46 F
Seattle
Friday, December 5, 2025
type here...
Home Blog Page 3

Supreme Court To Review New Jersey’s Subpoena Of Faith-Based Pregnancy Centers

By
Seattle Medium
-
A view of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on November 5, 2025. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images/File via CNN Newsource)
A view of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on November 5, 2025. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images/File via CNN Newsource)

By John Fritze, CNN

(CNN) — The Supreme Court will hear arguments Tuesday about a subpoena served on a faith-based nonprofit in New Jersey that runs “crisis pregnancy centers,” an appeal that has put both civil rights advocates and some of the nation’s best-known conservative groups on the same side.

First Choice Women’s Resource Centers is urging the 6-3 conservative court to throw out a decision from a federal appeals court that effectively required the religious nonprofit to continue fighting the subpoena in state court, rather than seeking early intervention from federal courts.

New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, a Democrat, subpoenaed the centers in 2023 as part of an investigation into whether the nonprofit violated consumer fraud laws. Pregnancy centers are opposed to abortion, but state officials said their marketing may have left some patients with the impression that they could receive abortions at the facilities.

The subpoena was aimed at evaluating whether the centers “or its staff engaged in misrepresentations and other prohibited conduct,” according to the state. It sought advertisements, donor solicitations and the identification of licensed medical personnel.

At a time when red and blue states are often pursuing radically different policies on abortion, immigration and LGBTQ rights, the religious nonprofit has asserted that both liberal and conservative groups are at risk of overzealous state officials using subpoenas to lean on groups they disfavor. The answer, First Choice said, is to let federal courts review those subpoenas at an early stage.

First Choice said that the subpoena at the center of its case, seeking information on most of its donors and other information, violates the First Amendment.

“The targets of state subpoenas extend far beyond pregnancy centers,” the group told the Supreme Court in written arguments. “When subpoenas violate the federal Constitution, these groups should not be relegated to state court to enforce their rights.”

It is an argument that has attracted an unusual coterie of support, including the Chamber of Commerce, the Conference of Catholic Bishops, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.

“A subpoena seeking sensitive donor information can chill a disfavored speaker’s protected associations long before it’s ever enforced,” the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression told the court in a brief joined by the ACLU.

The type of subpoena at issue isn’t “self-executing,” which means Platkin needed to get a court to enforce it. New Jersey courts have not yet ordered the production of documents under threat of contempt. And so while the Supreme Court dispute touches on controversial issues, it’s really about when – and whether – groups may challenge such subpoenas in federal court.

Platkin has argued it’s too soon for First Choice to do so. A divided 3rd Circuit agreed, ruling last year that the center’s claims are not yet ripe for federal review.

The consequences of siding with First Choice, Platkin told the justices in written arguments earlier this year, “would be far-reaching, turning every quotidian subpoena dispute into a federal case.”

Weighing heavily on the case is a 2021 Supreme Court decision in which a majority invalidated a California rule requiring charitable organizations to disclose the names of contributors. Both that appeal and the current case from First Choice lean on a landmark Civil Rights-era decision from 1958 in which the court struck down an Alabama subpoena requiring the NAACP to disclose its membership list.

That compelled disclosure, the court said in a unanimous decision, would violate the right of people to associate with the group because they would reasonably fear retaliation for being named.

The Trump administration is siding with the pregnancy centers, arguing that the nonprofit faced a credible threat of being forced to turn over the documents. But the administration, which will take part in arguments Tuesday, has been quick to assert that its own subpoenas, issued by federal agencies, are subject to different rules.

New Jersey’s attorney general picked up on that distinction in its own briefing, suggesting the federal government is fine with letting federal courts review state subpoenas at an early stage – just not federal ones.

The federal government, Platkin said, can’t “stomach” quick review by federal courts for itself and instead “demands a bespoke exception for its own administrative subpoenas.”

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

Government Ends TPS For Haitians: What This Means For 300,000 Immigrants

By
Seattle Medium
-
Emmanuel Similus, who owns a restaurant in Delray Beach, said even his own niece is facing an immigration deadline. (WPTV via CNN Newsource)
Emmanuel Similus, who owns a restaurant in Delray Beach, said even his own niece is facing an immigration deadline. (WPTV via CNN Newsource)

By Ange Toussaint

PALM BEACH COUNTY, Florida (WPTV) — Haitian families in Palm Beach County said the federal government’s decision to end Temporary Protected Status for Haitians has triggered widespread fear and uncertainty throughout the community.

“We feel it in every way. In the churches, everywhere. We feel the impact of the immigration fallout,” Emmanuel Similus said. He also added, “Whether you’re directly impacted, you have a friend, or you have a friend that has a friend, so we all feel it some kind of way.”

Emmanuel Similus, who owns a restaurant in Delray Beach, said even his own niece is facing an immigration deadline.

“She was allowed for two years and her two years was expired,” he said.

Similus said his niece is among the 300,000 Haitians whose TPS will expire in less than 90 days.

The Department of Homeland Security announced last week that TPS for Haitians will end Feb. 3, 2026, saying “Haiti no longer meets the statutory requirements for TPS.”

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem also urged Haitian TPS holders to prepare to “depart” if they have no other legal pathway to stay in the United States.

Residents said the impact will be immediate.

“Their jobs are on the line. The driving is on the line. Some of these people have cars, house, you know what,” one community member said.

Haitian immigration attorney Frandley Julien said families are scrambling for answers and running out of time.

“People are panicking, they don’t know what to do,” Julien said. “We have those mixed status families where you have a U.S. citizen spouse and the other spouse is on TPS — they don’t know what to do, what kind of decision they will have to come up with.”

He warns that most TPS holders will have few, if any, options to remain in the country.

“For the vast majority of TPS holders, there will be no options,” Julien said. “We tell them they need to consult with an estate planning attorney, because you may have decisions to make.”

Julien disputes the administration’s justification for ending TPS, saying conditions in Haiti have not improved.

“Haiti is in worst shape today than it has ever been at any TPS designation moment,” he said. “Definitely the administration is mischaracterizing the condition on the ground.”

He said immigration advocates plan to challenge the decision in court. But for thousands of Haitian families, the uncertainty is overwhelming.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

Understanding the True Cost of Everyday Indulgences And How To Save Money

By
Seattle Medium
-
Photo: peopleimages12 via 123RF

Finances FYI Presented by JPMorgan Chase

You’re not alone if you reach the end of the week or end of the month and wonder where your money goes.

If you’d like to save money, you may not realize how quickly everyday indulgences like a morning latte or takeout food add up — especially if you don’t track your expenses or follow a budget.

For example, the national average price for a latte is $5.46. If you buy one daily over a five-day work week, that’s $27.30 a week, or $1,419.60 for 52 weeks in one year.

If you’re constantly anxious about money, you may wonder how many other people share your struggles.

Let’s examine some financial stress statistics, crunch some more common daily expense costs, see how the money adds up, and offer some savings tips.

Over 40% of U.S. Adults Stress About Money

In a 2025 Money and Mental Health Bankrate survey, 43% of U.S. adults say money negatively affects their mental health, and 69% of those people say rising costs and inflation are the reason.

Plus, only 29% of respondents said they reviewed their budget. So, a lot of people aren’t tracking expenses.

Feeling stressed about finances makes sense when price increases and high inflation rates mean you’re paying more for things you previously bought for less, especially if you’re earning the same wage amidst the price hikes.

So, is there a way to take control of your money and get ahead?

Exploring the Costs of Everyday Indulgences

Tracking your daily expenses and becoming aware of what everyday or frequent indulgences cost is a crucial part of developing a solid savings plan.

Here are some average prices of everyday indulgences:

These average prices will vary by city and state, but they do serve as examples of common consumer purchases.

Photo: wavebreakmediamicro via 123RF

Do the Math to Calculate and Track Your Expenses

To get an idea of the actual cost you spend daily or weekly, log all your indulgent expenses into a budgeting app, write them down in a notebook, or record them in an electronic spreadsheet.

To calculate fast food expenses, for example, if you eat a fast food meal three times a week, at $11.56 on average, you are spending around $34.68 on fast food per week.

If you drink a morning latte each work day for five days at $5.46 a day for a total of $27.30 in a week, add in three fast food meals at $34.68, get a manicure for $20, and see a movie for $16.08, you are already spending $98.06, which only accounts for three meals out of seven days.

If you eat at more restaurants or have more takeout meals throughout the week, your food expenses increase.

Money-Saving Tips

The most obvious way to save money is to cut back the frequency of some of your indulgences, and leverage deals when you do enjoy them.

For example, have three lattes a week instead of five. Doing so will reduce your latte expense by an average of $10.92 per week.

Pack your lunch at home instead of opting for fast food or dining out, and take a can of soda to work instead of paying for a fountain soda.

Top Nutrition Coaching estimates that an inexpensive restaurant meal costs $16, while an average meal at home costs $4.23.

A fountain soda averages $3, and a single 12-oz. can averages .567 cents. If you drink five fountain sodas a week for $15, you can drink five cans for about $2.84 total.

That’s savings of about $12.16 per week or around $48.64 in a four-week month. If you opt to use a refillable water bottle and fill it at the tap at home instead of drinking soda, you save even more money.

Carpooling to work or taking public transportation saves money, fuel, and energy.

Finding grocery and restaurant coupons and deals, planning menus, and eating leftovers are other ways to save money.

For a long-term savings strategy, NerdWallet recommends following the 50/30/20 budget. With this plan, you allocate 50% of your take-home pay for rent and expenses, $30% for wants and entertainment, and 20% to repay debt and build savings.

The Bottom Line

Indulgences that seem small now add up quickly. Cutting back on frequency and taking advantage of discounts and deals can save money – and still allows you to occasionally enjoy a treat.

Also, by following a budget and savings strategy like 50/30/20, you can spend less and save more, which will help you achieve financial goals and reduce stress.

Finances FYI is presented by JPMorgan Chase. JPMorgan Chase is making a $30 billion commitment over the next five years to address some of the largest drivers of the racial wealth divide. 

Supreme Court Leans Toward Internet Service Providers In Copyright Battle With Nation’s Music Industry

By
Seattle Medium
-
The exterior of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on November 5, 2025. (Nathan Howard/Reuters via CNN Newsource)
The exterior of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on November 5, 2025. (Nathan Howard/Reuters via CNN Newsource)

By John Fritze, CNN

(CNN) — The Supreme Court appeared sympathetic Monday to an internet service provider locked in a copyright battle with the music industry that some warn could leave millions of Americans disconnected and turn companies that provide connectivity into “internet police.”

At issue are peer-to-peer file-sharing protocols like BitTorrent that allow users to download pirated music. The nation’s largest record labels are attempting to hold internet providers liable for copyright infringement because they declined to cut off online access to users they knew were downloading bootlegged music.

During nearly two hours of argument, the court appeared to be leaning toward the internet companies – perhaps on narrow grounds. The practical implications of the music industry’s position – such as potentially disconnecting members of group internet accounts or throttling the speed on university campuses – appeared to give at least a few of the justices pause.

“I just don’t see how it’s workable at all,” Justice Samuel Alito, a member of the court’s conservative wing, said at one point.

Cox Communications, an ISP that is appealing a ruling in favor of the music labels, warned the justices that making providers liable for the online conduct of customers would lead to a crackdown that would “yield mass evictions from the internet,” terminating connections at “homes, barracks, hospitals, and hotels, upon bare accusation” of copyright infringement by creators.

“The consequences of plaintiffs’ position are cataclysmic,” Joshua Rosenkranz, representing Cox, told the court, and would effectively require ISPs to “cut off the internet not just for the accused infringer but for anyone else who happens to use the same connection.”

That, Rosenkranz said, could mean shutting off access to “entire towns, universities or hospitals.”

Most of the court also posed challenging questions for Cox. In particular, Justice Amy Coney Barrett pressed the ISP on whether its theory would allow it to escape liability even if it refused to switch off access to users who were known to be engaged in child trafficking. Rosenkranz acknowledged that under his legal theory of the court’s earlier decisions, the company could not be held liable for aiding and abetting that activity.

Sony Music Entertainment and the other music companies that sued Cox say the ISP was more than an innocent bystander and was instead enabling “habitual offenders” to maximize profits. While Cox “waxes poetic” in its brief about the importance of the internet, Sony argued, “it neglects to mention that it had no qualms about terminating 619,711 subscribers for nonpayment over the same period that it terminated just 32” for serial copyright abuse.

Paul Clement, representing the music industry, argued that Cox is attempting to stoke fear by overstating the impact of cutting off people who are known infringers.

“If Cox is right on the law,” Clement said, “then Cox could take tens of thousands of copyright notices and throw them in the trash.”

The companies Clement represents hold the rights to many of America’s most recognizable singers and songwriters, according to legal papers, including Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Beyoncé, Eminem, Eric Clapton and Gloria Estefan.

Justice Neil Gorsuch, also a conservative, repeatedly suggested that his colleagues side narrowly with Cox and ask the lower court that ruled for the music industry to reconsider that decision under a different standard. Gorsuch said that the law around “secondary liability,” for companies providing a service to the public that is sometimes misused by the public, is murky.

“Isn’t that a flag on the field for us?” Gorsuch asked.

It’s also the case that the Supreme Court has repeatedly looked for narrow outcomes in cases with the potential to upend the internet.

“The internet is so amorphous,” said liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor, underscoring the potential unknown ramifications of requiring ISPs to cut off access to known copyright infringers.

“We’re being told that ISPs only know who their customer is, and their customer could be a region,” Sotomayor said, questioning the idea of cutting off the internet for “50,000 or 100,000 people” because “one person in that region continues to infringe.”

In a series of recent cases, the Supreme Court has declined to hold companies liable for aiding and abetting in other civil damages cases. In June, a unanimous court ruled that American gun manufacturers could not be held responsible for cartel violence on the Southwest border, even though their guns are often involved in those crimes.

Two years ago, the court unanimously ruled that Twitter, now X, could not be held liable for aiding and abetting terror attacks just because it had hosted tweets on its platform that were created by the terror group ISIS.

But in the Cox case, a jury sided against the ISPs and awarded the music companies a $1 billion verdict for the infringement of more than 10,000 copyrighted works.

An appeals court in Richmond, Virginia, tossed out the massive award but found Cox had engaged in “willful contributory infringement.” Cox appealed that decision to the Supreme Court.

The case has drawn attention from some of the nation’s most recognized internet companies, including Google and X, which are siding with the service providers. X argued in a brief that the appeals court ruling against Cox could “wreak havoc” on the tech industry and specifically on artificial intelligence.

X argued that if content creators are permitted to sue AI platforms when people use their technology to violate copyright law, the tech companies would “have no choice but to constrain their actions” to avoid the potential liability.

Several media companies, including Warner Bros. Discovery, have sued AI platforms alleging copyright infringement. (Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of CNN.)

In an interesting twist, the Supreme Court rejected a similar copyright appeal from the entertainment industry more than 40 years ago. In that case, Universal Studios challenged the maker of a new-fangled technology it feared would be widely used by Americans to engage in copyright infringement.

The technology at issue then was the Betamax videocassette recorder, or VCR.

A sharply divided Supreme Court ruled the sale of the equipment did not constitute a “contributory infringement” of Universal’s television programs.

The decision was a huge win for the maker of that technology, Sony Corp. of America — the parent company of the lead label now fighting the internet service providers at the Supreme Court.

This story and headline have been updated following oral arguments.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

Faith Leaders Rally Communities For A National Spending Blackout

By
Seattle Medium
-
Pastors are leading the call for a halt in holiday shopping to show that Black America won’t invest in businesses that don’t invest in us. (Credit: Getty/MRS)
Pastors are leading the call for a halt in holiday shopping to show that Black America won’t invest in businesses that don’t invest in us. (Credit: Getty/MRS)

by Rev. Dorothy S. Boulware

It’s November 26, and some people are already having withdrawal from not being able to shop on Amazon and various other outlets. I’m not one of those people, but I’ve heard tell.

Community and faith leaders across the country have banded together to extend the economic blackout. Black people and people who love justice are asked to withhold their dollars from Nov. 25 through Dec. 2 to allow the economy to feel the power citizens wield with their dollars.

“We Ain’t Buying It,” originally announced on Nov. 11, is circulating on social media to encourage people to hold onto their money for seven days. “No Target, no Home Depot, and no Amazon due to their support of harmful policies,” organizers suggest. Instead, the movement encourages deleting shopping apps, donating to mutual aid, and supporting small businesses; it also offers a QR code that leads to a toolkit, petitions, and resources. 

Having had an impact on Target with the ongoing boycott that began in the Spring, people are encouraged to keep it going with the hope that Target might revert back and keep its original commitment of $2 billion to Black businesses.

Redirecting Our Dollars

At the inception of the Target Fast in April, Dr. Jamal Bryant, senior pastor of New Birth Baptist Church in Atlanta and a fast initiator, declared, “We will not finance our own betrayal,” calling the action a redirect rather than a boycott. 

“We’re asking people to spend specifically with Black businesses; not to not buy but to buy with Black businesses…I hope that Black companies in America will recognize the $2 trillion worth of spending power that Black people have. What is the impact when we unify our own ecosystem?”

‘No Black Friday This Year, Unless it’s Truly Black’

In his Nov. 22 Five Minutes delivered to his Trinity Chicago congregation, Senior Pastor Dr. Otis Moss III said, “We are calling our village to be deliberate with your dollars. As a community, we have over $1.7 trillion of spending power. As a village, we are calling on you, as a member of this community, to not only place your dollars in Black-owned, Latino-owned, locally-owned businesses.” Instead, he encouraged people to shop at locally owned markets. 

And Moss was adamant: “No Black Friday this year, unless it’s truly Black. 

Do not shop at Target, Walmart, or any major corporate chain.”

Moss pointed out that his congregation should “Think through where you are going to eat ahead of time, and where you can purchase and utilize your dollars appropriately. 
A 5% reduction is enough for corporate stakeholders and investors to raise questions with leadership, about their direction and their vision. Ask the question, is this company supporting my community? Does this company support DEI? Let this be a week where we create new habits, liberation habits.”

‘Our Dollars Are Our Democracy’

LaTosha Brown, co-founder of Black Voters Matter, told Forbes that boycotters are “united in a powerful message: our dollars are our democracy too. This is a multicultural, multigenerational economic action where everyday people are reclaiming our power as consumers and investors. We will no longer invest in companies that invest against us.”

Brown also told Yahoo News, “We ain’t buying that the wealthiest country in the world will punish the poor during the holiday season by withholding SNAP benefits. We ain’t buying that families can be torn apart and people kidnapped off the streets by masked ICE agents. We ain’t buying that DEI and racial justice commitments can be tossed aside at the whims of political convenience. And we ain’t buying that corporations are powerless in all of this.” 

Seattle Torrent Sets Attendance Record At Home Opener Against Minnesota Frost

By
Seattle Medium
-

The Seattle Torrent’s home opener against the Minnesota Frost on Friday night made history by setting a new attendance record for professional women’s hockey in the United States. The game, held at Climate Pledge Arena—home to the NHL’s Seattle Kraken—attracted an impressive crowd of 16,014 fans, surpassing the previous record of 14,288 set during a neutral-site game in Detroit last season.

Despite the record-breaking turnout, the Torrent faced a tough challenge on the ice, succumbing to the Frost with a score of 3-0. This victory marked the first win of the season for the back-to-back champions, while the Torrent, who had previously lost their first game in overtime 4-3, found themselves still searching for their first victory of the 2025-26 season.

The recent game is particularly significant as it highlights the growth of the Premier Hockey Federation (PWHL), which expanded ahead of its third season by adding new teams in Seattle and Vancouver. The surge in attendance at the home opener is a testament to the league’s successful westward expansion strategy and the growing interest in women’s hockey.

Just a week prior, the Vancouver Goldeneyes made their debut by selling out the Pacific Coliseum with 14,958 fans, setting a record for the largest crowd at a regular PWHL home venue—until the Torrent’s opener. Additionally, Seattle’s inaugural jersey sales on October 21 achieved the highest single-day sales in PWHL history, with Vancouver closely following in ticket demand, leading the league in season ticket sales. Seattle ranks third, just behind Toronto.

The PWHL’s expansion and increasing fan engagement have not gone unnoticed, as executive vice president of business operations, Amy Scheer, hinted at the possibility of adding two to four more teams by next season. This announcement came during her address to the Ottawa city council last month, reflecting the league’s ambition to grow further.

As the season progresses, the Seattle Torrent and the PWHL continue to showcase the evolving landscape of women’s hockey, with fan support and attendance setting new milestones along the way. The excitement surrounding the league indicates a promising future for women’s sports, as more fans engage with their local teams and the sport gains traction across the country.

Reverend Jesse Jackson’s Leadership: A Beacon Of Hope And Resilience

By
Seattle Medium
-

By Ben Jealous

(Trice Edney Wire) – News of the Reverend Jesse Jackson’s health struggles has stirred many. It has me praying. And it has me remembering the hard lessons he taught, shaped in the trenches of our people’s ongoing fight for freedom.

Look around the world, and it is easy to find charismatic voices rising amid liberation movements. Black America has been blessed with such figures across generations—perhaps because we have been cursed with a freedom struggle that never really ends.

Through all that pain and hope, for nearly half a century, our most consequential and transformative leader has been the Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr.

Some dismiss his leadership as style over substance. “Keep Hope Alive!” they say. Sometimes with reverence. Sometimes half-mockingly. When I hear that latter tone, I’m reminded how privileged a life one must lead to think hope is just a slogan and not sacred labor.

They don’t understand the discipline it takes to help a people—or a nation—maintain hope in the face of adversity.

Last summer, at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Reverend Jackson invited me to join him and his family in their box. I sat beside my old mentor and friend, holding his hand as Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the nomination for president.

The symbolism of the location for the night was unmistakable. We were in the city that sent Barack Obama to the White House. But we were also in the city that decades before Turn that empowered Jesse Jackson to show America the question was no longer whether it would elect a Black president—but when.

He demonstrated that truth not only through his presidential campaigns in 1984 and 1988—campaigns that broke ceilings and forged coalitions—but through the generations of leaders he encouraged and inspired.

The year after his last presidential run, Virginia elected its first Black governor, L. Douglas Wilder. New York elected its first Black mayor, David Dinkins. Both publicly named Jackson as someone who helped make their possibilities real.

And just this past January, at Chicago’s Martin Luther King Day celebration, his impact was visible from City Hall to the state Capitol—a reminder that his legacy is not nostalgia, but political infrastructure.

A decade earlier, I was one of the few Black partners at any Silicon Valley venture-capital firm. I was told there had only been 36 Black men to hold such positions in the history of the Valley.

Then Reverend Jackson showed up. He stood before the boards of some of the largest technology companies in the world and told them plainly they needed to open their doors—not because it was charity, but because it was smart business.

Firms that had never once hired African-American investors began doing so soon after. I asked one top executive if Jackson’s public and private confrontations of their leaders had influenced that shift. He didn’t hesitate: “He’s right. We need to change.”

That’s the core of Jackson’s leadership—not just breaking barriers himself, but inspiring others to do so. He helped ordinary people see themselves as leaders and compelled those with resources to recognize their responsibility.

In doing so, he became a beacon of hope and taught others to be beacons themselves.

He continues to model that courageous hope even now. His leadership lessons still empower others to help transform our world for the better.

In 2010, Reverend Jackson and I led a delegation of African American leaders to Senegal to mark the 50th anniversary of its independence. Nearly every head of state on the continent was present—including some notorious for human rights abuses.

I froze, unsure how to engage them. Jackson did not. He walked forward, shaking their hands and hugging each with warmth.

Later I pulled him aside. “I don’t see how I can do that,” I told him.

He looked me in the eye. “Someday somebody’s parent or wife will call me,” he said. “A soldier. A missionary. A businessperson. And they will want help getting their loved one free. How will I be able to convince that president to free them if he doesn’t know that I love and respect him as my brother?”

It was a lesson in diplomacy that changed everything for me. But it was more than diplomacy. It was a Christian pastor living out Jesus’s commandment to “love your neighbor as yourself.”

This wasn’t sentimentality. It was strategy. Integrity. Faith turned into action.

I stepped back into that room and greeted every leader there—without judgment, without reservation. Not because each had earned it, but because transformation requires it.

Because hope demands it. Because, as Jackson taught, the work is helping each other become our best—and never giving up on the faith that each of us can do better tomorrow than we did yesterday.

As Reverend Jackson fights to regain his strength in Chicago, his lesson stands: hope is not a feeling you wait for. It is a discipline you practice.

And he is still teaching us—by living it—that no matter how dark the moment may be, we must keep hope alive by continuing to fight for a better day.

Ben Jealous is a professor of practice at the University of Pennsylvania and a former national president and CEO of the NAACP.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Lawyers Send Cease-And-Desist To Netflix, Claim Docuseries Produced By 50 Cent Uses ‘Stolen’ Footage

By
Seattle Medium
-
Sean Combs arrives at the Beverly Hilton Hotel In January 2020. (Mark Von Holden/Invision//AP/File via CNN Newsource)
Sean Combs arrives at the Beverly Hilton Hotel In January 2020. (Mark Von Holden/Invision//AP/File via CNN Newsource)

By Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN

(CNN) — On the eve of Netflix releasing a highly anticipated docuseries about Sean “Diddy” Combs — produced by his longtime foe Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson — the embattled mogul’s lawyers have sent a cease-and-desist letter to the streaming giant, demanding it not release “Sean Combs: The Reckoning.”

In a statement provided to CNN, a spokesperson for Combs also accused Netflix of using “stolen footage that was never authorized for release” in what they called a “shameful hit piece.”

The footage that Combs’ representative is referring to is shown in Netflix’s official trailer for the project, which was released on Monday morning.

“We need to find someone who will work with us who has worked in the dirtiest of dirty businesses,” Combs says in the one-minute trailer. “We are losing.”

Combs spokesperson Juda Engelmayer told CNN that Combs has been continuously filming himself for decades in an effort to chronicle his life for an eventual documentary. Engelmayer explained that the footage seen in Netflix’s trailer, which was filmed six days before Combs’ September 2024 arrest, was part of that documentary effort.

“Sean was making his own documentary since he was 19 years old. This footage was commissioned as part of it,” Engelmayer told CNN on Monday via email.

Engelmayer told CNN that neither Combs, who is serving a four-year sentence after a jury delivered a mixed verdict in his federal trial, nor his team has seen the Netflix docuseries in advance.

“We will see it tonight. Neither Netflix, nor Mr. Jackson were kind enough to offer us a screener,” Engelmayer said.

In response to CNN’s request for comment, a spokesperson for Netflix referred CNN to a statement from the docuseries’ director, Alexandra Stapleton, who said the filmmaking team obtained the footage legally.

“It came to us, We obtained the footage legally and have the necessary rights,” Stapleton said. “We moved heaven and earth to keep the filmmaker’s identity confidential. One thing about Sean Combs is that he’s always filming himself, and it’s been an obsession throughout the decades. We also reached out to Sean Combs’ legal team for an interview and comment multiple times, but did not hear back.”

In their cease-and-desist letter, attorneys for Combs threaten to take further legal action, writing on Monday, “As you are undoubtedly aware, Mr. Combs has not hesitated to take legal action against media entities and others who violate his rights, and he will not hesitate to do so against Netflix.”

Combs previously filed a $100 million defamation suit against NBCUniversal for a documentary on Combs that it aired on Peacock, “Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy.”

In Combs’ statement regarding the overall documentary, his team said Netflix and its CEO, Ted Sarandos, were aware that Combs “has been amassing footage since he was 19 to tell his own story, in his own way” and say “it is fundamentally unfair, and illegal, for Netflix to misappropriate that work.”

The statement added that it was “equally staggering” that the company worked with Jackson for the documentary as he is “a longtime adversary with a personal vendetta who has spent too much time slandering Mr. Combs.”

CNN has reached out to a representative for Jackson for comment.

Jackson, meanwhile, continues to poke fun and take aim at Combs on social media, posting frequently on Monday about Combs on his Instagram.

Combs was sentenced to 50 months (roughly four years) this summer by a judge after a two-month trial ended with him being convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs was acquitted by a jury of the more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering, for which he was facing decades and possibly life in prison if convicted.

He had been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since his September 2024 arrest. In late October, Combs was transferred to Fort Dix, a low-security federal prison in New Jersey.

Combs is appealing his conviction and sentence.

His defense previously told CNN that they had approached President Donald Trump’s administration about a potential pardon.

Combs is also facing roughly 70 civil lawsuits where most of the dozens of accusers — some of whom were minors at the time of the alleged incidents — claim they were drugged and sexually assaulted by Combs.

Combs has denied all of the civil claims. Some of the lawsuits have been dismissed.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

It’s Time To Fund HBCUs For Both Today And Tomorrow

By
Seattle Medium
-
Student Freedom Initiative’s Keith B. Shoates puts it plainly: HBCUs face a massive endowment gap that we must close. (Credit: Getty/CRobertson)
Student Freedom Initiative’s Keith B. Shoates puts it plainly: HBCUs face a massive endowment gap that we must close. (Credit: Getty/CRobertson)

In higher education, a strong endowment is often seen as the ultimate marker of stability. It allows institutions to plan confidently for the future, attract top talent, and weather economic storms. But for the nation’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), endowment disparities remain a stark reminder of how centuries of inequity continue to shape the present.   

The top 10 largest endowments from Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs) and top 10 HBCUs in 2024 were $336 billion and $2.6 billion, respectively, representing a drastic 129-to-1 endowment ratio. While the endowments at 226 PWIs exceed $1 billion, Howard University became the first HBCU to achieve this milestone last year, and only eight HBCUs have endowments over $1 million. 

HBCUs Produce Extraordinary Results

For generations, HBCUs have delivered extraordinary results with far fewer resources. Though they represent only about 3% of U.S. colleges and universities, they produce nearly 20% of Black college graduates, including 40% of Black engineers and members of Congress, 70% of Black doctors, and 50% of Black teachers. However, the average endowment at an HBCU remains a fraction of that at predominantly white institutions.

This gap is not the result of a lack of institutional will or alumni loyalty. It’s rooted in structural inequities. The white-Black wealth gap, which currently stands at 6-to-1, means Black alumni have historically had less to give, while state and federal funding formulas have often left HBCUs shortchanged. As a result, many schools operate with limited financial cushions, making it harder to invest in infrastructure, innovate for the future, respond to crises, or meet the financial needs of their students.

Why Endowments Matter

Endowments play a critical role in changing that trajectory. They are restricted funds, designed to be invested so that only a portion of the returns are used each year. The principal stays intact, creating a permanent source of income to support scholarships, faculty development, and long-term initiatives. Growing these funds is essential for increased HBCU competitiveness and resilience.

Thankfully, we’re starting to see momentum. In recent years, several major efforts have recognized that strengthening HBCU endowments is an investment in the nation’s economic future. Earlier this year, MacKenzie Scott contributed $70 million to the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) to bolster its Members Pooled Endowment Fund, designed to strengthen the long-term financial health of UNCF’s member institutions. Another example is the partnership between Base10 Partners, a venture capital firm, and Student Freedom Initiative, the organization I lead. Together, we’ve expanded the investment options available to HBCU endowments by lowering barriers to entry, fees, and holding periods.

These efforts are transformative. They help institutions build financial foundations that can support generations of students. However, as we celebrate these wins, it’s important to recognize what endowments cannot do in the short term.

HBCUs Also Need Flexible, Unrestricted Support

Because endowments are restricted, they don’t offer immediate flexibility. They can’t easily be tapped to address urgent needs like modernizing campus cybersecurity, replacing outdated labs, reducing student loan debt, or closing the digital divide that still leaves too many students behind. For that, HBCUs need something just as powerful – unrestricted and flexible funds that can be deployed quickly, strategically, and with impact. 

To help fill this gap, MacKenzie Scott provided $560 million in 2020 and $700 million in 2025 in unrestricted funds to HBCUs to address HBCU-identified priorities. This is also where Student Freedom Initiative and its entire slate of wraparound services come in.

How Student Freedom Initiative Fills Critical Gaps

SFI was created to complement efforts to strengthen HBCUs financially by providing the kinds of support that build institutional capacity and expand student opportunity today. Our mission is to remove financial, technological, and structural barriers that limit student and institutional freedom.

We accomplish this through programs designed in partnership with HBCUs. Our Student Freedom Loan Agreement offers an affordable alternative to high-interest private and Parent PLUS loans. internXL connects students to paid internships and career pathways in fields where they’ve been historically underrepresented. Our cybersecurity programhas fortified campus systems, helping to safeguard over $1.5 billion in federal funding.

We’re also investing in career pathways, affordable campus and community housing, and broadband expansion, all critical infrastructure that strengthens schools themselves. And, we provide microgrants that help students overcome emergencies that might otherwise derail their education.

These investments complement the endowment-building work already underway by giving schools and students the flexibility to innovate and compete. They make the process of growing endowments more effective because institutions supported today will be stronger, more stable, and more competitive tomorrow.

If we want HBCUs to endure and expand their impact, we need to grow the endowments and invest in flexibility. One builds the foundation, while the other builds scaffolding that allows the foundation to remain strong under pressure.

The recent surge in HBCU philanthropy is encouraging, but there’s more to do. Every donor, corporate partner, and policymaker who believes in the transformative power of these institutions should think not just about the size of their gift, but about its structure. Endowments fuel the future. Unrestricted funds power the present.

Invest in the Long-Term Freedom of HBCUs

At Student Freedom Initiative, we believe the path to equity requires both. Our programs are designed to complement efforts to grow HBCU endowments. Together, they create a financial ecosystem that’s sustainable, responsive, and capable of supporting students and institutions for generations to come.

If we want HBCUs to thrive rather than just survive, now is the time to act. This Giving Tuesday, I invite you to look beyond the traditional notion of giving as charity and see it as a transformational investment in equity, innovation, and freedom. When you support institutions like Student Freedom Initiative, you help expand opportunity for students and strengthen the capacity of the schools that serve them. Your support translates directly into affordable financing options, cutting-edge campus infrastructure, and the tools students need to compete in today’s economy.

We’ve seen what’s possible when philanthropy aligns with purpose. Let’s continue that momentum this Giving Tuesday. When HBCUs have the freedom to flourish, they don’t just change individual lives – they change the entire nation.

Keith B. Shoates is president and CEO of Student Freedom Initiative.

Sean Paul Helps Jamaica Rebuild After Hurricane Melissa

By
Seattle Medium
-

by Jennifer Porter Gore

Sean Paul had seen nothing like it. 

The internationally-known rapper and singer was touring the Jamaican countryside, not long after Hurricane Melissa — a massive Category 5 hurricane packing drenching rain and wind gusts exceeding 200 miles per hour — tore through the western part of the lush island nation. Amid the demolished homes and snapped power poles Melissa left in her wake, however, Paul was particularly struck by one indicator of the devastation the deadly storm inflicted on his home country.

“I keep saying to people, ‘There’s no leaves on the trees, for miles and miles,’” says Paul, who is on the ground to support ongoing recovery efforts on the island. “I’ve never seen that before.”

Some trees “look sun-blasted, like driftwood at a lake,” he says. ”So you can imagine seeing the houses just splattered over the hills.”   

With hit songs like “Gimme the Light” and “Temperature,” and fans on every continent, Paul, the musician considered a worldwide ambassador of Jamaican music, is using his resources to help his countrymen and women. Together with Angelie Spencer, a former Miss Jamaica, Paul is also using his star power to keep global attention on the country’s long, difficult road to recovery. 

“I’m asking all my fans, friends, and supporters worldwide: If you can, please give what you can,” says the dancehall artist born Sean Paul Ryan Henriques. 

Paul and Spencer took the time to speak with Word In Black about their work.

Dancehall artist helps disaster relief workers cleanup damage caused when Hurricane Melissa struck Jamaica on Oct. 28, 2025. Credit: Sean Paul Foundation / Extreme Weather Survivors. Video Produced by Shernay Williams / Word In Black.

Hurricane Melissa: A Monster Storm

When Melissa made landfall in Jamaica on October 28, the destruction was swift and brutal. The hurricane — one of the strongest ever recorded in the region — unleashed sustained winds of 185 mph. It also slammed the region with a record-setting wind gust of 252 mph. 

The monster storm drowned communities with 1.5 to 2 feet of rainfall, and triggered widespread flooding and landslides across the island. Storm surge from the hurricane reached more than 9 feet in some areas. 

An aerial view shows destroyed buildings following the passage of Hurricane Melissa, in Black River, St. Elizabeth, Jamaica on October 29, 2025. Photo by RICARDO MAKYN/AFP via Getty Images

As the wind and water receded, the scale of the devastation became apparent. The storm severely damaged or destroyed roughly 116,000 buildings and displaced as many as 25,000 people. It ruined tens of thousands of farms and caused power outages across the island.

Now, authorities and national agencies are in a race against time to restore basic services, clear debris, and continue assessing the damage to homes, roads, and the Jamaican economy. Tourism is the country’s leading revenue source.

As the cleanup continues, public health officials have raised alarms over the growing disease threat from mosquitoes, rodents, and unclean water. In November, the Jamaican government declared an outbreak of leptospirosis — a bacterial infection often linked to flood-contaminated water and soil that has killed at least six people.

Emergency shelters have been set up for displaced families, and social-support groups are coordinating the delivery of food, hygiene kits, and temporary housing materials. In addition to helping provide food and clothing, Paul and Spencer are helping rebuild infrastructure such as houses, roads, and solar-powered electricity. 

Bringing Light and Food

Paul and Spencer have been on the ground since the island’s airports reopened shortly after the storm. Spencer, who was crowned Miss Jamaica in 1994, is a humanitarian focused on advocacy, community rebuilding, and supporting vulnerable families across Jamaica.

Light and electric power is “pretty well sold out in a lot of places now in Jamaica,” says Spencer. “So, anybody who wants to [can] send things from the States — solar fans, solar lights–because we always have sunshine, so at least those will charge up, and they have a little bit of light.”

Together with a local nonprofit, Paul’s foundation has issued a plea for his fans worldwide to contribute to relief efforts. In a heartfelt Instagram post from his home in Kingston, he pledged to match every dollar donated to the fund, up $50,000. 

“Through the Sean Paul Foundation, we’ve partnered with Food For The Poor Jamaica to bring relief directly to those affected,” he wrote.

“I have to commend the Jamaica public service, because they’re really going hard trying to restore, but there’s a lot to do,” Spencer says. “Every line is down. Concrete poles that were in the middle of the street — they’re gone. All the light poles are down, the wires are gone.”

Paul says the challenges are steep, but he is confident the area can recover. 

“With all these places, we’re giving out the care packages [and] we’re getting the water and the solar and styling it so that it can be a hub,” he says. “And you know, the economy in those areas can start back.” 

Paul’s organization has also teamed up with World Central Kitchen, the internationally recognized nonprofit that works with local restaurants to feed hungry people during times of crisis. 

“[Their] objective is to get little areas back up and self-sufficient on their own,” Paul says. “So, they’re working with 30 different restaurants in Jamaica, and they’re also cooking themselves over 2 million meals right now.”  

Sometimes, “I’m giving them rice or food stuff, and they can’t wash their hands. And so, the hot meal is appreciated,” Paul adds.  “After a while, we can start moving out of these communities once they’re self-sufficient. World Central Kitchen and Food for the Poor, Jamaica, are just doing great work.” 

“Every donation counts, no matter how small. Together, we can make a big difference.” 

Paul and Spencer are encouraging donations through Food for the Poor, Jamaica and World Central Kitchen.

1234...3,653Page 3 of 3,653

© 2024, Tiloben Publishing Co., Inc. All Rights Reserved.

About Us

Popular Category

Info