• Criminal Justice Reform

by Daniel Johnson

March 9, 2025

Teen’s Incarceration With Adults In Alabama Draws Criticism

Djovani Jean-Pierre is 17.

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After Djovani Jean-Pierre, an Alabama teenager, was charged with first-degree robbery, second-degree assault, and two misdemeanors for allegedly using a gun to steal another loaded gun at a party, his lawyer argues that the charges were racially motivated amid tensions in Albertville surrounding the growing Haitian population. Activists are now condemning the decision to house the 17-year-old with adults in jail.

According to The Associated Press, although an Alabama law gives judges more discretion about whether or not to deny bail for those accused of violent crimes, juvenile justice advocates and other activists have made the case that housing Jean-Pierre with adults puts him in a dangerous situation.

However, Phil Sims, the Marshall County Sheriff, told the AP that removing him from the general population in jail would mean solitary confinement, which is also detrimental to his mental health.

As a result, Jean-Pierre has been stuck in jail awaiting trial, with his attorney, Richard Rice, telling the AP that his client, a strong student, has been denied access to his school materials while incarcerated.

“Djovani deserves compassion and a second chance to learn from this experience rather than subjecting him to unnecessary detainment that fails to serve his best interests or those of the community,” Rice said.

According to former Tennessee assistant attorney general and the current policy director for the Campaign for Fair Sentencing, Preston Shipp, Jean-Pierre absolutely should not be housed with adults due to the danger it poses to his health and well-being.

“We know it is such well-settled law now that you cannot house children with adults. This is not a gray area anymore,” Shipp told the AP.

According to WAAY 31, Jean-Pierre’s mother, Francia Apollon, told the outlet in October 2024 that her son is afraid and hinted that his incarceration with adults is due in part to his race, an allegation that Marshall County District Attorney Jennifer Bray refuted, citing Alabama state law which indicates that Jean-Pierre’s charges mean he is to be tried as an adult.

“Every time my son calls me, he will cry. He says, Mommy, I’m scared. As a mom, for your son to tell you he’s worried; someone might touch your son, it’s hard. And no kid deserves that treatment. It doesn’t matter the color or the race. No one deserves to be treated like that. I think the system needs to do better with kids,” Apollon told the outlet.

In an email to the AP, Bray said that she hopes that she and Rice, Jean-Pierre’s attorney, can find a solution that allows for accountability from the teenager as well as compassion, which would allow Jean-Pierre to make positive changes in his life.

For now, Jean-Pierre wants to remind people of the words of Equal Justice Initiative Founder Bryan Stevenson, who said that he is more than the worst thing he has been accused of doing.

“It’s been hard. I just stay in my cell. If it wasn’t for my cellmate, Marcus, I don’t know. He just kept being positive, saying, ‘the trouble will pass,; takethis as a lesson.’” According to the AP’s reporting, Marcus has been transferred to another facility. “I want everyone to know I’m not a bad person. I just made a mistake,” Jean-Pierre told the AP. “I hope that whenever I can get out, I can change everybody’s mind, do right.”

RELATED CONTENT: Sexual Abuse In NYC Juvenile Jails At The Center Of New Lawsuits

• News

by Nahlah Abdur-Rahman

March 9, 2025

18-Year-Old Hairstylist Faces Assault Charge After Dragging Client, 15, Across Floor Over Payment Dispute

The hairstylist could face up to 10 years in prison if found guilty.

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An 18-year-old hairstylist in Maryland now faces a second-degree assault charge after video went viral of her dragging a teenage client on the floor after a payment dispute.

Jayla Cunningham posted the video showing her dragging the client across her salon after the 15-year-old allegedly tried to leave without paying for her weave install. Cunningham told Fox 5 that she felt like she had to take matters into her own hands after the girl already tried to run out on her $150 bill.

“Forget trash, she ran without paying me,” the hairstylist told the outlet. “I dragged her by her hood back into the salon until I could get paid or, you know, until the police come or until, you know, she let me take out the service, because it’s like she literally ran outside, like she was about to be gone…I feel like if I didn’t do that, she would have been gone… and I would have just never been paid.”   

In the video, Cunningham tells the teenager to sit down until the money is sent. After dragging her back inside, she says the girl is “lucky” she didn’t get more physical. The stylist then proceeds to cut out the weave from the girl’s head.

“I’m not f—— playing. You just tried to f—— run. You lucky I ain’t beat the s— out you,” expressed Cunningham.

Court records obtained by People show Cunningham could receive an assault charge. If convicted, the hairstylist could face a sentence of up to 10 years and a $2,500 fine.

The girl’s mother claims she tried to send the $150 due for the service. However, she accidentally transferred the money to the wrong account. The parent described the situation as “absolutely absurd,” expressing concern over her daughter’s mental state following the video’s exposure. Cunningham also shared that she received death threats after the video went viral.

The 15-year-old’s family has also hired a Maryland-based law firm, Jackson and Associates, to represent her.

“This appalling incident involving a minor child and an adult stylist was most certainly avoidable,” shared their attorney, De’Aja Thompson. “Unfortunately, this case is just one depiction of the reality of what happens when citizens take the law into their own hands. As a result, in this case, a young girl suffered physical and psychological injuries for what ultimately turned out to be a mistake, and another young lady is now facing criminal charges that could have larger implications.”

Cunningham’s first court date remains set for April 18.

RELATED CONTENT: Synthetic Braiding Hair Contains Toxic Substances And Black Women Are At Risk

• Politics

by Nahlah Abdur-Rahman

March 9, 2025

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott Announces Birth Of First Daughter On International Women’s Day

Scott welcomed his first daughter with wife, Hana, on International Women's Day.

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Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott has expanded his family on a very special day. Scott announced the birth of his new child, a daughter, on International Women’s Day.

Scott shared the exciting news on social media on March 8, stating that his daughter was born on a day dedicated to women globally. Named Camden Lee Scott, the newborn is his second child with his wife, Hana.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mayor Brandon M. Scott (@mayorbmscott)

“Today on International Women’s Day at 12:35 P.M. Camden Lee Scott was born,” exclaimed the doting dad. “Measuring 19.25 inches in length and weighing 6 lbs even! Mama and Baby Camden are doing great, and Daddy is grinning from ear to ear!”

The Scotts previously welcomed a son, Charm, in late 2023. They also parent Hana’s eldest son, Ceron, from a previous marriage. The family of five continues to be a highlight for Baltimore residents and supporters of the mayor.

Their youngest children’s names also pay homage to Baltimore. Charm’s name takes inspiration from Baltimore’s nickname of Charm City, while Camden stems from Camden Yards, a ballpark home to the Orioles, the city’s baseball team.

The past year has also been a whirlwind for the mayor. While preparing for another addition to their family, Scott took on a reelection campaign for his office. The Democratic leader began his second term in December after beating former Mayor Sheila Dixon. Scott also made his reelection a family affair, with his stepson participating at his inauguration by reciting the pledge of allegiance.

As for his toddler, Scott also appears with the baby boy at some work events. His wife, Hana, is a self-proclaimed “mompreneur” with numerous projects under her leadership, including a Black women-focused nonprofit called Bmore Empowered.

As Scott enters the next phase of his political career and fatherhood, the family man continues to foster progressive policies for Baltimore’s people.

RELATED CONTENT: Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott Trolls Racist Attacker With Witty Clapback After Receiving Offensive Message

• Arts and Culture

by Daniel Johnson

March 9, 2025

Broadway’s ‘Wicked’ Features First Full-Time Black Elphaba

Lencia Kebede, an Ethiopian actress, made history as the first full-time Black actress to portray Elphaba on Broadway.

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While the cinematic version of “Wicked” is currently streaming on Peacock, the theater version of the musical made history during the week of March 7 when Lencia Kebede, an Ethiopian actress, became the first full-time Black actress to portray Elphaba, the green-skinned witch portrayed by Cynthia Ervio in the Hollywood version of “Wicked.”

According to The Associated Press, Kebede said her Broadway debut left her feeling as though she belongs in the world of Oz. “It’s hard to even pinpoint a single emotion because I feel that it changes like every five minutes. I woke up and I still sort of felt in the world of Oz,” Kebede said.

She continued, describing how she felt after she finished singing “Defying Gravity,” the song that punctuates Act 1 of the play.

“When the lights went off at the end of the song, I started sobbing. Not like just a gentle tear. Viscerally, I had to release. I really felt like I was flying, is the simplest way to put it. I felt like I’m doing it myself, though my own power — my vocal power, my emotional power, the power of all of my African ancestors,” Kebede told the AP.

Kebede also took the time to encourage the values of liberation and empowerment, telling the AP that the song made her feel like she could hold the audience in her arms.

“Everyone deserves a chance to fly. I’m projecting this message that no matter who you are, what you look like, where you come from, you deserve liberation and you deserve empowerment in the way that the character feels in that moment. It just feels like I’m taking the entire audience in my arms,” Kebede said.

She continued, “I needed to regroup,” she said as she laughed aloud. “My makeup artist was like, ‘Just let it out, just cry, and then we can clean it up.’”

Although Kebede is the first full-time Black actress to take on the role of Elphaba, there have been other Black women to don the green makeup and tattered Black dress like Broadway standbys Saycon Sengbloh, Lili Cooper, Broadway understudy Brandi Chavonne Massey, and Alexia Khadime, a full-time West End Elphaba.

Kebede, who also sang backup for Beyoncé during rehearsals for her Coachella performance, pivoted to the world of theatre after graduating from Occidental College in 2016 with a double major in diplomacy, world affairs, and politics, which she intended to use for a career in law or public policy; however, the theatre was calling her, and she answered.

“I just had this creative craving in terms of storytelling in the theatrical way that I was missing,” she says. “So I sat my mother down and I was like, ‘Look, I think I need just a couple years to explore this creative endeavor,’” Kebede recalled to the AP.

Kebede also credited her training through touring, which included time at Tokyo Disney and multi-year tours as part of the casts for “Rent” and “Hamilton,” with preparing her for her turn as Elphaba on Broadway.

“The rigorous nature of touring, I think, prepared me immensely for this,” Kebede said. “I do feel very equipped — physically, vocally, emotionally. I feel like I know how to take care of my body and my mind, how I need to cool down emotionally after such an intense experience for three hours.”

Kebede’s family, including her mother, aunts, uncles, and cousins, were all in attendance, as were her boyfriend, agent, and casting directors, among others, which gave Kebede an immense feeling of pride.

“My whole family was in the audience — just everyone who I’ve ever loved, with everyone who has loved me and supported me through my life, is just like under me, lifting me and holding me,” Kebede told the AP.

She continued, “It was just so important to me to have people there that I could share this moment with, so I could say to their faces, ’I couldn’t be here without a piece of your heart that you gave me.’”

RELATED CONTENT: Paul Tazewell Makes History As First Black Man To Win Oscar For Best Costume Design

• Diversity, Equality, Inclusion

by Daniel Johnson

March 9, 2025

University Of Virginia Board Votes To Dismantle DEI Office

Although the resolution, which dismantled the university's diversity equity, and inclusion office, allows for the programs housed inside the office to be moved to other homes, it was not immediately clear what would be categorized as permissible in the resolution.

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The University of Virginia’s board voted on March 7 to dissolve the university’s office of diversity, equity, and inclusion, becoming the latest university to acquiesce to the wishes of the Trump administration and the Republican Party to erase diversity from universities and other institutions nationwide.

According to The Washington Post, the University of Virginia’s governing board, the Board of Visitors, is largely controlled by appointees of Virginia’s Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

Gov. Youngkin, who, like Trump, has been trying to rid the State of Virginia of DEI, signaled his approval, declaring that the board voted in the interest of “common sense.”

Although the resolution, which dismantled the university’s diversity, equity, and inclusion office, allows for the programs housed inside the office to be moved, it was not immediately made clear what would be categorized as permissible in the resolution.

The resolution also contained a declaration from the board that it valued diversity and inclusion but instructed the university to comply with the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause and the Civil Rights Act. It also charged the University of Virginia to “ensure there are no efforts to circumvent prohibitions on the use of race by relying on proxies.”

According to Brian Coy, a spokesperson for the University of Virginia, the university’s administration will review which programs are permissible for transfers.

“In accordance with the resolution, the administration will review the functions of the office, and all personnel and programs that are permissible under state and federal law will be transferred within the University,” Coy also added that the Office for Equal Opportunity and Title IX compliance along with other “important” functions were part of the diversity, equity, and inclusion office.

In contrast to the University of Virginia’s signal that they will likely go along with the resolution, which in turn is itself a capitulation to the Trump administration’s Department of Education’s stance on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, Georgetown University’s law school did the complete opposite of the University of Virginia.

According to Slate, Georgetown Law Dean William Treanor told the Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Colombia, Ed Martin, in no uncertain terms that his attempt to blackmail the university into not promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion by punishing Georgetown graduates was unconstitutional.

RELATED CONTENT: Good News! Black History Month Doesn’t Violate Trump’s Anti-DEI Order, According To DOE

• Politics

by Daniel Johnson

March 9, 2025

Congressional Black Caucus Stands Behind Rep. Al Green After Censure

Green protested President Trump’s initiatives during the Joint Address.

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After 10 Democrats voted with the Republican Party to censure Rep. Al Green (D-TX), the Congressional Black Caucus is backing him and the intent behind his protest.

According to The Hill, Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-NY), the chair of the CBC, indicated in comments on March 7 that the Caucus is standing against the Republican Party’s attempts to gut social services programs.

“(The CBC) will not stand for Republicans’ hellbent efforts to decimate the social safety net and cut billions of dollars for programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security, while giving tax cuts to billionaires like Elon Musk,” Rep. Clarke said.

She continued, addressing Rep. Green’s protest and affirming the caucus’ support of his principled protest.

“Congressman Al Green’s decision to protest President Trump’s words during the Joint Address on Tuesday was one of conscience, and he maintains the full support of our Caucus. Americans around the country are showing up to town halls to express their outrage over Republicans’ complete disregard for the needs of the American people, and Congressman Green gave voice to their concerns.”

After Rep. Green was escorted from the chamber for vocally protesting Trump during his speech, he spoke to reporters and told them that the Trump administration’s overtures regarding eliminating Medicaid were a reason for his protest.

“This is about the people who are being punished by virtue of losing their healthcare,” Rep. Green said. “This is the richest country in the world, and we have people who don’t have good healthcare. We’ve got to do better.”

Richard Fowler, a cable news contributor, a professor of journalism, and the host of “The Richard Fowler Show,” wrote in a column for Forbes that Green and the other members of the Congressional Black Caucus are emerging as leaders in the resistance to Trump and the Republican Party that increasingly reflects his image.

On March 4, the CBC held a meeting with Forbes and other media members near the House chamber, where Green was escorted and indicated that they would lead the resistance, which Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA) said is inspired by young Black youths nationwide.

“We’re building a foundation for the movement to organize around it. We’re building because Black girls and Black boys deserve a country that persists. They deserve to have a safe space, clean air, and clean water and communities safe from state violence and a country that persists and lasts for them,” Rep. Lee said.

Green’s fellow Texas Democrat, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, a rising star in the Democratic Party, who alongside Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL), Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-NM), Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-NJ), and Rep. Lateefah Simon (D-CA), walked out of the Congressional joint session in support of Rep. Green, while wearing shirts that read “RESIST” in bold print, indicated that this present moment calls for something beyond business as usual.

“While Republicans run away from their districts, we should be in their district because…we are the ones that been making sure that they got food on the table to eat,” Rep. Crockett said before clarifying her reference to farmers, whom NPR reported currently faces the consequences of the Trump administration’s tariff policy. “We have been the most supportive of farmers and ensuring they have subsidies. Everyone is trying to pretend that things are normal. They are not.”

Rep. Steven Horsford, a key member of the Congressional Black Caucus and a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, indicated to reporters that Trump’s failure to uphold his promises for working people and families needs to be a focal point of messaging critical of Trump from the Democratic Party.

“Donald Trump promised the American people that costs would go down,” Rep. Horsford said. “He said it would go down on day one. Not only has it not gone down, but his actions are causing prices to rise. He’s showing us exactly who he is. He does not care about you. He cares about himself and the big corporations and the big tycoons.”

RELATED CONTENT: ‘This Is About The People,’: Rep. Al Green Brought All The Smoke To Protest Donald Trump’s False Claims

• Legal

by Mary Spiller

March 9, 2025

Wendy Williams Calls For A$AP Rocky‘s Infamous Lawyer To Represent Her In Guardianship Case

Wendy Williams stated that she feels imprisoned by the courts due to Sabrina Morrissey's allegedly wrongful allegations against her.

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Former talk show host Wendy Williams has called on A$AP Rocky‘s attorney, Joe Tacopina, to end her controversial guardianship. Joe Tacopina revealed that she contacted him to represent her in her case against her two-year court mandate on the “2 Angry Men” podcast.

As reported by TMZ, Tacopina admitted that he was alarmed by Williams’ situation after viewing Tubi’s Saving Wendy documentary. He called the whole thing “a true injustice” and said, “Murderers have more freedom than Wendy.”

Tacopina continued to discuss the situation while on the “2 Angry Men” podcast, hosted by Harvey Levin and Mark Geragos. He confirmed that Williams had reached out to him and requested that he represent her.

Joe Tacopina is best known as the lawyer who helped win Rocky’s public assault case against his former associate, A$AP Relli. The case received extensive media attention, and the jury acquitted Rocky under Tacopina’s representation.

Now, Williams wants the 58-year-old attorney to end her contentious guardianship.

In January of this year, Williams opened up about her allegedly dire situation in an interview with The Breakfast Club.

As previously reported by BLACK ENTERPRISE, in her first public statement since the release of the Lifetime documentary that began it all “Where Is Wendy Williams,” the former talk show host said that the court mandate she’s been under has felt like prison. She called out her court-appointed guardian, Sabrina E. Morrissey, for lying, as Morrissey claimed Williams was “cognitively impaired, permanently disabled, and legally incapacitated.”

She wants Tacopina’s help because she previously expressed on The Breakfast Club, “I am not cognitively impaired. But I feel like I am in prison.”

Williams told DJ Envy, Charlamagne Tha God, and guest host Loren LoRosa, “I’m in this place where the people are in their 90s and their 80s and their 70s. There’s something wrong with these people here on this floor.”

RELATED CONTENT: Wendy Williams On Life in Assisted Living Facility: ‘I Don’t Have the Freedom to Do Virtually Anything’

• News

by Kandiss Edwards

March 9, 2025

Students Request ‘Angel Of Greenwood’ After Tulsa Massacre Book Rejected, Receive Free Copies From Author

Randi Pink sent 100 copies of "Angel of Greenwood" to Pine-Richland High School students in Pennsylvania.

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WTAE Pittsburgh reported that Randi Pink’s “Angel of Greenwood” is reaching Pine-Richland High School students despite being rejected from the ninth-grade curriculum.

Students were disappointed when the school board denied the book’s inclusion, prompting them to take respectful action. Twelfth-grader Nedda Immen contacted Pink to request copies of the historical fiction novel.

Pink responded by sending 100 free copies.

“I reached out to Randi, and I thought it would be great to get these books and distribute them because we want to make a statement without being disrespectful. That’s one of our biggest goals, and I think this is almost the perfect example of that,” Immen said.

Junior Elise Duckworth expressed confusion over the school board’s decision. “Angel of Greenwood” is set in 1921 during the Tulsa Race Massacre, a pivotal moment in American history when a thriving Black community was violently destroyed by racism and hate.

“I’m having trouble understanding the reasoning behind not allowing this book. I’m currently reading it, and I think it’s a great book. It talks about something many students don’t know about. Many people don’t know anything about the Tulsa Race Massacre,” Duckworth said.

While opinions on the book’s rejection vary, School Board President Philip Morrissette emphasized that its historical significance is not in question. Instead, the board determined it did not meet the educational rigor required for a ninth-grade curriculum.

“‘Angel of Greenwood’ is a fine book for students, with good historical significance,” Morrissette said.

In a statement to Pittsburgh’s Action News 4, Morrissette clarified that the book was not previously in the curriculum and is not banned.

“‘Angel of Greenwood’ was NOT previously part of ninth-grade ELA (English Language Arts). This was a suggested text to be added while removing an existing ninth-grade ELA core text, ‘A Tale of Two Cities,'” he said.

Despite the decision, Duckworth and Immen have spoken publicly and organized events to celebrate the Angel of Greenwood. With community support, they raised funds for two book talks featuring Pink.

Pink pushed back against the notion that her book lacks academic value, saying she intentionally wrote every page for teenagers. However, she sees hope for the future of inclusive literature through the actions of Pine-Richland students.

“When they’re in charge,” Pink said, “we’re going to be all right.”

RELATED CONTENT: Justice Department Finds 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre A ‘Coordinated, Systematic Attack‘

• News

by Sharelle B. McNair

March 9, 2025

Exonerated Man Accuses Michigan Attorney General Of Retaliation By Seizing His Nonprofit

Mark Craighead says the attorney general wants to control the nonprofit since he received funds of the Wrongful Imprisonment Compensation Act.

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Mark Craighead, who spent seven years behind bars for a crime he didn’t commit, is accusing the Michigan Attorney General’s office of retaliatory practices by attempting to take over his nonprofit’s assets, Detroit Metro Times reports. 

In a case filed by Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office, the office hopes to take control of Craighead’s nonprofit, the Safe Place Transition Center, by claiming he is improperly using funds. The business owner insists the move is a form of retaliation since he received the Wrongful Imprisonment Compensation Act (WICA) in 2023, created by state lawmakers to assist wrongfully convicted people in taking back their lives. 

As a result, Craighead received $360,000. He claims he used his own money to launch the nonprofit, fix properties, and pay off necessary expenses like gas. Craighead calls the accusations against him “baseless,” explaining that the nonprofit reimbursed him. “Everything that came out of Safe Place, it came from me first,” Craighead says. 

“I eventually got paid back. The board approved the money to me.”

The successful nonprofit provides housing assistance to formerly incarcerated residents and veterans. It has several properties with below-market rent for those who need it. In addition to housing, Craighead’s organization hands out food to nearly 200 low-income people in Mount Clemens twice a month. 

However, Nessel’s office said the case relates to a 2020 complaint filed by another individual, who claimed the former inmate “pocketed over $200,000 from money intended to help needy individuals of the community.” After the state launched an investigation, it was revealed Safe Place and Craighead failed to provide the required legal information, prompting the AG to try and take control of the group’s assets.

A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office, Kimberly Bush, denied Craighead’s accusations, saying the unit handling Safe Place’s case is the office’s Charitable Trust Unit, which is separate from the WICA unit. 

Craighead continues to stand his ground, saying he hasn’t done anything wrong. He says that since his last run-in with law enforcement led to a false confession and wrongful conviction, he is determined not to let it happen again, calling the system “corrupt.” “They did whatever they wanted to do in the past,” Craighead said. 

“I’m not going to let it happen again. It’s a corrupt system.”

This is one of two battles that the nonprofit owner is working through. According to Fox 2 Detroit, Craighead and Lamar Monson, who was also wrongfully convicted, protested in front of the Detroit Police Department to call for an investigation into the work of retired detective Barbara Simon. As part of the “Freedom Ain’t Free” movement, the men are accusing the former detective of perjury, illegally detaining suspects, and coercing them—and two others—into making false confessions.

RELATED CONTENT: Two Men Convicted In Malcolm X’s Assassination To Be Exonerated

• Sports

by Daniel Johnson

March 8, 2025

Stephen A. Smith Fires Back After LeBron James Confrontation

Smith spent the weekend addressing the tense conversation the James had with him.

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Stephen A. Smith, who recently signed a $100 million deal with ESPN, found himself in an unexpected exchange with NBA star LeBron James over remarks he’s made about LeBron’s son, Bronny James Jr., during a courtside visit on March 6.

Smith spent the weekend addressing the tense conversation the elder James had with him, first on a March 7 episode of “First Take.” Later that night, through his podcast, “The Stephen A. Smith Show,” an episode met with criticism from both NBA players and NBA fans alike on social media.

According to The Athletic, Smith stated on the “First Take” program that although he understood that James was coming to him as a father, he still took exception to him approaching Smith publicly about his comments without going through other channels, which he deemed more appropriate.

“That was LeBron James coming up to me, unexpectedly, I might add, to confront me about making sure that I mind what I say about his son,” Smith said on “First Take” while discussing a clip of the moment, which had gone viral on social media. “Can’t repeat the words because they ain’t suited for FCC airwaves. That’s what he was doing.”

Smith continued, “That wasn’t a basketball player confronting me. That was a parent, that was a father. And I can’t sit here and be angry or feel slighted by LeBron James in any way in that regard. By all accounts, he’s obviously a wonderful family man and wonderful father who cares very deeply about his son. And based on some of the comments he had heard — or shall I say, I think he thought he heard — he clearly took exception to some of the things that he heard me say. And he confronted me about it.”

Following the program’s discussion, Smith followed up by addressing the incident further on his podcast. This caught the attention of James’ former teammate, Kevin Love, who posted a reply to Smith’s announcement that he was going to discuss the matter on his podcast.

“You have no choice? lol because it went viral? lol you didn’t want to have to? lol you wouldn’t have? lol,” Love wrote, criticizing Smith’s decision to continue the conversation about James confronting him.

Later, Smith addressed Love’s post through his podcast, writing in a quote tweet, “Addressing this now,” along with a link to his podcast.

On the podcast, Smith also addressed comments made by Charles Barkley on “Inside The NBA.”

Barkley, an NBA Hall of Famer, was critical of what he perceives as an unhealthy focus on teams like the Lakers and Warriors and numerous Michael Jordan vs. LeBron James GOAT conversations at ESPN, whose network Barkley and company are set to join in 2026.

“I’ve said it for years, the only people talking about LeBron and Michael is people on television who got no talent to talk about anything else,” Barkley said on the March 7 episode of Inside The NBA. “I been saying that for years. I ain’t hanging onto the ‘90s.”

According to Awful Announcing, Smith also addressed Barkley’s comments concerning the Lakers’ coverage on “First Take” with a shot at Barkley.

“Barkley does television. He’d never be accused of knowing television. That would be Ernie Johnson who handles that responsibility,” Smith said. “Maybe Charles Barkley should look at its rundowns from time to time even though they are an NBA show as opposed to a show that talks about an abundance of things. The fact of the matter is, some stories get a higher profile than others because they resonate with the viewing public. And in television, it’s called ratings.”

RELATED CONTENT: ‘First Take’s’ Stephen A. Smith Secures $100M Bag From ESPN Contract Extension