Video Shows Black Man Tased By White Police Officers After He Bought a Bike at Walmart
by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

July 23, 2020

Video Shows Black Man Tased By White Police Officers After He Bought a Bike at Walmart

A Black man was tased after being thrown to the ground by two white police officers at a Pennsylvania Walmart in an incident caught on video, according to The Urban Daily.

The man, Stanley G. Gracius, 37, was at Walmart to purchase a bicycle for his son. A video of the initial incident, caught by a Twitter user layla, shows the police officers attacking him at the cash register after he paid for the bike. The police officers used a taser on him as he is questioning why he was being detained.

There was another video posted on Reddit that showed what happened once the police officers took him out of the store.

FOLLOW UP: Wyomissing PA man racially profiled & arrested for riding a bike to the cash register in Walmart after paying for the bike from r/PublicFreakout

A statement was issued by the Berks County District Attorney.

by Derek Major

July 23, 2020

Ninety-Three Members Of The House and 23 Senators Voted To Cut The Pentagon Budget

Almost 100 members of the House of Representatives and 23 senators voted to cut the Pentagon’s budget by 10%.

According to The Nation, 93 members of the House agreed to an amendment Tuesday to reduce the size of the $740 billion National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. The mostly Democratic House members were joined by former Republican Justin Amash (L-Mi).

“Every dollar wasted at the Pentagon is a dollar not being spent on test kits, personal protective equipment, or contact tracing,“ Congressional Progressive Caucus co-chairs Pramila Jayapal and Mark Pocan wrote in an opinion piece for NBC. “Every handout to Lockheed Martin or Northrop Grumman is money that could have been spent on ending this pandemic, keeping small businesses afloat, and staving off an economic meltdown.”

A version of the amendment sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) in the Senate drew backing from half the Democratic Caucus, including Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. The support to cut the Pentagon’s budget comes as more than 4 million Americans have been infected during the coronavirus pandemic and more than 30 million Americans are unemployed.

“This week we made great progress toward reining in the blank check that the Pentagon has gotten all too often. Ninety-three members of Congress said ‘Enough!’ by supporting a 10% cut to defense spending,” Pocan said after the House vote. “That’s real, substantive progress on reprioritizing spending toward things that benefit the average American rather than enriching greedy defense contractors and wasteful, unnecessary programs.”

Despite the new support for cutting the Pentagon’s budget, 139 Democrats voted against it including Senators and vice presidential prospects Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.). Additionally, 185 Republicans also voted against the measure.

Americans, however, largely support the cut in the Pentagon’s budget. According to Data For Progress, 57% of Americans are in favor of the cut.

Rep. Barbara Lee (D–Calif.) said the 10% cut would create enough money for 225,871,999 coronavirus tests, 563,425 monthly relief payments of $1,200, and 270,444 coronavirus patient hospital stays.

The funds created by the cut would still have enough money left over to create 109,529 clean energy jobs,146,039 infrastructure jobs, and 81,133 jobs with supports created in high poverty communities.

Michigan Prosecutor Releases List Of Police Officers Caught Lying
by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

July 23, 2020

Michigan Prosecutor Releases List Of Police Officers Caught Lying

A prosecutor in Michigan has made good on her plan to release a list of police officers who have been punished for lying on the job, according to Blavity. 

County Prosecutor Kym Worthy released the first list last week featuring the names of police officers who are unable to testify in court due to having lied on the job, according to Detroit News. She intends to produce a list every quarter. 

The list is known as the Giglio-Brady list and it outlines the names of the officers and their misconduct.

The police officers on this list were determined based on officers who were labeled “Giglio-impaired.” That’s a term that local prosecutors in Michigan use to refer to the police officers who have disciplinary issues related to lying on their records. Because of the ruling on the U.S. Supreme Court case, Giglio v. United States in 1972, prosecutors have to tell defense attorneys about any police officer with a history of fabricating information. 

“Because trials will begin again mid-August and September, we thought it was important to send this out to our prosecutors and defense attorneys,” Worthy told Detroit Free Press. “There are currently 35 officers on the list. We are taking the additional step of releasing the list to the public because, in an era of criminal justice reform, it just makes sense. We will repeat this process quarterly and expect to release an updated list in September.”

Although Worthy is making the list public, the list will exclude police officers who have been reprimanded for smaller infractions like lying on their time sheet.

Detroit Police Chief James Craig is on board with the releasing of the list. He said he has “always welcomed transparency,” and added that “under this administration, if a police officer is found guilty of making a false statement, that’s a termination case. This is a position I’ve taken for a while now.”

“I just had a conversation with a group of activists a few days ago, and they asked me about the Giglio issue. I told them: I can’t undo a decision that was made before I got here; if an officer was found guilty of untruthfulness and was only suspended, contractually, I can’t go back and fire them,” he said.

“There have been instances where I’ve modified the work assignments of officers with truthfulness issues. You can’t have them doing reports because they’ll be challenged. You can’t have them making arrests because they’ll be challenged.”

Craig also spoke on police officers who may leave their jobs as a way of escaping accountability for infractions like falsification.

“If you make a decision to resign while you’re under investigation, we can’t administer discipline,” Craig said. “But what I can do is make a note on their file that they retired under charges. That way, if that officer were to apply to another police department, they would know that the officer didn’t just retire, but they retired under charges, and it would then be up to that hiring agency if they wanted to do a deeper background check.”

U.S Airlines Are Now Banning Customers Who Refuse To Wear Masks On-Board Planes
by Dana Givens

July 23, 2020

U.S Airlines Are Now Banning Customers Who Refuse To Wear Masks On-Board Planes

Airline travel has seen a drastic change since the spread of COVID-19, or novel coronavirus, across the U.S. and the globe. Face mask requirements are the latest change—even though the Trump administration has yet to mandate face masks be worn outside, leaving it up to states to make the decisions despite warnings from the CDC. Due to a recent spike in cases in numerous cities, major U.S airlines are enforcing stricter policies for passengers to board their aircraft; now passengers can potentially get banned for life if they don’t follow instructions.

American Airlines was one of the first airlines in early June to extend its face mask on-board the aircraft rule to the boarding gate and announcing that it would deny entry to passengers who didn’t follow the order. Just this week, American and Southwest Airlines went even further and announced that they would be unable to transport anyone over the age of 2 who didn’t comply with wearing a face mask, including those with medical conditions.

“If a customer is unable to wear a face-covering or mask for any reason, Southwest regrets that we will be unable to transport the individual,” Dallas-based Southwest Airlines said in statement according to the Dallas News. “In those cases, we hope the customer will allow us to welcome them onboard in the future, if public health guidance, or other safety-related circumstances, regarding face coverings changes.”

United Airlines has also tightened restrictions, stating that it would ban all passengers who refused to wear a mask, effectively losing all travel privileges with the airline. “The most important thing any of us can do to slow the spread of the coronavirus is simply wear a mask when we’re around other people,” said United Airlines Chief Executive Scott Kirby, according to Forbes.

“Wearing a mask is a simple and effective action that each and every one of us can—and should—do when they are in close contact with others. Do it for your family. Do it for your country. Do it for the countless men and women who have given their time and energy to protect the rest of us. Do it for the over half a million people worldwide, including more than 140,000 Americans, who have tragically lost their lives as a result of this terrible virus,” pleaded Delta’s CEO, Ed Bastian, in a video for CNN Business. 

“We all have a role to play, and we can all make a difference. So please, wear a mask—we are all depending on you.”
Senate Releases Details Of Second Coronavirus Stimulus Package
by Derek Major

July 23, 2020

Senate Releases Details Of Second Coronavirus Stimulus Package

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he will reveal the Republican version of another coronavirus relief package, which will include a second stimulus check.

According to Forbes, instead of putting forward one proposal, McConnell said he will roll out several different bills Thursday addressing various stimulus package components. The majority of Americans have said they need another stimulus check with the federal $600 unemployment benefit set to expire.


Additionally, the government reported more than 1.4 million workers filed new claims for state unemployment benefits last week—the first time that the weekly tally has risen since May.

Although the next coronavirus stimulus package is almost guaranteed to contain direct payments to Americans, how much they will receive remains in question. The House and Senate currently disagree on precisely how much direct cash should be distributed to Americans.

The House has already passed a second set of $1,200 payments included within the Heroes Act that passed in May. The Senate is debating whether a second check should be for less than $1,200 and whether or not to lower income limits so fewer individuals and families would be eligible to receive a second check.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told CNBC Thursday the Republican coronavirus relief plan will extend enhanced unemployment insurance “based on approximately 70% wage replacement.”

After the first checks went out, Republicans insisted on waiting to see how the coronavirus pandemic went over the next few months before committing to spend more money. However, the coronavirus pandemic has only gotten worse as states with low numbers are now seeing their hospitals fill to capacity. Florida, Texas, Arizona, and California are breaking infection rate records on a daily basis.

Even President Trump, who has been a hard no on face masks for months, reversed course earlier this week calling it “patriotic” to wear one.

More than 4 million Americans have been infected and the death toll has surpassed 145,000.

Derek Chauvin, Police Officer Charged in George Floyd’s Death, Accused of Felony Tax Evasion
by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

July 23, 2020

Derek Chauvin, Police Officer Charged in George Floyd’s Death, Accused of Felony Tax Evasion

Derek Chauvin, the fired Minneapolis police officer who has been charged with second-degree murder for the killing of George Floyd is now facing additional jail time. Chauvin and his wife were recently charged with nine felony charges for tax fraud in Washington County, Minneapolis, according to Washington County Attorney Pete Orput in a press release.

Chauvin and his wife, Kellie May Chauvin, have been accused of filing false or fraudulent returns and three counts of failure to file tax returns. The charges are the result of an investigation conducted by the Minnesota Department of Revenue and the Oakdale Police Department.

Orput stated, “When you fail to fulfill the basic obligation to file and pay taxes, you are taking money from the pockets of citizens of Minnesota. Our office has and will continue to file these charges when presented. Whether you are a prosecutor or police officer, or you are a doctor or a realtor, no one is above the law.”

The Minnesota Department of Revenue investigators started an inquiry into the Chauvins in June 2020 after they failed to file Minnesota individual income tax returns in a timely matter from 2016 to 2019 and fraudulently filing tax returns from 2014 to 2019. It has been alleged that the Chauvins knew of their obligation to file state income tax returns due to what they filed in previous years and from previous correspondences sent last year by the department regarding their missing 2016 individual income tax return.

The complaints detail that the Chauvins, both employed and living in Minnesota, failed to file income tax returns and pay state income taxes. They also under-reported and underpaid taxes on income gained from different jobs each year, and failed to pay proper sales tax on a car they purchased in Minnesota.

“The vast majority of taxpayers voluntarily comply with Minnesota tax laws,” said Department of Revenue Commissioner Cynthia Bauerly. “However, the department will work with our partners in law enforcement to help ensure that Minnesota’s tax laws are administered fairly and everyone pays the right amount, no more no less.”

This Woman Launched A Virtual Postpartum Doula Service For Mothers
by Dana Givens

July 23, 2020

This Woman Launched A Virtual Postpartum Doula Service For Mothers

Black maternal deaths have been the topic of conversation after the stories of several black women, some even public figures, expressed their experience with nearly fatal incidents during their pregnancies or postpartum, with many of these incidents attributed to a racist history within the medical field in the U.S.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 60% of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable and 44% of those deaths occurred within 42 days after delivery. The same study found that between 2011-2015, non-Hispanic Black and Indigenous women die between 3x to 4x the rate of non-Hispanic white women.

After dealing with her own bad experiences during her pregnancy, one woman decided to create an innovative service to help  mothers, especially those from marginalized groups navigate postpartum.

Mandy Major is the founder and CEO of Major Care, a virtual postpartum doula agency to connect mothers with doulas all over the country to provide accessible and affordable care for mothers after they give birth. Major says a service like this is greatly needed with the U.S., which has one of the highest rates of maternal deaths in the developed world.

“It was a personal experience that quickly became a professional mission. Having my daughter changed my life. It opened my eyes to how, in America, we are hyper-focused on pregnancy but do the bare minimum for postpartum,” she said in an email interview with BLACK ENTERPRISE.

“We are treated like disposable husks, yet we have our own physical and emotional needs that require care. It’s all on the birth person to be your own advocate and self-source information, services, and support. We’re the only developed country without some form of standard postpartum care, and it shows: We have the highest maternal mortality rate of all developed countries, an increasing postpartum suicide rate, and an increasing rate of postpartum depression and anxiety.”

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S, Major says her service saw a boost in interest with virtual services now becoming the new normal for a variety of services.

“We were working on this concept and business long before COVID-19 hit, but its presence has changed everything,” she explained. “While our virtual service model is the same, we’re fielding more questions from pregnant persons who want virtual resources for everything and are trying to figure out how to have a baby in this new paradigm.”

The consumer can go on the website and take a short quiz to be matched up with a doula and book a complimentary session to make sure it is the right fit. From there, mothers can schedule regular weekly video sessions with their doula.

“We offer what we call “relationship-based care,” she says. “It’s personal, intimate work. I left the industry I had been in for nearly a decade, became a certified postpartum doula, and started a local practice. But I knew the need was so much greater.”

“I thought about how to reach the most people and how to do it for less than in-person doula-ing, which can be costly. Given my background as a digital director, a virtual business was the natural answer. Technology isn’t a barrier anymore, it’s a benefit. It’s how people connect.”

by Von Boozier Twins

July 23, 2020

Master P Teams Up With BET on New Docuseries ‘No Limit Chronicles’

Fresh off walking away from the reality show he created, Growing Up Hip-Hop, Percy “Master P” Miller teams up with BET on a new docuseries, No Limit Chronicles, which depicts the story behind No Limit Records.

The five-part docuseries will recount the remarkable journey of the label, from its extraordinary rise to decline and rebirth to prominence. The series features candid sit-down interviews from No Limit insiders like Miller, his son Romeo Miller, Snoop Dogg, Silkk The Shocker, Mia X, Mystikal, Fiend, and Mr. Serv-On, in tandem with rare archival footage and dramatic recreations of pivotal events. Viewers will get an in-depth look into the saga of this iconic entity which hasn’t been told definitively, until now.

“I did this project to inspire the next generation. I want to show the younger people coming behind me the good things I’ve done but also the bad things as a blueprint for them to learn from,” Miller says in an exclusive statement to Black Enterprise. “If you put your trust and faith in God you will be around for a long time and have sustainability in this industry like I have 25 years later.”

Miller rose from humble beginnings to become a pioneer in the rap game and leave an indelible mark on the industry. With entrepreneurial aspirations in the pursuit of Black ownership, his hard work and perseverance drove him to start No Limit Records and ultimately build an empire that would become one of the most successful hip-hop brands in history. Throughout the ’90s, label productivity reflected a work ethic unlike any previous consortium, as No Limit Records released an astonishing 66 albums and amassed a collection of platinum plaques, generating nearly half a billion dollars in one decade, making millions and millionaires during that time.

Part 1 of No Limit Chronicles premiered Wednesday, July 29, at 9 PM ET/PT on BET, with new episodes coming every subsequent Wednesday on BET.

Watch the No Limit Chronicles trailer below.

by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton

July 23, 2020

NBA Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett Wants to Buy the Timberwolves

Former NBA player and Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett, who has always shown a deep affinity for the city of Minnesota and the NBA team that drafted him, the Timberwolves, has emerged as a potential owner of the NBA team, according to the Associated Press.

Garnett, who spent the majority of his legendary career as a star for the Timberwolves, said he is part of a group of investors hoping to purchase the organization from current owner Glen Taylor.

Taylor, the Timberwolves owner since 1994, has retained the Raine Group, a global merchant bank, to explore a potential sale of the team, according to ESPN.

“I was recently approached by The Raine Group to discuss the future of our franchise,” he wrote in a statement. “From the time I bought the team in 1994, I have always wanted what’s best for our fans and will entertain opportunities on the evolution of the Timberwolves and Lynx ownership structure.”

Taylor has at least one condition for the new ownership. “People have inquired who are interested but they want to move the team,” he said. “They are not a candidate. We’ve made that very clear.”

According to Sportico, the 79-year-old Taylor, who is chairman of Mankato, Minnesota-based Taylor Corporation, has a net worth of about $3 billion. Taylor is seeking at least $1.2 billion for the franchise that, according to Forbes, is worth $1.38 billion.

by Dana Givens

July 23, 2020

From Prison to Politics: This Formerly Incarcerated Black Woman Is Running For Congress In Tennessee

Find a job with a criminal record can be tough. However, one Black woman in Tennessee managed to beat the odds and reformed her life after serving a four-year prison sentence for a marijuana-felony. Now, she’s running for Congress in her home state.

Keeda Haynes announced that she would be running for the seat in the upcoming August election. The former public defender will be challenging a nearly two-decade Democratic incumbent as an independent. If she wins, she would become the first Black woman to represent the state in Congress and the first Black person since the 1990s. Due to her past, she was forced to petition a court earlier this year to restore some of her civil rights for eligibility.

“I am running because looking around I can see that people that look like me, that have the same issues I have, we were not being represented in this district,” said Haynes in an interview with Huffington Post. “It’s important to have someone in Congress that can view the policy from the lens of being formerly incarcerated, as a woman, an African American, saddled with student loan debt, from a working-class family.”

“In Congress, it’s important that we center the voices of people formerly incarcerated,” she continued. “When talking about criminal justice reform, we get caught up in the numbers. We’re not numbers, we’re people, we have lives,”

×