1594: Gene Jock

ITM,

In regards to episode 1594’s segment on updated covid mRNA shots, you and John are correct that it makes no sense to vaccinate patients hospitalized with an active covid infection but as your no agenda anesthetist I can report that this is exactly what happened. To be clear, hospitalized patients with active Covid infections were pressured to get vaccinated at the same time. Hope this clears things up and thank you for your courage!

Dorpshuis Hoekstee zat pas tot de nok vol in Hoek van Holland met 250 verontwaardigde hondenbezitters en een handvol ambtenaren van de gemeente Rotterdam. Volgens de ambtenaren zijn de honden met hun stikstof een bedreiging voor de biodiversiteit. En de flora en fauna zouden door de loslopende honden zelfs al een flinke tik gekregen hebben.

„Maar ze kunnen niet aantonen wat precies dat effect op de natuur is”, aldus Lensselink die met zijn Duitse staander Sep, een van de hondenbezitters is, die geniet van de vrijheid in de Hoekse Bosjes en het Roomse Duin.

Opruimplicht voor hondenpoep was er al, schetst hij. „Je ziet iedereen al met die zakjes rondlopen.” En volgens hem zit de natuur juist in de lift. „Ik heb er nog nooit zoveel buizerds en bijvoorbeeld ook ijsvogeltjes gezien. Veel vossen zijn er ook.”

Link

Is it A Solution to Declining

and Ageing Populations?

The new challenges being brought about by declining and ageing populations will require

objective, thorough and comprehensive reassessments of many established economic, social and

political policies and programmes. Such reassessments will need to incorporate a long-term

perspective. Critical issues to be addressed in those reassessments would include: (a) the

appropriate ages for retirement; (b) the levels, types and nature of retirement and health-care

benefits for the elderly; (c) the labour-force participation; (d) the assessed amounts of

contributions from workers and employers to support retirement and health-care benefits for the

increasing elderly population; and (e) policies and programmes relating to international

migration, in particular replacement migration, and the integration of large numbers of recent

migrants and their descendants.

Hello Adam,

Our company sells software that works on robots that crawl through the sewers. With over 600 customers (cities and contractors) across every state including Alaska, one of my duties is to collect the yearly software support fee. When a check arrives I always ask how things are going. East to West the answer is always the same, we have a lot of work to do and cannot find people to do it. The common story is "we had 4 applicants and only 1 showed up and after we hired him, he worked one day and quit." I hear this all the time.

Anyway, just one industry that needs those laborers and No Agenda nailed it with the open borders, just a job fair. I realize working around sewers is low on the totem pole for desired jobs, so there's that.

I though you might find my recent experience trying to get help from ICE / Homeland Security interesting. Here's some background. I've been a police officer in a small northwest Ohio town for 25 years. We're rural and are surrounded by a lot of farm land. We see a lot of migrant workers. But recently we've seen a large uptick in illegal immigrants. So much so, that I got a call from a trailer park owner. The trailer park is owned by a management company out of Florida. The Florida manager reported that they believe there may possibly be human trafficking of illegal immigrants at two of their lots. The park's onsite managers reported that several times a week a bus/van pulls up to two lots and drops off or pick up immigrants. The vehicle will often take them to another address to eat. The company manger advised that they have had suspicions for a while, after visiting the trailer park last year. At the time of their visit, one of the trailers was unlivable. Often, the managers will see people at these trailers, one time, then never see them again.

What is interesting is that the registered tenant for one of the trailers, doesn't actually live there. That person is running a check cashing business out of another residence, which is the same location the illegals are supposedly taken to for dinner. I know this because they have filed three reports of people cashing bad checks with us. There have also been three reports of sexual abuse of children, who were undocumented, at the same residence. Those cases were closed because the victims and their mothers couldn't be located after they initially made their reports.

This type of investigation is not something we're equipped to deal with. So, I called for help. I called the National hotline of ICE/ERO (Enforcement and Removal Operations) and received a message that all lines were busy and to call back later. I tried two more times, on different dates, and received the same message. In addition, I also called the local office, out of Detroit, three times, and was sent to voicemail. I have yet to receive a call back. Getting work visas for all the immigrants in NYC must be a bigger priority.

Volgens de Italiaanse krant Corriere della Sera schrijft Meloni in de brief dat zij verbaasd is over de steun van de Duitse regering aan de ngo’s, zonder dit van tevoren met de Italiaanse regering te overleggen. Meloni vraagt Scholz of hij de migranten uit Afrika niet in Duitsland zelf kan opnemen.

De Italiaanse premier stelt dat er een risico bestaat dat de ngo’s de Afrikaanse migranten juist aanmoedigen om naar Europa te komen, terwijl de grote stroom migranten onbeheersbaar is geworden. Met de grote aantallen die vertrekken, wordt bovendien het risico groter dat er tragedies in zee ontstaan omdat er boten met migranten zinken. Meloni heeft Scholz geschreven dat ze tijdens de Europese Raad begin oktober in Granada met hem over deze kwestie wil spreken.

Link

Under the Online Safety Bill, which is due to become law next month, Rumble will be regulated by Ofcom because it is accessible in the UK.

Brand has recognised the impact the new law could have. In a statement on Friday, he said: “The British government has asked big tech platforms to censor our online content. [This] bill . . . is a piece of UK legislation that grants sweeping surveillance and censorship powers.”

Under the new law, Rumble will have to prevent children from seeing pornography and material that promotes self-harm, suicide, or eating disorders. Violent content and material harmful to health, such as vaccine misinformation, will also have to be kept from children.

Ofcom will also draw up new guidelines on violence against women and girls that will have to be adhered to.

Rumble will also have to take down material that is illegal, such as videos that incite violence or race hate.

All these obligations will be hard for Rumble’s management to stomach, according to Lord Allan of Hallam, a former Facebook executive who has advised on the bill.

“You can’t get out of this by saying ‘I’m a crazy American platform, that’s not ok’ and that somehow you get a free pass. They don’t get a free pass,” he said. “Their whole philosophy is freedom of expression . . . a kind of ‘screw you’. So when they get a letter from Ofcom saying, ‘Here are all the things you’re going to have to do’, it seems to me the most likely reaction is going to be they’re going to say, ‘Well, we won’t operate in the UK any more.’ ”

Noncooperation could leave Rumble executives open to arrest if they came to Britain, as the bill provides for senior managers to be held criminally liable.

Link

I work with special ops and several of my high-level athlete coworkers and former special ops personnel are taking Ozempic. Some are on the actual drug and others are injecting themselves with this semiglutide for non-human, non-animal consumption. Yes, they are losing weight RAPIDLY and it's only $109 compared to the brand label $1200/month price tag. Even more alarming, is that people are self-prescribing and titrating themselves without any guidance from a medical professional.

I recently turned 30 and know 4 people my age or younger on it. I also work with people who have been marathon/iron Man champions... Yes, CHAMPIONS, who are taking this to shed a few extra pounds. The drug my co-workers are using is in the link below. Please note the horrifying label and warnings.

https://prestigepeptides.com/product/semaglutide-glp-1-analogue-5mg/

The on-label semiglutide is relatively good drug for people who have type 2 diabetes. However, there are other drugs on the market that don't have side affects like the thyroid cancer and stomach paralysis that Ozempic/other semiglutide drugs have for type 2 diabetes.

My husband works for a pharmaceutical company that sells on of these drugs. He works closely with those developing the drug and the most terrifying thing is that doctors will tell their patients to get on it to shed a few pounds, and then wean off. But Ozempic is no different than any other drug on the market. It's meant for you to be on it for life. The doctors are NOT prescribing the drug as the label indicates and there are ZERO studies for short-term use.

However, there are cases where people who were previously on Ozempic now have vagus nerve and hypothalamus issues. In other words, the part of your brain that receives signals from your stomach no longer work as well as they used to, and you can't tell when you're full, so you keep eating. There are also reports of people getting off of Ozempic and having zero control over how much they eat and gaining 2x the pounds they lost when getting on the drug.

The takeaway is that doctors are prescribing away from the labeled use of the drug- which is long term use. I'll say it again- there have been zero short term studies done on people who just want to "shed a few extra pounds". Studies have have only been done with people with over 30 BMI.

THANK YOU for all you do!!!

Types of Obesogens

Scientists have identified quite a few chemicals that may be obesogens, but the research is not yet conclusive. Some of the substances are already prohibited because of health concerns. Others are commonly used in manufacturing, agriculture, and consumer goods.

Phytoestrogens. Phytoestrogens are found in food products, including soybeans, lentils, and chickpeas.

Organotins. These chemicals are fungicides. They are used in treating wood for building materials.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). PAHs are byproducts caused by the burning of some types of fuel. They result in air pollution.‌

Bisphenol A (BPA). BPA and similar chemicals are used in plastics. They are found in food and beverage containers.‌

Link

I am a 911 call taker/dispatcher. Having listened to the reported 911 call from the F-35 pilot who ejected I believe it to be a legitimate recording of the incident. When we answer 911 calls we utilize a process called “Emergency Medical Dispatch” referred to as EMD. For most agencies, this utilizes a scripted set of questions based on the situation described by the caller in the initial part of the call. In listening to the call, you can tell that the 911 call taker is confused about the situation being described, I think that I would have been as well, the description was pretty incredible, and it evolved (changed in subtle but important ways) several times in the first 30 seconds of the call. The call taker pauses the call to consult with a colleague in the background, and if I had to guess, they would be saying, “What the heck do I process this under?”. When the call taker comes back, they have settled into the “17 card” which is for “Falls”. I know this because the first question on that card for non-ground level falls is, “How far did s/he fall?”, and the second question is, “What caused the fall?”, the third question is, “Is there any SERIOUS bleeding?”. These 3 questions are exactly what was asked on the 911 recording.

Depending on the agency, they may also use a set of protocols called, “Emergency Fire Dispatch” (EFD). That would have had much more appropriate protocol (“51 card”) that could have been used, “Aircraft Emergency”. Under that protocol the questions would have been:

“What type of aircraft is involved?”

“Where is the aircraft now?”

“Is the aircraft on fire?”

“Has the aircraft crashed?”

(If Yes – on land) “Is a building/structure involved?”

…

These protocols are not open source so I can’t send you copies, but they are widely used.

Cheers,

Anonymous

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 15:29

What if podcasters could flip a switch and instantly speak another language? That's the premise behind Spotify's new AI-powered voice translation feature, which reproduces podcasts in other languages using the podcaster's own voice.

The company has partnered with a handful of podcasters to translate their English-language episodes into Spanish with its new tool, and it has plans to roll out French and German translations in the coming weeks. The initial batch of episodes will come from some big names, including Dax Shepard, Monica Padman, Lex Fridman, Bill Simmons, and Steven Bartlett. Spotify plans to expand the group to include The Rewatchables from The Ringer and its upcoming show from Trevor Noah.

Here's one of Spotify's translations on an episode of Fridman's show:

The backbone of the translation feature is OpenAI's voice transcription tool Whisper, which can both transcribe English speech and translate other languages into English. But Spotify's tool goes beyond speech-to-text translation '-- the feature will translate a podcast into a different language and reproduce it in a synthesized version of the podcasters' own voice.

''By matching the creator's own voice, Voice Translation gives listeners around the world the power to discover and be inspired by new podcasters in a more authentic way than ever before,'' Ziad Sultan, Spotify's vice president of personalization, said in a statement.

OpenAI is likely behind the voice replication part of this new feature, too. The AI company is making a few announcements this morning, including the launch of a tool that can create ''human-like audio from just text and a few seconds of sample speech.'' OpenAI says it's intentionally limiting how widely this tool will be available due to concerns around safety and privacy.

That's probably part of the reason why Spotify says the translation tech is only being tested with a ''select group'' of podcasters for now. The company didn't elaborate on how widely it planned to make the tool available or when to expect an expansion.

Update September 25th, 8:55AM ET: Updated with the initial group of podcasters using the tool; Spotify also initially said French-language episodes would be available today, but they're now coming later.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:59

Sept 28 (Reuters) - Dawn Heidlebaugh felt trapped in a disturbing pattern while taking Ozempic, the popular drug used to treat diabetes and obesity.

Each Sunday for more than a year, the 53-year-old Ohio real estate agent took her weekly injection to help control her blood sugar. Then every Tuesday, she felt lethargic, depressed and sometimes suicidal, thinking her husband and four children might be better off without her. These feelings would last a few days, and the cycle repeated every week '-- except when she skipped a dose.

''I knew it was the drug,'' said Heidlebaugh, who said she had not previously suffered from depression.

Heidlebaugh is one of four U.S. patients who told Reuters about experiencing suicidal thoughts while taking Novo Nordisk's (NOVOb.CO) popular Ozempic drug, approved to treat type 2 diabetes, or Wegovy, another Novo top-seller approved for weight loss. A fifth patient said he experienced depression and suicidal thoughts after taking Mounjaro, a similar diabetes medicine from Eli Lilly (LLY.N), which is also used for weight loss. All three drugs are GLP-1 receptor agonists, which slow digestion and reduce hunger.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received 265 reports of suicidal thoughts or behavior in patients taking these or similar medicines since 2010, Reuters found in an examination of the agency's adverse-event database. Thirty-six of these reports describe a death by suicide or suspected suicide. The FDA monitors such reports to help decide whether to further investigate a drug's safety and take action to protect patients, such as mandating a warning label.

Accounts of suicidal thoughts linked to this class of drugs are drawing increasing scrutiny, including an investigation by European regulators announced in July. In a statement to Reuters, the FDA said it is evaluating such reports and will decide on what action, if any, to take after a thorough review.

Many beneficial drugs have rare and sometimes dangerous side effects that have to be carefully assessed by regulators and managed by physicians, making clear warnings essential in such cases, said Thomas J. Moore, faculty associate at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who has studied the incidence of rare psychiatric side effects.

''This doesn't mean to automatically blame the drug,'' he said. ''It does mean that a patient's complaint should not be automatically dismissed.''

The Reuters review is the first exhaustive examination of FDA adverse-event reports involving incidents of suicidal thinking linked to GLP-1 drugs. The news organization also filed public records requests to obtain 113 more-detailed narratives for individual incidents among the 265 reports in the FDA database. The experiences of the five patients who spoke with Reuters have not been previously reported.

More than half of the narrative summaries describe suicidal thoughts appearing shortly after the person started the medicine or increased the dose. About two fifths of them said symptoms ceased after the patient stopped taking the drug or lowered the dose.

Thirty of the 113 narratives described patients with a history of depression, suicidal thinking or another mental-health condition. Another five reports explicitly said the patient had no history of psychological issues. Most reports don't address that medical history.

Adverse-event reports provide a warning system for the medical community but aren't considered definitive scientific evidence. Submitted by doctors, patients, drugmakers and others, they often lack key details and do not on their own establish that a drug caused the potentially dangerous health events. Reuters identified the 265 reports by searching the government database for key words involving suicide and self-harm; it's possible that additional reports of these side effects exist.

It's also possible that the reports identified in these searches contain multiple submissions describing the same incident.

In a statement, Novo said it takes ''all reports about adverse events from use of our medicines very seriously,'' and that it would continue to monitor clinical data and collaborate with authorities. The company said it remains confident in the benefit-risk profile of the products and that its own safety monitoring has found no ''causal association'' between the drugs and thoughts of self-harm.

Eli Lilly said in a statement that it was working closely with regulators on potential safety issues involving Mounjaro and that it would continue to review data on ''suicidal ideation, thoughts of self-harm and depression.''

Dr. Erick Turner, a former FDA medical officer who reviewed psychiatric drugs, said cases such as Heidlebaugh's are cause for concern. Regulators should pay attention to cases where patients have no history of depression, experience suicidal thoughts suddenly after starting or increasing their dose, and then see symptoms subside after stopping.

''That makes it harder to explain away the suicidality,'' said Turner, a professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University. ''It makes any occurrence of those safety signals more credible.''

CAUSE FOR ALARM

Millions of patients are being encouraged to try drugs such as Wegovy, which led to an average loss of 15% of a person's body weight in clinical trials, making it the most effective approved weight-loss treatment to date. Its 2021 approval kickstarted a new market for obesity drugs that is estimated to reach $100 billion within a decade. Novo Nordisk says additional trials, which it plans to publish soon, show the drug can also help protect patients against heart attacks and strokes.

Trials of Mounjaro showed even more weight loss, and Eli Lilly has said it expects the FDA to approve the drug for that purpose this year.

Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro have so far proved relatively safe. Their clinical trials did not show suicide risk, according to the FDA. But doctors are on the lookout for previously undocumented dangers as hundreds of thousands of new patients start taking these drugs to lose weight. Heightened suicide risks have caused regulators to issue strong warnings on obesity drugs in the past.

Wegovy's U.S. prescribing label, produced with FDA approval, says suicidal thoughts or attempts have been reported in clinical trials for other weight-loss medicines. It recommends that patients starting Wegovy be monitored for such behavior and calls for those with a history of suicide attempts or active suicidal thinking to avoid the drug.

Novo's Saxenda, a GLP-1 approved in 2014 for weight loss and included in the Reuters analysis of adverse event reports submitted to the FDA, contains an FDA warning because suicidal thoughts or behaviors were seen in some patients during the company's clinical trials.

Dawn Heidlebaugh looks out of the window of her home in Findlay, Ohio, U.S., September 19, 2023. REUTERS/Megan Jelinger Acquire Licensing Rights

There's no such language on the U.S. label for Ozempic, which was approved for treating diabetes in 2017. Suicidal behavior isn't listed as a potential side effect for any GLP-1 drugs in the European Union.

Scrutiny of GLP-1 drugs intensified in July after the European Medicines Agency (EMA) announced an investigation of suicide risk from Ozempic, Wegovy, Saxenda and other GLP-1 drugs. It later said it was analyzing about 150 reports of suicidal thinking. Health agencies in the UK and Canada are also reviewing the drugs' suicide risk. The drug manufacturers have said they are cooperating with the probes.

The European regulator expects to conclude its review in November. The agency told Reuters that such reviews can result in regulators requiring a warning on the product, issuing urgent safety restrictions or asking drugmakers to conduct a more extensive safety study.

If the FDA finds that GLP-1 drugs increase suicide risk, it could also require warnings. In the case of Wegovy, the agency could strengthen the existing warning by requiring more explicit language linking the drug to suicide risk. The agency's strongest action, short of banning a drug, is to issue a so-called black-box warning, which could prompt some doctors and patients to avoid the medicine.

Novo Nordisk itself submitted 180 of the 265 reports to the FDA describing suicidal thinking or behaviors that Reuters found. Among the 113 detailed case narratives, 91 were filed by Novo. In nearly all of those, the company wrote that there weren't enough details to determine what happened. In three reports, the company sought to explain the experience of the patient by saying overweight people are at higher risk of depression or suicidal ideation. Novo declined to comment further on its statements in these reports.

It's difficult to gauge whether or how quickly such reports will spur FDA action. As Reuters reported earlier this year, it took the agency 12 years after launching a safety review of the allergy-and-asthma drug Singulair before it required a black-box warning about serious neuropsychiatric side effects, including suicidal thinking, in 2020. By that time, the FDA had received more than 80 reports of people killing themselves while taking the medicine, including 31 children and teenagers.

Reports of suicidal thinking have previously dogged other weight-loss medications. Sanofi's Acomplia, which never won U.S. approval, was withdrawn in Europe in 2008 after being linked to suicidal thoughts. The weight-loss drug Contrave carries a black-box warning about suicidal thinking, and another obesity medicine, Qsymia, carries a warning telling patients to stop taking it if they experience suicidal thoughts.

Sanofi and Currax Pharmaceuticals, the maker of Contrave, said their drugs shouldn't be compared to GLP-1 drugs because they contain different active ingredients. John Amos, chief executive of Vivus LLC, which sells Qsymia, said patients should consult health-care providers on the benefits and risks of various weight-loss medicines.

VISIONS OF DEATHGLP-1 drugs reach the brain, according to pharmacology reports Novo and Lilly submitted to the FDA. That may account for their effectiveness in influencing hunger signals, but could also increase risks of neuropsychiatric side effects.

Patients who spoke with Reuters described suicidal or panicked feelings that came on quickly after either starting the medicine or increasing the dosage.

None were aware of their experiences being reported to the FDA, underscoring how the FDA's adverse-event database often doesn't capture the full scope of a drug's potential problems. Some people do not connect medical or psychological issues to their medicines. Some patients interviewed by Reuters weren't aware of the FDA process for reporting them.

Three of the patients, including Heidlebaugh, described becoming scared after experiencing impulses to kill themselves by crashing their cars.

''I was driving and thought: 'What if I just jerked the wheel while on this bridge?''' said Lisa Wood, a 33-year-old North Carolina ultrasound technician who lost 70 pounds on Wegovy. ''It didn't occur to me that it was the Wegovy.''

Wood said her symptoms subsided after she stopped taking the medicine.

Sarah Sobol of Buffalo, New York, age 40, said she had panic attacks, hallucinations and suicidal thoughts after increasing her dose of Ozempic, which she took in 2021 for weight loss. She later found patients posting on Facebook about similar symptoms, stopped the medication and began to feel better.

''If someone had said: 'This is a side effect; you're not losing your mind,' it would have really helped me,'' said Sobol, who sought therapy to deal with her symptoms. ''I thought I would end up in the psych ward. I was terrified I would not be normal again.''

Some patients told Reuters they stuck with the therapy, despite the suicidal thoughts, because doctors assured them the drug didn't cause them. Katherine, a 37-year-old North Carolina nurse and mother of two who spoke on condition she be identified only by her first name, said she repeatedly visualized shooting herself while taking Wegovy. One night she went to the emergency room. She was given anxiety medicine and quickly released. She said an ER staffer told her: '''You're a mom. This happens when you get over-tired.'''

Katherine had lost 70 pounds while on Wegovy but switched to Mounjaro. She said she has not experienced any suicidal thoughts on that drug.

Some patients in reports to the FDA and interviews with Reuters said they had experienced depression in the past, but that the feelings they experienced on the GLP-1 drugs felt more intense.

Jayson Chesnutt, a 49-year-old patient on Mounjaro, told Reuters that his dark thoughts prompted him to check himself into the Indiana psychiatric hospital where he works as a nurse. He ultimately decided to continue the medicine, however, because his blood sugar levels had improved and he had lost 75 pounds in five months.

Chesnutt continues to feel depressed and, at times, suicidal. But he says he can manage these feelings now that he is aware of the possible cause. He favors a stronger warning for consumers.

''People need to know their feelings may not be them,'' he said.

Reporting by Robin Respaut and Chad Terhune; additional reporting by Maggie Fick and Ludwig Burger; editing by Michele Gershberg and Brian Thevenot

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:59

Image source, Getty ImagesBy Nick Triggle

Health correspondent

Student loans in England should be written off for certain health staff once they have completed 10 years of NHS service, experts say.

The Nuffield Trust said the financial incentive was needed to stop a "dropout crisis" among nurses, midwives and other front-line staff.

It warned huge numbers were failing to finish training, or leave the NHS soon after starting.

But ministers rejected the idea, saying support was already in place.

The report by the Nuffield Trust is the most comprehensive look at what is happening to those who start training and begin their careers in the NHS.

It looked at a host of different groups from doctors and nurses to midwives and allied health professionals, including physios, occupational therapists and radiographers, who carry out scans.

This data is not routinely published.

But after analysing student records and employment trends, the Nuffield Trust found about one in eight trainee nurses, radiographers and occupational therapists failed to finish their training.

Those who did make it through training did not always go on to work in the NHS, and for those who did, close to one in five nurses, physios and occupational therapists left NHS employment within two years of starting.

The Nuffield Trust said some of those leaving NHS employment could still be working in public sector roles for charities and private firms.

But it said it was still clear there was a worrying trend that could undermine efforts to boost the domestic supply of NHS staff.

Currently the NHS is heavily reliant on recruitment from abroad, but during the summer the government set out a 15-year workforce plan to increase the number of health staff being trained.

The Nuffield Trust said dropout rates were not such a problem for those studying to be a doctor, but there were worrying signs that doctors were taking a break during the early years and not always returning.

It said the student loan forgiveness scheme could work on a sliding scale - so three years of service reduced it by 30%, seven years by 70% and 10 completely.

It only recommended applying it to nurses, midwives and allied health professionals such as physios.

It said for doctors, a way of delaying paying off the loan without accruing interest could be more appropriate.

It costs nearly £65,000 to train a typical nurse - but even if the full loan is repaid in future decades, it still does not cover the whole amount.

'Short-sighted'

Nuffield Trust senior fellow Billy Palmer said: "These high dropout rates are in nobody's interest - they're wasteful for the taxpayer, often distressing for these students and staff who leave, and erode the NHS's ability to deliver safe and high-quality care.

"Simply ploughing more staff into training without thinking about why they leave or what might tempt them to stay is enormously short-sighted."

But he said the loan forgiveness idea would not be a silver bullet, and would need to be accompanied by other measures such as better salaries in the early years of a health worker's career, along with more support when they start.

Even in Scotland, where tuition fees are not charged for Scottish students, or in Wales, where tuition fees are covered if nurses and other front-line staff work for the NHS for two years, problems still exist.

Dean Rogers, of the Society of Radiographers, which is currently involved in strike action, said he welcomed the suggestion.

He said people were being put off training and staying in the profession because of the low starting salary of below £30,000.

"Even after graduating and working as a radiographer for several years, our members talk about not being able to afford to move out of their parents' home."

Royal College of Nursing Deputy Director for Nursing Nichola Ashby said the union has "long advocated" for a loan forgiveness scheme.

She said the report showed the government was "already failing" to meet its workforce plan.

But a spokesman for the Department of Health and Social Care said: "The current student finance system strikes the right balance between the interests of students and of taxpayers. We are working closely with NHS England to reduce student attrition rates and ensure they are supported whilst in training.

"This includes a training grant for eligible nursing, midwifery and allied health profession students of at least £5,000 a year, alongside support for childcare and certain expenses."

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:58

A British actress has claimed that being called ''woke'' is ''as bad'' as a racial slur.

Cathy Tyson, who rose to prominence following her turn as a high-class call girl in 1989's ''Mona Lisa,'' explained in a new interview about the role of race and identity in the entertainment industry why she finds the term offensive.

''I imagine some of the readership use the word 'woke.' For me, it's as bad a term as an offensive racial slur,'' Tyson, 58, shared in the sit-down with the Telegraph '-- a conservative publication that she also admitted she would ''never'' have chatted with when she was younger.

''The terms 'woke' and 'race card' are deeply offensive to me,'' she continued, noting that the latter ''is thrown in your face if you make a criticism of anything,'' while the former is tossed around to ''undermine'' progressive ideas.

''Even the term 'white privilege' is very, very divisive. I'm not about sides,'' Tyson explained, adding that studying for an English degree later in life ''taught me how to open my mind to different viewpoints.''

''How do we all get on together? It's complex, there's a lot of people of all colors who are suffering financially, who are hungry, at the moment,'' she said in the interview published Tuesday.

First lady of Florida Casey DeSantis wears a jacket calling her state ''where woke does to die.''Tyson was raised in Liverpool by her mother, who was of Irish descent, while her lawyer father worked in his native Trinidad.

''My mother was called, you know, a 'N-lover,' by certain people,'' she told the outlet of growing up in the Toxeth neighborhood around the time of the infamous 1981 riots over tensions between police and the black community.

''There were problems between Catholics and Protestants, then you had black and white, there was joyriding at night, there were juvenile delinquents,'' she recalled.

Tyson, who is of mixed race, says calling someone ''woke'' is as bad as a racial slur. ZUMAPRESS.com ''I was aware of why [the riots] flared up, but there was a level of drama all the time, I was used to it.''

Tyson also touched on her experience speaking with sex workers while preparing for a part in the 1995 series ''Band of Gold.''

''I met some lovely people,'' she told the Telegraph.

Republican presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy published a book calling out so-called ''wokeism.''''I saw what they went through. I also dressed up in a miniskirt and walked down Bradford High Street one day with my hair out, just to see what looks I would get. And I got some scornful looks from women, and I thought, 'Oh, that's what they're faced with every day'; it's difficult to live in that environment, where you've got such hostility towards you.''

Last year, Tyson won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Supporting Actress for her turn as a care home resident in ''Help,'' a television film about the COVID-19 pandemic.

She is now playing the disdainful mother of a chef in BBC One's ''Boiling Point,'' a spinoff of a 2021 film, and has also formed a production company, Brown Girl Films, and plans to direct a feature film, the outlet noted.

Tyson (center) rose to prominence when she starred in ''Mona Lisa'' opposite Bob Hoskins. Handmade/Palace/Kobal/ShutterstockIn a reflection on the industry, Tyson said that casting should be ''color-blind, size-blind, age-blind.''

''Society is always ahead of the industry '-- there are women of my age doing all sorts of amazing things,'' she pointed out.

Debates over so-called ''wokeism'' or ''woke culture'' have dominated headlines for months, with Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy even authoring a scathing takedown book titled ''Woke, Inc.''

Casey DeSantis, the wife of Florida Gov. and Ramaswamy campaign rival Ron DeSantis, has also been pictured wearing a leather jacket declaring Florida the place ''where woke goes to die.''

Media figures have come under fire for being either too ''woke'' or not ''woke'' enough '-- with radio personality Howard Stern declaring last week that he is ''woke, motherf''ker.''

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:57

A contempt of court warning issued by the attorney general over Russell Brand coverage has been described as ''worrying'' and ''unnecessary'' by the Society of Editors.

Under the Contempt of Court Act 1981, it is illegal for newspapers to publish anything that could prejudice a criminal trial once a suspect has been arrested or a warrant issued.

But Victoria Prentis KC, the attorney general, has sparked a press freedom row after warning editors that coverage about Brand ''may amount to contempt'', even though no arrests have taken place.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Dawn Alford, executive director of the Society of Editors, said: ''At the moment there are no active proceedings when there have been no arrests '' so it is a very unusual warning.

''I'd say it is worrying and also unnecessary.''

Ms Alford also said any ''attempt to curtail the work'' of newspapers was ''misguided''. She said journalists were ''well versed'' in contempt of court laws.

She added: ''There are many convictions which would not have been achieved had it not been for news organisations breaking stories on alleged wrongdoing.''

Coverage being 'monitored'Earlier this month, a joint investigation by Channel 4's Dispatches and The Sunday Times disclosed that four women accused Brand of sexual assault between 2006 and 2013.

The comedian has denied all wrongdoing and insists that all of his sexual encounters have been consensual.

On Monday, the Metropolitan Police confirmed it was investigating a number of allegations of sexual offences following the documentary's broadcast.

The force also confirmed that no arrests had been made.

A media advisory notice issued by the office of Ms Prentis on Friday, said it was ''monitoring'' the coverage of allegations made against Brand.

It read: ''The attorney general, the Rt Hon Victoria Prentis KC MP, wishes to amplify the importance of not publishing any material where there is a risk that it could prejudice any potential criminal investigation or prosecutions.

''Publishing this material could amount to contempt of court.''

David Banks, a media law consultant, compared the warning to an older version of the law, before the Contempt of Court Act was updated in 1981.

Mr Banks said: ''It is worrying that this attorney general warning appears to go back to a definition of contempt which would be far more of an imposition on our freedom of speech.''

''I expect that newspapers and their lawyers will be treating this advice with a pinch of salt.''

The attorney general has previously issued warnings when it has deemed press coverage or social media comments to be potentially prejudicial.

In 2020, the office monitored coverage of a terror attack in a Reading park and warned against the publication of anything that ''asserts or assumes the guilt'' of arrested suspects.

A spokesman for the attorney general's office said: ''We are committed to the principles of open justice and press freedom.

''However, given the extended period and nature of the coverage of these allegations, the media advisory was issued to remind journalists to exercise caution as common law contempt considerations apply, despite proceedings not currently being 'active'.''

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:53

Greece is to put undocumented migrants to work as builders as it struggles to complete major public projects such as a subway system and an airport in Crete.

The government plans to officially sanction an estimated 300,000 migrants who are either undocumented or whose residence permits have expired, Greece's minister for migration said on Tuesday.

The move is aimed at tackling labour shortages in tourism, building, agriculture and other sectors.

It comes as Europe is facing a fresh wave of migration, fuelling political friction between EU member states, including Germany and Italy, and giving rise to concerns over what to do with the growing number of refugees on the continent.

Speaking during a visit to the US on Tuesday, Suella Braverman, the UK Home Secretary, warned uncontrolled migration poses an ''existential challenge'' to the West as she called for the rewriting of the decades-old United Nations refugee convention.

Greece's migration minister admitted that providing a path to legal work for migrants who had arrived in the country might encourage illegal migration but said it was necessary given the scarcity of workers in a number of key industries.

''We do not want to create new incentives for further illegal flows because that is the danger,'' said Dimitris Kairidis, the Greek migration minister.

''On the other hand, we want to go '... from undeclared to declared labour to boost public revenue with employment taxes and contributions and help address dramatic shortages in certain sectors.''

Metro delaysThe difficulties of finding enough workers was hindering some major public works projects, he said, including a new airport on Crete and the construction of a metro system in the northern city of Thessaloniki.

The metro system has been delayed by the decade-long Greek financial crisis, which began in 2009, and by numerous archaeological discoveries that were made as engineers dug deep beneath the city.

On Crete, meanwhile, the planned construction of a new airport outside Heraklion, the island's main city, has been set back by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mr Kairidis said at the weekend that while the government was determined to crack down on illegal migration and trafficking gangs, it wanted to also boost legal migration routes.

He said the agricultural sector needed 110,000 farm labourers and there was also an acute need in hospitality, tourism and construction.

A survey in May by the Greek Exporters Association found that more than 90 per cent of the companies surveyed said they face labour shortages and difficulties in finding skilled workers.

The plans were announced amid a recent surge in the number of migrants reaching Greece from neighbouring Turkey.

So far this year, more than 18,000 migrants have arrived, an increase of 106 per cent on the figure for the corresponding period in 2022.

In the first seven months of this year, more than 176,000 unauthorised migrants have entered the EU according to Frontex, the bloc's border security force. That is an increase of 13 per cent compared to the same period in 2022.

A rise in arrivals has also been registered in Germany, where Chancellor Olaf Scholz's administration plans to halve the federal aid allocated for states to cover the expenses of receiving and integrating refugees next year.

At a meeting with the country's 16 states on Monday, the federal government said it would slash such funding from '‚¬3.75 billion this year to '‚¬1.7 billion in 2024 as part of belt-tightening amid soaring inflation and an economic slowdown.

''We emphasise again that the states must provide their municipalities with the necessary financial resources,'' a spokesman for Germany's finance ministry told Reuters after the meeting.

'Societal powder keg'The meeting ended in an impasse after the two sides were unable to agree on a financing package ahead of a planned consultation with Mr Scholz in November.

Critics of the federal government's move accused it of fuelling a ''societal powder keg'' after official figures showed more than 200,000 migrants had entered the country this year.

''Instead of increasing funds and decreasing migration figures, they are doing exactly the opposite: less money, rising refugee figures and no real solutions for how to control illegal migration,'' said Gordon Schnieder, party secretary for the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party in the southwestern state of Rhineland-Palatinate.

''Can't the cries for help from the municipalities up and down the country be heard in the capital? Many municipalities have their backs to the wall... The cries for help from the municipalities grow louder every week, every day.''

Meanwhile, Luigi Pantisano, a Stuttgart city councillor for the hard-Left Linke party, warned that slashing aid would strengthen the anti-immigration, hard-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which has seen its support surge in recent months.

Others, though, argued that state-level leaders were also shirking their responsibilities.

'Hole in our finances'Wolfgang Pieper, mayor of the town of Telgte near the Dutch border, said that the state government in North Rhine-Westphalia hadn't raised the level of its refugee aid spending since 2017.

''In this year alone we will have a hole of two million [euros] in our finances,'' he said, adding that authorities have had to turn two local sports halls into temporary shelters due to a lack of available housing options.

The cut in federal financing, if implemented, would bring federal aid to its lowest level since at least 2016.

During the tenure of Mr Scholz' predecessor, Angela Merkel, it was not unusual for federal aid to local governments to exceed '‚¬6 billion.

But, after years of huge spending packages to deal with the consequences of the pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Mr Scholz is keen to bring his budget back in line with Germany's strict public spending limits.

The increase in migrant arrivals has come at a time when Germany is already coping with the consequences of housing and schooling a million refugees from Ukraine.

Polling shows that Germans have little faith in the government's ability to cope with the migrant crisis.

Mr Scholz's centre-Left Social Democrats have fallen to third place in national opinion polls, behind the AfD, in second, and CDU, which is currently the most popular party.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:53

A migrant stands in the Mavrovouni camp on the island of Lesbos, Greece, November 25, 2021. REUTERS/Louiza Vradi/File Photo Acquire Licensing Rights

ATHENS, Sept 27 (Reuters) - Greece's conservative government is working on a plan to integrate hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants to fill worker shortages in agriculture, construction and tourism, ministry officials said on Wednesday.

Like other European countries, Greece faced an exodus of workers from the labour force, both natives and legal immigrants, during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, many of whom never returned.

The new proposal would look at allowing the 300,000 migrants estimated already to be living illegally in Greece to work in some sectors, Migration Minister Dimitris Kairidis told state broadcaster ERT.

"We need to see what to do with the population that is already in our country, without creating further magnets for others to come illegally," Kairidis said.

He gave no further details on the plan, which is still in an early stage. Kairidis is expected to formally outline the initiative at a cabinet meeting next month, a migration ministry official told Reuters.

Greece has taken a tough stance on migration since Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was first elected in 2019, hiring more border guards and boosting patrols on its land and sea borders to stop new arrivals.

The country of 11 million has long attracted thousands of migrants from the Middle East, Asia and Eastern Europe seeking jobs and a better life, many of whom end up working illegally for years, mostly on farms or in construction or as domestic workers.

Agriculture Minister Lefteris Avgenakis said he was in talks with the migration ministry to tackle this problem. He said Greece needs about 180,000 land workers each year, traditionally filled using worker schemes with Albania, Bangladesh, India and Egypt, but bureacucratic delays were leading to shortages.

"It is a fact that we have several thousand illegal workers in our country, who, for many years, have known the particularities and difficulties of raising sheep and goats," Avgenakis said.

Reporting by Karolina TagarisAdditional reporting by Angeliki KoutantouEditing by Peter Graff

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:25

German airline Lufthansa has tried to make a sustainability push in recent years'--the introduction of Green Fares earlier this year is one example, wherein customers can opt for fares in which the carbon offsetting feature is already built in. The company also says it's among the biggest buyers of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), which are alternatives to traditional fossil fuels.

But while Lufthansa has tried to do its bit to adopt sustainable practices, the company's chief says that switching the airline to green fuels like e-kerosene could come at a big price'--half of Germany's electricity supply.

''We would need around half of Germany's electricity to create enough of the fuels,'' Lufthansa's Carsten Spohr said at an aviation conference Monday, Bloomberg reported. He added that while green fuels made using renewable energy sources would help Lufthansa decarbonize its fuel consumption, the likelihood of having enough electricity to produce such materials was low.

''I don't think Mr. Habeck is going to give me that,'' Spohr said at the Hamburg conference, referring to German energy minister Robert Habeck.

Industry search for alternativesComments from the chief of Germany's biggest airline come as the aviation industry looks for alternatives to high carbon-emitting sources that have traditionally been used by airlines. SAFs offer a path to achieving this, as they are biofuels manufactured with a lower carbon footprint. Green kerosene, or e-kerosene, is a type of SAF made from CO2 and water, but requires copious amounts of renewable electricity.

The high demand and need for copious amounts of energy have made SAFs expensive'--aviation industry leaders have wrestled with the trade-off that transitioning to such fuel sources would create as it would hike the price of air travel for customers.

But studies have shown the potential impact that synthetic fuels like e-kerosene could have'--in Europe alone, this type of fuel could save millions of tons of CO2 emissions by 2030.

Industry executives like Spohr have recognized that such fuel sources are the way forward to decarbonize aviation. But at the same time, he has pushed back against European Union quotas on SAFs that could mandate targets for airlines on their use of cleaner fuel options.

''From today's point of view, it won't work to have even the availability of the quantities that are demanded of us, not to mention the high costs that in the end the passenger will have to bear,'' Spohr said during a press briefing earlier this month, Reuters reported.

He has also emphasized how capacity is one of the key constraints when it comes to scaling up the use of greener fuel alternatives.

''If the Lufthansa Group were to use all the SAF currently available, it would only be able to fly for just under two weeks. A market ramp-up, higher availability, and associated lower prices are urgently needed to enable greater use of SAF,'' a Lufthansa spokesperson told Fortune in an emailed statement.

Even still, Lufthansa is ahead of the curve when it comes to SAF use'--globally, only about 0.1% of airlines' fuel comes from SAFs, while that same ratio is about 0.2% for Lufthansa.

''The use of SAF is still at the beginning of market scaling, and the supply volumes available today and the share of SAF in the Lufthansa Group's total fuel consumption are correspondingly small,'' the spokesperson said. ''The Lufthansa Group does everything in its power to reduce the environmental impact of flying.''

Subscribe to Well Adjusted, our newsletter full of simple strategies to work smarter and live better, from the Fortune Well team.

Sign up today.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:17

Ukrainian soldiers surrenderingUkrainian troops are surrendering in droves, Russian TASS news agency claims, to the extent that Moscow has set up a special radio frequency so Ukrainian soldiers wishing to survive the Meat Grinder can do so safely.

Approximately 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers have surrendered to the Russians using the special 149.200 ''Volga'' radio frequency, which has been operating since mid-summer, TASS reported.

''Now more than 10,000 Ukrainian servicemen have already chosen life and used the 149.200 'Volga' frequency to surrender. The captives are being fed; they are being provided with all necessary medical care,'' a source told TASS, saying the radio frequency works along the entire front.

''Volga'' 149.200It's time. Those who know ..know pic.twitter.com/BzukKxTGKo

'-- MindWearApparel (@wear_mind) September 23, 2023

The operational source noted the number of Ukrainian soldiers surrendering has increased recently. There is a pro-Russian underground active within Ukraine, the source said, who inform soldiers about how to surrender.

''There have already been cases in (the frontline village of) Rabotino when Ukrainian fighters made use of the 149.200 'Volga' frequency to surrender in entire groups,'' the Union of Veterans of the Special Military Operation told TASS.

The 149.200 frequency, is designed to be used by Ukrainian soldiers who want to surrender to reach the Russian military, saving the Ukrainian servicemen from risking their lives crossing minefields to reach the Russian lines.

According to

Moscow's latest estimates, Kiev has lost more than 17,000 servicemen this month alone. The total number of Ukrainian troops killed since the counteroffensive began has now surpassed 83,000, with over 10,000 pieces of heavy military hardware destroyed, the Russian military claims.

Two more AFU fighters surrendered to Russian servicemen in the DPR

They used the radio frequency 149.200 and called ''Volga''. As noted, they were mobilized and were ''tired of fighting.''#Ukraine pic.twitter.com/cZhitMibTo

'-- Emeka Gift Official (@EmekaGift100) September 20, 2023

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:16

The alarming discovery by scientist Kevin McKernan, of DNA contamination in vials of Pfizer and Moderna Covid vaccines has raised significant concern in the scientific community. Meanwhile, the reported finding has attracted criticism from those quick to 'demonise' anyone questioning the safety, efficacy, and sanctity of the 'vaccines.' McKernan's detractors '' and there have been plenty of them '' have criticised everything from lack of peer-reviewed publication to speculation about the viability of the anonymously sent vials.

Now, don't get me wrong. Criticism and open debate in scientific enquiry are good things. After the three years of censorship and stifled debate in science and medicine one thing is patently clear: freedom of speech is paramount to truth.

Let's be clear on another thing. The peer-review system is essentially broken. The same players with vested interests in the pharmaceutical industry curiously have the same influence on the research and publication industry. As McKernan rightly points out, '[t]he market will validate this finding long before traditional peer review even puts its boots on. Independent wet lab reproduction trumps 3 anonymous readers every time.' This, then was the motivation behind publishing the results online with a call-to-action for scientists in the field to independently verify the results.

Answer the call they did. McKernan's results '' for the Pfizer product (BNT162b2) '' have now been independently verified by a number of internationally recognised laboratories confirming both the presence and levels of DNA contamination across different vials and batches.

So, in asking the question 'Is the result reproducible?' the answer (for the Pfizer product BNT162b2 at least) is 'Yes.' The contamination is real. These results now lead us to ask some other questions which hang heavily in the air.

Questions like, 'How bad is the contamination,' 'What are the regulatory authorities doing about it,' and '' the question on everyone's lips '' 'What does this mean for the billions who took the jab?'

These questions deserve answers.

So, how bad is the contamination? There are two things to consider here. Firstly, what are the levels of contamination and secondly what are the components of the contamination. As previously reported, levels of DNA contamination in the Pfizer BNT162b2 product came in around 18-70 times over the limits set by regulatory authorities. These levels of contamination have also been confirmed independently.

To put some perspective on these numbers McKernan explains in terms of PCR testing for Covid.

'You were probably swabbed with one of those nasal swabs to get a Covid PCR. You would be called positive of a CT (cycle threshold) under 40. We're getting CTs under 20 with the contamination of the vaccine. That's a million-fold more contamination than you would be called positive for having a virus. Now, the virus they're swabbing is outside of your mucosal membrane in your nose. We're talking about a contaminant that's getting injected, bypassing your mucosal defences at a million-fold higher concentrations'...There's an enormous difference here in terms of the amount of material it's in there.'

The manufacturing process, as discussed in a recent BMJ article, points to how the DNA contamination may've occurred. The clinical trials were run using 'Process 1' which involved in vitro transcription off synthetic DNA '' essentially a 'clean' process. However, this process is not viable for mass production, so the manufacturers switched to 'Process 2' to dial things up. Process 2 involves using E. coli bacteria to replicate the plasmids.

Getting the plasmids out of the E coli. can be challenging and result in residual plasmids in the vaccines. But there's another concern. When plasmid contamination is found, there is a potential for bacterial endotoxin to also be present. This endotoxin can produce serious side effects if injected including anaphylaxis and septic shock. Australian Professor Geoff Pain remains most vocal providing extensive details on these endotoxins.

Sequencing of the plasmids from the Pfizer vials resulted in another 'accidental' discovery. Something was found that wasn't in the sequence map disclosed by Pfizer to the EMA. This something is called a SV40 promoter. The SV40 promoter is a sequence that turns on gene expression, like a switch. It is also a potent nuclear localisation signal, meaning it makes a beeline for the nucleus. The entire SV40 genetic sequence came to infamous prominence in the 1960s having been found to have polluted the Salk polio vaccine, causing a subsequent surge in cancers. We'll return to the concerning significance of the SV40 promoter sequence in a moment.

Subsequent experiments suggest that most of the DNA contamination is fragmented, which is by no means benign. McKernan states, '(Much of) the DNA is actually linear because they do go through a step trying to fragment this and (linear DNA) has a higher propensity for integration than circular plasmid DNA.' It seems that a significant amount of the DNA is in this form and presents a greater risk to humans in terms of risk for integration into the genome, than the circular DNA.

To make matters worse '' as if things could get any worse '' it appears that much of the DNA is packaged in the lipid nano particles (LNP). 'If the DNA is actually in the LNPs, we have different risks, as'... this will then transfect the mammalian cells and become a genetic alteration. Now, whether it integrates with the genome is secondary, the fact that you're getting foreign DNA into the cell is a risk in and of itself, because it could partially get expressed, or it could muddle around with other transcription, translation machinery that's in there,' McKernan explains.

Let's recap. We have DNA, which is mostly packaged in LNP designed to travel all over the body and enter cells, delivering it's genetic cargo like a trojan horse. Some of this DNA may contain the SV40 promoter sequence '' the one known to make a beeline to the nucleus and turn on gene expression. McKernan states an obvious concern, 'If (the SV40 promoter) becomes integrated into the genome it will turn on gene expression wherever it lands. If this happens to be an oncogene (a cancer-causing gene), you've got problems.''

This, dear reader, is only one of the many possible adverse effects from injecting synthetic DNA into humans.

The scientific literature acknowledges the potential for foreign/synthetic DNA alone to be oncogenic (cancer-causing), infectious, and prothrombotic. In addition, genomic integration of a viral promoter like SV40 can contribute to cancer and is well known to cause leukemia in gene therapy trials.

You can see why scientists are alarmed. These concerns were presented to the FDA on the June 16, 2023. What have they done with this information you ask? Probably filed it in a box somewhere in a deep dark warehouse between the words 'conspicuous' and 'conspire' is my guess.

When we consider the above it is clear why strict legal rules exist in the field of genetic science especially where humans are involved. Rules designed to (actually) keep people safe from the potential known and unknown consequences of messing with the genetic integrity of human life. Which brings us to the next question:

'What are the regulatory authorities doing about it?' From what we can tell, nothing.

The independently verified contamination alone heralds a serious quality control issue which behooves immediate attention from the likes of the FDA, TGA and EMA. Combined with significant adverse event data and climbing excess mortality rates around the world these shots should have been pulled over two years ago. Indeed, we would postulate they should never have been approved.

This unfolding story is by no means over. Serious questions have been raised asking whether these products, which have been injected into billions around the world, were approved illegally.

The disturbing revelation was raised in a recent landmark publication by one of the authors. It appears that even without the DNA contamination 'the so-called ''vaccines,'' from the beginning fulfilled the legal definitions for being categorized as genetically modified organisms.' They therefore required GMO licences. It would appear those licences are missing.

The Australian Federal Court is being asked to consider this issue in proceedings recently filed under the Gene Technology Act against Pfizer and Moderna. Australia's TGA and the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator were thoroughly informed of the GMO and synthetic DNA contamination by the lawyers responsible, but neither office has bothered to reply nor comment.

In a statement to the press, instructing solicitor Katie Ashby-Koppens says, 'We took this case on because neither of the appropriate regulators were doing anything about it. The Therapeutic Goods Administration and Office of the Gene Technology Regulator were both put on notice in 2022 that these products contain GMOs and they have failed to act. It has been left to citizens to do what the Australian Government won't do.''

''Every single person who has been injected with these products has received a GMO that has not been through the expert regulatory process in this country. The human genome could be changed permanently, and no one was informed.''

If all this bares out, at best the regulatory bodies have failed in their duty to protect the people. At worst they have been complicit in a crime with consequences for the world's population and generations to come.

To answer the final question the question on everyone's lips: 'What does this mean for the billions who took the jab?' We may soon start answering this question more precisely, with the development of qPCR kits to differentiate between Long Covid and Long Vax, and determine whether vaccine sequences are present in human tissue samples.

Dr Julie Sladden is a medical doctor and freelance writer with a passion for transparency in healthcare. Her op-eds have been published in both The Spectator Australia and The Daily Declaration. In 2022, she was elected as a Local Government Councillor for West Tamar in Tasmania.

View all posts Julian Gillespie is a lawyer and former barrister in Australia, known for his Covid-19 research and advocacy. His work includes seeking to have the provisional approval of Covid-19 vaccines declared legally invalid due to failures to meet regulatory standards. Julian is also a director of Children's Health Defense, Australia.

View all posts

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 01:44

US Markets Loading... H M S

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg attending the closed door Senate AI forum. Nathan Howard This story is available exclusively to Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Members of the Senate last week held a private meeting with many major tech leaders to discuss AI. During the meeting, Tristan Harris said Llama 2 gives a walkthrough on how to create anthrax.Zuckerberg argued that information can also be found elsewhere.Several tech leaders descended upon Capitol Hill last week to discuss the rapid expansion of generative AI. It was a mostly staid meeting until the potential harms from Meta's new Llama 2 model came up.

During the discussion, attended by most of the Senate's 100 members, Tristan Harris, a co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology, said he recently had engineers take Meta's powerful large language model Llama 2 for a "test drive." After some prompting, Harris said that a chat with Llama 2 came back with a detailed walkthrough of how to create anthrax as a biological weapon, according to one person familiar with the forum and two senators present. That prompted a testy exchange between Harris and Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder and CEO of Meta, formerly known as Facebook. Most specifics of the exchange between Harris and Zuckerberg have not been previously reported, although Harris receiving directions from Llama 2 about an unidentified biological weapon was noted by The Washington Post.

This story is available exclusively to Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? . Among the two dozen tech leaders at the forum were Elon Musk, owner of Twitter and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX; Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI; Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft; Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia; and Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google.

The gathering was led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich, and Republican Sens. Mike Rounds, and Todd Young, who all make up a new "artificial intelligence working group." The group formed earlier this year, a few months after OpenAI's ChatGPT bot became known the world over.

During the session, Zuckerberg attempted to downplay Harris' statement that Llama 2 can tell users how to make anthrax, saying anyone who was looking for such a guide could find out how to make anthrax on YouTube, according to both of the senators present. Harris rejected the argument, saying such guides do not come up on YouTube, and even if they did, the level of detail and guidance provided by Llama 2 was unique to such a powerful generative AI model. It's also largely an open-source model, meaning it's freely available to use and adapt.

"It was one of the only moments in the whole thing that was like, 'Oh,'" one of the senators present said, describing the exchange as having caught people's attention. "Twenty-four out of the 26 panelists there basically said exactly the same thing over and over: 'We need to protect AI innovation but with safeguards in place.'"

A Meta spokesperson declined to comment. Harris did not respond to requests for comment.

Beyond the brief snit between Harris and Zuckerberg, there was little in-depth discussion of the issues surrounding AI, according to all three of the people familiar with the meeting. Even the ability of Llama 2 to guide a prospective user on creating anthrax was not cause for any extended probing, the people said.

"It was, 'Ok, next speaker,' it moved right along," one of the senators present said.

Llama 2's power is well-known inside Meta. Its ability to turn up detailed instructions for creating a biological weapon like anthrax is to be expected, two people familiar with the company said.

"Really, this is going to be the case for every LLM of a certain size, unless you kneecap it for certain things," one of the people familiar with Meta said. "There will be edge cases. But the ones that are products, like ChatGPT, as opposed to open source releases, they just nerf it for this and that."

Still, AI tools trained on trillions of pieces of information scraped from the whole of the internet are difficult to control. Earlier this year, a user of a Discord bot created with ChatGPT was able to get the chemical recipe for napalm, a highly flammable liquid used as a military weapon. ChatGPT and Google's Bard are also known for serving up information to users that is incorrect, composed of misinformation, or simply made up, dubbed "hallucinations."

Are you a Meta employee or someone else with insight to share? Contact Kali Hays at khays@insider.com, on secure messaging app Signal at 949-280-0267, or through Twitter DM at @hayskali. Reach out using a non-work device.

Get in touch with Bryan Metzger by email at bmetzger@insider.com or find him on Twitter at @metzgov.

Sign up for notifications from Insider! Stay up to date with what you want to know.

Subscribe to push notifications

Read next

Receive a selection of our best stories daily based on your reading preferences.

Mark Zuckerberg AI Generative AI More...

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 19:45

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five's ''The Message'' may not have been the origin of conscious-rap in the early '80s, but it took the idea, ran away with it, married it, had several children and bought a farm in upstate Idaho with it.

''The Message'' was the 7th rap song to ever appear on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, peaking at #62. It went gold within 11 days. It was also selected by the New York Times as 'the most powerful pop single of 1982' and NME named it their #1 track of the year.

In 2017, Rolling Stone named it the best hip-hop record of all time. But perhaps the song's biggest honor was in 2002 when the US Library Of Congress began archiving recordings that are ''culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant'' in its National Recording Registry. ''The Message'' was included because ''of its focus on urban social issues'', and thus shows it is regarded as significant as other recordings also archived that first year '' like ''Stars and Stripes Forever'', ''God Bless America'' and Martin Luther King's ''I Have a Dream'' speech.

Though it's credited to Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, ''The Message'' was primarily written by Ed ''Duke Bootee'' Fletcher and producer Jiggs Chase, with the only contributing member of GF & TFF being Melle Mel who wrote the final verse. At the suggestion of Sylvia Robinson, the then-head of Sugar Hill Records, both Duke & Mel rapped on the track.

There are many different versions of this song with different numbers of verse. Often, Verse 4 is omitted. This is the original, and longest, version.

It has been sampled and quoted many times, often imitated, but never matched.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 19:28

American black nationalist religious movement

The Five-Percent emblem, also known as the Universal Flag of Islam (I-Self Lord and Master).[1]Allah the Father (formerly Clarence 13X), the founder of the Nation of Gods and EarthsThe Five-Percent Nation, sometimes referred to as the Nation of Gods and Earths (NGE/NOGE) or the Five Percenters, is a Black nationalist movement influenced by Islam that was founded in 1964 in the Harlem section of the borough of Manhattan, New York City, by Allah the Father, who was previously known as Clarence 13X and, before that, Clarence Edward Smith.

Members of the group call themselves Allah's Five Percenters, which reflects the concept that ten percent of the people in the world are elites and their agents, who know the truth of existence and opt to keep eighty-five percent of the world in ignorance and under their controlling thumb; the remaining five percent are those who know the truth and are determined to enlighten the eighty-five percent.[2][3]

The Nation of Gods and Earths teaches the belief that Black people are the original people of the planet Earth and are therefore the fathers ("Gods") and mothers ("Earths") of civilization.[2] The Nation teaches that Supreme Mathematics and Supreme Alphabet, a set of principles created by Allah the Father, is the key to understanding humankind's relationship to the universe. The Nation teaches that the black man (insofar as the Nation defines this race) is himself God, with the black race thus being a race of actual gods.[2]

History [ edit ] Founding [ edit ] The Nation of Gods and Earths was founded by Clarence 13X after he left the Nation of Islam's Temple Number Seven in Harlem, New York, the same temple where Malcolm X was a minister from 1960 to 1963. Multiple stories exist as to why Clarence and the NOI parted ways: Some state he refused to give up gambling; others state he questioned the unique divinity of Wallace Fard Muhammad, whom the NOI deified as the true and living God in person; or that he questioned Fard's godhood due to the fact that Fard was born of a white mother.[5][6] One story states that he was disciplined by the NOI and excommunicated in 1963, but another version of events says that he left of his own free will.

After leaving the NOI, he renamed himself "Allah the Father". He was joined by Abu Shahid (formerly John 37X), who agreed with Allah's questioning of Wallace Fard Muhammad. Allah the Father and Shahid were nicknamed "High Scientists" due to their intense study of lessons.[5] Allah was also joined by Justice (formerly James 109X, and before that, James Howell) who would become one of Allah's closest associates until his death.[8]

Allah proselytized the streets of Harlem to teach others his views based on his interpretation of NOI teachings. After failing to reach elder adults whom he saw as already set in their ways, he found success with street youth.[10][11][12][13][14] On October 10, 1964, this young group formed the First Nine Born of what became known as the Five-Percent Nation, or later the Nation of Gods and Earths.

Allah taught his Black male students that they were Gods, just as he was. He taught them that the astral twin of the Black man is the Sun. In Supreme Mathematics, the Black man is symbolized as "Knowledge." The Black women who came into Father Allah's growing movement to study along with the males were taught they were symbolic of the planet Earth because women produce and sustain human existence as does the Earth. Female Five Percenters are also referred to as "Wisdom." The Nation of Gods and Earths' Supreme Wisdom states: "Wisdom is the Original Woman because life is continued through her cipher (womb)."[17] The NGE does not consider itself a religion; its position is that it makes no sense to be religious or to worship or deify anyone or anything outside of oneself because adherents, themselves, are the highest power in the known universe, both collectively and individually. Allah the Father developed a curriculum of eight lessons that included the Supreme Alphabets and Mathematics, which he devised, as well as lessons developed by the Nation of Islam's Elijah Muhammad and Wallace Fard Muhammad. The eight lessons were taught in this order, which follows below:

Supreme Mathematics (1''10)Supreme Alphabets (1''26)Student Enrollment (1''10)English Lesson C-1 (1''36)Lost-Found Muslim Lesson No. 1 (1''14)Lost-Found Muslim Lesson No. 2 (1''40)Actual Facts (13)Solar Facts (9)Each Five Percenter was required to fully "master" each lesson and was expected to be able to "think and reason by forming profound relationships between the lessons and significant experiences within life." Five Percenters were also required to share what they had learned with others, and thereby recruit new members.

Social and political influence [ edit ] The FBI opened a file on the Five Percenters in 1965, the height of the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements in the United States. In "Disturbance by Group Called 'Five Percenters,'" the FBI refers to the organization as a "loosely knit group of Negro youth gangs. ... These particular gangs emanate from New York City Public School Number 120 which is a junior high school."[22] The FBI file stated that the organization's name meant "The five percent of the Muslims who smoke and drink."[22] 1965 New York newspaper articles referred to the Five Percenters as a "gang," "hoodlums," and "terror group."[22] Allah the Father and the Five Percenters "had a reputation for being unreachable, anti-white criminals."[23] With the goal of preventing New York from having a race riot or uprising, New York Mayor John V. Lindsay sent Barry Gottehrer, the head of the mayor's Urban Task Force, to meet with the organization the FBI had called a "gang" and "terror group."[23] Gottehrer stated Allah the Father was non-violent, "but was dedicated to his community's well-being."[23] Gottehrer and Allah began organizing picnics and airplane rides for the Five Percenters that were funded by New York City through the Urban Task Force.[23] Wakeel Allah's book In the Name of Allah includes a photo captioned: "Allah (in background) along with Mayor Lindsay (holding baby) on airplane ride with Five Percenters." In 1967, Father Allah, with Gottehrer's assistance, opened the Urban League Street Academy, which would become known as the Allah School in Mecca.[23]

In 1967, shortly after Allah and Justice started holding classes at the Street Academy, Civil Rights leader Bayard Rustin and Massachusetts Senator Edward Brooke visited Father Allah at the Academy. In an article titled "The Five Percenters," published in The New Amsterdam News, Rustin wrote

We might all applaud the Street Academy as one of the most constructive contributions to the maintenance of stability in the Harlem Community, as well as creating an effective instrument for the rehabilitation of young men who might otherwise have no choice but the streets. ... Besides their academic and social activities, the Five Percenters told me that they pursue a spiritual ideal of "helping others discover a true knowledge of themselves." They said they are "neither anti-white nor pro-black."

Allah the Father stated that he was "neither pro-black nor anti-white."[27] In his "National Statement" given at Brookdale College in Monmouth County, New Jersey, in 1998, Dumar Wa'de Allah, National Spokesman for the NGE,[28] stated "we are not anti-white, nor pro-black. In fact, we have white Five Percenters."[29] NGE websites and articles state, "We as a collective are not anti-white nor pro-black. We are pro-righteous and anti-devilishment."[30][31][32]

There have been from the organization's inception Five Percenters of various ethnicities. The most well-known Caucasian Five Percenter is John Michael Kennedy, who met Allah in 1965. Allah proclaimed Kennedy a "righteous man" and renamed him Azreal.[33] Michael M. Knight's The Five Percenters includes a photo of a gathering of Five Percenters that includes Barkim, who Knight describes as "one of the earliest white Five Percenters" and his siblings.[34] Knight's book also includes two photos of Allah with Gottehrer, who Allah called "Moses."[35]

In 2018 members of the Five Percent Nation and Harlem community members applied to the Transportation/Historic Preservation & Landmarks Committee of Manhattan Community Board 10 to have the northwest corner of 126th Street & Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd in Harlem, New York co-named ''Allah, Justice & The Five Percenters Square.''[36][37] The application and subsequent proposal were approved by Manhattan Community Board 10 and the New York City Council.[37] In March 2019 the intersection of 126th Street & Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd in New York was officially co-named "Allah, Justice & The Five Percenters Square."[37][38]

Conflicts [ edit ] After the founding of the Allah School, the Gods and Earths became more influential '' upon the April 1968 assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., it quelled a potential rebellion inside Harlem.[40] Allah was assassinated 13 June 1969 at 21 West 112th Street in Harlem, the residence of his wife and children.[42] There have been rumors and theories about assailants and motives,[44] but the murder remains unsolved. The murder was a blow to the movement, but according to the direct orders of Allah before his death, some of his earliest disciples, a group of nine men who were called the First Nine Born carried on the teachings, and his friend Justice assumed an acting leadership role.

The FBI's labeling the Five Percenters as a "gang" in 1965 has caused much trouble for Gods and Earths in the United States. The "gang" label has caused individuals with even remote NGE affiliation to be designated as security threats in jails and prisons in Michigan, New Jersey, New York, and South Carolina.[46] NGE literature has been banned from penal institutions in these and other states, and inmates have been denied privileges enjoyed by those of other persuasions. Such rules were relaxed in 2004 in New York to allow registered "sincere adherent(s)" to study teachings personally but not share with unregistered inmates during their incarceration.[47]

Its newspaper The Five Percenter condemns the states who impose restrictions on their practice as those who "attempt to define us in ways that seek to criminalize us."[48] In Michigan, the Nation challenged a ban on the group's literature among prison inmates after an inmate was designated a security threat until he renounced his membership. Judge Steven Whalen found no evidence that the group advocated violence and recommended that it be recognized as a legitimate belief system.[49]

Beliefs [ edit ] Basis [ edit ] The men of the Five Percent Nation view themselves as Gods (both individually and collectively as the Original Man).[10] According to the Five Percenter Newspaper, "God first means that it is no longer a judicial argument; centered means everything we do is about God. Culture is the practices and principles of a people at any given time."[50] Gods and Earths sometimes refer to themselves as scientists, implying their search for knowledge and proof.[51][52]

The teachings of the Nation of Gods and Earths are passed on through a modern oral tradition. The advancement of a God or Earth is based on his or her memorization, recitation, comprehension, and practical application of the Supreme Mathematics and the Supreme Alphabet and also the 120 Lessons, sometimes referred to as degrees, a revised version of the Supreme Wisdom lessons of the NOI, originally written by Wallace Fard Muhammad and Elijah Muhammad.[12][53][54] The anthology Knowledge of Self: A Collection of Wisdom on the Science of Everything in Life by Supreme Understanding details the teachings of the Nation of Gods and Earths.[55][56] Wakeel Allah has written In the Name of Allah: A History of Clarence 13X and the 5 Percenters and The Naked Truth: From the Goal Mind of Abu Shahid, the Elder of the Nation of Gods and Earths.[57]

"Five Percent" [ edit ] The term "Five Percenter" is taken directly from the "Five Percent" who are described in "Lost-Found Muslim Lesson No. 2" of the Nation of Islam. The lesson groups the people of the world into three categories. Eighty-five percent of the world's population are described as "uncivilized people; poison animal eaters; slaves from mental death and power, people who do not know the Living God or their origin in this world, and they worship that which they do not know. ... [They] are easily led in the wrong direction, but hard to lead into the right direction." Ten percent of the world's population are described as "The rich; the slave-makers of the poor; who teach the poor lies'--to believe that the Almighty, True and Living God is a spook and cannot be seen by the physical eye. Otherwise known as: The Blood-Suckers of the Poor." Five Percent of the world's population are described as "the poor, righteous Teachers, who do not believe in the teachings of the 10%, and are all-wise; and know who the Living God is; and Teach that the Living God is the Sun of man, the supreme being, the (Black man) of Asia; and Teach Freedom, Justice and Equality to all the human family of the planet Earth."[58]

The Universal Language [ edit ] The Supreme Mathematics and Supreme Alphabet are key concepts in the Five Percent Nation. The Supreme mathematics is a system of understanding numerals alongside concepts and qualitative representations that are used along with the Supreme Alphabet.[12][54] The Supreme Mathematics is thought to be the highest system of numerology in the NGE, used to give qualitative value to numbers in addition to quantity. How the values associated with each number were derived are currently unknown. The numerals are as follows:[59][60]

1. Knowledge2. Wisdom3. Understanding4. Culture or Freedom5. Power or Refinement6. Equality7. God8. Build or Destroy9. Born (Birth)0. CipherThe Supreme Alphabet is a system of interpreting text and finding deeper meaning from the NOI Lessons by assigning actual meanings to the letters of the Latin script. For example, the first letter, A, stands for Allah; the 12th letter, L, stands for Love, Hell, or Right; and the 13th letter, M, stands for Master. The Supreme Alphabet was developed by Allah the Father and Justice. The method by which letters were associated with certain values is unknown.

Customs [ edit ] The Five-Percent Nation holds events known as Universal Parliaments in various cities'--usually once a month'--to build on their interpretation of the Supreme Mathematics, lessons, and to discuss business concerning the NGE. These meetings usually take place in public areas and can be held anywhere.

Because the NGE defines itself as a way of life and not a religion, the Nation generally does not observe religious holidays, including those associated with Christianity or Islam.[65] Many Five Percenters honor Allah the Father's birthday (February 22) and/or the official founding of the Nation (October 10) with special events and parliaments.[66] The Show and Prove is an annual event that takes place in Harlem every second weekend in June.[67]

Similar to adherents of denominations of traditional Islam, Five Percenters abstain from eating pork or any pork-based by-products. According to Five Percenter Universal Shaamguadd, Allah the Father stated Five Percenters should avoid eating "small scavengers, such as shrimp," and also avoid "lobsters, crabs, clams, and oysters." Some Five Percenters take further steps and eschew meat altogether, often opting for "strict" vegetarianism.[69] Allah the Father advocated "eating one meal a day, every other day or every third days, as prescribed in the Nation of Islam." Allah was also a proponent of fasting and many new adherents fast as part of "an induction process."

Teachings on race [ edit ] The teachings of Five-Percent Nation have been accused of promoting Black supremacy. As in the Nation of Islam, Five Percenters believe that the original inhabitants of the world were Black (which they refer to as the "Asiatic Blackman" and believe had inhabited the earth for "66 trillion years") who ultimately descended from the Tribe of Shabazz, while the white race are evil "devils" who were created 6,000 years ago on what is today the Greek island of Patmos by a ''rogue bigheaded scientist'' named Yakub (the Biblical and Qur'anic Jacob) who was of the Meccan branch of the tribe. After the whites attempted to rise up against their creators, they were exiled to the caves of "West Asia" '' what would later be known as Europe. The Yakub origin story is the basis for all Five Percenter racial understanding.[71]

Gender perceptions [ edit ] Some Five Percenters have been accused of promoting male chauvinism and misogyny.[72][73][74] According to Prince Allah Cuba, since the death of Allah the Father, some Gods have grown preoccupied with male supremacy, and this preoccupation has resulted in the minimization of all things female: from the crescent moon on the nation's flag being made smaller and eventually placed under the number seven, to the lack of parity in the God-Earth dyad.[75] According to the Five Percent Nation, each member constitutes a divine being in his or her own right.[69][76] Some males promote the minimization of women, as with Lord Jamar's lyric that woman is "secondary but most necessary."[77] Others describe the Black woman as the Black man's equal: In X Clan's song "Wiz Degrees," Five Percenter Brother J describes his partner as "Wisdom and the Goddess manifest."[78] Ladybug Mecca, a Five Percenter and the female member of the hip hop group Digable Planets, offers her view of gender and divinity:

We need to know that there is a feminine and masculine principal or consciousness that is considered the God or the Creator. It's not a male, like religion will tell you. It's a mother/father principle, a masculine/feminine principle. /. . . ./ The feminine principle is what gives birth to the universe. It's what brings creation forth, so there has to be an acknowledgement and respect for her in order to bring back the balance. In religion, in Christianity and in Islam, in all religions ... it's a perverted piece of the truth, when it doesn't hold the woman on a pedestal.[79]

Five Percenter Just I C Equality Allah asserts that gender equality is an inherent aspect of ALLAH: "How can woman not be God as well as man? First of all, we are the Arm Leg Leg Arm Head (Allah). There is no gender type, we all have the components that make the physical. Allah is the all in all. How can we be the all in all if "all" isn't included?"[80] When Allah the Father was alive, some female Five Percenters referred to themselves as Goddesses.[81] A Five Percent female named Tawanna referred to herself as God. When challenged by some male Five Percenters, Tawanna defended her position and was declared by Justice to be "more God than some of the men!"[81]

Hip hop [ edit ] The majority of allusions to Islam in American hip-hop, either conscious or otherwise, spawn from adherents of the Five Percenters.[82] In its article on Five Percenter Jay Electronica, Vice Magazine stated in regard to the Five Percent Nation: "It's a movement that's been affiliated with hip-hop from the very beginning, coining terms like 'ciphers' and 'dropping science' and influencing everyone, World's Famous Supreme Team, Big Daddy Kane,Busta Ryhmes, J. Cole, Jay-Z, Method Man, Rakim, Wu-Tang Clan, Brand Nubian, Nas, Common, Poor Righteous Teachers, Erykah Badu, and AZ. With these artists, and any others associated with the Five Percenters, music was more than just a message."[83]

The Nation of Gods and Earth has propagated its teachings throughout the United States and abroad. In the early 1980s, this spread was in part due to early adherents teaching when away at college or in the military and, more famously, because of the rise of hip hop music. The main theme of the NGE doctrine spoken on hip hop records were the teachings that black people were the original or first human life to walk the planet, that the Blackman is God, the Blackwoman is Earth, and through the inner esoteric powers of the Gods and Earths, the youth can transform and possess its true potential, which aspires to overthrow the overbearing oligarchy by becoming just rulers of themselves. This especially meshed well with conscious themes found in other golden-age hip hop recordings.

Early hip-hop acts affiliated with the Five Percenters, and who spread its teachings through hip hop, include two MCs of the late 1980s''early '90s conscious-rap era'--Rakim of Eric B. & Rakim[84] and Big Daddy Kane. These two acts, as well as some of their other contemporaries, infused Five-Percent teachings and symbolism throughout their music and videos. This reputation brought fans of Rakim in particular to refer to him as the God MC. After Rakim and Kane's heyday rose acts that were even more explicit with allegiance to the NGE, most notably Brand Nubian, Poor Righteous Teachers, Wu-Tang Clan, Killarmy, Sunz of Man, Gravediggaz and Busta Rhymes.[86][87][88] The popularity of these acts sparked a boom of new NGE students. The hip hop group 3rd Bass, whose MC's Prime Minister Pete Nice and MC Serch were white and Jewish, respectively, cited NGE lessons in the song "Triple Stage Darkness" and other songs.[89]

Five Percenters were the innovators behind early hip-hop slang, including "word is bond," "break it down," "peace," "droppin' science," and "represent."[3][90] Many MCs employ the technique and terminology of the Supreme Alphabet to create acrostics, acronyms and backronyms in their rhymes. For example, in the song "Wildflower," Ghostface Killah rhymes, "I'm God Cipher Divine," spelling G-O-D in the Supreme Alphabet.[91][92] Furthermore, RZA directly rhymes the Twelve Jewels of life's objectives on his later work with Gravediggaz, rhyming in succession: knowledge, wisdom, understanding, freedom, justice, equality, food, clothing, shelter, love, peace, happiness.[93] He regularly wears an eight-pointed star pendant with a number seven and a crescent, which can be seen on the cover of his album The World According to RZA.

Five Percenters in New York City were a visible presence at parties during hip hop's formative years of the 1970s. Scene pioneer DJ Kool Herc recalled that while there was a heavy gang presence in attendance, the Five Percenters were also there as a de facto peace-keeping element.[94]

Other examples of hip hop and R&B acts who are (or have been) associated with Five Percent teachings include Killah Priest, Digable Planets, J-Live, Nas, Erykah Badu, Queen Latifah, SZA, Planet Asia, and Guru.[95]

Notable current and former members and associates [ edit ] Allah Mathematics '' Hip hop producer and DJ of Wu-Tang Clan[96]AZ[97]Big Daddy Kane[98][99]Brother J '' frontman and lyricist of X Clan[78][100][101]Busta Rhymes[102]Black Sheep[103]Brand Nubian[98][99]Cipha Sounds '' DJ and radio personalityDJ Kay Slay[98][99]Digable Planets '' Grammy Award-winning jazz-rap group[104]Erykah Badu '' her Grammy Award-winning song "On & On" features teachings of the Five-Percent Nation[105]God Shammgod '' former NBA playerGravediggaz[106]GzaRakim[98][99]Jay-Z '' has teachings but not confirmed member[citation needed ]Just-Ice[98][99][107]Nas[97] was influenced by the Five-Percent Nation but does not claim to represent the culture.[108]Wu-Tang Clan '' Ghostface Killah[109] and Raekwon[110] have since converted to traditional IslamLakim Shabazz[97]Freedom Williams '' Lead vocalist of the group C+C Music Factory[111]Jus Allah '' Former member of the rap duo Jedi Mind Tricks[112]The World's Famous Supreme Team[113]MC ShanPlanet Asia[98][99]Poor Righteous Teachers[114]Large Professor[115]Positive K[98][99]St. Lunatics[98][99]J-Live[98][99]John Fort(C) '' Fugees-affiliated emcee[98][99]GQ '' an R&B and disco group, best known for its 1979 hit "Disco Nights (Rock Freak)"[116][117]Tragedy Khadafi[118]LL Cool J '' Stated in his autobiography that he joined the Five-Percent Nation in school and took the name "Lord Supreme Shalik", but he also said, "At [the Five Percent Nation's] core there is a strict religious doctrine, but we weren't following that. We were just using the Five Percenter label as a shield to do our dirty work '' fighting and eventually robbing."[119]Carmelo Anthony '' NBA player for the Los Angeles LakersPHASE 2 '' Graffiti writer, originator of the "bubble letter" style[120]Kase2 '' Graffiti writer and innovator featured in the documentary Style WarsRammellzee '' Graffiti writer, Hip-Hop musician and emcee featured in the film Wild Style[121]Raz Fresco '' Canadian emcee and music producer[122]RzaJay Electronica[123]References [ edit ] ^ Muhammad Knight, Michael (January 8, 2013). "What I Learned from the Five Percenters". VICE. Archived from the original on May 28, 2017 . Retrieved August 30, 2017 . ^ a b c "God, the Black Man and the Five Percenters". NPR.org. NPR. Archived from the original on January 19, 2012 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 . ^ a b Chandler, D. L. (June 28, 2012). "The Meaning of the 5%: A Look at the Nation Of Gods And Earths". Hip-Hop Wired. Archived from the original on October 12, 2013 . Retrieved October 11, 2013 . ^ a b Knight, Michael M. (2007). The Five Percenters. Oneworld. pp. 35''36. ISBN 9781851686155. ^ Miyakawa, Felecia (2007). Five Percenter Rap. Indiana University Press. pp. 15''16. ISBN 978-0253217639. ^ Beloved Allah. "The Founding of the Nation Of Gods And Earths". Thetalkingdrum.com. Archived from the original on January 26, 2012 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 . ^ a b Jane I. Smith (1999). Islam in America. Columbia University Press. pp. 101''103, 206. ^ Mattias Gardell (1996). In the Name of Elijah Muhammad: Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam. Duke University Press. p. 225. ^ a b c Juan Williams (2003). This Far by Faith: Stories from the African American Religious Experience. Amistad/HarperCollins Publishers. pp. 286''288. ^ McCloud, Aminah (2014). African American Islam. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis. pp. 59''60. ISBN 978-1-136-64930-1. OCLC 884017193. Archived from the original on August 19, 2020 . Retrieved April 23, 2019 . ^ Knight, Michael Muhamad. The Five Percenters: Islam, Hip Hop, and the Gods of New York. Oxford, England, UK: Oneworld Publications, 2007. Chapter 16 ^ Nation of Gods and Earth. "Supreme Mathematics." Supreme Wisdom. page 8. https://www.scribd.com/doc/302750576/NGE-Supreme-Wisdom Archived April 7, 2019, at the Wayback Machine ^ a b c "Five Percenters: Part 01 of 01". FBI Records: The Vault. Archived from the original on May 14, 2019 . Retrieved April 4, 2019 . ^ a b c d e Miyakawa, Felicia (2005). Five Percenter Rap. Indiana University Press. pp. 19. ISBN 0-253-21763-6. ^ Knight, Michael (2009). The Five Percenters. One World. pp. xiii, 142, 227. ^ "R.I.P. God Dumar Wa'de Allah". Amsterdamnews.com. June 27, 2013. Archived from the original on August 9, 2020 . Retrieved April 4, 2019 . ^ Allah, Dumar Wa'de (1998). "A National Statement by Dumar Wa'de Allah". Archived from the original on May 30, 2018 . Retrieved May 29, 2018 . ^ Allah, Jerule. "Welcome to the Love Allah website of the Gods and Earths!". Archived from the original on May 29, 2018 . Retrieved May 29, 2018 . ^ See also: Allah, Immortality Exegetical 120 (Randal Best) (November 28, 2013). "State and federal prisons persecute Nation of Gods and Earth (Five Percenters)". Archived from the original on May 29, 2018 . Retrieved May 29, 2018 . ^ Keiler-Bradshaw, Ahmon J. (2010). Voices of the Earth: A Phenomenological Study of Women in the Nation of Gods and Earths. Georgia State University: M.A. Thesis. p. 101. S2CID 151078180. ^ Knight, Michael M. (2007). The Five Percenters. One World. pp. 85''86. ISBN 978-1-85168-615-5. ^ Knight, Michael M. (2007). The Five Percenters. One World. Plate 2. ISBN 978-1-85168-615-5. ^ Knight, Michael M. (October 2008). The Five Percenters. One World. Plates 6 & 7 and page 112. ISBN 978-1-85168-615-5. ^ "General Board Meeting of City of New York Manhattan Community Board" (PDF) . www1.nyc.gov. November 7, 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 4, 2019 . Retrieved December 4, 2019 . ^ a b c Allah, Starmel (November 13, 2018). "ALLAH, JUSTICE & THE FIVE PERCENTERS SQUARE". The Righteous Way Book. Archived from the original on August 9, 2020 . Retrieved November 22, 2019 . ^ Allah, Sha Be (March 29, 2019). "TOMORROW! 'ALLAH, JUSTICE & THE FIVE PERCENTERS SQUARE' STREET SIGN UNVEILING IN HARLEM". The Source. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019 . Retrieved November 22, 2019 . ^ Knight, Michael M. (2007). The Five Percenters. Oneworld. pp. 107''109. ISBN 978-1-85168-615-5. ^ Knight, Michael M. (2007). The Five Percenters. Oneworld. p. 120. ISBN 9781851686155. ^ Knight, Michael M. (2007). The Five Percenters. Oneworld. pp. 117, 121. ISBN 9781851686155. ^ "Ra'heen M. Shabazz, #170474 vs. SCDOC". SC Administrative Law Court. November 29, 2001. Archived from the original on March 5, 2010 . Retrieved January 5, 2010 . ^ White, Ed (September 8, 2009). "Judge: No sign that Nation of Gods is prison risk". Victoria Advocate. Associated Press. Archived from the original on April 30, 2019 . Retrieved September 9, 2009 . ^ Five Percenter Newspaper, Vol 16.8, p.2 ^ White, Ed (September 9, 2009) "Nation of Islam sect allowed in prison", The Associated Press. ^ Five Percenter Newspaper volume 16.5 p.2 ^ Miyakawa, Felicia (2005). Five Percenter Rap. Indiana University Press. pp. 30, 68, 157. ISBN 0253217636. ^ Miyakawa, Felicia (2003). "The Duty of the Civilized is to Civilize the Uncivilized: Tropes of Black Nationalism in the Messages of Five Percent Rappers". In Jackson, Ronald, Ronald L. and Elaine B. Richardson (ed.). In: Understanding African American Rhetoric: Classical Origins to Contemporary Innovations. New York, NY: Routledge. pp. 174, 179. ISBN 978-1-136-72729-0. OCLC 881034429. Archived from the original on August 19, 2020 . Retrieved April 23, 2019 . ^ Knight, Michael Muhammad (2007). The Five Percenters: Islam, Hip Hop, and the Gods of New York . Oxford, England, UK: Oneworld Publications. ISBN 9781851685134. ^ a b Chang, Jeff (2005). Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation. St. Martin's Press. pp. 258, 259. ^ Ankh, Nur (July 30, 2009). Knowledge of Self: A Collection of Wisdom on the Science of Everything in Life (9780981617022): Supreme Understanding, Sunez Allah, CBS Alife Allah: Books. ISBN 978-0981617022. ^ "Knowledge Of Self". Supremedesignonline.com. Archived from the original on January 29, 2012 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 . ^ Muhammad, Ashahed (March 21, 2017). "In the Name of Allah, A History of Clarence 13X and the 5 Percenters". The Final Call Newspaper. Retrieved March 26, 2014. ^ Washington, Teresa (2014). Manifestations of Masculine Magnificence. Oya's Tornado. pp. 92''93. ISBN 978-0-9910730-0-9. ^ Washington, Teresa (2014). Manifestations of Masculine Magnificence. Oya's Tornado. p. 97. ISBN 9780991073009. ^ Miyakawa, Felicia (2005). Five Perenter Rap. Indiana University PRess. pp. 26. ISBN 0253217636. ^ Allah, Wakeel (2009). In the Name of Allah: A History of Clarence 13X and the Five Percenters, Vol. 2. Atlanta, GA: A-Team Publishing. p. 300. ISBN 978-0-9821618-2-1. OCLC 607977900. Archived from the original on August 19, 2020 . Retrieved April 23, 2019 . ^ Knight, Michael (2007). The Five Percenters. One World. pp. 172, 214. ISBN 978-1-85168-615-5. ^ "Five Percenters hold 44th annual Show and Prove". Archived from the original on July 19, 2018 . Retrieved July 18, 2018 . ^ a b Miyakawa, Felicia (2005). Five Percenter Rap. Indiana University Press. pp. 32. ISBN 0-253-21763-6. ^ Andrews, Pamela. " "Ain't No Spook God": Religiosity in the Nation of Gods and Earths". Academia.edu. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021 . Retrieved August 2, 2019 . ^ Knight, Michael (2007). The Five Percenters. One World. pp. 214''215. ^ Washington, Teresa N. (2014). Manifestations of Masculine Magnificence: Divinity in Africana Life, Lyrics, and Literature. Oya's Tornado. pp. 123''128. ISBN 978-0-9910730-0-9. ^ Keiler-Bradshaw, Ahmon J. (2010). Voices of the Earth: A Phenomenological Study of Women in the Nation of Gods and Earths. Georgia State University: M.A. Thesis. p. 63. ^ Knight, Michael (2017). The Five Percenters: Islam, Hip Hop and the Gods of New York. One World. pp. 214''215. ISBN 978-1-85168-615-5. ^ Washington, Teresa N. (2014). Manifestations of Masculine Magnificence. Oya's Tornado. p. 123. ISBN 978-0-9910730-0-9. ^ Lord Jamar. "Supreme Mathematics." The 5% Album. Babygrande/Koch. 2006. ^ a b X Clan. "Wiz Degrees." Mainstream Outlawz. Suburban Noize. 2009. ^ Quoted in: Washington, Teresa (2014). Manifestations of Masculine Magnificence. Oya's Tornado. p. 127. ISBN 978-0-9910730-0-9. ^ Knight, Michael (2007). The Five Percenters. One World. p. 219. ^ a b Knight, Michael. The Five Percenters. One World. p. 220. ^ Mohamed Nasir, Kamaludeen (2020). Representing Islam: Hip-Hop of the September 11 Generation. Indiana University Press. ISBN 9780253053053. Archived from the original on June 3, 2022 . Retrieved April 29, 2021 . ^ Bassil, Ryan (October 23, 2013). "The Prestige, The Five Percenters, and Why Jay Electronica Hasn't Released His Debut Album | NOISEY". Noisey.vice.com. Archived from the original on February 27, 2014 . Retrieved April 19, 2014 . ^ SPIN ''. SPIN Media LLC. February 1991 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 '' via Internet Archive. ^ Knight, Michael (2007). The Five Percenters. One World. pp. 117''186. ISBN 978-1-85168-615-5. ^ Washington, Teresa (2014). Manifestations of Masculine Magnificence. Oya's Tornado. pp. 101''136. ISBN 978-0-9910730-0-9. ^ Miyakawa, Felicia (2005). Five Percenter Rap. Indiana University Press. pp. 41''72. ISBN 0-253-21763-6. ^ "3rd Bass '' Triple Stage Darkness". Genius. Genius.com. Archived from the original on September 3, 2017 . Retrieved September 3, 2017 . ^ Mohaiemen, Naeem. "FEAR OF A MUSLIM PLANET:THE ISLAMIC ROOTS OF HIP-HOP". Archived from the original on October 2, 2013 . Retrieved September 22, 2013 . ^ "Supreme Alphabet". Blackapologetics.com. Archived from the original on February 8, 2012 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 . ^ "Ghostface Killah '' Wildflower Lyrics". Rap Genius. Archived from the original on April 1, 2012 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 . ^ "Gravediggaz '' Twelve Jewelz". Genius. Genius.com. Archived from the original on September 3, 2017 . Retrieved September 3, 2017 . ^ Felicia M. Miyakawa (2005). Five Percenter Rap: God-Hop's Music, Message, and Black Muslim Mission . Indiana University Press. ^ Felicia M. Miyakawa (2005). Five Percenter Rap: God Hop's Music, Message, and Black Muslim Mission . Indiana University Press. pp. 4, 103''106. ISBN 0-253-34574-X. nas percenter. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Wu-Tang DJ/Producer Mathematics interview talked about Rza, Gza, Method Man. Greatest Ent/SwaggLifeTV". April 19, 2011 . Retrieved July 25, 2012 '' via YouTube. ^ a b c Dasun Allah (March 24, 2010). "The GODS Of Hip-Hop: A Reflection on the Five Percenter Influence On Rap Music & Culture". Hip-Hop Wired. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 . ^ a b c d e f g h i j "8 Rap Lyrics That Use Five-Percent Nation Language". Vibe. April 22, 2014. Archived from the original on April 6, 2019 . Retrieved April 6, 2019 . ^ a b c d e f g h i j "The GODS Of Hip-Hop: A Reflection on the Five Percenter Influence On Rap Music & Culture". March 24, 2010. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019 . Retrieved April 6, 2019 . ^ Washington, Teresa N. (June 2014). "Rapping with the Gods:Hip Hop as a Force of Divinity and Continuityfrom the Continent to the Cosmos" (PDF) . Journal of Pan African Studies. 6:9: 79. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 7, 2019 . Retrieved April 7, 2019 . ^ Washington, Teresa N. (2014). Manifestations of Masculine Magnificence. Oya's Tornado. pp. 117''121, 124''125. ISBN 978-0-9910730-0-9. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Busta Rhymes on 5 Percenters & Nation of Islam" . Retrieved February 13, 2012 '' via YouTube. ^ "Black Sheep Facts, information, pictures | Encyclopedia.com articles about Black Sheep". Encyclopedia.com. Archived from the original on February 23, 2015 . Retrieved July 25, 2012 . ^ Felicia M. Miyakawa (2005). Five Percenter Rap: God Hop's Music, Message, and Black Muslim Mission . Indiana University Press. p. 64. ISBN 0-253-34574-X. ^ Vibe. May 2008. Archived from the original on November 22, 2020 . Retrieved July 25, 2012 '' via Books.google.com. ^ Adam Krims (April 24, 2000). Rap Music and the Poetics of Identity. Cambridge University Press. p. 79. ISBN 978-0-521-63447-2. Archived from the original on August 19, 2020 . Retrieved February 21, 2016 . ^ ionehiphopwiredstaff (March 24, 2010). "Artists influenced by the Five Percent Nation". www.bet.com. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020 . Retrieved November 23, 2019 . ^ "Nas: The mature voice of hip-hop". today.com. Associated Press. January 4, 2005. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015 . Retrieved November 14, 2015 . ^ "Ghostface Killah: 'Purified Thoughts' | Prefix". Prefixmag.com. October 26, 2010. Archived from the original on December 29, 2010 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 . ^ "Chatting with Raekwon the Chef about music, Islam and the Wu-Tang Clan". The Michigan Daily. December 6, 2009. Archived from the original on February 20, 2011 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 . ^ Luv, Layne. "Freedom or Death: DJ Layne Luv Chops It Up With Freedom Williams". State of Hip Hop: Uptown Weekly. Archived from the original on December 10, 2019 . Retrieved December 10, 2019 . ^ "Interview : Jus Allah". ugrap.de. April 17, 2005. Archived from the original on October 23, 2007 . Retrieved February 13, 2012 . ^ Smydra, David F. Jr. (December 21, 2003). "The Five-Percent rap". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on February 17, 2012 . Retrieved January 29, 2012 . ^ Kellman, Andy. "Holy Intellect '' Poor Righteous Teachers : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on June 3, 2022 . Retrieved July 25, 2012 . ^ Paine, Jake (September 12, 2008). "Large Professor: Original Recipe | Rappers Talk Hip Hop Beef & Old School Hip Hop". HipHop DX. Archived from the original on June 26, 2012 . Retrieved July 25, 2012 . ^ "Rahiem...The Son of a Queen". Thafoundation.com. Archived from the original on May 17, 2013 . Retrieved July 25, 2012 . ^ "The Lives of Nations for 65143353 Michael Muhammad Knight the Five Per Centers Islam Hip Hop and the Gods of New York" . Retrieved July 25, 2012 '' via Scribd. ^ One On One With Tragedy Khadafi (Part 2): "Stagnation Is Death" Archived January 16, 2013, at the Wayback Machine Therapup.net, October 20, 2010 ^ LL Cool J (1998). I Make My Own Rules. New York: St. Martin's Press. p. 52. ISBN 978-0-312-96731-4. ^ Caramanica, Jon (December 20, 2019). "Phase 2, an Aerosol Art Innovator, Is Dead at 64". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 17, 2020 . Retrieved February 17, 2020 . ^ "Remembering Rammellzee Through Stories of Those Who Knew Him". Archived from the original on May 17, 2019 . Retrieved May 17, 2019 . ^ "The Five Percenters Dominated Rap's Golden Age: Can They Return to Prominence?". Complex Networks. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019 . Retrieved April 2, 2019 . ^ "An Examination of the Islamic References in Jay Electronica's 'A Written Testimony' ". April 8, 2020. Archived from the original on April 20, 2020 . Retrieved April 16, 2022 . Sources [ edit ] Allah, Wakeel (2007). In the Name of Allah: A History of Clarence 13X and the Five Percenters, Vol. 1. Atlanta, GA: A-Team Publishing. ISBN 978-1-59916-200-3. OCLC 137272467 . Retrieved April 23, 2019 . External links [ edit ] The official Web site of the Nation of Gods and Earths (archived)A paper presented at the American Anthropological Association's Annual Meeting (Nov 1996) about Five Percenters and its influence on hip hop music, as well as its divergence from traditional IslamFBI files on the Five PercentersThe Five Percent Solution '' By SpinThe Daily Show with Trevor Noah Interviews Talib Kweli and Five Percenters '' The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Interviews Talib KweliOfficial YouTube Channel

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 19:28

Founder of The Nation of Gods and Earths

Clarence 13X

Clarence 13X standing between two of his followers

BornClarence Edward Smith

( 1928-02-22 ) February 22, 1928DiedJune 13, 1969 (1969-06-13) (aged 41)Cause of deathAssassination by gunshotsOther namesAllah, the Father, Father AllahKnown forFounding the Five-Percent NationSpouseDora SmithPartnerWillieen JowersChildren2Clarence Edward Smith (February 22, 1928 '' June 13, 1969), better known as Clarence 13X[a] and Allah, was an American religious leader and the founder of the Five-Percent Nation.[b] He was born in Virginia and moved to New York City as a young man, before serving in the United States Army during the Korean War. After returning to New York, he learned that his wife had joined the Nation of Islam (NOI) and followed her, taking the name Clarence 13X. He served in the group as a security officer, martial arts instructor, and student minister before leaving for an unclear reason in 1963. He enjoyed gambling, which was condemned by the NOI, and disagreed with the NOI's teachings that Wallace Fard Muhammad was a divine messenger.

After leaving the NOI, Clarence 13X formed a new group with other former members. He concluded that all black men were divine and took the name Allah to symbolize this status. He rejected the belief in an invisible God, teaching that God could be found within each black man. In his view, women were "earths" that complemented and nurtured men; he believed that they should be submissive to men. He and a few assistants retained some NOI teachings and pioneered novel interpretations of them. They devised teachings about the meaning of letters and numerals: understanding the meaning of each letter and number was said to provide deep truths about God and the universe. Clarence 13X referred to his new movement as the Five Percenters, referencing a NOI teaching that only five percent of the population knew and promoted the truth about God. One way that he distinguished his group from his previous faith was by rejecting dress codes or strict behavioral guidelines'--he allowed the consumption of alcohol, and at times, the use of illegal drugs.

Clarence 13X was shot by an unknown assailant in 1964 but survived the attack. After an incident several months later in which he and several of his followers vandalized stores and fought with police, he was arrested and placed in psychiatric care. He was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. He referred to himself as "Allah", which had become his preferred name. He was released from custody after a 1966 ruling by the Supreme Court placed limits on confinement without trial. Although he initially taught his followers to hate white people, he eventually began to cooperate with white city leaders. They gave him funding for a night school, and in return, he tried to prevent violence in Harlem. Clarence 13X was fatally shot in June 1969; the identity of his killer is unknown. The mayor of New York City and several other prominent leaders expressed condolences to his followers. Although the Five Percenters faltered in the immediate aftermath of his death, the movement rebounded after new leadership emerged. The group took a non-hierarchical approach to leadership, and no single leader replaced Clarence 13X. He has been held in high regard by Five Percenters, who celebrate his birthday as a holiday.

Early life and Nation of Islam [ edit ] Clarence Edward Smith was born on February 22, 1928, and raised in Danville, Virginia, with his five brothers and one sister. During his childhood, Virginia was racially segregated, and he witnessed incidents of racism, including a fight between his father and a white man that was sparked by racial tensions. In 1946, he moved with his mother to New York City, where they settled in Harlem. He attended only two years of high school.

In 1949, Smith fathered a child, Clarence Jowers, with Willieen Jowers. Although he married a woman named Dora Smith in 1950, he fathered another child, Otis Jowers, with Willieen in 1951; he also had several sons and daughters with Dora. Smith joined the U.S. Army in the early 1950s and was stationed in Korea from 1952 to 1954, where he served as an infantryman in the Korean War. After returning to the U.S., he lived in Harlem and served in the United States Army Reserve until 1960. During his military service, he became skilled in karate.

Mosque No. 7 in 2009Dora Smith embraced the Nation of Islam (NOI) while her husband was away and he converted after returning to New York. By 1961, he had registered at Mosque No. 7 and changed his name to Clarence 13X in accordance with NOI practice. Before his conversion, he often smoked marijuana and gambled, activities forbidden by the NOI. After joining the group, he studied the NOI's doctrines and quickly progressed within their organizational structure, possibly thanks to skills learned in the military. His responsibilities included teaching martial arts and serving on the Fruit of Islam security team. He was also recognized as a skilled speaker and reached the rank of "student minister" at Mosque No. 7. By 1963, he had come to the attention of the FBI'--informants recorded his presence at rallies led by Malcolm X.

The early 1960s were a turbulent period for the NOI; unrest was caused by conflicts between leaders Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X. Around that time, Clarence 13X became disenchanted with the organization, although the root of his qualms is not known. NOI members have offered contradictory accounts of the events that caused his exit and whether he left voluntarily. His departure has been variously attributed to doubts about the NOI's theology, violations of their moral code, objections to the luxurious lifestyles of their senior leadership, or Malcolm X's distrust of him. Dora Smith elected to stay with the group, prompting the couple's separation. Before leaving the NOI, Clarence 13X had begun to doubt their teaching that Wallace Fard Muhammad was a divine messenger. He believed that the NOI's teachings were contradictory because they taught that God is black but encouraged reverence of Fard Muhammad, who was not of exclusively African descent. Clarence 13X concluded that divinity was found in all black men, rather than in a single person. Several times before he left the NOI, he was censured by leadership for these assertions. His friend John 37X elected to leave with him. Malcolm X also left the NOI in 1963 and remained on good terms with Clarence 13X. Clarence 13X did not join Malcolm X's newly created group, Muslim Mosque, Inc.

Founding the Five Percenters [ edit ] After leaving the NOI, Clarence 13X and John 37X continued to study the group's teachings, sometimes while smoking marijuana. They assumed new names: Clarence 13X took Allah, and John 37X, Abu Shahid.[c] After reading an NOI book with 34 riddles, known as the "Lost-Found Lessons", John 37X concluded that numbers represented specific concepts, such as knowledge or wisdom. He referred to this system as "living mathematics". During its development, he was imprisoned on firearms charges. While John 37X was in prison, Clarence 13X taught a system of beliefs he referred to as "supreme wisdom", which he saw as the core of Islam, to groups of young men. He was assisted by his friend James Howard, with whom he developed a modified version of living mathematics, "supreme mathematics", and an accompanying doctrine about letters, the "supreme alphabet". The development of these systems, considered a "divine science" by adherents, may have been influenced by the teachings of Sufism; like some schools of Sufism, they found esoteric meanings in the alphabet. David Smydra of The Boston Globe compares these teachings to Kabbalah; Felicia Miyakawa of Middle Tennessee State University sees similarities to Gnosticism and Kemetism.

Clarence 13X developed novel teachings, assigning backronyms to familiar words. He stated that the letters of the word "Allah" stood for "arm, leg, leg, arm, head", signifying the human body. This was said to prove that humanity held a divine nature. He named parts of the New York area after locations in the Middle East that are significant to Islam: Harlem was referred to as Mecca, and Brooklyn, Medina. Other disaffected NOI members, including some who served the Fruit of Islam, were soon drawn to his burgeoning group. Several people from the NOI who were unwilling to choose between loyalty to Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X also joined; Clarence 13X incorporated aspects of the theology taught by the feuding leaders. In the group's early years, some Five Percenters attended NOI events, and Clarence 13X's theology had much in common with the teachings of the NOI, although there were notable differences. He taught his followers that he was an incarnation of God, and they each were gods. His followers were thus encouraged to look within themselves in their search for God. Clarence 13X taught that there was an inherent greatness in those of African descent not found in Europeans and their descendants, echoing statements made by Elijah Muhammad. He did not enforce the NOI's strict moral rules: one way that the group appealed to potential converts was by allowing many practices condemned by the NOI, including gambling, alcohol consumption, and drug use. Clarence 13X told his followers to avoid developing addictions but that drug use was not inherently wrong. He strictly forbade the consumption of pork, arguing that pigs were similar to animals that are not eaten in the United States, such as rats and dogs, and hence should not be consumed. Owing to their belief that black men are gods, the group allowed its members to make choices about clothing and most aspects of diet.

Early members of the group often proselytized on street corners for hours, and Clarence 13X's assistants led classes about the group's teachings, strictly enforcing study habits. He instructed his followers to memorize his teachings on the significance of numbers and letters. Once they did so, they were said to gain an understanding of profound truths. These lessons were taught in a form that resembled catechisms. Rather than hold services in mosques, they gathered for monthly meetings known as parliaments, which were often held outdoors. Attendees were given wide freedom to speak in a system that Ted Swedenburg of the University of Arkansas has compared to Quaker meetings.

Clarence 13X's group was initially known as the "Suns of Almighty God Allah" or the "Blood Brothers". After Malcolm X's death, the group became known as the "Five Percenters" or the "Five Percent Nation". The name was drawn from the NOI's claim to be the five percent of the black community who knew and promoted the truth about God; Clarence 13X considered his movement to be the five percent of the NOI that still held to truth and integrity. The other 95 percent were said to be unaware of the truth or corrupt. Clarence 13X assembled an inner circle of assistants, nine of whom are referred to by Five Percenters as the "First Born": they are said to embody his attributes. The assistants were assigned to spread the group's teachings to younger people, many of whom took African names, including some from non-Islamic societies. Clarence 13X taught Afrocentrism to his disciples and often wore a dashiki; male Five Percenters members frequently wore tasseled kufis, and female members wore colorful African head wraps. Some Five Percenters supported themselves via drug dealing and petty theft; others intentionally committed minor legal infractions, hoping to proselytize to others who had been arrested.

Clarence 13X's followers saw him as a divine messenger and referred to him as "Father Allah". This elevated him to a higher position than Elijah Muhammad, who had deemed himself the "Messenger of Allah". Eventually, Clarence 13X stopped identifying himself as a Muslim and spoke out against the reverence of Fard Muhammad, casting him as a "mystery God". He rejected the idea that God is invisible, which he felt weakened people. He encouraged his followers to learn about and respect other spiritual traditions.

Although female converts were initially referred to as "nurses", Clarence 13X renamed them "earths" in 1967. He taught that women were not gods, as he believed that they were created by man and did not possess creative power. In his view, women could nurture, but only men could make children. Women were said to resemble the Earth in their ability to sustain life. Clarence 13X had a patriarchal philosophy, and the Five Percenters were initially overwhelmingly male. He spoke in favor of fathers' arranging their daughters' marriages and told women to embody submission by serving their husbands as God. Polygamy or serial monogamy were allowed, and legal marriage was discouraged. Clarence 13X encouraged his followers to have many children and discouraged the use of birth control.

Opposition [ edit ] NOI leaders were angry that Clarence 13X freely taught portions of their doctrine that they only revealed to committed members; although one of their captains repeatedly asked him to stop, he refused. Clarence 13X also experienced conflict within his family: his children did not revere him, and hostility quickly developed between core Five Percenters and some of his sons when Willeen Jowers brought them to visit him.

On December 9, 1964, Clarence 13X was shot twice in the torso while at a popular gathering place in the basement of a Harlem tenement. He was brought to Harlem Hospital, where he was treated and released. He later claimed that he died and returned to his body a short time later. In a 2007 study of the Five Percent movement, American journalist Michael Muhammad Knight speculates that this caused his followers to see him as a Christ figure. The identity and motivation of the shooter are unknown; Knight notes that law enforcement and rival Muslim groups both had a motive to attack Clarence 13X. Some Five Percenters have speculated that the attack was part of a robbery attempt or retaliation for unpaid gambling debts. Clarence 13X's companions reported that he instructed them not to seek revenge on the shooter and to forswear violence. While recuperating from his wounds, Clarence 13X sought to distinguish his movement from other Islamic movements, abandoning Arabic greetings for English expressions.

The Five Percenters soon attracted attention from media and law enforcement. Local papers published negative coverage of the group, describing them as a violent hate group or a street gang. The New York Amsterdam News reported that Clarence 13X had threatened to kill white children if his group did not receive a government subsidy. In 1965, the FBI initiated an investigation of his group and may have provided sensationalized rumors to the press. That year, FBI director J. Edgar Hoover deemed Clarence 13X as a "Harlem rowdy", and feared that he would form ties with more dangerous groups. The FBI developed a detailed file on Clarence 13X; in 1967, Hoover described him as a potential threat to President Lyndon B. Johnson, and sent a detailed folder about him to the United States Secret Service.

Arrest [ edit ] Bellevue Psychiatric HospitalAfter Malcolm X's death in 1965, Clarence 13X mourned his loss but did not attend his funeral. In May 1965, while visiting the site of Mosque No. 7, then closed, Clarence 13X and several of his companions were told to leave by a police officer. They left, began to vandalize nearby buildings, and blocked the street near the former headquarters of Muslim Mosque, Inc. More police arrived and subdued Clarence 13X after an altercation, bringing him into custody with several of his followers. After being arrested, he refused to identify himself and was charged with assault and drug possession. About 60 of his followers attended his arraignment, but were removed from the court after shouting "Peace". Clarence 13X proclaimed his innocence and announced his intent to defend himself in court. He told the judge that he was Allah, and that the city would face grave judgment if he were not released. The judge disregarded his prognostication and set his bail at $9,500. At a court date in June, about 50 Five Percenters protested outside the court; afterwards, several were arrested on charges of making Molotov cocktails. In July, the court sent Clarence 13X to Bellevue Hospital Center for a psychiatric examination. While in the hospital, he made a few disciples and communicated with some followers through a hospital window. Under his instructions, Five Percenters resisted future NOI leader Louis Farrakhan's attempts to convert them.

Knight states that Clarence 13X's psychiatric results were not processed for an unusually long time; he posits that the delay was due to FBI involvement and argues that Clarence 13X was a political prisoner. In November 1965, Clarence 13X was ruled incompetent to stand trial and committed to the New York State Department of Mental Hygiene, which placed him at the Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. After he declared himself Allah and a "Master Gambler", the doctors concluded that he had schizophrenic reaction, paranoid type with delusions of grandeur; he faced indefinite commitment. Many Five Percenters and their converts traveled to the hospital to meet with him and receive instruction. He also proselytized to fellow inmates, converting one young white man, who later became a committed follower.

While Clarence 13X was in prison, the Five Percenters continued to proselytize and teach their doctrines. He instructed his followers to adopt names different from those used in the NOI to differentiate their group. After attaining a certain degree of knowledge of the group's doctrines, members were allowed to adopt the surname "Allah" and sometimes "God" as a first name. This was in recognition of Clarence 13X's teachings that black men were gods, and that each member should worship himself. His followers often took the name Allah, but would refrain from referring to themselves as such in his presence, in deference to his authority. After a decision (Pate v. Robinson) by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1966, limits were placed on the confinement of mentally ill criminals, causing many to be released. Clarence 13X was consequently released in March 1967.

Cooperation and conflict [ edit ] John Lindsay in 1966In mid-1967, New York City mayor John Lindsay sought to develop closer ties with leaders of impoverished neighborhoods. Prompted in part by concerns voiced by the New York Police Department (NYPD), the mayor dispatched one of his aides, Barry Gottehrer, to meet with Clarence 13X. Belying his fearsome reputation, Clarence 13X had a congenial meeting with Gottehrer, during which he requested more bus routes and school funding. Clarence 13X subsequently attended a meeting of black leaders at Gracie Mansion, the mayor's official residence. The city provided buses for Five Percenters to travel to a Long Island park, and with help from the National Urban League, obtained an abandoned storefront for use as a school. It became known as the Allah School in Mecca and aimed to prepare young people for college preparatory schools. Tensions soon formed between the Five Percenters and the school's overseers; Clarence 13X desired more control over the curriculum and had difficulty finding qualified teachers. Police regularly visited the school to ensure that the students were not being radicalized. In 1975, Gottehrer chronicled his friendship with Clarence 13X in The Mayor's Man. The book was well received by some Five Percenters, who republished portions of it after it went out of print. They have not reprinted the entire book, owing to a passage in which Gottehrer relates that Clarence 13X offered to allow him to sleep with his teenage daughter.

In February 1968, Lindsay estimated that there were about 500 to 700 Five Percenters. Some of Clarence 13X's followers attempted to create break-away groups, proclaiming themselves prophets and starting their own movements. They generally retained aspects of Five Percenter doctrine with different emphases.

After the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in April 1968, Lindsay feared that rioting would occur in Harlem. He traveled to the neighborhood to express condolences; Clarence 13X and his followers were among those who accompanied him as he walked the streets. Clarence 13X also instructed his followers to try to prevent violence and looting. He was commended by the city's leadership for his efforts, and they subsequently agreed to help him publish a book of Five Percenter teachings and portions of the Quran. Willieen Jowers recalled that Clarence 13X admitted that his previous teachings about racial hatred were wrong around this time. He later described himself as "neither anti-white nor pro-black" and saw some of his white contacts with the city as allies in the advancement of his teachings. His white convert was released from state custody and joined his teacher in Harlem during the February 1969 nor'easter. He was accepted as a Five Percenter, as Clarence 13X maintained that "civilization"'--rather than race'--was valued by the group. Clarence 13X made possibly contradictory statements about whether white individuals could be reformed. Contrary to his radical reputation, he endorsed some conservative positions in the late 1960s, including capital punishment, respect for the U.S. flag, and American involvement in Vietnam. He also allowed his supporters to attend Christmas celebrations. Knight notes that these shifts may have been intended to decrease suspicions of law enforcement. Clarence 13X was then allowed to visit a juvenile detention center to speak to young Five Percenters and won some concessions from the institution's leadership. Some secular black leaders disliked him, owing to his supportive comments about the mayor and neglect of revolutionary rhetoric. On one occasion, he was invited to address an audience of black Marxists, then spoke to them about numerology.

Around 1968, Clarence 13X fathered a son with a young convert named Gusavia. That year, Gloria Steinem published an article about Clarence 13X in New York magazine. She blamed the NOI for the previous attempt to kill him, arguing that they were angered by his claim to be Allah and thus above Elijah Muhammad. Clarence 13X also received coverage from international media, including a Canadian television program.

Death [ edit ] By 1969, Clarence 13X was sleeping little. He feared that he would be killed and instructed his followers to remain strong if he died. On June 12, he spent time with several of his disciples at their school. He left the school between 2:00 and 3:00 am on June 13 and then gambled for an hour or two. As was his occasional practice, he traveled to Dora Smith's house to rest. He was ambushed by three assailants who fatally shot him while he was in the lobby of her apartment building. That morning, several people from the mayor's office met with his family, and the mayor later visited the Five Percenters' school to express condolences.

Clarence 13X's funeral was held four days after his death. It was attended by about 400 people and was followed by a procession through Harlem. His death put the leadership of his movement in question'--there was no clear successor. At that time, his followers were primarily teenagers, and several of his top leaders subsequently struggled with drug addiction.

Most local media sources gave Clarence 13X positive coverage in the wake of his death. The Daily News connected his murder with the recent death of NOI activist Charles Kenyatta, casting them as part of a "Muslim War". The mayor believed that the NYPD told them this and was angered by their claim. Louis Farrakhan denied culpability, maintaining that he had good relations with Clarence 13X. NYPD investigators suspected that he was killed by members of an extortion ring, possibly connected to the Fair Play for Cuba Committee. In August 1969, an arrest was made in connection with his murder. The suspect denied involvement, and charges were soon dropped. Five Percenters have posited different culprits, including the CIA, the NOI, or a disgruntled follower.

Legacy and reception [ edit ] Five Percenter membership plunged after Clarence 13X's death, but rebounded in 1970 after new leadership emerged and revitalized the group. After his death, the group was not dominated by a single leader. This may have been a result of their teaching that all black men are gods, which rendered authoritarian leadership untenable.

Knight doubts that Clarence 13X set out to build a movement or a culture, but after his death, the movement expanded and gained converts across the United States. Five Percenters have celebrated Clarence 13X's birthday as a holiday, and minimized the descriptions of his flaws in their accounts of his life. Numerous apocryphal stories from his life have circulated among the group; some accounts have claimed that he gambled only as a means to reach others with his teachings. He did not leave behind a record of his teachings, and the group had few formalized tenets at the time of his death. In the following decades, the group's doctrine became more complicated.

Akbar Muhammad of the NOI described Clarence 13X as "confused", although relations between the Five Percenters and NOI leaders have improved over time. Clarence 13X's teachings may have influenced the doctrines of Dwight York, founder of the Nuwaubian Nation. York saw Clarence 13X's teachings as an insufficient, incomplete path.

Lawyer Sidney Davidoff, one of Lindsay's assistants, deemed Clarence 13X "a little bit snake-oil salesman and a little bit crazy, but no more unstable than anyone else preaching a gospel on the street corner." Davidoff saw Clarence 13X's black supremacist teachings as a way to instill confidence in young people. Knight states that Clarence 13X went from a "'Harlem rowdy' to [a] legitimate community leader", and Lindsay later cast Clarence 13X's role in the city as similar to that of Al Sharpton. Mattias Gardell of Uppsala University views Clarence 13X as a "gifted philosopher".

See also [ edit ] God complexList of founders of religious traditionsList of unsolved murdersNotes [ edit ] ^ The "X" replaced his surname, considered by the Nation of Islam to be a "slave name", and the "13" indicated that he was the thirteenth member named Clarence to join the group. (Knight 2007, p. 34) ^ He was also nicknamed "Pudding"; the name's origin is unknown: it may have been given as a childhood nickname or in recognition of his smooth verbal skills as an adult. (Haddad 1994, p. 113) ^ In Arabic, the name "Allah" means "God"; "Shahid" means "witness". (Knight 2007, p. 49) References [ edit ] Works cited [ edit ] Books

Allen, Ernest (1996). William Eric Perkins (ed.). Droppin' Science: Critical Essays on Rap Music and Hip Hop Culture . Temple University Press. ISBN 978-1-56639-362-1. Evanzz, Karl (2011). The Messenger: The Rise and Fall of Elijah Muhammad. Random House. ISBN 978-0-307-80520-1. Gardell, Mattias (1996). In the Name of Elijah Muhammad: Louis Farrakhan and The Nation of Islam. Duke University Press. ISBN 978-0-8223-1845-3. Haddad, Yvonne (1994). Muslim Communities in North America. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-2020-1. Jackson, John L. (2005). Real Black: Adventures In Racial Sincerity. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-39001-7. Knight, Michael Muhammad (2007). The Five Percenters: Islam, Hip Hop and the Gods of New York. Oneworld Publications. ISBN 978-1-85168-513-4. Miyakawa, Felicia M. (2005). Five Percenter Rap: God Hop's Music, Message, And Black Muslim Mission. Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-34574-5. Miyakawa, Felicia (2010). "Receiving, Embodying, and Sharing 'Divine Wisdom': Women in the Nation of Gods and Earths". In Lillian Ashcraft-Eason; Darnise C. Martin; Oyeronke Olademo (eds.). Women and New and Africana Religions. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-275-99156-2. Palmer, Susan J. (2010). The Nuwaubian Nation: Black Spirituality and State Control. Ashgate Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7546-6255-6. Reed, Monica (2010). Edward E. Curtis IV (ed.). Encyclopedia of Muslim-American History. Infobase. ISBN 978-1-4381-3040-8. Richardson, Elaine (2003). Understanding African American Rhetoric: Classical Origins to Contemporary Innovations. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-94386-4. Smith, Jane I. (1999). Islam in America. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-10967-3. Williams, Juan; Dixie, Quinton Hosford (2003). This Far by Faith: Stories from the African American Religious Experience. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-093424-8. Newspapers

Further reading [ edit ] External links [ edit ] FBI file on Clarence 13X

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 19:24

Discover more from The Smattering."The Smattering" is a refreshing oasis of political satire that adds a humorous twist to the world of politics. We take on the latest news, events, and politicians without a hint of mercy or seriousness.

Over 1,000 subscribers

Washington, D.C. '' In a groundbreaking fashion statement, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) arrived on the Senate floor Tuesday wearing a pair of pink booty shorts. The decision to sport the daring attire comes on the heels of the Senate's newly relaxed dress code policy, an announcement that has sparked controversy and debate among lawmakers.

While Republican senators like Susan Collins and Tommy Tuberville have criticized the casualization of the Senate dress code, Booker's wardrobe choice received impassioned defense from his fellow Democrats.

Riding the wave of the discourse surrounding the Senate's dress code, Booker himself took the time to explain the statement behind his audacious outfit. "These shorts are not just a piece of clothing; they represent the freedom to be oneself in an institution often characterized by conformity. Plus, they're incredibly comfortable."

After giving his remarks, Booker sashawed away singing Cardi B's ''Bongos.''

Sources told The Smattering that right-wing critics prompted Booker to double down on his fashion choices and wear a pink princess dress later in the day. ''Don't get it twisted. I'm revolutionizing the way we do government,'' he said before snapping his fingers twice in a zig-zag motion.

"This is what democracy looks like, people!" exclaimed Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). "If we can't express ourselves through booty shorts, then what's the point of free speech?"

She added: ''I might wear my traditional native American headdress tomorrow to show solidarity!''

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also weighed in, "Look, the President supports any effort to make Congress more relatable and accessible to the American people. If booty shorts do that, then the President is all in."

This development comes amid controversy over Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), who has been showing up to the floor wearing hoodies and shorts. Some have claimed that his fashion choice flouts decorum and professional standards.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) declared his support by saying, "We're talking about health care, climate change, and economic inequality. And you're worried about shorts? The top 1% of the top 1% can wear Armani suits, but the rest of us can't wear booty shorts? Enough is enough!"

Share

DNC Chair Jaime Harrison praised Booker's fashion-forward decision: "Cory is showing us that policy and leg day can coexist in a balanced, democratic society."

He added: ''The American people deserve to see our lawmakers in all their glory, even if it means booty shorts''

Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who earlier this week announced the relaxed dress code, commented, "Look, I said I'll continue to wear a suit, but I never said anything about not supporting those who want to... stretch the fabric of our democratic norms. I stand'--or sit'--by Senator Booker."

Alabama GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville quipped, "You got people walking around in booty shorts, that really don't fly with me. Next thing you know, we'll start showing up in cargo pants and crocs!''

Richard Thompson Ford, a Stanford University law professor, stated that the new Senate dress code is a reflection of changing societal norms. "I think Sen. Booker is just ahead of the curve. In fact, he's setting the curve, literally and figuratively."

As the debate over booty shorts simmers in the hallowed halls of Congress, one thing is clear: Booker's audacious fashion statement has Americans talking about the Senate in a way they never have before. Whether this conversation continues to focus on the importance of attire or shifts to the critical issues facing our nation remains to be seen.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 19:06

African-American activist (1948''1969)

Fredrick Allen Hampton Sr. (August 30, 1948 '' December 4, 1969) was an American activist. He came to prominence in his late teens and early 20s in Chicago as deputy chairman of the national Black Panther Party and chair of the Illinois chapter. As a progressive African American, he founded the anti-racist, anti-classist Rainbow Coalition,[4] a prominent multicultural political organization that initially included the Black Panthers, Young Patriots (which organized poor whites), and the Young Lords (which organized Hispanics), and an alliance among major Chicago street gangs to help them end infighting and work for social change. A Marxist''Leninist,[6] Hampton considered fascism the greatest threat, saying, "nothing is more important than stopping fascism, because fascism will stop us all."[7]

In 1967, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) identified Hampton as a radical threat. It tried to subvert his activities in Chicago, sowing disinformation among black progressive groups and placing a counterintelligence operative in the local Panthers organization. In December 1969, Hampton was drugged,[8][9] shot and killed in his bed during a predawn raid at his Chicago apartment by a tactical unit of the Cook County State's Attorney's Office, who received aid from the Chicago Police Department and the FBI leading up to the attack. Law enforcement sprayed more than 100 gunshots throughout the apartment; the occupants fired once.[10] During the raid, Panther Mark Clark was also killed and several others were seriously wounded. In January 1970, the Cook County Coroner held an inquest; the coroner's jury concluded that Hampton's and Clark's deaths were justifiable homicides.[12][13][14]

A civil lawsuit was later filed on behalf of the survivors and the relatives of Hampton and Clark.[15] It was resolved in 1982 by a settlement of $1.85 million (equivalent to $5.61 million in 2022); the U.S. federal government, Cook County, and the City of Chicago each paid one-third to a group of nine plaintiffs. Given revelations about the illegal COINTELPRO program and documents associated with the killings, many scholars now consider Hampton's death at age 21, a deliberate murder, or an assassination at the FBI's initiative.[1][2][3][16]

Biography [ edit ] Early life and youth [ edit ] Hampton in a 1966 yearbookHampton was born on August 30, 1948, in present-day Summit Argo, Illinois (generally shortened to Summit), and moved with his parents to another Chicago suburb, Maywood, at age 10. His parents had come from Louisiana as part of the Great Migration of African Americans in the early 20th century out of the South. They both worked at the Argo Starch Company, a corn starch processor. As a youth, Hampton was gifted both in the classroom and athletically, and hoped to play center field for the New York Yankees.[19] At 10 years old, he started hosting weekend breakfasts for other children from the neighborhood, cooking the meals himself in what could be described as a precursor to the Panthers' free breakfast program.[20] In high school, he led walkouts protesting black students' exclusion from the competition for homecoming queen and calling on officials to hire more black teachers and administrators.[20] Hampton graduated from Proviso East High School with honors and varsity letters, and a Junior Achievement Award, in 1966.[21]

In 1966, Fred Hampton turned 18. At that time, he started identifying with the Third World socialist struggles, as well as reading communist revolutionaries Che Guevara, Ho Chi Minh, and Mao Zedong. Shortly after, Hampton urged not only peace in the Vietnam War, but also North Vietnam's victory.

Hampton became active in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and assumed leadership of its West Suburban Branch's Youth Council. In his capacity as an NAACP youth organizer, he demonstrated natural leadership abilities: from a community of 27,000, he was able to muster a youth group of 500 members strong. He worked to get more and better recreational facilities established in the neighborhoods and to improve educational resources for Maywood's impoverished black community.

Activity in Chicago [ edit ] We got to face some facts. That the masses are poor, that the masses belong to what you call the lower class, and when I talk about the masses, I'm talking about the white masses, I'm talking about the black masses, and the brown masses, and the yellow masses, too. We've got to face the fact that some people say you fight fire best with fire, but we say you put fire out best with water. We say you don't fight racism with racism. We're gonna fight racism with solidarity. We say you don't fight capitalism with no black capitalism; you fight capitalism with socialism"

'--Fred Hampton on solidarity.[23]

In 1968, Hampton was accused of assaulting an ice cream truck driver, stealing $71 worth of ice cream bars, and giving them to kids in the street. He was convicted in May 1969 and served time in prison.[8] In a memoir, Frank B. Wilderson III places this incident in the context of COINTELPRO efforts to disrupt the Black Panthers of Chicago by the "leveling of trumped-up charges".

In 1969, Hampton, now deputy chairman of the BPP Illinois chapter, conducted a meeting condemning sexism.[24] After 1969, the party considered sexism counter-revolutionary.[25] In 1970, about 40''70% of party members were women.[26]

Over the next year, Hampton and his friends and associates achieved many successes in Chicago. Perhaps the most important was a nonaggression pact among Chicago's most powerful street gangs. Emphasizing that racial and ethnic conflict among gangs would only keep its members entrenched in poverty, Hampton strove to forge an anti-racist, class-conscious, multiracial alliance among the BPP, the Young Patriots Organization, and the Young Lords under the leadership of Jose Cha Cha Jimenez, leading to the Rainbow Coalition.[27]

Hampton met the Young Lords in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood the day after they were in the news for occupying a police community workshop at the Chicago 18th District Police Station. He was arrested twice with Jimenez at the Wicker Park Welfare Office, and both were charged with "mob action" at a peaceful picket of the office. Later, the Rainbow Coalition was joined nationwide by Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), the Brown Berets, AIM, and the Red Guard Party.[28][29] In May 1969, Hampton called a press conference to announce that the coalition had formed. What the coalition groups would do was based on common action. Some of their joint issues were poverty, anti-racism, corruption, police brutality, and substandard housing.[30][31] If there was a protest or a demonstration, the groups would attend the event and support each other.[31][32]

Jeffrey Haas, who was Hampton's lawyer, has praised some of Hampton's politics and his success in unifying movements.[33] But Haas criticizes the way Hampton and the BPP organized in a pyramidal/vertical structure, contrasting this with the horizontal structure of Black Lives Matter: "They may also have picked up on the vulnerability of a hierarchical movement where you have one leader, which makes the movement very vulnerable if that leader is imprisoned, killed, or otherwise compromised. I think the fact that Black Lives Matter says 'We're leaderfull, not leaderless' perhaps makes them less vulnerable to this kind of government assault."[33]

Hampton and Benjamin Spock (right) at a protest rally outside the Everett McKinley Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago, October 1969Hampton rose quickly in the Black Panthers based on his organizing skills, oratorical gifts, and charisma. Once he became leader of the Chicago chapter, he organized weekly rallies, participated in strikes, worked closely with the BPP's local People's Clinic, taught political education classes every morning at 6 am, and launched a project for community supervision of the police. Hampton was also instrumental in the BPP's Free Breakfast Program. When Bob Brown left the party with Kwame Ture, in the FBI-fomented SNCC/Panther split, Hampton assumed chairmanship of the Illinois state BPP. This automatically made him a national BPP deputy chairman. As the FBI's COINTELPRO began to decimate the nationwide Panther leadership, Hampton's prominence in the national hierarchy increased rapidly and dramatically. Eventually, he was in line to be appointed to the party's Central Committee Chief of Staff. He would have achieved this position had he not been killed on December 4, 1969.[28][29]

FBI investigation [ edit ] The FBI believed that Hampton's leadership and talent for communication made him a major threat among Black Panther leaders. It began keeping close tabs on his activities. Investigations have shown that FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover was determined to prevent the formation of a cohesive Black movement in the United States. Hoover believed the Panthers, Young Patriots, Young Lords, and similar radical coalitions that Hampton forged in Chicago were a stepping stone to the rise of a revolution that could cause a radical change in the U.S. government.[34]

The FBI opened a file on Hampton in 1967. It tapped Hampton's mother's phone in February 1968 and by May placed Hampton on the bureau's "Agitator Index" as a "key militant leader".[28] In late 1968, the Racial Matters squad of the FBI's Chicago field office recruited William O'Neal to work with it; he had recently been arrested twice for interstate car theft and impersonating a federal officer. In exchange for having his felony charges dropped and receiving a monthly stipend, O'Neal agreed to infiltrate the BPP as a counterintelligence operative.[35]

O'Neal joined the party and quickly rose in the organization, becoming Director of Chapter Security and Hampton's bodyguard. In 1969, the FBI Special Agent in Charge (SAC) in San Francisco wrote Hoover that the agent's investigation had found that, in his city at least, the Panthers were primarily feeding breakfast to children. Hoover responded with a memo implying that the agent's career prospects depended on his supplying evidence to support Hoover's view that the BPP was "a violence-prone organization seeking to overthrow the Government by revolutionary means".[36]

Using anonymous letters, the FBI sowed distrust and eventually instigated a split between the Panthers and the Blackstone Rangers. O'Neal instigated an armed clash between them on April 2, 1969. The Panthers became effectively isolated from their power base in the Chicago ghetto, so the FBI worked to undermine its ties with other radical organizations. O'Neal was instructed to "create a rift" between the party and Students for a Democratic Society, whose Chicago headquarters was near that of the Panthers.

The FBI released a batch of racist cartoons in the Panthers' name,[37] aimed at alienating white activists. It also launched a disinformation program to forestall the formation of the Rainbow Coalition, but the BPP did make an alliance with the Young Patriots and Young Lords. In repeated directives, Hoover demanded that COINTELPRO personnel investigate the Rainbow Coalition, "destroy what the [BPP] stands for", and "eradicate its 'serve the people' programs".[38]

Documents secured by Senate investigators in the early 1970s revealed that the FBI actively encouraged violence between the Panthers and other radical groups; this provoked multiple murders in cities throughout the country.[39] On July 16, 1969, an armed confrontation between party members and the Chicago Police Department resulted in one BPP member being mortally wounded, and six others arrested on serious charges.

In early October, Hampton and his girlfriend Deborah Johnson (now known as Akua Njeri), who was pregnant with their child (Fred Hampton Jr.), rented a four-and-a-half-room apartment at 2337 West Monroe Street to be closer to BPP headquarters. O'Neal reported to his superiors that much of the Panthers' "provocative" arms stockpile was stored there. He drew them a map of the apartment. In early November, Hampton traveled to California on a speaking engagement with the UCLA Law Students Association. He met with the remaining BPP national hierarchy, who appointed him to the party's central committee. He was soon to take the position of chief of staff and major spokesman.

Assassination [ edit ] Prelude [ edit ] On the night of November 13, 1969, while Hampton was in California, Chicago police officers John J. Gilhooly and Frank G. Rappaport were killed in a gun battle with Panthers; one died the next day.[41] A total of nine police officers were shot. Spurgeon Winter Jr, a 19-year-old Panther, was killed by police. Another Panther, Lawrence S. Bell, was charged with murder. In an unsigned editorial headlined "No Quarter for Wild Beasts", the Chicago Tribune urged that Chicago police officers approaching suspected Panthers "should be ordered to be ready to shoot."[42]

As part of the larger COINTELPRO operation, the FBI was determined to prevent any improvement in the effectiveness of the BPP leadership.[43] The FBI orchestrated an armed raid with the Chicago police and Cook County State's Attorney on Hampton's Chicago apartment. They had obtained detailed information about the apartment, including a layout of furniture, from O'Neal. An augmented, 14-man team of the SAO (state Special Prosecutions Unit) was organized for a predawn raid; they were armed with a search warrant for illegal weapons.[28][29]

On the evening of December 3, Hampton taught a political education course at a local church, which was attended by most Panther members. Afterward, as was typical, he was accompanied to his Monroe Street apartment by Johnson and several Panthers: Blair Anderson, James Grady, Ronald "Doc" Satchell, Harold Bell, Verlina Brewer, Louis Truelock, Brenda Harris and Mark Clark. O'Neal was already there, having prepared a late dinner, which the group ate around midnight. O'Neal had slipped the secobarbital into a drink that Hampton consumed during the dinner to sedate Hampton so he would not awaken during the subsequent raid. O'Neal left after dinner. At about 1:30 am, December 4, Hampton fell asleep mid-sentence while talking to his mother on the telephone.[44][45][46][47]

Although Hampton was not known to take drugs, Cook County chemist Eleanor Berman later reported that she had run two tests, each showing evidence of barbiturates in Hampton's blood. An FBI chemist failed to find similar traces, but Berman stood by her findings.

Raid [ edit ] Site of Black Panther Party Raid, Fred Hampton's DeathThe bed and room where Hampton was fatally shot during the raid, showing a large amount of blood on his side of the mattress and numerous bullet holes in the walls.The office of Cook County State's Attorney Edward Hanrahan organized the raid, using officers attached to his office.[49] Hampton had recently strongly criticized Hanrahan, saying that Hanrahan's talk about a "war on gangs" was really rhetoric used to enable him to carry out a "war on black youth".

At 4 am, the heavily armed police team arrived at the site, divided into two teams, eight for the front of the building and six for the rear. At 4:45 am, they stormed the apartment. Mark Clark, sitting in the front room of the apartment with a shotgun in his lap, was on security duty. The police shot him in the chest, killing him instantly.[51] An alternative account said that Clark answered the door and police immediately shot him. Either way, Clark's gun discharged once into the ceiling.[52] This single round was fired when he suffered a reflexive death-convulsion after being shot.[53] This was the only shot fired by the Panthers.[29][55]

Hampton, drugged by barbiturates, was sleeping on a mattress in the bedroom with Johnson, who was nine months pregnant with their child.[51] Police officers removed her from the room while Hampton lay unconscious in bed.[56] Then the raiding team fired at the head of the south bedroom. Hampton was wounded in the shoulder by the shooting. According to the National Archives and Records Administration, "upon that discovery, an officer shot him twice in his head and killed him".

Fellow Black Panther Harold Bell said that he heard the following exchange:[57]

"That's Fred Hampton."

"Is he dead?... Bring him out."

"He's barely alive."

"He'll make it."

The injured Panthers said they heard two shots. According to Hampton's supporters, the shots were fired point-blank at Hampton's head.[58] According to Johnson, an officer then said: "He's good and dead now."[57]

Chicago police removing Hampton's bodyHampton's body was dragged into the bedroom doorway and left in a pool of blood. The officers directed their gunfire at the remaining Panthers who had been sleeping in the north bedroom (Satchel, Anderson, Brewer, and Harris).[51] Brewer, Satchel, Anderson, and Harris were seriously wounded,[51] then beaten and dragged into the street. They were arrested on charges of aggravated assault and attempted murder of the officers. They were each held on $100,000 bail.[52]

In the early 1990s, Jose "Cha Cha" Jimenez, a former president and co-founder of the Young Lords who had developed close ties to Hampton and the Chicago Black Panther Party during the late 1960s, interviewed Johnson about the raid. She said:

I believe Fred Hampton was drugged. The reason why is because when he woke up when the person [Truelock] said, "Chairman, chairman," he was shaking Fred's arm, you know, Fred's arm was folded across the head of the bed. And Fred'--he just raised his head up real slow. It was like watching a slow motion. He raised. His eyes were open. He raised his head up real slow, you know, with his eyes toward the entranceway, toward the bedroom and laid his head back down. That was the only movement he made [...][56]The seven Panthers who survived the raid were indicted by a grand jury on charges of attempted murder, armed violence, and other weapons charges. These charges were subsequently dropped. During the trial, the Chicago Police Department claimed that the Panthers were the first to fire shots. But a later investigation found that the Chicago police fired between 90 and 99 shots, while the only Panthers shot was from Clark's dropped shotgun.[52][59]

After the raid, the apartment was left unguarded. The Panthers sent some members to investigate, accompanied by videographer Mike Gray and stills photographer Norris McNamara to document the scene. This footage was instrumental in proving the raid was an assassination. The footage was later released as part of the 1971 documentary The Murder of Fred Hampton. After a break-in at an FBI office in Pennsylvania, the existence of COINTELPRO, an illegal counter-intelligence program, was revealed and reported. With this program revealed, many activists and others began to suspect that the police raid and Hampton's killing were conducted under this program. One of the documents released after the break-in was a floor plan of Hampton's apartment. Another document outlined a deal that the FBI brokered with US deputy attorney general Richard Kleindienst to conceal the FBI's role in Hampton's death and the existence of COINTELPRO.[59]

Aftermath [ edit ] Mourners passing the bier of Hampton. His funeral in December was attended by over 5,000 people.At a press conference the next day, the police announced the arrest team had been attacked by the "violent" and "extremely vicious" Panthers and defended themselves accordingly.[60] In a second press conference on December 8, the police leadership praised the assault team for their "remarkable restraint", "bravery", and "professional discipline" in not killing all the Panthers present. Photographic evidence was presented of "bullet holes" allegedly made by shots fired by the Panthers, but reporters soon challenged this claim.[61] An internal investigation was undertaken, and the police claimed that their colleagues on the assault team were exonerated of any wrongdoing, concluding that they "used lawful means to overcome the assault".[62]

Five thousand people attended Hampton's funeral. He was eulogized by black leaders, including Jesse Jackson and Ralph Abernathy, Martin Luther King Jr.'s successor as head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. In his eulogy, Jackson said that "when Fred was shot in Chicago, black people in particular, and decent people in general, bled everywhere."[63] On December 6, members of the Weather Underground destroyed numerous police vehicles in a retaliatory bombing spree at 3600 N. Halsted Street, Chicago.[64]

The police called their raid on Hampton's apartment a "shootout". The Black Panthers called it a "shoot-in", because so many shots were fired by police.[65][66]

On December 11 and 12, the two competing daily newspapers, the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times, published vivid accounts of the events but drew different conclusions. The Tribune has long been considered the politically conservative newspaper, and the Sun-Times the liberal paper.[67] On December 11, the Tribune published a page 1 article titled, "Exclusive '' Hanrahan, Police Tell Panther Story." The article included photographs supplied by Hanrahan's office that depicted bullet holes in a thin white curtain and door jamb as evidence that the Panthers fired multiple bullets at the police.[68][69]

Jack Challem, editor of the Wright College News, the student newspaper at Wright Junior College in Chicago, had visited the apartment on December 6, when it was still unsecured. He took numerous photographs of the crime scenes. A member of the Black Panthers was allowing visitors to tour the apartment. Challem's photographs did not show the bullet holes reported by the Tribune. On the morning of December 12, after the Tribune article had appeared with the Hanrahan-supplied photos, Challem contacted a reporter at the Sun-Times, showed him his own photographs, and encouraged the other reporter to visit the apartment. That evening, the Sun-Times published a page 1 article with the headline: "Those 'bullet holes' aren't." According to the article, the alleged bullet holes (supposedly the result of the Panthers shooting in the direction of the police) were nail heads.[70]

Four weeks after witnessing Hampton's death at the hands of the police, Johnson gave birth to their son, Fred Hampton Jr.[71]

Civil rights activists Roy Wilkins and Ramsey Clark, styled as "The Commission of Inquiry into the Black Panthers and the Police", alleged that the Chicago police had killed Hampton without justification or provocation and had violated the Panthers' constitutional rights against unreasonable search and seizure.[72] "The Commission" further alleged that the Chicago Police Department had imposed a summary punishment on the Panthers.[73]

A federal grand jury did not return any indictment against any of the individuals involved with the planning or execution of the raid, including the officers involved in killing Hampton.[74] O'Neal, who had given the FBI the floor plan of the apartment and drugged Hampton, later admitted his involvement in setting up the raid.[75] He committed suicide on January 15, 1990.[76]

Inquest [ edit ] Shortly after the raid, Cook County Coroner Andrew Toman began forming a special six-member coroner's jury to hold an inquest into the deaths of Hampton and Clark.[77] On December 23, Toman announced four additions to the jury, who included two African-American men: physician Theodore K. Lawless and attorney Julian B. Wilkins, the son of J. Ernest Wilkins Sr.[77] He said the four were selected from a group of candidates submitted to his office by groups and individuals representing both Chicago's black and white communities.[77] Civil rights leaders and spokesmen for the black community were reportedly disappointed with the selection.[78]

An official with the Chicago Urban League said, "I would have had more confidence in the jury if one of them had been a black man who has a rapport with the young and the grass roots in the community."[78] Gus Savage said that such a man to whom the community could relate need not be black.[78] The jury eventually included a third black man, who had been a member of the first coroner's jury sworn in on December 4.[12]

The blue-ribbon panel convened for the inquest on January 6, 1970. On January 21, they ruled the deaths of Hampton and Clark to be justifiable homicides.[12][13][14] The jury qualified their verdict on Hampton's death as "based solely and exclusively on the evidence presented to this inquisition";[12] police and expert witnesses provided the only testimony during the inquest.[79]

Jury foreman James T. Hicks stated that they could not consider the charges made by surviving Black Panthers who had been in the apartment; they had told reporters that the police had entered the apartment shooting. The survivors were reported to have refused to testify during the inquest because they faced criminal charges of attempted murder and aggravated assault during the raid.[79] Attorneys for the Hampton and Clark families did not introduce any witnesses during the proceedings but called the inquest "a well-rehearsed theatrical performance designed to vindicate the police officers".[12] Hanrahan said the verdict was recognition "of the truthfulness of our police officers' account of the events".[12]

Federal grand jury [ edit ] Released on May 15, 1970, the reports of a federal grand jury criticized the actions of the police, the surviving Black Panthers, and the Chicago news media.[80][81] The grand jury called the police department's raid "ill conceived" and said many errors were committed during the post-raid investigation and reconstruction of the events. It said that the surviving Black Panthers' refusal to cooperate hampered the investigation, and that the press "improperly and grossly exaggerated stories".[80][81]

1970 civil rights lawsuit [ edit ] In 1970, the survivors and relatives of Hampton and Clark filed a civil suit, stating that the civil rights of the Black Panther members were violated by the joint police/FBI raid and seeking $47.7 million in damages.[82] Twenty-eight defendants were named, including Hanrahan as well as the City of Chicago, Cook County, and federal governments.[82] It took years for the case to get to trial, which lasted 18 months. It was reported to have been the longest federal trial up to that time.[82] After its conclusion in 1977, Judge Joseph Sam Perry of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois dismissed the suit against 21 of the defendants before jury deliberations.[82] After jurors deadlocked on a verdict, Perry dismissed the suit against the remaining defendants.[82]

The plaintiffs appealed. In 1979, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago found that the government had withheld relevant documents, thereby obstructing the judicial process.[82] Reinstating the case against 24 of the defendants, the Court of Appeals ordered a new trial.[82] The Supreme Court of the United States heard an appeal by defendants but voted 5''3 in 1980 to remand the case to the District Court for a new trial.[82]

In 1982, the City of Chicago, Cook County, and the federal government agreed to a settlement in which each would pay $616,333 (equivalent to $1.87 million per payee in 2022) to a group of nine plaintiffs, including the mothers of Hampton and Clark.[82] The $1.85 million settlement (equivalent to $5.61 million in 2022) was believed to be the largest ever in a civil rights case.[82] G. Flint Taylor, one of the attorneys representing the plaintiffs, said, "The settlement is an admission of the conspiracy that existed between the FBI and Hanrahan's men to murder Fred Hampton."[83] Assistant United States Attorney Robert Gruenberg said the settlement was intended to avoid another costly trial and was not an admission of guilt or responsibility by any of the defendants.[83]

Controversy [ edit ] Ten days afterward, Bobby Rush, the then deputy minister of defense for the Illinois Black Panther Party, called the raiding party an "execution squad".[84] As is typical in settlements, the three government defendants did not acknowledge claims of responsibility for plaintiffs' allegations.

Michael Newton is among the writers who have concluded that Hampton was assassinated.[85] In his 2016 book Unsolved Civil Rights Murder Cases, 1934''1970, Newton writes that Hampton "was murdered in his sleep by Chicago police with FBI collusion."[86] This view is also presented in Jakobi Williams's book From the Bullet to the Ballot: The Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party and Racial Coalition Politics in Chicago.[87]

Personal life [ edit ] Hampton was very close with Chicago Black Catholic priest George Clements, who served as his mentor and as a chaplain for the local Panther chapter. Hampton and the Panthers also used Clements's parish, Holy Angels Catholic Church in Chicago (now the parish of Our Lady of Africa[88]), as a refuge in times of particular surveillance or pursuit from the police. They also provided security for several of Clements's "Black Unity Masses", part of his revolutionary activities during the Black Catholic Movement. Clements spoke at Hampton's funeral, and also said a Requiem Mass for him at Holy Angels.[89][90][91]

Legacy [ edit ] Legal and political effects [ edit ] According to a 2007 Chicago Tribune report, "The raid ended the promising political career of Cook County State's Atty. Edward V. Hanrahan, who was indicted but cleared with 13 other law-enforcement agents on charges of obstructing justice. Bernard Carey, a Republican, defeated him in the next election, in part because of the support of outraged black voters."[92] The families of Hampton and Clark filed a $47.7 million civil suit against the city, state, and federal governments. The case went to trial before Federal Judge J. Sam Perry. After more than 18 months of testimony and at the close of the plaintiff's case, Perry dismissed the case. The plaintiffs appealed, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reversed, ordering the case to be retried. More than a decade after the case had been filed, the suit was finally settled for $1.85 million.[74] The two families each shared in the settlement.[93]

Jeffrey Haas, with his law partners G. Flint Taylor and Dennis Cunningham and attorney James D. Montgomery, were the attorneys for the plaintiffs in the federal suit Hampton v. Hanrahan, conducted additional research and wrote a book about these events. It was published in 2009. He said that Chicago was worse off without Hampton:

Of course, there's also the legacy that, without a young leader, I think the West Side of Chicago degenerated a lot into drugs. And without leaders like Fred Hampton, I think the gangs and the drugs became much more prevalent on the West Side. He was an alternative to that. He talked about serving the community, talked about breakfast programs, educating the people, community control of police. So I think that that's unfortunately another legacy of Fred's murder.[66]

In 1990, the Chicago City Council unanimously passed a resolution, introduced by then-Alderman Madeline Haithcock, commemorating December 4, 2004, as Fred Hampton Day in Chicago. The resolution read in part:

"Fred Hampton, who was only 21 years old, made his mark in Chicago history not so much by his death as by the heroic efforts of his life and by his goals of empowering the most oppressed sector of Chicago's Black community, bringing people into political life through participation in their own freedom fighting organization."[94]

Monuments and streets [ edit ] A public pool was named in his honor in his hometown of Maywood, Illinois.[95]On September 7, 2007, a bust of Hampton by sculptor Preston Jackson was erected outside the Fred Hampton Family Aquatic Center in Maywood.[96]In March 2006, supporters of Hampton's charity work proposed the naming of a Chicago street in his honor. Chicago's chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police opposed this effort.[97]

[ edit ] Two days after the killings of Hampton and Clark, on December 6, 1969, members of the Weathermen destroyed numerous police vehicles in a retaliatory bombing spree at 3600 N. Halsted Street in Chicago.[98] After that, the group became more radical. On May 21, 1970, the group issued a "Declaration of War" against the U.S. government and, for the first time, used its new name, the "Weather Underground Organization". They adopted fake identities and decided to pursue covert activities only. These initially included preparations to bomb a U.S. military non-commissioned officers' dance at Fort Dix, New Jersey, in what Brian Flanagan later said was intended to be "the most horrific hit the United States government had ever suffered on its territory".[99]

"We've known that our job is to lead white kids into armed revolution... Kids know the lines are drawn: revolution is touching all of our lives. Tens of thousands have learned that protest and marches don't do it. Revolutionary violence is the only way."'--Bernardine Dohrn[100]

Media and popular culture [ edit ] In film [ edit ] A 27-minute documentary, Death of a Black Panther: The Fred Hampton Story,[101] was used as evidence in the civil suit.[102] The 2002 documentary The Weather Underground shows in detail how that group was deeply influenced by Hampton and his death'--as well as showing that Hampton kept his distance from them for being what he called "adventuristic, masochistic and Custeristic".[103]

Much of the first half of Eyes on the Prize episode 12, "A Nation of Law?", chronicles Hampton's leadership and extrajudicial killing. The events of his rise to prominence, Hoover's targeting of him, and Hampton's subsequent death are also recounted with footage in the 2015 documentary The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution.

The Murder of Fred Hampton is a documentary shot from within the movement, released in 1971. It has no narration, relying solely on footage shot from within the Black Panther organization and portraying Hampton and his colleagues on their own terms.

In the 1999 TV miniseries The 60s, Hampton appears serving free breakfast with the BPP. David Alan Grier plays Hampton.[104]

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020) features Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Hampton, in which he advises Bobby Seale as he was denied counsel, with the Chicago Seven.[105][106][107]

Judas and the Black Messiah is a 2021 film about O'Neal's betrayal of Hampton. The film stars Daniel Kaluuya as Hampton and was directed by Shaka King. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on February 1, 2021. For his performance, Kaluuya won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.[108][109]

In literature [ edit ] Jeffrey Haas wrote an account of Hampton's death, The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and the Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther (2009).Stephen King refers to Hampton in the novel 11/22/63 (2012), in which a character discusses the ripple effect of traveling back in time to prevent John F. Kennedy's assassination. He postulates that other events would follow that could have prevented Hampton's assassination as well.[111]In music [ edit ] American rapper and entrepreneur Jay-Z has made a reference in his music on the song, "Murder to Excellence" to being born on the same day Hampton was murdered.[112] Hampton's son, however, has condemned the rapper for it.[113]American rock band Rage Against the Machine referenced Hampton in their 1996 song Down Rodeo, saying, "They ain't gonna send us campin' like they did my man Fred Hampton."[114]Kendrick Lamar refers to Hampton in his song HiiiPoWeR, which also contains references to black civil rights activists Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and Huey Newton.[115]Artists SEIITH and Kiko King referenced Hampton in their 2020 song "Ghost of Fred Hampton".[116]See also [ edit ] List of homicides in IllinoisNotes [ edit ] ^ a b Stubblefield, Anna (May 31, 2018). Ethics Along the Color Line. Cornell University Press. pp. 60''61. ISBN 9781501717703. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved July 4, 2019 . ^ a b Burrough, Bryan (2016). Days of Rage: America's Radical Underground, the FBI, and the Forgotten Age of Revolutionary Violence. Penguin Publishing Group. pp. 84''85. ISBN 9780143107972. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved November 11, 2020 . ^ a b Lee, William (December 3, 2019). "In 1969, Charismatic Black Panthers Leader Fred Hampton Was Killed in a Hail of Gunfire. 50 Years Later, the Fight Against Police Brutality Continues". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved December 3, 2019 . ^ "From the Bullet to the Ballot | Jakobi Williams". University of North Carolina Press. ^ Delphine (January 21, 2015). "Fred Hampton '' It's A Class Struggle Goddammit!, November, 1969". www.lfks.net. Archived from the original on February 12, 2021 . Retrieved February 13, 2021 . ^ "Fred Hampton on Revolution '' Bay Area Television Archive". ^ a b Ali, Rasha (February 13, 2021). "Fact-checking 'Judas and the Black Messiah': Was Fred Hampton drugged or arrested over ice cream?". USA Today. Archived from the original on March 22, 2021. ^ Thamm, Natalie (April 7, 2019). "Murder or "Justifiable Homicide"?: The Death of the Revolutionary Fred Hampton". STMU History Media. Archived from the original on March 22, 2021 . Retrieved March 22, 2021 . ^ Lee, William (December 3, 2019). "In 1969, charismatic Black Panthers leader Fred Hampton was killed in a hail of gunfire. 50 years later, the fight against police brutality continues". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 22, 2021 . Retrieved March 22, 2021 . ^ a b c d e f Dolan, Thomas J. (January 22, 1970). "Panther Inquest Backs Police" (PDF) . Chicago Sun-Times. Chicago. p. 3. Archived from the original on May 14, 2016 . Retrieved October 15, 2015 . ^ a b Rutberg, Susan (December 6, 2017). "Nothing but a Northern Lynching: The Death of Fred Hampton Revisited". Huffpost. Archived from the original on April 3, 2019 . Retrieved October 19, 2019 . ^ a b Thamm, Natalie (April 7, 2019). "Murder or 'Justifiable Homicide'?: The Death of the Revolutionary Fred Hampton". STMU History Media. Archived from the original on October 20, 2019 . Retrieved October 19, 2019 . ^ Morris, Rose (2019). Chronicle of the Seventh Son Black Panther Mark Clark. United States: Rose Morris. pp. 203''214. ISBN 978-1733581714. ^ Williams, Jakobi (2013). "Law Enforcement Repression and the Assassination of Chairman Fred Hampton". From the Bullet to the Ballot: The Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party and Racial Coalition Politics in Chicago. University of North Carolina Press. pp. 167''190. ISBN 978-0-8078-3816-7. JSTOR 10.5149/9781469608167_williams.10. ^ Hannah, Rosa (April 18, 2017). "Fred Hampton: American Activist". University North Carolina. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on December 9, 2020 . Retrieved April 10, 2020 . ^ a b Solly, Meilan. "The True History Behind 'Judas and the Black Messiah' ". Smithsonian Magazine. Archived from the original on February 14, 2021 . Retrieved February 14, 2021 . ^ Gottlieb, Jeff; Cohen, Jeff (December 26, 1976). "Was Fred Hampton Executed?". The Nation. ISSN 0027-8378. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved November 14, 2020 . ^ Jones, Cornelius (October 23, 2013). Don't Call Me Black, Call Me American. ISBN 9781105520020. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved June 16, 2020 . ^ Lumsden, Linda (2009). "Good Mothers With Guns: Framing Black Womanhood in the Black Panther, 1968''1980". Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly. 86 (4): 900''922. doi:10.1177/107769900908600411. S2CID 145098294. ^ Lumsden, Linda (2009). "Good Mothers With Guns: Framing Black Womanhood in the Black Panther, 1968''1980". Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly. 86 (4): 900''922. doi:10.1177/107769900908600411. S2CID 145098294. ^ Lumsden, Linda (2009). "Good Mothers With Guns: Framing Black Womanhood in the Black Panther, 1968''1980". Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly. 86 (4): 900''922. doi:10.1177/107769900908600411. S2CID 145098294. ^ "A Latino Young Lord remembers Black Panthers leader Fred Hampton: He united the oppressed". NBC News. February 12, 2021. ^ a b c d Ward Churchill; Jim Vander Wall (1988). Agents of Repression: The FBI's Secret Wars Against the Black Panther Party and the American Indian Movement. p. 66. ISBN 0-89608-293-8. ^ a b c d Rod Bush (2000). We Are Not What We Seem: Black Nationalism and Class Struggle in the American Century. NYU Press. p. 216. ISBN 978-0-8147-1318-1. ^ "50 Years After His Death, Fred Hampton's Legacy Looms Large In Chicago". NPR.org. December 5, 2019. Archived from the original on November 10, 2020 . Retrieved April 10, 2020 . ^ a b "The Panthers and the Patriots". www.jacobinmag.com. May 25, 2017. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved April 10, 2020 . ^ "Fifty Years of Fred Hampton's Rainbow Coalition". southsideweekly.com. August 25, 2016. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved April 10, 2020 . ^ a b "Who Was Fred Hampton '' True Story of Black Panther Fred Hampton's Death". Archived from the original on February 14, 2021 . Retrieved March 10, 2021 . ^ Gipson, Therlee (2018). "Black Panther Party True History". books.google.com. ISBN 9780359039913. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved April 10, 2020 . ^ Iberia HAMPTON et al., Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. Edward V. HANRAHAN et al., Defendants-Appellees, United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, September 12, 1979, page 1, paragraph 13 Archived January 9, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, Law Resource ^ FBI document, May 27, 1969, "Director FBI to SAC San Francisco", available at the FBI reading room. ^ Feldman, Jay (2012). Manufacturing Hysteria: A History of Scapegoating, Surveillance, and Secrecy in Modern America. New York: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. pp. 275''276. ISBN 9780307388230. ^ Ward Churchill, "To Disrupt, Discredit and Destroy", in Kathleen Cleaver and George Katsiaficas (eds), Liberation, Imagination and the Black Panther Party, p.84 Archived January 31, 2017, at the Wayback Machine and p. 87. Archived January 31, 2017, at the Wayback Machine ^ Michael Newton. Famous Assassinations in World History: An Encyclopedia Archived January 31, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. ABC-CLIO, p. 206. ISBN 1610692853 ^ "Second Cop in Gun Battle Dies, Wounded Describe Nightmare", Chicago Tribune, November 14, 1969, p. 1. ^ "No Quarter for Wild Beasts", Chicago Tribune, November 15, 1969, p. 10. ^ Democracy Now!, 01 Feb. 2021 "The Assassination of Fred Hampton: New Documents Reveal Involvement of FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover" Archived February 3, 2021, at the Wayback Machine ^ Bush, Rod (2000). We Are Not What We Seem: Black Nationalism and Class Struggle in the American Century. NYU Press. p. 216. ISBN 978-0-8147-1318-1. Archived from the original on January 31, 2017 . Retrieved February 21, 2016 . ^ Berger, Dan (2006). Outlaws of America: the Weather Underground and the politics of solidarity. AK Press. p. 66. ISBN 978-1-904859-41-3. Archived from the original on January 31, 2017 . Retrieved February 21, 2016 . ^ Ward Churchill; Jim Vander Wall (2002). The COINTELPRO Papers: Documents from the FBI's Secret Wars Against Dissent. South End Press. p. 358. ISBN 0-89608-648-8. Archived from the original on January 31, 2017 . Retrieved February 21, 2016 . ^ Peter Dale Scott (1996). Deep Politics and the Death of JFK. Univ. of California Press. p. 308. ISBN 978-0-520-20519-2. Archived from the original on January 31, 2017 . Retrieved February 21, 2016 . ^ Napoliatno, Jo. "Edward Hanrahan, Prosecutor Tied to '69 Panthers Raid, Dies at 88" Archived September 21, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, June 11, 2009. Retrieved June 13, 2009. ^ a b c d "Hampton v. City Of Chicago, et al". IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS. January 4, 1978. Archived from the original on August 10, 2007 . Retrieved July 19, 2007 . ^ a b c Nelson, Stuart Jr. (January 23, 2015). The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution (Documentary). ^ Mosley, Dwight (2020). "Towards the De-Miseducation of the African-American". books.google.com. ISBN 9781645444435. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved January 5, 2020 . ^ Berger, Dan (2006), Outlaws of America: The Weather Underground and the Politics of Solidarity, AK Press, ISBN 978-1-904859-41-3, pp. 132''133. ^ a b Interview by Jose "Cha-Cha" Jimenez, c. 1990, File Folder 10, Box 4, The Collection on the Young Lords, DePaul University Special Collections and Archives. Archived January 9, 2021, at the Wayback Machine ^ a b Ward Churchill; Jim Vander Wall (1988). Agents of Repression: The FBI's Secret Wars Against the Black Panther Party and the American Indian Movement. pp. 71-73. ISBN 0-89608-293-8. Churchill and Vander Wall cited court transcripts of Iberia Hampton, et al. vs. Plaintiffs-Appellants, v Edward V. Hanrahan, et al., Defendants-Appellees (Nos. 77''1968, 77''1210 and 77''1370) as the primary source for their account of the police raid. Witnesses Harold Bell and Deborah Johnson testified to the comments by police. ^ Williams, Jakobi (2013). From the Bullet to the Ballot: The Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party and Racial Coalition Politics in Chicago. UNC Press Books. p. 185. ISBN 9780807838167. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved July 4, 2019 . ^ a b Bennett, Hans (2010). "The Black Panthers and the Assassination of Fred Hampton". Journal of Pan African Studies. 3 (6). ^ Alm, David. " 'The Murder Of Fred Hampton' Still Has Much To Teach, Watch It Here". Forbes. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved November 14, 2020 . ^ Mitchell, Robert (December 4, 2019). "The police raid that killed two Black Panthers, shook Chicago and changed the nation". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on March 26, 2021 . Retrieved June 2, 2021 . ^ "Justice Dept. plans probe Into shooting of Panthers". Google News. The Bryan Times. December 22, 1969 . Retrieved June 2, 2021 . ^ Mantler, Gordon Keith (2013). Power to the Poor: Black-Brown Coalition and the Fight for Economic Justice, 1960''1974. UNC Press Books. ISBN 9780807838518. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved November 11, 2020 . ^ Weather Underground Anon. Prairie Fire: The Politics of Revolutionary Anti-Imperialism. UK, Red Dragon Print Collective, c. 1970. ^ Barbara Reynolds, "Five years later Hampton alive" Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, Chicago Tribune, December 8, 1974. ^ a b "The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and the Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther" Archived December 8, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. Interview with Jeffrey Haas, Democracy Now! December 9, 2009. ^ The Editorial Board (May 27, 2021). "Editorial: When the Tribune and Sun-Times agree on policy ..." chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on June 1, 2021 . Retrieved June 2, 2021 . (subscription required) ^ ""Exclusive '' Hanrahan, Police Tell Panther Story" Archived December 4, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, Chicago Tribune, December 11, 1969. ^ "Panther Battle Scene" Archived February 23, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, Chicago Tribune, December 11, 1969. ^ Joseph Reilly, "At Hampton Apartment" Archived January 9, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, Chicago Sun-Times, December 12, 1969. ^ " "Fred Hampton Jr. Speaks About the Assassination of His Father" ". Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved September 29, 2010 . ^ Ryan, Yvonne (November 19, 2013). Roy Wilkins: The Quiet Revolutionary and the NAACP. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 9780813143804. Archived from the original on February 28, 2023 . Retrieved February 28, 2023 . {{cite book}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) ^ Wilkins, Roy; Clark, Ramsey (1973). Search and Destroy: A Report by the Commission of Inquiry into the Black Panthers and the Police (PDF) . Metropolitan Applied Research Center. p. 249. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 30, 2013 . Retrieved February 28, 2023 . ^ a b "The Black Panthers and the Assassination of Fred Hampton". Archived from the original on June 13, 2010 . Retrieved September 29, 2010 . ^ "Interview with William O'Neal". digital.wustl.edu. Washington University in St. Louis. April 13, 1989. Archived from the original on March 29, 2021 . Retrieved June 2, 2021 . ^ Michael Ervin (January 25, 1990). "The Last Hours of William O'Neal". Chicago Reader. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved February 4, 2014 . ^ a b c O'Brien, John (December 24, 1969). "For More Selected for Jury to Probe Panther Raid Deaths". Chicago Tribune. Chicago. section 1, p. 4. Archived from the original on December 21, 2016 . Retrieved October 15, 2015 . ^ a b c Siddon, Arthur (December 24, 1969). "Panther Inquest Jury Selections Questioned". Chicago Tribune. Chicago. section 1, p. 4. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016 . Retrieved October 15, 2015 . ^ a b "Illinois jury rules Black Panther deaths 'justifiable homicide' ". The Bulletin. Bend, Oregon. United Press International. January 22, 1970. p. 12. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved October 15, 2015 . ^ a b Grossman, Ron (December 4, 2014). "Fatal Black Panther raid in Chicago set off sizable aftershocks". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on September 16, 2017 . Retrieved September 15, 2017 . ^ a b Graham, Fred P. (May 16, 1970). "US Jury Assails Police in Chicago on Panther Raid". The New York Times. p. 1. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved September 15, 2017 . ^ a b c d e f g h i j Franklin, Tim; Crawford, William B Jr. (November 2, 1982). "County OKs Panther Death Settlements". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016 . Retrieved July 27, 2015 . ^ a b Sheppard, Nathaniel Jr. (November 14, 1982). "Plaintiffs in Panther Suite 'Knew We Were Right' ". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved September 15, 2017 . ^ Koziol, Ronald (December 14, 1969). "Panther Slayings Split the City Into 'Name Calling' Factions". Chicago Tribune. section 1, p. 7. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016 . Retrieved September 23, 2015 . ^ Michael Newton. Famous Assassinations in World History: An Encyclopedia Archived January 13, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. ABC-CLIO, p. 205. ISBN 1610692853 ^ Newton, Michael (2016). Unsolved Civil Rights Murder Cases 1934''1970. McFarland & Company. p. 249. ISBN 978-0786498956. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved November 11, 2020 . ^ Williams, Jakobi (February 28, 2013). From the Bullet to the Ballot: The Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party and Racial Coalition Politics in Chicago. UNC Press Books. p. 10. ISBN 9781469608167. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved November 11, 2020 . ^ "History of Holy Angels". Our Lady of Africa . Retrieved July 20, 2023 . ^ "The priest who channeled Black Power into the Catholic Church". Religion News Service. December 2, 2019 . Retrieved August 16, 2021 . ^ "Chicago Negro Parish Marks Panther Death". The Catholic News Archive. Religion News Service. December 19, 1969 . Retrieved August 16, 2021 . ^ "Trailblazing Father George Clements Marks 60 Years As A Priest". May 2, 2017 . Retrieved August 16, 2021 . ^ "The Black Panther Raid and the death of Fred Hampton". Chicago Tribune. December 19, 2007. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014 . Retrieved February 4, 2014 . ^ Sheppard, Nathaniel Jr. (November 14, 1982). "Plaintiffs in Panther Suit 'Knew We Were Right' ". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 5, 2021 . Retrieved June 2, 2021 . ^ Monica Moorehead (December 16, 2004). "Chicago: 'Fred Hampton Day' declared". Workers World. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014 . Retrieved February 4, 2014 . ^ "Village of Maywood Parks and Recreation". Archived from the original on October 5, 2010 . Retrieved December 21, 2019 . ^ "Maywood street statue honor slain Panther leader Hampton". Itsabouttimebpp.com. September 9, 2007. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved April 12, 2014 . ^ "Group Wants Street Named After Black Panther Fred Hampton-Protesters filled City Hall Today '' Susan Murphy-Milano". Movingoutmovingon.bloghi.com. Archived from the original on October 4, 2013 . Retrieved April 12, 2014 . ^ Anonymous (Weather Underground). Prairie Fire: The Politics of Revolutionary Anti-Imperialism. UK, Red Dragon Print Collective, 1970. ^ "Ex-Weather Underground Member Kathy Boudin Granted Parole" Archived November 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Democracy Now! August 21, 2003. ^ Weather Underground Declaration of a State of War ^ "Death of a Black Panther: The Fred Hampton Story" '' via Internet Archive. ^ "The Death of a Black Panther '' The Fred Hampton Story, 1969''70" Archived January 9, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, Inteldocu, July 31, 2011. ^ "The Seeds of Terror". The New York Times. November 22, 1981. p. 4. Archived from the original on January 9, 2021 . Retrieved February 8, 2017 . ^ The '60s (TV Mini-Series 1999) '' IMDb, archived from the original on January 9, 2021 , retrieved July 8, 2020 ^ Gross, Terry (November 18, 2020). "Author Says The Chicago 7 Trial Reflected 'All The Conflicts In America' ". NPR. Archived from the original on January 11, 2021 . Retrieved January 9, 2021 . ^ McNary, Dave (December 17, 2020). " 'Trial of the Chicago 7' Honored With Inaugural Ensemble Tribute at Gotham Awards". Variety. Archived from the original on December 18, 2020 . Retrieved January 9, 2021 . ^ Allen, Nick (October 16, 2020). "Who's Who in The Trial of the Chicago 7: A Character Guide". Vulture. Archived from the original on February 13, 2021 . Retrieved January 9, 2021 . ^ Rubin, Rebecca (December 22, 2020). " 'Judas and the Black Messiah' Rescheduled for Early 2021". Variety. Archived from the original on January 16, 2021 . Retrieved January 9, 2021 . ^ Rubin, Rebecca (January 12, 2021). "Judas and the Black Messiah' to Premiere at Sundance Film Festival". Variety. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021 . Retrieved January 12, 2021 . ^ King 2012:62. ^ Harris, LaTesha (March 24, 2021). "Nobody's Savior '' Jay-Z Cannot Deliver Us into an Era of Racial Equity". Bitch Media. ^ "Fred Hampton Jr. Upset About Jay-Z Lyrics On 'Murder To Excellence' ". MTV . Retrieved September 24, 2023 . ^ "Down Rodeo Lyrics". Genius.com. ^ "Fred Hampton on your campus, you can't resist his / HiiiPoWeR". Genius . Retrieved October 12, 2022 . ^ GHOST OF FRED HAMPTON feat. KIKO KING , retrieved April 20, 2023 References [ edit ] Haas, Jeffrey (2009). The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and the Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 9781569763650. Wilderson, Frank (2015). Incognegro '-- A Memoir of Exile and Apartheid. Duke University Press. ISBN 978-0-8223-5993-7. "Fred Hampton (August 30, 1948 - December 4, 1969)". National Archives and Records Administration. August 25, 2016. Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. External links [ edit ] The Marxists Internet Archive: Fred Hampton Archive Transcribed speeches and collected works."The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and the Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther" '' video report by Democracy Now! December 4, 2009.The Murder of Fred Hampton at IMDb (A 1971 documentary film directed by Howard Alk)FBI files on Fred HamptonFrom COINTELPRO to the Shadow Government: As Fred Hampton Jr. Is Released From 9 Years of Prison, a Look Back at the Assassination of Fred Hampton Archived April 28, 2005, at the Wayback Machine. 36:48 real audio. Tape: Fred Hampton, Deborah Johnson. Guests: Fred Hampton Jr., Mutulu Olugabala, Rosa Clemente. Interviewer: Amy Goodman. Democracy Now!. Tuesday, March 5, 2002. Retrieved May 12, 2005."Power Anywhere Where There's People" A Speech By Fred HamptonNational Young Lords Archived October 25, 2012, at the Wayback Machine Brief notes on Young Lords originsThe short film Death of a Black Panther: The Fred Hampton Story is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive.Grand Valley State University Oral History Collection

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 18:55

Some describe America in the spring of 1968 as a country hell bent on tearing itself apart over two issues: the Vietnam War and civil rights. Martin Luther King Jr. had led the civil rights movement with peaceful methods. Yet his assassination on April 4 led to violence in almost 130 cities.

Although there were sporadic incidents of violence in Boston, it likely would have been worse, had it not been for a landmark concert at the old Boston Garden, broadcast on WGBH TV and radio the night after King's death. But it almost didn't happen. I was a graduate student working at WGBH at the time, and I watched the broadcast in the TV studio control room on Western Avenue in Allston.

Amid the grief the nation was experiencing the day after King's assassination, word began circulating in the building about a plan for WGBH to broadcast a previously scheduled concert at Boston Garden. It starred the ''Godfather of Soul,'' James Brown, the most popular, charismatic and powerful black entertainer of the day.

At first Kevin White, who had been Boston's mayor for barely three months, wanted to cancel the concert, fearing it could provoke the kind of rioting that so many American cities had seen after King's death. White had no idea who Brown was, thinking he was instead the former professional football star Jim Brown, according to James Sullivan, author of ''The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved the Soul of America.''

It was up to gospel and soul music deejay Jimmy Byrd, along with Tom Atkins, the lone African-American on the Boston City Council, to convince White that not having the concert could be more dangerous than letting it happen. In his book, Sullivan says that Atkins told the mayor: "You can't cancel the James Brown show because if you do that, you're going to have 14,000 kids showing up at the Boston Garden finding out by a piece of paper stuck on the door that the show has been canceled and, if they're not already angry and distraught over the murder of Dr. King, now they're really going to be mad."

White reluctantly agreed to let the show go on.

Then someone on White's staff suggested that WGBH broadcast the concert live, so people could watch the show at home and not have to go out. Sullivan told me how Brown reacted when he heard the concert was to be televised: "'Well, if you put the show on TV for free, who's going to come?' So, he said, 'I'll do it if the city government can promise me some money.'''

When White learned of Brown's demand, he almost cancelled the concert a second time. Once again, Atkins persuaded White that the cost to the city in terms of public safety and his own reputation would be far greater than the $60,000 Brown wanted.

Meanwhile, the executives at WGBH were debating the wisdom of such a broadcast. On the one hand, it would great public service; on the other hand, they could end up airing a riot. The associate director of programs at the time, Michael Ambrosino, told me the final word giving the go-ahead didn't come down until 5:30, just three hours before the show was to begin. Not waiting for a final decision, Ambrosino had already begun assembling ''the one group of guys who could pull off such a last minute live broadcast: producer Russ Morash, director David Atwood, along with [crew] Al Potter and Greg Harney.''

They made their way down to the Garden in a large white tractor-trailer that was the station's new mobile unit. Using three old black-and-white cameras, borrowed cables that WBZ used to broadcast sports from the arena, an improvised feed from the public address system and only a couple of spotlights for lighting, they were ready to go after a delay of just 45 minutes. Although Atwood told me he and the crew were aware that violence could break out, they didn't have time to think about their own safety because they were so focused on doing what they had to do to get the concert on the air.

Instead of the 14,000 concertgoers who could have filled Boston Garden at the sold-out show, only about 2,000 adoring fans showed up. They cheered loudly as Brown came on stage. He took the opportunity to heap praise upon Atkins for ''being a black man in the driver's seat'' and White as a ''swingin' cat'' for allowing the concert to take place and having the city pay for it. Although it was never revealed just how much Brown was paid, it was rumored he never got all the money he wanted.

As the three-hour concert got underway, I remember watching in the control room and seeing the videotape machines running. They were recording the show so it could be rebroadcast all night and doing that, many believe, was the key to keeping the city quiet.

At one point, some of Brown's young fans tried to climb up onto the stage just to be near him. Boston police officers moved in quickly, some with billy clubs, ready to subdue the crowd. Brown dramatically took control, keeping the police at bay and convincing the crowd their behavior was making him and all black people look bad. They eventually took their seats, and Brown resumed the show. It was a tense moment that demonstrated the power Brown had over his audience and his ability to prevent what might have been a violent scene.

Back in the control room, we were mesmerized by Brown's performance and amazed that the broadcast was going so well. But we were also anxious about what might be happening on the streets of the city. At 11 p.m. we watched newscasts on other local TV stations to see if any violence had erupted, but to our great relief, all was peaceful. As WGBH jazz deejay Al Davis, who attended the concert as a teenager, later recalled, ''The ride home on the T was so quiet it was surreal.''

Some say there is no proof that Brown's concert kept Boston from boiling over. State Representative Byron Rushing told me Roxbury residents had been so traumatized by rioting in August 1967 that left some Blue Hill Avenue businesses destroyed that they did not want a repeat of that kind of violence.

But Sullivan told me: "Historians have looked at the James Brown concert as one of the major events in Boston that night that kept people home, kept them off the streets and kept the peace, whereas many, if not most, of the other major cities around the country experienced a lot of rioting that night."

The concert marked a significant turning point in WGBH's history as well. Until then, producer Morash told me, the station had been broadcasting primarily instructional shows like ''The French Chef with Julia Child'' geared to a white audience and rarely got involved in local issues.

With the James Brown broadcast, WGBH was thrown suddenly into the role of responding to one of the most turbulent events of the time. For many members of its board of trustees, it was exactly the kind of programming the station should be doing.

What took place that night influenced programs to come like "Say Brother," which became "Basic Black" and is still airing today. Another landmark live broadcast in 1968, coordinated by WGBH, involved several public TV stations nationwide and dealt with the agonizing controversy over the Vietnam War.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 18:49

American Black rights activist (1925''1965)

Malcolm X

Malcolm X in March 1964

BornMalcolm Little

( 1925-05-19 ) May 19, 1925DiedFebruary 21, 1965 (1965-02-21) (aged 39)Cause of deathAssassination by gunshotResting placeFerncliff CemeteryOther namesMalik el-Shabazz (Arabic: مَاÙِك Ù±Ùشَّبَازّ , romanized: Mālik ash-Shabāzz )OccupationsOrganizationsMovementSpouseChildren6, including Attallah, Qubilah, and IlyasahRelativesLouise Helen Norton Little (mother)Malcolm Shabazz (grandson)[1] Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 '' February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of Islam until 1964, he was a vocal advocate for Black empowerment and the promotion of Islam within the Black community. A posthumous autobiography, on which he collaborated with Alex Haley, was published in 1965.

Malcolm spent his adolescence living in a series of foster homes or with relatives after his father's death and his mother's hospitalization. He committed various crimes, being sentenced to 8 to 10 years in prison in 1946 for larceny and burglary. In prison, he joined the Nation of Islam, adopting the name Malcolm X to symbolize his unknown African ancestral surname while discarding "the White slavemaster name of 'Little'", and after his parole in 1952 quickly became one of the organization's most influential leaders. He was the public face of the organization for 12 years, advocating Black empowerment and separation of Black and White Americans, and criticizing Martin Luther King Jr. and the mainstream civil rights movement for its emphasis on nonviolence and racial integration.[2][3] Malcolm X also expressed pride in some of the Nation's social welfare achievements, such as its free drug rehabilitation program. From the 1950s onward, Malcolm X was subjected to surveillance by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

In the 1960s, Malcolm X began to grow disillusioned with the Nation of Islam, as well as with its leader, Elijah Muhammad. He subsequently embraced Sunni Islam and the civil rights movement after completing the Hajj to Mecca, and became known as "el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz,"[4] which roughly translates to "The Pilgrim Malcolm the Patriarch".[5][4][6] After a brief period of travel across Africa, he publicly renounced the Nation of Islam and founded the Islamic Muslim Mosque, Inc. (MMI) and the Pan-African Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU). Throughout 1964, his conflict with the Nation of Islam intensified, and he was repeatedly sent death threats. On February 21, 1965, he was assassinated in New York City. Three Nation members were charged with the murder and given indeterminate life sentences; in 2021, two of the convictions were vacated. Speculation about the assassination and whether it was conceived or aided by leading or additional members of the Nation, or with law enforcement agencies, has persisted for decades.

A controversial figure accused of preaching racism and violence, Malcolm X is also a widely celebrated figure within African-American and Muslim American communities for his pursuit of racial justice. He was posthumously honored with Malcolm X Day, on which he is commemorated in various cities across the United States. Hundreds of streets and schools in the U.S. have been renamed in his honor, while the Audubon Ballroom, the site of his assassination, was partly redeveloped in 2005 to accommodate the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center.

Early years A 1930 United States Census return listing the Little family (lines 59ff)Malcolm X was born May 19, 1925, in Omaha, Nebraska, the fourth of seven children of Grenada-born Louise Helen Little (n(C)e Langdon) and Georgia-born Earl Little.[7] Earl was an outspoken Baptist lay speaker, and he and Louise were admirers of Pan-African activist Marcus Garvey. Earl was a local leader of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) and Louise served as secretary and "branch reporter", sending news of local UNIA activities to Negro World; they inculcated self-reliance and black pride in their children.[8][9][10] Malcolm X later said that White violence killed four of his father's brothers.[11]

Because of Ku Klux Klan threats, Earl's UNIA activities were said to be "spreading trouble"[12] and the family relocated in 1926 to Milwaukee, and shortly thereafter to Lansing, Michigan.[13] There, the family was frequently harassed by the Black Legion, a White racist group Earl accused of burning their family home in 1929.[14]

When Malcolm was six, his father died in what has been officially ruled a streetcar accident, though his mother Louise believed Earl had been murdered by the Black Legion. Rumors that White racists were responsible for his father's death were widely circulated and were very disturbing to Malcolm X as a child. As an adult, he expressed conflicting beliefs on the question.[15] After a dispute with creditors, Louise received a life insurance benefit (nominally $1,000 ''--'Œabout $19,000 in 2022)[A] in payments of $18 per month;[16] the issuer of another, larger policy refused to pay, claiming her husband Earl had committed suicide.[17] To make ends meet, Louise rented out part of her garden, and her sons hunted game.[16]

During the 1930s, white Seventh-day Adventists witnessed to the Little family; later on, Louise Little and her son Wilfred were baptized into the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Malcolm said the Adventists were "the friendliest white people I had ever seen."[18]

In 1937, a man Louise had been dating''--'Œmarriage had seemed a possibility''--'Œvanished from her life when she became pregnant with his child.[19] In late 1938, she had a nervous breakdown and was committed to Kalamazoo State Hospital. The children were separated and sent to foster homes. Malcolm and his siblings secured her release 24 years later.[20][21]

Malcolm attended West Junior High School in Lansing and then Mason High School in Mason, Michigan, but left high school in 1941, before graduating.[22] He excelled in junior high school but dropped out of high school after a White teacher told him that practicing law, his aspiration at the time, was "no realistic goal for a nigger."[23] Later, Malcolm X recalled feeling that the White world offered no place for a career-oriented Black man, regardless of talent.[23]

A Boston police mug shot of Malcolm, following his arrest for larceny (1944)[24]From age 14 to 21, Malcolm held a variety of jobs while living with his half-sister Ella Little-Collins in Roxbury, a largely African-American neighborhood of Boston.[25][26]

After a short time in Flint, Michigan, he moved to New York City's Harlem neighborhood in 1943, where he found employment on the New Haven Railroad and engaged in drug dealing, gambling, racketeering, robbery, and pimping.[27] According to biographer Bruce Perry, Malcolm also occasionally had sex with other men, usually for money, though this conjecture has been disputed by those who knew him.[28][29][B] He befriended John Elroy Sanford, a fellow dishwasher at Jimmy's Chicken Shack in Harlem who aspired to be a professional comedian. Both men had reddish hair, so Sanford was called "Chicago Red" after his hometown, and Malcolm was known as "Detroit Red". Years later, Sanford became famous as comedian and actor Redd Foxx.[37]

Summoned by the local draft board for military service in World War II, he feigned mental disturbance by rambling and declaring: "I want to be sent down South. Organize them nigger soldiers ... steal us some guns, and kill us [some] crackers".[38][39][40] He was declared "mentally disqualified for military service".[38][39][40]

In late 1945, Malcolm returned to Boston, where he and four accomplices committed a series of burglaries targeting wealthy White families.[41] In 1946, he was arrested while picking up a stolen watch he had left at a shop for repairs,[42] and in February began serving a sentence of eight to ten years at Charlestown State Prison for larceny and breaking and entering.[43] Two years later, Malcolm was transferred to Norfolk Prison Colony (also in Massachusetts).[44][45]

Nation of Islam period Prison Between Mr. Muhammad's teachings, my cor­re­spond­ence, my vis­i­tors ... and my reading of books, months passed without my even thinking about being impris­oned. In fact, up to then, I had never been so truly free in my life.

'--Malcolm X[46]

When Malcolm was in prison, he met fellow convict John Bembry,[47] a self-educated man he would later describe as "the first man I had ever seen command total respect ... with words".[48] Under Bembry's influence, Malcolm developed a voracious appetite for reading.[49]

At this time, several of his siblings wrote to him about the Nation of Islam, a relatively new religious movement preaching Black self-reliance and, ultimately, the return of the African diaspora to Africa, where they would be free from White American and European domination.[50] He showed scant interest at first, but after his brother Reginald wrote in 1948, "Malcolm, don't eat any more pork and don't smoke any more cigarettes. I'll show you how to get out of prison",[51] he quit smoking and began to refuse pork.[52]

After a visit in which Reginald described the group's teachings, including the belief that White people are devils, Malcolm concluded that every relationship he had had with Whites had been tainted by dishonesty, injustice, greed, and hatred.[53] Malcolm, whose hostility to Christianity had earned him the prison nickname "Satan,"[54] became receptive to the message of the Nation of Islam.[55]

In late 1948, Malcolm wrote to Elijah Muhammad, the leader of the Nation of Islam. Muhammad advised him to renounce his past, humbly bow in prayer to God, and promise never to engage in destructive behavior again.[56] Though he later recalled the inner struggle he had before bending his knees to pray,[57] Malcolm soon became a member of the Nation of Islam,[56]maintaining a regular correspondence with Muhammad.[58]

In 1950, the FBI opened a file on Malcolm after he wrote a letter from prison to President Truman expressing opposition to the Korean War and declaring himself a communist.[59] That year, he also began signing his name "Malcolm X."[60] Muhammad instructed his followers to leave their family names behind when they joined the Nation of Islam and use "X" instead. When the time was right, after they had proven their sincerity, he said, he would reveal the Muslim's "original name."[61] In his autobiography, Malcolm X explained that the "X" symbolized the true African family name that he could never know. "For me, my 'X' replaced the White slavemaster name of 'Little' which some blue-eyed devil named Little had imposed upon my paternal forebears."[62]

Early ministry After his parole in August 1952,[63] Malcolm X visited Elijah Muhammad in Chicago.[64] In June 1953, he was named assistant minister of the Nation's Temple Number One in Detroit.[65][C] Later that year he established Boston's Temple Number 11;[67] in March 1954, he expanded Temple Number 12 in Philadelphia;[68] and two months later he was selected to lead Temple Number 7 in Harlem,[69] where he rapidly expanded its membership.[70]

In 1953, the FBI began surveillance of him, turning its attention from Malcolm X's possible communist associations to his rapid ascent in the Nation of Islam.[71]

During 1955, Malcolm X continued his successful recruitment of members on behalf of the Nation of Islam. He established temples in Springfield, Massachusetts (Number 13); Hartford, Connecticut (Number 14); and Atlanta (Number 15). Hundreds of African Americans were joining the Nation of Islam every month.[72]

Besides his skill as a speaker, Malcolm X had an impressive physical presence. He stood 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) tall and weighed about 180 pounds (82 kg).[73] One writer described him as "powerfully built",[74] and another as "mesmerizingly handsome ... and always spotlessly well-groomed".[73]

Marriage and family In 1955, Betty Sanders met Malcolm X after one of his lectures, then again at a dinner party; soon she was regularly attending his lectures. In 1956, she joined the Nation of Islam, changing her name to Betty X.[75] One-on-one dates were contrary to the Nation's teachings, so the couple courted at social events with dozens or hundreds of others, and Malcolm X made a point of inviting her on the frequent group visits he led to New York City's museums and libraries.[76]

Malcolm X proposed during a telephone call from Detroit in January 1958, and they married two days later.[77][78] They had six daughters:Attallah (b. 1958; Arabic for "gift of God"; perhaps named after Attila the Hun);[79][D][E] Qubilah (b. 1960, named after Kublai Khan);[83] Ilyasah (b. 1962, named after Elijah Muhammad);[84] Gamilah Lumumba (b. 1964, named after Gamal Abdel Nasser and Patrice Lumumba);[85][86] and twins Malikah (1965''2021)[87] and Malaak (b. 1965, both born after their father's death, and named in his honor).[88]

Hinton Johnson incident The American public first became aware of Malcolm X in 1957, after Hinton Johnson,[F] a Nation of Islam member, was beaten by two New York City police officers.[91][92] On April 26, Johnson and two other passersby''--'Œalso Nation of Islam members''--'Œsaw the officers beating an African-American man with nightsticks.[91] When they attempted to intervene, shouting, "You're not in Alabama ... this is New York!"[92] one of the officers turned on Johnson, beating him so severely that he suffered brain contusions and subdural hemorrhaging. All four African-American men were arrested.[91]

Alerted by a witness, Malcolm X and a small group of Muslims went to the police station and demanded to see Johnson.[91] Police initially denied that any Muslims were being held, but when the crowd grew to about five hundred, they allowed Malcolm X to speak with Johnson.[93] Afterward, Malcolm X insisted on arranging for an ambulance to take Johnson to Harlem Hospital.[94]

Johnson's injuries were treated and by the time he was returned to the police station, some four thousand people had gathered outside.[93] Inside the station, Malcolm X and an attorney were making bail arrangements for two of the Muslims. Johnson was not bailed, and police said he could not go back to the hospital until his arraignment the following day.[94] Considering the situation to be at an impasse, Malcolm X stepped outside the station house and gave a hand signal to the crowd. Nation members silently left, after which the rest of the crowd also dispersed.[94]

One police officer told the New York Amsterdam News: "No one man should have that much power."[94][95] Within a month the New York City Police Department arranged to keep Malcolm X under surveillance; it also made inquiries with authorities in other cities in which he had lived, and prisons in which he had served time.[96] A grand jury declined to indict the officers who beat Johnson. In October, Malcolm X sent an angry telegram to the police commissioner. Soon the police department assigned undercover officers to infiltrate the Nation of Islam.[97]

Increasing prominence By the late 1950s, Malcolm X was using a new name, Malcolm Shabazz or Malik el-Shabazz, although he was still widely referred to as Malcolm X.[98] His comments on issues and events were being widely reported in print, on radio, and on television,[99] and he was featured in a 1959 New York City television broadcast about the Nation of Islam, The Hate That Hate Produced.[99]

In September 1960, at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, Malcolm X was invited to the official functions of several African nations. He met Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt, Ahmed S(C)kou Tour(C) of Guinea, and Kenneth Kaunda of the Zambian African National Congress.[100] Fidel Castro also attended the Assembly, and Malcolm X met publicly with him as part of a welcoming committee of Harlem community leaders.[101] Castro was sufficiently impressed with Malcolm X to suggest a private meeting, and after two hours of talking, Castro invited Malcolm X to visit Cuba.[102]

Advocacy and teachings while with Nation Cassius Clay (second row, in dark suit) watches Elijah Muhammad speak, 1964From his adoption of the Nation of Islam in 1952 until he broke with it in 1964, Malcolm X promoted the Nation's teachings. These included beliefs:

that Black people are the original people of the world[103]that White people are "devils"[2] andthat the demise of the White race is imminent.[3]Louis E. Lomax said that "those who don't understand biblical prophecy wrongly label him as a racist and as a hate teacher, or as being anti-White or as teaching Black Supremacy".[104] One of the goals of the civil rights movement was to end disenfranchisement of African Americans, but the Nation of Islam forbade its members from participating in voting and other aspects of the political process.[105] The NAACP and other civil rights organizations denounced him and the Nation of Islam as irresponsible extremists whose views did not represent the common interests of African Americans.[106][107]

Malcolm X was equally critical of the civil rights movement.[108] He called Martin Luther King Jr. a "chump," and said other civil rights leaders were "stooges" of the White establishment.[109][G] He called the 1963 March on Washington "the farce on Washington,"[112] and said he did not know why so many Black people were excited about a demonstration "run by Whites in front of a statue of a president who has been dead for a hundred years and who didn't like us when he was alive."[113]

While the civil rights movement fought against racial segregation, Malcolm X advocated the complete separation of African Americans from Whites. He proposed that African Americans should return to Africa and that, in the interim, a separate country for Black people in America should be created.[114][115] He rejected the civil rights movement's strategy of nonviolence, arguing that Black people should defend and advance themselves "by any means necessary".[116] His speeches had a powerful effect on his audiences, who were generally African Americans in northern and western cities. Many of them''--'Œtired of being told to wait for freedom, justice, equality and respect[117]''--'Œfelt that he articulated their complaints better than did the civil rights movement.[118][119]

Antisemitism Malcolm X has been widely accused of being antisemitic.[120][121] His autobiography contains several "antisemitic charges and caricatures of Jews".[122] Alex Haley, the autobiography's co-author, had to rewrite some of the book in order to eliminate a number of negative statements about Jews in the manuscript.[123] Malcolm X believed that the fabricated antisemitic text The Protocols of the Elders of Zion was authentic and introduced it to NOI members, while accusing the Jewish people of "perfecting the modern evil" of neo-colonialism.[124][125] He helped change the Black community's image of The Holocaust, engaging in Holocaust trivialization and claiming that the Jews "brought it on themselves".[126]

In 1961, Malcolm X spoke at a NOI rally alongside George Lincoln Rockwell, the head of the American Nazi Party. Rockwell claimed that there was overlap between Black nationalism and White supremacy.[127] Malcolm X's negative statements about Jews continued even close to his death.[128]

Effect on Nation membership Malcolm X is widely regarded as the second most influential leader of the Nation of Islam after Elijah Muhammad.[129] He was largely credited with the group's dramatic increase in membership between the early 1950s and early 1960s (from 500 to 25,000 by one estimate;[H] from 1,200 to 50,000 or 75,000 by another).[131][I]

He inspired the boxer Muhammad Ali to join the Nation,[133] and the two became close.[134]In January 1964, Ali brought Malcolm X and his family to Miami to watch him train for his fight against Sonny Liston.[135]When Malcolm X left the Nation of Islam, he tried to convince Ali (who had just been renamed by Elijah Muhammad) to join him in converting to Sunni Islam, but Ali instead broke ties with him, later describing the break as one of his greatest regrets.[J]

Malcolm X mentored and guided Louis X (later known as Louis Farrakhan), who eventually became the leader of the Nation of Islam.[137] Malcolm X also served as a mentor and confidant to Elijah Muhammad's son, Wallace D. Muhammad; the son told Malcolm X about his skepticism toward his father's "unorthodox approach" to Islam.[138] Wallace Muhammad was excommunicated from the Nation of Islam several times, although he was eventually re-admitted.[139]

Disillusionment and departure During 1962 and 1963, events caused Malcolm X to reassess his relationship with the Nation of Islam, and particularly its leader, Elijah Muhammad.

Lack of Nation of Islam response to LAPD violence In late 1961, there were violent confrontations between the Nation of Islam members and police in South Central Los Angeles, and numerous Muslims were arrested. They were acquitted, but tensions had been raised. Just after midnight on April 27, 1962, two LAPD officers, unprovoked, shoved and beat several Muslims outside Temple Number 27. A large crowd of angry Muslims emerged from the mosque and the officers attempted to intimidate them.[140][141]

One officer was disarmed; his partner was shot in the elbow by a third officer. More than 70 backup officers arrived who then raided the mosque and randomly beat Nation of Islam members. Police officers shot seven Muslims, including William X Rogers, who was hit in the back and paralyzed for life, and Ronald Stokes, a Korean War veteran, who was shot from behind while raising his hands over his head to surrender, killing him.[140][141]

A number of Muslims were indicted after the event, but no charges were laid against the police. The coroner ruled that Stokes's killing was justified. To Malcolm X, the desecration of the mosque and the associated violence demanded action, and he used what Louis X (later Louis Farrakhan) later called his "gangsterlike past" to rally the more hardened of the Nation of Islam members to take violent revenge against the police.[140][141]

Malcolm X sought Elijah Muhammad's approval which was denied, stunning Malcolm X. Malcolm X was again blocked by Elijah Muhammad when he spoke of the Nation of Islam starting to work with civil rights organizations, local Black politicians, and religious groups. Louis X saw this as an important turning point in the deteriorating relationship between Malcolm X and Muhammad.[140][141]

Sexual misbehavior by Elijah Muhammad Rumors were circulating that Muhammad was conducting extramarital affairs with young Nation secretaries''--'Œwhich would constitute a serious violation of Nation teachings. After first discounting the rumors, Malcolm X came to believe them after he spoke with Muhammad's son Wallace and with the girls making the accusations. Muhammad confirmed the rumors in 1963, attempting to justify his behavior by referring to precedents set by Biblical prophets.[142]

Over a series of national TV interviews between 1964 and 1965, Malcolm X provided testimony of his investigation, corroboration, and confirmation by Elijah Muhammed himself of multiple counts of child rape. During this investigation, he learned that seven of the eight girls had become pregnant as a result of this. He also revealed an assassination attempt made on his life, through a discovered explosive device in his car, as well as the death threats he was receiving, in response to his exposure of Elijah Muhammad.[143][better source needed ]

On December 1, 1963, when asked to comment on the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X said that it was a case of "chickens coming home to roost ." He added that "chickens coming home to roost never did make me sad; they've always made me glad."[144] Likewise, according to The New York Times:[144]

[I]n further criticism of Mr. Kennedy, the Muslim leader cited the murders of Patrice Lumumba, Congo leader, of Medgar Evers, civil rights leader, and of the Negro girls bombed earlier this year in a Birmingham church. These, he said, were instances of other "chickens coming home to roost".

The remarks prompted widespread public outcry. The Nation of Islam, which had sent a message of condolence to the Kennedy family and ordered its ministers not to comment on the assassination, publicly censured their former shining star.[145] Malcolm X retained his post and rank as minister, but was prohibited from public speaking for 90 days.[146]

Media attention to Malcolm X over Muhammad Malcolm X had by now become a media favorite, and some Nation members believed he was a threat to Muhammad's leadership. Publishers had shown interest in Malcolm X's autobiography, and when Louis Lomax wrote his 1963 book about the Nation, When the Word Is Given, he used a photograph of Malcolm X on the cover. He also reproduced five of his speeches, but featured only one of Muhammad's''--'Œall of which greatly upset Muhammad and made him envious.[147]

Departure from Nation of Islam On March 8, 1964, Malcolm X publicly announced his break from the Nation of Islam. Though still a Muslim, he felt that the Nation had "gone as far as it can" because of its rigid teachings. He said he was planning to organize a Black nationalist organization to "heighten the political consciousness" of African Americans. He also expressed a desire to work with other civil rights leaders, saying that Elijah Muhammad had prevented him from doing so in the past.[148]

Activity after leaving Nation of Islam Malcolm X's only meeting with Martin Luther King Jr., March 26, 1964, during the Senate debates regarding the (eventual) Civil Rights Act of 1964.[149]After leaving the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X founded Muslim Mosque, Inc. (MMI), a religious organization,[150][151] and the Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU), a secular group that advocated Pan-Africanism.[152][153] On March 26, 1964, he briefly met Martin Luther King Jr. for the first and only time''--'Œand only long enough for photographs to be taken''--'Œin Washington, D.C., as both men attended the Senate's debate on the Civil Rights bill at the U.S. Capitol building.[K][L]

In April, Malcolm X gave a speech titled "The Ballot or the Bullet", in which he advised African Americans to exercise their right to vote wisely but cautioned that if the government continued to prevent African Americans from attaining full equality, it might be necessary for them to take up arms.[156][157]

In the weeks after he left the Nation of Islam, several Sunni Muslims encouraged Malcolm X to learn about their faith. He soon converted to the Sunni faith.[158][159]

Pilgrimage to Mecca In April 1964, with financial help from his half-sister Ella Little-Collins, Malcolm X flew to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, as the start of his Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca obligatory for every Muslim who is able to do so. He was delayed in Jeddah when his U.S. citizenship and inability to speak Arabic caused his status as a Muslim to be questioned.[160][161]

He had received Abdul Rahman Hassan Azzam's book The Eternal Message of Muhammad with his visa approval, and he contacted the author. Azzam's son arranged for his release and lent him his personal hotel suite. The next morning Malcolm X learned that Prince Faisal had designated him as a state guest.[162] Several days later, after completing the Hajj rituals, Malcolm X had an audience with the prince.[163]

Malcolm X later said that seeing Muslims of "all colors, from blue-eyed blonds to Black-skinned Africans," interacting as equals led him to see Islam as a means by which racial problems could be overcome.[164]

Visit to Cairo Malcolm X, after his 1964 pilgrimage to MeccaMalcolm X had already visited the United Arab Republic (a short-lived political union between Egypt and Syria), Sudan, Nigeria, and Ghana in 1959 to make arrangements for a tour of Africa by Elijah Muhammad.[165] After his journey to Mecca in 1964, he visited Africa a second time. He returned to the United States in late May[166] and flew to Africa again in July.[167] During these visits he met officials, gave interviews, and spoke on radio and television in Egypt, Ethiopia, Tanganyika, Nigeria, Ghana, Guinea, Sudan, Senegal, Liberia, Algeria, and Morocco.[168]

In Cairo, he attended the second meeting of the Organization of African Unity as a representative of the OAAU.[169] By the end of this third visit, he had met with essentially all of Africa's prominent leaders;[170] Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt, and Ahmed Ben Bella of Algeria had all invited Malcolm X to serve in their governments.[170] After he spoke at the University of Ibadan, the Nigerian Muslim Students Association bestowed on him the honorary Yoruba name Omowale ('the son who has come home').[171] He later called this his most treasured honor.[172]

Malcolm especially hated Mo¯se Tshombe of the Congo as an "Uncle Tom" figure. In a 1964 speech in New York, he called Tshombe "the worse African ever born" and "the man who in cold blood, cold blood, committed an international crime-murdered Patrice Lumumba".[173] Tshombe's decision in 1964 to hire White mercenaries to put down the Simba rebellion greatly offended Malcolm, who accused the mercenaries of committing war crimes against the Congolese.[174]

France and United Kingdom On November 23, 1964, on his way home from Africa, Malcolm X stopped in Paris, where he spoke in the Salle de la Mutualit(C).[175][176] After his return to the United States, he accused the United States of imperialism in the Congo by supporting Tshombe and "his hired killers" as he called the White mercenaries.[174] X accused Tshombe and the American president Lyndon B. Johnson of "...sleeping together. When I say sleeping together, I don't mean that literally. But beyond that, they're in the same bed. Johnson is paying the salaries, paying the government, propping up Tshombe's government, this murderer".[174]

X expressed much anger about Operation Dragon Rouge, where the United States Air Force dropped in Belgian paratroopers into the city of Stanleyville, modern Kisangani, to rescue the White Belgian hostages from the Simbas.[174] Malcolm X maintained that there was a double standard when it came to White and Black lives, noting it was an international emergency when the lives of Whites were in danger, making Dragon Rouge necessary, but that nothing was done to stop the abuses of the Congolese at the hands of "Tshombe's hired killers".[177] X charged that the "Congolese have been massacred by White people for years and years" and that "the chickens have home to roast".[178]

A week later, on November 30, Malcolm X flew to the United Kingdom. On December 3 he took part in a debate at the Oxford Union Society. The motion was taken from a statement made earlier that year by U.S. presidential candidate Barry Goldwater: "Extremism in the Defense of Liberty is No Vice; Moderation in the Pursuit of Justice is No Virtue".[179] Malcolm X argued for the affirmative, and interest in the debate was so high that it was televised nationally by the BBC.[180][181]

In his address at Oxford, Malcolm rejected the label of "Black Muslim" and instead focused on being a Muslim who happened to be Black, which reflected his conversion to Sunni Islam.[182] Malcolm only mentioned his religion twice during his Oxford speech, which was part of his effort to defuse his image as an "angry Black Muslim extremist", which he had long hated.[182] During the debate at Oxford, he criticized the way the Anglo-American press portrayed the Congo crisis, noting the Simbas were portrayed as primitive cannibalistic "savages" who engaged in every form of depravity imaginable while Tshombe and the White mercenaries were portrayed in a very favorable light with almost no mention of any atrocities on their part.[177]

Malcolm X charged that the Cuban (C)migr(C) pilots hired by the CIA to serve as Tshombe's air force indiscriminately bombed Congolese villages and towns, killing women and children, but this was almost never mentioned in the media while the newspapers featured long accounts of the Simbas "raping White women, molesting nuns".[183] Likewise, he felt the term mercenary was inappropriate, preferring the term "hired killer" and that Tshombe should not be described as a premier as he preferred the term "cold-blooded murderer" to describe him.[183] Malcolm X stated that what he regarded as the extremism of the Tshombe government was "never referred to as extremism because it is endorsed by the West, it is financed by America, it's made respectable by America, and that kind of extremism is never labelled as extremism".[184]

Malcolm X argued this extremism was not morally acceptable "since it's not extremism in defense of liberty".[185] Many in the audience at Oxford were angered by Malcolm X's thesis and his support for the Simbas who had committed atrocities with one asking "What sort of extremism would you consider the killing of missionaries?".[185] In response, Malcolm X answered "It is an act of war. I'd call it the same kind of extremism that happened when England dropped bombs on German cities and Germans dropped bombs on English cities".[185]

On February 5, 1965, Malcolm X flew to Britain again,[186] and on February 8 he addressed the first meeting of the Council of African Organizations in London.[187] The next day he tried to return to France, but was refused entry.[188] On February 12, he visited Smethwick, near Birmingham, where the Conservative Party had won the parliamentary seat in the 1964 general election. The town had become a byword for racial division after the successful candidate, Peter Griffiths, was accused of using the slogan, "If you want a nigger for a neighbour, vote Liberal or Labour." In Smethwick, Malcolm X compared the treatment of ethnic minority residents with the treatment of Jews under Hitler, saying: "I would not wait for the fascist element in Smethwick to erect gas ovens."[189][190]

Return to United States After returning to the U.S., Malcolm X addressed a wide variety of audiences. He spoke regularly at meetings held by MMI and the OAAU, and was one of the most sought-after speakers on college campuses.[191] One of his top aides later wrote that he "welcomed every opportunity to speak to college students."[192] He also addressed public meetings of the Socialist Workers Party, speaking at their Militant Labor Forum.[193] He was interviewed on the subjects of segregation and the Nation of Islam by Robert Penn Warren for Warren's 1965 book Who Speaks for the Negro?[194]

Death threats and intimidation from Nation of Islam Malcolm X guards his family after Nation of Islam threats in an iconic Ebony magazine photo.Throughout 1964, as his conflict with the Nation of Islam intensified, Malcolm X was repeatedly threatened.[195]

In February, a leader of Temple Number Seven ordered the bombing of Malcolm X's car.[196] In March, Muhammad told Boston minister Louis X (later known as Louis Farrakhan) that "hypocrites like Malcolm should have their heads cut off";[197] the April 10 edition of Muhammad Speaks featured a cartoon depicting Malcolm X's bouncing, severed head.[198][199]

On June 8, FBI surveillance recorded a telephone call in which Betty Shabazz was told that her husband was "as good as dead."[200] Four days later, an FBI informant received a tip that "Malcolm X is going to be bumped off."[201] That same month, the Nation sued to reclaim Malcolm X's residence in East Elmhurst, Queens, New York. His family was ordered to vacate[202] but on February 14, 1965''--'Œthe night before a hearing on postponing the eviction''--'Œthe house was destroyed by fire.[203]

On July 9, Muhammad aide John Ali (suspected of being an undercover FBI agent)[204] referred to Malcolm X by saying, "Anyone who opposes the Honorable Elijah Muhammad puts their life in jeopardy."[205] In the December 4 issue of Muhammad Speaks, Louis X wrote that "such a man as Malcolm is worthy of death."[206]

The September 1964 issue of Ebony dramatized Malcolm X's defiance of these threats by publishing a photograph of him holding an M1 carbine while peering out of a window.[207][208]

Assassination On February 19, 1965, Malcolm X told interviewer Gordon Parks that the Nation of Islam was actively trying to kill him. On February 21, 1965, he was preparing to address the OAAU in Manhattan's Audubon Ballroom when someone in the 400-person audience yelled,"Nigger! Get your hand outta my pocket!"[210][211][212]

As Malcolm X and his bodyguards tried to quell the disturbance,[M] a man rushed forward and shot him once in the chest with a sawed-off shotgun[213][214] and two other men charged the stage firing semi-automatic handguns.[211] Malcolm X was pronounced dead at 3:30 pm, shortly after arriving at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital.[212] The autopsy identified 21 gunshot wounds to the chest, left shoulder, arms and legs, including ten buckshot wounds from the initial shotgun blast.[215]

One gunman, Nation of Islam member Talmadge Hayer (also known as Thomas Hagan), was beaten by the crowd before police arrived.[216][217] Witnesses identified the other gunmen as Nation members Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson.[218] All three were convicted of murder in March 1966 and sentenced to life in prison.[219][220]

At trial, Hayer confessed, but refused to identify the other assailants except to assert that they were not Butler and Johnson.[221]In 1977 and 1978, he signed affidavits reasserting Butler's and Johnson's innocence, naming four other Nation members of Newark's Mosque No. 25 as participants in the murder or its planning.[222][223][224][225] These affidavits did not result in the case being reopened.

Butler, today known as Muhammad Abdul Aziz, was paroled in 1985 and became the head of the Nation's Harlem mosque in 1998; he maintains his innocence.[226] In prison Johnson, who changed his name to Khalil Islam, rejected the Nation's teachings and converted to Sunni Islam. Released in 1987, he maintained his innocence until his death in August 2009.[227][228] Hayer, who also rejected the Nation's teachings while in prison and converted to Sunni Islam,[229] is known today as Mujahid Halim.[230] He was paroled in 2010.[231]

In 2021, Muhammad Abdul Aziz and Khalil Islam (formerly Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson) were exonerated from their murder convictions, following a review that found the FBI and the New York Police Department withheld key evidence during the trial.[232] On July 14, 2022, Aziz filed suit in the U.S. District Court in Brooklyn against the City of New York, seeking $40 million in damages related to his wrongful imprisonment.[233]

Les Payne and Tamara Payne, in their Pulitzer Prize winning biography The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X, claim that the assassins were members of the Nation of Islam's Newark, New Jersey mosque: William 25X (also known as William Bradley), who fired the shotgun; Leon Davis; and Thomas Hayer.[234]

Funeral The public viewing, February 23''26 at Unity Funeral Home in Harlem, was attended by some 14,000 to 30,000 mourners.[235]For the funeral on February 27, loudspeakers were set up for the overflow crowd outside Harlem's thousand-seat Faith Temple of the Church of God in Christ,[236][237] and a local television station carried the service live.[238]

Among the civil rights leaders attending were John Lewis, Bayard Rustin, James Forman, James Farmer, Jesse Gray, and Andrew Young.[236][239] Actor and activist Ossie Davis delivered the eulogy, describing Malcolm X as "our shining Black prince ... who didn't hesitate to die because he loved us so":

There are those who will consider it their duty, as friends of the Negro people, to tell us to revile him, to flee, even from the presence of his memory, to save ourselves by writing him out of the history of our turbulent times. Many will ask what Harlem finds to honor in this stormy, controversial and bold young captain''--'Œand we will smile. Many will say turn away''--'Œaway from this man, for he is not a man but a demon, a monster, a subverter and an enemy of the Black man''--'Œand we will smile. They will say that he is of hate''--'Œa fanatic, a racist''--'Œwho can only bring evil to the cause for which you struggle! And we will answer and say to them: Did you ever talk to Brother Malcolm? Did you ever touch him, or have him smile at you? Did you ever really listen to him? Did he ever do a mean thing? Was he ever himself associated with violence or any public disturbance? For if you did you would know him. And if you knew him you would know why we must honor him.... And, in honoring him, we honor the best in ourselves.[240]

Malcolm X was buried at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York.[238] Friends took up the gravediggers' shovels to complete the burial themselves.[241]

Actor and activist Ruby Dee and Juanita Poitier (wife of Sidney Poitier) established the Committee of Concerned Mothers to raise money for a home for his family and for his children's educations.[242]

Reactions to Malcolm X's assassination were varied. In a telegram to Betty Shabazz, Martin Luther King Jr. expressed his sadness at "the shocking and tragic assassination of your husband."[243] He said:[243]

While we did not always see eye to eye on methods to solve the race problem, I always had a deep affection for Malcolm and felt that he had a great ability to put his finger on the existence and root of the problem. He was an eloquent spokesman for his point of view and no one can honestly doubt that Malcolm had a great concern for the problems that we face as a race.

Elijah Muhammad told the annual Savior's Day convention on February 26 that "Malcolm X got just what he preached," but denied any involvement with the murder.[244] "We didn't want to kill Malcolm and didn't try to kill him," Muhammad said, adding "We know such ignorant, foolish teachings would bring him to his own end."[245]

Writer James Baldwin, who had been a friend of Malcolm X's, was in London when he heard the news of the assassination. He responded with indignation towards the reporters interviewing him, shouting, "You did it! It is because of you'--the men that created this White supremacy'--that this man is dead. You are not guilty, but you did it.... Your mills, your cities, your rape of a continent started all this."[246]

The New York Post wrote that "even his sharpest critics recognized his brilliance''--'Œoften wild, unpredictable and eccentric, but nevertheless possessing promise that must now remain unrealized."[247] The New York Times wrote that Malcolm X was "an extraordinary and twisted man" who "turn[ed] many true gifts to evil purpose" and that his life was "strangely and pitifully wasted."[248] Time called him "an unashamed demagogue" whose "creed was violence."[249]

Outside of the U.S., particularly in Africa, the press was sympathetic.[250] The Daily Times of Nigeria wrote that Malcolm X would "have a place in the palace of martyrs"[251] The Ghanaian Times likened him to John Brown, Medgar Evers, and Patrice Lumumba, and counted him among "a host of Africans and Americans who were martyred in freedom's cause."[252][253]

In China, the People's Daily described Malcolm X as a martyr killed by "ruling circles and racists" in the United States; his assassination, the paper wrote, demonstrated that "in dealing with imperialist oppressors, violence must be met with violence."[253] The Guangming Daily, also published in Beijing, stated that "Malcolm was murdered because he fought for freedom and equal rights."[254] In Cuba, El Mundo described the assassination as "another racist crime to eradicate by violence the struggle against discrimination."[250]

In a weekly column he wrote for the New York Amsterdam News, King reflected on Malcolm X and hisassassination:[255]

Malcolm X came to the fore as a public figure partially as a result of a TV documentary entitled, The Hate that Hate Produced. That title points to the nature of Malcolm's life and death.

Malcolm X was clearly a product of the hate and violence invested in the Negro's blighted existence in this nation....

In his youth, there was no hope, no preaching, teaching or movements of non-violence....

It is a testimony to Malcolm's personal depth and integrity that he could not become an underworld Czar, but turned again and again to religion for meaning and destiny. Malcolm was still turning and growing at the time of his brutal and meaningless assassination.'...

Like the murder of Lumumba, the murder of Malcolm X deprives the world of a potentially great leader. I could not agree with either of these men, but I could see in them a capacity for leadership which I could respect, and which was just beginning to mature in judgment and statesmanship.

Allegations of conspiracy Louis Farrakhan in 2005Within days, the question of who bore responsibility for the assassination was being publicly debated. On February 23, James Farmer, leader of the Congress of Racial Equality, announced at a news conference that local drug dealers, and not the Nation of Islam, were to blame.[256] Others accused the NYPD, the FBI, or the CIA, citing the lack of police protection, the ease with which the assassins entered the Audubon Ballroom, and the failure of the police to preserve the crime scene.[257][258] Earl Grant, one of Malcolm X's associates who was present at the assassination, later wrote:[259]

[A]bout five minutes later, a most incredible scene took place. Into the hall sauntered about a dozen policemen. They were strolling at about the pace one would expect of them if they were patrolling a quiet park. They did not seem to be at all excited or concerned about the circumstances.I could hardly believe my eyes. Here were New York City policemen, entering a room from which at least a dozen shots had been heard, and yet not one of them had his gun out! As a matter of absolute fact, some of them even had their hands in their pockets.

In the 1970s, the public learned about COINTELPRO and other secret FBI programs established to infiltrate and disrupt civil rights organizations during the 1950s and 1960s.[260] Louis Lomax wrote that John Ali, national secretary of the Nation of Islam, was a former FBI agent.[204] Malcolm X had confided to a reporter that Ali exacerbated tensions between him and Elijah Muhammad and that he considered Ali his "archenemy" within the Nation of Islam leadership.[204] Ali had a meeting with Talmadge Hayer, one of the men convicted of killing Malcolm X, the night before the assassination.[261]

The Shabazz family are among those who have accused Louis Farrakhan of involvement in Malcolm X's assassination.[262][263][264][265][266] In a 1993 speech Farrakhan seemed to acknowledge the possibility that the Nation of Islam was responsible:[267][268]

Was Malcolm your traitor or ours? And if we dealt with him like a nation deals with a traitor, what the hell business is it of yours? A nation has to be able to deal with traitors and cutthroats and turncoats.

In a 60 Minutes interview that aired during May 2000, Farrakhan stated that some things he said may have led to the assassination of Malcolm X. "I may have been complicit in words that I spoke," he said, adding "I acknowledge that and regret that any word that I have said caused the loss of life of a human being."[269] A few days later Farrakhan denied that he "ordered the assassination" of Malcolm X, although he again acknowledged that he "created the atmosphere that ultimately led to Malcolm X's assassination."[270]

No consensus has been reached on who was responsible for the assassination.[271] In August 2014, an online petition was started using the White House online petition mechanism to call on the government to release, without alteration, any files they still held relating to the murder of Malcolm X.[272] In January 2019, members of the families of Malcolm X, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., and Robert F. Kennedy were among dozens of Americans who signed a public statement calling for a truth and reconciliation commission to persuade Congress or the Justice Department to review the assassinations of all four leaders during the 1960s.[273][274]

A February 21, 2021 press conference attended by three of Malcolm X's daughters and members of deceased NYPD undercover officer Raymond Wood's family released his authorized posthumous letter that stated in part: "I was told to encourage leaders and members of the civil rights groups to commit felonious acts." The Guardian reports that "The arrests kept the two men from managing door security at the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights on the day of the shooting, according to the letter."[275] On February 26, 2021, the daughter of Raymond Wood, Kelly Wood, stated that the letter presented at the February 21 press conference is fake. Kelly Wood stated that the letter was created by her cousin Reggie Wood for attention and book sales.[276]

In early 2023, members of Malcolm X's family said they would file a $100 million wrongful death lawsuit against the CIA, the FBI, the NYPD and others for allegedly concealing evidence related to the assassination and for alleged involvement to it.[277] The attorney representing the family is Benjamin Crump.[278]

Philosophy Except for his autobiography, Malcolm X left no published writings. His philosophy is known almost entirely from the many speeches and interviews he gave from 1952 until his death.[279] Many of those speeches, especially from the last year of his life, were recorded and have been published.[280]

Beliefs of the Nation of Islam The white liberal differs from the white con­serv­a­tive only in one way: the liberal is more deceitful than the conservative.

'--Malcolm X[281]

While he was a member of the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X taught its beliefs, and his statements often began with the phrase "The Honorable Elijah Muhammad teaches us that ..."[282] It is virtually impossible now to discern whether Malcolm X's personal beliefs at the time diverged from the teachings of the Nation of Islam.[283][N] After he left the Nation in 1964, he compared himself to a ventriloquist's dummy who could only say what Elijah Muhammad told him to say.[282][O]

Malcolm X taught that Black people were the original people of the world,[103] and that Whites were a race of devils who were created by an evil scientist named Yakub.[2] The Nation of Islam believed that Black people were superior to White people and that the demise of the White race was imminent.[3] When questioned concerning his statements that White people were devils, Malcolm X said: "history proves the White man is a devil."[286] "Anybody who rapes, and plunders, and enslaves, and steals, and drops hell bombs on people ... anybody who does these things is nothing but a devil," he said.[287]

Malcolm X said that Islam was the "true religion of Black mankind" and that Christianity was "the White man's religion" that had been imposed upon African Americans by their slave-masters. He said that the Nation of Islam followed Islam as it was practiced around the world, but the Nation's teachings varied from those of other Muslims because they were adapted to the "uniquely pitiful" condition of Black people in the United States.[289] He taught that Wallace Fard Muhammad, the founder of the Nation, was God incarnate,[290] and that Elijah Muhammad was his Messenger, or Prophet.[P]

While the civil rights movement fought against racial segregation, Malcolm X advocated the complete separation of Blacks from Whites. The Nation of Islam proposed the establishment of a separate country for African Americans in the southern[114] or southwestern United States[293] as an interim measure until African Americans could return to Africa.[115] Malcolm X suggested the United States government owed reparations to Black people for the unpaid labor of their ancestors.[294] He also rejected the civil rights movement's strategy of nonviolence, advocating instead that Black people should defend themselves.[116]

Independent views The common goal of 22 million Afro-Americans is respect as human beings. ... We can never get civil rights in America until our human rights are first restored. We will never be recognized as citizens there until we are first recognized as humans. ...

Just as the violation of human rights of our brothers and sisters in South Africa and Angola is an international issue and has brought the racists of South Africa and Portugal under attack from all other independent governments at the United Nations, once the miserable plight of the 22 million Afro-Americans is also lifted to the level of human rights our struggle then becomes an international issue and the direct concern of all other civilized governments. We can then take the racist American Government before the World Court and have the racists in it exposed and condemned as the criminals that they are.

'--Malcolm X[295]

After leaving the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X announced his willingness to work with leaders of the civil rights movement,[148] though he advocated some changes to their policies. He felt that calling the movement a struggle for civil rights would keep the issue within the United States while changing the focus to human rights would make it an international concern. The movement could then bring its complaints before the United Nations, where Malcolm X said the emerging nations of the world would add their support.[296]

Malcolm X argued that if the U.S. government was unwilling or unable to protect Black people, Black people should protect themselves. He said that he and the other members of the OAAU were determined to defend themselves from aggressors, and to secure freedom, justice and equality "by whatever means necessary".[297]

Malcolm X at a 1964 press conferenceMalcolm X stressed the global perspective he gained from his international travels. He emphasized the "direct connection" between the domestic struggle of African Americans for equal rights with the independence struggles of Third World nations.[298] He said that African Americans were wrong when they thought of themselves as a minority; globally, Black people were the majority.[299]

In his speeches at the Militant Labor Forum, which was sponsored by the Socialist Workers Party, Malcolm X criticized capitalism.[193] After one such speech, when he was asked what political and economic system he wanted, he said he did not know, but that it was no coincidence the newly independent countries in the Third World were turning toward socialism.[300] When a reporter asked him what he thought about socialism, Malcolm X asked whether it was good for Black people. When the reporter told him it seemed to be, Malcolm X told him: "Then I'm for it."[300][301]

Although he no longer called for the separation of Black people from White people, Malcolm X continued to advocate Black nationalism, which he defined as self-determination for the African-American community.[302] In the last months of his life, however, Malcolm X began to reconsider his support for Black nationalism after meeting northern African revolutionaries who, to all appearances, were White.[303]

After his Hajj, Malcolm X articulated a view of White people and racism that represented a deep change from the philosophy he had supported as a minister of the Nation of Islam. In a famous letter from Mecca, he wrote that his experiences with White people during his pilgrimage convinced him to "rearrange" his thinking about race and "toss aside some of [his] previous conclusions".[304] In a conversation with Gordon Parks, two days before his assassination, Malcolm said:

[L]istening to leaders like Nasser, Ben Bella, and Nkrumah awakened me to the dangers of racism. I realized racism isn't just a Black and White problem. It's brought bloodbaths to about every nation on earth at one time or another.

Brother, remember the time that White college girls came into the restaurant''--'Œthe one who wanted to help the [Black] Muslims and the Whites get together''--'Œand I told her there wasn't a ghost of a chance and she went away crying? Well, I've lived to regret that incident. In many parts of the African continent, I saw White students helping Black people. Something like this kills a lot of argument. I did many things as a [Black] Muslim that I'm sorry for now. I was a zombie then''--'Œlike all [Black] Muslims''--'ŒI was hypnotized, pointed in a certain direction and told to march. Well, I guess a man's entitled to make a fool of himself if he's ready to pay the cost. It cost me 12 years.

That was a bad scene, brother. The sickness and madness of those days''--'ŒI'm glad to be free of them.[305]

Purported bisexuality In recent years, some researchers have alleged that Malcolm X was bisexual. These claims are founded upon the work of late Columbia University historian Manning Marable, and his controversial 2011 book Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention. In the book, Marable asserted that "Malcolm X had exaggerated his early criminal career and had engaged in an early homosexual relationship with a White businessman."[306]

Scholar Christopher Phelps agreed with Marable in the Journal of American Studies: "Malcolm Little did take part in sex acts with male counterparts. If set in the context of the 1930s and 1940s, these acts position him not as a 'homosexual lover,' as has been asserted, but in the pattern of 'straight trade''--heterosexual men open to sex with homosexuals'--an understanding that in turn affords insights into the Black revolutionary's mature masculinity."[307]

Malcolm X's family has rejected these allegations about his personal life. His daughter Ilyasah Shabazz said she would have known about these encounters before abruptly walking out on an interview on NPR. Shabazz said: "I think the things that I take issue with are the fact that he said my father engaged in a bisexual relationship, a homo'--you know, he had a gay lover who was an elder White businessman, I think, in his late 50s when my father was in his teens. And, you know, my father was an open book. And we actually have four of the missing chapters from the autobiography. And, you know, he is very clear in his activities, which nothing included being gay. And certainly he didn't have anything against gay'--he was for human rights, human justice, you know. So if he had a gay encounter, he likely would've talked about it. And what he did talk about was someone else's encounter."[308]

Legacy Malcolm X has been described as one of the greatest and most influential African Americans in history.[309][310][311] He is credited with raising the self-esteem of Black Americans and reconnecting them with their African heritage.[312] He is largely responsible for the spread of Islam in the Black community in the United States.[313][314][315] Many African Americans, especially those who lived in cities in the Northern and Western United States, felt that Malcolm X articulated their complaints concerning inequality better than did the mainstream civil rights movement.[118][119] One biographer says that by giving expression to their frustration, Malcolm X "made clear the price that White America would have to pay if it did not accede to Black America's legitimate demands."[316]

In the late 1960s, increasingly radical Black activists based their movements largely on Malcolm X and his teachings. The Black Power movement,[73][317] the Black Arts Movement,[73][318] and the widespread adoption of the slogan "Black is beautiful"[319] can all trace their roots to Malcolm X. In 1963, Malcolm X began a collaboration with Alex Haley on his life story, The Autobiography of Malcolm X.[147] He told Haley, "If I'm alive when this book comes out, it will be a miracle."[320] Haley completed and published it some months after the assassination.[321]

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, there was a resurgence of interest in his life among young people. Hip-hop groups such as Public Enemy adopted Malcolm X as an icon,[322] and his image was displayed in hundreds of thousands of homes, offices, and schools,[323] as well as on T-shirts and jackets.[324] In 1986 Ella Little-Collins merged the Organization of Afro-American Unity with the African American Defense League.[325]In 1992 the film Malcolm X was released,[326] an adaptation of The Autobiography of Malcolm X. In 1998, Time named The Autobiography of Malcolm X one of the ten most influential nonfiction books of the 20th century.[327]

Malcolm X was an inspiration for several fictional characters. The Marvel Comics writer Chris Claremont confirmed that Malcolm X was an inspiration for the X-Men character Magneto, while Martin Luther King was an inspiration for Professor X.[328][329][330] Malcolm X also inspired the character Erik Killmonger in the film Black Panther.[331][332]

Memorials and tributes A historical marker for Malcolm X's first home in Omaha, Nebraska. The house was unknowingly torn down in 1965.The house that once stood at 3448 Pinkney Street in North Omaha, Nebraska, was the first home of Malcolm Little with his birth family. The house was torn down in 1965 by new owners who did not know of its connection with Malcolm X.[333] The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.[334][335][336] A Nebraska Historical Marker now marks the site. The Malcolm X'--Ella Little-Collins House in the Roxbury section of Boston, Massachusetts, where Malcolm X lived with his half-sister Ella Little-Collins and began getting involved in the Nation of Islam,[337] was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.[338] Several archaeological surveys have been performed on the house's grounds, and there are ongoing efforts to preserve the site.[339]

The Malcolm X'--Ella Little-Collins House in Boston, Massachusetts. Malcolm X lived here with his half-sister Ella Little-Collins from 1941 to 1944.In Lansing, Michigan, a Michigan Historical Marker was erected in 1975 on Malcolm Little's childhood home.[340] The city is also home to El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz Academy, a public charter school with an Afrocentric focus. The school is located in the building where Little attended elementary school.[341]

In cities across the United States, Malcolm X's birthday (May 19) is commemorated as Malcolm X Day. The first known celebration of Malcolm X Day took place in Washington, D.C., in 1971.[342] The city of Berkeley, California, has recognized Malcolm X's birthday as a citywide holiday since 1979.[343]

Malcolm X Boulevard in New York CityMany cities have renamed streets after Malcolm X. In 1987, New York mayor Ed Koch proclaimed Lenox Avenue in Harlem to be Malcolm X Boulevard.[344] The name of Reid Avenue in Brooklyn, New York, was changed to Malcolm X Boulevard in 1985.[345][346] Brooklyn also has El Shabazz Playground that was named after him.[347] New Dudley Street, in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, was renamed Malcolm X Boulevard in the 1990s.[348] In 1997, Oakland Avenue in Dallas, Texas, was renamed Malcolm X Boulevard.[349] Main Street in Lansing, Michigan, was renamed Malcolm X Street in 2010.[350] In 2016, Ankara, Turkey, renamed the street on which the U.S. is building its new embassy after Malcolm X.[351][352][Q]

Dozens of schools have been named after Malcolm X, including Malcolm X Shabazz High School in Newark, New Jersey,[354] Malcolm Shabazz City High School in Madison, Wisconsin,[355] Malcolm X College in Chicago, Illinois,[356] and El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz Academy in Lansing, Michigan.[357] Malcolm X Liberation University, based on the Pan-Africanist ideas of Malcolm X, was founded in 1969 in North Carolina.[358]

In 1996, the first library named after Malcolm X was opened, the Malcolm X Branch Library and Performing Arts Center of the San Diego Public Library system.[359]

The U.S. Postal Service issued a Malcolm X postage stamp in 1999.[360] In 2005, Columbia University announced the opening of the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center. The memorial is located in the Audubon Ballroom, where Malcolm X was assassinated.[361] Collections of Malcolm X's papers are held by the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and the Robert W. Woodruff Library.[362][363][364]

After a community-led initiative, Conrad Grebel University College in Canada (affiliated with the University of Waterloo) launched the Malcolm X Peace and Conflict Studies Scholarship in 2021 to support Black and Indigenous students enrolled in their Master of Peace and Conflict Studies program.[365][366]

Portrayal in film, in television, and on stage Portrait of Malcolm X by Robert Templeton, from the collection Lest We Forget: Images of the Black Civil Rights MovementArnold Perl and Marvin Worth attempted to create a drama film based on The Autobiography of Malcolm X, but when people close to the subject declined to talk to them they decided to make a documentary instead. The result was the 1972 documentary film Malcolm X.

Denzel Washington played the title role in the 1992 motion picture Malcolm X.[367]Critic Roger Ebert and film director Martin Scorsese included the film among their lists as one of the ten best films of the 1990s.[368] Washington had previously played the part of Malcolm X in the 1981 Off-Broadway play When the Chickens Came Home to Roost.[369]

Other portrayals include:

James Earl Jones, in the 1977 film The Greatest.[370]Dick Anthony Williams, in the 1978 television miniseries King[371] and the 1989 American Playhouse production of the Jeff Stetson play The Meeting.[372]Al Freeman Jr., in the 1979 television miniseries Roots: The Next Generations.[373]Morgan Freeman, in the 1981 television movie Death of a Prophet.[374]Ben Holt, in the 1986 opera X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X at the New York City Opera.[375]Gary Dourdan, in the 2000 television movie King of the World.[376]Joe Morton, in the 2000 television movie Ali: An American Hero.[377]Mario Van Peebles, in the 2001 film Ali.[378]Lindsay Owen Pierre, in the 2013 television movie Betty & Coretta.[379]Fran§ois Battiste, in the stage play One Night in Miami, first performed in 2013.[380]Nig(C)l Thatch, in the 2014 film Selma[381] and the 2019 television series Godfather of Harlem.[382]Kingsley Ben-Adir in the 2020 film One Night in Miami, based on the play of the same name.[383]Jason Alan Carnell in the 2023 season of the television series Godfather of Harlem.[384]Published works The Autobiography of Malcolm X, first editionThe Autobiography of Malcolm X. With the assistance of Alex Haley. New York: Grove Press, 1965. OCLC 219493184.Malcolm X Speaks: Selected Speeches and Statements. George Breitman, ed. New York: Merit Publishers, 1965. OCLC 256095445.Malcolm X Talks to Young People. New York: Young Socialist Alliance, 1965. OCLC 81990227.Two Speeches by Malcolm X. New York: Pathfinder Press, 1965. OCLC 19464959.Malcolm X on Afro-American History. New York: Merit Publishers, 1967. OCLC 78155009.The Speeches of Malcolm X at Harvard. Archie Epps, ed. New York: Morrow, 1968. OCLC 185901618.By Any Means Necessary: Speeches, Interviews, and a Letter by Malcolm X. George Breitman, ed. New York: Pathfinder Press, 1970. OCLC 249307.The End of White World Supremacy: Four Speeches by Malcolm X. Benjamin Karim, ed. New York: Monthly Review Press, 1971. OCLC 149849.The Last Speeches. Bruce Perry, ed. New York: Pathfinder Press, 1989. ISBN 978-0-87348-543-2.Malcolm X Talks to Young People: Speeches in the United States, Britain, and Africa. Steve Clark, ed. New York: Pathfinder Press, 1991. ISBN 978-0-87348-962-1.February 1965: The Final Speeches. Steve Clark, ed. New York: Pathfinder Press, 1992. ISBN 978-0-87348-749-8.The Diary of Malcolm X: 1964. Herb Boyd and Ilyasah Shabazz, eds. Chicago: Third World Press, 2013. ISBN 978-0-88378-351-1.Explanatory notes ^ 1634''1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF) . American Antiquarian Society. 1700''1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF) . American Antiquarian Society. 1800''present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800''" . Retrieved May 28, 2023 . ^ The accuracy of these accounts has been questioned by some people who met Malcolm X later in life or never knew him, including Ta-Nehisi Coates,[30] Maulana Karenga,[31] Ilyasah Shabazz,[32] and Raymond Winbush.[33] For further information, see Phelps,[34] Polk,[35] and Street et al.[36] ^ Nation of Islam Temples were numbered according to the order in which they were established.[66] ^ Attallah Shabazz has said she was not named after Attila, rather her name is Arabic for "the gift of God".[80][81] ^ "People have to understand the [Autobiography of Malcolm X] was written at a time when indeed African Americans were likening themselves to warriors to underscore our revolutionary fervor. And Attallah was close to Attila the Hun, the warrior. But I'm named Attallah, which in Arabic means 'Gift of God.' I've never been Attila."[82] ^ Some sources, including The Autobiography of Malcolm X, give the name Johnson Hinton, but Benjamin Karim (one of Malcolm X's top aides) and former Newsweek editor and Malcolm X biographer Peter Goldman both give the name Hinton Johnson.[89][90] ^ King expressed mixed feelings toward Malcolm X. "He is very articulate ... but I totally disagree with many of his political and philosophical views ... I don't want to seem to sound self-righteous ... or that I think I have the only truth, the only way. Maybe he does have some of the answer ... I have often wished that he would talk less of violence, because violence is not going to solve our problem. And in his litany of articulating the despair of the Negro without offering any positive, creative alternative, I feel that Malcolm has done himself and our people a great disservice ... [U]rging Negroes to arm themselves and prepare to engage in violence, as he has done, can reap nothing but grief."[110] However, the veracity of this quote as recored by Alex Haley has been called into question by Jonathan Eigs, given that it does not appear on the original interview transcript.[111] ^ "Estimates of the Black Muslim membership vary from a quarter of a million down to fifty thousand. Available evidence indicates that about one hundred thousand Negroes have joined the movement at one time or another, but few objective observers believe that the Black Muslims can muster more than twenty or twenty-five thousand active temple people."[130] ^ "The common response of Malcolm X to questions about numbers''--'Œ'Those who know aren't saying, and those who say don't know'''--'Œwas typical of the attitude of the leadership."[132] ^ "Turning my back on Malcolm was one of the mistakes that I regret most in my life. I wish I'd been able to tell Malcolm that I was sorry, that he was right about so many things. But he was killed before I got the chance ... I might never have become a Muslim if it hadn't been for Malcolm. If I could go back and do it over again, I would never have turned my back on him."[136] ^ "There was no time for substantive discussions between the two. They were photographed greeting each other warmly, smiling and shaking hands."[154] ^ "Camera shutters clicked. The next day, the Chicago Sun-Times, the New York World-Telegram and Sun, and other dailies carried a picture of Malcolm and Martin shaking hands."[155] ^ In his Epilogue to The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Haley wrote that Malcolm X said, "Hold it! Hold it! Don't get excited. Let's cool it, brothers" (p. 499). According to a transcript of an audio recording, Malcolm's only words were, "Hold it!", repeated ten times (DeCaro, p. 274). ^ "'I'll be honest with you,' Malcolm X said to me. 'Everybody is talking about differences between the Messenger and me. It is absolutely impossible for us to differ. ' "[284] ^ On a radio program in December 1964, Malcolm X said "all of my former statements were prefaced by 'the Honorable Elijah Muhammad teaches thus and so.' They weren't my statements, they were his statements, and I was repeating them."[285] ^ Malcolm X told Lewis Lomax that "The Messenger is the Prophet of Allah."[291] On another occasion, he said, "We never refer to the Honorable Elijah Muhammad as a prophet."[292] ^ English-language sources disagreed whether the street was being renamed Malcolm X Road[351] or Malcolm X Avenue,[352] perhaps because of translation issues. The state media agency's English-language announcement said merely that "the street ... will bear the name of Malcolm X".[353] References Citations ^ Harrison, Isheka N. (July 2010). "Malcolm X's Grandson Working on Memoirs in Miami". South Florida Times . Retrieved June 9, 2016 . ^ a b c Perry 1991, p. 115. ^ a b c Lomax 1963, p. 57. ^ a b Krutzsch, Brett (April 5, 2021). "Malcolm X: Why El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz Matters". The Revealer . Retrieved March 9, 2023 . ^ "Definition of hajj | Dictionary.com". www.dictionary.com . Retrieved March 9, 2023 . ^ Angelo Gomez, Michael (2005). Black Crescent: The Experience and Legacy of African Muslims in the Americas. Cambridge University Press. p. 367. ^ Watson, Clarence; Akhtar, Salman (2012). "Ideology and Identity: Malcolm X". In Akhtar, Salman (ed.). The African American Experience: Psychoanalytic Perspectives. Lanham, Maryland: Jason Aronson. p. 120. ISBN 978-0-7657-0835-9. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 20''30. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 2''3. ^ Vincent, Ted (March''April 1989). "The Garveyite Parents of Malcolm X". The Black Scholar. 20 (2): 10''13. doi:10.1080/00064246.1989.11412923. JSTOR 41067613. ^ Malcolm X 1992, pp. 3''4. ^ DeCaro 1996, pp. 43''44. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 3. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 4. ^ Marable 2011, p. 29. ^ a b Marable 2011, p. 32. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 10. ^ "Malcolm X and Seventh-day Adventism". Blacksdahistory. Archived from the original on July 29, 2019 . Retrieved June 27, 2023 . ^ Marable 2011, p. 35. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 35''36, 265. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 33''34, 331. ^ Dozier, Vickki (February 21, 2015). "How Malcolm X's murder rippled through his hometown". Lansing State Journal. Lansing, Michigan. ^ a b Perry 1991, p. 42. ^ "Timeline of Malcolm X's Life". PBS. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020 . Retrieved December 31, 2020 . ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 21''29, 55''56 ^ Perry 1991, pp. 32''48, 58''61. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 62''81. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 65''66. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 77, 82''83. ^ Coates 2011, online. ^ Karenga, Maulana, "The Meaning and Measure of Malcolm X: Critical Remembrance and Rightful Reading", Boyd et al. 2012, p. 18. ^ Martin, Michel (April 20, 2011). "Malcolm X's Daughter Disputes Claims in New Bio on Father". Tell Me More. NPR . Retrieved September 7, 2017 . ^ Winbush, Raymond A., "Speculative Nonfiction: Manning Marable's Malcolm X", Ball & Burroughs 2012, pp. 105''117. ^ Phelps, Christopher (August 2017). "The Sexuality of Malcolm X" (PDF) . Journal of American Studies. 51 (3): 659''690. doi:10.1017/S0021875816001341. S2CID 147843832. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 12, 2019 . Retrieved July 11, 2019 . ^ Polk, Khary (Summer 2013). "Malcolm X, Sexual Hearsay, and Masculine Dissemblance". Biography. 36 (3): 568''584. doi:10.1353/bio.2013.0029. JSTOR 24570210. S2CID 161615221. ^ Street, Joe; Washington, Margaret; Hall, Simon; McLaughlin, Malcolm; Bailey, Peter (February 2013). "Roundtable '' Manning Marable, Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention". Journal of American Studies. 47 (1): 23''47. doi:10.1017/S0021875812002605. S2CID 232254323. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 51''52. ^ a b Malcolm X 1992, p. 124. ^ a b Carson, p. 108. ^ a b Lord, Thornton & Bodipo-Memba 1992, p. 5. ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 106''109. ^ Perry 1991, p. 99. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 67''68. ^ Malcolm X 1992, p. 181. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 131. ^ Malcolm X 1992, p. 199. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 121. ^ Malcolm X, Autobiography, p. 178; ellipsis in original. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 108''110, 118. ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 127''128, 132''138 ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 128''129. ^ Perry 1991, p. 113. ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 134''135. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 104''106. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 136. ^ a b Natambu 2002, pp. 138''139 ^ Malcolm X 1992, p. 196. ^ Perry 1991, p. 116. ^ Marable 2011, p. 95. ^ Marable 2011, p. 96. ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 139''140. ^ Malcolm X 1992, p. 229. ^ Marable 2011, p. 98. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 142, 144''145. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 168. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 141''142. ^ Perry 1991, p. 147. ^ Perry 1991, p. 152. ^ Perry 1991, p. 153. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 161''164. ^ Carson 1991, p. 95. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 122''123. ^ a b c d Marable 2009, p. 301. ^ Lincoln 1961, p. 189. ^ Rickford 2003, pp. 36''45, 50''51. ^ Rickford 2003, pp. 61''63. ^ Shabazz, Betty, "Malcolm X as a Husband and Father", Clarke 1990, pp. 132''134. ^ Rickford 2003, pp. 73''74. ^ Rickford 2003, pp. 109''110. ^ Hopkins, Ellen (November 30, 1989). "Yolanda King and Attallah Shabazz: Their Fathers' Daughters". Rolling Stone . Retrieved June 19, 2016 . ^ Miller, Russell (November 23, 1992). "X Patriot". New York . Retrieved June 19, 2016 . ^ Barboza 1994, pp. 205''206. ^ Rickford 2003, p. 122. ^ Rickford 2003, p. 123. ^ Assensoh & Alex-Assensoh 2016, p. xxi. ^ Rickford 2003, p. 197. ^ "Malikah Shabazz, daughter of Malcolm X, found dead at her home in New York". The Washington Post. November 22, 2021. ^ Rickford 2003, p. 286. ^ Karim 1992, pp. 47''48. ^ Abdullah, Zain (Autumn 2012). "Narrating Muslim Masculinities: The Fruit of Islam and the Quest for Black Redemption". Spectrum: A Journal on Black Men. 1 (1): 169. doi:10.2979/spectrum.1.1.141. S2CID 162371130. ^ a b c d Marable 2011, p. 127. ^ a b Perry 1991, p. 164. ^ a b Perry 1991, p. 165. ^ a b c d Marable 2011, p. 128. ^ Perry 1991, p. 166. ^ Marable 2011, p. 132. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 134''135. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 135, 193. ^ a b Perry 1991, pp. 174''179. ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 231''233. ^ Marable 2011, p. 172. ^ Lincoln 1961, p. 18. ^ a b Lomax 1963, p. 55. ^ Lomax 1963, p. 181. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 260. ^ Marable 2011, p. 162. ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 215''216. ^ Lomax 1963, pp. 79''80. ^ Perry 1991, p. 203. ^ Haley, Alex (January 1965). "The Playboy Interview: Martin Luther King". Playboy. Archived from the original on June 19, 2018 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Marcus, Josh. "Famous Martin Luther King quote ripping Malcom X was fake, author discovers". Independent. ^ Cone 1991, p. 113. ^ "Timeline". Malcolm X: Make It Plain, American Experience. PBS. May 19, 2005. Archived from the original on May 26, 2005 . Retrieved November 11, 2017 . ^ a b Lomax 1963, pp. 149''152. ^ a b Malcolm X & Karim 1989, p. 78. ^ a b Lomax 1963, pp. 173''174. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 182. ^ a b Cone 1991, pp. 99''100. ^ a b West, Cornel (1984). "The Paradox of the Afro-American Rebellion". In Sayres, Sohnya; Stephanson, Anders; Aronowitz, Stanley; Jameson, Fredric (eds.). The 60s Without Apology. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-8166-1336-6. ^ Lomax 1963, p. 172. ^ Moore 1987, p. 198. ^ Pollack 2013, p. 4. ^ Marable & Felber 2013, p. 492. ^ Norwood & Pollack 2020, pp. 157''158. ^ Pollack 2013, pp. 30, 35. ^ Pollack 2022, pp. 5, 16. ^ Heer, Jeet (May 11, 2016). "Farrakhan's Grand Illusion". The New Republic . Retrieved June 26, 2019 . ^ Norwood 2013, p. 245. ^ Cone 1991, p. 91. ^ Lomax 1963, pp. 15''16. ^ Marable 2011, p. 123. ^ Clegg III 1997, p. 115. ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 296''297. ^ Remnick, David (1999) [1998]. King of the World: Muhammed Ali and the Rise of an American Hero. New York: Vintage Books. p. 165. ISBN 978-0-375-70229-7. ^ Rickford 2003, p. 165. ^ Ali 2004, p. 85. ^ Marable 2011[page needed ] ^ Marsh 2000, p. 101. ^ Marsh 2000, pp. 58''59, 67. ^ a b c d Branch 1998, pp. 3''20. ^ a b c d Marable 2011, pp. 205''210. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 230''234. ^ "Malcolm X Exposes Elijah Muhammad". YouTube . Retrieved August 24, 2022 . ^ a b "Malcolm X Scores U.S. and Kennedy" . The New York Times. December 2, 1963. p. 21 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 288''290. ^ Perry 1991, p. 242. ^ a b Perry 1991, p. 214. ^ a b Handler, M. S. (March 9, 1964). "Malcolm X Splits with Muhammad" . The New York Times. p. 1 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Brown, DeNeen L. (January 18, 2014). "Martin Luther King Jr. met Malcolm X just once. The photo still haunts us with what was lost". The Washington Post . Retrieved October 31, 2020 . ^ Perry 1991, pp. 251''252. ^ Malcolm X 1990, pp. 18''22. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 294''296. ^ Malcolm X & Breitman 1989, pp. 33''67. ^ Cone 1991, p. 2. ^ Perry 1991, p. 255. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 257''259. ^ Malcolm X 1990, pp. 23''44. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 300''301. ^ Perry 1991, p. 261. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 262''263. ^ DeCaro 1996, p. 204. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 263''265. ^ Perry 1991, p. 267. ^ Malcolm X, Autobiography, pp. 388''393; quote from pp. 390''391. ^ Lomax 1963, p. 62. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 303. ^ Carson 1991, p. 305. ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 304''305. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 360''362. ^ a b Natambu 2002, p. 308 ^ Perry 1991, p. 269. ^ Malcolm X 1992, p. 403. ^ Tuck 2014, pp. 155''156. ^ a b c d Tuck 2014, p. 157. ^ Bethune, Lebert, "Malcolm X in Europe", Clarke 1990, pp. 226''231. ^ Malcolm X & Breitman 1989, pp. 113''126. ^ a b Tuck 2014, pp. 157''158. ^ Tuck 2014, p. 157 & 159. ^ Perlstein, Rick (August 2008). "1964 Republican Convention: Revolution from the Right". Smithsonian Magazine . Retrieved June 20, 2015 . ^ Bethune, "Malcolm X in Europe", Clarke 1990, pp. 231''233. ^ Malcolm X (December 3, 1964). "Malcolm X Oxford Debate". Malcolm X: A Research Site . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ a b Tuck 2014, p. 154. ^ a b Tuck 2014, p. 158. ^ Tuck 2014, pp. 158''159. ^ a b c Tuck 2014, p. 159. ^ Carson 1991, p. 349. ^ Perry 1991, p. 351. ^ Natambu 2002, p. 312. ^ Kundnani, Arun (February 10, 2005). "Black British History: Remembering Malcolm's Visit to Smethwick". Independent Race and Refugee News Network. Institute of Race Relations . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ Jeffries, Stuart (October 15, 2014). "Britain's Most Racist Election: The Story of Smethwick, 50 Years On". The Guardian . Retrieved April 17, 2016 . ^ Terrill 2004, p. 9. ^ Karim 1992, p. 128. ^ a b Perry 1991, pp. 277''278. ^ Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities (June 2, 1964). "Malcolm X". Who Speaks for the Negro? . Retrieved March 11, 2015 . ^ "The Malcolm X Project at Columbia University". www.columbia.edu . Retrieved December 13, 2019 . ^ Karim 1992, pp. 159''160. ^ Kondo 1993, p. 170. ^ Friedly 1992, p. 169. ^ Majied, Eugene (April 10, 1964). "On My Own". Muhammad Speaks. Nation of Islam . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ Carson 1991, p. 473. ^ Carson 1991, p. 324. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 290''292. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 352''356. ^ a b c Lomax 1987, p. 198 ^ Evanzz 1992, p. 248. ^ Evanzz 1992, p. 264. ^ Lord, Thornton & Bodipo-Memba 1992, p. 3. ^ Massaquoi, Hans J. (September 1964). "Mystery of Malcolm X". Ebony. pp. 38''40, 42, 44''46 . Retrieved April 4, 2017 . ^ Ross, Janell (May 19, 2016). "Google Commemorates a Very Controversial Civil-Rights Figure, Yuri Kochiyama". The Washington Post . Retrieved May 20, 2016 . ^ Karim 1992, p. 191. ^ a b Evanzz 1992, p. 295. ^ a b Kihss 1965, p. 1. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 436''437. ^ Perry 1991, p. 366. ^ Marable 2011, p. 450. ^ Perry 1991, pp. 366''367. ^ Talese, Gay (February 22, 1965). "Police Save Suspect From the Crowd" . The New York Times. p. 10 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Kondo 1993, p. 97. ^ Buckley, Thomas (March 11, 1966). "Malcolm X Jury Finds 3 Guilty" . The New York Times. p. 1 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Roth, Jack (April 15, 1966). "3 Get Life Terms in Malcolm Case" . The New York Times. p. 36 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Kondo 1993, p. 110. ^ Leland, John (February 6, 2020). "Who Really Killed Malcolm X?" . The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on February 6, 2020 . Retrieved February 27, 2020 . ^ Nutt, Amy Ellis; Barry Carter (April 4, 2011). "Muslim Man Denies Author's Claim That He Killed Malcolm X". HuffPost . Retrieved February 27, 2020 . ^ Bush, Roderick (1999). We Are Not What We Seem: Black Nationalism and Class Struggle in the American Century. New York: New York University Press. p. 179. ISBN 978-0-8147-1317-4. ^ Friedly 1992, pp. 112''129. ^ "Malcolm X Killer Heads Mosque". BBC News. March 31, 1998 . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ Jacobson, Mark (October 1, 2007). "The Man Who Didn't Shoot Malcolm X". New York . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ Marable 2011, p. 474. ^ Fanelli, James (May 18, 2008). "Quiet Life of an 'X'-Assassin". The New York Post . Retrieved June 20, 2018 . ^ Rickford 2003, p. 489. ^ Marable 2011, pp. 474''475. ^ Southall, Ashley; Bromwich, Jonah E. (November 17, 2021). "2 Men Convicted of Killing Malcolm X Will Be Exonerated Decades Later". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 28, 2021 . Retrieved November 17, 2021 . ^ Southall, Ashley (July 14, 2022). "Man Exonerated in Malcolm X Murder Sues New York City After Talks Fail". The New York Times . Retrieved July 15, 2022 . ^ Payne, Les; Payne, Tamara (2020). The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X. New York: Liveright. pp. 477''478. ISBN 978-1-63149-166-5. ^ Perry 1991, p. 374. Alex Haley, in his Epilogue to The Autobiography of Malcolm X, says 22,000 (p. 519). ^ a b Rickford 2003, p. 252. ^ DeCaro 1996, p. 291. ^ a b Arnold, Martin (February 28, 1965). "Harlem Is Quiet as Crowds Watch Malcolm X Rites" . The New York Times. p. 1 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ DeCaro 1996, p. 290. ^ Davis, Ossie (February 27, 1965). "Malcolm X's Eulogy". The Official Website of Malcolm X . Retrieved August 9, 2016 . ^ Rickford 2003, p. 255. ^ Rickford 2003, pp. 261''262. ^ a b King, Martin Luther Jr. (February 26, 1965). "Telegram from Martin Luther King Jr. to Betty al-Shabazz". The Martin Luther King Jr. Research and Education Institute. Archived from the original on February 1, 2016 . Retrieved May 28, 2018 . ^ Evanzz 1992, p. 301. ^ Clegg III 1997, p. 232. ^ DeCaro 1996, p. 285. ^ Rickford 2003, p. 247. ^ "Malcolm X" . The New York Times. February 22, 1965. p. 20 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ "Death and Transfiguration" . Time. March 5, 1965 . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ a b Rickford 2003, p. 248. ^ Evanzz 1992, p. 305. ^ Kenworthy, E. W. (February 26, 1965). "Malcolm Called a Martyr Abroad" . The New York Times. p. 15 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ a b "How World Saw Malcolm X's Death" (PDF) . New York Amsterdam News. March 13, 1965 . Retrieved January 15, 2018 . ^ Evanzz 1992, p. 306. ^ King, Martin Luther Jr. (March 13, 1965). "The Nightmare of Violence" (PDF) . New York Amsterdam News . Retrieved January 15, 2018 . ^ Perry 1991, p. 371. ^ Marable 2009, pp. 305''306. ^ Perry 1991, p. 372. ^ Grant, Earl, "The Last Days of Malcolm X", Clarke 1990, p. 96. ^ Kondo 1993, pp. 7''39. ^ Evanzz 1992, p. 294. ^ Rickford 2003, pp. 437, 492''495. ^ Evanzz 1992, pp. 298''299. ^ Friedly 1992, p. 253. ^ Kondo 1993, pp. 182''183, 193''194. ^ Marable 2009, p. 305. ^ Rickford 2003, p. 492. ^ Wartofsky, Alona (February 17, 1995). "Brother Minister: The Martyrdom of Malcolm X". The Washington Post . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ "Farrakhan Admission on Malcolm X". 60 Minutes. CBS News. May 14, 2000 . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ "Farrakhan Responds to Media Attacks". The Final Call. May 15, 2000 . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ Natambu 2002, pp. 315''316. ^ "Release Government Files on Malcolm X Assassination" . The Boston Globe. January 10, 2015 . Retrieved November 11, 2017 . ^ Jackman, Tom (January 25, 2019). "Kennedy, King, Malcolm X relatives and scholars seek new assassination probes". The Washington Post . Retrieved January 26, 2019 . ^ Simkin, John (January 2019). "Kennedy and King Family Members and Advisors Call for Congress to Reopen Assassination Probes". Spartacus Educational . Retrieved January 26, 2019 . ^ Laughland, Oliver (February 21, 2021). "Malcolm X family says letter shows NYPD and FBI conspired in his murder". The Guardian. Archived from the original on February 21, 2021 . Retrieved February 21, 2021 . The arrests kept the two men from managing door security at the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights on the day of the shooting, according to the letter. ^ Meminger, Dean (February 21, 2021). "Daughter of Former NYPD Officer Says Malcolm X Assassination Letter is Fake". NY1 . Retrieved February 26, 2021 . ^ "Malcolm X's family plans $100M wrongful death lawsuit against CIA, FBI - National | Globalnews.ca". globalnews.ca . Retrieved February 23, 2023 . ^ Tracy, Thomas (July 25, 2023). "Witness to Malcolm X assassination comes forward with account questioning NYPD response". New York Daily News . Retrieved August 5, 2023 . ^ Kelley, Robin D. G. (1999). "Malcolm X". Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience. New York: Basic Civitas Books. p. 1233. ^ Terrill 2004, pp. 15''16. ^ X, Malcolm. "God's Judgement of White America". www.malcolm-x.org. Archived from the original on April 8, 2016 . Retrieved April 2, 2016 . ^ a b Lomax 1963, pp. 80''81. ^ Terrill 2004, p. 184. ^ Lomax 1963, p. 91. ^ Malcolm X & Perry 1989, p. 104. ^ Lomax 1963, p. 67. ^ Lomax 1963, p. 171. ^ Malcolm X 1991, p. 119. ^ DeCaro 1996, pp. 166''167. ^ Lomax 1963, p. 80. ^ Malcolm X & Perry 1989, p. 46. ^ Lincoln 1961, p. 95. ^ Lincoln 1961, p. 96. ^ Malcolm X, "The Negro's Fight", The Egyptian Gazette, August 25, 1964. Reprinted as "Racism: The Canver That Is Destroying America" in Clarke 1990, pp. 302''306. ^ Malcolm X 1990, pp. 33''35. ^ Malcolm X & Breitman 1989, pp. 43, 47. ^ Malcolm X 1990, p. 90. ^ Malcolm X 1990, p. 117. ^ a b Cone 1991, p. 284. ^ Perry 1991, p. 277. ^ Malcolm X 1990, pp. 38''41. ^ Malcolm X 1990, pp. 212''213. ^ Malcolm X 1992, p. 391. ^ Parks, Gordon, "Malcolm X: The Minutes of Our Last Meeting", Clarke 1990, p. 122. ^ "Manning Marable's 'Reinvention' of Malcolm X". All Things Considered. NPR. April 5, 2011 . Retrieved November 18, 2021 . ^ Phelps, Christopher (August 2017). "The Sexuality of Malcolm X" . Journal of American Studies. Cambridge University. 51 (3): 659''690. doi:10.1017/S0021875816001341. S2CID 147843832. ^ "Malcolm X's Daughter Disputes Claims in New Bio on Father". Tell Me More. NPR. April 20, 2011 . Retrieved November 18, 2021 . ^ Asante, Molefi Kete (2002). 100 Greatest African Americans: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Amherst, New York: Prometheus Books. p. 333. ISBN 978-1-57392-963-9. ^ Marable, Manning; Frazier, Nishani; McMillian, John Campbell (2003). Freedom on My Mind: The Columbia Documentary History of the African American Experience. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 251. ISBN 978-0-231-10890-4. ^ Salley, Columbus (1999). The Black 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential African-Americans, Past and Present. New York: Citadel Press. p. 88. ISBN 978-0-8065-2048-3. ^ Cone 1991, pp. 291''292. ^ Nasr, Seyyed Hossein (2002). The Heart of Islam: Enduring Values for Humanity. New York: HarperCollins. p. 97. ISBN 978-0-06-073064-2. ^ Perry 1991, p. 379. ^ Turner, Richard Brent (2004). "Islam in the African-American Experience". In Bobo, Jacqueline; Hudley, Cynthia; Michel, Claudine (eds.). The Black Studies Reader. New York: Routledge. p. 445. ISBN 978-0-415-94554-7. ^ Perry 1991, p. 380. ^ Sales 1994, p. 187. ^ Woodard, Komozi (1999). A Nation Within a Nation: Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones) & Black Power Politics. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press. p. 62. ISBN 978-0-8078-4761-9. ^ Cone 1991, p. 291. ^ Haley, "Epilogue", Autobiography, p. 471. ^ Perry 1991, p. 375. ^ Sales 1994, p. 5. ^ Marable 2009, pp. 301''302. ^ Sales 1994, p. 3. ^ Millere, Mauricelm-Lei (2021). Malcolm X and The Organization of Afro-American Unity: African American Defense League (A2DL '' OAAU) . online: Kindle Books. p. 5. ASIN B097YR2SBH. ^ Sales 1994, p. 4. ^ Gray, Paul (June 8, 1998). "Required Reading: Nonfiction Books" . Time . Retrieved March 28, 2016 . ^ Young, Paul (March 30, 2014). "Real Life Inspirations Behind Some of the Best Comic Book Villains". Screen Rant. ^ Hanks, Henry (June 3, 2011). "The secret to 'X-Men's' success". CNN. ^ Darowski, Joseph J. The Ages of the X-Men:Essays on the Children of the Atom in Changing Times. p. 71. ^ Eells, Josh (February 18, 2018). "The 'Black Panther' Revolution". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on February 25, 2018 . Retrieved March 2, 2018 . ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray; N'Duka, Amanda (January 9, 2019). "New Hollywood Podcast: Michael B. Jordan Talks How 'Black Panther' Shifted Hollywood's Idea Of Representation". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved October 2, 2019 . ^ McMorris, Robert (March 11, 1989). "Empty Lot Holds Dreams for Rowena Moore". Omaha World-Herald . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ "National Register of Historic Places '' Nebraska, Douglas County". National Register of Historic Places . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ "NRHP: Malcolm X House Site". Nebraska State Historical Society . Retrieved June 20, 2018 . ^ "Nebraska Historical Marker: Malcolm X". Nebraska State Historical Society. Archived from the original on October 28, 2019 . Retrieved June 20, 2018 . ^ ''Malcolm X House, 1875, Roxbury, MA.'' Historic Boston Incorporated. Accessed April 23, 2023. ^ Paybarah, Ali. ''Malcolm X's Early Home in Boston Gets U.S. Historic Designation'' The New York Times. Published March 4, 2021. Accessed April 23, 2023. ^ ''MALCOLM X HOUSE.'' City of Boston. Accessed April 23, 2023. ^ "Malcolm X Homesite". Michigan Historical Markers. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020 . Retrieved June 20, 2018 . ^ Yancey, Patty (2000). "We Hold on to Our Kids, We Hold on Tight: Tandem Charters in Michigan". In Fuller, Bruce (ed.). Inside Charter Schools: The Paradox of Radical Decentralization. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 67. ISBN 978-0-674-00325-5. ^ Gay, Kathlyn (2007). African-American Holidays, Festivals and Celebrations. Detroit: Omnigraphics. p. 284. ISBN 978-0-7808-0779-2. ^ Thaai, Walker (May 20, 2005). "Berkeley Honors Controversial Civil Rights Figure". San Jose Mercury News. ^ Rickford 2003, p. 443. ^ Rickford 2003, p. 419. ^ Barron, James (January 18, 2009). " 'Not Much of a Block,' but It's Named for a King" . The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 22, 2009 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ "El Shabazz Playground : NYC Parks". New York City Department of Parks and Recreation . Retrieved February 21, 2020 . ^ DeCosta-Klipa, Nik (September 19, 2019). "Boston residents will get to vote on changing the name of Dudley Square. Here's why". Boston.com . Retrieved October 4, 2019 . ^ Scoville, Jen (December 1997). "The Big Beat". Texas Monthly. Archived from the original on December 29, 2004 . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ Vela, Susan (September 14, 2010). "Malcolm X, Cesar Chavez Get Nods for Lansing Street, Plaza Names". Lansing State Journal. ^ a b Harvey, Benjamin (October 14, 2018). "Turkey Names Street Leading to U.S. Embassy 'Malcolm X Road' ". Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg News . Retrieved October 23, 2018 . ^ a b Kent, Lauren (October 15, 2018). "Turkey renames street of new US Embassy to Malcolm X Avenue". CNN . Retrieved October 23, 2018 . ^ Calik, Burcu (October 13, 2018). "Turkey: New US Embassy street to be named 'Malcolm X' ". Anadolu Agency . Retrieved October 23, 2018 . ^ Lee, Felicia R. (May 15, 1993). "Newark Students, Both Good and Bad, Make Do" . The New York Times . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Hunt, Lori Bona (February 26, 1991). "Malcolm X's Widow Sees Signs of Hope". Milwaukee Journal. ^ Witkowsky, Kathy (Spring 2000). "A Day in the Life". National CrossTalk . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ "Home". Shabazz Public School Academy . Retrieved February 27, 2023 . ^ Belvin, Brent (October 6, 2004). Master's Thesis: Malcolm X Liberation University: An Experiment in Independent Black Education (Thesis). North Carolina State University . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ Flynn, Pat (January 7, 1996). "Big Crowd Welcomes New Library Warmly". The San Diego Union-Tribune. ^ Marable 2009, pp. 303''304. ^ "Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center Launches". Columbia University. May 17, 2005 . Retrieved October 2, 2014 . ^ Marable 2011, p. 564. ^ Hendrick, Bill (September 2, 1999). "A Revelation in Letters: Educated, Tender Malcolm X". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. ProQuest 413815431. ^ Eakin, Emily (January 8, 2003). "Malcolm X Trove to Schomburg Center" . The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 25, 2013 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ "New MPACS Scholarship Honours Malcolm X's Legacy". University of Waterloo. June 28, 2021 . Retrieved February 24, 2022 . ^ "Peace Incubator participant helps establish new Malcolm X PACS Scholarship". University of Waterloo. June 28, 2021 . Retrieved February 24, 2022 . ^ Canby, Vincent (November 18, 1992). " 'Malcolm X,' as Complex as Its Subject" . The New York Times . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Anderson, Jeffrey M. "The Best Films of the 1990s". Combustible Celluloid. Archived from the original on January 24, 2001 . Retrieved November 11, 2017 . ^ Rich, Frank (July 15, 1981). "The Stage: Malcolm X and Elijah Muhammad". The New York Times . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Canby, Vincent (May 21, 1977). "Ali's Latest Victory Is 'The Greatest' " . The New York Times . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ O'Connor, John J. (February 9, 1978). "TV: 6'Hour 'King,' Drama of Civil Rights Drive" . The New York Times . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Goodman, Walter (May 3, 1989). "An Imaginary Meeting of Dr. King and Malcolm X". The New York Times . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Maslin, Janet (February 25, 1979). "TV: End of 'Roots II' Delineates 60's" . The New York Times . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ "The Deification of Morgan Freeman: An Incomplete Filmography". The New York Times. August 28, 2011 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Henahan, Donal (September 29, 1986). "Opera: Anthony Davis's 'X (The Life and Times of Malcolm X)' " . The New York Times . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Romano, Frederick V. (2004). The Boxing Filmography: American Features, 1920''2003. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. pp. 138''139. ISBN 978-0-7864-1793-3. ^ Gallo, Phil (August 30, 2000). "Review: 'Ali: An American Hero' ". Variety . Retrieved June 9, 2016 . ^ Mitchell, Elvis (December 25, 2001). "Master of the Boast, King of the Ring, Vision of the Future" . The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 24, 2009 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Lowry, Brian (January 30, 2013). "Review: 'Betty & Coretta' ". Variety . Retrieved June 9, 2016 . ^ Verini, Bob (August 5, 2013). "L.A. Legit Review: 'One Night in Miami'...' ". Archived from the original on June 28, 2017 . Retrieved March 18, 2012 . ^ Scott, A. O. (December 24, 2014). "A 50-Mile March, Nearly 50 Years Later" . The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 24, 2014 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ Petski, Denise (September 21, 2018). " 'Godfather Of Harlem': Nig(C)l Thatch To Star As Malcolm X In Epix Drama Series". Deadline . Retrieved December 18, 2019 . ^ Fleming., Mike Jr. (January 7, 2020). "Regina King Directing Debut 'One Night In Miami' Underway With Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge & Leslie Odom Jr As '60s Icons". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved January 7, 2020 . ^ Simons, Roxy (January 15, 2023). "Why does Nig(C)l Thatch not play Malcolm X in "Godfather of Harlem" Season 3?". Newsweek . Retrieved April 30, 2023 . Works cited Ali, Muhammad (2004). The Soul of a Butterfly: Reflections on Life's Journey. with Hana Yasmeen Ali. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0-7432-5569-1. Assensoh, A. B.; Alex-Assensoh, Yvette M. (2016). Malcolm X and Africa. Amherst, New York: Cambria Press. ISBN 978-1-60497-924-4. Ball, Jared A.; Burroughs, Todd Steven, eds. (2012). A Lie of Reinvention: Correcting Manning Marable's Malcolm X. Baltimore: Black Classic Press. ISBN 978-1-57478-049-9. Barboza, Steven (1994). American Jihad: Islam After Malcolm X. New York: Image Books. ISBN 978-0-385-47694-2. Boyd, Herb; Daniels, Ron; Karenga, Maulana; Madhubuti, Haki R., eds. (2012). By Any Means Necessary: Malcolm X: Real, Not Reinvented . Chicago: Third World Press. ISBN 978-0-88378-336-8. Branch, Taylor (1998). Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years, 1963''65. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0-684-80819-2. Carson, Clayborne (1991). Malcolm X: The FBI File. New York: Carroll & Graf. ISBN 978-0-88184-758-1. Clarke, John Henrik, ed. (1990) [1969]. Malcolm X: The Man and His Times . Trenton, New Jersey: Africa World Press. ISBN 978-0-86543-201-7. Clegg III, Claude Andrew (1997). An Original Man: The Life and Times of Elijah Muhammad . New York: St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 978-0-312-18153-6. Coates, Ta-Nehisi (April 11, 2011). "The Sexuality of Malcolm X". The Atlantic . Retrieved September 7, 2017 . Cone, James H. (1991). Martin & Malcolm & America: A Dream or a Nightmare. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books. ISBN 978-0-88344-721-5. DeCaro, Louis A. (1996). On the Side of My People: A Religious Life of Malcolm X. New York: New York University Press. ISBN 978-0-8147-1864-3. Evanzz, Karl (1992). The Judas Factor: The Plot to Kill Malcolm X. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press. ISBN 978-1-56025-049-4. Friedly, Michael (1992). Malcolm X: The Assassination. New York: One World. ISBN 978-0-345-40010-9. Karim, Benjamin (1992). Remembering Malcolm . with Peter Skutches and David Gallen. New York: Carroll & Graf. ISBN 978-0-88184-881-6. Kihss, Peter (February 22, 1965). "Malcolm X Shot to Death at Rally Here" . The New York Times. p. 1 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . Kondo, Zak A. (1993). Conspiracys: Unravelling the Assassination of Malcolm X. Washington, D.C.: Nubia Press. OCLC 28837295. Lincoln, C. Eric (1961). The Black Muslims in America. Boston: Beacon Press. OCLC 422580. Lomax, Louis E. (1963). When the Word Is Given: A Report on Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X, and the Black Muslim World. Cleveland: World Publishing. OCLC 1071204. Lomax, Louis E. (1987) [1968]. To Kill a Black Man: The Shocking Parallel in the Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. Los Angeles: Holloway House. ISBN 978-0-87067-731-1. Lord, Lewis; Thornton, Jeannye; Bodipo-Memba, Alejandro (November 15, 1992). "The Legacy of Malcolm X". U.S. News & World Report. p. 5. Archived from the original on January 14, 2012 . Retrieved March 20, 2018 . Malcolm X; Haley, Alex (1992) [1965]. The Autobiography of Malcolm X. New York: One World. ISBN 978-0-345-37671-8. Citations in this article refer to this edition, of the many that have been published.Malcolm X (1989) [1970]. Breitman, George (ed.). By Any Means Necessary: Speeches, Interviews, and a Letter by Malcolm X. New York: Pathfinder Press. ISBN 978-0-87348-150-2. Malcolm X (1989) [1971]. Karim, Benjamin (ed.). The End of White World Supremacy: Four Speeches by Malcolm X. New York: Arcade. ISBN 978-1-55970-006-1. Malcolm X (1989). Perry, Bruce (ed.). The Last Speeches. New York: Pathfinder Press. ISBN 978-0-87348-543-2. Malcolm X (1990) [1965]. Malcolm X Speaks: Selected Speeches and Statements. George Breitman, ed. New York: Grove Weidenfeld. ISBN 978-0-8021-3213-0. Malcolm X (1991) [1968]. The Speeches of Malcolm X at Harvard. Archie Epps, ed. New York: Paragon House. ISBN 978-1-55778-479-7. Marable, Manning (2011). Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention. New York: Viking. ISBN 978-0-670-02220-5. Marable, Manning (2009). "Rediscovering Malcolm's Life: A Historian's Adventures in Living History". In Marable, Manning; Aidi, Hishaam D (eds.). Black Routes to Islam. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-1-4039-8400-5. Marable, Manning; Felber, Garrett (January 16, 2013). The Portable Malcolm X Reader: A Man Who Stands for Nothing Will Fall for Anything. Penguin. ISBN 978-1-101-60294-2. Marsh, Clifton E. (2000) [1996]. The Lost-Found Nation of Islam in America. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-1-57886-008-1. Moore, R. Laurence (1987). Religious Outsiders and the Making of Americans. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-536399-9. Natambu, Kofi (2002). The Life and Work of Malcolm X . Indianapolis: Alpha Books. ISBN 978-0-02-864218-5. Norwood, Stephen H. (2013). Antisemitism and the American Far Left. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-107-03601-7. Norwood, Stephen H.; Pollack, Eunice G. (2020). "White Devils, Satanic Jews: The Nation of Islam From Fard to Farrakhan". Modern Judaism - A Journal of Jewish Ideas and Experience. 40 (2): 137''168. doi:10.1093/mj/kjaa006 '' via Oxford University Press. Perry, Bruce (1991). Malcolm: The Life of a Man Who Changed Black America. Barrytown, New York: Station Hill. ISBN 978-0-88268-103-0. Pollack, Eunice G. (2013). Racializing Antisemitism: Black Militants, Jews, and Israel 1950-present (PDF) . Vidal Sassoon International Center for the Study of Antisemitism, Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Pollack, Eunice G. (2022). "Black Antisemitism in America: Past and Present" (PDF) . Institute for National Security Studies . Retrieved January 21, 2023 . Rickford, Russell J. (2003). Betty Shabazz: A Remarkable Story of Survival and Faith Before and After Malcolm X. Naperville, Illinois: Sourcebooks. ISBN 978-1-4022-0171-4. Sales, William W. (1994). From Civil Rights to Black Liberation: Malcolm X and the Organization of Afro-American Unity. Boston: South End Press. ISBN 978-0-89608-480-3. Terrill, Robert (2004). Malcolm X: Inventing Radical Judgment. Lansing: Michigan State University Press. ISBN 978-0-87013-730-3. Tuck, Stephen (2014). The Night Malcolm X Spoke at the Oxford Union: A Transatlantic Story of Antiracist Protest. Los Angeles: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0520279339. Further reading Abernethy, Graeme (2013). The Iconography of Malcolm X . Lawrence: University Press of Kansas. ISBN 978-0-7006-1920-7. Baldwin, James (2007) [1973]. One Day, When I Was Lost: A Scenario Based on Alex Haley's "The Autobiography of Malcolm X". New York: Vintage. ISBN 978-0-307-27594-3. Bailey, A. Peter (2013). Witnessing Brother Malcolm X: The Master Teacher. Plantation, Florida: Llumina Press. ISBN 978-1-62550-039-7. Breitman, George (1967). The Last Year of Malcolm X: The Evolution of a Revolutionary . New York: Pathfinder Press. ISBN 978-0-87348-004-8. Breitman, George; Porter, Herman; Smith, Baxter (1991) [1976]. The Assassination of Malcolm X. New York: Pathfinder Press. ISBN 978-0-87348-632-3. Cleage, Albert B.; Breitman, George (1968). Myths About Malcolm X: Two Views. New York: Merit. OCLC 615819. Collins, Rodnell P.; with A. Peter Bailey (1998). Seventh Child: A Family Memoir of Malcolm X. Secaucus, New Jersey: Birch Lane Press. ISBN 978-1-55972-491-3. Conyers, James L. Jr.; Smallwood, Andrew P., eds. (2008). Malcolm X: A Historical Reader. Durham, North Carolina: Carolina Academic Press. ISBN 978-0-89089-228-2. DeCaro, Louis A. (1998). Malcolm and the Cross: The Nation of Islam, Malcolm X, and Christianity. New York: New York University Press. ISBN 978-0-8147-1932-9. Dyson, Michael Eric (1995). Making Malcolm: The Myth and Meaning of Malcolm X . Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-509235-6. Gallen, David, ed. (1992). Malcolm X: As They Knew Him. New York: Carroll & Graf. ISBN 978-0-88184-850-2. Goldman, Peter (1979). The Death and Life of Malcolm X (2nd ed.). Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-252-00774-3. Jamal, Hakim A. (1972). From The Dead Level: Malcolm X and Me. New York: Random House. ISBN 978-0-394-46234-9. Jenkins, Robert L. (2002). The Malcolm X Encyclopedia. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-29264-4. Kly, Yussuf Naim, ed. (1986). The Black Book: The True Political Philosophy of Malcolm X (El Hajj Malik El Shabazz). Atlanta: Clarity Press. ISBN 978-0-932863-03-4. Leader, Edward Roland (1993). Understanding Malcolm X: The Controversial Changes in His Political Philosophy. New York: Vantage Press. ISBN 978-0-533-09520-9. Lee, Spike; with Ralph Wiley (1992). By Any Means Necessary: The Trials and Tribulations of the Making of Malcolm X. New York: Hyperion. ISBN 978-1-56282-913-1. Marable, Manning; Felber, Garrett, eds. (2013). The Portable Malcolm X Reader. New York: Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-310694-4. Payne, Les; Payne, Tamara (2020). The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X. New York: Liveright. ISBN 978-1-63149-166-5. Roberts, Randy; Smith, Johnny (2016). Blood Brothers: The Fatal Friendship Between Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X . New York: Basic Books. ISBN 978-0-465-07970-4. Shabazz, Ilyasah; with Kim McLarin (2002). Growing Up X: A Memoir by the Daughter of Malcolm X. New York: One World. ISBN 978-0-345-44495-0. Sherwood, Marika (2011). Malcolm X Visits Abroad. Hollywood, California: Tsehai Publishers. ISBN 978-1-59907-050-6. Strickland, William; et al. (1994). Malcolm X: Make It Plain. New York: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-14-017713-8. Terrill, Robert, ed. (2010). The Cambridge Companion to Malcolm X. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-73157-7. T'Shaka, Oba (1983). The Political Legacy of Malcolm X. Richmond, California: Pan Afrikan Publications. ISBN 978-1-878557-01-8. Waldschmidt-Nelson, Britta (2012). Dreams and Nightmares: Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and the Struggle for Black Equality. Gainesville: University Press of Florida. ISBN 978-0-8130-3723-3. Wolfenstein, Eugene Victor (1989). The Victims of Democracy: Malcolm X and the Black Revolution. London: Free Association Books. ISBN 978-1-85343-111-1. Wood, Joe, ed. (1992). Malcolm X: In Our Image. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 978-0-312-06609-3. External links Official website of the Estate of Malcolm XThe Malcolm X Project at Columbia UniversityMalcolm, website on the life and legacy of Malcolm XMalcolm Little (Malcolm X) file at Federal Bureau of InvestigationMalcolm X at IMDb

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 18:36

American musician (1933''2006)

James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 '' December 25, 2006) was an American musician. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by various honorific nicknames, some of which include "the Hardest-Working Man in Show Business", "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1".[1] In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres.[2] Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986.

Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia.[3] He rose to prominence in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd.[4][5] With the hit ballads "Please, Please, Please" and "Try Me", Brown built a reputation as a dynamic live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes known as the James Brown Band or the James Brown Orchestra. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World".

During the late 1960s, Brown moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly "Africanized" approach to music-making, emphasizing stripped-down interlocking rhythms that influenced the development of funk music.[6] By the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J.B.s with records such as "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" and "The Payback". He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit "Say It Loud '' I'm Black and I'm Proud". Brown continued to perform and record until his death from pneumonia in 2006.

Brown recorded and released 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts.[7] He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that did not reach No. 1.[9][10] Brown was posthumously inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He also received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame[11] and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.[12] In Joel Whitburn's analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, Brown is ranked No. 1 in the Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on Rolling Stone 's list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[14]

Early life [ edit ] Brown was born on May 3, 1933, in Barnwell, South Carolina, to 16-year-old Susie (n(C)e Behling; 1917''2004) and 21-year-old Joseph Gardner Brown (1912''1993) in a small wooden shack.[15] Brown's name was supposed to have been Joseph James Brown, but his first and middle names were mistakenly reversed on his birth certificate.[16] In his autobiography, Brown stated that he had Chinese and Native American ancestry and that his father was of mixed African-American and Native American descent, while his mother was of mixed African-American and Asian descent.[17][18]

The Brown family lived in poverty in Elko, South Carolina, which was an impoverished town at the time.[9] They later moved to Augusta, Georgia, when James was four or five. His family first settled at one of his aunts' brothels. They later moved into a house shared with another aunt. Brown's mother eventually left the family after a contentious and abusive marriage and moved to New York.

He began singing in talent shows as a young child, first appearing at Augusta's Lenox Theater in 1944, winning the show after singing the ballad "So Long". While in Augusta, Brown performed buck dances for change to entertain troops from Camp Gordon at the start of World War II as their convoys traveled over a canal bridge near his aunt's home. This is where he first heard the legendary blues musician Howlin' Wolf play guitar.[23] He learned to play the piano, guitar, and harmonica during this period. He became inspired to become an entertainer after hearing "Caldonia" by Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five.[24] In his teen years, Brown briefly had a career as a boxer.

At the age of 16, he was convicted of robbery and sent to a juvenile detention center in Toccoa. There, he formed a gospel quartet with four fellow cellmates, including Johnny Terry. Brown met singer Bobby Byrd when the two played against each other in a baseball game outside the detention center. Byrd also discovered that Brown could sing after hearing of "a guy called Music Box", which was Brown's musical nickname at the prison. Byrd has since claimed he and his family helped to secure an early release, which led to Brown promising the court he would "sing for the Lord". Brown was released on a work sponsorship with Toccoa business owner S.C. Lawson. Lawson was impressed with Brown's work ethic and secured his release with a promise to keep him employed for two years. Brown was paroled on June 14, 1952. Brown went on to work with both of Lawson's sons, and would come back to visit the family from time to time throughout his career. Shortly after being paroled he joined the gospel group the Ever-Ready Gospel Singers, featuring Byrd's sister Sarah.

Music career [ edit ] 1954''1961: The Famous Flames [ edit ] Brown eventually joined Bobby Byrd's group in 1954. The group had evolved from the Gospel Starlighters, an a cappella gospel group, to an R&B group with the name the Avons. He reputedly joined the band after one of its members, Troy Collins, died in a car crash.[30] Along with Brown and Byrd, the group consisted of Sylvester Keels, Doyle Oglesby, Fred Pulliam, Nash Knox and Nafloyd Scott. Influenced by R&B groups such as Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, the Orioles and Billy Ward and his Dominoes, the group changed its name, first to the Toccoa Band and then to the Flames.[30] Nafloyd's brother Baroy later joined the group on bass guitar, and Brown, Byrd and Keels switched lead positions and instruments, often playing drums and piano. Johnny Terry later joined, by which time Pulliam and Oglesby had long left.

Berry Trimier became the group's first manager, booking them at parties near college campuses in Georgia and South Carolina. The group had already gained a reputation as a good live act when they renamed themselves the Famous Flames. In 1955, the group had contacted Little Richard while performing in Macon.[35] Richard convinced the group to get in contact with his manager at the time, Clint Brantley, at his nightclub. Brantley agreed to manage them after seeing the group audition. He then sent them to a local radio station to record a demo session, where they performed their own composition "Please, Please, Please", which was inspired when Little Richard wrote the words of the title on a napkin and Brown was determined to make a song out of it.[38][39] The Famous Flames eventually signed with King Records' Federal subsidiary in Cincinnati, Ohio, and issued a re-recorded version of "Please, Please, Please" in March 1956. The song became the group's first R&B hit, selling over a million copies.[40] None of their follow-ups gained similar success. By 1957, Brown had replaced Clint Brantley as manager and hired Ben Bart, chief of Universal Attractions Agency. That year the original Flames broke up, after Bart changed the name of the group to "James Brown and His Famous Flames".

In October 1958, Brown released the ballad "Try Me", which hit number one on the R&B chart in the beginning of 1959, becoming the first of seventeen chart-topping R&B hits.[42] Shortly afterwards, he recruited his first band, led by J. C. Davis, and reunited with Bobby Byrd who joined a revived Famous Flames lineup that included Eugene "Baby" Lloyd Stallworth and Bobby Bennett, with Johnny Terry sometimes coming in as the "fifth Flame". Brown, the Flames, and his entire band debuted at the Apollo Theater on April 24, 1959, opening for Brown's idol, Little Willie John.[30] Federal Records issued two albums credited to Brown and the Famous Flames (both contained previously released singles). By 1960, Brown began multi-tasking in the recording studio involving himself, his singing group, the Famous Flames, and his band, a separate entity from the Flames, sometimes named the James Brown Orchestra or the James Brown Band. That year the band released the top ten R&B hit "(Do the) Mashed Potatoes" on Dade Records, owned by Henry Stone, billed under the pseudonym "Nat Kendrick & the Swans" due to label issues.[44] As a result of its success, King president Syd Nathan shifted Brown's contract from Federal to the parent label, King, which according to Brown in his autobiography meant "you got more support from the company". While with King, Brown, under the Famous Flames lineup, released the hit-filled album Think! and the following year released two albums with the James Brown Band earning second billing. With the Famous Flames, Brown sang lead on several more hits, including "Bewildered", "I'll Go Crazy" and "Think", songs that hinted at his emerging style.[30]

1962''1966: Mr. Dynamite [ edit ] In 1962, Brown and his band scored a hit with their cover of the instrumental "Night Train", becoming a top five R&B single. That same year, the ballads "Lost Someone" and "Baby You're Right", the latter a Joe Tex composition, added to his repertoire and increased his reputation with R&B audiences. On October 24, 1962, Brown financed a live recording of a performance at the Apollo and convinced Syd Nathan to release the album, despite Nathan's belief that no one would buy a live album due to the fact that Brown's singles had already been bought and that live albums were usually bad sellers.

Brown (middle) and the Famous Flames (far left to right, Bobby Bennett, Lloyd Stallworth, and Bobby Byrd), performing live at the Apollo Theater in New York City, 1964Live at the Apollo was released the following June and became an immediate hit, eventually reaching number two on the Top LPs chart and selling over a million copies, staying on the charts for 14 months.[45] In 1963, Brown scored his first top 20 pop hit with his rendition of the standard "Prisoner of Love". He also launched his first label, Try Me Records, which included recordings by the likes of Tammy Montgomery (later to be famous as Tammi Terrell), Johnny & Bill (Famous Flames associates Johnny Terry and Bill Hollings) and the Poets, which was another name used for Brown's backing band.[30] During this time, Brown began an ill-fated two-year relationship with 17-year-old Tammi Terrell when she sang in his revue. Terrell ended their personal and professional relationship because of his abusive behavior.[46]

In 1964, seeking bigger commercial success, Brown and Bobby Byrd formed the production company, Fair Deal, linking the operation to the Mercury imprint, Smash Records.[30][47] King Records, however, fought against this and was granted an injunction preventing Brown from releasing any recordings for the label. Prior to the injunction, Brown had released three vocal singles, including the blues-oriented hit "Out of Sight", which further indicated the direction his music was going to take.[48] Touring throughout the year, Brown and the Famous Flames grabbed more national attention after delivering an explosive show-stopping performance on the live concert film The T.A.M.I. Show. The Flames' dynamic gospel-tinged vocals, polished choreography and timing as well as Brown's energetic dance moves and high-octane singing upstaged the proposed closing act, the Rolling Stones.

Having signed a new deal with King, Brown released his song "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" in 1965, which became his first top ten pop hit and won him his first Grammy Award.[49] Brown also signed a production deal with Loma Records.[50] Later in 1965, he issued "I Got You", which became his second single in a row to reach number-one on the R&B chart and top ten on the pop chart. Brown followed that up with the ballad "It's a Man's Man's Man's World", a third Top 10 Pop hit (No. 1 R&B) which confirmed his stance as a top-ranking performer, especially with R&B audiences from that point on.[49]

1967''1970: Soul Brother No. 1 [ edit ] Brown performing in 1969By 1967, Brown's emerging sound had begun to be defined as funk music. That year he released what some critics cited as the first true funk song, "Cold Sweat", which hit number-one on the R&B chart (Top 10 Pop) and became one of his first recordings to contain a drum break and also the first that featured a harmony that was reduced to a single chord.[51][52] The instrumental arrangements on tracks such as "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" and "Licking Stick-Licking Stick" (both recorded in 1968) and "Funky Drummer" (recorded in 1969) featured a more developed version of Brown's mid-1960s style, with the horn section, guitars, bass and drums meshed together in intricate rhythmic patterns based on multiple interlocking riffs.

Changes in Brown's style that started with "Cold Sweat" also established the musical foundation for Brown's later hits, such as "I Got the Feelin'" (1968) and "Mother Popcorn" (1969). By this time Brown's vocals frequently took the form of a kind of rhythmic declamation, not quite sung but not quite spoken, that only intermittently featured traces of pitch or melody. This would become a major influence on the techniques of rapping, which would come to maturity along with hip hop music in the coming decades. Brown's style of funk in the late 1960s was based on interlocking syncopated parts: strutting bass lines, syncopated drum patterns, and iconic percussive guitar riffs.[53] The main guitar ostinatos for "Ain't It Funky" and "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" (both 1969), are examples of Brown's refinement of New Orleans funk; irresistibly danceable riffs, stripped down to their rhythmic essence. On both recordings, the tonal structure is bare bones. The pattern of attack points is the emphasis, not the pattern of pitches as if the guitar were an African drum or idiophone. Alexander Stewart states that this popular feel was passed along from "New Orleans'--through James Brown's music, to the popular music of the 1970s".[54] Those same tracks were later resurrected by countless hip-hop musicians from the 1970s onward. As a result, James Brown remains to this day the world's most sampled recording artist, but, two tracks that he wrote, are also synonymous with modern dance, especially with house music, jungle music, and drum and bass music, (which were sped up exponentially, in the latter two genres).

"Bring it Up" has an Afro-Cuban guajeo-like structure. All three of these guitar riffs are based on an onbeat/offbeat structure. Stewart says that it "is different from a time line (such as clave and tresillo) in that it is not an exact pattern, but more of a loose organizing principle."[55]

It was around this time as the musician's popularity increased that he acquired the nickname "Soul Brother No. 1", after failing to win the title "King of Soul" from Solomon Burke during a Chicago gig two years prior.[56] Brown's recordings during this period influenced musicians across the industry, most notably groups such as Sly and the Family Stone, Funkadelic, Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Booker T. & the M.G.s as well as vocalists such as Edwin Starr, David Ruffin and Dennis Edwards from the Temptations, and Michael Jackson, who, throughout his career, cited Brown as his ultimate idol.[57]

Brown's band during this period employed musicians and arrangers who had come up through the jazz tradition. He was noted for his ability as a bandleader and songwriter to blend the simplicity and drive of R&B with the rhythmic complexity and precision of jazz. Trumpeter Lewis Hamlin and saxophonist/keyboardist Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis (the successor to previous bandleader Nat Jones) led the band. Guitarist Jimmy Nolen provided percussive, deceptively simple riffs for each song, and Maceo Parker's prominent saxophone solos provided a focal point for many performances. Other members of Brown's band included stalwart Famous Flames singer and sideman Bobby Byrd, trombonist Fred Wesley, drummers John "Jabo" Starks, Clyde Stubblefield and Melvin Parker, saxophonist St. Clair Pinckney, guitarist Alphonso "Country" Kellum and bassist Bernard Odum.

In addition to a torrent of singles and studio albums, Brown's output during this period included two more successful live albums, Live at the Garden (1967) and Live at the Apollo, Volume II (1968), and a 1968 television special, James Brown: Man to Man. His music empire expanded along with his influence on the music scene. As Brown's music empire grew, his desire for financial and artistic independence grew as well. Brown bought radio stations during the late 1960s, including WRDW in his native Augusta, where he shined shoes as a boy.[49] In November 1967, James Brown purchased radio station WGYW in Knoxville, Tennessee, for a reported $75,000, according to the January 20, 1968 Record World magazine. The call letters were changed to WJBE reflecting his initials. WJBE began on January 15, 1968, and broadcast a Rhythm & Blues format. The station slogan was "WJBE 1430 Raw Soul". Brown also bought WEBB in Baltimore in 1970.

Brown branched out to make several recordings with musicians outside his own band. In an attempt to appeal to the older, more affluent, and predominantly white adult contemporary audience, Brown recorded Gettin' Down To It (1969) and Soul on Top (1970)'--two albums consisting mostly of romantic ballads, jazz standards, and homologous reinterpretations of his earlier hits'--with the Dee Felice Trio and the Louie Bellson Orchestra. In 1968, he recorded a number of funk-oriented tracks with the Dapps, a white Cincinnati band, including the hit "I Can't Stand Myself". He also released three albums of Christmas music with his own band.

1970''2006: Godfather of Soul [ edit ] In March 1970, most of Brown's mid-to-late 1960s road band walked out on him due to financial disputes, a development augured by the prior disbandment of the Famous Flames singing group for the same reason in 1968. Brown and erstwhile Famous Flames singer Bobby Byrd (who chose to remain in the band during this tumultuous period as co-frontman, effectively serving as a proto-hype man in live performances) subsequently recruited several members of the Pacemakers, a Cincinnati-based ensemble that included bassist Bootsy Collins and his brother, guitarist Phelps "Catfish" Collins; augmented by the remaining members of the 1960s road band (including Fred Wesley, who rejoined Brown's outfit in December 1970) and other newer musicians, they would form the nucleus of the J.B.'s, Brown's new backing ensemble. Shortly following their first performance together, the band entered the studio to record the Brown-Byrd composition, "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine"; the song '--with its off the beat play Brown called "The One"'--[58] and other contemporaneous singles would further cement Brown's influence in the nascent genre of funk music. This iteration of the J.B.'s dissolved after a March 1971 European tour (documented on the 1991 archival release Love Power Peace) due to additional money disputes and Bootsy Collins's use of LSD; a new lineup of the J.B.'s coalesced around Wesley, St. Clair Pinckney and drummer John Starks.

Brown with disc jockey Lars Jacob after a concert in Tampa in 1972In 1971, Brown began recording for Polydor Records. Many of his sidemen and supporting players, including Fred Wesley & the J.B.'s, Bobby Byrd, Lyn Collins, Vicki Anderson and former rival Hank Ballard, released records on the People label.

During the 1972 presidential election, James Brown openly proclaimed his support of Richard Nixon for reelection to the presidency over Democratic candidate George McGovern.[59] The decision led to a boycott of his performances and, according to Brown, cost him a big portion of his black audience. As a result, Brown's record sales and concerts in the United States reached a lull in 1973 as he failed to land a number-one R&B single that year. That year he also faced problems with the IRS for failure to pay back taxes, charging he hadn't paid upwards of $4.5 million; five years earlier, the IRS had claimed he owed nearly $2 million.[61]

Brown performing in 1973In 1973, Brown provided the score for the blaxploitation film Black Caesar. In 1974 he returned to the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts with "The Payback", with the parent album reaching the same spot on the album charts; he would reach No. 1 two more times in 1974, with "My Thang" and "Papa Don't Take No Mess".[citation needed ]

"Papa Don't Take No Mess" would prove to be his final single to reach the No. 1 spot on the R&B charts. His other Top Ten R&B hits during this latter period included "Funky President" (R&B No. 4) and "Get Up Offa That Thing" (R&B No. 4).

James Brown (1977)Although his records were mainstays of the vanguard New York underground disco scene (exemplified by DJs such as David Mancuso and Francis Grasso) from 1969 onwards, Brown did not consciously yield to the trend until 1975's Sex Machine Today. By 1977, he was no longer a dominant force in R&B. After "Get Up Offa That Thing", thirteen of Brown's late 1970s recordings for Polydor failed to reach the Top 10 of the R&B chart, with only "Bodyheat" in 1976 and the disco-oriented "It's Too Funky in Here" in 1979 reaching the R&B Top 15 and the ballad "Kiss in '77" reaching the Top 20. After 1976's "Bodyheat", he also failed to appear on the Billboard Hot 100. As a result, Brown's concert attendance began dropping and his reported disputes with the IRS caused his business empire to collapse. In addition, several longtime bandmates (including Wesley and Maceo Parker) had gradually pivoted to Parliament-Funkadelic, which reached its critical and commercial apogee in the mid-to-late 1970s. The emergence of disco also forestalled Brown's success on the R&B charts because its slicker, more commercial style had superseded his rawer, one-chord funk productions.

By the release of 1979's The Original Disco Man, Brown seldom contributed to the songwriting and production processes, leaving most of it to producer Brad Shapiro; this resulted in the song "It's Too Funky in Here" becoming Brown's most successful single in this period. After two more albums failed to chart, Brown left Polydor in 1981. It was around this time that Brown changed the name of his band from the J.B.'s to the Soul Generals (or Soul G's). The band retained that name until his death.

Despite Brown's declining record sales, promoters Gary LoConti and Jim Rissmiller helped Brown sell out a string of residency shows at the Reseda Country Club in Los Angeles in early 1982. Brown's compromised commercial standing prevented him from charging a large fee. However, the great success of these shows marked a turning point for Brown's career, and soon he was back on top in Hollywood. Movies followed, including appearances in Doctor Detroit (1983) and Rocky IV (1985). He also guest-starred in the Miami Vice episode "Missing Hours" (1987). Previously, Brown appeared alongside a litany of other Black musical luminaries in The Blues Brothers (1980).

In 1984, he teamed with rap musician Afrika Bambaataa on the song "Unity". A year later he signed with Scotti Brothers Records and issued the moderately successful album Gravity in 1986 with a popular song "How Do You Stop". It included Brown's final Top Ten pop hit, "Living in America", marking his first Top 40 entry since 1974 and his first Top Ten pop entry since 1968. Produced and written by Dan Hartman, it was also featured prominently on the Rocky IV film and soundtrack. Brown performed the song in the film at Apollo Creed's final fight, shot in the Ziegfeld Room at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and was credited in the film as the Godfather of Soul. 1986 also saw the publication of his autobiography, James Brown: The Godfather of Soul, co-written with Bruce Tucker. In 1987, Brown won the Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Living in America".

In 1988, Brown worked with the production team Full Force on the new jack swing-influenced I'm Real. It spawned his final two Top 10 R&B hits, "I'm Real" and "Static", which peaked at No. 2 and No. 5, respectively. Meanwhile, the drum break from the second version of the original 1969 hit "Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose" (the recording included on the compilation album In the Jungle Groove) became so popular at hip hop dance parties (especially for breakdance) during the early 1980s that hip hop pioneer Kurtis Blow called the song "the national anthem of hip hop".[62]

Brown performing in 1998After his stint in prison during the late 1980s, Brown met Larry Fridie and Thomas Hart who produced the first James Brown biopic, entitled James Brown: The Man, the Message, the Music, released in 1992.[63] He returned to music with the album Love Over-Due in 1991. It included the single "(So Tired of Standing Still We Got to) Move On", which peaked at No. 48 on the R&B chart. His former record label Polydor also released the four-CD box set Star Time, spanning Brown's career to date. Brown's release from prison also prompted his former record labels to reissue his albums on CD, featuring additional tracks and commentary by music critics and historians. That same year, Brown appeared on rapper MC Hammer's video for "Too Legit to Quit". Hammer had been noted, alongside Big Daddy Kane, for bringing Brown's unique stage shows and their own energetic dance moves to the hip-hop generation; both listed Brown as their idol. Both musicians also sampled his work, with Hammer having sampled the rhythms from "Super Bad" for his song "Here Comes the Hammer", from his best-selling album Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em. Big Daddy Kane sampled many times. Before the year was over, Brown''who had immediately returned to work with his band following his release''organized a pay-per-view concert following a show at Los Angeles' Wiltern Theatre, that was well received.

On June 10, 1991, James Brown and a star-filled line up performed before a crowd at the Wiltern Theatre for a live pay-per-view at-home audience. James Brown: Living in America '' Live! was the brainchild of Indiana producer Danny Hubbard. It featuredM.C. Hammer as well as Bell Biv Devoe, Heavy D & the Boys, En Vogue, C+C Music Factory, Quincy Jones, Sherman Hemsley and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Ice-T, Tone Loc and Kool Moe Dee performed paying homage to Brown. This was Brown's first public performance since his parole from the South Carolina prison system in February. He had served two-and-a-half years of two concurrent six-year sentences for aggravated assault and other felonies.

Brown continued making recordings. In 1993 his album Universal James was released. It included his final Billboard charting single, "Can't Get Any Harder", which peaked at No. 76 on the US R&B chart and reached No. 59 on the UK chart. Its brief charting in the UK was probably due to the success of a remixed version of "I Feel Good" featuring Dakeyne. Brown also released the singles "How Long" and "Georgia-Lina", which failed to chart. In 1995, Brown returned to the Apollo and recorded Live at the Apollo 1995. It included a studio track titled "Respect Me", which was released as a single; again it failed to chart. Brown's final studio albums, I'm Back and The Next Step, were released in 1998 and 2002 respectively. I'm Back featured the song "Funk on Ah Roll", which peaked at No. 40 in the UK but did not chart in his native US. The Next Step included Brown's final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In". Both albums were produced by Derrick Monk. Brown's concert success, however, remained unabated and he kept up with a grueling schedule throughout the remainder of his life, living up to his previous nickname, "The Hardest Working Man in Show Business", in spite of his advanced age. In 2003, Brown participated in the PBS American Masters television documentary James Brown: Soul Survivor, which was directed by Jeremy Marre.

Brown performed in the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show in 1997.

Brown during the NBA All-Star Game jam session, 2001Brown celebrated his status as an icon by appearing in a variety of entertainment and sports events, including an appearance on the WCW pay-per-view event, SuperBrawl X, where he danced alongside wrestler Ernest "the Cat" Miller, who based his character on Brown, during his in-ring skit with the Maestro. Brown then appeared in Tony Scott's short film Beat the Devil in 2001. He was featured alongside Clive Owen, Gary Oldman, Danny Trejo and Marilyn Manson. Brown also made a cameo appearance in the 2002 Jackie Chan film The Tuxedo, in which Chan was required to finish Brown's act after having accidentally knocked out the singer. In 2002, Brown appeared in Undercover Brother, playing himself.

Brown performing in June 2005In 2004, Brown opened for the Red Hot Chili Peppers at several Hyde Park concerts in London.[64] The beginning of 2005 saw the publication of his second book, I Feel Good: A Memoir of a Life of Soul, written with Marc Eliot. In February and March, he participated in recording sessions for an intended studio album with Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Ellis, and other longtime collaborators. Though he lost interest in the album, which remains unreleased, a track from the sessions, "Gut Bucket", appeared on a compilation CD included with the August 2006 issue of MOJO.[65] He appeared at Edinburgh 50,000 '' The Final Push, the final Live 8 concert on July 6, 2005, where he performed a duet with British pop star Will Young on "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag". In the Black Eyed Peas album "Monkey Business", Brown was featured on a track called "They Don't Want Music". The previous week he had performed a duet with another British pop star, Joss Stone, on the United Kingdom chat show Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. In 2006, Brown continued his Seven Decades of Funk World Tour. His final major U.S. performance was in San Francisco on August 20, 2006, as headliner at the Festival of the Golden Gate (Foggfest) on the Great Meadow at Fort Mason. The following day, he performed at an 800-seat campus theatre at Humboldt State University in Arcata, California. His last shows were greeted with positive reviews, and one of his final concert appearances at the Irish Oxegen festival in Punchestown in 2006 included a record crowd of 80,000 people. He played a full concert as part of the BBC's Electric Proms on October 27, 2006, at The Roundhouse,[66] supported by the Zutons, with special appearances from Max Beasley and the Sugababes.

Brown's last televised appearance was at his induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame in November 2006, before his death the following month. Before his death, Brown had been scheduled to perform a duet with singer Annie Lennox on the song "Vengeance" for her new album Venus, which was released in 2007.

Artistry [ edit ] Brown's most famous MC was Danny Ray (center), who was with him for over 30 years.As a vocalist, Brown performed in a forceful shout style derived from gospel music. Meanwhile, "his rhythmic grunts and expressive shrieks harked back farther still to ring shouts, work songs, and field cries", according to the Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History (1996): "He reimported the rhythmic complexity from which rhythm and blues, under the dual pressure of rock 'n' roll and pop, had progressively fallen away since its birth from jazz and blues."[67]

For many years, Brown's touring show was one of the most extravagant productions in American popular music. At the time of Brown's death, his band included three guitarists, two bass guitar players, two drummers, three horns and a percussionist.[68] The bands that he maintained during the late 1960s and 1970s were of comparable size, and the bands also included a three-piece amplified string section that played during the ballads.[69] Brown employed between 40 and 50 people for the James Brown Revue, and members of the revue traveled with him in a bus to cities and towns all over the country, performing upwards of 330 shows a year with almost all of the shows as one-nighters.[70][71]

Concert style [ edit ] Before James Brown appeared on stage, his personal MC gave him an elaborate introduction accompanied by drumrolls, as the MC worked in Brown's various sobriquets along with the names of many of his hit songs. The introduction by Fats Gonder, captured on Brown's 1963 album Live at the Apollo is a representative example:

So now ladies and gentlemen it is "Star Time". Are you ready for "Star Time?" Thank you and thank you very kindly. It is indeed a great pleasure to present to you at this particular time, national[ly] and international[ly] known as "The Hardest-Working Man in Show Business", the man that sings "I'll Go Crazy"..."Try Me"..."You've Got the Power"..."Think"..."If You Want Me"..."I Don't Mind"..."Bewildered"... the million dollar seller, "Lost Someone"... the very latest release, "Night Train"... let's everybody "Shout and Shimmy"... "Mr. Dynamite", the amazing "Mr. Please Please" himself, the star of the show, James Brown and the Famous Flames!![72]

Brown and MC Danny Ray during cape routine, BBC Electric Proms '06 concertJames Brown's performances were famous for their intensity and length. His own stated goal was to "give people more than what they came for '-- make them tired, 'cause that's what they came for.'"[73] Brown's concert repertoire consisted mostly of his own hits and recent songs, with a few R&B covers mixed in. Brown danced vigorously as he sang, working popular dance steps such as the Mashed Potato into his routine along with dramatic leaps, splits and slides. In addition, his horn players and singing group (The Famous Flames) typically performed choreographed dance routines, and later incarnations of the Revue included backup dancers. Male performers in the Revue were required to wear tuxedoes and cummerbunds long after more casual concert wear became the norm among the younger musical acts. Brown's own extravagant outfits and his elaborate processed hairdo completed the visual impression. A James Brown concert typically included a performance by a featured vocalist, such as Vicki Anderson or Marva Whitney, and an instrumental feature for the band, which sometimes served as the opening act for the show.

A trademark feature of Brown's stage shows, usually during the song "Please, Please, Please", involved Brown dropping to his knees while clutching the microphone stand in his hands, prompting the show's longtime MC, Danny Ray, to come out, drape a cape over Brown's shoulders and escort him off the stage after he had worked himself to exhaustion during his performance. As Brown was escorted off the stage by the MC, Brown's vocal group, the Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Lloyd Stallworth, and Bobby Bennett), continued singing the background vocals "Please, please don't go-oh".[74] Brown would then shake off the cape and stagger back to the microphone to perform an encore. Brown's routine was inspired by a similar one used by the professional wrestler Gorgeous George, as well as Little Richard.[72][75][76] In his 2005 autobiography I Feel Good: A Memoir in a Life of Soul, Brown, who was a fan of Gorgeous George, credited the wrestler as the inspiration for both his cape routine and concert attire, stating, "Seeing him on TV helped create the James Brown you see on stage".[77] Brown performs a version of the cape routine in the film of the T.A.M.I. Show (1964) in which he and the Famous Flames upstaged the Rolling Stones, and over the closing credits of the film Blues Brothers 2000. The Police refer to "James Brown on the T.A.M.I. Show" in their 1980 song "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around".

Band leadership [ edit ] Brown demanded extreme discipline, perfection and precision from his musicians and dancers '' performers in his Revue showed up for rehearsals and members wore the right "uniform" or "costume" for concert performances.[78] During an interview conducted by Terri Gross during the NPR segment "Fresh Air" with Maceo Parker, a former saxophonist in Brown's band for most of the 1960s and part of the 1970s and 1980s, Parker offered his experience with the discipline that Brown demanded of the band:

You gotta be on time. You gotta have your uniform. Your stuff's got to be intact. You gotta have the bow tie. You got to have it. You can't come up without the bow tie. You cannot come up without a cummerbund ... [The] patent leather shoes we were wearing at the time gotta be greased. You just gotta have this stuff. This is what [Brown expected] ... [Brown] bought the costumes. He bought the shoes. And if for some reason [the band member decided] to leave the group, [Brown told the person to] please leave my uniforms . ...

Brown also had a practice of directing, correcting and assessing fines on members of his band who broke his rules, such as wearing unshined shoes, dancing out of sync or showing up late on stage.[80] During some of his concert performances, Brown danced in front of his band with his back to the audience as he slid across the floor, flashing hand signals and splaying his pulsating fingers to the beat of the music. Although audiences thought Brown's dance routine was part of his act, this practice was actually his way of pointing to the offending member of his troupe who played or sang the wrong note or committed some other infraction. Brown used his splayed fingers and hand signals to alert the offending person of the fine that person must pay to him for breaking his rules.[81]

Brown's demands on his support acts could be harsh. As Fred Wesley recalled of his time as musical director of the JBs, if Brown felt intimidated by a support act he would try to "undermine their performances by shortening their sets without notice, demanding that they not do certain showstopping songs, and even insisting on doing the unthinkable, playing drums on some of their songs. A sure set killer."[82]

[ edit ] Education advocacy and humanitarianism [ edit ] Brown's main social activism was in preserving the need for education among youths, influenced by his own troubled childhood and his being forced to drop out of the seventh grade for wearing "insufficient clothes". Due to heavy dropout rates in the 1960s, Brown released the pro-education song, "Don't Be a Drop-Out". Royalties of the song were donated to dropout-prevention charity programs. The success of this led to Brown meeting with President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House. Johnson cited Brown for being a positive role model to the youth. In 1968 James Brown endorsed Hubert Humphrey,[83] but later Brown gained the confidence of President Richard Nixon, to whom he found he had to explain the plight of Black Americans.[84]

Throughout the remainder of his life, Brown made public speeches in schools and continued to advocate the importance of education in school. Upon filing his will in 2002, Brown advised that most of the money in his estate go into creating the I Feel Good, Inc. Trust to benefit disadvantaged children and provide scholarships for his grandchildren. His final single, "Killing Is Out, School Is In", advocated against murders of young children in the streets. Brown often gave out money and other items to children while traveling to his childhood hometown of Augusta. A week before his death, while looking gravely ill, Brown gave out toys and turkeys to kids at an Atlanta orphanage, something he had done several times over the years.

Civil rights and self-reliance [ edit ] Though Brown performed at benefit rallies for civil rights organizations in the mid-1960s, Brown often shied away from discussing civil rights in his songs in fear of alienating his crossover audience. In 1968, in response to a growing urge of anti-war advocacy during the Vietnam War, Brown recorded the song, "America Is My Home". In the song, Brown performed a rap, advocating patriotism and exhorting listeners to "stop pitying yoursel[ves] and get up and fight". At the time of the song's release, Brown had been participating in performing for troops stationed in Vietnam.

The Boston Garden concert [ edit ] On April 5, 1968, a day after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, Brown provided a free citywide televised concert at the Boston Garden to maintain public order and calm concerned Boston residents (over the objections of the police chief, who wanted to call off the concert, which he thought would incite violence).[49] The show was later released on DVD as Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968. According to the documentary The Night James Brown Saved Boston, then-mayor Kevin White had strongly restrained the Boston police from cracking down on minor violence and protests after the assassination, while religious and community leaders worked to keep tempers from flaring.[85] White arranged to have Brown's performance broadcast multiple times on Boston's public television station, WGBH, thus keeping potential rioters off the streets, watching the concert for free.[85] Angered by not being told of this, Brown demanded $60,000 for "gate" fees (money he thought would be lost from ticket sales on account of the concert being broadcast for free) and then threatened to go public about the secret arrangement when the city balked at paying up afterwards, news of which would have been a political death blow to White and spark riots of its own.[85] White eventually lobbied the behind-the-scenes power-brokering group known as "The Vault" to come up with money for Brown's gate fee and other social programs, contributing $100,000. Brown received $15,000 from them via the city. White also persuaded management at the Garden to give up their share of receipts to make up the differences.[85] Following this successful performance, Brown was counseled by President Johnson to urge cities ravaged from riots following King's assassination to not resort to violence, telling them to "cool it, there's another way".

Responding to pressure from black activists, including H. Rap Brown, to take a bigger stance on their issues and from footage of black on black crime committed in inner cities, Brown wrote the lyrics to the song "Say It Loud '' I'm Black and I'm Proud", which his bandleader Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis accompanied with a musical composition. Released late that summer, the song's lyrics helped to make it an anthem for the civil rights movement. Brown only performed the song sporadically following its initial release and later stated he had regrets about recording it, saying in 1984, "Now 'Say It Loud '' I'm Black and I'm Proud' has done more for the black race than any other record, but if I had my choice, I wouldn't have done it, because I don't like defining anyone by race. To teach race is to teach separatism." In his autobiography he stated:

The song is obsolete now ... But it was necessary to teach pride then, and I think the song did a lot of good for a lot of people ... People called "Black and Proud" militant and angry '' maybe because of the line about dying on your feet instead of living on your knees. But really, if you listen to it, it sounds like a children's song. That's why I had children in it, so children who heard it could grow up feeling pride ... The song cost me a lot of my crossover audience. The racial makeup at my concerts was mostly black after that. I don't regret it, though, even if it was misunderstood.

In 1969, Brown recorded two more songs of social commentary, "World" and "I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing", the latter song pleading for equal opportunity and self-reliance rather than entitlement. In 1970, in response to some black leaders for not being outspoken enough, he recorded "Get Up, Get into It, Get Involved" and "Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing". In 1971, he began touring Africa, including Zambia and Nigeria. He was made "freeman of the city" in Lagos, Nigeria, by Oba Adeyinka Oyekan, for his "influence on black people all over the world". With his company, James Brown Enterprises, Brown helped to provide jobs for blacks in business in the communities. As the 1970s continued, Brown continued to record songs of social commentary, most prominently 1972's "King Heroin" and the two-part ballad "Public Enemy", which dealt with drug addiction.

Political views [ edit ] During the 1968 presidential campaign, Brown endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hubert Humphrey and appeared with Humphrey at political rallies. Brown was labeled an "Uncle Tom" for supporting Humphrey and also for releasing the pro-American funk song, "America Is My Home", in which Brown had lambasted protesters of the Vietnam War as well as the politics of pro-black activists. Brown began supporting Republican president Richard Nixon after being invited to perform at Nixon's inaugural ball in January 1969. Brown's endorsement of Nixon during the 1972 presidential election negatively impacted his career during that period with several national Black organizations boycotting his records and protesting at his concert shows; a November 1972 show in Cincinnati was picketed with signs saying, "James Brown: Nixon's Clown". Brown initially was invited to perform at a Youth Concert following Nixon's inauguration in January 1973 but bailed out due to the backlash he suffered from supporting Nixon. Brown joined fellow black entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., who faced similar backlash, to back out of the concert. Brown blamed it on "fatigue". Brown later reversed his support of Nixon and composed the song, "You Can Have Watergate (Just Gimme Some Bucks And I'll Be Straight)" as a result. After Nixon resigned from office, Brown composed the 1974 hit, "Funky President (People It's Bad)", right after Gerald Ford took Nixon's place. Brown later supported Democratic President Jimmy Carter, attending one of Carter's inaugural balls in 1977.[92] Brown also openly supported President Ronald Reagan's reelection in 1984.[93]

Brown stated he was neither Democratic nor Republican despite his support of Republican presidents such as Nixon and Reagan as well as Democratic presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Jimmy Carter.[94] In 1999, when being interviewed by Rolling Stone, the magazine asked him to name a hero in the 20th century; Brown mentioned John F. Kennedy and then-96-year-old U.S. Senator, and former Dixiecrat, Strom Thurmond, stating "when the young whippersnappers get out of line, whether Democratic or Republican, an old man can walk up and say 'Wait a minute, son, it goes this way.' And that's great for our country. He's like a grandfather to me."[95] In 2003, Brown was the featured attraction of a Washington D.C. fundraiser for the National Republican Senatorial Committee.[96] Following the deaths of Ronald Reagan and his friend Ray Charles, Brown said to CNN, "I'm kind of in an uproar. I love the country and I got '' you know I've been around a long time, through many presidents and everything. So after losing Mr. Reagan, who I knew very well, then Mr. Ray Charles, who I worked with and lived with like, all our life, we had a show together in Oakland many, many years ago and it's like you found the placard."[97] Despite his contrarian political views, Brown mentored black activist Rev. Al Sharpton during the 1970s.[98]

Personal life [ edit ] In 1962, Tammi Terrell joined the James Brown Revue. Brown became sexually involved with Terrell'--even though she was only 17'--in a relationship that continued until she escaped his physical abuse.[99] Bobby Bennett, former member of the Famous Flames, told Rolling Stone about the abuse he witnessed: "He beat Tammi Terrell terrible", said Bennett. "She was bleeding, shedding blood." Terrell, who died in 1970, was Brown's girlfriend before she became famous as Marvin Gaye's singing partner in the mid-1960s. "Tammi left him because she didn't want her butt whipped", said Bennett, who also claimed he saw Brown kick one pregnant girlfriend down a flight of stairs.[100]

Marriages and children [ edit ] Brown was married three times. His first marriage was to Velma Warren in 1953, and they had one son together.[101] Over a decade later, the couple had separated, and the final divorce decree was issued in 1969. They maintained a close friendship that lasted until Brown's death. Brown's second marriage was to Deidre "Deedee" Jenkins, on October 22, 1970. They had two daughters together. By 1974 they were separated after what his daughter describes as years of domestic abuse,[102] and the final divorce decree was issued on January 10, 1981. His third marriage was to Adrienne Lois Rodriguez (March 9, 1950 '' January 6, 1996) in 1984. It was a contentious marriage that made headlines due to domestic abuse complaints.[104][105] Rodriguez filed for divorce in 1988, "citing years of cruelty treatment", but they reconciled.[106] Less than a year after Rodriguez died in 1996, Brown hired Tomi Rae Hynie to be a background singer for his band; she later claimed that she was his fourth wife.[107]

On December 23, 2002, Brown, 69, and Hynie, 33, held a wedding ceremony that was officiated by the Rev. Larry Flyer. Following Brown's death, controversy surrounded the circumstances of the marriage, with Brown's attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, reporting that the marriage was not valid; Hynie was still married to Javed Ahmed, a man from Bangladesh. Hynie claimed Ahmed married her to obtain residency through a Green Card and that the marriage was annulled but the annulment did not occur until April 2004.[108][109] In an attempt to prove her marriage to Brown was valid, she provided a marriage certificate as proof of her marriage to Brown during an interview on CNN with Larry King, but she did not provide King with court records pointing to an annulment of her marriage to Brown or to Ahmed.[110] According to Dallas, Brown was angry and hurt that Hynie had concealed her prior marriage from him and Brown moved to file for annulment from Hynie.[111] Dallas added that though Hynie's marriage to Ahmed was annulled after she married Brown, the Brown''Hynie marriage was not valid under South Carolina law because Brown and Hynie did not remarry after the annulment.[110][112] In August 2003, Brown took out a full-page public notice in Variety featuring Hynie, James II and himself on vacation at Disney World to announce that he and Hynie were going their separate ways.[113][114] On January 27, 2015, a judge ruled Hynie as Brown's legal widow and that she was now Brown's widow for purposes of determining the distribution of Brown's estate.[107][115] The decision was based on the grounds that Hynie's previous marriage was invalid and that James Brown had abandoned his efforts to annul his own marriage to Hynie.[115] On June 17, 2020, a South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Hynie was not legally married to Brown due to her failure to annul her previous marriage.[116][117][118] The court also officially ruled that she has no right to any part of his estate.[116][119][117][120][118]

Brown had numerous children and acknowledged nine of them, including five sons'--Teddy (1954''1973), Terry, Larry, Micheal Brown and James Joseph Brown Jr.'--and six daughters: LaRhonda Petitt, Dr. Yamma Noyola Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas, Cinnamon Brown, Jeanette Bellinger and Venisha Brown (1964''2018).[121] Brown also had eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Brown's eldest son, Teddy, died in a car crash on June 14, 1973.[122] According to an August 22, 2007, article published in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, DNA tests indicate that Brown also fathered at least three extramarital children. The first one of them to be identified is LaRhonda Pettit (born 1962), a retired flight attendant and teacher who lives in Houston.[123] Another alleged son, Michael Deon Brown, was born in September 1968 to Mary Florence Brown, and despite pleading no contest to a paternity suit brought against him in 1983, Brown never officially acknowledged Michael as his son.[124] During contesting of Brown's will, another of the Brown family attorneys, Debra Opri, revealed to Larry King that Brown wanted a DNA test performed after his death to confirm the paternity of James Brown Jr. (born 2001)'--not for Brown's sake but for the sake of the other family members.[125] In April 2007, Hynie selected a guardian ad litem whom she wanted appointed by the court to represent her son, James Brown Jr., in the paternity proceedings.[126] James Brown Jr. was confirmed to be his biological son.[127]

Drug abuse [ edit ] For most of his career, Brown had a strict drug- and alcohol-free policy for any member in his entourage, including band members, and would fire people who disobeyed orders, particularly those who used or abused drugs. Although early members of the Famous Flames were fired for using alcohol, Brown often served a highball consisting of Delaware Punch and moonshine at his St. Albans, Queens, house in the mid-1960s.[128] Some of the original members of Brown's 1970s band, the J.B.'s, including Catfish and Bootsy Collins, intentionally took LSD during a performance in 1971, causing Brown to fire them after the show because he had suspected them of being on drugs all along.[129]

Aide Bob Patton has asserted that he accidentally shared a PCP-laced cannabis joint with Brown in the mid-1970s and "hallucinated for hours", although Brown "talked about it as if it was only marijuana he was smoking".[128] By the mid-1980s, it was widely alleged that Brown was using drugs, with Vicki Anderson confirming to journalist Barney Hoskyns that Brown's regular use of PCP (colloquially known as "angel dust") "began before 1982".[128] After he met and later married Adrienne Rodriguez in 1984, she and Brown began using PCP together.[130] This drug usage often resulted in violent outbursts from him, and he was arrested several times for domestic violence against Rodriguez while high on the drug.[131] By January 1988, Brown faced four criminal charges within a 12-month span relating to driving, PCP, and gun possession.[106] After an April 1988 arrest for domestic abuse, Brown went on the CNN program Sonya Live in L.A. with host Sonya Friedman. The interview became notorious for Brown's irreverent demeanor, with some asserting that Brown was high.[133]

One of Brown's former mistresses recalled in a GQ magazine article on Brown some years after his death that Brown would smoke PCP ("until that got hard to find") and cocaine, mixed with tobacco in Kool cigarettes. He also engaged in the off-label use of sildenafil, maintaining that it gave him "extra energy".[134] Once, while traveling in a car under the influence of PCP (which he continued to procure dependent on its availability), Brown alleged that passing trees contained psychotronic surveillance technology.[128]

In January 1998, he spent a week in rehab to deal with an addiction to unspecified prescription drugs. A week after his release, he was arrested for an unlawful use of a handgun and possession of cannabis.[135] Prior to his death in December 2006, when Brown entered Emory University Hospital, traces of cocaine were found in the singer's urine.[136] His widow suggested Brown would "do crack" with a female acquaintance.[136]

Theft and assault convictions [ edit ] Brown's personal life was marred by numerous brushes with the law. At the age of 16, he was convicted of theft and served three years in juvenile prison. During a concert held at Club 15 in Macon, Georgia, in 1963, while Otis Redding was performing alongside his former band Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers, Brown, reportedly wielding two shotguns,[137] tried to shoot his musical rival Joe Tex.[138] The incident led to multiple people being shot and stabbed.[139] Since Brown was still on parole at the time, he relied on his agent Clint Brantley "and a few thousand dollars to make the situation disappear".[139] According to Jenkins, "seven people got shot", and after the shootout ended, a man appeared and gave "each one of the injured a hundred dollars apiece not to carry it no further and not to talk to the press".[139] Brown was never charged for the incident.

On July 16, 1978, after performing at the Apollo, Brown was arrested for reportedly failing to turn in records from one of his radio stations after the station was forced to file for bankruptcy.[61]

Brown was arrested on April 3, 1988, for assault,[141] and again in May 1988 on drug and weapons charges, and again on September 24, 1988, following a high-speed car chase on Interstate 20 near the Georgia''South Carolina state border. He was convicted of carrying an unlicensed pistol and assaulting a police officer, along with various drug-related and driving offenses. Although he was sentenced to six years in prison, he was eventually released on parole on February 27, 1991, after serving two years of his sentence. Brown's FBI file, released to The Washington Post in 2007 under the Freedom of Information Act,[142] related Brown's claim that the high-speed chase did not occur as claimed by the police, and that local police shot at his car several times during an incident of police harassment and assaulted him after his arrest.[143] Local authorities found no merit to Brown's accusations.

In 1998, a woman named Mary Simons accused Brown in a civil suit of holding her captive for three days, demanding oral sex and firing a gun in his office; Simons' charge was eventually dismissed.[139] In another civil suit, filed by former background singer Lisa Rushton alleged that between 1994 and 1999, Brown allegedly demanded sexual favors and when refused, would cut off her pay and kept her offstage.[139] She also claimed Brown would "place a hand on her buttocks and loudly told her in a crowded restaurant to not look or speak to any other man besides himself;" Rushton eventually withdrew her lawsuit.[139] In yet another civil suit, a woman named Lisa Agbalaya, who worked for Brown, said the singer would tell her he had "bull testicles", handed her a pair of zebra-print underwear, told her to wear them while he massaged her with oil, and fired her after she refused.[139] A Los Angeles jury cleared the singer of sexual harassment but found him liable for wrongful termination.[139]

The police were summoned to Brown's residence on July 3, 2000, after he was accused of charging at an electric company repairman with a steak knife when the repairman visited Brown's house to investigate a complaint about having no lights at the residence.[144] In 2003, Brown was pardoned by the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services for past crimes that he was convicted of committing in South Carolina.[145]

Domestic violence arrests [ edit ] Brown was repeatedly arrested for domestic violence. On four occasions between 1987 and 1995, Brown was arrested on charges of assault against his third wife, Adrienne Rodriguez. In one incident, Rodriguez reported to authorities that Brown beat her with an iron pipe and shot at her car.[106][146] Rodriguez was hospitalized after the last assault in October 1995, but charges were dropped after she died in January 1996.[146]

In January 2004, Brown was arrested in South Carolina on a domestic violence charge after Tomi Rae Hynie accused him of pushing her to the floor during an argument at their home, where she suffered scratches and bruises to her right arm and hip.[147] In June, Brown pleaded no contest to the domestic violence incident, but served no jail time. Instead, Brown was required to forfeit a US$1,087 bond as punishment.[148]

Rape accusation [ edit ] In January 2005, a woman named Jacque Hollander filed a lawsuit against James Brown, which stemmed from an alleged 1988 rape. When the case was initially heard before a judge in 2002, Hollander's claims against Brown were dismissed by the court as the limitations period for filing the suit had expired. Hollander claimed that stress from the alleged assault later caused her to contract Graves' disease, a thyroid condition. Hollander claimed that the incident took place in South Carolina while she was employed by Brown as a publicist. Hollander alleged that, during her ride in a van with Brown, Brown pulled over to the side of the road and sexually assaulted her while he threatened her with a shotgun.

In her case against Brown, Hollander entered as evidence a DNA sample and a polygraph result, but the evidence was not considered due to the limitations defense. Hollander later attempted to bring her case before the Supreme Court, but nothing came of her complaint.[149]

Later life [ edit ] At the end of his life, James Brown lived in Beech Island, South Carolina, directly across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia. Brown had chronic illness with type 1 diabetes that went undiagnosed for years, according to his longtime manager Charles Bobbit. In 2004, Brown was successfully treated for prostate cancer.[151] Regardless of his health, Brown maintained his reputation as the "hardest working man in show business" by keeping up with his grueling performance schedule.

Illness [ edit ] James Brown memorial in Augusta, GeorgiaOn December 23, 2006, Brown became very ill and arrived at his dentist's office in Atlanta, Georgia, several hours late. His appointment was for dental implant work. During that visit, Brown's dentist observed that he looked "very bad ... weak and dazed". Instead of performing the work, the dentist advised Brown to see a physician right away about his medical condition.[152]

The following day, Brown went to the Emory Crawford Long Memorial Hospital for medical evaluation and was admitted for observation and treatment.[153] According to Charles Bobbit, his longtime personal manager and friend, Brown had been struggling with a noisy cough since returning from a November trip to Europe. Yet, Bobbit said, the singer had a history of never complaining about being sick and often performed while ill.[152] Although Brown had to cancel upcoming concerts in Waterbury, Connecticut, and Englewood, New Jersey, he was confident that the doctor would discharge him from the hospital in time for his scheduled New Year's Eve shows at the Count Basie Theatre in New Jersey and the B. B. King Blues Club in New York, in addition to performing a song live on CNN for the Anderson Cooper New Year's Eve special.[153] Brown remained hospitalized, however, and his condition worsened throughout the day.

Death [ edit ] On Christmas Day 2006, Brown died at approximately 1:45 a.m. EST (06:45 UTC),[16] at age 73, from congestive heart failure, resulting from complications of pneumonia. Bobbit was at his bedside[154] and later reported that Brown stuttered, "I'm going away tonight", then took three long, quiet breaths and fell asleep before dying.[155]

In 2019, an investigation by CNN and other journalists led to suggestions that Brown had been murdered.[136][139][146][156][157]

Memorial services [ edit ] Public memorial at the Apollo Theater in HarlemAfter Brown's death, his relatives, a host of celebrities, and thousands of fans gathered, on December 28, 2006, for a public memorial service at the Apollo Theater in New York City and, on December 30, 2006, at the James Brown Arena in Augusta, Georgia. A separate, private ceremony was held in North Augusta, South Carolina, on December 29, 2006, with Brown's family in attendance. Celebrities at these various memorial events included Michael Jackson, Jimmy Cliff, Joe Frazier, Buddy Guy, Ice Cube, Ludacris, Dr. Dre, Little Richard, Dick Gregory, MC Hammer, Prince, Jesse Jackson, Ice-T, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bootsy Collins, LL Cool J, Lil Wayne, Lenny Kravitz, 50 Cent, Stevie Wonder, and Don King.[158][159][160][161] Rev. Al Sharpton officiated at all of Brown's public and private memorial services.[162][163]

Public funeral in Augusta, Georgia, with Michael Jackson attendingBrown's memorial ceremonies were all elaborate, complete with costume changes for the deceased[clarification needed ] and videos featuring him in concert. His body, placed in a Promethean casket'--bronze polished to a golden shine'--was driven through the streets of New York to the Apollo Theater in a white, glass-encased horse-drawn carriage.[164][165] In Augusta, Georgia, his memorial procession stopped to pay respects at his statue, en route to the James Brown Arena. During the public memorial there, a video showed Brown's last performance in Augusta, Georgia, with the Ray Charles version of "Georgia on My Mind" playing soulfully in the background.[158][159][166] His last backup band, the Soul Generals, also played some of his hits during that tribute at the arena. The group was joined by Bootsy Collins on bass, with MC Hammer performing a dance in James Brown style.[167] Former Temptations lead singer Ali-Ollie Woodson performed "Walk Around Heaven All Day" at the memorial services.[168] Brown was buried in a crypt at his daughter's home in Beech Island, South Carolina.[169]

Last will and testament [ edit ] Brown signed his last will and testament on August 1, 2000, before J. Strom Thurmond Jr., an attorney for the estate.[170] The irrevocable trust, separate and apart from Brown's will, was created on his behalf, that same year, by his attorney, Albert "Buddy" Dallas, one of three personal representatives of Brown's estate. His will covered the disposition of his personal assets, such as clothing, cars, and jewelry, while the irrevocable trust covered the disposition of the music rights, business assets of James Brown Enterprises, and his Beech Island, South Carolina estate.[171]

During the reading of the will on January 11, 2007, Thurmond revealed that Brown's six adult living children (Terry Brown, Larry Brown, Daryl Brown, Yamma Brown Lumar, Deanna Brown Thomas and Venisha Brown) were named in the document, while Hynie and James II were not mentioned as heirs.[170][172] Brown's will was signed 10 months before James II was born and more than a year before Brown's marriage to Tomi Rae Hynie. Like Brown's will, his irrevocable trust omitted Hynie and James II as recipients of Brown's property. The irrevocable trust had also been established before, and not amended since, the birth of James II.[173]

On January 24, 2007, Brown's children filed a lawsuit, petitioning the court to remove the personal representatives from the estate (including Brown's attorney, as well as trustee Albert "Buddy" Dallas) and appoint a special administrator because of perceived impropriety and alleged mismanagement of Brown's assets.[174][175] On January 31, 2007, Hynie also filed a lawsuit against Brown's estate, challenging the validity of the will and the irrevocable trust. Hynie's suit asked the court both to recognize her as Brown's widow and to appoint a special administrator for the estate.[176]

On January 27, 2015, Judge Doyet Early III ruled that Tomi Rae Hynie Brown was officially the widow of James Brown. The decision was based on the grounds that Hynie's previous marriage was invalid and that James Brown had abandoned his efforts to annul his own marriage to Hynie.[107][177]

On February 19, 2015, the South Carolina Supreme Court intervened, halting all lower court actions in the estate and undertaking to review previous actions itself.[178] The South Carolina Court of Appeals in July 2018 ruled that Hynie was, in fact, Mr. Brown's wife.[179] In 2020, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Hynie had not been legally married to Brown and did not have a right to his estate.[180] It was reported in July 2021 that Brown's family had reached a settlement ending the 15-year battle over the estate.[180]

Legacy [ edit ] Brown received awards and honors throughout his lifetime and after his death. In 1993, the City Council of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, conducted a poll of residents to choose a new name for the bridge that crossed the Yampa River on Shield Drive. The winning name, with 7,717 votes, was "James Brown Soul Center of the Universe Bridge". The bridge was officially dedicated in September 1993, and Brown appeared at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the event.[181] A petition was started by local ranchers to return the name to "Stockbridge" for historical reasons, but they backed off after citizens defeated their efforts because of the popularity of Brown's name. Brown returned to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, on July 4, 2002, for an outdoor festival, performing with bands such as the String Cheese Incident.[182]

During his long career, Brown received many prestigious music industry awards and honors. In 1983 he was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Brown was one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction dinner in New York on January 23, 1986. At that time, the members of his original vocal group, the Famous Flames (Bobby Byrd, Johnny Terry, Bobby Bennett, and Lloyd Stallworth) were not inducted.[183] However, on April 14, 2012, the Famous Flames were automatically and retroactively inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside Brown, without the need for nomination and voting, on the basis that they should have been inducted with him in 1986.[184][185] On February 25, 1992, Brown was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 34th annual Grammy Awards. Exactly a year later, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th annual Rhythm & Blues Foundation Pioneer Awards.[186] A ceremony was held for Brown on January 10, 1997, to honor him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.[186]

On June 15, 2000, Brown was honored as an inductee to the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame. On August 6, 2002, he was honored as the first BMI Urban Icon at the BMI Urban Awards. His BMI accolades include an impressive ten R&B Awards and six Pop Awards.[187] On November 14, 2006, Brown was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and he was one of several inductees to perform at the ceremony.[188] In recognition of his accomplishments as an entertainer, Brown was a recipient of Kennedy Center Honors on December 7, 2003.[186] In 2004 Rolling Stone magazine ranked James Brown as No. 7 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[189] In an article for Rolling Stone, critic Robert Christgau cited Brown as "the greatest musician of the rock era".[190] He appeared on the BET Awards June 24, 2003, and received the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Michael Jackson, and performed with him. In 2004, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Aretha Franklin.[191][192]

Statue of James Brown in AugustaBrown was also honored in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, for his philanthropy and civic activities. On November 20, 1993, Mayor Charles DeVaney of Augusta held a ceremony to dedicate a section of 9th Street between Broad and Twiggs Streets, renamed "James Brown Boulevard", in the entertainer's honor.[186] On May 6, 2005, as a 72nd birthday present for Brown, the city of Augusta unveiled a life-sized bronze James Brown statue on Broad Street.[186] The statue was to have been dedicated a year earlier, but the ceremony was put on hold because of a domestic abuse charge that Brown faced at the time.[193] In 2005, Charles "Champ" Walker and the We Feel Good Committee went before the County commission and received approval to change Augusta's slogan to "We Feel Good". Afterward, officials renamed the city's civic center the James Brown Arena, and James Brown attended a ceremony for the unveiling of the namesake center on October 15, 2006.[186]

On December 30, 2006, during the public memorial service at the James Brown Arena, Dr. Shirley A.R. Lewis, president of Paine College, a historically black college in Augusta, Georgia, bestowed posthumously upon Brown an honorary doctorate in recognition and honor of his many contributions to the school in its times of need. Brown had originally been scheduled to receive the honorary doctorate from Paine College during its May 2007 commencement.[194][195]

During the 49th Annual Grammy Awards presentation on February 11, 2007, James Brown's famous cape was draped over a microphone by Danny Ray at the end of a montage in honor of notable people in the music industry who died during the previous year. Earlier that evening, Christina Aguilera delivered an impassioned performance of Brown's hit "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" followed by a standing ovation, while Chris Brown performed a dance routine in honor of James Brown.[196]

On August 17, 2013, the official R&B Music Hall of Fame honored and inducted James Brown at a ceremony held at the Waetjen Auditorium at Cleveland State University.

Traffic box public art commissioned to be painted by Ms. Robbie Pitts Bellamy in tribute to Brown in 2015ART THE BOX began in early 2015 as a collaboration between three organizations: the City of Augusta, the Downtown Development Authority and the Greater Augusta Arts Council. 19 local artists were selected by a committee to create art on 23 local traffic signal control cabinets (TSCCs). A competition was held to create the James Brown Tribute Box on the corner of James Brown Blvd. (9th Ave.) and Broad St. This box was designed and painted by local artist, Ms. Robbie Pitts Bellamy and has become a favorite photo opportunity to visitors and locals in Augusta, Georgia.

"I have a lot of musical heroes but I think James Brown is at the top of the list", remarked Public Enemy's Chuck D. "Absolutely the funkiest man on Earth ... In a black household, James Brown is part of the fabric '' Motown, Stax, Atlantic and James Brown."[197]

In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked Brown at No. 44 on their list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.[198] On April 24, 2023, James Brown was inducted into the newly established Atlantic City Walk Of Fame presented by The National R&B Music Society Inc.[199][200] Brown's daughter Deanna Brown Thomas accepted the honor on his behalf. The unveiling and induction ceremony took place at Brighton Park in Atlantic City, NJ. Brown was inducted by Bowlegged Lou of the production team Full Force. Other inductees included, Little Anthony & The Imperials, The Delfonics and Grover Washington Jr.[201]

Tributes [ edit ] As a tribute to James Brown, the Rolling Stones covered the song, "I'll Go Crazy" from Brown's Live at the Apollo album, during their 2007 European tour.[202] Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has remarked, "He [James Brown] was almost a musical genre in his own right and he changed and moved forward the whole time so people were able to learn from him."[203]

On December 22, 2007, the first annual "Tribute Fit For the King of King Records" in honor of James Brown was held at the Madison Theater in Covington, Kentucky. The tribute, organized by Bootsy Collins, featured Tony Wilson as Young James Brown with appearances by Afrika Bambaataa, Chuck D of Public Enemy, the Soul Generals, Buckethead, Freekbass, Triage and many of Brown's surviving family members. Comedian Michael Coyer was the MC for the event. During the show, the mayor of Cincinnati proclaimed December 22 as James Brown Day.[204]

As of September 2021, a significant collection of James Brown clothing, memorabilia, and personal artifacts are on exhibit in downtown Augusta, Georgia, at the Augusta History Museum.

Discography [ edit ] Studio albums

Filmography [ edit ] Biopics [ edit ] Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown (2014), released in April 2014, written and directed by Alex Gibney, produced by Mick Jagger.Get on Up (2014), released in theaters on August 1, 2014. Chadwick Boseman plays the role of James Brown in the film. Originally, Mick Jagger and Brian Grazer had begun producing a documentary film on Brown in 2013. A fiction film had been in the planning stages for many years and was revived when Jagger read the script by Jez and John-Henry Butterworth.[205]In other media [ edit ] Games

In the video game World of Warcraft, the first boss character of the Forge of Souls dungeon is Bronjahm, "the Godfather of Souls". His quotes during the fight are musical references, and he has a chance of dropping an item called "Papa's Brand New Bag".[206]Television

As himself (voice) in the 1993 The Simpsons episode "Bart's Inner Child".[207]In 1991, Brown did a Pay Per View Special with top celebrities such as Quincy Jones, Rick James, Dan Aykroyd, Gladys Knight, Denzel Washington, MC Hammer and others attended or were opening acts. This was produced with boxing promoter Buddy Dallas. 15.5 million households tuned in at a cost $19.99.[208]In 2002, Brown starred in the Jackie Chan movie The Tuxedo as himselfOn December 1, 2018, Nickelodeon airs the Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episode ''Al Be Back'' in which the character Raphael is dressed in an outfit and wig reminiscent of James Brown's iconic red suits and hairstyle in order to perform a Soul-inspired set at a local carnival.See also [ edit ] Progressive soulList of dancersReferences [ edit ] Footnotes

^ Doran, John (October 28, 2015). "James Brown '' 10 of the Best". The Guardian. Archived from the original on October 31, 2015 . Retrieved October 31, 2015 . ^ Wiegand, D. (December 26, 2006). James Brown: 1933''2006 '' Godfather of Soul Changed Music at Frenetic Pace Archived May 17, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved January 10, 2007. ^ Hay, Fred J. (2003). "Music box meets the Toccoa band: the godfather of soul in Appalachia". Black Music Research Journal. 23 (1''2): 103''133. doi:10.2307/3593211. JSTOR 3593211 . Retrieved January 30, 2020 . [permanent dead link ] ^ "The Famous Flames Biography | The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum". Rockhall.com. Archived from the original on June 25, 2012 . Retrieved February 16, 2013 . ^ "James Brown Biography | The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum". Rockhall.com. Archived from the original on April 3, 2013 . Retrieved February 16, 2013 . ^ Collins, W. (January 29, 2002). "James Brown", St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture. Retrieved January 12, 2007. ^ Corpuz, Kristin (May 3, 2017). "James Brown's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits". Billboard . Retrieved May 9, 2018 . ^ a b Hirshey, Gerri (January 25, 2007). "Funk's Founding Father: James Brown, 1933''2006". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 19, 2020 . Retrieved October 9, 2020 . ^ Whitburn, J. (2000). Top Pop Singles: 1955''1999. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research. p. 900. ISBN 0-89820-140-3. ^ "Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame Announced With First Three Inductees". Billboard. February 18, 2021 . Retrieved April 15, 2021 . ^ "Songwriters Hall of Fame '' James Brown Recordings". Archived from the original on June 29, 2011 . Retrieved July 19, 2012 . ^ "100 Greatest Artists Of All Time. 7. James Brown". Rolling Stone . Retrieved April 11, 2014 . ^ "Ancestry of James Brown". Archived from the original on August 5, 2012 . Retrieved July 19, 2012 . ^ a b James Brown (1998). Notable Black American Men. Farmington Hills, Michigan: Thomson Gale (Document no. K1622000047). Retrieved January 12, 2007, from the Biography Resource Center database. ^ Powell, Kimberly (June 15, 2018). "Ancestry of James Brown". thoughtco.com. Archived from the original on June 19, 2018 . Retrieved September 26, 2018 . ^ Brown, J.; Eliot, M. (2005). "Introduction" in I Feel Good: A Memoir of a Life Soul. New York: New American Library. ISBN 0-451-21393-9. ^ St. Clair, Jeffrey (May 24, 2019). "The Army Ain't No Place for a Black Man". CounterPunch. Archived from the original on September 10, 2022 . Retrieved September 9, 2022 . ^ Kowalski, Ed (December 25, 2006). "Godfather of Soul, James Brown, Dead at 73". Voice of America. Archived from the original on January 9, 2007. ^ a b c d e f "Trace the Birth of Funk Back to James Brown". Goldmine Magazine. Archived from the original on October 2, 2012 . Retrieved July 19, 2012 . ^ Witheridge, Annette (August 2, 2014). "My mate the sex machine: Mick Jagger on his movie about his 'inspiration' James Brown". Irish Mirror Online. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014 . Retrieved October 3, 2014 . ^ Merlis, Bob (2002). "foreword". Heart and Soul '' A Celebration of Black Music Style in America: 1930''1975. Billboard Books. ISBN 978-0-8230-8314-5. ^ "News from Macon and Warner Robins, GA, and beyond". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on July 27, 2014 . Retrieved October 3, 2014 . ^ White, Cliff (1991). Discography. In Star Time (p. 55) [CD liner notes]. London: Polydor Records. ^ "Inductees: James Brown, performer". Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum. Archived from the original on December 2, 2006 . Retrieved January 9, 2007 . ^ "Nat Kendrick & The Swans". Henry Stone Music, Inc. Archived from the original on December 14, 2006 . Retrieved January 28, 2007 . ^ Guralnick, P. (1986). Sweet Soul Music: Rhythm and Blues and the Southern Dream of Freedom, 235. New York: Back Bay Books. ISBN 0-452-26697-1. ^ "Tammi Terrell: The Tragic Story Of Motown's Forgotten Star". Sabotage Times. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017 . Retrieved November 2, 2017 . ^ Richie Unterberger. James Brown: Biography at AllMusic. ^ "The History of Rock 'n' Roll: The Golden Decade 1954''1963". Archived from the original on March 3, 2007 . Retrieved February 25, 2007 . ^ a b c d James Brown interviewed on the Pop Chronicles (1970) ^ "Turners, Brown, Ink With Loma" (PDF) . Cash Box. June 5, 1965. p. 36. ^ George, N. (1988). The Death of Rhythm & Blues, 101. New York: Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-394-55238-5. ^ Vincent, R. & Clinton, G. (1996). Funk: The Music, The People, and The Rhythm of The One, 123. New York: St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 0-312-13499-1. ^ Slutsky, Allan, Chuck Silverman (1997). The Funkmasters-the Great James Brown Rhythm Sections. ISBN 1576234436. ^ Stewart, Alexander (2000: 306). "Funky Drummer: New Orleans, James Brown and the Rhythmic Transformation of American Popular Music". Popular Music, v. 19, n. 3. October 2000, pp. 293''318. ^ Stewart (2000: 306). ^ Peter Guralnick, "Song of Solomon", The Boston Phoenix (March 6, 1984), Section 3:3. ^ "James Brown '' Jackson Attends Brown's Public Funeral". Archived from the original on October 12, 2012 . Retrieved July 20, 2012 . ^ Penman, Ian (June 8, 2012). "Did He Feel Good?". City Journal. Manhattan Institute. Archived from the original on December 24, 2013 . Retrieved December 22, 2013 . ^ "James Brown: Soul Survivor". American Masters. PBS. October 29, 2003. Archived from the original on November 9, 2011 . Retrieved October 28, 2011 . ^ a b "James Brown Facts, information, pictures Encyclopedia.com articles about James Brown". Archived from the original on October 26, 2012 . Retrieved July 24, 2012 . ^ Liner notes '' "Kurtis Blow presents: The History of Rap, Volume I". Rhino Records. Retrieved January 9, 2007. Archived February 2, 2007, at the Wayback Machine ^ Hart, Thomas A. Jr. (May 5, 2008), James Brown: The Man, the Music, & the Message, Dick Clark, James Brown, Casey Kasem, archived from the original on February 10, 2017 , retrieved February 3, 2018 ^ Apter, Jeff (2004). Fornication: The Red Hot Chili Peppers Story. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 9781844493814. Archived from the original on August 13, 2023 . Retrieved October 26, 2020 . ^ "Portfolio '' Features". Charles Thomson. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013 . Retrieved February 12, 2014 . ^ "Electric Proms '' James Brown The Godfather of Soul". BBC. October 27, 2006. Archived from the original on January 16, 2013 . Retrieved April 11, 2014 . ^ West, Cornel; Smith, David L.; Salzman, Jack, eds. (1996). Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History. Macmillan Library Reference. p. 449. ISBN 0-02-897345-3. ^ "James Brown band to resume touring soon" Archived July 23, 2020, at the Wayback Machine (December 29, 2006). MSNBC. Retrieved January 13, 2007. ^ White, C., & H. Weinger, "Are You Ready for Star Time?" Star Time, J. Brown (1991). Liner notes, 31. Polydor. ^ George, N. (1988). The Death of Rhythm and Blues, 101. New York: Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-452-26697-1. ^ Guralnick, P. (1986). Sweet Soul Music: Rhythm and Blues and the Southern Dream of Freedom, 240. New York: Back Bay Books. ISBN 0-452-26697-1. ^ a b Gross, T. (February 22, 2005). James Brown (Fresh Air WHYY-FM audio interview) Archived November 10, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. National Public Radio. Retrieved January 22, 2007. ^ Guralnick, 231. ^ Page, C. (January 2, 2007). "Godfather's soul transcended racial, musical barriers" Archived September 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, The Record. Retrieved June 17, 2007. ^ Loverro, T. (December 28, 2006). "Soul Brother had sports roots" Archived August 13, 2023, at the Wayback Machine, The Washington Times. Retrieved January 13, 2007. ^ White, Charles (2003). The Life and Times of Little Richard: The Authorized Press. Omnibus Press. pp. 68''70. ISBN 978-0-306-80552-3. Archived from the original on August 13, 2023 . Retrieved July 28, 2021 . ^ Freedman, Lew (September 7, 2018). Pro Wrestling: A Comprehensive Reference Guide. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 96. ISBN 9781440853517. Archived from the original on August 13, 2023 . Retrieved June 15, 2020 . ^ Tangari, Joe (January 3, 2007). "James Brown, 1933''2006". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on August 5, 2021 . Retrieved August 5, 2021 . ^ Gross, T. (1989). Musician Maceo Parker (Fresh Air WHYY-FM audio interview) Archived September 23, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. National Public Radio. Retrieved January 22, 2007. ^ Burnett, B. (December 21, 2006). "James Brown: Audience with the Godfather" Archived November 16, 2009, at the Wayback Machine (interview). The Hour. Retrieved January 9, 2007. ^ Gottschild, B.D. (August 2000). "James Brown: Godfather of dance", Dance Magazine, 74(8), p. 54 (Document no. A63735725). Retrieved January 11, 2007, from the Biography Resource Center database. ^ Fred Wesley's sleevenotes to Honey & the Bees "Dynamite!" (Jamie4009) 1999. ^ James Brown and Super Bad Archived March 3, 2022, at the Wayback Machine Retrieved March 3, 2022 ^ Video on YouTube ^ a b c d "The Night James Brown Saved Boston" Archived March 10, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. VH1 rockDocs. ^ Robinson, Eugene (October 18, 2020). "SOUL BROTHER NO. 1 JAMES BROWN ENDORSES RICHARD NIXON? BELIEVE IT". Eugene Robinson. OZY. Archived from the original on November 28, 2020 . Retrieved November 23, 2020 . ^ "Quoted: James Brown on Ronald Reagan". The Reliable Source. The Washington Post. May 28, 2013. Archived from the original on May 20, 2021 . Retrieved November 23, 2020 . ^ James Brown on Conviction, Respect and Reagan. YouTube. PBS. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021 . Retrieved May 16, 2014 . ^ Hulse, Carl; Loughlin, Sean (December 20, 1999), "Graham, Clinton agree to agree", Lakeland Ledger, p. A14, archived from the original on February 25, 2021 , retrieved March 31, 2020 ^ Theimer, Sharon (March 26, 2003). "Gephardt Campaigns, Prays for Troops". Associated Press News. Archived from the original on December 3, 2018 . Retrieved December 22, 2013 . ^ Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees Archived August 8, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. CNN: June 10, 2004. ^ Feuer, Alan (December 29, 2006). "Sharpton in Mourning, Like a Son Without a Father". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 27, 2020 . Retrieved November 23, 2020 . ^ "Did You Know: Tammi Terrell's Affair with James Brown Ended Violently". The Reel Network. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017 . Retrieved November 2, 2017 . ^ "James Brown: Wrestling With the Devil". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 4, 2018 . Retrieved May 9, 2018 . ^ Fandel, Jennifer (2003). James Brown (African-American Biographies). Raintree. pp. 26. ISBN 9780739870273. ^ Yamma Brown; Robin Gaby Fisher (September 2014). Cold Sweat: My Father James Brown and Me. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 978-1883052850. Archived from the original on June 19, 2018 . Retrieved June 19, 2018 . ^ "Godfather of Soul James Brown Denies Wife's Domestic Abuse Charges". Jet. November 20, 1995. p. 59. ^ Hurst, Candice (2017). This is the Real James Brown. Rosedog Pr. p. 139. ISBN 9781480975934. ^ a b c George, Nelson; Leeds, Alan (2008). The James Brown Reader: Fifty Years of Writing About the Godfather of Soul. Penguin. pp. 205''207. ISBN 978-1-4406-3734-6. Archived from the original on August 13, 2023 . Retrieved October 26, 2020 . ^ a b c Larry Rohter (January 23, 2015). "Judge Rules Tommie Rae Hynie Brown Was Married to James Brown". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015 . Retrieved January 27, 2015 . ^ Martin, J. (January 4, 2007). "Tomi Rae defends her relationship with James Brown". WRDW-TV News. Augusta, Georgia. Archived from the original on January 5, 2013 . Retrieved January 9, 2007 . ^ Gardner, L. (December 26, 2006). "Tomi Rae Hynie: 'It's a blatant lie' ". WRDW-TV News. Augusta, Georgia. Archived from the original on September 19, 2012 . Retrieved January 8, 2007 . ^ a b Anderson, V. (January 5, 2007). "Probate hearing may determine whether Hynie is James Brown's widow". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on January 27, 2012 . Retrieved January 8, 2007 . ^ "Singer James Brown files for annulment". Jet. Vol. 105, no. 8. p. 18. ^ "Brown widow: I've been locked out". CNN Entertainment News. 2006. Archived from the original on January 22, 2007 . Retrieved January 8, 2007 . ^ "Public announcement of annulment in Variety Magazine". The Smoking Gun. July 22, 2003. Archived from the original on December 30, 2006 . Retrieved January 8, 2007 . ^ Stritof, Sheri & Bob. "James Brown and Tomi Rae Hynie timeline: The puzzle of a complicated marriage relationship". About.com: Marriage. Archived from the original on March 16, 2007 . Retrieved January 14, 2007 . ^ a b Court order states Tommie Rae Brown as James Brown's wife and legal surviving spouse Archived April 2, 2015, at the Wayback Machine", WRDW-TV (January 26, 2015). ^ a b "SC Supreme Court: Tommie Rae not James Brown's wife". June 18, 2020. Archived from the original on November 16, 2022 . Retrieved November 16, 2022 . ^ a b Kinnard, Meg (June 18, 2020). "South Carolina high court rules 'Godfather of Soul' James Brown's last partner not his wife, OKs his dying wish". USA Today. Archived from the original on November 17, 2022 . Retrieved November 16, 2022 . ^ a b Knopper, Steve (July 15, 2021). "James Brown's Will: Is It Inching Toward Closure After 14 Years". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 17, 2022 . Retrieved November 17, 2022 . ^ "SC Supreme Court rules Tomi Rae Hynie is not James Brown's wife". June 18, 2020. Archived from the original on November 17, 2022 . Retrieved November 16, 2022 . ^ Kinnard, Meg (July 24, 2021). "Family of James Brown settles 15-year battle over his estate". ABC News 4. Archived from the original on November 17, 2022 . Retrieved November 17, 2022 . ^ Goodman, Brenda (November 8, 2007). "Keeping Track of James Brown and The Big Payback". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 7, 2008 . Retrieved July 31, 2009 . ^ Stritof, Sheri & Bob. "The marriages of James Brown". About.com: Marriage. Archived from the original on January 1, 2007 . Retrieved January 8, 2007 . ^ Elsworth, C. (August 22, 2007). "James Brown's secret children emerge". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on October 14, 2007 . Retrieved July 5, 2009 . ^ "Being the son of the "Godfather of Soul": Michael Brown, son of the late James Brown, begins to set the record straight". Archived from the original on November 16, 2022 . Retrieved November 16, 2022 . ^ "Brown wanted paternity test". The Herald Sun (Australia). January 8, 2007. Archived from the original on March 11, 2008 . Retrieved January 8, 2007 . ^ "James Brown's partner selects guardian". The Washington Post. April 4, 2007. Archived from the original on April 24, 2011 . Retrieved April 11, 2007 . ^ Smith, Andrew (October 15, 2018). "James Brown's Estate Is Still In Turmoil 12 Years After His Death". Forbes. Archived from the original on December 16, 2018 . Retrieved December 16, 2018 . ^ a b c d Smith 2012, p. [page needed ]. ^ Unsung: "Bootsy Collins", TV One, 2011 ^ "James Brown's Wife Arrested On Drug Charge Third Time". Jet. June 6, 1988. p. 52. ^ "James Brown Arrested On Drug And Assault Charges". Jet. June 6, 1988. p. 52. ^ "1988: Is this James Brown's strangest interview ever?". CNN. May 29, 2013. Archived from the original on March 13, 2014 . Retrieved February 16, 2014 '' via YouTube. ^ "Papa: Music: GQ". March 2009. Archived from the original on May 13, 2013 . Retrieved July 19, 2012 . ^ "James Brown Facing Marijuana, Weapons Charges". Philadelphia Daily News. January 29, 1998. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016 . Retrieved July 19, 2012 . ^ a b c Lake, Thomas (February 2019). "Lost in the Woods with James Brown's Ghost (Part 3): Fifteen Questions Surrounding James Brown's Death". CNN. Archived from the original on February 5, 2019 . Retrieved February 5, 2019 . ^ Martinko, Jason (2018). Hold What You've Got: The Joe Tex Story. Lulu.com. p. 21. ISBN 978-1-387-93286-3. Archived from the original on August 13, 2023 . Retrieved October 26, 2020 . ^ " 'Hold What You've Got': A local writer pulls Joe Tex's story into the light". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. August 3, 2019. Archived from the original on August 8, 2020 . Retrieved May 30, 2023 . ^ a b c d e f g h i Lake, Thomas (February 2019). "Lost in the Woods with James Brown's Ghost (Part 1): The Circus Singer and the Godfather of Soul". CNN. Archived from the original on February 5, 2019 . Retrieved February 5, 2019 . ^ James Brown CNN Interview Archived March 31, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, April 4, 1988. ^ In the Matter of James Joseph Brown, File No. SV-44B-3846 Archived March 5, 2016, at the Wayback Machine (1989). Criminal Investigative Division, Civil Rights Unit. U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. Retrieved June 3, 2007 (Adobe Acrobat Reader required for viewing). ^ Stephens, J. (April 3, 2007). "FBI file recounts James Brown's side Of '88 police chase" Archived June 21, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, The Washington Post. Retrieved June 4, 2007. ^ Aiken County Sheriff's Office Incident Report, Case No. 0000030719 Archived December 31, 2006, at the Wayback Machine (July 3, 2000). The Smoking Gun. Retrieved January 8, 2007. ^ "South Carolina pardons James Brown for past crimes" (June 9, 2003). Jet Magazine, 36. Retrieved January 14, 2007, from the Lexis-Nexis Academic database. ^ a b c Lake, Thomas (February 2019). "Lost in the Woods with James Brown's Ghost (Part 2): Was James Brown's Wife Murdered?". CNN. Archived from the original on February 5, 2019 . Retrieved February 5, 2019 . ^ Dansby, Andrew (January 29, 2004). "James Brown Arrested". Rolling Stone . Retrieved February 14, 2020 . ^ "James Brown pleads to domestic violence" Archived January 7, 2007, at the Wayback Machine (2004). The Smoking Gun. Retrieved January 8, 2007. ^ "James Brown rape case dismissed". BBC News. April 3, 2007. Archived from the original on May 11, 2011 . Retrieved August 20, 2009 . ^ "Singer James Brown prostate cancer surgery successful" (December 16, 2004). Medical News Today. Retrieved January 10, 2007. Archived May 18, 2005, at the Wayback Machine ^ a b Smith, W. (December 26, 2006). "James Brown, the undeniable 'Godfather of Soul' dead at 73" [permanent dead link ] , The New York Beacon. Retrieved January 10, 2007. ^ a b "James Brown hospitalized with pneumonia" Archived December 26, 2006, at the Wayback Machine (December 24, 2006), CNN Entertainment News. Retrieved January 9, 2007. ^ "Soul 'godfather' James Brown dies" (December 25, 2006). CNN Entertainment News. Retrieved January 9, 2007. Archived January 21, 2007, at the Wayback Machine ^ "James Brown, the 'Godfather of Soul,' dies at 73" (December 25, 2006). CNN Entertainment News. Retrieved January 5, 2007. Archived December 18, 2008, at the Wayback Machine ^ Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (February 6, 2019). "Call to investigate James Brown's death after murder claims". The Guardian. Archived from the original on February 6, 2019 . Retrieved May 22, 2018 . ^ Lake, Thomas (February 5, 2019). "CNN investigation raises questions about the deaths of James Brown and his third wife, Adrienne". CNN. Archived from the original on April 13, 2021 . Retrieved July 25, 2021 . ^ a b Old friend and original Famous Flames founder Bobby Byrd was also present. "Mourners pay respects to James Brown at Apollo Theater public viewing" Archived November 6, 2018, at the Wayback Machine (December 28, 2006). Fox News. Retrieved March 16, 2007. ^ a b "Private ceremony held Friday for friends and family of James Brown" Archived November 6, 2018, at the Wayback Machine (December 29, 2006). Fox News. Retrieved March 16, 2007. ^ "Michael Jackson attends James Brown funeral" Archived May 1, 2011, at the Wayback Machine (December 30, 2006). Access Hollywood. Retrieved March 21, 2007. ^ Anderson, V. (December 30, 2006). "Michael Jackson, McCartney had private viewing", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved March 23, 2007. Archived February 12, 2012, at the Wayback Machine ^ "James Brown eulogized for impact on word: Family and friends attend a private South Carolina ceremony for the 'Godfather of Soul'" Archived October 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine (December 29, 2006). CBS News: The Show Buzz. Retrieved March 10, 2007. ^ "NYC & Ga. farewell for Godfather of Soul: Funeral procession and wake in Harlem; funeral in Georgia" Archived October 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine (December 28, 2006). CBS News: The Show Buzz. Retrieved March 10, 2007. ^ Christensen, J. (December 28, 2006). Picture of horse-drawn carriage carrying James Brown's body in gold casket to the Apollo Theater in Harlem. Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 21, 2007. ^ Altaffer, M. (December 28, 2006). Picture of pallbearers carrying James Brown's casket to Apollo Theater memorial service. Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 21, 2007. ^ "Farewell tour to James Brown ends with hometown memorial" Archived November 6, 2018, at the Wayback Machine (December 30, 2006). Fox News. Retrieved March 21, 2007. ^ Barnett, R. (December 30, 2006). "Farewell tour to James Brown ends" Archived March 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, USA Today. Retrieved March 16, 2007. ^ Wynn, M., & J. Edwards (December 31, 2006). "Hardest Work Is Done" Archived February 24, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, Augusta Chronicle. Retrieved February 1, 2009. ^ "James Brown's body placed in crypt". March 10, 2007. Archived from the original on June 11, 2022 . Retrieved June 11, 2022 . ^ a b "James Brown Jr. not included in will". WRDW-TV News. Augusta, Georgia. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007 . Retrieved January 12, 2007 . ^ "James Brown's road to wealth was rocky: Financial turmoil part of 'Godfather' legend". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. January 7, 2007. Archived from the original on February 17, 2022 . Retrieved February 17, 2022 . ^ James "Brown's widow 'not in will'" Archived February 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, BBC News (UK), January 12, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2007. ^ Finn, N. (January 18, 2007), "James Brown's estate wills more drama", E!News. Retrieved March 21, 2007. Archived May 22, 2012, at the Wayback Machine ^ "James Brown's children request trustees be removed". Star Pulse. January 26, 2007. Archived from the original on July 4, 2014 . Retrieved January 28, 2007 . ^ "Emergency petition for termination of appointment and removal of personal representatives and for emergency order restraining all personal representatives. In the matter of James Brown, a/k/a James Joseph Brown. Case/Estate No. 2007-ES02-0056" (PDF) . Probate Court of Aiken County, State of South Carolina. January 24, 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 16, 2007 . Retrieved January 28, 2007 . ^ " "Emergency petition for appointment of special administrator. In re estate of James Brown a/k/a James Joseph Brown, deceased, Case No. 2007-CP-02-0122". State of South Carolina Circuit Court, County of Aiken. January 31, 2007. Archived from the original on March 7, 2007 . Retrieved March 21, 2007 '' via FindLaw. ^ "Court order states Tommie Rae Brown as James Brown's wife and legal surviving spouse". WRDW-TV News. Augusta, Georgia. January 26, 2015. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. ^ "S.C. Supreme Court freezes James Brown estate case" Aiken Standard Archived May 26, 2015, at the Wayback Machine ^ "James Brown was legally married to wife, appeals court rules" Archived April 21, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, Augusta Chronicle ^ a b Kinnard, Meg (July 23, 2021). "Family of James Brown settles 15-year battle over his estate". AP News. Associated Press. Archived from the original on July 25, 2021 . Retrieved July 25, 2021 . ^ Crowl, D. (June 29, 2002). "The godfather's bridge: James Brown snatched a piece of steamboat history nine years ago" Archived November 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Steamboat Pilot & Today. Retrieved January 12, 2007. ^ "The String Cheese Independence Incident returns to Steamboat: Earl Scruggs and Family and Friends, Yonder Mountain String Band, James Brown & Corey Harris round out music acts" Archived October 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine (June 26, 2002). Steamboat Ski Two, U.S.A. Retrieved January 29, 2007. ^ "The Famous Flames". Future Rock Legends. Archived from the original on May 11, 2012 . Retrieved May 4, 2012 . ^ "The Famous Flames Biography | The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum". Rockhall.com. Archived from the original on June 25, 2012 . Retrieved May 4, 2012 . ^ Redferns (April 6, 2012). "The Famous Flames: James Brown was their leader, but they were R&B legends, too (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2012)". The Plain Dealer. Archived from the original on May 10, 2012 . Retrieved May 4, 2012 . ^ a b c d e f The James Brown review Archived December 29, 2008, at the Wayback Machine (December 30, 2006). The Augusta Chronicle. Retrieved January 12, 2007. ^ "BMI Celebrates Urban Music at 2002 Awards Ceremony". bmi.com. August 6, 2002. Archived from the original on July 24, 2008 . Retrieved September 27, 2010 . ^ UK Music Hall of Fame 2006 Archived November 13, 2006, at the Wayback Machine (March 11, 2006). Endemol UK Plc. Retrieved January 12, 2007. ^ Rubin, R. (April 15, 2004). The Immortals: The first fifty '' 7 James Brown Archived November 20, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, Rolling Stone Magazine (issue 946). Retrieved January 10, 2007. ^ Christgau, Robert. "The Genius: James Brown" Archived May 5, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 17, 2010. ^ "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement. Archived from the original on December 15, 2016 . Retrieved December 26, 2020 . ^ "2004 Summit Highlights Photo". 2004. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020 . Retrieved December 26, 2020 . 2004 honoree James Brown, the 'Godfather of Soul,' performs his famous hit song from 1965, "I Got You (I Feel Good)" at the Academy of Achievement's Banquet of the Golden Plate in Stanley Hall of Chicago's Field Museum. ^ "James Brown's legal troubles delay statue unveiling" (May 1, 2004). The Augusta Chronicle. Retrieved January 14, 2007, from the Lexis-Nexis Academic database. ^ "Remembering James Brown: Augusta memorial memorable" Archived July 3, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, WKBF-TV (Augusta, Georgia). Retrieved January 10, 2007. ^ "James Brown receives posthumous degree" Archived January 5, 2009, at the Wayback Machine (January 2, 2007). Diverse: Issues In Higher Education. Retrieved March 16, 2007. ^ Hasty, J. (February 12, 2007). "Grammy performances look forward and back" Archived June 2, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, Billboard. Retrieved February 12, 2007. ^ Mojo, March 2002 ^ "The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time". Rolling Stone. January 1, 2023 . Retrieved September 6, 2023 . ^ "Atlantic City Walk of Fame Induction". Press of Atlantic City. April 24, 2023. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023 . Retrieved April 26, 2023 . ^ "GALLERY: Atlantic City Walk of Fame induction ceremony". Press of Atlantic City. April 24, 2023. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023 . Retrieved April 26, 2023 . ^ Fertsch, Cindy (April 20, 2023). "Musicians to be inducted in Atlantic City Walk of Fame". Shore Local Newsmagazine. Archived from the original on April 28, 2023 . Retrieved April 28, 2023 . ^ "Rolling Stones show they are still greatest rock band" Archived August 13, 2023, at the Wayback Machine (August 22, 2007). The Arizona Republic. Retrieved August 24, 2007. ^ Ross Bennett. Jimmy Page: "The Records That Changed My Life!" #10 Archived January 3, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. Mojo. Retrieved December 31, 2010. ^ Tunis, W. (December 21, 2007). "Feel good again: Show to pay tribute to the Godfather of Soul, a year after his death", Lexington Herald-Leader. Retrieved December 23, 2005. Archived January 13, 2008, at the Wayback Machine ^ Browne, David (January 31, 2013). "James Brown Estate Revs Up With Biopic". Rolling Stone. No. 1175. p. 22. ^ "Bronjahm '' NPC '' World of Warcraft". Wowhead.com. Archived from the original on July 19, 2011 . Retrieved July 6, 2011 . ^ Chilton, Martin (December 17, 2014). "The Simpsons: best musical guests" . The Telegraph. Archived from the original on January 10, 2022 . Retrieved September 10, 2018 . ^ Jet Magazine, July 1, 1991, pp. 58''60. Sources

M. Cordell Thompson (December 30, 1971). "James Brown Goes through Some New Changes". Jet. Vol. XLI, no. 14. pp. 54''61. "Singer James Brown in Poor Health". Jet. January 6, 2003. Brown, James; Tucker, Bruce (1986). James Brown: The Godfather of Soul. New York: Macmillan. Brown, James; Tucker, Bruce (1997). James Brown: The Godfather of Soul. Thunder's Mouth Press. ISBN 1-56025-388-6. Archived from the original on January 24, 2013 . Retrieved August 7, 2019 '' via worldcat.org. Brown, James; Tucker, Bruce (2002). James Brown: The Godfather of Soul. New York: Macmillan. ISBN 1560253886. [permanent dead link ] Rhodes, Don (2008). Say It Loud! My Memories of James Brown, Soul Brother No. 1. Lyons Press. ISBN 978-1-59921-674-4. Smith, R. J. (2012). The One: The Life and Music of James Brown. New York: Gotham Books. ISBN 9781101561102. Whitburn, Joel (2010). Hot R&B Songs From Billboard's R&B Charts, 1942''2010. Records Research Inc. ISBN 978-0-89820-186-4. Further reading [ edit ] Danielsen, Anne (2006). Presence and pleasure: The funk grooves of James Brown and Parliament. Wesleyan University Press.George, Nelson, and Leeds, Alan (editors). (2008). The James Brown Reader: 50 Years of Writing about the Godfather of Soul. New York: Plume.Lethem, J. (June 12, 2006). "Being James Brown", Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved January 14, 2007. Archived May 5, 2009, at the Wayback MachineMcBride, James (2016) Kill 'Em and Leave: Searching for James Brown and the American Soul. New York: Spiegel & GrauSullivan, James. (2008). The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved The Soul Of America. New York: Gotham Books. ISBN 9781592403905Sussman, M. (producer). (December 25, 2006). Arts: Soul classics by James Brown (multimedia presentation). The New York Times. Retrieved January 9, 2007.Wesley, Fred. (2002). Hit Me, Fred: Recollections of a Sideman. Durham: Duke University Press.Whitney, Marva and Waring, Charles. (2013) God, The Devil & James Brown:(Memoirs of a Funky Diva). New Romney: Bank House BooksExternal links [ edit ] "James Brown Showcase". Local Music Scene South Carolina. James Brown at AllMusic James Brown at CurlieJames Brown discography at DiscogsJames Brown at IMDbStudio albumsLive albumsNotable compilation albumsBand membersAssociated actsRelated articles

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 17:24

Raynoma Gordy and Barney Ales, left, and Berry Gordy Jr., far right, in a Detroit nightclub around 1960. Credit... Barney Ales Collection Raynoma Gordy Singleton, who played a vital role in the early days of Motown as the business partner and second wife of Berry Gordy Jr., the record label's founder and patriarch, died on Nov. 11 in Woodland Hills, Calif. She was 79.

The cause was brain cancer, her family said. Her death was not immediately announced.

In most versions of Motown's founding myth, Mr. Gordy, a former boxer and Detroit autoworker, created his musical enterprise '-- a series of interconnected labels and other companies '-- in early 1959 to gain greater control over his budding career as a songwriter and producer.

But by his side from the earliest days was Ms. Singleton, whom Mr. Gordy met when she auditioned as a singer in 1958, impressing him with her perfect pitch. From then until 1964, when she left Motown for the first time, Ms. Singleton helped Mr. Gordy run some of his most important businesses, including Jobete, the company that managed Motown's music publishing rights.

She also created arrangements for Motown's studio musicians and taught future stars like Smokey Robinson the fundamentals of music theory. It was Ms. Singleton who, in 1959, found the former photography studio at 2648 West Grand Boulevard in Detroit that became the label's headquarters, known as Hitsville U.S.A.

Many of Ms. Singleton's achievements, however, are little known. In part that may be because Motown's golden era in the mid-1960s, when it churned out Top 10 hits by the dozen, came after Ms. Singleton left the company and divorced Mr. Gordy, said Adam White, who wrote the book ''Motown: The Sound of Young America,'' published this year, with the former Motown executive Barney Ales.

''So much happened subsequently'' to Ms. Singleton's time there, Mr. White said in an interview, ''that it's obscured the importance of her role at that critical early stage.''

Yet as Ms. Singleton saw it, Mr. Gordy himself was the cause of her obscurity.

In her book ''Berry, Me, and Motown: The Untold Story'' (1990), Ms. Singleton bitterly accused her former husband '-- whom she called ''that thief of dreams'' '-- of denying her credit for helping to found the label, and of persuading her to remove her name from company legal papers, leaving her with no financial stake. After the Motown label was sold in 1988 for $61 million, she said, she received only a plaque.

Raynoma Mayberry was born in Detroit on March 8, 1937. Her father, Ashby, was a janitor at a Cadillac plant; he and her mother, Lucille, encouraged her musical talent at a young age. At Cass Technical High School, Raynoma learned to play 11 instruments, including the harp.

Image Raynoma Gordy Singleton's memoir. Credit... McGraw-Hill She married Charles Liles, a saxophonist, in 1955, and divorced him two years later. After meeting Mr. Gordy in 1958, she quickly became his business and romantic partner, and in 1959 she gave birth to their son, Kerry; she and Mr. Gordy married the following year.

In Motown's infancy, Ms. Singleton held a variety of roles. As one of the Rayber Voices '-- the name was a combination of Raynoma and Berry '-- she was a backup singer on many early songs, including Marv Johnson's ''Come to Me,'' the inaugural record on Tamla, Mr. Gordy's first label.

She also worked as a producer under the name Miss Ray. And as a label executive, she signed the first contract for one of Motown's most important early talents: Stevie Wonder.

Ms. Singleton and Mr. Berry had already decided to divorce, when she was sent to New York in 1963 to open a branch of Jobete. But their relationship collapsed the next year when she bootlegged 5,000 copies of Mary Wells's single ''My Guy,'' peddling the record out of a silver Lincoln Continental; she spent a night in jail.

According to Ms. Singleton's book, she agreed to a settlement with Motown to avoid being prosecuted. She signed a general release from the label, she said, in exchange for $10,000 and monthly payments including child support.

She divorced Mr. Gordy in 1964, and the next year she married Eddie Singleton, a songwriter. The two started a new label, Shrine, in Washington. But after a few years, the label failed and Ms. Singleton returned to the Motown fold, for a time working as an assistant to Diana Ross. Her marriage to Mr. Singleton also ended in divorce.

Despite her break with Mr. Gordy, Ms. Singleton continued to have various affiliations with Motown. In the late 1970s she managed Apollo, a band that included her son Kerry and was signed to a Motown label. In 1983, credited as Ray Singleton, she was an executive producer of ''Somebody's Watching Me,'' the hit album by Rockwell (a stage name for Kennedy Gordy, another Motown scion).

Already estranged from the Motown circle by the time she published her book '-- she called her status an ''exile'' '-- she eventually reconciled with Mr. Gordy. In his 1994 memoir, ''To Be Loved: The Music, the Magic, the Memories of Motown,'' Mr. Gordy disputed some of the claims in her book. Ms. Singleton apologized to him personally, he wrote, and the two had become ''closer than ever.''

Ms. Singleton, who lived in Woodland Hills, is survived by her sons, Cliff Liles, Kerry Gordy and Eddie Singleton Jr.; her daughter, Rya Singletary; four grandchildren; and a sister, Juanita Dickerson.

A version of this article appears in print on

, Section

A

, Page

30

of the New York edition

with the headline:

Raynoma Singleton, Early Motown Force, Dies at 79

. Order Reprints | Today's Paper | Subscribe

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 16:54

American music executive and record producer

Berry Gordy

Gordy in 1998

Birth name Berry Gordy III Also known as Berry Gordy Jr.Born ( 1929-11-28 ) November 28, 1929 (age 93) [1]Detroit, Michigan, U.S.GenresOccupation(s)Record executiverecord producersongwriterfilm producertelevision producer Years active 1953''2019[2][3]LabelsMotownMusical artist

Berry Gordy III[citation needed ] (born November 28, 1929), known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr.,[4] is an American retired record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record label and its subsidiaries, which was the highest-earning African-American business for decades.[5]

As a songwriter, Gordy composed or co-composed a number of hits including "Lonely Teardrops" and "That's Why" (Jackie Wilson), "Shop Around" (The Miracles), and "Do You Love Me" (The Contours), all of which topped the US R&B charts, as well as the international hit "Reet Petite" (Jackie Wilson). As part of the Corporation, he wrote many hit songs for the Jackson 5, including "I Want You Back" and "ABC". As a record producer, he launched the Miracles and signed acts like the Supremes, Marvin Gaye, the Temptations, the Four Tops, Gladys Knight & the Pips, and Stevie Wonder. He was known for carefully directing the public image, dress, manners, and choreography of his acts.

Gordy was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama in 2016, and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2021. In 2022, he was inducted into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame.

Early years [ edit ] Berry Gordy III (also known as Berry Gordy Jr.) was the seventh of eight children (Fuller, Esther, Anna, Loucye, George, Gwen, Berry and Robert), born on November 28, 1929,[6] in Detroit, to middle-class parents, Berry Gordy II (also known as Berry Gordy Sr.) and Bertha Fuller Gordy, who had relocated to Detroit from Oconee, Washington County, Georgia, in 1922.[4]

His grandfather, named Berry Gordy I, was the son of James Gordy, a white plantation owner in Georgia, and one of his slaves. His half-brother, James (son of the elder James and his legal wife), was the grandfather of President Jimmy Carter. Berry Gordy II was led to Detroit both by the job opportunities offered by the booming automotive businesses,[4] and also by worries over the atmosphere in the American South where black men were lynched "with chilling regularity by the Ku Klux Klan"; in the first twenty years of the twentieth century, 1,502 lynchings were reported, most in Southern states.[7] Gordy's father opened a grocery store, owned a plastering and carpentry business, and a printing shop. While his brothers Fuller and George were happy to work at jobs their father assigned to them in construction and printing, Berry and Robert, the younger boys, were less inclined to follow that path. Both Robert and Berry liked dancing and music, but Berry's greatest interest was in boxing.[8]

Gordy dropped out of Northeastern High School in the eleventh grade to become a professional boxer[9][10] in hopes of becoming rich quickly; he boxed professionally until 1950, when he was drafted by the United States Army in 1951 for service in the Korean War. Arriving in Korea in May 1952, Gordy was first assigned to the 58th Field Artillery Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division, near Panmunjom. He later became a chaplain's assistant, driving a jeep and playing the organ at religious services at the front. His tour in the Korean War was completed in April 1953. He obtained a GED, which is equivalent to a high school diploma.[11]

After his return from Korea in 1953, he married 19-year-old Thelma Louise Coleman in Toledo, Ohio.[11] Gordy developed his interest in music by writing songs and opening the 3-D Record Mart, a record store featuring jazz music and 3-D glasses.[12] The store was unsuccessful, and Gordy sought work at the Lincoln-Mercury plant, but his family connections put him in touch with Al Green (no relation to the singer Reverend Al Green), owner of the Flame Show Bar Talent Club, where he met the singer Jackie Wilson.[13]

In 1957, Wilson recorded "Reet Petite", a song Gordy had co-written with his sister Gwen and writer-producer Billy Davis. It became a modest hit, but had more success internationally, especially in the UK, where it reached the Top 10 and even later topped the chart on re-issue in 1986. Wilson recorded six more songs co-written by Gordy over the next two years, including "Lonely Teardrops", which topped the R&B charts and got to number 7 in the pop chart. The Gordy siblings and Davis also wrote "All I Could Do Was Cry" for Etta James at Chess Records.[14][15]

Motown Record Corporation [ edit ] Gordy reinvested the profits from his songwriting success into producing. In 1957, he discovered the Miracles (originally known as the Matadors) and began building a portfolio of successful artists. In 1959, with the encouragement of Miracles leader Smokey Robinson, Gordy borrowed $800 (about $8,404 in 2023) from his family to create an R&B record company. Originally, Gordy wanted to name the new label Tammy Records, after the song recorded by Debbie Reynolds. However, that name was taken, and he chose the name Tamla Records. The company began operating on January 12, 1959.[6] "Come to Me" by Marv Johnson was issued as Tamla 101. United Artists Records picked up "Come to Me" for national distribution, as well as Johnson's more successful follow-up records such as "You Got What It Takes", co-produced by Gordy, who also received a co-writer credit, though the song was originally written and recorded by guitarist Bobby Parker for Vee-Jay Records a year and a half earlier. Gordy's next release was the only 45 ever issued on his Rayber label, featuring Wade Jones with an unnamed female backup group. The record did not sell well and is now one of the rarest issues from the Motown stable. Berry's third release was "Bad Girl" by the Miracles, the first release on the Motown record label. "Bad Girl" was a solid hit in 1959 after Chess Records picked it up. Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)" initially appeared on Tamla and then charted on Gordy's sister's label, Anna Records, in February 1960. It was The Miracles who gave the label its first million-selling hit single, with the 1960 Grammy Hall of Fame smash, "Shop Around" and this song, and its follow up hits,"You've Really Got a Hold on Me" (another Grammy Hall of Fame-inducted hit), "Mickey's Monkey","What's So Good About Goodbye", and "I'll Try Something New", made The Miracles the label's first stars.[citation needed ]

The Tamla and Motown labels were then merged into a new company, Motown Record Corporation, incorporated on April 14, 1960. In 1960, Gordy signed an unknown singer, Mary Wells, who became the fledgling label's second star, with Smokey Robinson penning her hits "You Beat Me to the Punch", "Two Lovers", and "My Guy". The Miracles' hit "Shop Around" peaked at No. 1 on the national R&B charts in late 1960 and at No. 2 on the Billboard magazine pop charts on January 16, 1961 (No. 1 pop, Cash Box), which established Motown as an independent company worthy of notice. Later in 1961, the Marvelettes' "Please Mr. Postman" made it to the top of both charts.[citation needed ]

Berry Gordy House, known as the Motown mansion, in Detroit's Boston-Edison Historic District[16]Gordy's gift for identifying and bringing together musical talent, along with the careful management of his artists' public image, made Motown a major national and then international success. Over the next decade, he signed such artists as the Supremes, Marvin Gaye, the Temptations, Jimmy Ruffin, the Contours, the Four Tops, Gladys Knight & the Pips, the Commodores, the Velvelettes, Martha and the Vandellas, Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5. Though he also signed some white acts to the label (Rare Earth, Rustix, via the Rare Earth label), he mainly promoted African American artists but carefully controlled their public image, dress, manners and choreography for across-the-board appeal.[17]

Relocation to Los Angeles [ edit ] In 1972, Gordy relocated to Los Angeles, where he produced the commercially successful biographical drama film on Billie Holiday, Lady Sings the Blues, starring Diana Ross (who was nominated for an Academy Award), Richard Pryor, and Billy Dee Williams (cast in a role originally for Levi Stubbs of the Four Tops). Initially the studio, over Gordy's objections, rejected Williams after several screen tests. However, Gordy, known for his tenacity, eventually prevailed, and the film established Williams as a major movie star. Berry Gordy soon after produced and directed Mahogany (Tony Richardson was the original director, but Gordy fired Richardson and took over direction himself after a dispute over minor casting), also starring Ross and Williams. In 1985, he produced the cult martial arts film The Last Dragon, which starred martial artist Taimak and one of Prince's proteges, Vanity.[citation needed ]

Although Motown continued to produce major hits throughout the 1970s and 1980s by artists including the Jacksons, Rick James, Commodores, Lionel Richie, and long-term signings Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson, the record company was no longer the major force it had been. Gordy sold his interests in Motown Records to MCA and Boston Ventures on June 28, 1988, for $61 million (equivalent to $122,340,000 in 2021). He later sold most of his interests in Jobete publishing to EMI Publishing. Gordy wrote or co-wrote 240 of the approximately 15,000 songs in Motown's Jobete music catalogue. However, the true test of the label's worth would come a few years later, when Polygram paid over $330 million (Diana Ross was given shares in this version of the label) for the Motown catalog.[citation needed ]

Gordy published an autobiography, To Be Loved, in 1994.[18]

Awards and accolades [ edit ] Berry Gordy with John Legend, Smokey Robinson, and First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House in 2011.Gordy was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.[19] In 1993 he received the CBC Lifetime Achievement Award.[20] He was inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame in 2009.[21]

When Gordy received the Songwriters Hall of Fame's Pioneer Award on June 13, 2013, he was the first living individual to receive the honor.[22]

In 2016, Gordy received the National Medal of Arts from President Obama for "helping to create a trailblazing new sound in American music. As a record producer and songwriter, he helped build Motown, launching the music careers of countless legendary artists. His unique sound helped shape our Nation's story."[23]

Berry Gordy Square in Los Angeles was designated by the City Council at intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Argyle where the office of Motown was located.[24]

In 2021, he was awarded the Kennedy Center Honors alongside Bette Midler, Joni Mitchell, Justino D­az, and Lorne Michaels.[25]

In 2022, he was inducted into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame.[26]

In 2022, he was awarded with an honorary doctorate from the University of Michigan.[27]

Statements about Motown artists [ edit ] Following the funeral of Marvin Gaye on April 5, 1984, Gordy declared Gaye "the greatest of his time." Berry said the singer "had no musical equals," while also discussing how he carried on the legacy of other soul singers who tackled a range of themes, from love to civil rights, such as Billie Holiday.

On March 20, 2009, Gordy was in Hollywood to pay tribute to his first group and first million-selling act, the Miracles, when the members received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Speaking in tribute to the group, Gordy said: "Without the Miracles, Motown would not be the Motown it is today."[29][30][31][32]

At the age of 79, Gordy spoke at the memorial service for Michael Jackson in Los Angeles on July 7, 2009. He suggested that "The King of Pop" was perhaps not the best description for Jackson in light of his achievements, referring to him instead as "the greatest entertainer that ever lived."

Motown: The Musical [ edit ] On May 15, 2011, it was announced that Gordy was developing a Broadway musical about Motown. The show is said to be an account of events of the 1960s and how they shaped the creation of the label. Gordy hoped that the musical would improve the reputation of Motown Records and clear up any misconceptions regarding the label's demise.[33]

Motown: The Musical began previews at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on March 11, 2013, and began regular performances there on April 14.[34]The musical closed in January 2015.[35]

The UK version of Motown: The Musical opened in London's West End in January 2016. Berry Gordy was present at the opening night.

Personal life [ edit ] Berry Gordy celebrating his daughter's birthday (1971)Gordy, who was married and divorced three times, has eight children with six different women. His publishing company, Jobete, was named after his three eldest children: Joy, Berry and Terry.

He had three children with his first wife, Thelma Coleman, whom he married in 1953 (they were divorced in 1959):

Hazel Joy Gordy (born August 24, 1954), was once married to Jermaine JacksonBerry Gordy IV (born October 1955), father to Skyler Austen GordyTerry James Gordy (born August 1956)In the spring of 1960 he married Raynoma Mayberry Liles (they were divorced in 1964).[36][37] They had one son:

Kerry Gordy (born June 25, 1959)With Jeana Jackson, Gordy had one daughter:

Sherry Gordy (born May 23, 1963)[38]With his then-mistress Margaret Norton, Gordy had a son who would later become more popularly known as Motown musician Rockwell (born March 15, 1964):

Kennedy William Gordy (born March 15, 1964)Gordy had a daughter with Motown artist Diana Ross, with whom he had an intimate relationship from 1965 through 1970:

Rhonda Suzanne (born August 14, 1971; her legal father is Robert Ellis Silberstein under California family law)Gordy's eighth and youngest child is a son born to Nancy Leiviska. He is known by his stage name, Redfoo, as one member of the duo LMFAO (the other member is Skyler Gordy, born August 23, 1986, and known professionally as SkyBlu; he is the grandson of Gordy and Thelma Coleman through their son Berry IV and his wife, Valerie Robeson):

Stefan Kendal Gordy (born September 3, 1975)Berry married Grace Eaton on July 17, 1990; they divorced in 1993.

He is also related to former US President Jimmy Carter.[39] His relationship with Carter stems from his white great-grandfather James Thomas Gordy who owned a black, female slave named Esther Johnson.[40][41]

Vistas Stables [ edit ] Berry Gordy owned the colt Powis Castle whom he raced under the nom de course Vistas Stables.[42] Racing in California, Powis Castle won the 1994 Oceanside Stakes and Malibu Stakes then finished 8th in the Kentucky Derby and 9th in the Preakness Stakes, the first two legs of the U.S. Triple Crown series.[42]

Film [ edit ] Broadway [ edit ] In popular culture [ edit ] Gordy was portrayed by Billy Dee Williams (whose career Gordy had helped to jump-start in the 1970s) in the 1992 miniseries The Jacksons: An American Dream.Gordy was portrayed by Obba Babatunde in the 1998 miniseries The Temptations. He also plays a key role in Ain't Too Proud, which tells the story of The Temptations in a musical format.The character Gordy Berry (also played by Babatunde) in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is a reference to Berry Gordy.The character of Curtis Taylor Jr., a music executive in the 2006 musical film Dreamgirls, has been described as "appeared to be patterned after him."[43] The film was based on the 1981 musical Dreamgirls, but the film made the connection to Gordy and Motown much more explicit than the musical did, by, among other things, moving the setting of the story from Chicago to Detroit. Taylor appears in the film as unethical and insensitive to his artists, which caused Gordy and others to criticize the film after its release. Gordy called the portrayal "100% wrong," while Smokey Robinson said it "blatantly painted a negative picture of Motown and Berry Gordy and of the Supremes."[43]Gordy was portrayed by Brandon Victor Dixon in the 2013 stage play production Motown: The Musical.See also [ edit ] Biography portal Album eraList of songs written by Berry GordyReferences [ edit ] ^ "Berry Gordy | Motown Museum | Home of Hitsville U.S.A." Motown Museum. ^ Allard, Fran§ois; Lecocq, Richard (October 4, 2018). Michael Jackson: All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track. Octopus Books. ISBN 9781788401234 . Retrieved November 25, 2019 . ^ Jem Aswad (September 24, 2019). "Motown Founder Berry Gordy to Retire". Variety . Retrieved December 20, 2019 . ^ a b c Gordy, Berry Sr. (1979). Movin' Up '' Pop Gordy Tells His Story. Harper Collins. ISBN 0060220538. Archived from the original on January 1, 2018. ^ Smith, Jessie Carney (January 1, 2006). Encyclopedia of African American Business. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 9780313331107. ^ a b "Berry Gordy Jr". Biography. April 2, 2014 . Retrieved March 15, 2019 . ^ George, Nelson, Where Did Our Love Go, pg. 5 ^ Where Did Our Love go, Nelson George, pg. 12 ^ Birmingham, Stephen (May 15, 1978). "Mystery man runs largest black company" . The Cincinnati Enquirer. Cincinnati, Ohio. p. B-1 . Retrieved January 28, 2022 '' via Newspapers.com. ^ "Berry Gordy". BoxRec . Retrieved June 24, 2019 . ^ a b George, Nelson, Where Did Our Love Go, p. 14 ^ BBC (May 22, 2016). "BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Berry Gordy" . Retrieved May 25, 2016 . I was heavily into Jazz and so I opened up this Jazz record store, and in Detroit the people that came in there were asking for the Blues ^ George, Nelson (1985). Where Did Our Love Go? : The Rise & Fall of the Motown Sound (1st ed.). New York, New York. p. 19. ISBN 0312866984. OCLC 12694993. {{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) ^ Finn, Natalie (January 20, 2012). "Five Memorable Etta James Songs'--Besides At Last". E! Online . Retrieved March 20, 2019 . ^ Danois, Ericka Blount (July 22, 2016). "Why So White, 'Mad Men' Finale?". EBONY . Retrieved March 20, 2019 . ^ "Motownmansion.com". Motownmansion.com . Retrieved June 30, 2014 . ^ "Berry Gordy". Entrepreneur. October 10, 2008 . Retrieved June 24, 2019 . ^ Miles, Milo (November 27, 1994). "Mr. Motown". The New York Times. ^ "Berry Gordy to Receive Pioneer Award From Songwriters Hall of Fame". Rolling Stone. March 12, 2013. ^ Arsenio hall to get black caucus award. (1993, Sep 16). Los Angeles Sentinel. ^ "Michigan Rock and Roll Legends - BERRY GORDY JR". Michiganrockandrolllegends.com. ^ Hetrick, Adam. "Songwriters Hall of Fame to Honor Motown's Berry Gordy" Archived April 11, 2013, at archive.today Playbill.com, March 12, 2013. ^ Dwyer, Colin (September 22, 2016). "At White House, A Golden Moment For America's Great Artists And Patrons". NPR. ^ Wick, Julia (November 26, 2019). "When Motown came to L.A." Newsletter. Los Angeles Times . Retrieved January 30, 2020 . ^ "Kennedy Center Honors celebrate Bette Midler, Berry Gordy". UPI . Retrieved December 7, 2021 . ^ Nazareno, Mia (December 17, 2021). "Smokey Robinson, Berry Gordy, Jr. & More to Be Inducted at 2022 Black Music and Entertainment Walk of Fame". Billboard . Retrieved December 27, 2021 . ^ "UMich celebrates first in-person commencement since 2019". May 2, 2022. ^ "Photo from Reuters Pictures". Daylife.com. March 20, 2009. Archived from the original on March 18, 2012 . Retrieved April 16, 2012 . ^ "The Miracles Honored At The Hollywood Walk Of Fame - Pictures". Zimbio. March 20, 2009 . Retrieved April 16, 2012 . ^ "The Miracles Honored At The Hollywood Walk Of Fame - Pictures". Zimbio. March 20, 2009 . Retrieved April 16, 2012 . ^ "The Miracles Honored At The Hollywood Walk Of Fame '' Pictures". Zimbio. March 20, 2009 . Retrieved April 16, 2012 . ^ "Motown Founder Develops Own Story for Broadway". Broadway.me. Archived from the original on October 9, 2011 . Retrieved May 15, 2011 . ^ "Berry Gordy, Doug Morris, Smokey Robinson Preview 'Motown: The Musical' ". The Hollywood Reporter. December 4, 2012 . Retrieved December 24, 2012 . ^ "Motown Will Move Out! Musical Will Take Broadway Hiatus With U.K. Plans in Store". playbill.com. Playbill. August 21, 2014. Archived from the original on August 22, 2014 . Retrieved August 22, 2014 . ^ "Shrine -The Full and first issue story by Andy Rix MISS RAY ARRIVES". Soul Articles . Retrieved February 22, 2001 . ^ Green, Michelle (November 5, 1990). "After Decades of Silence, Raynoma Singleton Is Singing the Blues About Her Ex-Husband Berry Gordy". People . Retrieved April 16, 2012 . ^ Gordy, Sherry. "Sherry Gordy's personal webpage". Archived from the original on December 24, 2013 . Retrieved December 22, 2013 . ^ "Berry Gordy". Walkoffame.com. October 25, 2019 . Retrieved February 28, 2022 . ^ Carter, Jeff, Ancestors of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland and Company, Inc. (2012), 94 ^ Hayter-Menzies, Grant, Lillian Carter: A Compassionate Life, Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland and Company, Inc., Publishers (2015), 207 ^ a b "Powis Castle". Equibase Inc. December 28, 2018 . Retrieved December 28, 2018 . ^ a b Berry Gordy speaks out on 'Dreamgirls', Jet, March 19, 2007, archive Sources [ edit ] Ritz, David (1991). Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Da Capo Press. ISBN 0-306-81191-X. External links [ edit ] Awards for Berry Gordy

PerformersThe Beach BoysAl Jardine, Mike Love, Brian Wilson, Carl Wilson, Dennis WilsonThe BeatlesGeorge Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo StarrThe DriftersBen E. King, Rudy Lewis, Clyde McPhatter, Johnny Moore, Bill Pinkney, Charlie Thomas, Gerhart ThrasherBob DylanThe SupremesFlorence Ballard, Diana Ross, Mary WilsonEarly influencesNon-performers(Ahmet Ertegun Award)

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 16:42

(C) 2023 Headspace Inc.Terms & conditionsPrivacy policyCookie policy & settingsCCPA noticeSecuritySitemap

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 16:39

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

American psychiatrist (1935''2016)

Frances Cress Welsing

Welsing receives Community Award at National Black LUV Festival on September 21, 2008

BornFrances Luella Cress

( 1935-03-18 ) March 18, 1935DiedJanuary 2, 2016 (2016-01-02) (aged 80)Alma materAntioch College (B.S.),Howard University (M.D.)OccupationPhysicianKnown forThe Isis Papers: The Keys to the Colors (1991)Frances Luella Welsing (n(C)e Cress; March 18, 1935 '' January 2, 2016) was an American psychiatrist and well-known proponent of the black supremacist melanin theory.[1][2][3]:'Š3'Š [4]:'Š80'Š Her 1970 essay, The Cress Theory of Color-Confrontation and Racism (White Supremacy),[5] offered her interpretation of what she described as the origins of white supremacy culture.

She was the author of The Isis Papers: The Keys to the Colors (1991).[6]

Early life [ edit ] Welsing was born Frances Luella Cress in Chicago on March 18, 1935. Her father, Henry Noah Cress, was a physician, and her mother, Ida Mae Griffin, was a teacher. She was the middle child of three girls, her elder sister named Lorne, and the younger Barbara. In 1957, she earned a B.S. degree at Antioch College, in Yellow Springs, Ohio. In 1961, she met and eventually married Johannes Kramer Welsing, a Ghanaian, while enrolled at Howard University Medical School. They had no children. In 1962, she received an M.D. from Howard University.[citation needed ] In the 1960s, Welsing moved to Washington, D.C., and worked at many hospitals, especially children's hospitals.[7] While Welsing was an assistant professor at Howard University she formulated her first body of work in 1969, The Cress Theory of Color-Confrontation and self-published it in 1970.[5] The paper subsequently appeared in the May 1974 edition of The Black Scholar. This was an introduction to her thoughts that would be developed in The Isis Papers.[8] Twenty-two years later she released The Isis Papers, a compilation of essays she had written about global and local race relations.[9]

Career [ edit ] In 1992, Welsing published The Isis Papers: The Keys to the Colors. The book is a compilation of essays that she had written over 18 years.

The name "The Isis Papers" was inspired by an ancient Egyptian goddess. Isis was the sister/wife of the most significant god Osiris. According to Welsing, all the names of the gods were significant; however, also according to Welsing, Osiris means "lord of the perfect Black,'' although there is no etymological validity to this assertion. Welsing specifically chose the name Isis for her admiration of "truth and justice" that allowed for justice to be stronger than gold and silver.[8]

In this book she talks about the genocide of people of color globally, along with issues black people in the United States face. According to Welsing, the genocide of people of color is caused by white people's inability to produce melanin. The minority status of whites has caused what she calls a preoccupation with white genetic survival.

She believed that injustice caused by racism will end when "non-white people worldwide recognize, analyze, understand and discuss openly the genocidal dynamic."[8] She also tackled issues such as drug use, murder, teen pregnancy, infant mortality, incarceration, and unemployment, in the black community. According to Welsing, the cause of these issues is white supremacy (the white man's race to the top). Black men are at the center of Welsing's discussion because, according to her, they "have the greatest potential to cause white genetic annihilation."[8]

Views [ edit ] In The Isis Papers, she described white people as the genetically defective descendants of recessive genetic mutants. She wrote that due to this "defective" mutation, they may have been forcibly expelled from Africa, among other possibilities.[10] Racism, in the views of Welsing, is a conspiracy "to ensure white genetic survival". She attributed AIDS and addiction to crack cocaine and other substances to "chemical and biological warfare" by white people.[10]

Welsing defined racism as:

"Racism (white supremacy) is the local and global power system dynamic, structured and maintained by those who classify themselves as white; whether consciously or subconsciously determined; this system consists of patterns of perception, logic, symbol formation, thought, speech, action and emotional response, as conducted simultaneously in all areas of people activity: economics, education, entertainment, labor, law, politics, religion, sex, and war. The ultimate purpose of the system is to ensure white genetic survival and to prevent white genetic annihilation on Earth'--a planet in which the overwhelming majority of people are classified as non-white (black, brown, red, and yellow) by white skinned people. All of the non-white people are genetically dominant (in terms of skin coloration) compared to the genetic recessive white skinned people".

Welsing was against white supremacy and what she saw as the emasculation of black men.[8] She theorized that white people were the first people with Albinism who were driven from Africa by the black natives.[11]

Criticisms [ edit ] Welsing caused controversy after she said that homosexuality among African-Americans was a ploy by white males to decrease the black population,[12] arguing that the emasculation of the black man was a means to prevent the procreation of black people. She also believed that white homosexuality was effeminate and an attempt by weak men at gaining more masculinity. Welsing believed that homosexuality is one of the products of the white peoples' race toward supremacy (using their own weaknesses as a weapon).[clarification needed ]

Death [ edit ] By December 30, 2015, Welsing had suffered two strokes and was placed in critical care at a Washington, D.C.-area hospital.[13] She died on January 2, 2016, at the age of 80.[13][14]

Film appearances [ edit ] Welsing appeared in the documentary 500 Years Later (2005), directed by Owen Alik Shahadah, and written by M. K. Asante.[15]Welsing also appeared in Hidden Colors: The Untold History of People of Aboriginal, Moor, and African Descent, a 2011 documentary film by Tariq Nasheed.[16]Works [ edit ] The Isis Papers: The Keys to the Colors, Chicago: Third World Press, c 1992 (3rd printing); ISBN 978-0-88378-103-6, ISBN 978-0-88378-104-3.References [ edit ] ^ Newkirk, Pamela (September 2002). Within the Veil: Black Journalists, White Media. NYU Press. ISBN 978-0-8147-5800-7. ^ "Controversial Black Doctor Provokes Reporters' Reactions - The Washington Post". The Washington Post. ^ Newkirk, Pamela (September 2002). Within the Veil: Black Journalists, White Media. NYU Press. p. 3. ISBN 978-0-8147-5800-7 . Retrieved December 31, 2020 . ^ Walker, Clarence E. (June 14, 2001). We Can't Go Home Again: An Argument About Afrocentrism. Oxford University Press. p. 80. ISBN 978-0-19-535730-1 . Retrieved December 31, 2020 . ^ a b Welsing, Frances Cress (May 1, 1974). "The Cress Theory of Color-Confrontation". The Black Scholar. 5 (8): 32''40. doi:10.1080/00064246.1974.11431416. ISSN 0006-4246. ^ Jaynes, Gerald D. (2005). Encyclopedia of African American society, Volume 1. Sage. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-7619-2764-8. ^ This was from the previous wiki article ^ a b c d e Welsing, Frances (1991). Isis Papers. Washington, DC: C.W Publishing. pp. i''9. ISBN 978-1-60281-959-7. ^ "PE THE 'PIGMENT ENVY' THEORY - The Washington Post". The Washington Post. ^ a b Ortiz de Montellano, Bernard R. (1993). "Melanin, afrocentricity, and pseudoscience". American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 36 (S17): 33''58. doi:10.1002/ajpa.1330360604. ^ "Afrocentricity vs Homosexuality: The Isis Papers". www.spunk.org . Retrieved April 4, 2018 . ^ Lehr, Valerie (1999). Queer Family Values: Debunking the Myth of the Nuclear Family. Temple University Press. p. 108. ISBN 978-1-56639-684-4. ^ a b "Educator Frances Cress Welsing Dies at 80". Rolling Out.com . Retrieved January 1, 2016 . ^ "Dr. Frances Cress Welsing Dead at 80". The Root.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2016 . Retrieved January 2, 2016 . ^ "500 Years Later" (PDF) . African Holocaust.com . Retrieved January 2, 2016 . ^ " 'Hidden Colors' Filmmaker Tariq Nasheed: 'Eric Garner Was Lynched' ". Huffington Post.com. July 30, 2014 . Retrieved January 2, 2016 . External links [ edit ] Ortiz de Montellano, B. (2001) Magic Melanin: Spreading Scientific Illiteracy to Minorities, csicop.org; accessed June 29, 2017.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 15:41

COMMENTARY

A Cold War true believer who sabotaged Obama's foreign policy, Nuland is a huge risk at the State Department Published January 19, 2021 5:00AM (EST)

Former US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland testifies during a hearing on Policy Response to Russian Interference in the 2016 US Elections before the Senate Intelligence Committee at Capitol Hill in Washington, USA on June 20, 2018. (Yasin Ozturk/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images) ");}

Who is Victoria Nuland? Most Americans have never heard of her, because the U.S. corporate media's foreign policy coverage is a wasteland. Most Americans have no idea that President-elect Biden's pick for deputy secretary of state for political affairs is stuck in the quicksand of 1950s U.S.-Russia Cold War politics and dreams of continued NATO expansion, an arms race on steroids and further encirclement of Russia.

Nor do they know that from 2003 to 2005, during the hostile U.S. military occupation of Iraq, Nuland was a foreign policy advisor to Dick Cheney, the Darth Vader of the Bush administration.

You can bet, however, that the people of Ukraine have heard of neocon Nuland. Many have even heard the leaked four-minute audio of her saying "Fuck the EU" during a February 2014 phone call with the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Geoffrey Pyatt.

During the infamous call on which Nuland and Pyatt appeared to be plotting to replace or undermine elected Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych, Nuland expressed her not-so-diplomatic disgust with the European Union for favoring former heavyweight boxer and austerity champ Vitali Klitschko to take over as prime minister, instead of the U.S. first choice, Artseniy Yatsenyuk, who indeed took power after Yanukovych was ousted about three weeks later.

The "Fuck the EU" call went viral, as an embarrassed State Department, never denying the call's authenticity, blamed the Russians for tapping the phone, much as the NSA has tapped the phones of European allies.

Despite outrage from German Chancellor Angela Merkel, no one fired Nuland, but her potty mouth upstaged the more serious story: the U.S. plot to overthrow Ukraine's elected government '-- and America's responsibility for a civil war that has killed at least 13,000 people and left Ukraine the poorest country in Europe.

In the process, Nuland, her husband Robert Kagan '-- co-founder of The Project for a New American Century '-- and their neocon cronies succeeded in sending U.S.-Russian relations into a dangerous downward spiral from which they have yet to recover.

Nuland accomplished this from a relatively junior position as assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs. How much more trouble could she stir up as the No. 3 official at Biden's State Department? We'll find out soon enough, if the Senate confirms her nomination.

Joe Biden should have learned from Barack Obama's mistakes that appointments like this matter. In his first term , Obama allowed his hawkish Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Republican Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, and military and CIA leaders held over from the Bush administration to ensure that endless war trumped his message of hope and change.

Obama, the Nobel Peace Prize winner, ended up presiding over indefinite detentions without charges or trials at Guantnamo Bay, an escalation of drone strikes that killed innocent civilians, a deepening of the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan, a self-reinforcing cycle of terrorism and counterterrorism, and disastrous new wars in Libya and Syria .

With Clinton out and new personnel in top spots in his second term, Obama began to take charge of his own foreign policy. He started working directly with Russia's President Vladimir Putin to resolve crises in Syria and other hotspots. Putin helped avert an escalation of the war in Syria in September 2013 by negotiating the removal and destruction of Syria's chemical weapons stockpiles, and helped Obama negotiate an interim agreement with Iran that led to the JCPOA nuclear deal.

But the neocons were apoplectic that they failed to convince Obama to order a massive bombing campaign and escalate his covert proxy war in Syria and at the receding prospect of a war with Iran. Fearing their control of U.S. foreign policy was slipping, the neocons launched a campaign to brand Obama as "weak" on foreign policy and remind him of their power.

With editorial help from Nuland, Kagan penned a 2014 New Republic article entitled "Superpowers Don't Get to Retire," proclaiming that "there is no democratic superpower waiting in the wings to save the world if this democratic superpower falters." Kagan called for an even more aggressive foreign policy to exorcise American fears of a multipolar world it can no longer dominate.

Obama invited Kagan to a private lunch at the White House, and the neocons' muscle-flexing pressured him to scale back his diplomacy with Russia, even as he quietly pushed ahead on Iran.

The neocons' coup de grace against Obama's better angels came with Nuland's 2014 coup in debt-ridden Ukraine, a strategic candidate for NATO membership right on Russia's border.

When Ukrainian President Yanukovych spurned a U.S.-backed trade agreement with the European Union in favor of a $15 billion bailout from Russia, the State Department threw a tantrum.

Hell hath no fury like a superpower scorned.

The EU trade agreement was to open Ukraine's economy to European imports, but without a reciprocal opening of EU markets to Ukraine, it was a lopsided deal Yanukovich could not accept. The deal was approved by the post-coup government, and has only added to Ukraine's economic woes.

The muscle for Nuland's $5 billion coup was Oleh Tyahnybok's neo-Nazi Svoboda Party and the shadowy new Right Sector militia. During her leaked phone call, Nuland referred to Tyahnybok as one of the "big three" opposition leaders on the outside who could help the U.S.-backed Prime Minister Yatsenyuk on the inside. This is the same Tyanhnybok who once delivered a speec h applauding Ukrainians for fighting Jews and "other scum" during World War II.

After protests in Kyiv's Maidan Square turned into battles with police in February 2014, Yanukovych and the Western-backed opposition signed an agreement brokered by France, Germany and Poland to form a national unity government and hold new elections by the end of the year.

But that was not good enough for the neo-Nazis and extreme right-wing forces the U.S. had helped to unleash. A violent mob led by the Right Sector militia marched on and invaded the parliament building , a scene no longer difficult for Americans to imagine. Yanukovych and his members of parliament fled for their lives.

Facing the loss of its most vital strategic naval base at Sevastopol in Crimea, Russia accepted the overwhelming result (a 97% majority, with an 83% turnout) of a referendum in which Crimea voted to leave Ukraine and rejoin Russia, of which it had been a part from 1783 to 1954.

The majority Russian-speaking provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine unilaterally declared independence from Ukraine, triggering a bloody civil war between U.S.-backed and Russian-backed forces that still rages in 2021.

U.S.-Russian relations have never recovered, even as the two nations' nuclear arsenals still pose the greatest single threat to our existence. Whatever Americans believe about the civil war in Ukraine and allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, we must not allow the neocons and the military-industrial complex they serve to deter Biden from conducting vital diplomacy with Russia to steer us off a suicidal path toward nuclear war.

Nuland and the neocons, however, remain committed to an ever-more debilitating and dangerous Cold War with Russia and China to justify a militarist foreign policy and record Pentagon budgets. In a July 2020 Foreign Affairs article entitled "Pinning Down Putin," Nuland absurdly claimed that Russia presents a greater threat to "the liberal world" than the Soviet Union posed during the old Cold War.

Nuland's narrative rests on an utterly mythical and ahistorical narrative of Russian aggression and U.S. good intentions. She pretends that Russia's military budget, which is one-tenth of America's, is evidence of "Russian confrontation and militarization" and calls on the U.S. and its allies to counter Russia by "maintaining robust defense budgets, continuing to modernize U.S. and allied nuclear weapons systems, and deploying new conventional missiles and missile defenses to protect against Russia's new weapons systems."

Nuland also wants to confront Russia with an aggressive NATO. Since her days as U.S. ambassador to NATO during President George W. Bush's second term, she has been a supporter of NATO's expansion all the way up to Russia's border. She calls for "permanent bases along NATO's eastern border." We have pored over a map of Europe, but we can't find a country called NATO with any borders at all. Nuland sees Russia's commitment to defending itself after successive 20th-century Western invasions as an intolerable obstacle to NATO's expansionist ambitions.

Nuland's militaristic worldview represents exactly the folly the U.S. has been pursuing since the 1990s under the influence of the neocons and "liberal interventionists," which has resulted in a systematic underinvestment in the American people while escalating tensions with Russia, China, Iran and other countries.

As Obama learned too late, the wrong person in the wrong place at the wrong time can, with a shove in the wrong direction, unleash years of intractable violence, chaos and international discord. Victoria Nuland would be a ticking time-bomb in Biden's State Department, waiting to sabotage his better angels much as she undermined Obama's second-term diplomacy.

Marcy Winograd is the Coordinator of CODEPINK Congress and co-chair of the foreign policy team for Progressive Democrats of America.

MORE FROM Marcy Winograd");}else {document.write("");}

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 15:36

US intelligence agencies are getting their own ChatGPT-style tool to sift through an avalanche of public information for clues. The Central Intelligence Agency is preparing to roll out a feature akin to OpenAI Inc.'s now-famous program that will use artificial intelligence to give analysts better access to open-source intelligence, according to agency officials. The CIA's Open-Source Enterprise division plans to provide intelligence agencies with its AI tool soon. ''We've gone from newspapers and radio, to newspapers and television, to newspapers and cable television, to basic internet, to big data, and it just keeps going,'' Randy Nixon, director of the division, said in an interview. ''We have to find the needles in the needle field.'' It's part of a broader government campaign to harness the power of AI and compete with China, which is seeking to become the global leader in the field by 2030. That US push dovetails with the intelligence community's struggle to process the vast amounts of data that's now publicly available, amid criticism that it's been slow to exploit that source. The CIA's AI tool will allow users to see the original source of the information that they're viewing, Nixon said. He said that a chat feature is a logical part of getting intelligence distributed quicker. ''Then you can take it to the next level and start chatting and asking questions of the machines to give you answers, also sourced,'' said Nixon, whose division oversees intelligence drawn from publicly and commercially available sources.

Full report : CIA Builds Its Own Artificial Intelligence Tool in Rivalry With China.

About OODA Analyst OODA is comprised of a unique team of international experts capable of providing advanced intelligence and analysis, strategy and planning support, risk and threat management, training, decision support, crisis response, and security services to global corporations and governments.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 14:11

A former Indian diplomat has claimed that there is a "credible rumor" that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's plane at the recent G20 meeting was "full of cocaine."

Deepak Vohra, who was a former Indian ambassador to Sudan, made the claim on Monday on Indian television, also saying that the Canadian leader "has definitely gone insane."

"When Justin Trudeau came to India for the G20 this month, his plane was full of cocaine," Vohra said during a show on Zee News, according to the Toronto Sun. "He did not come out of his room for two days."

Vohra claimed that police dogs had discovered cocaine on Trudeau's plane during the G20 summit earlier this month.

"My wife saw him at the Delhi airport and said that Trudeau looked depressed and stressed," Vohra continued. "We don't know the reason. I don't know the reality, but social media and some 'credible rumors' suggest that his plane was full of cocaine."

"He has become lonely. He is now trying to show that he is a Canadian Rambo and nothing can go wrong in his presence. India has done the right thing by suspending visa services in Canada."

In a statement to the outlet, the Prime Minister's Office denied the allegation.

"This (is) absolutely false and a troubling example of how disinformation can make its way into media reporting."

Vohra also criticized Trudeau for a recent speech he gave in the House of Commons, saying "In his parliament address, he used the words 'credible allegations' against India," Vohra said. "How can allegations be credible? Either it can be credible or an allegation. I also have a 'credible rumor' to make in this case that 'Trudeau is crazy.' It is a credible rumor."

Trudeau last week told the House of Commons that Canadian intelligence services are investigating "credible' information regarding a "potential link" between the Indian government and the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a British Columbia Sikh leader, who was fatally shot outside his gurdwara on June 18.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has denied the allegations. India has stopped processing Canadian visas, and both countries have expelled senior diplomats.Notably, Trudeau's jet was stuck in India for an extra day after "technical difficulties" grounded the flight.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:45

Volkswagen is curbing the production of electric vehicle models at two German plants due to declining European demand and shrinking government subsidies.

Production of Volkswagen's ID.3 and Cupra's Born electric models will be dialed back at the German carmaker's main EV factory in Zwickau until Oct. 16, a spokesperson said. Assembly of the ID.3 at a small-scale plant in Dresden will cease for the first two weeks of October.

VW is holding talks with local labor representatives on how production in Zwickau, located near the Czech border, will continue in the second half of October, the spokesperson said. Assembly in Dresden's Glaeserne Manufaktur will return to normal during that period.

The appetite for EVs in Europe has been held back in recent months by higher energy, living and borrowing costs, as well as lingering consumer concerns about charging infrastructure and battery range. The German government's decision to end subsidies for electric cars in company fleets this month led to a 171% increase in new EV registrations in August compared to the previous year, according to Germany's VDA auto lobby.

Against that backdrop, Germany has led a months-long crusade to extend the use of internal combustion engines under the European Union's climate plans through the use of so-called e-fuels.

VW said earlier this month it was letting go 269 temporary workers in Zwickau whose year-long contracts are expiring soon. Orders for company cars, which accounted for some 70% of VW-branded EVs made in Zwickau, have been dropping in the wake of the subsidy phaseout.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:39

Donald Trump has lashed out against a New York judge for ruling that he lied about his wealth for years and committed fraud by submitting false valuations to secure loans.

Judge Arthur Engoron ruled that Trump committed fraud for years while building the real estate empire that catapulted him to fame and the White House, after prosecutors charged he inflated property valuations with lenders and diminished them with tax authorities.

In reaction, the former president took to Truth Social to say it was 'a very sad day for the New York State System of Justice'.

'Today's Ruling about a Company that has done a magnificent job for New York State fails to acknowledge the fact that Murder and all other forms of Violent Crime have reached record levels in New York State,' he wrote.

'Can you imagine ruling against me for having done business perfectly, and yet letting people go on a rampage on the sidewalks of New York?

A New York judge ruled in summary judgment that former President Trump and his company engaged in Fraud over a period of years

'This is the Judicial conduct that is forcing thousands of companies to flee New York for other environs, while virtually nobody comes back to the City or State.'

The civil trial begins October and could run through the end of the year, as Trump continues to lead the GOP field for the Republican presidential nomination.

The ruling Tuesday came in a civil lawsuit brought by James, even as Trump faces multiple criminal indictments in multiple jurisdictions related to his election overturn effort and other matters.

She sued last year, claiming numerous acts of fraud. Lawyers representing Trump and his company, as well as his adult children, asked the judge to dismiss the suit through summary judgement.

James found that the former president and his company deceived banks, insurers and others by massively overvaluing his assets and exaggerating his net worth on paperwork used in making deals and securing financing.

She said he boosted valuations by up to $2 billion, inflating the value of signature assets including the Mar-a-Lago club where he now resides and his Manhattan penthouse apartment at Trump Tower.

The decision, days before the start of a non-jury trial in Attorney General Letitia James´ lawsuit, is the strongest repudiation yet of Trump´s carefully coiffed image as a wealthy and shrewd real estate mogul turned political powerhouse.

Beyond mere bragging about his riches, Trump, his company and key executives repeatedly lied about them on his annual financial statements, reaping rewards such as favorable loan terms and lower insurance premiums, Engoron found.

Those tactics crossed a line and violated the law, the judge said, rejecting Trump's contention that a disclaimer on the financial statements absolved him of any wrongdoing.

Manhattan prosecutors had looked into bringing a criminal case over the same conduct but declined to do so, leaving James to sue Trump and seek penalties that could disrupt his and his family´s ability to do business in the state.

Engoron's ruling, in a phase of the case known as summary judgment, resolves the key claim in James' lawsuit, but six others remain.

Trump has repeatedly attacked New York State AG Letitia James and accused her of bias against him

Engoron is slated to hold a non-jury trial starting Oct. 2 before deciding on those claims and any punishments he may impose. James is seeking $250 million in penalties and a ban on Trump doing business in New York, his home state. The trial could last into December, Engoron has said.

Trump's lawyers had asked the judge to throw out the case, which he denied.

They contend that James wasn't legally allowed to file the lawsuit because there isn't any evidence that the public was harmed by Trump's actions. They also argued that many of the allegations in the lawsuit were barred by the statute of limitations.

Trump has long accused James and other prosecutors coming after him of bias.

The judgment came in a case where Trump once again delivered potentially harmful statements during a deposition.

Trump under questioning compared his golf and real estate empire to the Mona Lisa and other priceless art works.

Trump made the extraordinary claim while describing his decision to hand off control of his business to his adult sons Don Jr. and Eric during his term as president '' with New York AG Letitia James sitting across from him in a Manhattan courthouse for a deposition.

'We have the Mona Lisas of properties,' Trump told the prosecuting attorney in the April deposition unsealed Wednesday.

Then he bragged about his golf course in Turnberry, Scotland. 'I could sell that. That's like selling a painting. A painting on a wall that sells for $250 million,' he continued.

'I have great assets,' Trump gushed '' raving about Mar-a-Lago as well as his property at 40 Wall Street, which he said is 'the best location,' he told prosecutor Kevin Wallace in James' office.

Prosecutors claim he has jacked up his net worth by between $812 million and $2.2 billion every year over a decade. James argues Trump inflated his valuations when seeking lending. Trump's lawyers are asking a judge to toss the suit, calling it a 'crusade' over long-ago loans that have been repaid.

'You don't have a case and you should drop this case,' Trump told James.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:38

Former President Donald Trump submitted "fraudulent valuations" for assets that were then used by himself, his eldest sons and his business to obtain better loan and insurance terms, a judge in New York decided Tuesday before ordering the cancelation of the company's business certificates in New York.

The judge's determination came as he granted partial summary judgment in New York Attorney General Letitia James' multimillion-dollar civil fraud lawsuit.

Judge Arthur Engoron cites "false and misleading square footage" of Trump's Fifth Avenue apartment among other faulty valuations.

The judge immediately canceled all of the defendants' business certificates in New York, and ordered that they must recommend no more than three potential independent receivers to manage the dissolution of the canceled LLCs within 10 days.

The move severely restricts Trump's ability to conduct business in New York going forward.

The judge said Trump and the other defendants have a "propensity to engage in persistent fraud," severely undercutting the defense Trump will offer when the case goes on trial next month.

Engoron wrote in his order that Trump, his adult sons, Eric and Don Jr., and the other defendants fraudulently inflated the value of properties including Trump's Mar-A-Lago estate in Florida and his own triplex apartment in New York City, as well as 40 Wall Street, Trump Park Avenue, multiple golf courses, and an estate in upstate New York.

In this June 24, 2023, file photo, Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump speaks at an event in Washington, D.C.

Drew Angerer/Getty Images, FILE

Eric Trump, who runs the Trump Organization's day-to-day operations, responded on X, previously known as Twitter, saying, "Today, I lost all faith in the New York legal system. Never before have I seen such hatred toward one person by a judge."

"We have run an exceptional company -- never missing a loan payment, making banks hundreds of millions of dollars, developing some of the most iconic assets in the world. Yet today, the persecution of our family continues..." he said.

Donald Trump, also on X, reposted a previous post in which he said, "THE BANKS WERE PAID BACK IN FULL, SOMETIMES EARLY, THERE WERE NO DEFAULTS, THE BANKS MADE MONEY, WERE REPRESENTED BY THE BEST LAW FIRMS, & WERE VERY 'HAPPY.' THERE WERE NO VICTIMS!"

In a statement to ABC News, Trump attorney Alina Habba said they intend to "immediately" appeal the decision, calling the Trump Organization "an American success story."

James, in a statement, said, "Today, a judge ruled in our favor and found that Donald Trump and the Trump Organization engaged in years of financial fraud. We look forward to presenting the rest of our case at trial."

Trial is currently scheduled to begin Oct. 2, although upcoming rulings may alter that schedule. Among other determinations, the trial will decide how much Trump will have to pay in penalties.

In his ruling Tuesday, Engoron said Trump inflated the value of his own Trump Tower residence between $114 million and $207 million -- including claiming the property was triple its actual size in square feet.

"A discrepancy of this order of magnitude, by a real estate developer sizing up his own living space of decades, can only be considered fraud," Engoron said in his order.

Engoron also found that Trump inflated the value of his Mar-a-Lago club by at least 2,300%, claiming the property assessed by the county between $18 million and $27.6 million was actually worth between $426,529,614 and $612,110,496.

In total, Engoron wrote that the New York attorney general "submitted conclusive evidence" that the defendants overvalued their assets between $812 million and $2.2 billion.

In his 35-page order, the judge described the conduct of the defendants in the case as belonging in a "fantasy world," and sharply criticized what he called the "bogus arguments" made by the defense.

"In defendants' world: rent regulated apartments are worth the same as unregulated apartments; restricted land is worth the same as unrestricted land; restrictions can evaporate into thin air; a disclaimer by one party casting responsibility on another party exonerates the other party's lies..." Engoron wrote, citing multiple arguments made by defense to justify the allegedly inflated valuations of Trump's assets. "That is a fantasy world, not the real world."

Engoron also appeared to use the words of former President Trump against him, citing a transcript from a deposition of Trump about the inclusion of so-called "worthless clauses," disclaimers included in financial statements which defense has argued insulate the defendants from liability.

"However, defendants' reliance on these 'worthless' disclaimers is worthless," Engoron wrote, rejecting a frequent argument cited by the defense.

Engoron similarly disagreed with the defense's argument that property values were "subjective" and therefore could not be fraudulent.

"The defenses Donald Trump attempts to articulate in his sworn deposition are wholly without basis in law or fact," Engoron wrote, saying that the documents presented to the court "clearly contain fraudulent valuations that defendants used in business."

Engoron also sanctioned Donald Trump's lawyers for peddling "bogus arguments," ordering five attorneys to pay $7,500 each. Christopher Kise, Michael Madaio, Clifford S. Robert, Michael Farina and Armen Morian were each ordered to pay within 30 days.

A lawyer for the New York attorney general's office had earlier described "staggering" misrepresentations about the value of Trump's properties and assets, arguing that Trump engaged in a prolonged "bait-and-switch" to lower his tax burden while inflating his assets to obtain favorable loan terms.

ABC News' Olivia Rubin and Lalee Ibssa contributed to this report.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 11:58

Creating a centralized podcast destination on YouTube Music

News and Events

By The YouTube Team

Sep 26, 2023 '' minute read

We're living in the golden age of podcasts. We've seen creators and artists really embrace Podcasts on YouTube, and its incredible potential to boost audience growth across audio and video formats. That's why, earlier this year, we launched the ability to watch and listen to podcasts on YouTube Music in the US, without requiring a paid membership. Podcasts on YouTube Music in the US already include access to downloads, background play in places like the car and on smart speakers as well as the ability to switch between audio and video podcasts. We plan to make Podcasts on YouTube Music globally available before the end of the year.

Looking forward to 2024, we'll be increasing our investment in the podcast experience on YouTube Music '-- making it a better overall destination for fans and podcasters alike.

Looking forward to 2024, we'll be increasing our investment in the podcast experience on YouTube Music '-- making it a better overall destination for fans and podcasters alike with YouTube-only capabilities across community, discovery and audio/visual switching. Later in 2024, as part of this process, we'll be discontinuing Google Podcasts. As part of this process, we'll be helping Google Podcasts users move over to Podcasts in YouTube Music. This matches what listeners and podcasters are already doing: according to Edison, about 23% of weekly podcast users in the US say YouTube is their most frequently used service, versus just 4% for Google Podcasts.

We want to make sure we get this right and will give fans and podcasters plenty of time to make the transition. For users, it means a simple migration tool and the ability to add podcast RSS feeds to their YouTube Music library, including shows not currently hosted by YouTube. For those who prefer a different listening platform, the tools will also include an option to download an OPML file of their show subscriptions, which they can upload to an app that supports their import. For podcasters, this means providing robust creation and analytics tools, as well as RSS uploads, in addition to making your podcasts available everywhere YouTube Music listeners are already consuming their favorite content''in the background, in the car, offline, and more.

In the coming weeks and months, we'll gather feedback to make the migration process from Google Podcasts to YouTube Music as simple and easy as possible. Once we feel the migration tools are ready, we'll release them along with clear guidelines on how they work.

We know this transition will take time, but these efforts will allow us to build an amazing product and a single destination that rewards creators and artists and provides fans with the best Podcasts experience. For now, nothing is changing and fans will continue to have access to YouTube, YouTube Music and Google Podcasts. We're committed to being transparent in communicating future changes with our users and podcasters and will have more to share about this process in the coming months.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 20:48

Image source, Reuters Image caption, Speaker of the House of Commons Anthony Rota said he did not know of the 98-year-old's previous Nazi ties

The Speaker of Canada's House of Commons has resigned after inviting a Ukrainian man who fought for a Nazi unit to parliament and praising him.

After first resisting calls to step down, Anthony Rota quit on Tuesday after meeting party leaders in Ottawa.

"I must step down as your Speaker," he said in parliament. "I reiterate my profound regret."

The incident last Friday drew global condemnation.

Yaroslav Hunka, 98, got a standing ovation after Mr Rota called him a "hero" during a Friday visit by Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky.

Mr Rota has said he did not know of Mr Hunka's Nazi ties and made a mistake in inviting him to attend the event.

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Monday it was "extremely upsetting that this happened".

"This is something that is deeply embarrassing to the parliament of Canada and by extension to all Canadians," he told reporters.

Image source, Reuters

Image caption, Mr Trudeau called last week's incident "deeply embarrassing"

During World War Two, Mr Hunka served in the 14th Waffen-SS Grenadier Division, a voluntary unit made up mostly of ethnic Ukrainians under Nazi command. Division members are accused of killing Polish and Jewish civilians, although the unit has not been found guilty of any war crimes by a tribunal.

Earlier on Tuesday, Poland's Education Minister Przemysław Czarnek said he had "taken steps" towards extraditing Mr Hunka.

Members of Mr Trudeau's cabinet had joined cross-party calls for Mr Rota to step down.

Hours before the Speaker announced his resignation, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly called the mistake "completely unacceptable".

"I think the Speaker should listen to members of the house and step down," she said. "I don't think there's any alternative."

Media caption, Watch: The moment Canadian lawmakers celebrate Ukrainian Nazi

House leader for Canada's New Democratic Party Peter Julian applauded Mr Rota's resignation, calling it the "right decision".

"We fully accept Mr Rota's apology and believe that he didn't intend to cause harm but, unfortunately, there are very real consequences to his lapse in judgment," he said in a statement.

Mr Rota's resignation has not slowed criticism from Canada's opposition leader, the Conservative Party's Pierre Poilievre.

Addressing parliament, Mr Poilievre said the responsibility fell to Prime Minister Trudeau "to reverse the massive damage down to our international reputation".

"Will he rise in this place and apologise for this massive and shameful failure?" he said.

Michael Mostyn, CEO of Jewish human rights group B'nai Brith Canada, told the BBC that the incident "cannot end simply with the speaker".

"We have a situation in Canada, where we don't know our own history when it comes to Nazi perpetrators that made their way into this country," he said. "It's a shame to our country."

With reporting from Nadine Yousif

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 18:09

Humans will go extinct on Earth in 250 million years '' but that's if we were to stop burning fossil fuels right now, a bleak new study reveals.

Computer simulations suggest our planet will face a mass extinction that wipes out all mammals, University of Bristol experts report.

Any lifeforms still alive on Earth by this time would have to cope with temperatures of between 104°F to 158°F (40°C to 70°C), they say.

But their calculations don't account for greenhouse gases emitted by the burning of fossil fuels and other human-caused sources '' so the date of our demise will likely be even sooner.

It would be the first mass extinction since the dinosaurs died out, around 66 million years ago, when the Earth was catastrophically hit by a massive space rock.

Extreme heat is likely to wipe out humans and mammals in the distant future even without the influence of CO2-belching fossil fuels (artist's impression)

Supercontinents and how they formEarth's tectonic plates, move around the planet at speeds of a few centimetres per year.

Every so often they come together and combine into a supercontinent, which remains for a few hundred million years before breaking up.

The plates then disperse or scatter and move away from each other, until they eventually '' after another 400-600 million years '' come back together again.

The new study was led by Dr Alexander Farnsworth, senior research associate at the University of Bristol's School of Geographical Sciences.

'The outlook in the distant future appears very bleak,' Dr Farnsworth said.

'Carbon dioxide levels could be double current levels.

'Humans '' along with many other species '' would expire due to their inability to shed this heat through sweat, cooling their bodies.'

In 250 million years' time, all of Earth's continents will have moved together to form a supercontinent known as Pangea Ultima, according to the researchers.

Earth's land would form a doughnut-shape with an inland sea in the middle '' all that's left of the once-mighty Atlantic Ocean.

The surrounding Pacific Ocean, meanwhile, would take up the majority of Earth's surface.

Pangea Ultima is just one possible projection of what Earth's supercontinent could look like once the plate tectonics come together.

Whatever the exact alignment, scientists are sure Earth's continents will slowly merge to form one hot, dry and largely uninhabitable mass.

Image shows the geography of today's Earth (left) and the expected geography of Earth in 250 million years, when all the continents converge into one supercontinent (Pangea Ultima)

Image shows the warmest month average temperature (degrees Celsius) for Earth and the projected supercontinent (Pangea Ultima) in 250 million years, when it would be difficult for almost any mammals to survive

Tectonic processes in Earth's crust that brought the continents together would lead to more frequent volcanic eruptions, which would produce huge releases of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere, further warming the planet.

Adding to this is another less well-known form of global warming '' the natural brightening of the sun, which is steadily making the planets hotter and hotter.

'The newly-emerged supercontinent would effectively create a triple whammy, comprising the continentality effect, hotter sun and more CO2 in the atmosphere, of increasing heat for much of the planet,' said Dr Farnsworth.

'The result is a mostly hostile environment devoid of food and water sources for mammals.

'Widespread temperatures of between 40 to 50 degrees Celsius, and even greater daily extremes, compounded by high levels of humidity would ultimately seal our fate.'

For the study, the scientists used computerised climate models to simulate temperature, wind, rain, and humidity trends for Pangea Ultima.

To estimate the future level of CO2 the team used models of tectonic plate movement, ocean chemistry and more to map out inputs and outputs of CO2.

Researchers stress that they didn't factor in the contribution of CO2 emissions from burning fossil fuels, commonly cited as the largest cause of climate change today.

Pictured, average monthly surface air temperature for Earth in 250 million years in the future if all the continents come together to form Pangea Ultima

The new calculations don't account for greenhouse gases emitted by the burning of fossil fuels and other human-caused sources - the date we go extinct will likely be even sooner (file photo)

They estimated that CO2 could rise from around 400 parts per million (ppm) today to more than 600 ppm many millions of years in the future.

'Of course, this assumes that humans will stop burning fossil fuels, otherwise we will see those numbers much, much sooner,' said co-author Professor Benjamin Mills at the University of Leeds.

Findings indicate only somewhere between 8 per cent and 16 per cent of land would be habitable for mammals, but likely all mammal species will be wiped out.

'Some specialised ones could survive potentially, however it would still be a mass extinction of mammals either way,' Dr Farnsworth told MailOnline.

To make things worse, the supercontinent would be located primarily in the hot, humid tropics, so much of the planet could be facing hotter temperatures than many mammal species will be used to.

'We can't predict how long humans will exist for, however, should we assume that we do last that long such a future world would be inhospitable for us,' Dr Farnsworth added.

The academic said we might be able to survive if we built 'environmentally-controlled shelters with air conditioning'.

'But we would likely have to build other facilities to house food production as well,' he said.

Another hope for humanity is forming civilisations on other planets in other solar systems, but this is currently only the stuff of science fiction.

'[Survival] will all depend on whether we can escape this planet, and if not, do we have the capacity to use geoengineering solutions to manage the climate,' Dr Farnsworth said.

The study has been published today in Nature Geoscience.

Climate change really is our fault: More than 99.9% of studies agree that global warming is mainly caused by humans Global warming is our fault, according to a new study that analysed tens of thousands of climate change papers, finding that over 99.9 per cent of them agree.

In total 88,125 studies published from 2012 to 2020 were reviewed by experts from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, to see how many of them linked human activity to the changing climate and look for consensus on the subject.

It builds on the work of a 2013 paper that analysed all climate science papers published between 1991 and 2012, finding a 97 per cent consensus.

'We are virtually certain that the consensus is well over 99 per cent now, said author Mark Lynas, who said it is 'case closed' for discussion of human-caused climate change.

Read more

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 17:08

The standoff between Moscow and Kiev might evolve into a hybrid war and drag on for years, Aleksey Arestovich warns

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine could continue for more than a decade, Aleksey Arestovich, a former adviser to President Vladimir Zelensky, has said, predicting that the two neighbors are unlikely to resolve their differences in the near future.

''That will last until 2035, that's for sure,'' he said in an interview on September 17, published on his YouTube channel. According to Arestovich, Russia is ''seeking a new form of empire,'' which will never come into existence without Ukraine.

The former presidential aide then doubled down on his forecast, saying that the ''acute phase of the standoff will continue until 2035.'' However, he argued that the standoff does not have to be a military one. The two sides might reach a ceasefire or end the hostilities altogether, but the conflict would then continue ''on diplomatic, intelligence, economic, and information fronts.''

Ukraine has to get used to living in a situation of constant military threat and maintain an ''advanced alert status,'' Arestovich said, suggesting that Kiev should follow Israel's example if it wants to adapt to such circumstances. ''A war can break out or a border incident might [happen]'' at any moment, even after the current fighting ends.

Arestovich also noted that he first made such a forecast in April 2022, just two months into the conflict. His words shocked people at that time, he added.

On Tuesday, Bloomberg reported that seven of the world's leading developed economies, known as the G7, believe the Russia-Ukraine conflict could extend for another six to seven years. The timeline has been stretched due to the apparent lack of progress in Ukraine's counteroffensive, the news agency reported, citing multiple officials.

One such official told Bloomberg that Kiev is likely to struggle with insufficient Western arms supplies and rising personnel losses. Regardless of such forecasts, Ukraine and its Western backers still oppose the idea of negotiations with Russia, and have rejected any resolution to the conflict that involves Ukraine ceding territory that it claims as its own, the article added.

Moscow has repeatedly said it is ready for peace talks, but insisted that they must take into account Russia's interests and ''the reality on the ground,'' which saw four former Ukrainian territories join Russia following a series of referendums in 2022.

On Saturday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told journalists on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session that Russia was willing to engage in peace negotiations, but would not consider any ceasefire proposals, since it has already been ''deceived'' before.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 16:57

Our impactWe regularly report on our activities and impact to our funders. This allows us to reflect on our growth, and on what the tech accountability ecosystem needs from us.

Who funds usDigital Action was founded in 2018 with the financial support of the Wallace Foundation, Ford Foundation, Luminate Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and Open Society Foundations. We also received funding from Unbound Philanthropy. Some funders have continued to support our project with repeat funding and we have recently secured new support from the Skoll Foundation.

Our generous and supportive foundation backers have given Digital Action the stability to gain invaluable experience during our start-up years, learning how we can best serve the tech accountability ecosystem. We're now scaling up our team and campaign capabilities globally. As at financial year 2023, we are backed by multi-year grants totalling $1,737,000 and talks about future funding beyond existing agreements are active and positive.

Our funding partnersLuminate was established in 2018 by philanthropists Pierre and Pam Omidyar. Their mission is to ensure that everyone '' especially those who are underrepresented '' has the information, rights, and power to influence the decisions that affect their lives.

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation supports creative people, effective institutions, and influential networks building a more just, verdant, and peaceful world. The Foundation aims to strengthen democracy and build a more equitable future by informing, engaging, and activating Americans through deep investments in just and inclusive news and narratives.

Open Society Foundations work to build vibrant and inclusive democracies whose governments are accountable to their citizens.

The Skoll Foundation catalyzes transformational social change by investing in, connecting, and championing social entrepreneurs and other social innovators who together advance bold and equitable solutions to the world's most pressing problems.

The Ford Foundation is an independent organization working to address inequality and build a future grounded in justice. For more than 85 years, it has supported visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide, guided by its mission to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 16:55

IndividualsAmira GalalAnna Grace CalhounAnriette EsterhuysenBrbara PaesBram FudzulaniCamilla MachuyCheryl AkinyiDr. Michael StrautmannDima SamaroElla ShoupEya OueslatiFatuma NyirendaFrancesca EdgertonGuendalina SimonciniIdayat HassanIngrid FariasKarina MendozaKaryn CaplanKeerti RajagopalanKirsten FiedlerKyle TaylorLuis SerranoLuise KochMaria Paula Russo RivaMichaela Nakayama ShapiroMostafa FouadNasiru DeenNatalia AlbertNatalia ZuazoPablo NunesRima SghaierSam PhiriSeble G. WorknehWathata Kinyua FoundationYasmin Curzi*Some Coalition members are not disclosed for security or other reasons

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 16:13

Early in 2023, genomics scientist Kevin McKernan made an accidental discovery. While running an experiment in his Boston lab, McKernan used some vials of mRNA Pfizer and Moderna Covid vaccines as controls. He was 'shocked' to find that they were allegedly contaminated with tiny fragments of plasmid DNA.

McKernan, who has 25 years' experience in his field, ran the experiment again, confirming that the vials contained up to, in his opinion, 18-70 times more DNA contamination than the legal limits allowed by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

In particular, McKernan was alarmed to find the presence of an SV40 promoter in the Pfizer vaccine vials. This is a sequence that is, ''...used to drive DNA into the nucleus, especially in gene therapies,' McKernan explains. This is something that regulatory agencies around the world have specifically said is not possible with the mRNA vaccines.

Knowing that the contamination had not been disclosed by the manufacturers during the regulatory process, McKernan raised the alarm, posting his findings to Twitter (now X) and Substack with a call-out to other scientists to see if they could replicate his findings.

Other scientists soon confirmed McKernan's findings, though the amount of DNA contamination was variable, suggesting inconsistency of vial contents depending on batch lots. One of these scientists was cancer genomics expert Dr Phillip Buckhaults, who is a proponent of the mRNA platform and has received the Pfizer Covid vaccine himself.

In September of this year, Dr Buckhaults shared his findings in South Carolina Senate hearing. 'I'm kind of alarmed about this DNA being in the vaccine '' it's different from RNA, because it can be permanent,' he told those present.

'There is a very real hazard,' he said, that the contaminant DNA fragments will integrate with a person's genome and become a 'permanent fixture of the cell' leading to autoimmune problems and cancers in some people who have had the vaccinations. He also noted that these genome changes can 'last for generations'.

Dr Buckhaults alleges that the presence of high levels of contaminant DNA in the mRNA vaccines 'may be causing some of the rare but serious side effects, like death from cardiac arrest'. He added, 'I think this is a real serious regulatory oversight that happened at the federal level.'

Dr Buckhaults' concerns are shared by McKernan, who presented his findings to the FDA in June. At the time of writing, McKernan had not received any response from the FDA on the matter. Dr Buckhaults said in the Senate hearing that he had emailed his findings to the FDA, but he had not received a response either.

In Australia, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) maintains that Covid vaccines cannot alter a person's DNA. A spokesperson for the TGA stated, 'The mRNA in the vaccines does not enter the nucleus of cells and is not integrated into the human genome. Thus, the mRNA does not cause genetic damage or affect the offspring of vaccinated individuals.'

They also said, 'All batches of Covid vaccines distributed to Australians have been tested for the presence of contaminants including residual DNA template levels.'

However, a legal case filed in the Australian Federal Court in July of this year alleges that the TGA is not the appropriate regulator of Covid mRNA vaccines because, under the Gene Technology Act (2000) definition, the DNA contamination is a genetically modified organism (GMO).

The plaintiff, Victorian doctor and pharmacist Dr Julian Fidge, is seeking an injunction to stop Pfizer and Moderna from distributing their mRNA Covid vaccines because they never obtained a license from the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (OGTR), which is the agency that oversees all GMO related products.

The TGA did not require tests for genotoxicity or carcinogenicity before providing provisional approval and, eventually, full registration of both the Moderna and Pfizer Covid vaccines. OGTR guidance strongly suggests such tests should be undertaken where there exists a risk of harm to human health.

McKernan, who provided expert advice on the case, agrees that the DNA contamination in the mRNA vaccines fits the Australian legal definition of a GMO. But there is also a second component of the mRNA vaccines that fits the definition.

That's the mRNA itself, which is actually modified RNA wrapped in lipid nanoparticles (LNPs). The case argues that this 'LNP-mod-RNA complex' falls under the legal definition of a GMO and that, like the DNA contamination, it has the capacity to enter the cell nucleus and integrate into the human genome.

There is already at least one peer-reviewed scientific paper demonstrating that the Pfizer Covid vaccine mRNA can enter the human liver cell line and reverse transcribe into DNA in vitro (meaning in a lab dish).

Other studies cited in the case materials show the presence of spike protein mRNA in the nucleus of human cells, and evidence that acquired immune traits pass down to the offspring of mice pre-exposed to the Covid vaccine mRNA-LNP platform. This is suggestive that, once in the nucleus, the vaccine mRNA can be transferred and integrated with chromosomal DNA.

Taking both the LNP-mod-RNA complexes and the recently discovered DNA contamination present in the mRNA Covid vaccines, acting solicitor Katie Ashby Koppens says, 'Every single person who has been injected with these products has received a GMO that has not been through the expert regulatory process in this country.' She adds, 'The human genome could be changed permanently, and no one was informed.'

Now, McKernan, Dr Buckhaults and other scientists are calling for urgent research to test whether the DNA contamination is lingering in the cells of mRNA vaccinated people, and whether the human genome has in fact been altered by mRNA Covid vaccines.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 16:02

Authored by Marina Zhang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Findings in a new study challenge the mainstream narrative that COVID-19 vaccinations prevent long COVID. The study found that while previous infections reduce the risk of long COVID by 86 percent, vaccination status prior to COVID infection is irrelevant to a person's risk of developing long COVID.

''The notion had been that both previous infection as well as vaccination reduce the chances of subsequent long COVID should you become infected,'' Dr. William Schaffner, professor of preventive medicine and health policy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told The Epoch Times.

Syringes of COVID-19 vaccines at a vaccination site in Los Angeles on Feb. 16, 2021. (Apu Gomes/AFP via Getty Images)These investigators have poured "cool water" on that concept, he continued.

Researchers from Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, an over-500-year-old research university in Germany, found that people with the highest risk of long COVID or post-COVID condition, as the authors wrote, were unvaccinated people infected with the Wuhan variant, followed by unvaccinated and vaccinated participants infected with the alpha variant.

While not explicitly discussed in the study, the study's diagram and supplementary tables showed that with the exception of infection with the Wuhan variant, unvaccinated people tend to have a slightly lower risk of long COVID than their vaccinated counterparts.

Furthermore, unvaccinated people infected with the omicron variant had the lowest risk of long COVID.

''Vaccination offered no meaningful protection against developing PCC [post-COVID condition] in case of an infection. In contrast, there was '... strong evidence that a previous infection reduced the risk of PCC,'' the authors wrote.

Based on Online QuestionnaireNearly 49,000 people in the German population responded to the survey. Participants were recruited through postal mail. They were then asked to fill out an online questionnaire that included a list of symptoms.

Participants self-reported if they tested positive for COVID-19 and the symptoms they experienced afterward.

The study authors asked for symptoms present from the four- to 12-week post-infection window and for symptoms that persisted after the 12th week. Symptoms that did not persist beyond that were not deemed as long COVID.

Depending on the date of infection, the authors categorized the participant as being infected by the dominant variant at the time.

''We categorized infections before January 1, 2021 as caused by the Wildtype (Wuhan) variant, infections between January 1, 2021 and June 30, 2021 as caused by the Alpha variant, infections between July 1, 2021 and December 20, 2021 as caused by the Delta variant, and infections from December 21, 2021 as caused by the Omicron variant,'' the authors wrote.

Of all the surveyed people, around 17,000 had at least one COVID-19 infection, with around 2,800 reporting long-COVID symptoms.

None of the participants in the study was physically examined nor did they present lab tests on their health.

Doctors are engaged in a debate over the study's findings and its methodology.

Many were concerned that the questionnaire was too subjective. Like many large population-based studies, the findings are provocative, "but they're often not definitive. You have to do other follow-up studies, many of which are much smaller but much more precise, and they eliminate a lot of the uncertainty," Dr. Schaffner said.

Dr. Cody Meissner, a professor of pediatrics at the Dartmouth Geisel School of Medicine, argued that the study's participant is "so heterogeneous" and that he is not sure what to conclude from the study.

As the study authors admit, none of the participants was given an actual diagnosis of long COVID nor tested for comorbidities. It is possible that any of the patients could have been suffering from another disease that may have been unrelated to COVID-19.

Long COVID Is Hard to DefineAnother major problem plaguing long-COVID research is that everyone has a different definition of long COVID.

"There is a post-COVID symptomatology ... But I don't think we understand the biological basis; we can't define it very clearly. So to make a statement that it was more or less common after certain variants or vaccines is pretty difficult," Dr. Meissner said.

Retired associate professor of Brown University Dr. Andrew Bostom agreed that the long-COVID condition is poorly defined in the literature, so it is hard to conclude if the symptoms are long COVID or if it is something else entirely.

Apart from the loss of smell and taste, all other symptoms that characterize the long-COVID condition can manifest through psychosomatic triggers, Dr. Bostom said.

The study's findings "look interesting, particularly to people like me that have been disappointed in how such short shrift was given to natural immunity," Dr. Bostom, who has extensive experience working on pharmaceutical clinical trials, told The Epoch Times. But it's hard to conclude prior infection is protective against long COVID "if you're not really sure what the post-COVID condition is."

Study Findings Validate What Some Doctors SeeDr. Joseph Varon, chief of the Critical Care and COVID-19 Department at the United Memorial Medical Center, told The Epoch Times that he can look past the flaws in the methodology since the study findings validate what he sees in his clinic.

The study did not discuss if vaccinations put people at risk of long COVID. Its graph showed that the vaccinated cohort tended to have a slightly higher risk of long COVID than the unvaccinated, when they were infected by the same variant.

Dr. Varon interpreted this to suggest that vaccinations may put people at a greater risk of long COVID, which is what he has been seeing in his clinic.

"What I'm seeing is that the higher the number of boosters that you have, the more chances ... you're going to have long haul syndrome," he said, adding that the majority of his long-haul patients are those who took four or more doses of the vaccine rather than those who took up to three doses or were unvaccinated.

Dr. Varon also found that the study's findings on the most prevalent symptoms very accurately mirror what he sees in his clinic, with fatigue and cognitive impairment being the most common symptoms among his patients.

Psychiatrist Dr. Adonis Sfera at Patton State Hospital agreed that the study's symptoms are mostly representative of what he sees in his clinic, though the primary symptoms are fatigue and shortness of breath.

He also agreed with the notion that more vaccinations may put people at risk of long-haul symptoms since the vaccinations would induce the production of more spike proteins, which can cause organ damage and symptoms.

"The vaccines make our cells express the spike antigen. So the more vaccinated you are, the more likely you are to express the antigen," he said.

Hide Vaccine Injuries From Scrutiny?Nurse practitioner Scott Marsland, who shares the Leading Edge Clinic, a long-COVID and vaccine-injury practice, with pulmonary critical care physician Dr. Pierre Kory, expressed concern that the study findings may hide vaccine injuries from scrutiny.

"[The paper] helps perpetuate the narrative that ... it doesn't make a difference whether or not [someone] got the vaccine; it's all about whether or not they got infected and which variant they got," Mr. Marsland said.

Long COVID and vaccine injury can share very similar symptoms, but detailed patient records would show that the symptoms appeared after different exposures.

Mr. Marsland was concerned that the study dismisses the cumulative effects the vaccines may have on patients, which contradicts what he sees in his clinic.

Some of his patients developed mild symptoms after their first or second shot, but they did not link it temporally to the vaccines until "they got the booster or a second booster" and their symptoms became severe, he said.

Loading...

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:53

Rumble, the free-speech video hosting website could be banned in the UK under new online safety laws. As reported here a couple of days ago, the Online Safety Bill was approved by the House of Lords on the 19th of September but still needs official approval from the King before it can become law. This has not deterred the government from trying to coax platforms such as YouTube, to ban Russell Brand due to allegations of historical abuse.

Again as we reported last week, while YouTube dutifully obeyed, Rumble stayed true to their mission and responded ''Although it may be politically and socially easier to join the cancel culture mob, doing so would be a violation of our companies values and mission. and finished with ''We emphatically reject the UK Parliament's demands.''

Unfortunately, now ''experts'' have said that Rumble, which hosts Russell Brand, could be blocked in the UK because of the Online Safety Bill.

Rumble's response to the government last week.According to The Times: ''Rumble, a video-sharing platform based in North America, has become home to Brand and other figures with extreme views, including Andrew Tate and Alex Jones, the conspiracy theorist.''

It also hosts extreme videos on race and antisemitism that mainstream platforms such as YouTube have made more of an effort to take down.

Rumble has been thrust into the spotlight after Brand used it to declare his innocence of sexual assault claims.

Under the Online Safety Bill, which is due to become law next month, Rumble will be regulated by Ofcom because it is accessible in the UK.

Brand has recognised the impact the new law could have. In a statement on Friday, he said: ''The British government has asked big tech platforms to censor our online content. [This] bill . . . is a piece of UK legislation that grants sweeping surveillance and censorship powers.''

Under the new law, Rumble will have to prevent children from seeing pornography and material that promotes self-harm, suicide, or eating disorders. Violent content and material harmful to health, such as vaccine misinformation, will also have to be kept from children.

Ofcom will also draw up new guidelines on violence against women and girls that will have to be adhered to.

Rumble will also have to take down material that is illegal, such as videos that incite violence or race hate.

All these obligations will be hard for Rumble's management to stomach, according to Lord Allan of Hallam, a former Facebook executive who has advised on the bill.

''You can't get out of this by saying 'I'm a crazy American platform, that's not ok' and that somehow you get a free pass. They don't get a free pass,'' he said. ''Their whole philosophy is freedom of expression . . . a kind of 'screw you'. So when they get a letter from Ofcom saying, 'Here are all the things you're going to have to do', it seems to me the most likely reaction is going to be they're going to say, 'Well, we won't operate in the UK any more.' ''

Noncooperation could leave Rumble executives open to arrest if they came to Britain, as the bill provides for senior managers to be held criminally liable.

Professor Lorna Woods, an internet law expert who was one of the architects of the bill, said Ofcom had the ability to disrupt or block Rumble if it did not comply.

''In theory Ofcom will engage with them, and say, 'You're not complying with rules', and Rumble will grandstand before the press, as we've seen, and try to ignore what Ofcom does,'' she said.

Rumble's defiance was evident in a row with Dame Caroline Dineage, chairwoman of the culture, media and sport select committee, on Thursday.

She asked whether the video site, on which Brand has 1.4 million followers, would join YouTube in ''suspending Brand's ability to earn money''.

Chris Pavlovski, Rumble's chief executive, posted an open letter on Twitter/X in response that said: ''Today we received an extremely disturbing letter from a committee chair in the UK parliament.''

He noted that none of the allegations against Brand related to content on Rumble, adding: ''We regard it as deeply inappropriate and dangerous that the UK parliament would attempt to control who is allowed to speak on our platform or to earn a living.''

He concluded: ''[Joining] a cancel culture mob . . . would be a violation of our company's values and mission. We emphatically reject the UK parliament's demands.'' Source

The UK is a Fledgling DictatorshipThis issue goes beyond Russell Brand, Andrew Tate, or any individual who dares to voice their opposition to the WEF, WHO, or government agendas. It's no longer solely about preserving freedom of speech or expression. Instead, it's about depriving us of our ability to independently think, critically assess information, and draw our own conclusions.

A small group of individuals holds absolute and centralised authority over our society. Unless you are an individual who is feeling all warm and fuzzy believing that they are doing it for our own good and are happy to think what they tell you to think, then you will have already felt the effects of the suppression of our opposing views and restrictions of our civil liberties.

There is now next to no political pluralism in the UK, no political opposition or meaningful competition, just red Tories, and blue Tories all appeasing the WEF.

There are no checks and balances usually necessary in a democratic society, so, I guess this means we have now slid into a dictatorship after months of government preparing us. Although there are some of us who have arrived at this point kicking and screaming about it all the way here, the rest of the people in the UK are still blissfully unaware or simply do not care because they don't like Brand anyway.

These song words are stuck in my head! Your Freedom's Been Sold, Take Back Control, Or Your Future Dissolves.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:50

The United States is slated to get a new military base '-- this time in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

Last month, during high-level talks in Honolulu, the US Indo-Pacific Command and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) agreed to build a new base in the island nation, an archipelago of more than 600 islands strewn across the Western Pacific, some 3,700 miles from Hawaii.

The move is seen as another component of the Biden administration's continued effort to increase its footprint in Oceania.

However, details about the base, so far, are scarce, causing anxiety for some FSM citizens who are worried about disruptions to their way of life, and wary about the idea of American military expansion in the region.

Related: The pandemic wiped out tourism on Pacific island nations

Sam Illesugam, 41, has lots of questions about the new military base: How big? What kind of base?

''All of those questions are still very much up in the air for us,'' Illesugam told The World.

Illesugam, who now lives and works in the US territory of Guam, still has siblings and other family back in Yap, one of the Federated States of Micronesia's four states.

''Any time there is a sudden change to the land, you affect our identity as Native islanders..."

''Any time there is a sudden change to the land, you affect our identity as Native islanders,'' he said. ''This will alter the social landscape of our islands. Our islands are very, very small. Any type of changes to our lifestyle will greatly affect us.''

Illesugam is also uneasy with the idea of an increased US military presence in the Pacific. Ongoing land disputes on Guam and heightened tensions with locals over the heavy US military presence on Okinawa have put him and others ''on alert.''

'Part of the homeland'The US military's record in the Pacific is as checkered as it is long.

From colonization of the Philippines to nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands, Washington has given locals plenty of reasons for pause.

Today, US Indo-Pacific Command already has some 375,000 military and civilian personnel working across the Asian Pacific.

The Federated States of Micronesia did not respond to The World's questions about how, or if, they plan to incorporate the public. But President David W. Panuelo clearly stated that the agreement he made to build the new military base was in the interest of his people.

In particular, their security interests, which are guaranteed by a very special relationship with Washington.

''The Freely Associated States are squarely part of the homeland, and so, we're being protected by the United States,'' Panuelo told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation after his meetings in Hawaii.

The Compacts of Free Association are special, bi-lateral agreements FSM, Palau and The Marshall Islands have each struck with Washington.

Established in the 1980s, these agreements are renegotiated every few years, and through them, the three nations have received hundreds of millions of dollars in aid.

Related: Western nations bulk up their Pacific presence to counter China

Satu Limaye, vice president of the East-West Center, said there's also a crucial military component to the agreements, which allows citizens to join the US military.

''The most recent version of the Compact of Free Association requires the United States to defend the FSM and gives it the right to use facilities, bases, sites."

''The most recent version of the Compact of Free Association requires the United States to defend the FSM and gives it the right to use facilities, bases, sites,'' he said.

Limaye said that being legally obligated to the US military as a sole defender puts these states in a very unique position.

''FSM, like other countries in the region, is straddling or managing its relations both with China and the United States, as China is increasingly active there,'' he said.

Preparing for China's military capabilities Beijing has had diplomatic relations with the Federated States of Micronesia for more than 30 years. So far, there's been no real reaction about their forthcoming base. The two nations engage in millions of dollars in trade annually, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity.

President Panuelo told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that in managing his relationships with the US and China, FSM interests come first.

''And so, the posturing of the United States and our country is not looking for confrontation, but rather looking at deterrence and making sure peace exists in our vast Pacific Ocean,'' he said.

Related: Philippine president reverses threat to void defense deal with the US

Still, Washington is increasingly concerned about armed conflict with China, according to Derek Grossman, a senior defense analyst with the RAND Corporation.

''They [China] have a growing range to deploy these capabilities against US interests in the Pacific. ... That's ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, bombers, surface fleets, as well as submarine assets.''

''They have a growing range to deploy these capabilities against US interests in the Pacific,'' Grossman said. ''That's ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, bombers, surface fleets, as well as submarine assets.''

Over the last decade or so, China has made significant inroads into the Pacific by scaling up, not just economic involvement, but also its aid, and diplomatic and commercial activity in the region.

The Compact of Free Association States have not been immune to Beijing's growing influence, according to the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

By establishing new military sites in the Pacific, the US gains access to new locations from which to potentially engage in future armed conflict with Beijing. But the downside is that these places are much further away from the US, Grossman said.

The Federated States of Micronesia, for example, is nearly 3,700 miles from Hawaii. And this, Grossman said, will likely make it more difficult for the US to project its influence on the people in the region.

Freelance writer Alex J. Rhowuniong is an FSM-born US military veteran living in Guam. The Chuuk State, Micronesia native says he would like to see a military base built in FSM.

He can understand the hesitation, but for a military mind, ''a no-active-military-presence zone is not a safe zone at all,'' he wrote in an email to The World.

Rhowuniong noted that a military base in FSM would be both good for the local economy, as well as for the thousands of veterans scattered throughout the nation.

''If the US military does not establish a presence on FSM now, the enemy just might during military conflict,'' he said.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:47

The Mozambique Connectivity and Coastal Resilience Compact will promote inclusive economic growth, climate and coastal resilience, and improve public services and transportation infrastructure.

The Kenya Urban Mobility and Growth Threshold Program seeks to assist Kenya in addressing limited connectivity in urban areas, a critical constraint to inclusive economic growth.

The program aims to address the country's biggest constraint to economic growth '' low participation in international labor mobility.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:44

اÙعربيØ(C) 中文 Nederlands EnglishFran§ais हà¤à¤¨à¥à¤...ॠPortuguªs Русский Espa±ol Kiswahili T¼rk§e УкÑаїнська General Assembly Photo: UN Photo/Manuel Elias

2023 SDG Summit The 2023 SDG Summit took place on 18-19 September 2023 in New York. It marked the beginning of a new phase of accelerated progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals with high-level political guidance on transformative and accelerated actions leading up to 2030.

Convened by the President of the General Assembly, the Summit marked the half-way point to the deadline set for achieving the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. It was the centerpiece of the High-level Week of the General Assembly. It responded to the impact of multiple and interlocking crises facing the world and is expected to reignite a sense of hope, optimism, and enthusiasm for the 2030 Agenda.

Latest The 17 Goals In 2015, countries adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) . They embarked on a journey to achieve the 2030 Agenda to promote prosperity, address inequalities while protecting the environment. The 17 SDGs offer the most practical and effective pathway to tackle the causes of poverty, violent conflict, human rights abuses, climate change and environmental degradation.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:43

1 of 2 | FILE - Polish President Andrzej Duda, left, welcomes President Joe Biden at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw, Ukraine, Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023. The Biden administration announced Monday, Sept. 25, that it is offering a $2 billion loan to Poland, which has been a hub for weapons going into Ukraine, to support the ally's defense modernization. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski, File)

2 of 2 | FILE - President Joe Biden, left, and Polish President Andrzej Duda, right, meet Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023, in Warsaw. The Biden administration announced Monday, Sept. 25, that it is offering a $2 billion loan to Poland, which has been a hub for weapons going into Ukraine, to support the ally's defense modernization. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

1 of 2 | FILE - Polish President Andrzej Duda, left, welcomes President Joe Biden at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw, Ukraine, Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023. The Biden administration announced Monday, Sept. 25, that it is offering a $2 billion loan to Poland, which has been a hub for weapons going into Ukraine, to support the ally's defense modernization. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski, File)

1 of 2

FILE - Polish President Andrzej Duda, left, welcomes President Joe Biden at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw, Ukraine, Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023. The Biden administration announced Monday, Sept. 25, that it is offering a $2 billion loan to Poland, which has been a hub for weapons going into Ukraine, to support the ally's defense modernization. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski, File)

2 of 2 | FILE - President Joe Biden, left, and Polish President Andrzej Duda, right, meet Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023, in Warsaw. The Biden administration announced Monday, Sept. 25, that it is offering a $2 billion loan to Poland, which has been a hub for weapons going into Ukraine, to support the ally's defense modernization. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

2 of 2

FILE - President Joe Biden, left, and Polish President Andrzej Duda, right, meet Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023, in Warsaw. The Biden administration announced Monday, Sept. 25, that it is offering a $2 billion loan to Poland, which has been a hub for weapons going into Ukraine, to support the ally's defense modernization. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) '-- The Biden administration announced Monday that it is offering a $2 billion loan to Poland , which has been a hub for weapons going into Ukraine , to support the ally's defense modernization.

The State Department said in a statement that Poland is a ''stalwart'' ally of the U.S. whose ''security is vital to the collective defense'' of NATO 's eastern flank, and that such funding is reserved for Washington's most important security partners.

The U.S. government is also providing Warsaw up to $60 million for the cost of the loan in Foreign Military Financing (FMF) which would support ''urgent procurements of defense articles and services from the United States,'' the State Department said. The $60 million is a loan subsidy meant to ensure that Warsaw can secure favorable terms for the loan.

Poland has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion of the country, handing over large numbers of its own tanks, fighter jets and other equipment. It has also been a hub for most of the Western weapons going to Ukraine.

It has been undergoing a process of modernization to replace what it gave away, much of which was based on old Soviet technology, putting in orders with U.S. and South Korean defense companies .

Recently the Polish-Ukrainian relationship has seen strains due to a trade dispute centered on Ukrainian grain entering the Polish market and driving down the prices Polish farmers can get. Amid the spat Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said his country was no longer sending any more weapons to Ukraine.

The comment created some confusion. Analysts noted that Poland has already in fact given Ukraine most of what it has to give, and the statement was made ahead of a Polish election and did not mean much. But it also raised concerns that Western support for Ukraine could be weakening.

U.S. officials have sought to play down the spat, praising Poland's role in helping Ukraine and noting that it is in Poland's strategic interest for Ukraine to prevail against Russia.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:33

A screen grab from Danish Defense shows the gas leak from the exploded Nord Stream pipelines causing bubbles on the surface of the Baltic Sea on September 30, 2022. / Photo by Swedish Coast Guard Handout / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images.I do not know much about covert CIA operations'--no outsider can'--but I do understand that the essential component of all successful missions is total deniability. The American men and women who moved, under cover, in and out of Norway in the months it took to plan and carry out the destruction of three of the four Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea a year ago left no traces'--not a hint of the team's existence'--other than the success of their mission.

Deniability, as an option for President Joe Biden and his foreign policy advisers, was paramount. No significant information about the mission was put on a computer, but instead typed on a Royal or perhaps a Smith Corona typewriter with a carbon copy or two, as if the Internet and the rest of the online world had yet to be invented. The White House was isolated from the goings-on near Oslo; various reports and updates from the field were directly provided to CIA Director Bill Burns, who was the only link between the planners and the president who authorized the mission to take place on September 26, 2022. Once the mission was completed, the typed papers and carbons were destroyed, thus leaving no physical trace'--no evidence to be dug up later by a special prosecutor or a presidential historian. You could call it the perfect crime.

There was a flaw'--a gap in understanding between those who carried out the mission and President Biden, as to why he ordered the destruction of the pipelines when he did. My initial 5,200-word report , published in early February, ended cryptically by quoting an official with knowledge of the mission telling me: ''It was a beautiful cover story.'' The official added: ''The only flaw was the decision to do it.''

This is the first account of that flaw, on the one-year anniversary of the explosions, and it is one President Biden and his national security team will not like.

Inevitably, my initial story caused a sensation, but the major media emphasized the White House denials and relied on an old canard'--my reliance on an unnamed source'--to join the administration in debunking the notion that Joe Biden could have had anything to do with such an attack. I must note here that I've won literally scores of prizes in my career for stories in the New York Times and the New Yorker that relied on not a single named source. In the past year we've seen a series of contrary newspaper stories, with no named first-hand sources, claiming that a dissident Ukrainian group carried out the technical diving operation attack in the Baltic Sea via a 49-foot rented yacht called the Andromeda .

I am now able to write about the unexplained flaw cited by the unnamed official. It goes once again to the classic issue of what the Central Intelligence Agency is all about: an issue raised by Richard Helms, who headed the agency during the tumultuous years of the Vietnam War and the CIA's secret spying on Americans, as ordered by President Lyndon Johnson and sustained by Richard Nixon. I published an expos(C) in the Times about that spying in December 1974 that led to unprecedented hearings by the Senate into the role of the agency in its unsuccessful attempts, authorized by President John F. Kennedy, to assassinate Cuba's Fidel Castro. Helms told the senators that the issue was whether he, as CIA director, worked for the Constitution or for the Crown, in the person of presidents Johnson and Nixon. The Church Committee left the issue unresolved, but Helms made it clear he and his agency worked for the top man in the White House.

Back to the Nord Stream pipelines: It is important to understand that no Russian gas was flowing to Germany through the Nord Stream pipelines when Joe Biden ordered them blown up last September 26. Nord Stream 1 had been supplying vast amounts of low-cost natural gas to Germany since 2011 and helped bolster Germany's status as a manufacturing and industrial colossus. But it was shut down by Putin by the end of August 2022, as the Ukraine war was, at best, in a stalemate. Nord Stream 2 was completed in September 2021 but was blocked from delivering gas by the German government headed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz two days prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Given Russia's vast stores of natural gas and oil, American presidents since John F. Kennedy have been alert to the potential weaponization of these natural resources for political purposes. That view remains dominant among Biden and his hawkish foreign policy advisers, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, and Victoria Nuland, now the acting deputy to Blinken.

Sullivan convened a series of high-level national security meetings late in 2021, as Russia was building up its forces along the border of Ukraine, with an invasion seen as almost inevitable. The group, which included representatives from the CIA, was urged to come up with a proposal for action that could serve as a deterrent to Putin. The mission to destroy the pipelines was motivated by the White House's determination to support Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky. Sullivan's goal seemed clear. ''The White House's policy was to deter Russia from an attack,'' the official told me. ''The challenge it gave to the intelligence community was to come up with a way that was powerful enough to do that, and to make a strong statement of American capability.''

The major gas pipelines from Russia to Europe. / Map by Samuel Bailey / Wikimedia Commons.I now know what I did not know then: the real reason why the Biden administration ''brought up taking out the Nord Stream pipeline.'' The official recently explained to me that at the time Russia was supplying gas and oil throughout the world via more than a dozen pipelines, but Nord Stream 1 and 2 ran directly from Russia through the Baltic Sea to Germany. ''The administration put Nord Stream on the table because it was the only one we could access and it would be totally deniable,'' the official said. ''We solved the problem within a few weeks'--by early January'--and told the White House. Our assumption was that the president would use the threat against Nord Stream as a deterrent to avoid the war.''

It was no surprise to the agency's secret planning group when on January 27, 2022, the assured and confident Nuland, then undersecretary of state for political affairs, stridently warned Putin that if he invaded Ukraine, as he clearly was planning to, that ''one way or another Nord Stream 2 will not move forward.'' The line attracted enormous attention, but the words preceding the threat did not. The official State Department transcript shows that she preceded her threat by saying that with regard to the pipeline: ''We continue to have very strong and clear conversations with our German allies.''

Asked by a reporter how she could say with certainty that the Germans would go along ''because what the Germans have said publicly doesn't match what you're saying,'' Nuland responded with an astonishing bit of doubletalk: ''I would say go back and read the document that we signed in July [of 2021] that made very clear about the consequences for the pipeline if there is further aggression on Ukraine by Russia.'' But that agreement, which was briefed to journalists, did not specify threats or consequences, according to reports in the Times , the Washington Post , and Reuters. At the time of the agreement, on July 21, 2021, Biden told the press corps that since the pipeline was 99 percent finished, ''the idea that anything was going to be said or done was going to stop it was not possible.'' At the time, Republicans, led by Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, depicted Biden's decision to permit the Russian gas to flow as a ''generational geopolitical win'' for Putin and ''a catastrophe'' for the United States and its allies.

But two weeks after Nuland's statement, on February 7, 2022, at a joint White House press conference with the visiting Scholz, Biden signaled that he had changed his mind and was joining Nuland and other equally hawkish foreign policy aides in talking about stopping the pipeline. ''If Russia invades'--that means tanks and troops crossing . . . the border of Ukraine again,'' he said, ''there will no longer be a Nord Stream 2. We will bring an end to it.'' Asked how he could do so since the pipeline was under Germany's control, he said: ''We will, I promise you, we'll be able to do it.''

Scholz, asked the same question, said: ''We are acting together. We are absolutely united, and we will not be taking different steps. We will do the same steps, and they will be very very hard to Russia, and they should understand.'' The German leader was considered then'--and now'--by some members of the CIA team to be fully aware of the secret planning underway to destroy the pipelines.

By this point, the CIA team had made the necessary contacts in Norway, whose navy and special forces commands have a long history of sharing covert-operation duties with the agency. Norwegian sailors and Nasty-class patrol boats helped smuggle American sabotage operatives into North Vietnam in the early 1960s when America, in both the Kennedy and Johnson administrations, was running an undeclared American war there. With Norway's help, the CIA did its job and found a way to do what the Biden White House wanted done to the pipelines.

At the time, the challenge to the intelligence community was to come up with a plan that would be forceful enough to deter Putin from the attack on Ukraine. The official told me: ''We did it. We found an extraordinary deterrent because of its economic impact on Russia. And Putin did it despite the threat.'' It took months of research and practice in the churning waters of the Baltic Sea by the two expert US Navy deep sea divers recruited for the mission before it was deemed a go. Norway's superb seamen found the right spot for planting the bombs that would blow up the pipelines. Senior officials in Sweden and Denmark, who still insist they had no idea what was going on in their shared territorial waters, turned a blind eye to the activities of the American and Norwegian operatives. The American team of divers and support staff on the mission's mother ship'--a Norwegian minesweeper'--would be hard to hide while the divers were doing their work. The team would not learn until after the bombing that Nord Stream 2 had been shut down with 750 miles of natural gas in it.

What I did not know then, but was told recently, was that after Biden's extraordinary public threat to blow up Nord Stream 2, with Scholz standing next to him, the CIA planning group was told by the White House that there would be no immediate attack on the two pipelines, but the group should arrange to plant the necessary bombs and be ready to trigger them ''on demand'''--after the war began. ''It was then that we'''--the small planning group that was working in Oslo with the Royal Norwegian Navy and special services on the project'--''understood that the attack on the pipelines was not a deterrent because as the war went on we never got the command.''

After Biden's order to trigger the explosives planted on the pipelines, it took only a short flight with a Norwegian fighter and the dropping of an altered off-the-shelf sonar device at the right spot in the Baltic Sea to get it done. By then the CIA group had long disbanded. By then, too, the official told me: ''We realized that the destruction of the two Russian pipelines was not related to the Ukrainian war'''--Putin was in the process of annexing the four Ukrainian oblasts he wanted'--''but was part of a neocon political agenda to keep Scholz and Germany, with winter coming up and the pipelines shut down, from getting cold feet and opening up'' the shuttered Nord Stream 2. ''The White House fear was that Putin would get Germany under his thumb and then he was going to get Poland.''

The White House said nothing as the world wondered who committed the sabotage. ''So the president struck a blow against the economy of Germany and Western Europe,'' the official told me. ''He could have done it in June and told Putin: We told you what we would do.'' The White House's silence and denials were, he said, ''a betrayal of what we were doing. If you are going to do it, do it when it would have made a difference.''

The leadership of the CIA team viewed Biden's misleading guidance for its order to destroy the pipelines, the official told me, ''as taking a strategic step toward World War III. What if Russia had responded by saying: You blew up our pipelines and I'm going to blow up your pipelines and your communication cables. Nord Stream was not a strategic issue for Putin'--it was an economic issue. He wanted to sell gas. He'd already lost his pipelines'' when the Nord Stream I and 2 were shut down before the Ukraine war began.

Within days of the bombing, officials in Denmark and Sweden announced they would conduct an investigation. They reported two months later that there had indeed been an explosion and said there would be further inquiries. None has emerged. The German government conducted an inquiry but announced that major parts of its findings would be classified. Last winter German authorities allocated $286 billion in subsidies to major corporations and homeowners who faced higher energy bills to run their business and warm their homes. The impact is still being felt today, with a colder winter expected in Europe.

President Biden waited four days before calling the pipeline bombing ''a deliberate act of sabotage.'' He said: ''now the Russians are pumping out disinformation about it.'' Sullivan, who chaired the meetings that led to the proposal to covertly destroy the pipelines, was asked at a later press conference whether the Biden administration ''now believes that Russia was likely responsible for the act of sabotage?''

Sullivan's answer, undoubtedly practiced, was: ''Well, first, Russia has done what it frequently does when it is responsible for something, which is make accusations that it was really someone else who did it. We've seen this repeatedly over time.

''But the president was also clear today that there is more work to do on the investigation before the United States government is prepared to make an attribution in this case.'' He continued: ''We will continue to work with our allies and partners to gather all of the facts, and then we will make a determination about where we go from there.''

I could find no instances when Sullivan was subsequently asked by someone in the American press about the results of his ''determination.'' Nor could I find any evidence that Sullivan, or the president, has been queried since then about the results of the ''determination'' about where to go.

There is also no evidence that President Biden has required the American intelligence community to conduct a major all-source inquiry into the pipeline bombing. Such requests are known as ''Taskings'' and are taken seriously inside the government.

All of this explains why a routine question I posed a month or so after the bombings to someone with many years in the American intelligence community led me to a truth that no one in America or Germany seems to want to pursue. My question was simple: ''Who did it?''

The Biden administration blew up the pipelines but the action had little to do with winning or stopping the war in Ukraine. It resulted from fears in the White House that Germany would waver and turn on the flow of Russia gas'--and that Germany and then NATO, for economic reasons, would fall under the sway of Russia and its extensive and inexpensive natural resources. And thus followed the ultimate fear: that America would lose its long-standing primacy in Western Europe.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:19

The Attorney General confirms the requirement not to publish material which could prejudice any potential criminal investigation or prosecutions.

Following the airing of ''Russell Brand: In Plain Sight: Dispatches'' on 16 September 2023, there has been extensive reporting about Russell Brand.

The Attorney General, the Rt Hon Victoria Prentis KC MP, wishes to amplify the importance of not publishing any material where there is a risk that it could prejudice any potential criminal investigation or prosecutions.

Publishing this material could amount to contempt of court.

Editors, publishers, and social media users should take legal advice to ensure they are in a position to fully comply with the obligations to which they are subject under the common law and Contempt of Court Act 1981.

The Attorney General's Office is monitoring the coverage of these allegations.

Published 22 September 2023

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:13

00:00 / 00:00

Speed

doug.news Doug News · 2h ago original sound - Doug News

288 comments

Log in to comment

You may like

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 14:53

'Exclusionary to some groups, evokes racism, privilege, power or oppression'

A group of Canadian scholars argued recently that the term ''white paper'' should be scrapped due to its problematic ''racial and historical context.''

In a University Affairs op-ed, Jennifer Jakobi of the University of British Columbia and leaders of Women in Science and Engineering (part of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada) assembled ''experts from across Canada'' to get input on a replacement term.

Despite the fact that paper is white, the experts '-- ''researchers, librarians, Indigenous leaders, science policy experts'' and ''advocates'' in the topics of racism and decolonization '-- agreed that ''hierarchies inherent in the creation of white papers are seen as artefacts of colonialization.''

The group also noted ''white paper'' is ''exclusionary to some groups, and evokes racism, privilege, power or oppression.''

''Whatever the intent,'' Jakobi (pictured) and Co. said the term implies ''superiority'' and additionally cited research about ''white'' being associated with ''good'' and the color black with ''bad.''

They noted Canada is unique in that its first use of ''white paper'' '-- ''The White Paper, 1969'' '-- is associated with a policy opposed by the country's Native American population.

MORE: Norwegian university investigates if white paint is '... racist

The experts suggested replacing ''white paper'' with ''position statement,'' ''resource'' and ''brief,'' all of which could add something more specific after.

Right now The College Fix has a back-to-school campaign to help us continue to support our amazing student journalists. A donation today will be matched thanks to a generous limited-time matching gift opportunity from a friend of The Fix! CLICK HERE for more details '-- and thank you!

From the piece:

This work to-date has deconstructed the term; and shapes the starting point to retiring and renaming the word ''white paper''. Language that embeds a new term must be inclusive, non-racialized and take into consideration the historical context. Using ''white'' as synonymous with authority is the antithesis of inclusion.

To heal from the past and support the process of reconciliation, we propose ending the use of the term ''white paper'' and creating practices for naming documents that align with the United Nations Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Truth and Reconciliation Calls for Action.

While we build consensus on a new naming procedure, we are advocating for the use of specific names that describe what a document or resource entails. By embedding descriptors into resource titles, we will be able to retire the racist language of ''white paper'' while gaining consensus on a universal term.

The op-ed concludes with a Native American land acknowledgment.

According to her faculty page, Jakobi, who researches neuromuscular and exercise physiology, is ''committed to increasing diversity across science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).'' She also leads DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) professional development workshops.

MORE: 'Even the bread was white': Professor argues fast food industry is racist

IMAGES: Tashatuvango/Shutterstock.com; U. British Columbia

Like The College Fix on Facebook / Follow us on Twitter

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 14:49

Michelle Obama raked in nearly $750,000 for a one-hour speech at a tech fair in the southern German city of Munich on Monday, DailyMail.com has learned.

The 59-year-old picked up the eye-watering check for speaking to a start-up event held on the sidelines of the annual Oktoberfest beer festival, two sources close to the conference organizers said.

According to the event's webpage, the ex-attorney was set to speak to some 5,000 attendees on how to 'push past self-doubt while discussing the importance of inclusivity and diversity.'

The Harvard graduate will be paid 700,000 euros for her appearance at the three-day love-in for European entrepreneurs, which is roughly the equivalent of $741,000.

Organizers said Mrs Obama had 'topped the list' of people that participants wanted to take part 'year after year.'

Former first lady Michelle Obama speaks at the opening ceremony of the of the U.S. Open tennis championships on August 28

Organizers said Mrs Obama had 'topped the list' of people that participants wanted to take part 'year after year'

The 59-year-old was speaking to a start-up event held on the sidelines of the annual Oktoberfest beer festival

'They really pulled out all the stops to get her,' said one person close to the team behind the annual 'Bits and Pretzels' forum. 'It's one of the highest fees that they have ever paid.'

That sum is nearly double what Biden earns in a year as president.

Axios previously reported that Michelle Obama could be booked for $200,000, while her husband cost $400,000.

Her fellow speakers include Oliver Kahn, a former German soccer star turned entrepreneur.

The Bits & Pretzels conference is set over three days and hears from founders of national and international companies that tell their success stories, as well as guest speakers like Michelle Obama.

Michelle Obama was the United States' First Lady from January 2009 to January 2017, when her husband Barack served two consecutive terms as the commander-in-chief.

She has been mooted in recent months as a possible alternative candidate to Joe Biden, 80, if he decided to pull out of the 2024 presidential race amid concerns over his cognitive abilities.

Democrat Party bigwigs are worried that Biden could end up losing to resurgent GOP frontrunner Donald Trump.

Even the Biden-bashing Senator from Texas, Ted Cruz, believes Obama is preparing to run despite her denials.

'Here's the scenario that I think is perhaps most likely, and most dangerous,' he said on his podcast. 'In August of 2024, the Democrat kingmakers jettison Joe Biden and parachute in Michelle Obama.'

The Harvard graduate will be paid 700,000 euros for her appearance at the three-day love-in for European entrepreneurs

President Barack Obama at the beginning of his White House tenure with daughter Malia Obama, first lady Michelle Obama and daughter Sasha Obama in the Green Room of the White House September 1, 2009

Former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama take in the tennis on day one of the 2023 U.S. Open tennis tournament

She commands wide support among the American people, and throughout her time in the White House the former first lady consistently gained sky-high approval ratings, according to Gallup.

In a recent YouGov poll, 77 percent of people said they still had a favorable opinion of her, compared to just 15 percent unfavorable.

And 71 percent of Americans and half of all Democrats say Biden is too old to be president and most voters say they are worse off since he took power, according to a damning DailyMail.com poll from June.

Former president Barack Obama also spoke to the same Munich forum a mere three years ago in a keynote address that focused on 'entrepreneurial spirit and leadership skills.'

However his fee for that appearance has never been disclosed, but he picked up nearly $700,000 for two speeches in Australia earlier this year.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at the opening of the Bits & Pretzels meetup on September 29, 2019, in Munich

Upon leaving the White House, the ex-presidential couple, married since 1992, have focused on boosting their earning power through lucrative speaking engagements as well as a $65 million publishing deal with Penguin for their memoirs.

Together, they set up their joint production company 'Higher Ground', signing a multi-year 'eight figure' contract with streaming giant Netflix in 2018.

Last year, the former First Lady staged a six-city U.S. tour for her recent tome, The Light We Carry, in which she explained to readers the habits and practices, attitudes and beliefs that she uses to overcome her fears.

The mother-of-two gets a Secret Service security detail whenever she travels at home or abroad at the expense of the U.S. taxpayer.

It is thanks, in part, to a law brought in by President Obama in 2013 that restored lifetime protection for former presidential spouses and their family members.

That piece of legislation reversed a 1994 statute that had capped Secret Service protection at a maximum of just ten years for presidents who took office after Jan 1, 1997.

DailyMail.com has contacted a spokesperson for Michelle Obama for comment.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 14:46

Removing Paywall

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 16:46

Over the years, human body weights have trended higher. Some of that can be attributed to positive changes, such as consistent access to enough food. But other factors have been linked to excessive weight gain, such as heavily processed foods with higher concentrations of sugars and fats than what your body needs.

An increasing number of people find that their weight is above the range that would typically be considered healthy. About 42% of Americans are considered obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Experts are struggling to understand why people have trouble losing weight, even when they want to do so.'Œ

Some researchers suggest the possibility that chemicals in common products may contribute to obesity. These chemicals may affect human hormones and change the way our bodies make, store, and use fat. Experts call these chemicals obesogens.

In the past, experts believed that weight gain was a result of eating more calories than your body needed to function. Excess energy from food is stored in our bodies as fat, so the idea is that eating more than you need results in fat gain. In recent years, doctors have found that sometimes people who change their eating and activity levels still don't lose weight.

One possible explanation for this inability to lose excess weight is metabolic changes caused by exposure to chemicals. For several decades, researchers have noted that lab animals gain weight when they are exposed to specific substances. Scientists realize now that those substances are endocrine disruptors, which means these chemicals affect the normal function of hormones in animals and people.'Œ

Early research suggests that there are several ways that obesogens affect your body, including:'Œ

Increasing fat cells. Some obesogens can trigger your body to make new fat cells. In some cases, the new cells may be unusually large. This allows more fat to build up in your body, leading to weight gain. The research on this isn't conclusive, and scientists are continuing to study this process in humans and animals.'Œ

Blocking fat burning. Obesogens may disrupt the usual way fat cells work so that they can't release stored fat. If your body can't access fat to use as energy, the fat stores never go down. This may explain why changing food and exercise levels does not affect how much fat your body has. Research into this process is ongoing to understand better how obesogens limit fat loss.'Œ

Altering appetites. Some obesogens may affect your hypothalamus, the part of your brain that controls appetite. The hypothalamus releases hormones that signal hunger and other hormones that tell you when you're full. In animal studies, certain chemicals affected that process. The animals showed a tendency to compulsively eat and not stop even if they might not be hungry anymore. This may happen to humans, as well.

Scientists have identified quite a few chemicals that may be obesogens, but the research is not yet conclusive. Some of the substances are already prohibited because of health concerns. Others are commonly used in manufacturing, agriculture, and consumer goods.

Phytoestrogens. Phytoestrogens are found in food products, including soybeans, lentils, and chickpeas.

Organotins. These chemicals are fungicides. They are used in treating wood for building materials.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). PAHs are byproducts caused by the burning of some types of fuel. They result in air pollution.'Œ

Bisphenol A (BPA). BPA and similar chemicals are used in plastics. They are found in food and beverage containers.'Œ

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). PBDEs are flame retardants. They are used to treat materials such as fabrics or furniture to make them less likely to catch fire.'Œ

Phthalates. Phthalates are plasticizing agents. They are found in cosmetics, medicines, and paint.'Œ

Parabens. Parabens are preservatives found in food, paper products, and medicines.

Pesticides. Pesticides used in agricultural industries may have obesogenic effects.'Œ

Alkylphenols. These are a type of surfactant and thickener that are used in many consumer goods, such as rubber or paint.

There is evidence that some medications may have an obesogenic effect. Thiazolidinediones, atypical antipsychotics, antihistamines, and antidepressants may have effects that lead to weight gain or difficulty losing weight.

Researchers do not have conclusive results from studies about the effects of obesogens. There are still many questions about obesogens and how they affect human beings. If you are concerned about exposure to obesogens, you can make lifestyle changes to protect yourself.'Œ

Caution during pregnancy. There is some evidence that obesogens can affect babies while they are in the womb. Avoiding obesogens during pregnancy may help your baby.

Ingredients. Most foods and many household products have ingredient lists on the containers. You can look at these for more information about possible obesogens in foods or personal care products.'Œ

Packaging. Some experts suggest that avoiding plastic packaging can reduce your exposure to obesogens. In addition, you may want to limit your handling of certain types of paper, such as the paper for printed receipts. They can be treated with plastic-like coatings made from BPA.

Air pollution. You can limit the amount of air pollution that comes into your home by removing your shoes when you're indoors. Using HEPA filters and vacuuming frequently may also be helpful.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 16:45

Foreign chemical compound that disrupts lipid balance causing obseity

Bisphenol A found in food and beverage packaging is an obesogen showing up in the bodies of about 95% of the human population.[1]Obesogens are certain chemical compounds that are hypothesised to disrupt normal development and balance of lipid metabolism, which in some cases, can lead to obesity.[2][3][4] Obesogens may be functionally defined as chemicals that inappropriately alter lipid homeostasis and fat storage, change metabolic setpoints, disrupt energy balance or modify the regulation of appetite and satiety to promote fat accumulation and obesity.[5]

There are many different proposed mechanisms through which obesogens can interfere with the body's adipose tissue biology. These mechanisms include alterations in the action of metabolic sensors; dysregulation of sex steroid synthesis, action or breakdown; changes in the central integration of energy balance including the regulation of appetite and satiety; and reprogramming of metabolic setpoints.[6][7] Some of these proposed pathways include inappropriate modulation of nuclear receptor function which therefore allows the compounds to be classified as endocrine disrupting chemicals that act to mimic hormones in the body, altering the normal homeostasis maintained by the endocrine system.[8]

Obesogens have been detected in the body both as a result of intentional administration of obesogenic chemicals in the form of pharmaceutical drugs such as diethylstilbestrol, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, and thiazolidinedione and as a result of unintentional exposure to environmental obesogens such as tributyltin, bisphenol A, diethylhexylphthalate, and perfluorooctanoate.[6][7]

The term obesogen was coined in 2006 by Felix Gr¼n and Bruce Blumberg of the University of California, Irvine.[3]

[ edit ] There are many ways in which obesogenic drugs and chemicals can disrupt the body's adipose tissue biology. The three main mechanisms of action include

alterations in the action of metabolic sensors in which obesogens mimic metabolic ligands acting to either block or upregulate hormone receptorsdysregulation of sex steroid synthesis, in which they alter the ratio of sex hormones leading to changes in their control of lipid balancechanges in the central integration of energy balance including the regulation of appetite and satiety in the brain and the reprogramming of metabolic setpoints.[6][7]Metabolic sensors [ edit ] Obesogenic drugs and chemicals have been shown to target transcription regulators found in gene networks that function to control intracellular lipid homeostasis and proliferation and differentiation on adipocytes. The major group of regulators that is targeted is a group of nuclear hormone receptors known as peroxisome proliferator activated receptors (PPARα, δ, and Î"). These hormone receptors sense a variety of metabolic ligands including lipophilic hormones, dietary fatty acids and their metabolites, and, depending on the varying levels of these ligands, control transcription of genes involved in balancing the changes in lipid balance in the body.[6][7] To become active and properly function as metabolic sensors and transcription regulators, the PPAR receptors must heterodimerize with another receptor known as the 9-cis retinoic acid receptor (RXR). The RXR receptor itself is the second major target of obesogens next to the PPAR receptors.[6][7]

The PPARα receptor, when complexed with RXR and activated by the binding of a lipid, promotes peroxisome proliferation leading to increased fatty acid β-oxidation.[9] Substances, such a xenobiotics that target and act as agonists of PPARα, typically act to reduce overall serum concentrations of lipids. In contrast, the PPARÎ" receptor, when complexed with RXR and activated by the binding of fatty acids or their derivatives, promotes lipid biosynthesis and storage of lipids is favored over fatty acid oxidation. In addition, activation promotes differentiation of preadipocytes and the conversion of mesenchymal progenitor cells to preadipocytes in adipose tissues. Substances that target and act as agonists of PPARÎ"/RXR complex typically act to increase overall serum concentrations of lipids.[10]

Obesogens that target the PPARÎ"/RXR complex mimic the metabolic ligands and activate the receptor leading to upregulation of lipid accumulation which explains their obesogenic effects. However, in the case of obesogens that target the PPARα/RXR complex, which when stimulated reduces adipose mass and body weight, there are a few explanations as to how they promote obesity.[6][7]

The ligand binding pockets of PPARs are very large and unspecified, allowing for different isoforms of the receptor (PPARα, δ, and Î") to be activated by the same agonist ligands or their metabolites. In addition, fatty acid oxidation stimulated by PPARα requires continuous stimulation while only a single activation event of PPARÎ" is required to permanently increase adipocyte differentiation and number.[6][7] Therefore, it may be the case that metabolites of PPARα targeting obesogens are also activating PPARÎ", providing the single activation event needed to potentially lead to a pro-adipogenic response.[11][12]

A second explanation points to specific PPARα targeters that have been shown to additionally cause abnormal transcriptional regulation of testicular steroidogenesis when introduced during fetal development. This abnormal regulation leads to a decreased level of androgen in the body which, itself, is obesogenic.[13][14][15]

Finally, if PPARα activation occurs during critical periods of development, the resulting decrease in lipid concentration in the developing fetus is recognized by the fetal brain as undernourishment. In this case, the developing brain makes what will become permanent changes to the body's metabolic control, leading to long-term upregulation of lipid storage and maintenance.[16]

Sex steroid dysregulation [ edit ] Sex steroids normally play a significant role in lipid balance in the body. Aided by other peptide hormones such as growth hormone, they act against the lipid accumulation mediated by insulin and cortisol by mobilizing lipid stores that are present. Exposure to obesogens often leads to a deficiency or change in the ratio between androgen and estrogen sex steroid levels, which modifies this method of lipid balance resulting in lowered growth hormone secretion, hypocortisolemia (low levels of circulating cortisol), and increased resistance to insulin effects.[17]

This alteration in sex steroid levels due to obesogens can vary enormously according to both the sex of the exposed individual as well as the timing of the exposure.[6][7] If the chemicals are introduced at critical windows of development, the vulnerability of an individual to their effects is much higher than if exposure occurs later in adulthood. It has been shown that obesogenic effects are apparent in female mice exposed to both phytoestrogens and DES during their neonatal periods of development, as they, though born with a lower birth weight, almost always developed obesity, high leptin levels, and altered glucose response pathways.[18][19][20] Both phytoestrogen and DES exposed male mice did not develop obesity and, rather, showed decreased body weights with increased exposure confirming the role of gender differences in exposure response.[19][20][21] Further studies have shown positive correlations for serum BPA levels with obese females in the human population, along with other xenoestrogen compounds suggesting the parallel roles that these effects may be having on humans.[22]

Central balance of energy [ edit ] While hormone receptors tend to be the most obvious candidates for targets of obesogens, central mechanisms that balance and regulate the body's nutritional changes on a day-to-day basis as a whole cannot be overlooked. The HPA axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal) is involved in controlling appetite and energy homeostasis circuits which are mediated by a large number of monoaminoergic, peptidergic (use of hormones as neurotransmitters), and endocannabinoid signals that come from the digestive tract, adipose tissues, and from within the brain. It is these types of signals that provide a likely target for obesogens that have shown to have weight altering effects.[6][7]

Neuroendocrine effects [ edit ] Neurological disorders may enhance the susceptibility to develop the metabolic syndrome that includes obesity.[23] Many neuropharmaceuticals used to alter behavioral pathways in patients with neurological disorders have shown to have metabolic altering side-effects leading to obesogenic phenotypes as well. These findings give evidence to conclude that an increase in lipid accumulation can result from the targeting of neurotransmitter receptors by foreign chemicals.[6][7][24]

Peptidergic hormones [ edit ] Several peptidergic hormone pathways controlling appetite and energy balance '--such as those involving ghrelin, neuropeptide Y, and agouti-related peptide '-- are particularly sensitive to changes in nuclear receptor signaling pathways and can therefore be easily altered by the introduction of endocrine disruptors. Such an alteration can lead to induced feelings of hunger and decreased feelings of fullness causing an increase in food intake and inability to feel satisfied, both characteristic of obesity.[6][7]

Some xenoestrogens such as BPA, nonylphenol, and DEHP have all shown to act is this way, altering NPY expression and significantly shifting the feeding behaviors of exposed mice.[25][26] In addition, organotins such as trimethyltin (TMT), triethyltin (TET), and tributyltin (TBT) compounds can exert their effects through similar pathways. TBT can locally disrupt aromatase regulation in the hypothalamus causing the responses of the HPA axis to hormones to become abnormal. TMT works in a similar but unique way, inducing NPY and NPY2 receptor expression initially which later is counteracted by neuronal degeneration in lesions causing decrease in signaling ability.[27][28]

While an increase in food intake is often the case after exposure, weight gain involves the body's maintenance of its metabolic setpoint as well. Given this information, it is particularly important to note that exposure during development and initial programming of these setpoints can be extremely significant throughout the remainder of life.[6][7]

Endocannabinoid signaling [ edit ] A wide range of environmental organotins that mimic petidergic hormones in the HPA axis as mentioned before, additionally mimic lipid activators of the cannabinoid system and inhibit AMPK activity.[6][7] Endocannaboid levels are high in those suffering from obesity due to hyperactivity of cannaboid signalling pathways. It is these high levels that have been found to be closely associated with increased fat stores linking the lipid activator mimics to the actual disease.[29]

Programming of metabolic set points [ edit ] Regions in the hypothalamus control the responses that establish an individual's metabolic setpoint and metabolic efficiency. These responses are adaptive in that they vary according to the individual's needs, always working to restore the metabolic setpoint through the increase or decrease of metabolic functions depending on varying energy needs. Since it is adapted, it is expected that it would be able to achieve equilibrium if the lipid balance was altered by hormones via the mechanisms mentioned above. However, since obesogenic phenotypes persist, it can be concluded that adaptive response components of the hypothalamus may be a target of obesogens as well.[6][7]

Body composition is very much predetermined before birth and changes rarely occur in adulthood. Adipocyte numbers increase during development and come to a plateau, after which adipocytes are restricted to mostly hypertrophic growth and don't seem to change much in cell number. This is demonstrated by the difficulty in altering somatotypes or more simply by the difficulty that goes along with trying to lose weight past a certain point.[30][better source needed ]

A particular study on polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), a commonly used chemical in flame retardants, made its role in altering the functions of the thyroid hormone axis apparent.[31][32] This finding leads to increased concern as neonatal thyroid status plays a large role in the integration of maternal environmental signals during development in the womb that is used for long-term body weight programming.[6][7]

Pharmaceutical obesogens [ edit ] Obesogens detection in the body and resulting obesogenic effects can result as side effects from intentional administration of obesogenic chemicals in the form of pharmaceutical drugs. These pharmaceutical obesogens can show their effects through a variety of targets.

Metabolic sensors [ edit ] Thiazolidinediones (TZD), rosiglitazone, and pioglitazone are all used to treat diabetes. These drugs act as agonists of the PPAR-Î" receptor leading to insulin sensitizing effects that can improve glycemic control and serum triglyceride levels.[33] Despite the positive effects these chemicals can have in treating diabetes patients, administration also lead to unwanted PPAR-Î" mediated side effects such as peripheral edema which can be followed by persistent weight gain if the drug is used over a long period of time. These side effects are particularly prominent in diabetes 2 patients, a disease that tends to result from an overabundance of adipose tissue.[34][35]

Sex steroid dysregulation [ edit ] Diethylstilbestrol (DES) is a synthetic estrogen that was once prescribed to women to decrease the risk of miscarriage until it was found to be causing abnormalities in exposed offspring. This same chemical has been shown to cause weight gain in female mice when exposed during neonatal development. While exposure didn't lead to an abnormal birth weight, significant weight gain occurred much later in adulthood.[19][20]

Central integration of energy balance [ edit ] Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) (e.g. paroxetine), tricyclic antidepressants (e.g. amitriptyline), tetracyclic antidepressants (e.g. mirtazapine) and atypical antipsychotics (e.g. clozapine) are all neuropharmaceuticals that target neurotransmitter receptors that are involved with brain circuits that regulate behavior. Often the function of these receptors overlaps with metabolism regulation, such as that of the H1 receptor which when activated decreases AMPK activity.[36] As a result, the administration of these drugs can have side effects including increased lipid accumulation that can result in obesity.

Metabolic setpoints [ edit ] The mechanisms behind SSRI, tricyclic antidepressants, and atypical antipsychotics function allow them all to have potential roles in the alteration of metabolic setpoints. TZD, in particular has been linked to regulatory function in the HPT axis, however, no conclusive evidence has been determined thus far and further research is required to confirm these hypotheses.[6][7]

Environmental obesogens [ edit ] While obesogens can be introduced to the body intentionally via administration of obesogenic pharmaceuticals, exposure can also occur through chemical exposure to obesogens found in the environment such as organotins and xenobiotics.

Organotins [ edit ] Particular members of the organotin class of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), namely tributyltin (TBT) and triphenyltin (TPT) are highly selective and act as very potent agonists of both the retinoid X receptors (RXR α,β, and Î") and PPARÎ".[37][38] This ability to target both receptors at the same time, is more effective than single receptor activation, as adopogenic signaling can be mediated through both components of the heterodimer complex. This highly effective activation mechanism can pose detrimental, long-term adipogenic effects especially if exposure occurs during development and early life.

Organotins (tin-based chemicals), used in marine anti-fouling paints, wood catalysts, plasticizers, slimicides, in industrial water systems, and fungicides on food have recently been linked to obesogenic properties when introduced in the body.[39] Human exposure to these major environmental sources most commonly occurs through ingestion of contaminated seafood, agricultural products, and drinking water as well as from exposure to leaching from plastics.[40][41][42]

Although studies that have directly measured organotin levels in human tissue and blood are limited, it has been determined that vulnerability of a portion of the general population to organotin exposure at levels high enough to activate RXRs and PPARÎ" receptors is very probable. The high usage of organotins in both plastics and agricultural maintenance as well as the high affinity of the chemicals further confirms this conclusion.[6][7]

Liver samples from the late 1990s in Europe and Asia contained on average 6 and 84 ng/g wet wt respectively for total organotin levels, while later studies found levels of total organotins in US blood samples averaged around 21 ng/mL with TBT comprising around 8 ng/mL (~ 27 nM).[43] Even more recent analyses of European blood samples found the predominant species to be TPT rather than TBT at 0.09 and 0.67 ng/mL (~0.5-2 nM). Only occasional trace amounts of TBT were found.[44][45] These results indicate that organtin exposure to humans, while found to be present among many different populations, can vary in terms of type of organatin and level of exposure from region to region.

Other xenobiotics [ edit ] Other common xenobiotics found in the environment have been shown to have PPAR activity, posing even further threats to dysregulated metabolic balance. BPA from polycarbonate plastics, phthalate plasticizers used to soften PVC plastics, and various perfluoroalkyll compounds (PFCs) that are widely used surfactants and surface repellents in consumer products are all potentially obesogenic when introduced in the body.[6][7] Phthalates and PFCs in particular have been found to function as agonists for one or more of the PPARs [46] Additionally, metabolites of DHEP such as MEHP also activate PPARÎ" leading to a proadipogenic response.[11][12]

Public health implications [ edit ] Although research on endocrine disruptors or "obesogens" is still emerging, the public health implications so far have mainly surrounded obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.Obesity has become a pandemic, increasing for all population groups. From 1980 to 2008, the rates of obesity have doubled for adults and tripled for children.[47] In the U.S. alone, it has been estimated that almost 100 million individuals in are obese[48] Traditional thinking suggested that diet and exercise alone were the main contributors to obesity; however, current experimental evidence shows that obesogens might be part of the cause.[medical citation needed ]

Obesity may lead to potentially debilitating chronic diseases such as diabetes, and certain environmental exposures, or obesogens, have been directly linked to Type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM).[49]

Potential obesogens in everyday life [ edit ] Obesogens can be found in many things, from water bottles to microwaveable popcorn, and from nonstick pans to shower curtains. People interact with them on a daily basis,[citation needed ] both intentionally and unintentionally, at work, school and home. They are an unnecessary and mostly preventable potential hazard to health,[medical citation needed ] which can have a large impact on how individuals gain and lose weight.[medical citation needed ]

Bisphenol-A (BPA) is an industrial chemical and organic compound that has been used in the production of plastics and resins for over a half-century. It is used in products such as toys, medical devices, plastic food and beverage containers, shower curtains, dental sealants and compounds, and register receipts.[50] BPA has been shown to seep into food sources from containers or into the body just by handling products made from it. Certain researchers suggest that BPA actually decreases the fat cell count in the body, but at the same time increasing the size of the ones remaining; therefore, no difference in weight is shown, and an individual is even likely to gain more.[51]

Nicotine is a chemical found in tobacco products and certain insecticides. As an obesogen, nicotine mostly acts on prenatal development after maternal smoking occurs. A strong association has been made between maternal smoking and childhood overweight/obesity, with nicotine as the single causal agent.[49]

Arsenic is a metalloid (i.e., an element with some metallic properties) found in and on most naturally occurring substances on Earth. It can be found in the soil, ground water, air, and in small concentrations in food. Arsenic has many applications such as in the production of insecticides, herbicides, pesticides and electronic devices.[52][53] The development of diabetes has been linked to arsenic exposure from drinking water and occupational contact.

Pesticides are substances used to prevent, destroy, repel or mitigate pests, and they have been used throughout all of recorded history. Some pesticides persist for short periods of time and some for long periods of time which are considered persistent organic pollutants (POPs). Several cross-sectional studies have shown pesticides as obesogens, linking them to obesity, diabetes and other morbidities.[49][54]

Some pharmaceutical drugs are also potentially obesogens. From 2005''2008, 11% of Americans aged 12 and over took antidepressant medications.[55] Certain antidepressants, known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), are potentially adding to the almost 100 million obese individuals in the U.S.[48] A key function of SSRI antidepressants is to regulate the serotonin reuptake transporter (SERT) which can affect food intake and lipid accumulation leading to obesity.[56]

Organotins such as tributyltin (TBT) and triphenyltin (TPT) are endocrine disruptors that have been shown to increase triglyceride storage in adipocytes. Although they have been widely used in the marine industry since the 1960s, other common sources of human exposure include contaminated seafood and shellfish, fungicides on crops and as antifungal agents used in wood treatments, industrial water systems and textiles. Organotins are also being used in the manufacture of PVC plastics and have been identified in drinking water and food supplies.[3]

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) is a surfactant used for reduction of friction, and it is also used in nonstick cookware. PFOA has been detected in the blood of more than 98% of the general US population.[57] It is a potential endocrine disruptor.[58] Animal studies have shown that prenatal exposure to PFOA is linked to obesity when reaching adulthood.[59]

Future research [ edit ] Most of the environmental obesogens currently identified are either classified into the category of chemical mimics of metabolic hormones throughout the body or of neurotransmitters within the brain. Because they fall into these two categories, extensive opportunities for complex interactions and varied sites of action as well as multiple molecular targets are open for consideration. Changing dose ranges tend to result in varying phenotypes and timing of exposure, gender, and gender predisposition introduce even more levels of complexity in how these substances effect the human body.[6][7]

Because the mechanisms behind the different effects of obesogens are so complex and not well understood, the extent to which they play in the current obesity epidemic may be greater than once thought. Epigenetic changes due to obesogen exposure must also be considered as a possibility, as they open up the potential for misregulated metabolic functions to be passed on from generation to generation. Epigenetic processes via hypermethylation of regulatory regions could lead to overexpression of different proteins, and therefore, amplification of acquired environmental effects. Research will be required in order to gain a better understanding of the mechanism of action these chemicals are involved in before the extent of the risk of exposure can be determined and methods of prevention and removal from the environment can be established.[6][7]

See also [ edit ] BariatricsObesityChildhood obesityOrexigenicEpidemiology of obesityEpidemiology of childhood obesityReferences [ edit ] ^ Calafat AM, Kuklenyik Z, Reidy JA, Caudill SP, Ekong J, Needham LL (Apr 2005). "Urinary concentrations of bisphenol A and 4-nonylphenol in a human reference population". Environmental Health Perspectives. 113 (4): 391''5. doi:10.1289/ehp.7534. PMC 1278476 . PMID 15811827. ^ Gr¼n F, Blumberg B (June 2007). "Perturbed nuclear receptor signaling by environmental obesogens as emerging factors in the obesity crisis". Rev Endocr Metab Disord. 8 (2): 161''71. doi:10.1007/s11154-007-9049-x. PMID 17657605. S2CID 7677454. ^ a b c Gr¼n F, Blumberg B (June 2006). "Environmental obesogens: organotins and endocrine disruption via nuclear receptor signaling". Endocrinology. 147 (6 Suppl): S50''5. doi:10.1210/en.2005-1129 . PMID 16690801. ^ Begley, Sharon (2009-09-21). "Why Chemicals Called Obesogens May Make You Fat". Newsweek . Retrieved 2010-04-29 . ^ Kirchner S, Kieu T, Chow C, Casey S, Blumberg B (March 2010). "Prenatal exposure to the environmental obesogen tributyltin predisposes multipotent stem cells to become adipocytes". Mol. Endocrinol. 24 (3): 526''39. doi:10.1210/me.2009-0261. PMC 2840805 . PMID 20160124. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Gr¼n F, Blumberg B (May 2009). "Endocrine disrupters as obesogens". Mol. Cell. Endocrinol. 304 (1''2): 19''29. doi:10.1016/j.mce.2009.02.018. PMC 2713042 . PMID 19433244. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Gr¼n F, Blumberg B (August 2009). "Minireview: the case for obesogens". Mol. Endocrinol. 23 (8): 1127''34. doi:10.1210/me.2008-0485. PMC 2718750 . PMID 19372238. ^ Diamanti-Kandarakis E, Bourguignon JP, Giudice LC, Hauser R, Prins GS, Soto AM, Zoeller RT, Gore AC (June 2009). "Endocrine-disrupting chemicals: an Endocrine Society scientific statement". Endocr. Rev. 30 (4): 293''342. doi:10.1210/er.2009-0002. PMC 2726844 . PMID 19502515. ^ Ferr(C) P (February 2004). "The biology of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors: relationship with lipid metabolism and insulin sensitivity". Diabetes. 53 (Suppl 1): S43''50. doi:10.2337/diabetes.53.2007.s43 . PMID 14749265. ^ Rosen ED, Sarraf P, Troy AE, Bradwin G, Moore K, Milstone DS, Spiegelman BM, Mortensen RM (October 1999). "PPAR gamma is required for the differentiation of adipose tissue in vivo and in vitro". Mol. Cell. 4 (4): 611''7. doi:10.1016/S1097-2765(00)80211-7 . PMID 10549292. ^ a b Hurst CH, Waxman DJ (August 2003). "Activation of PPARalpha and PPARgamma by environmental phthalate monoesters". Toxicol. Sci. 74 (2): 297''308. doi:10.1093/toxsci/kfg145. PMID 12805656. ^ a b Feige JN, Gelman L, Rossi D, Zoete V, Metivier R, Tudor C, Anghel SI, Grodidier A, Lathion C, Engelborghs Y, Michielin O, Wahli W, Desvergne B (June 2007). "The Endocrine Disruptor Monoethyl-hexyl-phthalate Is a Selective Peroxisome Proliferator-activated Receptor Î" Modulator That Promotes Adipogenesis". J. Biol. Chem. 282 (26): 19152''19166. doi:10.1074/jbc.M702724200 . PMID 17468099. ^ Parks LG, Ostby JS, Lambright CR, Abbott BD, Klinefelter GR, Barlow NJ, Gray LE (December 2000). "The plasticizer diethylhexyl phthalate induces malformations by decreasing fetal testosterone synthesis during sexual differentiation in the male rat". Toxicol. Sci. 58 (2): 339''49. doi:10.1093/toxsci/58.2.339 . PMID 11099646. ^ Jarfelt K, Dalgaard, Hass U, Borch J, Jacobsen H, Ladefoged O (March''April 2008). "Antiandrogenic effects in male rats perinatally exposed to a mixture of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate". Reprod. Toxicol. 19 (4): 505''515. doi:10.1016/j.reprotox.2004.11.005. PMID 15749265. ^ Braga-Basaria M, Dobs AS, Muller DC, Carducci MA, John M, Egan J, Basaria S (August 2006). "Metabolic syndrome in men with prostate cancer undergoing long-term androgen-deprivation therapy". J. Clin. Oncol. 24 (24): 3979''83. doi:10.1200/JCO.2006.05.9741 . PMID 16921050. ^ Levin BE (July 2006). "Metabolic imprinting: critical impact of the perinatal environment on the regulation of energy homeostasis". Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B Biol. Sci. 361 (1471): 1107''21. doi:10.1098/rstb.2006.1851. PMC 1642705 . PMID 16815795. ^ Bj¶rntorp P (September 1997). "Body fat distribution, insulin resistance, and metabolic diseases". Nutrition. 13 (9): 795''803. doi:10.1016/s0899-9007(97)00191-3. PMID 9290093. ^ Ruhlen RL, Howdeshell KL, Mao J, Taylor JA, Bronson FH, Newbold RR, Welshons WV, vom Saal FS (March 2008). "Low phytoestrogen levels in feed increase fetal serum estradiol resulting in the "fetal estrogenization syndrome" and obesity in CD-1 mice". Environ. Health Perspect. 116 (3): 322''8. doi:10.1289/ehp.10448. PMC 2265041 . PMID 18335098. ^ a b c Newbold RR, Padilla-Banks E, Snyder RJ, Jefferson WN (July 2007). "Perinatal exposure to environmental estrogens and the development of obesity". Mol Nutr Food Res. 51 (7): 912''7. doi:10.1002/mnfr.200600259. PMID 17604389. ^ a b c Newbold RR, Padilla-Banks E, Snyder RJ, Phillips TM, Jefferson WN (2007). "Developmental exposure to endocrine disruptors and the obesity epidemic". Reprod. Toxicol. 23 (3): 290''6. doi:10.1016/j.reprotox.2006.12.010. PMC 1931509 . PMID 17321108. ^ Penza M, Montani C, Romani A, Vignolini P, Pampaloni B, Tanini A, Brandi ML, Alonso-Magdalena P, Nadal A, Ottobrini L, Parolini O, Bignotti E, Calza S, Maggi A, Grigolato PG, Di Lorenzo D (December 2006). "Genistein affects adipose tissue deposition in a dose-dependent and gender-specific manner". Endocrinology. 147 (12): 5740''51. doi:10.1210/en.2006-0365 . PMID 16959845. ^ Takeuchi T, Tsutsumi O, Ikezuki Y, Takai Y, Taketani Y (April 2004). "Positive relationship between androgen and the endocrine disruptor, bisphenol A, in normal women and women with ovarian dysfunction". Endocr. J. 51 (2): 165''9. doi:10.1507/endocrj.51.165 . PMID 15118266. ^ Casey DE (April 2005). "Metabolic issues and cardiovascular disease in patients with psychiatric disorders". Am. J. Med. 118 (Suppl 2): 15S''22S. doi:10.1016/j.amjmed.2005.01.046. PMID 15903291. ^ See also: #Central integration of energy balance ^ Masuo Y, Morita M, Oka S, Ishido M (December 2004). "Motor hyperactivity caused by a deficit in dopaminergic neurons and the effects of endocrine disruptors: a study inspired by the physiological roles of PACAP in the brain". Regul. Pept. 123 (1''3): 225''34. doi:10.1016/j.regpep.2004.05.010. PMID 15518916. S2CID 9419249. ^ Masuo Y, Ishido M, Morita M, Oka S (2004). "Effects of neonatal treatment with 6-hydroxydopamine and endocrine disruptors on motor activity and gene expression in rats". Neural Plast. 11 (1''2): 59''76. doi:10.1155/NP.2004.59 . PMC 2565434 . PMID 15303306. ^ Ishikura N, Tsunashima K, Watanabe K, Nishimura T, Minabe Y, Kato N (2002). "Neuropeptide Y and somatostatin participate differently in the seizure-generating mechanisms following trimethyltin-induced hippocampal damage". Neurosci Res. 44 (3): 237''248. doi:10.1016/S0168-0102(02)00132-3. PMID 12413652. S2CID 29090185. ^ Sadamatsu M, Tsunashima K, Schwarzer C, Takahashi Y, Kato N, Sperk G (1998). "Trimethyltin-induced expression of neuropeptide Y Y2 receptors in rat dentate gyrus". Neurotoxicol Teratol. 20 (6): 607''10. doi:10.1016/S0892-0362(98)00022-1. PMID 9831121. ^ Engeli S, B¶hnke J, Feldpausch M, Gorzelniak K, Janke J, Btkai S, Pacher P, Harvey-White J, Luft FC, Sharma AM, Jordan J (October 2005). "Activation of the peripheral endocannabinoid system in human obesity". Diabetes. 54 (10): 2838''43. doi:10.2337/diabetes.54.10.2838. PMC 2228268 . PMID 16186383. ^ Janesick A, Blumberg B (March 2011). "Endocrine disrupting chemicals and the developmental programming of adipogenesis and obesity". Birth Defects Res. C. 93 (1): 34''50. doi:10.1002/bdrc.20197. PMC 4919125 . PMID 21425440. ^ Ellis-Hutchings RG, Cherr GN, Hanna LA, Keen CL (September 2006). "Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE)-induced alterations in vitamin A and thyroid hormone concentrations in the rat during lactation and early postnatal development". Toxicol. Appl. Pharmacol. 215 (2): 135''45. doi:10.1016/j.taap.2006.02.008. PMID 16580039. ^ Kuriyama SN, Wanner A, Fidalgo-Neto AA, Talsness CE, Koerner W, Chahoud I (December 2007). "Developmental exposure to low-dose PBDE-99: tissue distribution and thyroid hormone levels". Toxicology. 242 (1''3): 80''90. doi:10.1016/j.tox.2007.09.011. PMID 17964054. ^ Goldberg RB (August 2007). "The new clinical trials with thiazolidinediones--DREAM, ADOPT, and CHICAGO: promises fulfilled?". Curr. Opin. Lipidol. 18 (4): 435''42. doi:10.1097/MOL.0b013e32821f604c. PMID 17620861. S2CID 25296886. ^ Larsen MO, Rolin B, Ribel U, Wilken M, Deacon CF, Svendsen O, Gotfredsen CF, Carr RD (2003). "Valine pyrrolidide preserves intact glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide and improves abnormal glucose tolerance in minipigs with reduced beta-cell mass". Exp. Diabetes Res. 4 (2): 93''105. doi:10.1155/EDR.2003.93 . PMC 2478600 . PMID 14630571. ^ Rubenstrunk A, Hanf R, Hum DW, Fruchart JC, Staels B (August 2007). "Safety issues and prospects for future generations of PPAR modulators". Biochim. Biophys. Acta. 1771 (8): 1065''81. doi:10.1016/j.bbalip.2007.02.003. PMID 17428730. ^ Kim SF, Huang AS, Snowman AM, Teuscher C, Snyder SH (February 2007). "From the Cover: Antipsychotic drug-induced weight gain mediated by histamine H1 receptor-linked activation of hypothalamic AMP-kinase". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 104 (9): 3456''9. Bibcode:2007PNAS..104.3456K. doi:10.1073/pnas.0611417104 . PMC 1805549 . PMID 17360666. ^ Kanayama T, Kobayashi N, Mamiya S, Nakanishi T, Nishikawa J (March 2005). "Organotin compounds promote adipocyte differentiation as agonists of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma/retinoid X receptor pathway". Mol. Pharmacol. 67 (3): 766''74. doi:10.1124/mol.104.008409. PMID 15611480. S2CID 20588515. ^ Gr¼n F, Watanabe H, Zamanian Z, Maeda L, Arima K, Cubacha R, Gardiner DM, Kanno J, Iguchi T, Blumberg B (September 2006). "Endocrine-disrupting organotin compounds are potent inducers of adipogenesis in vertebrates" (PDF) . Mol. Endocrinol. 20 (9): 2141''55. doi:10.1210/me.2005-0367 . PMID 16613991. ^ Nath M (2008). "Toxicity and the cardiovascular activity of organotin compounds: a review". Applied Organometallic Chemistry. 22 (10): 598''612. doi:10.1002/aoc.1436. ^ Tsuda T, Inoue T, Kojima M, Aoki S (1995). "Daily intakes of tributyltin and triphenyltin compounds from meals". J AOAC Int. 78 (4): 941''3. doi:10.1093/jaoac/78.4.941 . PMID 7580332. ^ Gu(C)rin T, Sirot V, Volatier JL, Leblanc JC (December 2007). "Organotin levels in seafood and its implications for health risk in high-seafood consumers". Sci. Total Environ. 388 (1''3): 66''77. Bibcode:2007ScTEn.388...66G. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2007.08.027. PMID 17889928. ^ Ohno H, Suzuki M, Nakashima S, Aoyama T, Mitani K (August 2002). "[Determination of organotin compounds in plastic products by GC/MS after ethyl derivatization with sodium tetraethylborate]". Shokuhin Eiseigaku Zasshi (in Japanese). 43 (4): 208''14. doi:10.3358/shokueishi.43.208 . PMID 12436712. ^ Kanaan K, Sethilkumar K, Giesy J (1999). "Occurrence of butyltin compounds in human blood". Environmental Science & Technology. 33 (10): 1776''9. Bibcode:1999EnST...33.1776K. doi:10.1021/es990011w. ^ Rantakokko P, Turunen A, Verkasalo PK, Kiviranta H, M¤nnist¶ S, Vartiainen T (July 2008). "Blood levels of organotin compounds and their relation to fish consumption in Finland". Sci. Total Environ. 399 (1''3): 90''5. Bibcode:2008ScTEn.399...90R. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2008.03.017. PMID 18436279. ^ Lo S, All(C)ra A, Albers P, Heimbrecht J, Jantzen E, Klingm¼ller D, Steckelbroeck S (April 2003). "Dithioerythritol (DTE) prevents inhibitory effects of triphenyltin (TPT) on the key enzymes of the human sex steroid hormone metabolism". J. Steroid Biochem. Mol. Biol. 84 (5): 569''76. doi:10.1016/S0960-0760(03)00074-8. PMID 12767282. S2CID 21495365. ^ Bell FP (November 1982). "Effects of phthalate esters on lipid metabolism in various tissues, cells and organelles in mammals". Environ. Health Perspect. 45: 41''50. doi:10.1289/ehp.824541. PMC 1568983 . PMID 7140695. ^ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Obesity and Overweight for Professionals: Data and Statistics: Facts - DNPAO - CDC". U.S. Department of Health and human Services. ^ a b "Clinical Guidelines on the Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults--The Evidence Report. National Institutes of Health" (PDF) . Obesity Research. 6 (Suppl 2): 51S''209S. Sep 1998. PMID 9813653. ^ a b c Thayer KA, Heindel JJ, Bucher JR, Gallo MA (Jun 2012). "Role of environmental chemicals in diabetes and obesity: a National Toxicology Program workshop review". Environmental Health Perspectives. 120 (6): 779''89. doi:10.1289/ehp.1104597. PMC 3385443 . PMID 22296744. ^ Zeratsky K (Jul 2010). "What are the health concerns about BPA?". Mayo Clinic Women's Healthsource. 14 (7): 8. PMID 20517192. ^ Vom Saal FS, Nagel SC, Coe BL, Angle BM, Taylor JA (May 2012). "The estrogenic endocrine disrupting chemical bisphenol A (BPA) and obesity". Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology. 354 (1''2): 74''84. doi:10.1016/j.mce.2012.01.001. PMC 3306519 . PMID 22249005. ^ "Inorganic Arsenic" (PDF) . TEACH Chemical Summary. United States Environmental Protection Agency. 2007-08-01. p. 20. ^ Del Razo LM, Garc­a-Vargas GG, Valenzuela OL, Castellanos EH, Snchez-Pe±a LC, Currier JM, Drobn Z, Loomis D, St½blo M (2011). "Exposure to arsenic in drinking water is associated with increased prevalence of diabetes: a cross-sectional study in the Zimapn and Lagunera regions in Mexico". Environmental Health. 10: 73. doi:10.1186/1476-069X-10-73 . PMC 3169452 . PMID 21864395. ^ Lind L, Lind PM (Jun 2012). "Can persistent organic pollutants and plastic-associated chemicals cause cardiovascular disease?". Journal of Internal Medicine. 271 (6): 537''53. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2796.2012.02536.x . PMID 22372998. ^ Pratt LA, Brody DJ, Gu Q (Oct 2011). "Antidepressant use in persons aged 12 and over: United States, 2005-2008". NCHS Data Brief (76): 1''8. PMID 22617183. ^ Chen X, Margolis KJ, Gershon MD, Schwartz GJ, Sze JY (2012). "Reduced serotonin reuptake transporter (SERT) function causes insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis independent of food intake". PLOS ONE. 7 (3): e32511. Bibcode:2012PLoSO...732511C. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0032511 . PMC 3297606 . PMID 22412882. ^ Shankar A, Xiao J, Ducatman A (2011). "Perfluoroalkyl chemicals and elevated serum uric acid in US adults". Clinical Epidemiology. 3: 251''8. doi:10.2147/CLEP.S21677 . PMC 3191115 . PMID 22003309. ^ White SS, Fenton SE, Hines EP (Oct 2011). "Endocrine disrupting properties of perfluorooctanoic acid". The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. 127 (1''2): 16''26. doi:10.1016/j.jsbmb.2011.03.011. PMC 3335904 . PMID 21397692. ^ Hines EP, White SS, Stanko JP, Gibbs-Flournoy EA, Lau C, Fenton SE (May 2009). "Phenotypic dichotomy following developmental exposure to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in female CD-1 mice: Low doses induce elevated serum leptin and insulin, and overweight in mid-life". Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology. 304 (1''2): 97''105. doi:10.1016/j.mce.2009.02.021. PMID 19433254. S2CID 24249833. Further reading [ edit ] Newbold RR, Padilla-Banks E, Jefferson WN, Heindel JJ (Apr 2008). "Effects of endocrine disruptors on obesity". International Journal of Andrology. 31 (2): 201''208. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2605.2007.00858.x. PMID 18315718. Newbold RR, Padilla-Banks E, Jefferson WN (Jun 2006). "Adverse effects of the model environmental estrogen diethylstilbestrol are transmitted to subsequent generations" (Free full text) . Endocrinology. 147 (6 Suppl): S11''S17. doi:10.1210/en.2005-1164 . PMID 16690809. Boberg J, Metzdorff S, Wortziger R, Axelstad M, Brokken L, Vinggaard AM, Dalgaard M, Nellemann C (Sep 2008). "Impact of diisobutyl phthalate and other PPAR agonists on steroidogenesis and plasma insulin and leptin levels in fetal rats". Toxicology. 250 (2''3): 75''81. doi:10.1016/j.tox.2008.05.020. PMID 18602967. Hines EP, White SS, Stanko JP, Gibbs-Flournoy EA, Lau C, Fenton SE (May 2009). "Phenotypic dichotomy following developmental exposure to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in female CD-1 mice: Low doses induce elevated serum leptin and insulin, and overweight in mid-life". Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology. 304 (1''2): 97''105. doi:10.1016/j.mce.2009.02.021. PMID 19433254. S2CID 24249833. Chen JQ, Brown TR, Russo J (Jul 2009). "Regulation of energy metabolism pathways by estrogens and estrogenic chemicals and potential implications in obesity associated with increased exposure to endocrine disruptors". Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Molecular Cell Research. 1793 (7): 1128''1143. doi:10.1016/j.bbamcr.2009.03.009. PMC 2747085 . PMID 19348861. Look up

obesogen in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 16:11

Climate | Bill Gates Says 'Brute Force' Climate Policies Won't Work https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/21/climate/bill-gates-climate-policy.htmlSpeaking at a live event at The Times Center in New York, the billionaire philanthropist argued for a pragmatic, technology-driven approach to global warming.

Videotranscript

transcript

Bill Gates Champions Innovation as Way to Combat Climate Change''Are we the science people or are we the idiots?'' asked Bill Gates, during a discussion about his pragmatic strategy to fighting climate change.''If you try to do climate things brute force, you'll sometimes get people say, 'Hey, I like climate, I'm for climate, but I don't want to bear that cost and reduce my standard of living.' The political realities are such that without innovation, it's unlikely, particularly in middle-income countries, that the brute force approach will be successful. I'm the person who's doing the most on climate in terms of the innovation and how we can square multiple goals. I don't use some of the less proven approaches.'' Moderator: ''Such as.'' ''I don't plant trees. ''There's a lot of people who are very enamored with trees. We've got trees on this stage. Some people would even say that if you just planted enough trees, it could take care of the climate issue altogether.'' ''And that's complete nonsense.'' ''OK.'' ''I mean, are we the science people or are we the idiots? Which one do we want to be?''

''Are we the science people or are we the idiots?'' asked Bill Gates, during a discussion about his pragmatic strategy to fighting climate change. Credit Credit... Calla Kessler for The New York Times Bill Gates, the multibillionaire founder of Microsoft, argued for a pragmatic, technology-driven approach to fighting climate change on Thursday.

''If you try to do climate brute force, you will get people who say, 'I like climate but I don't want to bear that cost and reduce my standard of living,''' Mr. Gates said at the Climate Forward event hosted by The New York Times. ''Without innovation, it's unlikely, particularly in middle-income countries, that the brute force approach will be successful.''

Mr. Gates also said winning more bipartisan support was needed in order for policy to actually stick. ''Republicans for climate change action are gold, you know,'' he said. ''That's got to be a number that somehow we manage to increase over time.''

''You can't have a climate policy that when one party is in charge goes full speed ahead and stops cold,'' he added. ''These are 30-year investments in steel factories, new ways of making meat.''

Mr. Gates, who in recent weeks has espoused an everything-will-be-fine approach to the climate crisis, was asked whether he could reconcile that stance with the reality of extreme weather around the globe.

''I'm the person who is doing the most on climate in terms of the innovation and how we can square multiple goals,'' said Mr. Gates, a co-founder of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a major donor to health- and climate-related causes. ''There's very limited money for causes to reduce inequity in the world. And no temperate country is going to become uninhabitable.''

Instead, he said, he is taking a more pragmatic approach and drawing a line at untested remedies like planting a trillion trees.

''Are we the science people or are we the idiots?'' he said. ''Which one do we want to be?''

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 16:04

A Covid drug hailed as a game-changer may cause the virus to mutate, scientists warned today.

Molnupiravir is given to thousands of vulnerable Brits who test positive, such as patients fighting cancer or liver and kidney disease.

The antiviral, made by US pharma giant Merck, protects against severe illness by forcing mutations in the virus that fatally weaken it.

However, in some cases these mutations do not kill off the virus, say researchers at the Francis Crick Institute and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).

Instead, a patient can remain infected with a mutated version of Covid and pass this on to others, according to the team's analysis of millions of virus sequences.

Experts warned it is now key to find out if mutations triggered by molnupiravir can make the pandemic-causing virus more transmissible or severe, or allow it to bypass immunity from previous infections or vaccines.

Some have even warned that its use could lead to new variants spawning, although the manufacturer has rubbished such fears.

Molnupiravir is dished out to at-risk adults in the UK who have tested positive for Covid, such as cancer , liver and kidney disease patients

Molnupiravir, sold under the brand name Lagevrio, works by stopping Covid from growing and spreading in an infected person, keeping virus levels low.

This helps the body's immune system control the infection, reducing the risk of severe symptoms and hospitalisation.

Clinical trials suggest the drug '-- which was rolled out to patients in the UK from December 2021 and described as an 'excellent addition' to the country's 'armoury against Covid' '-- halves the risk of being admitted or dying from Covid.

The team, which included scientists from the University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, the University of Liverpool and the University of Cape Town, noted molnupiravir's effects are a result of it triggering an array of mutations in the virus.

Many of the mutations damage or kill the virus.

What is molnupiravir? Molnupiravir works by stopping Covid from growing and spreading in an infected person, keeping virus levels low.

This helps the body's immune system control the infection, reducing the risk of severe symptoms and hospitalisation.

Clinical trials suggest the drug halves the risk of beding admitted or dying from Covid.

It it taken as four capsules twice a day for five days among those who have recently become infected and are vulnerable.

This includes cancer patients, those with Down's syndrome and liver disease patients.

Molnupiravir, taken as four capsules twice a day for five days, has not been linked to any serious side effects, though some patients report suffering from headaches, nausea and feeling dizzy.

In rare cases, it can trigger an allergic reaction.

However, in some patients, the virus is not fully cleared, meaning they can infect others with the molnupiravir-mutated virus.

They examined a family tree of 15million Covid sequences, collected from global databases, to map its mutations over time.

Covid mutates constantly and most have little to no impact on the virus's properties, such as how transmissible it is or the severity of infection that it triggers.

However, in a study published in the journal Nature, the researchers said they spotted changes to the virus that looked very different to the expected patterns.

These mutations were strongly linked with people who had taken molnupiravir.

The team noted that the frequency of these mutations increased in 2022, which is when the rollout gathered pace.

The unusual changes to the virus were also more common among older people '-- who are more likely to be given the drug '-- in countries known to have high molnupiravir use and among samples taken during clinical trials of the drug.

Three in 10 of the abnormal mutations seen in England were among those given the drug, according to the researchers.

The team also spotted clusters of odd mutations, suggesting that the tweaked version of the virus had been passed on to others. However, they noted that no variants of concern are linked to the mutations though to be triggered by the drug.

It is difficult to understand whether molnupiravir risks triggering new variants or whether these could risk public health.

And chronic Covid infections '-- which the drug is used to treat '-- can also trigger new mutations.

Theo Sanderson, lead study author and researcher at the Francis Crick Institute, said: 'It's important we develop drugs which aim to cut short the length of infection.

'But our evidence shows that a specific antiviral drug, molnupiravir, also results in new mutations, increasing the genetic diversity in the surviving viral population.'

He said drug makers must consider the risk of the medicine triggering mutations in a virus, when developing drugs that work in a similar way to molnupiravir.

Christopher Ruis, a researcher at the University of Cambridge, said the findings show that in some patients, molnupiravir doesn't kill all of the virus and that the mutated virus can spread.

'This is important to take into account when assessing the overall benefits and risks of molnupiravir and similar drugs,' he said.

Molnupiravir, taken as four capsules twice a day for five days, has not been linked to any serious side effects, though some patients report suffering from headaches, nausea and feeling dizzy. In rare cases, it can trigger an allergic reaction.

The antiviral, made by US pharma giant Merck, protects against severe illness by forcing mutations in the virus that fatally weaken it

It was approved in the UK in November 2021 and in the US one month later.

Professor Jonathan Ball, a virologist at the University of Nottingham, said it is 'surprising' that the heavily molnupiravir-mutated viruses were able to spread.

'But what isn't clear is if any of the transmitted viruses contained mutations which would change how they would behave '-- for example if they were more or less transmissible, more pathogenic or less susceptible to our immunity. This is a key question to address.'

Dr Chris Illingworth, a senior lecturer in virology at the University of Glasgow, said there is a ' need for caution before simply abandoning the use of the drug'.

'Most mutations would be expected to make the virus less, rather than more dangerous. As such we can't yet say that the use of molnupiravir has been harmful for human health,' he said.

Some experts immediately flagged the potential for molnupiravir to cause worrying mutations when it first made headlines in late-2021 '-- and even labelled its continued use as 'disturbing'.

Professor Stephen Griffin, an infectious disease expert at the University of Leeds, said Covid won't mutate and spread in the majority of cases when molnupiravir is used.

'However, as we have seen recently with [the BA2.86 Covid variant], Covid evolution sometimes takes "leaps", and anything that might help that occur is a bad idea,' he said.

Professor Griffin added: ' What remains certain though, is that we must remain vigilant to the ongoing shifts and leaps in SARS-COV-2 evolution, which is becoming all the more difficult to track due to reductions in testing and surveillance.'

A Merck spokesperson said: 'Clinical and preclinical data show molnupiravir impairs viral replication and reduces viral shedding, which would reduce the risk of transmission.

'The authors of the Sanderson et al. manuscript based their research on divergent global database SARS-CoV-2 sequences capturing specific mutational patterns present within the viral populations.

'The authors assume these mutations were associated with viral spread from molnupiravir-treated patients without documented evidence of that transmission.

'Instead, the authors rely on circumstantial associations between the region from which the sequence was identified and timeframe of sequence collection in countries where molnupiravir is available to draw their conclusions.

'Furthermore, these sequences were uncommon and were associated with sporadic cases. As noted by the authors, there are limitations to the analyses conducted in this study, which are described in more detail in the manuscript. These data must be considered in the context of all available clinical and non-clinical molnupiravir data.'

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 15:07

Russell Brand sexual assault allegations: Brands pull ads from his Rumble channel after News Movement investigation

By John Simpson Senior reporter, and Ollie Smith ReporterHello Fresh said: ''Thanks for pointing this out to us. We have manually removed our ads from Rumble.''

Massive brands including Burger King, ASOS, London's Barbican centre and Hello Fresh have pulled advertising from Russell Brand's Rumble channel, The News Movement can reveal.

Three of the companies have removed their ads from Rumble altogether after The News Movement found that they were appearing alongside Brand's videos.

Burger King has paused advertising on Brand's channel while broadcasters and police look at claims of rape and sexual assault against him.

The comedian has been accused of rape and sexual assaults against four women between 2003 and 2013. He denies the claims. Brand, 48, has a huge audience on Rumble with over 1.4m followers. There has been concern about the increasing discussion of conspiracy theories on his videos on that platform.

In his response to a recent investigation into claims of sexual misconduct against him, he suggested there was ''another agenda at play'' and referenced ''co-ordinated media attacks''.

He has made several videos that discuss a conspiracy theory centred on protests by Dutch farmers.

Brand, who is married and expecting a third child, also repeatedly refers to ''The Great Reset'' - a common term among conspiracy theorists, often alleging a global elitist power grab said to link to the World Economic Forum. TNM approached other brands including Ralph Lauren, eBay and Hilton hotels, whose ads all came up on Brand's channel but none replied to requests for comment.

' YouTube suspended ads from his channel on their site for allegedly "violating" its creator policies. The BBC has removed

some shows Brand made while working there after '‹'‹the four women took part in a joint investigation by The Sunday Times, The Times and Channel 4's Dispatches.

Brand has been dropped by his literary agent, tour promoter and book publisher in the days since the allegations emerged.

In a video released before the allegations were made public, Brand said he had always been open about his promiscuity.

''During that time of promiscuity, the relationships I had were absolutely always consensual,'' he said in a video on Rumble and YouTube.

''I was always transparent about that. Then almost too transparent, and I'm being transparent about it now as well.

Burger King said: ''Burger King has paused all advertising on the channel while investigations into the allegations are ongoing.''

ASOS declined to comment but TNM understands the company removed their ads this week.

Hello Fresh said: ''Thanks for pointing this out to us. We have manually removed our ads from Rumble.''

The Barbican said: ''We have now asked our media agency to exclude this site from where our ads appear.''

Rumble has said it has no plans to remove advertising altogether but did not reply to a request for comment. Google and Brand himself have yet to reply to us either.

When a UK Parliamentary committee asked Rumble if it would do the same as YouTube, Rumble said ''We don't agree with the behaviour of many Rumble creators, but we refuse to penalise them for actions that have nothing to do with our platform''

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 14:27

MEXICO CITY -- The former mayor of Mexico City will be the dominant ruling party's presidential candidate, moving the country closer to electing its first female president next year.

The decision driven by polls of Morena party members means that Claudia Sheinbaum will run as the party's candidate in the June election. Mexico's constitution bars outgoing President Andr(C)s Manuel L"pez Obrador from a second six-year term.

Morena national council president Alfonso Durazo said Sheinbaum beat former Foreign Affairs Secretary Marcelo Ebrard by double figures in five party surveys.

Sheinbaum is a close ally of the popular L"pez Obrador and as Morena's candidate she will enjoy a distinct advantage in June.

''I'm excited,'' Sheinbaum said, thanking each of her competitors by name with the exception of Ebrard who was not present. ''I feel very proud, very honored'' to have been part of this movement since its inception.

Last week, a broad opposition coalition selected female lawmaker X"chitl Glvez as its candidate.

Sheinbaum, 61, led Ebrard in recent polling and both had stepped down from their positions to campaign full time.

Durazo said ''the result of this exercise is definitive,'' adding that even though there were difficulties they didn't affect the final result. He called on party members to close ranks behind Sheinbaum's candidacy.

The other party candidates present at the announcement commended Sheinbaum. Ebrard was the only candidate who did not attend.

Hours before the announcement Wednesday, Ebrard complained of irregularities in the process, said it should be done over and accused his party of increasingly resembling the Institutional Revolutionary Party that ruled Mexico for 71 years, famously allowing each president to select his successor. He said he would decide Monday how to proceed.

Other party leaders seemed to respond indirectly to Ebrard's criticisms, saying the internal party process was transparent and democratic.

Trained as an environmental scientist, Sheinbaum sits solidly on the left of the ideological spectrum. She frequently echoed L"pez Obrador's rants against the neoliberal economic policies of earlier Mexican presidents, blaming them for the country's gaping inequality and high levels of violence.

L"pez Obrador had said that he would let the party faithful decide its candidate.

Neither Sheinbaum nor Ebrard has the president's charisma and easy connection with the party's base, but she skillfully leveraged her position as the capital's mayor, getting attention with free concerts from popular bands in the sprawling central square and promotion of L"pez Obrador's signature social programs, such as pensions for seniors and scholarships for students.

Thanks in large part to his popularity, Morena has expanded its control to 22 of Mexico's 32 states and Sheinbaum is expected to have the advantage in the June 2 election.

Sheinbaum holds a PhD in engineering, served on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that won a shared Nobel Peace Prize in 2007, and pledges to commit Mexico to sustainability.

That commitment would appear to frequently put her in conflict with L"pez Obrador. He built a massive new oil refinery, has propped up the state-owned petroleum company and gave advantages to dirtier state-owned energy producers. But if she had explicit criticisms, she kept them quiet.

''I believe in science,'' she said in an interview with AP earlier this year. ''I believe in technology to have a better life.'' She has said that going forward most energy has to come from renewable sources.

One area where she did show more independence was taking more aggressive action in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. While the president downplayed the risks, Sheinbaum donned a protective face mask, shut down bars and nightclubs and pushed for more testing.

She overcame criticism of her handling of the capital's sprawling subway system. In May 2021, an elevated section collapsed, causing 26 deaths and injuring nearly 100 people.

On Wednesday night, with shouts of ''President! President!'' echoing in the hall, Sheinbaum appeared to send a message to Ebrard without naming him.

''Unity is fundamental and the doors are always open, they are never going to close.''

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 13:40

The controversy over the sexual assault allegations against podcaster and comedian Russell Brand continues to dominate political discourse. When accusations emerged, it led to a series of occurrences that have made ripples in the world of entertainment and business.

Brand, who has denied the allegations, finds himself at the center of a storm. But now, companies like Burger King and others have also been targeted for criticism after it was revealed they pulled their advertising from the video-sharing platform Rumble, which has continued to allow Brand to broadcast on their platform after YouTube demonetized his channel due to the controversy.

The revelation came from The News Movement, a TikTok channel.

Burger King and other companies have removed their adverts from a video-sharing platform that continues to host Russell Brand after he was accused of rape and sexual assault, [news outlet] i can reveal.

The move by several firms, selling everything from software to soft toys, to pull their ads from US-based Rumble follows the decision by YouTube to suspend ad revenue on the comedian's channels '' and Rumble's refusal to follow suit.

Now, it appears that Burger King might get the Bud Light treatment, with several conservative influencers threatening to boycott the fast-food giant.

Burger King wants you to ''have it your way.'' Who knew their ''way'' was wokeism, censorship & cancel culture. Their burgers are shit any way.Spend your money wisely. @BurgerKing pic.twitter.com/u7YIMUuTs6

'-- Dan Bongino (@dbongino) September 23, 2023Burger King has pulled its ads from Rumble because the free speech platform refuses to play judge, jury, and executioner of Russell Brand after the UK Governor demanded the platform demonetize him.Reminder, Brand has not been convicted of a single crime.

Boycott @BurgerKing.'...

'-- Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) September 24, 2023Burger King hates free speech. It will be very easy to never eat there again. @BurgerKing Goodbye. pic.twitter.com/xtC1S3j8df

'-- TheQuartering (@TheQuartering) September 23, 2023The allegations against Brand are quite serious. A joint investigation by The Sunday Times, the Times, and U.K. broadcaster Channel 4's Dispatches program covered claims coming from multiple women alleging that Brand had committed rape and sexual abuse against them between 2006 and 2013. One of the most appalling accusations is that he had a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old girl when he was in his early 30s. She claims he referred to her as ''the child'' and detailed instances of emotional abuse and controlling behavior.

On the other hand, Brand has denied these allegations and indicated that it is part of an effort to smear him because of his prominent platform on which he constantly expresses anti-establishment views. Indeed, he is not the only high-profile individual who found themselves in a similar predicament after speaking out against the government and authoritarian forces in society. Many have defended the podcaster, arguing that it is a media-inspired witch hunt and pointing out that these allegations never surfaced when Brand was not a political figure.

Rumble has been pressured to demonetize Brand's channel as well. A member of the United Kingdom's Parliament sent a letter to the company asking if it will remove advertising revenue from his channel. The company refused.

The women making the accusations have remained anonymous, and there have been no charges filed against Brand at the moment.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 13:39

While EVs are all the rage with automakers right now (if not with their customers), their green bona fides have increasingly come into question over the past few years. SF Gate has a reminder that, when it comes to Tesla, pulling back the curtain even a little reveals all sorts of dirty secrets.

Honda's Motocompacto Is The Ultra Portable E-Scooter That Can Fit Just About Anywhere

The Harris Ranch Supercharger sits at on a beautiful resort-style ranch between San Francisco and Los Angeles and provides good food and plenty of charging spots for folks making the six-hour journey between the two cities. Tesla hails the Harris Ranch site as the largest bank of EV chargers in the world at 98 spots, but one journalist found that the Superchargers are often supplemented by a small diesel plant. From SF Gate:

The Central California charging station is such a big deal that Tesla clubs even make it an appointment destination . Yes, they'll rally-style drive to it just to honor its lineage and size . But as with many Tesla-related things, there is a secret, thinly obscured by an Oz-like curtain, at the Harris Ranch Supercharger. Hidden in plain sight across the way from the Harris Ranch Supercharger's main stations, behind a Shell station, is a small diesel plant that has helped power Tesla's footprint.

The news was first broken by investigative journalist Edward Niedermeyer . In May 2015, Niedermeyer drove from his Oregon home to Harris Ranch to see whether ''Musk's latest bit of dream weaving could stand up to reality.''

What Niedermeyer reportedly found was a little different from the company's clean energy claims. ''I discovered that Tesla's battery swap station was not in fact being made available to owners who regularly drove between California's two largest cities,'' Niedermeyer wrote in a May 2022 expos(C) for Slate. ''Instead, the company was running diesel generators to power additional Superchargers (the kind that take 30 to 60 minutes to recharge a battery) to handle the holiday rush, their exhaust mingling with the unmistakable smell of bulls'--t.''

The fact that a small diesel plant was helping power the additional chargers kicked off a series of events that unraveled the myth of Elon Musk for Niedermeyer: ''Once you stop taking Musk at his word,'' he wrote, ''his heroic popular image evaporates, and a far darker reality begins to reveal itself.''>>

It's unclear just what percentage of Supercharger power at Harris Ranch is being generated via diesel, as even apps devoted to tracking what kind of energy is delivered to Superchargers have no idea. Musk himself promised Superchargers would be entirely solar-fed back in 2017 . So far that is definitely not the case.

That being said, at least Tesla has a large network of Superchargers, enough for gaggles of people to make the journey between the two cities during busy holiday driving weekend. It's Tesla's charging supremacy that has almost all other automakers making deals for their cars to use the network, after all. Tesla owners SFGate spoke to admitted their Teslas weren't perfect, but they are much closer to perfect than any other automaker out there today.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 13:38

"I'... want to tell President Zelenskyy never to insult Poles again, as he did recently during his speech at the UN," Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said at an election rally on Friday, Polish national news agency PAP reported.

This came days after Morawiecki announced, "We are no longer transferring weapons to Ukraine because we are now arming Poland with more modern weapons."

Zelensky had during his UN address to the general assembly in New York blasted the "political theatre" around grain imports. It was seen as a swipe at Warsaw, given he was chastising those who Ukraine sees as helping the Russian cause. The spat was very bad timing for Zelensky given he's currently in North America to rally the US and Canada behind staying the course in supporting Kiev - meaning more money, and more advanced weapons.

NurPhoto via Getty Images fileAnd the Ukrainian leader had more to say in Canada where he met with PM Justin Trudeau and spoke before the House of Commons:

"You help either Ukraine or Russia. There will be no mediators in this war. By weakening assistance to Ukraine, you will strengthen Russia."

"And a powerful Russia and what to expect from it'... I think history in books and witnesses has long since answered this question. If someone wants to take a risk, fine, weaken assistance to Ukrainians," he said, according to a statement posted on the Ukrainian president's website.

Poland was not mentioned directly in these comments, nor before the UN General Assembly, but the message was clear.

Still, Poland has sought to cool the ratcheting tensions with Kiev, with President Andrzej Duda saying in separate comments Friday that Poland is still a staunch supporter of the Ukrainian cause amidst the Russian invasion.

Poland led a handful of eastern European countries, including Hungary and Bulgaria, in extending a controversial Ukrainian grain import ban which they say harms local farmers.

"I have no doubt that the dispute over the supply of grain from Ukraine to the Polish market is an absolute fragment of the entire Polish-Ukrainian relations," Duda said. "I don't believe that it can have a significant impact on them, so we need to solve this matter between us."

The Poland-Ukraine rift has without doubt contributed to a general cooling of "blank check" support to the Zelensky government, and this comes in the context of a failing Ukrainian counteroffensive.

Still, the official Polish government position remains that it will "continue to back Ukraine's efforts to join NATO and the EU."

Loading...

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:55

The centre will house people who can't claim refugee status as they've arrived from countries not considered to be dangerous.

ADVERTISEMENTItaly has set up its first centre for asylum seekers deemed to have come from so-called safe countries.

The Italian government hopes the facility in the Sicilian port city of Pozallo will accelerate the processing of asylum claims. It will house people who can't claim refugee status as they've arrived from countries not considered to be dangerous.

As part of efforts to ease the country's migrant problem, people are being relocated to various rescue centres in an effort to address both the humanitarian and logistical challenges of the current situation.

The move comes as Italy struggles to cope with severe overcrowding at its migrant centre on Lampedusa island.

The extent of the problem was highlighted earlier this month when some migrants broke out of the centre because of a lack of space and essential provisions.

In an effort to reduce the number of arrivals, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's cabinet is implementing measures against young adults posing as unaccompanied minors in order to claim state protection.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:04

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 14:02

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:46

00:00 / 00:00

Speed

informant_go informant · 18h ago оÑиÐ"инаÐ>>ьный звук - informant

669 comments

Log in to comment

You may like

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:45

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:42

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:40

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:38

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:35

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:30

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 12:55

DETROIT (AP) '-- Hyundai and Kia are recalling nearly 3.4 million vehicles in the U.S. and telling owners to park them outside due to the risk of engine compartment fires.

The recalls cover multiple car and SUV models from the 2010 through 2019 model years including Hyundai's Santa Fe SUV and Kia's Sorrento SUV .

Documents posted Wednesday by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration say the anti-lock brake control module can leak fluid and cause an electrical short, which can touch off a fire while the vehicles are parked or being driven.

The automakers are advising owners to park outdoors and away from structures until repairs are done.

Dealers will replace the anti-lock brake fuse at no cost to owners. Kia says in documents that it will send notification letters to owners starting Nov. 14. For Hyundai the date is Nov. 21.

Hyundai reported 21 fires in the affected vehicles in the U.S., and another 22 ''thermal incidents'' including smoke, burning and melting of parts, the documents say. Kia reported 10 fires and melting incidents.

Hyundai said in a statement that owners can continue to drive the vehicles and that no crashes or injuries have been reported. The automaker said it was doing the recall to ensure safety of its customers.

The company said an O-ring in the antilock brake motor shaft can lose sealing strength over time due to the presence of moisture, dirt and dissolved metals in the brake fluid, causing leaks. The new fuse limits the operating current of the brake module, the statement said.

In a statement, Kia said an engine compartment fire could happen in the area of the brake control unit due to an electrical short that results in excessive current. The statement says the exact cause of the short circuit is unknown and that there have been no crashes or injuries.

Michael Brooks, executive director of the nonprofit Center for Auto Safety, questioned why the companies aren't fixing the leak problem and why they are waiting so long to send letters to owners.

The remedy is replacing one fuse with another, but brake fluid can still leak, potentially causing a safety problem, Brooks said.

''Why not fix the problem?'' he asked. ''What you're not doing here is fixing the O-ring and the leak that's causing the problem in the first place. You're combatting a symptom or part of the problem without actually fixing the underlying design issue.''

Brooks also questioned why NHTSA is allowing the companies to only replace a fuse, and why owners aren't being sent interim letters immediately warning them of a serious problem. ''You would think that you should be notifying those owners right now that they shouldn't be parking in their garages or their house could catch fire,'' he said.

Statements from both companies don't address why the fluid leaks aren't being repaired or why it will take about two months to notify owners by letter. Spokespeople for both companies said they would check into the questions.

NHTSA said that under the federal motor vehicle safety act, automakers can choose the remedy to fix a defect. The agency said it will monitor the effectiveness of the repairs and open an investigation if warranted.

In addition, automakers have 60 days to notify owners of recalled vehicles by letter, but often the mailings can happen sooner, the agency said.

NHTSA also issued a statement Wednesday warning owners to park the vehicles outdoors until repairs are made.

Affected Kia models include the 2010 through 2019 Borrego, the 2014 to 2016 Cadenza, 2010 through 2013 Forte, Forte Koup and Sportage, the 2015 to 2018 K900, the 2011 to 2015 Optima, the 2011 to 2013 Optima Hybrid and Soul, the 2012 to 2017 Rio, the 2011 to 2014 Sorento, and the 2010 to 2011 Rondo.

Hyundai models covered by the recall include the 2011 to 2015 Elantra, Genesis Coupe, and Sonata Hybrid, the 2012 to 2015 Accent, Azera, and Veloster, the 2013 to 2015 Elantra Coupe and Santa Fe, the 2014 to 2015 Equus, the 2010 to 2012 Veracruz, the 2010 to 2013 Tucson, the 2015 Tucson Fuel Cell, and the 2013 Santa Fe Sport.

Owners can go to www.nhtsa.gov/recalls and key in their 17-digit vehicle identification number to see if their vehicle is affected.

Hyundai and Kia have been plagued by fire problems since 2015. The Center for Auto Safety successfully petitioned U.S. regulators to seek recalls in 2018 and says on its website that the automakers have recalled more than 9.2 million vehicles for fires and engine problems, not including the recalls announced Wednesday. More than two dozen of the recalls involved over 20 models from the 2006 through 2021 model years.

In addition, NHTSA is investigating 3 million vehicles made by the automakers from the 2011 through 2016 model years. NHTSA says it's received 161 complaints of engine fires, some of which occurred in vehicles that had already been recalled.

In June 2018, NHTSA said it had received owner complaints of more than 3,100 fires, 103 injuries and one death. Hyundai and Kia were fined by NHTSA in 2020 for moving too slowly to recall vehicles that were prone to engine failures.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 12:43

The streets, sidewalks and roofs of cities all absorb heat during the day, making some urban areas up to six degrees Fahrenheit hotter than rural ones during the day'--and 22 degrees F hotter at night. These ''urban heat islands'' can also develop underground as the city heat diffuses downward, beneath the surface. And basements, subway tunnels and other subterranean infrastructure also constantly bleed heat into the surrounding earth, creating hotspots. Now that underground heat is building up as the planet warms.

According to a new study of downtown Chicago, underground hotspots may threaten the very same structures that emit the heat in the first place. Such temperature changes make the ground around them expand and contract enough to cause potential damage. ''Without [anyone] realizing it, the city of Chicago's downtown was deforming,'' says the study's author Alessandro F. Rotta Loria, a civil and environmental engineer at Northwestern University.

The findings, published on July 11 in Communications Engineering, expose a ''silent hazard'' to civil infrastructure in cities with softer ground'--especially those near water'--Rotta Loria says. ''There might have been structural issues caused by this underground climate change that happened, and we didn't even realize,'' he adds. While not an immediate or direct danger to human lives, this previously unknown effect highlights the impacts of a lesser-known component of climate change.

''For a lot of things in the subsurface, it's kind of 'out of sight, out of mind,''' says Grant Ferguson, an engineering geologist at the University of Saskatchewan, who was not involved in the new study. The underground world teems with life, however. It is home to animals that have adapted to subterranean living such as worms, snails, insects, crustaceans and salamanders. These creatures are used to ''very static conditions,'' says Peter Bayer, a geoscientist at the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg in Germany, who was also not involved in the paper. Aboveground temperatures often swing wildly throughout the year, but the subsurface remains around the yearly average temperature, he explains. In Chicago, that's about 52 degrees F.

Colors show underground temperatures in Chicago's Loop district. Credit: Alessandro F. Rotta Loria (temperature data); OpenStreetMap (base map) (CC BY-SA 2.0)

The subsurface has ''a memory that air temperatures don't have,'' Ferguson says. As these stable temperatures rise because of climate change and underground urban development, scientists such as Ferguson and Bayer are keeping tabs on the potential implications for underground ecosystems. For example, if groundwater gets too warm, it could kill or drive away animals, trigger chemical changes in the water and become a breeding ground for microbes.

But the question of how underground hotspots could affect urban infrastructure has gone largely unstudied. Because materials expand and contract with temperature change, Rotta Loria suspected that heat seeping from basements and tunnels could be contributing to wear and tear on various structures.

He collected three years of temperature data from more than 150 sensors installed in basements, train tunnels and parking garages underneath Chicago's downtown Loop district. For comparison, sensors were also installed in the ground beneath Grant Park, which is located in the Loop, along the shore of Lake Michigan.

Chicago's overall ground temperatures are rising by 0.25 degree F each year, with readings in specific underground locations as much as 27 degrees F hotter than undisturbed ground. Temperatures beneath Loop buildings are often 18 degrees F hotter than those beneath Grant Park.* To understand how this large difference has affected the physical properties of the ground, Rotta Loria used a computer model to simulate the underground environment from the 1950s to now'--and then to predict how conditions will change from now until 2050.

He found that by the middle of this century, some areas under the Loop may heave upward by as much as 12 millimeters (0.47 inch) or settle by as much as eight millimeters (0.31 inch), depending on the soil makeup of the area involved. Though these may sound like small displacements, Rotta Loria says they could cause cracks in the foundations and walls of some buildings. This could lead to water damage or cause buildings to tilt. Over recent decades, this hidden factor could have contributed to some of the ongoing challenges and costs of maintaining these structures, he says.

Kathrin Menberg, a geoscientist at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany, who was not involved in Rotta Loria's study, says these displacement predictions are orders of magnitude higher than what she would have guessed and could be linked to Chicago's soft, clay-heavy soils. ''Clay material is particularly sensitive,'' she says. ''It would be a big issue in all cities worldwide that are built on such material.'' This would include many cities near oceans and rivers'--London, for example, is built on a layer of clay. In contrast, cities built largely on harder rocks (such as New York City), would not be as impacted by this effect, Ferguson says.

Similar to climate change above the surface, these underground changes occur over long periods of time. ''These effects took decades, a century, to develop,'' Ferguson says, adding that elevated underground temperatures would likewise take a long time to dissipate on their own. ''We could basically turn everything off, and it's going to persist there, the temperature signal, for quite a while.''

But Ferguson and the other researchers interviewed for this story all say this wasted energy could also be reharnessed, presenting an opportunity to both cool the subsurface and save on energy costs. Subway tunnels and basements could be retrofitted with geothermal technologies to recapture the heat. For example, water pipes could be installed to run through underground hotspots and pick up some of the thermal energy. While that energy wouldn't be hot enough to turn the water into steam and create electricity, it could still be used to heat buildings and other civil infrastructure. This approach may or may not be worth the effort because it would require a high up-front cost and, in the case of the Loop district, may add up to less than 1 percent of local energy demand.

Still, this calculus could be altered as aboveground climate change continues to amplify underground warming. In a warming world, buildings will require more electricity to stay cool, generating more wasted energy in the form of heat. However slowly, this heat will accumulate beneath our feet. ''It's like climate change,'' Rotta Loria says. ''It's happening. Maybe we don't see it always, but it's happening.''

*Editor's Note (7/11/23): This sentence was edited after posting to correct the description of how hot temperatures below Chicago's Loop district often are, compared with those below Grant Park.

A version of this article with the title ''Weather Underground'' was adapted for inclusion in the October 2023 issue of Scientific American.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR(S)Allison Parshall is a science journalist, multimedia editor, podcast host and former news intern at Scientific American. Follow her on Twitter @parshallison

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 01:33

2 days ago

6.8K

RTRussia Todayhappening nownewscurrent eventsvenezuelaoiluspoliticsus interventionguyanaSpeculation emerges that US plans to set up a military base in order to intervene in a centuries-long territorial dispute between Venezuela and neighboring Guyana

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Freedom over censorship, truth over narrative.Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RTnewsFollow us on Telegram: t.me/rtnewsFollow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RT_com

Loading 57 comments...

1:03RT9 hours ago

Mass looting spree rocks Philadelphia3.64K

51

LIVEGOP17 days ago

Fox Business Second Republican Presidential Primary Debate244,833 watchingLIVESteven Crowder4 hours ago

ðŸ--´ LIVE GOP Debate 2! FEATURING Trump's UAW Speech! Alex Jones Joins!73,961 watchingRight Side Broadcasting Network2 days ago

45th President Donald J. Trump to Deliver Remarks in Clinton Township, MI - 9/27/2023258K

321

31:05The Rubin Report4 hours ago

Listen to Dr. Fauci's Reaction to This GOP Candidate's "Threat" | Direct Message | Rubin Report59K

171

43:05Matt Kohrs8 hours ago

LIVE! From The Second 2024 GOP Presidential Debate || The Matt Kohrs Show52.8K

71

1:18:09vivafrei8 hours ago

Live from the RNC! Trump Fraud? Vaccine Death Lawsuit! Rumble Under Attack? & MORE!111K

127

7:06MV Street8 days ago

MV Street #23 Florabama - Bulls on the Beach35.8K

24

LIVEMoroney6 hours ago

SEASON 6ðŸ--¥ THE BEST POV ''… #1 IRISH KBM ''…96 watchingLIVELofi Girl1 year ago

lofi hip hop radio ðŸ'š - beats to relax/study to281 watching

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 15:18

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 15:13

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 15:11

What's causing the delay in COVID vaccines

What's causing the delay in COVID vaccines 01:56 MINNEAPOLIS '-- For the first time, vaccines for all three major respiratory viruses - COVID, RSV and the flu - are available this fall. But the latest COVID shot, which was approved just two weeks ago, is still rolling out.

"So some of the shipments are coming out. You know, they may not be at your pharmacy or at your clinic immediately. But that is something that we can keep you getting over the next few weeks to a month," said Dr. George Morris, medical director of wellness at CentraCare.

"We just don't have the vaccine yet. So it's not hidden away, we just don't have it anywhere in our pharmacies yet to be able to get it out. And so across the metro, really people are waiting for that vaccine to arrive in order to be able to give it and so we're anticipating that that should start to come in over the next week or so," said Dr. Kate Hurst, a primary care physician at Hennepin Healthcare.

MORE: Free COVID test kits are back. Here's how to get them

In the meantime, people looking for any shot to protect against COVID - old or new - have to wait.

"We were using what we were calling the bivalent booster, it was something designed to improve upon the original COVID-19 vaccines that we received. When this new vaccine was approved. It took the place of that bivalent booster and so we stopped using it because the approval with the new one kind of takes away the old approval," Hurst explained.

Once supply catches up with demand, doctors are encouraging anyone 6 months and older to get the updated shot, but especially those in high risk groups including seniors, the immunocompromised, people who are pregnant, and children.

RELATED: Do COVID-19 tests still work after they expire? Here's how to tell

"Getting the vaccine is just one more tool to make sure that your body is best equipped to fight that virus off without having significant side effects either acutely, and hopefully to decrease any risk for long COVID in the future as well," said Hurst.

The Minnesota Department of Health says, for the first time, you may have to pay to get a COVID vaccine.

Minnesotans with health insurance are encouraged to speak with their provider and check their coverage before scheduling a vaccine appointment.

More from CBS News

In: COVID-19 Allen Henry Allen Henry is an Emmy Award-winning journalist who joined WCCO as a reporter in August 2022.

Thanks for reading CBS NEWS.

Create your free account or log in for more features.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 15:08

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 15:05

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:59

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:56

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:50

Link to Article

Archived Version

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 11:57

Slamming the tentative labor deal between Hollywood writers and studios, media mogul Barry Diller on Tuesday laid out his biggest bone of contention with generative artificial intelligence.

Diller, chair of IAC and Expedia, called for the law to be redefined to protect published material from capture in the knowledge bases of artificial intelligence.

"Fair use needs to redefined, because what they have done is sucked up everything and that violates the basis of the copyright law," Diller said on CNBC's "Squawk Box." "All we want to do is establish that there is no such thing as fair use for AI, which gives us standing."

Diller's complaints came as prominent authors, including George R.R. Martin and Jodi Picoult, have sued OpenAI for copyright infringement. His remarks also followed on the heels of the Writers Guild of America's tentative agreement with Hollywood studios to end a nearly 150-day strike.

Diller isn't a fan of the deal.

"They spent months trying to craft words to protect writers from AI and they ended up with a paragraph that protected nothing from no one," Diller said.

The details of the tentative deal between the WGA and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have not been made public. Hollywood studios are expected to walk away with the right to use and train AI models using writers' work, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited unnamed sources familiar with the negotiations. On the other hand, writers are expected to be guaranteed compensation for work they do on scripts, even if the studios employ an AI tool, the Journal report added.

Legacy media and AI companies, most notably ChatGPT creator OpenAI, have clashed on what content should be allowed into the knowledge base of generative artificial intelligence. Critics of AI point to the fair use doctrine under U.S. copyright law, which permits limited portions of a work to be used without a license or compensation. Generative AI and language-based model systems index entire bodies of work within their knowledge base, a violation of fair use, some argue.

According to Diller, that's one of his key points of contention with Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI.

"The thing that Sam and I disagree and have talked about is that he believes fair use allows him to take all of a publisher's [work]," said Diller. "We believe that it doesn't."

Altman, who also served on the Expedia board with Diller, testified before senators in May to discuss regulations on AI.

"We think that creators deserve control over how their creations are used, and what happens sort of beyond the point of them releasing it into the world," Altman said during the hearing. "We need to figure out new ways with this new technology that creators can win, succeed and have a vibrant life, and I'm optimistic that this will present it."

CNBC has reached out to OpenAI for a response to Diller's remarks.

Shutterstock, a stock media service and OpenAI partner since 2021, set up a contributors fund for creators which provides compensation if their intellectual property is used during AI content generation. Altman also said that Shutterstock was critical in the training of OpenAI's generative media AI, DALL-E.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 22:29

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 17:58

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 17:27

Published September 25, 2023 5:19PM

Updated 9:49PM

Chicago alderman: 'Let the people vote' on sanctuary cityThere is a new push to have Chicago residents vote on whether or not the city remains a sanctuary city.

CHICAGO - As Chicago works to deal with a growing number of migrants, 12 more buses arrived over the weekend.

The city says this is the largest number of buses arriving since last August.

Right now, there are close to 9,000 migrants staying at city shelters and another 2,000 still waiting for a spot.

Those who are waiting are at CPD stations, O'Hare and Midway.

Now, there's a chance Chicago could no longer be a sanctuary city. Two aldermen want the choice to be left to voters.

With the city spending an estimated $5 million per week to house migrants, that would be upwards of $200 million for an entire calendar year, although some put the actual figure at much higher.

Aldermen want residents to vote on Chicago remaining sanctuary city: 'let the people decide'Two Chicago aldermen are pushing for residents to be able to vote on if the city should remain a sanctuary city.

Chicago Ald. Anthony Beale of the 9th Ward is one of two aldermen pushing for a referendum to be placed on the March 2024 primary ballot asking voters directly: should Chicago remain a sanctuary city?

"Right now, we're dealing with a huge, huge disaster here in the city of Chicago and we need to get a handle on it. Nobody has ever asked the voters, the people who actually vote and pay taxes here in the city of Chicago, if they want to remain a sanctuary city," said Beale.

Right now, Chicago is under what's called a 'Welcoming City' ordinance, which means officials don't ask immigrants about their status, and police do not cooperate with ICE authorities.

"I definitely think that's something that should be up for discussion, regardless of whether or not you're pro or against it," one taxpayer told FOX 32.

"I don't think it is that important compared to a lot of the other issues that we are facing in Chicago," said another.

If the sanctuary city referendum were to make the ballot and pass, Beale says Chicago would lose its designation as a welcoming city.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 16:13

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 16:01

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:57

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:55

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:51

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:50

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:48

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:46

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 15:29

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 14:58

Sharon Osbourne admitted she took weight loss too far after taking the diabetes drug Ozempic to drop some pounds and said she's now ''too skinny'' and didn't intend to get so thin.

During her recent appearance on ''Piers Morgan Uncensored,'' the 70-year-old television personality told the host that her looks have changed and not for the better after she dropped 42 pounds over the last four months.

''It's just time to stop, I didn't actually want to go this thin but it just happened,'' Osbourne said.

Osbourne said she's since stopped getting the weight-loss injections and joked that she'll ''probably put it all on again soon!''

"Ozzy's having a go at me because he thinks I look like Nancy Reagan."

Sharon Osbourne thinks "it's time to stop" after shedding weight using Ozempic: "I didn't want to go this thin but it just happened."@MrsSOsbourne | @piersmorgan | #PMU pic.twitter.com/AEBZsjRSJa

'-- Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) September 20, 2023

The music manager also told Morgan that her husband, Ozzy Osbourne, even started calling her ''Nancy,'' for former first lady Nancy Reagan, because she looks so different.

''Nancy, he calls me Nancy Reagan all the time,'' said Osbourne, adding that ''you can't stay on it forever. It's enough.''

She also said Ozempic hadn't been an easy, quick fix because she was constantly nauseous.

''You don't want to eat, that's it,'' Osbourne said. ''And that's why I keep saying you've got to keep this stuff away from younger people, because they will go berserk on it, and it's not right.''

In an interview earlier this month, Osbourne told E! News that she wants to ''maintain at about 105 because I'm too skinny.''

CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP

''I'm at the point of losing too much that I have to try and maintain,'' Sharon said. ''In my life, the heaviest I was 230 pounds and I'm now under a hundred.''

''And I want to maintain at about 105 because I'm too skinny,'' she added. ''But I'm trying to have a healthy balance.''

The British TV personality and former co-host of CBS's ''The Talk'' recently admitted that she had too many plastic surgery procedures to look younger and vowed not to get any more, The Sun reported.

''That [fifth face-lift] put me off and it frightens me, I really f***ing pushed it with the last face-lift and I am now like, no more,'' Osbourne told the outlet.

''Time is against me, I cannot have another face-lift,'' she added

RELATED: 'Frightens Me': Sharon Osbourne, Other Hollywood Stars Say They Regret Getting Plastic Surgery

Link to Article

Archived Version

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 14:44

''The View'' host Ana Navarro called the allegations against long-time friend Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) ''serious'' and ''troubling'' as she explained that he's ''entitled to a presumption of innocence'' amid multiple corruption charges.

The ABC talk show host wrote to her 1.9 million followers on Monday in a post on X about how she knows Menendez '-- after working ''with him on countless issues'' '-- as the senator faces multiple felonies after he was indicted on bribery charges. He faces charges of conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, and conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right, as previously reported.

''These are serious, troubling allegations,'' Navarro's post read. ''It doesn't look good. But Bob is entitled to a presumption of innocence. The people of NJ will decide his political future.''

''A jury will decide his legal fate,'' she added. ''Corruption, on all sides, in all branches and levels of government, must be eradicated '' whether friend or foe.''

I know Menendez. I've worked with him on countless issues. These are serious, troubling allegations. It doesn't look good. But Bob is entitled to a presumption of innocence. The people of NJ will decide his political future. A jury will decide his legal fate. Corruption, on all'... pic.twitter.com/roleRCwzyo

'-- Ana Navarro-Crdenas (@ananavarro) September 25, 2023

Navarro's post included a video from her comments she made earlier in the day on the daytime talk show in which she shared she admitted talking about the allegations against her friend was ''not easy'' for her.

''I have worked with him on many, many issues,'' the co-host said. ''There is not an important issue to the Latino community, there is not an important issue about freedom around the world, about freedom in Latin America that he has not been on the forefront of.''

''I can tell you I have worked with him time and time again '... never has there been any hint of impropriety,'' she added. ''Never has he hinted about a payback or anything like that.''

''So, I'm having a very hard time reconciling the evidence I saw shown on TV with the Bob Menendez I have known for almost 30 years,'' Navarro continued. ''This is personally hard for me '... I'm hoping against hope that there is some sort of logical explanation.''

The TV host said as hard as it's been for her to see the allegations, she also knows Menendez and said he's not ''going to resign'' and is ''going to go to trial on this.''

''This looks ugly,'' she added. ''This looks bad. This is hard to explain. I can't come up with an explanation. But I do think that there is a bigger problem here than Bob Menendez.''

''The problem here is Bob Menendez wife cashing in on his name,'' Navarro continued. ''Or [President] Joe Biden's son [Hunter Biden] cashing in on his name '... at some point Congress needs to get a hold of this swampiness going on and'... deal with the idea that they can't just have their stupid family members making money off their own name.''

The senator was previously indicted in 2015 on federal corruption charges, but that case ended in a mistrial two years later.

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 17:11

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 17:09

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 17:08

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 17:05

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 17:04

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 15:59

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 15:53

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 15:14

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Customers are thrilled the original Jim's West Steaks & Hoagies in West Philadelphia is back in business, and they formed a line around the building.

"I'm so excited," said Nitah Dunham from West Philadelphia. "The food has always been good."

"In my opinion, it's the best cheesesteak in town," said William King from West Philadelphia.

But now, customers can expect to see armed agents out front.

"The violence has spiked," said Co-owner Cortez Johnson. "It goes up and down. You want people to feel safe and be safe. So when they come out and eat, they don't have to worry about no type of harm."

"Our lines are down the block, so while you're standing here in line, connecting with other people you may not know, we have security right here just to keep you guys safe," said Saul Landers, the CFO of Jim's West.

The owners hope the presence of armed agents prevents crimes.

"It's not just myself," said Kevon Darden, who owns Presidential Protection Services. "It's usually other agents who are sworn and certified by the state of Pennsylvania to do security work when they're off duty. All of us are former military, police, and law enforcement background."

The armed agents will be there during business hours Thursday through Sunday.

Other business owners hired armed guards too, including the Karco Gas Station in North Philadelphia.

"If you want to secure your business and you want to make sure everyone is safe, you have to spend that extra money," said Landers.

Some customers say they support the enhanced security.

"Safety and good food is always a plus," said Dunham.

"If it deters it (crime), I can't complain," said Mario Maiale from West Philadelphia. "I'm not a big fan of guns, but I get it."

Others think it's not necessary outside of Jim's West and say it's an alarming sight.

"Now North Philly, where that gas station is, where the guy is out there with a machine gun, I can understand that," said King. "Here, it's a little overkill. Even if you have an armed guard, okay. But, walking around with a machine gun, it's not family-friendly."

"I'm here to protect you," said Darden. "I'm not here to cause any trouble or be that guy with a rifle."

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 15:04

50m59s - 51m33s - and other stuff going on a good fight last night on HBO. I don't like watching men hit each other. Yeah, stupid. Well, fine. How? I'm not gonna make you so just want healers who twist Taylor Swift. Taylor Swift. Yeah, this is the new I don't know who is the one that picks says okay, we're going to make her a star. And they find some growth. This is kind of a discovery cute looking puffy faced blonde. Who

52m8s - 52m42s - So I'm watching her, but she's pretty. And so So Andrew Gromit, by the way comes up to me later, okay, yeah, I know who she is. Yeah. Andrew Gromit. Andrew grommet says, oh, you know, my wife and my daughter are really into this girl named Taylor Swift. And I mean, I don't know what he was going to tell me because then I went off on him. Something about Taylor Swift, I guess, but, but I just it's just like, overnight, this just just, it just happens. I've

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 14:49

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 14:37

From February 5, 2023, the European Union will no longer purchase petroleum products such as diesel, gasoline or lubricants from Russia.

Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty Images

Russia imposed an indefinite ban on the export of diesel and gasoline to most countries, a move that risks disrupting fuel supplies ahead of winter and threatens to exacerbate global shortages.

In a government decree signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, the Kremlin said Thursday that it would introduce "temporary" restrictions on diesel exports to stabilize fuel prices on the domestic market.

The ban, which came into immediate effect and applies to all countries apart from four former Soviet states, does not have an end date. The countries exempt from the ban include Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan, all of which are members of the Moscow-led Eurasian Economic Union.

Russia is one of the world's largest suppliers of diesel and a major exporter of crude oil. Market participants are concerned about the potential impact of Russia's ban, particularly at a time when global diesel inventories are already at low levels. Oil prices jumped as much as $1 a barrel on the news on Thursday, before settling lower for the session.

International benchmark Brent crude futures traded 0.9% higher at $94.13 a barrel on Friday afternoon in London, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures rose 1.1% to trade at $90.62.

Energy analysts said the vague language used in Russia's announcement made it difficult to assess exactly how long the ban would remain in place and warned that Moscow could once again be seeking to weaponize fuel supplies ahead of another winter heating season.

A spokesperson for the Kremlin said Friday that the fuel export ban would last for as long as necessary to ensure market stability, Reuters reported.

In the weeks leading up to Thursday's intervention, analysts said Russian diesel exports had come under pressure due to the weakness of the ruble, domestic refinery maintenance and government-led efforts to increase domestic supply.

"All deals agreed before the regulation took effect are still on, meaning the likelihood of an immediate halt in diesel and gasoline exports is unlikely, most probably it would take 1-2 weeks for the impact to transpire," Viktor Katona, lead analyst at Kpler, said in a research note published Friday.

"By that point, however, the government might already annul this specific piece of legislation, as abruptly as it was published," he added.

What impact could the ban have?Prior to the Kremlin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February last year, Russian refineries exported an estimated 2.8 million barrels per day of oil products. That figure has since fallen to around 1 million barrels per day, according to ING, but Moscow still remains a major player in global energy markets.

Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy at ING, said in a research note published Friday that Russia's ban on fuel exports was a major development ahead of the Northern Hemisphere winter, a period which would typically see a seasonal pick-up in demand.

"The middle distillate market was already seeing significant strength ahead of this ban with inventories tight in the US, Europe and Asia as we head into the Northern Hemisphere winter," Patterson said, citing factors such as OPEC+ production cuts, recovering air travel and Europe's struggle to replace Russian middle distillates after a ban came into effect in February.

"The loss of around [1 million barrels per day] of Russian diesel in the global market will be felt and only reinforces the supportive view we have held on middle distillate cracks and as a result on refinery margins," he added. "How much upside really depends on the duration of the ban."

Oil storage tanks in Tuapse, Russia, March 22, 2020.

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia said on Sept. 5 that it would extend its 1 million barrel per day production cut through to year-end, with non-OPEC leader Russia pledging to reduce oil exports by 300,000 barrels per day until the end of the year. Both countries have said they will review their voluntary cuts on a monthly basis.

"The purpose of the ban is apparently to address tightness and high prices in domestic Russian markets, where high oil prices combined with a weakened rouble, must be painful for Russian consumers," Callum Macpherson, head of commodities at Investec, said Friday.

"However, there are also echoes with disruptions to Russian gas supplies to Europe that started in 2021. They also began as supposedly temporary disruptions while gas was held back to fill domestic storage '-- we all know what happened there," he added.

"It might be a coincidence that this ban has been announced the day after Russia had a tough time at the UN, or it might be a broadening of the policy of using energy as a weapon in reaction to that."

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 14:37

Link to Article

Archived Version

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 13:34

Margaret Brennan was interviewing Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Face the Nation about the ongoing United Auto Workers (UAW) strike when the conversation turned to AOC's vehicle.

The controversial congresswoman owns one of evil Elon's Tesla electric vehicles - a non-union-made vehicle - which should be a mortal sin for a Democratic Socialist and self-proclaimed defender of unions.

AOC's scramble to excuse her heresy was nothing short of mock-worthy.

HOST: "You were quoted back in July saying you look forward to buying a union-made electric vehicle, but you currently have a non-union-made Tesla ... why?"ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ: "Our car was purchased during the pandemic before a vaccine had come out" pic.twitter.com/K8ll6IuLzR

'-- RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 24, 2023Surely the lawmaker had a clear explanation for stiffing the union workers '...

'We got the Tesla because of the pandemic!'

'... Nope. LOL.

https://t.co/KAntSGLQaY pic.twitter.com/8ScnZI05yH

'-- Matthew D. Dempster (@dempstermd) September 24, 2023Users of the apostate car maker's social media platform tried to unwrap AOC's perplexing justification.

We'll let you work on it yourselves. Her answer to the question is nearly unintelligible, as she seemed genuinely caught off guard to be asked to defend the hypocrisy of her personal choices.

pic.twitter.com/BosQKtg35x

'-- Russell Michaels, Momotaros (@TGBED8v8) September 24, 2023Other Twitter/X users just stared in disbelief.

So... @AOC bought a non-union electric vehicle because a cold vaccine had not yet been produced... for... the car?What's the correlation here, congresswoman?

'-- Aldous Huxley's Ghost' (@AF632) September 25, 2023 RecommendedHold on now, she mentioned COVID. The rules are that we all have to shut our brains off anytime someone calls 'COVID'.

Dodge the question...and oh yeah! COVID! https://t.co/I79iKXql0e

'-- Brian K (@brian_knauff) September 24, 2023That's exactly how it came off to many viewers.

'You know, AOC, you talk a big game about supporting unions, but your car wasn't made by union workers '... '

'Well, you see '... COVID!'

https://t.co/mUjqcM8S71 pic.twitter.com/9HZKP04oR4

'-- Magills (@magills_) September 24, 2023LOLOLOL!

Mechanic: 'This one's going to be expensive, I'm afraid.'

Tesla Owner: 'What is it? Engine? Transmission?'

Mechanic: 'No, nothing like that. Your vehicle needs 3 Pfizer boosters.'

In a shock to absolutely no one, AOC is a hypocrite. https://t.co/f5zEsrrBLv

'-- Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) September 24, 2023How could we have possibly seen it coming?

Aside from decades of witnessing Democrat hypocrisy, there were no signs.

They all laughed when I exposed that AOC was a Tesla owner'...now it's on Face The Nation https://t.co/TNytZPioZe

'-- Brent Scher (@BrentScher) September 25, 2023We remember. The Left lost their minds when the hypocrisy of an illegally parked Tesla-owning AOC was exposed in 2021.

She had been critical of Tesla and Musk but still managed to buy a vehicle from her billionaire nemesis that likely cost somewhere between $46,000 and $59,000.

Over a year ago, AOC claimed to be considering trading in her Tesla. She also used the COVID excuse at the time but explained her odd motivation a bit more clearly.

AOC's story is essentially that she decided to buy a car to travel between New York and DC because of COVID (to avoid methods of travel that required being around other people). She went with the Tesla because it was the only EV option that could make the journey with an acceptable number of charges.

And that brings us to the final stage of this awkward exchange and self-own genius '...

lmao, she basically advertised why non-union companies are better

'-- decoy (@decoyposts) September 24, 2023When asked why she didn't buy a union-made vehicle, AOC essentially answered that the union-made vehicles weren't good enough to meet her needs, as compared to Elon Musk's Tesla offering.

Ouch. Way to 'help' the union workers, AOC.

It's bc she secretly likes you @elonmusk

'-- Susan ChakðŸ'‹VoxSusana (@voxsusana) September 24, 2023Clearly, she just wants to date him.

***

Editor's Note: Do you enjoy Twitchy's conservative reporting taking on the radical left and woke media? Support our work so that we can continue to bring you the truth. Join Twitchy VIP and use the promo code SAVEAMERICA to get 40% off your VIP membership!

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:26

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:08

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:04

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:02

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 12:46

Link to Article

Archived Version

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 04:26