All posts tagged: NAACP

DOJ Lawyers Argue xAI Is ‘Vital’ for National Security in NAACP Lawsuit

DOJ Lawyers Argue xAI Is ‘Vital’ for National Security in NAACP Lawsuit

Published by skeptic

The Department of Justice intervened in a lawsuit over xAI’s gas turbines on Monday. In a filing, the agency sided with Elon Musk’s company, saying attempts to stop xAI from running the natural gas turbines “threatens American national, economic, and energy security by seeking to shut off the power supply for artificial-intelligence innovation that supports the Department of War’s military operations.” The DOJ, along with xAI and the state of Mississippi, asked the court to dismiss the suit, filed by the NAACP in April. The NAACP alleges xAI isn’t following the Clean Air Act and is endangering public health by running unpermitted natural gas turbines at the site of its second data center in Southaven, Mississippi, dubbed Colossus 2. In May, the NAACP filed a request for a preliminary injunction to stop xAI from running the turbines, alleging that their continued use without a permit “increases risks of asthma attacks and heart disease” in communities with an already heavy pollution burden. xAI and DOJ didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. According to the …

The NAACP Is Proposing a Radical Shift to College Sports. Will It Work?

The NAACP Is Proposing a Radical Shift to College Sports. Will It Work?

Published by José Betancourt

Last month, the Supreme Court ruled that Louisiana’s recently redrawn congressional map was unconstitutional. The decision effectively dismantled a key section of the 1965 Voting Rights Act allowing for the creation of majority-minority districts, in order to ensure that nonwhite voters would be fairly represented in national politics. Since the ruling, elected officials in several southern states have moved to break up predominantly Black voting districts. Tennessee’s Ninth Congressional District, for example, which encompasses most of the majority-Black city of Memphis—and has elected a Democratic representative to Congress since 1983—has been reshaped to form three Republican-leaning districts. The gerrymandering rush has been speedy, calculated, and legal, prompting no shortage of concern from politicians and voters. On Tuesday, the NAACP announced an effort to do something about it. In a press conference, NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson urged Black athletes and fans to boycott state-funded universities in the Deep South, in an effort to exploit one of the region’s biggest weaknesses: its passion for college sports. Flanked by members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), …

NAACP Sues Elon Over His Noxious AI Data Center

NAACP Sues Elon Over His Noxious AI Data Center

Published by José Betancourt

Sign up to see the future, today Can’t-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech Elon Musk may have yet another day in court, at least if the NAACP has anything to say about it. The oldest civil rights organization in the United States has named Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI, in a new lawsuit, alleging that the turbines powering its “Colossus” data center violate the Clean Air Act of 1970. For months, xAI has used 27 unpermitted gas turbines — each about the size of a bus — to power the data center used to run the chatbot Grok. The practice has had horrible consequences for the Black, working class neighborhood where the turbines are located, whose residents are stuck breathing xAI’s noxious exhaust. According to the Guardian, the Mississippi lawsuit seeks to force xAI to stop using the turbines without permits, plus civil penalties to cover legal fees. On top of spewing nitrogen dioxide, a gas that causes irreversible respiratory damage over time, the turbines emit a horrendous sound that’s made …

NAACP host addresses backlash to joke about John Davidson’s racial Tourettes outburst at Baftas

NAACP host addresses backlash to joke about John Davidson’s racial Tourettes outburst at Baftas

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Comedian and actor Deon Cole has addressed growing backlash to a controversial joke he made about John Davidson’s involuntary racial slur at the Baftas. Cole, whose credits include the sitcom black-ish, hosted the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Image Awards on Saturday (28 February), and brought up the incident in which Davidson, who has Tourette syndrome, shouted a slur while Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage. “If there are any white men in the room with Tourette’s, I advise you to tell them to read the room, lord,” Cole said in a mock prayer, adding: “It might not go the way they thinketh. Whatever medicine they on, they better double up on it, lord.” The joke was met with initial gasps before the crowd laughed and applauded the quip. After the joke went viral …

At the NAACP Image Awards, the BAFTAs Controversy was an Ongoing Theme

At the NAACP Image Awards, the BAFTAs Controversy was an Ongoing Theme

Published by Sam Flores

Regina Hall Earl Gibson III/Getty Images Sinners, which recently made Oscars history as its most-nominated film ever, also did well at the NAACP Awards. Coogler’s film took home 13 trophies out of 18 nominations, including best picture, best actor (Jordan), and outstanding breakthrough for Miles Caton. Its accomplishments—as well as the BAFTAs incident—were also acknowledged throughout the ceremony. Regina Hall, who starred in Sinners‘ toughest Oscars competition, One Battle After Another, paused before presenting the night’s first award to address Lindo and Jordan. “I’d like to take a moment to thank the two kings who are in this audience and just send you so much love for your class,” she said, looking straight at the seated stars. Quinta Brunson, who won best actress in a comedy series for her self-created role in Abbott Elementary, also gave a nod to Coogler’s film in her acceptance speech. “I have to do a quick shout-out to the cast of Sinners,” she said. “We see you, we’re behind you. The crew of Sinners, we support you and we love …

‘Sinners’ Star Jayme Lawson Speaks Out on BAFTA Tourette Incident

‘Sinners’ Star Jayme Lawson Speaks Out on BAFTA Tourette Incident

Published by Daniella Wilson

Sinners actress Jayme Lawson candidly shared her thoughts on last weekend’s incident at the BAFTA Awards while speaking with The Hollywood Reporter on the NAACP Image Awards red carpet last night. “I’ll first say a big shout-out to Mike and Delroy; let’s continue to honor them for how they handled that in real time,” Lawson said about Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo having the N-word shouted at them by guest John Davidson, who has Tourette Syndrome, while they were onstage to present at the British awards ceremony. “The grace and the dignity that they exercised and the whole home team, everybody that was out there really carried themselves well. “I think the events this weekend exposed a couple of things,” Lawson continued. “Institutionally, we still don’t understand what inclusion means. Just because you invite someone into a space, but you don’t provide the necessary resources to keep them and everyone else in that room safe by them being there, that’s not inclusivity. That’s exploitation.” That man’s disability got exploited that night, and it led to …

2026 NAACP Image Awards Winners List

2026 NAACP Image Awards Winners List

Published by Daniella Wilson

Sinners dominated the 2026 NAACP Image Awards on Saturday, winning 13 awards after scoring a leading 18 nominations, including best motion picture. Additionally, star Michael B. Jordan took home the NAACP Image Awards’ top honor of entertainer of the year. The Ryan Coogler-written and -directed film, which scored a record-breaking 16 Oscar nominations, racked up 10 awards across various non-televised ceremonies earlier this week. During Saturday’s broadcast ceremony, airing live on BET and CBS from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, Sinners picked up three more, for best motion picture, best actor (Michael B. Jordan) and breakthrough performer (Miles Caton). Accepting for best motion picture, Coogler praised the audience for “wrapping [their] arms around the movie” and shouted out Warner Bros. Pictures co-chairs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy for believing in the film and encouraged them to stand in the audience. Coogler ended his speech with powerful comments about representation and identity. “Since our people been here over four centuries, there’s always been a lot of lies told about us,” he said. “And a lie, no …

Delroy Lindo Speaks on BAFTA Tourette’s Fiasco at NAACP Image Awards

Delroy Lindo Speaks on BAFTA Tourette’s Fiasco at NAACP Image Awards

Published by Daniella Wilson

At the end of the week that saw the 2026 BAFTA Awards descend into controversy after guest John Davidson, who has Tourette Syndrome, shouted the N-word while Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo presented an award, the 2026 NAACP Image Awards offered numerous opportunities for those affected by the incident to express their support for Jordan and Lindo. And Lindo himself offered his first public comments on the incident, taking the stage with his Sinners writer-director Ryan Coogler a little over an hour into the ceremony to loud applause at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium. “I’d just like to officially say, I appreciate, we appreciate all the support and love we have been shown in the aftermath of what happened last weekend. It means a lot to us,” Lindo said. He added the moment is a “classic case of something that could be very negative becoming very positive” and reflected on the “honor” of being at the NAACP Image Awards. BAFTA has since offered a full apology for the incident, which reached a wider audience when …

Watch Viola Davis’ Powerful NAACP Image Awards Speech

Watch Viola Davis’ Powerful NAACP Image Awards Speech

Published by Daniella Wilson

Viola Davis delivered a powerful speech at the 2026 NAACP Image Awards on Saturday night, where she reflected on her early beginnings, success in the industry and the current state of the nation. The EGOT winner was honored with the Chairman’s Award, hitting the stage on Saturday and beginning her acceptance speech by noting, “I always feel like I’m going to step into feeling like I deserve it.” “I like this quote, that the definition of hell is on your last day on Earth, the person you became meets the person that you could have become,” she continued. “I say that about our nation, I say that about myself; that there is no becoming until you face the depth and the darkness of your own soul. There is no becoming without healing and without a radical acceptance of one’s truth. I know that about myself growing up in poverty.” The Woman King actress reflected on her upbringing, noting, “Little chocolate girl with thick lips and wide nose in Rhode Island in 1965. I didn’t see hope. …

Where to Watch NAACP Image Awards 2026 Free CBS Live Stream​ Online

Where to Watch NAACP Image Awards 2026 Free CBS Live Stream​ Online

Published by Daniella Wilson

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, The Hollywood Reporter may receive an affiliate commission. Hosted for the second consecutive year by Deon Cole, the 57th NAACP Image Awards air on Saturday, Feb. 28, at 8 p.m. PT/ET. Since the ceremony will be broadcast on both BET and CBS, cord-cutters can watch it live via streaming services that carry either of those networks, including DirecTV (with a five-day free trial), Philo, Fubo (with a five-day free trial), Sling and Hulu + Live TV. Since Paramount+ Premium (formerly Paramount+ with Showtime) gives subscribers access to their local CBS channel, the 57th NAACP Image Awards will also livestream on the streaming service, however Paramount+ does not offer a free trial. Paramount+ Essential subscribers will not be able to watch the awards show live, and it is yet to be confirmed whether they’ll have access on-demand the following day. At a Glance: How to Watch 57th NAACP Image Awards Since select streamers are offering free trials and limited-time discounts, viewers …