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Miami Grand Prix 2023

NNPA NEWSWIRE — The only Black man to have raced in Formula 1, British driver Lewis Hamilton, 38, has won more and been the fastest qualifier more times than any other driver, triggering racist social-media diatribes from motorsports fans used to their Nomex-clad heroes being White-only.
The post Miami Grand Prix 2023 first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

2 years ago

May 10, 2023

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MIAMI GARDENS, FL – Chattering happily, rocking garb worn to ward off an unrelenting South Florida sun, scores of Black faithful exuberantly trudge toward their place of Sunday worship – Hard Rock Stadium, home of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins.

The 20 helmeted deities to be exalted this afternoon probably couldn’t toss a perfect spiral if their lives depended on it, and their average weight is a dinky 148 pounds. But they drive the hell out of nimble, 1,000-horsepower winged cars better than anyone on the planet, and are led by a Black high priest whose seven world championships and 103 career victories make him the hands-down G.O.A.T.

Welcome to the Formula 1 Crypto.Com Miami Grand Prix 2023, the fifth round of a traveling circus that will hit 24 global racing venues this year and is viewed as the pinnacle of motorsport. Formula 1’s irrepressible Black king, British driver Lewis Hamilton, 38, has drawn the sport’s ire for speaking truth to power, to include kneeling atop racetracks while clad in a Black Lives Matter T-shirt, to protest the police executions of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

The only Black man to have raced in Formula 1, Hamilton has won more and been the fastest qualifier more times than any other driver, triggering racist social-media diatribes from motorsports fans used to their Nomex-clad heroes being White-only.

The only Formula 1 icon with 103 wins and 103 pole positions, Hamilton was victimized by an inexplicable, last-second rules change during the last lap of the last race of 2021, which was held in Abu Dhabi. As a result, Hamilton, who entered Formula 1 in 2007 and currently drives for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas team, was controversially deprived of a chance to win a record-setting eighth world championship.

His otherworldly talent, off-track fashionista flair, and even his affluence (Forbes says Hamilton raked in $55 million in 2022, excluding endorsements), spurred a noticeable Black presence among the more than 270,000 fans who attended three days of Miami Grand Prix festivities May 5, 6 and 7. Easily half of the melanated faces in the crowd were crowned by baseball caps emblazoned with Mercedes’ distinctive tri-star logo.

Without Hamilton in the field, it’s doubtful there would have been pre-race pageantry featuring Venus and Serena Williams standing near the start/finish line of a twisty, makeshift 3.36-mile asphalt track winding around Hard Rock Stadium. The Williams sisters smiled appreciatively as showman LL Cool J bombastically introduced each of the contest’s 20 drivers, while will.i.am theatrically led a string orchestra providing background music.

The Miami Grand Prix is more than a contest where cars routinely hit 210 mph while traversing a 19-turn course lined by unforgiving concrete barriers. It’s part sporting event, part over-the-top party leavened with plenty of palm trees, more celebs than you can shake a stick at, blaring reggaeton and sumptuous food and drink prepared by worldclass chefs and mixologists.

Moko, a colorfully dressed native of Senegal who’s traveling to each of Formula 1’s 24 races in 2023, wouldn’t have it any other way.

“I look at Formula 1 like art, in a way,” says Moko, who idolizes Juan Manuel Fangio, a charismatic Argentinian driver who seized the world championship in 1951, 1954, 1955, 1956 and 1957, before Moko was born. “I like the duality between the machine and the human being.

“It’s hard to explain, but I’m going to give it to you the African way — it’s like you’re dancing with the woman you love, and if you don’t dance right, the woman can kill you,” Moko laughs. “And the woman is the car!”

As for the financial impact of the Miami Grand Prix, where $100 earns you the privilege of strolling around the sprawling Miami International Autodrome campus for a single day, without getting a place to sit, Moko shrugs. “If you love something and you can afford it, why not?”

Unlike Moko, saxophone player Bismarck Morgan traveled only 60 miles from West Palm Beach. “I think there’s a great atmosphere here, and I think it’s important for people to come and make a decision for themselves,” Morgan says. “You get in and it’s a very wonderful and beautiful atmosphere. It’s easy to sit on the outside of something and have an opinion of it, but when you get there, it’s actually a beautiful place.

“There are plenty of people from around the world here, people of color from India, Dubai. It’s a beautiful thing, and I love the sound of race cars, I love the revving of the engines. It gets your blood flowing.”

Lewis Hamilton, who drives a W14 Mercedes-AMG road rocket propelled by a 1.6-liter, V6 engine and an electric motor hooked to a rechargeable battery, has noticed a change in the hue of Grand Prix crowds since he joined the Grand Prix circuit 16 years ago.

“For the first five or ten years or so, I didn’t see many people of color in the grandstands,” says Hamilton, whose Mercedes-AMG Petronas team has an annual budget exceeding $300 million. “There were very few people of color. It was not as diverse as I might have hoped.”

However, Hamilton is now “seeing a crowd that’s more diverse. That’s amazing to me to not be the only one there, which is nice to see. And it’s just great to be seeing that we’re tapping into those different cultures, those different communities, who perhaps once didn’t think (Formula 1 racing) was for them. “Because they didn’t see someone that looked like them in the sport, maybe.”

Just as Tiger Woods’ soul-crushing dominance drew more Black fans to golf tournaments, Lewis Hamilton’s championship-winning campaigns in 2008, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 have lured new eyeballs to Formula 1.

So has the Netflix series “Formula 1: Drive to Survive,” which New England Patriots safety Adrian Phillips and his wife, pediatrician Camille Phillips, credit with attracting them to Miami Gardens to see Hamilton drive.

The couple watched Hamilton hustle his underperforming W14 Mercedes from 13^th on the grid to a 6th-^–place finish. Hamilton says that despite having subpar equipment this year, and finishing the Miami Grand Prix fourth in the driver standings with 56 points, compared with 119 for first-place Dutchman Max Verstappen, Hamilton will be back in 2024 and beyond.

Adrian and Camille Phillips say you can count them in, too.

The post Miami Grand Prix 2023 first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Black Feminist Movement Mobilizes in Response to National Threats

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — More than 500 Black feminists will convene in New Orleans from June 5 through 7 for what organizers are calling the largest Black feminist gathering in the United States.

Published

3 days ago

May 30, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

More than 500 Black feminists will convene in New Orleans from June 5 through 7 for what organizers are calling the largest Black feminist gathering in the United States. The event, led by the organization Black Feminist Future, is headlined by activist and scholar Angela Y. Davis. Paris Hatcher, executive director of Black Feminist Future, joined Black Press USA’s Let It Be Known to outline the mission and urgency behind the gathering, titled “Get Free.” “This is not just a conference to dress up and have a good time,” Hatcher said. “We’re building power to address the conditions that are putting our lives at risk—whether that’s policing, reproductive injustice, or economic inequality.” Hatcher pointed to issues such as rising evictions among Black families, the rollback of bodily autonomy laws, and the high cost of living as key drivers of the event’s agenda. “Our communities are facing premature death,” she said.

Workshops and plenaries will focus on direct action, policy advocacy, and practical organizing skills. Attendees will participate in training sessions that include how to resist evictions, organize around immigration enforcement, and disrupt systemic policies contributing to poverty and incarceration. “This is about fighting back,” Hatcher said. “We’re not conceding anything.” Hatcher addressed the persistent misconceptions about Black feminism, including the idea that it is a movement against men or families. “Black feminism is not a rejection of men,” she said. “It’s a rejection of patriarchy. Black men must be part of this struggle because patriarchy harms them too.” She also responded to claims that organizing around Black women’s issues weakens broader coalitions. “We don’t live single-issue lives,” Hatcher said. “Our blueprint is one that lifts all Black people.”

The conference will not be streamed virtually, but recaps and updates will be posted daily on Black Feminist Future’s YouTube channel and Instagram account. The event includes performances by Tank and the Bangas and honors longtime activists including Billy Avery, Erica Huggins, and Alexis Pauline Gumbs. When asked how Black feminism helps families, Hatcher said the real threat to family stability is systemic oppression. “If we want to talk about strong Black families, we have to talk about mass incarceration, the income gap, and the systems that tear our families apart,” Hatcher said. “Black feminism gives us the tools to build and sustain healthy families—not just survive but thrive.”

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Hoover’s Commutation Divides Chicago as State Sentence Remains

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Hoover was convicted of murder and running a criminal enterprise. Although some supporters describe him as a political prisoner, the legal and public safety concerns associated with his name remain substantial.

Published

4 days ago

May 29, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

The federal sentence for Gangster Disciples founder Larry Hoover has been commuted, but he remains incarcerated under a 200-year state sentence in Illinois. The decision by Donald Trump to reduce Hoover’s federal time has reignited longstanding debates over his legacy and whether rehabilitation or continued punishment is warranted. The commutation drew immediate public attention after music executive Jay Prince and artist Chance the Rapper publicly praised Trump’s decision. “I’m glad that Larry Hoover is home,” said Chance the Rapper. “He was a political prisoner set up by the federal government. He created Chicago Votes, mobilized our people, and was targeted for that.”

But Hoover, the founder of the Gangster Disciples, is not home—not yet. Now in federal custody at the Florence Supermax in Colorado, Hoover was convicted of murder and running a criminal enterprise. Although some supporters describe him as a political prisoner, the legal and public safety concerns associated with his name remain substantial. “There is a divide in the Black community here,” said Chicago journalist Jason Palmer during an appearance on the Let It Be Known morning program. “Some view Hoover as someone who brought structure and leadership. Others remember the violence that came with his organization.” Palmer explained that while Hoover’s gang originally formed for protection, it grew into a criminal network responsible for extensive harm in Chicago. He also noted that Hoover continued to run his organization from state prison using coded messages passed through visitors, prompting his transfer to federal custody.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who is widely considered a potential 2028 presidential contender, has not issued a statement. Palmer suggested that silence is strategic. “Releasing Hoover would create enormous political consequences,” Palmer said. “The governor’s in a difficult spot—he either resists pressure from supporters or risks national backlash if he acts.” According to Palmer, Hoover’s federal commutation does not make him a free man. “The federal sentence may be commuted, but he still has a 200-year state sentence,” he said. “And Illinois officials have already made it clear they don’t want to house him in state facilities again. They prefer he remains in federal custody, just somewhere outside of Colorado.”

Palmer also raised concerns about what Hoover’s case could signal for others. “When R. Kelly was convicted federally, state prosecutors in Illinois and Minnesota dropped their charges. If a president can commute federal sentences based on public pressure or celebrity support, others like R. Kelly or Sean Combs could be next,” Palmer said. “Meanwhile, there are thousands of incarcerated people without fame or access to public platforms who will never get that consideration.” “There are people who are not here today because of the violence connected to these organizations,” Palmer said. “That has to be part of this conversation.”

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WATCH: Five Years After George Floyd: Full Panel Discussion | Tracey’s Keepin’ It Real | Live Podcast Event

Join us as we return to the city where it happened and speak with a voice from the heart of the community – Tracey Williams-Dillard, CEO/Publisher of the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.

Published

4 days ago

May 28, 2025

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https://youtube.com/watch?v=OsNLWTz6jU0&feature=oembed

May 25, 2020. The world stopped and watched as a life was taken.

But what has happened since?

Join us as we return to the city where it happened and speak with a voice from the heart of the community – Tracey Williams-Dillard, CEO/Publisher of the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.

She shares reflections, insights, and the story of a community forever changed. What has a year truly meant, and where do we go from here?

This is more than just a date; it’s a moment in history. See what one leader in the Black press has to say about it.

Recorded live at UROC in Minneapolis, this powerful discussion features:

Panelists: