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High-performing women reportedly face more judgment compared to their male counterparts. Management software company Textio released a report surveying 450 participants that reveals a drastic difference among workplace feedback depending on a person’s gender or race. In fact, 67% of men said they were described as “intelligent,” while only 32% of women said they received the same description. When considering race, the numbers dwindle with 18% of Black workers saying they were labeled as intelligent in comparison to nearly 50% for white and Asian workers. With traits that include “likable,” “brilliant, “genius,” “gifted,” and “talented,” women still reportedly heard that feedback less than men. Even when surveyed on receiving negative feedback, women stated they experienced this at a higher rate with 56% being labeled as “ unlikable” in comparison to 16% of men, and 78% of women said they were called “emotional” in comparison to 11% of men. On top of this, women are seven times more...
Direct payouts from the Biden administration will be allocated to Black farmers who have faced discrimination. ABC News reports Black farmers acknowledge that they have been discriminated against by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) when it comes to loans. The outlet notes many had been denied loans or received loans that were less than their white counterparts. Some that did receive loans had even reported having their property foreclosed on sooner than was typical when they experienced issues paying. Denial was the case for Wardell Carter, whose family has owned 85 acres of land in Mississippi since 1939. Yet despite their longevity, they have never been able to access a loan application. Instead, they were greeted by USDA loan officers with a slammed door, and if they persisted they were faced with the reality of having a cop called to their home, he says. Due to these challenges, it prevented the family from purchasing a tractor for years. So, they had to rely on a horse...
Elon Musk has shared a fake AI video that labels Vice President Kamala Harris as the “ultimate diversity hire.” Harris is actively campaigning to receive the official Democratic nomination as she looks to become the 47th U.S. president, facing off against former President Donald Trump. She has already received the blessing of President Joe Biden, who will no longer be running for re-election. “On behalf of the American people, I thank Joe Biden for his extraordinary leadership as President of the United States and for his decades of service to our country,” Harris wrote on Instagram. “I am honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination. I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party—and unite our nation—to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kamala Harris (@kamalaharris) Harris’s announcement has been met with skepticism. As AFROTECH™ previously...
Fearless Fund has been barred temporarily from providing funding to Black entrepreneurs. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, the venture capital fund had been sued by Edward Blum and his American Alliance for Equal Rights group in August 2023 for “explicit racial exclusion” by creating a grant program dedicated solely to Black women, The Washington Post shares. Initially, U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Thrash had ruled in favor of Fearless Fund, but the verdict was blocked by a panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit on Sept. 30, 2023. Fearless Fund, looking to retract the verdict, filed to appeal the September ruling. In the most recent update, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit has temporarily blocked Fearless Fund from continuing its efforts to support Black women entrepreneurs with funding, CNN reports . The panel judges ruled the Fearless Fund’s Fearless Strivers Grant Contest is “substantially likely to violate” Title 42 of the US Code’s provisions,...
A lawsuit has been filed against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The Equal Protection Project, which is under the Legal Insurrection Foundation, is suing MIT for its program supporting women of color, CRWN ( The Creative Regal Women of kNowledge), according to Boston.com. The nonprofit claims that the program is exclusionary, discriminatory, and violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 because “only undergraduate ‘women of color’ can participate in the program.” “We bring this civil rights complaint against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for creating, supporting and promoting a program for undergraduate students — called the Creative Regal Women of Knowledge, or ‘The CRWN’ — that engages in invidious discrimination on the basis of race, color and sex,” foundation founder William A. Jacobson wrote in the complaint, per the outlet. In a follow-up statement, he added. “It is sad and disheartening to...
Colorado is taking a stand to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) in the workplace. On May 8, 2024, the Colorado General Assembly passed Senate Bill 24-205 (SB205), Forbes reports. In the bill’s summary, it wrote that it “requires a developer of a high-risk artificial intelligence system (high-risk system) to use reasonable care to avoid algorithmic discrimination in the high-risk system.” Moreover, the bill described high-risk artificial intelligence systems as any machine-based system that plays a role in consequential decisions being made in education enrollment and education opportunities, employment and employment opportunities, financial and lending services, essential government services, healthcare services, housing, insurance, or legal services. According to Forbes, the bill marks Colorado as the first U.S. state to establish a comprehensive law that not only addresses utilizing AI in employment but also in other critical sectors. On May 17, Governor of Colorado Jared...
Al Roker and his production company, Al Roker Entertainment, have been sued for allegedly not following through with a commitment to diversity. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Bill Schultz filed a lawsuit against the “Today” host and CEO’s company as he claims that executives failed to commit to its DEI initiative, which would bring Black writers on board for PBS’s “Weather Hunters.” Al Roker Entertainment is the owner of the animated children’s show. As an executive producer for “Weather Hunters,” Schultz addressed the issue at hand, confronting the leaders about the failure to adhere to the diversity program, which is mandated by PBS. However, he says that their response was firing him. In addition, a Black producer was also reprimanded for speaking up. “I put nine years of my career into ‘ Weather Hunters ,’ a project I strongly believe in, with the goal of making a wonderfully crafted show for children to enjoy and learn from,” Schultz shared in a statement, according to...
A new move made by a group of education officials in North Carolina has the power to do a state-wide sweep of programs committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) at public universities. According to The News & Observer, the University of North Carolina System Board of Governors’ University Governance Committee has approved “a policy that repeals the university system’s existing policy and regulation on diversity and inclusion.” The move will reportedly disband laws in place requiring all 17 public campuses within the state of North Carolina to employ diversity officers as well as drive efforts toward a common goal of fulfilling diversity-related measures. A University of North Carolina System Board of Governors committee voted in favor of policy that would eliminate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion jobs at NC public universities. There was no discussion. https://t.co/9xQvXJFFG8 — philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) April 18, 2024 Per the Raleigh, NC-based outlet, the committee held...
The implementation of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) at medical schools is currently in danger. In March 2024, Congressman Greg Murphy (R-NC) introduced the Embracing anti-Discrimination, Unbiased Curricula, and Advancing Truth in Education (EDUCATE) Act. The proposed bill aims to prohibit race-based mandates at medical schools and accrediting institutions, per a news release. In addition, it would stop federal funding to medical schools that “discriminate” against races and ethnicities, have DEI offices, and “force” students and school faculty to assimilate to particular beliefs. “American medical schools are the best in the world and no place for discrimination,” Murphy shared in a statement. “The EDUCATE Act compels medical schools and accrediting agencies to uphold colorblind admissions processes and prohibits the coercion of students who hold certain political opinions. Diversity strengthens medicine, but not if it’s achieved through exclusionary practices. Medicine is...
Duke University is the latest higher educational institute to make a change following the 2023 Supreme Court ruling that ended affirmative action in admissions. According to its student publication The Chronicle, the North Carolina college has officially discontinued its Reginaldo Howard Memorial Scholarship Program. Since its inception in 1979, the merit scholarship was created for Black undergraduates, some of whom were required to demonstrate the need for financial assistance. It covered the cost of full tuition as well as room and board for those who were selected to be a part of the program. Duke University announced it is ending a full-ride scholarship program for Black students in the wake of the Supreme Court’s affirmative action ruling https://t.co/dNK2Rst99y — philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) April 12, 2024 “It is very much disheartening to hear that this program that opened the door for me to come to Duke is now being closed essentially, even though it will take on a new...
In 2015, film and television producers Lee Daniels and Danny Strong debuted the critically acclaimed television series, “Empire,” starring actors Taraji P. Henson and Terrence Howard. As characters, they portrayed a complicated couple attempting to navigate the duality of family and business. Each week, viewers were engrossed in the drama of this fictitious musical dynasty, but behind the scenes everything wasn’t as glamorous as it seemed. Howard has been in a legal battle over his salary from the show since December 2023. According to a previous post from AFROTECH™, the “Hustle & Flow” actor claims he received up to 50% less than what his white counterparts would have made in a starring role similar to “Empire’s” music mogul character Luscious Lyon. Terrence Howard’s Complaints Based on the lawsuit documents filed against the Creative Artist Agency (CAA), the complaint alleges that Howard was unaware of the fees and conflict of interest the agency would impose. Additionally, after...
Terrence Howard is set on pushing forward with a legal battle regarding his Hollywood earnings. As previously shared by AFROTECH™, the Oscar-nominated actor filed a lawsuit against the Creative Artists Agency (CAA) in December 2023. Howard claims that the agency prompted him to accept talent fees that were less than what he should’ve received. For starring in the hit TV series, “Empire,” he allegedly earned 30% to 50% less than what he should have earned per episode. “We expect our agents and our lawyers to look after us, and therefore we’re free to do all of the work that you guys enjoy so much,” Howard expressed during a press conference that year. “I trusted CAA to look after me, and they looked after themselves.” During the press conference, Howard noted that he wasn’t entirely certain that the lowball pay was due to a “racial issue.” However, now, he has come forward to not only further address the elephant in the room but also detail what he believes he’s owed. In an interview...
To foster inviting settings and decrease racially-biased experiences for shoppers, U.S. retailers have linked up. According to a press release sent to AfroTech, the nonprofit Open to All has announced that 28 major retail brands have signed the Mitigate Racial Bias in Retail Charter. What this means is that signees have committed to integrating actions that work to dismantle racially biased interactions while creating a friendly atmosphere for shoppers.
A Texas telecom company just lost a $70 million federal discrimination lawsuit. Atlanta Black Star reports that Glow Networks Inc. and its parent company, CSS Corp, exposed nine Black employees — and one white employee who advocated on behalf of his Black co-workers — to what can only be summarized as a hostile work environment tinged with more than a bit of racism. And based on the facts of the case, that’s the height of understatement. “Court documents reveal there were originally fourteen members in the group suing Glow Networks, Inc., alleging that they had ‘both tangible actions, such as terminations and denials of promotions, and on the alleged creation of a hostile work environment,'” reports the outlet. Initially, fourteen employees brought the federal discrimination suit against the telecom company. However, only ten employees ultimately were awarded damages — the other four’s claims were dismissed by the court. For Yarbrough, though, it was the principle of the matter. “We...
A sign-on bonus from a job is always a win. However, for one Black Houston doctor, her moment of victory was swiftly taken away due to discriminatory practices. ABC13 reports that Dr. Malika Mitchell-Stewart had recently completed her residency before securing a position at Valley Oaks Medical Group. The Black Houston doctor was subsequently awarded a $16,000 check from her newly acquired position. Dr. Malika Mitchell-Stewart then went to JPMorgan Chase Bank at First Colony Branch in Sugar Land to deposit her new earnings. Unfortunately, her celebration was cut short. According to a lawsuit, staff members at JPMorgan Chase began to ask Dr. Malika Mitchell-Stewart unwarranted questions pertaining to her check and position as a doctor, ABC13 reports. Dr. Stewart describes feeling like a criminal after showing her check. JPMorgan Chase ultimately led with a decision to refuse Dr. Stewart’s service and declared the check fraudulent. Stewart believes she was targeted due to the color of...