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☆ The Texas town where James Byrd Jr. was dragged to his death in 1998, sparking national outrage and new federal hate crime legislation, wants to 'move on'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-26 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

People in Jasper are in many ways still dealing with the aftermath of James Byrd Jr.'s 1998 murder. Louvon Byrd Harris, Byrd's younger sister, told The Post that many people simply "want to forget what happened." A section of Huff Creek Road in Jasper, Texas, where James Byrd Jr., was dragged to his death. While Byrd's murder prompted the Texas legislature's 2001 passage of the James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act, along with the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr.

Persons: James Byrd Jr, Byrd's, Byrd, George Floyd's, haven't, Louvon Byrd Harris, Poor Jasper, David Shultz, Jasper, Anderson, Juan Lozano, Betty Lane, Matthew Shepard, Tod Lawlis Organizations: Post, Service, Washington, Lone Star State, Historical Museum, Jasper City Council, Anderson Land, AP, Congress, Byrd Foundation, Racial, Byrd Locations: Jasper, Wall, Silicon, East Texas, Minneapolis, Huff, Jasper , Texas, Texas, Austin

☆ A backlash is brewing against DEI in corporate America — and a venture-capital fund facing a racial-bias lawsuit is caught in the middle
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Vishal Persaud | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

VC firm Fearless Fund is being sued by the group behind the Supreme Court affirmative action case. The conservative group claims a grant program run by Fearless Fund is racially discriminatory. It also led some companies like Bank of America, Mastercard , PayPal and others to earmark millions of dollars to fund and address the racial funding gap. A small, Atlanta-based, Black women-led venture firm called Fearless Fund was one of them. "Their motive is clear: they want to disrupt the vital work of Fearless Fund and similar institutions and organizations whose primary mission is to provide underrepresented communities with an economic engine to build, sustain and scale their businesses," said Fearless Fund in a press release.

Persons: George Floyd, Edward Blum, Arian Simone, Ayana Parsons, George Floyd's, Eghosa Omoigui, Yasmin Cruz Ferrine, Ferrine, VCs Organizations: Fearless, Morning, Bank of America, Mastercard, PayPal, American Alliance for Equal Rights, Civil, Costco, MasterCard, Street Journal, Netflix, Disney, Warner Bros, Wall Street Journal, Pew Research Center, Microsoft, Walmart, TechCrunch, Warner Bros . Locations: Minneapolis, Atlanta, America

☆ There's a brewing backlash against DEI in corporate America — and a venture capital fund getting sued for racial bias is now caught in the middle
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Vishal Persaud | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

☆ Major retailers bring $14 billion in revenue to Black-owned brands
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Brandon Gomez | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Major retailers and brands have driven $14 billion in revenue to Black-owned businesses since May 2020. The group asks companies to reflect the Black community that makes up 15% of the U.S. population by dedicating 15% of their shelf space to Black-owned brands. Prior to taking the pledge, many of the group's current partners had less than 3% of their shelf space dedicated to Black-owned brands. Now all partners are committed to attaining their 15% pledge over a 10-year contract. Fifteen Percent Pledge has committed to generating $1.4 trillion in wealth for Black entrepreneurs by 2030.

Persons: Nordstrom, LaToya Williams Belfort, Sephora, Aurora James, George Floyd's, James, InStyle Organizations: Federal, CNBC, JUST Capital, Vogue Locations: Brooklyn, Black, U.S

CNN —Tou Thao, the former Minneapolis police officer who held back a crowd of bystanders during George Floyd’s fatal arrest in May 2020, was sentenced to four years and nine months in prison Monday for aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. Tou Thao, the last former Minneapolis police officer to face sentencing in state court for his role in the killing of George Floyd, appeared in court Monday. During the arrest, Lane held down Floyd’s legs, Kueng held down Floyd’s torso, and Thao stood nearby and kept back a crowd of upset bystanders, including an off-duty firefighter trying to render aid. Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in state court and was sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison in June 2021. Lane, Kueng and Thao were found guilty in federal court of violating Floyd’s civil rights and of failing to intervene to stop Chauvin during the restraint.

Persons: Tou Thao, George Floyd’s, Thao, ”, George Floyd, Peter A, Cahill, “ Mr, Chauvin, Kueng, Lane, ” Thao, “, Derek Chauvin, Thomas Lane, J, Alexander Kueng, George Floyd's, Floyd, Floyd’s, Judge Cahill Organizations: CNN, Minneapolis, Minnesota Department of Human Rights Locations: Minneapolis, Minnesota, Hennepin, Floyd, Kueng

☆ Family of Henrietta Lacks finally settles lawsuit against biotech company accused of profiting billions of dollars from collecting the Black woman's cancer cells without her consent
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Lea Skene | Sarah Brumfield | Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Henrietta Lacks changed modern medicine when doctors took her cells without her consent in 1951. Despite that incalculable impact, the Lacks family had never been compensated. Henrietta Lacks' cells have been part of many medical breakthroughs. "The exploitation of Henrietta Lacks represents the unfortunately common struggle experienced by Black people throughout history," the complaint reads. "It was a long fight — over 70 years — and Henrietta Lacks gets her day."

Persons: Henrietta, HeLa, Ben Crump, Crump, didn't, Rebecca Skloot, Oprah Winfrey, Johns Hopkins, Fisher, George Floyd's, Alfred, Carter Jr, Chris Van Hollen, Ben Cardin, Van Hollen Organizations: Service, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Fisher Scientific Inc, Associated Press, HBO, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Maryland Democrats Locations: Wall, Silicon, Waltham , Massachusetts, Baltimore, Virginia, United States, Baltimore's

☆ Reddit throughout the years: Its rise to prominence, recent revolts and IPO plans
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Katie Brigham | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The price hikes have led some beloved third-party Reddit apps such as Apollo to shut down, instigating an uproar among the website's community of volunteer moderators, who often rely on third-party apps to run the site's 100,000+ discussion communities, called subreddits. But tensions remain high, and some say that if Reddit doesn't rebuild trust, its most passionate users will go elsewhere. Ohanian rejoined Reddit as executive chairman in 2014 and Huffman rejoined as CEO the next year. But it's not just tech giants who use Reddit's API. These third-party apps are largely just alternatives to Reddit's official mobile app, which didn't even exist until 2016.

Persons: Reddit, David DeWald, Alexis Ohanian, Steve Huffman, Paul Graham, Ohanian, Huffman, Y Combinator, Condé Nast, Debra Aho Williamson, George Floyd's, it's, Apollo, Jakub Porzycki Organizations: University of Virginia, Advance, Facebook, Insider Intelligence, GameStop, AMC, Google, Getty

☆ Black executives see progress since George Floyd, but much work still to be done: CNBC survey
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( Frank Holland | In Frank-Holland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The tragedy sparked more awareness and positive change in corporate America, according to a new survey of Black executives conducted by CNBC, but the results from the survey show that there remains much work to be done. The survey, conducted by CNBC in partnership with the Executive Leadership Council, found 74% of Black executives saying they saw a positive change in hiring, retention and promotion of Black employees since Floyd was killed in May 2020. As many Black executives say organizational treatment of Black employees has remained the same (43%) or worsened (9%) since 2020, as those who say it has improved (48%). And exactly half say there are still less opportunities for Black employees than other employees at their organizations. More Black executives said that prior to 2020 their firms were "checking the DEI box" rather than taking a comprehensive approach.

Persons: George Floyd, Kerem Yucel, Floyd, Shundrawn Thomas, George Floyd's, Judy Smith, Smith, Smith & Company . Smith, Thomas, Rashida Jones, Priscilla Sims Brown, Melonie Parker, Johnson Organizations: Afp, Getty, Black, CNBC, Executive, Council, Copia, Smith & Company, Equity, Opportunity, MSNBC, Amalgamated Bank ., Google Locations: Minneapolis , Minnesota, U.S, America, New Orleans

☆ The Goldman Sachs trader known for speaking up about racism is leaving the bank, according to a report
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Emmalyse Brownstein | Dakin Campbell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Frederick Baba is leaving Goldman Sachs months after becoming a partner, Bloomberg reports. The Goldman Sachs executive who spoke out about his experience as a Black trader on Wall Street is leaving the firm, according to a new report. Goldman Sachs declined to comment. After graduating in 2010, he went to work for the Global Electronic Trading Co., known on Wall Street as GETCO. That's part of the virtuous ecosystem of Goldman Sachs," he added.

☆ Adidas to donate Yeezy proceeds to Anti-Defamation League and other NGOs
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Rapper Kanye West talks on the phone before attending the Versace presentation in New York, U.S. December 2, 2018. Adidas cut ties with West, who goes by Ye, in October after he made a string of antisemitic comments in interviews and on social media. The German sportswear maker was left with Yeezy shoes worth 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion). The value of Yeezy shoes in the resale market has rocketed since then, with some models more than doubling in price. Adidas said there could be further releases of Yeezy stock but no decisions have been made on timing.

☆ I turned down a $250,000 job offer and moved to St. Barts to start a new life. I'm much happier since prioritizing my well-being over money.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Alicia Gonzalez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Once she visited St. Barts, she found herself and turned down an attractive job offer to move there. I fell in love with St. Barts while visiting a friend, and I turned down a $250,000-a-year job offer to move there permanently. Around my third month of working from home, a friend invited me to St. Barts, a place I'd never been. When I got to St. Barts, everything changedIt's a very small community, and you run into people all the time. Even though I couldn't be certain what would happen if I declined the job, trusting myself to succeed as an entrepreneur felt right.

CNN —A Minnesota judge found former Minneapolis police officer Tou Thao guilty of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter for his role in the May 2020 killing of George Floyd, according to court documents filed Monday. “Like the bystanders, Thao could see Floyd’s life slowly ebbing away as the restraint continued,” Cahill wrote in the verdict. Tou Thao Hennepin County Sheriff's Office“The conviction of Tou Thao is historic and the right outcome,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, the lead prosecutor of Floyd’s murder, said in a statement. Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in state court and was sentenced to 22.5 years in prison in June 2021. Lane, Kueng and Thao were found guilty in federal court of violating Floyd’s civil rights and of failing to intervene to stop Chauvin during the restraint.

☆ 43-year-old used her life savings to open a bar that only plays women's sports—it brought in almost $1 million in 8 months
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Tom Huddleston Jr. | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

When Jenny Nguyen signed the lease to create her dream bar, she wasn't sure it would stay open for more than a few months. Aptly named The Sports Bra, it's a sports bar where only women athletes appear on the TVs. The Sports Bra brought in $944,000 in revenue in the eight months it was open in 2022, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It. "Me, personally, I thought the idea was brilliant and that [it was] what the world needs," Nguyen says. "The very first thing that came into my mind was The Sports Bra," Nguyen says.

☆ Bidens report $580,000 in 2022 income, donation to police foundation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Trevor Hunnicutt | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, April 18 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden and his wife Jill released their federal tax return on Tuesday, showing the couple earned nearly $580,000 last year and paid an effective federal income tax rate of 23.8%. The Bidens also donated roughly 3.5% of their income, or $20,180, to 20 charities, including one associated with U.S. police unions. The Bidens reported 2022 federal adjusted gross income of $579,514 and paid $137,658 in federal income tax. Their charitable donations included contributions to churches and organizations focused on helping children and first responders, including $2,000 to the National Fraternal Order of Police Foundation. Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, reported federal adjusted gross income of $456,918, paying $93,570 in federal income tax for an effective federal income tax rate of 20.5%.

☆ Appeals court affirms conviction of Chauvin for George Floyd murder
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 17 (Reuters) - The Minnesota Court of Appeals on Monday upheld the conviction of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd during a 2020 arrest, rejecting Chauvin's request for a new trial. In December 2021, Chauvin pleaded guilty in federal court to charges he violated George Floyd's civil rights. The most serious state crime for which Chauvin was convicted was second-degree unintentional murder involving third-degree assault. Writing for the appeals court panel, Judge Peter Reyes disagreed. "Chauvin crossed that line here when he used unreasonable force on Floyd."

☆ Deloitte's chief purpose officer says he's pushing execs to think differently about change in corporate America
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Josée Rose | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Kwasi Mitchell, Deloitte's chief purpose officer, says he's driven, not overwhelmed, by his job. As Deloitte's first chief purpose officer, his reach across corporate America is great. I had a conversation with my boss at that time, and he said, "We've heard you with respect to your concerns on not wanting to step into this role right now. Not only were we not worried about D&I efforts being cut, organizations didn't have significant D&I programming to cut to begin with. That person that you just hired two years ago should not be the first person to exit your organization.

☆ Trump gloated over his January 6 prison choir song 'beating Taylor Swift' on the charts: 'I feel like Elvis'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Aditi Bharade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Trump told Fox News' Sean Hannity that he feels "like Elvis" after "beating Taylor Swift." The Trump song topped the iTunes chart in the US on March 11. Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity that he was elated that his track was doing so well. "The J6 is beating Taylor Swift. Known collectively as the J6 Prison Choir, they sang a rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" from behind bars.

☆ How representation of Black artists in galleries, museums is changing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( Lorie Konish | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

"There's a lot more support for Black artists that kind of came out of George Floyd's murder and institutions realizing that they need to do more," Peterson said. Saul Loeb | Afp | Getty ImagesThe market for work by Black American artists grew by nearly 400% between 2008 and 2021, according to a recent report from art market website ArtNet. Acquisitions of work by Black American artists peaked in 2015, two years after the start of the Black Lives Matter movement. "My impression is there are vastly increased number of solo shows and group shows dedicated to Black artists in London, in Paris, in New York, across the United States," Elliott said. Works from established artists like Kerry James Marshall that depict Black figures are influencing the work of new artists and creating a lineage, Elliott noted.

☆ Ex-basketball star thought Nike and Adidas weren't doing enough for Black people—so he built a $30 million competitor
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Tom Huddleston Jr. | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Lanny Smith wants someone to challenge sportswear giants like Nike, Adidas and Reebok — so much that he's trying to do it himself. Smith, 38, is the founder and CEO of Actively Black, the sportswear company he launched in 2020 in the wake of George Floyd's death. Today, Actively Black is a multimillion-dollar brand, reportedly valued at $30 million in 2021. NBA star Stephen Curry was spotted wearing an Actively Black hoodie during a press conference last year, shortly after former President Barack Obama sported a watch the brand collaborated on. And we were going to build our own table," Smith says.

☆ Tyre Nichols' death has reignited the debate around police brutality. Here are 5 proven ways to reduce it - and 2 strategies that don't work.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Michelle Mark | Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Here are five proven, data-based changes that could make a difference, and two approaches that don't seem to work, according to Campaign Zero. Track complaints about officers' use of forceMost complaints against officers aren't public, making them hard to track. These changes, along with requiring departments to report and publish online data on all uses of force, could reduce police violence. Body cameras are another method that haven't been proven effective when it comes to excessive force instances. Research has shown that 93% of prosecutors' offices have used body cameras mostly in cases against citizens, not against police.

☆ The Memphis Police Department's original report on Tyre Nichols death is full of discrepancies and outright omissions, newly released bodycam footage shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

On January 8, Memphis Police released a statement about a "confrontation" with a reckless driver. New bodycam video shows officers beating Nichols, which is omitted in the police version of events. But bodycam footage of the incident, released Friday, revealed a different story of the brutal beating that left the 29-year-old dead. —Memphis Police Dept (@MEM_PoliceDept) January 8, 2023The statement continued: "Officers pursued the suspect and again attempted to take the suspect into custody. Later in the footage, Nichols' cries become less coherent, his speech slurs, and he struggles to stand up.

☆ $340 billion pledged by companies to support racial equity following George Floyd's murder: McKinsey
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( Sharon Epperson | Lindsey Jacobson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email$340 billion pledged by companies to support racial equity following George Floyd's murder: McKinseyNearly three years after George Floyd's murder, McKinsey & Co. has found that $340 billion has been publicly announced by companies to support racial equity. Shelley Stewart who leads the McKinsey Institute for Black Economic Mobility tells CNBC's Sharon Epperson how and where that money is being spent.

It's been nearly three years since the protests and racial unrest following the murder of George Floyd. As of Oct. 2022, the amount companies have pledged to support racial justice has grown to nearly $340 billion, according to McKinsey & Company senior partner Shelley Stewart. Second, they pledged the use of both capital and assets to help address "broader systemic inequality" outside their organizations. Still, it has been a challenge to meet such ambitious goals when it comes to deploying capital, Stewart acknowledged. Watch the video (will link when the video is live) to learn more about how companies have begun to invest in anti-bias structures both internally and in their communities.

☆ Court asked to void verdict against Derek Chauvin in George Floyd's murder
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

An attorney for Derek Chauvin asked an appeals court Wednesday to throw out the former Minneapolis police officer’s convictions in the murder of George Floyd, arguing that legal and procedural errors deprived him of a fair trial. But Neal Katyal, a special attorney for the state, said Chauvin got “one of the most transparent and thorough trials in our nation’s history. ... Chauvin’s many arguments before this court do not come close to justifying reversal.”Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill sentenced Chauvin to 22 1/2 years after jurors found him guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. “Judge Cahill managed this trial with enormous care, and even if Chauvin could identify some minor fault, any error is harmless,” Katyal said. Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin addresses the court as Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill presides over Chauvin's sentencing on June 25, 2021, at the Hennepin County Courthouse in Minneapolis.

☆ America's lack of boardroom diversity isn't just a PR problem, it's a business problem that will make companies more vulnerable in a downturn
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Marguerite Ward | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

More than a dozen companies had no board members of color, according to the report, which relied on 2021 data. Along with a few partner organizations, Watts launched a program in August to help companies interview and select more board members from underrepresented backgrounds. Bessie Watts of Vista Equity Partners is working on a program to increase the pipeline of board members from underrepresented backgrounds. More CEOs are embracing not just the moral case for board diversity, but the business case, as well, Watts said. "We're able to meet and help support board members with valuable new insight."

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