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Former Running Back Jason Wright Named President of NFL’s Washington Football Team

Former Running Back Jason Wright Named President of NFL’s Washington Football Team

By goodblacknews on August 20, 2020

Former National Football League running back Jason Wright was named the first Black president of an NFL team on Monday, according to The Washington Post. He will be heading up the Washington Football Team.

The hiring by team owner Daniel Snyder of the 38-year-old Wright, who rose quickly in the business world after getting an MBA at the University of Chicago and became a partner at McKinsey & Company, comes at a difficult time for a franchise that in past years was one league’s strongest.

To quote the Washington Post:

The team has had eight losing seasons in the last 11 years; it recently dropped its 87-year-old name, which is considered a racial slur, under pressure from sponsors; it has commissioned an investigation of its corporate culture after The Washington Post published a story detailing allegations of sexual harassment and verbal abuse; and Snyder’s three minority partners want to sell their roughly 40 percent stake in the team.

Yet Wright, who has lived in the Washington area since 2013, said he understands what waits for him when he takes over the team’s business operations next week.

“A lot of the high-stakes stuff that you see in and around the club at this time is something that I’m quite familiar with,” he said. “Hopefully, having not grown up in [Washington’s] front office allows me to bring some catalytic thinking. It’s the same reason organizations bring in people externally — to push the thinking, to have new, creative ways of thinking about things [and] maybe be a bit disruptive.”

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2020/08/17/jason-wright-hired-president-washington-football-team/

NBA Legend Michael Jordan and his Jordan Brand Donate $2.5 Million to Combat Black Voter Suppression

NBA Legend Michael Jordan and his Jordan Brand Donate $2.5 Million to Combat Black Voter Suppression

By goodblacknews on August 1, 2020

Michael Jordan and the Jordan Brand are donating $2.5 million toward fighting Black voter suppression as part of a larger 10-year, $100 million effort that Jordan and Jordan Brand announced on June 5 to “impact the fight against systemic racism.”

According to Nike News,  Jordan and Jordan Brand chose partners to fight Black voter suppression based on their ability to take actions to create immediate and direct.

Donations of $1 million each are going to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) and the Formerly Incarcerated & Convicted People and Families Movement (FICPFM), and $500,000 to Black Voters Matter to support reformative practices that drive real change in the Black community.

“We understand that one of the main ways we can change systemic racism is at the polls,” Jordan said in a statement.

Black Voters Matter (Capacity Building Institute) has been successful in supporting policies that expand access to the ballot, including the restoration of voting rights to people who have been incarcerated, and the development of network of grassroots organizations that activate Black voters. Michael Jordan and Jordan Brand will support Black Voters Matter in its efforts to register and turn out voters in the upcoming elections. For more information, visit bvmcapacitybuilding.org.

Formerly Incarcerated and Convicted Peoples and their Families Movement (FICPFM) FICPFM supports formerly incarcerated individuals who are returning to society, to promote civic engagement, help them meet voter registration eligibility requirements and shift the dominant narrative on who convicted people and their loved ones are. Michael Jordan and Jordan Brand will support FICPFM to help restore the rights of disenfranchised voters. For more information, visit ficpfm.org. 

LDF, which was founded by Thurgood Marshall before he became the first Black U.S. Supreme Court Justice, is the nation’s premier civil rights law organization. It employs litigation, advocacy and public education to advance its mission to achieve racial justice, equality and an inclusive society. Over the past 80 years, LDF has fought for structural changes to expand democracy and eliminate disparities. Through its many transformative cases, such as Brown v. Board of Education, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned the “separate but equal” doctrine that underpinned legal segregation, LDF has changed the very fabric of American democracy. Today, LDF fights to expand and protect civil rights so that our nation’s promise of racial equity and justice can become a reality for all Americans. For more information, visit naacpldf.org. 

NBA Legend Michael Jordan and Jordan Brand Pledge $100 Million to Racial Equality, Education and Social Justice Organizations

NBA Legend Michael Jordan and Jordan Brand Pledge $100 Million to Racial Equality, Education and Social Justice Organizations

By goodblacknews on June 5, 2020

According to ESPN.com, Michael Jordan and Jordan Brand are pledging $100 million over the next 10 years to nationwide organizations “dedicated to ensuring racial equality, social justice and greater access to education.”

To quote from ESPN:

“Black lives matter. This isn’t a controversial statement,” read a joint statement from Jordan and his company, which is a subsidiary of Nike. “Until the ingrained racism that allows our country’s institutions to fail is completely eradicated, we will remain committed to protecting and improving the lives of Black people.”

Specifically, Jordan Brand will increase its work in communities across the United States to provide access to education and opportunities for future generations, while also taking a more active role in supporting organizations that work to effect policy change in local government.

The Jordan Brand pledge came hours after Nike announced its own “Commitment to the Black Community,” an additional $40 million collective pledge to community organizations from the Nike, Jordan and Converse brands over the next four years.

Read more: https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29272682/jordan-brand-pledges-100-million-racial-equality-education-initiatives

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/sports/charlotte-hornets/article243321076.html

Boxing Champion Floyd Mayweather to Pay George Floyd’s Funeral Expenses

By goodblacknews on June 2, 2020
Floyd Mayweather Jr. (photo: wikipedia.org)

As reported by The Grio, boxing champion Floyd Mayweather offered last week to cover all funeral expenses for George Floyd. His generous offer has been accepted.

To quote from blackamericaweb.com:

According to Leonard Ellerbe, the CEO of Mayweather Promotions, the Floyd family has accepted his offer. “He’ll probably get mad at me for saying that, but yes, [Mayweather] is definitely paying for the funeral,” he told ESPN on Monday, June 1. “Floyd has done these kind of things over the last 20 years,” he added.

The gesture came about through an unexpected six degrees of separation. Anzel Jennings, CEO of The Money Team Record Label, apparently grew up with George Floyd in Houston, Texas.

Jason Lee of Hollywood Unlocked spoke to Jennings and reports that Anzel reached out to the family on behalf of the boxer.

He will reportedly pay for three ceremonies, one in Houston, Minnesota and Charlotte, North Carolina. A fourth is tentatively planned and Mayweather has agreed to bear the costs for that funeral as well.

Read more: https://thegrio.com/2020/06/01/floyd-mayweather-george-floyd-funeral/

 https://blackamericaweb.com/2020/06/02/floyd-mayweather-will-pay-for-george-floyds-funeral/

Candice Story Lee Named Athletic Director at Vanderbilt University, 1st Black Woman to Lead Power 5 Program

By goodblacknews on May 23, 2020
Candice Storey Lee (photo: Twitter)

According to espn.com, Vanderbilt University recently announced that Candice Storey Lee, a former standout student-athlete and three-time Vanderbilt graduate, has been named Vice Chancellor for Athletics and University Affairs and Athletic Director at Vanderbilt after serving in the role on a temporarily since February 2020.

Lee is Vanderbilt’s first female athletic director and the first African American woman to head a Southeastern Conference (SEC) athletics program. The permanent hire places her in the top tier of college athletics as one of only five women currently leading a “Power 5” program.

“Candice is perfectly positioned to lead our athletics program to new heights of success on and off the field of play. She has the drive, creativity and perseverance to help elevate our student-athletes and the entire Vanderbilt Athletics program,” said Incoming Vanderbilt Chancellor Daniel Diermeier.

Lee has served as an integral leader at the university and in Athletics for almost 20 years. Prior to becoming interim athletic director, she served as deputy athletic director, a role she was appointed to in 2016. Lee was also a captain on Vanderbilt’s women’s basketball team, graduating in 2000.

To quote from ESPN:

“It’s really interesting and humbling to hear words like pioneer and trailblazer, and I appreciate that. I know it’s significant, and it just reminds me of the responsibility that lies ahead,” Lee said on Freddie and Fitzsimmons on ESPN Radio on Thursday night. “I want to do a great job for all the people that I’m working with and for, but I also want to make sure that I’m not a deterrent when there are other opportunities presented to other people of color and other women and other people who are deserving of opportunities.

“There are a lot of people out there that just need a chance, and so if part of this can mean that there are more opportunities to come for others? I’m really excited about that.”

Read more: https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/29205275/vandy-makes-candice-lee-sec-first-female-black-ad

Former WNBA Player Tamara Moore Becomes 1st Black Woman Head Coach of Men’s College Basketball Team

By goodblacknews on April 28, 2020
Former WNBA Player Tamara Moore (photo via nbcnews.com)

According to nbcnews.com, former WNBA guard Tamara Moore has been hired as the men’s basketball head coach at Mesabi Range College in Virginia, Minnesota, making her the only woman to be the head coach of a men’s collegiate program in the country currently. And the first African American woman to hold that job in the U.S., ever.

“Now, it’s time for me to show you guys and show people that women are just as knowledgeable as men to coach the game,” she told ESPN.

To quote nbcnews.com:

Moore’s rise to head coach started from an early age. In high school, she was Minnesota’s Miss Basketball winner in 1998, later playing for the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she was named 2001 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and a two-time First Team All-Big Ten selection.

After college, Moore spent six seasons in the WNBA from 2002 to 2007, playing for seven different teams throughout her career before playing overseas. She was the girls’ basketball coach at Edison High School in Minneapolis before accepting her new position as the men’s basketball and softball head coach at Mesabi Range College.

Moore, 40, said that coaching men doesn’t faze her, and that she hasn’t been asked how male players will respond to her.

“I can use my recruiting calls in this process as an answer to that question: I didn’t even get that question once,” Moore said. “My resume speaks for itself.”

Moore isn’t the first woman to coach a basketball team. In the 1990s, Kerri-Ann McTiernan became the first woman in the country to be the head coach of a men’s college basketball team at Kingsborough Community College in New York. Moore’s hiring also follows a record 11 women who served as assistant coaches in the NBA 2019-20 season.

To read more, go to: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/former-wnba-player-tamara-moore-becomes-only-female-head-coach-n1183091

Former New York Knicks Star Stephon Marbury Sets Up Deal to Deliver 10 Million N95 Masks to NY Amid Covid-19 Crisis

By goodblacknews on March 30, 2020
Former NBA star Stephon Marbury (photos via Backgrid, Twitter)

According to nypost.com, former New York Knicks star Stephon Marbury wants to deliver something the city needs even more than an NBA title — 10 million N95 masks for hospital workers and other first responders on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.

To quote:

Marbury, who played in the NBA 14 years before moving overseas to become a legend in the Chinese Basketball Association, told The Post he’s made arrangements with a mask supplier in China willing to sell New York 10 million masks “at cost” for $2.75 each – well below the roughly $7.50 that N95 retailers have been quoting the state.

The Coney Island native said he got the idea last week after learning of the state’s lack of protective gear and the astronomical price its been paying for masks. So the now-retired, former point guard decided to reach out to Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, a presumptive 2021 mayoral candidate who has backed Marbury’s local charities in the past, to let him know he’s ready to dish his biggest assist yet.

“At the end of the day, I am from Brooklyn,” Marbury said during a call from his Beijing home. “This is something that is close and dear to my heart as far as being able to help New York.”

“I have family there in Coney Island, a lot of family … who are affected by this, so I know how important it is for people to have masks during this time.”

With China now beginning to recover from the pandemic, Marbury’s mask contact has more N95s than that country currently needs, according to Brooklyn Borough Hall. The gear would be delivered 2 million at a time over five weeks.

Read more: https://nypost.com/2020/03/29/stephon-marbury-plans-to-deliver-10-million-masks-to-ny-amid-coronavirus-crisis/

Russell Wilson and Ciara Pledge to Donate One Million Meals to Food Lifeline and Feeding America in Wake of Pandemic

By goodblacknews on March 19, 2020
NFL Quarterback Russell Wilson and Musical Artist Ciara (photo via flickr.com)

According to NBCSports.com, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and singer Ciara have pledged 1 million meals to Food Lifeline and Feeding America in an effort to help keep Americans in need fed in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.

To quote the article:

“Obviously this worldwide pandemic, coronavirus, is changing the world, second-by-second, minute-by minute. People are losing loved ones, the elderly and the young, people in between. … So what we’ve decided to do is partner with our local food bank in Seattle, Seattle Food Lifeline, and we’re going to donate a million meals and hopefully make a difference,” Wilson said in a video message.

Wilson and Ciara mentioned people losing jobs in the wake of increasing shut down initiatives in an effort to keep the spread of the virus from proliferating an exponential rates. They’ve already seen friends in the area that work for companies such as Alaska Airlines, the Seattle Sounders – where the pair are part owners – and Seattle Children’s Hospital hit with the effects of the virus.

“We want to encourage every out there to join us in whatever way that you can, big or small,” Ciara said. “Everything makes a difference. Everything that we do together makes a difference and together we will conquer this tough time that we’re going through.”

The Feeding America network of food banks “distributes 4.3 billion meals each year through food pantries and meal programs throughout the United States and leads the nation to engage in the fight against hunger.”

Charles Barkley to Sell Memorabilia to Build Affordable Housing in his Alabama Hometown

By goodblacknews on March 11, 2020
NBA great Charles Barkley (photo via commons.wikipedia.org)

According to the Washington Post, former NBA superstar Charles Barkley is selling his 1993 NBA MVP trophy and an Olympic gold medal among other memorabilia from his Hall of Fame basketball career so he can use the proceeds to build affordable housing in Leeds, Ala., where he grew up.

“That stuff’s not that important to me. I’ve had an unbelievable life,” Barkley told Birmingham’s WJOX-FM last week, explaining why he isn’t attached to these possessions. “I’ve been in Leeds a lot and we’ve probably got 30 eyesores, as I call them, where houses used to be when I was growing up. Either a rotted-out house or there’s just weeds that have overgrown.

“So, what I’m trying to do — I want to work with the city of Leeds, I want them to give me the spaces, number one. I want them to give me the houses, and I’m going to use my own money, selling my memorabilia.”

To quote the article:

Panini, a sports card and memorabilia company that Barkley has a relationship with, estimated that the MVP trophy alone could fetch $300,000 to $400,000, Barkley said. And his 1992 and 1996 Olympic gold medals? “ ‘I don’t even want to guess,’ ” Barkley said he was told, “ ‘but I can get you a lot for those gold medals.’ ”\

“I got an autograph deal with Panini and I was talking to the guys,” Barkley said. “All that stuff is at my grandmother’s house; I don’t even keep it, to be honest with you. And I said, ‘How much could I get for my MVP trophy and my two gold medals? And I got an autographed plaque signed by the [1992] Dream Team.’ He says, ‘Oh, I can get you a lot of money for that stuff.’ ”

Barkley went to high school in Leeds, which is about 20 miles east of Birmingham, and played collegiately at Auburn from 1981 to 1984. Now working for TNT, Barkley lives in Arizona but remains vocal about his Alabama roots. He has toyed with the idea of running for political office and hasn’t shied away from offering his opinion, whether it’s about Roy Moore when he was a candidate for Senate in 2017, the issues of race and poverty, or Trump.

“I want to do something really nice for Leeds. And if I could build 10 to 20 affordable houses — I want to do green housing, too,” he said. “If I could sell all that stuff, it would just be a really cool thing for me.”

To read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2020/03/09/charles-barkley-is-selling-memorabilia-build-affordable-housing-his-alabama-hometown/

Students at LeBron James’ I Promise School in Ohio to Receive Free Tuition to Kent State

By goodblacknews on February 14, 2020
Photo via Kent.edu

The inaugural class of NBA superstar LeBron James‘ I Promise School in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, has received some life-changing news, according to CNN.

All 193 students, who are high school juniors, will be receiving free tuition to Kent State University. The students, who were visiting the Kent State campus, erupted in cheers when they were told of the news, while many of their parents, watching from a live feed in a separate room, burst into tears.

Video of the announcement was released on Wednesday by the LeBron James Family Foundation. To see the video on Twitter, click here.

To quote the CNN article:

On Wednesday, James told reporters that his school has a great relationship with Kent State and the University of Akron. When the school opened in 2018, plans were announced to promise free tuition to the University of Akron when the students graduate.

“We have so many options, and I just know that so many kids in my community just don’t have many options,” James said. “So for me to be able to be in a position where I can give these kids options to decide what they want to do with their future, it’s probably the best thing I’ve ever done.”

According to a press release, the students will be guaranteed free tuition for four years as well as one year of a free room and meal plan. The students will be eligible for the package as college freshmen for the 2021-2022 academic year. To be eligible, they must be admitted to Kent State, fill out required financial aid forms and have completed a required number of community service hours each semester.

To remain eligible, students need to remain in good academic standing, take part in a required number of community service or volunteer hours and complete a minimum number of credit hours per year.

“We are so pleased to take our partnership with the LeBron James Family Foundation to this next level and welcome these students fully into the Kent State family,” said Kent State President Todd Diacon. “Kent State looks forward to the time when our campus is teeming with I Promise students.”