Featured
South Korea’s Warning for Washington. By Brian Klaas / The Atlantic
A right-wing wannabe authoritarian president—a leader who attacks the press, is accused of abusing power for personal gain, uses his power to block investigations into his family’s potential corruption, hopes to stay in office to avoid heading to prison, and only seems to have concepts of a plan to address his nation’s inflation and health care—declared martial law earlier today.
This is not a dystopian fever dream for what may soon come to pass in the United States, but instead a rapidly unfolding crisis in South Korea, where President Yoon Suk Yeol shocked his nation with a hastily executed surprise power grab under the pretext of an unspecified military threat from North Korea and enemies within. Late Tuesday evening in Seoul, Yoon issued a statement calling the country’s National Assembly a “den of criminals” and claiming that it was undermining governance. Martial law was needed, Yoon claimed, to stop the “anti-state forces that are plundering the freedom and happiness of our people.” Read more
Political / Social
Trump team turns to Project 2025 after disavowing the effort during the campaign. By and
Transition officials have used Project 2025’s extensive personnel database to identify potential hires for the incoming administration, a person familiar with the plans said.
While Project 2025’s massive book of conservative policy recommendations received most of the attention from Democrats, a central part of the effort was putting together a database that officials had framed as a conservative LinkedIn to help staff an incoming Republican administration. The person familiar with the transition said officials overseeing plans for some departments and agencies have started to reach out to potential hires whose names and contact information were part of that database. Read more
Why Democrats seem so disconnected from what voters want. By Chauncey Devega / Salon
Public focus groups before the election were a huge clue into Trump’s popularity — but they largely went ignored
Nearly one month later, the Democratic Party and the pundits and other politics experts are continuing to study the wreckage of the 2024 election. They are asking themselves how this could have possibly happened. How could we have been so wrong in assessing the country’s mood? They need to quickly come up with the correct answer because they are running out of time. Trump has promised a campaign of revenge and retribution against his perceived enemies. He is not kidding. Read more
Biden Urged To Grant Clemency To The ‘Majority Of African Americans’ Serving Unjust Sentences. By Jeroslyn JoVann / Black Enterprise
President Biden is being urged to grant clemency to other Americans facing unjust sentences.
President Joe Biden’s pardon of his son, Hunter, garnered national attention, particularly given his prior statements that he would not use his executive authority to pardon or commute his son’s sentence. Amid the controversy surrounding President Biden’s pardon of his son, Rep. Summer Lee tweeted on Monday to confirm her support for a letter members of Congress signed urging Biden to use his executive power to grant amnesty to thousands of Americans serving unjust sentences. Read more
Related: Joe Biden’s Hunter lesson: The political high road is a mirage. By Lucian K. Truscott IV / Salon
Georgia court didn’t toss Fani Willis’ case against Trump. By Joedy McCreary / USA Today
While the Georgia case has been on hold for months, it was not dismissed by the state Supreme Court or any other court when the post was shared. The state Court of Appeals listed it on its docket as pending as of Dec. 3.
The case is being heard in Fulton County Superior Court, is listed as pending and has been on hold since June, a month after Trump asked the state Court of Appeals to remove Willis from it. The appellate court on Nov. 18 canceled oral arguments scheduled for Dec. 5, and questions persist about whether a state criminal case can go forward if it interferes with the presidency. Read more
Judge Rules Trial of White Homeowner Accused of Shooting Black Teen. By Melissa Noel / Essence
After 86-year-old Andrew Lester underwent a recent mental health evaluation, a Missouri judge ruled that his trial for the shooting of Ralph Yarl will begin in February.
Clay County Circuit Court Judge David P. Chamberlain approved a mental evaluation for Lester in September, and the completed report was entered into the record earlier this month; however, it remains sealed from public view, according to NBC News. For now, the trial is still set to begin on February 18, with an additional week reserved starting February 24 if needed, according to court records. Read more
MSNBC Chief Rashida Jones Mulls Exit After Trump Win, Ratings Crash. By Ross A. Lincoln / The Wrap
The exec led the liberal-leaning cable news channel to its first ratings win over CNN on election night
According to Darcy, a spokesperson for Jones denied the report; NBCUniversal representatives had no comment. But citing unnamed sources close to the matter, Darcy wrote in his Status newsletter that her potential exit would only come at some point after Trump is sworn in for his second term on Jan. 20, 2025. Read more
University of Michigan Weighs Changes to Its Diversity Program. Nicholas Confessore / NYT
The school is one of higher education’s biggest supporters of D.E.I. Now it’s considering a new approach as critics question the program’s success and impact on campus life.
The University of Michigan, one of higher education’s staunchest proponents of diversity, equity and inclusion plans, is weighing changes to its own program as colleges across the country brace for the second presidency of Donald J. Trump and a Republican assault on such initiatives in government and academia. Read more
A Black College Lost Its Accreditation Almost 30 Years Ago. Why Won’t Its Leaders Pull the Plug? By Jasper Smith / The Chronicle of Higher Ed
At its height in the early 1970s, Knoxville College, a historically Black institution, enrolled more than 1,300 students on its 40-acre campus. The four-year college served as one of the few gateways into East Tennessee’s Black middle class and formed the backbone of Mechanicsville, the surrounding Black neighborhood.
But competition and a series of bad fiscal decisions ultimately resulted in the college’s loss of accreditation in 1997. Most unaccredited colleges lay off their staff, shut their doors, and sell their property. But for almost 30 years, a passionate group of Knoxville alumni has been determined to keep the college running. They have made multiple attempts at restoring accreditation, even as enrollments hovered at a few dozen students. Last spring, the college graduated just three. Read more
World News
Economic hardship looms over Ghana as country readies for polls. By Eromo Egbejule / The Guardian
Election is being contested between vice-president Mahamudu Bawumia and former president John Mahama, under whom corruption ballooned
In the past three years, the cedi was one of the world’s worst-performing currencies and public debt was 72.3% of Ghana’s GDP as of December 2023. Despite being one of the world’s leading gold and cocoa producers, Ghana returned to the International Monetary Fund [IMF] for another bailout in 2022, unable to meet its debt obligations. Read more
Biden, in Africa, decries history of slavery and urges partnership. By Abigail Hauslohner and Katharine Houreld / Wash Post
Biden visits Angola in his only presidential trip to the continent, spotlights U.S. investment
President Joe Biden on Tuesday used his only presidential trip to Africa to pay tribute to the tragic history of the enslaved person trade, urging the United States and Africa to expand a relationship built on investment and equality without losing sight of a past often marked by cruelty and enslavement. Read more
NATO chief urged Trump to see Ukraine aid as ‘a good deal’ for U.S. By Michael Birnbaum and Ellen Francis / Wash Post
Mark Rutte, the alliance’s secretary general, says he told the incoming president that Russia, China, Iran and North Korea all also have a stake in the war’s outcome.
Seeking to frame robust support for Ukraine as “a good deal” that might appeal to President-elect Donald Trump, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Tuesday said any potential peace deal with Russia should not give U.S. adversaries reason to celebrate, as he outlined a suite of ideas intended to be attractive to the alliance skeptic once he’s back in the White House. Read more
Historical / Cultural
Their Palm Springs homes were destroyed decades ago. A new settlement attempts to make amends. By Curtis Bunn / NBC News
Palm Springs, Calif., became a playground for midcentury celebrities. But development of the city came at the expense of Black residents who were pushed into a small neighborhood, which was unceremoniously destroyed.
In 2022, the Section 14 Survivors Group filed a complaint against the city, seeking restitution for the hundreds of homes lost and lives suddenly upended. Earlier this month, the Palm Springs City Council unanimously voted to approve a multilevel settlement offer to former residents and descendants of those who lived in the Black and Latino neighborhood. “It is the responsibility of the city of Palm Springs to compensate individuals for the destruction of personal property,” said council member Lisa Middleton during the hearing. “We broke something that was yours, and now we need to pay for it.” Read more
Fred Hampton Assassination Anniversary And Killer Chicago Cops. Editor at Newsone
Assassinated on Dec. 4, 1969, Chairman Fred Hampton was one of the major figures in the original Black Panther Party that rose to prominence after the height of the civil rights movement. The extrajudicial murder of Hampton and his comrade, Mark Clark, 54 years ago as they slept is an example of the lengths white supremacy has gone to deny Black power and self-determination.
Hampton was only 21 at the time of his murder, but his accomplishments and contributions to empowering Black people in America have lasted for decades. Law enforcement began “heavy surveillance” of him before the fateful police raid in Peoria, Illinois, where he died and other Black Panther members were injured. Read more
“Wicked” reminds us we’d all better be ready to defy gravity. Especially Black women. By Melanie McFarland / Salon
The full musical may be tough to stomach right now but Cynthia Erivo’s triumphant film flight is the uplift we need
“Wicked” is an allegory about manipulated history. Thanks to the 1939 movie version of “The Wizard of Oz,” Americans know the same story Oz’s citizens were told about Elphaba, all of us accepting that propaganda as gospel. My husband and I watched the theatrical performance on the Sunday that followed an election that reminded me yet again how much disdain America has for women, especially Black women. Read more
Black Music Sunday: A tribute to Lou Rawls’ talent and iconic telethon. By Denise Oliver Velez / Daily Kos
We have not explored the musical career and passionate work of singer, actor, and philanthropist Lou Rawls or his work funding HBCUs via the United Negro College Fund, an organization founded in 1944 whose work continues today
Rawls was born in Chicago on Dec. 1, 1933, and for his birthday, we celebrate both his music and his commitment to supporting Black educational achievement. Music critic Steve Huey is behind the biography of Rawls found at Blue Note Records. Read more and listen here .
Sports
33 Years After Contracting HIV, Magic Johnson Gives Key Update on Current Health Condition. By Pranav Kota / Essentially Sports
“Because of the HIV virus that I have obtained, I will have to retire from the Lakers, today,” the then-32-year-old Magic Johnson had told a hushed press conference in Los Angeles on November 7, 1991.
“Today, on World AIDS Day, I take a moment to reflect on my journey living with HIV for 33 years. It’s been a long road, but I’m healthy and stronger than ever due to the medical advancements, research, and work of those in the HIV/AIDS community! I want to thank all the doctors, scientists, and everyone who’s contributed to the HIV/AIDS fight.” The tweet from the Lakers legend continued. Read more
The Broncos paid Russell Wilson $39 million to go away — now he’s starting for a Super Bowl contender. By
The veteran quarterback is averaging 271 yards per game this season in Pittsburgh, a career high.
When the Pittsburgh Steelers made the midseason decision to switch starting quarterbacks, the move wasn’t exactly celebrated. Pittsburgh went 4-2 in its first six games with Justin Fields at the helm, leading practically everyone to question why head coach Mike Tomlin would start offseason signee Russell Wilson for the team’s Oct. 20 game against the New York Jets. In Week 13, Wilson threw for 414 yards and led the Steelers to 44 points in a win over the Cincinnati Bengals, the type of shootout it would have been difficult to envision Fields, who threw for under 200 yards in four of his six starts, winning. Read more
Related: Russell Wilson Surpasses Ben Roethlisberger in Steelers Win. By Jacob Punturi / Sports Illustrated
Stephen A. Smith’s New Proposed ESPN Contract Includes Interesting Twist. By Dan Lyons / Sports Illustrated
Stephen A. Smith is nearing a new deal with Disney/ESPN, and a current proposal would give him even more influence within the larger Disney empire according to a report by Variety.
Smith currently makes $12 million per year on his ESPN contract that is set to expire in 2025. A June Puck report stated that Disney made an $18 million per year offer to Smith, but that the commentator is seeking a deal worth at least $25 million. A Tuesday evening report by The Athletic put the current proposal in the range of $120 million over six years, though Smith forcefully called the Variety report that the two sides are close “False” in a message to media insider Andrew Marchand. Read more
Related: Stephen A Smith reveals how Bronny James messed up after historic moment with LeBron James. By Armaan Gupta / First Sportz
Serena Williams Hits Back At Accusers On A Really Touchy Subject. By Ron Dicker / HuffPost
Tennis great Serena Williams is now slamming critics who accused her of bleaching her skin.
Williams faced an onslaught of negative comments and allegations when a video surfaced last month that showed her at a school event for her daughter Olympia. The retired 23-time Grand Slam singles winner offered a rebuttal Monday during a makeup tutorial for her Wyn Beauty brand on Instagram. “I put just that neutral color, that is actually my skin color,” she said, applying makeup. “And no, for you haters out there, I do not bleach my skin. There is a thing called sunlight, and in that sunlight you get different colors.” Read more
Bernie Mac’s ‘Mr. 3000’: 20 years later, the Black baseball accuracy remains. By Clinton Yates /Andscape
“Sportswriters hate me, but my numbers don’t lie. … They gotta let me in. It’s my year and everybody knows it.”
Those are the words of one Stan Ross, played by the indomitable Bernard Jeffrey McCullough in the 2004 movie, Mr. 3000. A wildly underrated baseball movie in terms of being another vehicle for Bernie Mac to show off his comedic genius, 20 years later it serves with striking accuracy as a fascinating reminder of what the game means to quite a few Black veteran ballplayers. Read more
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