More than 50,000 people marched in New York City Saturday — with untold thousands of others joining across the country — to protest the killings of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and many other young men and women of color, while officers got away scot-free. Less than 24 hours before, Senator Elizabeth Warren took the Senate floor and gave what may be the most significant speech of her career, railing against the Wall Street giveaways in the weekend’s spending bill and the big banks’ outsize influence in Washington: And now we’re watching as Congress passes yet another provision that was written by lobbyists for the biggest recipient of bailout money in the history of this country. And it’s attached to a bill that needs to pass or else…

More than 50,000 people marched in New York City Saturday — with untold thousands of others joining across the country — to protest the killings of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and many other young men and women of color, while officers got away scot-free.

Less than 24 hours before, Senator Elizabeth Warren took the Senate floor and gave what may be the most significant speech of her career, railing against the Wall Street giveaways in the weekend’s spending bill and the big banks’ outsize influence in Washington:

And now we’re watching as Congress passes yet another provision that was written by lobbyists for the biggest recipient of bailout money in the history of this country. And it’s attached to a bill that needs to pass or else the entire federal government will grind to a halt.
Think about that kind of power. If a financial institution has become so big and so powerful that it can hold the entire country hostage.

In many ways the anger that caused thousands to take the streets on Saturday against a criminal justice system that devalues the lives of people of color in this country is the same anger against a political system that prioritizes the banks, the rich and the powerful over families, which Senator Warren encapsulated in her speech.

There is a growing protest movement in this country fueled by a sense of isolation and desperation from a system that keeps families in despair and has a different set of rules for those in power than for those who are not. The justice system that refused to try the officers involved in the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown is the same justice system that refused to jail the bankers responsible for the financial crisis.

Americans remain skeptical of judicial and political systems that are stacked against them. Confidence in all levels of government is at an all-time low, while societal shifting protests are on the rise. From the #BlackLivesMatter movement to the #OccupyWallStreet movement to the #Fightfor15 movement, Americans (especially young Americans) have risen up against a system of inequality in ways that are reminiscent of the 1960’s civil rights and Vietnam War movements.

The rage Senator Warren expresses is the same rage of millions who have joined the #BlackLivesMatter movement and others like it in this country. Until we can restore confidence in government and truly hold those responsible for the crimes they commit, the movements will continue to grow. The question remains whether Hillary Clinton and the old guard of Democrats are ready to embrace these movements or whether these movements will surpass them and create a new branch of Democrats aligned with the broader anger we are seeing in the streets.

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What Elizabeth Warren and the #BlackLivesMatter Movement Have in Common

Camille Cosby has broken her silence on the recent sexual assault allegations against her husband, Bill Cosby. In a statement released by CBS News on Monday, Camille wrote that her “kind,” “generous” and “funny” husband is not the person the media has painted him as in light of the recent accusations. Camille compared the claims against her husband to the recent Rolling Stone article that detailed an alleged gang rape at a University of Virginia fraternity. “The story was heart-breaking, but ultimately appears to be proved untrue,” Camille wrote. “Many in the media were quick to link that story to stories about my husband — until that story unwound.” Following the publication of the piece in…

Camille Cosby has broken her silence on the recent sexual assault allegations against her husband, Bill Cosby.

In a statement released by CBS News on Monday, Camille wrote that her “kind,” “generous” and “funny” husband is not the person the media has painted him as in light of the recent accusations.

Camille compared the claims against her husband to the recent Rolling Stone article that detailed an alleged gang rape at a University of Virginia fraternity. “The story was heart-breaking, but ultimately appears to be proved untrue,” Camille wrote. “Many in the media were quick to link that story to stories about my husband — until that story unwound.”

Following the publication of the piece in question, Rolling Stone found what it called “discrepancies” in the woman’s account. In a statement, Rolling Stone editors admitted that trust in the victim’s account had been “misplaced.” That phrasing was later removed from the Rolling Stone editor’s letter without comment. “These mistakes are on Rolling Stone, not on Jackie,” managing editor Will Dana wrote, referencing the victim in question. “We apologize to anyone who was affected by the story and we will continue to investigate the events of that evening.”

“None of us will ever want to be in the position of attacking a victim. But the question should be asked — who is the victim?” Camille wrote at the end of her statement.

Camille’s words come after Bill Cosby told a reporter for The New York Post that he expected “the black media to uphold the standards of excellence in journalism” with regard to the many assault claims. More than 20 women have made allegations against him.

Read Camille Cosby’s full statement below:

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Camille Cosby Compares Allegations Against Bill Cosby To Rolling Stone UVA Rape Story

“There is an unbroken line of police violence in the United States that takes us all the way back to the days of slavery, the aftermath of slavery, the development of the Ku Klux Klan,” says Angela Davis. “There is so much history of this racist violence that simply to bring one person to justice is not going to disturb the whole racist edifice.”

“There is an unbroken line of police violence in the United States that takes us all the way back to the days of slavery, the aftermath of slavery, the development of the Ku Klux Klan,” says Angela Davis. “There is so much history of this racist violence that simply to bring one person to justice is not going to disturb the whole racist edifice.”

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Angela Davis: ‘There Is An Unbroken Line Of Police Violence In The U.S. That Takes Us All The Way Back To The Days Of Slavery’

Last night Blackfilm.com attended the NY Premiere of Selma, presented by Paramount Pictures, Delta Air Lines, Tina Brown Live Media, and Credit Suisse, at the Ziegfeld Theater, where stars David Oyelowo, Oprah Winfrey (also a Producer on the film), Carmen Ejogo, Tom Wilkinson, Tim Roth, Common, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Andre Holland, Lorraine Toussaint, Niecy Nash, Stephen Root, Colman Domingo, Lakeith Lee Stanfield, E. Roger Mitchell, Dylan Baker, Omar Dorsey, Stephan James, Alessandro Nivola, Wendell Pierce, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Trai Byers, Corey Reynolds, Henry G. Sanders, Jeremy Strong, Kent Falcon, and John Lavelle walked the red carpet alongside Director/Executive Producer Ava Duvernay, Producers Dede Gardner and Jeremy

Last night Blackfilm.com attended the NY Premiere of Selma, presented by Paramount Pictures, Delta Air Lines, Tina Brown Live Media, and Credit Suisse, at the Ziegfeld Theater, where stars David Oyelowo, Oprah Winfrey (also a Producer on the film), Carmen Ejogo, Tom Wilkinson, Tim Roth, Common, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Andre Holland, Lorraine Toussaint, Niecy Nash, Stephen Root, Colman Domingo, Lakeith Lee Stanfield, E. Roger Mitchell, Dylan Baker, Omar Dorsey, Stephan James, Alessandro Nivola, Wendell Pierce, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Trai Byers, Corey Reynolds, Henry G. Sanders, Jeremy Strong, Kent Falcon, and John Lavelle walked the red carpet alongside Director/Executive Producer Ava Duvernay, Producers Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner, and Executive Producer Paul Garnes.

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Pics From ‘Selma’ NY Premiere And Afterparty

Through the voices of African American men, The Washington Post unpacks the anger expressed by tens of thousands nationwide in the wake of the deaths of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and Tamir Rice.

Through the voices of African American men, The Washington Post unpacks the anger expressed by tens of thousands nationwide in the wake of the deaths of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and Tamir Rice.

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BrotherSpeak: Exploring The Lives Of Black Men

Last year, 12-year-old Mikia Hutchings was suspended from school. She spent her summer on probation, completed 16 hours of community service and faced potential criminal charges — all for writing graffiti on the walls of a middle school bathroom. Although a $100 restitution fee would have kept the young black girl from the slew of additional disciplinary actions, her family couldn’t afford it. In contrast, Hutchings’ white friend, who defaced the bathroom walls, avoided further penalties after her parents paid the fee. The actions taken against Hutchings’ graffiti seem to be indicative of a larger problem. Between 2011 and 2012, 12 percent of African-American girls in public elementary and secondary schools were suspended, while just 2 percent of their white counterparts were …

Last year, 12-year-old Mikia Hutchings was suspended from school. She spent her summer on probation, completed 16 hours of community service and faced potential criminal charges — all for writing graffiti on the walls of a middle school bathroom.

Although a $100 restitution fee would have kept the young black girl from the slew of additional disciplinary actions, her family couldn’t afford it. In contrast, Hutchings’ white friend, who defaced the bathroom walls, avoided further penalties after her parents paid the fee.

The actions taken against Hutchings’ graffiti seem to be indicative of a larger problem. Between 2011 and 2012, 12 percent of African-American girls in public elementary and secondary schools were suspended, while just 2 percent of their white counterparts were suspended. According to the U.S. Department of Education report, black girls were suspended more than girls of any other racial group.

In a HuffPost Live conversation, freelance writer Kimberly Williams discussed how such disciplinary actions disproportionately target black girls.

“It’s a shame when you look at all of the different factors that play into it. There are a lot of socio-economic factors that play into it,” said Williams. “It’s one more thing that can prevent and hinder a group that has more milestones and obstacles to overcome.”

Unfortunately, conversations around race and gender often fail to include black girls, said Elizabeth Plank, an executive social editor at Mic.

“Women of color, especially young women of color, just fall through the cracks of these two conversations that we’re having in parallel, which is feminism, women’s rights and then race,” Plank told host Caroline Modarressay-Tehrani. “And I’m so glad that we’re talking about crime when it comes to young men and the way that we treat young men, but we need to talk about the way that we treat young women too.”

Click here to learn more about the biggest women’s issues this week.

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How School Suspensions Disproportionately Target Black Girls

No topic was off limits when Michael Strahan sat down with Barbara Walters for her “10 Most Fascinating People of 2014” special Sunday night — not even his bitter 2006 divorce. The 42-year-old “Live! with Kelly and Michael” co-host kept it positive when Walters pressed him for details on his private life — including his two divorces — during the ABC special. “It was one of the worst/best things that ever happened to me,” the former football star said of his divorce from ex Jean Muggli. At the height of the court battle, the former Giants defensive was accused of cheating and, at one point, having a romantic relationship with a male friend. In the end, Strahan said the divorce drama was a learning experience. “It…

No topic was off limits when Michael Strahan sat down with Barbara Walters for her “10 Most Fascinating People of 2014” special Sunday night — not even his bitter 2006 divorce.

The 42-year-old “Live! with Kelly and Michael” co-host kept it positive when Walters pressed him for details on his private life — including his two divorces — during the ABC special.

“It was one of the worst/best things that ever happened to me,” the former football star said of his divorce from ex Jean Muggli. At the height of the court battle, the former Giants defensive was accused of cheating and, at one point, having a romantic relationship with a male friend.

In the end, Strahan said the divorce drama was a learning experience.

“It let me get to the point where I had to learn not to care what anybody thought,” he told Walters. “So I also didn’t want to say anything and fight back to the papers because that fed more into it.”

The daytime talk show host said he was ultimately more concerned with how the divorce might affect his twin daughters with Muggli.

“I had girls. I had these two little babies. And I don’t want my little ones to Google when they’re older — they’re 10 years old now — and say, ‘Daddy, why did you say this about mommy?’ I didn’t want that,” he explained. “It was more important for me to take it and deal with it as a father than to put my — to say something that could hurt my kids in the future.”

Strahan, a recent inductee to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, also has a 23-year-old daughter and a 20-year-old son from his first marriage to ex Wanda Hutchins. He told Walters that Hutchins is still “one of [his] best friends.”

“She gives me advice on relationships and everything else,” he said. “We were just kids having kids. For us, we were smart enough to turn that into a great friendship.”

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Michael Strahan: Divorce Was The ‘Worst Best’ Thing To Happen To Me

Do you remember that children’s book, Are You My Mother? It’s where a bird goes around asking a kitten, a cow, a dog and others if they are its mother. I feel like I’m that little bird when it comes to the spate of black men being killed. With each Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin or Amadou Diallo, I’m asking: Are you my Emmett Till? Which one of you will be the one who opens all of America’s eyes to the ugliness of systemic racism? Till was a 14-year-old Chicago kid who was murdered in Mississippi. The year was 1955 and his mom had an open casket funeral so…

Do you remember that children’s book, Are You My Mother? It’s where a bird goes around asking a kitten, a cow, a dog and others if they are its mother.

I feel like I’m that little bird when it comes to the spate of black men being killed. With each Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin or Amadou Diallo, I’m asking: Are you my Emmett Till?

Which one of you will be the one who opens all of America’s eyes to the ugliness of systemic racism? Till was a 14-year-old Chicago kid who was murdered in Mississippi. The year was 1955 and his mom had an open casket funeral so the world could see his mangled body. An all-white jury did not convict the two men charged with the crime, though both of them admitted to the killing years later. Till’s horrible death was one of the major catalysts of the Civil Rights movement.

Honestly, I thought Trayvon Martin was going to be the catalyst to fight the modern-day effects of institutional racism that was forewarned in the historic 1967 Kerner Commission report. But apparently, a wanna-be cop gunning down a 17-year-old with a hoodie and Skittles wasn’t enough to incite nationwide change. I recognize that gains were made and without a doubt Trayvon Martin did not die in vain.

But I wanted more. My country needs more.

When Michael Brown was killed, I watched as the nation divided largely along color lines and saw the truths of their own personal experiences. Communities that have found police officers to be helpful and heroic saw Brown’s death one way, and communities that have found officers to be rude bullies had a different take.

I also watched a militarized police force violate the rights of my fellow Americans. And things shifted. I started to see more white people protesting in Ferguson, Mo. and around the country in support of Ferguson. I started to hope that this time could be different.

Then the Michael Brown grand jury’s decision came and the difference was apparent. There were no longer mostly black people protesting with die-ins, marches and rallies. The protesters were white, black, Hispanic, Asian, all kinds of ethnicities. My hopes were buoyed.

Next came the grand jury decision on Eric Garner, who died after an officer put him in a chokehold. After that it was clear, Americans of every hue were outraged. The protests stretched from Portland, Ore. to Portland, Maine. My hope for improving America’s race relations grew.

We can’t have substantial change unless people from all backgrounds demand it. When the world saw Emmett Till’s body after he had been beaten, shot, tied to a cotton gin fan and tossed in the Tallahatchie River, many said, whoa, this isn’t the America I want. This ends now. It was like seeing is believing.

Is listening to Eric Garner’s last words — “I can’t breathe!” — enough to make us say, this isn’t the America I want?

Is the disturbing videotape of Garner’s chokehold going to be our equivalent of Till’s open casket? Will it be another case of seeing is believing? I don’t want to wait to find out. I shouldn’t have to wait for the “perfect victim” to galvanize this country. I just want all of this to end.

I am glad about the Ferguson Commission, the new federal guidelines on racial profiling and the Dec. 13 marches in Washington, New York and elsewhere, but it’s not enough. We have whole communities that rightfully distrust the police, neighborhoods where the entire system has failed its citizens. I believe most cops are good cops, but we all know it only takes a few bad apples. And our justice system is fatally flawed.

Our country needs all of us to chip in. Every day in your life you can push for change. I don’t have enough room to list all the examples here, but educate yourself on what subtle, modern day racism looks like because its damage is real. If you can see it, you’re better equipped to fight it. When someone else points out racism, don’t immediately dismiss them as being too sensitive or playing a race card. Let’s listen to each other. Teach your children by showing them the actions of an open mind. Keep marching, keep protesting, keep tweeting #CrimingWhileWhite #AliveWhileBlack, please don’t give up. Keep demanding for a better America.

Do it for the Emmett Tills. The Rumain Brisbons, Prince Joneses and Jonathan Ferrells.

Give truth to Eric Garner’s words: This ends now.

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With Each Killing I Ask: Are You My Emmett Till?

By Jessa Barron, NextAdvisor.com Do you need to pay a friend back for buying your movie ticket but won’t see them for a while? Or maybe you want to send your nephew money for his birthday but fear the check would be lost in the mail? Snapchat has partnered up with Square for a new feature, Snapcash, which allows its users to send and receive money on the app. It’s as easy as sending selfies with Snapchat, but how safe is it? How Does Snapcash Work? The first time you use Snapcash, it will prompt you to link a debit card to your account through Square, which means you will automatically become a Square user in the process. You must enter your card number, security code…

By Jessa Barron, NextAdvisor.com

Do you need to pay a friend back for buying your movie ticket but won’t see them for a while? Or maybe you want to send your nephew money for his birthday but fear the check would be lost in the mail? Snapchat has partnered up with Square for a new feature, Snapcash, which allows its users to send and receive money on the app. It’s as easy as sending selfies with Snapchat, but how safe is it?

How Does Snapcash Work?

The first time you use Snapcash, it will prompt you to link a debit card to your account through Square, which means you will automatically become a Square user in the process. You must enter your card number, security code and billing zip code before you can send or receive money. Sending money on Snapchat is similar to sending messages on the app. The recipient will get a notification and must also link a debit card to their Snapcash account in order to receive the money. Once they link their card, the money will be deposited into their account. Unlike regular messages, money transaction messages will not disappear from your chat history in Snapchat. Once you send the cash, the recipient has 24 hours to link their debit card to claim the money. If they fail to do so, the money is refunded to the sender.

One of the disadvantages with Snapcash is that there’s no way to cancel a transaction after you send it. That means if you send it to the wrong person or send the wrong amount, there’s a chance that you may have created a major headache for yourself, especially since you’ll have to go through Square to dispute it.

Is It Safe?

The only security feature that Snapchat has is a setting that requires you to enter your card’s security code before each payment. With the history the app has with hackers, this doesn’t seem like enough. However, Snapchat claims to only manage the message itself, leaving Square to control the financial aspect. This means Snapchat will not store any of your debit card information, as Square will encrypt it and submit it to their servers.

So can you trust Square with your financial information? Square is best known for giving small businesses a way to accept credit cards for payments, via a smartphone swiping device or tablets that function as cash registers (as you’ve seen on food trucks or in smaller boutiques and stores). While the company does have a long-standing history of securely storing information, it’s always best to be skeptical of handing over your financial information.

We should also note that since Snapcash requires you to use a debit card instead of credit, you may be more financially vulnerable if Square is ever breached. This is because you’ll be vulnerable to someone gaining access to all of your bank accounts connected to the card, instead of just one credit card account. Learn more about why credit is a better option than debit here.

What Are the Limitations?

Snapcash is currently only available to Snapchat users in the United States, who are at least 18 years old and who have a Visa or Mastercard debit card. There is also a limit on how much money can be sent and received. According to Snapchat, the limit on funds sent can be raised to up to $2,500 per week, and $1,000 per month for funds received.

The Snapcash feature is only available for peer-to-peer payments, which means that you cannot use it to make purchases from vendors. There are other options for peer-to-peer payment, like PayPal and the mobile app Venmo, but each has its own drawbacks, with security being the main worry. Most of these peer-to-peer payment apps and services like this store all of your information, so anyone who might gain access to your phone or computer could use your card to send themselves money and take you for everything you’ve got. Venmo also has a big social component, where it encourages you to share your transaction history in detail — similar to Facebook’s newsfeed, but with payments sent and received between friends. This may not be the type of information you want posted online for anyone to potentially see.

Should I Use It?

With Snapcash, the money is sent directly to your debit card and deposited in your account, regardless of which bank the other party uses and at no charge on either end. There is no login or password to remember (as long as you stay logged into Snapchat) and no special software required to use the service. But since Square and most of the other payment apps store your information, you may want to download a separate Internet security mobile app for security purposes. Many of these types of apps, such as ESET and BitDefender, offer special security features that make sure the apps you use are safe. BitDefender even has a feature you can activate which will prompt you to enter a PIN each time you access an app like Snapchat, giving you an additional layer of protection since no one can get into the app without the PIN.

As with most services online, you should always be wary of adding people you don’t know to further protect yourself from identity fraud, and monitor your bank transactions daily. Visit our identity theft protection blog to learn other precautions you can take to protect yourself from identity theft.

This blog post originally appeared on NextAdvisor.com.

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Snapchat’s Snapcash: Is Peer-to-Peer Payment Safe?

In a new interview with The Daily Beast, “Selma” director Ava DuVernay has called leaked emails between Sony co-chair Amy Pascal and producer Scott Rudin that mocked the film taste of President Barack Obama “sad, limited, crass.” DuVernay said she found out about the emails shortly after becoming the first black woman ever nominated for Best Director at the Golden Globes. “I thought it was a great gift to me to be reminded of that kind of sad, limited, crass view of the work that people do in this industry who are not from the dominant culture,” she said. “It was a gift to me to be reminded on that in that moment…

In a new interview with The Daily Beast, “Selma” director Ava DuVernay has called leaked emails between Sony co-chair Amy Pascal and producer Scott Rudin that mocked the film taste of President Barack Obama “sad, limited, crass.”

DuVernay said she found out about the emails shortly after becoming the first black woman ever nominated for Best Director at the Golden Globes.

“I thought it was a great gift to me to be reminded of that kind of sad, limited, crass view of the work that people do in this industry who are not from the dominant culture,” she said. “It was a gift to me to be reminded on that in that moment when there were a lot of shining lights on me and hoopla around the Globes. It was sobering, and it provided a moment of clarity that I’m thankful for as I move forward.”

In the emails, Rudin and Pascal joked about the kinds of movies President Obama might enjoy. “I bet he likes Kevin Hart,” Rudin wrote.

“I made a series of remarks that were meant only to be funny, but in the cold light of day, they are in fact thoughtless and insensitive,” Rudin said in a statement to Deadline.com. Pascal also apologized for the remarks.

This wasn’t the first time DuVernay spoke out about the emails. In a short interview with Variety last Thursday, the director said she had two words to pass along as commentary: “sickening and sad.” On Friday, during an interview with The Washington Post, DuVernay also called the emails a “gift.” She explained:

Something about reading that on the day of these nominations, getting off the stage with John Lewis, the standing ovations, all these things that have been happening, to get back and say, Okay, this is what some folks really think. […] [It] was empowering to me, got me really clear, got me really focused. So I’m grateful.

DuVernay is not the only person to slam Pascal and Rudin in the wake of their emails.

“What is most troubling about these statements is that they reflect a continued lack of diversity in positions of power in major Hollywood studios. The statements clearly show how comfortable major studio powers are with racial language and marginalization,” Al Sharpton said in a statement.

“Scandal” creator Shonda Rhimes also weighed in on the emails via her Twitter account:

For the full interview with DuVernay, head to The Daily Beast.

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‘Selma’ Director Ava DuVernay Calls Racist Sony Emails ‘Sad, Limited, Crass’