Ice Cube, as a member of the seminal hip-hop group N.W.A., came out the gate in the group’s debut record titled “F*** The Police” back in 1988 in response to the treatment of Blacks in California by police officers. That was the start of a career where the realities of young Blacks were brought to light in the form of the hip-hop music he and his group created.
With the current change in climate toward altering the way the police deal with Blacks and with the fight against systemic racism, Ice Cube is rejoining the fight he’s been involved with since the sounds of N.W.A. reverberated through the streets.
Ice Cube is calling attention to police reform, reparations, and inequality within the halls of Hollywood.
Some excerpts below:
Instead of looking for incremental reform, the Contract with Black America tries to address the root causes of racism in our society and develop a roadmap for a comprehensive solution. Beyond the obvious, we need to focus on the areas of banking and finance, justice, policing, education, Hollywood depictions, as well as a system of reparations. None of these work in isolation, this plan looks at the systemic core of racism as a whole, and only in that way can a true solution be born.
As a writer, rapper and producer, I have called out police brutality and other injustices for decades. I have been censored, smeared, slammed and had my life threatened for my work—for speaking the truth. As much as my art has contributed, I know that calls for change will not achieve the paradigm shift necessary to address four centuries of racial injustice. I am angry. And I’m not backing down. I want a better world for my children and their children, and platitudes about “progress” won’t produce it. We need a world where hate towards any people is not tolerated.
People want to believe the great lie and that we are making “progress.” But the system is rigged.A country where the systems inhibit and destroy black progress, whether by law, overt racism or unconscious bias, is designed to produce n***as. Across our country this summer, more Americans are awakening to how systemic racism has cheated generations of black children.
Will a nation that prides itself on being “one nation under God with liberty and justice for all” realize that it has never achieved that? A nation lying to God. The justice wasn’t for “all.” Will a nation whose people put their own children in bondage ever pay for what they have done to themselves? Only when America admits the Founders’ lies can we begin to heal.
Tennessee State Senator Katrina Robinson Charged With Embezzling $600,000 in Federal Funds, Faces 20 Years in Prison
Tennessee State Senator Katrina Robinson, 39, is being accused of stealing more than $600,000 in grants from the healthcare company she founded and has been federally charged with theft and embezzlement involving government programs and wire fraud. U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant announced the charge this past Wednesday, according to a press release.
Robinson allegedly used the funds for “a vehicle for her daughter; clothing, accessories, and hair and beauty products; expenses related to her wedding and honeymoon, and later, legal fees for her divorce; payments on her personal debts, including credit cards, store charge cards, student loans, and other personal loans; travel and entertainment for herself and her family; improvements to her personal residence; expenses related to a body aesthetics business she owned and a snow cone business operated by her children; and an event for her State Senate campaign.”
If convicted, Robinson faces a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison, three years supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
According to details presented in the complaint, Robinson is the director of The Healthcare Institute (THI), a provider of educational and training programs for jobs in the healthcare field. She also serves as a Tennessee State Senator, having been elected to represent the 33rd District in Shelby County in 2018.
Between the years of 2015 and 2019, The Healthcare Institute received more than $2.2 million in federal grants from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Robinson is accused of stealing in excess of $600,000 from THI by compensating herself more than what was allowed under the terms of the HRSA grant and by using Institute funds for payments and purchases for her own personal benefit and that of her immediate family.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services –Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG).
Dunavant said: “Protection of the United States Treasury and federal grant programs against theft, fraud, waste, and abuse is a top priority of this office and the Department of Justice. We commend the FBI and the HHS-OIG for their diligent and thorough investigation in this case.”
“Anyone who seeks to take advantage of government programs will be vigorously investigated by the FBI, regardless of who they are or any position they hold,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Jermicha L. Fomby of the Memphis Field Office of the FBI. “The public should know that the FBI will continue to work diligently with our law enforcement partners to identify and investigate those who seek to exploit government programs and line their own pockets.”
Meet The Entrepreneur Behind South Africa’s First Black Woman-Owned Winery
The wine and spirits industry severely lacks diversity when it comes to control and ownership. Just like Black entrepreneurs in the United States encounter hurdles that are not present for White counterparts, the same applies in other parts of the world where wine is prevalent. In South Africa, one woman has managed to beat the odds to become the first Black woman to own a winery in the country.
Ntsiki Biyela is the founder of Aslina Wines. Her start in the industry was not as you might expect. She came from a background of never drinking wine to studying it at Stellenbosch University on a scholarship funded by South African Airways.
“It was an opportunity to do something with my life, to change my life to be a better person [and] change my life with family and everything,” says Biyela in an interview with BLACK ENTERPRISE.
But there have been challenges, including going to school where everyone spoke a different language.
“[It] was the language and culture, which are all complete different things,” she adds. “[I came from] a small village where it’s only Black people and we speak Zulu … I came to Stellenbosch and having to learn in Afrikaans was like, ‘Oh my word, how I am going to deal with this?’”
Despite the setbacks, Biyela advanced her career while challenging people’s stereotypes of what a South African winemaker looks like, whether she was attending industry events or dealing with consumers.
“You’re working as a winemaker and people [don’t believe] that you are the winemaker because people have a picture that they’ve grown up seeing of a winemaker, and I was the complete opposite in every aspect of what they [think] a winemaker looks like,” she says.
Biyela started her winery a year after she left school and named her products after her late grandmother.
Hardline Opponent Of Face Masks Tests Positive For Coronavirus
A Texas Republican who once insisted he wouldn’t wear a mask unless he caught the coronavirus can now put one on, as he’s contracted the virus.
According to Mic, Rep. Louie Gohmert reportedly tested positive for coronavirus Wednesday, a day after he appeared at a House Judiciary Committee hearing with Attorney General Bill Barr without a mask.
In June, Gohmert told CNN, “I don’t have the coronavirus, turns out as of yesterday I’ve never had it. But if I get it, you’ll never see me without a mask.”
Gohmert was tested as part of the regular procedures for entry to the White House. He is asymptomatic.
According to Politico, Gohmert is the seventh member of the House, and the sixth Republican member, to be infected by the coronavirus. Gohmert was filmed on Wednesday walking next to Attorney General Bill Barr after the House committee hearing. Barr will now be tested for coronavirus following Gohmert’s infection.
Former presidential candidate Herman Cain, who contracted coronavirus after attending President Trump’s rally in Tulsa, died Thursday morning from the virus.
Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler (N.Y.), who chaired the hearing with Barr, criticized a group of GOP committee members, but not Gohmert, for refusing to comply with House rules and not wearing face masks during the hearing.
Gohmert posted a video on his Twitter account Wednesday afternoon announcing he had contracted “the Wuhan virus.” Gohmert added he regularly wore a mask during the past week and wondered whether his adjusting his face covering “to make it more comfortable” had “put some germs in the mask.”
“I’m so sorry for him,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told MSNBC’s Garrett Haake after learning of Gohmert’s infection. “But I’m also sorry [for] my members, who are concerned, because he has been showing up at meetings without a mask and making a thing of it,” she added.
McDonald’s Promises To Bolster Diversity Within Its System
McDonald’s has promised to improve diversity at all levels of its systems, including franchisees and suppliers in a worldwide digital meeting Wednesday.
The international burger chain held its first Worldwide Connection Overview, a digital convening of operators, suppliers, and employees worldwide Wednesday. In the meeting, company executives acknowledged they need to do better at creating a culture of equality, fairness, and opportunity where these values don’t have to be marched for but are expected as soon as employees and customers walk in the door.
As part of that, McDonald’s has promised to address hiring bias, reduce barriers for underrepresented populations, increase the diversity of its leadership to represent the communities they serve, and hold suppliers accountable as well.
“These actions and others will be underscored by a Mutual Commitment to Diversity, Equity and
Inclusion,” McDonald’s announced in a press release. “This is a pledge that asks anyone who does business with McDonald’s to make and be accountable to progress across diversity, equity and inclusion in their own business.”
The fast-food chain also discussed the Black Lives Matter movement and the protests taking place across the country. McDonald’s promised to set diversity goals within the company and track its progress annually to ensure success.
“For our Black friends and neighbors and colleagues of color, the devastation of COVID is matched by the pain and frustration they feel over just how far we still have to go to achieve justice in the world,” CEO Chris Kempczinski said during an hourlong Worldwide Connection video shared with members of the media.
“Some people in our system feel they haven’t been given a fair opportunity,” he added. “We have to face that fact and do better.”
McDonald’s also announced a partnership with the Mayo Clinic, which will review McDonald’s coronavirus related health and safety precautions. The partnership will also select global standards, which take into
consideration local regulations, practices, and guidance from local public health authorities.
McDonald’s has made an effort to give back to its customers during the coronavirus pandemic. In April, McDonald’s honored the selfless service of healthcare workers and first responders—police officers, firefighters, and paramedics—by giving them free ‘Thank You Meals’ to all healthcare workers and first responders.
Obama Calls Filibuster ‘Jim Crow Relic’ And Backs New Voting Rights Act
Former President Barack Obama called the Senate filibuster rule a “Jim Crow Relic” and said it should end, especially if that’s what’s needed to pass legislation restoring a key provision of the Voting Rights Act.
According to The Hill, Obama made the remarks during his eulogy for civil rights legend John Lewis (D-GA) who died at the age of 80, earlier this month. The provision, which is named after Lewis, would make it harder for states to enact racially suspect voting restrictions.
“Once we pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, we should keep marching,” Obama said Thursday. “And if all this takes eliminating the filibuster—another Jim Crow relic—in order to secure the God-given rights of every American, then that’s what we should do.”
Obama’s support for eliminating the Senate filibuster, a procedural tactic that requires 60 votes for legislation to proceed, could spark intense political debate with the upcoming election less than 100 days away. If Democrats win the Senate and the White House, they could get rid of the filibuster to push high-priority legislation into law.
Democratic Nominee Joe Biden said he might support eliminating the filibuster if Senate Republicans were to adopt a hard-line stance on opposing proposals from a Democratic majority.
The Lewis voting rights measure is a response to the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision in Shelby County v. Holder. A 5-4 ruling struck down Section 5 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The provision required states with a recent history of racism at the ballot box to get federal approval, known as pre-clearance, before changing their voting laws.
Since the provision was struck down during Obama‘s second term, multiple states have passed voting restrictions that legal analysts and some courts have found to have affected a disproportionate number of minority populations.
“The decision in Shelby County opened the floodgates to laws restricting voting throughout the United States,” a fact sheet from the left-leaning Brennan Center for Justice states. “The effects were immediate. Within 24 hours of the ruling, Texas announced that it would implement a strict photo ID law. Two other states, Mississippi and Alabama, also began to enforce photo ID laws that had previously been barred because of federal preclearance.”
REVOLT Exec Detavio Samuels on Leading a Brand that Empowers Black Creatives
Detavio Samuels didn’t expect to become the co-head of REVOLT Media and TV a few weeks after accepting an entirely different position at the network founded by entertainment mogul Sean “P. Diddy” Combs.
God’s Plan
After six years of climbing the ranks at Interactive One (iOne), Samuels moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in May to start a new chapter as the COO and head of content at REVOLT, a multiplatform curator and distributor of hip hop-centered content launched in 2013.
The former iOne Digital and One Solution president officially began his journey on June 1. However, his role drastically shifted in a matter of weeks after REVOLT CEO Roma Khanna stepped down in mid-July. In turn, Samuels and Colin McIntosh, the EVP and head of finance and operations, were given the additional role of co-heads of REVOLT and were responsible for the day-to-day leadership of the company. Although the 39-year-old media executive says Khanna’s “departure was unexpected and sad on a lot of different levels,” he believes taking lead at REVOLT was part of a divine plan.
“God moves chess pieces,” Samuels tells BLACK ENTERPRISE. “And so right now I just feel like I’m sitting squarely in my time and squarely in my mission. And I’m excited about the opportunity to lead this brand.”
Samuels was initially hired to lead REVOLT’s original content development, content acquisitions, production, and digital video content and strategy. He also oversees insights, creative, consumer marketing, and PR. Now as co-head, he is also responsible for the brand’s vision and strategy, business operations and structure, and revenue. Ultimately, he aims to shape a network that lives up to the definition of its name.
In March, REVOLT adopted a new content strategy that focused on social justice amid the global COVID-19 pandemic, which has disproportionately affected Black Americans. Now, most of its coverage is oriented around the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement, which was triggered by the police killing of George Floyd at the end of May. As such, the media outlet facilitated a virtual town hall to explore COVID’s impact on Black America and launched REVOLT Black News, hosted by Eboni K. Williams. For Samuels, highlighting these aspects of the Black experience is vital in molding a brand that literally means “rise in rebellion.”
“The first piece is just really anchoring the brand in the movement [and] really anchoring this brand in the revolution,” said the Duke and Stanford University grad. “With a brand called ‘revolt,’ you can’t do anything but lead a revolution.”
He adds that delving into Black Lives Matter issues is resonating with their viewers and moving the culture forward.
“Clearly, we’re about Black excellence, clearly we are about Black culture. So, jumping into this BLM movement, and staying there and wanting to be here for the foreseeable future, just makes a ton of sense,” the media and advertising vet says. “We’re seeing the audience respond in ways we’ve never seen before. June was our biggest month for our dot.com…we saw double-digit growth across all of our social media platforms. And so this pivot to social justice is (A.) not temporary–it’s here forever and here to stay; (B) we believe it’s meaningful and impactful to the culture; and (C) the culture is showing up and appreciating it.”
Freeing the Black Genius
According to Samuels, creating an organization that lives and breathes Black excellence starts with the talent that is hired and cultivated within the company.
“We want to give people a place to be free and really impact the culture,” he says, describing REVOLT as the “go-to-place” for Black artists, creatives, and hip hop. For Samuels, it’s just as important to give creatives of color a safe space to “be free” without feeling pressured to conform or censor themselves.
His statements come after Combs publicly invited Nick Cannon to work for REVOLT after the actor and comedian was terminated from ViacomCBS for anti-Semitic rhetoric. Samuels says he was surprised the media conglomerate severed its decades-long relationship with Cannon — and his popular comedy franchise Wild ‘N Out — considering that he was “a Black man who has done so much, and built so much, and put so much money in the pockets of the folks at Viacom.”
.@NickCannon come home to @REVOLTTV truly BLACK OWNED!!! ✊🏿❤️ We got your back and love you and what you have done for the culture. We are for our people first!!! For us! By US! Let’s go!!!
That’s not all. “But what was really surprising to me was the fact that Viacom doesn’t appear — you know, again, I’m not inside — but it does not appear that there was a lot of conversation,” Samuels says. “It doesn’t appear that there was a lot of chance for forgiveness or evolution. And that’s where I see the problem is.”
That Black talent may receive less grace and redemption for mishaps, in turn, is what drives his resolve to scale REVOLT.
“That’s where I see the opportunity for REVOLT,” Samuels explains. “We are going to be this home for Black creatives to be free. When they make mistakes or when we have disagreements about things, we want to have grown-up business conversations with our people. We’re cheering for everybody Black. So we’re never going to cancel somebody without having real conversations, regardless of whether we agree with what they did or not.”
Although Cannon has not publicly responded to Combs’ job offer, Samuels asserts that the entertainer and entrepreneur would be welcomed with open arms.
“We see a brilliant creative mind who has assets that are working for the culture, great for the culture, and we are happy to be a home for those assets and for his creativity,” he says. In addition, “we also see a brother who is down” and “a place to put arms around him,” Samuels says of Cannon, who admitted to suffering from suicidal thoughts following the controversy.
Supporting Black Creatives
As much as Samuels aims to grow REVOLT into a Black-owned multinational corporation, he says the company can’t scale without the backing of advertisers, corporate sponsorship, and funding. Without financial support, Black creatives ultimately suffer.
“It is important that advertisers show up for us,” he said. In addition to saying “Black lives matter,” he challenges organizations to invest in Black-owned media outlets. “Otherwise, we will begin to again just see the deterioration of the free Black press.”
Even though a number of Black media outlets have gone out of business, while others struggle to stay afloat, Samuels believes that the Black press is pivotal in today’s media landscape. Without Black-owned publications, Black writers, content creators, and storytellers won’t have outlets to report and cover the stories that speak to their communities.
“I need people to understand the power of the media, the power of Black-owned media, the power of the free Black press, and help fund us so that we can continue the revolution,” he says.
“The revolution can’t be televised if it’s not funded.”
Oprah Honors Breonna Taylor on Historic September Cover of O Magazine
Oprah Winfrey is honoring the life of Breonna Taylor by putting her on the cover of the September issue of O, The Oprah Magazine—marking the first time in 20 years that Winfrey won’t grace the cover.
“We can’t be silent. We have to use whatever megaphone we have to cry for justice. And that is why Breonna Taylor is on the cover of O magazine,” Winfrey writes in her What I Know for Sure column. “I cry for justice in her name.”
The cover illustration was created by a Black woman, 24-year-old digital artist Alexis Franklin.
“When Breonna Taylor was killed, I couldn’t even try to shut it out. I was uncontrollably angry and hurt,” Franklin said in O magazine.
“So many things were going through my mind—Breonna’s life, mostly, and how it ended so abruptly and unnecessarily. Every stroke was building a person: each eyelash, each wisp of hair, the shine on her lips, the highlight on her cheek,” Franklin said of the process of creating the cover.
“I was as up close and personal as I could ever get to this woman and, consequently, to this very real problem. I felt a new level of determination and pressure to get it right.”
Winfrey’s editor’s letter features a second work by a Black woman artist: a silhouette of Taylor by papercut artist Janelle Washington. In it are written the names of 89 Black women and girls who have died by police violence or while in custody from the African American Policy Forum’s #SayHerName campaign.
(Image: Janelle Washington, courtesy of O magazine)
“I have a collection of property ledgers from former plantations. Names, ages, and prices of people, listed along with cattle, shoes, wagons, and all other earthly possessions,” Winfrey writes.
“Those ledgers come to mind when I see the names of Black women who were killed by police. Breonna Taylor and too many others like her. I see the names, I think of the ledgers, I feel the connection down the generations: the refusal to value Black women’s lives. And I feel a personal connection. Because I am these women. These women are me.”
The issue also includes a call to action for readers to continue the fight for justice for Taylor:
2) Call Kentucky’s attorney general, mayor, governor, and the public integrity unit of the Louisville Metro Police Department to demand the officers involved in Breonna’s death are fired and charged with her killing. Visit StandWithBre.com for guidance.
4) Hashtag #SayHerName on social media—so no one forgets her: Breonna Taylor.
The September issue of O magazine, which celebrated it’s 20th anniversary in April and will stop publishing regular print issues after the December 2020 issue, will be on newsstands August 11th.
Nevada Sheriff Threatens Local Library Over Black Lives Matter Support
The sheriff of Douglas County, Nevada, sent a letter to the local library saying it should no longer call the cops for help due to its Black Lives Matter stance.
According to The Root, the Douglas County Public Library published a proposed diversity statement on July 22nd as part of the agenda to be discussed at a special meeting it was planning on July 28th. The statement “denounces all acts of violence, racism, and disregard for human rights” and supports Black Lives Matter. It did not mention any law enforcement agency.
But Douglas County Sheriff Daniel Coverley reacted with a letter to the library’s Board of Trustees slamming the Black Lives Matter movement and threatening a lack of police response.
“The Black Lives Matter movement openly calls all law enforcement corrupt and racist on their website,” Coverley wrote in the letter Monday. “Numerous Black Lives Matter protests have resulted in violence, property damage and the closing of local businesses, sometimes permanently. To support this movement is to support violence and to openly ask for it to happen in Douglas County.”
“Due to your support of Black Lives Matter and the obvious lack of support or trust with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, please do not feel the need to call 911 for help,” Coverley continued. “I wish you good luck with disturbances and lewd behavior.”
In his letter, Coverley included statistics showing police shootings of unarmed Black people have declined and cited data as proof that systemic racism in policing is nonexistent.
The Black Lives Matter movement has seen a resurgence after the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. For more than two months, there have been daily protests across the nation against police brutality and in favor of defunding police departments to provide more money and resources for social services.
Library Director Amy Dodson met with Coverley Tuesday to discuss the situation according to the Reno Gazette-Journal. Dodson called the situation “an unfortunate circumstance of misunderstanding.”
The Douglas County public information office released a statement by Coverley Tuesday evening. In the statement, Coverley didn’t apologize for his actions, instead saying the Black Lives Matter movement has created a difficult time for law enforcement.
“I am passionate about and proud of the work the Sheriff’s Office does for all members of this community,” Coverley said in the statement. “This has been a difficult time to be a law enforcement professional and can be disheartening when we perceive that our office may be under attack.”
