Ella Jones just became the first black person and first woman to be elected mayor in Ferguson, the city whose protests almost six years ago solidified the Black Lives Matter movement following the police killing of Mike Brown. On Tuesday (June 2nd), Jones made history as the first black woman to become mayor of the Missouri city in its 126-year history.
"The common goal is the people," Jones, who's lived in Ferguson for more than 40 years, told Missouri resident, Jason Rosenbaum, about her new position. "It's 'We the people.' I tell people all the time, if you go look in the budget, the first thing you see is the organizational chart. When you look at the organizational chart in the budget, at the top of that chart it says 'citizens.' And then from the top, the elected officials. The elected officials appoint and hire a city manager and a city clerk. If the people are not in charge of what they're doing, then you're gonna have chaos. We have had enough chaos."
As you'll recall, on August 9, 2014, 18-year-old Michael Brown Jr. was shot dead by former police officer, Darren Wilson, in Ferguson. The tragedy sparked immense outrage, leading to protests in Ferguson that lasted weeks as well as the official public recognition of the Black Lives Matter movement. Wilson was never charged for his crime.
However, Jones wants better for her city and the people who live in it, and she plans to use her new position to include Ferguson residents in this positive change. "I am going to be very transparent," she said during an interview with KSDK News. "As a matter of fact, after my first 90 days in office, I've already started putting a task force together so that we can do a town hall and the people of Ferguson will know the state of their city. It's very important that the people be informed of what's going on. They can be a part of the government." According to The New York Times, Jones won 54% of the vote, beating out her opponent, Heather Robinett. Jones succeeds James Knowles III, who has been mayor of the city for the past nine years since 2011. Check out some of the reactions to this incredible news on Twitter.
Barack Obama Labels Donald Trump’s COVID-19 Response A "Chaotic Disaster"
Barack Obama criticized Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic while speaking with former members of his administration.
Former President Barack Obama called President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic a “chaotic disaster” in leaked audio from a discussion with the Obama Alumni Association.
Win McNamee / Getty Images
“What we’re fighting against is these long-term trends in which being selfish, being tribal, being divided, and seeing others as an enemy–that. has become a stronger impulse in American life. It would’ve been bad even with the best of governments, it has been an absolute chaotic disaster when that mindset — of ‘what’s in it for me’ and ‘to heck with everybody else’ — when that mindset is operationalized in our government,” Obama can be heard saying.
The pandemic has resulted in the deaths of over 75,000 Americans and far more worldwide. There have been over 1 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States.
Obama goes on to discuss the upcoming presidential election, arguing that it “is so important because what we’re going to be battling is not just a particular individual or a political party.”
“That’s why, I, by the way, am going to be spending as much time as necessary and campaigning as hard as I can for Joe Biden,” he continues.
Obama’s office has yet to comment.
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Cardi B Goes Live With Bernie Sanders To Discuss The Election & Coronavirus
Cardi B had a chat with former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders on Instagram live about Trump, Biden, the current global health crisis, and more.
Cardi B hopped on Instagram live with Bernie Sanders on Tuesday night to discuss a myriad of issues, including the coronavirus pandemic and the former presidential candidate's previous opponents. Cardi has been an avid and vocal Bernie supporter for quite some time now, so it's no surprise that he would ask her to join him in a virtual discussion about politics. Among this wide range of topics was the current president, Donald Trump, and how he's been handling this global health crisis. Cardi criticized Trump's approach to coronavirus and listed the things he could have done to improve the situation.
While Cardi was discussing a conspiracy theory among Trump supporters that the coronavirus pandemic is merely a Democratic tactic to hurt Trump's chances at re-election, Cardi countered Trump's common claim that the Dems have been pushing "propaganda" to make him look bad. "Honey, you don't need the Democrats to make you look bad," she said, directing her remarks at Trump. "You make your own self look bad. There were so many chances that he had when interviewers asked him questions that he could have answered with the right answer that would make people be like, 'OK, he actually cares.' And instead of him giving a right answer, he just shushed them off or just degrades them. It's like, you don't need no Democrat to make you look bad. Sir, you make your own self look bad." Cardi also points out that the severity of the pandemic in the United States could have been significantly reduced back in January, but Trump didn't take the proper precautions early enough (or at all).
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Diamond Ball
Later in their conversation, Cardi asks Bernie about his recent endorsement of Joe Biden following his own withdrawal from the race. The rapper explains that young voters just "don't rock" with Biden as a presidential nominee because of his outdated centrist views. Bernie ensures her that the ultimate goal is to defeat Trump in the election, hence his endorsement. He's also hoping that he can work with Biden to instill more progressive ideas into his platform. Check out the full exchange below or go to Bernie's website.
Bernie Sanders Drops Out Of 2020 Presidential Race
Bernie Sanders has officially dropped out of the 2020 Presidential Election, leaving room for Joe Biden to represent the Democratic Party.
For the last two elections, Bernie Sanders has been hopeful that the American public relates to his campaign but, both times, he came up just short.
It is being reported that Bernie Sanders, one of the sole remaining Democratic candidates running against Joe Biden, has dropped out of the race to become President of the United States.
As reported by CNN, Bernie Sanders announced to his team that he would be dropping out of the race this morning, leaving room for Joe Biden and Donald Trump to face off later this year.
Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images
This announcement comes after a stunning turn for Sanders. After seeing tremendous support from the first three primaries in late February, that was reversed and Joe Biden became the clear favorite for the Democrats.
It will be interesting to note whether Sanders ends up endorsing Joe Biden as his choice for the next President. The two men did not agree on many important topics. Sanders was viewed as the "progressive" candidate of the bunch, and his supporters have lived with a "Bernie or Bust" mentality for eight years.
Do you think Joe Biden has a shot at defeating Donald Trump come election time or does Trump have this in the bag?
Killer Mike Likens Bernie Sanders To Martin Luther King Jr. & Gets Slammed Online
Killer Mike further backed his statement.
Killer Mike has been advocating for Bernie Sanders for years now. The rapper is intelligent and well-spoken, but sometimes his statements miss the mark. That's what happened this past weekend when Killer Mike compared the struggles of Martin Luther King Jr. to those of Democratic presidential nominee hopeful Bernie Sanders. The entire debacle started when Killer Mike responded to a tweet by author and Hillary Clinton supporter Zachary Wood. Wood himself was responding to a tweet by Bernie where Mr. Sanders asked the youth to get out and vote. "There’s just something about you, @BernieSanders, that pisses me off," Wood wrote.
Once he saw Wood's response, Killer Mike hit back with a screenshot of an article titled, "Even Though He Is Revered Today, MLK Was Widely Disliked by the American Public When He Was Killed." Essentially, the rapper was comparing hatred for Sanders to the anger and animosity that MLK faced while he was alive. Mike continued on to write, "Your tweet better help. Me understand I’m on the correct side of history. Thank U." Killer Mike's response received many confused and angry replies.
Killer Mike responded in kind, claiming that he has been taught by those that worked with MLK, so his opinion rules supreme.
Joe Biden Sweeps Super Tuesday As Bernie Sanders Race Tightens
Though Bernie Sanders appeared to be an early Democratic frontrunner, Joe Biden’s Super Tuesday surge has effectively changed the game.
With early victories in Vermont, Utah, and Colorado, many felt that Democratic dark horse Bernie Sanders was emerging as a clear favorite — at least, until last night’s Super Tuesday saw Joe Biden surging into the frontrunner position. Though Sanders locked down a victory in California, Biden came through with a total of ten projected wins, including Texas, Minnesota, Alabama, Virginia, Tennessee, and Massachusetts. A surprising turn, given than many had written off the former Vice President over a seemingly tepid campaign.
Biden himself acknowledged the unflattering narrative during his victory speech. “Just a few days ago the press and the pundits declared the campaign dead,” said Biden. “And then came South Carolina and they had something to say about it. They said when it got to Super Tuesday it would be over. Well, it may be over for the other guy!”
On that note, many were left wondering how the momentum-riding Sanders came up so short. Essentially, it all came down to the fact that a sizeable portion of his base simply did not vote. Once again, the narrative that the older generation dictates the political direction holds steadfast — though can somebody who decided to skip the polls truly complain about that? With the race tighter than ever Biden and Sanders are destined to dance for the big title. Expect a long and contentious road lined with infighting and controversies ripe for the picking.
One has to wonder whether either candidate would ever get behind the other, should it come time to consolidate for the big one: going against Donald Trump will not be easy, and a fractured Democratic party is hardly the ideal champion come battle-time. With Elizabeth Warren and Mike Bloomberg yet to make a decision vis-a-vis their own candidacy, there’s no telling which turns this wild ride is liable to take.
Chuck D Says Flavor Flav Rather "Dance For His Money" After Bernie Sanders Debacle
Chuck D claps back.
The members of Public Enemy are currently public enemies. Flavor Flav released a statement earlier this weekend taking aim at Chuck D for supporting Bernie Sanders and using the group name to promote his political campaign. “We have become aware that Flavor’s bandmate and Public Enemy co-creator, Chuck D, has endorsed Bernie Sanders’ candidacy for President and plans to perform at an upcoming Sanders Rally,” Flav’s attorney Matthew H. Friedman wrote in a statement. “While Chuck is certainly free to express his political views as he sees fit—his voice alone does not speak for Public Enemy. The planned performance will only be Chuck D of Public Enemy, it will not be a performance by Public Enemy. Those who truly know what Public Enemy stands for know what time it is, there is no Public Enemy without Flavor Flav.” Flav went on to diss the Sanders campaign.
“Flav has always delivered his authentic self,” the statement continues. “That authenticity compels him to speak out to ensure voters are not misled and that Public Enemy’s music does not become the soundtrack of a fake revolution.” Chuck D caught wind of Flav’s anger and responded swiftly.
“Flavor chooses to dance for his money and not do benevolent work like this,” he said in a statement to HipHopDX. “He has a year to get his act together and get himself straight or he’s out.” Chuck’s attorney explained that, “From a legal standpoint, Chuck could perform as Public Enemy if he ever wanted to; he is the sole owner of the Public Enemy trademark. He originally drew the logo himself in the mid-80’s, is also the creative visionary and the group’s primary songwriter, having written Flavor’s most memorable lines.” We have a feeling that this isn’t over.
Tory Lanez Offers Thought-Provoking Take On Donald Trump & Iran War
Tory Lanez thinks Trump's airstrike was conducted with the 2020 election in mind.
Tory Lanez might not be affected by the current threat of war looming between the United States and Iran because of his Canadian nationality but the superstar still decided to voice his opinion on the frightful situation. With all the WWIII memes being shared across TikTok, Twitter, and other social media platforms, Lanez offered his take on why President Donald Trump chose to attack his rivals with a drone airstrike, killing general Qasem Soleimani. In the artist's eyes, it all has to do with the threat of being booted from the White House in the upcoming election.
After Donald Trump became the third President to ever be impeached, Tory Lanez believes that he may have stooped this low to heighten his chances of re-election in the fall. He noted that he would be keeping his nose out of this drama, but that came after he let off a potential conspiracy theory.
"So basically America bout to go into war becuz it’s re-election time... and the chances of switching a president while a war is going on are slim," wrote the rapper on Twitter. "Just saying ... who the fuck am I ... but seems about right to me ... however I’m Canadian so ima stay outta this."
The Chixtape 5 singer doesn't seem too offbase. This would be the wildest thing Trump has done as President and, let's be honest, would anybody be surprised if this was actually the case?