This week, Gilad Edelman joins us to discuss the White House’s move against tech platforms, and how talk of the November election led us to this moment.
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Friday, May 29, 2020
Meet The Black Woman Who Created Live 24-Hour Movie Streaming Platform
Streaming has become the main way people consume entertainment. Platforms ranging from Netflix to Hulu have been dominating movie and television platforms with 24/7 content. For one entrepreneur, creating a streaming platform became a way to share black stories across the globe through a new 24-hour movie channel dedicated to the culture.
DeShuna Spencer is the founder and CEO of KweliTV, one of the only digital streaming platforms dedicated to celebrating black culture and the African diaspora around the world. The name of the network comes from the Swahilli word for truth. Spencer was inspired to create the unique platform after becoming frustrated with the lack of diversity in movies and television. Her mission was to create a platform that could tell the global black experiences through numerous stories across the world.
Spencer recently expanded her network to include a new 24-Hour movie channel where viewers can enjoy indie films, documentaries, and web series from black creatives all around the world. Many of the films have been played at notable film festivals and garnered critical acclaim within the film community. Spencer is committed to ensuring that creators get their fair share of the profits offering them 60% of the revenue each quarter.
In an interview with Black Business News, Spencer says that “this year, KweliTV is laser-focused on spreading our content across various distribution channels to make it much easier to reach our audience in a number of ways. Given the fact that COVID-19 is disproportionately impacting our community’s health and pocketbooks, our live, free channel allows us to connect with customers who may be experiencing financial challenges.”
. Representing black culture across the globe. $5.99 a month. First 7 days are free! 
www.kweli.tv 
#streamingfortheculture #bingeontheculture
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HP Is Helping HBCU College Students Obtain Internships Amid COVID-19
The COVID-19, or the novel coronavirus, pandemic, has severely impacted the lives of the Class of 2020. From graduation ceremonies and proms being canceled to universities and primary schools working on strategies to continue remote learning while they learn to adapt, students are among some who have been hit the most by the public health crisis.
Outside of traditional ceremonies, it has also affected the job market for new graduates leaving college. According to a new report by Glassdoor, internship openings have been cut by 52% since March with over 4 million jobs being lost as a direct result of the pandemic. To help students and graduates with the transition, HP has announced that it will be launching a new virtual development experience aimed toward HBCU students.
Starting this summer, HP will launch its Summer Scholars series, a free developmental series to help students gain technical and professional skills to help them in businesses ranging from learning how to perform software data analysis, understanding how trends influence the global market, and discovering job opportunities at HP. The company is currently working with a group of deans from various HBCUs around the country to encourage students to apply. The program runs from June 15 – July 24.
In addition to the program, the tech giant has donated over $1 million in direct relief efforts for communities impacted by COVID-19 in addition to using its 3D printing technology to produce equipment for healthcare professionals.
“As a global company, we understand the importance of acting globally while executing at the local level,” said Christoph Schell, chief commercial officer for HP to Channel Futures. “Rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach, we are taking a customized approach specific to the unique and evolving dynamics at the market and country level, depending on a variety of factors.”
For students interested in applying to the program, they can visit the website or email hpsummerscholars@hp.com.
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Minneapolis police station set afire during George Floyd protests
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Cheering protesters broke into a Minneapolis police precinct station on Thursday after the department abandoned it, setting it ablaze and igniting fireworks as three days of violent protests spread to cities across the U.S over the death of George Floyd, a handcuffed Black man.
A police spokesman confirmed late Thursday that staff had evacuated the 3rd precinct station, the focus of many of the protests, “in the interest of the safety of our personnel” shortly after 10 p.m. Livestream video showed the protesters entering the building, where fire alarms blared and sprinklers ran as blazes were set.
READ MORE: Teen who filmed George Floyd’s death says she is traumatized
Mpls Fire Chief John Fruetel learned that the 3rd Precinct Police Department building is on fire from CNN’s Don Lemon during a live interview pic.twitter.com/2OWGRAq56H
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 29, 2020
Protesters could be seen setting fire to a Minneapolis Police Department jacket and cheering.
Protests first erupted Tuesday, a day after Floyd’s death in a confrontation with police captured on widely seen citizen video. On the video, Floyd can be seen pleading that he can’t breathe as Officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, kneels on his neck. As minutes pass, Floyd slowly stops talking and moving. The 3rd Precinct covers the portion of south Minneapolis where Floyd died.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz earlier Thursday activated the National Guard at the Minneapolis mayor’s request, but it wasn’t immediately clear when and where the Guard was being deployed, and none could be seen during protests in Minneapolis or St. Paul. The Guard tweeted minutes after the precinct burned that it had activated more than 500 soldiers across the metro area.
Earlier Thursday, dozens of businesses across the Twin Cities boarded up their windows and doors in an effort to prevent looting, with Minneapolis-based Target announcing it was temporarily closing two dozen area stores. Minneapolis shut down nearly its entire light-rail system and all bus service through Sunday out of safety concerns.
In St. Paul, clouds of smoke hung in the air as police armed with batons and wearing gas masks and body armor kept a watchful eye on protesters along one of the city’s main commercial corridors, where firefighters also sprayed water onto a series of small fires. At one point, officers stood in line in front of a Target, trying to keep out looters, who were also smashing windows of other businesses.
Hundreds of demonstrators returned Thursday to the Minneapolis neighborhood at the center of the violence, where the nighttime scene veered between an angry protest and a street party. At one point, a band playing in a parking lot across from the 3rd Precinct broke into a punk version of Bob Marley‘s “Redemption Song.” Nearby, demonstrators carried clothing mannequins from a looted Target and threw them onto a burning car. Later, a building fire erupted nearby.
But elsewhere in Minneapolis, thousands of peaceful demonstrators marched through the streets calling for justice.
READ MORE: George Floyd’s family wants Minneapolis officers charged with murder
Floyd’s death has deeply shaken Minneapolis and sparked protests in cities across the U.S. Local leaders have repeatedly urged demonstrators to avoid violence.
“Please stay home. Please do not come here to protest. Please keep the focus on George Floyd, on advancing our movement and on preventing this from ever happening again,” tweeted St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, who is Black.
Please stay home. Please do not come here to protest. Please keep the focus on George Floyd, on advancing our movement, and on preventing this from ever happening again. We can all be in that fight together.
— Melvin Carter (@melvincarter3) May 28, 2020
Erika Atson, 20, was among thousands of people who gathered outside government offices in downtown Minneapolis, where organizers had called a peaceful protest. Many protesters wore masks because of the coronavirus pandemic, but there were few attempts at social distancing.
Atson, who is Black, described seeing her 14- and 11-year-old brothers tackled by Minneapolis police years ago because officers mistakenly presumed the boys had guns. She said she had been at “every single protest” since Floyd’s death and worried about raising children who could be vulnerable in police encounters.
“We don’t want to be here fighting against anyone. We don’t want anyone to be hurt. We don’t want to cause any damages,” she said. “We just want the police officer to be held accountable.”
Hennepin County Sheriff David Hutchinson said the rally had been peaceful and there had been no arrests by late evening.
After calling in the Guard, Walz urged widespread changes in the wake of Floyd’s death.
“It is time to rebuild. Rebuild the city, rebuild our justice system and rebuild the relationship between law enforcement and those they’re charged to protect,” Walz said.
Much of the Minneapolis violence occurred in the Longfellow neighborhood, where protesters converged on the precinct station of the police who arrested Floyd. In a strip mall across the street from the 3rd Precinct station, the windows in nearly every business had been smashed, from the large Target department store at one end to the Planet Fitness gym at the other. Only the 24-hour laundromat appeared to have escaped unscathed.
“WHY US?” demanded a large expanse of red graffiti scrawled on the wall of the Target. A Wendy’s restaurant across the street was charred almost beyond recognition.
Among the casualties of the overnight fires: a six-story building under construction that was to provide nearly 200 apartments of affordable housing.
“We’re burning our own neighborhood,” said a distraught Deona Brown, a 24-year-old woman standing with a friend outside the precinct station, where a small group of protesters were shouting at a dozen or so stone-faced police officers in riot gear. “This is where we live, where we shop, and they destroyed it.” No officers could be seen beyond the station.
“What that cop did was wrong, but I’m scared now,” Brown said.
Others in the crowd saw something different in the wreckage.
Protesters destroyed property “because the system is broken,” said a young man who identified himself only by his nickname, Cash, and who said he had been in the streets during the violence. He dismissed the idea that the destruction would hurt residents of the largely black neighborhood.
“They’re making money off of us,” he said angrily of the owners of the destroyed stores. He laughed when asked if he had joined in the looting or violence. “I didn’t break anything.”
The protests that began Wednesday night and extended into Thursday were more violent than Tuesday’s, which included skirmishes between offices and protesters but no widespread property damage.
Mayor Jacob Frey appealed for calm but the city’s response to the protests was quickly questioned as things started spiraling into violence. “If the strategy was to keep residents safe — it failed,” City Council Member Jeremiah Ellison, who is Black, tweeted. “Prevent property damage — it failed.” On Thursday, he urged police to leave the scene of the overnight violence, saying their presence brings people into the streets.
If the strategy was to:
keep residents safe—it failed
prevent property damage—it failed
None of MPDs actions have accounted for the spread of this infectious disease
Why are our officers firing at people from rooftops?
Why is MPD not acting like they work for Minneapolis?
— Jeremiah Ellison (@jeremiah4north) May 28, 2020
But Eric Kowalczyk, a police captain in Baltimore during the Freddie Gray riots in 2015, generally supported the Minneapolis police strategy to avoid confrontations with protesters when possible, saying heavy-handed police responses are only met with more violence.
“Nobody wants to see their city on fire, but at the same time, you don’t want to see citizens injured by the very police department they are protesting,” he said.
Protests have also spread to other U.S. cities. In New York City, protesters defied New York’s coronavirus prohibition on public gatherings Thursday, clashing with police, while demonstrators blocked traffic in downtown Denver. A day earlier, demonstrators had taken to the streets in Los Angeles and Memphis.
Amid the violence in Minneapolis, a man was found fatally shot Wednesday night near a pawn shop, possibly by the owner, authorities said.
Fire crews responded to about 30 intentionally set blazes, and multiple fire trucks were damaged by rocks and other projectiles, the fire department said. No one was hurt by the blazes.
The city on Thursday released a transcript of the 911 call that brought police to the grocery store where Floyd was arrested. The caller described someone paying with a counterfeit bill, with workers rushing outside to find the man sitting on a van. The caller described the man as “awfully drunk and he’s not in control of himself.” Asked by the 911 operator whether the man was “under the influence of something,” the caller said: “Something like that, yes. He is not acting right.” Police said Floyd matched the caller’s description of the suspect.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI in Minneapolis said Thursday they were conducting “a robust criminal investigation” into the death. President Donald Trump has said he had asked an investigation to be expedited.
The FBI is also investigating whether Floyd’s civil rights were violated.
Chauvin, the officer who kneeled on Floyd’s neck, was fired Tuesday with three other officers involved in the arrest. The next day, the mayor called for Chauvin to be criminally charged. He also appealed for the activation of the National Guard.
___
Associated Press writers Steve Karnowski, Jeff Baenen and Doug Glass in Minneapolis, and Gretchen Ehlke in Milwaukee contributed to this report.
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Trump calls George Floyd protesters ‘thugs,’ threatens to send military
President Donald Trump threatened to send the national guard to the city of Minneapolis early Friday following the third night of protests over the police-involved death of George Floyd.
What’s more, the nation’s commander-in-chief called protesters “THUGS” who are “dishonoring the memory of George Floyd.”
“I can’t stand back & watch this happen to a great American City, Minneapolis. A total lack of leadership,” Trump tweeted in the wee hours of the morning.
“Either the very weak Radical Left Mayor, Jacob Frey, get his act together and bring the City under control, or I will send in the National Guard & get the job done right…..”
READ MORE: Trump on George Floyd’s death: ‘I feel very, very badly’
He added: “These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!”
….These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 29, 2020
Trump’s use of the term “thugs” quickly drew outrage on Twitter, as many called out its inherent racism.
“Trump to the white people with AR-15s throwing a temper tantrum over a haircut — “Liberate” Trump to those protesting the lack of justice in Minneapolis — “THUGS” A whole, racist clown,” tweeted journalist Jemele Hill.
Trump to the white people with AR-15s throwing a temper tantrum over a haircut — “Liberate”
Trump to those protesting the lack of justice in Minneapolis — “THUGS”
A whole, racist clown.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) May 29, 2020
Bishop Talbert Sawn tweeted, “You didn’t call the cops who MURDERED #GeorgeFloyd “THUGS.” You never called the white supremacist mass shooters you inspired to murder innocent Americans “THUGS.” You reserve “THUGS” for Black people, you vile, degenerate, white supremacist, son of a klansman.”
One tweet drew a stark comparison to how Trump described the mostly Black crowd of protesters in Minneapolis to the mostly white protesters in Michigan who stormed the state capitol last month over the closing of businesses to guard against the novel coronavirus.
— T H E R O U X (@TheWickedCoder) May 29, 2020
Trump’s tweets came just hours after protesters stormed the streets in outrage over the death of Floyd, who died on Memorial Day after former Officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on the 46-year-old’s neck while handcuffed as he repeatedly said he couldn’t breathe.
In the days that followed, demonstrations in Minneapolis grew increasingly tense. On Thursday night, the 3rd Precinct police station was set ablaze. According to the Associated Press, a police spokesman confirmed that staff had evacuated the station “in the interest of the safety of our personnel” shortly after 10 p.m.
READ MORE: There are no ‘riots’ in Minneapolis after the death of George Floyd
President Trump had initially remained reluctant to comment too much on Floyd’s death, which was caught on video and widely condemned by elected officials and public figures on both sides of the political aisle.
Earlier on Thursday while in the Oval Office, Trump said he felt “very, very badly” about Floyd’s death, and on Wednesday, he claimed that he asked U.S. Attorney General William Barr and the FBI to “expedite” federal probes of the police incident.
Chauvin and three other officers present during Floyd’s detainment have all been terminated from the Minneapolis Police Department.
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Black Church Action Fund, Vote.org launch digital vote-by-mail campaign for Black faith voters
The Black Church Action Fund and Vote.org have partnered on a new initiative aimed at Black faith voters.
The political action committee and the voter registration organization announced on Friday morning that they will work together to deliver digital voter registration and vote-by-mail tools to Black voters for the 2020 election.
READ MORE: 2020 election should be entirely vote-by-mail, most Americans say
“This moment demands that our communities get organized and protect our votes earlier than ever before. From voting by mail, to checking voter registration status, or getting the latest updates on election changes due to COVID-19, we are thrilled to offer all of our Vote.org services to the Black faith community,” said Andrea Hailey, CEO of Vote.org, said in a press release. “The Black Church Action Fund reach and grassroots political power, combined with our trusted voter engagement tools, will result in unprecedented efforts to reach Black voters of faith throughout the nation in this critical election year.”
Rev. Leah Daughtery and Pastor Michael McBride, co-founders of the Black Church Action Fund, stressed the importance of the initiative in a joint statement of their own on Friday.
“Black Church Action Fund is excited to be in partnership with Vote.org as we register, educate and mobilize millions of Black church voters in 2020,” the co-founders said. “The power of the Black church, and in particular Black women voting as a bloc of voters in 2020, is one of the greatest examples of sister power rising up to ensure the survival of our democracy. This partnership will help us reach our collective aspiration.”
The digital vote-by-mail campaign comes as Republican lawmakers and elected officials, including President Donald Trump, work to disenfranchise voters and gerrymander voting districts.
The president took to Twitter on Tuesday to slam voting by mail, falsely claiming that the practice would encourage voters to commit fraud.
READ MORE: GOP spending $20M on alleged voter suppression for the 2020 election
“There is NO WAY (ZERO!) that Mail-In Ballots will be anything less than substantially fraudulent. Mail boxes will be robbed, ballots will be forged & even illegally printed out & fraudulently signed,” he tweeted.
Trump’s claims were debunked by experts and flagged by Twitter with fact-check warnings.
For more information on the digital vote-by-mail initiative please visit vote.org.
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Thursday, May 28, 2020
MIT Corporation elects 12 term members, three life members
The MIT Corporation — the Institute’s board of trustees — elected nine full-term members, who will each serve for five years, three partial-term members, and three life members, during its quarterly meeting yesterday. Corporation Chair Robert B. Millard ’73 announced the election results; all positions are effective July 1.
The nine full-term members are: Wesley G. Bush ’83; R. Erich Caulfield SM ’01, PhD ’06; Heather Cogdell ’89; Orit Gadiesh; Jeffrey S. Halis ’76, SM ’76; Michelle K. Lee ’89, SM ’89; Adrianna C. Ma ’96, MEng ’96; Indra K. Nooyi; Adedoyin Olateru-Olagbegi ’20. The three partial-term members are: Drew Gilpin Faust; Janet C. Wolfenbarger SM ’95; and Mark S. Wrighton. The three life members are: Victor J. Menezes SM ’72; Phillip T. Ragon ’72; and Jeffrey L. Silverman ’68.
The Corporation also announced Charlene C. Kabcenell ’79 as the 2020-2021 president of the Association of Alumni and Alumnae of MIT, effective July 1. She succeeds Caulfield, who will return to the Corporation for a five-year term.
As of July 1, the Corporation will consist of 75 distinguished leaders in education, science, engineering, and industry. Of those, 24 are life members and seven are ex officio. An additional 37 individuals are life members emeritus.
The nine full-term members are:
Wesley G. Bush, former chairperson and chief executive officer, Northrop Grumman Corporation
Bush received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT in 1983. He has worked in the aerospace and defense industry since starting at COMSAT Labs under MIT’s co-op program. After graduation, Bush first worked at The Aerospace Corporation, then became a systems engineer at TRW’s Space Park facility in 1987. Prior to Northrop Grumman’s acquisition of TRW in 2002, Bush led numerous space program activities, served as vice president of TRW Ventures, and was the president and chief executive officer of TRW’s U.K.-based Aeronautical Systems business. At Northrop Grumman, he served as the president of the company’s space technology sector, then as its chief financial officer. He became president of the company in 2006. He served as chief executive officer from 2010 through 2018 and became chairman in 2011. He is also a member of the National Academy of Engineering.
R. Erich Caulfield, founder and president, The Caulfield Consulting Group
Caulfield received a bachelor’s degree in physics and mathematics from Morehouse College. He obtained his master’s degree and PhD in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT in 2001 and 2006, respectively. After beginning his professional career as at McKinsey and Company, Caulfield was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve as a White House Fellow in 2010, working at the White House Domestic Policy Council. He was part of the senior leadership team that developed and launched the White House Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) Initiative, which was a new partnership between the federal government and pilot cities across the country. In 2011, Caulfield assumed the role of New Orleans Community Solutions Team Lead for the SC2 Initiative. In 2013, he founded The Caulfield Consulting Group, a New Orleans-based management consulting firm. In 2018, he went on to serve as the chief policy advisor to Cory Booker, then Mayor of Newark, New Jersey, and to the city’s business administrator.
Heather Cogdell, principal business process engineer, MITRE Corporation
Cogdell received her bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from MIT in 1989. She received her MBA in decision sciences from the Wharton School of Business and master’s degree in systems engineering from the University of Pennsylvania in 1993. Cogdell is a principal business process engineer at the MITRE Corporation. She joined MITRE in 2008 and has supported the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Internal Revenue Service, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Working across that sponsor landscape, she provided expertise in problem identification, source analysis, and solution development and implementation. She is currently working at the Census Bureau to develop the future data repository vision. Her past projects include performing independent verification and validation of new Medicare Card Project systems for the CMS Office of Information technology.
Orit Gadiesh, chairperson, Bain and Company Inc.
Born in Haifa, Israel, Gadiesh completed her compulsory service in the Israel Defense Forces and studied at Hebrew University of Jerusalem, graduating in 1975 with her bachelor’s degree in psychology. She received an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1977 and was also awarded the Brown prize for the most outstanding marketing student. Gadiesh joined Bain and Company in 1977 after graduating from Harvard Business School and has been the chairperson since 1993. A world-renowned expert on management and corporate strategy, she has advised a multiplicity of CEOs and senior executives of major international companies on strategy development and the implementation of change. She has counseled top level management on structuring and managing portfolios, developing and implementing global strategy, executing turnarounds, improving organizational effectiveness, and designing both cost reduction and growth programs.
Jeffrey S. Halis, president, Tyndall Management, LLC
Halis received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Sloan School of Management in June 1976. He is president and chief executive officer of Tyndall Management, an investment firm specializing in publicly traded securities that he founded in 1991. Prior to establishing Tyndall, he held positions in the finance and investment industry working for Citibank, Merrill Lynch, and Sabre Associates. A New York native, Halis currently resides with his wife, Nancy L. Halis, in Manhattan. They have two daughters, Laura and Jenny, who reside in Boston and Manhattan.
Michelle K. Lee, vice president, Machine Learning Solutions Lab, Amazon Web Services
Lee studied electrical engineering and computer science at MIT, receiving her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in 1989. She received her JD from Stanford Law School in 1992. Lee is vice president of the Machine Learning Solutions Lab at Amazon Web Services. Prior to joining Amazon, Lee was the Herman Phleger Visiting Professor of Law at Stanford Law School from 2017 to 2018. Lee also served as the under secretary of commerce and director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office from 2015 to 2017 and was the first woman to serve in this role in the country’s history. Additionally, Lee was the deputy general counsel at Google Inc. and a partner with Fenwick and West LLP.
Adrianna C. Ma, managing partner, Haleakala Holdings LLC
Ma received a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT in 1996. She received her MBA from Harvard Business School in 2000. Ma is the managing partner of Haleakala Holdings LLC, her personal investment and advisory firm. Previously, she was a managing partner of Fremont Group, a single-family investment firm, where from 2015 to 2019 she oversaw a portfolio that consisted of actively managed funds as well as directly owned public and private securities. Prior to joining Fremont Group, Ma was a managing director of General Atlantic, where from 2005 to 2015 she invested in and served on the boards of directors of technology-enabled growth companies globally. Before joining General Atlantic, she was an investment banker from 2000 to 2005 in Morgan Stanley's mergers, acquisitions, and restructuring department. Previously, she was a project manager at the network server division of Hewlett-Packard Company, from 1996 to 1998.
Indra K. Nooyi, chairperson and CEO (retired), PepsiCo
Nooyi received a bachelor’s degree from Madras Christian College in 1974, an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management in Calcutta in 1976, and a master’s degree in public and private management from Yale University in 1980. Nooyi served as the chairperson and CEO of PepsiCo from 2006 to 2019. In this role, Nooyi was the chief architect of Performance with Purpose, PepsiCo’s pledge to do what’s right for the business by being responsive to the needs of the world around us. She directed the company’s global strategy for more than a decade. Prior to becoming CEO, Nooyi served as president and chief financial officer beginning in 2001, when she was also named to PepsiCo’s board of directors. Before joining PepsiCo in 1994, Nooyi spent four years as senior vice president of strategy, planning and strategic marketing for Asea Brown Boveri, a Zurich-based industrials company.
Adedoyin Olateru-Olagbegi, student, MIT
Adedoyin Olateru-Olagbegi is a senior at MIT studying computer science, economics, and data science. Next year, she will complete a master’s degree in global affairs at Beijing’s Tsinghua University as a Schwarzman Scholar. Afterward, Olateru-Olagbegi plans to focus on using digital health tools to improve health care quality and access globally. She has worked at a range of organizations, including the National Institutes of Health, Google, Bain and Company, and most recently, 1upHealth, a digital health startup. Adedoyin has enjoyed traveling while at MIT, studying race and migration in Brazil, co-designing technologies with coffee farmers in Colombia, and taking a class on the HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa.
The three partial-term members are:
Drew Gilpin Faust, president emerita and Arthur Kingsley Porter University Professor, Harvard University
Faust received her bachelor’s degree from Bryn Mawr College in 1968 and her master’s degree and PhD in American civilization from the University of Pennsylvania in 1971 and 1975. As president of Harvard from 2007 to 2018, she expanded financial aid to improve access to for students of all economic backgrounds and advocated for increased federal funding for scientific research. She broadened the University’s international reach, led a successful capital campaign, updated university governance, and raised the profile of the arts on campus, among other achievements, while also guiding the university through a period of significant financial challenges. Faust previously served as founding dean of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, from 2001 to 2007. Before coming to Radcliffe, she was the Annenberg Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania. She is the author of six books and is a contributing writer at The Atlantic. Faust will serve a two-year term with the Corporation.
Janet C. Wolfenbarger, general (retired), U.S. Air Force
Wolfenbarger earned a bachelor’s degree from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1980, a master’s degree in aeronautics and astronautics from MIT in 1985, a master’s degree in national resource strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces in 1994, and an honorary doctoral degree from Wright State University in 2013. She retired from the U.S. Air Force in 2015, culminating a distinguished 35-year career as the Service’s first female four-star general. She commanded Air Force Materiel Command, which employs 80,000 people and manages a $60 billion annual budget. The command is responsible for executing the critical mission of warfighter support through leading-edge science and technology, cradle-to-grave life cycle weapons system management, world-class developmental test and evaluation, and world-class depot maintenance and supply chain management. Since retirement she has served as a board director for two entities and volunteers in a number of other capacities. Wolfenbarger will serve a three-year term with the Corporation.
Mark S. Wrighton, chancellor emeritus and professor of chemistry, Washington University
Wrighton received his bachelor’s degree from Florida State University in 1969 and his PhD in chemistry from Caltech in 1972. He joined the faculty of MIT’s Department of Chemistry that year, and from 1981 until 1989 held the Frederick G. Keyes Professorship in Chemistry, followed by the Ciba-Geigy Professorship in Chemistry. He was head of the department from 1987 to 1990 and served as MIT’s provost from 1990 to 1995. He then moved to Washington University in St. Louis, where he served as chancellor and CEO until 2019. He now continues full time at Washington University as a professor and chancellor emeritus. A fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a member of the American Philosophical Society, he has participated in numerous governmental panels and has been a consultant to industry. Wrighton will serve a one-year term with the Corporation.
The three life members are:
Victor J. Menezes, senior vice chairperson (retired), Citigroup Inc.
Menezes received his undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay in 1970 and a master’s degree from the MIT Sloan School of Management in 1972. He was senior vice chair of Citigroup Inc. and retired in 2005 after a 32-year global career in the company. He served previously as chair and CEO of Citibank and was head of Citigroup’s emerging markets business, with responsibility for the corporate and consumer businesses and global product responsibility for e-business and global securities services. In 1995 he was named chief financial officer of Citicorp and Citibank. Previously, he headed Citibank’s businesses and lived in India, Hong Kong, and Europe. He also chaired Citi’s India Advisory Board from 2011 to 2013.
Phillip T. Ragon, CEO, founder, and owner, InterSystems Corporation
After earning a bachelor’s degree in physics from MIT in 1972, Ragon went on to found InterSystems in 1978, leading the company to worldwide prominence in the database, interoperability, and health care application markets. He is a trustee of the Mass General Brigham health system, as well as a trustee of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), where he also served as honorary co-chair of the MGH Campaign. He is on the Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows. In 2008, he helped create the Ragon Institute, a joint research center of MGH, MIT, and Harvard. The vision of the Ragon Institute is to “harness the immune system,” and its immediate objective is the creation of a vaccine for HIV. Ragon is also a signatory to The Giving Pledge.
Jeffrey L. Silverman, chairperson, Agman Partners
Silverman, who earned a bachelor’s degree from MIT in 1968, is the founder and chair of Agman Partners, a multistrategy private investment firm that invests both directly and through partnerships across asset classes and stages of development. During his career, he incorporated an evolving game theory approach to applied economics as an independent commodity futures trader at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, where he also served as a director. He has supported the MIT Evergreen Energy Fund, which resulted in a substantial savings in energy for MIT while leading the way for other institutions. He also provided initial funding for MIT's “Just Jerusalem” competition envisioning peace in the Middle East. Currently, he supports the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research through a communications outreach project as part of their ongoing fundraising.
President of the Association of Alumni and Alumnae of MIT:
Charlene C. Kabcenell, vice president (retired), Oracle Corporation
Kabcenell received her bachelor’s degree from MIT in 1979 and began her career as a software developer at Xerox Corporation, where she was involved in the development of the Star workstation, the first commercial system that incorporated technologies familiar to Macinotsh and Microsoft Windows users today. She joined Oracle Corporation in 1987 as a group product manager. During her tenure, she managed projects involving product software, software development tools, and internationalization. She retired as a vice president of software development in 1997. Kabcenell now devotes her time to a range of charitable and volunteer activities, including managing her family foundation. She joined the MIT Corporation in 2011 and has been a life member since 2013.
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Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar declined to charge cop that killed George Floyd in previous cases
George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis by the hands of a cop has created a furor and protests over police brutality. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar is now under scrutiny for failing to pursue charges against the officer involved when she was chief prosecutor.
READ MORE: Trump on George Floyd’s death: ‘I feel very, very badly’
Ex-Minneapolis police officer Derick Chauvin kneeled on Floyd’s neck for eight minutes as he struggled to breathe on Monday. He and three other officers have since been fired but the incident with Floyd was not the first controversial one in his police jacket. Chauvin has at least 10 complaints of misconduct against him according to the database that registers complaints against police.
Klobuchar, Minnesota’s Democratic senator—and a possible vice presidential running mate to presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden has demanded a “complete and thorough” investigation into Floyd’s death.
My statement on the officer-involved death in Minneapolis: pic.twitter.com/HUoGfXEj7R
— Amy Klobuchar (@amyklobuchar) May 26, 2020
However, her words are seen as hallow given her actions as a chief prosecutor from 1999 and 2007.
She declined to charge Chauvin after he was involved in a fatal accident in 2005, killed Wayne Reyes in 2006, and shot another man while in uniform in 2008. But those are not the only instances Kloubchar chose not to bring charges against a swath of officers accused of wrongdoing.
The Washington Post noted in March that Klobuchar “declined to bring charges in more than two dozen cases in which people were killed in encounters with police” while she was Hennepin County attorney. Her focus instead was on “aggressively prosecuted smaller offenses” that “have been criticized for their disproportionate effect on poor and minority communities.”
Klobuchar has not commented on the renewed scrutiny of her record but critics claim her time as the top prosecutor should disqualify her from any higher office.
Nekima Levy Armstrong, a civil rights lawyer who served as head of the Minneapolis NAACP from 2015 to 2016, told the Huffington Post in an article published Thursday that Klobuchar inflicted trauma on the people of Minnesota.
“There is absolutely no way that she is qualified to become Biden’s VP nominee,” Armstrong said.
Armstrong added that if Biden were to choose Klobuchar as his running mate, it would put him at a disadvantage with African American voters. Others agree that Klobuchar was seen as part of the root issues bubbling to the surface in Minnesota such as its disproportionately non-white jail and prison populations.
“Minnesota leadership has really supported police and the expansion of policing,” said Isabela Escalona, a spokesperson for the Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en Lucha, a Midwest worker’s advocacy group that has fought against increases in Minneapolis’ police budget.
READ MORE: The are no ‘riots’ in Minneapolis after the death of George Floyd
“She’s a part of the problem and we must find community solutions to safety beyond police.”
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Bakari Sellers cries over George Floyd murder: ‘It’s hard being Black in this country’
Bakari Sellers couldn’t hold back his tears as he spoke about the murder of George Floyd and the emotional toll the latest act of violence has taken.
Sellers and Donte Stallworth were on New Day with John Berman on CNN Thursday morning. They were reacting to Alisyn Camerota’s interview with Philonise Floyd on his brother’s death while being arrested by four police officers earlier in the week.
Ex-Minneapolis police officer Derick Chauvin kneeled on Floyd’s neck for eight minutes as he struggled to breathe on Monday as he lay dying on the ground. Philonise told Camerota that he was “tired” and that no one was “listening.”
READ MORE: George Floyd encourages youth to give up gun violence in bittersweet video
Sellers quoted human rights activist Ella Baker who once said in 1964, “Until the killing of black men, black mothers’ sons, becomes as important to the rest of the country as the killing of a white mother’s son, we who believe in freedom cannot rest until this happens”.
Sellers became overwhelmed and began to cry, insisting that her words still echoed in the present day.
“It was hard to listen to that interview,” Sellers said.
The tears continued to flow as the CNN commentator, author and former representative spoke of the visceral pain that Black families were in. He admitted to struggling over how to raise his son and daughter in a world that viewed them as threats.
“It’s just so much pain. You get so tired. We have black children. I have a 15-year-old daughter. I mean, what do I tell her? I’m raising a son. I have no idea what to tell him,” he said.
“It’s just — it’s hard being black in this country when your life is not valued and people are worried about the protesters and the looters. And it’s just people who are frustrated for far too long and not have their voices heard. You put me on after his brother and I feel like I lost my brother.”
READ MORE: Additional video shows George Floyd was not resisting arrest as police claimed
Sellers agonized that the pain of Floyd’s death stung even more since it was so close to the death of Ahmaud Arbery who died in February. He was taking a run from his hometown of Brunswick, Ga, through the affluent neighboring community of Satilla Shores when father and son Gregory and Travis McMichael followed him in their truck and he was allegedly shot by Travis.
It took two months before authorities arrested Gregory, a former police officer in the town, and his son, Travis. Both were charged with felony murder and aggravated assault. William ‘Roddie’ Bryan who filmed the video that changed the direction of the case, was also arrested on charges including murder.
“They had a video of Ahmaud Arbery and two different solicitors looked at the video and declined to press charges,” he said. “And for those of us who have a mistrust of the system, it’s very hard for us to do anything else other than just to cry this morning and then hope and pray we are not sitting next to Ben Crump one day. That’s about all we can do.”
Sellers — whose father Cleveland Sellers was shot more than 50 years ago at the Orangeburg Massacre in 1968 — said that the back-to-back tragedies made him even more worried about the wellbeing of his kids. He tried to keep hope, faith, and encourage his kids to one day be a United States senator or president but racism would always cast a shadow.
READ MORE: Bakari Sellers talks memoir ‘My Vanishing Country’ and family’s civil rights legacy
“What happens if they get pulled over and they comply? What happens if they get judged by a father and son who are just on a good ole fashioned Georgia lynching? What happens if they get served a no-knock warrant like Breonna Taylor?” he asked.
“How do you raise your children in this America to understand you’re free when we see these images of them being gunned down in the street and the knee in the back of the neck for eight minutes like a dog?” He asked. “I don’t have that answer other than every day I just tell them I love them. That’s all I can do.”
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Joe Biden endorsed by Coalition of Black Trade Unionists
Though Joe Biden has found himself engulfed by controversy in recent weeks regarding off-the-cuff comments he’s made about the African American community but his support has remained strong. The presumptive Democratic nominee has just received the endorsement of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists.
READ MORE: Biden reinforces plan for Black America after ‘Breakfast Club’ backlash
CBTU is the independent voice of 1.2 million Black workers represented by 57 international unions in the U.S. and Canada and has been involved in presidential politics since 1972 — defying the AFL-CIO by backing George McGovern against President Richard Nixon.
CBTU endorsed Biden to be the 46th president of the United States with the hope that this can help Biden inspire more progressives and create a broad coalition.
The nonprofit organization views the upcoming 2020 election as a watershed moment in history that needs Biden’s leadership. They believe America can’t survive another four years of President Donald Trump
“Four more years of a Trump presidency could push America to the point of no return. The hate and divisiveness being poured into the veins of this democracy by the man elected to preserve it has done incalculable damage to our institutions, our families, and our communities,” Rev. Terrence Melvin, president of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, said.
“That’s why we must get this right. We must throw our full support behind a candidate who has the character, credibility, and game plan to lift America from the sewage of Trumpism. Joe Biden is democracy’s best and only hope in the presidential race of 2020.”
They also noted that Biden was a faithful second in command to President Barack Obama during his two terms. It was noted that the former vice president, “ran interference on Capitol Hill, using his experience and reputation to win key votes on both sides of the aisle.”
READ MORE: Biden issues apology for ‘ain’t Black’ comments after backlash
CBTU listed a litany of Trump grievances that they believe have led to “full scale of pain and devastation and death” inflicted on the American people. Packing the courts with conservative judges, separating families at the border and immigrant children being placed in cages.
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the staggering death toll—100K as of Wednesday— was in part due to Trump because he “tried to sabotage public health guidelines and smother the truth to advance his own selfish political interests.”
In the group’s estimation, there is no other choice but for Trump to be defeated in November.
“The current occupant in the White House has wrapped himself in white nationalism and stoked the racial anxiety of a population that sees itself shrinking, but still the center of America – its past, present and future,” the statement continued.
CBTU maintains that they were not in search of a “normal” nor are they interested in the status quo of “deep inequalities in our society” which they believe COVID-19 has further exposed. The organization believes Biden would be an ally in advancing racial and gender progress.
READ MORE: Biden advisor Symone Sanders says ‘Breakfast Club’ comments ‘were in jest’
Biden’s ‘Lift Every Voice’ Plan for Black America offers student debt relief, a $15 minimum wage for all workers and increased subsidies to Obamacare. CBTU feels Biden would be more able to impact criminal justice reform.
They stress that engagement is needed now before ballots are cast in the fall.
“It’s a call to action NOW to black workers across the country. We cannot afford to drift through the summer and hope to mobilize the massive turnout in our unions and communities that will deliver victory on Election Day. The fluctuating scenarios of campaigning and voting require early and sustained engagement,” the statement said.
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‘America’s Got Talent’ announces findings in Gabrielle Union investigation
After months of speculation, this week NBC released the findings from the investigation of America’s Got Talent’s firing of popular judge Gabrielle Union.
Thank you ma and every single one of yall out there who understand how hard this journey is and checked on me and sent ♥️, prayers, protective vibes. Appreciate you, love you, tomorrow we ride again. https://t.co/oLZeTThxgk
— Gabrielle Union (@itsgabrielleu) May 28, 2020
Although the investigation was originally expected to end in January, according to Deadline, Wednesday morning the network issued a statement attempting to shed light on the circumstances surrounding Union’s dismissal.
BBC News – Gabrielle Union: Ex-America’s Got Talent judge discusses ‘toxic’ environment https://t.co/YMNnyYCLuN
— ASHBMN (@ASHBMN) May 28, 2020
READ MORE: Taye Diggs says ‘The Best Man’ could be turned into TV series
“Through the investigation process, it has been revealed that no one associated with the show made any insensitive or derogatory remarks about Ms. Union’s appearance and that neither race nor gender was a contributing factor in the advancement or elimination of contestants at any time,” the statement said. “The investigation has shown that the concerns raised by Ms. Union had no bearing on the decision not to exercise the option on her contract.”
“While the investigation has demonstrated an overall culture of diversity, it has also highlighted some areas in which reporting processes could be improved,” it conceded.
After 9 months of being careful with her word choices, that same day Variety published an interview in which Union broke her silence on the racism and sexism she claims to have experienced on the NBC series.
“I couldn’t escape. I ended up staying sick for two months straight. It was a cold that lingered, and turned into bronchitis, because I couldn’t shake it,” she told the publication. “It impacted my voice, which affects my ability to do my job.”
She continued, “It was challenging to tend to my illness without being made to feel like I’m responsible for my own sickness. It put me in a position from day one where I felt othered. I felt isolated. I felt singled out as being difficult when I’m asking for basic laws to be followed. I want to come to work and be healthy and safe and listened to.”
READ MORE: ‘Boy Meets World’ actress accuses stars of ‘extreme’ racism
“There were so many spaces in this industry where I had to compartmentalize myself to feel like I was worthy of work,” she explained. “In my 40s, I embraced myself exactly as I am. I wanted to create projects and be a part of things, to have personal and professional relationships that brought me peace, joy, grace and allowed for compassion.”
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Kiki Layne stars in Gina Prince Bythewood flick ‘The Old Guard’
Director Gina Prince Bythewood is bringing her brilliance to Netflix with a new action The Old Guard, due out this summer.
The Love & Basketball director directs the film based on the graphic novel by Greg Rucka and they’ve enlisted some of Hollywood’s heaviest hitters to take part.
The all-star cast includes Charlize Theron and If Beale Street Could Talk star, Kiki Layne.
Here’s the official synopsis:
Led by a warrior named Andy (Charlize Theron), a covert group of tight-knit mercenaries with a mysterious inability to die have fought to protect the mortal world for centuries. But when the team is recruited to take on an emergency mission and their extraordinary abilities are suddenly exposed, it’s up to Andy and Nile (KiKi Layne), the newest soldier to join their ranks, to help the group eliminate the threat of those who seek to replicate and monetize their power by any means necessary. Based on the acclaimed graphic novel by Greg Rucka and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, The Old Guard is a gritty, grounded, action-packed story that shows living forever is harder than it looks.
READ MORE: Kiki Layne, James Earl Jones, Rick Ross cast in ‘Coming To America 2’
Check out the trailer:
The Old Guard premieres July 10 on Netflix.
By the looks of the trailer, we’re in for a wild ride of non-stop action with this flick.
Aside from Love & Basketball, Bythewood brought us beloved classics like The Wood, Beyond The Lights, The Secret Life of Bees, and Disappearing Acts, among others.
Rucka’s graphic novel series started in 2017 with the publication of “The Old Guard Book 1: Opening Fire.”
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White Man Threatens to Call Police on Black Men for Trespassing at Minneapolis Gym
A white man threatened to call the police on some black men at a Minneapolis gym after accusing them of not belonging in the building, according to Business Insider.
In another case of racial profiling, the black men, the entrepreneurs behind Team Top Figure, a social media consulting firm, shared the encounter in the Mozaic East building, where they rent space from a WeWork on site. They were entitled to use the gym.
The white man, Tom Austin, a venture capitalist who runs the F2 Intelligence Group, approached the men questioning whether they belong there.
Austin provided Business Insider a written statement:
“Yes, I f—-d up. Should have handled it differently. Not my job to have done anything. Building management had been complaining that tenants were allowing their friends to trespassing and use a private gym that was authorized only for building tenants. Said hello to everyone when I walked in. But after working out for 10 minutes, I noticed that one of the tenants seemed to have brought 4 friends and I complained to them that this isn’t right. One guy was letting his other 4 friends in and out of the building with his pass card FOB. Four guys didn’t have a FOB. When I said something, they got in my face accusing me of racial profiling. I said it wasn’t racial profiling and it was all about suspicious activity/behavior. Because they were in my face and didn’t have pass cards, I took photos and called the property manager. I only called the building property manager! Never called 911. I told them I’d have done the same thing if they were white, or even a bunch of girls who were trespassing. What surprises me is that we worked out in gym together for another 45 minutes. I had already apologized to them for making them feel it was a race issue and I listened to all their grievances about “being black.” When I left the gym, at the end of the night I said “Have a great night, hope we’re good.” and did a fist bump with each of them! There is way more to the story. Fake news!”
The Star Tribune reported that Stuart Ackerberg, CEO of Ackerberg Group, which owns the MoZaic East building, has terminated Austin’s lease. Ackerberg said he was still heartbroken from seeing the video of police brutality victim George Floyd when he viewed the video clip of the confrontation.
“My heart hurts,” he said. “This is not how we do business. … I’m alarmed by what I saw.”
He said that two WeWork members used their key fobs to access the gym and he assumes the other people in the Top Figure group also were employees.
“It appears they had every right to be there and to use that amenity,” he said.
Ackerberg said he spoke to Austin on Wednesday and expressed his dismay.
“I shared with him that I did not think it was handled well and there are other ways to go about this,” he said. “It’s unfortunate. Our goal is to create a safe and inviting experience for everybody.”
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