Editorial
NBC’s Brian Williams Blasts Trump Backside Smoocher Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Over Safe Dogs Act Veto
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: NBC / Getty NBC News host Brian Williams has largely portrayed himself as a stern and sometimes serious journalist but has shown flashes of having more edge than previously assumed. During his nightly news program, Williams had choice words for Donald Trump supporter, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas, this after the state leader vetoed a bill that would protect dogs from mistreatment. In the closing segment of a Wednesday night (June 23) airing of The 11th Hour with Brian Williams, the host opened with a straightforward rundown of Gov. Abbott’s deep alignment with the so-called “Trumper Republican” mindset which included the state’s controversial open-carry law, and Abbott’s support of new restrictive voting laws widely supported by Republicans and conservatives...
You Care: Kanye West Unfollows Kim Kardashian & Her Sisters On Social Media
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Sheri Determan/WENN.com / WENN While most people hoped for the best, many felt it was only inevitable that Kanye West and Kim Kardashian would split. With the latter filing for divorce and the former back on the dating scene, the petty is starting to escalate. Case in point, Kanye West has reportedly unfollowed Kim Kardashian and all her sisters on social media. You care. Okay, maybe not. But the UK newspaper the Mirror has noted that shortly after his 44th birthday on June 8, Yeezy started cleansing his timeline. Not so coincidentally, the finale of Keeping Up With the Kardashians has aired, and in the last episode Kim Kardashian explained why her marriage is a wrap. Of course, it was all Yeezy’s fault, allegedly. Among her issues were living separately ...
NFL Says It Will End Racist “Race-Norming” Practice In Concussion Settlement
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Benjamin Solomon / Getty The NFL has pledged to end a racist practice known as “race-norming” which examines the cognitive abilities of a Black player and curves it lower for data purposes. The measure is part of a $1 billion settlement reached after a class-action concussion lawsuit went forward. The Washington Post reports that the NFL and attorneys for the league and met with the legal representation of 20,000 players in regards to the litigation that was launched and has now come to an agreeable end. Attorney Chris Seeger issued a statement that read, “I am sorry for the pain this episode has caused black former players and their families. Ultimately, this settlement only works if former players believe in it, and my goal is to regain their trust and ...
Naomi Osaka Withdraws From French Open After Facing Expulsion
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Tim Clayton – Corbis / Getty Naomi Osaka entered the French Open tournament as one of the favorites to win it all despite heavy competition from the likes of Serena Williams and current No. 1 player Ashleigh Barty. Citing mental health concerns, Osaka has withdrawn from the tournament after she was faced with expulsion from the tournament and hit with a $15,000 fine. Osaka, 23, won her first-round match in the tournament against Patricia Maria Țig. Osaka was slated to take on Ana Bogdan in the second round but after skipping the mandatory postgame press conferences, all four major tournament bodies issued a statement saying that she could face harsher penalties or be booted from the WTA tour for failing to meet the obligations. Via a lengthy statement pos...
Black Activist Sasha Johnson Shot In Head In South London
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Guy Smallman / Getty Sasha Johnson, a notable Black activist in London, suffered a gunshot wound to the head according to reports that are still circulating here in the states. Johnson has endured death threats in the past and details are still in development regarding the incident as she recovers. On Sunday (May 23), the Taking The Initiative Party (TTIP), a group based in London, shared details of the shooting and has kept Johnson’s supporters informed with frequent updates regarding her condition. From Taking The Initiative Party’s Facebook page: It is with great sadness that we inform you that our own Sasha Johnson has sustained a gunshot wound to her head. She is currently hospitalised and in a critical condition. The incident happened in the early h...
Michael Rapaport Remains Willfully Tone-Deaf As Van Lathan & Rachel Lindsay Explain Harmful Images of Black People
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Nicky Nelson/WENN.com / WENN Someone should give Higher Learning podcast hosts Van Lathan and Rachael Lindsay a humanitarian award for their valiant attempt to get through the thick skull of Michael Rapaport about his penchant to post violent videos of Black people on his social media. Be clear. We said it was an attempt, not a success story. According to Bossip. Lathan attempted to level with Rapaport about why posting the violent content is damaging to the Black community, “On my social media, I don’t post any of these videos. I post no videos of violence. No videos of violence against Black people, no police beatings. I didn’t post the Goerge Floyd video,” Lathan calmly explains. “I post none of that. The reason I don’t post any of that stu...
Black Man Enslaved By White Restaurant Manager Owed Over $500K
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Horry County Sheriff’s Office / HCSO Although we’re some two decades into the 21st Century, slavery is seemingly alive in the United States of America. An imprisoned white restaurant manager enslaved a Black man with cognitive disabilities by making him work at his establishment five years straight without pay and a court is now saying the worker is owed over $500,000. The Washington Post shared details of the case involving Bobby Paul Edwards, 56, who is currently serving 10 years in prison after pleading guilty in 2019 to a forced labor charge. John Christopher Smith, now 43, worked at Edwards’ South Carolina restaurant, J&J Cafeteria, in the town of Conway for five years without pay. As part of Edwards’ sentencing, he was ordered by the court to pa...
Tyler Perry Accepts Humanitarian Award at 2021 Oscars With Plea To Not Hate Police Officers
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Handout / Getty Recent remarks from Tyler Perry have confused fans after announcing his refusal to hate police officers during his Academy Awards speech. On Sunday (April 25), the Atlanta media mogul recently took home the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for his work in helping others and feeding people during the pandemic, per a Fox 5 Atlanta report. Perry using his billion-dollar wallet to help people in their time of need has been well documented over the year. His good deeds include: leaving $21,000 in tips at an Atlanta restaurant, paying the tab for seniors shopping at 73 groceries stores, offering to pay for the funeral of Rayshard Brooks and Secoriea Turner, donating $100,000 to the legal defense fund of Breonna Taylor’s boyfriend, and feed...
Dr. Carl Hart: Blame Drug War For DMX’s Death, Not Drugs
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Adam Bielawski/WENN.com / WENN DMX, whose given name is Earl Simmons, died on April 9 after spending a week on life support. He was just 50, more than two decades short of his expected time on earth. Sometimes life is cruel that way. But not even death could kill moralistic-infused conjectures about DMX’s past drug use and its potential role in his untimely demise. “DMX suffered a drug overdose… [and this] …triggered a heart attack,” TMZ reported before anyone else. Like hungry sharks in pursuit of prey, other media outlets pounced on the story, devoured it, and shared it without deviating. Reactions on social media varied from sympathetic responses like this one: “Addiction is a lifelong battle” to just plain cruel ones like this: “If you do drugs, then ...
Biking While Black: New Jersey Cops Harass Black Biker For Not Having A License
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Screengrab / Youtube Given the unrest sparked by the actions of police officers across the nation, it remains baffling why instances of harassment masked as law enforcement remains rampant. In Perth Amboy, N.J., the actions of officers in the town sparked an investigation into the matter by the county prosecutor. As reported by NJ.com, a video of the incident captured by a group of young Black and Latino bike riders having a bit of two-wheeled fun depicted a moment where one of the officers responding to the non-violent collective decided it was time to flex some imaginary muscles. The reason the officers stopped the bikers was due to an obscure rule that they must have licenses to operate the bikes, something that probably doesn’t get enforced with a bun...
Tiger Woods Was Allegedly Speeding, Media Cares Again
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Rob Rich/WENN.com / WENN Back in late February, Tiger Woods was involved in a single video car crash that left him needing surgery for injuries to his legs. After it was determined that there was nothing illicit going on up to the accident, the media forgot about the story—until today (April 7) after news broke that the golf legend was speeding. The accident that hospitalized Woods occurred on a winding road in the Rolling Hills Estates in California on February 23. Woods was driving a Hyundai Genesis SUV, which was totaled in the crash, and suffered fractures in his leg. The Los Angeles Times reports that at the time of accident, Woods was driving over 80mph in a 45mph zone. The local sheriff’s office has revealed that the computer data from the vehicle ...
Black Man Who Murdered Mom Arrested For Beating Asian Woman In New York
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Screencap / NYPD Crimestoppers A horrific incident on a New York street involving a Black man unleashing a brutal beating on an elderly Asian woman has led to an arrest and growing outrage. Brandon Elliot, who murdered his mother in 2002 and served 17 years, was free on parole and carried out his attack on the 65-year-old woman on Monday (March 29). The NYPD Hate Crimes division shared a tweet on Tuesday that featured surveillance video images of Elliot along with reports of his arrest and charges. Elliot was slapped with both Felony Assault as a Hate Crime and Attempted Assault as a Hate Crime charges. Thanks to assistance from the public and excellent investigative work by @NYPDHateCrimes Detectives, the individual wanted for Monday’s assault of a 65 ye...
