Art for Sale Page 2

Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery
Photo: © David Levene; Art Fund 2026
A Norwich castle will compete with the National Gallery in London for the 2026 edition of the Art Fund Museum of the Year, the most prestigious UK prize in the sector. Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery in East England and the 202-year-old institution located in Trafalgar Square have been shortlisted along with The Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, The Box in Plymouth and the V&A East Storehouse in London. The winning museum, to be announced 25 June at a ceremony at Cutty Sark in London, will receive £120,000, while the four other finalists will receive £20,000 each.
“Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery comprises a medieval Castle Keep, and a museum. Following a major £27.5m redevelopment, the Keep reopened in August 2025 and is now the most accessible castle in the UK,” says an Art Fund statement. As part of the Royal Palace Reborn project, the museum has also created a new Gallery of Medieval Life, developed in partnership with the British Museum. The new spaces are “filled with the types of furniture, textiles and painted decoration that could have greeted Henry I when he stayed in Norwich in 1121,” says the museum’s guidebook.
The National Gallery gets the nod for its wide-ranging bicentenary projects which included an £85m project to upgrade its Sainsbury Wing entrance, an ambitious public art piece in Trafalgar Square devised by the artist Jeremy Deller and a “once-in-a-lifetime” rehang called C C Land: The Wonder of Art. The gallery’s latest capital project involves building a £350m extension on the site of St. Vincent’s House to house modern and contemporary art.
Another London powerhouse museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum, launched the V&A East Storehouse in Stratford last May, winning plaudits for offering a new museum experience based on breaking down “physical barriers and removing glass cases so visitors can get closer than ever before to national collections”. The venue has since drawn over 500,000 visitors; its sister institution, the V&A East Museum, launched 18 April.
Meanwhile the Fitzwilliam is “reimagining the role of a historic university museum: not as a neutral guardian of objects, but as an active participant in social dialogue, knowledge exchange and collective responsibility,” says Art Fund, which emphasises the innovative programming at the Cambridge museum founded in 1816. Highlights in 2024-25 included All Over the Place, the US artist Glenn Ligon’s first major solo exhibition in the UK, and Rise Up, which brought together historic objects and contemporary art to explore the lives of abolitionists.
The Box in Plymouth marked its fifth birthday in September last year and has drawn more than one million visitors (a 2025 report published by the gallery says that it has since boosted the city’s economy by £244m). “Striving to be ‘nationally known and locally loved’, The Box preserves the city’s cultural collections of more than two million artworks, objects, specimens, and archival materials,” says Art Fund. A Beryl Cook exhibition held at the venue this year was critically acclaimed.
The Art Fund Museum of the Year judges are Tony Butler, the executive director of Derby Museums; the artist Yinka Ilori MBE; the author Alice Loxton and the broadcaster June Sarpong. Beamish, The Living Museum of the North, an open-air museum in County Durham that brings 19th and 20th century history to life through “immersive exhibits”, won last year’s Art Fund Museum of the Year prize.
The eligibility criteria for the prize state that prospective galleries “must be based in the UK and be either a public museum, gallery, historic house, library or archive which has spaces for the public to visit and experience the visual arts or other object-based collections”.
The Finding of Moses, currently on loan at the London museum, is owned by sofa-billionaire Graham Kirkham
Guercino’s “King David” and a rare relief by John Deare have been allocated to the London institutions in lieu of inheritance tax on the estate of the celebrated financier, philanthropist and heritage leader
Galleries on lockdown connect online during coronavirus pandemic using #CollectionsUnited
Museums considered banning female visitors at height of suffrage movement

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Chloe Bailey and The Hair Poet keep pushing loc versatility—and we love it.
Chloe Bailey blessed our timelines on April 23, dropping Instagram visuals that made everybody stop scrolling, zoom in, and ask: Wait, are those locs? Between the sky-high hair, cartoon-glam makeup, and flirty Y2K styling, the whole look felt playful, sexy, and very Chloe.
This is what happens when loc versatility meets pure imagination. The hair sorcery that Chloe and her hairstylist, The Hair Poet (Fesa Nu) create is unmatched. Chloe took her signature locs and flipped them, making us all do a double-take.
For a second, you almost forget she even has locs.
The look gives off main cartoon-character energy. It feels Gen Z, playful, and a little anime-coded. It still lands in Chloe’s sexy lane.
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Her hair is styled into dramatic, high ponytails. The long lengths flow down her body and move with her. The shape is bold and exaggerated.
And her makeup by Painted By Esther (Ngozi Edeme)…just as fun.
Chloe plays with color in a fresh way. Her brows and liner do not match, and it works. The pink tones and glossy lips keep the look flirty.
Then there is the outfit.
Chloe steps out in low-rise, body-hugging skinny jeans. Yes, skinny jeans. The look feels like a quiet return we did not expect.
She pairs them with a barely-there top. Her silhouette is on full display. Flat stomach, soft curves, and just enough attitude.
The visuals feel gritty and dark, but still bright. The contrast works and pulls you in.
This look comes after another standout moment. Chloe wore a stunning style to the Cécred hair party with her mentor, Beyoncé.
That look proved it again. Locs can do nearly anything.
Chloe wore all white with an Asian-inspired updo. The style featured a twisted bun, short bangs, and long side pieces. It felt sleek and sculptural.
Chloe Bailey is that girl, and looks like these remind us why. She keeps giving us style, beauty, body, and loc creativity without missing a beat. That’s what we love about being Black women. Some people call it Black girl magic. We call it range. And Chloe keeps giving us more than enough of it.
We Almost Forgot Chloe Bailey Had Locs Because Of This Look was originally published on hellobeautiful.com

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The 30 Most Beautiful Black Women In Hollywood
Rest In Power: Notable Black Folks Who We’ve Lost In 2026
Donald Trump’s Mental Fitness The Subject of Intense Scrutiny Following Zany Fox News Interview
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Marcelo Dantas, curator of the 2027-29 Vancouver Biennale, pictured at Sfer Ik in Mexico, where he serves as art director Courtesy Roth Productions
The Vancouver Biennale has selected Marcello Dantas to be the senior curator for its 2027-29 edition. According to the biennale’s founder and director, Barrie Mowatt, Dantas is “widely recognised as one of the world’s most distinguished and innovative curators, and we are honoured to welcome him to Vancouver”.
Mowatt says that Dantas’s most recent projects include co-curating the 2024 edition of the outdoor art exhibition Desert X AlUla in Saudi Arabia (with Maya El Khalil) and curating an Es Devlin exhibition in São Paulo. Dantas is also the art director at Sfer Ik, an art centre in Tulum, Mexico. And, with the Fifa World Cup coming to Vancouver in just eight weeks, Mowatt adds that Dantas has “World Cup experience”, having served as the artistic director of Pelé Station, a massive multimedia exhibition about the Brazilian soccer legend Pelé during the 2006 World Cup in Berlin.
In addition to curating exhibitions by artists including Shirin Neshat, Bill Viola, Tunga, Ai Weiwei and Laura Vinci, Dantas has produced operas by Peter Greenaway and La Fura dels Baus. He is also a film-maker who has made 12 documentaries about artists. This is not the São Paulo-curator’s first time working in Vancouver: he was involved in the Vancouver Biennale’s 2013-15 edition, curating a project by Vik Muniz that involved using local natural materials to create a portrait of a wolf that was so large it could only be fully viewed from an elevated platform. Dantas worked with local First Nations and community groups on that project, and says he hopes to continue those types of collaborations in the upcoming biennale.
“Vancouver is still a puzzle I’m trying to solve,” Dantas tells The Art Newspaper during his first trip back to the city since 2018. “The city has changed tremendously. It now has emergent design that is very much concentrated into corporate real estate development.” This requires, he says, a delineation between public and private space in relation to public art, leading to questions like: “What is community space? What is layered into them? Because there are sacred sites—the whole area has a First Nations history, as well as a colonial one.”
He adds that Vancouver and the surrounding region have impressed him while he has spent the past week driving through 800 miles of urban and rural landscapes looking at possible “stages” for public art.
“Vancouver is one of the rare cities in the world where landscape and urban life are in constant dialogue,” he says. “The proximity between ocean, forest and mountains creates a condition that is both humbling and inspiring—a place where nature is an active presence shaping perception, behaviour and imagination.”
It is also a city, Dantas adds, defined by its multiplicity of peoples, cultures and histories—some recent, others profoundly ancient. “At its core lies a millenary First Nations presence whose knowledge systems, cosmologies and relationship to land are not only foundational to this territory but essential to any meaningful cultural discourse moving forward.”
With a view to future projects, he says he is interested in exploring ideas of belonging and displacement, of what it means to be “native” in a world of constant movement. “I am drawn to forms of collaboration that transcend authorship—collective processes, shared structures and temporary architectures that invite encounter and participation,” Dantas says. He adds that Vancouver’s art scene reflects this sense of openness. “It is porous, engaged and increasingly attentive to questions of ecology, identity and coexistence. What excites me most is the possibility of expanding this sensibility into the public realm—through works that emerge from it.”
Rather than thinking of public art as permanent objects, he says his inspiration comes from “the potential of ephemeral, living and transformative works—projects that evolve, decay and return to the land. Works that are less about marking space and more about activating it.”
Opening dates and participating artists for the Vancouver Biennale’s 2027-29 edition will be announced at a future date.
Kiendl’s departure comes a few months after the gallery pulled the plug on an ambitious but costly building project it had already spent C$60m on
A writer’s complaints about downtown tagging were met with accusations of classism—and a new mural
The images of sleeping people were too creepy for many residents, in a city where property values are a major concern

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In an emotional conversation with Shannon Sharpe, Michael Beasley tears up as he remembers his late mother and his time in the NBA.
While many fans recognize Michael Beasley as an NBA star who played alongside LeBron James, Beasley admits there was a period in his life when he did not feel like the star athlete he was perceived to be. During an appearance with Shannon Sharpe’s “Club Shay Shay,” the Washington D.C. native opened up about his season playing on the L.A. Lakers. 
“I wasn’t a basketball player then, my mom died,” Beasley said candidly. “I just couldn’t hold on. I just couldn’t play no more. I ain’t like that year.” 
That year was 2018. At the time, Beasley was playing for the New York Knicks, which allowed him to easily travel between New York and D.C. to visit his mother, Fatima Smith, who had been battling cancer. However,  in July 2018, the former Knicks player was signed to the Los Angeles NBA team, which took a significant toll on his ability to be there for his mother. 
“When I signed with the Lakers, that’s when we found out my mom had been lying to us about having stage two cancer, and it was stage four,” he said, recalling his brother being the one to unveil the news. “He showed me the side she wasn’t showing us. So we didn’t know, but every day she would get up and make sure she took her morphine so she could have that phone call.”
During the 2018-2019 season, Beasley missed 13 games caring for his mother who ultimately passed in December 2018. When he returned to the court in January 2019, he quickly became the subject of jokes and social media memes when he accidentally checked into a game wearing the wrong shorts. However, while sports commentators and social media users teased him for that moment, the former NBA star revealed that the mistake was a result of him grieving not only his mother, but also his cousin, who had passed recently. 
Explaining how grief took away his desire to even want to play basketball, Beasley recalls constantly feeling sad to the point he would cry without even realizing it. Despite the handful of teammates who got a glimpse of what he was going through, the athlete says no one else knew, not because he didn’t want them to know, but rather because he didn’t know how to vocalize it.  
“I didn’t know how [to tell anyone]. I couldn’t. My whole life. From day one, from the day I got drafted. I was going through it all,” he explained. “And it’s like if I say it, y’all [the public] just laugh at it. If I act out on it or if I just slip out because I’m going through reality outside of this game, y’all just laugh at it.” 
“I’ve never been able to have a good game without talking about my past. Y’all don’t know my mental. No…nobody asked me sh** y’all ain’t care,” he added. 
This is not the first time Beasley has opened up about how much the public narrative impacted him while in the league. While appearing on “The Pivot” podcast, the former Lakers players shared: “Everything I did was [under] a f—g microscope.” 
“Everything I did, wrong, right and different. And all I wanted to do was play basketball. Every time they said something f—ked up about me, I was in the f—ing gym playing basketball. Every time they said I got pulled over with a bag of f—ing weed, every time somebody f—ing lied on me about something.”
Through the years, he has taken ownership of his mistakes, from NBA fines to the stress-induced substance abuse that landed him in rehab. However, today, as he still carries the emotional weight of these experiences, Beasley’s one wish is that someone had just listened to him at the time, because if he had some support, he believes his story would have been different. 
“How many times I tried to reintroduce myself? Go back and look at it. How many times I tried to apologize for who y’all thought I was? Go back and look at it. Y’all laughed at it every single time…every single time,” he said. “Just listen. Stop telling me what I mean. Just hear me. Stop telling me who you think I am. I’ve been saying my whole life. Stop telling me who you think I am. We judge decisions without knowing the choices.” 
“So just listen, and not just to me,” he concluded. 
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“Candace Owens’ stock, which was never very high, has fallen a long way,” President Donald Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
President Donald Trump unleashed his latest online tirade against conservative firebrand Candace Owens, calling the former MAGA darling “low IQ,” a frequent insult used against Black women.
In a Truth Social post Friday evening, Trump wrote, “Candace Owens’ stock, which was never very high, has fallen a long way.”
The U.S. president called out Owens’ personal attack on Brigitte Macron, the first lady of France, whom Owens has repeatedly accused of being a trans woman. Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron, who sued Owens for defamation, are friends and allies.
“Her attack on the First Lady of France is despicable,” said Trump, who added, “I believe, in this case, without verification, she is an extremely Low IQ individual!”
The post also included a doctored TIME magazine cover with an unflattering image of Owens with blurbs that read, “Candace Owens Lies, Lies, Lies,” “Uses Rich Men,” “0% Fact Check Ratio On All Credible Fact Checking Sites” and “Protects Sex Offenders.”
“Trump is back doing one of his favorite things, taking cheap shots at Black women instead of showing an ounce of seriousness about the job he was elected to do,” Brandon Weathersby, a spokesperson for American Bridge 21st Century, said in reaction to the president’s post. He tells theGrio, “I may not share any of Owens’ values—and obviously disavow her attacks on Brigitte Macron—but I can see this is the same tired pattern Trump has shown for years.”
He added, “Meanwhile, the people who voted for him are getting squeezed on rent, groceries, and bills, and this is what he chooses to spend his time on. It’s petty, it’s small, and it says everything about his priorities.”
Trump’s personal attack on Owens comes after he railed against her and other conservative influencers who have denounced their support for the president and his MAGA movement over a series of actions, most notably Trump’s war in Iran.
Candace Owens also took Trump to task for his administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, which have dogged Trump politically. She has also clashed with another Trump ally, Erika Kirk, the widow of slain conservative influencer and podcaster Charlie Kirk.
President Trump calling Owens “low IQ” comes just days after he used the term to describe U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, a double Harvard graduate and the first Black woman on the court.
As theGrio previously reported, Trump has repeatedly used the “low IQ” term to attack his perceived political enemies, many of whom have been Black women, including U.S. Reps. Jasmine Crockett, Maxine Waters, Ilhan Omar, and New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Minutes after using the term against Owens, he used it again to attack U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader of the U.S. House of Representatives.
“Hakeem “High Tax” Jeffries is a Low IQ individual who is not smart enough to be “running” the Democrat Party, and certainly not smart enough to be involved in running the United States of America,” the president wrote.

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When you’re Black in America, there is always someone, somewhere plotting to take your life. You can bet on that.
Authorities say a potentially devastating racist mass shooting was narrowly prevented after a North Carolina man was arrested with weapons and ammunition before he could carry out the attack in New Orleans.
According to the CountOn2, the suspect of this foiled hate crime has been identified as Christopher Gillum of Chapel Hill, N.C. He was taken into custody Wednesday (April 22) night at a hotel in Destin, Fla., after law enforcement officials said he had been under investigation for making “terroristic threats.” It is believed that Gillum was traveling to Louisiana with the intent to carry out a mass shooting specifically targeting Black folks. When deputies located him, Gillum was arrested him without incident while in possession of a handgun along with roughly 200 rounds of ammunition.
While authorities did not officially name the event, details strongly suggest the intended target was the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, culturally known as JazzFest, which drew 460,000 attendees last year. The event was scheduled to begin on Thursday, April 23, and carry on until May 3, which is the same time as the alleged plot. significantly raising concerns about the potential scale of harm had the plan been carried out.
Gillum’s family reported him missing on Tuesday, April 21. He had a history of self-harm, according to Lt. Clint Lyons of the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office in North Carolina. Gillum’s family told law enforcement he had a gun and “expressed recent threats to harm ‘Black people,’” according to a bulletin from police in Burlington, N.C.
Investigators say the arrest came after federal authorities alerted local law enforcement in Florida that Gillum was in the area and possibly en route to commit the attack. The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office then worked quickly to locate and apprehend Gillum. Officials noted that the coordination between agencies across multiple states was critical in stopping the suspected plot before it could unfold.
THIS is how efficient and effective police work should be. Not waiting on a tragedy only for it to be revealed that the alleged perpetrator had made threats and other disturbing statements that suggested a violent intent.
Gillum has a background in law enforcement, having previously worked as a police officer in North Carolina. At this time, authorities have not fully detailed how they became aware of his alleged plans, but the case is now being investigated by both state and federal agencies, including the FBI. Despite the alarming nature of the allegations, officials emphasized that there are currently no known active threats to any festivals or public events in Louisiana. The suspect is being held in Florida and is expected to be extradited to Louisiana, where he will face charges related to the alleged threats.
We hope that justice continues to prevail and that this man is removed from the public as he clearly poses a threat to Black Americans and potentially the rest of civil society.
Ex-North Carolina Cop Christopher Gillum Arrested For Alleged Plot To Kill Black People At New Orleans Jazz Festival was originally published on bossip.com

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Donald Trump’s Mental Fitness The Subject of Intense Scrutiny Following Zany Fox News Interview
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The new office, led by a homeowner assistance attorney, will target deed theft, a form of fraud that affects Black homeowners.
Two days after New York City Council Member Chi Ossé was arrested protesting the planned eviction of one of his constituents, Mayor Zohran Mamdani has taken action.
On Friday (Apr. 24), Mamdani established the Office of Deed Theft Prevention, headed by homeowner assistance lawyer Peter White, who has worked on deed theft litigation, foreclosures, bankruptcy and landlord-tenant disputes. He previously worked as a supervising attorney at the nonprofit organization Access Justice Brooklyn, providing pro bono legal services to low-income residents.
“The establishment of this office and the work going forward is an act of empathy for people,” White said during a news conference on Friday. “I see it as a direct correlation and an extension of the work that I’ve previously done. I’m excited to get this going.”
Scammers are stealing homes from New Yorkers — and Black and Brown homeowners are being targeted the most.

We’re launching the Mayor’s Office of Deed Theft Prevention, led by Director Peter White, to defend vulnerable homeowners.

And we are pausing the tax lien sale for the… pic.twitter.com/EZ3wV71Q6F
Ossé’s arrest on Wednesday was in protest of a tenant who had resided at the apartment for decades and became a victim of “deed theft,” which is a form of fraud affecting Black homeowners, as home ownership is transferred to a third-party illegally without consent. The practice often involves the use of forged documents, short sales and foreclosure rescue scams.
“The theft of a home is the theft of a family’s future,” Mamdani said in a statement. “Deed theft preys on the New Yorkers who can least afford it. Today, we are bringing the full force of city government to bear to stop it – to protect homeowners, defend generational wealth and make clear that this city will not tolerate the exploitation of our communities.”
The resident at the center of Ossé’s arrest on Wednesday has a complicated story, according to court records. Camella Charrington’s home is tied to an older relative through a Georgia conservatorship, with competing claims over the home’s sale. New York State Attorney General Letitia James’s office stated that the case was a property dispute, not a case of deed theft.
Ossé is hopeful that the new office will help provide clarity to cases such as Charrington’s.
“Having a dedicated office that is creating awareness and educating people will help them figure out if they’re dealing with deed theft or not, or point them in the right direction to seek help even if they’re not dealing with deed theft,” Ossé told THE CITY. He was on hand at the ceremony announcing the new position in his district, which includes neighborhoods such as Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights, which are historically Black and have been the frequent target of deed thefts for residents.
In a letter to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, Ossé and others revealed that from 2014 to 2023, state officials received about 3,500 complaints of deed theft.
“New York will not allow homes to be stolen through paperwork or pressure, or turned into speculative chips in someone else’s portfolio,” Ossé said.
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The DOJ charged SLPC with financial crimes accusing it of defrauding donors by using their money to pay informants inside groups such as the KKK.
Here’s a question: If the Trump administration isn’t a white supremacist organization, then how come President Donald Trump’s thoroughly subjugated Department of Justice is prosecuting one of the nation’s most well-known civil rights organizations for using paid informants to infiltrate white supremacist organizations?
According to the New York Times, on Tuesday, the Justice Department charged the Southern Poverty Law Center with financial crimes, accusing it of defrauding donors by using their money to secretly pay informants inside extremist organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan. So far, no individual affiliated with SPLC has been charged in the indictment, but the organization itself is facing charges of wire fraud, false statements to a bank, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. 
Now, for those of us who have been paying attention to how the DOJ has been moving since the start of Trump’s second term, we already know what this is, but before we get into how the Trump administration is more upset about white supremacist groups being infiltrated and reported on than it is about those groups existing in the first place, let’s take a look at exactly what the DOJ is alleging.
From the Times:
At a news conference announcing the charges, Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, said that from 2014 to 2023, the group made payments totaling more than $3 million to people who were affiliated with extremist organizations like the Ku Klux Klan and the National Socialist Party of America. The law center, he added, was “doing the exact opposite of what it told its donors it was doing — not dismantling extremism, but funding it.”
The indictment, however, offers little to support the notion that the group’s payments to informants was meant to aid the extremist groups they had infiltrated.
Prosecutors describe how one informant, which the law center refers to as a field source, “was a member of the online leadership chat group that planned the 2017 ‘Unite the Right’ event in Charlottesville, Virginia, and attended the event at the direction of the S.P.L.C.”
That rally included torch-wielding marchers chanting antisemitic slogans, and violent clashes that culminated with one participant ramming his car into a group of counterprotesters, killing a woman and leaving at least 19 others injured.
The informant “made racist postings under the supervision of the S.P.L.C. and helped coordinate transportation to the event for several attendees,” the charging document said. Between 2015 and 2023, the informant received more than $270,000 from the group, the indictment said.
Another informant affiliated with a neo-Nazi group was paid more than $1 million over a period of about nine years, according to the indictment, and in 2014 that informant stole 25 boxes of documents from an unidentified violent extremist group. The Southern Poverty Law Center later used those documents to create a report about the group.
So, essentially, the DOJ is charging the SPLC because it doesn’t think activists under deep cover should be paid to upend their lives for the cause for years on end. Well, that tracks.
Here’s another question, though: How exactly do DOJ prosecutors think the process of infiltrating an extremist group works? Because they seem to think an informant making racist posts to impress and gain the trust of racists is proof that those informants were actually real racist members of the group the whole time. Of course, they also don’t seem to understand that if an informant is stealing 25 boxes of documents from an extremist group to create a report on said group, that’s a clear sign that the informant is, indeed, an informant, not a member.
But, again, this isn’t about the law; it’s about a DOJ that has been taken over by MAGA sycophants protecting conservatism by protecting white supremacist groups, and, by extension, white supremacy.
Last week, when DOJ prosecutors were firing other DOJ prosecutors for prosecuting anti-abortion protesters accused of violence during the Biden administration, I noted in our report on the firings that “shortly after Trump was sworn into office, the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division saw a mass exodus of more than 100 attorneys, who resigned from the department due to its expressed agenda to steer away from (or outright gutting) cases involving civil rights protections for Black people, people of color and other marginalized groups in order to focus on white grievance and what it perceives as anti-conservative bias.”
Since January of last year, this DOJ has gone after universities it suspected of engaging in any DEI practices, taken legal action against Democratic leaders who wouldn’t let ICE agents terrorize their cities, sought to prevent trans people from owning guns, launched an investigation into Chicago’s Black mayor because it felt he was hiring too many Black people, and investigated anti-Turning Point USA protesters, who it claimed were members of the MAGA’s favorite boogey nan group, Antifa, which, as an organization, is about as real as the actual boogey man.
Last year, this same DOJ ended a settlement agreement regarding wastewater issues in a mostly Black rural Alabama county, citing the White House’s anti-DEI directive, all because environmental racism was addressed during the case. It also made the decision to end Biden-era police-accountability agreements with Minneapolis and Louisville, Ky., that came as a result of extensive investigations following the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, which it did one day after it announced the approval of a nearly $5 million settlement for the family of slain Jan. 6 rioter Ashli Babbitt.
So, yeah — the Trump administration is a white supremacist group, and the DOJ is its weaponized legal arm.
Anyway, the SPLC responded to the DOJ’s indictment in a statement denouncing it and the department.
 “We have recently received and are reviewing the charges; however, after today’s Department of Justice press conference we are outraged by the false allegations levied against SPLC – an organization that for 55 years has stood as a beacon of hope fighting white supremacy and various forms of injustice to create a multi-racial democracy where we can all live and thrive. Taking on violent hate and extremist groups is among the most dangerous work there is, and we believe it is also among the most important work we do. To be clear, this program saved lives,” the group’s statement read, according to CNN.
“The actions by the DOJ will not shake our resolve to fight for justice and ensure the promise of the Civil Rights movement becomes a reality for all. SPLC will vigorously defend ourselves, our staff and our work; we will continue to fight hate; and we will continue to envision and create a safer and more just world.”
SEE ALSO:
Trump Admin’s Attack On Civil Rights Groups Is A Call To Action 
Trump’s DOJ Accuses DOJ Prosecutors Under Biden Of ‘Weaponizing’ FACE Act

Justice Department Indicts Southern Poverty Law Center For Paying Informants Of White Supremacist Groups was originally published on newsone.com

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Rest In Power: Notable Black Folks Who We’ve Lost In 2026
The 30 Most Beautiful Black Women In Hollywood
Donald Trump’s Mental Fitness The Subject of Intense Scrutiny Following Zany Fox News Interview
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“Hollywood Baddies” highlights 25 actresses who continue to stay booked and busy, making their mark across film, television, and beyond.
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Hollywood is full of stars, but only a few truly stay working.
These women are more than just beautiful faces on the screen. They are consistent, in-demand, and constantly leveling up their careers. From leading blockbuster films to dominating streaming platforms, these actresses prove that talent, presence, and star power go hand in hand.
“Hollywood Baddies” highlights 25 actresses who continue to stay booked and busy, making their mark across film, television, and beyond.
Their impact goes far beyond appearances.
It shows up in their versatility, their ability to take on diverse roles, and their influence both on and off the screen. Many of these women are not just actresses, but producers, entrepreneurs, and cultural leaders shaping the direction of entertainment.
Their confidence, work ethic, and consistency are exactly why they continue to win.
When it comes to beauty, talent, and longevity, these actresses check every box.
Check out 25 actresses who stay booked and busy below.

Hollywood Baddies is more than just a list. It is a reminder that these women are shaping the culture in real time.
They are leading films, building brands, creating opportunities, and proving that staying booked and busy is about more than just talent. It is about consistency, presence, and knowing how to own every room they step into.
As Hollywood continues to evolve, these actresses remain at the forefront, setting the tone for what success looks like in today’s entertainment industry.
And one thing is clear. They are not slowing down anytime soon.
RELATED: Baller Babes: 50 of the Hottest NCAAW Basketball Players

Hollywood Baddies: 25 Actresses Who Stay Booked and Busy was originally published on hot1009.com

COMMENTARY: 5 Reasons Why Obama Will Beat Romney
The 30 Most Beautiful Black Women In Hollywood
Rest In Power: Notable Black Folks Who We’ve Lost In 2026
Donald Trump’s Mental Fitness The Subject of Intense Scrutiny Following Zany Fox News Interview
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April 23, 2026
The former reality star urges fans to embrace the pivot.
Former Basketball Wives star Draya Michele has stepped out from in front of the camera and into the kitchen as she embarks upon a new culinary career. 
The influencer revealed on social media that she had been quietly attending culinary school for months. In a series of Instagram photos and videos, Michele shared footage of herself in class, prepping ingredients and executing the French flambé technique, in which a chef adds high-proof alcohol to a hot pan and ignites it to create a burst of flames.
“Becoming a chef was never something on my mood board (until lately),” Michele wrote to over 9 million followers on Instagram. “I’ve enjoyed cooking for my loved ones for years, and now I’m just perfecting it.”

A post shared by Draya Michele (@drayamichele)
Michele described this new chapter in her life as her “Culinair era.” She encouraged her followers to pursue new interests, regardless of age or background. 
“You’re allowed to evolve. You’re allowed to pivot.” Her message said, “You’re allowed to discover new passions you never saw coming. It’s never too late to change your path or start something new. If you’ve been waiting for a sign… this is it.”
Michele has been incorporating cooking content into her social posts for several months, but she hasn’t positioned it as a pivot for her brand. 
Michele founded the swimwear line Mint Swim in 2011, using $12,000 to launch the brand, which offers high-quality swimwear for diverse body types. She also said she wanted to create a product that felt authentic to both herself and her fans.
“I wouldn’t start the company just to make a quick buck or to say I have a business. It’s something that I love, and I live, breathe, and eat it, and I think that my supporters that follow me, they can see that and they can tell. So, Mint Swim is just a genuine company altogether,” the entrepreneur told BLACK ENTERPRISE in 2016.
Also an actress, Michele has starred in nearly a dozen films. In 2022, she costarred with singer Ne-Yo in a BET+ film, The Sound of Christmas. 
RELATED CONTENT: Michael B. Jordan’s Career Before His Oscar Triumph

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April 23, 2026
Charles Ford faces federal charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm and making false statements.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Louisiana has charged a 56-year-old man with illegally possessing and providing the firearm used in a weekend mass shooting that killed eight children
Charles Ford faces federal charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm and making false statements to federal agents, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced April 21. Investigators allege that Ford provided the assault-style pistol used by 31-year-old Shamar Elkins to carry out the murders.
If convicted, Ford faces up to 20 years in federal prison.
According to court documents, Ford initially denied having the weapon before admitting he possessed it. He later claimed to investigators that Elkins likely stole the gun from his truck in the weeks leading up to the shooting. 
“The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (“ATF”) is engaged and committed to holding people accountable for illegal possession and use of firearms that harm our community,” said Alcohol, Tobacco, and Fireamrs Special Agent Joshua Jackson said in a statement. “Holding people accountable does not stop with the person who pulled the trigger but also includes those who give access to and proliferate firearms that are later used in violent crime.”
Shreveport Man Arrested for Allegedly Supplying Gun Used by Shamar Elkins in Mass Shooting That Killed 8 Children

Faces Federal Prison Time
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Louisiana has charged Charles Ford, 56, with felon in possession of a… pic.twitter.com/SmTzk3dVPN
The shooting, described by officials as “beyond comprehension,” resulted in the deaths of seven of Elkins’ children and one of their cousins. The victims ranged in age from 3 to 11. Two women, including Elkins’ wife, were also shot and remain hospitalized. A ninth child escaped the massacre by jumping from the roof of the home during the shooting.
Elkins died following a police pursuit and a shootout with officers.
Because Elkins cannot face trial, U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Keller said federal prosecutors are committed to holding those who enabled the violence accountable. Keller noted that tracing the weapon led investigators to Ford after the original purchaser of the firearm informed law enforcement she had given the weapon to him.
RELATED CONTENT: Louisiana Man Kills 8 Children, 7 Of His Own, In Mass Shooting

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DST Group employees will be encouraged to engage with events at Muzeu Hugo Delgado
In May 1968, when French students, then workers, took to the streets of Paris in a revolutionary cloud of protest, they dug up cobblestones and demanded the world be remade. They did not mean better infrastructure; they meant a fairer, freer society. They dreamed of knowledge and emancipation for everyone. “Be realistic,” they chanted, “demand the impossible.”
This month, that exact sentiment takes centre stage in northern Portugal. In the city of Braga, an hour north east of Porto, a new museum dubbed Muzeu—Thought and Contemporary Art DST will open its doors. It is home to one of the country’s most significant private art collections, that of the DST Group.
The museum’s director, Helena Mendes Pereira, says the project is about much more than simply showcasing the 1,500-plus works in the company’s holdings: the space aims to be a civic forum for cultural, philosophical and political discussion. The Braga-based architect José Manuel Carvalho Araújo has transformed the site—a former courthouse in the historic centre of the city—into a storied exhibition space rising over four floors. An auditorium at the top will host a rolling programme of live events.
With more than 100 works by 96 Portuguese and international artists, from Alex Katz and Francesco Clemente to Franz West and Nan Goldin, the inaugural exhibition reprises as its title a version of that erstwhile French slogan, Let Us Be Realistic, Let Us Demand the Impossible. “It’s a political statement,” Pereira says. On 24 April, the museum will open for the company’s workers only, and from the day after—Freedom Day, the anniversary of the revolution—for the general public. Entrance will be free for everyone during that first week. And on 1 May, the museum will close to mark International Workers’ Day.
DST Group is no ordinary industrial conglomerate. It was founded in the 1940s by Domingos da Silva Teixeira, father of the current chairman José Teixeira, and supplied materials for local construction projects during the oppressive years of the Estado Novo fascist dictatorship. In 1974, the Carnation Revolution—so called because civilians put flowers in soldiers’ guns—brought the regime down with remarkably little bloodshed. This ushered in a new, tumultuous era of leftist reform, economic struggle, decolonisation and cultural revival.
DST Group chairman José Teixeira’s leftist principles are reflected in the museum’s commitment to community involvement Hugo Delgado
In the decades since, DST has branched out into businesses including property, infrastructure, water, telecoms and renewables. The family has also, from the outset, prioritised cultural investment, setting up a biennial, a photography award, three literary awards and an art in public space and sustainability award. It also boasts an art gallery, which exists not to sell but to buy works for the collection from the artists it supports. It is actively engaged in education, funding scholarships and a professorship, collaborating with universities and serving as industry affiliate for the MIT Portugal education and research programme.
Peireira describes these multi-layered activities not just as philanthropic endeavours but as a kind of human resources toolkit. The collection, she says, is for everyone who works there. Pieces are displayed throughout the company’s factories and offices, and the museum, once opened, will be free to enter for employees. Ahead of the opening, they are also being offered training, if they would like it, to act as educational exhibition guides.
“The museum is not a space for the elite,” Pereira says. “Any worker can participate. We really believe that everyone deserves a good life. We pay better and we also manage human resources with philosophy lessons, reading books together, with conference talks given by international authors and philosophers—for our workers, that is, not for the outside but for the inside. We believe culture is a way that we can make workers happier and also more productive.”
Muzeu now offers the opportunity to share these values with the wider community, not least because, as a building company, its employees have literally built it themselves. “It’s poetic,” Pereira says. “We have built our own house.”
The 3,000 sq. m of exhibition space inside is simply designed to look like a factory, she says: “It’s very industrial, very structuralist, everything in white, very simple.” This area will host a rotating selection of works from the collection, as well as a room dedicated to Anselm Kiefer, a key artist in the collection.
A central staircase leads up to the auditorium, where children will take part in philosophy workshops and jazz fans will engage in collective listening sessions. This has been intentionally placed at the top of the building. From the work ambience of the “factory” below, visitors move up into a space where dreaming, as Pereira puts it, is always possible: “It’s a never-ending story.”
Teixeira, Pereira says, is a leftist. And his museum will not be a neutral space. “We’re going to have a political vision and create influence. In Europe, in the United States, we are living in very strange times. Our idea is very clear: it’s to inform and to foster discussion with the community and try to create a better situation for democracy.”
Famous Mattioli collection loan will make Museo del Novecento “undoubtedly the most important centre for Futurist art” when it goes on display next spring
Museu de Arte Contemporânea Armando Martins opens on 22 March, at a time of significant growth in Lisbon’s art scene
Sonnabend Collection in Mantua—home to the collection of the late dealer Ileana Sonnabend—includes works by Jasper Johns and Andy Warhol as well as contemporary artists
Collection of Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah Al Thani finds a long-term home at the Hôtel de la Marine, the former repository of French royal furniture, art and jewels

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Attacking civil rights groups like SPLC follows a pattern and practice of the administration’s revisionist terror and political prosecutions. We can’t afford to look away. 
Exactly one year after civil rights groups publicly declared their commitment to defending against the Trump administration’s anti-civil rights agenda, the empire struck back with politically motivated charges against the Southern Poverty Law Center. News of the Department of Justice filing charges against SPLC follows a pattern and practice of revisionist terror and political prosecutions.  
Combined with the increasing abuses of power and attacks on our elections, the administration is ramping up its efforts to restore the dominance of white supremacy. It wants to overpower our collective will and dictate how we live, move, and exist in this country. 
While many groups have been warning since before the 2024 election that this would happen, there’s no denying we are now living the beginning of our worst fears. 
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Maya Wiley, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, called the move the latest example of the administration’s intimidation and retaliation against people doing the work of protecting communities from extremist terror and discrimination. 
“We will not be intimidated, and we will not abandon our partners,” Wiley said in a statement. “We are the ones who make sure that everyone can live, love, vote, work, study, travel, and simply be themselves, free from discrimination. This administration views that as a threat to its power.” 
She called the latest move the worst attack on movement communities since COINTELPRO. Wiley also said the dismantling of our rights was their only path to absolute power.
Affirming solidarity with civil and human rights advocates, People for the American Way President Svante Myrick echoed Wiley’s sentiments, calling out the aggressive attempts to erase a diverse democratic society. 
“Donald Trump and his corrupt Department of Justice are abusing the power of the federal government to wage war against American values and the people and organizations that stand up for them,” Myrick said in a statement. “They have turned the Justice Department, once a powerful force for good, into a reactionary weapon for dismantling a century’s worth of progress. And they are attacking anyone who might get in their way, from dedicated public servants to powerful law firms to civil rights defenders like the Southern Poverty Law Center.”
It’s clear the administration went after SPLC with frivolous fraud claims as part of its efforts to intimidate and control. Last year’s shakedowns and threats against lawyers, many of whom supported civil rights work and pro bono efforts, were part of an effort to neutralize the field. 
There is no waiting and riding this out. The administration continues to throw things at the wall, escalating at each turn, and hoping some of the worst will stick.
Defending our communities against what is happening requires more than simply people “standing up to Trump” and denouncing him and his immediate circle. There’s an entire ecosystem of hate and repression deeply rooted in propaganda dating back to the Reconstruction era.  
The moment requires that we not only pay attention but clearly name the harms happening. Our presence must remain constant amid the dismantling of federal civil rights protections, election threats, and targeted prosecutions. 
Discord and division are tools to keep us on edge and demobilized. The constant threats of criminalization and retribution based on lies about prior elections will only increase the closer we get to the 2026 midterm election. 
These are tactics of a power-mad opposition desperate to remain in control. Like emancipation and Reconstruction, the Civil Rights Movement didn’t suddenly change hearts and minds. 
We’ve always had to fight to protect our rights and communities, and where necessary, expand protections for Black and other communities impacted by discrimination. 
With each passing day, it becomes increasingly clear that we are literally fighting for our lives and freedom. I am often reminded of Ida B. Wells-Barnett’s quote that “with no sacredness of the ballot, there can be no sacredness of human life itself.” 
It’s a guiding principle in my work and personal life. The attacks on our communities, livelihoods, and rights are all connected. 
And I understand that, for many, keeping our heads down and staying quiet is often seen as a way to stay safe and out of harm’s way. But we can’t just close our eyes and pray the hate away. 
While the 2026 midterm election is over six months away, we can’t simply hope a champion shows up. Or that maybe a certain party will do the right thing. Primary elections happening right now demand we choose the best person to represent us and block the harm as we build new systems. 
And while voting alone will not save us, I remain firm in my belief that it is one of our most important tools for organizing governing power. States have always been a testing ground for extremist policies, and the politics of retribution have long been leveraged against us on the local level. 
But states and local communities have also been innovation labs of resistance and resilience. 
You do not have to love or even like either major party. But we cannot shrug this off or look away. Don’t wait for the state to come for you, because there might not be anyone left standing to have your back.
We do not have the luxury of waiting to see what happens. Organizing and connecting in the community around a governing agenda is the best way to ensure our people are protected. 
SEE ALSO: 
Southern Poverty Law Center Indicted By DOJ For Using Paid Informants
The FISA Warrantless Surveillance Loophole Threatens Black Communities
Trump’s Election Order Is Open Rebellion Against The Country
States Must Hold Line Against Trump’s Election Subversion
The Trump Administration’s Latest Attack On Civil Rights Groups Is A Call To Action  was originally published on newsone.com

COMMENTARY: 5 Reasons Why Obama Will Beat Romney
Rest In Power: Notable Black Folks Who We’ve Lost In 2026
The 30 Most Beautiful Black Women In Hollywood
Donald Trump’s Mental Fitness The Subject of Intense Scrutiny Following Zany Fox News Interview
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April 23, 2026
After Kennedy seemed confused by the questions, Alsobrooks read the quote out loud and when that didn’t work, she suggested playing the clip after Kenendy said he would need to hear it.
In a tense exchange between Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Maryland Democratic Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, Kennedy apologized for recorded comments he made in the past about Black kids being “reparented,” but stood his ground on claims he never said it. 
During an April 22 hearing, Alsobrooks asked the secretary if he could admit to suggesting he had a plan that would send Black children to rural rehabilitation centers to be “reparented” after he failed to do so when Rep. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.) brought up the same remarks when appearing before the House Ways and Means Committee last week.
“Now, you’ve had some trouble with the truth, I’ve seen it myself during your appearances in Congress and as we all saw clearly during your exchange with Congresswoman Sewell. Can you admit today that you said that every Black kid can get reparented on a wellness farm?” she asked. 
After Kennedy seemed confused by the questions, Alsobrooks read the quote out loud, and when that didn’t work, she suggested playing the clip after Kennedy said he would need to hear it. Despite having a recording, the HHS leader said “he doesn’t believe it,” but then said, “If I said it, I apologize, but I’d have to see the transcript.” 
ALSOBROOKS: I have the recording. I can play it

RFK Jr: I do not believe that every Black kid should be re-parented on a wellness farm and I have never believed it

ALSOBROOKS: Well you said it, sir, I have the video

RFK Jr: I’d have to see the transcript pic.twitter.com/YQMGkMKYdg
He very much did suggest it. While appearing on the High Level Conversations podcast during his 2024 presidential campaign, he claimed “psychiatric drugs, which every black kid is now just standard put on, Adderall, SSRIs, benzos which are known to induce violence and those kids are going to have a chance to go somewhere and get reparented; to live in a community where there’ll be no cell phones no screens you’ll actually have to talk to people.”

This isn’t the only controversial comment Kennedy allegedly made, that Alsobrooks stood firm on, regarding the welfare of Black people. The Hill reported he once suggested that Black individuals shouldn’t follow the same immunization schedule as others since “their immune system is better than ours.” 
In a statement defending the agency leader, a HHS spokesperson said, “Prior to his time as Secretary, he described these communities as spaces where individuals, particularly young people facing alienation, mental health challenges, and rising rates of despair, could undergo a form of ‘reparenting.’” 
In his first appearance before Congress in 2026, the secretary praised the agency’s work, claiming it is changing the nation’s dietary guidelines and reducing waste, fraud, and abuse, according to the New York Amsterdam News.
While Republicans on the committee celebrated Kennedy’s work as “a breath of fresh air,” emphasizing nutrition and overall health, Democrats were focused on the Trump Administration’s plan to cut close to 12% from his department’s 2027 budget, carving over $100 billion from the agency that provides healthcare services to all Americans. 
In addition to cutting $5 billion from the National Institutes of Health, the nation’s leading health and biomedical research organization, the proposed cuts would also terminate a program that provides home heating and energy assistance to millions of households. 
It would also cut budgets for federal programs that assist in feeding low-income families and children.
RELATED CONTENT: Lawmakers Grill Health Secretary RFK Jr. Over Medicaid Cuts, Black Maternal Health

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April 23, 2026
The R&B singer has filed a lawsuit against Julie McKnight, Brian McKnight Jr., podcasters Marc Lamont and Tasha K, as well as the New York Post.
Recording artist Brian McKnight has filed a lawsuit against his former wife, Julie McKnight, his son, Brian McKnight Jr., podcasters Marc Lamont and Tasha K, as well as the New York Post. He accuses them of spreading a false narrative about his parenting and his refusal to tell his dying son, Niko, that he loved him.
According to TMZ, the R&B singer is claiming that the accused were involved in a coordinated attempt to ruin his reputation and make money, through “malicious character assassination” in the lawsuit filed. He said that he is the victim of a “shockingly dishonest” and “sensational but false narrative” after they said that he abandoned his children.
In the suit, he also claimed that Tasha K falsely reported that he was a cheater and that he had sex with a minor. He says that his reputation has taken a hit because of the narrative they spread. He is seeking damages because the “relentless and persistent assault upon his character” gave him no choice but to take legal action.
The singer is keeping his lawyers busy.
In May 2025, McKnight also accused controversial singer Jaguar Wright of spreading salacious allegations online. He claimed that she said that McKnight hired and mistreated prostitutes during sexual encounters. The “Back At One” vocalist also denied Wright’s claims that he was abusive toward his former wife, Julie, whom Wright says is her cousin. The singer also said that she has been evading service, as multiple attempts have been made to serve her.
“It is apparent that [Wright] is evading service,” McKnight’s attorney Ryan Saba said, as captured by Hot New Hip Hop. “Given that [McKnight] made reasonable attempts to serve [Wright] and [Wright] is evading service by refusing to answer the door or open the door, or to sign the return receipt, service by publication is necessary to provide notice of [McKnight’s] complaint.”
RELATED CONTENT: Brian McKnight and Estranged Daughter Settle Differences Before Court Battle

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