David E. Taylor, self-proclaimed “apostle” and leader of Kingdom of God Global Church (formerly Joshua Media Ministries), was arrested in August 2025 and federally indicted for operating what prosecutors call a religious labor trafficking scheme. Along with associate Michelle Brannon, Taylor faces 10 felony counts including forced labor, conspiracy, and money laundering.
According to the indictment, Taylor and Brannon coerced church members into unpaid labor, forcing them to meet daily fundraising quotas in abusive conditions. Victims were allegedly denied sleep, food, and medical care, subjected to public shaming, and controlled through fear, isolation, and threats of spiritual damnation. Women were forced to take “day after pills” formerly known as Plan B contraceptives, and some served as personal assistants known as “armor bearers.” The ministry reportedly raised over $50 million from 2014–2024, used to fund luxury homes, cars, and boats.
FBI raids across Texas, Florida, and Missouri rescued 17 people and exposed the scale of control behind the organization’s religious front.
Image credit: Dhs.gov
Taylor’s alleged manipulation of spiritual authority for profit and abuse erodes trust in faith leaders and institutions meant to protect. Moreover, the coercion tactics used echo broader patterns of trafficking, exploitation, and systemic harm that disproportionately affect minority Americans, especially women and youth.
While Taylor once promoted himself as fighting sex trafficking, his ministry now stands accused of perpetrating a form of it. The case is a sobering reminder: exploitation can wear many faces or in this case cloths. Mr. Taylor is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Every time we pick up a product, be it a beauty item, electronics, furniture, or even food we might see a small, often overlooked label: “This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm.” This warning comes from Proposition 65, a California law enacted in 1986. While the intent behind this law is to inform and protect consumers, the reality—especially for Black Americans is far more complicated, and dangerous.
Imaged by: BEWITTY Publication
Proposition 65, officially known as the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act, was created to help Californians make informed decisions about their exposure to harmful chemicals. It requires companies to warn consumers when their products contain any one of over 900 toxic substances linked to cancer or reproductive harm by being near said item in any capacity.
Image credit: Sky News
But here’s the thing: these warnings are everywhere, from hair relaxers to cookware, car parts, household cleaners, and even drinking straws. And when everything carries a warning, it’s easy for consumers to tune them out or misunderstand what they mean. That can be deadly.
To understand why Prop 65 matters so deeply to Black Americans, we have to look at the broader issue of environmental racism. For decades, Black communities have been disproportionately exposed to harmful chemicals and pollutants. Our neighborhoods are often near factories, highways, waste sites, and power plants. Toxic air, unsafe water, and chemical-laden products have been part of daily life for many of us, not by choice, but by design.
This systemic exposure leads to higher rates of asthma, cancer, reproductive issues, and other chronic diseases in Black communities. Proposition 65, while helpful in theory, doesn’t do enough to prevent these exposures. It merely warns consumers, assuming we all have the same resources, education, and access to safer alternatives.
One of the most striking examples of this issue is in the beauty industry. Black women have long been targeted with hair and beauty products containing toxic chemicals. Studies have shown that many hair relaxers and skin-lightening creams which often carry Prop 65 warnings contain endocrine-disrupting chemicals that can lead to uterine fibroids, cancer, and early puberty in girls. Meanwhile these products are still widely sold in stores that serve Black communities many times foreign owned beauty supply stores.
We’re being told that these products are dangerous, but are not given local alternatives. With the burden of navigating these dangers being placed on the community instead of companies which make billions from such.
Let’s be clear: a Prop 65 warning doesn’t mean a product is banned. It doesn’t mean a product is unsafe by FDA standards. It just means the manufacturer is required to tell you that it will expose you to harmful chemicals that can lead to but is not limited to cancer or death. Knowing most people don’t have the time or knowledge to research every label. And in communities already facing health inequities, warning labels aren’t enough.
Moreover, many companies don’t change their formulas when they get a Prop 65 designation. Instead, they simply slap a label on the package and continue to sell the item. This practice disproportionately impacts consumers of color, who are more likely to live in areas where safer or organic products are less available and more expensive and thus forth unaffordable.
From a minority perspective Proposition 65 reveals a deeper issue: the fight for clean, safe, and non-toxic living. It’s not just about warning labels, it’s about accountability, education, and environmental justice.
We need stronger regulations on companies that continue to sell toxic products, especially those targeting Black and Brown communities. Public health messaging around Prop 65 must be clear, accessible, and culturally relevant. Safer alternatives must be made affordable and available in our neighborhoods, not just in wealthier ones. And we need meaningful investment in Black-led environmental justice movements that have long been fighting for our communities’ health and safety.
Prop 65 may offer transparency, but it doesn’t offer protection. For the systemic maligned who have long borne the brunt of environmental racism and toxic exposure, a warning label isn’t a solution, it’s a reminder that our health is still being treated as an afterthought.
Until our communities are truly protected, not just warned , we all must keep demanding more.
Twenty years, that’s how long it’s been since the levees broke, since the floodwaters rose and swallowed neighborhoods whole, and since America watched a predominantly Black city suffer while help came far too late.
But for Black folks in New Orleans and across this country, Hurricane Katrina was never just a natural disaster. It was a mirror. A moment of reckoning. And now, Netflix’s new docuseries “Katrina: Come Hell and High Water” holds that mirror up once again reflecting not only the waterlines left on buildings, but the deep cracks in America’s promise of equality, safety, and care.
Directed by Geeta Gandbhir, Samantha Knowles, and the incomparable Spike Lee, this three-part documentary doesn’t simply revisit the tragedy, it re-centers the people who lived it, who survived it, and who still carry the weight of it.
The water came fast, but the abandonment came faster. We remember the images of Black elders stranded on rooftops, children wading through water up to their chests, bodies left in the street.
This documentary masterfully captures what we didn’t see, the stories behind said images. The everyday lives disrupted. The legacies & heirlooms lost. The trauma etched into generations.
We hear from survivors who speak not just of the storm itself, but of the silence afterward, the government’s delayed inaction & FEMA’s disastrous failures. While the media criminalized Black grief. As one voice in the film puts it, “We weren’t refugees. We were citizens, and they left us.” That truth lands heavy.
What sets Katrina: Come Hell and High Water apart is its insistence on Black voices telling Black stories.
COREY SIPKIN/NY DAILY NEWS ARCHIVE VIA GETTY IMAGES
The showrunner, Alisa Payne, brings together a creative team that understands how to balance reverence with reality. And with Spike Lee on board who first documented the catastrophe in “When the Levees Broke” the series carries the same unflinching honesty he’s known for. This isn’t just about showing pain. It’s about reclaiming the narrative.
This time, the survivors are prioritized at the center not the politicians, not the experts. Whom proceed to speak freely about loss, with endurance. Highlighting how New Orleans didn’t just rebuild, it fought to preserve its culture, its soul, its Black ethnic roots.
If Katrina taught us anything, it’s that disaster didn’t fall evenly. The flood may have been natural, but the devastation was manmade, built on centuries of neglect, redlining, poverty, and institutional racism.
We’re walked through the failures of the levees designed and poorly maintained with deadly disregard. It looks back on how evacuation plans didn’t account for families without cars. How emergency shelters became sites of dehumanization. How rebuilding efforts favored wealthy developers over displaced residents. Seeing it wasn’t just about infrastructure.
MICHAEL APPLETON/NY DAILY NEWS ARCHIVE VIA GETTY IMAGES
“Katrina: Come Hell and High Water” also celebrates. It celebrates the music, the second lines, the families that returned, the youth who’ve grown up refusing to forget. It shows New Orleans not as a place defeated, but as a place defined by resilience.
LINDA ROSIER/NY DAILY NEWS ARCHIVE VIA GETTY IMAGESImaged by: Andre Perry
There’s joy in this documentary. However it isn’t the kind that ignores pain, but the kind that rises despite it.
“Katrina: Come Hell or High Water” is currently streaming on Netflix.
Caroline Wanga has officially stepped down as President and CEO of Essence Ventures after nearly a year on health leave. While the official narrative focuses on personal health and a “new purpose calling,” many within the Black American cultural community are not so quick to let Wanga’s exit pass without reflection, particularly in light of her controversial leadership over one of Black America’s most sacred cultural institutions: the Essence Festival of Culture.
Caroline A. Wanga, Chief Executive Officer of ESSENCE, speaks onstage during the 15th Annual ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Awards Luncheon at the Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel, on March 24, 2022, in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Robin L Marshall/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
Wanga’s tenure, which began in 2020 and saw her elevated to CEO in 2022, was initially met with hope. A bold, high-energy executive with a strong corporate background, Wanga was seen as a modern leader who could usher Essence into a new digital age. But over the years, and especially during the most recent iterations of the Essence Festival, her approach drew increasing criticism for what some view as a corporate, overly curated, and at times culturally tone-deaf repackaging of a legacy event built by and for Black Americans.
1970’s Essence Cover
The 2025 Essence Festival, held this July, was perhaps the final straw for many longtime supporters. Social media exploded with backlash over what attendees described as chaotic organization, lackluster programming, and an overwhelming sense that the event no longer reflected the richness, struggle, joy, and authenticity of Black American culture. For many, it felt like the culture was being co-opted, commodified and repackaged instead of celebrated.
Wanga’s background, as a Kenyan-American, has also come under scrutiny in these conversations. Critics argue that her leadership often failed to fully grasp the nuances and lived experiences of Black Americans. A group whose specific cultural history, born of slavery, survival, and resilience in the United States, cannot be universally substituted with pan-African ideals or broader diasporic narratives.
December 1990 Essence Magazine Cover featuring Black American singer, actor, icon Whitney Houston
“There is a difference between celebrating Blackness globally and erasing Black American specificity,” one cultural critic noted on X (formerly Twitter). “Essence Fest was ours — rooted in our traditions, music, and soul. It became unrecognizable under Wanga’s leadership.”
In response to the backlash, Wanga issued a statement earlier this summer vehemently denying any connection between her leave and the Essence Festival controversies. She called the narratives swirling around her departure “false assumptions” and warned the public against “defamation cloaked in curiosity.” Still, the statement did little to quell the growing discontent among many who feel the Essence brand has lost its cultural compass.
Wanga’s defenders point to her accomplishments: a memoir (I’m Highly Percent Sure), expanded digital initiatives, and efforts to modernize Essence’s media and business operations. But for her critics, those achievements ring hollow when weighed against what they view as a fundamental disconnect between Essence’s mission and her leadership style.
Essence was once seen as a cultural sanctuary a place where Black American women could be seen, celebrated, and empowered on their own terms. Under Wanga, some argue, it became a brand experiment, tailored more to corporate optics and global palatability than community roots.
Her resignation leaves a complex legacy: a leader who undeniably brought energy and innovation to Essence Ventures while to some alienating a significant portion of the very audience the brand was built to serve.
The exterior of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History
On August 11, Trump announced the deployment of roughly 800 National Guard troops and 500 federal law enforcement officers to Washington, D.C., a city he has harshly criticized, calling it filled with “savagery, filth, and scum.” This move came despite city data from the Metropolitan Police Department showing violent crime at a 30-year low. Several Republican-led states — Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee — joined Ohio, South Carolina, and West Virginia in sending National Guard troops to the capital.
The following day, Trump shifted his focus to the Smithsonian museums. On his social media platform, he criticized what he called the “WOKE” nature of their exhibits, claiming they center too heavily on “how bad slavery was.” He also announced that his team would begin a review of the museums, a decision that has frustrated many museum-goers who see the Smithsonian as a vital institution for public education and historical preservation.
Trump claimed in a social media post that the Smithsonian focuses too heavily on portraying the struggles of marginalized groups, saying it emphasizes “how unaccomplished the downtrodden have been” and includes “nothing about success, nothing about brightness, nothing about the future.”
While the Blacksonian presents an often difficult chronological history of the U.S. beginning with slavery, it also features numerous galleries that highlight joy, resilience, and hope for the future.
A Smithsonian exhibit of former iconic NBA player Michael Jordan.
Trump has indicated he may seek to cut federal funding for the Smithsonian Institution, similar to actions he’s taken against several elite universities. However, the Smithsonian holds a distinct status. Around 62% of its budget comes from federal funds, with the remainder supported by donations, endowments, and trust funds. It is also not part of the executive branch—rather, it is overseen by a 17-member Board of Regents.
In March, Trump signed an executive order accusing the Smithsonian of promoting a “divisive, race-centered ideology” and advancing narratives that depict American and Western values as inherently oppressive. The order grants Vice President JD Vance the authority to review Smithsonian programs and institutions, with the goal of removing what he has called “improper ideology.”
This marks a sharp contrast to Trump’s earlier stance. During his first term, he praised the National Museum of African American History and Culture, also known as the Blacksonian.
“I’m deeply proud that we now have a museum that honors the millions of African American men and women who built our national heritage, especially when it comes to faith, culture, and the unbreakable American spirit,” Trump said in 2017. “I know President [Barack] Obama was here for the museum’s opening last fall. And I’m honored to be the second sitting president to visit this great museum.”
It also seems to be a pivot from the declaration made at his former presidential rally in which he appeared proud of Black American history saying.
“You know, you’re just starting to get real credit for that, OK,” Trump said. “I don’t know if you know that, you’re just starting to get — you built the nation. We all built it, but you were such a massive part of it. Bigger than you were given credit for. Does that make sense?”
According to Pew Research, approximately 15% of Black voters supported Trump in 2024—up from just 8% in 2020?
Is it justified to threaten the Smithsonian’s funding when its mission is to preserve and present the full scope of American history specifically regarding Black Americans?
The City of Gary and Mayor Eddie Melton are inviting the community to a special two-day celebration at the iconic Theodore Roosevelt Highschool, which received a designation for being one of the “most endangered historic landmarks” from The National Trust for Historic Preservation in 2024. This celebration will honor Black American namely, Michael Jackson’s birthday and the enduring legacy of the Jackson family.
Top left to right: (singer) Deniece Williams, (actor, comedian) Chris Tucker, DJ Kid Capri, City Of Gary Mayor Eddie Melton Jr.
Festivities kick off on Thursday, August 28, at 10 a.m. with the unveiling of a new mural honoring Grammy Award-winning singer Deniece Williams, located at 25th and Broadway.
The celebration continues on Friday, August 29, from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m., with the 2300 Jackson Street Block Party in full swing. Hosted by actor and comedian Chris Tucker, the event will commemorate the King of Pop’s birthday with music, food, and live entertainment. DJ sets from Kid Capri, DJ K Ceasar, DJ All OWT, DJ Cheech Beats, and special surprise guests will keep the crowd energized all day long.
On Saturday, August 30, also from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m., the tribute expands to honor the entire Jackson family. Original Jackson 5 members Jackie and Marlon Jackson will make a special appearance for a recognition ceremony that also celebrates the late Tito Jackson and his musical legacy.
Both days of the 2300 Jackson Street Block Party will be held at Theodore Roosevelt High School (730 W. 25th Avenue, Gary, IN), marking a historic celebration of the city’s most iconic musical family.
The Biden administration has renewed efforts to fast track the face of Harriet Tubman on the upcoming $20 bill. This action was laid aside during Trumps time in office.
One of the many designs that have appeared in the effort to give a nod to the civil rights icon and freedom fighter Harriet Tubman.
“The Treasury Department is taking steps to resume efforts to put Harriet Tubman on the front of the $20 notes” said White House press secretary Jen Psaki during a press briefing.
She added “It’s important that our notes, our money…reflect the history and diversity of our country, and Harriet Tubman’s image gracing the new $20 note would certainly reflect that. So we’re exploring ways to speed up that effort.”
Source: White House-Instagram
The Treasury Department first initiated Tubman on the $20 bill in 2016, during the Obama administration. In an effort to replace Andrew Jackson on the front of the currency. Shortly after former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said the new bills would be unveiled in 2020. That proposal loss traction under former president Donald Trump who cited the change as “pure political correctness.”
Driving on the expressway has gotten deadlier for Chicagoans and it’s not for the reason most would think. Travelers previously worried about getting in a vehicular accident or traffic jam but 2020 has added fatal gunfire to that list. Early reports are indicating a 100% surge in expressway shootings in Chicago for 2020. Ending last year with a total of 128 gunshot victims while only 12 of those shootings resulted in an apprehension. The previous year (2019) was less than half of that number (52). One third of those incidents took place on the Dan Ryan according to Illinois state police.
Chanel Crespo holds a memorial for her brother John Ortiz, who was fatally shot while driving on the Eisenhower expressway in Chicago Illinois. Source: Reuters-Jim Young
Community stakeholders are slamming those shootings as unacceptable. A spokesperson (Beth Hundsdorfer) for the state police said “Expressway camera footage has produced evidence that was useful in obtaining criminal charges pursuant to expressway-related investigations.”
While a community member namely Alma Hill is crying foul and insisting more can be done. “I feel we’re being neglected. I feel we’re being put on the back burnerbecause they can use the excuse of COVID.” Hill went on to say “I do believe more people have to stand up and let the public and especially the government know that this is important to us.” I know they’ve got a lot on their hands but that’s no excuse. This is ridiculous people are dying.” As originally reported by The Chicago Tribune.
On Tuesday rapper Snoop Dogg thanked Donald Trump for pardoning a Death Row exec on his final day in office. “That’s great work for the president and his team on the way out.” He went on to “The Post” saying “They did some great work while they was in there and they did some great work on their way out. Let them know that I love what he did.” Harris received the news of his clemency at the Lompoc Federal Correctional Institution from previous clemency beneficiaries Alice Johnson and Weldon Angelos. Who are also criminal justice advocates. Then shortly after midnight he gave a pardon to rappers Lil Wayne who was facing a weapons charge and one of our faves Kodak Black. Who wasn’t scheduled to be released until 2022 for a nonviolent paperwork crime. In addition former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is also being released after serving one fourth of his 28 year sentence according to Reuters. Are you happy for them?
Jacob Blake (29) sat down with Michael Strahan because he has little ability to stand after Kenosha police partially paralyzed him. Jacob Blake and his ex were uniting to celebrate their child’s 8th birthday when a dispute ensued with a neighbor. Blake said the altercation put a damper on his son’s party who tearfully asked him “daddy you sure it’s my birthday?” That query prompted him to leave to distract his son by “going back to the store.” Wanting to add joy to his child almost subtracted his life when police shot him seven times in the back. A miscommunication with his ex LaqueshaBooker caused the police call. When officers arrived Blakedidn’t realize they were their for him since he hadn’t committed a crime. He proceeded to Booker’s rental vehicle to secure his three children in their car restraints. Moments later he felt someone tugging his arm and flinched due to “human reaction.”
That moment made Blake realize he was the target. The next minute without verbal warning Blake says he was “slammed” against the car and tased. He responded by getting up to remove the “taser prongs” and pick up his dropped belongings which included a pocket knife. After garnering his things Blaketried to return to his “babies” in the vehicle. Blake said he walked away but in hindsight shouldn’t have picked up the knife due to the hostile climate. Still oblivious to his life being in danger since he was going in the opposite direction. Blake said he was not resisting arrest but the fate of being the “next George Floyd.” Trying to ensure the well being of his three kids almost turned fatal when a white police officer decided to shoot him seven times from behind.
Jacob Blake felt death was imminent.So he went on to give presumed final words to his children saying “Daddy love you no matter what.” Those children would later “facetime” their father in his hospital bed in awe that he was alive. Blake ended the interview thanking GOD for his life.
The families attorney, Ben Crump spoke about the smearing of Jacob Blake since the incident. Explaining how Black people have to be “perfect” to receive empathy.
Kenosha authorities identified the shooting officer as “Rusten Sheskey.” Who claimed Jacob Blake’s pocket knife had him in fear for his life. Sheskey said he thought he was going to be stabbed so he walked in closer to shoot him seven times. The officer’s attorney Brandan Matthews defended the publicly funded shooter sayinghe “acted according to his training.” His legal instruction has Jacob Blake heading into his 37th surgery as reported by “Good Morning America.”
Peaceful protestors taking to the street after Jacob Blakes shooting. Source: Instagram
Despite the international outcry Kenosha’s District Attorney, Michael Graveley decided not to charge the officer.
