When he's not on stage or in the studio, he's at the hospital helping those in need
We all hear about recording artists and celebrities not being in the spotlight and being regulated to try to stay relevant, but then some understand that as long as there are bills to pay, a regular job is not beneath them, and Brand Nubian’s Sadat X is a perfect example.
Sadat X posts regularly on his Instagram page, whether it’s a recent video, a performance, or from his job at a medical facility. In a recent video clip, as some people may question why he keeps his fans updated on regular happenings in his life, he explained that, although he STILL performs and goes into the studio, he has a regular place of employment as well, and his job is one of his hustles. And even with his hustle, he is trying to elevate his status to bring home more money.
“Yeah, basically, it’s just one of my hustles, yo. I’m here from 7:00 to 3:00. I’m certified. You know, I did go to school for it. I’m going. I’m getting ready to get a, probably, a surgical tax certification, probably moved to the OR (Operating Room) but, you know, it got benefits.”
He explained that, although hip-hop can be lucrative as a career, unless you’re a superstar, there are no health benefits, and with this medical job, he has benefits that he can use. But he is still doing shows, performing for people, and recording material, even stating that he keeps busy in that department.
“It still affords me the opportunity to do shows. I got some in Europe. I’m back and forth on the bird. You understand? My passport is the ticket and Grandma’s Bible.”
“My feature list goes from Conway to J to Common to the Beat Nuts to Nas, on to Biggie, and so on and so on. So I’m good, man.”
But for the fans who question why he has a regular job, he said “I’m good, man. So like, why do I work here? Basically, just one of my hustles.”
Islamic Police In Nigeria Are Evacuating ‘Street’ Children And Sending Them To Rehabilitation Camps
They plan to evacuate over 5,000 street children from the streets of Nigeria's largest city, Kano.
An Islamic-based police force in Nigeria plans to evacuate more than 5,000 children living on the streets over concerns that they pose a “security threat.”
Known as The Hisbah and based in northern Nigeria, they have started bringing in over 5,000 street children into a camp for rehabilitation. CBS News reported that they launched this operation through night raids where many of these children sleep, including in motor parks and markets. They have also swept the street corners of the regional capital and the nation’s largest city of Kano, to evacuate these unhoused minors, primarily comprised of boys.
The security threat stems from their potential indoctrination into a criminal lifestyle. The Hisbah’s director-general, Abba Sufi, called the children a “ticking time bomb” that required an immediate solution.
“We have so far mopped up 300 of these boys from the streets and taken them into a camp provided for their rehabilitation,” explained Sufi to AFP. “Their continued living on the streets is a huge social and security threat because they are potential criminal recruits… They are a ticking time bomb that needs to be urgently defused with tact and care.”
The children hail from the city and other states, with most from broken homes, given the capital’s high divorce rate. These boys fend for themselves without access to care or an education. They roam the streets and scavenge for items to sell in an effort to secure food.
Others come to Kano to learn how to read the Quran at informal Islamic religious schools called almajiri. However, their schooling does not stop the scavenging and begging that has become commonplace.
The crisis has also worsened due to nationwide inflation, which rose to a staggering 34.6% in November. Nigeria aims to remedy this specific effect through this measure.
Once rounded up, the children travel to a rehabilitation camp to receive “psychosocial” support and counseling. Sufi claims that those who show interest in academics will enroll in school. The others can gain seed money to start a new trade. Children from surrounding states will be repatriated back to their native areas after the rehabilitation is completed.
This plan will differ from previous approaches to reduce the number of street children. In their prior plan, conducted from 2017 to 2018, the Hisbah returned children to their parents in outside states. However, this strategy proved unsustainable and unsuccessful, with the minors ultimately going back to the streets.
Sufi added, “We want to avoid a repeat of the past experience, which is why we changed approach by camping the children and rehabilitating them before sending them back into the society.”
Nigeria itself has 18.5 million children not in school, with 1.9 million living in Kano, according to a UNICEF survey. With these numbers in mind, the Hisbah’s plan of action toward street children remains a top priority.
As The Super Bowl Generates $1B, Workers Make $12 An Hour
Typically, cities bid to host the Super Bowl in hopes that the projected revenue will trickle down to their local economies, but according to Michael Edwards, a professor at North Carolina State University, this is often not the case
As the Super Bowl gets closer and closer, information about what makes it work is trickling out, in this case, through an online job listing for field crew workers, which lists their pay at $12 an hour for work performed during rehearsals and the halftime show.
According to The Intercept, in contrast to the estimated $1 billion in revenue the game will generate for the NFL and the $7 million per 30-second advertising slot the game will generate for Fox, the network with exclusive broadcast rights for the Super Bowl, these workers are making scraps.
Per the job listing, workers need the capability to “push, pull, bend and lift” objects that weigh up to 50 pounds and they will also be “moving and assembling the large rolling stage carts and other scenic elements on and off the field.” Like most other workers at sporting events, they are at work, and thus do not receive a ticket to watch the game.
Typically, cities bid to host the Super Bowl in hopes that the projected revenue will trickle down to their local economies, but according to Michael Edwards, a professor at North Carolina State University, this is often not the case.
“The reality is we see these jobs, whether it’s working the halftime show, whether it’s working in a concession stand, or even the restaurant work that is getting extra hours because the Super Bowl is coming — these aren’t high-paying jobs. These are all service industry event-type gig jobs that are going to be low-paying with no benefits at all,” Edwards told The Intercept.
Edwards continued, “There is always this vague, but highlighted, statement about X number of jobs created by hosting the Super Bowl. Most of the economic impact of the Super Bowl is realized by corporations and leaks out of the local economy. What actually ends up in the pockets of local residents is typically much less.”
The NFL, which formerly operated as a non-profit organization until 2015, when it voluntarily gave up its tax-exempt status, still has vestiges of its past non-profit era, namely its reliance on volunteer workers.
Those workers perform a variety of tasks related to hospitality, including assisting visitors at airports and hotels, and organizing NFL events.
In 2016, when the Super Bowl was hosted by the San Francisco 49ers, who play in Santa Clara, California, the NFL found itself the subject of news reports over potential labor law violations in California after it initially planned not to pay its crew of 500 field workers.
Following the negative media attention, the league agreed to pay the workers California’s minimum wage of $15 an hour. A similar occurrence occurred in 2022 when the game was hosted at the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers’ joint home stadium, SoFi Stadium.
In that occurrence, dancers were initially offered unpaid roles, before backlash forced the league to pay them $15 an hour, which still angered dance and labor advocates.
According to Edwards, this form of wage theft is a common practice, and it is not limited to the NFL.
“The Super Bowl or the NFL isn’t any different than any other corporation in the U.S. or the world: There’s always an equity issue,” Edwards told The Intercept. “There’s always an argument that could be made that the owners should share more profits with labor.”
Doc Rivers Recalls Tactics Used By Boston Celtics During 1988 Eastern Conference Semifinals
While playing for the Atlanta Hawks, he alleges the Celtics made sure the Hawks players did not get food service at the hotel they stayed at
Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers recalled the difficulties he encountered as an Atlanta Hawks player facing the Boston Celtics in 1988, but it was more than the game itself, as his team faced other issues when they played at the infamous Boston Garden.
According to Basketball Network, when discussing the last playoff game in the challenging series against the Eastern Conference team with the best record that year, Rivers spoke about the tactics the Boston team incorporated to gain an advantage against the Hawks before the teams met on the basketball court.
It was Game 7 of the 1988 Eastern Conference Semifinals where the Hawks were up against the Celtics. The game was a winner-takes-all contest to advance to the conference finals, and the favored Celtics, who possessed the best record in the East, held homecourt advantage due to the team’s standing. Outside of the challenge of trying to beat the best team in the east, Rivers stated that the Celtics employed other tactics to help their team gain the edge, even before the game started.
The Celtics owner at the time, Red Auerbach, had a reputation for using unfair measures against opposing teams when they came to Boston, so it wasn’t beyond the players thinking he was behind several things that took place during the series.
“The morning of Game 7, no one got their room service order at the hotel. We didn’t know what was going on,” Rivers stated. “We just assumed it was Red Auerbach being Red Auerbach.”
Being that the players didn’t eat, hunger pains led to them trying to find something to eat when they arrived at the stadium.
“I remember having chips on the bus going to the game. A couple of guys tried to get things after the walkthrough in the ballroom. We were all scrambling just to get something to eat.”
Rivers also recalled that his coach, Mike Fratello went crazy because the chalkboard that he always had to help map out game plans for the team was missing. As his anger increased, Fratello just knew in his mind that Auerbach had something to do with it and it angered him.
“There was no chalkboard for Coach Fratello before Game 7, and I remember him losing his mind. He’s in the hallway screaming, ‘Where the hell is my chalkboard?’ I remember just laughing away,” Rivers said. “We could care less, but Mike was so mad. He was mad at Red. He was just convinced again it was the Boston stuff.”
Whether the tactics worked or not, the Hawks ended up losing to the Celtics in a close game by a score of 118-116.
BLK Dating App Holds ‘Freedom Weekend’ Contest For Black D.C. Residents To Escape Trump Inauguration On MLK Day
The contest hopes to provide an escape for Black people worried about the potential chaos of another Donald Trump inauguration.
BLK has launched its #BLKFreedomWeekend so that Black D.C. residents can avoid Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration on Jan. 20, Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
According to BLK, the popular dating app for Black people, 80% of its D.C.-based users feel anxious, concerned, or angry about the upcoming inauguration and the potential chaos that could ensue.
To soothe this worry, BLK is hosting its Freedom Weekend contest to provide flight credits to any destination of its winners’ choosing.
“With #BLKFreedomWeekend, we’re offering Black DC residents the chance to step away from the chaos and reclaim this important holiday in a way that feels meaningful to them,” Jonathan Kirkland, head of brand and marketing at BLK, said in a press release sent to BLACK ENTERPRISE. “Dr. King’s vision of freedom includes the right to prioritize our own peace and joy. This campaign is our way of honoring that legacy.”
The social app will select 10 winners from the metro D.C. area, and fly them out to a new city to celebrate MLK Day elsewhere. BLK’s study also revealed that 59% of users rank possible violence or unrest as their top safety concern, with 41% preferring to leave the area during that time.
“Our survey shows the emotional toll this weekend takes on our community,” added Kirkland. “By giving Black residents of DC the chance to leave the city, we hope to create a moment of liberation—an opportunity to truly celebrate freedom and honor Dr. King’s vision in ways that feel restorative.”
D.C. area residents with a BLK profile can enter the contest now at no cost until 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 13.
Report: Understaffed Prisons A Symptom Of Mass Incarceration
According to a December report from the Prison Policy Initiative, jails and prisons across the United States are experiencing staff shortages and no amount of pay raises, benefits, or new facilities have been able to turn the tide.
According to a December report from the Prison Policy Initiative, jails and prisons across the United States are experiencing staff shortages, and no amount of pay raises, benefits, or new facilities have been able to turn the tide.
According to the report, between 20% and 30% of prison workers leave their jobs each year. This leads to authorities at correctional institutions cutting back on the things employees need to do their jobs, leading to other issues compounding the staff shortages.
Also very concerning:
– Overcrowding is leading to deadly conditions in prisons
– DOC has a consistent practice of releasing people experiencing medical emergencies that lead to death *while* they are having the emergency
“Though for many, it has proven to be a rewarding career, a variety of factors can deter individuals from entering or remaining in the field of corrections. The work is inherently dangerous, given the characteristics of the population of incarcerated individuals. Beyond the risk of physical injury, there are extraordinary stressors associated with corrections work that can seriously affect the well-being of staff. Beyond the risk of injury and actual injury, common stressors are exposure to crisis situations and secondary trauma as well as work overload, overtime demands, and role conflict,” the report stated.
In January 2024, The Marshall Project noted that the corrections industry has a dilemma: as the number of incarcerated people increases, the number of correctional workers is dwindling, and like the Prison Policy Initiative, its ultimate conclusion is that this is due, at least in part, to mass incarceration.
According to Brian Dawe, the national director of One Voice United, an advocacy organization for correctional officers, the issue of understaffing goes in cycles.
“It becomes cyclical. You start getting mandatory overtime, which means you miss more and more time with your family,” Dawe told The Marshall Project. “You are demanded more and more to be on the job, which burns you out and causes people to leave.”
This is mirrored by the account of Andrew Phillips, a former correctional worker in Georgia’s Smith State Prison.
Reflecting on his time working in the prison, he told the Marshall Project, “We just had no energy; we didn’t have the ability to care,” Phillips said. He indicated to the outlet that mandatory overtime, as well as constant violence against both staff and incarcerated people, led officers to quit. “The place was too brutal, too disgusting,” Phillips concluded.
During the pandemic, institutions reduced their populations by releasing nonviolent offenders to prevent prisons from becoming too crowded to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Some call for a return to this approach.
“The size and scope of our national prison population is exacerbating our understaffing crisis. As we work to ensure proper staffing levels in our prisons, we should also explore ways to reduce the high demand on our prison system through mechanisms designed to safely release individuals whose sentence is no longer necessary to protect and promote public safety — such as individuals who are terminally ill or geriatric,” a joint statement from One Voice and Families Against Mandatory Minimums, an organization representing the families of incarcerated people reads.
The statement continued, “It is time for our country to pay attention to what happens behind the walls. Years of chronic neglect are putting lives at risk and creating a vicious cycle of low staff morale and high turnover that makes these problems more severe and also more difficult to solve. Corrections officers have a suicide rate that is 39% higher than other professions, and rates of PTSD are higher for staff and incarcerated people alike. Unless policymakers act now, there will continue to be more violence and trauma behind bars, staff wellness will further deteriorate, fewer people will leave prisons rehabilitated, and more people will become victims of crime in our communities.”
California Insurance Commissioner Protects Wildfires Victims With One-Year Home Insurance Cancellation Ban
The ban applies to zip codes surrounding the Palisade and Eaton fires and adjacent areas.
In the wake of the deadly California wildfires, the state’s insurance commissioner has initiated a one-year moratorium on insurance companies canceling or not renewing policies for homeowners, KCAL reports.
Ricardo Lara announced the news during a Jan. 9 press conference.
The ban applies to zip codes surrounding the Palisades and Eaton fires and adjacent areas. Homeowners who did not sustain any property damage will also be covered.
“I’m also calling on insurance companies to suspend any pending non-renewals and cancellations that homeowners received before these fires started,” Lara said. “This means that if you received a non-renewal from your homeowner’s insurance between Oct. 9 and Jan. 7, essentially 90 days, your insurance company should do the right thing and retain you as a valued policyholder.”
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has issued a mandatory one-year moratorium on insurance non-renewals and cancellations to protect Southern California residents affected by the recent fires. pic.twitter.com/9YrO5ZOL4F
Before Lara’s announcement, close to 1,600 policies in the Pacific Palisades area were canceled by State Farm in July 2024 and, according to ABC 7, over 10% of homeowners and fire policies in Pacific Palisades failed to be renewed between 2020 and 2022.
Lara also encouraged companies to show compassion by extending the 60-day grace period for homeowners to pay their premiums. To help homeowners prepare for what’s next, Lara’s office is hosting two free insurance support workshops: Santa Monica on Jan. 18 and 29 and Pasadena on Jan. 25 and 26.
“Start documenting every conversation,” he said. “I often tell survivors—even set up a new, different email where you’re getting all your emails around your insurance recovery policies so that you could keep that and track that and document that,” he said. “That’s critical.”
The wildfires serve as an opportune time for fraudsters to take advantage of victims’ vulnerability.
“Do not sign anything under stress,” Lara said. “You have out-of-state adjusters that make false promises that don’t know California law and how we protect consumers here.”
Axed Disney Employee Hacked Menus To Exclude Food Allergens; Added Swastika, Mass Shooting Locations
The terminated employee also added a swastika to the menu and harassed former colleagues.
A former Disney employee will plead guilty to hacking restaurant menus to exclude deadly allergens in addition to adding disturbing material.
Michael Scheuer, who once worked as a menu production manager, admitted to the crimes in a federal case. According to a court filing obtained by CNBC, he will plead guilty to one felony count for computer fraud and another for aggravated identity theft.
The filing claims Scheuer hacked into the menu-creation software for the company’s restaurants. Once in, he would falsely state that food items did not contain certain food allergies, such as peanuts, that could have resulted in death.
According to the filing, Scheuer made other destructive changes. He switched information about wine selections to include regions with areas that recently had mass shootings and added a swastika to a menu.
A criminal complaint also accused Scheuer of hacking the software for months after his June firing. These ongoing incidents led to federal agents raiding Scheuer’s residence last September.
A month prior, as written on his plea agreement, Scheuer launched a cyber attack that “continually” locked other Disney employees out of their company accounts. Most of the employees targeted had previous contact with their former colleagues.
Scheuer also harassed one victim after the raid. Scheuer traveled to the victim’s residence, walked up to their doorstep and gave a thumbs up to their security camera. Disney provided security to the victims and temporarily placed them in a hotel for safety purposes.
Scheuer’s lawyer, David Haas, said his client “is prepared to accept responsibility for his conduct. Unfortunately, he has mental health issues that were exacerbated when Disney fired him upon his return from paternity leave.”
Scheuer expects to receive a restitution order and fine upon his sentencing. As for Disney, it will no longer use the third-party system to create menus.
HOW TO AVOID A FINANCIAL HANGOVER FROM HOLIDAY SPENDING
Research has shown, however, that year-end activities create the most financially exhaustive period of the year, with multitudes engaging in overspending or being overwhelmed by debt. Data shows more than 30% of consumers endured debt this past holiday season.
People connecting with loved ones, providing others with much-needed relief, and exercising greater generosity make the holiday a joyous time for so many.
Research has shown, however, that year-end activities create the most financially exhaustive period of the year, with multitudes engaging in overspending or being overwhelmed by debt. Data shows more than 30% of consumers endured debt this past holiday season.
“The Howard University Swim Team has been honored with the Key to the Historic Town of Eatonville, FL! A symbol of gratitude and recognition, this prestigious gesture celebrates their excellence, perseverance, and commitment to greatness.”
The Howard University Swim Team has been honored with the Key to the Historic Town of Eatonville, FL! 🏊🏾♂️🔑 A symbol of gratitude and recognition, this prestigious gesture celebrates their excellence, perseverance, and commitment to greatness. While in the Orlando area for winter… pic.twitter.com/3bjJPmkDFI
According to Fox 5 DC, the team was given the key to the city, due in part to the swim and dive teams going to the Rosen Aquatic & Fitness Center in Orlando every year during the school’s winter break.
The facility is located about 15 miles south of Eatonville.
Howard University’s swim team is the only Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) to have a swim team that competes at the Division I level.
“Almost speechless, and that’s hard to do for me. When they reached out to us and said that, it just solidifies the work we do. The work we do is hard; being D1 is a difficult task,” said Swim Coach Nic Askew.
The swim team will compete for its conference championship next month. And, yes, it is practicing at at the Rosen Aquatic Center.
“As an alum, it couldn’t make me prouder because when I was a part of the program, we didn’t have opportunities like this. Either we couldn’t afford it or the resources weren’t available. Now, with my coaching staff and amazing support from our family and alumni, we’re able to provide these opportunities to be in this beautiful facility,” Askew said.
