Current Events
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A South Carolina man who was recognized as the king of an African village was stabbed on Monday (July 29) later succumbing to the wounds. Police have arrested the suspect but details are still largely being kept under wraps as the village prepares to properly bury the leader.
Oba Adegbolu Abiogemo Adejuyigbe Egunjobi Oyewole Adefunmi II was the king of Oyotunji African Village, located near Sheldon, Beaufort County in South Carolina. Oyotunji was founded in 1970 by Oba Efuntola Oseijeman Adelabu Adefunmi I.
According to a report from local outlet WJCL, reports of the stabbing Monday came in around 2:45 local time according to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office’s communications team. Adefunmi was taken to a local hospital and died from the stab wounds.
A suspect, Akiba Kasale Meredith, 53, has been identified by the authorities and it now facing murder charges. According to the accounts delivered by BCSO officials, Meredith fled the area on foot but was later apprehended after walking back to the scene of the crime. A motive has not been established.
Source: Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office / BCSO
Officials at the Oyotunji African Village site have decided to speak with the press after completing proper burial services for Adefunmi.
Oba Adegbolu Abiogemo Adejuyigbe Egunjobi Oyewole Adefunmi II was 47.
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Photo: Allen Funerals
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Source: The Washington Post / Getty
Vice President Kamala Harris called out Donald Trump during her campaign rally in Atlanta for declining to debate her in September.
On Tuesday evening (July 30), before a crowd of 10,000 at the Georgia State Convention Center, Vice President Kamala Harris called out Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump for declining to debate her in September. The presumptive Democratic nominee spelled it out plainly, saying: “You may have noticed he pulled out of the debate,” she began. “The momentum in this race is shifting, and there are signs that Donald Trump is feeling it. Well Donald, I do hope you’ll reconsider to meet me on the debate stage, because as the saying goes, if you’ve got something to say, say it to my face,” Harris finished, with the crowd wildly roaring in approval. Harris has said she will be at the Sept. 10 debate.
Trump has refused to commit to debating Vice President Harris after President Joe Biden decided not to run for reelection and endorsed Harris to be the Democratic presidential nominee. His campaign team has gone on record saying it would be “inappropriate” since the Democratic Party could change their minds and not officially nominate Harris at their convention in Chicago beginning Aug. 15. Trump had agreed to two debates against President Biden, with the first moderated by CNN on June 27. However, he has also called for the second debate to be moved from ABC News to Fox News, saying in an interview with Laura Ingraham that he doesn’t “like rewarding fake news” in addition to insulting host George Stephanopoulos. “I don’t like that ABC is going to get rich,” he added.
The enthusiasm for Harris as the Democratic nominee has potentially given Trump and his team cause for worry. According to reports, recent polls have shown that the vice president has dramatically wiped out leads that Trump has had in key battleground states. Harris alluded to that throughout her speech at the rally, which also featured Hip-Hop stars lending their support to Vice President Harris. Quavo talked at length about her support to institute laws to prevent gun violence. “You can’t understand the struggles of gun violence if you’re not in the field or in the heart of it. One thing I learned about working with Vice President Harris is she’s always standing on business,” he said. Megan Thee Stallion was also present, performing a mini-concert for all in attendance.
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Source: Justin Sullivan / Getty
For years we’ve been told that eating foods like bologna, hot dogs, and other kinds of ultra processed foods are horrible for your health. Now, we’ve gotten some more incentive to avoid the delicious deli meats as Boar’s Head is recalling a lot of their products from your neighborhood markets and bodegas.
According to the Detroit Free Press, Boar’s Head has announced that they’ve recalled more than seven million pounds worth of ready-to-eat-meats and poultry products due to fears of possible listeria contamination. The news comes just days after they recalled an initial 270,000 pounds of meat for the same exact reason for their Strassburger Brand Liverwurst products that were made in Virginia on the same line during the same day.
The Detroit Free Press reports:
A liverwurst sample collected by the Maryland Department of Health, “tested positive for the outbreak strain of Listeria monocytogenes,” according to FSIS alert. Meat intended for slicing at retail delis and some packaged meat and poultry products sold at retail locations are also being recalled.
The products have sell-by dates ranging from July 29, 2024 through Oct. 17, 2024 and were distributed to retail locations nationwide with some exported to the Cayman Islands, Dominican Republic, Mexico and Panama. The products shipped to retailers have the establishment number “EST. 12612” or “P-12612” inside the USDA mark of inspection on the product labels.
According to a Boar’s Head website July 30 message to customers, and out of an abundance of caution, the company voluntarily expanded the recall to all items produced at its Jarrett Virginia, facility. Boar’s Head also said they’ve “paused ready-eat-operations” at the facility until further notice.
We hope consumers take notice of the recall and check their Boar’s Head products before consuming them and ending up with a fever or a bad case of diarrhea. If you happen to be in possession of one of their recalled products, it is recommended that you thoroughly clean your refrigerators to prevent cross-contamination with your other produces on your shelves.
Yeah, it’s that real.
With that being said, be safe eating that “harmless” sandwich, y’all. You might end up paying for it one way or another.
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Source: Julia Beverly / Getty / Megan Thee Stallion
Some people believe Megan Thee Stallion’s performance at Kamala Harris’ presidential rally in Atlanta was a bit too much.
Last night, the energy in the race for the White House truly shifted for the better for Democrats after 20,000+ reportedly packed a Georgia arena to hear VP Kamala Harris lay the groundwork for the first four years of Harris’s administration and warn us what’s at stake.
Before VP Harris took the stage, the excited attendees heard from an all-star lineup of political figures, including Senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossof, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, and Stacey Abrams, who was instrumental in flipping normally conservative state blue and helping President Joe Biden win the 2020 presidential election.
The event was also Harris’ campaign attempt to energize the youth vote, so it shouldn’t shock anyone. That’s why Quavo, a former ATL rap stable The Migos member, was in attendance.
Quavo has also been a staunch advocate of gun reform after his nephew and fellow Migos member, Takeoff, was viciously gunned down in 2022.
But outside Harris’ fantastic speech that left us with many soundbites, folks have been talking about Megan Thee Stallion’s performance, and it is now the subject of respectability politics discussions on timelines.
Dressed in a blue pantsuit that fit her to perfection, flanked by her background dancers, the Houston rapper hit the stage to perform a medley of hit records while performing the same dance routines fans who have attended her tour have seen.
Respectability Politics Takes Centerstage In The Social Media Discussion
Following the performance, people have accused VP Harris’ campaign of “pandering” and also called Thee Stallion’s performance distasteful and inappropriate for a political rally.
“All the Democratic Party feels like they have to do is have someone shake ass on the stage to get bp’s vote. Ghetto!” one person on Twitter, formerly X, wrote.
Jason Lee, a man who makes a living off spreading gossip, mainly about Black people in the entertainment industry, also did not like the Houston rapper’s performance, somehow equating it to Trump having rappers at his rally.
Bruh.
X has been dragging Lee for his comment about Thee Stallion situation, calling him out for giving Jonathan Majors a “Perseverance Award.”
Are People Missing The Point In Focusing On Megan Thee Stallion’s Performance?
For those complaining about Megan Thee Stallion’s performance and claiming the rally was a “missed opportunity” to focus on policy, one post from a user on X perfectly shut that argument down.
“The Harris campaign will use many methods to cast as wide a net as possible for potential voters. Some will appeal to you and some won’t. That’s fine. But please don’t get all “We want policy, not twerking!!!” when the policy was right there. Before and after that performance,” the tweet read.
Proud K-Hive member and popular social media political commentator 2RawTooReal also had time for those using Megan Thee Stallion’s performance to drag down Harris’ rally.
Honestly, the Harris campaign knew what they were getting by asking Megan Thee Stallion to perform at the rally. Also, Thee Stallion is out here doing the work, talking about issues like body autonomy and helping the people of her home state.
Just saying.
You can see more reactions in the gallery below.
2. That part
3. Truuuuueeee
6. Nope, definitely not
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Source: Jason Armond / Getty
Vice President Kamala Harris will not be appearing at the NABJ Convention, as organizers deal with the backlash of Donald Trump being invited to speak there.
According to reports, Vice President Kamala Harris will not attend the annual convention of the National Association of Black Journalists taking place in Chicago. The news comes as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is slated to appear at the convention, sparking a massive backlash and online debate. A source close to the negotiations between the NABJ and Harris’ campaign team confirmed that the vice president’s schedule as her presidential election campaign is building up steam is preventing her from being physically present.
In a statement released on Wednesday morning (July 31), NABJ President Ken Lemon said that the “last update” they had received was that Vice President Harris “would not be available in person or virtually during our Convention.” Another source said that the NABJ had declined the suggestion from Harris’ team for a virtual panel initially, but is now fervently working to convince them to take part in a virtual town hall, claiming her appearance is “pending”. Another factor in the vice president not appearing at the convention, which begins on Wednesday and ends August 4 is her attendance at the funeral of the late Sheila Jackson-Lee, the longtime Congresswoman from Texas.
The NABJ is also dealing with the outrage from journalists and observers over the panel featuring Trump, which will be moderated by Fox News’s Harris Faulkner, ABC News senior congressional correspondent Rachel Scott, and Semafor politics reporter Kadia Goba and was announced 48 hours before the convention’s start. NABJ’s political journalism chair, Tia Mitchell, defended the decision in a post on X, formerly Twitter, writing: “I helped make this call. And it’s in line with invitations NABJ has sent to every presidential candidate for decades. But continue to go off on your feed. I’ll continue to work to create opportunities for journalists to interview the potential next President.”
Critics point to Trump’s history of demeaning Black people and his disregard for Black people in the past as a reason to disqualify him from appearing. “If a super conservative white woman can’t get straight answers out of him, what makes you think that three Black women are going to get them?”, journalist Matthew Wright said to The Guardian, citing Trump’s recent interview with Laura Ingraham.
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Simone Biles achieved a remarkable feat during the 2024 Summer Olympics, becoming the most decorated U.S. Olympic gymnast in history. After making the historic mark, Simone Biles subtly hit back at former gymnast MyKayla Skinner Harmer, who made disparaging comments about the work ethic of Team USA.
Simone Biles, 27, and the U.S. women’s gymnastics team captured gold which adds to Biles hefty medal total. As reported by NBC Olympics, Biles has five gold medals, bypassing Shannon Miller. In all, Biles owns eight Olympic medals in total.
Much has been made of the age of the women’s gymnastics team, especially after they won silver as a team at the 2020 Summer Olympics. Fellow gymnasts Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey, and Hezly Rivera join Biles in becoming the fourth American gymnastics team in history to win gold in the Olympics.
Biles, who suffered the “twisties” during the vault event at the 2020 Tokyo Games, landed her vault in Paris with confidence and beaming pride. While one announcer called her vault, quote, “safe,” it was clear that whatever fears and concerns Biles had before are now behind her.
“I was like, phew, at least no flashbacks or anything,” Biles said. “I did feel a lot of relief and after I landed vault I was like, ‘Oh yeah, we’re definitely going to do this.’”
And “do this” they did.
The win is a direct jab back at Skinner Harmer, this after the Olympic silver medalist posted a now-deleted YouTube video saying, “Besides Simone, I feel like the talent and the depth just isn’t like what it used to be. Just notice like, I mean, obviously a lot of girls don’t work as hard.”
Skinner Harmer has since apologized by Biles isn’t letting it go as evidenced in the Instagram post below.
Further, Biles took to Twitter to share the team’s real nickname after the F Around And Find Out team name went wide.
“[O]kay on the real though, the official team name is golden girls (because oldest olympic team) s/o to cecile,” Biles wrote on X.
Although we can’t confirm it, it appears that Skinner Harmer blocked Biles on X after the win. Check out the assumed jab below.
Congratulations to Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey, and Hezly Rivera! Keep scrolling for comments from X.
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Photo: Getty
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Source: Eyepix Group / Getty
Days after it was reported that U.S. authorities apprehended two of Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel top bosses (Joaquín Guzmán López and Ismael Zambada García), details about the arrest are coming to light, and they are simply raising more questions than answers.
According to the New York Times, it seems like El Chapo’s son, Joaquín Guzmán López, actually kidnapped and forced his underling Ismael Zambada García to accompany him on the ill-fated (for them) flight from Mexico to Texas, where authorities were waiting for them to touch down before putting both men into custody. Why López would take such action is the million dollar question, especially since Garcia had been on the run for quite some time.
Still, López did what he did and apparently he tricked Garcia into a meeting that ended up being his last moments in Mexico.
The New York Times reports:
Mr. Zambada García, one of his country’s most wanted men, had come down from a hide-out in the mountains last week and was ambushed in the Mexican city of Culiacán at what he thought would be a friendly meeting with Mr. Guzmán López, according to three federal law enforcement officials who spoke anonymously to discuss sensitive details of the case. Mr. Guzmán López then forcibly flew Mr. Zambada García in a Beechcraft King Air turboprop across the border, where he was apprehended by U.S. federal agents, the officials said.
That version of events echoed one that was recently offered by Mr. Zambada García’s lawyer, who told The New York Times and other news outlets that his client had not been tricked into boarding the plane, but in fact had been abducted. Mr. Guzmán López, the lawyer said, waylaid Mr. Zambada García with a group of henchmen who handcuffed him, stuck a bag over his head and muscled him into a car and then on to the plane, where he remained bound throughout the flight.
Did El Chapo’s son have a personal grudge with Lopez or something? Though he had apparently been negotiating his own surrender to U.S. authorities for quite some time, why would he take down one of his top bosses with him? Would such a move guarantee him a lighter prison sentence? And did authorities know that Garcia would be brought against his will?
Though Garcia’s lawyer says that his client never intended on surrendering himself to authorities, what’s done is done and that particular defense won’t be leading to him regaining his freedom anytime soon.
Legal experts say that even if Mr. Zambada García arrived in the United States under physical duress, it may have no effect on the criminal charges he is facing. There is longstanding legal precedent allowing prosecutors to pursue cases against defendants who were brought to the United States against their will, the experts said.
“U.S. law is quite clear that even kidnappings that violate extradition treaties don’t provide a basis for relief for the defendant,” said Daniel Richman, a former federal prosecutor and professor at Columbia Law School.
Still, it seems like that’s the only hand Garcia has to play not only in a court of law, but also in a court of public opinion.
El Chapo must be in his prison cell somewhere just shaking his head.
What do y’all think about this latest twist in this Narcos novela? Let us know in the comments section below.
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John Legend will be making an appearance at the Democratic National Convention to support Vice President Kamala Harris in her bid to be the nominee for the presidential election in November.
According to reports, it has been confirmed that singer John Legend will be appearing at the Democratic National Convention. It’s expected that he will offer up full-throated support for Vice President Kamala Harris to be the party’s presidential candidate. The news makes Legend the first big name that will be in attendance at the convention, which is slated to be held in Chicago, Illinois, from Aug. 19 to Aug. 22.
There hasn’t been any advance notice as to what role John Legend will fulfill during the week-long event – there is a likelihood that he could deliver a speech and perform. The Grammy Award-winning artist has been a longtime supporter of the Democratic Party and weighed in on the decision by President Joe Biden to drop out of the race for reelection and his endorsement of Harris to be the Democratic nominee in an Instagram post on July 21. “I’m so ready to work to help unite the pro-democracy coalition to reject Trump’s authoritarian, oppressive Project 2025 and elect Kamala Harris as our President. She’s ready for this fight and I’m excited to help her in any way I can,” he wrote.
Celebrities making a splash with their support at political conventions have been a lasting part of American politics, with it ramping up within the past couple of decades. The Republican National Convention, which took place 90 minutes away at the Fiserv Forum in the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, held a lot of buzz as Amber Rose delivered a speech on its opening night. Former WWE superstar wrestler Hulk Hogan was another prominent celebrity who spoke to the gathered crowd to support the nominee, Donald Trump. For the DNC, the event is expected to be held at several venues throughout Chicago with the United Center being the place where the primetime events will be held.
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Source: Leon Bennett / Getty / Tiffany Haddish
Tiffany Haddish, once again, is getting dragged for her behavior.
Spotted on TMZ, Tiffany Haddish found herself in the crosshairs of users on X, formerly Twitter. The actress/comedian is catching heat after dropping a video showing her overly impressed with an African grocery store in Zimbabwe.
Per TMZ:
The comedian/actress ventured out while visiting Zimbabwe — where she made a stop at a local supermarket and recorded herself inside. While filming in the supermarket, Tiff expressed shock and amazement multiple times … commenting on how beautiful and massive it was.
The implication here — or at least how people took it — was that TH couldn’t believe how modern the grocery store was in an African country … and the internet didn’t take that well.
https://twitter.com/unclescrooch/status/1817482404115751033
X Is Tired of Tiffany Haddish’s Shenanigans
After dropping the video, Haddish has been getting slammed on X, with people calling her a “f***ing idiot” and chastising her for sharing a video showing her being amazed about a supermarket.
“Every time I see Tiffany Haddish it’s never something funny. It’s always her doing/saying something lame or stupid,” one user wrote on X.
Another user wrote, “Tiffany Haddish hasn’t had the best life in recent years, so we (“the Americans” who travel to Africa more than once a year and beam from ear to ear whenever we make it across that ocean) want to indefinitely distance ourselves from this behaviour!”
Haddish did defend herself, explaining that she was only trying to demystify the portrayal of the motherland. According to the Night School star, Americans have been made to believe that Africans are always starving.
She added, “We got here and I have been eyes full of tears finding out the truth. The media be lying. I thought I would share cause I know people in the USA that believe Africans don’t have anything.”
She also feels she didn’t do anything wrong and was only trying to bring to attention the inaccurate portrayal of African life, adding she felt safer in Zimbabwe than in Los Angeles.
Welp.
The gallery below shows more reactions to Tiffany Haddish’s amazement at the African supermarket.
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Source: Brian Stukes / Getty / Megan Thee Stallion
Kamala Harris is quickly rallying Democrat support after President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign and backed his VP as the Democratic Nominee for POTUS. Now, she has one of the most prominent artists in the world backing her, Megan Thee Stallion.
Megan Thee Stallion is ensuring she is on the right side of history.
Unlike her peers in the Hip-Hop space, such as Swae Lee, Sexxy Red, Lil Pump, and other irrelevant acts, Megan Thee Stallion isn’t stumping for Donald Trump, but she will be twerking for Harris.
Now, before yall lose your sh*t, she will cement her support for the MVP and hopefully the 47th President of the United States when she takes the stage during Harris’ first Presidential Rally in Atlanta, which was ironically the death of the current President Joe Biden’s campaign following a poor debate performance.
Team Harris > Team Trump
Thee Stallion is the latest musician to support VP Harris. Beyoncé let the world know she was down with the Harris campaign by allowing her to use her song “Freedom” as walkout music. It was also featured in the first television ad announcing her presidential campaign.
John Legend will be at the DNC in August, where Harris will undoubtedly earn the nomination as the Democrat’s choice to take on Donald Trump in the upcoming election.
Taylor Swift is also rallying her Swifties to support VP Harris and ensure that Trump does not regain the White House.
Cardi B has shown support for Vice President Harris but has stopped short of endorsing her, conditioning her support on Harris securing a ceasefire in Gaza.
Hopefully, Cardi B knows that VP Harris can’t make that happen alone.
Still, Harris has made it clear after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that it’s time for the war to end, and a two-state solution should be the end goal.
Compared to the Republicans rolling out acts like Kid Rock, Amber Rose, and other musical acts that no one gives a damn about, the Democrats have an all-star lineup looking to help our MVP finally break the glass ceiling that Hillary Clinton fell short of doing during the 2016 election.
As expected, the Hotties and the K-Hive are excited about the news of Megan Thee Stallion performing at the VP Harris rally.
You can see those reactions in the gallery below.
1. We are hyped
2. This remix needs to happen