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OP-ED: FDA — Smoking While Black and Brown in America

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Our experiences inform us that the implementation of a menthol ban will inevitably and undoubtedly create an increased number of stops, frisks, and interactions between law enforcement and members from Black and Brown communities. According to the Prison Policy Initiative, Black and Brown residents in the U.S. continue to have a long and troubled legacy of disproportionately larger numbers of police stops and interactions with the police. The proposed menthol ban will do nothing to quell this troubling reality.
The post OP-ED: FDA — Smoking While Black and Brown in America first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

4 years ago

April 5, 2022

Oakland Post

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, President and CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association

Whenever the history of racial discrimination in the United States appears to repeat itself, it produces predictable rhymes and sometimes tragic social consequences. Mark Twain, Ida B. Wells, James Baldwin, and Toni Morrison all had one thing in common as visionary authors. They used their pens to offer literary critiques about America’s historical inflection points concerning racism and systemic inequalities.

The federal government’s recent announcement that it is close to proscribing a ban on menthol cigarettes is another public policy gone astray that will produce unintended racial-discriminatory consequences. As a result of a decades-long marketing campaign aimed at African Americans, nearly 85% of all non-Hispanic Black smokers choose menthol cigarettes, the highest percentage of menthol cigarette use compared to other racial and ethnic groups. The Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should be questioned about their disparate targeting of African American and Latino-American smokers who disproportionately prefer to smoke menthol cigarettes. This is an urgent matter now that the FDA has just asked the government’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to review the proposed discriminatory ban.

Driving while Black and Brown, jogging while Black and Brown, and breathing while Black and Brown have had, at times, fatal consequences intergenerationally for women, men, and youth from our communities. Now, our families and communities will have to contend additionally with smoking while Black and Brown in America.

For the record, I do not smoke tobacco or marijuana. I am raising questions, however, to the FDA and to the U.S. Congress because I care passionately about protecting the civil rights and cultural rights of communities of color. We should learn from the past about how to avoid racial injustice rather than to entertain the repetition of pseudo-justifications of wrongdoing and counterproductive public policies that disparage communities of color.

Recalling back in the 1980s and 1990s there was the prevalence of the availability and use of crack cocaine that swept severe drug-related suffering in urban areas across the nation. Because of decades of White flight and self-segregation, those same inner-city areas were disproportionately populated by Black and Brown families. The result was another regrettable chapter in American history when crack cocaine ravaged our communities.

The subsequent response from the federal government was neither compassion nor empathy. Rather, the U.S. Congress passed the now-infamous 1994 Crime Bill, which treated the possession of crack cocaine disproportionately harsher in the criminal justice system than powder cocaine, which was more expensive and more commonly used by White drug users. Too many communities of color were once again devastated by the unjust massive long-term imprisonment of crack cocaine users for decades that literally destroyed families and left hundreds of thousands of children without parents while escalating mass incarceration of Black and Brown people to an unprecedented national level.

It is, therefore, against this historical backdrop that we find anew the recent contradictory announcement by the Biden Administration’s FDA. According to the Centers for Disease Control, over 85% of Black and Brown smokers prefer menthol cigarettes. While there may be compelling public health concerns that can be cited to support proposing a ban on smoking cigarettes, the question arises why the FDA only wants to target and ban “menthol” cigarettes that are disproportionately used and preferred by Black and Brown smokers. Law enforcement agencies, similar to what happened by law enforcement in response to the crack cocaine epidemic, will ultimately have to enforce the proposed ban on the sale of menthol cigarettes.

In addition, serious concerns today abound among national and local law enforcement leaders that a prohibition of these particular tobacco products will only end up dramatically increasing an illicit, underground market for these menthol products. I am certain that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will rightly oppose any public policy by the FDA that will lead to further substantial border insecurity from the future billion-dollar illicit smuggling of proposed menthol-banned tobacco products into the United States. Another serious unintended consequence will be the illegal trafficking of FDA-banned cigarettes by international terrorists who will profit millions of dollars from that illicit trade.

I write, therefore, on behalf of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) and the Black Press of America that have been “pleading our own cause” since March 16, 1827 with the first publication of Freedom’s Journal 195 years ago. Our concerns are not hypothetical and do not exist in a vacuum.

Our experiences inform us that the implementation of a menthol ban will inevitably and undoubtedly create an increased number of stops, frisks, and interactions between law enforcement and members from Black and Brown communities. According to the Prison Policy Initiative, Black and Brown residents in the U.S. continue to have a long and troubled legacy of disproportionately larger numbers of police stops and interactions with the police. The proposed menthol ban will do nothing to quell this troubling reality.

Moreover, there is data to suggest that a prohibition on the sale of menthol cigarettes would not meet the proposed ban’s intended goal. According to a report by the United States Surgeon General, published in 2020, “the evidence is suggestive but not sufficient to infer that restricting the sale of certain types of tobacco products, such as menthol or other flavored products, increases smoking cessation, especially among certain populations.” Indeed, a report by the National Bureau of Economic Research echoes this concern and suggests that a prohibition on menthol cigarettes is “unlikely to be a panacea,” because while the product may be prohibited in Canada, it is available on Native Canadian reserves, and still available for purchase throughout Mexico.

On his first day in The White House, President Biden signed the Executive Order (13985) on Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. That was a much-needed federal corrective action taken by President Biden. Notwithstanding those facts, it has become a noticeable contradiction for the FDA to now embark on a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) with respect to a menthol ban tentatively scheduled for April 2022.

What are some of the possible alternative options for the FDA and for the U.S. Congress with respect to menthol cigarettes? One option is for the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Commissioner of the FDA to enter into an agreement with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, and additional relevant entities (including representatives of community organizations that have been historically underrepresented in the Federal Government and underserved by, subject to discrimination in, Federal policies and programs) to conduct a national study on the impact of a menthol ban would have on:

the frequency of adverse law enforcement interactions with members of communities of color, underserved and other discriminated communities
the illicit sale of counterfeit cigarettes in communities of color, underserved and other discriminated communities, and
the likelihood that counterfeit cigarettes illicitly sold in communities of color, underserved and other discriminated communities would contain a mixture of lethal substances in excess of the toxins found in ordinary commercially approved cigarettes

There are other options in addition to the stated above proposal that I am confident can and should be explored by both the U.S. Congress and the FDA. What should be prohibited at this point should be all forms of racial profiling and targeting. Smoking while Black and Brown should not be the predicate for more negative disastrous interactions between law enforcement and our communities who have already suffered too much. I recently had the honor to attend a national meeting of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Black police chiefs and other Black law enforcement executives from across the nation voiced their concerns about the negative, disparate and dangerous unintended consequences of the proposed FDA ban on menthol cigarettes.

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. is currently the President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) and Executive Producer/Host of The Chavis Chronicles television show that is broadcast weekly on PBS TV stations throughout the United States.

The post OP-ED: FDA — Smoking While Black and Brown in America first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Michael: The King of Pop’s Story Returns to the Big Screen

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — The curtain has finally lifted on one of Hollywood’s most anticipated films. Lionsgate has unveiled the official trailer and release date for “Michael,” the sweeping biopic about Michael Jackson that has been years in the making.

Published

6 days ago

November 6, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

The curtain has finally lifted on one of Hollywood’s most anticipated films. Lionsgate has unveiled the official trailer and release date for “Michael,” the sweeping biopic about Michael Jackson that has been years in the making. Directed by Antoine Fuqua, the film will arrive in theaters on April 24, 2026, with the singer’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, stepping into the spotlight to portray his legendary uncle.

The trailer wastes no time rekindling the aura of Jackson’s genius. Opening with a studio scene between Jackson and his longtime producer Quincy Jones, played by Kendrick Sampson, the clip builds from a quiet, familiar rhythm to the electrifying pulse of “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’.” Viewers catch glimpses of the singer’s childhood, flashes of “Thriller,” and the silhouette that redefined pop culture. Each frame reminds fans of why Jackson remains unmatched in artistry and influence. The cast surrounding the late pop king’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, reads like a who’s who of Black entertainment and music history. Colman Domingo plays Joe Jackson, Nia Long portrays Katherine Jackson, and Larenz Tate takes on the role of Motown founder Berry Gordy. Laura Harrier portrays music executive Suzanne de Passe, while Kat Graham embodies Diana Ross. Miles Teller plays attorney John Branca, a towering entertainment lawyer and longtime Jackson confidant who later became co-executor of his estate. The film’s journey to release has been as complicated as the icon it portrays. Production wrapped in 2024, but legal hurdles over depictions of past controversies forced extensive reshoots and editing delays. Even so, Fuqua’s film now appears ready to reclaim the narrative, focusing on Jackson’s creative ambition and humanity beyond tabloid noise. IndieWire reported that the film had faced “a massive legal snafu” over a disputed storyline but was retooled to center the music and legacy that defined generations.

Maven. Photo Credit: Glen Wilson

“Michael” promises more than a chronological retelling. It aims to explore how a child star from Gary, Indiana, became the world’s most influential entertainer. The script, written by Oscar-nominated John Logan, traces Jackson’s early years with the Jackson 5 through the triumphs and isolation of global superstardom. With Fuqua’s cinematic eye and producer Graham King—who brought “Bohemian Rhapsody” to life—joining forces with estate executors Branca and John McClain, the film is positioned as both a tribute and a restoration of Jackson’s cultural truth. Branca’s work behind the scenes has long shaped Jackson’s posthumous success. After the singer died in 2009, Branca and McClain took control of the estate burdened by debt and turned it into a global powerhouse worth billions. Under their stewardship, Jackson’s projects have generated more than $3 billion in worldwide ticket sales and landmark deals, including a $600 million joint venture with Sony earlier this year. At its heart, though, “Michael” is a story about artistry that transcends scandal. It offers a reminder that, despite the noise surrounding his life, Jackson’s music still bridges continents and generations. The trailer’s closing moments capture that spirit. As the beat of “Billie Jean” swells and Jaafar Jackson moonwalks into a spotlight, audiences are left with a familiar feeling—the awe of witnessing something timeless return home.

“Michael” opens worldwide in theaters April 24, 2026. See the official trailer here.

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Donald Trump Is the Biggest Loser

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — The Trump Brand took a significant hit as it was swept up in the Democratic blue wave of the election last night.

Published

7 days ago

November 5, 2025

Oakland Post

By April Ryan

The Trump Brand took a significant hit as it was swept up in the Democratic blue wave of the election last night.

Chris Jones, Democratic candidate for U.S. House of Representatives (AR-02), says, “Last night was electric, and it was unquestionably a wave.” Democrats won big in what is widely considered a repudiation of Trump’s 9 months at the White House in his second term.

In the state of Virginia, which produced the first big election night win and saw the election of the first woman governor, Democrat Abigail Spanberger, 56% of Virginia’s residents disapprove of President Trump. In New Jersey, 55% of state residents disapprove of the president; in New York, 69% disapprove; and in California, 63% disapprove of the president. The Trump brand or his support for any candidates did nothing to benefit those he endorsed in this election. They actually lost in each race he publicly put his name behind. Trump endorsed former New York Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo, who lost the New York mayor’s race in his run as an independent. And New Jersey Republican Jack Ciattarelli, who ran for governor with the presidential endorsement, also lost his prospective race.

The next question is, will the democratic momentum be sustainable? Jones further explained, “This can become a 2026 tsunami, but turning a wave into a tsunami takes energy. A lot of energy. It doesn’t just happen. The conditions are there. Now we have to work!”

Some Democrats would argue that the work is already underway. The pushback against Trump’s national redistricting efforts received a thumb in the eye from California voters. Prop 50, California Governor Gavin Newsom’s counterbalance to President Trump’s redistricting efforts, passed in California last night. Although Trump’s name was not on the ballot last night, his Republican policies were. The United States has now entered the longest government shutdown in its history. Forty-two million Americans are not getting SNAP benefits. Economists are acknowledging that the government shutdown is contributing to the rise in delinquent debt in the student loan, automotive, and credit card industries. These items are among the negatives Americans are protesting against.

Compounding Trump’s political problems is a tariff battle that’s directly impacting pocketbooks. The day after the elections, the Trump administration was arguing before the US Supreme Court in favor of the president’s tariff powers. Meanwhile, President Trump‘s poll numbers are underwater, standing at a 37% national disapproval rate

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Historic Beatdown: Democrats Sweep Virginia as Speaker Don Scott and Jay Jones Make History

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — In a clear rejection of the policies of President Donald Trump, history repeated itself in Virginia.

Published

1 week ago

November 5, 2025

Oakland Post

By Lauren Burke

In a clear rejection of the policies of President Donald Trump, history repeated itself in Virginia. Democrats once again swept all three statewide offices as they did in 2017 during Trump’s first term. Abigail Spanberger easily won the office of Governor, and State Senator Ghazala Hashmi won her race over John Reid to be the next Lieutenant Governor. The victories occurred against the backdrop of a historic win in Virginia by Spanberger that will give Virginia its first woman Governor.

Spanberger’s widely predicted win over Republican gubernatorial nominee Winsome Earle-Sears was called 17 minutes after the polls closed in Virginia at 7 pm. Former Delegate Jay Jones won his race against incumbent Attorney General Jason Miyares. His victory means Jones will be the first Black Attorney General in Virginia’s history. Jones’ win was particularly noteworthy since the last month of his campaign was consumed by the issue of private text messages from 2022 to Republican Delegate Carrie Coyner. Republicans ran a non-stop barrage of negative ads against Jones for a month.

Del. Coyner lost her bid for re-election to Delegate-elect Lindsey Dougherty. The Dougherty race was the number one target for House Speaker Don Scott and his campaign lieutenant, Delegate Dan Helmer. Coyner’s defeat was one of at least 13 victories for Democrats who have now added to their ranks in the Virginia House to historic margins. When the Virginia General Assembly returns to session in January, there will be at least 64 Democrats in the chamber. The widespread Republican defeat is a testament to a combination of historic fundraising, Democrats running in all 100 seats, dislike of President Trump’s policies, and an ineffective top of the ticket featuring Lt. Gov. Earle Sears.

+13: Speaker Scott and Del. Helmer Hit Historic Numbers in Fundraising and Power

As the evening ended, a glaring historic fact became clearer: The Virginia House of Delegates will expand to a historic number. The change means the largest Democratic House chamber in the modern era. There were several notable wins by Democrats running for the Virginia House. They include Virgil Thornton, Lilly Franklin, and Kim Pope Adams. Speaker Don Scott and his campaign chair, Dan Helmer, undertook a record fundraising effort never before seen in Virginia’s history. The moment of success for Virginia Democrats will be viewed as a positive signal for Democrats moving into the 2026 elections.