• 'Time' Magazine's Short List for 'Person of the Year' Candidates Is Raising Some Eyebrows

    On Wednesday, Dec. 10, "Time" magazine will announce its 2014 Person of the Year, and after learning who landed on the short list of candidates, we are more than a little confused. Some of the names on the list are not too shocking.There is Tim Cook, who introduced a bunch of new Apple products this year and then decided to come out of the closet, making him the first openly gay CEO of a Fortune 500 company. There is Taylor Swift, who, as a top-selling artist, decided to pull her music from Spotify this past fall because she believes the streaming service is not compensating artists nearly enough.But some of the other contenders are a bit baffling.Like Vladimir Putin, the Russian president who guided his country through hosting the Sochi Olympics in February under subpar conditions. He has also been one of the ringleaders in the ongoing strife between Russia and eastern Ukraine. Then there is NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who has spent the last six months living under a microscope because it seems the majority of even NFL fans believe he purposely set out to cover up several domestic violence cases within the league, including the now-infamous knockout punch by Ray Rice that was caught on surveillance tape and then shown to the world.The Ferguson protesters have also made the list, but wouldn't it have made more sense for the peaceful protesters in New York City's chokehold case to have made it instead? By pointing to Ferguson, sadly the first thing that comes to mind for many people is either the rioting and destruction of local businesses after Darren Wilson was not indicted, or else the video of Michael Brown's grieving and angry stepfather directing the crowd to burn things down.

  • Jeanine Pirro of Fox News Claims that 'Minority Communities' Need to Be More Sensitive Toward the Police

    Fox News often finds itself under fire for the stance that the network appears to take on hot-button issues, and right now nothing is more volatile than the tension between police and their handling of the black community. Last night, Jeanine Pirro decided to ask for viewer feedback on whether or not police should be more careful in the way they deal with incidences occurring in black communities and the response was quite unified.In between people stating the obvious — that if you are not breaking the law then you are less likely to find yourself tangled in any sort of altercation — there was also the thinking that communities need to be more mindful of the police. Pirro backed up that notion and, interestingly enough, it Is a sentiment that even New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has echoed.Basically, the thinking is that there is a rift, and in order to fix it both sides need to take steps toward meeting in the middle. He also admitted last week, shortly after it was announced that NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo would not be indicted in the chokehold death of Eric Garner, that his own biracial son has been directed on how to carry himself if he should be stopped by a police officer.

  • Jay Electronica Responds to Ferguson and Eric Garner Decisions: 'Don't Tell Me About Black-on-Black Crime'

    In light of the recent grand jury decisions in Ferguson, Missouri, and Staten Island not to indict two white police officers for the killings of two black men, protests have erupted across the United States and sporadically around the world. The issue of police brutality and mistreatment of minorities vs. whites by law enforcement is at the forefront of the nation's conscious.While some commentators have steered the commentary toward black-on-black crime and the violence in poor urban neighborhoods, New Orleans native Jay Electronica wholeheartedly disagrees with this notion, saying among other things in a series of tweets that "We live in a criminal nation, founded by rapists, mass murderers and robbers. So don't tell me about 'black on black' crime."Read the expletive-laden series of tweets below, via "Pigeons and Planes."

  • Joanna Newsom Working on New Album, Discusses Ferguson and New York

    Joanna Newsom is not someone who can be easily placed categorically, but we will give it a shot. The Californian folk singer/songwriter/harpist/actress is in Paul Thomas Anderson's forthcoming film "Inherent Vice," but she recently told Dazed she is working on fresh tunes."I'm working on something new — I should hopefully have a little more news soon," Newsom said, via Stereogum. "I've been working hard for a lot of those five years on a new idea.""Vice" is a 1970s-set picture that deals with race issues, and Newsom used it as a bridge to current events."I think the film drums up a sense that dark forces are at work behind the scenes, and that's a fear that many people I know struggle with, particularly in the States right now," she said. "There's an incredible sense of — at the risk of sounding melodramatic — a conspiracy. I mean, right now, what's happening in Ferguson and in New York is terrible: terrible cases of cops murdering people and getting away with it. The words 'civil rights violation' come up a lot in this film, and I think that that applies more today than it has for decades."

  • Peaceful Protest Over Eric Garner's Chokehold Death Turns Violent in California

    Thousands of protestors met up in big cities across the country yesterday for a fourth day of making their displeasure with law enforcement in NYC and Ferguson, Missouri known. Nearly two weeks ago Darren Wilson walked away indictment-free in the Ferguson shooting death of Michael Brown. This past weeks' decision of a grand jury not to indict Daniel Pantaleo in the Staten Island chokehold death of Eric Garner took things to a completely different level. After the video of Garner's saying that he couldn't breath moments before dying hit the internet most people expect some charges to stick to Pantaleo. When they didn't it prompted people that normally don't get involved to speak up and rally for change. The majority of the protests have been peaceful with the exception of one in California last night.

  • NYC Chokehold Victim Eric Garner's Family is Grateful for the Support of Peaceful Protesters

    While the lack of an indictment in the chokehold death of Staten Island's Eric Garner may have been exactly the same result that the people of Ferguson, Missouri faced in the shooting death of Michael Brown just one week earlier, the reaction has been profoundly different. Rather than lashing out in one night of mayhem like Ferguson did, supporters of Garner have truly taken a peaceful approach to protesting and his family couldn't be more grateful to see that kind of support from complete strangers.

  • Hillary Clinton Claims Nation's Criminal Justice System is "Out Of Balance," Supports Probes of NYC and Ferguson Police Cases

    It seems like Hillary Clinton might be the only one left that isn't sure if she intends to announce a 2016 presidential campaign, but if that is on her to-do list, then the fact that she supports the U.S. Department of Justice looking into the untimely deaths of two black men at the hands of white police officers is sure to get some backing. Clinton spoke at a conference today and expressed her dismay at there being no indictment against police officers who ultimately killed Eric Garner in NYC and Michael Brown in Ferguson while in the line of duty. She was quoted as calling the system "out of balance."

  • John Legend, Common Share New Song - "Glory" - From Upcoming 'Selma' Film [LISTEN]

    The nominees for the 87th Academy Awards will be announced on Jan. 15 and today, R&B singer John Legend has shared his Best Original Song hopeful -- "Glory" -- which will be featured in the upcoming Martin Luther King, Jr. drama, 'Selma.' The song features some socially conscious guest verses from Common, who references the recent unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, and joins the ever-growing list of artists to release tribute songs to Michael Brown.

  • Michael Brown, Eric Garner: 10 Tribute Songs From T.I., Alicia Keys, J. Cole, And More

    Following the grand jury decisions regarding the police-related deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO and Eric Garner in Staten Island, NY, plenty of musicians have expressed their outrage and calls for peace and unity by releasing songs inspired by these incidents. Here are 10 songs inspired by the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner.

  • Michael Brown's Ex-Con Stepfather Louis Head is Being Investigated for Inciting Ferguson Riots

    By now I think nearly everyone has seen the video of Michael Brown's stepfather shouting into the crowd, "Burn this b**** down!" shortly after the grand jury announced its' decision not to indict officer Darren Wilson for the Aug. 9 shooting that killed the teen. While many have said that Louis Head, Brown's step-dad, wasn't actually inciting violence, he was just reacting to the pain in that moment, the Ferguson police department doesn't necessarily see it that way.
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