BET | June 29, 2020
“Patrisse Cullors, Viola Davis, Sterling K. Brown, Spike Lee, Whoopi Goldberg and others honor Black Americans who were murdered as a result of systemic racism.”
Follow the link above to watch the highlights.
The Washington Post | June 29, 2020
“In the middle of the 2020 BET Awards on Sunday night, celebrities from Jamie Foxx and Viola Davis to Kendrick Lamar and Tracee Ellis Ross appeared on video screens together to read a long list of names: George Floyd. Breonna Taylor. Trayvon Martin. Elijah McClain. Sandra Bland. Stephon Clark. Rayshard Brooks. Medgar Evers. Michael Brown. Ahmaud Arbery. Tamir Rice. Emmett Till. Malcolm X. Martin Luther King Jr. And many more.
‘Unfortunately, these names represent only a fraction of the black lives we’ve lost to the over 400-year-long pandemic called racism,’ said Patrisse Cullors, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement. ‘We can’t allow this cycle of pain and oppression to continue any longer. It ends now. We will not lose.’
During the three-hour show (prerecorded remotely because of the novel coronavirus pandemic), nearly every artist addressed the Black Lives Matter movement and police brutality amid the national reckoning over racial injustice. Host Amanda Seales started and ended the telecast by talking about Taylor, who was shot and killed by Louisville police in her apartment: ‘Breonna Taylor’s killers are still walking free,’ she said to close the show.”
Follow the link above to read the entire article.
Newsweek | June 26, 2020
“Seven years have passed since Patrisse Cullors and fellow activists Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi launched the Black Lives Matter movement in response to the acquittal of the man who killed Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Black teenager shot while walking home in Miami Gardens, Florida. Cullors talked with Newsweek chief correspondent Chantal Da Silva about what's changed since then, what hasn't and what the BLM movement means today, in the wake of George Floyd's death and its impact on the movement for racial justice. Here are edited excerpts from the interview.”
Follow the link above to read the entire interview between Patrisse Cullors and Newsweek.
Hypebeast | June 26, 2020
“Dev Hynes, Doja Cat and Aloe Blacc are among the names performing in a live stream this weekend to raise funds in the fight against racial injustice.
Black Power Live will be hosted by #BlackLivesMatter co-founder Patrisse Cullors, and will feature performances from a range of musicians, poets and activists, all streamed live through Twitch.
The event is intended as an opportunity to reflect on the next steps in current movement for social equality that is taking place worldwide, while celebrating the achievements of activists and protestors so far.”
Follow the link above to learn more about The Black Power Live stream.
Entertainment Tonight | June 26, 2020
“Some famous names have signed on to appear on Nick News' latest special! ET can exclusively announce that Chance the Rapper, Simone Biles, Naomi Campbell and Lay Lay will all appear on Kids, Race and Unity: A Nick News Special later this month.
Alicia Keys is set to host the virtual event, which will focus on the protests and social movements sweeping the nation in an effort to ‘amplify the voices and experiences of Black kids across the country amid current events.’
The special feature young activists like 12-year-old Keedron Bryant, as well as leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement -- Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi -- the latter of whom will be answering questions submitted by kids.
Kids, Race and Unity: A Nick News Special will air Monday, June 29 at 7 p.m. ET/PT on Nickelodeon, TeenNick, and Nicktoons. After the episode airs, viewers can check it out on all of Nickelodeon's digital streaming platforms.”
Be sure to watch the Nick News special!
Newsweek | June 26, 2020
“Can eight minutes and 46 seconds change the world?
From London to Lisbon, Berlin to Brisbane, Pretoria to Paris, as well as Toronto, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro and scores of other cities in dozens of other countries across the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, the answer, increasingly, seems to be yes.
In the month that's passed since George Floyd was killed and that horrifying, heartbreaking nearly nine-minute video revealed his treatment by four Minneapolis police officers, protests have spread beyond the U.S. and around the globe. The themes are at once universal—demonstrators demand justice for Floyd, and call for police reform and an end to systemic racism—and unique to the particular challenges of racial justice in each country. Protestors invoke the names of Black people killed in their country along with Floyd's, topple symbols of racism specific to their culture, point to what they believe are egregious examples of inequality particular to where they live.
The overarching message that ties the global protests together: ‘Black Lives Matter.’”
Follow the link above to read the entire article.
Amazon | June 25, 2020
Astronauts by Jim Ottaviani and Maris Wicks was name an Amazon best nonfiction children's book of 2020 so far!
Follow the link above to see the full list.
O Magazine | June 24, 2020
“We are in a moment—hunkered down, face masks on, social distancing even from family and friends—when it’s tempting to settle into our cocoons, to get more insular.
Before the pandemic, it wasn’t unusual for me to visit two or three continents in the span of a month. Wherever I went, I’d take in the history, the culture, the people, the cuisine, opening my eyes wide to sights and customs I hadn’t experienced before, always struck by how closely connected we are. For the foreseeable future I won’t be making those trips that for decades fueled my imagination and enriched my soul. But that won’t stop me from spending this summer venturing to places I’ve never been and revisiting others I’ve yearned to see again. My plan is to embark on these journeys while curled up in my coziest chair at home, beneath my favorite tree, book in hand. My guides will be glorious women writers from around the world—the women we celebrate here.”
My Mother’s House by Francesca Momplaisir was included in this lovely round-up. Follow the link above to read more!
People | June 24, 2020
“For Good Trouble star Zuri Adele, the way life is imitating art on her Freeform series is a bit ‘triggering.’
‘It's certainly not an escape,’ Adele, 30, tells PEOPLE of the show, which follows her character Malika Williams as she becomes enthralled in a case involving a young Black man named Jamal Thompson, who was shot multiple times by police and bled for nearly 20 minutes without receiving medical treatment. Malika goes on to lead protests in Jamal's honor.
The show undoubtedly mirrors what's happening in the world today as many Americans continue to protest systemic racism and police brutality following the death of George Floyd, among others.
Despite the heaviness of the series — which is named after Rep. John Lewis' quote about fighting injustice and is a spinoff of The Fosters — Adele feels motivated by her character, who was ‘inspired’ by Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors (who now is a writer on the show).”
Follow the link above to read more.
Elle | June 24, 2020
“For those counting the days until To All the Boys 3 is released on Netflix, a sneak peek from the new movie is on the way—and in a way that will benefit the Black Lives Matter movement. Co-stars Lana Condor and Noah Centineo announced via Instagram Live on Tuesday that they'll be hosting a June 30 charity livestream table read on YouTube that will include a scene from the upcoming movie.
The pair, who play high school sweethearts Lara Jean and Peter Kavinsky in the hit Netflix franchise, will read scenes from the original 2018 film and 2019's sequel, To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You. Plus, they'll read a scene from the unreleased third and final movie, To All the Boys: Always and Forever, Lara Jean. Centineo and Condor said they had yet to pick which scene from the forthcoming film they'll be sharing. Proceeds from the event will support several organizations fighting racial injustice, including Black Lives Matter, Know Your Rights Camp, Color of Change, and more.”
Follow the link to learn more!
Library Journal | June 23, 2020
Library Journal put together a list of books published in 2020 and written by Black authors. My Mother’s House by Francesca Momplaisir and Book of the Little Axe by Lauren Francis-Sharma were included! Follow the link above to read more.
WNYC | June 23, 2020
“Vice President of the National Independent Venue Association Justin Kantor and Pitchfork Senior Staff Writer Marc Hogan discuss the future of live music during and after the pandemic.
Stuart Duncan discusses his new group album with Yo-Yo Ma, Chris Thile, and Edgar Meyer, Not Our First Goat Rodeo.
Director Josephine Decker discusses her new film, ‘Shirley,’ which stars Elisabeth Moss as writer Shirley Jackson.
Jill Watts, Professor of History at California State University San Marcos, discusses her new book, The Black Cabinet: The Untold Story of African Americans and Politics During the Age of Roosevelt.”
Follow the link above to listen to Jill Watts talk about her new book!
Variety | June 23, 2020
“After co-organizing a demonstration in Los Angeles at which he was hit with a police baton and shot seven times with rubber bullets, Kendrick Sampson (‘Insecure,’ ‘Miss Juneteenth’) has penned a letter to the entertainment industry at large, asking Hollywood to divest from the police and invest in the Black community. The letter, shared exclusively with Variety, was developed alongside Tessa Thompson (‘Avengers: Endgame,’ ‘Westworld’) and Black Lives Matter co-founders Patrisse Cullors and Melina Abdullah. It is signed by over 300 Black artists and executives, among them Thompson’s Marvel co-stars Chadwick Boseman, Anthony Mackie, Michael B. Jordan and Danai Gurira, as well as Billy Porter, Cynthia Erivo, Idris Elba, Issa Rae, Octavia Spencer, Viola Davis and many more. It follows a statement from Black Artists for Freedom, which likewise was signed by a list of prominent Black artists and called for cultural institutions to ‘break ties with the police.’”
Click the link above to read the powerful letter.
Rolling Stone | June 23, 2020
“Patrisse Cullors can’t quite remember if she was six or seven when her home was raided by police.
‘We were children. My mom was young. I just remember them having no care in how they treated us,’ says Cullors, who grew up with a single mom in Van Nuys, California, a suburb of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley. Police were looking for one of her uncles. ‘I remember them not looking us in the eye. It felt like it didn’t matter if we were collateral damage to their raid. I grew up just watching so much violence at the hands of law enforcement, and a deep rogue nature that felt like it was going to be like that forever.’
Cullors, 37, has worked for the better part of a decade to build a movement focused on ending police violence and mass incarceration, most notably as a co-founder and a national leader of Black Lives Matter. (That work was chronicled in Rolling Stone’s July cover story). But she’s also turned to art as a complimentary form of resistance-building. ‘Art is how we get to the places that we want to get to,’ she says. ‘Art creates vision and hope and it grounds us. We cannot forget that the work that we do as artists has to be deeply aligned with the movements that are calling for artists to be some of the visionaries in this process.’“
Follow the link to read more about Patrisse’s art.
Los Angeles Times | June 21, 2020
“Then they marched.
The unprecedented size and scope of recent rallies speaks to how Black Lives Matter has transformed from a small but passionate movement into a cultural and political phenomenon. And in few places has that movement generated more passion than in Los Angeles, home to two of BLM’s guiding forces, Abdullah and Patrisse Cullors.”
Follow the link above to read more!
Variety | June 21, 2020
“Nickelodeon is bringing back ‘Nick News’ for an hour-long special about children, race, and unity.
The special will be hosted by Alicia Keys and is meant to amplify the voices and experiences of Black kids across the country in the wake of the large-scale protests that have rocked the United States in recent weeks. It will air June 29 at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
Keys will lead a series of conversations with special guests, including: the co-founders of Black Lives Matter, Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi; teen activist Marley Dias, founder of the #1000BlackGirlsBook campaign; 12-year-old singer and viral sensation, Keedron Bryant; Ibram X. Kendi, author of ‘Antiracist Baby;’ Jade Fuller, Nya Collins, Zee Thomas, Kennedy Green, Emma Rose Smith and Mikayla Smith, the Nashville, Tenn., teens who founded Teens4Equality; social media star Tabitha Brown and her family; and family therapist, Dr. George James.”
Follow the link above to learn more about the “Nick News” revival!
Powell’s | June 18, 2020
“By now you’ve heard pretty much everyone in the book and media industries commenting on the surge of consumer interest in books by Black authors on issues like antiracism and activism, and the subsequent difficulty in obtaining copies. While you should absolutely read essential nonfiction by Ibram X. Kendi, Ijeoma Oluo, Gary Younge, and more this summer, consider branching out into fiction, poetry, and humor by Black authors while you wait, as these forms do a brilliant job of centering marginalized voices and illuminating the varied, complicated links between American history and the present day, all while educating and engaging the reader on an emotional level.
The following 10 books came out earlier this year and, for the most part, were eclipsed by the coronavirus. Now that our attention is back in the stacks, put one on your summer reading list. You won’t be disappointed.”
Book of the Little Axe by Lauren Francis-Sharma was included on this list! Follow the link above to read more.
CBS News | June 17, 2020
“‘I’m really proud of the work we’ve been able to do in the last seven years,’ Patrisse Cullors, co-founder and chairwoman of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, said in a statement. ‘What is clear is that Black Lives Matter shares a name with a much larger movement and there are literally hundreds of organizations that do impactful racial and gender justice work who make up the fabric of this broader movement.’
The foundation has already identified several non-BLM global network movement organizations that it would like to support, said Cullors, who declined to name the groups. The foundation says it will ‘prioritize mutual aid organizations, direct service and organizations focused on creating sustainable improvements in the material conditions for all black people.’ It also looks to support black lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender-led groups.”
Follow the link above to read more about the amazing work being done.