Jay Z Joins Effort to Bail Out 100 Dads for Father’s Day

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Jay Z with Kalief Browder

It’s a Father’s Day 100 Dads won’t soon forget.

Because they’ll get to spend it with their kids instead of cell mates. All thanks to new father of three (you prob haven’t heard) Jay Z, backing Color of Change’s fundraising effort to bail out 100 Dads today.

The racial justice org did the same thing last month for moms.

Sadly it’s needed given that one in 9 children have a parent behind bars. A truth bomb Jay Z launched in his penned TIME article, For Father’s Day, “I’m Taking on the Exploitative Bail Industry.”

In the think piece Jay Z shares the heartbreaking reality of being locked up with no way out:

 If you’re from neighborhoods like the Brooklyn one I grew up in, if you’re unable to afford a private attorney, then you can be disappeared into our jail system simply because you can’t afford bail. Millions of people are separated from their families for months at a time — not because they are convicted of committing a crime, but because they are accused of committing a crime.

And why the rap mogul has made it his mission to take on the exploitation of the bail bond industry:

 …when I helped produce this year’s docuseries, Time: The Kalief Browder Story, I became obsessed with the injustice of the profitable bail bond industry. Kalief’s family was too poor to post bond when he was accused of stealing a backpack. He was sentenced to a kind of purgatory before he ever went to trial. The three years he spent in solitary confinement on Rikers ultimately created irreversible damage that lead to his death at 22.

The sad reality of nearly 700,000, on any given day, that get locked up without a conviction or a way to pay for their freedom.

Thankfully, there are some that found a way out today.

Happy Father’s Day!!

The Weeknd Donates $100,000 To Medical Center In Uganda

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CREDIT: Getty Images
The Weekend is helping a medical facility in East Africa fund a new clinic. The “Starboy” singer donated $100,000 to the Suubi Health Center, a maternity and children’s medical facility located in Budondo, Uganda.

According to E! News, The Weekend was motivated to make a donation because of French Montana’s work to raise awareness for the health canter through Global Citizen, a social action platform, and Mama Hope.

The Moroccan rapper has been spreading the word through his #Unforgettable Dance video which is touted as a “call to action to raise awareness for the needs of Suubi and the people of Uganda.”

In March, Montana traveled to Uganda to shoot the “Unforgettable” music video. Once he landed in Uganda, Montana met with the founders of the Suubi Center, and spoke with community members about some of the challenge that they face (especially new mothers and babies).

Montana was so inspired by the visit that he pledged the first $100,000 donation to help pay for ambulances, premature incubators, cribs and a blood bank for the Suubi community. He’s now challenging others (including some of his musical peers like The Weekend) to make donations to help pay for the new maternity center.

Click here for more information on Montana’s #Unforgettable Dance challenge.

 (Reported by Vibe)

Sista Goals! Venus and Serena Donate $1 Million to ATA in Dad’s Honor

 

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A century ago, when the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association formalized a policy barring African-American players, the American Tennis Association – the ATA – was born.

It had to be born.

As it celebrates its 100th anniversary, the oldest African-American sporting organization in the U.S. has ambitious goals.

And Serena and Venus Williams may play a major role in helping the organization cement its legacy.

The ATA wants to set down permanent roots to help ensure African-American kids get every opportunity to thrive in the sport.

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To that end, it plans to build a new facility in south Florida. The location, subject to municipal procedures, is set for the city of Miramar’s regional park. The complex, to be called the ATA Tennis and Education Complex, will house the association’s relocated offices as well as a museum.

And it also will include a national training centre for promising young African-American players. The first major news is the imminent announcement that the first inductee into the ATA’s new Hall of Fame will be … Richard Williams.

There will be a stadium court in the middle of the proposed new complex. And in appreciation of the court being named after their father, Tennis.Life has learned that daughters Venus and Serena intend to endow the project with a hefty sum – $1 million.

Now 75, Williams did the seemingly impossible when he brought daughters Serena and Venus from the pitted courts of Compton, California to sporting immortality.The first two phases will cost about $7 million. First will be tennis courts and the ATA offices. Phase 2 will add more courts, and the museum.“Not only will it be a permanent home, but it also will help the development of the city,” Tucker said. In addition to being an ATA member, Tucker also is vice-president of multicultural business development for the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The organization has been trying for decades to make this a reality. There were plans even as far back as 20 years ago in south Florida.

(Written by Tennis Life)

Forest Whitaker Launched Education Center for Ugandan Refugees

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Let’s raise a glass to Last King of Scotland actor Forest Whitaker for creating an education center for Ugandan refugees.

Whitaker combined his Peace & Development Initiative with Western Union Foundation to contribute $1.24 million, over three years, to ensure refugees have access to life-altering skills.

The Whitaker Peace Initiative learning centers (WPI)—The Youth Peacemaker Network—in Northern Uganda have several programs dedicated to peace building, mediation, life skills, information and communication technologies, entrepreneurship skills for 30 Gulu district men and women, according to Western Union Foundation rep, who blogged about the learning center launch.

The Waiting to Exhale also paid the Kiryandongo refugee settlement camp, with 70,000 refugees fleeing from conflicts in South Sudan, DR Congo and other nearby areas.

“The WU Foundation and WPDI have set up a Community Center and sports field, facilities that will used for training in conflict resolution, ICT business, sports and cultural skills. With the training received, young men and women have set up micro businesses and income generating projects in the area,” WU rep Jean-Claude Farah reports.

Continuing with “another program, called Peace through Sports program trains teams of young girls and boys in football. The teams have already begun to play games and have won competitions.”

 

 

Nicki Minaj Accepts Fans Offer to Pay College Tuition

Hol’ up, Hol’ up Hooolllld up. You mean to tell me my $18G’s of college debt could’ve been eliminated with one (numero uno) tweet to a celeb?

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Well, for a lucky few die-hard (they certainly are now) Nicki Minaj fans that most certainly was the case.

The fairy-tale ending–every college grad prays, wishes and pleads for–happened Saturday. A bold Nicki Minaj fan pleaded her case via Twitter.

Nicki was willing to shell out the coins, if the fan could prove she was a star pupil.

Thus began the put it on Minaj’s tab challenge. For those unaware of how it works–us mere broke and low-paying college grads put in offers for the “No Frauds” rapper and she epically hooked us up.

The tweets speak for themselves.

After a few hours Nicki cut off her purse strings, but it goes without saying she’s our #WCW.

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TGIF! Colin Kaepernick Continues Giving Tour |Obama Donates $2M to Chi-Town Jobs Program

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Happy Cinco De Mayo, Blinkers!

It couldn’t come at a better time…because it’s feel good Friday, y’all.

So grab that Corona with lime–dont forget the tacos–settle in and let’s recap some of the good things that went down this week.

Starting with our favorite quarterback Colin Kaepernick, sans a team. (Insert rant: will somebody pick this dude up already?)

Colin’s giving tour landed in front of the New York State Parole Board on Sunday, where the former 49er handed out custom suits to recently released prisoners looking for jobs.

Colin’s doing the damn thing when it comes to helping out in the community. Keep up the goodworks, CK.

Now for some Obama news that doesn’t involve “health” or “care” ’cause ain’t nothing feel good about that ish.

Anyway, Barack and Michelle Obama announced making a $2 million donation to create 800 summer jobs in Chicago on Wednesday.

“One of the things that we’ll be starting this year is Michelle and I are personally going to donate $2 million to our summer jobs programs here in the community,” he said at the South Shore Cultural Center. “[It’s] so that right away young people can get to work and we can start providing opportunities to all of them.”

So take that, all you salty Democrats (**cough Bernie Sanders cough**) who chastised Obama for filling his pockets with Wall Street dollars. A cash grab former presidents have done for decades, mind you. At least Obama is doing it to help out his adopted city. To prevent more violence from coming out of Chiraq.

One Summer Chicago will be hosting summer jobs for the teens.

Cheers to more people like Obama.

Cha-Ching! Ne-Yo Invests $2.3 Million in Tech School to Attract Minority Coders

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Ne-Yo has been M.I.A lately. Perhaps it’s due to a new house, new baby (it’s a boy!), new album and upcoming tour.

Whew!! I’m winded from just writing that sentence.

Luckily, what hasn’t changed is his gentlemanly ways.

Hence, the Miss Independent crooner’s announcement of investing $2.3 million dollars into a San Francisco-based technical school, Holberton, so underprivileged kids can learn to code.

“Everybody knows that tech and all these things are the wave of the future,” Ne-Yo told Tech Crunch. “I just love the fact of what they’re doing with the school — that they’re making it easier for underrepresented people in the world of tech. They’re giving them a platform and access to this knowledge that they probably wouldn’t get otherwise. I think that’s one of the coolest things about this whole situation.”

Another dope thing is Holberton doesn’t charge tuition until after the student gets a job. You read that right. If and when they do, the school takes 17 percent of a salary.

Plus, the odds of getting selected are def in minorities favor—Holberton’s current class is made up of 40% female and 53% of color, according to Tech Crunch.

No wonder Ne-Yo is also a member of the Holberton’s board of trustees.

“I’m definitely going to be hands on,” he said. “I don’t know if I’m going to do every day because there’s this little music career thing that i’ve got going on,” he joked. “So there’s that but i’m definitely going to be hands on.”

Ne-Yo is definitely swapping the gentleman for philanthropist.