Paradise News

Tag: General News

  • Moderate Dem says he would protect Speaker Johnson over Ukraine aid, government funding

    Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) said he would protect Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) gavel as long as he backs legislation to provide more aid to Ukraine and ensures the government remains open.

    Golden promised to stave off a motion to vacate if Johnson moves to bring the modified $66.32 billion foreign aid package — which includes border provisions — to the House floor for a vote.

    “Put this bill on the floor or something like it that addresses the border, Ukraine, Israel and can pass the Senate and become law because this is so important, and keep our government open and funded,” Golden said Friday during on a Zoom call organized by “No Labels” and attended by hundreds of their supporters.

    “I’ll vote to protect speaker Mike Johnson,” he added.

    The legislation, called the Defending Borders, Defending Democracies Act, was introduced last week, after the bipartisan Senate border bill collapsed and Johnson refused to bring a separate Ukraine aid bill to a vote.

    The House bill contains $47 billion for Ukraine, $10 billion for Israel, $5 billion for the Indo-Pacific and $2 billion to support U.S. Central Command operations. It would also bring resinstate former President Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” immigration policy for one year and does not include humanitarian aid for Gaza.

    The bill was negotiated by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) who also spoke on Friday’s call.

    Golden and Fitzpatrick urged colleagues to back the modified package in a “Dear Colleague” letter sent on Sunday. 

    Following the call, Golden’s office confirmed his pledge to protect Johnson if he moves the bill closer to passage and is able to keep the government funded.

    “If Speaker Johnson takes action in the House to secure the border, provide urgently needed aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan, and pass a spending bill to avoid a government shutdown — and does so in a manner that can pass the U.S. Senate — then Congressman Golden would oppose a motion to vacate,” Golden’s office communications director Mario Moretto said in a statement.

    His vow comes after Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), circulated a resolution Tuesday that would make it tougher for the House GOP to oust Johnson from his leadership position. But, that resolution hinges on foreign aid receiving a vote in the lower chamber.

    In early February, Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) — the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee — made a prediction that members of his party would slide in and protect the Speaker if a motion to vacate was triggered over Ukraine aid.

    Anxiety over a potential motion comes just over four months since former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was ousted in a historic vote. His removal from leadership came after the House averted a shutdown in 2023 by putting a stopgap measure on the floor that as supported by Democrats— a move that infuriated hardline conservatives.

    Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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  • Otti Retires Abia State Vigilante Commander After 21 years In Service

    Mr. Idika Martins, Commander, Abia State Vigilante Services (AVS)

    The Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, has directed that Mr. Idika Martins, Commander, Abia State Vigilante Services (AVS) proceeds on retirement with immediate effect.

    A statement by Prince Okey Kanu, the Commissioner for Information and Culture, said the governor had ordered the revival of the moribund state-owned vigilante group, the Abia State Vigilante Services (AVS), to enhance community policing

    To this effect, the government directed Martins to hand over all government property in his possession to the next in command Mr. Kelechi Okereke, who will assume the role of AVS Commander in acting capacity pending the appointment of a substantive AVS Commander by government.

    The governor thanked Idika Martins for his services to the state and wished him well in all his future endeavors .

    The Abia State Vigilante Service formerly (Bakassi Boys) were created in 1998 by traders in Aba who wanted to protect themselves from armed robbers and hoodlums.

    Having had success in reducing crime in Aba, the Bakassi Boys became in high demand and their activities spread to other cities in eastern Nigeria

    According to 2004 and 2005 reports, the vigilante group is active in the southeastern states of Imo, Abia, and Anambra

    The Bakassi Boys are officially called the Imo Vigilante Services (IVS), the Abia Vigilante Services (AVS), and the Anambra Vigilante Services (AVS)

    Otti Retires Abia State Vigilante Commander After 21 years In Service is first published on The Whistler Newspaper

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  • Fact Check: NASA is not altering pictures of Canada and passing them off as Mars images

    NASA satellites have made it easy to find authentic photos of Mars, but some social media claims say these aren’t actually images of the red planet. 

    A Feb. 21 Instagram video claims NASA is altering photos of Earth’s landscapes to make them look like Mars. 

    The video shows two identical, side-by-side photos, one labeled “Mars” and the other labeled “Devon Island,” the world’s largest uninhabited island located in the Arctic Archipelago.

    “The photos have a little bit of Photoshop … allegedly this is Columbia Hills, Mars,” he said. “Clicking auto-tone in Photoshop, looks identical, the landscape does.”

    This Instagram post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram.)

    NASA has said in prior news reports it is not passing off photos of Canada — or any other country — as Mars. 

    The photo labeled Mars in the video appears on NASA’s website and is from 2004, according to the agency. The “Columbia Hills” refers to a range of low hills inside a crater on Mars’ surface, named to honor the Space Shuttle Columbia whose crew perished upon reentering the earth’s atmosphere in 2003. 

    The photo labeled “Devon Island” in the Instagram photo is identical; there’s no evidence it’s from Canada. A reverse Google image search does not link the photo to any existing photos in Canada.

    NASA does field research on Devon Island because the landscapes are similar to Mars. The island, which is in the Arctic Ocean off the coast of Canada, hosts the Haughton-Mars Project, which includes a research facility NASA uses because it mimics Mars’ environment. 

    “Devon Island’s barren terrain, freezing temperatures, isolation, and remoteness offer scientists and personnel unique research opportunities,” according to NASA’s website.

    A similar conspiracy theory surfaced in February 2021, claiming that NASA had released fake photos of Mars that were really images of a Bulgarian rock formation. That claim was debunked by USA Today, Reuters and Agence France-Presse. NASA confirmed in 2021 that it took none of the photos. Another debunked claim in 2022 alleged that NASA said photos from Ireland were from Mars.

    We rate the claim that pictures of Mars are actually Devon Island, Canada, False.

     



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  • Draymond Green calls out Grant Williams after garbage time scuffle

    SAN FRANCISCO —In the waning seconds of the Warriors’ blowout win over Charlotte, tempers flared when Lester Quinones took a layup in garbage time.

    The tension sparked when Quinones shot a layup when the game was out of hand. There was a two-second difference between the shot and game clock, but players often take a turnover if the game’s essentially over. Miles Bridges blocked Quinones’ attempt for a goaltending call, and frustrations boiled over into an all-hands skirmish.

    In the dust-up, Quinones was assessed two technicals and an ejection. Bridges picked up a technical and Grant Williams, who joined the scrum late, got ejected for escalating the conflict.

    Williams, a Warriors foe from the 2022 NBA Finals as a Celtic, doesn’t have many fans in the Chase Center. Draymond Green, who launched into a comedy routine at the postgame podium, sure doesn’t seem like one.

    “Grant Williams gotta stop it, man,” Green said. “Being like this tough guy is going absolutely wrong for him. Like, he’s a really nice guy. For some reason, he keeps like trying to jump onto the unlikeable side, and I must tell you: it’s not always fun over here. It’s not always a good time. I don’t know man, he needs to figure it out. Because boy, talking too much kind of got you out of Dallas. Overdoing it. He’s over there talking too much now. You might want to slow down, and stop all the tough guy stuff.”

    The scuffle reached its apex when Quinones and Williams went jaw-to-jaw, with the Warriors guard repeatedly calling Williams a profanity. Williams was finishing his fifth game as a Hornet after the Mavericks traded him at the deadline, reportedly because he rubbed some Mavericks the wrong way.

    Williams is regarded as a smart player, but has always played with a lot of emotion — and verbosity. He was elected as the National Basketball Association Players Association vice president last February.

    “You want to be the president of the PA and stuff, you can’t be out here doing all that stuff,” Green said. “You don’t see CJ McCollum being a tough guy. Chris (Paul) was tough as hell as the Players Association president. But CP’s 6 feet. You got to have some nastiness to you to be that great and be 6 feet tall. I don’t know what Grant Williams out here doing. That dude — and he’s doing it with everybody this year. Then he came over to our bench, thought he was about to have a friend. Ain’t no friends for you over here, my man. You gotta go down there and talk to your guys. You can’t come over here and talk to us about what just happened with our players, like no, we support our players.”

    “Pray for Grant Williams,” Green’s soliloquy ended.

    Green and Warriors head coach Steve Kerr defended Quinones after the game, saying there shouldn’t be a problem with someone taking a shot instead of taking a shot clock violation. The Hornets were pressing late in the fourth quarter despite Golden State having removed their starters, and the Warriors believe there’s nothing wrong with playing, with reason, to the final horn.

    “I don’t really understand why people get so mad at somebody scoring at the end of the game,” Green said.  “It’s like this dumb, unofficial, unwritten rule that everybody gets mad. Like, if y’all were winning by 13 points, would you get mad if he laid the ball up? I doubt it. And so it’s kind of like a sore loser type thing.”

    Warriors rookie Brandin Podziemski revealed that Kerr — who reportedly agreed to a two-year, $35 million contract extension — told the team postgame that he’ll pay Quinones’ ejection fine. Williams could be so lucky.



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  • SCOTUS Punts On Race And Schools Case

    UNITED STATES – APRIL 07: THOMAS JEFFERSON HIGH SCHOOL FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY–Kristina Foster works on an assignment during a computer architecture class at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Fairfax County, Virginia. (Photo by Scott J. Ferrell/Congressional Quarterly/Getty Images) Credit: CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Imag

    by Joseph Williams

    Less than a year after the Supreme Court voided race-based admissions policies in top colleges, diversity advocates breathed a sigh of relief when the high court passed on hearing a challenge to an initiative to bring more Black students to an elite Virginia magnet school. 

    But experts warn that the court’s decision not to hear a challenge to an admissions policy at Thomas Jefferson High School in suburban Washington, D.C., is more likely the justices deciding to hit the pause button on a politically charged issue — not a clear win for diversity in secondary education.

    The court apparently “is not ready to opine on such a question” so soon after its landmark 2023 ruling, says Deborah Hellman, a constitutional law professor at the University of Virginia School of Law.  While it’s hard to read the court’s motives, she says, “I think (the court) will be for some time.”

    On Tuesday, the justices declined to add to their upcoming docket a case arguing that the admissions policies for the prestigious Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Fairfax, Va., discriminate against Asian American applicants.

    The highly-anticipated case, Coalition for T.J. vs. Fairfax County School Board, was brought by a group of Asian American parents who argued that the strategies the school implemented to increase the number of Black and Latino students left their children out in the cold. 

    Although the conservative-majority court agreed to punt the case, Justice Samuel Alito wrote a 10-page dissent slamming the “indefensible” decision. He said a lower court ruling that now stands is “based on a patently incorrect and dangerous understanding of what a plaintiff must show to prove intentional race discrimination.”

    The reasoning behind that ruling, Alito wrote, is “a virus that may spread if not promptly eliminated.”

    At issue is a series of changes the high school made in the wake of the 2020 murder of George Floyd, when the country underwent a racial reckoning. The school board made what it called “holistic” changes to Thomas Jefferson High’s admissions requirements — including priority admission for the top 1.5% of eighth-grade students in the county’s public middle schools, elimination of the entrance exam, and waiver of a $100 fee. 

    The changes triggered an increase of nearly 1,000 more applicants, including substantial upticks in the acceptance of Black and Hispanic students. But Coalition for T.J. sued in federal court, and a federal district judge sided with them in 2022. 

    But in a 2-1 decision, an appellate court overturned that decision last year. In its ruling, the court noted that, even after the changes, Asian American students made up more than half of those who received offers of admission. White students made up 22% of the admission pool, with Latino students at 11% and Black students at less than 8%. 

    Hellman, the University of Virginia professor, says that although the Supreme Court’s dismantling of affirmative action in college admissions was a backdrop, the facts and issues raised in the Thomas Jefferson High School case are different, and that may have given pause to the justices. 

    In the college admissions case, race was an explicit factor in deciding who won admission to Harvard University and the University of North Carolina, Hellman says. But Thomas Jefferson, she says, adopted “a facially race-neutral policy. The new policy was one that didn’t use race-based classification.”

    Half of U.S. adults disapprove of selective colleges considering race and ethnicity in admissions decisions, while a third approve.

    *Estimates for asian adults are representative of English speakers only.
    Note: Black, Asian, and White adults include those who report being only one race and are not Hispanic. Hispanics are of any race. No answer responses not shown. See topline for full question wording.
    Source: Survey of U.S. Adults conducted March 27-April 2, 2023. Pew Research Center.

    Though they lost at the Supreme Court, lawyers for Coalition for T.J. say they haven’t given up on trying to change the admissions policy at the high school.  

    “If anything, this multiplies our efforts,” Glenn Roper, a senior attorney for the Pacific Legal Foundation, which represented the plaintiffs, told Inside Higher Ed. “There are multiple unanswered questions from the Students for Fair Admissions ruling that the court is going to have to address eventually.”

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  • Odysseus lander tipped over on moon’s surface, now on it’s side

    The Odysseus lander, just a day after it made a historic landing on the moon, tipped over and is now on its side, officials revealed.

    The lander, which made history as the first private spacecraft to land on the moon in over 50 years, ended up on its side near the moon’s south pole. The craft “caught a foot in the surface” and might have broken one of its six legs, according to the Associated Press (AP). 

    “So far, we have quite a bit of operational capability even though we’re tipped over,” CEO Steve Altemus said Friday. 

    Altemus explained that some antennas on the lander were pointed toward the moon’s surface, therefore restricting data flow. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will try to determine its location. 

    Still, according to an update on the company website, the lander is “alive and well.” 

    A successful landing by Intuitive Machines, a Houston-based company, was not a guarantee, as the craft experienced issues and had delays. 

    “Odysseus is alive and well,” the company wrote. “Flight controllers are communicating and commanding the vehicle to download science data.”

    The craft landed on Thursday a few miles away from its preferred site, Malapert A crater, per the company.

    The spacecraft is carrying NASA scientific instruments and experiments, and the administration partially sponsored the mission. 

    Odysseus was launched last week from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This was the first lunar touchdown for the U.S. since Apollo 17 landed in 1972.

    Only five countries have successfully landed crafts on the moon. Japan became the fifth last month, joining Russia, India, China and the U.S.

    Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.



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  • NEFGAD Challenges INEC’s Report On IReV Failure, Calls For Investigation Of Procurement Process

    Mahmood-Yakubu-INEC-chairman

    The Network for the Actualization of Social Growth and Viable Development (NEFGAD) has called for investigation over the 2023 General Election Report released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    According to INEC’s report, the technical challenges faced during the February 25 presidential election on the INEC results viewing (IReV) platform were due to inherent complexities.

    Reacting in a statement signed on Friday by NEFGAD’s head of office, Mr Akingunola Omoniyi, the group disputed INEC’s explanation, asserting that the IReV project was mis-procured and unfit for its intended purpose.

    Omoniyi, while calling on Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the electoral umpire (INEC), suggested that the procurement process lacked due diligence, leading to the failure of the IReV system to function optimally on election day.

    He emphasized that the IReV procurement failed to ensure the accuracy of claims made by the procuring entity and bidders, raising concerns about a potential large-scale collusion between the procuring entity and the selected bidder.

    The statement read, “INEC in its 526-page 2023 General Elections Report says the reason why Nigerians couldn’t view in real-time the result of the presidential elections on the INEC results viewing (IReV) during the 25 February presidential election that was held last year was due to ‘’inherent complexities within the system which was difficult to anticipate as a result of unfrozen technical challenges arising from the uniqueness of the presidential election.”

    The group further said that the “INEC report is an afterthought of a seriously flawed procurement process, positing that IReV project was mis-procured and unfit for purpose over its failure to function optimally on the day of election particularly for the transmission of presidential election results – being the intended purpose for which it was acquired.

    “The entire IReV procurement has failed procurement due diligence test for its inability to ensure that the claims made by procuring entity, bidders are accurate and the selected bidder is capable of fulfilling the contract.”

    NEFGAD however, called for a thorough investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Offences Commission (ICPC) to address possible procurement infractions.

    The group highlighted the need for transparency and accountability in the electoral process, with implications for the credibility of future elections in Nigeria.

    “In view of the foregoing, there is a clear possibility of large-scale collusion between the procuring entity and the selected bidder to perpetrate procurement infraction. Hence, the need for thorough investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Offences Commission (ICPC),” the group said.

    NEFGAD Challenges INEC’s Report On IReV Failure, Calls For Investigation Of Procurement Process is first published on The Whistler Newspaper

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  • Fact Check: Why the juvenile suspects in the Chiefs parade shooting haven’t been named, unlike Kyle Rittenhouse

    In the aftermath of the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooting, some social media users wondered why local authorities and news outlets have not released certain information about the juvenile suspects.

    One of them was Kyle Rittenhouse, who was 17 when he was arrested in the high-profile fatal shootings of two men during a 2020 protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He was acquitted of charges in 2021.

    “I am trying to comprehend why the government was quick to reveal my name after I defended myself, but they still haven’t released the names of the Kansas City shooters,” Rittenhouse posted Feb. 20 on X.

    Authorities charged four people, two adults and two minors, in connection with the Feb. 14 shooting in Kansas City, Missouri.

    Several other social media users besides Rittenhouse saw a double standard between the details released in this shooting — the adult suspects are Black, while the juveniles’ races are unknown — and other high-profile, but noncriminal, incidents involving white minors. They mentioned Nick Sandmann, a high schooler whose encounter with a Native American man went viral in 2019, and Holden Armenta, a 9-year-old who was criticized by the news outlet Deadspin for wearing black and red face paint and a Native American headdress to a 2023 Chiefs game.

    All of these cases involved different circumstances that determined whether identifying information about the minors was released. For example, Missouri law does not allow for juvenile defendants to be identified, except in more severe criminal cases, while Wisconsin law treats all 17-year-olds as adults in criminal prosecutions. 

    Regardless of whether local authorities release identifying information about minors, four journalism ethics experts told PolitiFact that newsrooms must consider the ethics of publishing such details.

    What we know about the Kansas City shooting

    The Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office said an argument and gunfire broke out at the Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade, leaving one woman dead and 22 other people, most of them children, injured.

    Lyndell Mays, 23, and Dominic M. Miller, 18, were arrested on charges of second-degree murder, armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon.

    On Feb. 16, before the adult suspects were publicly identified, Jackson County Family Court said two juveniles were arrested on gun-related and resisting arrest charges. No further details about the juveniles have been released.

    Juvenile court records are typically not disclosed to the public under Missouri law.

    “They shouldn’t have their lives derailed because of one bad decision,” said Clark Peters, a University of Missouri associate professor specializing in criminal and juvenile justice.

    The ultimate decision to identify a juvenile suspect in Missouri lies with the juvenile court judge, Peters said.

    If juveniles are charged with a felony, such as murder, a judge may decide to prosecute them as an adult. In this case, a judge may decide to allow identifying information about minors to be publicly released.

    The two juveniles involved in the Kansas City shooting have not been charged with felonies. The Jackson County Family Court said additional charges were expected as the local police investigation continues, but the court did not say who may be charged or what the charges may be.

    What happened with Rittenhouse and the other minors?

    Rittenhouse claimed he acted in self-defense when shooting three people during a night of protests in Kenosha. In November 2021, a jury found him not guilty on counts of first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, first-degree attempted intentional homicide and two counts of first-degree reckless endangerment.

    Rittenhouse was prosecuted as an adult under Wisconsin law, which requires all 17-year-old criminal defendants to be charged and prosecuted as adults. In adult court, the criminal defendant’s name is publicly released at the time of arrest.

    In Sandmann’s case, there was no crime. His name rose to national prominence because of a 2019 viral video that showed an encounter between Sandmann, then a Covington Catholic High School student, and a Native American protester.

    Sandmann sued several news organizations, including The Washington Post, USA Today publisher Gannett Co. and CNN, for damages following media coverage of the event. Sandmann privately settled with The Washington Post and CNN; the lawsuit involving Gannett was dismissed.

    Armenta also went viral online because of a photo taken of him during a Chiefs football game. Soon after, Deadspin ran a story accusing Armenta — without naming him — of wearing blackface. Deadspin included a photo of Armenta showing only half his face, which was covered in black paint. (The other half not seen in the photo was painted red.)

    The child’s family is suing Deadspin for defamation. Deadspin has since updated the story to remove the photo and mentions of Armenta.

    The ethics around naming children in news stories

    When deciding to name a minor suspect, news organizations should weigh a person’s right to privacy and the public’s right to know, said Kellie Stanfield, an associate professor of broadcast journalism at the University of Missouri.

    John Watson, an associate professor of communications law and journalism ethics at American University, said this is especially important to prioritize minimizing harm when children are involved.

    “The potentially massive and long-term harm to children is probably never ethically justified given that they should not be held to the same standards of publicized accountability as newsworthy adults,” Watson said.

    Experts said some of the questions journalists should consider are:

    • Does the public need to know the minor’s identity? Why or why not?

    • Would shielding the minor’s identity lead to public harm?

    • Does releasing the minor’s identity give readers a deeper understanding of the context of the story?

    “Each circumstance, obviously, is different and might change what a journalist would ultimately decide to do. But the key thing … is to remind oneself that we are dealing with human beings and not just reporting information,” said Aly Colón, a media ethics professor at Washington and Lee University.

    Journalists should also be transparent with the public about this decision-making process, said Kathleen Culver, professor and director of the Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

    “Oftentimes, newsrooms can be so insular. We’re just having these discussions of ethics among ourselves, rather than inviting people from the outside into the conversation,” Culver said. “If you are transparent with your audience about why you make those decisions, it’s going to result in more trust of your organization, not less.”



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  • Warriors bottle up Hornets to keep rolling

    SAN FRANCISCO — By forcing a season-high 19 turnovers and limiting the Hornets to 36.4% shooting, the Warriors held Charlotte to 84 points.

    Charlotte’s total was the fewest by a Warriors opponent since Jan. 9, 2022, when Golden State let up 82 to the Thunder. The result: a 97-84 Warriors blowout victory.

    It was sloppy, but behind the dominant defensive performance, the Warriors (29-26) earned their 10th win in their past 12 games. Charlotte’s offensive output was especially stunning considering the league’s historic scoring boom, with the highest point totals in decades. The game was so low-scoring, Steph Curry led the Warriors with 15 points and Miles Bridges recorded a game-high 19.

    Golden State Warriors' Brandin Podziemski (2) drives past Charlotte Hornets' Cody Martin (11) to scores against Nick Richards (4) in the fourth quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Golden State Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski (2) drives past Charlotte Hornets’ Cody Martin (11) to scores against Nick Richards (4) in the fourth quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

    With a 14-44 record, the Hornets came into the Chase Center representing a definition trap game for the Warriors. Charlotte had won four straight. The Warriors were on the second night of a back-to-back. The defending champion Nuggets awaited a game later.

    So in their pregame team meeting, Steve Kerr warned the Warriors that they can’t let their guard down. Even while they’re playing their best ball of the season, ranking in the top-10 in both offensive and defensive rating in February, they shouldn’t take the Hornets lightly.

    “I said the good news is we’re now good enough to have a letdown game,” Kerr said. “We weren’t good enough to have a letdown game a couple weeks ago. But now we are. We’re playing well on both ends. But this is a natural letdown game.”

    The Warriors listened to Kerr, who just before tipoff reportedly minted a two-year contract extension. Not that there were any doubts, but it’s clear Kerr still has the locker room’s ear.

    Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr prepares for an NBA game against the Charlotte Hornets at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr prepares for an NBA game against the Charlotte Hornets at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

    Despite tough shooting, Golden State’s defensive intensity was on point. They limited Charlotte to 15 points in the first quarter, forcing five turnovers and holding the Hornets to 25% shooting from the field. Gary Payton II returned after missing Thursday night’s contest with an illness, adding energy to the defensive end.

    Payton wasn’t alone in the effort. Brandin Podziemski took a charge in the first quarter and two more in the second. Golden State allowed just two points in the first four minutes of the second period, but turnovers prevented them from building a lead.

    Golden State’s defense led to offense. Back-to-back steals allowed Steph Curry to score five straight points. A tremendous Draymond Green block — after several defensive rotations — turned into a Payton layup on the other end.

    The Warriors led the Hornets 43-29 at halftime despite committing 14 turnovers. The teams combined for 26 first-half turnovers, making for the clunkiest half of the season. Charlotte’s 29 points were the fewest any team has scored in any half this season.

    Charlotte’s own offensive ineptitude certainly played a part. Despite averaging 115.7 points over their past four games — all victories — the Hornets’ execution resembled that of a G League team. On one play in the third, Brandon Miller flubbed an easy fast break, throwing an errant hit-ahead pass through the baseline. Miles Bridges simply lost his dribble later in the period.

    Brandon Miller got going a bit in the fourth, but it still wasn’t pretty. Bridges air-balled a midrange jumper and the Warriors’ 20-point lead was never threatened. The Hornets shot 28.2% from 3 and only got to the free throw line 11 times.

    “I think in the modern NBA, it’s just kind of like if you don’t give up 3s and you don’t let them shoot free throws, you’ve got a pretty good chance,” Podziemski said.

    It didn’t look like any other game this year, but the Warriors made sure they didn’t fall into the trap.

    In the game’s final seconds, Miles Bridges and Lester Quinones got tangled up under the Hornets’ basket, leading to a dust-up on the court. Quinones and Grant Williams got ejected, with Bridges picking up an offsetting technical foul. Given how the Hornets played, it was easy to imagine frustrations boiling over, especially with Quinones shooting a layup instead of letting the clock run out.

    With how ugly the first 47 minutes of the game were, it only made sense that the last 30 seconds were a slog, too.

    Golden State Warriors' Lester Quinones (25) and Charlotte Hornets' Tre Mann (23) get into a tussle late in the 4th quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Golden State Warriors’ Lester Quinones (25) and Charlotte Hornets’ Tre Mann (23) get into a tussle late in the 4th quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Referee Josh TIven tries breaking up an altercation between Golden State Warriors' Lester Quinones (25) and Charlotte Hornets' Cody Martin (11) late in the 4th quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Referee Josh TIven tries breaking up an altercation between Golden State Warriors’ Lester Quinones (25) and Charlotte Hornets’ Cody Martin (11) late in the 4th quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Charlotte Hornets' Cody Martin (11) is ejected after an altercation with Golden State Warriors' Lester Quinones (25) late in the 4th quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Charlotte Hornets’ Cody Martin (11) is ejected after an altercation with Golden State Warriors’ Lester Quinones (25) late in the 4th quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Golden State Warriors' Gary Payton II (0) scores on a fast break against Charlotte Hornets' Miles Bridges (0) in the third quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Golden State Warriors’ Gary Payton II (0) scores on a fast break against Charlotte Hornets’ Miles Bridges (0) in the third quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Golden State Warriors' Andrew Wiggins (22) is fouled by Charlotte Hornets' Brandon Miller (24) in the first quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Golden State Warriors’ Andrew Wiggins (22) is fouled by Charlotte Hornets’ Brandon Miller (24) in the first quarter of their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Brothers Seth Curry of the Charlotte Hornets and Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors share a post-game moment with Draymond Green after their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
    Brothers Seth Curry of the Charlotte Hornets and Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors share a post-game moment with Draymond Green after their NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

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  • Lorraine Hansberry’s Legacy: To Be Young, Gifted And Black

    Writer and playwright Lorraine Hansberry poses for a portrait in her apartment at 337 Bleecker Street (where she had written the first-ever Broadway play by an African-American woman, “A Raisin In The Sun”) in April, 1959 in New York City, New York. (Photo by David Attie/Getty Images)

    by Gwen McKinney

    It was May 1, 1964, and celebrated playwright Lorraine Hansberry, addressing a group of teenage national essay winners, extolled the power of Blackness:

    “I speak with you on this occasion because you are young, gifted and black. I for one can think of no more dynamic combination a person might be…Look at the work that awaits you! Write if you will. But write about the world as it is, and as you think it ought to be…Write about our people. Tell their story.”

    Though destined to an early grave, Hansberry (May 19, 1930 – January 12, 1965) achieved more in 35 years than most can imagine in multiple lifetimes. Heavily influenced by poet and then elder statesman Langston Hughes, whose “Dream Deferred” inspired the title of her acclaimed play “A Raisin in the Sun,” Hansberry was the first Black playwright to show up on Broadway. 

    She opened the gates for August Wilson, Amiri Baraka, and the next generation of Black (mostly male) playwrights and directors.

    “A Raisin in the Sun” transformed theater, shattering the reality of Black family life and American racism onto the Broadway stage. That transcendent play portrayed the depth and emotions of spatial isolation encountered by a working-class Black family struggling to attain the intangible “American Dream.” 

    Hansberry, from a middle-class background, was removed from the economic struggles of “Raisin’s” Younger family. But her lived experience was fused by the torment of hate and bigotry rampant in the nation’s segregated neighborhoods.

    When her family moved into a white Chicago neighborhood, they were greeted by a cement block thrown through a window that narrowly missed young Lorraine’s head. Her father, Carl Augustus Hansberry, was the named plaintiff in a lawsuit against racially restrictive covenants that was successfully carried to the U.S. Supreme Court.

    At 21, Hansberry relocated to New York, taking a job with Freedom, a Pan-Africanist journal published by Paul Robeson. As a young journalist, she covered the Sojourner for Truth and Justice — groundbreaking meetings convened by Black women activists in Washington, D.C., taking on U.S. government repression. 

    She also covered the case of Willie McGee, a Black man who was executed by Mississippi for allegedly raping a White woman. That derailment of justice inspired 21-year-old Hansberry to write the poem “Lynchsong.”

    When Robeson’s passport was seized by the U.S. government, he chose his young protégé Lorraine to represent him at a major peace conference abroad. Hansberry traveled globally and wrote about Pan-Africanism and anticolonialism around the world.

    From 1953 to 1960, Hansberry resided in the third-floor apartment of this building. While here, Hansberry lived parallel lives: one as the celebrated playwright of A Raisin in the Sun, the first play by a Black woman to appear on Broadway, and the other, as a woman who privately explored her homosexuality through her writing, relationships, and social circle.

    She was also deeply centered in the Black Arts explosion and used her literary voice to inflict lashes against racism, patriarchy, and inequality worldwide.

    James Baldwin counted Hansberry among his trusted political comrades. He reportedly would not schedule a meeting in 1963 with then-Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and 10 Black cultural leaders until he could confirm Hansberry’s attendance. 

    During that heated session with the attorney general, Hansberry, defending the remarks of a disaffected youth freedom rider attending the meeting, told Kennedy, “If you can’t understand what this young man is saying, then we are without any hope at all because you and your brother are representatives of the best that a white America can offer; and if you are insensitive to this, then there’s no alternative except our going in the streets … and chaos.”

    The meeting ended when Hansberry rose and walked out, to be followed by Baldwin and the other Black leaders. She was branded a radical by Kennedy aides who would later malign Hansberry, saying she called for the arming of Black youth and the killing of white people.

    Hansberry was unapologetic about her radical activism. A beneficiary of the Harlem Renaissance and the explosion of Black Arts, she was immersed in radical Black lesbian feminism in a period before the movement had even solidified.

    While Hansberry’s short hour on life’s stage was all too brief, hers was a prolific voice that maximized every moment with pathos and meaning.

    Gwen McKinney is the creator of Unerased | Black Women Speak and is the founder of McKinney & Associates, the first African American and woman-owned communications firm in the nation’s capital that expressly promotes social justice and public policy.

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