Category: World & Nation

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

Reckless Messaging Breach Alarms Oversight Group

Chioma Chukwu, executive director of American Oversight, issued a sharp rebuke of the
current administration’s handling of sensitive national security matters following recent
reports that high-level officials used encrypted messaging apps to discuss active military
operations.

African Americans
Stefi Mar

Trump Backs U.S. Entry into British Commonwealth, Raising Alarm Over American Independence and Slave Trade

Donald Trump has expressed support for the United States becoming an “associate member” of the British Commonwealth, responding to a report in The Sun that King Charles might extend such an offer during Trump’s upcoming state visit to the United Kingdom. “I Love King Charles. Sounds good to me!” Trump wrote online. The Sun cited a “secret offer” in development following a Daily Mail report claiming discussions are underway “at the highest levels” to include the U.S. in the Commonwealth of Nations. While the British government deferred to Buckingham Palace, some officials in the Labour government view the monarchy as a diplomatic bridge to Trump, who has publicly praised the royals.

African Americans
Stefi Mar

Return to Jim Crow: Federal Regulations Rolled Back to Allow Segregation

The Trump administration has blatantly resurrected segregation in federal contracting, undoing decades of civil rights progress by removing anti-segregation mandates. The alarmingly regressive move reopens the door for racially divided facilities, eerily reminiscent of the Jim Crow era, with potential “Whites Only” and “Colored” signage in government-funded workplaces.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

Market Turmoil Raises Concerns Among Black Investors

The U.S. stock markets have continued to experience significant declines, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping to start the week at 890 points (2.1%) to close at 41,912. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also fell to begin the week by 2.7% and 4%, respectively. The downturn has heightened concerns among Black investors, who have historically faced challenges in wealth accumulation and market participation.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

Bipartisan Effort Seeks to Protect Workers and Crack Down on Child Labor Violations

U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) have introduced a bipartisan bill to accelerate contract negotiations for newly formed unions and prevent corporations from using delay tactics to weaken collective bargaining. The Faster Labor Contracts Act has drawn support from Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Bernie Moreno (R-OH), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR), signaling a rare bipartisan push to strengthen workers’ rights. The legislation targets a major obstacle for unionized workers—securing an initial contract. While current law requires employers to negotiate in good faith, it does not impose a timeframe for reaching an agreement. As a result, many new unions face lengthy delays, often exceeding a year, as corporations stall negotiations. A Bloomberg Law study from 2021 found that, on average, it takes 465 days for newly unionized workers to obtain their first contract.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

Trump Moves to Dismantle Education Department

The Trump administration is preparing to issue an executive order directing newly confirmed Education Secretary Linda McMahon to begin dismantling the Department of Education. While the president lacks the authority to unilaterally shut down the agency—requiring congressional approval—McMahon has been tasked with taking “all necessary steps” to reduce its role “to the maximum extent permitted by law.” The administration justifies the move by claiming the department has spent over $1 trillion since its 1979 founding without improving student achievement. However, data from The Nation’s Report Card shows math scores have improved significantly since the 1990s, though reading levels have remained stagnant. The pandemic further widened achievement gaps, leaving many students behind.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

‘We’re Not Running from Our Own House’: CBC Declares War on Trump, Musk, and Project 2025

In what might be an unprecedented show of force, a powerful contingent of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) met with African American journalists inside the Democratic Whip’s Conference Room at the U.S. Capitol, laying out their battle plan against Donald Trump, Elon Musk and the far-right’s dystopian blueprint known as Project 2025. CBC Chair Yvette Clarke, First Vice Chair Troy Carter, Whip Sydney Kamlager-Dove, former Chair Steven Horsford, Reps. Jahana Hayes, Summer Lee, and the ever-outspoken Jasmine Crockett made it clear—while they lack the votes to halt Trump’s cruel and life-threatening policies, they are on the offensive with one goal in mind: retaking the House next year to neutralize his agenda.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

Trump Kicks the Ukrainian President Out of the White House

“You are playing cards” and “you’re gambling with World War III” scolded President Trump to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy before he kicked Zelenskyy out of the White House today. The Oval Office visit was meant to ease tensions in the Russian war against Ukraine. However, it ended in a shouting match. The verbal sparring pit President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D, Vance, in a tag team of sorts, against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

NNPA Launches ‘Missing & Black 2025’ Campaign to Spotlight Disparities in Media Coverage of Missing Black Individuals

The NNPA World News app has unveiled the Missing & Black 2025 Campaign, a nationwide initiative aimed at addressing the glaring disparities in media coverage and law enforcement response to missing Black individuals. The campaign seeks to bring long-overdue visibility, resources, and justice to the thousands of missing Black children, women, and men whose cases are frequently overlooked. “With an alarming disparity in coverage and urgency between cases involving people of color and their white counterparts, this initiative calls for collective action to change the narrative and ensure that all missing persons in America receive the responsive attention that they deserve,” said Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA).

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

Trump Hosts Black History Month Reception

“One of the reasons why I am president today is because of the Black vote,” Trump told African Americans celebrating Black History Month at the White House.  There was a resounding response of “We love you” and “Thank you” from the exuberant crowd. 

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

Federal Workers Face Unprecedented Ultimatum as Elon Musk Wields Trump’s Government Efficiency Agenda

Federal employees have been instructed to justify their work over the past week or risk being deemed as having resigned, according to a directive issued by the White House’s Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The mandate, which demands responses by 11:59 p.m. ET Monday, was reinforced by Elon Musk, head of the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), who stated on X that noncompliance would result in termination.

African Americans
Stefi Mar

Dying to Wear the Badge: Black Police Recruits at Risk

Black Americans have long feared dying at the hands of police officers. Now, they are dying while trying to become police officers. An investigation by the Associated Press has revealed a troubling and deadly reality for Black police recruits, who died during training at disproportionately higher rates than their peers. The report found that nearly 60% of recruit deaths involved Black trainees, despite Black officers comprising just 12% of local police forces.

African Americans
Stefi Mar

The Black Press: The Last Line of Defense as Trump Seizes Control of the National Archives

Donald Trump’s recent takeover of the National Archives marks yet another chilling step in his broader campaign to rewrite history, erasing the truths that challenge his authoritarian ambitions. With the forced resignation of Acting Archivist William Bosanko, Trump and his allies are moving swiftly to reshape how American history is recorded, preserved, and ultimately remembered. This power grab, executed under the banner of Project 2025 and backed by figures like Elon Musk, is more than just an attack on government records—it is an existential threat to the preservation of Black history and the truth itself.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

NAACP Sues Trump Administration Over Dismantling of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

The NAACP has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia challenging the legality of the Trump administration’s decision to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The civil rights organization argues that the move undermines protections for Black, elderly, and vulnerable consumers, leaving them exposed to financial exploitation.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

House GOP Pushes Forward Extreme Budget Plan as Project 2025 Fears Become Reality

As the Trump administration prepares to close out its first full month back in power, the fears many Americans expressed about Project 2025 are rapidly becoming frightening realities. House Republicans unveiled a budget resolution on Wednesday that slashes federal spending by $2 trillion while providing up to $4.5 trillion in tax cuts—largely benefiting the wealthy and major corporations.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

Trump Plans to Own the Gaza Strip

The reaction is swift to the new redevelopment plan by President Donald Trump to level the Gaza Strip as the United States is expected to take it over and occupy the land. Jamal Bryant, Sr. Pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Georgia told Black Press USA, “This is a dark moment for humanity! The light in the holy land has blown out with the decisions of the Trump administration.” Bryant emphatically stated, “We are effectively co-signing a genocide, and people around the world should be morally outraged.” During the joint Press Conference with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last night, Trump expressed that he wants to turn this valuable property, the Gaza Strip, into “the Riviera of the Middle East”.

Bakersfield
Stefi Mar

Experts Say Trump’s South African Land Stance Exposes A Deep Hypocrisy

President Donald Trump’s latest maneuver, an executive order to cut U.S. aid to South Africa while extending refugee status to white South Africans, is yet another calculated exercise in race-baiting and historical revisionism. Trump claims that Afrikaners, the white descendants of Dutch and French settlers who own the vast majority of South Africa’s farmland, are victims of persecution under President Cyril Ramaphosa’s land reform efforts. Yet, the reality of land ownership in South Africa tells a different story, and Trump’s feigned concern for land rights is made even more absurd when compared to the systematic land dispossession endured by Black Americans in the United States.

African Americans
Stefi Mar

Black Federal Employees Targeted in Public Blacklist as Trump and Musk Continue Assault on Diversity

A right-wing nonprofit backing Donald Trump has published the names and photos of more than 50 federal employees, many of them Black, in a move that civil rights advocates warn could endanger lives and deepen systemic discrimination in government agencies. The “D.E.I. bureaucrat watch list,” compiled by the American Accountability Foundation, identifies workers based on their support for diversity, equity, and inclusion (D.E.I.) initiatives, past social media activity, or donations to Democratic candidates.

African Americans
Stefi Mar

Trump’s Trade War Hits Black America Hardest as Tariffs Drive Up Costs

President Donald Trump’s latest round of tariffs—25% on imports from Canada and Mexico and 10% on imports from China—has sent shockwaves through global markets, sparking retaliatory measures from trade partners and raising concerns about the economic strain on American consumers. But for Black Americans, already facing disproportionate financial burdens, the fallout could be devastating.