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It's been just over a year since the now-famous Michael Brown killing and subsequent protests in Ferguson. Now, with riots still occurring, more headlines are cropping up as a result of one St. Louis officer Todd J. Bakula – aka TJ Thekoola, according to his Facebook page. Bakula reportedly used his overtime pay from working on the Ferguson case to go on vacation. What's causing a controversy, however, is not the vacation, but a Facebook post in which he announced (or bragged) that he used his "Michael Brown bonus" to go on vacation with his wife. Read More »
Soul, R&B singer/songwriter Goapele is wrapping up her 14-city tour that kicked off at Highline Ballroom in New York, New York on November 7. The last show will be at The Loft in Atlanta, Georgia on December 14. Read More »
Some celebrities are doing positive things, and John Legend along with his wife, Chrissy Teigen are also in that list. Read More »
Chicago Bulls player Derrick Rose made a bold statement when he rocked an "I Can't Breathe" shirt during Saturday, Dec. 6's warm-up against the Golden State Warriors. According to "Sports Illustrated," the black shirt was in support of Eric Garner, the African-American man who died when placed in a chokehold by a white police officer in NYC over the summer. Protests have been happening across the country ever since another jury reached the decision not to indict NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo for causing Garner's death. Though many officers were involved in the struggle with Garner, Pantaleo was the officer who put a chokehold on Garner while trying to arrest him for selling untaxed cigarettes. "I can't breathe" were the words you could hear Garner clearly yelling during the time of his arrest. Garner's death was ruled a homicide by the medical examiner's office, sending out chaos from protesters after a jury saw different. Derrick Rose wears "I Can't Breathe" shirt. #EricGarner pic.twitter.com/ghvbflibyk — Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) December 7, 2014 #EricGarner protesters march in cities across U.S. A special edition of #OutFront begins now w/ @ErinBurnett. @CNN pic.twitter.com/qgnhtPgZ8O — OutFrontCNN (@OutFrontCNN) December 6, 2014 There has also been more protests from the world of sports, including players from the St. Louis Rams. Stedman Bailey, Tavon Austin, Jared Cook, Chris Givens and Kenny Britt protested before a game with their "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" gesture that has been seen in Ferguson, Missouri, and across the nation for months now, and in recent weeks after a grand jury decided not to indict Officer Darren Wilson after he shot unarmed, 18-year-old Michael Brown in August. One celebrity who decided to show support of Eric Garner was Kylie Jenner. The "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" star was slammed by followers who felt that Jenner didn't really care about the situation at hand. When Jenner posted the photo statement below and captioned it, "RIP Eric Garner," she found herself in an Instagram fire as people criticized her over the post: Read More »
In the second high-profile instance of professional athletes making political statements in support of the protests occurring in St. Louis, Missouri, and New York City, Chicago Bulls star guard Derrick Rose etched his position on the side of support for late New Yorker Eric Garner by wearing a shirt that read "I Can't Breathe" during warm-ups before Saturday, Dec. 6's game against the Golden State Warriors. Garner died in July in a police chokehold while he was being arrested. A grand jury decided not to indict the police officer in the incident, inspiring protests around the country that echo those for Michael Brown, the 18-year-old young black man who was killed by a police officer this summer in Ferguson, Missouri. "I Can't Breathe" alludes to Garner's last words, which were captured on video. ESPN reported that earlier this week NBA legend Magic Johnson said athletes need to participate in social movements. Read More »
St Louis Rams tight end Jared Cook would "absolutely" repeat the 'Hands Up Don't Shoot' pre-game stance he and four other Rams teammates took in support of the family and friends of slain Ferguson teen Michael Brown, even if he's receiving online threats for his actions. Read More »
Former Chicago Bears coach and current ESPN TV personality Mike Ditka has taken a hardline stance against St. Louis Rams players who showed their solidarity with the family and friends of Ferguson police shooting victim Michael Brown with a "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" stance before their game against the Oakland Raiders Sunday, Nov. 30. The players — Stedman Bailey, Tavon Austin, Jared Cook, Chris Givens and Kenny Britt — all came out of the St. Louis tunnel before their Oakland game with their hands up in the "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" protest gesture. Elderly white man Ditka, however, doesn't think they should have. Saying that the Rams players should be "embarrassed" for their political stance — presumably against innocent people being shot by those charged to serve and protect them — the former NFL coach doesn't "want to hear about this hands-up crap" and adds that Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson's "life is ruined." Mike Ditka on Ferguson. http://t.co/59tjB5PPLU pic.twitter.com/Ee2T2VW7Ca — Sun-Times Sports (@suntimes_sports) December 2, 2014 Read More »
Former Chicago Bears coach and current ESPN TV personality Mike Ditka has taken a hardline stance against St. Louis Rams players who showed their solidarity with the family and friends of Ferguson police shooting victim Michael Brown with a "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" stance before their game against the Oakland Raiders Sunday, Nov. 30. The players — Stedman Bailey, Tavon Austin, Jared Cook, Chris Givens and Kenny Britt — all came out of the St. Louis tunnel before their Oakland game with their hands up in the "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" protest gesture. Elderly white man Ditka, however, doesn't think they should have. Saying that the Rams players should be "embarrassed" for their political stance — presumably against innocent people being shot by those charged to serve and protect them — the former NFL coach doesn't "want to hear about this hands-up crap" and adds that Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson's "life is ruined." Mike Ditka on Ferguson. http://t.co/59tjB5PPLU pic.twitter.com/Ee2T2VW7Ca — Sun-Times Sports (@suntimes_sports) December 2, 2014 Read More »
The current Ferguson protests - which began as a result of the "no indictment" decision against former Officer Darren Wilson surrounding the murder of unarmed teen Michael Brown - have caused quite a bit of stir in the news these days, especially after a number of St. Louis Rams players sported the "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" gesture during one of their games. And following the St. Louis police asking the NFL the apology for the gesture (in which the Rams' coach basically told them to screw off), there's been much discussion about "black-on-black" crime, something The Daily Show with Jon Stewart easily picked up on. To further the discussion, the Comedy Central hit brought in their Senior Black Correspondent, Larry Wilmore, who will replace Stephen Colbert with The Nightly Show when The Colbert Report ends. Read More »
Earlier in the weekend a University of Arkansas player celebrated a touchdown with a silent protest by raising both hands and staring into a row of cameras. But his actions garnered much less attention and controversy than the Rams' did. Read More »
Did Bow Bow really throw shade at the Rev. Al Sharpton as he spoke for the Brown family during a press conference's after Monday, Nov. 24's grand jury decision? "MStars News" previously reported that the officer who shot and killed unarmed Michael Brown, 18, will not be charged in his death. On Monday the city of Ferguson was filled with chaos, as streets were on fire, shots were fired and looting of businesses erupted as the prosecutor, Robert P. McCulloch, announced their would be "no indictment" against Officer Darren Wilson, 28. During last night's news conference, McCulloch said: "The duty of the grand jury is to separate fact and fiction," he said to the shocked nation. "No probable cause exists to file any charges against Darren Wilson." Now everyone, including celebrities, are talking about the "#FergusonDecision," and some of the tweets and comments are troubling. We learned that Bow Wow joked about Sharpton's words, as he said on Facebook: "Here go rev al sharpton's ass.. I wonder if he gone promote his Slickback Grease? I hope in his speech he doesn't start promoting his book. Always got to be all up in the videos all in the pictures (suge knight voice) Man dude is the biggest opportunist of all. Tired of this dude yo. Go sit your ass down. The young folks dont care what you got to say. They rather see rae sremmurd speak." Read More »
With the unfortunate protests occurring in Ferguson, Missouri right now due to the no indictment ruling on the murder of unarmed black teen Michael Brown, it seems things are only getting more dangerous – not only for residents, protestors and law enforcement, but also for the ones reporting on the news. Sara Sidner of CNN was recently reporting on the riots and was hit in the head by a rock in the middle. And what’s most shocking? She didn’t even miss a beat! Read More »
On Monday night, Nov. 24, America witnessed Ferguson, Missouri, go up in flames and chaos as the prosecutor announced that there would be "no indictment" filed against the officer who fatally shot unarmed teen Michael Brown in August in Ferguson. According to NPR, eyes and ears were open and listening to the news as everyone learned that Police Officer Darren Wilson, 28, would not be charged for any crimes in the death of the 18-year-old. Monday night's decision sparked an outrage not only in Ferguson community, but all over the U.S., including Chicago, New York, Oakland and Los Angeles. Brown's parents asked protesters to stay calm and be peaceful, but that went up in flames and resulted in looting. The Brown family said, "We are profoundly disappointed that the killer of our child will not face the consequence of his actions." Read More »
