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☆ How Benjamin O. Davis Sr. and Davis Jr. became America’s first Black generals
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-25 | by ( Nicole Chavez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

In 1940, Benjamin O. Davis Sr. became the first Black person to achieve the rank of brigadier general in the US Army. Twenty years after his father made history, Davis Jr. became the first Black brigadier general in the Air Force in 1960. Davis Sr. was born in Washington, DC, less than 20 years after the ratification of the 13th amendment, which abolished slavery. So, Davis Jr. moved alone to Chicago for nearly two years to secure the nomination and his spot at West Point. “So, (the Army) provided no opportunities for African Americans to lead troops, it provided no opportunities before 1940 for African Americans to fly airplanes, there were no African Americans in the Marine Corps,” Moye added.

Persons: Benjamin O, Davis, Davis Jr, “ Davis, ”, J, Todd Moye, “, White, ” Moye, Sr, West Point Davis, Oscar S, De Priest, Illinois, ” “, Doug Melville, ’, America’s, Ben Jr, ” Benjamin O, Simon, Simon & Schuster, Franklin D, Roosevelt, Moye, Army shouldn’t, Harry S, Truman, Melville, Le’Trice Donaldson, ” Donaldson, Bill Clinton, Davis , Jr, ” Clinton, ” Melville Organizations: CNN, US Army, Tuskegee Airmen, Air Force, University of North, Service’s Tuskegee, Guard, 8th US Volunteer Infantry, Army, Army’s, of, 9th Cavalry, Buffalo Soldiers, Army War, Corps, West Point, African, Blacks, Tuskegee Institute, 99th Fighter Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group, Chanute Air Museum, Simon &, Marine Corps, Alabama’s Tuskegee Army, US Air Force, Armed Services, United States Army, United States Air Force, Black, Texas, Corpus Christi, Department of Transportation, Federal Air Marshal Service, America Locations: University of North Texas, Washington ,, Spanish, Philippines, Mexico, American, France, Chicago, West, West Point, Italy, Washington, America, North Africa, Sicily, Vietnam, “

☆ Anti-LGBTQ+ activism spiked during Pride Month, with California leading the way
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Anti-LGBTQ+ activism spiked in June, according to the monitoring group ACLED. Pride Month saw more anti-LGBTQ+ demonstrations than any other period since 2020. As the LGBTQ+ community has become increasingly visible in entertainment, politics, and corporate America, there has been an accompanying spike in anti-LGBTQ+ activism. "This new peak in our data comes after anti-LGBTQ+ demonstrations had already surged to their highest point on record by late 2022." That — visibly showing up for LGBTQ+ rights — is what Bjorn-James argues will determine whether far-right activism proliferates or recedes.

Persons: Vanderbilt, Sophie Bjork, James, ACLED, Kieren Doyle, Wesley Phelps, Hodges, there's, Phelps, It's, There's, they've, Bjork, Donald Trump —, —, Bjorn Organizations: Service, University of North, Lone Star State, District of Columbia, Golden State, Vanderbilt University, Miss America, Target Locations: Wall, Silicon, America, California, United States, North America, University of North Texas, Obergefell, ACLED, Texas , New York, Golden

☆ Texas TikTok Ban Challenged for Threatening ‘Academic Freedom’
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Sapna Maheshwari | More About Sapna Maheshwari | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“The Supreme Court has characterized academic freedom as a special concern of the First Amendment,” said Ramya Krishnan, a lawyer at the Knight First Amendment Institute. The lawsuit said that Jacqueline Vickery, an associate professor at the University of North Texas and a digital media scholar, had been forced to “suspend research projects and change her research agenda, alter her teaching methodology, and eliminate course material,” because of the ban. The Texas ban also appears to extend to her personal cellphone based on her use of university email and other apps there, the lawsuit said. Ms. Vickery said in an interview that she had not been able to access TikTok since the university returned from winter break, even for an assignment where she wanted her students to read the privacy terms on TikTok’s site. The ban’s effect on her classes and research has been “really challenging,” particularly as she does not have a personal laptop, she said.

Persons: “, ”, Ramya Krishnan, Abbott, Jacqueline Vickery, Vickery Organizations: University of North Locations: University of North Texas, Texas

☆ Knight Institute files lawsuit against Texas's TikTok ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Melissa Mahtani | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Texas’s ban on TikTok at state institutions violates the First Amendment, claims a lawsuit filed Thursday by a group of academics and civil society researchers. The lawsuit specifically challenges Texas’ TikTok ban in relation to public universities, saying it compromises academic freedom and impedes vital research. Texas Governor Greg Abbott ordered all Texas state agencies to ban the use of TikTok in early December. The Knight Institute lawsuit notes that Texas has not imposed a ban on other online platforms that collect similar user data, such as Meta and Google. TikTok told CNN last month that it is funding the suit by users and creators on the platform.

Persons: CNN —, Jameel Jaffer, Greg Abbott, “ It’s, ” Jaffer, ”, Dave Karpf, “, TikTok Organizations: CNN, Columbia University, Coalition for Independent Technology Research, Institute, University of North, Texas, Texans, Chinese Communist Party, Knight, Google, Coalition, Independent Technology Research, George Washington University School of Media, Public Affairs Locations: Texas, China, University of North Texas, ” Texas, TikTok . Montana

☆ Man who threatened to bomb Merriam-Webster offices over gender identity definitions sentenced to year in prison
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Aaron Mcdade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A California man got a year in prison over threats to Merriam-Webster and other businesses. Jeremy Hanson made threats related to gender, including some related to the definition of "female". Hanson used an anonymous account to post threatening responses to new definitions added to words like "female" on Merriam-Webster's website. "It is absolutely sickening that Merriam-Webster now tells blatant lies and promotes anti-science propaganda," Hanson wrote. "You [sic] headquarters should be shot up and bombed," Hanson wrote in a message on the site's Contact Us page.

☆ An influencer started a newsletter after her TikTok engagement dropped. Here's how she amassed 25,000 subscribers in 4 months.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Shriya Bhattacharya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

She built an email newsletter last year, and explains how its helped increase her income. Applying to college was a stressful time for Carlynn Greene because she had to apply for financial aid to afford the steep tuition. While some TikTokers have tried to combat the issue by making more SEO friendly content, Greene sought another solution. She built a free email newsletter on Convert Kit, a website for building email templates, and sent the first iteration to subscribers in September 2022. Here is an example of Carlynn Greene's email newsletter from February 2023:Carlynn Greene's newsletter Carlynn GreeneCarlynn Greene's newsletter Carlynn GreeneThe newsletter reads:Hi there carr!

The men’s defense lawyers asked a judge to rule the geofence warrant unconstitutional and throw out any evidence that came from it. Last March, a federal judge in Virginia ruled that a geofence warrant used to find a suspect in a bank robbery was unconstitutional. In September, a state court in San Francisco ruled against the use of a geofence warrant in a burglary investigation. Law enforcement agencies may then try workarounds, like teaming up with agencies in jurisdictions that lack restrictions. “This is a tool that law enforcement is hellbent on using, and I understand why,” Owsley said.

☆ The biggest universities in Texas are blocking students from accessing TikTok on campus WiFi
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Texas A&M University and the University of Texas at Austin have blocked TikTok from campus WiFi. Texas A&M University — thought to be the state's biggest university with close to 70,000 students — is blocking TikTok from its IT network under a directive by Governor Greg Abbott, local news outlets reported on Tuesday. Lamar University and the University of Texas at Dallas told students that TikTok would continue to work at its residence halls. Even then, access would only be granted on devices connected to cellular services, not to the university's WiFi or wired network. Do you study or work at a US university that has banned the use of TikTok on campus WiFi?

☆ Miss USA R’Bonney Gabriel crowned Miss Universe 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

NEW ORLEANS — R’Bonney Gabriel, a fashion designer, model and sewing instructor from Texas who competition officials said is the first Filipino American to win Miss USA, was crowned Miss Universe on Saturday night. Gabriel closed her eyes and clasped hands with runner-up Miss Venezuela, Amanda Dudamel, at the moment of the dramatic reveal of the winner, then beamed after her name was announced. Thumping music rang out, and she was handed a bouquet of flowers, draped in the winner’s sash and crowned with a tiara onstage at the 71st Miss Universe Competition, held in New Orleans. In the Q&A at the last stage of the competition for the three finalists, Gabriel was asked how she would work to demonstrate Miss Universe is “an empowering and progressive organization” if she were to win. “It is so important to invest in others, invest in our community and use your unique talent to make a difference,” Gabriel continued.

Once considered taboo in film and television, gay entertainers and characters will be hard to miss at the 80th Golden Globe Awards. Some of the evenings most nominated films — including sci-fi dramedy “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and psychological thriller “Tár,” — and TV series that include “The White Lotus” and “Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” — star LGBTQ actors or feature fictional queer characters. And to top off the evening, the Golden Globes will honor gay television writer and producer Ryan Murphy, perhaps best known for co-creating “Glee,” “Pose” and the “American Horror Story” franchise, with a lifetime achievement award. While this year’s pool of Golden Globe nominees ups the awards ceremony’s queer factor, many of the most anticipated wins involve seemingly straight actors playing queer characters. The Golden Globes airs on Jan. 10 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on NBC and Peacock.

Human remains found in a shallow Ohio grave in 1991 are of a missing Columbus man, officials said Tuesday, marking another cold case homicide broken open by advancements in DNA and genealogical research. The dead man found more than 31 years ago is 21-year-old Robert Mullins, who had vanished two or three years earlier, state prosecutors and Pickaway County Sheriff's deputies said. "Thirty-one Christmases have come and gone and I was thinking about the headstone with no name on it," Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost told reporters. Pickaway County Sheriff's Office via FacebookA pair of hunters stumbled upon Mullins' skeleton north of State Route 56 just west of State Route 159, in Pickaway County on Nov. 1, 1991, state and local officials said. “We would also like to thank Robert’s genetic relative matches who volunteered their time (and) family information,” Strawser said.

Walmart Healthcare Research Institute, the largest U.S. retailer's new healthcare research service, will find participants for clinical trials, and Walmart also host MyHealthJourney, a patient portal that helps people find upcoming research trials and track their care. Walmart's expansion into clinical trial recruitment could bring it new streams of revenue from drug companies. Walmart is currently working with Laina Enterprises, a virtual clinical trial management platform, the retailer said in a press release. Rival Walgreens said in June it had launched clinical trial services to increase diversity in test subjects. Walmart opened Walmart Health locations in Dallas, Georgia in 2019 and now has 24 locations including in Arkansas, Florida and Illinois.

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