Surprise! Beyoncé just dropped a new song in honor of Juneteenth called “Black Parade.”
In addition to the track, Beyoncé also unveiled the “Black Parade Route”—an online directory putting a huge spotlight on Black-owned artists and businesses through her BeyGOOD charity.
“Happy Juneteenth Weekend! I hope we continue to share joy and celebrate each other, even in the midst of struggle. Please continue to remember our beauty, strength and power,” Beyoncé wrote on Instagram.
“Being Black is your activism. Black excellence is a form of protest. Black joy is your right.”
“Black Parade” serves as the singer’s first new song as a solo artist since the Lion King companion album The Gift, which was released last summer. She most recently appeared on the remix to Megan Thee Stallion’s “Savage.”
Proceeds from “Black Parade” will benefit BeyGOOD’s Black Business Impact Fund, administered by the National Urban League, which supports Black-owned small businesses.
During an interview with an ABC affiliate in Pennsylvania on Friday (Jun. 19), Mike Pence refused to say the words “Black lives matter,” instead saying that “all lives matter.”
“Let me just say that what happened to George Floyd was a tragedy,” Pence told 6ABC Action News in Philadelphia when asked directly if he would say that Black lives matter.
“And in this nation, especially on Juneteenth, we celebrate the fact that from the founding of this nation we’ve cherished the ideal that all, all of us are created equal, and endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights. And so all lives matter in a very real sense.”
Juneteenth, however, commemorates the end of slavery in America, which happened nearly a century after the nation’s founding.
The distinction between saying “Black lives matter” and “all lives matter” has emerged as something of a cultural dividing line amid the nationwide discussion about racial equality that has been touched off in recent weeks.
The phrase “Black lives matter” has gained widespread use in recent years as a way to draw attention specifically to deadly encounters between Black Americans and police.
“Forgive me for pressing you on this, sir,” anchor Brian Taff said to Pence, “but I will note you did not say those words, ‘Black lives matter,’ and there is an important distinction.
“People are saying, of course all lives matter, but to say the words is an acknowledgment that Black lives also matter at a time in this country when it appears that there’s a segment of our society that doesn’t agree. So why will you not say those words?”
“Well, I don’t accept the fact, Brian, that there’s a segment of American society that disagrees, in the preciousness and importance of every human life,” Pence said.
“And it’s one of the reasons why as we advance important reforms in law enforcement, as we look for ways to strengthen and improve our public safety in our cities, that we’re not going to stop there.”
Pence went on to tout the Black unemployment rate pre-pandemic and the development of economic “opportunity zones,” adding that the administration is “absolutely determined to improve” the lives of African Americans.
“And yet, one final time, you won’t say the words and we understand your explanation,” Taff responded.
We don’t know how many times it has to be said that “Black lives matter” doesn’t mean that no other life matters.
Of course ALL lives matter … but ALL lives aren’t being targeted by police, and ALL lives aren’t dealing with the ramifications of racial injustice and systemic racism. Just Black lives.
Is the concept of “Black Lives Matter” really that hard to comprehend? Are people like Mike Pence and Donald Trump just plain dumb and don’t have the mental capacity to grasp a seemingly simple concept?
It’s Juneteenth for Christ’s sake! You can’t even say “Black lives matter” on Juneteenth?!?
Chicago rapper and Chief Keef associate Tray Savage is dead after he was shot Friday morning (Jun. 19) while he was driving in the city’s infamous South Side area.
According to Chicago police, Savage had just dropped his girlfriend off in the 8100 block of South Evans Avenue in the Chatham neighborhood when shots rang out.
Police said Savage was hit in the neck and shoulder, but continued driving and crashed into three cars. He was rushed to the University of Chicago Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Kentray Young, Savage’s birth name. He lived in the same neighborhood where he was shot, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
Witnesses said they noticed a white SUV, possibly a Mazda, in the area at the time of the fatal shooting. Chicago police said detectives are investigating, but they don’t have any suspects in custody.
A Chicago native, Tray Savage was a member of the rap label Glory Boyz Entertainment (aka GBE), which is owned by Chief Keef and the late Fredo Santana.
Savage is best known for his 2013 collaboration with Chief Keef and Tadoe (another Chicago rapper and GBE member) called “Chiefin Keef.”
The stepmother of the Atlanta Police officer who is facing felony murder charges for shooting and killing Rayshard Brooks has been fired from her job.
Garrett Rolfe was one of the officers involved in the murder of an Atlanta resident who had fallen asleep behind the wheel in a Wendy’s parking lot.
The killing came in the midst of mass protests against police brutality around the country, and less than a week later, he was facing felony charges for the incident.
Now, his stepmother, Melissa Rolfe, has been terminated from her position with Atlanta-based Equity Prime Mortgage (EPM) where she served as the human resources director.
— Equity Prime Mortgage LLC (@Equity_Prime) June 19, 2020
EPM, which was co-founded by people of color, strives to build “wealth in communities of color that have historically suffered from systemic racism,” they said in a released statement.
“We recognize the roadblocks these communities face and have and will continue to honor our commitment to removing them.”
While the exact reason for her firing hasn’t been released, EPM said that Rolfe’s HR position was terminated because she “lost the confidence of her peers, leadership, and many employees who no longer felt comfortable engaging with her.”
“EPM is dedicated to being an organization that strives for diversity and equality,” they said.
After the outcry of voices denouncing Garrett Rolfe’s actions, Melissa reached out to Georgia congressional candidate Marjorie Taylor Green, saying that the backlash was “nonsense,” according to reports.
She also said that she agrees with Greene “100%” on many topics.
Greene has been under fire this week because of a surfaced Facebook video that showed her making racist remarks, including saying that Black people are “held slaves to the Democratic Party” with a “BackTheBlue” hashtag.
Los Angeles sheriff deputies shot and killed an 18-year-old man who was working as a security guard Thursday night (Jun. 18).
Andres Guardado had been hired by a local body shop to prevent local residents from tagging the building with spray paint.
While on the job, two deputies from Gardena approached the teen and claimed that he flashed a weapon at them before fleeing on foot.
The officers chased the teen on foot before ultimately gunning him down and taking his life.
“The police came up, and they pulled their guns on him and he ran because he was scared,” said Andrew Heney, the shop’s owner who hired Guardado. “They shot and killed him.”
“He’s got a clean background and everything,” Heney told reporters. “There’s no reason.”
It doesn’t appear that the police officers were called to the scene, but instead, they saw the teen with a firearm he used for his job.
During a briefing, Lt. Charles Calderaro said: “Deputies observed the individual, at which point he observed the deputies. The individual then produced a handgun and began running southbound away from the deputies through businesses nearby.”
It’s unclear if Guardado fired any shots at the deputies, but he was pronounced dead at the scene and no officers were injured.
“I lost a part of me, it’s empty, and I’m never gonna have him back,” said Guardado’s sister. “I’m never gonna see him, he’s never gonna talk to me. I just can’t believe this happened to my brother. It really hurts.
As the news of Guardado’s death emerged, people took to the internet to demand justice after yet another police killing.
The teen’s death comes just one day after another deadly shooting by police officers in Los Angeles County, and as of now, the incident is currently being investigated internally.
Brett Hankison, one of the three Louisville police officers involved in the tragic shooting death of Breonna Taylor, has been fired.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer announced the firing on Friday (Jun. 19).
In a letter to the disgraced officer, interim police Chief Robert Schroeder said Hankison “violated obedience to rules and regulations” and “displayed an extreme indifference to the value of human life” by “blindly” firing 10 rounds into Taylor’s home.
The chief also called Hankison out for firing upon someone he didn’t know posed a threat, and also for shooting through a patio door without knowing who or what was on the other side of it.
“I find your conduct a shock to the conscience,” Schroeder wrote. “I am alarmed and stunned you used deadly force in this fashion.”
Schroeder added: “The result of your action seriously impedes the Department’s goal of providing the citizens of our city with the most professional law enforcement agency possible. I cannot tolerate this type of conduct by any member of the Louisville Metro Police Department. Your conduct demands your termination.”
The other two officers who shot into Taylor’s apartment—Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Officer Myles Cosgrove—were placed on administrative reassignment after the incident.
Mayor Fischer refused to say why only Hankison had been fired.
“Unfortunately, due to a provision in state law that I would very much like to see changed, both the chief and I are precluded from talking about what brought us to this moment or even the timing of this decision,” he said Friday at a press conference.
In recent weeks, Hankison has also been accused of sexual assault by multiple women via viral social media posts. In each instance, he offered intoxicated women a ride home from bars before sexually assaulting them.
An LMPD spokeswoman said last week that the department was “looking into the allegations.”
Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron addressed the investigation into Taylor’s death on Thursday, saying that his team was working around the clock, but they didn’t have anything to report yet as far as possible charges for the officers.
He instead pleaded for patience and peace and promised to follow the truth and be “thorough and fair” to everyone involved.
Breonna Taylor, 26, was shot dead on March 13th when three plainclothes officers entered her apartment during a no-knock drug raid while searching for a suspect that had already been taken into custody.
Last week, Louisville banned no-knock warrants with an ordinance called “Breonna’s Law.”
Hurricane Chris has reportedly been arrested for murder following a dispute with another man at a Texaco gas station in Louisiana.
According to KTBS, the 31-year-old Shreveport, Louisiana rapper—whose real name is Christopher Jerrod Dooley Jr.—initially told police he shot and killed a man early Friday morning (Jun. 19) in self-defense after the man tried to steal his car.
The deadly encounter happened just after 1 a.m. at the Texaco convenience store in the 2600 block of Hollywood Avenue.
Early reports from Shreveport police indicated a man who was at the store said he shot a man that he thought was trying to steal his vehicle.
The victim suffered multiple gunshots and was taken to Ochsner LSU Health hospital, where he later died.
Investigators later determined that Chris made up the story, as video footage obtained from the shooting showed that he did not act in self-defense, and not only that, but the car he was in did not even belong to him and had been reported stolen from Texas.
The rapper was charged with second-degree murder and illegal possession of stolen things.
Hurricane Chris is best known for his 2007 album 51/50 ratchet, which features his hit single “A Bay Bay.” He’s also known for hits such as “Playas Rock” and “Halle Berry (She’s Fine.)”
Surprise! Raven-Symoné is a married woman after tying the knot with her girlfriend, Miranda Pearman-Maday, in a backyard wedding ceremony.
The actress took to Instagram Thursday (Jun. 18) to reveal the happy news, writing alongside a photo with her bride: “I got married to a woman who understands me from trigger to joy, from breakfast to midnight snack, from stage to home. I love you Mrs. Pearman-Maday! Let’s tear this world a new a**h*le!!! I’s married NOW.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBlPtkLD4F-/
Minutes before sharing the news, Raven hinted that “something happened” this week, sharing a picture of a celebratory glass of champagne, presumably from her and Miranda’s wedding.
She captioned the post: “So something happened this week, that has changed my life FOR THE BETTER!”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBlPTpDDksx/
In a separate IG post, Raven thanked her loved ones who attended the intimate wedding, writing: “Thank you to all those who helped and for those who understand why it was small during this time.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBlQSHMD7yT/
Symoné, who has remained private about her love life, first opened up about her sexuality back in 2016.
“I never thought I would come out because my personal life didn’t matter,” Symoné shared in Lexus L/Studio’s ‘It Got Better’ docu-series. “It only mattered what could be sold as part of the Raven-Symoné brand.”
Raven—who first started acting back in 1989 at the age of 3 after landing the role of Olivia on The Cosby Show and went on to headline Disney’s That’s So Raven as well as a series of TV movies for “The Cheetah Girls”—admitted in the interview that she knew she was gay by the time she was 12 years old, but she tried to force herself to be attracted to boys.
She said, at the time, she’d even convinced herself that she would end up being married to a man. “I kind of pushed myself to open myself up to look for boys,” Symoné said.
But when she went to college, that’s where she found herself and discovered that she didn’t need to hide her sexuality anymore.
“I went to college. I felt good,” she said. “I had support there beyond belief, and that was the first time I felt like I didn’t have to have a beard. I didn’t have to have a man standing beside me because I [was] in love with a girl.”
That’s when she decided to come out to her parents, then the world.
“I felt lighter,” she recalled. “I felt like I could go out and not have to put on 17 different hats to be myself.”
A huge congrats goes out to Raven and her new bride!
Terron Jammal Boone, Fuller’s half-brother, was shot dead by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies Wednesday afternoon (Jun. 17) in Rosamond—just north of the Los Angeles County border—after authorities say he opened fire on them.
A team of deputies were looking for Boone—who was wanted for kidnapping, spousal assault and assault with a deadly weapon—when they spotted a vehicle with Boone in the passenger seat.
When police tried to pull the car over, he opened the passenger door and opened fire on deputies, and deputies shot back. Boone was struck multiple times in the upper body and died at the scene, police said.
A woman and a 7-year-old girl were also in the vehicle.
The woman, who was driving the vehicle, was shot in the chest, but was released from the hospital Wednesday night, the sheriff’s department said.
The child was unharmed. It wasn’t clear what the woman and child’s relationship to Boone was.
Officials told the Los Angeles Times that “none of the detectives nor their vehicles were equipped with cameras, but investigators are working to recover footage from … home video systems in the area.”
Video footage posted on social media of the incident showed vehicles following an SUV into a housing complex parking lot. Police can then be heard shouting “Hands Up!” repeatedly before a litany of gunshots.
Sources told NBC Los Angeles that Boone was suspected of kidnapping an unidentified woman and holding her against her will.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department didn’t name the person killed in the shooting, but an attorney for the Fuller family identified the man as Terron Boone, who shares a mother with Fuller.
Bonne’s death came exactly one week after Fuller’s body was found hanging from a tree in a park in Palmdale, California on June 10th.
Authorities initially claimed the 24-year-old’s death was a suicide, but his family said they believe it may have been a lynching.
The body of Malcolm Harsch, another Black man, was also found hanging from a tree in Victorville, California 10 days earlier. Victorville is a little over 50 miles away from Palmdale, where Fuller’s body was found hanging.
The deaths of Fuller and Harsch have gained national attention amid widespread Black Lives Matter protests against racial injustice and police brutality.
The FBI and California Attorney General’s Office have said they will now be monitoring the investigations into Fuller and Harsch’s deaths “to determine whether there are violations of federal law.”
Amy Cooper, the NYC woman who made headlines when she called the cops on a Black man who was just out birdwatching, is once again in the news, and Twitter is eating it up.
A recently released New York Times article chronicling the incident included an interesting tidbit about the woman who claimed she feared for her life when an innocent man asked her to put her dog on a leash.
“In a legal filing that reads more like a soap-opera script, Amy Marie Cooper says she dated Martin Priest, 36, for four years but claims she had no idea he was still living his wife Tianna, 32, at the time,” the story reads.
It goes on to say that the two parted ways until Priest resurfaced years later in trouble. Apparently, he had yet another lover, who he had gotten pregnant, and he needed $65K “to protect himself and his children from his wife and pay Carrie to abort her unborn child.”
Cooper proceeded to lend her old flame the money as a loan, but Priest used it to divorce his wife and run off with the pregnant girlfriend, according to a lawsuit by Cooper.
After the video emerged of Cooper calling the police, she quickly received national backlash. She lost her job, temporarily had her dog taken from her, and was thrust into the national spotlight.
Now that she’s back in the headlines, people on Twitter are having a field day with the revelation that she gave her married lover $65,000 to not only divorce his wife but to pay his OTHER side chick for an abortion.
finding out that amy cooper ( the woman who called the cops on that guy in central park ) PAID A MAN 65K to leave his WIFE and to pay for the abortion of ANOTHER WOMAN and then him taking the money and getting w/ a brand new woman has really been the highlight of my week so far
On the one hand, I don't want to spend another moment thinking about Amy Cooper; on the other hand, pic.twitter.com/OP7cMTRXYr
— Detective Pikajew wants Bill de Blasio gone (@clapifyoulikeme) June 14, 2020
Y’all. Amy Cooper was fucking a married man and “lent” him $65k. When he didn’t leave his wife she sued him to get her money back ???????? https://t.co/lDJh6QGVHP
— Dreamville Librarian (@indigogloves) June 17, 2020
Priest, however, is telling a different story than Cooper, saying that she “harassed” and “stalked” him.
“She became increasingly abusive and unstable,” he told NYT. “I tried to get away from her as she become more outrageous and threatening with her demands.”
It’s just the latest development for the woman who now has a law named after her designed to punish people who make false reports based on race.
A teenager in Florida has quit his job at Publix after the grocery store chain refused to allow him to wear a face mask that supported the Black Lives Matter movement.
18-year-old Quinton Desamours was moved by the protests happening across the country to combat police brutality, and he decided to show his support for the cause by writing the letters “BLM” on his face mask.
When he arrived for work, his supervisor told him that he wouldn’t be allowed on the floor with the mask on because it “was endangering myself and everybody else who worked there,” Desamours told reporters.
Rather than complying and changing his mask, Desamours decided he’d rather quit his position.
“I don’t want to be a part of a company that’s not committed to making a change,” he said. “This was never a political statement to me. It was all about equality and human rights.”
Publix, which recommends employees working on the floor to wear protective face masks, says that they support the fight against racial injustice. Their CEO, Todd Jones, recently wrote a letter to employees saying they support change.
“Like you, I’m saddened and unsettled by any racial injustice or events that divide this country,” the letter read. They even made a $1 million contribution to National Urban League affiliates across the country, according to reports.
When questioned as to why they wouldn’t allow the Black Lives Matter mask to be worn, the company said that they don’t “permit non-Publix messaging on clothing or accessories.”
“Many employees have different designs on their masks,” he told reporters. “They just didn’t like the message I was trying to portray.”
Publix apparently reached out to the teen apologizing for the matter, but said “they don’t want to be apart of political views,” Desamours wrote on Twitter.
Got a call from the @Publix District Manager apologizing. They also said they don’t want to be apart of political views. #BlackLivesMatter is not political! The movement is all about Equality. There will be no change until EVERYBODY is 100% IN. Let’s keep fighting. They hear us!
The Fulton County District Attorney’s office has filed charges against the officer who shot and killed Rayshard Brooks in a Wendy’s parking lot.
During a press conference Wednesday afternoon (Jun. 17), Fulton County D.A. Paul Howard announced that former Atlanta Police Officer Garrett Rolfe will be charged with felony murder and 10 other charges, including felony murder and multiple assault with a deadly weapon charges.
Howard said Devin Brosnan, the other officer on the scene, also faces three charges, including aggravated assault.
Garrett Rolfe kicked Brooks while he lay on the ground and the officer with him, Devin Brosnan, stood on Brooks’ shoulder as he struggled for life after a confrontation Friday night, Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said at a news conference.
Rolfe had already been fired after he fatally shot Brooks, 27, on Friday night. Brosnan, who will be charged with aggravated assault and other crimes, had been placed on administrative leave.
Brooks’ widow, Tomika Miller, attended the news conference along with her lawyers, Justin Miller and L. Chris Stewart.
The news came as Republicans on Capitol Hill unveiled a package of police reform measures and the movement to get rid of Confederate movements and other racially offensive symbols reached America’s breakfast table, with the maker of Aunt Jemima syrup and pancake mix dropping the 131-year-old brand.
The shooting sparked new demonstrations in Georgia’s capital against police brutality, after occasionally turbulent protests in response to George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis had largely simmered down. Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields resigned less than 24 hours after Brooks died.
Police were called to a Wendy’s fast food restaurant over complaints of a car blocking the drive-thru lane. An officer found Brooks asleep behind the wheel of the car and called for another officer to do field sobriety testing.
Police body camera video shows Brooks and officers having a relatively calm and respectful conversation for more than 40 minutes before things rapidly turned violent. Brooks wrestled with officers, snatched one of their stun guns and turned and pointed it at one of them as he ran through the parking lot.
An autopsy found that Brooks was shot twice in the back.
Rayshard Brooks was on probation when he was found asleep and intoxicated at a Wendy’s drive-thru, and he feared going back to prison if he ended up being charged with DUI, which may explain why he tried to make a run for it when police tried to arrest him.
Brooks was shot and killed Friday (Jun. 12) when cops received a 911 call to the Wendy’s at University Avenue in Atlanta after Brooks fell asleep behind the wheel of his car and blocking the fast-food restaurant’s drive-thru lane.
Bodycam footage released of Brooks’ interaction with police before the fatal shooting showed him being polite and compliant with officers for 20 minutes while officers Devin Brosnan and Garrett Rolfe questioned him about how much he’d had to drink and how he ended up in the drive-thru.
At one point during his interaction with police, Brooks suggested to officers that he could just leave his car parked in the parking lot and walk home because it wasn’t far. “My sister’s house is right here,” he said pointing in the direction of the house he wanted to walk to.
But after Brooks failed a field sobriety test and blew a 0.108 into a breathalyzer, with 0.08 being the legal limit in Georgia, Rolfe tried to place Brooks under arrest.
Brooks resisted and a scuffle between him and the officers ensued. One cop could be heard shouting to Brooks “stop fighting” and warned him that he was going to tase him.
After Brooks took a taser from one of the cops, he tried to make a run for it, and that’s when he was shot at three times, twice in the back and once in the buttocks, an autopsy report revealed.
Now, the Daily Mail has revealed what caused Brooks to panic and run away when the cops tried to arrest him:
The charges to which Brooks pleaded guilty and for which he was still on probation dated back to August 2014 when he was convicted on four counts – False Imprisonment, Simple Battery/Family, Battery Simple and Felony Cruelty/Cruelty to Children.
He was tried in Clayton County and sentenced to seven years on the first count, with one year in prison and six on probation and 12 months for each of the other three counts, sentences to be served concurrently.
His sentence was revised, and he was sent back to prison for 12 months in July 2016 when he violated the terms of his probation.
Brooks had not been in trouble since that year until last December when he went to Ohio without informing his probation officer and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
That warrant was revoked and the case dismissed when he returned to Georgia on January 6.
Brooks’ wife, Tomika Miller, said he was a devoted husband to her and a loving father to their three daughters and his stepson.
Speaking to CNN, Miller recalled her husband as a happy person who always kept her spirits up and doted on their children.
She has told how Brooks pushed her to be a better person and said of her children: “They got him wrapped around their little fingers.”
“There’s nothing they can’t have even when I’m saying, ‘Hey, stop, don’t give them that, they don’t need that.'”
She last saw her husband at 4pm on Friday when she went home to unwind after the family had gone bowling, an outing at which she said, they “had a blast.”
Now she revealed her one great regret for which she carries a sense of guilt is that she did not stay with Brooks that day.
She said: “I know he wanted me to stay with him. I was just so tired that day.”
Brooks’ death was ruled a homicide by the Fulton County Medical Examiner, who conducted an autopsy on Sunday (Jun. 14).
DailyMail.com can also reveal that Rolfe begged Brooks to live as he desperately administered CPR to the dying man.
Rolfe’s bodycam came off during the violent altercation that erupted when he tried to cuff Brooks telling him he’d had too much to drink to be driving.
But the camera never stopped recording, as it was picked up and carried around by other officers called out to investigate the shooting before eventually being returned to its owner.
Amid angry shouts and accusations from by-standers Rolfe can be clearly heard pleading, “Mr. Brooks keep breathing. Keep breathing for me.”
The jerky bodycam footage captures him kneeling on the ground and administering CPR to the bleeding man while Brosnan looks on.
Rolfe administered CPR until the ambulance arrived and can be heard repeatedly calling Mr. Brooks’ name as he tried to keep him alive.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigations are still investigating the shooting and Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard is considering bringing charges against officer Rolfe who fired three times with two bullets striking Brooks in the back.
According Howard from what he has seen Rolfe would have a hard time arguing self-defense, despite the fact that Brooks grabbed Brosnan’s taser and turned to deploy the stun gun against Rolfe as he chased him.
Howard has stated that a Taser is not a lethal weapon and that therefore the officers’ lives could not be considered under threat as they had already established that Brooks was otherwise unarmed.
Regardless of what was on Rayshard Brooks’ criminal record prior to the Wendy’s incident, he did NOT deserve to be shot in the back and killed by police.
A White female cop has gone viral on social media after a video showed her having a full-on emotional breakdown after a recent visit to a McDonald’s because she had to wait for an Egg McMuffin that she ended up no longer wanted.
Dubbed “Officer Karen” and “Stacy McMuffin” by Twitter users, the policewoman—whose real name is said to be Stacey—breaks down into tears because she was afraid to eat her breakfast sandwich because it took too long to make and she couldn’t see it being made.
In other words, she was worried that someone had put something in her food because she’s a cop.
“I said ‘Don’t bother with the food because right now I’m too nervous to take it.’ It doesn’t matter how many hours I’ve been up. It doesn’t matter what I’ve done for anyone. Right now I’m too nervous to take a meal from McDonald’s because I can’t see it being made.
I don’t know what’s going on with people nowadays, but please, just give us a break. Please just give us a break. I don’t know how much more I can take. I have been in this for 15 years and I have never ever had such anxiety about waiting for McDonald’s drive-thru food. So please just have a heart and if you see an officer just tell them ‘Thank you.’ Because I don’t hear ‘Thank you’ enough anymore.”
Watch the clip for yourself below:
Stacey who has been a cop for 15 yrs went to @McDonalds She paid for it in advance and this is how she gets treated for being a cop?? Come on America. We are better than this. pic.twitter.com/IcudsNfVLY
This comes after three NYPD cops claimed they ingested bleach because they believed their milkshakes at a Manhattan Shake Shack location had been poisoned. It was later determined that “no criminality” was done by any Shake Shack employees.
Still … following the recent tragic deaths of Rayshard Brooks at the hands of cops in Atlanta, George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis cops, and of course, Breonna Taylor at the hands of Louisville police, social media has very little sympathy for a police officer crying over a damn breakfast sandwich.
If a one minute delay on your McMuffin causes you to break down crying because you assume it’s being poisoned… you shouldn’t have a gun.
this person…..having a mental breakdown over a mcmuffin… is allowed to carry a pistol everyday and use it whenever they deem it necessary https://t.co/A4ty2YJZzn
I can't imagine being the woman working for minimum wage at McDonalds who is now seeing a video go viral of an unstable and armed police officer–for whom she brought out a cup of coffee–accuse her of suspicion of tampering with a McMuffin. I would be terrified.
I am speechless. Black people are worried about getting killed in their sleep and cops are having nervous breakdowns about hash browns. Police officers need to be able to handle high pressure, life or death situations, and Stacey has gone viral because her McMuffin was late https://t.co/sTVIINM0oS
her job is being a police officer, anyone having a breakdown like that over a McMuffin doesn’t need to be carrying a firearm? Let alone being put in any actual stressful situations. if these officers emotions are so high they should be on leave. https://t.co/PiitkXti9E
McMuffin is trending because this woman had a full meltdown about having to wait for her order.
Officers collapsing into self-pity because they’re mildly inconvenienced… while a whole lot of Americans fear for their lives when they see them coming.
— The Hoarse Whisperer (@HoarseWisperer) June 17, 2020
While Officer Karen is trending, a reminder a Martin Gugino is still hospitalized with a fractured skull and is yet unable to walk. pic.twitter.com/tMosJzZFoq
The weaponization of white womens tears is amazing. Like we don’t wait an extra 10 minutes for Spicy every time we go to Popeyes even BEFORE the pandemic or the rebellion. Girl GTF. Use the wait time to teach your partners to be less racist. https://t.co/TyL1zZDEKy
Officer Karen's story about waiting for her McDonalds Egg McMuffin is way worse than the guy who was killed for sleeping on line at the Wendy's drive-thru. Yeah, it isn't. Get a grip lady.
You see "Officer Karen" trending and you’re like, “What could this be about?” Then you see the tape and your heart just breaks into a million pieces. Imagine never knowing if your McMuffin is going to come home. Imagine living with that fear
Black people are out here DYING after interacting with your comrades, and you having to wait for a McMuffin that you wrongly assume has now been poisoned is what’s sending you over the edge? Good grief.
A 61-year-old employee of the Philadelphia Family Court was fired from his position after a viral video was shared online showing the man tearing down Black Lives Matter signs and verbally assaulting a woman.
Michael Henkel was captured on camera ripping off multiple posters from a fence near a local playground as someone offscreen questioned what he was doing.
“My taxes pay for this place, just so you know. So I can do whatever I want,” he’s heard saying in the video. “I’m always around here too.”
The woman, who is offscreen, responded by saying, “Great. I live right here … Black Lives Matter!”
“Not to me, they don’t,” was Henkel’s response.
According to reports, Henkel had worked as a supervisor writ server in the First Judicial District’s Family Court where he earned a base salary of $71,591. He quickly lost that position when the video surfaced online.
“The Court takes this incident very seriously and believes Mr. Henkel’s behavior as shown in the video is egregious and totally unacceptable for an employee of the Courts,” said family court spokesperson Martin O’Rourke in a statement.
Henkel is just one of many people who have lost their jobs due to racist remarks and acts since the protests against police brutality took off following the murder of George Floyd.
Mugshots (L to R): Donny Salyers, Dennis Salyers, Farrah Salyers, Christopher Sharp, Amanda Salyers
Earlier this month, a Black Pastor in Virginia called the police for help when five people threatened him and used racial epithets. When the officers arrived, they arrested the pastor and let the five white people go.
This is the story of Pastor Leon K. McCray Sr. who called the incident the “most humiliating, dehumanizing, damning, and violating event of my life.”
He shared the painful story with his church and posted the video online so more people would be aware of the injustice he faced.
It all started when McCray arrived at an apartment he owns in Edinburg where he noticed a man and woman dragging a refrigerator into his dumpster. He knew they weren’t residents, so he asked them to leave.
The two didn’t comply. Instead, they got three more of their friends and surrounded the pastor.
McCray told reporters that the five started attacking him verbally and physically. He said they “threatening to kill me … telling me that my Black life didn’t matter,” and that “they don’t give a darn about that stuff in this country and they could care less.”
Feeling threatened, McCray pulled out a registered firearm to ward off the attackers, but he never actually fired a shot. Instead, he called the police.
According to reports, the responding officers proceeded to interview the group of five people. Then, they walked over and arrested McCray for “brandishing a firearm,” before they even gave him a chance to tell his story.
Since the incident, the Sheriff’s office has released a statement apologizing to McCray and condemning the actions of the responding deputies.
“After talking with him about the incident, it was apparent to me that the charge of brandishing was certainly not appropriate,” the statement read.
“Actually, as I told Mr. McCray, if I were faced with similar circumstances, I would have probably done the same thing.”
The five people who assaulted McCray have now all been charged with a litany of crimes, and the two deputies have been placed on unpaid administrative leave while the incident is under investigation, news outlets report.
Atlanta megachurch pastor Louie Giglio sat down with rapper Lecrae and Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy on Sunday (Jun. 14) and had an “open and honest conversation around how racism has plagued our city for generations, and the steps we can all take to confront it head-on in our church, our neighborhoods, and our hearts.”
During that “open and honest conversation,” Pastor Giglio—who heads ATL’s Passion City Church—said that instead of using the term “white privilege,” he would rather say “white blessing” since slavery was a “blessing” to white people.
Pastor Louie Giglio, rapper Lecrae and Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy "had an honest conversation about race and the Church" on June 14.
Here's an example of why words and their meanings matter.
He started out by saying: “I feel like on the inside of the church we’re fighting this historical context you [Lecrae] talk about. In other words, we love the blessing of the cross but we don’t love to sit in it and realize this is what God’s asking me to do, to die to myself, and live for him, whatever context that’s going to look like for me.
“But I want to flip that upside down because I think the other side of it is true with our nation’s history. We understand the curse that was slavery, white people do, and we say ‘that was bad,’ but we miss the blessing of slavery that it actually built up the framework for the world that white people live in and lived in.”
Giglio went on to explain that he feels as though the term “white privelege” makes some white people uncomfortable as hell (Ed. Note: AS IT SHOULD!), so he proposed that they change the phrase.
Speaking to Lecrae, the pastor said: “I know that you and I both have struggled in these days with ‘hey if the phrase is the trip up, let’s get over the phrase and let’s get down to the heart, let’s get down to what then do you want to call it,’ and I think maybe a great thing for me is to call it ‘white blessing’. That I’m living in the blessing of the curse that happened generationally that allowed me to grow up in Atlanta.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=838dbo4TgcA
Following Pastor Giglio’s comments, the phrase “White Blessing” quickly became a trending topic on Twitter, along with Lecrae’s name, as folks pointed out how ridiculous and offensive that statement is and how Lecrae just sat there and nodded his head as if he were in agreement.
“White privilege” accurately describes the unfair benefits that society gives white people. The phrase calls out a societal problem.
“White blessing” makes it sound like God blessed white people for being white. It implies white supremacy. What an absurd and offensive phrase.
Lecrae is just the latest example of the type of black "leaders" that are put in spaces that they shouldn't be in that Malcolm X spoke on over 55 years ago
He was put there because "they" knew he wouldn't be call them out for their "White Blessing"pic.twitter.com/3y5ECSbNjM
— P. Against The World ??? (@chillin662) June 16, 2020
@lecrae you let a White man say some foolishness and didn’t check him because you want to lead with “grace” and “love”. You were wrong. Own that. Doing all you do for Black people should include standing up for them when it’s uncomfortable. You should have done that then.
— Candice Marie Benbow (@CandiceBenbow) June 16, 2020
@lecrae You let a white man tell you to your face, “We miss the blessing of slavery…” and nodded your head. I hope you sit with that. https://t.co/uu7Kzev28D
Using the term “white blessing” instead of “white privilege” erases reality. “White blessing” implies that white advantages in society are ordained by God and allows white people to absolve themselves of responsibility for their own creation and perpetuation of white supremacy. https://t.co/uCzsnRKVIV
After getting dragged all over Twitter, Pastor Giglio clarified his comment, writing that he was “not seeking to refer to slavery as [a] blessing—but that we are privileged because of the curse of slavery. In calling it a privilege/benefit/blessing—word choice wasn’t great. Trying to help us see society is built on the dehumanization of others. My apology, I failed.”
@spulliam not seeking to refer to slavery as blessing-but that we are privileged because of the curse of slavery. In calling it a privilege/benefit/blessing— word choice wasn’t great. Trying to help us see society is built on the dehumanization of others. My apology, I failed.
Three NYPD officers were hospitalized after allegedly ingesting bleach that had put been put into their milkshakes at a Shake Shack location in New York City, ABC News reports.
The situation went down Monday (Jun. 15) when the three officers hit up a Shake Shack in Lower Manhattan and began to feel sick while drinking their milkshakes.
A statement released by the New York City Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association said that it was believed that the officers had ingested bleach.
“At some point during their meal period, the MOS discovered that a toxic substance, believed to be bleach, had been placed in their beverages,” the NYC PBA’s statement read. “The contamination was not discovered until the MOS had already ingested a portion of their beverages.”
The three NYPD cops were taken to a local hospital where they received treatment and they are expected to recover.
Since then, both Shake Shack and the New York Police Department Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison addressed the incident, with Harrison saying that following a “thorough investigation … it has been determined that there was no criminality by Shake Shack’s employees.”
Shake Shack said they were “working hard to get the full picture” and were “relieved to hear the officers are all okay.”
Our team is working hard to get the full picture. In the meantime, we’re relieved to hear the officers are all okay. https://t.co/rjJYFSYjZc
Harrison didn’t elaborate on the investigation and it still isn’t clear how the toxic substance made its way into the officers’ milkshakes, though the Detective’s Endowment Agency (DEO) said Monday night that they believed the three officers had been “intentionally poisoned.”
The statement from the DEA continued: “Police in New York City and across the country are under attack by vicious criminals who dislike us simply because of the uniform we wear. Emboldened by pandering elected officials, these cowards will go to great lengths to harm any member of law enforcement.
“We urge you to not buy food from locations unknown to you. Keep your eyes open and be alert at all times. Make sure you always stay with your partner — and back one another up. Inspect your vehicle—personal and department—before you drive. Now, more than ever, we have to be united.”
In a follow-up statement, the NYC PBA also warned officers to “remain vigilant at all times, both on and off duty” and said Shake Shake was fully cooperating with the investigation.
WLNY reported that employees at the Shake Shack had been questioned, but no arrests were made. A sample from the supposedly tainted milkshakes was also sent to a lab for testing.
New York City is among several major U.S. cities in which protesters have taken to the streets since the death of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis Police Department on May 25th.
“When NYC police officers cannot even take meal without coming under attack, it is clear that environment in which we work has deteriorated to a critical level,” the NYC PBA tweeted. “We cannot afford to let our guard down for even a moment.”
Last week, an impassioned Michael O’Meara, the head of the NYC PBA, said that officers were being vilified and denied concerns of Black parents who are afraid that their children will be brutalized or killed by cops, saying “it does not happen.”
“We all read in the paper all week that in the Black community, mothers are worried about their children getting home from school without being killed by a cop,” O’Meara said.
“What world are we living in? That doesn’t happen. It does not happen! Everybody’s trying to shame us. Legislators. The press. Everybody’s trying to shame us into being embarrassed of our profession.”
WATCH ? New York police boss Mike O'Meara went off on the media today:
"Stop treating us like animals and thugs and start treating us with some respect … Our legislators abandoned us. The press is vilifying us. It's disgusting." pic.twitter.com/CXOPARKff7
The man accused of murdering 19-year-old Black Lives Matter activist Oluwatoyin Salau and 75-year-old AARP volunteer Victoria Sims was arrested Sunday (Jun. 14) in Orange County on warrants for homicide and kidnapping, the Orlando Sentinel reports.
49-year-old Aaron Glee Jr. was booked into the Orange County Jail around 5 a.m. Sunday morning and he was being held without bond as of Monday afternoon.
She was last seen June 10th at a dessert shop in Tallahassee, and the week before her death, she was out protesting the death of George Floyd in Tallahassee and seeking emergency shelter.
On June 6th, the day she went missing, Salau tweeted that she’d been sexually assaulted by a man who offered her a ride to a church where she was staying temporarily.
Victoria Sims’ family reported her missing Saturday night (Jun. 13), two days after they’d last seen her.
Sims—a grandmother and retired state worker also known by the name “Vickie”—volunteered for the AARP and Second Harvest of the Big Bend food bank, and she and Salau met during the George Floyd/Black Lives Matter protests.
According to county court records, Glee has been arrested in Tallahassee twice within the past month on separate battery charges.
He was arrested on May 30th on a felony battery charge the day after an officer waiting a spotlight witnessed him kicking a woman in the stomach.
The woman, who said she knew Glee through a mutual friend, told police that she and Glee had been drinking alcohol together and were walking down the sidewalk when he asked her to “break me off a piece,” essentially propositioning her for sex.
After she rejected the sexual advance, Glee threw her to the ground and “began kicking her in the abdomen,” the arrest affidavit stated.
Authorities said Glee told officers he knew the woman because he “helps the homeless” and, in the past “has brought her food and drinks.”
Glee claimed that the woman offered to give him oral sex so he decided to purchase two bottles of liquor.
Glee said after he bought the liquor, the woman decided she no longer wanted to perform oral sex on him. He stated that he told the woman she owed him $60 for the liquor, but denied kicking or hurting her, according to court docs.
He was released on a $2,500 bond on June 1st and was arrested again just eight days later on June 9th on a separate misdemeanor battery charge related to an incident on May 28th when he got into a fight with another man over “racial differences” at a bus stop.
State prison records also show that Glee has at least nine criminal convictions dating back to 1992, all from Palm Beach County. His last prison stint ended in 2017 before he moved into Care Tallahassee, a Christian home for men.
Police in Akron, Ohio are investigating a shooting that left a Black teen dead after she was fired upon while waiting at a stoplight.
According to ABC News 5 Cleveland, police responded to reports of shots fired around 1:25 p.m. Saturday afternoon (Jun. 13) at the intersection of North Howard Street and West North Street
When police arrived on the scene, they found 18-year-old Na’Kia Crawford suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.
She was rushed to Akron City Hospital, where she later died from her injuries on Monday (Jun. 15).
Her grandmother was in the car with her at the time of the shooting, but she wasn’t injured.
Police have not made any arrests and the shooting suspect has yet to be identified, though investigators are following up on reports that the suspect is a white male driving a black Mustang with tinted windows.
Akron Police Lieutenant Michael Miller said there haven’t been any reports of related random shootings in North Akron, contrary to social media rumors.
Friends and family of Crawford, who was a 2020 graduate of North High School in Akron, gathered Monday afternoon at the intersection where she was killed demanding justice.
Akron Public Schools Superintendent David James said Crawford’s death marks the second student in a week to die from gun violence.
“We will never know what Na’Kia Crawford might have done in or after college,” James’ statement read. “She is our second student in a week to die a violent death. The flame of her candle went out way too early.
“To make it to her high school graduation, with plans for her future, especially during this difficult time of COVID-19, just stings that much more. The heartache is real for those of us left behind to pick up the pieces.”
The statement continued: “All of us at Akron Public Schools are feeling the loss of this young woman as we do when — all too often it seems — children’s lives are taken.
“We pray for Na’Kia and her entire family, her fellow students at North High School, and the teachers and staff there as well. We offer our support to them in any way that is possible. What a terrible loss.”
Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan said in a separate statement: “Na’kia Crawford was a young woman who deserved a life and a future. She was a recent high school graduate, preparing to start the next chapter of her story at Central State University. Her senseless murder is devastating, not only to her family and friends, but to the entire Akron community.
“I spoke with Nakia’s father and uncle, who I know, early this morning, and my heart truly goes out to all Na’kia’s loved ones in this time of incredible grief and pain. These events are extremely real and important to me and to the Akron Police detectives investigating Na’kia’s death.
“I feel that it is essential to say clearly and loudly: Black lives matter. Nakia Crawford’s life mattered.”
