• Hillary Clinton Meets with Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown Families Regarding Gun Safety

    The issue of guns has been extremely contentious in this election, especially in the Democratic Party. As many die on the streets of cities like Chicago and Baltimore due to gun violence, and the number of mass shootings seems to rise every year, many in the party are speaking up about the vital necessity of gun control reform. According to CBS News, Hillary Clinton held a meeting in Chicago where she spoke with the families of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, and others to discuss loss and the necessity mitigating gun violence.

  • Killer Mike Pens Op-Ed for Martin Luther King Jr., Encouraging People to Be 'Revolutionaries'

    Musicians and celebrities are often in a unique position to share their personal views on politics, race, sexual orientation and any other social issues of their time period. The ones who resonate with the public, though, are the artists who share their ideals within and outside their craft. Killer Mike of Run the Jewels has been on a mission as of late, penning opinion pieces for publications about his feelings toward race relations following the unfortunate deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner in Staten Island. His post yesterday on Martin Luther King Jr. Day might have been his finest.

  • Kendrick Lamar Drops Guest Verse on Jonathan Emile's 'Heaven Help Dem' [LISTEN]

    Canadian rapper Jonathan Emile has shared a politically charged new track titled "Heaven Help Dem," featuring a guest appearance by Kendrick Lamar, which you can check out below. The track finds Emile and Lamar rapping about the overwhelming violence against black men in the United States, with Lamar opening his verse with recollections of his own horrifying experiences: "The average black man only live to 25/Pac died at 25/How many kids you know dead at 20? 5?/ Nah, that's light/I know 10 that's crumblin' in coffins." It's powerful stuff, accompanied by a video featuring images of Trayvon Martin, Mike Brown, Eric Garner, and many others.

  • Kid Cudi Responds to Kendrick Lamar's Ferguson Views, Starts Beef with Lupe Fiasco

    Kendrick Lamar's recent remarks on the murder of Michael Brown started a few beefs with the likes of Azealia Banks and Lupe Fiasco. The rapper said the problem is part of a bigger issue that starts with African-American communities. Kid Cudi shared his opinion on the statement before Fiasco took issue with his tweets, starting a sub-beef of sorts, "Vibe" notes. "I wish somebody would look in our neighborhood knowing that it's already a situation, mentally, where it's f--ked up. What happened to [Michael Brown] should've never happened. Never. But when we don't have respect for ourselves, how do we expect them to respect us? It starts from within. Don't start with just a rally, don't start from looting — it starts from within," Lamar told "Billboard." Cudi's rant started yesterday, Jan. 10, and Fiasco interrupted soon after. "Dear black artists, dont talk down on the black community like you are Gods gift to n---az everywhere. If you wanna help, inspire, uplift, don't point the blame and talk down," he tweeted.

  • Ferguson Protesters Pepper-Sprayed for Infiltrating STL Police HQ

    We may have closed the book on 2014, but that does not mean the tension between Ferguson, Missouri, protesters and St. Louis, Missouri, police officers is over — not by any means. Instead, a group of 75 protesters proved last night, Dec. 31, 2014, that the racially charged divide is going to be an issue that follows us into this new year, 2015. The protesters served a literal eviction notice to St. Louis police officers late last night and many found themselves either pepper-sprayed or arrested. As part of their "March to the Arch" protest, several members of the group purposely went into the lobby of STL police headquarters and then proceeded to read off a list of demands and they posted hundreds of eviction notices on the outside of the building for alleged police brutality. Nineteen protesters were eventually arrested, primarily because they were laying in the middle of the road blocking the flow of traffic. The group had originally intended to occupy the area of the headquarters for four hours to commemorate how long Michael Brown lied dead in the street after being shot by Darren Wilson.

  • Wu-Tang Clan's RZA Speaks Out on Eric Garner Case, Says It's a Power Issue, Not Race Issue

    Wu-Tang Clan released their sixth studio album, A Better Tomorrow, earlier this month. A political video for the title track followed, showing scenes of protests from the Michael Brown and Eric Garner cases. RZA spoke with Gawker recently, advocating the indictment of every police officer involved in the Garner incident, which occurred in the rapper's native Staten Island.

  • Former Federal Investigator Performs Jim Croce Song, Changes Tune Into Tasteless Parody of Michael Brown's Death [LISTEN]

    A former federal investigator performed a tasteless song in California recently at a charity event held by a retired LAPD policeman. Gary Fishell took the stage and performed an absolutely disgusting parody of Jim Croce's "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown," poking fun at the unfortunate death of African American teenager Michael Brown. TMZ received footage of the song and, well, it's hard to hear.

  • NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton Doesn't Feel Mayor de Blasio Has 'Blood' on His Hands

    New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton have worked hard today to prove to the media and general public that they are committed to repairing the deep divide in the city. Early this morning, Bratton did an interview with "Today" that seemed to try and lead the way in smoothing over tensions between his officers and those on the job at City Hall. It has been widely reported that many officers do not feel that de Blasio has had their backs thanks to recent statements he has made. While Bratton understood how some officers are feeling, he also believes de Blasio has nothing to apologize for. Bratton also went on the record to say he believes it was wrong of officers to have turned their backs purposely on de Blasio before he gave a news conference about the deaths of two Brooklyn officers Saturday, Dec. 20. Some officers have reportedly felt that de Blasio has complicated their job by allowing protestors of the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown to freely roam city streets. Bratton challenged the notion that de Blasio has turned his back on the Police Department by reminding everyone that he has granted more than $400 million outside the normal budget to bolster the NYPD.

  • Robert McCulloch Admits That He Knew Some of the Witnesses That He Presented to Ferguson Grand Jury Were Lying

    Robert McCulloch is the prosecuting attorney that was presiding over the Ferguson grand jury, which means that he has been under intense scrutiny from day one. McCulloch has also been blamed for Darren Wilson not being indicted in the Aug. 9 shooting death of Michael Brown. The general consensus seems to be that if the prosecution really wants an indictment, they'll get it, so the underlying feeling has been that McCulloch didn't push too hard for what many believe would have been justice for Brown. Unfortunately, the attorney hasn't helped his image at all by giving a recent interview to KTRS 550 and making some stunning admissions.

  • Ferguson Protests Led D'Angelo to Push Up 'Black Messiah' Release

    Earlier this week, neo-soul pioneer D'Angelo surprised the music world by suddenly releasing his new album "Black Messiah," his first new album since his 2000 classic "Voodoo," with almost no warning whatsoever. Despite its absurdly long gestation period, however, "The New York Times" reports that the album's release was somehow still rushed, as D'Angelo's label RCA had originally planned to drop it sometime in early 2015. But following the volatile situation in Ferguson, Missouri, and the grand-jury decision to not indict Officer Darren Wilson for the shooting death of Michael Brown, D'Angelo decided to push up the album's release to Dec. 15. According to D'Angelo's manager Kevin Liles, D'Angelo had called him up in distress last month following the Ferguson grand-jury decision. "He said, 'Do you believe this? Do you believe it?'" Liles recalls. "And then we just sat there in silence. That is when I knew he wanted to say something." With the famously delayed album put on the fast track for release, D'Angelo and RCA pulled "many all-nighters" to finish the album, which included everything from the artwork and tracklist to the music itself.

  • Petition Filed by National Bar Association to Strip Darren Wilson of Badge in Missouri

    About a week after learning that he would not be indicted for the Aug. 9 shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown, Darren Wilson ironed out the details and resigned from the Ferguson Police Department. Wilson agreed with the department that it is in everyone's best interest that he not serve and protect in Ferguson again. His being on the streets would only put him as well as other officers at risk. While it seems unlikely that Wilson will patrol anywhere again, he has still retained his badge — and that is something the National Bar Association is not happy about. The country's oldest and largest group of African-American attorneys and judges have filed a nine-page petition requesting that Wilson be completely stripped of his badge. The official petition is requesting that the Missouri Department of Public Safety revoke Wilson's badge. While under oath, Wilson insisted that during his altercation with Brown he had feared for his life, but some naysayers believe the officer got away with murder.

  • Jeanine Pirro of Fox News Claims 'Minority Communities' Need to Be More Sensitive Toward Police

    Fox News often finds itself under fire for the stance that the network appears to take on hot-button issues, and right now nothing is more volatile than the tension between police and their handling of the black community. Last night, Jeanine Pirro decided to ask for viewer feedback on whether or not police should be more careful in the way they deal with incidences occurring in black communities and the response was quite unified. In between people stating the obvious — that if you are not breaking the law then you are less likely to find yourself tangled in any sort of altercation — there was also the thinking that communities need to be more mindful of the police. Pirro backed up that notion and, interestingly enough, it Is a sentiment that even New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has echoed. Basically, the thinking is that there is a rift, and in order to fix it both sides need to take steps toward meeting in the middle. He also admitted last week, shortly after it was announced that NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo would not be indicted in the chokehold death of Eric Garner, that his own biracial son has been directed on how to carry himself if he should be stopped by a police officer.

  • Wu-Tang Clan 'A Better Tomorrow' Vid Features Footage from Michael Brown, Eric Garner Protests [WATCH]

    Wu-Tang Clan dropped a video for the title track off their new album "A Better Tomorrow," and it is one powerful, political visual. The group used footage from protests revolving around the recent decisions to not indict police officers who killed Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner in Staten Island, New York. Both grand jury verdicts have caused unrest throughout the country and political debates among friends, family and famous personalities. The video opens with a snippet of an address by President Barack Obama, who says the incidents are part of larger issues that have been in the public eye for four decades. Scenes from protests follow, with police sporting riot gear and citizens chanting "Hands up, don't shoot." "We want justice," Raekwon raps. "Police are supposed to protect and serve / And then they shoot us down like wild animals, the nerve / Of them cold-hearted killers with blue suits / Slaying our black youth." Check out the video below.
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