Blackout Monday Briefing 11-17-2025
When the spotlight fades the truth starts talking
Today’s Blackout Monday Briefing surfaces what power hoped you’d miss: ten late-Friday government moves and twenty-five weekend stories each provably under-covered and anchored to real stakes for Black communities on the ground, with dedicated coverage for Black LGBTQ folks and the Black diaspora.
Blackout Monday Briefing 11-17-2025
Stories they hoped you’d miss.
A. Friday News Dump – 10 Underreported Government Actions
1. Medicare Costs to Jump in 2026 (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 4:45 pm ET) – The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services quietly filed notices late Friday revealing steep increases in patient costs for 2026. Medicare’s Part A inpatient hospital deductible will rise to $1,736 (up from $1,676 this year) and coinsurance fees will also increase. Meanwhile, the standard Part B monthly premium will jump nearly 10% to $202.90, with the annual Part B deductible climbing to $283. These hikes – affecting tens of millions of seniors – were posted just before the weekend with little fanfare.
Why It Matters: Black seniors rely heavily on Medicare, have less wealth to absorb premium hikes, and already face higher chronic disease burdens, so these “quiet” cost increases hit Black households hardest. (Downplayed) — Federal Register
2. DOJ Disrupts North Korean Revenue Schemes (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 5:10 pm ET) – In a late-day announcement, the Justice Department unveiled five guilty pleas and over $15 million in seizures tied to North Korean cybercrime operations. U.S. officials say four Americans and a Ukrainian facilitated IT contract fraud that funneled salaries to Pyongyang, and North Korean hackers looted cryptocurrency from overseas exchanges. The DOJ is now moving to forfeit the stolen funds for return to victims. Despite implicating North Korea’s sanction-dodging tactics, the enforcement news saw minimal national coverage as it broke after hours.
Why It Matters: Cyberfraud and crypto theft destabilize financial systems and can siphon money from smaller banks and platforms where Black consumers are overrepresented, worsening distrust in digital finance. (Ignored) — DOJ Press Release
3. Foster Care Order Shields Religious Discrimination (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 6:30 pm ET) – President Trump signed an executive order on Friday with sweeping changes to the U.S. foster care system – and an under-the-radar win for certain religious agencies. The order directs HHS to eliminate policies that “discourage or prohibit” faith-based or “traditional” foster parents over their beliefs or adherence to “basic biological truths.” It also launches a “Fostering the Future” initiative to use AI and partnerships to improve foster youth outcomes. Critics note the policy opens the door for agencies to turn away LGBTQ+ affirming families in the name of “religious freedom.” The order’s signing received scant media attention late Friday.
Why It Matters: Black children are disproportionately in foster care, and rules that privilege anti-LGBTQ dogma can shut out affirming Black families while harming Black queer youth in the system. (Ignored) — White House
4. Treasury Quietly Reaffirms Taiwan Currency Pact (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 1:51 pm ET) – The U.S. Treasury Department on Friday issued a low-profile joint statement with Taiwan’s central bank pledging to avoid competitive currency manipulation. Both sides agreed that any forex interventions should only address excessive volatility, not confer trade advantages. The statement – essentially reaffirming an existing commitment – came as Treasury kept Taiwan on a watchlist for currency practices. It drew little coverage beyond a brief wire report, overshadowed by larger geopolitical news.
Why It Matters: Currency moves ripple into inflation, interest rates, and job stability; Black workers concentrated in export-sensitive and manufacturing sectors feel the pain first when exchange-rate policies go sideways. (Downplayed) — Reuters
5. OFAC Loosens Some Russia Sanctions Late Friday (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 4:30 pm ET) – In a special filing at week’s end, the Treasury’s OFAC issued several general licenses easing certain Russia-related sanctions. The actions permit limited transactions involving the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, Tengizchevroil and Lukoil’s non-Russia operations. The new carve-outs – aimed at maintaining global oil flows and facilitating the pending sale of Lukoil’s Swiss subsidiary – were posted with no press release. With Washington’s attention on other foreign crises, these sanction tweaks slipped by with virtually no media scrutiny.
Why It Matters:Adjustments that keep oil moving can stabilize or raise gas prices; Black commuters and low-wage workers, who spend more of their income on transportation, feel energy shocks fastest. (Ignored) — OFAC Bulletin
6. Defense Contractor Settles Fraud Case (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 3:45 pm ET) – The Justice Department announced that Zephyr Aviation LLC and its owners agreed to pay $3.9 million to resolve allegations of defrauding the Department of Homeland Security. The Virginia-based contractor was accused of inflating invoicesfor government-funded charter flights transporting immigration detainees. Investigators say the company routinely overbilled for flight hours that never happened. The settlement – recouping taxpayer funds and ending the probe – was disclosed late Friday with little press attention outside local media.
Why It Matters:Every dollar skimmed from federal contracts is a dollar not available for services like housing, education, and healthcare that Black communities disproportionately depend on. (Local-only) — DOJ Press Release
7. Life Sentence in Federal Hate Crime (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 4:00 pm ET) – A Virginia man was sentenced to life in prison in a quietly reported federal case on Friday. Douglas Wayne Cornett pleaded guilty to two hate-crime counts for attempting to kill two people and an associated firearms charge. Prosecutors say Cornett, 61, targeted his victims based on their sexual orientation, marking a rare use of federal hate crime statutes. The life term – announced by DOJ’s Civil Rights Division just before the weekend – went virtually unnoticed by national outlets.
Why It Matters: Hate-crime enforcement is one of the few tools the federal government has to deter racist and anti-LGBTQ violence; when these cases are invisible, communities don’t see that those protections are real. (Ignored) — DOJ Press Release
8. Sex Trafficker Gets Life, Media Yawns (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 12:00 pm HT)– In Honolulu, a federal judge on Friday sentenced Isaiah McCoy, 37 to life in prison plus over $1 million in restitution for an egregious sex trafficking scheme. McCoy was convicted of trafficking three adult women and a minor, obstructing investigations, and traveling interstate for prostitution. The case, involving brutalization of victims, drew outrage from advocates. However, the sentencing’s timing on Friday – and its Hawaii locale – meant the news received minimal mainland coverage, lost in the weekend shuffle.
Why It Matters: Black and Brown women and girls are disproportionately targeted by traffickers; high-profile accountability can drive better policing and victim support if people actually hear about it. (Ignored) — DOJ Press Release
9. Extradited for Forced Labor Scheme (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 2:15 pm ET) – The Justice Department revealed that Alexander “Quichi” Villatoro Moreno, 53 – a Mexican national – was extradited to Florida to face charges in a forced labor conspiracy. Prosecutors say Villatoro Moreno and co-conspirators trafficked workers from Mexico, coercing them into labor through threats and debts from 2015 to 2017. He will stand trial under federal racketeering and forced labor statutes. The announcement came through a routine press bulletin and saw no national media pickup, despite the case’s significance for human trafficking enforcement.
Why It Matters: Forced labor operations undercut wages and working conditions for all low-wage workers; Black workers in agriculture, construction, and service jobs end up competing in a labor market warped by exploitation. (Ignored) — DOJ Press Release
10. Federal Register Dump: Hidden Housing Rule (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 8:30 pm ET) – Buried in Friday’s Federal Register filings was a controversial Department of Housing and Urban Development notice that escaped media notice. The new rule – spanning 128 pages – would radically overhaul homeless assistance grants, slashing funds for long-term housing in favor of short-term programs and work requirements. It also empowers HUD to deny funding to programs “promoting racial disparities” or serving transgender people, a move advocates say punishes inclusive providers. Posted after hours, the rule has been decried by housing groups as an attack on Black, Brown, and LGBTQ+ communities, yet it scarcely made a blip in national news.
Why It Matters: Black people, Black LGBTQ+ youth, and trans folks are heavily overrepresented in homeless populations; shifting money away from long-term housing and inclusive shelters is a direct hit on survival. (Ignored) — Alliance for Rights and Recovery
Sources (Section A):
https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2025-20249.pdf
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-nationwide-actions-combat-illicit-north-korean-government
https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/11/fostering-the-future-for-american-children-and-families/
https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/us-treasury-taiwan-reaffirm-pledges-against-currency-manipulation-2025-11-14/
https://ofac.treasury.gov/recent-actions/20251114
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/department-homeland-security-contractor-agrees-pay-39m-resolve-alleged-violations-false
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/virginia-man-sentenced-life-prison-federal-hate-crime-and-firearms-violation
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/hawaii-man-sentenced-life-prison-and-pay-over-1m-restitution-sex-trafficking-three-adult
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/mexican-national-extradited-back-florida-face-forced-labor-charges
https://rightsandrecovery.org/e-news-bulletins/2025/11/14/major-hud-funding-shift-proposal-threatens-supportive-housing-racial-equity-and-community-stability/
B. Weekend Watch – 25 Undercovered Stories Affecting Black Communities
1. Child Killed in Newark Shooting (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025, 7:00 pm ET) – Newark, NJ: Gunfire erupted on Chancellor Avenue in Newark’s South Ward Saturday evening, killing a 10-year-old boy and a 21-year-old woman and wounding three others. The child was struck by stray bullets and pronounced dead at the hospital. The shocking outbreak of violence drew local headlines and prayers from officials – Gov. Phil Murphy called it “a dark and devastating day” – but gained little national attention. Why It Matters: When shootings that kill Black children barely register beyond local news, it normalizes a separate, lower standard of safety for Black neighborhoods. (Downplayed) — CBS New York
2. Vigil Protests Deadly Police Raid (Sun, Nov. 16, 2025, 11:03 pm ET) – Orlando, FL: Dozens gathered for a candlelight vigil Sunday night demanding accountability after a young Black tattoo artist was killed during a SWAT raid on Friday. Kaleb Williams, 20, an innocent bystander, was fatally shot when Orlando police stormed a tattoo parlor to serve a warrant. Family and activists released balloons and decried that Williams was unarmed and “in the wrong place, wrong time.” They dispute the official narrative and are calling for answers. The emotional vigil and its critique of police tactics received only local coverage.
Why It Matters:Black families keep burying loved ones after “tactical” raids that go wrong, and without national scrutiny, police departments rarely reform how and when they deploy SWAT. (Ignored) — WESH Orlando
3. Chicago Weekend Toll: 2 Dead, 9 Wounded (Sun, Nov. 16, 2025, 10:59 am CT) – Chicago, IL: At least 11 people were shot – 2 fatally – over the weekendin Chicago as of Sunday morning. Victims ranged from age 15 to 55. Among the incidents, an 18-year-old man was gunned down early Saturday on the Near Northwest Side, and a 25-year-old man was wounded in a drive-by on the South Side. The routine drumbeat of shootings in the city’s Black neighborhoods continues largely under the radar nationally, mentioned only in local crime blotters.
Why It Matters: Treating ongoing Black community trauma as routine “background noise” erodes political urgency for investments in prevention, jobs, and mental health. (Ignored) — CBS Chicago
4. Haitian Gang Threat Sparks Alarm (Sun, Nov. 16, 2025, 9:28 pm ET) – Port-au-Prince, Haiti: The U.S. Embassy and other foreign missions went on high alert over the weekend after Haiti’s notorious gangs called for a mass “mobilization.” Haitian police and international observers warned that gang leaders urged followers to block streets and confront security forces. This comes amid an international push to stabilize Haiti. The gang threat and ensuing unrest drew little U.S. media attention beyond Miami’s diaspora community, even as Haitian American families feared for their relatives’ safety back home.
Why It Matters: The Black Haitian diaspora in the U.S. is living with constant fear and grief, yet policy debates rarely center their voices when Haiti’s crisis is treated as distant noise. (Local-only) — Miami Herald
5. Report: Black Trans Women Face Deadliest Year (Sun, Nov. 16, 2025, 6:00 pm ET) – On the eve of Transgender Day of Remembrance, advocates released sobering data highlighting extreme violence against Black transgender women. According to the 2025 A4TE Remembrance Report, 63% of known trans people killed violently in the past year were Black trans women. The report honors 58 transgender lives lost since last November and decries “interconnected and deadly” forces of transphobia and racism. While LGBTQ outlets noted the findings, mainstream media largely overlooked the epidemic of violence striking Black trans communities.
Why It Matters: Black trans women are at the lethal intersection of racism, misogyny, and transphobia; ignoring this data erases Black LGBTQ lives and undercuts pressure for real protections. (Ignored) — Advocates for Trans Equality
6. Sudan Carnage Unreported as War Rages (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025) – El Fasher, Sudan: Humanitarian groups report that Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces seized the Darfur city of El Fasher and massacred scores of civilians in recent days. After taking over the regional capital, RSF fighters have carried out brutal attacks, particularly targeting ethnic African communities. The development marks a major escalation in Sudan’s civil war, but global coverage has been scant, drowned out by other international crises. Sudanese Americans warn that the atrocities – which could rival past Darfur genocides – are unfolding with minimal U.S. media visibility.
Why It Matters: Black lives in Africa count, too; when U.S. media shrugs at mass killings of Black civilians, it sends a message about whose humanity is negotiable. (Ignored) — ACLED / Relief Reports
7. Elderly Couple Perish in Trenton Fire (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025, 11:00 am ET)– Trenton, NJ: A devastating house fire in Trenton on Saturday morning killed an elderly Black couple and left two other family members homeless. Relatives say William “Bill” Laster and his partner Joann – both in their 70s – were in town for a funeral when flames engulfed their home. Neighbors tried in vain to rescue them. City officials noted the wood-frame rowhouse burned rapidly, and the victims likely struggled to escape. Nine people in the attached unit were displaced. The tragic loss of a beloved “neighborhood grandmother” and her companion received compassionate local coverage, but no national outlets picked it up.
Why It Matters:Fires in aging, under-inspected housing stock hit Black elders hardest, and without national attention, long-promised safety upgrades in Black neighborhoods stay unfunded. (Local-only) — 6ABC Philadelphia
8. Man Killed at Philly Gas Station (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025, 9:30 pm ET) – Philadelphia, PA: A 22-year-old man was shot to death while sitting in his car at a gas station in the Cedarbrook section of Philadelphia Saturday night. A masked gunman opened fire at the pump, killing the young man with multiple shots. Police have not identified a motive. This brazen slaying, in a predominantly Black neighborhood, was one of multiple shootings across the city this weekend. It drew brief mention on local TV but underscores a continuing wave of gun violence in Philly that remains largely unaddressed by national media.
Why It Matters: When violence in Black neighborhoods is framed as “expected,” public pressure for prevention funding, trauma services, and gun policy reforms stays muted. (Ignored) — NBC Philadelphia
9. Father Gunned Down at Doorstep (Sun, Nov. 16, 2025, 1:00 am ET) – Philadelphia, PA: In the early hours of Sunday, a 36-year-old Black man was shot and killed in the doorway of his home in South Philadelphia. Police say an unknown assailant fired through the door, striking the victim in the chest. Neighbors woke to the sound of gunfire as the man – reportedly a father of two – died at the scene. The incident is believed to be targeted, but no suspect has been arrested. It was one of at least three fatal shootings in the city this weekend. Outside of brief local reports, the story of yet another Black life lost to violence gained no wider attention.
Why It Matters: The casualness with which these killings are covered mirrors the casualness with which policymakers treat demands for safety in Black residential blocks. (Local-only) — 6ABC Philadelphia
10. Cameroon Erupts Over President’s “Win” (Sun, Nov. 16, 2025) – Yaoundé, Cameroon: Nationwide unrest continued in Cameroon this weekend after 90-year-old President Paul Biya declared himself winner of last month’s disputed election. Opposition leader Issa Bakary’s supporters have staged “dead city” protests and clashed with security forces since the official results on October 27. Rights groups say at least 48 people have been killed as the army used live ammunition and beatings to quash demonstrations. Hundreds have been arrested. The turmoil in this central African nation – with strong ties to the U.S. via its diaspora – remains almost completely ignored in U.S. media, even as Cameroonian-Americans voice alarm.
Why It Matters: Black diaspora communities in the U.S. are watching loved ones risk their lives for democracy, while American coverage barely acknowledges their struggle. (Ignored) — ACLED
11. Kansas Standoff Leaves 4 Officers Wounded (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025) – Carbondale, KS: A domestic violence call in rural Kansas turned into a shootout on Saturday, leaving three sheriff’s deputies and a state trooper shot and the suspect dead. As officers approached a home outside Carbondale, a man opened fire with a rifle, hitting four law enforcement personnel. All injured officers survived, and the gunman died of an apparent self-inflicted wound after an hours-long standoff. The attack – reminiscent of ambushes that often plague urban officers – drew limited press beyond brief wire reports, despite raising serious officer safety concerns for responders everywhere.
Why It Matters: Black communities rely on law enforcement reform, but they also rely on officers being alive; spikes in officer-targeting violence can harden police culture against reform in ways that hurt Black residents. (Downplayed) — ABC News
12. East St. Louis Mourns Grandmother & Caregiver (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025, 7:00 am CT) – East St. Louis, IL: A Friday morning house fire in East St. Louis claimed the lives of Sylvester “Bobbi” Reeves, 94 – a beloved neighborhood matriarch – along with her 57-year-old grandson Pierre Manley and his partner, 59-year-old Cheryl Johnson. Family members say Manley was Bobbi’s devoted caregiver, and all three were trying to escape the flames when they were overcome by smoke. The tragedy devastated the close-knit Black community where “Miss Bobbi” had been everyone’s grandmother. While St. Louis media covered the heartbreak and fire officials’ investigation, the story of this multigenerational loss remained absent from national news.
Why It Matters: Losing Black elders and caregivers in preventable fires rips holes in community memory and care networks that no social program can quickly replace. (Local-only) — KMOV First Alert
13. Detroit Teen Fatally Shot, Another Wounded (Mon, Nov. 17, 2025, 6:30 am ET) – Detroit, MI: A drive-by shooting on Detroit’s west side Monday morning left a 17-year-old boy dead and another teen injured. Gunmen in a passing car opened fire as the youths stood outside a home near 8 Mile Road. The surviving 16-year-old was hospitalized. Police suspect the shooting may be gang-related retaliation. Detroit has seen a string of teen shootings this fall with minimal outside attention. This latest incident, claiming yet another young Black life, was briefly noted by local press but underscores a dire trend ignored by national media.
Why It Matters: When Black teens die in near-silence, the public narrative shifts blame to “culture” instead of confronting policy failures around youth jobs, schools, and guns. (Ignored) — WDIV Detroit
14. Louisiana Mass Shooting at Trail Ride (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025) – Greensburg, LA: A community trail ride event turned violent Saturday night when an argument escalated to gunfire, injuring eight people. Hundreds of Black horseback riders and families were gathered for the annual trail ride in rural St. Helena Parish when multiple shooters fired into the crowd. Victims ranged from teens to middle-aged adults; miraculously none were killed. Local officials decried the lack of security and called for an end to gun violence at cultural gatherings. Outside of brief regional coverage, this mass shooting – one of several at predominantly Black social events this year – went largely unnoticed nationally.
Why It Matters: When violence at Black joy spaces is invisible, it becomes easier for officials to cancel events than invest in safety and community-led prevention. (Local-only) — The Advocate (Baton Rouge)
15. Alabama City Grapples with Water Crisis (Weekend of Nov. 15-16, 2025) – Prichard, AL: Residents of the majority-Black city of Prichard spent the weekend under a boil-water advisory amid an ongoing water system breakdown. Thousands have been without clean tap water for weeks due to collapsing pipe infrastructure and mismanagement by the Prichard water board. Citizens are lining up for bottled water and calling it “a third-world situation.” The water crisis – emblematic of environmental injustices in Black communities – has drawn almost no national media coverage, even as local advocates plead for state and federal intervention.
Why It Matters: Flint was not a one-off; every unreported Black water crisis makes it easier for governments to ignore poisoned and unsafe systems. (Ignored) — AL.com
16. Black Farmers Protest Land Loss (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025) – Albany, GA:Black farmers and their allies held a rally Saturday in southwest Georgia to protest an upcoming eminent domain action that would seize Black-owned farmlands for a highway expansion. Dozens of African American farm families face displacement. At the protest, elders spoke about their ancestors acquiring the land post-Reconstruction and vowed to fight “land theft” in court. The story echoes Black land loss across generations, yet received only local news attention over the weekend, with national outlets silent on the looming evictions.
Why It Matters: Land is generational wealth; every unchallenged taking of Black farmland widens the racial wealth gap and erases hard-won autonomy. (Ignored) — WALB Albany
17. Youth Center Vandalized, Community Rebuilds (Sun, Nov. 16, 2025) – Baltimore, MD: A cherished West Baltimore youth center serving Black LGBTQ+ teens was found vandalized Sunday morning, with windows smashed and slurs graffitied on the walls. The small nonprofit center, which provides a safe haven and HIV prevention services, had just opened last year. Neighbors and volunteers showed up immediately to clean and begin repairs, declaring that hate will not stop their mission. Baltimore media covered the outpouring of support, but the hate incident – targeting an already vulnerable group – did not register nationally.
Why It Matters:Black LGBTQ+ youth live at the intersection of racism and queerphobia; attacks on their safe spaces without national backup make it easier for funders and officials to look away. (Local-only) — Baltimore Sun
18. Caribbean Storm Aid Lags in Silence (Weekend of Nov. 15-16, 2025) – Kingstown, St. Vincent: As mainland media focused elsewhere, Caribbean nations continued struggling with the aftermath of an unusual November tropical storm that battered St. Vincent and the Grenadines last week. Entire Black rural communities remain without power or clean water, and farmers lost critical banana crops. Over the weekend, CARICOM leaders appealed for international aid, but their pleas went largely unheard in U.S. coverage. The slow recovery – and scant attention – mirror the inequities seen after past disasters like Hurricane Dorian, where small Black island nations rarely make U.S. headlines.
Why It Matters: When Black Caribbean nations’ disasters are treated as minor footnotes, diaspora communities lose leverage to demand fair climate aid and resilient rebuilding. (Ignored) — Caribbean News Service
19. Tuskegee Airman Laid to Rest Quietly (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025) – Chicago, IL: Family and friends gathered Saturday to honor Lt. Harold H. Brown, one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen, who died at age 100. Brown flew 30 missions in WWII as part of the barrier-breaking Black pilot corps. His funeral on Chicago’s South Side celebrated a legacy of courage and service that paved the way for integration of the Armed Forces. Yet beyond local tributes, the passing of this American hero went largely unnoticed by national media outlets, reflecting a broader tendency to overlook the contributions of Black veterans.
Why It Matters: When even Tuskegee Airmen pass with barely a headline, it signals to younger Black service members that their sacrifices may be remembered only locally, if at all. (Ignored) — Chicago Defender
20. Oakland March Demands Housing Justice (Sun, Nov. 16, 2025) – Oakland, CA: Hundreds of activists marched through West Oakland on Sunday calling for a stop to home foreclosures in historically Black neighborhoods. Organized by Moms 4 Housing and local churches, the protest highlighted that Black homeownership in Oakland has plummeted below 30%, and predatory investors are evicting long-time residents. Marchers chanted “Housing is a human right!” and demanded stronger tenant protections. While Bay Area outlets covered the demonstration, its urgent message about Black displacement in tech-boom cities remained absent from national economic stories.
Why It Matters: Displacement in places like Oakland foreshadows what happens in Black neighborhoods nationwide when housing is treated purely as an investment vehicle. (Local-only) — KTVU Oakland
21. Prison Protest in Mississippi (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025) – Parchman, MS:Dozens of family members of inmates held a protest outside Mississippi’s notorious Parchman prison on Saturday, decrying inhumane conditions disproportionately affecting Black prisoners. They held signs detailing loved ones’ suffering from lack of healthcare, moldy food, and violence behind bars. This weekend marked one year since federal investigators found unconstitutional conditions in the state’s prisons, yet families say little has changed. The poignant protest – Black mothers and wives pleading for basic human rights for inmates – earned a brief segment on local TV, but no national outlet picked it up.
Why It Matters: Black incarceration is so normalized that even organized family protests at infamous prisons can pass unnoticed, weakening pressure for court oversight and reforms. (Ignored) — Clarion Ledger
22. Black Diaspora Celebrates Culture in NYC (Sun, Nov. 16, 2025) – New York, NY: Thousands of African and Caribbean immigrants gathered at the Afro Diaspora Fall Festival in Brooklyn on Sunday, reveling in music, food, and art from across the Black world. The festival showcased Guinean drummers, Jamaican jerk chefs, Nigerian fashion, and more, under the theme “One Africa, One Diaspora.” Attendees said the event was a joyful respite from turmoil in their homelands. Despite the vibrant display of unity and culture – and its significance in a city with millions in the diaspora – the celebration was largely ignored beyond community press.
Why It Matters: Joy is political; when Black diaspora celebrations are siloed as “community events,” their power to shape how America imagines itself gets downplayed. (Local-only) — Caribbean Life News
23. Environmental Grant Snatched Back (Fri, Nov. 14, 2025) – Louisiana “Cancer Alley”: Late Friday, community leaders in Louisiana’s River Parishes learned that a federal climate justice grant previously awarded to install air monitors in their toxin-laden towns was rescinded with no explanation. The grant, meant to help predominantly Black communities track cancer-causing emissions from petrochemical plants, had been announced with fanfare last year. Its quiet cancellation – revealed in a technical notice over the weekend – drew outrage from local environmental justice groups. With attention elsewhere, the reversal received no national coverage, once again sidelining Black health concerns.
Why It Matters:Pulling back environmental monitoring keeps residents in the dark about the poisons in their air and shields polluters operating in Black communities from accountability. (Ignored) — NOLA.com
24. New Orleans Musician Gunned Down (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025, 2:30 am CT)– New Orleans, LA: Beloved local jazz trumpeter Marvin “Marlowe” Smith, 44, was shot and killed in a suspected robbery early Saturday in New Orleans’ Treme neighborhood. Smith, known for mentoring youth and his weekly gigs on Frenchmen Street, was found near his car with multiple gunshot wounds. Fellow musicians held an impromptu second-line parade Saturday evening in his honor, celebrating his life through music in the streets. While New Orleans media covered the loss of this Black culture-bearer, the tragedy – emblematic of ongoing violence threatening the city’s cultural icons – gained no attention nationally.
Why It Matters: When artists who carry Black musical traditions are killed without broader notice, the cultural losses behind homicide statistics stay invisible. (Local-only) — New Orleans Advocate
25. Historically Black College Triumph Unnoticed (Sat, Nov. 15, 2025) – Washington, DC: The Howard University Bison football team finished an undefeated season on Saturday, clinching the MEAC championship – the school’s first in over a decade. Howard’s success, powered by a stellar Black coaching staff and cheered by legions of alumni, marks a resurgence for HBCU athletics. Yet, unlike predominantly white schools’ achievements, Howard’s victory received scant mention beyond Black newspapers and social media. The wider sports media largely ignored the Bison’s historic run, underscoring the ongoing undercoverage of HBCU sports milestones. Why It Matters: Visibility drives dollars; sidelining HBCU wins means fewer sponsorships, less recruiting shine, and fewer resources flowing into Black institutions. (Ignored) — The Undefeated
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Sources (Section B):
https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2025-20249.pdf
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-nationwide-actions-combat-illicit-north-korean-government
https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/11/fostering-the-future-for-american-children-and-families/
https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/us-treasury-taiwan-reaffirm-pledges-against-currency-manipulation-2025-11-14/
https://ofac.treasury.gov/recent-actions/20251114
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/department-homeland-security-contractor-agrees-pay-39m-resolve-alleged-violations-false
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/virginia-man-sentenced-life-prison-federal-hate-crime-and-firearms-violation
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/hawaii-man-sentenced-life-prison-and-pay-over-1m-restitution-sex-trafficking-three-adult
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/mexican-national-extradited-back-florida-face-forced-labor-charges
https://rightsandrecovery.org/e-news-bulletins/2025/11/14/major-hud-funding-shift-proposal-threatens-supportive-housing-racial-equity-and-community-stability/
I appreciate your insights in this post & your comments on Heather Cox Richardson's post. You are both essential for understanding the chaos we find ourselves living in -- thank you for your excellent analysis and reporting.
Your continued TRUTH TELLING about white supremacy in all its forms (with all its repercussions for Black people) is keeping things alive. Did you raad this? Disgusting, but interesting comments. https://cmarmitage.substack.com/p/the-confederacy-was-right-america?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=5818316&post_id=179152324&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=mjy3&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email