Spring is a season for growth, and if personal growth is on your agenda, Tabitha Brown has a guide to get you there. In January, the actress, entrepreneur and internet favorite published her fourth book, “I Did a New Thing: 30 Days to Living Free” (HarperCollins), a step-by-step guide to stepping out of our comfort zones. As Brown recently told theGrio’s “Writing Black” podcast, her latest effort was the ideal sequel to her 2022 bestselling memoir, “Feeding the Soul.”

“ ‘Feeding the Soul’ was more about how I found my way to like [Tabitha], right? You know, finding my freedom again,” she shared. “‘I Did a New Thing’ is about how you can find it; like me showing you some of the things that I do to open up even more of my freedom; open up more about myself; find out new discoveries about myself — because we all are forever changing, right?”

Brown knows a thing or two about change; in less than a decade and in the midst of a global pandemic, her effervescent, down-home personality, coupled with her commitment to vegan living, catapulted her from struggling actress to Emmy-winning household name — with a line of household goods at Target, among other ventures. Even through her acceptance amongst Hollywood elites, her warmth and authenticity has continued to charm and inspire her devoted fanbase and newcomers alike, she’s the first to admit she’s still evolving; largely by leaning into the unfamiliar.

“Sometimes we don’t know what we like. We get in a stage where we’ve done it all, and we are in routine, and we don’t know what we like right now, and the only way to figure out a new thing that you like is trying something new — or when you figure out, ‘You know what, I actually don’t like doing this anymore, or I don’t like this thing,” she explained. “So it was all about that for me. I wanted to kind of share my experience of doing a new thing, which I’ve been doing for years. But now I get to do it in a free space, right? I’m a whole free woman, and so I get to do it and share that with others, with the hope of pushing other people to do the same — you know, discovering something new about themselves.”

Honoring the base that continues to bolster Brown’s thriving career, “I Did a New Thing” features several of those voices and experiences alongside her own, an affirming element Brown credits to her longtime co-writer, NAACP Award-winner Tracey Michae’l Lewis-Giggetts. How did they do it? Hear all that and more as Tabitha Brown joins this week’s episode of “Writing Black,” available on theGrio Black Podcast Network or wherever you listen to your podcasts.

Recommended Stories

Maiysha Kai is theGrio’s lifestyle editor, covering all things Black and beautiful. Her work is informed by two decades of experience in fashion and entertainment, great books, and the brilliance of Black culture. She is also the editor-author of Body: Words of Change series and the host of ‘Writing Black‘ on theGrio Black Podcast Network.

Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrio’s newsletter. 

LSU basketball star Angel Reese has been a polarizing figure since she led her team to win the NCAA Women’s Championship in 2023. She plays with the same exceptional talent, trash talking swag and cockiness as her male counterparts, so there’s no reason for her to receive so much hate. And yet, we know probably already know why she’s criticized so harshly.

It’s no secret that this isn’t a world that appreciates smart, confident Black women, but lately the harassment and hate has gotten out of control. Don’t believe me, just look at the reaction to Beyoncé putting out a country album. All Reese did was be a spectacular basketball player who’s proud of how good she is.

Following LSU’s 94-87 loss to Iowa in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament on Monday, she spoke about the pressure and attacks she’s faced since LSU’s championship win over Iowa last season.

“I’ve been through so much,” Reese said. “I’ve seen so much. I’ve been attacked so many times, death threats, I’ve been sexualized, I’ve been threatened, I’ve been so many things, and I’ve stood strong every single time.”

We know people like to take their sports seriously, but if you’re sending a college kid death threats over a basketball game, you need to rethink all your life choices. Sadly, most of these threats probably aren’t related to sports, but my point still stands. All these haters who can’t fathom a world where Black women refuse to stand aside and let mediocre men have the spotlight need to get over themselves and realize we’re not letting them just fail upwards anymore.

Just because you know you can’t play ball better than Angel doesn’t mean you get to attack her character. She shouldn’t have to remind you that she’s human. Even though she’s just 21-years-old, the basketball star displayed a wisdom beyond her years by knowing exactly who she is and refusing to apologize for that.

“All this has happened since I won the national championship,” she said. “And it sucks, but I still wouldn’t change anything, and I would still sit here and say I’m unapologetically me. I’m going to always leave that mark and be who I am and stand on that.”

Meanwhile, Los Angeles Times columnist Ben Bolch issued an apology on Monday for a controversial story he wrote on LSU’s matchup against UCLA. He referred to LSU as “dirty debutantes” and “villains.” The offensive language has since been removed from the piece, with Bolch writing in his apology, “I have failed miserably in my choice of words.”

“In my column previewing the LSU-UCLA women’s basketball game, I tried to be clever in my phrasing about one team’s attitude, using alliteration while not understanding the deeply offensive connotation or associations,” Bolch wrote. “I also used metaphors that were not appropriate. Our society has had to deal with so many layers of misogyny, racism and negativity that I can now see why the words I used were wrong. It was not my intent to be hurtful, but I now understand that I terribly missed the mark.”

He continued, “UCLA, a school I have covered for nearly a decade, champions diversity and is known as a leader in inclusivity. However, I have not upheld that standard in what I wrote and I will do much better. I am deeply sorry.”

If you have a problem with the way Angel Reese plays basketball, or handles herself on court, we are wondering if you also have a problem with LeBron James, Steph Curry, Trae Young, Damian Lillard, and other notable players who show plenty of personality in their game. If it’s just Angel who gets your scorn, then you need to check your misogyny and just enjoy the basketball.

Watching “The Batman” on mute. Plans of installing a jail at Donda Academy. Pretending to “please” himself. Threatening to punch a staffer. Ranting about the greatness of Hitler. Treating white staffers better than his Black staffers.

These are all things Kanye West has been accused of in a new lawsuit from Trevor Phillps, a Black former employee of the controversial rapper.

The 42-page complaint obtained by Rolling Stone gives everyone a peak into what it’s allegedly like to work for the Chicago rapper. Phillips also described moments where he would attempt to go against West’s ridiculous behavior and in response, would be humiliated and harassed in front of others.

More from Rolling Stone:

From the start of his nine-month employment in November 2022, Phillips, who is Black, says it was “immediately apparent” that Ye “treated the Black staff considerably worse than white employees” and would “scream and berate Black employees, while never even as much raising his tone at the white staff.”

Coming on board weeks after Ye’s fallout with Adidas and Gap over his antisemitic remarks, Phillips claims Ye continued to “double down” and make similar statements throughout his employment. Ye also threatened to go after the LGBTQ+ community “next,” according to the suit, because “gay people are controlled by Bill Gates so that they don’t have children for population control.”

Remember when Ye was seen donning a “WHITE LIVES MATTER” t-shirt along with Candace Owens at his Yeezy fashion show? Phillips was hired just shortly after that, and was originally tasked with being a part of the “Vertically Integrated Crew.” But his role continued to change to the point where he started working at Donda Academy, Ye’s (failed) private Christian school.

Along with plans of creating a jail in the school, Phillips also claims that West would spread antisemitic language and other inappropriate remarks in front of other students including that he only dates white women and that he would fire any employees that were fat, according to Rolling Stone.

West’s relationship with Phillips officially turned for the worse in May 2023, after the rapper got mad at the way he tended a garden. Allegedly, in front of a crowd, Ye told Phillops to “get the fuck out of here” and that he was fired.

In an attempt to keep his job, Phillips pleaded with Ye, explaining that his daughter and brother both attended Donda Academy, and that he was dealing with his own medical issues. West allegedly didn’t care and told him, “‘F**k your daughter. I don’t give a fuck about none of that.’”

He also claims in the lawsuit that the rapper later threatened to punch him in the face.

As a result, Phillips is seeking $35,000 for a hostile workplace, discrimination based on race, and “whistleblower retaliation,” according to Rolling Stone.

Abortion rights advocates fear women, especially those from marginalized communities, will stop seeking medical care due to health care workers alerting law enforcement about patients who have self-managed abortions.

The practice will scare women “from feeling like they can confide in and share information with their doctors” who are there to “help them and take care of them,” Lauren Johnson, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Abortion Criminal Defense Initiative, told theGrio.

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a self-managed abortion takes place when an individual terminates a pregnancy usually by nontraditional means such as taking medication, using vitamins, herbs, alcohol, or other toxic substances. They are often carried out by individuals experiencing obstacles to abortion care, including people of color, those in low-income communities, and people living in either abortion-restrictive states or in areas located near medical facilities.

Rafa Kidvai, director of If/When/How’s Repro Legal Defense Fund, told theGrio some people are “reticent to talk to medical providers and get the medical treatment that they need because they cannot trust the people who can meet their needs.”

If/When/How’s Repro Legal Defense Fund recently worked on a case where Lizelle Gonzalez, a Texas resident, was charged with murder over a self-managed abortion. Gonzalez took misoprostol, an abortion drug usually paired with mifepristone, to terminate her pregnancy at 19 weeks.

Gonzalez was treated at a local hospital and was discharged after experiencing abdominal pain. She visited the hospital the next day and doctors performed a caesarian section to deliver a stillborn baby.

The doctors tipped off the district attorney’s office about Gonzalez’s self-managed abortion, which then led to the murder charges that were later dropped.  

Under Texas state law, a pregnant person cannot be criminally prosecuted for carrying out their own abortion.

Johnson of the ACLU told theGrio that since a self-managed abortion is not a “criminal act” the doctors in this case should not have informed law enforcement of Gonzalez’s abortion.

Johnson added that circumstances that require a doctor to report to law enforcement by law are “very narrow.”

Gonzalez alleges in the lawsuit that due to the arrest, spending two days in jail and after feeling the impacts of the media covering her case, she suffered harm.

Clarifying how media coverage can harm those accused of a crime, Kidvai of If/When/How’s Repro Legal Defense Fund said, “Oftentimes information from the prosecutor’s office or law enforcement is leaked to the media in order to shape the public narrative of the case.”

“That shaping is never to be trusted,” added Kidvai. “Lizelle’s case is highly emblematic of this exact problem … prosecutors made false representations in order to pursue her case.”

Gonzalez filed a $1 million lawsuit against Starr County District Attorney Gocha Ramirez for erroneously charging her with murder.

In the meantime, Ramirez and the State Bar of Texas reached an agreement for the prosecutor to pay a $1,250 fine and for his law license to be placed in a probated suspension status for 12 months.

Johnson of the ACLU told theGrio that Ramirez’s punishment will not prohibit him from continuing to prosecute cases.

Kidvai said it is “devastating and terrifying” that prosecutors are not held accountable in any “real way and continue to function” despite “the amount of violence, harm, and cruelty that prosecutors are able to inflict upon communities in the name of justice.”

Gonzalez’s case took place prior to the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022, granting states the authority to enact their own abortion laws. Since then, many states across the nation have enacted abortion bans, including Texas, Idaho, Florida, Georgia, and Alabama, that have incorporated restrictions that have disproportionately impacted women of color.

Johnson of the ACLU told theGrio that cases like Gonzalez’s “will continue to take place” across the country.

Kidvai of If/When/How’s Repro Legal Defense Fund said marginalized communities are disproportionately targeted by prosecutors and law enforcement in abortion cases because “that’s the purpose of criminalization.”

Their aim is “break apart communities and to inflict further trauma upon marginalized people,” Kidvai argued.

She added that people of color are “surveilled in different ways.”

“Who gets reported is not just an accident. It’s not random,” she continued. “It’s about people’s biases … that lead to why people are reported in the first place.”

Recommended Stories

Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrio’s newsletter.

In a pioneering effort to elevate Black queer history and culture within academia, graduates from Howard University and Bowie State University working for The Human Rights Campaign have unveiled “Renaissance: A Queer Syllabus.”

“Inspired by Beyoncé’s chart-topping album, this dynamic educational resource designed to celebrate the beauty, brilliance and resilience of the LBTQ+ community. This syllabus aims to amplify diverse voices, empower communities pushed to the margins, and promote inclusivity and a sense of belonging within higher education,” the syllabus states. “In light of the recent declaration of a national state of emergency for members of the LGBTQ+ community by the Human Rights Campaign, this syllabus becomes even more significant. It serves as a powerful tool to navigate these challenging times and Forster a deeper understanding of the experiences and contributions of LBTQ+ individuals.”

Curated by Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s HBCU Program Director Leslie D. Hall, MSW, Director (Bowie State University 2012 (Bachelor), Howard University 2014 (MSW), Howard University 2024 (Ph.D.)); HBCU Program Manager, Justin Calhoun (Howard University); Associate Director Chauna Lawson (Bowie State University, Howard University and a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.); and designer Korey Foster (Howard University), Renaissance: A Queer Syllabus transcends conventional boundaries of academia by blending music, literature, film, and art into a comprehensive exploration of Black queer and feminist studies. Each track on Beyoncé’s album serves as a catalyst for dissecting themes of joy, resilience, innovation, and legacy within the Black LGBTQ+ community.

With nearly 30 HBCUs set to integrate Renaissance into their curricula, including institutions such as Howard University, North Carolina A&T University, Prairie View A&M University, and Shaw University, the impact of this initiative is poised to be far-reaching. Leslie Hall, MSW, underscores the transformative potential of the syllabus, envisioning it as a tool for resistance and empowerment. “We want folks to add this resource to the arsenal of resistance,” Hall explains. “The syllabus allows educators to utilize music to undergird the works of scholars and authors that emphasize the joy and brilliance of the LGBTQ+ community.”

“Black queer history and culture has always been a vital part of Black culture as a whole. However, this rich area of history is often overlooked. Many of us have spent most of our lives hiding our sexuality and identities due to the stigma that came along with it. The Renaissance Syllabus was not only conceptualized out of a global need for highlighting Black LGBTQ+ culture. It was birthed from a longing of our own self-discovery.” Chauna Lawson told Watch The Yard in an email.

At a time when diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives face mounting challenges and opposition, Renaissance: A Queer Syllabus stands as a beacon of hope and progress. By amplifying marginalized voices and fostering dialogue around LGBTQ+ identities, this collaborative effort between HBCU graduates and the Human Rights Campaign exemplifies the power of education to effect meaningful change. As students and educators engage with the syllabus, they embark on a transformative journey towards greater understanding, empathy, and acceptance of all members of the Black community..

Click here to see the free syllabus for yourself.

NEW YORK (AP) — Above a bodega in New York City’s Harlem neighborhood, a mosque congregation hosts iftar, the traditional Islamic end of fast meal, for hundreds of hungry migrants every night during this holy month of Ramadan.

Up north in the Bronx, an imam has turned the two-story brick residence that houses his mosque into a makeshift overnight shelter for migrants, many of them men from his native Senegal.

Islamic institutions in the Big Apple are struggling to keep up with the needs of the city’s migrant population as an increasing number of asylum seekers come from Muslim-majority African countries. The challenge has become all the more pronounced during Ramadan, which began March 11 and ends April 9.

Many mosques have opened their doors to migrants during the daylight hours, becoming de facto day centers where new arrivals can find a quiet place to rest and recover, oftentimes following restless nights sleeping on the streets or in the subway.

Muslim leaders say they’ve stepped up their appeals for donations of money, food, clothing and other supplies in recent days.

“We’re doing what we can do, but we can’t do everything. That’s the bottom line,” said Moussa Sanogo, assistant imam at the Masjid Aqsa-Salam in Harlem, just north of Central Park. “These brothers, they don’t eat enough. They’re starving when they get here. Can you imagine? Starving. In America.”

Imam Omar Niass, who runs Jamhiyatu Ansaru-Deen, the mosque in the Bronx, said providing a place for newly arrived migrants to bed down is the least he can do, even if it has come at great personal expense.

His utility bills have long since outpaced his ability to pay. He estimates he’s behind about $7,000 on the home’s electricity service and another $11,000 on water service.

“In our culture, you can’t deny the people who come to the mosque,” he said on a recent Friday as more than 50 men arrived for afternoon prayers. “We keep receiving the people because they have nowhere to go. If they come, they stay. We do what we can to feed them, to help them.”

The latest migrant surge has seen more than 185,000 asylum seekers arrive in New York City since the spring of 2022, with Africans from majority Muslim nations such as Senegal, Guinea and Mauritania among the top nationalities represented in new cases in federal immigration courts in the state.

New York City’s estimated 275 mosques were among the first places to feel the impact of the African wave, as they’re often migrants’ first stop upon arriving in the city, said Assefash Makonnen, of African Communities Together, a Harlem-based advocacy group supporting African immigrants.

But relying solely on the generosity of faith-based communities — many of which are already struggling to keep afloat — isn’t sustainable in the long run, she said.

Last summer, Democratic Mayor Eric Adams announced to fanfare a program meant to provide funding, security and other support for up to 75 mosques, churches and synagogues that agreed to provide overnight shelter to migrants.

So far, though, just six houses of worship holding around 100 beds have been approved to provide additional space for the more than 64,000 migrants currently housed by the city in hotels and other shelters.

Recommended Stories

Bishop Matthew Heyd of the Episcopal Diocese of New York said the challenge for many faith-based institutions is that they’re located in older buildings that don’t meet current fire safety standards.

With more “commonsense” regulations, he said, houses of worship are prepared to provide 5,000 additional beds for migrants at a fraction of the cost the city is currently paying to shelter migrants in hotels across the five boroughs.

“We want to be part of the solution to this. We have been before, and can be now,” Heyd said, referring to a network of faith-based shelters that grew in response to the city’s homeless crisis in the 1980s.

Adams spokesperson Kayla Mamelak said the city, in response to the concerns, lowered the maximum number of beds permitted at faith-based shelters earlier this year from 19 to 15, meaning they wouldn’t be required to have sprinkler systems under city building codes.

“We are making changes where we can,” she said. “Obviously the health and safety of the people we are sheltering has to be the priority. You just can’t walk into a church and turn it into a shelter.”

In the Bronx, Niass said he hasn’t given the city program much thought. He also stressed he doesn’t collect rent from the migrants, in contrast to the illegal, dangerously overcrowded migrant boarding houses the city has shut down in recent weeks.

Still, the conditions at the mosque are less than ideal.

On a recent visit, men rested on the floor of a basement prayer room in between the day’s five prayer times. More lounged out in the backyard, where there was a microwave and hot water kettle set up for preparing basic meals, as well as a shed for storing luggage and a row of file cabinets for incoming mail. Near the driveway was a portable toilet covered in a blue tarp that did little to mask the odors that drew swarms of flies.

Malick Thiam, a Senegalese migrant who has been staying at Niass’ mosque for about a month, said he’s thankful for the hospitality but looks forward to finding a place of his own.

The 29-year-old, who arrived in the country in August, said he’s recently started work making late-night food deliveries. He said he typically returns to the mosque as others get up for early morning work shifts, allowing him to avoid conflicts as men jockey over sleeping spots.

“Sometimes they got fighting, sometimes they got many problems,” Thiam said, speaking in clear but at times broken English as he relaxed in the mosque’s backyard. “Living here is not easy. It is difficult. It is very, very difficult.”

Back in Harlem, Alphabacar Diallo is similarly thankful for the support Masjid Aqsa-Salam has provided, but is anxious to get on with his life. Like many others coming for iftar, the 39-year-old migrant from Guinea says he’s still waiting for work authorization some eight months after arriving in the country.

Until then, the mosque provides him a place to keep warm, fed and close to the faith that’s sustained him.

“Without the masjid,” he said in French through a translator, “I don’t know where I’d be.”

Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrio’s newsletter.