Insight ::: 06.30.2025

Entire community is under attack

scribed Jenkins’s

By Pulane Choane

Contributing Writer

Andrea Jenkins, Minneapolis City Council member and the first openly transgender Black woman elected to public office in the U.S., called for renewed resistance and “radical love” in response to rising anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and last week’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding a Tennessee law banning gender-affirming care for minors.

Speaking on The Conversation with Al McFarlane during Friday’s Healing Circle segment, Jenkins described the ruling as part of a larger movement seeking to erase trans people from public life.

The Supreme Court ruling, delivered on June 18 in a 6–3 vote, allows Tennessee to enforce its ban on gender-af-

“I’m not exaggerating when I say we are experiencing a coordinated erasure,” Jenkins said. “They are trying to make us invisible, remove us from public spaces, rewrite textbooks and erase our contributions to society.”

- Andrea Jenkins-

Jenkins, who transitioned in her 30s and has served on the Minneapolis City Council since 2018, reflected on the personal and political weight of

the moment.

“By age 30, I was slowly dying inside,” she said. “I had to live as myself, regardless of the consequences.”

During the broadcast, which is co-hosted by Dr. Bravada M. Garrett-Akinsanya, Ph.D., LP, LISCW, Jenkins emphasized the connection between trans rights, racial justice, and historical resistance. She invoked the legacies of Audre Lorde, Marsha P. Johnson, and other Black queer thinkers, calling on communities to “stand up and speak out.”

“This isn’t just about trans people,” she said. “This is about the entire community being under attack; our rights, our history, our families, our futures.”

In addition to legal and political challenges, Jenkins referenced repeated threats to her safety in office, including vandalism of her home. “I live

with fear,” she said. “But I also live with courage. And I am not alone.”

Jenkins warned that the shift in federal legal precedent signals a deeper national crisis. “What we’re seeing isn’t new,” she noted. “It’s an old pattern, just recycled.” Still, she emphasized that healing is possible, particularly when communities ground themselves in solidarity and cultural memory.

“We need to remember who we are,” she said. “As Black people, as queer people, as people of conscience. Our stories matter. Our survival matters.”

Jenkins’s comments come amid growing scrutiny of anti-LGBTQ+ laws and an uptick in targeted hate crimes, according to data from the Human Rights Campaign.

McFarlane, who hosts The Conversation, de-

Northside mourns killing of 11-year-old Amir Atkins

By John Hanna, Steve Karnowski Associated Press

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian

O’Hara shared the heartbreaking news that 11-year-old Amir Atkins died after being shot Monday afternoon. Amir was due to be enrolled in sixth grade at Hopkins Elementary School at the end of summer, his relatives said. The family is “devasted by the child’s death, said his uncle Marvin Walker, who told KSTP that Amir and his 15-year-old brother Keontae had gone to the Folwell Park to hang out with friends. He said they are still trying to cope with the loss of the youngest child in the family. At approximately 2:08 p.m., Fourth Precinct officers responded to a report of gunfire at Folwell Park on Dowling Avenue North.

Police said gunfire erupted within the park. Witnesses reported seeing a vehicle driving through the park and two other vehicles moving through the adjacent parking lot at the time of the shooting. Shortly afterward, a resident sitting on his porch near Morgan Avenue North and Dowling Avenue North heard cries for help. He discovered the boy suffering from a life-threatening gunshot wound, along with two other males, outside his home. The resident placed the child and one of the males into his vehicle and began driving toward the hospital. On the way, he flagged down an officer near Penn and Dowling Avenues. The officer immediately removed the boy from the vehicle and initiated lifesaving efforts. Despite efforts by police, fire, and EMS personnel, the boy was pronounced dead at the scene, the police department said.

“That neighbor did

Democratic Texas Congressman Al Green is filing Articles of Impeachment against President Donald Trump. Green, who has filed the Articles three times during Trump’s first term, seeks to have Trump impeached with the ultimate goal of removal from office. House Resolution 537 details Green’s allegations of an “abuse of power” as “President Trump took America to war without consulting with the Congress of America.”

During this morning’s speeches on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, Green alleged that President Trump has committed an “impeachable act with the use of authoritarian powers to declare war.”

Once this Resolution is introduced, a vote could occur within days. Green initiated im-

peachment three times during President Trump’s first term. Today’s attempt takes place only five months into Trump’s second term. Green emoted during a phone conversation with Black Press USA this morning, “This is a time of decision!” He emphasized, “We’re at the

crossroads of Democracy and autocracy.” The Senior Texas lawmaker details, “Where we [are] now is in trust of a person who has instigated an assault on the Capitol, who has denied due process,” and has the “ultimate power of determining whether he will decide when more than 300 million people will go to

war. “ Trump, who has been impeached twice but never convicted of removal, has seen his approval ratings slip in recent polls. The iPsos/ Reuters poll finds that 57% of Americans disapprove of the president.

When Israel assassinated a number of senior Iranian military officials and nuclear scientists on June 13, there was an initial euphoria among some ruling elites in the Gulf. They saw it as a sign of Iran’s diminishing regional threat.

Relations between Gulf states and Iran have been fraught since 1979 when Iran’s former supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, vowed to export the revolution that had brought him to power that same year. This set off decades of ideologically charged proxy conflicts, with Gulf states viewing Iran as the principal de-

By Rachel Ama Asaa

Thousands of sculpted heads –captive African men, women, and children – meticulously created by the artist Kwame Akoto-Bamfo, emerge from the soil at the Nkyinkyim Museum, as a sacred gathering of ancestors. Together, they form a powerful monument to the horror, violence, and resistance to enslavement, as well as the ongoing work of remembrance and healing.

Kwame Akoto-Bamfo is a Ghanaian multi-

disciplinary artist who engages with the histories and legacies of the transatlantic slave trade and colonialism at home and, increasingly, internationally, on both sides of the Atlantic. As an archaeologist who works in the field of critical heritage studies, Akoto-Bamfo’s work is important

By Matt Fitzpatrick Professor in International History, Flinders University

U.S. Congressman Al Green (D-TX9). Official photo.

Kwame Akoto-Bamfo.

Ali Haider / EPA Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, at the Saudi-US Investment Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in May 2025.

AP Photo/Richard Vogel Protesters stand off against California National Guard soldiers at the Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles during a “No Kings” protest on

2025.

City Council Member LaTrisha Vetaw in a statement to the

Credit: GoFundMe

Atkins

Credit: GoFundMe

Atkins

Credit: Wikipedia Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara

“We the People” wasn’t meant to

Columnist

By Haley Taylor Schlitz, Esq.

The words “We the People” open our Constitution not as a fulfilled ideal, but as a challenge. One that generations of Americans have struggled to meet.

When those words were first written, they did not include women. They did not include the enslaved. They did not include Indigenous people or immigrants from Asia or Latin America. And yet for nearly 250 years, excluded communities have fought to expand that phrase. Not because it was ever intended to apply to us, but because we refused to accept a democracy built on exclusion.

That is why what happened last fall at the University of Florida’s law school should alarm all of us. A law student, Preston Damsky, submitted a paper in a constitutional law seminar taught by a sitting fed-

eral judge, arguing that “We the People” only applies to white Americans. He claimed the Constitution was never meant to include nonwhite people, and that voting rights protections for them should be removed. He called demographic change a “crime” and urged shoot-tokill orders at the border. This was not rejected. It was rewarded. The paper received the course’s highest honor: the “book award.” Judge John L. Badalamenti, a Trump-appointed federal judge, has offered no public explanation for the decision. But his silence tells us what kind of arguments can be elevated within our legal institutions today.

As an attorney, I am trained to engage constitutional questions. So let’s be clear about what this paper represents, because it is not merely hateful speech. It is a legal framework designed to strip away citizenship rights, to rewrite American history, and to dismantle over a century of constitutional law.

What this paper proposes is the nullification of the Fourteenth Amendment, which guarantees equal protection under the law, and the Fifteenth, which prohibits racial discrimi-

nation in voting. If those amendments are seen as illegitimate, as this paper argues, then every legal victory for civil rights becomes legally suspect. Brown v. Board of Education. The Voting Rights Act. Even birthright citizenship.

That is not hyperbole. That is the logical endpoint of this theory.

And with a Supreme Court that has already shown an appetite for historical revisionism, most recently in Dobbs v. Jackson, where the Court erased 50 years of precedent by turning to 19th-century legal standards, we must not underestimate what once sounded extreme.

If a future Court adopts a vision of the Constitution that excludes the amendments that followed the Civil War, we could see a return to the most violent forms of legal exclusion. That is what makes this moment dangerous. Not that a student wrote the paper, but that a judge gave it legitimacy. But there is another lie embedded in this argument that must be challenged. The idea of “whiteness” itself as a timeless identity. The Constitution wasn’t written by “white peo-

Armstrong: White press bias reveals racial conditioning

Civil rights lawyer Nekima Levy-Armstrong posted the following on Facebook, charging racial bias in how white newsrooms denigrate Black men while showing sympathy for white men. Look at these two photos. Really look.

Both were published in the Star Tribune—less than two weeks apart. The first (published today) shows a Black man, shirtless, caught in a moment of chaos. The headline calls him a felon. No name. No context. No attempt to understand who he is or what he may be going through. Just fear. Just judgment.

ple.” It was written by British colonists. The settlers who arrived in North America weren’t identifying themselves as white. They were English, Dutch, French, Portuguese, Spanish, German. These identities carried their own histories, conflicts, and hierarchies. The French and Indian War, for example, was not a fight between “white people.” It was a war between rival European empires. The idea of “whiteness” as a political category emerged later, not as a reflection of culture, but as a tool of control. It was forged in opposition to Blackness, to indigeneity, to any identity that might disrupt the power structure built on land theft and slavery. And it has been expanded over time to absorb different European identities, first Irish, then Italian, then Eastern European, under a single banner of racial entitlement. I know this as someone whose ancestry embodies the contradiction of America. Descended from those enslaved and lived the American Nightmare and from Europeans who came seeking opportunity. I do not need a theory to explain what America has done. I carry

it in my blood. I know my European ancestors: German, Irish, British, French. Americans of European descent often know these lineages and celebrate them, with flags, recipes, and traditions passed down through generations. That is not something to resent. It is something to reflect on. Because when people are invited to shed those identities and huddle together under the label of “white,” it is rarely to build community. It is too often to protect privilege. That is how whiteness works, not as history, but as strategy. This is why we must reject the false premise that “We the People” ever referred to a unified racial group. It didn’t. It referred to property-owning white men of British colonial descent. Everyone else was excluded, including many poor Europeans. To now argue, as this student did, that the Constitution should “return” to its racial roots is not a restoration. It is a retreat into a lie. And if we allow that lie to take hold in our courts, our classrooms, or our Constitution, we will find ourselves defending not the idea of America, but its betrayal. I still believe in the

project of this nation. Not as it began, but as it could be. We the People was never meant to include us. But we made it include us. Through protest, through litigation, through generations of sacrifice. Every expansion of American freedom has come not from the goodwill of those in power, but from the refusal of the excluded to remain silent. That fight is not over. It is not just about free speech in a classroom. It is about who gets to shape the future of this country. If we are not vigilant, white supremacy will be wrapped in legal citations, presented as originalist doctrine, and taught as constitutional truth. It will not need a mob. It will wear a robe. So let me say this clearly. We the People must remain a fight for all of us. Not because the Constitution began that way, but because we demanded that it become so. And we will not let that progress be undone by those who confuse hate for heritage or silence for scholarship.

He was armed. He had a kill list. He targeted elected officials. He was extremely dangerous. And yet… his photo is well-lit. Calm. Composed. He looks like a war veteran, not a domestic terrorist. Where is his label?

Where is the fear-inducing headline?

Where is the urgency?

This is media bias in plain sight—and it’s not new. It is racial conditioning.

It is the weaponization of imagery.

Now look at the second image: Vance Boelter—a white man who murdered a Minnesota legislator, and her spouse and critically wounded another Minnesota legislator and his spouse.

It teaches us—again

and again—to fear Black men, and to excuse white violence.

Who are we taught to fear?

Who are we taught to feel sorry for?

Whose humanity is erased before we even read the article?

The stories we are told shape the world we live in. This is why diversity in newsrooms matters. This is why equitable editorial standards matter. And this is why we can’t stay silent. #MediaBias #RacialJustice #NarrativeMatters #StarTribuneDoBetter

Juneteenth

Rebuilding one of the nation’s oldest Black churches begins at Juneteenth ceremony

By Ben Finley Associated Press

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP)

— The rebuilding of one of the nation’s oldest Black churches, whose congregants first gathered outdoors in secret before constructing a wooden meetinghouse in Virginia, started Thursday with a ceremonial groundbreaking.

The First Baptist Church of Williamsburg officially established itself in 1776, although parishioners met before then in fields and under trees in defiance of laws that prevented African Americans from congregating. Free and enslaved members erected the original church house around 1805, laying the foundation with recycled bricks.

Reconstructing the 16-foot by 32-foot (5-meter by 10-meter) building will help demonstrate that “Black history is American history,” First Baptist Pastor Reginald F. Davis told The Associated Press before the Juneteenth groundbreaking.

“Oral history is one thing but to have an image to go along with the oral history makes a greater impact on the psyche of oppressed people,”

said Davis, who leads the current 215-member congregation in a 20th Century church that is less than a mile from the original site. “Black Americans have been part of this nation’s history before and since the Declaration of Independence.”

The original building was destroyed by a tornado in 1834. First Baptist’s second structure, built in 1856, stood there for a century. But the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, a living history museum, bought the property in 1956 and turned the space into a parking lot.

Colonial Williamsburg had covered the costs of building First Baptist’s current church house. But for decades it failed to tell the church’s pioneering history and the stories of other colonial Black Americans.

In recent years, the museum has placed a growing emphasis on telling a more complete story about the nation’s founding. Colonial Williamsburg’s rebuilding of the church is an opportunity to tell Black history and resurrect the stories of those who originally built it.

“Today is more than a groundbreaking. This is a homecoming,” The Colo-

nial Williamsburg Foundation Chief of Staff Dana Tomlin said Thursday. “In lifting up this space again, we’re not just reconstructing a building. We’re restoring a dignity to a community’s voice, honoring a legacy that has long deserved recognition.”

Telling Virginia’s untold story

Rebuilding First Baptist’s original meetinghouse will fill an important historical gap, while bolstering the museum’s depiction of Virginia’s 18th century capital through interpreters and restored buildings. More than half of the 2,000 people who lived in Williamsburg at the time were Black, many of them enslaved.

Rev. James Ingram is an interpreter who has for 27 years portrayed Gowan Pamphlet, First Baptists’ pastor when the original church structure was built. Pamphlet was an enslaved tavern worker who followed his calling to preach, sermonizing equality, despite the laws that prohibited large gatherings of African Americans out of fear of slave uprisings.

“He is a precursor to someone like Frederick Douglass, who would be the precursor to someone like Martin Luther King Jr.,” Ingram said.

“Gowan Pamphlet was leading the charge.”

The museum’s archaeologists uncovered the original church’s foundation in 2021, prompting Pastor Davis to say then that it was “a rediscovery of the humanity of a people.”

“This helps to erase the historical and social amnesia that has afflicted this country for so many years,” he said.

The archaeologists also located 62 graves, while experts examined three sets of remains and linked them to the congregation.

Scientists at William & Mary’s Institute for Historical Biology said the teeth of a Black male in his teens indicated some kind of stress, such as malnutrition or disease.

“It either represents the conditions of an enslaved childhood or far less likely — but possibly — conditions for a free African American in childhood,” Michael Blakey, the institute’s director, said in 2023. ‘It was a marvel’

In the early 1800s, the congregation acquired the property for the original church from a local white merchant. The land was low, soft and often soggy — hardly ideal for building, said Jack Gary, Colonial

Williamsburg’s executive director of archaeology.

But the church’s congregants, many of whom were skilled tradespeople, made it work by flipping bricks on their side and making other adjustments to lay a level foundation.

“It was a marvel that they were able to build a structure there, but also that the structure persists and even grows bigger,” Gary said, adding that the church was later expanded.

Based on their excavation, archaeologists surmise there was no heat source, such as a fireplace, no glass in the windows and no plaster finish, Gary said.

About 50 people could have sat comfortably inside, possibly 100 if they were standing. The congregation numbered about 500, which included people on surrounding plantations. Services likely occurred outside the church as well.

White planters and business owners were often aware of the large gatherings, which technically were banned, while there’s documentary evidence of some people getting caught, Gary said.

Following Nat Turner’s rebellion in 1831, which killed more than 50 white people in Virginia’s Southampton County, the congregation was led by white pastors, though it was Black preachers doing the work, Gary said. The tornado destroyed the structure a few years later.

Boards are being cut

The museum is rebuilding the 1805 meetinghouse at its original site and will use common wood species from the time: pine, poplar and oak, said Matthew Webster, the mu-

seum’s executive director of architectural preservation and research. The boards are already being cut. Construction is expected to finish next year.

The windows will have shutters but no glass, Webster said, while a concrete beam will support the new church directly over its original foundation, preserving the bricks.

“When we build the earliest part of the church, we will put bricks on their sides and will lay them in that strange way because that tells the story of those individuals struggling to quickly get their church up,” Webster said. “And then when we build the addition, it will be this formal foundation that really shows the establishment of the church.”

The rebuilt church will stir the memories of those who built it with little more than faith, said the Rev. Carlon Lassiter, pastor at Saint John Baptist Church and a descendent of First Baptist Church members.

“This is not simply a glance backward, but a reaching to carry forward the gifts our ancestors left buried in the soil and spirit of this very place,” Lassiter said.

Janice Canaday, who traces her lineage to First Baptist, said Williamsburg’s Black community never forgot its original location or that its graves were paved over in the 1950s.

“They will never be able to expunge us from the landscape,” said Canaday, who is also the museum’s African American community engagement manager. “It doesn’t matter if you take out the building. It doesn’t matter if you ban books. You will never be able to pull that root up because that root is so deep.”

Congress set to push war powers resolution after Trump starts a war with Iran

By Lauren Victoria Burke

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWS-

“The President’s di-

—

WIRE

sastrous decision to bomb Iran without authorization is a grave violation of the Constitution and Congressional War Powers. He has impulsively risked launching a war that may ensnare us for generations. It is absolutely and clearly grounds for impeachment,” wrote Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez on June 21. With no customary advance notice, senior members of Congress were caught off guard by the airstrikes on Iran.

When President Trump ordered the bombing of Iranian nuclear sites, there was no congressional vote beforehand. Democrats in Congress are strongly making that point, as most Republicans are taking their customary posi-

tion of agreeing with every decision Trump makes.

In the case of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DNY), she even added a call for impeachment because Trump once again actively ignored the Constitution.

“The President’s disastrous decision to bomb Iran without authorization is a grave violation of the Constitution and Congressional War Powers. He has impulsively risked launching a war that may ensnare us for generations. It is absolutely and clearly grounds for impeachment,” wrote Rep. Ocasio-Cortez on June 21.

Trump then wrote a June 22 message on social media about “regime change” and Iran. The moment was a flashpoint for conflict in the Middle East during a week when Congress returns to work.

“The President has attacked another nation without congressional authorization.

There was no apparent imminent threat from Iran against the United States. Furthermore, the President’s own Director of National Intelligence testified before Congress earlier this year that the U.S. intelligence community assessed Iran was

not building a nuclear weapon,” wrote Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) on June 21. Rep. Scott was referring to Trump’s Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who has reportedly been

Colonial Williamsburg Foundation via AP

This image provided by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation shows the 2021 excavation of the original First Baptist Church of Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Va.

AP Photo/Ben Finley, File

From left, Reginald F. Davis, pastor of First Baptist Church, Connie Matthews Harshaw, a member of First Baptist, and Jack Gary, Colonial Williamsburg’s director of archaeology, stand at the brick-and-mortar foundation of one the oldest Black churches in the U.S. on Oct. 6, 2021, in Williamsburg, Va.

Amir

From 3

community.

“I want to thank that brave neighbor (Troy), the officer (Lieutenant Hand) who fought to save Amir’s life, and the first responders who acted

ens of languages and nationalities peacefully co-exist, some Angelenos believe the city is experiencing an attack on its most essential social fabric.

On June 7, Trump acted under United States Code Title 10 provisions to take over command and control of California’s National Guard. Federalized military forces were deployed.

The objective was to counter what Trump argued was a form of rebellion against the authority of the government of the United States. In fact, these “rebellions” were largely peaceful protests in downtown L.A.

On June 9, the U.S.

swiftly and selflessly. I’m also deeply grateful to community groups like A Mother’s Love, 21 Days of Peace, We Push for Peace, and every resident who showed up to manage the chaos and care for one another in such a heartbreaking moment.”

“I cannot emphasize enough how terrible it is to have

Green, a former Judge turned statesman, told this reporter, “If people can accept authoritarianism, then that’s a

District Court for the Northern District of California granted an injunction restraining the president’s use of military force in L.A. The court order supported Gov. Gavin Newsom’s contention that Trump overstepped his authority.

On June 19, a decision from a panel of judges at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit overturned the injunction.

What this means at the moment is that Trump does not have to return control of the troops to Newsom. California has options to continue litigation by asking the Federal Appeals Court to rehear the matter, or perhaps directly asking the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene.

Moving toward authoritarianism

prochement, with Saudi Arabia and Iran reestablishing diplomatic ties in 2023 and reopening embassies in each other’s countries.

the US – for regime change in Tehran became clear. Following US strikes against Iranian nuclear sites, US president Donald Trump floated the idea of overthrowing the government to “make Iran great again”.

Retaliatory attacks by Iran on American forces at bases in Qatar and Iraq brought the conflict closer to home. The strikes prompted Gulf states to close their airspaces, while Qatar warned of its right to respond directly “in a manner equivalent with the nature and scale” of Iran’s attack. What effect the attacks will have on the involvement of Gulf countries in the conflict will soon become clear.

The Gulf states have long worked to keep Iran’s influence in check without attempting to topple its leadership. They have sought rap-

Gulf leaders view the alternative to warmer relations – be it a chaotic regime change or a globally interconnected or expansionist Iran – as possibly even more destabilising for the Gulf region and its economic ambitions.

Iran, for all its regional adventurism, is still regarded in the Gulf as an organic part of the Middle East. It is a civilisation with deep, ancient roots and an uninterrupted history of co-existence and cultural co-creation within the Islamic world.

This stands in contrast to how Israel is perceived. Some Gulf states have established diplomatic relations with Israel since 2020, under the framework of the Abraham Accords. But there remains a wider perception – particularly among citizens of these countries – that Israel is an imposed colonial

an 11-year-old boy shot and killed in the middle of the day,” said Chief O’Hara. “We need anyone with information to come forward so we can bring some sense of justice to this child’s family. We are following every lead, but we need the public’s help to solve this.” Vetaw said, “Let me

decision they make. I choose not to.” Green needs most of the 435 House members to vote

Trump’s June 7 memorandum facilitating his move to overrule Newsom’s authority and seize control of 2,000 National Guard troops was based on the president defining his own so-called emergency.

He claimed incidents of violence and disorder following aggressive immigration enforcement amounted to a form of rebellion against the U.S.

As Trump flexes his emergency power might, his second term has been called the 911 presidency. He has used extraordinary emergency powers at a pace well beyond his predecessors, pressing the limits to address his administration’s supposed sense of serious perils overtaking the nation.

Issues arise when the level of actual danger locally is not at all representative of what the president suggests is a full-

be very clear: No parent should have to bury their child. This cycle of grief is unacceptable, and we must demand justice and accountability. Our children deserve a future free from gun violence, where they can grow up in safety.

“Please keep Amir’s family in your thoughts and

for his impeachment attempts. He hopes a Senate conviction will remove President Trump from office this time.

scale national emergency. For example, demonstrations over immigration raids occupied only a tiny parcel of real estate in L.A.’s huge metropolitan area. A Los Angeles-based rebellion against the U.S. was not occurring. As dissent over aggressive immigration enforcement actions grew, localized clashes with law enforcement did occur. Mutual aid surged into Los Angeles, where neighbouring California law enforcement agencies acted to assist one another. The law enforcement challenges never rose to the level of the governor of California requesting additional federal support.

Shortly after the federal government took over the California National Guard, Newsom said the move was purposefully inflammatory.

prayers. And if you know something, say something. This family deserves justice. Our community deserves peace. And our kids deserve to live,” Vetaw said.

Anyone with information is urged to email policetips@minneapolismn.gov or leave a voicemail at 612-673-

recalls that each time he has introduced articles of impeachment, they have been tabled. As for this

In addition to declaring dubious emergencies to amass power, stoking violence is a characteristic of authoritarian rulers. Creating fear, division and feelings of insecurity can lead to community crises.

Trump did not need to wait for a crisis; it seems he simply invented one.

No guardrails

The expression “out of kilter” comes to mind as Trump inches closer to invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807. If so, the situation will look quite similar in practice to what is happening now in Los Angeles.

Five years ago, Trump flirted with invoking the Insurrection Act during Black Lives Matter unrest in Washington, D.C., in and around Lafayette Park.

As recent L.A. pro-

5845. Those wishing to remain anonymous can

and

tests intensified, Trump stated: “We’re going to have troops everywhere.”

Currently, there are few guardrails in place to prevent a rogue president from misusing the military in domestic civilian affairs. Trump has been coy about whether he would tap into the greater powers available to him under the Insurrection Act.

Real emergencies presenting existential threats to America do persist. Nuclear proliferation, climate change and pandemics need serious leaders. But politically exploiting last-resort emergency laws designed to provide options to deal with genuine existential threats — not to weaponize them against protesters demonstrating against public policy — is absurd.

presence whose threat to regional stability is growing.

Iran has hardly been a benign actor. Its government has played a destabilising role across the Arab world, from propping up the ruthless regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria to supporting armed groups in Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen. And now it has attacked the sovereign territory of two Gulf countries. It also continues to occupy three islands that are claimed by the United Arab Emirates: Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa. Iran’s interventions have left behind a trail of sectarianism, militarisation and humanitarian crises.

Yet Gulf leaders separate the actions of the Iranian regime from the people of Iran. Repeated waves of protests within Iran, particularly the women-led uprisings of recent years, have reinforced the sense that ordinary Iranians are themselves victims of a repressive regime.

There’s empathy within the Gulf for Iranian society, coupled with recognition of the historic and cultural ties that bind the region and its people. Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, described Iran as a “neighbour forever” in 2022, and with this neighbourliness comes a preference for stability over collapse. Gulf states would rather not see Iran plunge into chaos. This could unleash humanitarian crises and refugee flows that would be morally troubling and economically disastrous for the region. No decisive winner

While there is no appetite within the Gulf for regime change in Tehran, views expressed in government-controlled media suggest there is interest in seeing a political transformation in Israel. It seems to me that the Gulf states would prefer neither Iran nor Israel to emerge as a decisive winner in this military confrontation. A prolonged war of attrition weakens both, reducing the threats they pose to Arab sovereignty and regional stability. Such a conflict could result in political change in Israel that sees the end of oppressive policies against Palestinians and curbs to regional aggression. This would ease the political cost of normalising relations with Israel. Current efforts to integrate Israel into the regional order place Gulf leaders in an awkward position, appearing to side with a state that routinely violates Arab rights.

A regime change in Iran, particularly one that produces a nationalist, pro-western government, would present new complications for the Gulf. A more internationally connected and economically ambitious Iran could overshadow Gulf economies and revive old territorial disputes.

A prolonged conflict would, of course, raise the prospect of the Strait of Hormuz emerging as a flashpoint.

A closure, which Iran is reportedly discussing as a possibility, would disrupt one-fifth of the world’s oil supply and plunge global markets into turmoil. Neither side may actively seek this, but the risk of miscalculation is high. For Gulf

economies, whose futures are tied to global energy markets and diversification projects, such an outcome would be catastrophic. However, at least for now, Gulf countries seem relatively calm about the prospects of a closure. They issued a series of statements on June 22, expressing concern over the US strikes on Iran and calling for restraint. But the tone of their statements was rather measured. The mood in the Middle East appears to be shifting.

As one Emirati analyst, Mohammed Baharoon, recently warned: “Israel risks seeing itself as Thor, the mythical deity whose real status as a god is related to his hammer. This is dangerous for Israel’s future in the region and the world.” Baharoon added on social media: “Hammer-wielding Israel will have very limited space in a region that seeks economic partnerships over security alliances.” In other words, the region’s priorities are shifting, and Israel’s overreliance on military power is increasingly at odds with the future that the Gulf leaders are trying to shape. They wish to make the region an economic magnet for investment, not a cinematic backdrop for perpetual conflict.

Maxar Technologies Handout / EPA

A satellite image showing damage at the Isfahan nuclear site in Iran after US airstrikes on June 22.

Insight 2 Health

Mpox in Sierra Leone: what’s behind the recent surge and why west Africa is at risk

By Jia B. Kangbai Senior lecturer, Njala University

As of 17 June 2025, there have been over 4,000 confirmed cases of mpox and 25 deaths in Sierra Leone, raising the possibility that the virus will spread to neighbouring countries and spark a larger outbreak throughout the densely populated region of west Africa. Cases in Sierra Leone appear to be spreading from person to person, mainly among young men and women.

The Conversation Africa asked Jia Kangbai, an infectious-diseases epidemiologist at Njala University in Freetown, what’s behind the upsurge and how it can be stopped. What is mpox and how is it transmitted?

Mpox (formerly monkeypox) is a disease caused by the mpox virus. It is a member of the Orthopoxvirus genus. Other members of this genus include small pox and chicken pox. Initially, close physical contact with an infected person was the recognised mode of contracting the virus. With the emergence of various subclades (Clade 1a and 1b, Clade 2a and 2b) of MPXV, sexual transmission of mpox has been documented in several studies. What’s behind the recent outbreak in Sierra Leone?

The index case for the current mpox outbreak in Sierra Leone is a young man with a documented immunocompromised condition who had gone to the northern town of Lungi in December 2024 to spend Christmas Holiday with his wife. Two days after arrival in Lungi he had unprotected sex with one of the female hotel workers and later developed high fever, muscle and body pains, and swollen lymph nodes. He was later transferred to the capital Freetown where he was diagnosed positive for mpox. He was then admitted at the Connaught Hospital, Freetown, where he was successfully treated.

Sierra Leone’s international airport is located at Lungi. The town is also bustling with international tourists. It is possible that the current outbreak was imported from West Africa; it is also possible that cryptic MPXV transmission has been ongoing in Sierra Leone. Cryptic transmission is a situation when the virus is circulating within a population in low levels so much so that when there is an outbreak it is difficult to identify the source.

In our current study in Sierra Leone, we are running genomic sequencing on specimen obtained from this index case to know the source of the mpox outbreak.

This is a laboratory method used to determine the

entire genetic makeup of a specific organism or cell type. This method can be used to find changes in areas of the genome. These changes may help scientists understand how specific diseases form. Results of genomic sequencing may also be used to diagnose and treat disease.

How worried should Sierra Leoneans be about mpox?

Sierra Leoneans are visibly worried by the increasing number of mpox cases and deaths that have been recorded within four months of active mpox case surveillance. More worrying now for most Sierra Leoneans is the increasing number of commercial sex workers and people with multiple sex partners who are self-reporting for mpox.

Most of the mpox cases in Sierra Leone belong to these sub-populations. This implies that for an effective containment of the mpox outbreak in Sierra Leone special attention needs to be paid to these sub-populations.

What emergency measures need to be put in place to stem the spread?

The emergency measures put in place by the National Public Health Agency include: targeted vaccination of at-risk population active surveillance contact tracing

From Minnesota Department of Health

quarantine, and effective risk communication including the sharing of critical health information to empower individuals make informed and positive decisions about their safety and personal health

The effectiveness of these measures is being challenged because of the lack of resources. As of 17 June, there have been over 4000 confirmed cases and 25 deaths, with most patients recovering. But the number of mpox testing sites nationwide is very limited. During outbreaks with such dynamics, time is crucial. With few mpox testing sites it implies

that the time it takes to process samples to releasing lab results (turn around time) is going to be very long especially in this case when we are dealing with a population of over 8 million people that are scattered all over. How high is the risk of a regional spillover?

The West Africa sub region should be worried about a spillover. The cultures of the people in West Africa are identical, indicating a common ancestry. Additionally, there is a huge trade and trafficking of both human and goods across the sub region which makes the export-

New survey shows broad support among Minnesotans for Medicaid

8 in 10

respondents opposed federal cuts to Medicaid

Findings from a new statewide survey show there is broad support among Minnesotans for Medicaid and providing health insurance to people in need. Nearly three quarters of respondents (72%) said that Medicaid was “very important” to people in their local community.

In May 2025, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) partnered with the State Health Access Data Assistance Center (SHADAC) at the University of Minnesota on a survey to assess how Minnesotans perceive the Medicaid program (known as Medical Assistance in Minnesota), and potential changes to the program being discussed among lawmakers in Congress. Support for Medicaid was seen across all demographics and all areas of the state.

“Minnesotans know that Medicaid matters, and these survey results show that,” said State Medicaid Director and Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) Deputy Commissioner John Connolly. “Medicaid plays a key role in helping make sure people from all backgrounds and communities in every corner of our state have access to health coverage. However, the proposed federal cuts to Medicaid mean tens of thousands of our friends, neighbors and loved ones will lose their health coverage.” Minnesota has historically had low rates of uninsurance (3.8% in 2023) due to high rates of employer coverage and a robust state public health insurance system (Medical Assistance and MinnesotaCare). Additionally, with simplified enrollment and additional financial help with private insurance through MNsure, the state’s health insurance exchange, Minnesotans have enjoyed strong access to health care.

“The consequences of having a large number of people without health insurance are significant—not only for the people who do not have coverage but for our health care system and everyone in Minnesota,” said Minnesota Commissioner of Health Dr. Brooke Cunningham. “In the long run, access to health care coverage through Medicaid saves resources, saves money and saves lives.”

ed requiring everyone who is working age on Medicaid to be working or looking for work. Opinions shifted somewhat when people were told more about the potential impacts of this kind of policy.

Other key findings from the survey included:

The vast majority of survey respondents (93.3%) supported providing coverage through the government to people who lose their job-related coverage.

Most people had heard about changes to Medicaid being considered by lawmakers in Congress, but only 15.6% thought the changes would improve the health of people on Medicaid. The majority (70.7%) thought they would reduce spending.

Eight out of 10 respondents opposed reducing the amount of money the federal government puts toward the Medicaid expansion.

Of those who supported reducing money put toward Medicaid expansion, about a quarter (27.3%) changed their minds when they learned states might not be able to make up the amount and 20 million people would lose coverage nationally.

Respondents were split on whether they support-

“We are concerned about losing the gains in coverage and access made since the passage of the Affordable Care Act,” said State Health Economist at MDH Stefan Gildemeister. “Medicaid cuts of the proposed magnitude will affect many Minnesotans’ ability to see their doctor and get needed medicines. It will also challenge the financial viability of some health care provider systems in Minnesota, just as we worry about the impact of past closures and reduction in services across the state.”

Proposed changes to Medicaid in Congress include federal funding cuts, which would increase the costs for states, counties, Tribes, providers and enrollees. The proposed changes also call for new work requirements and other reforms that would reduce the number of people who qualify and increase the amount of information people who remain enrolled have to submit. It would also create more administrative burden for staff implementing the program.

(See the 2025 Reconciliation Bill: Federal Medicaid Cuts (PDF) factsheet from DHS for more on the proposed changes.)

The Opinions in Minnesota about Medical Assistance (Medicaid Opinions) survey reconnected with participants in the Minnesota Health Access (MNHA) Survey. The MNHA Survey is a large-scale web and telephone survey that collects information on the health of Minnesotans and how they access health insurance and health care services and is conducted every two years. About 2,000 people completed the Medicaid Opinions survey in the spring of 2025, either by telephone or online. More information on the Medicaid Opinions

Healing

From 3

for its powerful engagement with memory, material culture and restorative justice. I feature it in a chapter of a new book that I co-edited called Architectures of Slavery: Ruins and Reconstructions.

Who is Kwame Akoto-Bamfo?

Akoto-Bamfo studied at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi. He obtained his bachelor’s and master of fine arts degrees, both in sculpture. After graduating, the artist worked as a school teacher and a university lecturer. In 2015, Akoto-Bamfo rose to international fame through a series of largescale installations. He called it ‘Nkyinkyim’ (“twisting” in the Ghanaian Twi language, as in the proverb, “Life’s journey is twisted”).

Four years later, he established the ‘Nkyinkyim Museum’, a non-profit organisation known as the ‘Ancestor Project’. This open-air museum is located in Nuhalenya-Ada, a two-hour drive from Accra. It has become a space for people of African descent to engage in restorative healing through art and education.

Nkyinkyim Museum

At the site’s entrance, three twenty-five-foot monuments are displayed. They are made of stone, concrete and wood. The first is inspired by North and Eastern Africa, and the second by Sudano-Sahelian architecture. The third is inspired by the Forest regions in Central and West Africa.

The collection includes multiple installations in collaboration with the local community. They illustrate “the diversity in our narratives surrounding history, philosophy, and religious beliefs”. The artist himself, demonstrates a mastery of multimedia art forms, work-

ing in cement, terracotta, brass, copper, and wood, noting “one can reach different heights with different technologies.”

Today, the museum features a sacred healing space with a compelling display of thousands of unique concrete life size heads and 7,000 terracotta miniature sculpted heads. They include captive Africans abducted, sold and forcibly trafficked during the transatlantic slave trade.

His sculptures capture captives’ shock, horror, anger, distress and fear—emotions. This is communicated through their facial expressions in an installation that is disturbingly evocative and profoundly haunting. It is inspired by ‘nsodie’, an Akan funerary sculpture tradition, that dates back to approximately the twelfth century. Akoto-Bamfo explains during our conversations relating to the research for book: I wanted to draw upon Akan belief in commemoration and remembrance after death in order to honour the young, old, men and women, who originated from various ethnic groups and who died in the Atlantic Ocean during the Middle Passage and did not get that chance.

Each year, the annual ‘Ancestor Veneration’ ceremony takes place under the guidance of chiefs, priests, and priestess from various ethnic groups.

Visitors are invited

to participate in certain Akan rites and ceremonies – free from photography and selfies that undermine or commercialise sacred funerary art practices. Says Akoto-Bamfo: I am Akan, so initially I began with Akan traditional

rites, but now our ceremonies welcome other African ethnic groups including the GaDangme, Ewe, and Yoruba, from Ghana and Nigeria, as well as African descendant people in the African diaspora. In contrast, the ‘Freedom Parade Festival’ allows participants to creatively express and contribute to an evolving heritage tradition, without the specified observances. For example, painted bodily adornment applied directly onto the skin, yet without the necessary spiritual rites.

A protest monument Akoto-Bamfo’s sculptures have also gained recognition beyond Ghana’s borders. For instance, the permanent installation at the Legacy Museum and National Museum for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama in the US.

More recently, in 2021, his Blank Slate Project Monument toured throughout the United States. This included stops at Times Square in New York and the King Center in Atlanta. It depicts an enslaved ancestor, bent forward with his hands behind his back, head turned sideways, face on the ground, with a booted foot on his head.

Akoto-Bamfo describes this work as “a noisy one — a protest piece that speaks against racist Civil War monuments.” The work was completed prior to the police killing of George Floyd that led to widespread protests in the US in 2020. It was first unveiled in a private viewing in Ghana, prior to its shipment to the United States.

He says: We had a lot of discussions among those involved in the project: some feared it might incite violence, others said that it was a prediction. The work is interactive. It holds a removable placard that invites viewers to inscribe their reactions to the statue, which are then exhibited. Akoto-Bamfo emphasises:

I wanted ordinary people, both individuals and communities, to relate, and to contribute to, not only to-

wards my artwork but also to the wider ongoing discussions. As an artist, I believe that I do not have the sole right to speak. I wanted ordinary Americans to add their voices because I am already contributing.

In Europe too, his work is featured at the 169 Museum in Germany.

In Ghana, Akoto-Bamfo’s work was initially seen as too controversial. The artist shares: At first, I had to be extremely resilient because my work was concerned with the slave trade, slavery, colonialism, racism, and human rights. I embraced uncomfortable dialogue. Yet these were difficult topics for galleries and the art world at that time in Ghana. He adds: Today, however, some even view me as a spiritual leader… but I have always had an innate antipathy towards injustice. My work is not only about the past but what is unfolding now.

Akoto-Bamfo offers a closing reflection on why this kind of memory work matters: I just want to use the little knowledge that I have to contribute towards the work of restorative and transformative justice.

The museum displays 7,000 terracotta sculpted heads. Kwame Akoto-Bamfo

An installation of the heads of enslaved people. Kwame Akoto-Bamfo

Sculptures at the museum entrance. Kwame Akoto-Bamfo

NNPA presents Rev. Jamal Bryant with Black Press of America 2025 Newsmaker of the Year Award

By Stacy M. Brown

Newswire Senior

At the annual convention of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), held under the theme “The Black Press: Engaging Black America—Empowerment, Justice and Prosperity,” Rev. Dr. Jamal Harrison Bryant received the NNPA’s prestigious 2025 Newsmaker of the Year Award. Bryant was honored during a ceremony on June 27 recognizing Bryant’s bold leadership in confronting corporate America’s retreat from diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), most notably through his ongoing boycott of Target.

The NNPA is the trade association representing more than 200 African American-owned newspapers and media companies that comprise the 198-year-old Black Press of America.

Bryant, the Senior Pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in metro Atlanta, launched a 40-day fast—aligned with Lent—as an economic protest against Target after the company announced in January it would end its DEI initiatives and cancel a $2 billion pledge it made in 2020 to support Black-owned businesses following the murder of George Floyd.

“After the murder of George Floyd, [Target] made a $2 billion commitment to invest in Black businesses,” Bryant said during an earlier appearance on the Black Press’ Let It Be Known news program. “That commitment was due in December 2025. When they pulled out of the DEI agreement in January, they also canceled that $2 billion commitment.”

Target has told Black Press USA that it has exceeded its commitments made after

Floyd’s death.

However, Bryant cited the $12 million spent daily by Black consumers at Target as a driving reason to focus the protest on the retailer. Within just one week of launching the petition at targetfast.org, 50,000 people had signed on. “This is just phase one,” he said. “Amazon and others come right after.

America has shown us time and time again: if it doesn’t make dollars, it doesn’t make sense.”

Beyond the restoration of DEI programs, Bryant has called on Target to invest $250 million in Black-owned banks to help scale Black businesses and to partner with HBCUs located near the company’s 10 distribution centers.

“White women are the number one beneficiaries of DEI,” he said. “What I am asking for is a quarter of a billion dollars to be invested in Black banks so that our Black businesses can scale.”

The NNPA, in response to widespread corporate rollbacks, also launched a national public education and selective buying campaign.

“We are the trusted voice of Black America, and we will not be silent or nonresponsive to the rapid rise of renewed Jim Crow racist policies in corporate America,” said NNPA Chairman Bobby R. Henry Sr. “Black Americans spend $2 trillion annually,” said NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. “We must evaluate and realign to question why we continue to spend our money with companies that do not respect us.”

Bryant has also partnered with Ron Busby, President and CEO of the U.S. Black Chambers, to provide consumers with a directory of over 300,000 Black-owned businesses. “You can’t tell people what not to do without showing them what to do,” Bryant said.

“If you’re not going to Target or Walmart but need essentials

like toilet paper, soap, or detergent, we’ll show you where to get them and reinvest in Black businesses.”

He said the impact has proved major. “Since Black people have been boycotting Target, the stock has dropped by $11. Stockholders are now suing Target because of the adverse impact this boycott has had on their stock,” Bryant proclaimed.

He also addressed Target’s recent $300,000 agreement with the National Baptist Convention. During a sermon, he accused the convention of allowing the company to sidestep

accountability. “You thought you were going to go around me and go to the National Baptist Convention and sell out for $300,000?” Bryant demanded. “Are you crazy to think that we gonna’ sell out for chump change? You must not know who we are!”

Rev. Boise Kimber, president of the National Baptist Convention, said the denomination is working on a three-year plan with Target that “will be very beneficial to the Black community.”

Bryant has spent decades as a leading voice for justice. From his early work as

National Youth and College Director of the NAACP, where he mobilized over 70,000 young people in nonviolent campaigns, to founding Empowerment Temple AME Church in Baltimore—once the fastest-growing church in the AME denomination—to now leading New Birth, supporters said Bryant has never wavered in his commitment to mobilizing faith, economic power, and activism.

A Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award recipient and two-time Grammy Award winner, Bryant has established ministries that combat in-

justice, foster entrepreneurship, and empower economically disadvantaged individuals. He rose from earning a GED to receiving a Ph.D., reaching across generations and building bridges between the Civil Rights era and today’s movements.

Chavis said Bryant’s award at this year’s NNPA convention aligns directly with the event’s theme.

“Dr. Bryant has shown that prophetic voices still matter in the marketplace,” Chavis affirmed. “And the Black Press will always amplify those voices who fight for empowerment, justice, and prosperity.”

By Nancy Forster-Holt Clinical Associate Professor of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, University of Rhode Island

causes them to overlook important differences. After all, a 68-year-old carpenter trying to retire doesn’t have much in common with a 28-year-old tech founder pitching a startup.

Policymakers may cheer for high-growth “unicorns,” but they often overlook the “cows and horses” that keep local economies running.

Even among older business owners, circumstances vary based on local conditions.

Two retiring carpenters in different towns may face vastly different prospects based on the strength of their local economies. No business, and no business owner, exists in a vacuum.

vide resources specifically for retirement planning that starts early in a business’s life, to include how to increase the value of the business and a plan to attract acquirers in later stages.

tial buyers is cooling. For many business owners, retirement isn’t a distant concern. In the U.S., baby boomers – who are currently 61 to 79 years old – own about 2.3

million businesses. Altogether, they generate about US$5 billion in revenue and employ almost 25 million people. These entrepreneurs have spent decades building businesses that often are deeply rooted in their communities. They don’t have time to ride out economic chaos, and their optimism is at a 50year low. New policies, new challenges You can’t blame them for being gloomy. Recent policy shifts have only made life harder for business owners nearing retirement. Trade instability, whipsawing tariff announcements and disrupted supply chains have eroded already thin margins. Some businesses – generally larger ones with more negotiating power – are absorbing extra costs rather than passing them on to shoppers. Others have no choice but to raise prices, to customers’ dismay.

Inflation has further squeezed profits. At the same time, with a few notable exceptions, buyers and capital have grown scarce. Acquirers and liquidity have dried up across many sectors. The secondary market – a barometer of broader investor appetite – now sees more sellers than buyers. These are textbook symptoms of a “flight to safety,” a market shift that drags out sale timelines and depresses valuations – all while Main Street business owners age out. These entrepreneurs typically have one shot at retirement – if any. Adding to these woes, many small businesses are part of what economists call regional “clusters,” providing services to nearby universities, hospitals and local governments. When those anchor institutions face budget cuts – as is happening

now – small business vendors are often the first to feel the impact. Research shows that many aging owners actually double down in weak economic times, sinking increasing amounts of time and money in a psychological pattern known as “escalating commitment.” The result is a troubling phenomenon scholars refer to as “benign entrapment.” Aging entrepreneurs can remain attached to their businesses not because they want to, but because they see no viable exit.

This growing crisis isn’t about bad personal planning — it’s a systemic failure. Rewriting the playbook on small business policy

A key mistake that policymakers make is to lump all small business owners together into one group. That

Relatedly, when small businesses fail to transition, it can have consequences for the local economy. Without a buyer, many enterprises will simply shut down. And while closures can be long-planned and thoughtful, when a business closes suddenly, it’s not just the owner who loses. Employees are left scrambling for work.

Suppliers lose contracts. Communities lose essential services.

Four ways to help aging entrepreneurs

That’s why I think policymakers should reimagine how they support small businesses, especially owners nearing the end of their careers.

First, small business policy should be tailored to age. A retirement-ready business shouldn’t be judged solely by its growth potential. Rather, policies should recognize stability and community value as markers of success. The U.S.

Small Business Administration and regional agencies can pro-

Second, exit infrastructure should be built into local entrepreneurial ecosystems. Entrepreneurial ecosystems are built to support business entry – think incubators and accelerators – but not for exit. In other words, just like there are accelerators for launching businesses, there should be programs to support winding them down. These could include confidential peer forums, retirement-readiness clinics, succession matchmaking platforms and flexible financing options for acquisition.

Third, chaos isn’t good for anybody. Fluctuations in capital gains taxes, estate tax thresholds and tariffs make planning difficult and reduce business value in the eyes of potential buyers. Stability encourages confidence on both sides of a transaction.

And finally, policymakers should include ripple-effect analysis in budget decisions. When universities, hospitals or governments cut spending, small business vendors often absorb much of the shock. Policymakers should account for these downstream impacts when shaping local and federal budgets.

If we want to truly support small businesses and their owners, it’s important to honor the lifetime arc of entrepreneurship – not just the launch and growth, but the retirement, too.

Courtesy photo

Rev. Dr. Jamal Harrison Bryant, the Senior Pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Metro Atlanta.

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko

Small business owners who want to retire don’t have it easy.

NBA owners unanimously approve $1.5B sale of Wolves, WNBA’s Lynx from Taylor to Lore-Rodriguez group

By Dave Campbell AP Sports Writer

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The

$1.5 billion sale of the Minnesota Timberwolves from Glen Taylor to an investment group led by e-commerce entrepreneur Marc Lore and former baseball star Alex Rodriguez gained NBA approval on Tuesday, finalizing a complex and contentious process more than four years after the deal was reached.

The ownership transfer that Taylor tried to stop last year received an unanimous vote from the league’s board of governors that comprises the 30 team owners. The deal, which is expected to close this week nearly 51 months and more than 1,500 days after the initial agreement, includes the fourtime WNBA champion Minnesota Lynx.

The Timberwolves are planning an introductory news conference for Lore and Rodriguez next month in Las Vegas during the NBA Summer League. Lore and Rodriguez will serve as co-chairmen on the board, with Lore as Timberwolves governor and Rodriguez as alternate governor, the league announced. For the Lynx, Rodriguez will serve as governor and Lore as alternate governor.

“We fully recognize the great responsibility that comes with serving as stewards of these exceptional franchises,” Lore said in a statement distributed by the organization. “We are committed to building an organization that sets the standard for excellence, is universally admired, and rooted in pride that spans generations.”

The business partners and close friends who met during the pandemic over a Zoom call have said they’re committed to keeping the teams in Minnesota.

“I’ve dedicated my entire life to the world of sports, not just as a game, but as a

powerful force that unites people, uplifts communities, and changes lives,” Rodriguez said. “I’m incredibly honored and energized to roll up my sleeves and get to work. I know what it takes to be a champion, and I’m ready to bring that same commitment and drive to create a winning culture in Minnesota.”

The 83-year-old Taylor, who grew up on a Minnesota dairy farm and built a fortune with a business that specialized in printing wedding invitations, bought the Timberwolves for about $88 million in 1994 to prevent them from moving after a deal between the original owners and a group in New Orleans was nixed by the NBA.

After Lore and Rodriguez were outbid for the New York Mets by hedge fund manager Steve Cohen, they turned their attention to basketball after learning Taylor was exploring a sale. The deal was arranged in phases to allow Taylor to stay as a mentor of sorts.

The value of the franchise has more than doubled since that April 10, 2021, agreement due largely to soaring NBA revenues. Forbes has estimated the Timberwolves are worth $3.1 billion. Sportico’s most recent calculations pegged the club at $3.29 billion. Both publications put them as the third-lowest in the league, playing in a midsized market in a 35-year-old arena.

The Lynx have been valued between $230 million (Forbes) and $240 million ( Sportico ), in the bottom half of the league that’s in the midst of an expansion to 16 teams by 2028.

Taylor announced on March 28, 2024, he was exercising his right to back out of the sale because Lore and Rodriguez missed the deadline to purchase a third portion of the club that would have given their group about an 80% stake.

Lore and Rodriguez were blindsided by the decision and defended their integ-

rity, accusing Taylor of having seller’s remorse. They blamed the payment delay on the slow pace of the league’s approval process and said they submitted paperwork six days ahead of the deadline.

The dispute first went to mediation and then to arbitration, where a three-panel judge ruled in favor of Lore and Rodriguez. Their group, which includes former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Google executive Eric Schmidt, has been poised to buy Taylor and his partners completely out rather than the leave him with a 20% stake from the initial agreement.

Taylor decided in April not to appeal the arbitration decision, near the end of his 31st season controlling the team. The Timberwolves saved

him the best for last, reaching the Western Conference finals for a second straight year before losing to NBA champion Oklahoma City.

Even after making the playoffs in each of Taylor’s final four seasons, the Timberwolves have the worst all-time regular season record — 1,196-1,680, a .416 winning percentage — of the league’s current 30 franchises. They’re 39-55 in playoff games, with a first-round elimination in 10 of the 13 times they qualified.

Taylor and his wife, Becky, published a farewell message in Monday’s print edition of the Minnesota Star Tribune, which Taylor bought in 2014. The Timberwolves also posted it on the front of their website. “This marks the end

of an extraordinary chapter in our lives — one filled with purpose, pride, and a deep connection. When we kept the Timberwolves from moving to New Orleans in 1994, we did so with the hope of building something that could unite people across Minnesota and beyond.

And when we added the Lynx in 1998, it was driven by our belief in supporting women and fully embracing the diversity and promise of the WNBA,” the Taylors said, thanking their limited partners, the players, the staff, the community and the fans for their support.

“Though we are stepping away as owners, our love for this organization and this community remains as strong as ever. We will always be fans, cheering from our seats, celebrating your triumphs, and be-

lieving in what comes next. It has been the honor of our lives.” Lore, whose net worth is estimated by Forbes at $2.9 billion, is the CEO of the New York-based meal delivery service Wonder. He has founded e-commerce companies that were previously acquired by retail giants Walmart and Amazon. Rodriguez, a 14-time All-Star who hit 696 career home runs but has fallen short of Hall of Fame induction due to his admitted use of performance enhancing drugs, built a business career around real estate investment and development. He made more than $450 million in salaries over 22 years in the major leagues.

East West Classic embraces history on Juneteenth

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Hall of Fame Inductee CC Sabathia headlined the event and was the winning pitcher for the West Team, as they beat the East Team 3-0 in the scheduled five inning game. Prince Fielder won the home run derby outlasting former Atlanta Braves star Andruw Jones. There was a three-hour rain delay before the teams took the field at Rickwood.

Legends of the game gathered at historic Rickwood Field in Major League Baseball’s celebration of the Negro

League All-Stars coinciding with Juneteenth. The star studded event honored the rich history of the Negro Leagues with some of the original players in attendance. Former players played an exhibition game as well as a home run derby on the same field where the game’s greatest athletes once played.

Hall of Fame Inductee CC Sabathia headlined the event and was the winning pitcher for the West Team, as they beat the East Team 3-0 in the scheduled five inning game. Prince Fielder won the home run derby outlasting former Atlanta Braves star Andruw Jones. There was a three-hour rain delay before the teams took the field at Rickwood.

Hosting the festivities

was Birmingham native, comedian Ron Wood Jr. currently on the TV show “Have I Got News For You” on CNN. Some of the greats who participated included Gary Sheffield, Ryan Howard, Matt Kemp, Chris Young, Jake Peavy, and Mike Cameron.

“There’s a direct connection between this field and all of us because we wouldn’t be able to play the game if it wasn’t for the guys that paved the way that played on this field.,” Sabathia said. “This won’t be the last time we’re down here.” This was the second annual East West Classic. Last year the inaugural event was held at the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

Indiana star Caitlin Clark has an early lead in the fan voting for next month’s WNBA All-Star Game, the league announced Friday. The guard received 515,993 votes and was followed by Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier, who garnered 484,758 votes. There were three other Indiana players in the top 10 with Aliyah Boston third, Kelsey Mitchell seventh and Lexie Hull ninth. This year’s game will be played in Indiana on July 19. A’ja Wilson of Las Vegas and Breanna Stewart of New York were fourth and fifth in the balloting, respectively. The two were the captains for the All-Star Game in 2022 and 2023. Sabrina Ionescu, Stewart’s teammate, was eighth, while rookies Paige Bueckers of Dallas, in sixth, and Kiki Iriafen of Washington, in 10th, rounded out the top 10. Fan voting ends on June 28 and accounts for 50% of

AP Photos

Ron Wood (left) talks to Negro League legend Al Holt (right).

AP Photo/Abbie Parr

AP Photo/Abbie Parr

Minnesota Timberwolves co-owner Alex Rodriguez cheers during the second half of Game 4 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs

between the Timberwolves and the Oklahoma City Thunder Monday, May 26, 2025, in Minneapolis.

Books, Art & Culture

Call Me Miss Hamilton

Sharing Our Stories

By W.D. Foster-Graham Book Review Editor

By Carole Boston Weatherford Illustrated by Jeffery Boston Weatherford

In the course of shar-

ing our stories as African American and African born people, we constantly learn something new, something we can pass on to succeeding generations. When it comes to family history, we are encouraged to document it, to have some hard copies that establish our connections to that history.

Another way is, of

One Woman’s Case for EQUALITY and RESPECT

course, through books, and the way we engage children so that reading is fun as well as informative and enlightening. As a Baby Boomer, the more I learn, the more I have yet to learn, which keeps me young. One of my elders told me a while ago that when I think I know everything, I have lost my capacity to learn new things, and that’s when I become old.

That being said, I am happy to bring you another entry in our growing library of Black children’s books: Carole Boston Weatherford’s Call Me Miss Hamilton: One Woman’s Case for Equality and Respect.

Born in 1935, Mary Hamilton’s parents raised her to know right from wrong. Though she could pass for white, she was proud to be Black. As a

college graduate, she knew that addressing someone by the titles Miss, Mrs. or Mr. denoted courtesy and respect. This would be put to the test when she became part of the Civil Rights Movement as a member of CORE and as a Freedom Rider. She, like many, was arrested and jailed, with whites calling her “out of her name,” and expecting her to respond. They discovered they were dealing with a sistah who refused to back down. When she was in an Alabama court, she refused to answer a white prosecutor and a judge unless she was called “Miss Hamilton.” Charged with contempt, and refusing to pay the fine, she took the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1964. She won the case, which became known as

the Miss Mary Case. Now, all people in court deserve respect, and African Americans are addressed as Miss/Ms., Mrs., and Mr., same as whites. We don’t hear as much about these unsung sheros like Mary Hamilton, yet their stories and experiences have brought about the changes in our lives today, such as in the eyes of the law. She demanded respect, she demanded justice, and she got it.

Weatherford is the recipient of the Caldecott Honor, the Sibert Honor, the Newberry Honor, and two NAACP Image Awards.

Kudos to Jeffery Boston Weatherford for his amazing illustrations. Call Me Miss Hamilton is available through Am-

Q&A: Pulitzer Prize winner Robin Givhan chronicles Virgil Abloh’s rise to fashion fame

By Beatrice Dupuy Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — With his calm and cool demeanor, fashion disruptor and multi-hyphenate

Virgil Abloh artfully challenged the fashion industry’s traditions to leave his mark as a Black creative, despite his short-lived career. In the years since his 2021 death at just 41, his vision and image still linger. Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Robin Givhan sheds new light on how Abloh ascended the ranks of one of the top luxury fashion houses and captivated the masses with her latest book, “Make It Ours: Crashing the Gates of Culture with Virgil Abloh.”

In the book out Tuesday, Givhan documents Abloh’s early life growing up as the son of Ghanaian immigrants in Rockford, Illinois, his days as graduate student studying architecture and his working relationship and friendship with Kanye West. Before taking the helm of Louis Vuitton as the house’s first Black menswear creative director, Abloh threw himself into his creative pursuits including fine art, architecture, DJing and design. Abloh remixed his interests with his marketing genius and channeled it into fashion with streetwear labels like Been Trill and Pyrex Vision.

These endeavors were the launchpad for his luxury streetwear label OffWhite, known for its white diagonal lines, quotation marks, red zip ties and clean typeface. Off-White led to Abloh’s collaboration with Ikea, where he designed a rug with “KEEP OFF” in all-white letters and also with Nike where he deconstructed and reenvisioned 10 of Nike’s famous shoe

silhouettes.

Throughout his ventures, Abloh built a following of sneakerheads and so-called hypebeasts who liked his posts, bought into his brands and showed up in droves outside his fashion shows. Social media made Abloh accessible to his fans and he tapped into that.

Off-White had built a loyal following and some critics.

Givhan, a Washington Post senior critic-at-large, openly admits that she was among the latter early on. Givhan said she was fascinated that Abloh’s popularity was more than his fashion.

“For me, there was something of a disconnect really,” she said. “That here was this person who had clearly had an enormous impact within the fashion industry and outside of the fashion industry, and yet it wasn’t really about the clothing. It was about something else.”

For her latest project, Givhan spoke with The Associated Press on how she approached each of Abloh’s creative undertakings and his legacy during a period of heightened racial tension in America. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

AP: Tell me why you felt it was important to include the context of what was happening at the time Abloh was growing up as well as on his rise up through the fashion industry, with him ultimately ending up at Louis Vuitton.

GIVHAN: Fashion doesn’t just sort of happen in a vacuum. People are the product of their parents, their family, their environment, their timing, their interests, all of those things.

I always like to see, what is swirling around people when they make certain decisions? What is sort of in the water that you’re absorbing,

that you are not even conscious that you’re absorbing it.

AP: Can you talk about the process of writing about all of his creative endeavors and how they shaped his career?

GIVHAN: The skater culture — in part because it was such a sort of subculture that also had a very specific aesthetic and was such a deep part of the whole world of streetwear — and then the DJing part intrigued me because so much of his work as a designer seems to reflect a kind of DJ ethos, where you’re not creating the melody and you’re not creating the lyrics. You’re taking these things that already exist and you’re remixing them and you’re responding to the crowd and the crowd is informing you. And so much of that, to me, could also be used to describe the way that he thought about fashion and the way that he designed.

AP: What role would you say that Virgil has had in the fashion industry today?

GIVHAN: He certainly raised the question within the industry of what is the role of the creative director? How much more expansive is that role? ... And I do think he

has really forced the question of how are we defining luxury? Like what is a luxury brand? And is it something that is meant to sort of have this lasting impact? Is it supposed to be this beautifully crafted item? Or is it really just a way of thinking about value and beauty and desirability? And if it’s those things, then really it becomes something that is quite sort of quite personal and can be quite based on the community in which you live.

AP: How did he use social media to his advantage and to help catapult his career?

GIVHAN: He really used social media as a way of connecting with people as

opposed to just sort of using it as kind of a one-way broadcast. He was telling his side of things, but he was also listening to other people. He was listening to that feedback.

That’s also what made him this larger-than-life person for a lot of people, because not only was he this creative person who was in conversation with fans and contemporaries, but he was this creative person inside. He was this creative person at the very top of the fashion industry. For a lot of people, the idea that you could ostensibly have a conversation with someone at that level, and they would seemingly pull back the curtain and be transparent about things — that was really quite powerful.

AP: You write about his relationship to Kanye in the book. Were you able to get any input from him on their relationship for the book?

GIVHAN: Their individual ambitions, aesthetic ideas and curiosity kind of propelled them forward in separate directions. I did reach out to Kanye after a lot of the reporting because he obviously is this thread that is woven throughout the book. And, ultimately, he elected not to engage.

But I was lucky enough to get access to an

unpublished conversation that Virgil had had around, I think it was 2016-ish, where he talked at length about his working relationship with Kanye and sort of the differences between them and the similarities and the ways in which ... Kanye inspired him and sort of the jet fuel that he got from that relationship. More than anything, because Virgil’s personality was in so many ways kind of the opposite of Kanye’s, that for every door that Kanye was kind of pounding on, Virgil was able to politely sort of walk through.

AP: Why do you think his legacy continues to persist?

GIVHAN: For one, he had such an enormous output of work. I think there’s a lot of it to consider. Also, sadly, because his career was cut so short that there is this sense of someone who sort of stops speaking midsentence.

I’ve been thinking about how Virgil might have responded, how his creativity might have responded to this moment because so much shifted post-George Floyd that like this is another inflection point and it makes me wonder, “OK, how would he have responded today?” And with the person who said, “I’m not a rebel and I’m not a flame thrower,” would he have picked up some matches? I don’t know.

azon, Barnes and Noble, and Millbrook Press. Thank you, thank you, thank you, for this inspiring story, and for

Crown via AP, left, and AP

This combination of images shows cover art for “Make It Ours: Crashing the Gates of Culture with Virgil Abloh” by Robin Givhan, left, and Givhan at the Global Citizen NOW conference in New York on April 28, 2023.

Dark Country by J. Darnell Johnson Book Cover Art

Lucas Giambelluca President, Bank of America Twin Cities