By KIM CHANDLER Associated Press More than a dozen sticks of dynamite planted by Ku Klux Klansmen exploded at a Birmingham church in 1963, killing four Black girls. The “fifth little girl,” Sarah Collins Rudolph, survived but still has shards of glass in her body from the blast that took her sister, her right eye and her dreams of becoming a nurse. Rudolph, 69, is now seeking an apology from the state and compensation for what she says has been a lifetime of trauma. A law firm working for free on Rudolph’s behalf sent a letter to Alabama Gov. Kay…
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By KIMBERLEE KRUESI and ADRIAN SAINZ Associated Press MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) _ As millions of Americans struggle to pay their rent during the coronavirus pandemic, landlords are going to courts, claiming that the national eviction moratorium unfairly strains their finances and violates their property rights. At least 26 such lawsuits have been filed by property owners this year, including several federal challenges of President Donald Trump’s directive, delivered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that broadly prevents evictions through the end of 2020. In Memphis, seven landlords who together manage or own more than 5,000 rental units sued…
Nashville—Metro Nashville Government contracted with The Equity Alliance to conduct a Covid-19 community needs assessment to inform the Covid-19 Financial Oversight Committee’s funding recommendations. The Equity Alliance is a nonpartisan, Nashville-based 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that advocates for African Americans and other communities of color to have a fair and just opportunity at realizing the American dream. The Equity Alliance’s survey of 1,028 adults in Davidson County revealed the challenges the pandemic presents for all Nashvillians, and particularly for communities of color. Across the city, for example, more than one in five adults who were employed full-time in February have since…
NASHVILLE, Tenn.–Nashville-based Bridgestone Retail Operations, a subsidiary of Bridgestone Americas, announced it will donate an additional $760,000 to support COVID-19 relief efforts at Boys & Girls Clubs across the country. With this donation, Bridgestone has given a total of $1.6 million to the Boys & Girls Clubs COVID-19 Relief Fund this year. Boys & Girls Clubs of America launched their multi-million-dollar COVID-19 Relief Fund in April and announced phase two of the fund on Sept. 3. With the impacts of COVID-19 continuing throughout the U.S., this second phase of funding will help address urgent needs Club kids continue to face…
By PIPER HUDSPETH BLACKBURN Associated Press LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) _ Angry, confused and shedding tears, demonstrators who spent months calling for justice in the fatal police shooting of Breonna Taylor resumed their protests Wednesday after prosecutors announced a single officer had been indicted _ but not on charges involving the Black woman’s death. The protests, which rekindled as soon as news of the grand jury’s decision broke Wednesday afternoon, appeared to be largely peaceful, although as the day wore on, police in protective gear clashed with protesters in some areas and used batons to push some of them down. Late…
NASHVILLE — Sen. Brenda Gilmore (D-Nashville) will be honored for her years of commitment to reproductive freedom. The Planned Parenthood Federation of America will present Sen. Gilmore with the Champion of Reproductive Health Award the week of Sept. 28 during an online ceremony. In a letter, Alexis McGill-Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, wrote why the group had chosen to honor Gilmore. “Your commitment to reproductive freedom has been consistent as both a Tennessee Representative and currently as a State Senator. You have fought hard to oppose restrictions to abortion access, voter suppression legislation, and discriminatory…
By Rosetta Miller Perry The death last week of distinguished Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg gives President Donald Trump a chance to demonstrate that his continual rhetoric about how dedicated and devoted to justice for Black Americans he is really means something. Trump has been constantly claiming he’s been the “best thing that ever happened to Black Americans,” despite his refusal to seriously address issues of social justice or equal opportunity that Blacks and other people of color have been demonstrating about for months. Now he can and should do something about another problem that many have been citing…
CHICAGO — For the third consecutive year, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. sorority has successfully raised $1 million in 24 hours for the benefit of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The sorority’s annual HBCU Impact Day on September 21 exceeded its $1 million goal in online donations alone from local AKA chapters, private donors and corporate matching dollars from across the globe. “We did it, we did it again!” Dr. Glenda Glover, AKA International President and Chief Executive Officer shared with excitement in a video message to sorority members. “The online receipts alone totaled more than $1.3 million. We can now…
PRNewswire BASKERVILLE, VA — In a highly offensive move, John Deere has set up its own coalition to represent Black farmers, in an apparent effort to sidestep the boycott the National Black Farmers Association (NBFA) launched last week. Association President John Boyd declared, in an announcement that the 116,000-member group’s boycott of Deere will continue. After years of discrimination and inequitable treatment by the iconic company, Boyd said the boycott was intended to draw attention to John Deere’s unfairness and gain respect and better responsiveness for Black farmers. He charged that the company declines to participate in the NBFA’s annualconference or display…
By Peter White NASHVILLE, TN — Mohamed-Shukri Hassan has a sense of urgency about his new job. He was just hired to direct Metro’s Office of New Americans. The post had been vacant for 11 months. He said his first priority is to get a strong public health response to the COVID-19 infections that are higher in Southeast Nashville than any other district. The second item on his to-do list is to make a concerted effort to get people counted in the 2020 Census. “There’s a Census deadline and we have some people who have been living here for 30-plus…