Earlier this month, South Carolina’s General Assembly elected nearly two dozen judges to preside over cases across the state’s court system. No African Americans were selected for the judgeships. Instead, most of them were granted to white men, a fact that once again highlighted the state’s diversity problem, according to Black lawmakers who bristled at the legislative vote. “What this says to me is if you’re African American, do not apply,” state Rep. Leon Howard (D-Columbia) told Atlanta Black Star this week.
While Howard was outraged by the Feb. 3 elections, he was not surprised. He said South Carolina has had a dearth of Black judges since he was first elected in 1995.
A former professional athlete who once had the largest stable of Black-owned McDonald’s franchises in the nation now claims the mega fast-food chain is trying to force him out.
Herb Washington claims McDonald’s executives targeted him after he spoke out about the corporation’s unfair treatment of Black franchisees. They’ve retaliated by pressuring him to sell seven of his restaurants to white investors over the past three years, Washington said during a news conference Tuesday, Feb. 16.
Herb Washngton, top left, and his attorneys address reporters during a virtual press conference Tuesday, Feb. 16, where Washington announced a discrimination lawsuit filed against McDonald’s. (Matt Bruce)
Zerina Akers, Dominic Grizzelle, Kellie Brown, Shelcy and Christy Joseph (Facebook.com/WeTheCulture)
As part of its $25 million commitment to empower Black creators, Facebook is amplifying and investing in Black voices through its new We the Culture content initiative.
Launched on Tuesday, We the Culture was curated by a team of Black Facebook employees to help Black content creators build successful and sustainable digital communities on the platform. It kicked off with an inaugural class of 120 plus creatives that includes Danielle Young, Lauren “Sitting Pretty Lolo’ Spencer, Cameron J. Henderson, and Nneka Irobunda. The initiative also incorporates programming for Facebook Watch in partnership with production companies focused on Black creatives. Among the first shows are “Chop It Up” with actress Storm Reid, “Asking for a Friend” hosted by actress and entrepreneur Vanessa Simmons, and “Mastery of Comedy” with media host Angela Yee.
This is the second story in the three-part series titled “Below the Surface: The Fight to Protect African-American Cemeteries.” The series takes a look at the disparities and the ever-present systemic racism Black Americans face even in death.
One recent afternoon Edwina St. Rose and Bernadette Whitsett-Hammond walked an Atlanta Black Star reporter around Daughters of Zion Cemetery, a two-acre corner lot in Charlottesville, Virginia, filled with history.
The Daughters of Zion Cemetery was established by a charitable organization of African-American women in 1873. The cemetery is the final resting place of some of Charlottesville’s noted Black residents, including the Coles Family, who owned the largest African-American construction company in the city, and Benjamin E. Tonsler, who was a grade school principal and friend to Booker T. Washington. The last known burial came in 1995.
Facebook Launches Black Creator Accelerator Program We the Culture
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Facebook has launched We the Culture, a new content initiative created and managed by a team of Black employees that is investing in and amplifying content from Black creators.
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The initiative also incorporates programming for Facebook Watch through partnerships with production companies focused on Black creatives, and among the first shows are “Chop It Up” with Storm Reid, “Asking for a Friend” with Vanessa Simmons, and “Mastery of Comedy” with Angela Yee.
We the Culture grew out of Facebook’s announcement last summer following the murder of George Floyd that it would invest $200 million to support Black-owned businesses and organizations, including $25 million earmarked for Black content creators.