Nation honors Rev. Jackson. Chicago pays $5.7M to family raided, Brian McKnight sues Rickey Smiley

A Chicago jury ruled that the city must pay $5.7 million to the Tate family for a wrongful 2018 police raid. CPD SWAT team members set off flashbang grenades, broke down their door, and pointed assault rifles at four children (ages 4-13). The jury found officers guilty of improper conduct and excessive force, with each child receiving $1 million and the adults $750,000 each. The family's attorney stated the verdict sends a message that such police behavior is unacceptable.

A Chicago jury ruled in favor of a black family after a 2018 police raid went wrong. The jury found CPD officers guilty of acting improperly and using excessive force against the family. Each child will receive $1 million in damages while Tate and East will each get $750,000.

Amidst a trend of companies scaling back Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs due to political pressure, Colgate-Palmolive is standing firm. The company announced it would ask investors to vote against a conservative shareholder proposal to remove DEI criteria from its board selection process, noting that three of its director nominees are from underrepresented communities.

Colgate Palm Olive says it will ask investors to vote against a conservative shareholder proposal to remove diversity, equity, and inclusion criteria from its board selection process. In its 2025 proxy statement, the company noted that three of its director nominees are members of underrepresented communities.

The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) has filed a petition to the US Department of Education because a new rule does not list social work as a professional degree. This omission has severe implications: social workers pursuing graduate degrees will face lower loan limits, potentially forcing them into private loans with higher interest rates or deterring them from the field entirely. This threatens to worsen the existing mental health workforce shortage, as social workers are the largest providers of behavioral services in the US, impacting schools, hospitals, and foster care systems.

The Department of Education has submitted their final rule making, which does not list social work as a professional degree. Primarily it means that social workers that are attempting to advance their education with a graduate degree are not able to apply for loans beyond the lower limits. Social work is the largest profession that provides behavioral services in the United States.

Congressman Al Green intentionally protested during the State of the Union by holding a 'Black people aren't apes' sign in the President's personal space. He aimed to confront the President directly about racist remarks and the harm they inflict on Black people. Green emphasized that such protests are necessary to challenge those who tolerate and perpetuate racism, asserting that the constitution protects all people and that 'might makes right' mentality threatens due process and democracy.

Congressman Al Green held up this sign... He says, 'Black people aren't able.' I was there to confront the president. I wanted him to know that what he's doing is harming black people and that we're not going to tolerate it. The first duty is to support the constitution and the constitution has places in it where all people are to be protected.