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Tag: george floyd

  • An ICE Killing Puts Minneapolis on the Brink

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    Five years ago, a Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, killed a man named George Floyd. The Twin Cities, then the rest of the country, exploded in Black Lives Matter protests: daily marches, traffic blockades, calls to defund the police, and public destruction that matched the turmoil so many Americans were experiencing. In response to the burning of a police precinct, the governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, called up more than seven thousand National Guard troops and airmen to enforce a curfew. For protestors, there was a blurring of the local and federal; all officers inspired fear.

    One arm of the federal government, though, was later welcomed. In 2021, the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice—the standard-bearer in anti-discrimination enforcement—opened a “pattern and practice” investigation into the use of force by the Minneapolis Police Department. Before Floyd, there had been other victims whose names weren’t shouted in the streets.

    The Justice Department found that the M.P.D. had used excessive force, especially against protesters, Black people, Native Americans, and people with disabilities. Minneapolis has since banned choke holds and no-knock warrants. The current police chief, Brian O’Hara, has a reputation for fair-mindedness. Problems with local law enforcement persisted, but officers knew that they were being watched—by the people and by the federal government.

    For the past few months, federal officials have again been all over Minneapolis. As part of the Trump Administration’s mission to detain and deport a historic number of immigrants, more than two thousand officers with the Department of Homeland Security have swarmed Minnesota’s Twin Cities—St. Paul and Minneapolis, both sanctuary jurisdictions—and their suburbs. Masked, uniformed personnel from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Border Patrol, and D.H.S. police have arrested hundreds of non-citizens at bus stops, homes, even a library. Agents have asked neighbors to become informants. In subzero temperatures last month, D.H.S. engaged in an hours-long standoff with two men who were atop a partially constructed suburban roof. (ICE said that the men fled from a car “to evade arrest.”)

    These operations have targeted Latino and, notably, Somali communities. Minnesota, which has a long Lutheran-inspired history of refugee resettlement, is home to more than a hundred thousand people of Somali descent, nearly all of whom are U.S. citizens. Recently, Trump referred to Somali people, including Ilhan Omar, who represents Minnesota in the U.S. House of Representatives, as “garbage.” The Administration has leveraged a series of social-services fraud schemes, allegedly perpetrated by some Somalis (among others) in Minnesota, as a reason to go “DOOR TO DOOR.”

    Earlier this week, Kristi Noem, the Secretary of Homeland Security, joined her agents in Minneapolis. She later posted video of the ride-along: she wears a tactical vest and strides past an armored vehicle, in a file of men outfitted for war, up the stairs of an apartment building. They surround and apprehend an unarmed man whom they describe, on X, as an “Ecuadorian illegal alien convicted of robbery and WANTED for MURDER and SEXUAL ASSAULT.” The next day, an ICE officer, identified in press reports as Jonathan Ross, shot and killed Renee Nicole Good—a white U.S. citizen, poet, and mother of three—in the same area of South Minneapolis where Floyd was murdered. Good was at the wheel of her S.U.V., on a snowy street of large houses and evergreen trees, where ICE was conducting a raid. (It’s unclear whether Good was there as an activist, with a local rapid-response network, or just passing through.) Bystander videos showed an officer grabbing at the door of Good’s vehicle, then Good trying to steer away. Ross walked toward her windshield and shot her multiple times. Trump and Noem have justified his actions as self-defense. The Vice-President, J. D. Vance, accused Good of “trying to ram this guy with her car.” The way the media was reporting the story was an “absolute disgrace,” he added.

    I went to a vigil for Good that night. What looked to be a few thousand people crowded into the neighborhood where she was killed. The ground was slushy with snow. One of the speakers, standing near a ring of tea candles and flowers, condemned Good’s death as a “modern-day lynching.” She blamed Trump for sending outsiders—ICE officers—“into our city, where we live, to criminalize us.” A community organizer who went by S.B. told me, “The fear has been daily since ICE has been in the streets.”

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    E. Tammy Kim

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  • “Cookies With Rookies” takes place at Atlantic Station

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    Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice

    Public confidence in police in the United States plummeted in 2020 after the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police, with only 48% of Americans saying they had a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in police that year, a drop from historical norms above 50%, and remaining depressed in subsequent years.

    Across the country, that erosion of trust has lingered, particularly in communities of color, and has reshaped conversations about public safety, accountability, and community policing. Against that backdrop, Atlanta’s newest police officers and firefighters are participating in a grassroots effort to rebuild trust one conversation at a time.

    Jamal McKee – AFRD recruit. Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice

    Rookies from the Atlanta Police Department and Atlanta Fire Rescue hosted “Cookies With Rookies,” a community engagement event at Atlantic Station, designed to introduce first responders to residents outside of emergencies and foster dialogue in a casual setting.

    Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said the initiative is part of a broader city strategy to strengthen relationships and counter distrust that followed national controversies over police conduct and use of force.

    Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice

    “These are our newest members of the department, and we want them to understand that community partnership is essential,” Schierbaum said. “The only way we succeed as an effective police and fire department is to have that relationship with our neighborhoods.”

    For many Americans, efforts like this come amid ongoing skepticism about policing and the justice system. A 2025 Pew Research Center survey found that about a third of U.S. adults say things between police and Black Americans are worse now than before Floyd’s murder, and just 11% say the relationship is better. 

    Jamari Anderson- APD recruit. Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice

    Recruit Jamari Anderson, 22, said he chose to join the Atlanta Police Department because he wanted to be part of the solution and a reassuring presence in communities where distrust runs deep.

    “At the end of the day, someone always needs a protector,” Anderson said. “Regardless of how  

    Anderson said being present and approachable at community events is one way future officers can begin to bridge the gap with residents.

    On the fire side, recruits emphasized that trust is equally important when lives are at stake. Jamal McKee, a 28-year-old Atlanta Fire Rescue recruit who entered the academy in February 2024, said training demands precision and accountability.

    “This job is very detailed,” McKee said. “You’re learning EMT work and life-saving measures. It’s not just your license in your hands,  it’s other people’s lives.”

    McKee, scheduled to graduate in April 2026, said becoming a firefighter offered him a way to serve while being a familiar, reassuring face in the community.

    Atlanta Fire Chief Roderick Smith, a veteran of 32 years, said building trust before emergencies occur can make a meaningful difference when crises strike.

    “I always say, get to know us before the red lights come on,” Smith said. “When the lights come on, there’s chaos. Trust is key in those moments.”

    The monthly engagement events will continue through 2026, including during major events like the World Cup, as part of ongoing efforts to rebuild community trust and dialogue between first responders and Atlanta residents.

    Another recruit, 34-year-old Justus Wright, said he hopes residents remember firefighters as approachable people committed to service.

    “If they see me again in the future, I want them to recognize me and know that I’m there to help,” Wright said.

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    Noah Washington

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  • Opinion | What Does ‘White Guilt’ Mean in 2025?

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    Victim politics gave us pro-Hamas activism and a powerful reaction in the form of Donald Trump, argue Shelby Steele and his son, Eli.

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    Tunku Varadarajan

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  • FACT FOCUS: Trump paints a grim portrait of Portland. The story on the ground is much less extreme

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    PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — President Donald Trump, members of his administration and conservative influencers painted a bleak portrait of Portland, Oregon, at a roundtable event at the White House Wednesday, alleging that the city has been besieged by violence perpetrated by “antifa thugs” and that it is essentially a war zone.

    “It should be clear to all Americans that we have a very serious left-wing terror threat in our country, radicals associated with the domestic terror group antifa that you’ve heard a lot about lately,” Trump said.

    But the reality on the ground in Portland is far from the extremes described at the White House.

    Here’s a closer look at the facts.

    The protests

    TRUMP: “In Portland, Oregon, antifa thugs have repeatedly attacked our offices and laid siege to federal property in an attempt to violently stop the execution of federal law.”

    THE FACTS: There have been nightly protests outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Portland for months, peaking in June when police declared one demonstration a riot. There have also been smaller clashes since then: On Labor Day, some demonstrators brought a prop guillotine — a display the U.S. Department of Homeland Security blasted as “unhinged behavior.”

    The protests at the ICE facility, which is outside downtown, have largely been confined to one city block and have attracted a range of participants. During the day, a handful of immigration and legal advocates mill about and offer copies of “know your rights” flyers. Daytime marches to the building have also included older people and families with young children. At night, other protesters arrive, often using megaphones to shout obscenities at law enforcement.

    While the administration claims protesters are antifa, short for “anti-fascists,” antifa is not a single organization but rather an umbrella term for decentralized far-left-leaning militant groups that confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.

    The building was closed for three weeks from mid-June to early July because of damage to windows, security cameras, gates and other parts of the facility, federal officials said in court filings submitted in response to a lawsuit brought by Portland and Oregon seeking to block the Trump administration’s deployment of the National Guard. The building’s main entrance and ground-floor windows have been boarded up.

    Protesters have also sought to block vehicles from entering and leaving the facility. Federal officials argue that this has impeded law enforcement operations and forced more personnel and resources to be sent from other parts of the country.

    However, in the weeks leading up to the Trump administration’s move to federalize 200 members of the Oregon National Guard on Sept. 28, most nights drew a couple dozen people, Portland police correspondence submitted to the court shows.

    Protests began growing again after the National Guard was ordered to Portland over the objections of local and state officials.

    Since June, Portland police have arrested at least 45 people, with the majority of those arrests taking place in June. Meanwhile, federal prosecutors have charged at least 31 people with crimes committed at the building, including assaulting federal officers; 22 of those defendants had been charged by early July.

    Is Portland on fire?

    TRUMP: “The amazing thing is, you look at Portland and you see fires all over the place. You see fights, and I mean just violence. It’s just so crazy. And then you talk to the governor and she acts like everything is totally normal, there’s nothing wrong.”

    THE FACTS: Fires outside the building have been seen on a handful of occasions. In June, a man was arrested after he lit a flare and tossed it onto a pile of materials stacked against the vehicle gate, according to federal prosecutors, who said the fire was fully extinguished within minutes.

    More recently, social media videos of the Labor Day protest showed a small fire lit on the prop guillotine. And in early October, following the announcement of the National Guard’s mobilization, videos on social media showed a protester holding an American flag on fire — and conservative influencer Nick Sortor stomping the fire out.

    There have also been some high-profile confrontations between protesters and counterprotesters. In late September, conservative media figure Katie Daviscourt was hit in the face with a flagpole and suffered a laceration, police logs show. In early October, Sortor, who has more than 1 million followers on X, was arrested along with two other protesters following an altercation. Local prosecutors ultimately declined to charge him after finding that one of the protesters had pushed him and that “any physical contact he had with other persons was defensive in nature.”

    While Portland police correspondence submitted to the court notes a few instances of “active” energy and disturbances between protesters and counterprotesters, many entries describe low energy and “no issues” in the weeks leading up to the National Guard’s mobilization.

    A new tongue-in-cheek website has also launched in recent days: isportlandburning.com shows multiple live cameras in the city and near-real-time data from the city’s fire department.

    Shops and sewers

    TRUMP: “I don’t know what could be worse than Portland. You don’t even have sewers anymore. They don’t even put glass up. They put plywood on their windows. But most of the retailers have left.”

    THE FACTS: This is false. Portland does have sewers — its sewer and stormwater system “includes more than 2,500 miles of pipes, nearly 100 pump stations, and two treatment plants,” according to the city’s website. The largest sewer pipe is the East Side Big Pipe, which has an inside diameter of 22 feet, while the smallest are only six inches in diameter.

    Local and state officials have suggested that many of Trump’s claims appear to rely on images from 2020. Portland famously erupted in more than 100 days of large-scale unrest and violent protests after George Floyd’s killing by Minneapolis police that year. Police were unable to keep ahead of splinter groups of black-clad protesters who broke off and roamed the downtown area, at times breaking windows, spraying graffiti and setting small fires.

    But Portland has largely recovered from that time. Under a new mayor and police chief, the city has reduced crime, and the downtown — which has more than 600 retail shops, many with glass storefronts — has seen a decrease in homeless encampments and increased foot traffic. This summer was reportedly the busiest for pedestrian traffic since before the coronavirus pandemic, and a recent report from the Major Cities Chiefs Association found that homicides from January through June decreased by 51% this year compared to the same period in 2024.

    Gov. Tina Kotek said she told Trump during a phone call that “we have to be careful not to respond to outdated media coverage or misinformation that is out there.”

    Accusation of a cover-up

    KRISTI NOEM, Homeland Security Secretary: “I was in Portland yesterday and had the chance to visit with the governor of Oregon, and also the mayor there in town, and they are absolutely covering up the terrorism that is hitting their streets.”

    THE FACTS: Noem did visit Portland on Tuesday and met with Kotek and Mayor Keith Wilson. Both officials disagree with Noem’s narrative.

    Kotek has repeatedly said that “there is no insurrection in Portland,” including in conversations with Trump and Noem, and that the city does not need “military intervention.” She has also continually called for any protests to be peaceful and said that local law enforcement can “meet the moment.” After Trump threatened to send the National Guard to Portland, Wilson said in a statement that the city has protected freedom of expression while “addressing occasional violence and property destruction.”

    Observations on the ground in Portland support Kotek’s statement. While the nightly protests at the ICE facility have been disruptive for nearby residents — a charter school relocated this summer to get away from crowd-control devices — life has continued as normal in the rest of the city. There is no evidence of the protests in other areas of the city, including the downtown area about two miles away.

    Portland residents have taken to social media to push back against the Trump administration’s statements about their city with the hashtag #WarRavagedPortland, posting photos and videos that show protesters in inflatable unicorn and frog costumes, along with people walking their dogs, riding their bikes and shopping at farmers markets.

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    Find AP Fact Checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck.

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  • What to know after Trump classifies antifa as a domestic terror organization

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    President Donald Trump on Monday signed an order designating a decentralized movement known as antifa as a domestic terrorist organization, though whether he can actually do that remained unclear. Trump blames antifa for political violence.The Republican president said on social media last week during a state visit to the United Kingdom that he would be making such a designation. He called antifa a “SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER” and said he will be “strongly recommending” that its funders be investigated.The White House released Trump’s executive order shortly after he departed for New York, where he was addressing the annual meeting of the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday.Here are a few things to know about Trump and antifa:What is antifa?Short for “anti-fascists,” antifa is not a single organization but rather an umbrella term for far-left-leaning militant groups that confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.Can Trump designate it as a domestic terrorist organization?Antifa is a domestic entity and, as such, is not a candidate for inclusion on the State Department’s list of foreign terror organizations. Dozens of groups, including extremist organizations like the Islamic State and al-Qaida, are included on that list. The designation matters in part because it enables the Justice Department to prosecute those who give material support to entities on that list even if that support does not result in violence.But there is no domestic equivalent to that list in part because of broad First Amendment protections enjoyed by organizations operating within the United States. And despite periodic calls, particularly after mass shootings by white supremacists, to establish a domestic terrorism law, no singular statute now exists.The executive order did not specify how Trump would go about designating antifa as a domestic terrorist organization.What does antifa do exactly?Literature from the antifa movement encourages followers to pursue lawful protest activity as well as more confrontational acts, according to a 2018 Congressional Research Service report.The literature suggests that followers monitor the activities of white supremacist groups, publicize online the personal information of perceived enemies, develop self-defense training regimens and compel outside organizations to cancel any speakers or events with “a fascist bent,” the report said.People associated with antifa have been present for significant demonstrations and counter-demonstrations in recent years, including mobilizing against a white supremacist march in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017. They were also present during clashes with far-right groups in Portland, Oregon.Why did Trump label antifa as domestic terrorists?He says it’s a very bad and “sick” group. The executive order says antifa “uses illegal means to organize and execute a campaign of violence and terrorism nationwide” to accomplish its goal of overthrowing the U.S. government. The order calls on relevant government departments and agencies to use every authority to investigate, disrupt and dismantle any and all illegal operations, including terrorist actions conducted by antifa or anyone claiming to act on its behalf.Trump’s history with antifaIn Trump’s first term, he and members of his administration singled out antifa as being responsible for the violence at protests triggered by the killing of George Floyd, a Black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for several minutes and held it there even after Floyd stopped moving and pleading for air.Then-Attorney General William Barr described “antifa-like tactics” by out-of-state agitators and said antifa was instigating violence and engaging in “domestic terrorism” and would be dealt with accordingly.At the time, Trump blamed antifa by name for the violence, along with violent mobs, arsonists and looters.He recently began singling out antifa again by name following the Sept. 10 assassination of conservative youth activist Charlie Kirk, who was a big supporter of the president.In an exchange with reporters in the Oval Office last week, Trump said he would pursue a domestic terrorism designation for antifa if such a move had the support of Pam Bondi, the current attorney general, and other Cabinet members.“It’s something I would do, yeah,” Trump said. ”I would do that 100%. Antifa is terrible.”He previously had called for antifa to be designated as a terror organization after skirmishes in Portland, Oregon, during his first term.

    WASHINGTON —

    President Donald Trump on Monday signed an order designating a decentralized movement known as antifa as a domestic terrorist organization, though whether he can actually do that remained unclear. Trump blames antifa for political violence.

    The Republican president said on social media last week during a state visit to the United Kingdom that he would be making such a designation. He called antifa a “SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER” and said he will be “strongly recommending” that its funders be investigated.

    The White House released Trump’s executive order shortly after he departed for New York, where he was addressing the annual meeting of the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday.

    Here are a few things to know about Trump and antifa:

    What is antifa?

    Short for “anti-fascists,” antifa is not a single organization but rather an umbrella term for far-left-leaning militant groups that confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.

    Can Trump designate it as a domestic terrorist organization?

    Antifa is a domestic entity and, as such, is not a candidate for inclusion on the State Department’s list of foreign terror organizations. Dozens of groups, including extremist organizations like the Islamic State and al-Qaida, are included on that list. The designation matters in part because it enables the Justice Department to prosecute those who give material support to entities on that list even if that support does not result in violence.

    But there is no domestic equivalent to that list in part because of broad First Amendment protections enjoyed by organizations operating within the United States. And despite periodic calls, particularly after mass shootings by white supremacists, to establish a domestic terrorism law, no singular statute now exists.

    The executive order did not specify how Trump would go about designating antifa as a domestic terrorist organization.

    What does antifa do exactly?

    Literature from the antifa movement encourages followers to pursue lawful protest activity as well as more confrontational acts, according to a 2018 Congressional Research Service report.

    The literature suggests that followers monitor the activities of white supremacist groups, publicize online the personal information of perceived enemies, develop self-defense training regimens and compel outside organizations to cancel any speakers or events with “a fascist bent,” the report said.

    People associated with antifa have been present for significant demonstrations and counter-demonstrations in recent years, including mobilizing against a white supremacist march in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017. They were also present during clashes with far-right groups in Portland, Oregon.

    Why did Trump label antifa as domestic terrorists?

    He says it’s a very bad and “sick” group. The executive order says antifa “uses illegal means to organize and execute a campaign of violence and terrorism nationwide” to accomplish its goal of overthrowing the U.S. government. The order calls on relevant government departments and agencies to use every authority to investigate, disrupt and dismantle any and all illegal operations, including terrorist actions conducted by antifa or anyone claiming to act on its behalf.

    Trump’s history with antifa

    In Trump’s first term, he and members of his administration singled out antifa as being responsible for the violence at protests triggered by the killing of George Floyd, a Black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for several minutes and held it there even after Floyd stopped moving and pleading for air.

    Then-Attorney General William Barr described “antifa-like tactics” by out-of-state agitators and said antifa was instigating violence and engaging in “domestic terrorism” and would be dealt with accordingly.

    At the time, Trump blamed antifa by name for the violence, along with violent mobs, arsonists and looters.

    He recently began singling out antifa again by name following the Sept. 10 assassination of conservative youth activist Charlie Kirk, who was a big supporter of the president.

    In an exchange with reporters in the Oval Office last week, Trump said he would pursue a domestic terrorism designation for antifa if such a move had the support of Pam Bondi, the current attorney general, and other Cabinet members.

    “It’s something I would do, yeah,” Trump said. ”I would do that 100%. Antifa is terrible.”

    He previously had called for antifa to be designated as a terror organization after skirmishes in Portland, Oregon, during his first term.

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  • Minnesota School District Bans Officer From Teaching After He Reenacted George Floyd’s Murder

    Minnesota School District Bans Officer From Teaching After He Reenacted George Floyd’s Murder

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    MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minnesota school district has banned a police officer from working as a substitute teacher after a series of “racially harmful” actions that officials say included putting a student on the ground for a reenactment of the 2020 murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis officer.

    The staffing agency that placed him at Woodbury High School said Wednesday that he also no longer works for them.

    The man was serving as a substitute English teacher on Monday when he told students in four separate 10th and 12th grade classes that they might want to hear about his life as a police officer, school officials said in a letter to students, families and staff.

    Besides the re-enactment of the actions that led to the death of George Floyd, students also complained that the substitute teacher “repeatedly made racially harmful comments,” “told sexist jokes,” “spoke in disturbing detail about dead bodies he had seen,” said “cops would be the best criminals” because “they know how to get away with stuff,” and “stated that police brutality isn’t real,” the letter SAID.

    The letter was signed by the principal of Woodbury High School and the superintendent and assistant superintendent of the South Washington County Schools district. It said the man is now prohibited from setting foot on district property. They also said they reported the incident to the Minnesota Department of Education, the state teacher licensing board and the Woodbury Police Department.

    Floyd died after a white officer pinned his neck to the pavement for 9 1/2 minutes despite the Black man’s dying pleas of “I can’t breathe.” Children were among the concerned witnesses, including a teen who captured the incident on a video widely viewed on social media. The officer, Derek Chauvin, was convicted of murder. Floyd’s death touched off protests that sometimes turned violent, testing the leadership of Gov. Tim Walz at one of the state’s most consequential moments, and sparking a nationwide reckoning over racial discrimination and police misconduct.

    “I specifically want to acknowledge racial harm that occurred when the substitute teacher reenacted the prone restraint that resulted in the murder of George Floyd,” Principal Sarah Sorenson-Wanger wrote.

    “This reported behavior is reprehensible. I am embarrassed, and I am sorry this happened to our students. We will take as much time as students need to listen and create open space for courageous conversations that lead to healing, action and education. The reported actions are not, and will not, be tolerated at Woodbury High School or in South Washington County Schools,” the principal wrote.

    The man was not identified in the letter, but it said he is not a police officer in Minnesota. Woodbury is a suburb southeast of St. Paul, and the eastern suburbs of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area extend into western Wisconsin.

    The substitute was hired through Teachers on Call, a staffing agency that’s part of the national Kelly Education employment network. The company said the man passed comprehensive background checks before he was placed.

    “The actions of this individual were unacceptable, and the substitute teacher is no longer an employee of Teachers on Call,” company spokesperson Danielle Nixon said in a statement. “We recognize the significant public trust placed in us to ensure our substitute educators maintain a safe learning environment. We have a zero-tolerance policy for any form of violent, aggressive, or harmful behavior.”

    Citing the ongoing investigation, she added that Teachers on Call is not releasing any additional information on its former employee.

    Woodbury Police Chief Jason Posel said in a statement Wednesday that his department is “disturbed by the preliminary information of what occurred” and will investigate this incident to the fullest extent, while showing compassion to the students impacted.”

    A police spokesman, Cmdr. Tom Ehrenberg, said officials didn’t know yet which law enforcement agency employs the substitute teacher.

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    The principal did not immediately return a message seeking further details Wednesday. The superintendent’s office referred a call to the district spokesperson, who did not immediately return a message either. Messages were also left with the Department of Education and the teacher licensing board.

    The South Washington County Schools district says it serves about 18,700 students at 25 schools in seven communities. It says 37% of its students identify as a race other than white.

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  • How women of color with Christian and progressive values are keeping the faith — outside churches

    How women of color with Christian and progressive values are keeping the faith — outside churches

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    Brandi Brown has yet to find a Black church near her Southern California home that feels right for her. So when she wants to talk about God, she relies on someone over a thousand miles (1,600 kilometers) away.

    Like her, Ellen Lo Hoffman, who lives just outside Seattle and is Chinese American, is a progressive Christian. They have known each other through a Christian fellowship for six years. But for the past three years, Hoffman has supported Brown, a former minister, through monthly virtual chats.

    “How Black women and how women of color experience God is different than how other people experience God,” said Brown, who is Black. “If I imagine myself, like, sitting on a bench trying to talk to God, Ellen is there too — to sit on the bench with me and point out observations and allow me to interpret things that I’m experiencing.”

    For some Christian progressives, the lack of acknowledgement by their churches or ministries of the 2020 racial reckoning was the final push to go elsewhere. Some women of color have been disappointed and upset by evangelical Christian churches — both predominantly white and multiracial — whose leaders failed to openly decry racism or homophobia. Traditional pastors and other leaders often see congregants’ concerns through a patriarchal lens, leaving many feeling dismissed or overlooked. Still, others said they felt alienated by evangelical supporters of former President Donald Trump, with whom they disagree on politics.

    Many are now finding solace and reaffirming their faith on their own terms through what they call “spiritual directors,” who are not necessarily priests, pastors, counselors or therapists, but can help others explore thoughts about God or broader concepts around a higher power.

    With nearly 24 years of ministry leadership experience, Hoffman has been a self-employed spiritual director for the past seven years. The 2014 death of Michael Brown by a Ferguson, Missouri, police officer was a pivotal moment for her. She gathered staff members of color, as the associate regional director of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA, in a discussion.

    Hoffman came away vowing to be a better ally.

    So when the murder of George Floyd and anti-Asian hate crimes soon dominated national conversation, Hoffman wanted to do more than march in protests and facilitate bystander training. She said she noticed that a lot of people of color needed “care in the midst of racial trauma.” So with her husband, she created Soul Reparations, a nonprofit providing free spiritual support to women.

    “With the people that I was already meeting with, the impact of the racial trauma in 2020 was constantly coming up,” Hoffman said. “And then the people who were reaching out looking for a spiritual director was all women of color looking for spaces to process.”

    The sessions are intimate one-on-one chats in person or over Zoom. It’s the client who drives the conversation. Often, there’s no Bible talk or preaching from Hoffman. The discussions can be more philosophical.

    “Simply allowing them to tell their story, giving them space to share their pain — is really healing for them and it restores a sense of identity,” Hoffman said. Churches, religious leaders and officials don’t get to “have the last word” on how women choose to express their Christianity.

    She has since recruited seven other women of color to serve as directors. In total, they have helped more than 200 women, including queer women, over the past three years. The demand hasn’t waned. Recently, Hoffman had to close a 60-person waitlist.

    That number doesn’t surprise Jessica Chen, of Los Angeles, who virtually meets with Hoffman monthly.

    “I do see this kind of movement of women of color who’ve left kind of the traditional church environment to create these spaces for other women of color,” Chen said. “So, sort of reimagining what community can look like for women of color, I think that’s very much needed.”

    Only in the last few years did Chen consider she might be limiting herself by only hearing male pastors who have a specific perspective that’s been “universalized,” she said. While her last church was diverse and multigenerational, she felt like she wasn’t growing as a person.

    “I want to hear from Black women, Asian women, Indigenous folks … queer folks. What has your faith experience been and how can I learn from your experiences as well?” Chen said. “And I think that makes our understanding and relationship with God or spirituality a lot richer.”

    In 2020, Rebekah James Lovett, of Chicago, tried to broach the subject of social justice with her evangelical pastor. She stayed up till 4 a.m. crafting a written plea to him. The pastor met with her but she came away feeling like he was simply placating her.

    Raised in Christianity by Indian immigrant parents, she said she came to a realization, “I can’t ever go back” to white, male-dominated churches that don’t consider other viewpoints.

    She felt liberated — but also a bit rudderless. Then she heard Hoffman speak on a podcast, “Reclaiming My Theology.”

    “The idea of going to a woman who also is pastorally trained was interesting to me,” Lovett said. “Christianity as we’ve been sold it is built on this sense of certainty that somebody has the answer and you just have to look to the Bible and it’s all right there. Whereas for Ellen, there’s this invitation to wonder. That was never there before.”

    After adding her name to the waitlist, Lovett became a regular client of Hoffman’s in fall 2021.

    Hoffman’s rates for spiritual direction range from $85-$100 per session — or, in some cases, are free. Her paying clients, or “directees,” don’t seem to mind. They liken it to a regular check-up or therapy session.

    “I do feel like it is a wellness practice as well as a spiritual practice. It’s something that keeps me centered,” Brown said. “I’m not trying to reach a goal. My only desire is to, deepen my personal relationship with God.”

    Many have left churches across the U.S. over the past few decades. Around 30% of Americans identify as “the nones” or people with no organized religion affiliation, according to a 2023 AP-NORC poll. They include atheists, agnostics and people who are “nothing in particular.”

    The Rev. Karen Georgia Thompson, who last year became the first woman and woman of color elected general minister and president of the socially liberal United Church of Christ, agrees churches are often patriarchal. They “continue to be exclusive and bring narratives of hatred, diminishing the human spirit and decrying people’s humanity,” she said. While UCC congregations have become more racially and ethnically diverse, Thompson wants to see that diversity reflected at the top as well.

    “We continue to include the voices of all in the leadership — as best we can — paying attention to those whose presence and voices have been historically underrepresented in the life of the UCC,” Thompson said in an email.

    Spiritual direction has actually reinvigorated Brown to not give up on looking for a church.

    “I’m excited about joining a church that talks about justice, that cares about LGBTQ+ people,” Brown said. “I want to be a part of a community.”

    ___ This story has been corrected to show Hoffman’s group has assisted more than 200 women or 70 per year, not 70 overall.

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  • Bronze statue of John Lewis replaces more than 100-year-old Confederate monument

    Bronze statue of John Lewis replaces more than 100-year-old Confederate monument

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    DECATUR, Ga. (AP) — A large bronze statue of the late civil rights icon leader and Georgia congressman John Lewis was installed Friday, at the very spot where a contentious monument to the confederacy stood for more than 110 years in the town square before it was dismantled in 2020.

    Work crews gently rested the 12-foot-tall (3.7-meter-tall) statue into place as the internationally acclaimed sculptor, Basil Watson, looked on carefully.

    “It’s exciting to see it going up and exciting for the city because of what he represents and what it’s replacing,” Watson said, as he assisted with the install process.

    Lewis was known for his role at the front lines of the Civil Rights Movement and urged others to get in “good trouble” for a cause he saw as vital and necessary. In DeKalb County where the Confederate monument stood for more than a century, protesters have invoked “good trouble” in calling for the swift removal of the obelisk.

    Back in 2020, the stone obelisk was lifted from its base with straps amid jeers and chants of “Just drop it!” from onlookers in Decatur, Georgia, who were kept at a safe distance by sheriff’s deputies. The obelisk was erected by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1908.

    Groups like the Beacon Hill Black Alliance for Human Rights and Hate Free Decatur had been pushing for the monument to be removed since the deadly 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

    The monument was among those around the country that became flashpoints for protests over police brutality and racial injustice, following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis. The city of Decatur then asked a Georgia judge to order the removal of the monument, which was often vandalized and marked by graffiti, saying it had become a threat to public safety.

    The statue of Lewis will be officially unveiled on Aug. 24.

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  • This You? Donald Trump Trashes Tim Walz For George Floyd Protests After Praising MN Governor’s Response In Leaked 2020 Audio

    This You? Donald Trump Trashes Tim Walz For George Floyd Protests After Praising MN Governor’s Response In Leaked 2020 Audio

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    More of Donald Trump‘s “flip-flopping” went viral after he bashed Kamala Harris‘ running mate, Tim Walz, for the same thing he previously supported on tape and claimed credit for. The current “hateration” in question: Trump backtracking about Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s handling of the unrest that followed George Floyd’s murder in 2020.

    Source: Michael Ciaglo/Andrew Harnik / Getty

    However, recently resurfaced audio recordings reveal that Trump’s current criticism is more misinformation from the “fake news” felon himself. CNN previously reported a full transcript of the detailed call between Trump and US governors. 

    Trump’s 2020 Praise Of Walz: A Conveniently Forgotten History

    Trump and his campaign have recently claimed that Walz “let Minneapolis burn.” Let’s rewind to June 1, 2020, when protests erupted across the country following the harrowing death of George Floyd, a Black man whose life was brutally taken by then-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. Amidst the nationwide uproar, Minneapolis became ground zero for protests, some of which turned violent as the city grappled with deep-seated anger and grief.

    Listen to the audio here where Trump praises Walz:

    During this time, Donald Trump was quick to praise Governor Walz for his handling of the protests. According to AP News, a phone call that included top officials like Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Attorney General William Barr, Trump told Walz, “What they did in Minneapolis was incredible. They went in and dominated, and it happened immediately.”

    Yes, you read that right.

    Trump, who now claims that Walz “let rioters burn Minneapolis,” was singing an entirely different tune back when the heat was on. Newsone states that Trump even went so far as to call Walz “an excellent guy” during that call. 

    Fast forward to the 2024 presidential campaign, and Trump, along with his running mate JD Vance, is suddenly criticizing Walz for supposedly allowing Minneapolis to burn during the protests. But here’s the kicker: that same audio recording, which Trump and the GOP are conveniently ignoring, directly contradicts these claims.

    AP News received a statement from Trump’s campaign spokesperson, Karoline Leavitt, who is trying to spin the narrative.

    “Governor Walz allowed Minneapolis to burn for days, despite President Trump’s offer to deploy soldiers and cries for help from the liberal Mayor of Minneapolis,” said Leavitt.

    However, according to the phone call,  Trump was praising Walz for deploying the National Guard. Trump himself claimed credit for in a 2024 fundraiser, despite the fact that it was Walz who gave the official order.

    This attempt to rewrite history isn’t just disingenuous; it’s a blatant attempt to mislead voters as Trump and his team scramble to discredit Walz, who has been tapped as Vice President Kamala Harris’s running mate in the 2024 election.

    The GOP’s current claims are nothing more than desperate attempts at damage control. What a PR mess.

    Republicans like House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and House GOP Chair Elise Stefanik have also jumped on the bandwagon.

    Newsone reports that Trump’s VP, JD Vance, ever eager to play the race card, questioned whether Black business leaders in Minneapolis were grateful that Walz supposedly allowed their businesses to burn.

    But again, the receipts—aka that 2020 audio—tell a different story.

    Truth Is Out, But Will It Matter?

    So, what’s the takeaway from all this? Simply put, Trump’s attempt to backtrack on his OWN recorded words is just another case of political opportunism. But thanks to modern technology and a few vigilant social media users, the truth is out there for anyone willing to see it.

    As the 2024 election heats up, it’s CONTINUOSLY proven that clearly the GOP is willing to bend, twist, and outright break the truth to suit their narrative. But the truth has a way of coming to light—whether they like it or not.

    For Trump and his team, the message is clear: You can’t rewrite history when the receipts are only a click away.

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  • Trump in 2020 praised Tim Walz’s handling of George Floyd protests

    Trump in 2020 praised Tim Walz’s handling of George Floyd protests

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    (CNN) — Republicans are attacking Tim Walz’s response to unrest in Minneapolis in 2020, but at the time, then-President Donald Trump said he “fully” agreed with how the Minnesota governor handled rioting in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder, undercutting a key line of GOP attack this week after Walz was named Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 running mate.

    “I fully agree with the way he handled it the last couple of days,” Trump said of Walz on a June 1, 2020, call during which he also described the Democratic governor as “an excellent guy.”

    The call was led by Trump, who was joined by then-Attorney General Bill Barr, then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley and then-Defense Secretary Mark Esper, and included a series of governors as protests across the country, some of which devolved into violent rioting, were breaking out following the police killing of Floyd on May 25.

    Details from the call, during which Trump implored governors across the country to “dominate” protesters, have previously been reported, and CNN published the call’s full transcript the day it happened in 2020.

    It’s not uncommon for even the most bitter of political rivals to offer tempered praise toward one another in the aftermath of a natural disaster or serious nationwide crisis – especially ones that require cooperation in responses between state and federal governments. But more than four years later, Trump’s praise for Walz takes on new meaning as the GOP nominee and his allies have sought to jolt Americans’ memories of the nationwide unrest that summer, linking Walz to pictures of Minneapolis engulfed in flames and the aftermath of the destruction.

    “You’ve got a big National Guard out there that’s ready to come in and fight like hell. I tell you, what they did in Minneapolis was incredible. They went in and dominated. And it happened immediately,” Trump told the governors. “Tim Walz. Again, I was very happy with the last couple of days. Tim, you called up big numbers and the big numbers knocked them out so fast it was like bowling pins.”

    The call took place a week after Floyd was killed. At the time, and in the years since, Republicans publicly criticized Walz over whether he waited too long to call in Minnesota’s National Guard.

    Trump’s 2024 campaign, responding to CNN’s request about his 2020 praise for Walz and the details of the call, said that he was only complimentary of the Minnesota governor given that by June 1, Walz “had acted.” They argued, however, that Trump had always been frustrated that Walz hadn’t taken more action sooner.

    Walz first activated the Guard on May 28, three days after Floyd was killed, and the same day protesters lit the outside of the Minneapolis Police Department’s Third Precinct on fire.

    “The important thing here is the timing and context for these remarks. He was complimenting a governor that finally, after days of madness, had finally done something. So it wasn’t in real time. It was after Walz finally did something about it,” a senior Trump campaign adviser told CNN.

    A second Trump adviser reiterated the point, telling CNN the call came “in the context of what President Trump encouraged a lot of these governors and local leaders to do, in finally stopping or doing something about these riots. It had been seven days, or however long, days that Minneapolis had been burning, where President Trump, is essentially saying, finally, you guys, finally, the burning and looting and rioting have stopped.”

    Allies close to Trump echoed the adviser’s sentiment, noting the panic among government officials at the time on how to curb the riots, and the urgency to reach across the aisle to stop the violence.

    During the 2020 call, Walz also offered some words of thanks for the Trump administration’s response, thanking Esper for his “strategic guidance.” He also asked the Trump administration to help with messaging surrounding the role of National Guard troops.

    But in the hours after Walz was announced as Democrats’ vice presidential candidate on Monday, Republicans attacked his tenure as governor — with much of the criticism focused on the timing of his decision to call in his state’s National Guard. Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, told reporters earlier this week that Walz “allowed rioters to burn down Minneapolis in the summer of 2020.”

    Walz “sat by and let Minneapolis burn,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis wrote on X. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott echoed that accusation. Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton said Walz “could have stopped” the rioting, “if he wanted to,” while the Republican Party’s research arm accused Walz of fleeing “like a coward” while Minneapolis burned.

    A spokesperson for Cotton’s Senate campaign said Walz “should have immediately sent in the Guard, the state police, and restored order instead of letting violent criminals destroy a huge portion of the city, before they were bailed out of jail by Kamala Harris,” alluding to a tweet Harris posted in support of a Minnesota bail fund.

    “As Tim Walz has admitted, his handling of the riots was an ‘abject failure,’” Cotton’s spokesperson said, referencing remarks the governor made about the city’s response to the riots. Spokespeople for Abbott and DeSantis did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday afternoon.

    Even before Harris selected Walz, Trump criticized the governor on the subject.

    “Every voter in Minnesota needs to know that when the violent mobs of anarchists and looters and Marxists came to burn down Minneapolis four years ago … Remember me? I couldn’t get your governor to act,” Trump told the crowd at his rally in St. Cloud, Minnesota, last month, before falsely claiming that he, not Walz, activated the National Guard in response to the unrest.

    “I sent in the National Guard to save Minneapolis, while Kamala Harris sided with the arsonist and rioters and raised money to bail out the criminals,” Trump said.

    Walz, who first activated the Guard after peaceful protests had devolved into instances of rioting, looting and violence, said in 2020 he did so in response to requests from the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul.

    During the June 2020 call, Trump said he had directed Walz to call in the National Guard, before lauding the way the officers performed.

    “I said you gotta use the National Guard,” Trump said, referring to Minneapolis. “They didn’t at first, then they did, and I’ll tell you that’s true, I don’t know what it was … those guys, third night, fourth night, they walked through that stuff like it was butter. They walked right through and you haven’t had any problems since.”

    The governor faced some bipartisan criticism for the timing of his order to activate the Guard. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, a Democrat who was facing scrutiny over chaos in his city, said in August 2020 that he had verbally asked Walz on the evening of May 27 to send in the Guard but that the governor hesitated. Walz refuted Frey’s account at the time, saying the ask did not constitute an official request, which he said came the next day. (Any tension between the two seems to have cooled.)

    Some of the most notable instances of violence in Minneapolis, including the ransacking and burning of a city police precinct, took place the night of May 28 – after Walz had already activated a portion of the Guard. Walz and Trump spoke the same day. The governor activated the entire guard on May 30.

    In the June 1 call with Walz and the other governors, Trump seemed to acknowledge that he was satisfied with how the state Guard responded to the protests: “Yesterday and the day before, compared to the first few days, was just – never seen anything like it,” Trump said. Walz responded: “Absolutely.”

    “A lot of people don’t understand who the National Guard is and you need to get out there, from a PR perspective, and make sure that it’s not seen as a occupying force, but it’s their neighbors, school teachers, business owners, those types of things,” Walz said on the call.

    Trump said he believed that was a good idea, though he added he thought “that the people wouldn’t have minded an occupying force.”

    “I wish they had an occupying force in there,” Trump added.

    Later that day, federal law enforcement would forcibly clear peaceful protesters from a park outside the White House, making way for Trump to cross the park and pose for a photo op with a Bible outside St. John’s Church.

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  • Trump and Vance team up to campaign in Minnesota, a state that hasn’t backed the GOP in 52 years

    Trump and Vance team up to campaign in Minnesota, a state that hasn’t backed the GOP in 52 years

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    ST. CLOUD, Minn. (AP) — As the presidential campaign enters a critical final 100 day stretch, Republican nominee Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, rallied supporters on Saturday in a state that hasn’t backed a GOP candidate for the White House since 1972.

    The rally in St. Cloud, Minnesota, was designed as a sign of the campaign’s bullishness about its prospects across the Midwest, particularly when President Joe Biden was showing signs of weakness ahead of his decision to exit the campaign. Trump, who won Michigan and Wisconsin in 2016 only to lose them four years later, has increasingly focused on Minnesota as a state where he’d like to put Democrats on defense.

    The rally is something of a gamble, potentially forcing the likely Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Democrats to devote resources in a state they would likely otherwise ignore. But it could also be a risk for Trump if he spends time in places that might prove to be a reach with Harris leading the ticket when he could otherwise focus on maintaining his support in more traditional battlegrounds.

    Trump spoke for more than an hour and a half to cheering crowds holding signs supporting police and calling for the deportation of migrants in the country illegally. He continued a pattern of escalating attacks against Harris on immigration and crime.

    He called her a “crazy liberal” and accused her of wanting to “defund the police,” while he said by contrast, he wants to “overfund the police.”

    “She has no clue, she’s evil,” Trump said, suggesting Harris had failed at her tasks related to the border as vice president. “Kamala Harris’ deadly destruction of America’s borders is completely and totally disqualifying for her to be president.”

    Trump called out Harris for a 2020 post she made after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis at the hands of police. The post had encouraged people to help protesters by donating to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, which had been working on reforming the bail system and posted criminal bail for people as part of a campaign to address inequities in the system.

    Though Harris did not contribute to the fund herself, her tweet was among those from celebrities and high-profile people that helped donations flow into the cash-strapped nonprofit, helping it quickly raise $34 million. In the immediate aftermath of the protests and unrest, the group actually spent little bailing out protesters.

    What to know about the 2024 Election

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    Ammar Moussa, a spokesperson for the Harris campaign, called Trump’s attack line “a desperate lie from a desperate campaign” that can’t change the fact that its candidate has been convicted of multiple felonies.

    Trump also knocked Harris as an “absolute radical” on abortion, seemingly sensing an opening to attack her on the issue after she has become the Biden administration’s most vocal proponent of abortion rights. He wrongly suggested Harris wants abortion “right up until birth and after birth.” Infanticide is criminalized in every state, and no state has passed a law that allows killing a baby after birth.

    Yet the former president also recycled much of his past material targeting Biden, showing how his campaign has sought to keep Biden’s pitfalls fresh in voters’ minds even after the president has ended his candidacy and endorsed Harris.

    Trump’s remarks followed a spirited speech from Vance, in which he leaned heavily into issues that animate the GOP base, particularly security at the U.S.-Mexico border and crime. He also took a broadside against the news media, arguing that journalists were comparing the first Black woman and person of south Asian descent to lead a major party ticket to Martin Luther King, Jr.

    In May, Trump headlined a GOP fundraiser in St. Paul, where he boasted he could win the state and made explicit appeals to the iron-mining range in northeast Minnesota, where he hopes a heavy population of blue-collar and union workers will shift to Republicans after years of being solidly Democratic.

    Appealing to that population has also helped Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz land on the list of about a dozen Democrats who are being vetted to potentially be Harris’ running mate.

    Walz posted on the social platform X on Friday poking fun at Trump’s visit to his state.

    “Donald Trump is coming back to the State of Hockey tomorrow for the hat trick,” Walz wrote. “He lost Minnesota in ’16, ’20, and he’ll lose it again in ’24.”

    Saturday’s rally took place at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center, a 5,159-seat hockey arena. After surviving the July 13 assassination attempt on him at an outdoor rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, Trump has only had events at indoor venues. But he said in a post on his social media network Saturday that he will schedule outdoor stops and the “SECRET SERVICE HAS AGREED TO SUBSTANTIALLY STEP UP THEIR OPERATION.”

    Secret Service officials would not say whether the agency had agreed to expand operations at Trump’s campaign events or had any concerns about him potentially resuming outdoor gatherings. “Ensuring the safety and security of our protectees is our highest priority,” Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement Saturday. “In the interest of maintaining operational integrity, we are not able to comment on specifics of our protective means or methods.”

    Earlier Saturday, Trump spoke at a bitcoin conference in Nashville, Tennessee, laying out a plan to embrace cryptocurrency if elected and promising to make the U.S. the “crypto capital of the planet” and a “bitcoin superpower.”

    Trump didn’t always support cryptocurrency but has changed his attitude toward the digital tokens in recent years and in May, his campaign started accepting donations in cryptocurrency.

    Also Saturday, Harris ramped up her campaign for president with her first fundraiser since becoming the Democrats’ likely White House nominee.

    The event in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, on Saturday was expected to raise more than $1.4 million, her campaign announced, from an audience of hundreds at the Colonial Theatre. That would be $1 million-plus more than the original goal set for the event before Biden dropped out of the race.

    ___

    Swenson reported from New York. Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani and Brian Slodysko in Washington and Kimberlee Kruesi in Nashville, Tennessee, contributed to this report.

    ___

    The Associated Press receives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about AP’s democracy initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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  • Dr. Tashion Macon creates blueprint for Black women with new book, ‘Coming In Hot’

    Dr. Tashion Macon creates blueprint for Black women with new book, ‘Coming In Hot’

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    The hardback/hardcover edition of “Coming in Hot’ will be coming out soon, according to author Dr. Tashion Macon. The E-book is available now on Amazon. For more information about Macon, visit https://www.tashionmacon.com. Photo by Kerri Phox/The Atlanta Voice

    In an empowering tribute to the accomplishments of Black women everywhere, Dr. Tashion Macon recently released her book, “Coming in Hot: A Blueprint for Black Women Setting the World Ablaze.”

    “Coming in Hot” is described as a movement, a call to action for Black women, the corporate entities that employ them, and the allies dedicated to their success and equitable consideration and inclusion in the C-Suite, according to Macon.

    Starting her career in Atlanta and LaFace Records, Macon witnessed the beauty of careers like Dr. Dre, Toni Braxton, Usher, TLC, OutKast, Pink, and more.

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    Isaiah Singleton

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  • OIG report: CPD unprepared for mass gatherings

    OIG report: CPD unprepared for mass gatherings

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    CHICAGO — A follow-up report to a 2021 review of the Chicago Police Department’s response to civil unrest following George Floyd’s murder was released by the Chicago Office of the Inspector General Thursday, which found CPD to be underequipped and underprepared for large-scale public demonstration.

    While the overarching conclusion was that more work needs to be done to prepare CPD to handle mass gatherings surrounding major political events, like the upcoming Democratic National Convention, Inspector General Deborah Witzburg did say good news came from the report.

    “The city is better situated in terms of planning, interagency citywide comprehensive planning for these events,” Witzburg said. “We’re in a better place now than in 2020.”

    Where improvements still need to happen lay with CPD’s guidance to its officers to ensure consistent messaging, according to the report.

    The report also points toward CPD’s Coordinated Multiple Arrest policy, which said the policy draws on outdated crowd control tactics.

    CPD Superintendent Larry Snelling rebuked the OIG’s report and defended the preparedness of his officers.

    “It’s very inaccurate,” Snelling said. “If you wanna come here, if you wanna protest if you wanna show up and you wanna have your voice heard the Chicago Police Department will protect your rights to do that.

    “As long as you’re not engaging in any criminal activity which is not protected by the first amendment.”

    Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson expressed optimism as the 2024 DNC fast approaches.

    “I’m confident that the work we are doing to secure a peaceful safe energetic convention that that work is ongoing. We’re confident we’ll be prepared and ready when the day comes.”

    The Chicago Office of the Inspector General has not returned WGN TV News’ requests for comment on this story.

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    Julian Crews

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  • Colorado lawmakers’ latest police oversight bill would protect whistleblowers from retaliation

    Colorado lawmakers’ latest police oversight bill would protect whistleblowers from retaliation

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    Former Edgewater police officer McKinzie Rees hopes to serve and protect again, but first she must get her name removed from a so-called “bad cops list” maintained by the Colorado Attorney General’s Office. It landed there, she said, as retaliation after she reported sexual assaults by a supervising sergeant.

    That sergeant went on to work for another police department until this year, when he pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual contact and misconduct and was sentenced, more than four years after the assaults and retaliation against Rees.

    She testified to the state’s House Judiciary Committee this week that, even after her attacker was exposed, her complaint about still being listed as a problem police officer “is falling on deaf ears every time.”

    Rees’ testimony, echoed by other frontline police officers from Colorado Springs and Denver about retaliation they faced after reporting misconduct, is driving state lawmakers’ latest effort at police oversight. Fresh legislation would require investigations of all alleged misconduct and increase protection for whistleblowers.

    But the bill, titled “Law Enforcement Misconduct,” faces resistance from police chiefs, sheriffs, district attorneys and the Fraternal Order of Police who contend it would complicate police work and lead to unnecessary prosecutions.

    While state leaders “are committed to addressing police misconduct,” the requirement that all allegations must be investigated could create “a caustic culture” within police agencies, said Colorado Department of Public Safety executive director Stan Hilkey in testimony to lawmakers during a hearing Tuesday.

    “This bill is harmful to the mission of public safety,” Hilkey said, raising concerns it would lead to police “watching each other … instead of going out and responding to and preventing crime.”

    The legislation, House Bill 1460, won approval on a 6-5 vote in the House Judiciary Committee. It would require investigations of all alleged misconduct by police, correctional officers and others who enforce the law in Colorado. Officers who report misconduct would gain the ability to file lawsuits if complaints aren’t investigated or they face retaliation.

    Key elements under discussion include a provision bolstering the attorney general’s power to add and remove names from the Police Officer Standards and Training database, which bars future employment, and to compel police agencies to provide information for managing that list.

    Other provisions would require longer retention of police records and prohibit government agencies from charging fees for making unedited police body-worn camera videos available for public scrutiny.

    Investigating all alleged misconduct is projected to cost millions of dollars as state agencies face increased workloads, requiring more employees in some agencies, and increased litigation and liability expenses.

    Lawmakers sponsoring the bill have agreed to remove a provision that would have established a new misdemeanor crime for officers who fail to report misconduct by their peers.

    But the increased protection for whistleblowers is essential, said Rep. Leslie Herod, a Denver Democrat, in an interview.

    “People need those protections now. This would ensure good officers can be good officers and bad officers who cover up for bad officers no longer can be on the force,” said Herod, who introduced the legislation on April 17.

    Most police officers “do great work,” sponsor says

    The bill would build on police accountability laws passed following the 2020 Minneapolis police murder of George Floyd, which sparked street protests, Herod said.

    “We still have more work to do. There’s no one-shot bill that will fix police accountability in the state,” she said.

    “The majority of police officers in Colorado do great work. We need to make sure we have protections in place when that doesn’t happen. This is just as important as any other issue we are debating in Colorado.”

    The late-in-the-session legislation would affect the 246 police agencies and 12,000 sworn officers around Colorado. It began when Rees and other police whistleblowers who had faced retaliation approached lawmakers.

    For Rees, 30, who now supports herself by pet-sitting, the feeling of still being punished — and prevented from continuing a career she worked toward since childhood — “is horrible,” said in an interview.

    “There should always be checks and balances,” she said. “It is exhausting trying to figure this out. You just get this runaround. There’s no way out.”

    Rees told lawmakers that she reported two sexual assaults in 2019 by the sergeant to colleagues, seeking protection under internal agency protocols and as a whistleblower under existing state laws.

    “Instead, I got served the ultimate sentence of no protection,” she said.

    This year, after his dismissal from the Black Hawk Police Department, former Edgewater police Sgt. Nathan Geerdes, who was indicted by a grand jury in 2022 on four counts of unlawful sexual contact and one count of witness retaliation, pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual contact, first-degree official misconduct and forgery as part of a plea deal. He was sentenced in Jefferson County District Court to four years of probation.

    Edgewater police officer Ed McCallin also testified, describing the retaliation he faced after he became aware “that a senior officer had sexually assaulted a junior officer” — referring to Rees — and then “weaponized” the state’s database against her.

    “I was asked to cover that up by my police chief,” he said. “I was threatened with internal investigations twice” and “had to meet with a city council member to save my job for doing the right thing.”

    When he went to the Fraternal Order of Police for guidance in the case, McCallin said, a contract attorney advised him “to look the other way.”

    “We just need more time,” sheriff says

    Colorado law enforcement group leaders and police advocates said their main concern was that they weren’t consulted by sponsors of this legislation.

    “We just need more time to dive into this,” Arapahoe County Sheriff Tyler Brown, representing the County Sheriffs of Colorado, told lawmakers.

    Herod acknowledged “miscalculation” in not consulting with law enforcement brass in advance.

    She and co-sponsor Rep. Jennifer Bacon, a Denver Democrat serving as vice chair of the House Judiciary Committee, said they lined up meetings this week to hash out language and amendments before the bill advances.

    Rep. Mike Weissman, who chairs the committee, agreed that support from law enforcement leaders would be crucial but added that he understood the “guardedness” of the bill sponsors, “given how these issues can go in this building.”

    District attorneys from Jefferson and El Paso counties objected to the proposed requirement that every misconduct claim must be investigated, saying it would create conflicts in carrying out their professional duties.

    Several lawmakers raised concerns about language in the bill, such as “unlawful behavior.” Rep. Matt Soper, a Delta Republican, said a police officer who was sexually assaulted and chose not to report the crime “could become caught up in the system” for failing to report misconduct. Or police who might have to make an illegal U-turn while chasing a suspect, hypothetically, would have to be investigated, he said.

    But the lawmakers broadly supported the efforts aimed at making sure the Attorney General’s Office manages the database of police transgressors properly.

    The committee’s bill supporters said the compelling testimony from the Edgewater officers and other whistleblowers persuaded them that there’s an undeniable problem to address.

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    Bruce Finley

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  • 3 Alameda police officers charged with involuntary manslaughter in 2021 death of Mario Gonzalez

    3 Alameda police officers charged with involuntary manslaughter in 2021 death of Mario Gonzalez

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    Nearly three years after a Bay Area man died when police pinned him facedown, in a case that drew comparisons to the killing of George Floyd, the Alameda Police Department officers involved have been charged with involuntary manslaughter, authorities announced.

    The charges in the death of Mario Gonzalez, 26, came Thursday. Gonzalez died after an altercation with police on April 19, 2021. No charges were filed against the officers at the time.

    An initial autopsy cited “physiological stress of altercation and restraint” as one of four factors in Gonzalez’s death, along with the “toxic effects of methamphetamine,” morbid obesity and alcoholism.

    The Alameda County district attorney’s Public Accountability Unit reopened the case in 2023, and a second autopsy determined that Gonzalez had died as “a result of restraint asphyxiation,” according to the prosecutor.

    The case was brought by Dist. Atty Pamela Price. Elected in 2022, Price had promised in her campaign to reopen the inquiry, which had been closed without charges by previous Dist. Atty. Nancy O’Malley.

    The three officers, Eric McKinley, James Fisher and Cameron Leahy, were charged with involuntary manslaughter.

    Gonzalez’s death drew comparisons to Floyd’s 2020 murder in Minneapolis by then-Officer Derek Chauvin, a killing that set off nationwide protests against police brutality.

    Less than a year later, police officers in Alameda responded to a report of an intoxicated person and possible theft at a local park.

    Body camera footage released by the Police Department shows the officers’ interaction with Gonzalez. In the video, Gonzalez struggles to answer their questions and appears dazed. After he fails to produce identification for the officers, they attempt to pin his hands behind his back to handcuff him.

    The officers determine that Gonzalez is resisting and push him to the ground, the video shows.

    “We’re going to take care of you, OK? We’re going to take care of you,” one officer tells Gonzalez as they continue to restrain him.

    “I think you just had too much to drink today, OK? That’s all,” the officer continues. After learning his name, the officer adds, “Mario, just please stop fighting us.”

    Gonzalez can be seen facedown in wood chips, grunting and shouting as the officers hold him down.

    One officer puts a knee on Gonzalez’s back and holds it there for at least four minutes, even as Gonzalez gasps for air.

    “I didn’t do nothing, OK?” Gonzalez says at one point.

    An officer eventually says that Gonzelez is “going unresponsive,” according to the video. The officers then roll Gonzalez over and perform CPR on him. He died at the hospital later that day.

    In its initial public comment on the case, the Alameda Police Department did not mention that Gonzalez had been restrained, saying only that “officers attempted to detain the man, and a physical altercation ensued. At that time, the man had a medical emergency.”

    But Gonzalez’s family saw the situation differently.

    “The police killed my brother, in the same manner they killed George Floyd,” his brother Gerardo Gonzalez told reporters at the time.

    Alison Berry Wilkinson, a lawyer who represented all three officers during the criminal investigation but who now represents only Leahy, called the case a “blatantly political prosecution.”

    “The officers’ actions while taking Mr. Gonzalez into custody were reasonable, necessary, and lawful, and his tragic death was the result of drug toxicity, not criminal misconduct,” she said.

    All three officers are still active in law enforcement and will surrender themselves in the case, Berry Wilkinson said.

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    Noah Goldberg

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  • Former Aurora police officer who beat Black man with gun goes on trial

    Former Aurora police officer who beat Black man with gun goes on trial

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    A former Aurora police officer is set to go on trial for his actions in the 2021 arrest of a Black man, including repeatedly hitting the man with a gun after he swatted his hands at the officer’s weapon, according to body camera footage and court documents.

    The violent arrest has put the former officer, John Haubert, on trial facing assault and other charges with opening statements expected Tuesday.

    The trial follows the convictions last year of a police officer and two paramedics from the city’s fire department in the 2019 death of Elijah McClain, who was put in a neckhold by police before being injected with the sedative ketamine by paramedics.

    Haubert’s lawyer, Reid Elkus, did not immediately respond to a request for comment to the allegations but said at a a recent court hearing that there was a rush by police to investigate and charge Haubert.

    Haubert, who resigned, has pleaded not guilty.

    His arrest of Kyle Vinson in July 2021 renewed anger about misconduct by the city’s police department. The department’s then-chief, Vanessa Wilson, who had vowed to try to restore trust, announced Haubert’s arrest four days later, calling the handling of Vinson’s arrest a “very despicable act.”

    Haubert also held his hand around Vinson’s neck for about 39 seconds, according to Haubert’s arrest affidavit, which referred to Haubert as “strangling” Vinson.

    Vinson was taken to a hospital for welts and a cut on his head that required six stitches, police said.

    Vinson was with two other men sitting under some trees when police responded to a report of trespassing in a parking lot. Two of the men got away from police, but Vinson was ordered to get on his stomach and put his hands out. He complied but repeatedly protested, saying he had not done anything wrong and police did not have a warrant. Police said there was a warrant for his arrest for a probation violation.

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    Colleen Slevin

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  • Georgia state Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick champions diversity and access to investment capital

    Georgia state Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick champions diversity and access to investment capital

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    During a typical day during the legislative session, Georgia State Representative Dar’shun Kendrick is usually walking around the House Chamber as she speaks to different lawmakers. It doesn’t matter if they’re from Elberton or East Atlanta. Decatur or Dacula. Kendrick, a Democrat from Lithonia, will speak to anyone in order to build consensus in order to get bills passed. 

    Last week, Kendrick qualified to run for House District 95, an area that includes portions of Lithonia, eastern Dekalb, southern Gwinnett, and western Rockdale counties. After the 12:00PM deadline on March 8th, Kendrick found out she would not have an opponent in the upcoming 2024 elections. Before she embarks on her eighth term in the Georgia House, the financial securities attorney would sit for an interview with The Atlanta Voice, from her legislative office. 

    “We’re only down here for 40 days, even though it’s not consecutive, it goes by really fast,” explained Kendrick. “So it’s almost like the time period, which we’re down here, forces you to be fearless because you don’t have all day. And I think I’ve developed some really good relationships.  I try to control the things I can control. It gives me such peace.”

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    Itoro N. Umontuen

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  • Top prosecutor in Derek Chauvin trial talks police reform during Colorado visit

    Top prosecutor in Derek Chauvin trial talks police reform during Colorado visit

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    DENVER — Sunday marked what would have been Elijah McClain‘s 28th birthday.

    McClain was killed in 2019 when Aurora Police Officers responded to a 911 call about a “sketchy” man. McClain, who was unarmed and had not committed a crime, was put into a neck hold by police. Paramedics administered a sedative called ketamine, which officials said led to cardiac arrest on the way to the hospital. He was declared brain dead days later and died Aug. 30, 2019.

    The two Aurora paramedics who injected McClain with ketamine were convicted of criminally negligent homicide, but the jury was split on the charges regarding the unlawful administration of the powerful sedative.

    Three former Aurora Police Officers — Jason Rosenblatt, Randy Roedema, and Nathan Woodyard — were all taken to trial. Only Roedema was convicted of the charges against him. He is appealing that jury decision.

    “I don’t think a ‘not guilty’ is a failure. I think the failure is to never even bring the case forward for consideration,” said the Minnesota Attorney General, Keith Ellison.

    Ellison was the top prosecutor in the case against Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis Police Officer convicted of the charges related to the killing of George Floyd in 2020.

    “2020 will be remembered as a time when, in the midst of a pandemic, we had a massive social reckoning,” said Ellison. “There were protests and demonstrations in almost every city, including Denver.”

    Hear Ellison’s message in the video below:

    Top prosecutor in Derek Chauvin trial talks police reform in Colorado visit

    Ellison wrote a book about what he learned during the trial, titled “Break the Wheel: Ending the Cycle of Police Violence.” On Sunday, Ellison visited Tattered Cover to discuss the novel with Colorado residents.

    “Not every police officer is Derek Chauvin,” said Ellison. “People like Derek Chauvin discourage good candidates from coming forth. I think that if people know that the dignity and the honor of the profession will be upheld, that it will attract people who want to do the job.”

    Ellison suggested a handful of ways to curb police violence. Some of the more attainable options, according to Ellison, are a greater emphasis on how to handle mental health crises, using cameras to enforce the law instead of traffic stops in certain situations, and a national database that tracks police violence.

    “What we’re doing is upholding high standards, and there’s nothing wrong with having high standards for law enforcement… If there’s no system of accountability, then almost every other measure you try to do will not work,” said Ellison. “We’ve got to put a system in place which will guarantee that the constitutional rights of everyone are going to be respected and observed… If we do that, better days are ahead. More cooperation, more public safety. Those things are around the corner for us if we’re willing to do those things.”

    In 2023, the City of Denver paid protesters a $1 million settlement.

    In Aurora, a record settlement of $15 million was paid to the parents of McClain.

    The Follow Up

    What do you want Denver7 to follow up on? Is there a story, topic or issue you want us to revisit? Let us know with the contact form below.

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    Colette Bordelon

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  • John Rich Slams Taylor Swift For Staying Silent About Toby Keith’s Death After He Helped Launch Her Career

    John Rich Slams Taylor Swift For Staying Silent About Toby Keith’s Death After He Helped Launch Her Career

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    Opinion

    Source YouTube: Fox Business, CBS Sunday Morning

    The country music legend Toby Keith passed away on Monday night at the age of 62 following a lengthy battle with stomach cancer. We then reported on how Keith had previously helped kickstart the career of Taylor Swift in a big way. In the wake of Keith’s death, however, Swift has stayed silent and declined to publicly pay tribute to him.

    Now, the country music star John Rich is calling her out for this in a big way.

    Rich Calls Out Swift

    Newsweek reported that Rich took to X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, to respond to journalist Matt Couch after he shared a 2005 video in which Swift gushed over Keith following him signing her to his label.

    “Going to be interesting to see what she says about Toby Keith,” Couch wrote. “Without Toby Keith there wouldn’t be a Taylor Swift.. Toby signed her to his record label and gave her, her start.. Hope she recognizes that today.. like she should..”

    Rich responded by questioning why Swift would stay silent about the death of a man who had helped her career so much.

    “When is@taylorswift13 going to share some words about Toby Keith? The man who discovered her, got her the 1st record deal? Taylor, where are you today? #TobyKeith,” Rich wrote.

    Daily Mail reported that in the video shared by Couch, a 15 year-old Swift praised Keith after he signed her to his record label, as he was a major stakeholder in Big Machine Records at the time.

    “You’re in the room and you can feel it. There’s a power there,” Swift stated in the footage. “And you’re just like ‘oh my god.’ So I don’t think I’ll ever get to a point where I won’t see him and be like: ‘oh my god, that’s Toby Keith.’”

    Backstory: Here’s How Toby Keith Helped Kickstart The Careers Of Taylor Swift And Blake Shelton

    Keith Performed At Trump Inauguration

    Of course, this was years before Swift became a radical liberal who enjoys constantly preaching about leftwing politics to her adoring fans. Perhaps her silence about Keith’s death could be over him defying the left to perform at the 2017 inauguration of Donald Trump.

    “I don’t apologize for performing for our country or military,” Keith said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly at the time. “I performed at events for previous presidents [George W.] Bush and [Barack] Obama and over 200 shows in Iraq and Afghanistan for the USO.”

    In 2017, Keith defended Trump after his infamous  “grab ’em by the p****” comment, pointing out that “Guys talk like that everywhere.”

    “Bill Clinton, everyone was on him about getting a BJ,” Keith said, according to Newsweek. “I was like, ‘It doesn’t affect the way he’s running the country.”

    Keith went on to be awarded the National Medal of Arts by Trump.

    Swift’s Politics

    In contrast, Swift has frequently used her platform to bash Trump, and she campaigned hard for Joe Biden in 2020. That year, Swift accused Trump of “stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism” in response to comments he made condemning the violence that spread throughout the country in the wake of the death of George Floyd.

    “After stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism your entire presidency, you have the nerve to feign moral superiority before threatening violence?” she wrote on social media at the time, according to The Mail. “When the looting starts the shooting starts’??? We will vote you out in November. @realdonaldtrump.”

    Related: Megyn Kelly Reveals Why Taylor Swift Would Be Crazy To Endorse Biden – ‘If She’s Smart…’

    Swift would not be where she is today if it were not for Keith, so her silence on his death is nothing short of deafening. While there is no confirmation that politics is what led Swift to stay silent on his passing, it would unfortunately not be surprising if this were to be the case.

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    James Conrad

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  • Seattle To Pay $10 Million Settlement To Black Lives Matter Rioters

    Seattle To Pay $10 Million Settlement To Black Lives Matter Rioters

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    Opinion

    Screenshot: The Telegraph YouTube Video

    The city of Seattle has agreed to pay $10 million to settle a lawsuit brought by Black Lives Matter protesters who claimed that they were victims of excessive force during the 2020 demonstrations.

    The settlement comes after years of legal battles and negotiations between the city and the protesters.

    A group of 50 BLM protesters filed the lawsuit claiming that the Seattle Police Department was a bit heavy-handed during the demonstrations following the death of George Floyd.

    Floyd died in 2020 during an arrest involving excessive force by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, sparking nationwide protests and unjustified race riots.

    Doing the math, the settlement amounts to a $200,000 payment to each protester involved in the suit.

    RELATED: Black Lives Matter Seattle Vows to Boycott White Businesses On Black Friday

    Black Lives Matter Gets A Hefty Payday For Rioting

    A statement from the City Attorney in Seattle seems to indicate that the $10 million payday was simply a means to settle the matter and move forward.

    “This decision was the best financial decision for the City considering risk, cost, and insurance,” he said. “The case has been a significant drain on the time and resources of the City and would have continued to be so through an estimated three-month trial that was scheduled to begin in May.”

    It’s never really a good strategy to give in to extortionists, especially those who burned and looted your city for months on end.

    You don’t reward a child who steals a cookie by giving them $10 to buy more cookies.

    Attorneys for the Black Lives Matter protesters claimed that their clients suffered a whole host of injuries ranging from hearing loss and broken bones to “emotional damage.”

    Will BLM use some of that money to pay for the emotional damage they caused local businesses?

    Journalist Andy Ngo, who documented much of the rioting, explains that such payouts “encourage future rioting.”

    RELATED: Lawless In Seattle: Anarchist ‘Autonomous Zone’ Preventing Police From Responding To Violent Crimes

    Who Pays For The Damage THEY Did?

    According to various reports, the riots in Seattle caused millions of dollars in damages to businesses, public buildings, and infrastructure.

    The Seattle Police Department reported that over 100 officers were injured during the protests, and many businesses were looted, vandalized, and set on fire.

    The Seattle City Attorney’s Office estimated that the total cost of property damage and other expenses related to the riots was around $200 million.

    This figure includes damages to private businesses, public buildings, and the cost of deploying law enforcement and other emergency services during the unrest.

    Those businesses got a lot less than $10 million. In fact, business owners received $3,650,000 for damages caused by the Black Lives Matter protests according to court filings.

    As for something you can’t put a price tag on, there were reports of two deaths that occurred during the Black Lives Matter protests in Seattle.

    One of these incidents involved a 19-year-old man who was shot and killed in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) zone, and another involved a 32-year-old woman who was hit by a car while protesting on a closed section of Interstate 5.

    Multiple other shootings took place in that seven-block area that police were forced to abandon during the “Summer of Love.”

    What do you think about this? Let us know in the comments section.

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    Rusty Weiss

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