Category: African-American

Essence Magazine:

As protests continue to roil the nation following a spate of police and vigilante killings of Black people, many lawmakers, civil rights leaders and advocates vow to fight along with the community for new laws and systemic reforms. 

“America is raw and her wounds are showing,” said U.S. Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA), who recently joined fellow Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Chair, Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA) for a virtual meeting with some of the country’s civil rights and racial justice advocates. 

The National Urban League’s President/CEO Marc Morial convened Monday’s virtual meeting. Rev. Al Sharpton of the National Action Network (NAN); Derrick Johnson of the NAACP; and Sherrilyn I>Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF) joined. So did Melanie Campbell of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation; Kristen Clarke of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law; and Vanita Gupta of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. 

“The tragic and senseless loss of Black lives to police-involved violence, and the callous indifference to justice in response, should have been enough to persuade the nation of the need for dramatic change,” the group said in a joint statement. “The last several days have made it impossible to ignore.” 

The leaders lamented that Black communities “already saturated in grief over the COVID-19 pandemic,” have now been “pushed to the brink by relentless police brutality and vigilante injustice.” Alluding to protests nationwide–largely peaceful, others with violence, looting and vandalism, they blamed “White nationalists” intent on stoking division. Critics say police in some cities have escalated unrest, and President Donald Trump has fanned the flames. 

This comes as relatives and strangers grieve George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery–the latest Black victims of countless deadly police encounters. 

“Blackness continues to put a mark on our backs,” said Judith Browne Dianis, Executive Director of the Advancement Project, which promotes fair democracy. “The police continue to believe that Black lives do not matter.” 

In February, Ahmaud Arbery, 25, was shot and killed in Georgia after being chased by a White father and son who’d allegedly accused him of burglary and deputized themselves; the slaying was caught on video.

In March, Breonna Taylor of Kentucky was reportedly shot eight times by Louisville Metro Police Department officers while asleep in the apartment she shared with her boyfriend. “We can’t change people’s hearts, but we can certainly demand that their behavior be changed,” Sadiqa Reynolds, president of the Louisville Urban League, told Essence. 

George Floyd, 46, was arrested in May by Minneapolis police officers, one of whom was captured kneeling on the dying man’s neck while ignoring pleas of “I cannot breathe.”  The words echoed those of Eric Garner who died during a police chokehold on Staten Island in 2014.

The same day as Floyd’s death, a Black male birdwatcher in New York’s Central Park used his cell phone to record a White woman calling 9-1-1 after he requested she leash her dog. 

The chasm between law enforcement and communities they are sworn to protect requires a systemic overhaul, say many. Civil rights leaders aim to work with bipartisan members of Congress, and want a broad review and revision of police training procedures, hiring standards, use of force policies and other reform measures. “We have so much work to do,” said Booker. 

The CBC is crafting a multifaceted approach. “We have to end this,” said Chairwoman Bass. On Friday June 5, they’ll host a virtual Town Hall “Living While Being Black in America.”

A virtual briefing by the Democratic Caucus on Tuesday drew nearly 100 participants including members of Congress, advocates and stakeholders such as the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) and the Center for Policing Equity. 

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) announced that they’ll  hold a hearing next week on police brutality. The committee has sent a letter to the Department of Justice headed by U. S. Attorney General William Barr, demanding investigations into the Arbery, Taylor and Floyd deaths. 

Many Black lawmakers including Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI) and Rep. Robin Kelly (D-IL) have or plan to sponsor legislation around policing issues. Kelly urged folks to contact legislators, special interest groups and funders. If elected officials don’t support reform? “Vote them out,” she said. 

Sustained action is key, say advocates. Monifa Bandele is part of the policy table leadership team for the Movement for Black Lives, via her work with Malcolm X Grassroots Movement.

“From protesting in the streets to art murals to mutual aid coordination and economic boycotts, we will not rest until there is justice for all. When we say Black Lives Matter, we mean it in every way.” 

The NAACP has launched a campaign entitled #WeAreDoneDying. The racial justice group Color of Change urges support of local bail funds for protestors, and removal of GoFundMe campaigns for former Minnesota officer Derek Chauvin and others. 

Meanwhile, the civil rights community is calling for a National Day of Mourning on Thursday, June 4, when Floyd’s funeral is scheduled at North Central University in Minneapolis. Rev. Sharpton is to deliver the eulogy and attorney Benjamin Crump, who represents the family, will be among those offering remarks. Crump told Essence while convicting officers who commit crimes is tough, it’s not impossible to win cases. “You learn a little more from each one of them,” he said. 

People across America are being asked to spend Thursday in reflection and prayer for racial reconciliation, and an end to violence. “We’ve gotta seize this moment to change the times,” said Sharpton.

The post Black Lawmakers, Advocates And Community Pushing For Police Reforms appeared first on Essence.

Essence Magazine:

A California woman claims that police officers stomped on her stomach during a traffic stop last year and caused her to have a

The post California Woman Brings Lawsuit Against City Alleging Police Stomped On Pregnant Stomach Causing Miscarriage appeared first on Essence.

Essence Magazine:

A Black Oklahoma County detention officer decided that standing with the crowd to protest police brutality, and the horrific officer-involved death of George Floyd in Minneapolis was more important than his job.

According to KOCO, Keval Williams, now a former detention officer, was told that he could not kneel with protesters and decided to take action.

“I turned in my badge, and now I’m out here,” he said in video that has been shared across social media.

this is what we mean. fkn quit that job if u truly care. he did. i respect dat pic.twitter.com/e2fjrYANek

— 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐢 ☆ BLM (@Y2KANi) June 1, 2020

Williams told KOCO was protesting before the incident at work even happened, however, he got called into work at the jail. Once there, he wanted to take a knee to show his support but was told he could not.

Williams also said after he quit, he saw all the officers taking a knee in front of the protesters…of course, once the media cameras showed up.

“I didn’t want to quit my job…because I felt like that wasn’t the message I wanted to show,” Williams told the news station. “I wanted to show all these protesters that police officers, corrections officers stand with you and they understand what you’re doing.”

“These correction officers, these police officers when cameras are not around…that’s when they should be taking the knee,” he added. “Why can’t one or two officers walk with us?”

Mark Myers, with the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office, told the station that staff was called in to help push back “protesters who turned into rioters.”

“Protesters who turned into rioters tried to breach the jail, set one of our vans on fire and were knocking out windows,” Myers said, noting it was “an all-hands on deck” situation.

Myers said it was simply a situation of needing essential employees assigned to the jail to remain at the jail.

If employees want to protest, Myers suggests that they just “take the day off.”

The post A Black Oklahoma Detention Officer Was Told He Couldn’t Kneel With Protesters, So He Quit appeared first on Essence.

Essence Magazine:

Star Wars actor John Boyega took to the streets of London Wednesday to march for Black lives, and the actor gave an electrifying speech to protesters in the city’s Hyde Park area. 

During his speech, he also questioned whether he’ll “have a career” after his participation, highlighting an issue Black people face when they stand up for racism: fear that they’ll be retaliated against.

“Black lives have always mattered,” Boyega said to protesters Wednesday, overwhelmed with emotion as he spoke into a bullhorn to amplify his message. “We have always been important. We have always meant something. We have always succeeded regardless. And now is the time. I ain’t waiting.”

“We are a physical representation of our support for George Floyd. We are a physical representation of our support for Sandra Bland. We are a physical representation of our support for Trayvon Martin. We are a physical representation of our support for Stephen Lawrence,” he continued, naming the several Black Americans who’ve been killed at the hands of police and other citizens.

“I need you to understand how painful this shit is. I need you to understand how painful it is to be reminded every day that your race means nothing and that isn’t the case any more. That was never the case,” he added.

At one point, Boyega acknowledged the potential professional backlash that he could face for openly fighting against racism and police brutality. 

“Look, I don’t know if I’m going to have a career after this, but f-ck that,” he said. 

But Boyega doesn’t have anything to worry about. Several Hollywood heavyweights responded to his uncertainty by making it clear that they still were willing to work with him after speaking out, including some Star Wars co-stars along with Oscar winners Jordan Peele and Matthew Cherry. 

We got you, John. https://t.co/oX7Rr52omx

— Jordan Peele (@JordanPeele) June 3, 2020

I would work with John Boyega and I urge other Non-Black creators to affirm that they have his back as well. https://t.co/SqXgmIS5aR

— Matthew A. Cherry (@MatthewACherry) June 3, 2020

Yo @JohnBoyega just say the word.LUCKY and grateful to have you act in anything I’m working on. #BlackLivesMatter

— Tracy Y. Oliver (@TracyYOliver) June 3, 2020

The Star Wars franchise and its parent company Disney also stood by his actions and tweeted a message of support, calling him a true “hero.” 

We stand with and support you, @JohnBoyega. View his full speech: https://t.co/Goxb5y2wrK pic.twitter.com/ZvE0t5tRPY

— Star Wars (@starwars) June 3, 2020

Disney is also putting its money where its mouth is by pledging $5 million to non-profits that are focused on social justice. They are beginning with a $2 million donation to the NAACP. 

The post ‘Star Wars’ Actor John Boyega Demands Respect For Black Lives At London Protest appeared first on Essence.

Essence Magazine:

In a harrowing video shared to Instagram, Porsha Williams shows how she and her fiancé Dennis McKinley were tear-gassed at a peaceful protest in Atlanta Tuesday.

The video shows The Real Housewives of Atlanta star standing with protestors “at the capitol,” with a protective mask on before what appears to be gunshots rang out around her. Williams then runs and screams before she yells out, “It’s gas!” In the chilling video, another protestor pulls her aside to relief her of her symptoms with milk, instructing her not to wipe her face and to “tilt her head back.”

“I’m good. I’m good,” she eventually says in the more than eight-minute video. “Do y’all see this? We’re in Atlanta. It’s 7:45. The curfew isn’t until 9 o’clock. We’re out here peacefully protesting and they tear-gassed us for no reason at all.”

“I’m going live. Everybody will know what is going on…what is happening to us right now,” she continues.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by #PorshaWilliams (@porsha4real) on Jun 1, 2020 at 4:54pm PDT

In a later post on Instagram, Williams expressed her outrage on how the protestors were treated in her own city.

“We have the right to freedom of assembly, the right to freedom of association, and the right to freedom of speech,” she wrote in a caption of a photo of her and McKinley. “Although today here in Atlanta that was taken away from us.”

“A very peaceful group of us protesters had pepper spray bombs thrown at us! In the post right before this one you can hear the music & peaceful chanting right before we were had bombed!” she continued. “What a shame to try to silence the people once again. #Bloodline ‘Enough is enough’!”

The reality star later told People magazine that after Tuesday’s protest she has even more “strength” to go back on the front lines.

“It won’t stop. Anybody who is out there now and they feel like they can’t move forward because of the mistreatment [by] the police and what they’re doing to us…I would say to them, stay focused on the cause,” she told the magazine. “We are looking to get justice for George Floyd.”

Floyd, a 45-year-old Black man, was viciously murdered by a White Minneapolis police officer named Derek Chauvin. Initially charged with third degree murder and manslaughter, since the protests the charges have been upped to second degree murder. Also, the other three officers who stood by were also arrested and charged with crimes.

View this post on Instagram

We stand together #PEACEFULProtestEarlier #BlackLivesMatter #HoseaWilliams #Legacy #NoJusticeNoPeace #WeCantBreathe#ThisWhatAmericaLooksLike#GodHelpUs #WeJustWantToLive #SayTheirNames #Action #Atlanta

A post shared by #PorshaWilliams (@porsha4real) on May 29, 2020 at 6:37pm PDT

Williams, whose grandfather, Rev. Hosea Williams, marched alongside Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement, added that “being on the frontline” was “a very beautiful thing.”

“The energy of the people is very much one mind, one mission and one goal, and that is to stand side by side, locked in arms, locked in heart, and to use every breath we have to demand justice for George Floyd and for the other victims of police brutality,” she concluded.

The post Porsha Williams Speaks After Being Tear-Gassed At Peaceful Atlanta Protest appeared first on Essence.

Essence Magazine:

In late April, more than 200 Black women sent a letter to Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, urging him to select a Black woman as a running mate for 2020. I was one of the organizers and signers of the letter. It has been clear for some time that Black women are not only the key to a Democratic victory in November, we are also the leaders that the party, and this country, so desperately need. 

Biden has already committed to choosing a woman as his vice-president. And as his team vets potential picks, political pundits, journalists and a sizeable segment of the American public question if a winning ticket could include a Black woman. Possible running mates include Senator Kamala Harris, former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, United States Representatives Karen Bass, Val Demings, Marcia Fudge and former national security advisor Susan Rice. Each of these women are highly competent and capable and brings decades of experience in public service. The question is not if they are ready to lead, but if America will let them.

When women run for office, they often have to make the case that they can do the job since men hold the majority of elected positions at local, state and federal levels. For Black women, the bar is much higher. They must also show that they can win with white voters in non-Black districts. Black women candidates are subject to intense scrutiny, having to prove themselves “electable” and “qualified” in ways that their peers do not. No matter how many degrees earned, years of experience or time held in office, there are still people who are unable or unwilling to recognize the capacity of Black women to be effective leaders. 

Black women are recognized as a key voting bloc within the Democratic Party. But it’s a mistake to take for granted how Black women candidates have widespread appeal to a diverse coalition of voters. In 2018, the Higher Heights Leadership Fund partnered with The Brookings Institution to analyze the variables associated with the elections of Black women across the country. We found that recent mayoral victories in some of the most populous cities in America as well as unexpected wins in that year’s primaries, show that Black women are, in fact, viable in districts that were traditionally out of reach. This includes the election of London Breed as the first Black female mayor of San Francisco; Ayanna Pressley, the first Black woman elected to Congress from Massachusetts; and Lauren Underwood, who won the race for Illinois’ 14th U.S. Congressional seat, in a majority-white district. Underwood not only beat six white male candidates in the primary, she also became the youngest Black woman to serve in Congress. 

In 2018, Stacey Abrams became the first Black woman in America to win a gubernatorial nomination by a political party. She also turned out more voters of color in that race than in the 2016 presidential election. Still, Abrams as a potential candidate for the vice-presidency has evoked dismissal and hostility by those who are offended by her confidence. She has not been shy about her ability to do the job or her desire to lead. “As a young Black girl growing up in Mississippi, I learned that if I didn’t speak up for myself, no one else would,” she said in a recent interview on Meet the Press. In presenting herself as her own advocate, Abrams has challenged our biases about leadership. Men do this all the time—stepping up to lead even when they don’t have the necessary experience. But society is uneasy when Black women know their worth and unapologetically go for what they want. Discomfort with our ambitions presents yet another barrier to being elected to office. If Black women don’t advocate for themselves, who will? 

As we approach the presidential election in November, the stakes could not be higher. Our country has greatly suffered under its current leadership and we are in crisis.  Black women cannot afford to simply “Vote Blue, No Matter Who.” We demand a return on our voting investment in the form of policies that directly center Black women, our families and communities and we are claiming our seats at decision making tables. Democrats need to do more than convince swing voters and energize their loyal base to win. They must also recognize the capacity of Black women to govern. There is a disconnect between relying on Black women to turn out the vote but not engaging and supporting us as candidates. We refuse to accept leading from the back of the bus. We have proven that we can win, even the most challenging of races. America, are you ready to follow our lead?   

Glynda C. Carr is President and CEO of Higher Heights, the only national organization providing Black women with a political home exclusively dedicated to harnessing their power to expand Black women’s elected representation and voting participation, and advance progressive policies.

The post Meant For The Moment: Biden Should Select A Black Woman To Be VP appeared first on Essence.

Essence Magazine:

With so much going on in the world right now, the one thing we can all use is a getaway. And with many countries announcing reopening plans, many Americans are considering what travel will look like under our ‘new normal’ and accompanying best practices. 

Though the vast majority of travelers have canceled their plans as we shelter in place to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, others are weighing out their options on where (and when) they will be able to visit. Travelocity’s recent study predicts a new travel trend will appear this summer as a result — the “safecation.” This is an opportunity to travel to some of your favorite destinations, but implementing safe measures and protocols to protect you, because 72% of travelers say health & safety are their top priority when deciding where and when to travel post COVID-19.

With that in mind, we don’t know exactly what summer travel will look like, but one thing is certain: You can expect change. Here are a few tips for planning your safecation this summer. 

Search for flexible change/cancel policies.

Because we’re all taking this situation day by day, it’s hard to plan out for an extended period of time. Thankfully, airlines and hotels are trying their best to be accommodating during this uncertain time. Travelocity is seeing low fares on major U.S. airlines like Delta, American and many are waiving normal change or cancel fees through the end of year. So if you do change your mind, you’ll only pay the difference in ticket price.

Consider the booking window.

Gone are the days where folks plan 6-9 months out for a vacation. For short-term, Travelocity is seeing an uptick in bookings 0-3 days out, as experts suggest travelers are waiting to book — even if it’s at the last minute. While for long-term, expect to see good values on airfare and travel this summer, and if you know where you’re headed, it’s advised to book those trips 60+ days out (keeping in mind that a lot may change throughout that time). 

Look for cleanliness information on-site.

You’ve probably received emails from many airlines and hotels reporting that they are following CDC guidelines for sanitizing public interfaces — contactless check-in kiosks, ticket counters, among other frequently touched areas multiple times a day — but of course, it’s always better to be safe than sorry, and check each policy before you book. For example, many hotels on Travelocity.com for instance can now highlight their cleanliness policies to show what health & hygiene amenities they offer such as contactless check-in/check-out, hand sanitizer for guests, enhanced cleaning practices, social distancing measures, etc. 

Roam near home.

If you’ve been looking to hit the open road, this summer will be the summer of road trips and exploring fun within your own backyard. According to Travelocity, most hotel bookings right now are within a 100-mile radius of where people live. In addition, travelers are mostly booking domestic travel, within driving distance. This creates the perfect opportunity to make your “Backyard Bucket List” — a list of all those in-state trips to landmarks and places you’ve always meant to visit as a family. The CDC recommends that prospective travelers keep an eye on the number of coronavirus cases in the destination they plan on visiting and not traveling there if COVID-19 is actively spreading. The agency also recommends avoiding crowded settings while traveling.

Control what you can.

The important thing to remember right now, is that nothing is within your control. When planning your travel, be sure to consider non-peak travel times because weekends tend to be busy, and the goal should be to avoid larger crowds to implement social distancing measures. Try to shift travel to Saturday-Monday or mid-week, as an alternative. Also, revisit destinations you’ve been to before — there’s a feeling of comfort when we visit places we know well. Take this time to revisit those hidden gems you’ve enjoyed before.

The post 5 Tips For Planning Safe Summer Travel appeared first on Essence.