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Friday, August 18, 2023
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Today is Friday, and we’re highlighting stories from across the URL Media network about a Black spy who witnessed the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the first African American to be crowned Tiny Miss Princess of America, and a historic win for climate justice. — Alicia Ramirez
Uplift. 🙌🏼 Respect. 💯 Love. 💛
Uplifting our Communities
📷 Beside King in his last moment, a hidden spy: Writer Leta McCollough Seletzky joined Wake Up With WURD this week to talk about her book, “The Kneeling Man: My Father's Life as a Black Spy Who Witnessed the Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.,” which tells the story of how her father came to be photographed kneeling beside King’s body immediately after he was shot. 🎧 Listen to the full interview here.
✊ Montana youth win historic climate lawsuit: In a landmark ruling, Montana Judge Kathy Seeley agreed with 16 youth plaintiffs that the state harmed residents as part of its environmental review process that supports the fossil fuel industry. She also ruled that Montana agencies will have to consider climate impacts before approving future fossil fuel permits. Prism has the full story here.
🏛️ Unpacking Trump’s latest federal indictment: In this week’s episode of Our Body Politic, host Farai Chideya talks with former Senior Investigative Counsel for the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, Soumya Dayananda, about former President Donald Trump’s latest federal indictment. 🎧 Listen to the full episode here.
🛒 Asian grocers and consumers confront a shortage of beloved hot sauce: Huy Fong Foods, a California-based company that produces Sriracha, has been facing production issues due to a shortage in chili peppers, squeezing supplies and driving up prices. Read more here from Sahan Journal.
⚠️ How to protect yourself from immigration fraud: Scammers often target recent immigrants seeking citizenship or residency in the United States, but that doesn’t mean longtime immigrants are immune to immigration fraud. Documented has a list of tips and tricks to help you spot a scam. Read more here.
+ 📱 Immigration can access your private social networks: A new report from the Georgetown Law Center on Privacy and Technology, shows how U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has accessed databases containing personal and detailed records of the vast majority of people in the country.La Noticia has more here.
⚖️ Lawsuit alleges D.C. neglects mental health crises: The ACLU has filed suit against the city of Washington, D.C. on behalf of a nonprofit supporting underserved communities alleging that the disparity in how the city responds to physical and mental health emergencies violates both the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act. Read more here from PushBlack.
🚨 Howard University fraternity releases statement on uptick in violence on campus: The brothers of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.’s Alpha Chapter at Howard University have released a public statement regarding the uptick in on-campus violence that students are facing at the HBCU, including a recent stabbing outside of two residence halls. Read more here from Watch The Yard.
🏥 Los Angeles-area hospital to cease maternity care: Centinela Hospital Medical Center, located in Inglewood, Calif., has announced that it will no longer provide maternity care effective Oct. 25. It’s the only hospital in the city of more than 100,000 people that offers maternity service. Black Voice News has the story here.
🗽 NYC vendors protest following crackdown: Corona Plaza, located at the base of the 103th Street stop of the 7 train in New York City, has historically been a haven for street vendors. That all changed last month when officials from the Sanitation Department cleared out vendors awaiting paperwork delayed by government red tape. Epicenter-NYC has the story here.
🚧 University of Michigan sidestepping community benefits agreement: Deadlines for the University of Michigan’s plans to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in a state-of-the-art facility in downtown Detroit are fast approaching, but the university has yet to break ground or engage in any meaningful community benefits process with the surrounding community. Outlier Media has the story here.
🇭🇹 Hundreds flee Haitian neighborhood after deadly raids: Several hundred residents fled their homes this weekend after enduring a barrage of heavy gunfire for two consecutive days by armed individuals believed to be members of a local gang. Read more here from The Haitian Times.
Respecting & Honoring Arts & Culture
👸🏾 Oklahoma girl becomes pageant princess: Paris Epps, a seven-year-old student from Tulsa, Okla., received the national title of Tiny Miss Princess of America and became the first African American contestant to win the title.
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🌮 The French did what to the taco?: When Colombian-American producer Charlie Garcia moved to France, he faced a big challenge. His favorite food, the taco, was nowhere to be found. He then stumbled on a small shop called O’Tacos. What followed would change his view on the meaning of authenticity, cultural appropriation, and whether an “authentic French taco” can actually be a thing. 🎧 Listen to the full episode here from Pulso.
Centering Love
🎼 Music icon Robbie Robertson dies: Robbie Robertson (Mohawk/Cayuga), born Jaime Royal Robertson, spent the first six years of his life on the Six Nations Reserve, an hour outside of Toronto. He rose to prominence in the 60s touring with Bob Dylan and later embarked on a solo career that included writing scores for a number of Martin Scorsese films including Raging Bull (1980) and Casino (1995). Read more here from Native News Online.
What We're Loving This Week From Our Partners
💔 Unpacking media bias against missing Black and Brown kids: In the second part of its two-episode series, Immigrantly host Saadia Khan joins Liz Alarcón, founder of Project Pulso, to dissect “Missing White Girl Syndrome” and how it severely deprioritizes Black and Brown missing kids. Both podcasts are URL Media partners. 🎧 Listen to the full episode here.
The URLs on URL
🗳️ Help URL Media bring a these thought-provoking discussions to SXSW 2024
Help elevate the discourse at SXSW 2024 by supporting these crucial conversations featuring URL Media founders Sara Lomax and S. Mitra Kalita. Dive into the topics below and cast your vote — yes, you can vote for all of them!
What is the Future of BIPOC Coalition Building?: Read more and vote here.
The Art of the Career Pivot: Read more and vote here.
The Partnership That Could Save Equitable Media: Read more and vote here.
The Evolving Business of Media: Read more and vote here.
How To Put On Events That Are Fun, Inclusive and Profitable: Read more and vote here.
Dateline Texas: Top Editors on this Microcosm of America: Read more and vote here.
🗣️ How Documented uses WhatsApp for journalism
URL Media partner Documented has developed a unique approach to engage with its audiences via WhatsApp, using the app to not only have conversations with audiences, but to create high-impact journalism that serves readers as well as the community at large. Learn how they do it.
👩🏽💻 Epicenter welcomes a new community reporter
URL Media partner Epicenter-NYC is expanding its news team with a new community reporter, Ambar Castillo. Born in Crown Heights to Dominican immigrant parents, Castillo grew up just off of the J train tracks in Richmond Hill, Queens, spending afternoons at her father’s Brooklyn bodega and summers with extended family in the Dominican Republic. Read more here.
The URLs on URL
🎉 WURD celebrates Founder’s Day
URL Media partner WURD Radio is celebrating Founder’s Day today, honoring the legacy of Dr. Walter P. Lomax Jr. and celebrating the West Philadelphia community. This year’s Founder’s Day coincides with the station’s 20th anniversary celebration and will feature a block party and street fair at the future headquarters of WURD Radio in Philadelphia’s Mantua neighborhood. Learn more here.
Our Founders
Sara Lomax-Reese, CEO of WURD Radio, media entrepreneur for almost 30 years, served as Program Lead for the inaugural Facebook BIPOC Sustainability Accelerator and is a former John S. Knight Fellow.
S. Mitra Kalita, former SVP at CNN Digital, current CEO & Publisher at Kalita Mukul Creative Inc., which publishes Epicenter-NYC, The Unmuted and The Escape Home has worked at The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The LA Times, and has launched brands like Mint and Quartz.
Our Partners
