From Pandering Callouts To Praise Of Trump, Here's What The Black People At The RNC Have To Say

Walker, a three-time All-American at the University of Georgia during the ‘80s, defended his relationship with the president and sided with Trump on athletes not protesting during the national anthem.

“Just because someone loves and respects the flag, our National Anthem, and our country doesn’t mean they don’t care about social justice. I care about all of those things, and so does Donald Trump,” Walker said. “He shows how much he cares about social justice and the Black community through his actions. And his actions speak louder than any stickers or slogans on a jersey.”

After his speech, Walker told Fox News that Trump's words are often misunderstood by the masses and people would connect better with him if they prioritized his actions. 

"I don't think people really know Donald Trump. I think they look at Donald Trump from a tweet or look at from what he says, and they're not looking at what he does," Walker said.

Walker said he built a close relationship with Trump when the president purchased the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League in 1984. The former pro athlete said player said it hurts him deeply when people accuse the president of being a bigot.

“People who think that don’t know what they are talking about. Growing up in the Deep South, I have seen racism up close. I know what it is. And it isn’t Donald Trump,” Walker said.

From the stage at the Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C., Rep. Jones accused fellow Democrats of cultivating a “mental plantation” among Black voters and doubled down on his support of Trump’s campaign.

“The Democratic Party does not want Black people to leave their mental plantation,” Jones said. “We are free people with free minds.”

He also said Democrats have been pandering to the Black community, instead of implementing policy and law to advance their quality of life. He argued that, unlike Trump, Democrats want to defund the police and have been supporting violent protest behavior.

“The Democratic Party has become infected with the pandemic of intolerance, bigotry, socialism, anti-law enforcement bias and a dangerous tolerance for people who attack others, destroy property and terrorize our own communities,” he said.

Jones got his start in politics running for the state House in 1990, according to The Atlanta Journal Constitution. In 2008, President Barack Obama called him out for appropriating his image on a campaign flyer Obama didn't approve.

"I do not endorse him; I have not endorsed him," Obama told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "He put my picture on his literature without asking me."

Since then, Jones' career has been mired in controversy, and he recently made noise on both sides of the table for going against party allegiances in endorsing Trump.

Kim Klacik, a Republican candidate running for office in Maryland's 7th Congressional district, attacked Joe Biden and his party for their public relations gaffs in relation to the Black community.

“Joe Biden believes we can't think for ourselves, that the color of someone's skin dictates their political views," Klacik said in the segment streamed from Charlotte Monday. "We're not buying the lies anymore, you and your party have ignored us for too long."

She warned Black voters are growing frustrated with Democrats and "the days of blindly supporting" them are ending.

In May, Biden infamously The 2020 Republican National Convention kicked off on Monday with President Donald Trump aiming to galvanize support for his re-election campaign.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>After Democrats \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/6-highlights-from-the-first-part-of-the-2020-democratic-national-convention\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">executed\u003C/a> a successful, virtual convention last week, Republicans have co-opted similar tactics. The Trump-focused RNC tapped Black speakers for endorsements and credibility, following the DNC’s programming that was intent on bringing diverse voices to speak on issues important to their voting block like police brutality and policy reform. \u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>In a night highlighted by Sen. Tim Scott’s keynote address, former NFL running back Herschel Walker and Georgia state Rep. Vernon Jones, a Democrat, joined a contingent of Black influencers who gave remarks supporting Trump and his presidency.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Here is what Black Trump advocates said about him and his campaign at the RNC Monday:\u003C/p>\n",[23],{"name":24,"slug":25,"id":26},"News","news",83,[28,32,36,40,44],{"id":29,"name":30,"slug":31,"description":10,"image":10},5363,"Herschel-Walker","herschel-walker",{"id":33,"name":34,"slug":35,"description":10,"image":10},5361,"Kim-Klacik","kim-klacik",{"id":37,"name":38,"slug":39,"description":10,"image":10},5360,"Rep.-Vernon-Jones","rep-vernon-jones",{"id":41,"name":42,"slug":43,"description":10,"image":10},5362,"Republican-National-Convention","republican-national-convention",{"id":45,"name":46,"slug":47,"description":10,"image":10},28697,"Sen. Tim Scott","sen-tim-scott",{"url":49,"thumbnail":49,"credit":50,"title":10,"alt":10,"type":51},"https://res.cloudinary.com/blavity/image/upload/v1598384256/c8gg35ewuvjmrdlqlyaz","Getty Images","image","2020-08-25T15:08:24-04:00","listicle",[55,58,61,64],{"title":56,"content":57},"Former NFL Star Defends Friendship With Trump, Says He's Not A Racist","\u003Cp>Walker, a three-time All-American at the University of Georgia during the ‘80s, defended his relationship with the president and sided with Trump on athletes not protesting during the national anthem.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>“Just because someone loves and respects the flag, our National Anthem, and our country doesn’t mean they don’t care about social justice. I care about all of those things, and so does Donald Trump,” Walker said. “He shows how much he cares about social justice and the Black community through his actions. And his actions speak louder than any stickers or slogans on a jersey.”\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cspan class=\"fr-video fr-draggable\" contenteditable=\"false\">\u003Ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/wLzg6iGhzVY\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\">\u003C/iframe>\u003C/span>\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>After his speech, Walker \u003Ca href=\"https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-rnc-herschel-walker-speech.amp\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">told \u003C/a>Fox News that Trump's words are often misunderstood by the masses and people would connect better with him if they prioritized his actions. \u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>"I don't think people really know Donald Trump. I think they look at Donald Trump from a tweet or look at from what he says, and they're not looking at what he does," Walker said.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Walker said he built a close relationship with Trump when the president \u003Ca href=\"https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/14/trumps-ownership-of-usfls-new-jersey-generals-fueled-anthem-fight-with-nfl.html\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">purchased\u003C/a> the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League in 1984. The former pro athlete said player said it hurts him deeply when people accuse the president of being a bigot.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>“People who think that don’t know what they are talking about. Growing up in the Deep South, I have seen racism up close. I know what it is. And it isn’t Donald Trump,” Walker said.\u003C/p>\n",{"title":59,"content":60},"Rep. Jones Attacks Own Party For Pandering To Black People ","\u003Cp>From the stage at the Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C., Rep. Jones accused fellow Democrats of cultivating a “mental plantation” among Black voters and doubled down on his support of Trump’s campaign.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>“The Democratic Party does not want Black people to leave their mental plantation,” Jones said. “We are free people with free minds.”\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cspan class=\"fr-video fr-draggable\" contenteditable=\"false\">\u003Ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/hj-QAUsi_kA\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\">\u003C/iframe>\u003C/span> \u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>He also said Democrats have been pandering to the Black community, instead of implementing policy and law to advance their quality of life. He argued that, unlike Trump, Democrats want to \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/the-movement-to-defund-the-police-explained\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">defund the police\u003C/a> and have been supporting violent protest behavior.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>“The Democratic Party has become infected with the pandemic of intolerance, bigotry, socialism, anti-law enforcement bias and a dangerous tolerance for people who attack others, destroy property and terrorize our own communities,” he said.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Jones got his \u003Ca href=\"https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/all-about-vernon-jones/zSjWgmBugmCDjOwzJPEKbK/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">start \u003C/a>in politics running for the state House in 1990, according to The Atlanta Journal Constitution. In 2008, President Barack Obama called him out for appropriating his image on a campaign flyer Obama didn't approve.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>"I do not endorse him; I have not endorsed him," Obama told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "He put my picture on his literature without asking me."\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Since then, Jones' career has been mired in controversy, and he recently made noise on both sides of the table for going against party allegiances in endorsing Trump.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cdiv class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\" style=\"display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;\">\u003Ciframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 802px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"Twitter Tweet\" src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/embed/index.html?creatorScreenName=blavity&dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1298072596156735489&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Feditor.blavity.com%2Feditpost%2F5f452968c77c89314e07bd1a&siteScreenName=blavity&theme=light&widgetsVersion=223fc1c4%3A1596143124634&width=550px\" data-tweet-id=\"1298072596156735489\">\u003C/iframe>\u003C/div>\n",{"title":62,"content":63},"Black Republican Congressional Candidate Says Democrats Take Black Vote For Granted","\u003Cp>Kim Klacik, a Republican candidate \u003Ca href=\"https://kimkforcongress.com/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">running \u003C/a>for office in Maryland's 7th Congressional district, attacked Joe Biden and his party for their public relations gaffs in relation to the Black community.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>“Joe Biden believes we can't think for ourselves, that the color of someone's skin dictates their political views," Klacik said in the segment streamed from Charlotte Monday. "We're not buying the lies anymore, you and your party have ignored us for too long."\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cspan class=\"fr-video fr-draggable\" contenteditable=\"false\">\u003Ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/H4rYc3QcPX8\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\">\u003C/iframe>\u003C/span>\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>She warned Black voters are growing frustrated with Democrats and "the days of blindly supporting" them are ending.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>In May, Biden infamously \u003Ca href='http://\u003Ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/KOIFs_SryHI?start=1044\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen>\u003C/iframe>‘ rel=”noopener noreferrer” target=”_blank”>told \u003C/a>radio show host Charlamagne tha God that any Black person who is torn about which way they'll vote in the upcoming election "ain't Black."\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>"If you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black," the Democratic nominee said. \u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Hours later, Biden \u003Ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/22/joe-biden-breakfast-club-interview-274490\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">walked \u003C/a>back his comments and said his remarks were “much too cavalier” Politico reports.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Klacik is \u003Ca href=\"https://www.foxnews.com/politics/rnc-speaker-kim-klacik-republican-convention\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">running \u003C/a>again for the Maryland 7th District seat left vacant by the late Rep. Elijah Cummings after she lost the special election in April, according to Fox News.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Trump recently shared a short advertisement she commissioned called, “Black Lives Don’t Matter To Democrats.” In the short, she takes viewers through poverty stricken parts of Baltimore, condemning popular left-wing politicians that govern the city.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cblockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n\u003Cp dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Democrats don’t want you to see this. \u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>They’re scared that I’m exposing what life is like in Democrat run cities. \u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>That’s why I’m running for Congress \u003Cbr />Because All Black Lives Matter \u003Cbr />Baltimore Matters \u003Cbr />And black people don’t have to vote Democrat \u003Cbr />Help us win \u003Ca href=\"https://t.co/CSOjc9aQlS\">https://t.co/CSOjc9aQlS\u003C/a>\u003Cbr />\n\u003Ca href=\"https://t.co/XnEDTaDDIG\">pic.twitter.com/XnEDTaDDIG\u003C/a>\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>— Kimberly Klacik (@kimKBaltimore) \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/kimKBaltimore/status/1295461903268040707?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 17, 2020\u003C/a>\u003C/p>\u003C/blockquote>\n",{"title":65,"content":66},"Sen. Scott Says Trump's Criminal Justice Reform Is More Fair Than Biden's ","\u003Cp>\u003Cspan style=\"background-color: initial;\">Scott, the \u003C/span>\u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/tim-scott-the-only-black-republican-us-senator-explains-the-republicans-version-of-the-justice-in-policing-act?category1=politics\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">\u003Cspan style=\"background-color: initial;\">lone\u003C/span>\u003C/a>\u003Cspan style=\"background-color: initial;\"> Black Republican senator, gave a personal account of how he rose from poverty to power in his keynote remarks. Scott also used his speaking slot to criticize Biden-backed policies affecting the Black community.\u003C/span>\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>“Biden led the charge on a crime bill that put millions of Black Americans behind bars,” he said. “President Trump’s criminal justice reform law fixed many of the disparities Biden created and made our system more fair and just for all Americans.”\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cspan class=\"fr-video fr-draggable\" contenteditable=\"false\">\u003Ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/8w9ZwgHC78I\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\">\u003C/iframe>\u003C/span>\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Scott \u003Ca href=\"https://www.vox.com/2020/7/7/21311493/tim-scott-race-policing-justice-act-reform\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">headed \u003C/a>the effort to create his party’s police reform proposal after the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. His plan was blocked by Senate Democrats who wanted more sweeping, widespread reform.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>On Monday, he said Democratic leaders “wanted the issue more than they wanted a solution.”\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>The senator underscored his belief in “the goodness of America,” by describing his own childhood as a poor student who became the first Black person elected to both the House and Senate.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>“Our family went from cotton to Congress in one lifetime,” Scott said. “And that’s why I believe the next American century can be better than the last.”\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>The 54-year-old Scott praised Trump for building, “the most inclusive economy ever.” According to Scott, seven million jobs were created before the coronavirus outbreak with two thirds of going to women, Blacks and Latinx.\u003C/p>\n",true,{"disableAd":69,"disableConnatixPlayer":69,"enabledComments":69,"headScript":70},false,null,"article","2025-11-14T10:54:33.961Z",{"list":74,"total":199},[75,110,148],{"id":76,"author":77,"authors":84,"title":86,"subTitle":10,"excerpt":10,"slug":87,"body":88,"categories":89,"tags":94,"featuredMedia":99,"publishedAt":105,"updatedAt":106,"type":107,"listicle":108,"disableContentGate":69,"isDisabledListicleNumbers":69,"canonicalUrl":10,"socialThumbnail":10,"additional":109},72879869,{"id":78,"avatar":79,"firstName":10,"lastName":10,"displayName":80,"email":81,"username":80,"normalizedUsername":82,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":83},95243,"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/16fdff8cddc7bd4702273ce7e1677d1d0021c4b55e83ca690c8b22edc3cbfdf4?s=1024&r=g","Christopher Rhodes","[email protected]","christopher-rhodes","2020-09-14T00:00:00+00:00",[85],{"id":78,"avatar":79,"firstName":10,"lastName":10,"displayName":80,"email":81,"username":80,"normalizedUsername":82,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":83},"Judge Orders Trump Admin To Pay Full SNAP Benefits For November As They Continue To Resist","judge-orders-trump-admin-to-pay-full-snap-benefits-for-november","\n\u003Cp>As the longest \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/heres-what-government-shutdown-means-parties-fail-deal\">government shutdown\u003C/a> in American history continues, tens of millions of people continue to face uncertainty over federal benefits that have been disrupted by the political crisis. In the latest development, a federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration must fulfill obligations to provide food assistance in November.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-federal-judge-issues-new-ruling-to-fully-fund-snap\">Federal judge issues new ruling to fully fund SNAP\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>U.S. District Judge John McConnell ruled Thursday that the federal government must make \u003Ca href=\"https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/politics/snap-november-payments\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">full payments\u003C/a> in November for the nearly 42 million Americans who receive aid through the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program. The Rhode Island-based judge’s ruling follows earlier \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/federal-judge-orders-trump-to-fund-snap-amid-shutdown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">rulings\u003C/a> made by McConnell and another federal judge that ordered the Trump administration to use billions of dollars of contingency funds to partially cover SNAP payments for November as the program’s ordinary funding remains unapproved due to the ongoing government shutdown. Now, McConnell is ordering the government to fully fund SNAP, giving the administration until Friday to distribute the money to state governments, which administer SNAP for their residents.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\u003Cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n\u003Ciframe title=\"Judge orders Trump administration to pay SNAP benefits immediately\" width=\"750\" height=\"422\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/sRzkfXSeSqE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen>\u003C/iframe>\n\u003C/div>\u003C/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“People have gone without for too long,” McConnell said in his ruling, adding that “not making payments to them for even another day is simply unacceptable.” The judge also called out the Trump administration for “arbitrarily and capriciously” deciding not to fully fund SNAP for November. Now, McConnell is saying that the Trump administration must not only use the contingency funds covered in his previous order but must also draw from a separate set of funds held by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for its Child Nutrition Program in order to fully fund SNAP. In his ruling, McConnell warned that not fully funding SNAP would cause “irreparable harm” to the program’s recipients.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-snap-fight-continues-as-administration-resists-orders-to-fund-program\">SNAP fight continues as administration resists orders to fund program\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>The fight over SNAP benefits comes after the Trump administration decided not to use the contingency funds to pay for SNAP while the government shutdown endures. The \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/food-stamps-snap-benefits-stop-november-trump-government-shutdown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">administration\u003C/a> argued that it was not legally allowed to tap into the contingency money in this circumstance, leading a group of Democratic-controlled states to sue to release the funds. Even though several court rulings have ordered the federal government to fund SNAP this month, the Trump administration continues to resist. The administration indicated that the Justice Department would file an \u003Ca href=\"https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5594443-vance-pushes-back-snap/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">appeal\u003C/a> to Thursday’s ruling, and on Friday it filed an \u003Ca href=\"https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/trump-administration-seeks-emergency-stay-145341486.html?.tsrc=1340&ncid=crm_-1285232-20251107-517--A&bt_user_id=fOPheLhJjj4AnvqtrvUQZj8xAzcK309tr4UEk%2FCL%2BrSwL2Yz9hSO0BKhbXoQ9avLM2fLriTte8Gg%2FIfthtqWbyV9t4AfiAussuD0RZJztRVlrCO6Uw2xCPXyCE%2FVgqFb&bt_ts=1762529218901\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">emergency motion\u003C/a> for a stay to be issued against McConnell’s ruling.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Speaking to reporters at the White House, Vice President JD Vance said, “It’s an absurd ruling because you have a federal judge effectively telling us what we have to do in the middle of a Democrat government shutdown.” The vice president also attempted to deflect responsibility for the SNAP funding crisis. “What we’d like to do is for the Democrats to open up the government of course, then we can fund SNAP and we can also do a lot of other good things for the American people,” Vance argued, continuing the administration’s \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/trump-using-government-websites-to-blame-democrats-for-government-shutdown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">strategy\u003C/a> of attempting to blame Democrats for the government shutdown. “But in the midst of a shutdown, we can’t have a federal court telling the president how he has to triage the situation,” the vice president said.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>With the current government shutdown now the longest in United States history, tens of millions of people across the country have been feeling the hardship of having salaries or benefits cut off. With no end yet to the deadlock between the two parties, and the Trump administration resisting efforts to keep important services like SNAP operational during the shutdown, vulnerable populations across the United States are bearing the brunt of this latest political fight.\u003C/p>\n",[90],{"name":91,"slug":92,"id":93},"Politics","politics",120,[95],{"id":96,"name":97,"slug":98,"description":10,"image":10},44529,"top stories","top-stories",{"url":100,"thumbnail":101,"credit":102,"title":103,"alt":104,"type":51},"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/GettyImages-2244208878.jpg","https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/GettyImages-2244208878-150x100.jpg","An EBT sign is displayed on the window of a grocery store on October 30, 2025 in the Flatbush neighborhood of the Brooklyn borough in New York City. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits and other assistance are set to stop on November 1st amid a federal government shutdown that has been going on for 29 days and is the second-longest shutdown in the nation's history. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency for extra emergency funds and personnel to be deployed, as SNAP payments will be suspended. About 42 million Americans are expected to lose access to their benefits. | Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images","Federal Funding For Food Assistance Programs To Run Out Starting Nov. 1, Due To Government Shutdown","An EBT sign is displayed on the window of a grocery store on October 30, 2025 in the Flatbush neighborhood of the Brooklyn borough in New York City. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits and other assistance are set to stop on November 1st amid a federal government shutdown that has been going on for 29 days and is the second-longest shutdown in the nation's history. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency for extra emergency funds and personnel to be deployed, as SNAP payments will be suspended. About 42 million Americans are expected to lose access to their benefits.","2025-11-07T12:47:08-05:00","2025-11-07T12:48:00-05:00","default",[],{"disableAd":69,"disableConnatixPlayer":69,"enabledComments":69,"headScript":10},{"id":111,"author":112,"authors":122,"title":124,"subTitle":10,"excerpt":10,"slug":125,"body":126,"categories":127,"tags":132,"featuredMedia":138,"publishedAt":144,"updatedAt":145,"type":107,"listicle":146,"disableContentGate":69,"isDisabledListicleNumbers":69,"canonicalUrl":10,"socialThumbnail":139,"additional":147},72878990,{"id":113,"avatar":114,"firstName":115,"lastName":116,"displayName":117,"email":118,"username":119,"normalizedUsername":120,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":121},100232,"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/a06a5771f8cfba274d46c86c605dcb0d8d755e98c099a750fb3a94f9ff1d94a1?s=1024&r=g","Tayler","Adigun","Tayler Adigun","[email protected]","TaylerAdigun","tayleradigun","2023-09-14T18:03:00+00:00",[123],{"id":113,"avatar":114,"firstName":115,"lastName":116,"displayName":117,"email":118,"username":119,"normalizedUsername":120,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":121},"The Duality Of Grace Wales Bonner's Historic Hermés Appointment","grace-wales-bonners-to-design-menswear-hermes","\n\u003Cp>Grace Wales Bonner has been a \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/women/scad-fashion-designers\">designer to watch\u003C/a> since she graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2014. Her cerebral design ethos pulls from academic and cultural references, fusing elements of her British-\u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/women/ayesha-curry-sweet-july-skin\">Jamaican\u003C/a> identity and historical academia. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>At just 35 years old, Bonner has reinvigorated the stylistic propensity of Adidas’ \u003Ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DQZ3QvxEp2n/?hl=en&img_index=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">most classic sneakers\u003C/a> and collaborated with \u003Ca href=\"https://www.clashmusic.com/fashion/solange-knowles-stars-in-wales-bonners-dream-study-campaign-for-aw24/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Solange\u003C/a> on multidisciplinary outputs. And now she will serve as the new creative director of men’s ready-to-wear at \u003Ca href=\"https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/luxury/hermes-menswear-designer-grace-wales-bonner/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Hermés\u003C/a>, making her the first Black woman to be appointed creative director of a major luxury fashion house.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-history-in-the-making-at-hermes\">History in the making at Hermés\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Naturally, this epoch-making moment is being celebrated en masse, as it should. This appointment, beyond its historical implications, is a testament to the genius that is Grace Wales Bonner and that deserves to be acknowledged for the triumph that it is. But there is a certain bittersweetness to this news. For this to be the first time a Black woman has held this title in 2025 is insulting to the contributions Black women have made in the world of fashion.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Whether it be the erasure of Black women like \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/entertainment/anne-lowe-biopic-serena-williams-ruth-e-carter\">famed couturier Ann Lowe\u003C/a>, who was dubbed “Society’s Best Kept Secret” after designing First Lady Jacqueline Bouvier’s wedding dress in 1953, or the various ways Black women have influenced the style zeitgeist and the \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/blavity-original/bhad-bhabie-alabama-barker-cultural-appropriation\">subsequent appropriation\u003C/a>, this exclusion has been a documented part of fashion’s history.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-reckoning-with-fashion-s-present\">Reckoning with fashion’s present\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>According to a study by the British Fashion Council, only 14% of creative directors \u003Ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/DQFQbsHDX8P/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">across luxury brands\u003C/a> are women, and only 1% come from minority backgrounds. Conversely, Black women account for over \u003Ca href=\"https://www.fashionminorityalliance.com/where-are-the-black-female-creative-directors-at-global-luxury-brands/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">30% of total sales\u003C/a> within the industry.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>On the one hand, Bonner’s appointment is a fitting homage for someone with her historical aptitude when it comes to designing. From \u003Ca href=\"https://www.vogue.com/article/the-best-of-grace-wales-bonner-in-vogue\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">James Baldwin to Haile Selassie\u003C/a>, Bonner’s diasporic references reflect the very history she is now a part of. In that sense, it does feel a bit kismet, if not ironic, that she is the first Black woman to hold such an esteemed position in the fashion world. A student of history becoming a part of it: Serendipitous, in essence, quite somber in practice.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Perhaps this is just a symptom of existing in society at the intersection of racism and misogyny, but a lot of these firsts have a way of making Black women feel like we’re coming in last.\u003C/p>\n",[128],{"name":129,"slug":130,"id":131},"Opinion","opinion",114,[133,137],{"id":134,"name":135,"slug":136,"description":10,"image":10},75810,"Non-Newsletter","non-newsletter",{"id":96,"name":97,"slug":98,"description":10,"image":10},{"url":139,"thumbnail":140,"credit":141,"title":142,"alt":143,"type":51},"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/GettyImages-2213627742.jpg","https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/GettyImages-2213627742-150x102.jpg","Photo: Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images","Grace Wales Bonner","Grace Wales Bonner attends the 2025 Met Gala","2025-11-05T04:44:00-05:00","2025-11-05T21:26:00-05:00",[],{"disableAd":69,"disableConnatixPlayer":69,"enabledComments":69,"headScript":10},{"id":149,"author":150,"authors":161,"title":163,"subTitle":10,"excerpt":10,"slug":164,"body":165,"categories":166,"tags":175,"featuredMedia":188,"publishedAt":194,"updatedAt":195,"type":107,"listicle":196,"disableContentGate":69,"isDisabledListicleNumbers":69,"canonicalUrl":10,"socialThumbnail":197,"additional":198},72878579,{"id":151,"avatar":152,"firstName":153,"lastName":154,"displayName":155,"email":156,"username":157,"normalizedUsername":158,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":159,"registeredAt":160},99834,"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/KyraAlessandrini-compress.jpeg","Kyra","Alessandrini","Kyra Alessandrini","[email protected]","KyraAlessandrini","kyraalessandrini","https://www.instagram.com/kyraless/","2023-04-03T03:46:17+00:00",[162],{"id":151,"avatar":152,"firstName":153,"lastName":154,"displayName":155,"email":156,"username":157,"normalizedUsername":158,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":159,"registeredAt":160},"HBCU Talladega College Sells Some Of Its Historic Black Art Amid Financial Struggles","talladega-college-sells-hale-woodruff-murals","\n\u003Cp>\u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/s-epatha-merkerson-talladega-college-hbcu-donation\">Talladega College\u003C/a> is selling four out of six of its murals painted by Hale Woodruff and depicting key scenes of Black history. The HBCU made this decision in order to fund the school, which has been increasingly \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/hbcu-talladega-college-cuts-several-athletic-programs\">financially struggling\u003C/a> in recent years. The paintings were sold with the intent of having them exposed to the public. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-historic-hale-woodruff-paintings-that-are-part-of-talladega-college-s-heritage-nbsp\">Historic Hale Woodruff paintings that are part of Talladega College’s heritage \u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Woodruff was commissioned to paint several paintings by the HBCU, which were completed between 1939 and 1942. Each one depicts different historic events representing the fights for freedom and the advancement of Black people in the United States. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>He first painted “The Mutiny on the Amistad,” which depicts the Amistad saga. Woodruff then completed a second series for Talladega’s 75th anniversary, including a painting depicting the Underground Railroad and two others. The paintings took on an important place as part of the HBCU’s heritage.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“It’s not my place to tell an institution what to do, but that would be like giving up part of their soul,” Michael Lomax, the president and chief executive of the UNCF and a former professor at Morehouse and Spelman, told \u003Ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/29/arts/design/talladega-college-sells-hale-woodruff-murals-hbcu.html\">The New York Times\u003C/a>.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“I would consider the Talladega murals to be a big part of their birthright. Those paintings will not have the same meaning if they’re put in a high-design building and a place that has nothing to do with the paintings.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Lomax later learned that Talladega issued the sale in order to help support itself financially. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“What is the theme of the Amistad murals?” he then said. “It is freedom. And this is allowing them to have financial freedom.” He added, “It was a hard call, but they made the right call. They saved the institution.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-talladega-college-is-selling-the-murals-to-help-with-its-finances\">Talladega College is selling the murals to help with its finances\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>The HBCU has been facing financial struggles in recent years. It currently has an endowment of under $5 million, according to The New York Times.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Despite a $15 million credit union loan, the institution heavily relies on tuition fees to sustain itself. It recorded an enrollment of 745 this year, down from 1,291 in fall 2020.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“We had to look at every asset that we have,” Talladega board chair Rica Lewis-Payton said.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“It required deliberate thought and execution,” she said about the decision to sell four the six murals. “I sit here today feeling good that we are leveraging this most prized possession in a way that will improve the ability of the college to provide a foundational education for people like me.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Although Talladega did not disclose how much the sale is worth, experts estimate it at $20 million. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“We can become a leader in the reimagining of liberal arts education,” Talladega president Willie Todd said. “I want every student to graduate with an internship or apprenticeship opportunity. And I want all of our programs to be connected to industry standards and accredited by national accreditors. That takes money.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-happens-to-hale-woodruff-s-murals-after-talladega-college-sells-them\">What happens to Hale Woodruff’s murals after Talladega College sells them?\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Three of the murals depicting the Amistad saga are being sold to the Art Bridges Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art, two nonprofit organizations that lend art to public institutions. The Toledo Museum of Art is acquiring Woodruff’s painting of the Underground Railroad.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“This is an incredible painting that will be deeply meaningful for our audience,” the president of the Toledo Museum of Art Adam Levine, said. “My objective and the objective of the Toledo Museum of Art is to support Talladega College.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Although the agreement hasn’t yet been finalized, the Toledo Museum and the foundations acquiring the paintings said they would highlight the art’s connection to Talladega. The paintings will also be exhibited at the HBCU every six to eight years.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Todd noted that the sale will also help give the murals more exposure, as only 500 people come to view them every year at Talladega.\u003C/p>\n",[167,171],{"name":168,"slug":169,"id":170},"Blavity-U","blavity-u",70685,{"name":172,"slug":173,"id":174},"HBCU","hbcu",70684,[176,180,183,187],{"id":177,"name":178,"slug":179,"description":10,"image":10},74288,"Blavity U Top Stories","blavity-u-top-stories",{"id":181,"name":172,"slug":182,"description":10,"image":10},38270,"hbcu-2",{"id":184,"name":185,"slug":186,"description":10,"image":10},38075,"talladega college","talladega-college",{"id":96,"name":97,"slug":98,"description":10,"image":10},{"url":189,"thumbnail":190,"credit":191,"title":192,"alt":193,"type":51},"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/GettyImages-1456705311.jpg","https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/GettyImages-1456705311-150x100.jpg","A member of Talladega College “Great Tornado Band” performs during The HBCU Culture Homecoming Fest & Battle Of The Bands MLK Weekend Edition at State Farm Arena on January 15, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. | Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images","The HBCU Culture Homecoming Fest & Battle Of The Bands MLK Weekend Edition","ATLANTA, GEORGIA - JANUARY 15: A member of Talladega College “Great Tornado Band” performs during The HBCU Culture Homecoming Fest & Battle Of The Bands MLK Weekend Edition at State Farm Arena on January 15, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia.","2025-10-31T12:42:15-04:00","2025-10-31T15:22:01-04:00",[],"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Hale-Woodrufff_The-Underground-Railroad.webp",{"disableAd":69,"disableConnatixPlayer":69,"enabledComments":69,"headScript":10},213,{"list":201,"total":402},[202,245,293,330,367],{"id":203,"author":204,"authors":215,"title":217,"subTitle":218,"excerpt":10,"slug":219,"body":220,"categories":221,"tags":226,"featuredMedia":235,"publishedAt":241,"updatedAt":242,"type":107,"listicle":243,"disableContentGate":69,"isDisabledListicleNumbers":69,"canonicalUrl":10,"socialThumbnail":10,"additional":244},72881032,{"id":205,"avatar":206,"firstName":207,"lastName":208,"displayName":209,"email":210,"username":211,"normalizedUsername":211,"description":10,"twitter":212,"facebook":10,"instagram":213,"registeredAt":214},98966,"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/WhatsApp-Image-2022-02-07-at-19.31.50-2-compress.jpeg","Kui","Mwai","Kui Mwai","[email protected]","kuimwai","https://twitter.com/kuiwrites_","https://www.instagram.com/kuiwrites_/","2019-11-07T00:00:00+00:00",[216],{"id":205,"avatar":206,"firstName":207,"lastName":208,"displayName":209,"email":210,"username":211,"normalizedUsername":211,"description":10,"twitter":212,"facebook":10,"instagram":213,"registeredAt":214},"Why 'English Teacher' Canceled At FX After 2 Seasons?","The sophomore season of the FX comedy premiered in September","why-english-teacher-canceled-at-fx-after-2-seasons","\n\u003Cp>The final bell has rung on \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/entertainment/snowfall-spinoff-starring-gail-bean-and-isaiah-john-ordered-to-series\">FX’s\u003C/a> \u003Cem>English Teacher\u003C/em>, which has been canceled after two seasons.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>According to \u003Ca href=\"https://deadline.com/2025/11/english-teacher-canceled-fx-1236615886/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Deadline\u003C/a>, the show, created by and starring Brian Jordan Alvarez, has been axed just six weeks after the premiere of its well-received second season. Alvarez and FX have not commented on the cancellation, \u003Ca href=\"https://variety.com/2025/tv/news/english-teacher-canceled-fx-1236569661/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Variety\u003C/a> reported.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>English Teacher\u003C/em> followed Alvarez’s Evan Marquez, a gay English teacher who had to manage his personal life, professional responsibilities and political beliefs while working at a high school in Austin, Texas. By his side were his best friend and fellow teacher, Gwen (Stephanie Koenig), gym teacher Markie (Sean Patton), guidance counselor Rick (Carmen Christopher), and principal Grant Moretti (Enrico Colantoni).\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-english-teacher-premiered-in-september-2024-and-received-critical-acclaim\">‘English Teacher’ premiered in September 2024 and received critical acclaim\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Season 1 of \u003Cem>English Teacher\u003C/em> premiered in September 2024 and went on to receive critical acclaim, earning a 98% rating on \u003Ca target=\"_blank\" href=\"https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/english_teacher/s01\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Rotten Tomatoes\u003C/a>, Deadline reported. The sitcom’s debut season also earned nominations for Critics’ Choice, Film Independent Spirit Awards and Writers Guild of America Awards.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>“English Teacher\u003C/em> was one of the most critically acclaimed new shows of 2024 and we are grateful to the producers, writers, cast, directors and crew for the show’s creative excellence,” FX Entertainment president Nick Grad said in a February statement, per \u003Ca target=\"_blank\" href=\"https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/fx-english-teacher-renewed-season-2-1236129762/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Hollywood Reporter\u003C/a>. “We look forward to the new season.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Despite its success, FX waited for four months after the Season 1 finale to renew the show. The sitcom’s 10-episode second season premiered in September and currently has a 100% rating on \u003Ca target=\"_blank\" href=\"https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/english_teacher/s02\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Rotten Tomatoes\u003C/a>.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-a-former-friend-of-alvarez-accused-the-actor-of-sexual-assault-days-before-the-sitcom-s-debut\">A former friend of Alvarez accused the actor of sexual assault days before the sitcom’s debut\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>FX has not shared a reason for the cancellation, but sexual assault allegations made against Alvarez may be a contributing factor. According to Variety, just days before the show premiered, Jon Ebeling — a former friend of Alvarez and collaborator on the actor’s 2015 webseries \u003Cem>The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo \u003C/em>— accused the \u003Cem>English Teacher\u003C/em> creator of sexual assault. Ebeling first shared the allegations on Instagram before elaborating on the incident in a December 2024 article in \u003Ca target=\"_blank\" href=\"https://www.vulture.com/article/brian-jordan-alvarez-allegations-jon-ebeling-english-teacher.html\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">New York Magazine\u003C/a>.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>In that essay, he also accused Koenig — who’s Ebeling’s ex and a close friend of Alvarez, of enabling the toxic dynamic between him and the show creator — which Ebeling compared to Netflix’s \u003Cem>Baby Reindeer\u003C/em>, \u003Ca target=\"_blank\" href=\"https://thetab.com/2025/11/13/despite-critical-acclaim-how-controversy-derailed-english-teacher-and-it-gets-cancelled-forever\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Tab\u003C/a> reported. Alvarez denied the allegations, and a spokesperson for the actor said, “All interactions with Ebeling were always entirely consensual.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>English Teacher\u003C/em> was renewed for a second season two months after Ebeling’s essay was published, and FX released a brief statement addressing the claims.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“We reviewed the allegations presented to us by another media outlet prior to the show’s launch. Mr. Ebeling never reached out to us with any concerns. We will have no further comment at this time,” the network’s statement read.\u003C/p>\n",[222],{"name":223,"slug":224,"id":225},"Entertainment","entertainment",3,[227,231],{"id":228,"name":229,"slug":230,"description":10,"image":10},76732,"Brian Jordan Alvarez","brian-jordan-alvarez",{"id":232,"name":233,"slug":234,"description":10,"image":10},76731,"English Teacher","english-teacher-2",{"url":236,"thumbnail":237,"credit":238,"title":239,"alt":240,"type":51},"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ET_201_01259r-scaled.jpg","https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/ET_201_01259r-150x100.jpg","Photo: Steve Swisher/FX","ET_201_01259r","Brian Jordan Alvarez as Evan Marquez in 'English Teacher'","2025-11-13T21:31:43-05:00","2025-11-13T21:31:49-05:00",[],{"disableAd":69,"disableConnatixPlayer":69,"enabledComments":69,"headScript":10},{"id":246,"author":247,"authors":257,"title":259,"subTitle":10,"excerpt":10,"slug":260,"body":261,"categories":262,"tags":264,"featuredMedia":284,"publishedAt":289,"updatedAt":290,"type":107,"listicle":291,"disableContentGate":69,"isDisabledListicleNumbers":69,"canonicalUrl":10,"socialThumbnail":10,"additional":292},72881101,{"id":248,"avatar":249,"firstName":250,"lastName":251,"displayName":252,"email":253,"username":254,"normalizedUsername":255,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":256},99749,"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/0e06ac718f7a550db95df4496a68adaf6c8f37c0c2d8df8f0afb068edad8ca39?s=1024&r=g","Monique","Jones","Monique Jones","[email protected]","MoniqueJones","moniquejones","2023-01-12T17:11:33+00:00",[258],{"id":248,"avatar":249,"firstName":250,"lastName":251,"displayName":252,"email":253,"username":254,"normalizedUsername":255,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":256},"'Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters' Season 2 Teaser Gives Fans First Footage As They Head To Kong's Skull Island","monarch-legacy-of-monsters-season-2-teaser","\n\u003Cp>Apple TV is giving Godzilla fans a preview of the \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/search?q=Monarch:+Legacy+of+Monsters\">next season\u003C/a> of \u003Cem>Monarch: Legacy of Monsters\u003C/em>, which returns to the streaming service Feb. 27. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>The series stars Kurt Russell, Wyatt Russell, Anna Sawai, Kiersey Clemons, Ren Watabe, Mari Yamamoto, Joe Tippett and Anders Holm in a story about siblings finding out their family’s hidden connections to the shady Monarch organization. Now, knowing their family’s ties to Godzilla, the siblings head to King Kong’s realm. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Apple TV dropped the new teaser on Thursday. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Here’s more about the series:\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>Season one of “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” tracks two siblings looking to uncover their family’s connection to the secretive organization known as Monarch. Clues lead them into the world of monsters and ultimately down the rabbit hole to Army officer Lee Shaw (played by Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell), taking place in the 1950s and half a century later where Monarch is threatened by what Shaw knows.\u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>Season two will pick up with the fate of Monarch — and the world — hanging in the balance. The dramatic saga reveals buried secrets that reunite our heroes (and villains) on Kong’s Skull Island, and a new, mysterious village where a mythical Titan rises from the sea. The ripple effects of the past make waves in the present day, blurring the bonds between family, friend and foe — all with the threat of a titan event on the horizon.\u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Safehouse Pictures’ Joby Harold and Tory Tunnell serve as executive producers with Lawrence Trilling, who directs four episodes, writer Andrew Colville, who writes two episodes, and showrunner Chris Black. Jen Roskind and Matt Shakman also executive produce. Toho Co., Ltd.’s Hiro Matsuoka and Takemasa Arita executive produce. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>The first season of \u003Cem>Monarch: Legacy of Monsters \u003C/em>is available to stream on Apple TV. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Watch the teaser below:\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\u003Cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n\u003Ciframe title=\"Monarch: Legacy of Monsters — Season 2 Date Announcement | Apple TV\" width=\"750\" height=\"422\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/2CYelltpxT4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen>\u003C/iframe>\n\u003C/div>\u003C/figure>\n",[263],{"name":223,"slug":224,"id":225},[265,269,273,277,281],{"id":266,"name":267,"slug":268,"description":10,"image":10},55047,"Blavity Entertainment","blavity-entertainment",{"id":270,"name":271,"slug":272,"description":10,"image":10},40910,"Kiersey Clemons","kiersey-clemons",{"id":274,"name":275,"slug":276,"description":10,"image":10},68637,"Monarch: Legacy of Monsters","monarch-legacy-of-monsters",{"id":278,"name":279,"slug":280,"description":10,"image":10},34278,"Shadow and Act","shadow-and-act",{"id":282,"name":283,"slug":283,"description":10,"image":10},32488,"television",{"url":285,"thumbnail":286,"credit":287,"title":288,"alt":10,"type":51},"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Monarch_Legacy_of_Monsters_First_Look_0201-scaled.jpg","https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Monarch_Legacy_of_Monsters_First_Look_0201-150x63.jpg","Photo: Apple TV","Monarch_Legacy_of_Monsters_First_Look_0201","2025-11-13T21:25:26-05:00","2025-11-13T21:25:34-05:00",[],{"disableAd":69,"disableConnatixPlayer":69,"enabledComments":69,"headScript":10},{"id":294,"author":295,"authors":296,"title":298,"subTitle":10,"excerpt":10,"slug":299,"body":300,"categories":301,"tags":307,"featuredMedia":320,"publishedAt":326,"updatedAt":327,"type":107,"listicle":328,"disableContentGate":69,"isDisabledListicleNumbers":69,"canonicalUrl":10,"socialThumbnail":10,"additional":329},72881092,{"id":248,"avatar":249,"firstName":250,"lastName":251,"displayName":252,"email":253,"username":254,"normalizedUsername":255,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":256},[297],{"id":248,"avatar":249,"firstName":250,"lastName":251,"displayName":252,"email":253,"username":254,"normalizedUsername":255,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":256},"'The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants' New Trailer Showcases New Ice Spice Song In The Film","the-spongebob-movie-search-for-squarepants-trailer-ice-spice-song","\n\u003Cp>The new trailer for the latest \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/entertainment/regina-hall-ice-spice-to-star-spongebob-movie\">\u003Cem>SpongeBob SquarePants\u003C/em> film\u003C/a>, \u003Cem>The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants\u003C/em>, is here and zanier than ever.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/entertainment/the-spongebob-movie-search-for-squarepants-trailer\">The film\u003C/a> stars the voices of Tom Kenny as SpongeBob, who gets wrapped up in a journey with The Flying Dutchman to prove himself. Here’s more about the film from the official synopsis:\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>SpongeBob and his Bikini Bottom friends set sail in their biggest, all-new, can’t miss cinematic event ever…The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants. Desperate to be a big guy, SpongeBob sets out to prove his bravery to Mr. Krabs by following The Flying Dutchman – a mysterious swashbuckling ghost pirate – on a seafaring comedy-adventure that takes him to the deepest depths of the deep sea, where no Sponge has gone before.\u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-new-footage-showcases-ice-spice-s-song-for-the-film\">The new footage showcases Ice Spice’s song for the film\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>The trailer also features Ice Spice’s new song for the film, “Big Guy.” The single will be available everywhere Thursday night. Spice made her first major film debut earlier this year with \u003Cem>Highest 2 Lowest. \u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>The film also stars the voices of Clancy Brown, Rodger Bumpass, Bill Fagerbakke, Carolyn Lawrence and Mr. Lawrence. George Lopez, Arturo Castro, Sherry Cola, Regina Hall and Mark Hamill also star.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Derek Drymon directs from a script by Pam Brady and Matt Lieberman, with a story by Marc Ceccarelli and Kaz and Pam Brady. Marc Ceccarelli, Vincent Waller, Pete Chiappetta, Anthony Tittanegro and Andrew Lary executive produce, with Lisa Stewart, Pam Brady and Aaron Dem producing. The characters are based on \u003Cem>SpongeBob SquarePants\u003C/em>, created by Stephen Hillenburg.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-when-does-the-film-release-in-theaters\">When does the film release in theaters? \u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants\u003C/em> comes to theaters Dec. 19.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/XdPt8QWTypI?si=ZRAUiWSSVCbS8QWr\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen>\u003C/iframe>\n",[302,303],{"name":223,"slug":224,"id":225},{"name":304,"slug":305,"id":306},"Film","film",56942,[308,309,311,315,316],{"id":266,"name":267,"slug":268,"description":10,"image":10},{"id":310,"name":304,"slug":305,"description":10,"image":10},36896,{"id":312,"name":313,"slug":314,"description":10,"image":10},53701,"ice spice","ice-spice",{"id":278,"name":279,"slug":280,"description":10,"image":10},{"id":317,"name":318,"slug":319,"description":10,"image":10},75353,"The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants","the-spongebob-movie-search-for-squarepants",{"url":321,"thumbnail":322,"credit":323,"title":324,"alt":325,"type":51},"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/unnamed-45.jpg","https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/unnamed-45-150x81.jpg","Photo: Paramount Pictures","unnamed (45)","Ice Spice character new Spongebob Movie","2025-11-13T21:04:51-05:00","2025-11-13T21:05:03-05:00",[],{"disableAd":69,"disableConnatixPlayer":69,"enabledComments":69,"headScript":10},{"id":331,"author":332,"authors":333,"title":335,"subTitle":10,"excerpt":10,"slug":336,"body":337,"categories":338,"tags":341,"featuredMedia":357,"publishedAt":363,"updatedAt":364,"type":107,"listicle":365,"disableContentGate":69,"isDisabledListicleNumbers":69,"canonicalUrl":10,"socialThumbnail":10,"additional":366},72881089,{"id":248,"avatar":249,"firstName":250,"lastName":251,"displayName":252,"email":253,"username":254,"normalizedUsername":255,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":256},[334],{"id":248,"avatar":249,"firstName":250,"lastName":251,"displayName":252,"email":253,"username":254,"normalizedUsername":255,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":256},"'Wuthering Heights' New Trailer Gives Footage Of Jacob Elordi And Margot Robbie's Windswept Historical Romance","wuthering-heights-new-trailer-jacob-elordi-margot-robbie","\n\u003Cp>The official trailer for \u003Cem>\u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/entertainment/wuthering-heights-trailer-jacob-elordi-and-margot-robbie\">Wuthering Heights\u003C/a> \u003C/em>gives fans some more conventional looks at the new retelling by \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/entertainment/saltburn-movie-inspiration\">Emerald Fennell\u003C/a>, but will it satisfy purists? That remains to be seen.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>When the teaser trailer came out, some fans were hoping that perhaps the film was about a woman who had read \u003Cem>Wuthering Heights\u003C/em> and was imagining herself in the world of the book. But that hope was because the teaser trailer was so far removed from what they had expected. While this more extended trailer gives more views of the windswept moors of the UK, the film still insists on it being a modern film “inspired by the greatest love story of all time.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>The film’s logline also promotes its “bold and original” retelling of the story, describing Cathy (Margot Robbie) and Heathcliff’s (Jacob Elordi) “forbidden passion for one another turns from romantic to intoxicating in an epic tale of lust, love and madness.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-who-else-stars-in-wuthering-heights\">Who else stars in ‘Wuthering Heights’?\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>The film also stars Hong Chau, Shazad Latif, Alison Oliver, Martin Clunes and Ewan Mitchell.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Fennell directs from her screenplay based on the book by Emily Brontë. Fennell also serves as producer with Robbie and Josey McNamara. Sara Desmond and Tom Ackerley serve as executive producers. Charli XCX provides original songs for the film.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-when-is-wuthering-heights-in-theaters\">When is Wuthering Heights in theaters?\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>Wuthering Heights\u003C/em> comes to theaters Feb. 13, 2026.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/3fLCdIYShEQ?si=NLT6YuiVWoo-K4c0\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen>\u003C/iframe>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>\u003C/p>\n",[339,340],{"name":223,"slug":224,"id":225},{"name":304,"slug":305,"id":306},[342,343,344,348,352,353],{"id":266,"name":267,"slug":268,"description":10,"image":10},{"id":310,"name":304,"slug":305,"description":10,"image":10},{"id":345,"name":346,"slug":347,"description":10,"image":10},63535,"Jacob Elordi","jacob-elordi",{"id":349,"name":350,"slug":351,"description":10,"image":10},58251,"Margot Robbie","margot-robbie",{"id":278,"name":279,"slug":280,"description":10,"image":10},{"id":354,"name":355,"slug":356,"description":10,"image":10},57328,"Wuthering Heights","wuthering-heights",{"url":358,"thumbnail":359,"credit":360,"title":361,"alt":362,"type":51},"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/WHE-T2-0081r-1-scaled.jpg","https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/WHE-T2-0081r-1-150x84.jpg","Photo: Warner Bros. ","WHE-T2-0081r (1)","'Wuthering Heights'","2025-11-13T20:49:11-05:00","2025-11-13T21:01:38-05:00",[],{"disableAd":69,"disableConnatixPlayer":69,"enabledComments":69,"headScript":10},{"id":368,"author":369,"authors":376,"title":378,"subTitle":10,"excerpt":10,"slug":379,"body":380,"categories":381,"tags":384,"featuredMedia":393,"publishedAt":398,"updatedAt":399,"type":107,"listicle":400,"disableContentGate":69,"isDisabledListicleNumbers":69,"canonicalUrl":10,"socialThumbnail":394,"additional":401},72881086,{"id":370,"avatar":371,"firstName":10,"lastName":10,"displayName":372,"email":373,"username":374,"normalizedUsername":374,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":375},99591,"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_1020-2-compress.jpg","Aria Bell","[email protected]","ariabell","2022-08-29T17:13:08+00:00",[377],{"id":370,"avatar":371,"firstName":10,"lastName":10,"displayName":372,"email":373,"username":374,"normalizedUsername":374,"description":10,"twitter":10,"facebook":10,"instagram":10,"registeredAt":375},"Morgan Freeman Says 'You're Robbing Me' When It Comes To AI Mimicking His Voice, Lawyers 'Have Been Very Busy'","morgan-freeman-calls-out-ai-for-copying-his-voice","\n\u003Cp>\u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/entertainment/lioness-season-2-zoe-saldana-morgan-freeman\">Morgan Freeman\u003C/a> is not a fan of \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/sza-kehlani-slam-ai-artist-xania-monet-deal\">AI’\u003C/a>s infiltration into the entertainment industry. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>As more companies seek more efficient processes, they have continuously adopted and integrated AI into various operations. Recently, the general public has begun to rely on AI through tools like ChatGPT, reaching 100 million users in just a two-month span, according to \u003Ca href=\"https://assets.kpmg.com/content/dam/kpmgsites/ae/pdf/how-ai-is-redefining-advantage.pdf.coredownload.inline.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">KPMG\u003C/a>.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>As \u003Ca href=\"https://blavity.com/gayle-king-but-you-cant-sing-xania-monet-ai-viral\">Blavity\u003C/a> reported, AI-generated singer Xania Monet recently landed a multi-million dollar record deal. In a recent interview, Freeman slammed AI, especially regarding his distinct voice. \u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-morgan-freeman-s-fight-against-ai\">Morgan Freeman’s fight against AI\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Freeman talked with \u003Ca href=\"https://www.theguardian.com/film/ng-interactive/2025/nov/10/morgan-freeman-interview-nelson-mandela-six-decades-on-screen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Guardian\u003C/a> to promote his upcoming film, \u003Cem>Now You See Me: Now You Don’t\u003C/em>, which hit theaters this weekend. During the conversation, he expressed his disdain for AI being able to replicate his distinct voice.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“I’m a little PO’d, you know,” he told the publication. “I’m like any other actor: don’t mimic me with falseness. I don’t appreciate it and I get paid for doing stuff like that, so if you’re gonna do it without me, you’re robbing me.”\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Freeman also shared that his legal team has been “busy” because his voice is being used in AI-generated content without his consent.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“Well, I tell you, my lawyers have been very, very busy,” he said.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-morgan-freeman-is-advocating-for-real-performers-as-ai-rises-in-popularity\">Morgan Freeman is advocating for real performers as AI rises in popularity\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>As someone who grew up in modest circumstances, Freeman, who’s 88, worked hard to get to where he is today, so he’s not a fan of inauthenticity. In his interview with The Guardian, he criticized \u003Ca href=\"https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/2035003-ai-tilly-norwood-backlash-controversy-statement\">Tilly Norwood\u003C/a>, a fully digital character widely promoted as the first “AI actor” that was introduced to the public in September.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>“Nobody likes her because she’s not real and that takes the part of a real person, so it’s not going to work out very well in the movies or in television … The union’s job is to keep actors acting, so there’s going to be that conflict,” he said.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp>Still hungry to work, Freeman doesn’t plan to slow down any time soon, and he just wants the art to be respected: “The appetite is still there. I will concede that it’s dimmed a little. But not enough to make a serious difference.”\u003C/p>\n",[382,383],{"name":223,"slug":224,"id":225},{"name":24,"slug":25,"id":26},[385,389],{"id":386,"name":387,"slug":388,"description":10,"image":10},16496,"artificial intelligence","artificial-intelligence",{"id":390,"name":391,"slug":392,"description":10,"image":10},27722,"Morgan Freeman","morgan-freeman-2",{"url":394,"thumbnail":395,"credit":396,"title":391,"alt":397,"type":51},"https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/GettyImages-2246098786.jpg","https://cms.blavity.com/cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,slow-connection-quality=30,onerror=redirect/https://cms.blavity.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/GettyImages-2246098786-150x108.jpg","Photo: Noam Galai/WireImage via Getty Images","Morgan Freeman attends Lionsgate's \"Now You See Me: Now You Don't\" New York premiere in NYC","2025-11-13T20:39:07-05:00","2025-11-13T20:39:16-05:00",[],{"disableAd":69,"disableConnatixPlayer":69,"enabledComments":69,"headScript":10},74822,["Reactive",404],{},["Set"],["ShallowReactive",407],{"page-from-pandering-callouts-to-praise-of-trump-heres-what-the-black-people-at-the-rnc-have-to-say":70,"L5mKWLzO22":70,"7VUhfdt1ev":70},"/from-pandering-callouts-to-praise-of-trump-heres-what-the-black-people-at-the-rnc-have-to-say",["Reactive",410],{}]