Activism

Axios reports: March for Our Lives co-founder David Hogg tweeted on Thursday that he and software developer William LeGate are launching a pillow company to compete against MyPillow, which is led by Trump supporter CEO Mike Lindell. Lindell is one of former President Trump’s most adamant defenders and has repeatedly shared unsubstantiated conspiracy theories about the election since President Biden …

New Jersey Arts reports: Don Winslow has released, via his Twitter account, his new anti-Trump video, “America Needs Pennsylvania,” which is set to the music of Bruce Springsteen’s “Streets of Philadelphia,” with The Boss’ permission. The video’s release is planned to coincide with a trip today by Trump to Pennsylvania, which is considered a swing state. It uses grim images …

NBC Sports reports: The NFL will join other sports leagues in putting social justice messages on the playing field this season. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said on a conference call this afternoon that the league will stencil “End racism” and “It takes all of us” in the end zones at each stadium this fall. “The NFL stands with the black …

ABC News reports: Former President Obama on Friday called for “peaceful, sustained” demonstrations for racial justice as the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis., has ignited a new round of protests and demands for reform across the nation. The tweet came as thousands of people congregated in Washington, D.C., in a march against police brutality and systemic racism …

The Washington Post reports: Thousands of protesters gathered Friday at the Lincoln Memorial to call for criminal justice reform and racial equality while honoring the 57th anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” address from the same location. Planning began in June after the funeral of George Floyd. Organizers say they want to highlight the …

Variety reports: Following Michelle Obama is no easy task, but the duo of Billy Porter and Stephen Stills stepped up with a virtual performance of “For What It’s Worth” during the opening night of the 2020 Democratic National Convention. While Stills first wrote and sang the song — which is perhaps better known by its subtitle, “Stop, Hey, What’s That …

Courthouse News reports: The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating a possible prank call Wednesday that triggered a heavily armed police response at the home of leading Black Lives Matter activist Melina Abdullah, who livestreamed the incident as her three children were inside the home. Abdullah, co-founder of Black Lives Matter LA and a professor at California State University, Los …

NBC News reports: Former president Barack Obama gave a soaring eulogy for John Lewis, urging Americans to honor the legacy of a civil rights giant by engaging in the “good trouble” that leads to a more perfect democracy in the face of powerful institutions that seek to oppress. The former president spoke on the current threat to voting rights in …

ABC New York reports: An anti-police protester has been released following an arrest that has protesters and some New York City elected officials demanding answers. 18-year-old Nikki Stone, a trans woman from the Lower East Side, was released at 1 a.m. Wednesday to cheers from her fellow protesters. She said she had some scrapes on her knees but was otherwise …

NBC News reports: Dozens of women wearing yellow linked arms to form a protective “wall of moms” around Black Lives Matter protesters in Portland, Oregon, on Sunday as the protesters clashed with federal law enforcement. Video from the scene showed crowds chanting “Feds stay clear, moms are here!” and “Feds go home!” before protesters toppled a fence erected around the …

The Washington Post reports: South Carolina racial justice activists said they would postpone future demonstrations or move them online after at least 13 people who took part in previous protests tested positive for the coronavirus. As the number of cases across the country continued to climb ominously Monday, organizers of “I Can’t Breathe” protests in South Carolina urged participants to …

Courthouse News reports: The demands for an end to police brutality and protection of civil rights for Black Americans on signs clutched by protesters as they marched on the nation’s capital are finding their way to historic preservation. The African American History and Culture Museum, the American History Museum and the Anacostia Museum have formed a coalition with staff, activists …

NBC News reports: Protesters packed the courtyard of the Brooklyn Museum and surrounding parkway in New York City on Sunday in support of Black trans lives, merging the fight to protect two deeply marginalized groups. The rally began about 1 p.m. in front of the museum, just a short walk east of Brooklyn’s Grand Army Plaza, as activists made speeches …

Via press release: Billy Porter, Pete & Chasten Buttigieg, Rosie O’Donnell, Jonathan Van Ness, Brian Michael Smith, Ross Mathews, and Tyler Oakley will join GLAAD’s livestream event, “Together in Pride: You are Not Alone,” tonight at 8pm ET on GLAAD’s YouTube channel and Facebook Live. Billy Eichner and Lilly Singh will co-host the event, which will include special performances from …

Gay City News reports: Rod Townsend, who most recently served as president of the Stonewall Democratic Club of New York City, is running for the City Council in Queens, he told Gay City News in an exclusive interview this week. Townsend is eying the seat occupied by term-limited Councilmember Costa Constantinides in the 22nd District, which encompasses Astoria, East Elmhurst, …

Let’s take a break from election infighting and virus doomsday scenarios for a thirsty look at next week’s Winter Party Festival, Florida’s longest-running and largest LGBT charity event, which has raised millions for local HIV/AIDS and LGBT rights campaigns. From the organizers at the National LGBTQ Task Force: Our work to lift barriers related to HIV/AIDS reaches across a number …

Posted today to Jeff Bezos’s Instagram account: Today, I’m thrilled to announce I am launching the Bezos Earth Fund.⁣⁣⁣ Climate change is the biggest threat to our planet. I want to work alongside others both to amplify known ways and to explore new ways of fighting the devastating impact of climate change on this planet we all share. This global …

The Guardian reports: BBC Studios has announced a documentary series about the teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg. The new show will follow Thunberg’s “international crusade” against the climate emergency, focusing on her campaign work as well as her “journey into adulthood”. It will also see Thunberg meet with scientists, politicians and businesspeople to explore the evidence around rising global temperatures. …

Axios reports: Fred Guttenberg, a gun control activist whose daughter died during the 2018 Parkland mass shooting, has spoken about being ejected from the gallery during President Trump’s State of the Union address Tuesday. The big picture: Guttenberg, who was a guest of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, was removed by security after yelling “What about my daughter!” as Trump spoke …

Newsweek reports: A press conference for President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign was interrupted Monday by a Jewish American activist, who blamed the president for rising anti-Semitic sentiment and violence in the U.S. The event, held in Des Moines Iowa, was interrupted as Donald Trump Jr.—the president’s eldest son—was at the podium speaking. Video of the event showed the activist—Elon Glickman, …