Why The 'Race Card' Is Played

A Black Panther lawsuit is testing the cultural exchange between Africans and African-Americans Just days after Kendrick Lamar released the song “All The Stars,” British-Liberian artist Lina Iris Viktor filed a  lawsuit (pdf)  which alleges that the rapper conducted “willful brazen, and extensive unlawful” copying of her artwork for the music video. She’s also suing others that participated in the production, such as singer SZA (real name Solana Imani Rowe), the  music video’s director  Dave Meyers, and  Top Dawg Entertainment . In a response  filed on May 18 , Lamar and his fellow defendants argue that “alleged use of the artwork did not proximately cause any of Plaintiff’s alleged damages,” or any profits for Top Dawg entertainment. They added that any of the “alleged infringements were innocent,” and constituted as “fair use.” Both have asked the New York district court for a trial by jury. The case doesn’t just bring up questions over what constitutes creative theft—it

Janet Jackson to get the Billboard Icon Award Janet Jackson's icon status is being confirmed at the Billboard Awards. The superstar is set to get the Billboard Icon Award at the May 20 ceremony in Las Vegas, hosted by Kelly Clarkson. She'll also reward fans with a performance on the live telecast, her first televised performance in nine years. Past award recipients include Prince, Stevie Wonder, Cher, Neil Diamond, Celine Dion and Jennifer Lopez.

Police release bodycam video after black Airbnb guests threaten to sue, alleging racial profiling "The videos speak for themselves," Rialto’s interim police chief, Mark Kling, said at a news conference Tuesday. "Our officers handled the situation with professionalism, dignity and respect."

Donald Trump Apparently Thinks Putting Kanye West in a Room With Colin Kaepernick Can Solve Racism The Donald Trump advisor who solved Chicago’s violence problem in early 2017 by speaking to some of the city’s “top gang thugs” has received approval from the White House to invite Kanye West, Colin Kaepernick, Jim Brown and Mike Tyson to a summit to discuss race in America.

Miami Cop Suspended After Kicking Man in Head on Video Earlier today, the City of Miami Police Department issued an ominous statement: Chief Jorge Colina said he'd received a video of an officer clearly violating departmental policy. That cop had been relieved of duty, he reported, adding the department had sent the clip to the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office. Now the video has surfaced. It shows  an Miami  Police officer taking a running start and then kicking a defenseless, handcuffed suspect in the head. A police department spokesperson confirmed this was the video in question.

George Zimmerman 'sells Trayvon Martin gun for $250,000 to a mother planning to give it to her son for his birthday' George Zimmerman sold the gun he used to shoot dead Trayvon Martin for $250,000 to a mother planning to give it to her son for his birthday, according to reports. Zimmerman said he put the pistol up for auction after hearing Hillary Clinton's 'anti-gun rhetoric' as he smoked a cigar during an interview with  KTNV . He also vowed to fight against the Black Lives Matter movement and end the career of Florida state attorney Angela Corey, who led Zimmerman's prosecution. But he may have made yet another enemy after he snubbed Daytona Beach bar owner Denny Honeycutt, who Zimmerman initially agreed to sell the gun to for $150,000.

Exeter University: 'Why I revealed my friends' racist WhatsApp messages' http://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-43987148# "It went from crude humour to racial slurs. Awful things were said about rape. Every group was targeted." Exeter University student Arsalan Motavali is talking about the WhatsApp group he was in with fellow members of the university's law society. "[The messages] started to get progressively worse after certain people were added." Five months on and several of them have been  expelled  after Arsalan's post of their "vile" screen shots went viral. Speaking to Newsbeat, the 21-year-old said he had no regrets about his decision to go public.

Man killed by KCK police previously received $300k settlement for police brutality KANSAS CITY, Kan. --  A man shot and killed by Kansas City Kansas police  Wednesday  had previously sued the Kansas City Missouri Police Department for excessive force. Multiple sources confirm to the 41 Action News Investigators that the victim is Manuel Palacio, 27. As of Thursday morning, police have not said what led to the shooting, which happened just across the street from New Chelsea Elementary School. Only saying, the suspect was armed.

'Black Cowboys' Sheds Light On Overlooked Music Of African-Americans Who Went West " Black Cowboys " is the new album from multi-instrumentalist and songwriter  Dom Flemons , a co-founding member of the Grammy Award-winning Carolina Chocolate Drops. But it's more than a collection of songs from the Wild West — the record sheds light on the prominent but often-overlooked role African-American pioneers played in westward expansion. Here & Now 's Eric Westervelt ( @Ericnpr ) talks with Flemons ( @domflemons ) about the music's origins and evolution.

The fascinating history of Africa’s female husbands Many people believe that homosexuality and feminism are entirely foreign to Africa. Many, still, believe that the practice of homosexuality and the principles of feminism are native to the land. Well, the little-known history about Africa’s female husbands adds an interesting element to discussions on African sexuality and power.

Modern day polygamy in Africa: first wife feeding second wife goes viral When Yakaka Mandara tweeted a picture of a first wife feeding her husband’s second wife at a wedding reception, she did not expect that the photo would go outside of her country, Nigeria. But that’s exactly what it did, reigniting an age-old debate about polygamy in Africa. Polygamy is a centuries-old practice in Africa that has yet to disappear from modern life. It has both cultural and religious origins. It is legal in 26 out of 54 African countries, particularly Muslim majority countries.

Leaked Meeting Audio Proves NFL Owners Worried About Appeasing White Fans, While Players Worried About Kaepernick, Black Lives An October meeting between National Football League owners, players and league executives to discuss player protests and President Donald Trump’s bashing of the league because of players protests was supposed to be confidential. If Colin Kaepernick’s heavenly Afro didn’t already prove that God was OK with players protesting, the leaking of audio from said meeting at league headquarters on Park Avenue proves which side the heavenly father has taken.

Find Local Black-Owned Businesses to Support Using This App In 2015, Mandy Bowman founded  Official Black Wall Street , a website that features a global directory of black-owned businesses.  Blavity  reports , this week the site made it even easier to find black-owned businesses near you through a new app. Also called Black Wall Street,  the iOS and Android  app helps you find black-owned businesses near you. Each entry offers directions to the business, images of what you can buy there, and reviews from others that have been there previously. You can set up alerts to get a notification when you pass by a black-owned store so you can make a point to pop in (or visit later on), and get special offers that you can redeem while shopping.

Why r African Americans so dominate in sports??

Joy Reid Shuts Down Killer Mike After Rapper Attempts To Drag Her On Instagram  Joy-Ann Reid and Killer Mike might have beef after the rapper stepped out of line over the weekend. Over the weekend, Reid shared a photo of herself all glammed up and thanked her hair and makeup team, writing, "And not to be outdone... @glamluxxe and @savvychicz, who rocked the  H&M  for our Elgin Baylor shoot!"

‘Cosby Show’ Actress Details Why She Went Topless for Bill Cosby Protest Former Cosby Show actress Nicolle Rochelle was recently arrested after protesting topless outside of the courthouse where Bill Cosby is currently being re-tried for sexual assault. In a new interview, she breaks down her line of thinking, saying she very purposefully wanted to make Cosby “uncomfortable.” “He’s a man who’s dis-empowered women’s bodies for decades. It doesn’t seem to be recognized,” Rochelle, 39, told PEOPLE . “The case is being publicized with this narrative of race. He’s being painted as the victim. I wanted to emphasize that this is about rape. I wanted to make him uncomfortable and to make people think about women’s bodies.”

Nicki Micheaux Talks New Film, “LOWLIFE”, Hollywood & Business {VIDEO}      

PCF Draws Attention to Prostate Cancer Disparity among African American Men      One out of nine American men are likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer. However, 74 percent of African American men are more likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer than White men and are twice as likely to die from the disease. In honor of National Minority Health month, the  Los Angeles Sentinel  spoke with Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) CEO and President, Dr. Johnathan Simon about the disparity of the disease and how men of African descent can better their chances of prevention.