Source: The White House
Friday, September 8, 2017
Hurricane Irma Public Advisory
Click here for the advisory.
Click here for the forecast track.
Source: The National Hurricane Center
FEMA Officials Brief Ahead of Hurricane Irma Arrival
Federal Emergency Management Agency officials hold a briefing on
Hurricane Irma, which is expected to reach Florida this weekend.
Source: C-SPAN
The House Approves Harvey Disaster Relief Package, 316-90 (Video)
The House votes to approve the $15.25 billion Harvey disaster relief
package, which also includes a three-month debt ceiling hike and
temporary spending. Ninety Republicans voted against the measure.
Source: C-SPAN
Trailblazers in Black History: Dr. Moses Powell
Before action actor and martial artist Jim Kelly graced movie screens, Dr. Moses Powell
was considered one of the top Black martial artists of his era. Also
known as Master Musa Muhammad, Grandmaster Powell developed the Sanuces
Ryu Jiu-Jitsu system which is still taught today.
Powell was born on January 13, 1941 in Norfolk, Va. While living in
Harlem, New York, Powell encountered Filipino martial arts instructor
Florendo Visitacion, better known as Professor Vee, Powell became so
adept at the fighting system that he was training far more advanced
students although he was just a green belt.
Over time, Powell mastered the art and began developing his own
system in the early ’60’s. After several name changes, Powell settled on
Sanuces Ryu Jiu-Jitsu. The style combined the judo, jiu-jitsu, and
real-time combat preparation. In an interview, Powell once referred to
his fighting art as “streetology.”
Click here for the full article.
Source: https://blackamericaweb.com
D.L. Hughley on Hillary Clinton's Super-Predator Comment: Black Leaders Felt the Same
Warning: This video, which was published on YouTube on September 7, 2017, contains strong language.
Source: djvlad
11 Things You WILL NOT See at the All Black National Convention
Brace for impact, everyone!
The Dr. Boyce Watkins Channel is an all-black news and commentary channel
that features a number of African American thinkers, commentators and
speakers. The views of each video are not necessarily representative of
those of Dr. Boyce Watkins himself.
Source: Boyce Watkins
Venus Williams on Breaking New Ground
Venus Williams is still breaking new ground in tennis two decades after her first U.S. Open appearance.
Her semifinal match Thursday evening against
Sloane Stephens (ahead of Madison Keys vs. Coco Vandeweghe) marked the
first time since 1981 that American female athletes are dominating the
136-year-old hard court competition.
Williams, who competed in her 19th career U.S.
Open, made more milestones last July. At BB&T Atlanta Open,
Williams’ exhibition match against Genie Bouchard was the first time in
the tournament’s 96-year history that women participated as competitors.
Click here for the full article.
Las Vegas Police Union Disputes NFL Player’s Claim of Racial Profiling
The president of a Las Vegas police union is disputing claims by a
Seattle Seahawks football player that he was racially profiled when he
was handcuffed and detained following an active shooter report last
month.
"Our officers did not detain Bennett because
he was 'a black man in the wrong place at the wrong time,'" Las Vegas
Police Protective Association President Steve Grammas said in a letter
to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell Thursday.
Michael Bennett, a defensive end and a two-time Pro Bowler, said on Twitter Wednesday
that an officer "warned me that if I moved he would 'blow my f---ing
head off'" and that he was racially profiled when he was handcuffed and
detained following a report of an active shooter at the Cromwell Hotel
and Casino.
The union called for Goodell to investigate
the "obvious false allegations." NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said there
is no basis for such a probe. "There is no allegation of a violation of
the league's personal conduct policy and therefore there is no basis
for an NFL investigation," he said in an email Thursday.
Click here for the full article.
Source: NBC News
DACA Reversal Could Be ‘Death Sentence’ for LGBTQ Immigrants
When the Trump administration announced its decision to rescind the program known as DACA this week, nearly 800,000 undocumented immigrants were left in the dark.
One of them was Catalina Velasquez.
Velasquez's family, from Cali, Colombia, fled
the civil war there and sought refuge in the United States, where they
were denied asylum. Though her family was deported, Catalina remained,
and she has since built a life for herself in Washington.
In 2008, she became the first undocumented
transgender person to attend Georgetown, and in 2013, she became the
first transgender immigrant Latina appointed as commissioner for the
D.C. Office of Latino Affairs.
Click here for the full article.
House Passes Disaster Relief, Sending Bill to Trump
WASHINGTON — The House passed a $15 billion disaster relief package
Friday morning with a broad bipartisan majority, sending the measure to
President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign it into law later in the
day.
With the cleanup efforts from Hurricane Harvey
running out of money and Hurricane Irma bearing down on Florida,
Congress acted quickly, taking only three days to move the measure
through both legislative bodies. But the bill, which includes a deal
struck between the president and Democratic leaders to include
short-term extensions of overall government funding and the nation's
debt ceiling, saw sizable defections among Republicans in both chambers.
One day after the Senate passed it with 17 GOP
defections, 90 Republicans voted against it in the House, including
four from storm-ravaged Texas.
Click here for the full article.
Homeland Security Cancels Massive Roundups of Undocumented Immigrants
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's Department of Homeland
Security had planned nationwide raids to target 8,400 undocumented
immigrants later this month, according to three law enforcement
officials and an internal document that described the plan as "the
largest operation of its kind in the history of ICE," an acronym for
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
But after NBC News reported the plans late
Thursday, the agency issued a statement saying it had cancelled
nationwide enforcement actions due to Hurricane Irma and the damage
caused by Hurricane Harvey.
"While we generally do not comment on future
potential law enforcement actions, operational plans are subject to
change based on a variety of factors," ICE spokesman Sarah Rodriguez
said in a statement. "Due to the current weather situation in Florida
and other potentially impacted areas, along with the ongoing recovery in
Texas, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had already
reviewed all upcoming operations and has adjusted accordingly. There is
currently no coordinated nationwide operation planned at this time. The
priority in the affected areas should remain focused on life-saving and
life-sustaining activities."
Click here for the full article.
Monster Hurricane Irma Barrels Toward Climate Change Deniers’ Playground
The most powerful storm ever recorded in the Atlantic is headed straight
for the beach houses of deniers Donald Trump, Rush Limbaugh, Ann
Coulter, and the Koch brothers.
By Michael Daly
The playground of big-shot climate-change deniers becomes subject to a hurricane evacuation order as of 5 p.m. Friday.
And
were it not for all the innocent souls who have been and likely will be
hurt by Hurricane Irma, you might see poetic justice in homes owned by
President Trump and billionaire David Koch and commentators Rush
Limbaugh and Ann Coulter being battered by a storm made the most powerful ever recorded in the Atlantic with a boost from warmer water and moister air.
Just last week, those same climate-change-related factors in the Gulf of Mexico contributed toward Hurricane Harvey flooding Texas with its biggest rainfall ever recorded. Coulter responded to that earlier calamity with her usual discerning insight, giving a whole other meaning to being all wet.
“I don’t believe Hurricane Harvey is God’s punishment for Houston electing a lesbian mayor,” she tweeted. “But that is more credible than ‘climate change.’”
Click here for the full article.
Source: The Daily Beast
Flags Will Be At Half-Staff in New York on 9/11
Governor Andrew Cuomo today announced that flags on state government buildings will be flown at half-staff on Monday, September 11 in remembrance of the nearly 3,000 men, women and children who lost their lives in the 2001 terrorist attacks.
"Nearly 16 years ago, New York endured one of the deadliest and most devastating terrorist attacks America has ever seen. Today, and every day since September 11, 2001, we remember the lives lost and we honor New York's finest and bravest first responders who served as beacons of light during our darkest day."
As we continue to remember the nearly 3,000 lives taken from us too soon on 9/11, we also honor the dedicated men and women of the United States Armed Forces who fight tirelessly every day for our safety and freedom both at home and abroad."
"Nearly 16 years ago, New York endured one of the deadliest and most devastating terrorist attacks America has ever seen. Today, and every day since September 11, 2001, we remember the lives lost and we honor New York's finest and bravest first responders who served as beacons of light during our darkest day."
As we continue to remember the nearly 3,000 lives taken from us too soon on 9/11, we also honor the dedicated men and women of the United States Armed Forces who fight tirelessly every day for our safety and freedom both at home and abroad."
Source: Press Office, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
NYC Comptroller Wields New Clout in Boardroom Diversity Drive
By Ross Kerber
BOSTON (Reuters) - New York City Comptroller Scott
Stringer is wielding more clout as he presses more than 150 U.S.
companies to detail plans to diversify their boardrooms.
Stringer
oversees $181 billion in city pension fund assets. In a statement
emailed by his staff to Reuters this week, he said he had gained
leverage in the diversity campaign from a three-year-old push for
companies to adopt so-called proxy access rules that give outside
investors more power to nominate corporate board directors.
At
companies now following those rules, or where they have been supported
by investors, Stringer is now seeking more disclosures about the race
and gender of current directors and their skill mix, the statement said.
Click here for the full article.
Entire School District in Westchester County Closes Amid Unspecified Police Search
An entire school district in
Westchester County has been closed for the day because of unspecified
"ongoing police activity," officials say.
A
statement on the Irvington Union Free School District reads simply,
"Due to the ongoing police activity, and in the interest of the safety
of all students and staff, the Irvington Schools will be closed today,
Friday, September 8."
The nature
of the investigation wasn't clear. It appears the school district had
initially called for a two-hour delayed opening, but later opted to
cancel classes for the entire day.
Click here for the full article.
NY Extends Obamacare Enrollment Beyond Trump's New Deadline
ALBANY -- New York is extending the state's 2018 Obamacare enrollment period beyond the Trump administration's new deadline.
The state announced today open enrollment will run from Nov. 1 through Jan. 31, 2018.
The Trump administration recently shortened the amount of time people
shopping on the federal exchange will have to sign up to get coverage
for 2018. Open enrollment on the federal exchange will run from Nov. 1
to Dec. 15.
Because New York operates its own exchange it has the flexibility to
set its own open enrollment dates. New York is sticking with the same
three-month open enrollment period consumers had last year.
Other states that run their own exchanges such as Colorado,
Minnesota, Washington, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia have
also decided not to follow Trump's earlier deadline.
Click here for the full article.
Source: syracuse.com (via The Empire Report)
With Potential Supreme Court Ruling Pending, Unions Look to Shore Up Membership
By Rick Karlin
Albany - The 2018 elections are still more than a year away, but some of New
York’s major public employee unions are starting to mobilize – not so
much for political candidates, but for their own members.
Rather than setting up the familiar get-out-the-vote operations such
as phone banks and door-to-door campaigns, leaders of unions like the
Civil Service Employees Association and the Public Employees Federation
are working to educate their rank-and-file about the benefits of being
in a union, even if it means a weekly paycheck deduction.
That’s because labor experts believe the U.S. Supreme Court, after
failing to do so in 2016, may render a decision next year that would ban
“agency fees” or the practice in which union members are compelled to
pay union dues whether they want to or not.
Click here for the full article.
Source: timesunion.com (via The Empire Report)
Harlem: Black Girl Magic feat. Natasha Diggs and the Film 'The Fits'
A dreamy exploration of girlhood, The Fits follows an 11-year-old
tomboy as she tries to fit in with her peers after joining an all-girl
dance team.
Source: ImageNation
Thursday, September 7, 2017
President Trump Receives Briefing on Hurricane Irma
President Trump pictured with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, left; Homeland Security and Counterterrorism Adviser Thomas Bossert; Vice President Mike Pence and Deputy National Security Adviser Dina Powell. (Click on the photo to increase its size.)
President Trump and Vice President Pence met with senior members of the Administration to discuss initial Federal support for Hurricane Irma preparation, response and recovery, as well as ongoing support for recovery from Hurricane Harvey. President Trump continued to stress his expectation that all departments and agencies stay fully engaged in supporting the Governors of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Florida, and other States that may be affected, as well as providing assistance to international partners in the path of the historic storm. His number one priority is saving lives. He reminded everyone that search and rescue efforts will transition to mass care, restoring power and other emergency support functions, providing life-sustaining necessities for the population that sheltered in place, and economic recovery. The President closed the discussion by urging those in the path of the storm to continue to heed the instructions of their State and local officials. The President and Vice President continue to extend their thoughts and prayers to those affected and recognize the many volunteer and faith-based organizations dedicating time and efforts to helping fellow Americans.
Source: The White House, Office of the Press Secretary
Official White House Photo by Andrea
Hanks
Saving Our Youth: Former Vice Lord Sets Kids Straight
This video was published on YouTube on May 15, 2014.
In Episode 7 of Vice News' Last Chance High we meet 13-year-old Keontay, who is enamored with gang life, his disabled mother Takita, who has lost all hope of prying him from the streets, and a former gang chief nicknamed Shotgun, who has a plan to help them both.
On Chicago's West Side, there is a school for the city's most at-risk youth — the Moses Montefiore Academy. Most of the students at Montefiore have been kicked out of other schools for aggressive behavior, and many have been diagnosed with emotional disorders.
Last Chance High takes viewers inside Montefiore's classrooms, and into the homes of students who are one mistake away from being locked up or committed to a mental hospital.
Black Immigrant Communities Reeling From DACA Reversal
The clock is ticking.
After eight years of protection under DACA, President Donald Trump decided to rescind the program on Tuesday, putting some 800,000 young, undocumented immigrants in legal jeopardy and at risk of being deported.
One of them is 25-year-old Jonathan Jayes-Green.
An afro-Panamanian immigrant who came under
DACA protection at age 13, Jayes-Green said the administration’s
announcement has triggered a palpable level of fear and anxiety among
those protected by DACA and other undocumented Black immigrants, but it
has also stiffened their resolve.
Click here for the full article.
Oval Office Chat: Governors Mapp, Rosselló and Scott
The following conversations took place on September 6.
President Trump spoke with Governor Kenneth Mapp of the U.S.
Virgin Islands to express his support for the Governor and the people of
the U.S. Virgin Islands as the territory prepares for Hurricane
Irma and to acknowledge the territory’s experience in responding to
hurricanes. The President confirmed that the Federal Government has
been actively readying for the Hurricane Irma response even as the
Government continues to support the States of Texas
and Louisiana following Hurricane Harvey. FEMA will continue to
coordinate with the emergency management staff of the U.S. Virgin
Islands and will work with other Federal partners to help support the
territory’s efforts.
President also spoke with Governor Ricardo Rosselló of Puerto
Rico to express his support for the Governor and the people of Puerto
Rico as the territory prepares for Hurricane
Irma and to acknowledge Puerto Rico’s experience in responding to
hurricanes. The President confirmed that the Federal Government has
been actively readying for the Hurricane Irma response even as the
Government continues to support the States of Texas and
Louisiana following Hurricane Harvey. FEMA will continue to coordinate
with Puerto Rico’s emergency management staff and will work with other
Federal partners to help support the territory’s efforts.
Finally, the President spoke with Governor Rick Scott to express his
support for the Governor as the State prepares for Hurricane Irma and to
thank him for his leadership in preparing
the residents of Florida. The President confirmed that the Federal
Government has been actively readying for the Hurricane Irma response
even as the Government continues to support the States of Texas and
Louisiana following Hurricane Harvey. FEMA will continue
to coordinate with Florida’s emergency management staff and will work
with other Federal partners to help support the State’s efforts.
Source: The White House, Office of the Press Secretary
Hurricane Irma Is Stronger Than All of 2017’s Other Eight Atlantic Storms Combined
The Category 5 storm is breaking records and headed straight for Puerto Rico. Florida may be next.
By Justin Miller
Hurricane Irma’s
winds are stronger than if you were to add up all of the winds of the
prior eight storms Atlantic storms together at maximum intensity.
That’s just one shattering measure of the storm’s strength from meteorologist Phil Klotzbach,
research scientist at Colorado State University’s Department of
Atmospheric Science. Irma’s 185 mph winds make it the strongest storm on
record in the Atlantic Ocean outside of the Caribbean and Gulf of
Mexico, according to Klotzbach’s research, which he shared with The Daily Beast.
“Most
of the other storms this season were pretty weak and short-lived.
While Harvey was intense, it was intense for a short time period before
making landfall,” Klotzbach said.
Click here for the full article.
Source: The Daily Beast
NY Offers Assistance to Communities in the Path of Hurricane Irma
The following statement was issued today by Governor Andrew Cuomo.
"New York is
no stranger to the challenges of Mother Nature's fury and we stand
ready to help communities grappling with the consequences of extreme
weather.
"Just as New York stood shoulder to shoulder with Texas and Louisiana
during Hurricane Harvey, we will provide any support and assistance we
can for the people of Puerto Rico, Florida, the Dominican Republic and
other Caribbean islands in the path of Hurricane Irma. We are in communication with Governor Ricardo Rosselló of Puerto Rico, Governor Rick Scott of Florida and others and we have offered assistance before and following the storm.
"As
our neighbors and friends brace for Irma, we have offered personnel,
equipment and whatever else is needed. The 106th Rescue Wing of the New
York Air National Guard is on standby and ready to ship out and assist impacted communities.
"We,
unfortunately, have much first-hand experience with extreme weather and
its aftermath. Just as others have helped New York recover from Sandy,
Irene, Lee, and other severe, and increasingly common, '100-year
storms,' we will be there for those who need our help."
Source: Press Office, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
Free Lunch Announced for Students at All NYC Public Schools
Source: WABC 7 Eyewitness News (via The Empire Report)
NYC Council Members with Most Absences in FY 2017
By Conor Skelding, Brendan Cheney and Gloria Pazmino
Five current or former members of the New York City Council missed
more than 25 percent of their required meetings during fiscal year 2017,
according to records obtained through a Freedom of Information Law
request released on Wednesday.
The current Council members are Andy King, Annabel Palma, Darlene
Mealy and Julissa Ferreras-Copeland. The list also includes a former
member, Ruben Wills, who was ejected from the Council after his criminal
conviction earlier this year.
Records show that King, of the Bronx, missed 30 percent of his scheduled meetings, or 22 of 74, plus one medical absence.
King said that a member’s attendance isn’t a measure of whether he or she is doing the job.
“I’m OK with it,” he said in a phone interview. “As Council members,
we are at three places at one time, all the time. So, between committee
meetings bumping heads and being at meetings in your district and moving
all around, it happens ... no one can tell me I’m not working.”
Council members are paid an annual salary of $148,500.
Click here for the full article.
Source: Politico (via The Empire Report)
Black Lives Matter Lawsuit Against Buffalo Police Alleges Discrimination
Black Lives Matter-Buffalo and a coalition of Buffalo residents
announced Tuesday that they have filed a federal lawsuit against the
Buffalo Police Department alleging racial discrimination.
They are also asking the state attorney general to investigate the
police department, accusing the agency of engaging in a "repeated,
persistent and widespread pattern of unconstitutional policing" that
targets people of color, in a letter to that office.
The groups asked the Attorney General's Office to investigate the
police department in a separate complaint that accuses Buffalo police of
discriminating against people of color through enforcement policies —
particularly "zero tolerance" campaigns announced in 2006 and 2012.
Anji Malhotra, co-author of a study released by the University at
Buffalo and Cornell law schools based on two years of research into
Buffalo Police Department policing practices, joined other activists
Tuesday on the steps of City Hall to call for action to be taken against
what they called discriminatory policing practices.
Click here for the full article.
Source: The Buffalo News (via The Empire Report)
Court of Appeals Upholds Ban on Physician-Assisted Suicide
The state’s highest court has dismissed a case filed by three
terminally ill patients who sought a court order protecting their
doctors if they prescribed a lethal dose of medication to help them
die.
The plaintiffs asked the court to declare a constitutional right to
“aid in dying,” or as critics call it, assisted suicide. The three
patients in the original lawsuit filed in February 2015 — two have since
died — were mentally competent and terminally ill, and sought the right
to end their lives without undue suffering.
Thursday’s 81-page decision from the Court of Appeals found that the
state Legislature “has a rational basis for criminalizing assisted
suicide.” The Legislature has been reluctant to pass legislation to legalize aid in dying in recent years.
Click here for the full article.
Source: timesunion.com (via The Empire Report)
Trump to Discuss Hudson Tunnel Project With New York and New Jersey Leaders
By Shane Goldmacher and Patrick McGeehan
President Trump has invited top officials from New York and New Jersey to the White House on Thursday, including Senators Chuck Schumer, Cory Booker and Kirsten Gillibrand and Govs. Andrew M. Cuomo and Chris Christie, to discuss the future of a multibillion-dollar tunnel between the two states, according to people familiar with the meeting.
The
so-called Gateway project, to build a train tunnel under the Hudson
River, is considered the linchpin of transportation infrastructure in
the region and a top priority for many officials from the two states. It
would provide a critical additional link between New Jersey and New
York’s Pennsylvania Station.
In
addition to the statewide officials, members of Congress from both
states whose districts or residents would be affected have also been
invited. Mr. Schumer, Mr. Booker and Ms. Gillibrand, all Democrats, are
expected to attend, people familiar with the meeting said.
Click here for the full article.
Source: The New York Times (via The Empire Report)