News Bites From Across South Carolina And The Nation

County Guaranteed Income Program Underway With 1,000 New Recipients

Los Angeles County’s guaranteed basic income program is underway, with 1,000 residents now receiving $1,000 a month for the next three years, officials said Tuesday. The recipients were chosen randomly from more than 180,000 people who applied for the program. “Given the huge number of L.A. County residents who applied, it’s abundantly clear that a guaranteed basic income is an idea whose time has come,” Supervisor Sheila Kuehl said. “I’m confident that we will see what other pilots have already shown: that a guaranteed basic income, by giving people a bit of financial breathing room, allows them to stabilize their lives and that of their family.

Religious, Spiritual Blacks Have Better Heart Health: Study

Black adults who participate consistently in religious activities or harbor deep spiritual beliefs are more likely to score higher in indicators connected to good heart health than those who don’t, according to a recent study.

The article published by the Journal of the American Heart Association said religious and spiritual participants had better scores for blood pressure, cholesterol and other factors that are known to influence cardiovascular health, CNN reported.

For example, going to a religious service was associated with a 15% higher likelihood of getting an “immediate” or “ideal” composite cardiovascular health score, which comprises eight measures, including diet, physical activity, sleep, and nicotine consumption.

“I was slightly surprised by the findings that multiple dimensions of religiosity and spirituality were associated with improved cardiovascular health across multiple health behaviors that are extremely challenging to change, such as diet, physical activity, and smoking,” said Dr. LaPrincess C. Brewer, a preventive cardiologist and assistant professor of medicine at Mayor Clinic in Rochester, Minn., who served as the lead on the study, CNN reported. “Our findings highlight the substantial role that culturally tailored health promotion initiatives and recommendations for lifestyle change may play in advancing health equity. The cultural relevance of interventions may increase their likelihood of influencing cardiovascular health and also the sustainability and maintenance of healthy lifestyle changes.”

Cardiovascular health among Blacks is worse than those of non-Hispanic whites. Plus, Blacks die at a higher rate due to poor heart health than non-Hispanic whites.

Why Black Lives Should Also Matter In the Russia-Ukraine War

Black Americans have enjoyed an enduring bond with Africa and their brothers and sisters living on the Continent, with many U.S.-based civil rights agencies, clergy members and African-American organizations taking a keen interest in the welfare of citizens in the 55-nation motherland.

Now protesters in the District have gathered in earnest at the Russian embassy to protest the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

The protesters have remained outside the Russian embassy since Russian President Vladimir Putin greenlighted a “special military operation” in Ukraine on February 24. Almost immediately, explosions occurred across Ukraine in Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odessa.

Protesters at the embassy carried Ukrainian and American flags while around the world, individuals expressed concern about the invasion. And in areas with large Black and minority populations, concern mounted for the tens of thousands of international students studying in Ukraine.

Many of those students come from Africa.

“Many of them do not have paperwork to enter Europe,” wrote Terrell J. Starr, host of the Black Diplomats Podcast that focuses on the intersection of race and foreign policy.

Starr also counts as a non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center, focusing on Ukraine, Georgia, Russia and nuclear non-proliferation issues.

Starr notes the especially perilous position facing African students and Black Ukrainians in an op-ed.

Madam C. J. Walker Barbie Doll Now Available

Madam C. J. Walker’s status as an entrepreneur, philanthropist and activist has long been a model for aspiring Black business owners. On August 24th, she became a model too - a doll in the image of Madam premiered as part of Mattel’s “Barbie – Inspiring Women Series.” According to A’Lelia Bundles, Madam’s great-great-granddaughter and official biographer, the doll sold out on Mattel’s website in less than five hours. Restocking is underway for online purchases at Amazon, Target, and Walmart.

It was a short time from idea to retail shelf success. Bundles said Mattel presented the idea to her with conversations beginning just last October.

“I got an email out of the blue from Mattel Barbie asking if I were interested in a Madam Walker doll,” Bundles said. “Of course, I said, ‘Yes.’”

Bundles shared phenomenal statistics from the first-day launch of Barbie’s Madam. Coverage on August 24 was extremely positive from media across multicultural, lifestyle, and toy outlets. Launch day ended with 20 high-quality media placements reaching over 35 million people seeing information about Barbie Madam through various platforms like social media and online media sites. Further, on the day of the launch, Amazon’s data showed that Madam was the #1 best seller in the “dolls” category and #1 as a new release among all toys on that day.

Ida B. Wells’s connection

Helpful to Bundles during this process was her friendship with Michelle Duster, the great-great-granddaughter of Ida B. Wells. In January, The Wells doll was launched in Mattel’s “Barbie – Inspiring Women Series.” Madam and Wells knew each other, as both were strong advocates for women’s and workers’ rights. Duster and Bundles posted on Twitter mutual excitement about their legendary elders being together again as Barbie dolls.

“Barbie is a big deal. I watched that process for somebody who went through the same thing I was going through,” Bundles said.

Tiffany Haddish Speaks Out On Child Sex Abuse Suit
Tiffany Haddish says she “deeply” regrets performing in a skit years ago that led to her and fellow comedic actor Aries Spears being accused of child sex abuse.

“I know people have a bunch of questions. I get it,” Haddish wrote in a statement posted on her verified Instagram account on Monday.

“I’m right there with you,” she continued. “Unfortunately, because there is an ongoing legal case, there’s very little that I can say right now.”

Haddish and Spears have been accused of having “groomed and molested” two then-minor siblings, according to a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court last week.

“Jane Doe” and “John Doe” (their names are withheld to protect their privacy) were 14 and 7, respectively, when they allege that Haddish and Spears had them participate in sexually suggestive videos in separate incidents in 2013 and 2014, according to the complaint, a copy of which was obtained by CNN.

“He isn’t going to fall for any shakedown,” Debra Opri, an attorney for Spears, said in a statement to CNN.

An attorney for Haddish told CNN that the plaintiff’s mother “has been trying to assert these bogus claims against Ms. Haddish for several years.”

“Every attorney who has initially taken on her case — and there were several — ultimately dropped the matter once it became clear that the claims were meritless and Ms. Haddish would not be shaken down,” the statement read, adding that the mother “has her adult daughter representing herself in this lawsuit. The two of them will together face the consequences of pursuing this frivolous action.”

“John Doe” alleges that in summer 2014, Haddish “offered to book, arrange, and film Mr. Doe content for a Nickelodeon sizzle reel at the home of Spears. Haddish claimed the reel would be used to book Mr. Doe on Nickelodeon.”

“Upon information and belief, Haddish and Spears removed the 7-year-old victim from his sister, placed him upstairs in a bedroom, and stripped the child down to his underwear,” according to the suit. “The video was entitled ‘Through A Pedophiles Eyes’ and shows Spears lusting over the 7-year-old child” and rubbing his back.

Haddish played the boy’s mother in the video, which has circulated on social media.

In her statement Monday, Haddish wrote that “…while this sketch was intended to be comedic, it wasn’t funny at all – and I deeply regret having agreed to act in it.”

“I really look forward to being able to share a lot more about this situation as soon as I can,” Haddish concluded her statement.