Category: Afro Briefs

With the rainy season creating additional strife in earthquake-ravaged Haiti, BET founder and business mogul Bob Johnson is bringing new hope to the Caribbean nation. Johnson’s investment company, RLJ Companies, partnered with Global Building Solutions following the January natural disaster to develop mass housing and now has new plans to bring work and financial assistance […]

On June 29, members of the Congressional Black Caucus, Hip Hop Caucus and National Conference of Black Mayors converged in Washington, D.C., to push for federal action on clean energy and climate policies. The mayors met with members of Congress in the House and Senate, as well as administration officials to draw attention to the […]

A co-defendant of the infamous dog fighting case that sent NFL quarterback Michael Vick to prison two years ago was shot June 24 while attending a birthday party for the football star. According to Virginia Beach Police, Quanis Phillips was shot outside of Guadalajara, a night club in Virginia Beach’s Town Center. Police also told […]

Dallas Police Chief David Brown is dealing with personal tragedy after his son was killed in a shootout with police on June 20 after killing a police officer and another man. According to police, David Brown Jr. shot and killed , 23-year-old Jeremy McMillian, as Brown drove his girlfriend and two small children into the […]

A federal judge dismissed Media giant Viacom’s $1 billion lawsuit against Google on June 23 after in a ruling that Viacom did not prove the Internet company’s YouTube service committed copyright infringement. According to the Huffington Post, Viacom claimed in their suit that Google branded YouTube as the “most watched video site” of clips that […]

President Obama removed Gen. Stanley McChrystal on June 23 from his position as top war commander in Afghanistan following disparaging remarks the general made in a Rolling Stone article. In the article, headlined “The Runaway General,” McChrystal strongly criticized Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and other members of the Obama administration. Obama nominated Gen. David […]

The explosion of a BP oil rig which has resulted in the biggest oil spill in U.S. history over the last two months could have been prevented, according to a company employee who was aboard the rig. Tyrone Benton, a rig worker aboard BP’s Deepwater Horizon rig, told several news outlets that he saw a […]

The University of Texas is mulling whether to rename one of the campus’ buildings which was named for a prominent KKK member. Simkins Hall, one of the campus dormitories, was named after William Stewart Simkins, a leader of the Ku Klux Klan in Florida who later became a law professor at the school. “The question […]

Obama administration Cabinet members and officials from the U.S Interagency Council on Homelessness on June 22 unveiled “Opening Doors: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness,” the administration’s latest federal initiative targeting homelessness. Officials said the plan will involve joint action by the council’s 19 member agencies along with local and state partners […]

With news reports from Jamaica showing widespread violence in the country’s capital city, the Caribbean nation’s event and tourism industries are beginning to feel the strain, according to a report from the McClatchy Newspapers. Last month, a police search for alleged drug lord Christopher “Dudus” Coke” created a rift between the public and law officials. […]

Dr. Charlotte P. Morris, a 25-year member of the Tuskegee University staff, has been appointed interim president of the historic Alabama school. According to a press release issued by the 128-year-old institution, Morris will be the first female to serve at the helm of Tuskegee University. Morris’ appointment comes after an enthusiastic vote of the […]

Soulful R&B singer Musiq Soulchild salutes some of the music’s greatest artist in his latest music video “Silky Soul,” which has been on heavy rotation on BET’s Centric, Music Choice, and VH-1’s Soul cable stations. In the video, Soulchild gives accolades to several famed soul singers. “Marvin Gaye is one third of my holy trinity […]