Latest news with #African-Americans
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Nicki Minaj Details the ‘Proud Period' That Inspired Her 2025 Met Gala Look
Nicki Minaj walked the carpet at the Met Gala on Monday night (May 5), which is the Queens legend's eighth appearance at the prestigious May fashion event. Minaj stopped on the blue carpet for an interview with Entertainment Tonight, where she explained the inspiration behind her Thom Browne navy pinstripe dress to match the 'Superfine: Tailoring Black Style' theme of the night. More from Billboard Met Gala 2025: Best Photos From the Red Carpet Beats Headphones Deals: Save 51% Off the Musician-Loved Brand's Bestselling Models A$AP Rocky Says 'It Was Time' to Reveal Rihanna's Pregnancy at 2025 Met Gala 'Thinking about the tailoring of everything. First of all, Thom Browne is known for his craftsmanship. To me, it represents a proud period of African-Americans,' she said. 'That's what I got out of it when I saw the photos of what it would be about.' Minaj — in her mermaid gown accessorized with a floral bouquet and a gold headband — continued: 'It reminded me of putting on your Sunday's best and being iconic in your own world.' Minaj had another hilarious moment on the blue carpet when interacting with a reporter who shouted, 'Nicki, why are you excited about this one?' The Young Money rapper clapped back with a cheeky response captured by AP: 'Who said I was excited?' Monday was yet another star-studded affair on a rainy night in NYC at the Met Gala, which saw stars such as Dua Lipa, Sabrina Carpenter, Cardi B, Kim Kardashian, Sydney Sweeney, Rihanna, A$AP Rocky, Pharrell, Pusha T, Alicia Keys, Ciara, Doechii, Madonna and many more in attendance. Colman Domingo, Lewis Hamilton, A$AP Rocky, Pharrell Williams and Anna Wintour served as the co-chairs for the 2025 Met Gala. Minaj has laid low for much of 2025 as the rapper is yet to drop a single this year. The Queen came in at the No. 1 spot on our Best Female Rappers of All-Time list in April. Best of Billboard Kelly Clarkson, Michael Buble, Pentatonix & Train Will Bring Their Holiday Hits to iHeart Christmas Concert Fox Plans NFT Debut With $20 'Masked Singer' Collectibles 14 Things That Changed (or Didn't) at Farm Aid 2021
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump admin asking federal agencies to cancel remaining Harvard contracts
The Trump administration is asking all federal agencies to find ways to terminate all federal contracts with Havard University amid an ongoing standoff over foreign students' records at the Ivy League school. The General Services Administration is planning to send a letter Tuesday instructing all federal agencies to review the estimated $100 million remaining in federal contracts with Harvard and potentially "find alternative vendors," according to a copy of the letter obtained by Fox News. The remaining federal contracts include a $527,000 agreement for Harvard ManageMentor Licenses, which was awarded in September 2021, a $523,000 contract for Harvard to conduct research on energy drinks and the health outcomes of other dietary intakes overtime, which was awarded in August 2023, and a $39,000 contract for gradate student research services, which was award in April 2025, a source familiar with the matter told Fox News. Trump Accuses Harvard Of Being 'Very Slow' To Turn Over Foreign Student Info The New York Times first reported about a draft of the letter. In the letter, GSA's Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Josh Gruenbaum said Harvard "continues to engage in race discrimination, including in its admissions process and in other areas of student life." Read On The Fox News App He said Harvard has shown "no indication" of reforming its admissions process, despite the Supreme Court ruling that university's long-standing policy discriminates on the basis of race. For applicants in the top academic decile, admissions rates were 56% for African-Americans, 31% for Hispanics, 15% for Whites and 13% for Asians, according to the lawsuit. Gruenbaum said Harvard "now has to offer a remedial math course, which has been described as 'middle school math' for incoming freshmen." He said that was a direct result "of employing discriminatory factors, instead of merit, in admission decisions." Gruenbaum also cited possible violations of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 regarding Harvard's hiring, promotion, compensation, and other personnel-related actions. He said discriminatory practices "have been exposed at the Harvard Law Review, where internal documents that have been made public detail the pervasive and explicit racial discrimination in the publication's article selection and editor appointment process." "GSA is also aware of recent events at Harvard University involving anti-Semitic action that suggest the institution has a disturbing lack of concern for the safety and wellbeing of Jewish students," Gruenbaum wrote. "Harvard's ongoing inaction in the face of repeated and severe harassment and targeting of its students has at times grounded day-to-day campus operations to a halt, deprived Jewish students of learning and research opportunities to which they are entitled, and profoundly alarmed the general public." Fox News Digital reached out to Harvard University for comment Tuesday. Harvard has already sued in federal court seeking the restoration of about $3.2 billion in federal grant funding already frozen by the administration since last month. In a separate suit, the university was granted a temporary restraining order on Friday that temporarily blocks the government from canceling the school's certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program. The program permits the university to host international students with F-1 or J-1 visas to study in the U.S. Harvard said the revocation would impact more than 7,000 visa holders – more than a quarter of its student body. A brief federal court hearing was held Tuesday morning in federal court in Boston on the matter. A judge scheduled another hearing for Thursday to allow both parties more time to present their case. President Donald Trump said in a TRUTH Social post on Monday that he is "considering taking Three Billion Dollars of Grant Money away from a very antisemitic Harvard, and giving it to TRADE SCHOOLS all across our land." "What a great investment that would be for the USA, and so badly needed!!!" he wrote. Judge Temporarily Pauses Trump Move To Cancel Harvard Student Visa Policy After Lawsuit The president also accused Harvard of being "very slow" in handing over documents about foreign students and of having "shopped around and found the absolute best judge (for them)." Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem said last week that she revoked Harvard's certification after the university refused to comply with multiple requests for information on foreign students while "perpetuating an unsafe campus environment that is hostile to Jewish students, promotes pro-Hamas sympathies, and employs racist 'diversity, equity and inclusion' policies." The requested records include any and all audio or video footage in Harvard's possession regarding threats to other students or university personnel, "deprivation of rights" of other classmates or university personnel, and "dangerous or violent activity, whether on or off campus" by a nonimmigrant student enrolled at Harvard in the last five years. Noem is also asking for any and all disciplinary records and audio or video footage of any protest activity involving nonimmigrant students. DHS said that Harvard's responses so far have been insufficient. Fox News' Sarah Tobianski contributed to this article source: Trump admin asking federal agencies to cancel remaining Harvard contracts
Mint
4 days ago
- Politics
- Mint
Race in Trump's America: One step forward and two steps back
On the afternoon of 25 May 2020, George Floyd was choked to death on a Minneapolis street by a police officer. The brutal act, captured on video by a teenager, sparked a wave of multiracial protests for social justice and police reform. It also became a flashpoint in US politics and culture, ushering in a brief and backlash-ready period that galvanized millions to push for racial progress. Caucasians began to have rare and overdue conversations about the status of African-Americans. Companies complied with the new zeitgeist and dropped racially stereotypical brand names like Aunt Jemima and Uncle Ben, made bandages for other complexions and expanded diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts. California formed a task force to study reparations. Buildings, schools and roads were renamed. Statues came down. Also Read: Trump's trade agenda: About US jobs or global supremacy? This was peak 'woke,' an old term that gained widespread usage around the protests. Five years later, 72% of Americans say the period of 'racial reckoning' didn't lead to changes that improved the lives of African-Americans, according to a Pew Research Center poll. Not only that, framing America's intractable social problems around race is increasingly politically risky. President Donald Trump is back in office—and now lecturing the leader of South Africa about reverse apartheid and 'White genocide.' Some conservatives are calling on him to pardon Derek Chauvin, sentenced to 21 years in prison for violating Floyd's civil rights. Many DEI initiatives have been renamed or eliminated and polls show a drop in support for diversity initiatives, especially among Republican voters. The nation's only African-American governor, Maryland's Wes Moore, just vetoed a bill to study reparations. The 'Black Lives Matter' (BLM) movement has stalled, as has the police reform sought by activists. Perhaps nothing captures this more than DC Mayor Muriel Bowser's decision to dismantle Black Lives Matter Plaza, a site that had been a locus for activists and something of a rebuke to Trump in his first term. Also Read: DEI defence: How to promote diversity and prevent a backlash During the height of the protests, 67% of US adults expressed support for BLM, according to the Pew Research Center, including 60% of Caucasian Americans and 86% of African-Americans. Now that figure stands at 52%, with 45% of Caucasians and 76% of African-Americans expressing support for BLM. The numbers underscore the political fault lines around race and the remedies to address racial inequality. They also show a concerted and successful effort by conservatives to malign the activists and the aims associated with the movement—in part using weapons handed to them in the form of unpopular slogans ('defund the police") and a handful of unruly protests like those in Portland, Oregon. In the BLM era, some Caucasian voters, particularly college-educated ones, shifted to the left on a broad array of social issues, helping the Democratic ticket in 2020. Now, the post-BLM or post-woke era sees Republicans with an advantage, helping Trump win a second term by suggesting activists went too far, even as it's hard for most Americans to point to any lasting good that came out of the 2020 movement for racial progress. Some 87% of US adults say the relationship between African-American people and police officers is either about the same or worse in the five years since Floyd's death. Only 11% say that relationship has gotten better. The most striking dip is among Democrats, who in September 2020 had high hopes for African-American progress, with 70% expecting changes a result of the protests. Now, five years later, that figure is 34% according to Pew. The Justice Department last Wednesday dropped consent decrees with Minneapolis and Louisville, rolling back federal oversight of several police departments and shifting the focus away from racial discrimination. Also Read: Caution: Attacks on DEI in the US threaten to cement glass ceilings The BLM protests were among the biggest and most multiracial the country has ever seen. Powered by covid lockdowns and pent-up frustration over several instances of violence against African-American people, sometimes caught on camera, the demonstrations seemed to augur in something more permanent. Yet, concerted efforts by conservatives to demonize protestors and suggest the goals of the activists amounted to reverse racism or blanket attacks on the police worked, with Trump returning to office in 2025 and advancing Caucasian identity politics. In the wake of Trump's re-election, some African-Americans, who have been at the forefront of fights for a more equal America, have decided to march no more, instead leaving the fight to others. The lack of engagement has consequences for Democrats particularly, but more broadly for the cause of racial equality, which remains a worthy goal. ©Bloomberg The author is a politics and policy columnist for Bloomberg Opinion.
The Hindu
23-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Permanent damage: on the Trump administration and Harvard
Civic life in the United States stands on multiple, strong and independent institutions in different fields. These institutions, whether constitutionality mandated or not, have a continuity, life and standing of their own, beyond particular individuals. They enable diversity and pluralism, and provide protection against arbitrary decisions by those in power. Ironically enough, U.S. President Donald Trump is intent on damaging its oldest and wealthiest educational institution — Harvard. After harassing the institution with investigations, orders to turn over records, and freezing funds and grants running to hundreds of millions of dollars, the U.S. government has said that Harvard cannot enrol foreign students in 2025-26. Some 6,800 international students, including more than 750 from India, constitute more than 27% of its current student strength. They will have to transfer to other institutions within the U.S. or leave, as per the government, which does not want any new international student there in 2025-26 either. The U.S. government has said that the student visa programme is a privilege that it has granted and Harvard 'relies heavily' on foreign students to 'build and maintain their substantial endowment', which is said to run to over $55 billion. And it sees foreign student visas and tax-exempt status as weapons in its arsenal against Harvard. Across the world, the authoritarian's playbook for pluralistic societies is to identify an enemy against whom a campaign is unleashed based on real and imagined grievances. The campaign keeps the 'enemy' in a state of disarray, even turmoil, with long-term damage and a chilling effect. Though sullied by unsavoury links, from the Salem witch trials to Enron, Harvard attracts some of the brightest talent from across the world and trains them for leadership roles in their chosen fields. It represents liberalism and knowledge creation that advances globalisation. Mr. Trump's working and middle class support base looks at Harvard as one among elitist vehicles of globalisation that have excluded them while promoting affirmative action for minorities, especially African-Americans. While lineage and family background of prospective students are a factor for Harvard, an extensive scholarship programme seeks to balance that. Harvard has said that it will go to court against the government's move just as it sued the Trump administration for freezing government funds. While the courts may well stay the ban, the damage has been done not just to Harvard but also to the image of American higher education and democratic principles. It is damage that cannot be easily remedied.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Yahoo
Christopher Schurr mistrial shows prompts questions about criminal justice system
After a deadlocked jury forced a mistrial in the recent second-degree murder trial of former Grand Rapids police officer Christopher Schurr, the prosecutor's decision to forgo a do-over of the trial leaves the family of the victim Patrick Lyoya to grieve without a verdict that might have brought them closure. Lyoya, a Congolese immigrant was stopped by Schurr in 2022 because his vehicle had bad plates. Schurr gave chase when Lyoya exited the vehicle and attempted to flee on foot. The two engaged in a furious grappling match, and while Lyoya was face-down on the ground, Schurr claims that he shot Lyoya in the head because he feared for his life after Lyoya reached for the officer's taser. While many are frustrated by the mistrial, and subsequent decision to not retry the case, some have expressed satisfaction and appreciation for the jury's presumably thorough, careful deliberations. In a system established to administer criminal justice we can't ask for more, right? Wrong. More opinion: Christopher Schurr's murder trial ended in a hung jury. It still has value. There are many people of color and other people of good will who in the wake of this mistrial are speculating about whether there would have been a hung jury, or even whether the jury deliberations would have been careful and considered if the situation had been reversed. If an African immigrant had placed a pistol against the skull of a white police officer and pulled the trigger, would there have been a rush to conviction, or instead would a jury presume the defendant's innocence as the law requires and carefully consider all evidence and exculpatory defenses? We can't know with certainty how these jurors — 10 of them white, three Hispanic and one biracial — or any other predominantly white jury would react, but scientific findings provide a basis for unsettling questions. In a 2018 article published in the DePaul Journal for Social Justice, legal analyst Jonathan M. Warren explains: 'While issues of racial discrimination are a problem all their own, these issues are often compounded because of the lack of jury diversity. Many times, the jury pool looks much different than the defendant, as juries across America tend to be white and upper-middle class. Instead of being tried by a jury of one's peers, a defendant usually finds himself facing 'peers' with a higher economic class, lighter skin tone, different social background, and inability to truly empathize with the defendant's circumstances. This problem is pronounced with race, especially in regard to African-Americans. For example, one study found all-white juries convict black defendants 16% more often than white defendants. However, when at least one African-American was included in the jury pool, the racial conviction gap fell to nearly even.' This phenomenon is not a mystery. For generations this country has been conditioned to believe Black people are criminal by nature. Prior to the Civil War, free Blacks living in northern cities competed with white workers for jobs and other economic opportunities, and to justify campaigns to colonize them in Africa, lies were fabricated about the inherent criminality of Black people. During Reconstruction, when southern sheriffs determined they could make a profit from renting prisoners to plantation owners who lost their slave labor, they arrested Black people en masse amidst swirling lies about Black people's supposed rampant criminal conduct. Finally, Blacks who were defiant or 'uppity' were often accused of rapes and murders that never occurred, and then summarily killed by mobs. NAACP records reflect that between 1882 and 1968 there were 4,743 lynchings, with Blacks comprising 72% of the victims. In the modern era, police patrolling patterns are too often fueled by stereotypes of Black criminality and white innocence. Police often create self-fulfilling prophecies by looking for crime in Black communities – and finding it, while many crimes that occur with regularity in upscale white communities go undetected. What should be of concern to all is the fact that the presumption of criminality is a malignant phenomenon that has metastasized into other communities of color. Consider that all that is needed to prove gang membership and the need for a life sentence in a hell-hole prison in El Salvador is Latino heritage and tattoos. But racial dynamics are not the only factor to be considered. The fact that Schurr was a police officer complicates an already complicated situation. In his article, Warren explains: '…[T]he current composition of juries tends to be more favorable to the prosecution and police. One manifestation of this bias is through increased credibility of police testimony. Such unearned officer credibility creates an atmosphere of reduced scrutiny, as jurors are more willing to take an officer at her word without the necessary analysis, reasoning, and ultimate weighing of credibility. Less police scrutiny leads to problems for the judicial system, especially because police officers, like anyone, are not perfect.' The prosecutor has decided not to retry the Grand Rapids case, and the community must now move forward. In doing so perhaps all will be best served by remaining acutely aware that criminal proceedings that appear to be proper unavoidably occur against a historical and social backdrop that includes racial stereotypes and implicit biases that alternately favor and disfavor certain communities and law enforcement officers. Notwithstanding their best efforts to be fair and to render a just result, in America, no jury is immune. Mark P. Fancher is the staff attorney for the Racial Justice Project of the ACLU of Michigan. Submit a letter to the editor at and we may publish it online and in print. Like what you're reading? Please consider supporting local journalism and getting unlimited digital access with a Detroit Free Press subscription. We depend on readers like you. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Christopher Schurr mistrial in Lyoya shooting has history | Opinion
