Hailed as the largest mixed-industry showcase of Black-owned businesses in the Southeast, the expo features exhibits, interactive experiences, and activations.
“The Atlanta Black Expo is a unique platform for supporting and celebrating local Black-owned businesses,” Corey “NetworKing” Moore, who relaunched the Atlanta Black Expo concept in 2023, said in a press release.
“We recognized a need for a centralized space where consumers could discover and engage with a diverse range of Black-owned businesses in Metro Atlanta. Our goal was to create an immersive experience that not only showcases these businesses but also celebrates the richness of Black culture.”
This year’s expo begins with a VIP reception on Saturday, Feb. 22, featuring a private food and beverage tasting alongside a culinary competition. The main event unfolds on Sunday, Feb. 23, with a marketplace featuring a diverse array of local Black-owned businesses and exhibitors.
Attendees can enjoy food throughout the day while participating in workshops and networking opportunities. The event also features a Kids Business Expo, a fashion show, speed networking sessions, and insights from over 25 speakers.
Attendees can also enjoy the Black Art Expo, sponsored by Fulton County, a celebration of Black art and culture. Additionally, the International Black Business Expo, sponsored by Go Global, fosters global connections and business opportunities.
“We’re still a new event but we’re also a growing event,” Moore said. “Every year we get more attendees and more businesses that want to be a part of what we’re doing. And we continue to exceed even my expectations.”
Alexis Ohanian, Husband Of Serena Williams, Claps Back At Jason Whitlock For Calling Him A Simp
'I get it—you’re 57, and life didn’t turn out the way you imagined.'
Serena Williams’ husband is defending the tennis great, who had the audacity to…dance.
After the tennis great was featured at Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl still-discussed halftime show on Sunday, pundits like Stephen A. Smith and Jason Whitlock put on their hot-take hats and went to town.
Williams became an instant meme after she was filmed doing a “crip walk,” an ode to the neighborhood gang that was involved in Compton where she, her sisters, and Lamar, the Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper, grew up.
Smith and Whitlock took to their respective programs and social media platforms to blast Williams for participating. This is nothing new. Tennis officials criticized Serena for doing the same dance after a victory at the Summer Olympics in 2012.
Williams’ husband, Alex Ohanian, took to X to express his exhaustion.
Some of y’all have no idea how criticized Serena was for this same dance at Wimbledon 13 years ago and it shows…. This is bigger than the music. pic.twitter.com/Xq4O96Yg0s
Less than two hours after Whitlock’s post went live, Ohanian, the co-founder of Reddit, responded with a response that may have hit below the belt.
I get it—you’re 57, and life didn’t turn out the way you imagined. That kind of disappointment must be exhausting. You’re the embodiment of peaked in high school, spending decades chasing validation from strangers through Likes and Digital Hugs, only to find that no amount of…
The Negro National League Celebrates Its 105th Birthday
The Negro League Baseball Museum celebrates Black excellence in baseball.
On Feb 13, 1920, Andrew “Rube” Foster called a meeting of Black baseball team owners in Kansas City, MO, to discuss the plight of Black baseball players. Jim Crow laws prohibited the men from playing in professional American leagues, so the team owners established the Negro National League.
Under Foster’s leadership, the league started with eight teams, including the Chicago Giants, the Detroit Stars, the Kansas City Monarchs, and the Cuban Stars.
Integration in baseball led to the Negro National League’s dissolution in the mid 1950s. But its legacy lives on through the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (NLBM) in Kansas City.
Established in 1990, the museum houses artifacts that celebrate the history and the legacy of giants such as Buck O’Neil, Cool Papa Bell, and Josh Gibson.
“It’s not a sad, somber story but a celebration of the human spirit’s power to persevere and prevail,” NLBM President Bob Kendrick said in an interview with First National Bank. “The Negro Leagues are rooted in the simple principle of creating one’s league in the face of exclusion from the Major Leagues, embodying the American spirit in a way unlike any other in our history,” Kendrick said.
A year after Rube Foster died in 1930, the league disbanded, citing financial strain, but in 1933, Gus Greenlee formed and established a new Negro National League. At the height of its popularity, the league played a pivotal role in African-American culture.
The Negro National League saw some of the most skilled players in the history of the game. Jackie Robinson played with the Kansas City Monarchs before becoming the first African American to play major league baseball when he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947.
The NLBM is located at 1616 East 18th St in Kansas City. It is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m.
Non-local baseball fans can visit the museum’s virtual exhibition.
Morehouse College and Tuskegee University Will Play In 2025 NBA HBCU Classic
The matchup takes place on Feb. 15.
The NBA has announced the participating schools for this year’s NBA HBCU Classic. Morehouse College and Tuskegee University, rivals in Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, will play at the Oakland Arena at 2:00 p.m. on February 15.
Each school will receive $100,000 each from the NBA and AT&T. The game will be shown on ESPN+, NBA TV and TruTV.
PJ Morton will sing the “Star-Spangled Banner” and Goapele will perform the Black national anthem, “Lift Every Voice.”
“The NBA HBCU Classic presented by AT&T has become a highlight of the league calendar as we continue to use our platform to celebrate HBCU culture and traditions,” NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum said in a written statement. “We’re excited to showcase a conference matchup between two historic programs in Morehouse College and Tuskegee University while also providing career development opportunities that elevate the experience for HBCU students throughout the weekend.”
The game between the men’s basketball teams takes place the day before the NBA All-Star Game. Numerous activities will take place during NBA All-Star 2025, the league’s showcase stretch, that align with the NBA HBCU Classic. These include:
NBA HBCU Classic Teams Participating in NBA Cares All-Star Day of Service
The Morehouse College and Tuskegee University men’s basketball, band and cheer teams will participate in the 17th annual NBA Cares All-Star Day of Service volunteering in community service projects throughout San Francisco.
2025 Castrol Rising Stars: Player Development Workshop
Participating players will create and mix musical beats with EngineEars founder Derek Ali (MixedByAli) as part of the unfinished co-lab—a creative workshop hosted by the NBA’s Player Development department. The top beat selected by the Rising Stars, HBCU band members, and others will be amplified during the NBA HBCU Classic presented by AT&T.
NBA HBCU Classic presented by AT&T–HBCU Career Development Session
The theme is “Next Gen Trailblazers: Sport, Tech & Culture Innovators.” The day will start with a career panel followed by customized breakout tracks led by NBA staff and partners. Guests will include NBA players, NBA legends, NBA staff and corporate partners from various departments.
Black People Don’t Get Jobs We Don’t Qualify For, But White Men Do
Daniel Penny’s New Job And Darren Beattie’s Return To Power Prove DEI Is Hella Necessary
Written by Dr. Dionne Mahaffey
America has made it clear: If you are a mediocre white man, there is no limit to what you can fail upward into. The rest of us, not so much. We have to be twice as good to get half as much.
Daniel Penny, the white man who made national headlines for killing an unarmed Black man, Jordan Neely, on a New York City subway. Penny, who faced 20 years in prison, has now landed a prestigious job at Andreessen Horowitz, one of the country’s most elite venture capital firms.
Let’s be clear: Penny has no investment experience, finance background, or business education—not even a college degree. Yet somehow, he has waltzed into a job that countless qualified Black candidates, including MBAs and experienced professionals, could never dream of being handed to them.
If that weren’t enough, we now see Darren Beattie—a known white nationalist—being given a top position at the U.S. State Department. Beattie was fired from Trump’s first administration in 2018 after it was revealed he had spoken at a white nationalist conference. He has openly stated that “competent white men must be in charge if you want things to work” and that the entire system is built to coddle women and minorities. Beattie has even praised a so-called “scientist” who suggested Black people are less intelligent than whites. And yet—this man has been rewarded with a high-ranking government job.
Sit with that for a second. A man who believes Black people are inferior, who thinks Black lawmakers should “learn their place,” has been given power over public diplomacy in the United States government. And if it weren’t for the fearless Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who has never been afraid to call out this racist hypocrisy, many would have overlooked this latest insult. Crockett nailed it when she said:
“I am tired of the white tears. Listen, if you are competent, you are not concerned.”
The truth is, this is exactly why affirmative action and DEI initiatives existed in the first place. To combat a system where white men like Penny and Beattie get opportunity after opportunity—no qualifications necessary—while Black professionals have to work twice as hard even to be considered.
The Lie That Black People Aren’t Qualified
One of the biggest lies Black people have been told is that affirmative actions and DEI policies allow unqualified Black people to take jobs from better-qualified white candidates. It’s laughable because Black people don’t apply for jobs we aren’t qualified for. We don’t have the audacity. We don’t have the privilege of failing upward.
But white men? They don’t even need to be competent to be given leadership roles.
I’ve seen it firsthand. As an executive, every time I hired a Black professional, I was questioned:
“How do you know they have the experience?”
But when a white man was hired? No one asked those questions.
I’ve seen entire departments of Black women passed over for promotions, only to be forced to train the unqualified white man placed over them. I once watched as a white man, hired by his neighbor, was given a high-paying director role in a tech company—despite having no degree and no relevant experience. Before this job? He worked at a car dealership service department—literally, the guy who greeted you when you pulled in for an oil change. And yet, Black women with MBAs and years of experience had to teach him how to do his job.
This is the reality Black professionals face often. That’s why the attacks on DEI and affirmative action aren’t about “fairness” or “merit.” They are about maintaining a system where white men can continue to fail upward, unchecked, while keeping Black professionals locked out and hitting a ceiling in their careers.
Black professionals have had to be twice as good just to get half as much. We are scrutinized, over-credentialed, and yet still overlooked. The numbers speak for themselves—Black women are the most educated demographic in America. We hold more degrees per capita than any other group, yet we continue to be underpaid, under-promoted, and underrepresented in executive leadership. Meanwhile, white men like Penny—who have never even stepped foot in a business class—are ushered into elite spaces with a pat on the back and a ‘you’ll learn on the job’ motivation.
Protecting White Mediocrity
When Obama won the presidency, I understood Black people were going to pay for that win tenfold—and here we are. White unqualified people never got over the fact that an educated Black man ascended to the highest office on his own merit.
The backlash is unrelenting: rewriting history, banning books, gutting affirmative action, attacking DEI, and defunding HBCUs. These aren’t isolated incidents; they’re part of a calculated effort to dismantle anything that allows Black people even a fraction of the advantages white mediocrity has long enjoyed.
For centuries and for some, whiteness alone was the job qualification—no credentials, no experience, just access. White men didn’t have to be twice as good; they just had to be present. Affirmative action and DEI weren’t about “handouts” for Black people, but about leveling a playing field that had been rigged for white men since this country’s founding. These policies were necessary precisely because the default hire was always the white man, regardless of competence.
Yet, instead of acknowledging this, they’ve twisted the narrative—painting Black professionals as undeserving, as if we haven’t worked twice as hard for half as much. As if we aren’t the most educated demographic in the country. As if we haven’t been overqualified for roles we’re still denied.
The fight against DEI and affirmative action isn’t about fairness. It’s about preserving a system where whiteness is the default setting for power and opportunity. They don’t want to compete—they want to keep doing what Andreessen Horowitz did for Daniel Penny: just hand him a lucrative job, no experience required.
It’s the same reason Darren Beattie—a white nationalist who openly claims Black people are inferior—was given a high-ranking government job, while HBCUs are being underfunded and attacked.
Rep. Jasmine Crockett laid it out plainly:
“This is why they don’t want us to have an education. This is why they are trying to literally say we won’t fund the HBCUs because they know that they’ve already gone after affirmative action.”
Make no mistake, this is all connected. The rollback of DEI, the elimination of affirmative action, the underfunding of HBCUs, and the corporate retreat from diversity efforts—it’s all a coordinated effort to keep white mediocrity thriving while Black excellence is systematically undermined.
Sick and Tired of Being Sick
I am so damn tired of watching white men fail upward while Black professionals are told we have to prove ourselves, over and over again, just for a chance to compete.
I am so damn tired of watching white supremacists like Beattie be given jobs in government while Black professionals are accused of taking “unearned” opportunities.
I am so damn tired of being told that DEI is “racist” when the real racism has always been the unchecked nepotism and mediocrity that lets white men take whatever job they want—experience or qualifications be damned.
Black people don’t apply for jobs we aren’t qualified for. But maybe if we did, we could finally start failing upward, too.
(Photo: Dr. Dionne Mahaffey)
Dionne Mahaffey, Psy.D. is a business psychologist, psychotherapist, professor, writer and award-winning tech entrepreneur.
Hidden Empire Sports Collective (HESC) Formed To Help Athletes Tell Their Stories
HESC claims to be the first entertainment division from a film studio to prioritize intellectual property and content creation for athletes and sports.
Hidden Empire Film Group (HEFG) and The Union have launched an entertainment company, Hidden Empire Sports Collective (HESC).
The entity claims to be the first entertainment division from a film studio to prioritize intellectual property and content creation for athletes and sports. WithexclusiverelationshipswiththeNFLandNBA, HESC was created to usher in an eraof pro-athlete-drivencontent utilizing sports,entertainment,andculture.
“Asa formerproathlete,Iknowhowdifficultitcanbetofindtherightopportunitiesandtransitioninto adifferentfieldpost-career,”saidDeonTaylor, directorand do-CEOofHEFG, in a written statement.“Thisiswhy HESCwascreated—toopennewdoorsforathletesandgivethemtheplatformtheydeserve.”
HESCwill help tell the stories of athletes through strategicpartnershipsthat will showcase authentic,culture-centricnarrativesfrom athletes worldwide.
Teaming up with TheUnion, theonlyathlete-ownedOTT (Over-the-top) network,HESC is the firstentertainmentcompanytodeveloppremiumcontentandintellectualpropertyfor athletes.
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Files $100M Defamation Suit Against NBCUniversal For ‘Documentary Full Of Lies’
Sean "Diddy" Combs is accusing NBCUniversal and Peacock of $100 million worth of defamation over the "Making of a Bad Boy" documentary.
Sean “Diddy” Combs is firing back at NBCUniversal and Peacock’s release of the Diddy: Making of a Bad Boydocumentary with a $100 million lawsuit.
According to the disgraced hip-hop mogul, the 90-minute documentary was riddled with an “outrageous set of fresh lies and conspiracy theories,” Deadline reports. The jury-trial-seeking defamation complaint highlights how upset Combs was over how he was depicted and described in the scathing documentary that arrived on Jan. 14 on Peacock.
“For nearly a century, NBC has been a trusted name in news, a leader in broadcasting important stories to citizens who depend on reputable media to stay informed,” the suit states. “Grossly exploiting this trust and shamelessly capitalizing on the public’s insatiable appetite for content about Mr. Combs in the lead-up to his criminal trial, Defendants made a conscious decision to line their own pockets at the expense of truth, decency, and basic standards of professional journalism.”
The documentary features candid, in-depth interviews with former employees, collaborators, ex-bodyguards, and alleged victims, who discuss decades of alleged violence and abuse by Combs, as well as suspicions surrounding the deaths of the Notorious B.I.G. and Kim Porter, his longtime girlfriend, and mother of several of his children. The 17-page defamation suit references this, accusing NBCUniversal of including “numerous false and defamatory statements that Defendants NBCU and Ample knew were false or published with reckless disregard as to whether they were false or not.”
“Indeed, the entire premise of the Documentary assumes that Mr. Combs has committed numerous heinous crimes, including serial murder, rape of minors, and sex trafficking of minors, and attempts to crudely psychologize him,” the complaint states.
“It maliciously and baselessly jumps to the conclusion that Mr. Combs is a ‘monster’ and ‘an embodiment of Lucifer’ with ‘a lot of similarities’ to Jeffrey Epstein.”
In a statement to Deadline after filing the suit, Combs attorney, Erica Wolff, accuses the media giant of “Grossly exploiting the trust of their audience and racing to outdo their competition for the most salacious Diddy exposé.”
“Defendants maliciously and recklessly broadcast outrageous lies in Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy. In the purported documentary, Defendants accuse Mr. Combs of horrible crimes, including serial murder and sexual assault of minors -– knowing that there is no evidence to support them,” the attorney declares.
Combs remains behind bars at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center since his arrest on Sept. 16. Despite multiple attempts to secure release on $50 million bail, he is scheduled to stand trial on racketeering, sex trafficking, and transportation for prostitution charges beginning May 5.
The Georgia legislature’s Ways and Means Committee met on Feb. 13. During the session, the committee approved House Bills 111 and 112.
Bill 112 approves a “one-time tax credit for individual taxpayers who filed income tax returns for the 2023 and 2024 taxable years.”
Bill 111 amends the tax burden for Georgia residents. It proposes a reduction from the current 5.39% to 5.19% retroactive to Jan. 1. The rate would continue to lower by 10% annually until it reaches the minimum of 4.99%.
The proposed plan is outlined in Section 1 (a.1):
“(a.1)(1) On and after Jan. 1, 2025, the tax imposed pursuant to subsection (a) of this Code section shall be 5.19% for taxable years beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2025; provided, however, that such rate shall be reduced by 0.10% annually beginning Jan. 1, 2026, until the rate reaches 4.99%.”
The Ways and Means Committee unanimously passed the bill. Georgia residents’ projected savings are upwards of $2 million.
Gov. Brian Kemp first introduced the proposal in October 2024. According to a press release, the proposal benefited Georgia residents by “returning $250 to single tax filers, $375 to head-of-household filers, and $500 to married couples filing jointly. “
Gov. Kemp intends to give Georgians a break from a dwindling economy. Kemp hopes to help ease the financial constraints on everyday citizens struggling under the weight of high inflation.
“Inflation may have fallen, but high prices are still here and weighing down hardworking Georgians every time they go to the grocery store, the gas pump, and so many other places in our daily lives,” said Kemp. “Here in Georgia, we’re working to give our people relief.”
R. Kelly Denied Appeal On 30-Year Prison Sentence, Considers Taking Case To The U.S. Supreme Court
R. Kelly's attorney suggests they may take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
R. Kelly isn’t catching any breaks after his latest appeal attempt was denied on Wednesday.
The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York rejected the disgraced singer’s appeal challenging his 30-year prison sentence and conviction on racketeering and sex trafficking charges, USA Today reports.
The court upheld the Grammy-winning singer’s original sentence, citing the verdict from his 2021 trial, where he was found guilty on nine counts of sex trafficking and racketeering.
“We have considered all the arguments presented by Kelly on appeal and concluded they are without merit,” the decision states.
The ruling was based on the argument that Kelly’s network of managers and aides, who facilitated his access to young girls and ensured their compliance and silence, constituted a criminal enterprise. After the appeal was rejected, Kelly’s attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, expressed her “disappointment” with the ruling but hinted at the possibility of taking the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“We believe the United States Supreme Court will be interested in reviewing this unprecedented opinion that gives the government limitless discretion to apply the RICO statute to situations absurdly remote from the statute’s intent,” Bonjean said in a statement. “The statute was intended to punish organized crime—not individual conduct. This decision paves the way for prosecutorial abuse of the RICO statute.”
Last March, Kelly’s legal team appealed his conviction, focusing on the racketeering statute used to convict him. They sought to have his conviction overturned or, at the very least, get the singer a retrial.
The appeal challenged various aspects of Kelly’s 2021 conviction, including the evidence supporting his racketeering and Mann Act charges. In addition to racketeering, Kelly was convicted on criminal counts for violating the Mann Act, which prohibits taking someone across state lines “for any immoral purpose.”
The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals determined there was “sufficient evidence to support each of Kelly’s convictions, including for the state and federal violations underlying his Mann Act convictions.”
“Enabled by a constellation of managers, assistants, and other staff for over 25 years, Kelly exploited his fame to lure girls and young women into his grasp,” the court said in its decision. “Evidence at trial showed that he would isolate them from friends and family, control nearly every aspect of their lives, and abuse them verbally, physically, and sexually.”
Kelly also contested the validity of restitution payments made to two of his victims, who contracted herpes as a result of their sexual encounters with him. Kelly’s victims, Jane and Stephanie, both claim that the singer began sexual relationships with them when they were underage.
Jane was awarded more than $281,000 in restitution for her herpes treatment, while Stephanie received over $70,000. The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed that it was “satisfied” with the district court’s restitution order for a name-brand drug.
RFK Jr. Confirmed As Trump’s Health Secretary Despite Opposition From Democrats And Mitch McConnell
Robert F. Kennedy is the new secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services despite his controversial stance on vaccines.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an avid advocate against vaccines, is now the Health Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
On Feb. 13, the Republican-led Senate voted to confirm RFK Jr. as the head of a department overseeing nearly 100,000 employees and 13 agencies, according to The Hill. The confirmation vote for the Department of Health and Human Services secretary was 52-48, with Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) being the only Republican to vote against Kennedy’s appointment.
“In my lifetime, I’ve watched vaccines save millions of lives from devastating diseases across America and around the world,” McConnell said in a statement explaining his vote. “I will not condone the re-litigation of proven cures, and neither will millions of Americans who credit their survival and quality of life to scientific miracles.”
The confirmation follows a party-line vote by the Senate Finance Committee last week to advance Kennedy’s nomination. On Wednesday, the full Senate voted 53-47 along party lines to end debate and move the nomination forward.
Kennedy, the founder of one of the nation’s most prominent anti-vaccine organizations, concludes a controversial three-month confirmation battle that tested the Republican Party’s allegiance to President Donald Trump. For his nomination to be rejected, at least four Republicans would have to side with all Democrats.
Though Kennedy is a former Democrat, he has garnered support from Republican lawmakers in Congress despite his past comments on abortion rights. His history of anti-vaccine advocacy faced opposition from Democrats. During confirmation hearings, Kennedy denied being anti-vaccine, though he refused to refute his claims linking vaccines to autism. Instead, he advocated for vaccine safety, arguing that vaccines are not sufficiently tested—a claim experts widely dispute.
RFK Jr.’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda emphasizes eliminating food additives and redirecting health agencies’ focus from infectious diseases to chronic conditions. He will also oversee the nation’s vaccine policy, a key component of the nearly $2 trillion federal health portfolio.
