and train the next generation of agricultural leaders who will continue to keep our food supply chain safe,” Abdulah said according to the Georgia Recorder.

The nineteen :and grant HBCUs are Alabama A&M University, Alcorn State University, Central State University, Delaware State University, Florida A&M University, Fort Valley State University, Kentucky State University, Langston University, Lincoln University, North Carolina A&T State University, Prairie View A&M University, South Carolina State University, Southern University System, Tennessee State University, Tuskegee University, University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Virginia State University and West Virginia State University.