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Lawmakers in New York have introduced a new bill that will prohibit the use of rap lyrics in criminal trials as evidence by prosecutors – an issue recently highlighted across the nation.
In January of this year, New York State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Assemblymember Catalina Cruz brought forth S1738, known as the “Rap Music on Trial” bill. The goal of the bill is to prevent prosecutors in criminal trials from using lyrics from songs by the defendant in those trials as proof of guilt for the crimes they’re charged with. “Protecting artistic freedom and expression is paramount for our country, but in particular New York City, where we are the cultural capital of the world,” Hoylman-Sigal said to the press. “Rap music has been targeted by prosecutors, mainly because it would seem that there’s racial bias.”
The bill wouldn’t be isolated to only rap music, but the music genre has been the most targeted by prosecutors in cases across the country as social media has made sharing rap videos easier with a farther reach. An essay in the New York Times last year detailed the timeline for the increase of rap lyrics being used since 2005. The RICO case brought against Young Thug in Georgia is currently the most prominent example as lyrics from nine of his songs were cited in the indictment.
Governor Gavin Newsom of California signed the Decriminalizing Artistic Expression Act into law last September. Congressman Jamaal Bowman of New York and Hank Johnson of Georgia re-introduced the Restoring Artistic Protection, or RAP Act to the House of Representatives in April. That bill has not gone beyond a referral to the House Judiciary Committee.
An earlier version of New York’s state bill was introduced in 2021 with heavy support from artists including Jay-Z, Big Sean, and Meek Mill among others. But it didn’t advance to being passed in the Assembly. The hope is that the current bill will pass this current session, which ends on Thursday (June 8th). The state Senate did approve S1738 on May 15th, which Hoylman-Sigal said gives a “boost of confidence and momentum” that it will make it to Governor Kathy Hochul to be signed into law.
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Jordan Neely, a young Black homeless man who reportedly suffered a mental health episode while on a New York City subway train, was subdued by a passenger and eventually lost his life. Neely’s death was ruled a homicide as protestors continue to demand justice.
Neely, 30, was aboard an F train at the Broadway-Lafayette station when he allegedly threated passengers while standing. Another passenger, reportedly a U.S. Marine, grabbed Neely from behind with a rear-naked chokehold to subdue Neely as others looked on. From the little video footage we could bear to watch, Neely was effectively constrained by the Marine and two others posing no real threat but the Marine kept the deadly chokehold applied tightly and emergency response teams were unable to revive him.
As reported by local outlet ABC 7, protestors planned a protest outside of the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office for Thursday (May 4), adding to the growing cries of injustice and a common refrain that Neely’s death was indeed murder. The Marine, 24, was taken into custody and eventually released. Howwever, with the homicide ruling, charges could be pending for the Long Island resident.
As the news of Neely’s passing grew wide, most remembered him as a Michael Jackson imprsonator who held performances in and around the Times Square area. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was among the many public figures to speak out regarding Neely’s death and opened a tweet about the matter with, “Jordan Neely was murdered.”
The tweet was decried by New York Mayor Eric Adams, who said of Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez’s tweet, “I don’t think that’s very responsible at the time when we’re still investigating the situation.”
While Neely’s death was ruled a homicide, the Manhattan DA will need to file charges if the case is to move ahead.
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander has been especially vocal regarding Neely’s death, also incurring the criticism of Mayor Adams. However, Lander is refusing to back down.
Across social media, many are gathered in support of Jordan Neely and his family in their ongoing fight to find a legal resolution.
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The Big Apple will have to find another festival to turn up to this year. Rolling Loud New York has been cancelled.
As spotted on Hype Beast the popular Rap concert outing has been put on ice for the foreseeable future. On Friday, March 17 the organization released a formal statement to their social media channels announcing the cancellation of the 2023 festivities. “For the last few years, we’ve made some legendary moments happen in Queens,” the organization’s representatives wrote in a statement that was placed on the visual.
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“Sadly, due to logistical factors beyond our control, Rolling Loud will not return to New York in 2023. But don’t worry, this isn’t ‘goodbye,’ more like ‘see you later.’ We’ll be back in New York when the time is right. In the meantime, we invite all of our New York fans to meet us in Miami July 21-23 for our biggest, best festival of the year. Love you all! Rolling Loud forever.”
The first Rolling Loud took place in Miami, Florida in February 2015 and featured artists such as Schoolboy Q, Juicy J, Curren$y, and Action Bronson in the one-day event. It took place at Soho Studios in the Wynwood district of the city, though the venue was temporarily flooded during the event due to rain.
You can purchase tickets for Rolling Loud Miami here.
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A food company publicly apologized after students at a school in upstate New York were served a racially insensitive lunch at the beginning of Black History Month.
According to reports, students at Nyack Middle School were served chicken and waffles with a side of watermelon last Wednesday (Feb. 1), the first day of Black History Month. The original menu offerings were supposed to be Philly cheesesteaks, broccoli and fresh fruit. Students including Honore Santiago spoke out about the meal. “I was questioning because they don’t usually give watermelon,” she said.
Principal David Johnson sent out a letter to parents apologizing for the situation. “I am disappointed that Aramark would serve items that differed from the published monthly menu, especially items that reinforce negative stereotypes concerning the African-American community,” the letter read.
Johnson called the menu items “insensitive.” He contacted the school’s food provider Aramark to voice his concern and to see if this situation can be avoided in the future. “If they had served chicken and waffles by itself, I don’t know that we would be having this conversation. But the moment you add in the watermelon, that changed the whole complexion, literally,” Wilbur Aldridge of the Nyack chapter of the NAACP said.
A spokesperson from Aramark released a statement, saying: “The situation at that middle school was our mistake and never should have happened. It stands in direct contrast to who we are as a company and our longstanding commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. We have apologized for our mistake, and are working to determine how it happened and make sure it never happens again.”
The interim school superintendent, James Montesano, said that the company has committed to working with the school to have “workshops that are focused around the concept of equity and institutional racism,” involving their employees.
This wasn’t the first time that Aramark has wound up in a scandal along these lines. In 2018, students at New York University were served barbecued ribs, collard greens, cornbread, Kool-Aid and watermelon-flavored water during Black History Month. After a vocal backlash, the workers involved were fired and the company apologized. For Honore Santiago, she just has one thought about it all: “I just hope that they won’t do it again, at a different school or my school ever again.”
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The NYPD found itself in poor public light once again after an incident between an officer and a Black teenager was caught on video and went wide. The scuffle caught the attention of New York Mayor Eric Adams, who spoke out about the actions of the officer that was later suspended as an investigation was launched.
According to a report from NBC 4 New York, the unnamed NYPD officer was near Port Richmond High School and I.S. 5 and en route to detain a 14-year-old girl when the teen’s younger sister reportedly swung at the officer, prompting him to hit her back. The older sister also reportedly reached for the officer’s handcuffs and struck him as well.
More from NBC 4 New York:
The 14-year-old was arrested and the younger sister given a juvenile report for the alleged assault. Their mother is calling for a full investigation of what went down.
“They’re supposed to be protected by the police officers and I didn’t expect them to get hurt,” said Taneesha Robinson, who added that her daughter is doing better and “basically has a headache now.” Robinson said it’s not up to her if the officer should face further discipline.
As for the officer, who has been on the job for 14 years, he has been suspended, according to the NYPD, with an internal investigation underway into what led up to the encounter.
The NYPD said via its official Twitter account that the officers who were on the scene are under investigation by the Internal Affairs Bureau.
Mayor Adams addressed the incident during a press conference on Wednesday (Jan. 4) and said that bodycam footage will be reviewed by all the proper authorities.
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Written By D.L. Chandler , Senior Editor Posted 31 mins ago @dlchandler123 D.L. Chandler is a veteran of the Washington D.C. metro writing scene, working as a journalist, reporter, and culture critic. Initially freelancing at iOne Digital in 2010, he officially joined the iOne team in 2017 where he currently works as a Senior Editor […]