Author: Kailyn Hayes, DI

Kailyn Hayes was a Digital Intern for Urban Newsroom and Black News Alerts.

Janet Jackson, Chris Brown, 50 Cent, Future and Tyga have been added to the lineup for the Jeddah World Fest, the concert in Saudi Arabia that Nicki Minaj was scheduled to perform at but pulled out of due to human rights issues. What We Know: After accepting the invitation to headline the concert, Minaj canceled her performance in the ultra-conservative kingdom. This decision came after fans urged her to look at the country’s human rights record, according to BBC News. It seems that Jackson, Brown, 50 Cent, Future and Tyga will take her place. The Human Rights Foundation and other…

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The Southern Christian Leadership Conference will honor Hillary Clinton at an annual convention in Atlanta. What We Know: The former Secretary of State, First Lady and Democratic party presidential candidate will receive the Southern Christian Leadership Conference’s Realizing the Dream Award. “Mrs. Clinton has been close to us ever since I have been president of SCLC,” said Charles Steele. “She has always been supportive of the work that we do and has always been a good role model.” Clinton lost the 2016 presidential race to Donald Trump. Trump beat her by 5 points in Georgia, but Clinton won every core…

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The final trailer for It: Chapter 2 was released Thursday and was, quite frankly, terrifying. What We Know: It had one of the biggest openings for a horror film in modern box office history by bringing in a record-breaking $117.2 million in America during its first few days, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The sequel to the 2017 adaptation of Stephen King’s It is gearing up to be released and the trailer has everyone buzzing. The clip shows the grown-up Losers Club preparing to battle evil Pennywise, who ominously says, “for 27 years, I dreamed of you. I craved you.…

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Kentucky Democrats will have more variety in deciding who will take on Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell in 2020. What We Know: Farmer and retired Marine, Mike Broihier entered the race Thursday with a three-minute advertisement that calls on voters to forget their labels. “It’s time to retire Mitch McConnell,” Broihier said in an interview with the Courier-Journal. “We have to do it to restore our democracy, and I’ve been warned about what he’s capable of doing, but it doesn’t scare me.” Broihier is not the only one tossing his hat into the ring. Former Marine Amy McGrath has been in…

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The highly anticipated Cats trailer dropped Thursday afternoon and Twitter was not here for it. What We Know: The Tom Hooper-directed film takes Andrew Lloyd Webber’s famous musical under the same title and makes it even more strange. Webber based the musical on T.S. Eliot’s book, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, and first premiered in 1981 in the United Kingdom. All the actors in the movie keep their human faces and bodies but are covered in CGI fur and have tails and pointy ears…interesting. It transforms big-name stars like Jennifer Hudson, Idris Elba, Jason Derulo and Taylor Swift into odd…

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Paul Ossmann, the former chief meteorologist at CBS46, has sued his former employer for “racially and ethnically discriminatory termination.” What We Know: Ossmann is accusing the CBS affiliate of fostering a “racially hostile work environment.” In response to his claim, the CBS affiliate released a statement saying that Ossmann was fired in April “for cause based on multiple complaints from female co-workers of conduct that violated our workplace policies.” He said he “was not given a written statement from the co-worker, nor allowed to provide a written statement in response.” He was then terminated with two years left on his…

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Jerry Foxhoven, the Director of Iowa’s Department of Human Services sent an email to 4,300 employees celebrating the life of the late rapper Tupac Shakur last month. He was ordered to resign a few days later. What We Know: In a phone interview with The New York Times, Foxhoven said his frequent quoting of Tupac at work was intended to improve employee morale at the troubled agency. He does not believe it led to his removal. After his last Tupac email, the Governor’s Chief of Staff met with him and informed him the governor wanted to take the agency in…

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Walt Disney Company continues to fight off allegations made by family heiress Abigail Disney, who claims she found workers severely struggling when she visited Disneyland. What We Know: During an interview with Yahoo News, Abigail Disney said Disneyland workers told her they have to go through “other people’s garbage” for food and they often have a hard time staying happy. She said she visited the park to see worker conditions and was “so livid” at what she saw. In a statement, the company told CNN Business that Abigail Disney’s claims are baseless. “This widely reported stunt is a gross and…

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The House voted Wednesday evening to hold Attorney General William Barr and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in criminal contempt of Congress for obstructing a probe into the Trump administration’s failed attempt to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. What We Know: The resolution passed by a vote of 230-198 and no Republicans voted in favor. Democratic Reps Anthony Brindisi of New York, Jared Golden of Maine, Conor Lamb of Pennsylvania and Jefferson Van Drew of New Jersey voted against it. White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said the vote was “ridiculous and yet another lawless attempt to harass…

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Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson is coming to President Donald Trump’s defense over his racial tirade. What We Know: On Wednesday, Carson appeared on Fox News and suggested that the public misunderstood what Trump was saying when he made racially centered remarks against four congresswomen of color. The host Sandra Smith asked Carson to explain what the President meant when he essentially attacked Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Talib, Ilhan Omar and Ayanna Pressley on Twitter and encouraged them to “go back” to their countries. Smith asked if Carson thought Trump’s comments were racist and he completely shot…

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