News

 A police shooting death of a homeless man who the chief said wounded an officer with a knife while resisting arrest has roiled Wisconsin’s capital city, with protesters and community groups demanding accountability and an end to racial injustice. Corey Durell Ruiz, 38, was shot and killed on a city street Wednesday, the moments of his death captured in bystander videos that were later posted online. The race of the officer who fired his gun has not been released by police. Ruiz is identified as Black or Latino in Wisconsin court records. “It does not matter who you are or what your past is, you should not lose your life as a result of an encounter with law enforcement,” Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said during a news conference Thursday afternoon. Wisconsin court records show Ruiz had been in and out of jail over the past decade for mostly misdemeanor offenses including disorderly conduct, drug possession, auto theft, battery and invasion of privacy. He was also convicted of felonies including possession of cocaine and marijuana, robbery, strangulation, resisting an officer and causing bodily harm. “He’s a human being. He had a family. He has parents who loved him, who brought him home, who cared for him,” Common Council President Sabrina Madison said, adding that she’s struggling to understand what she’s seen in videos of the shooting that have circulated on social media. “My first thought is, when the officer’s walking away, why isn’t he walking away in cuffs?” Madison said. “I’m angry, there’s no way around it.” Ruiz’s family has retained Ben Crump, a prominent civil rights attorney, who said the case must be examined for excessive force. Frustrated residents marched, and a memorial of flowers and signs grew near the place where Ruiz died. It was just blocks from where two other police killings happened in 2015 and 2012. A group of about 20 protesters burst into Thursday’s news conference, taking the microphone from police Chief John Patterson and arguing with some attendees who said they wanted to hear more about the investigation. One protester held a sign saying “Corrupt cops deserve to die too!!!” Moments earlier, the mayor said the shooting would be “rigorously investigated.” Once the protesters quieted down, the chief resumed his presentation, promising his department’s full cooperation with the state investigation. None of the four officers who were detaining Ruiz wore body cameras, but passersby recorded the confrontation on video, and accused the officers of overreacting. “I thought, ‘Holy cow — what could have warranted that?’ It looked to me like they had him under control,” David Ortiz-Whittingham, who saw officers swarming and heard the gunshots, said Thursday. “Even now, knowing about the knife, did he have to die for it? Could this have been de-escalated?” The police chief released few details Thursday, saying a Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation probe of the officer-involved shooting must run its course. Earlier Thursday, Madison’s independent police monitor, Aeiramique Glass, said police had not yet shared evidence or the officer’s identity with her office, which will review the case and can recommend to the district attorney that charges be filed if warranted. She said the department and city are “obstructing what the community and the public” want. “Let me do my job,” she said. Patterson said the police were committed to cooperating with Glass. Patterson has urged caution in reading too much from the cellphone videos. He said none show the perspective of the officers, and additional unreleased video was being reviewed. The officer who fired his weapon is an 11-year veteran of the force, the chief said. He and the three other responding officers will be placed on administrative leave. Patterson said police were responding to calls that someone was attempting to enter parked vehicles, and the suspect fled on a bike before the officers surrounded him. One deployed a taser, but Patterson said the effort failed to control the man. In the videos circulating online, the man can be seen standing before he’s brought to his knees as the officers struggle to force him into a prone position. Then he falls quickly to the pavement after what sounds like three gunshots, and seems motionless as the officers handcuff him behind his back. Arriving officers then escort one of the officers a short distance away. Patterson said he did not know the extent of the knife injuries sustained by the officer. “This situation was clearly dangerous,” Patterson said before adding he was saddened by the loss of life. The shooting happened in the middle of an intersection in the popular Marquette neighborhood, less than 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) from the state Capitol. Bystander videos show numerous cars at the scene, with people watching as it unfolds. “I saw everything! I saw everything! You did not need to kill him! ... We watched it all!” a woman yells in the video recorded by Ortiz-Whittingham. Residents who dealt with two other police killings expressed frustration Thursday. In 2015, a white police officer shot and killed Tony Robinson, who was biracial, on the same street. Large protests followed, but the district attorney filed no charges, determining the officer was justified. In 2012, Paul Heenan, a white musician, was fatally shot after he had been drinking and mistakenly entered his neighbor’s house. That officer was exonerated as well. The chief acknowledged that the neighborhood “has experienced a lot of trauma” and urged people to support one another. “I want transparency. I want accountability,” Patterson said. Black advocacy groups, protesters and politicians are speaking out against the shooting, which has also focused attention on the Madison Police Department’s lack of body-worn cameras. The force of around 500 is among the largest in the Midwest that doesn’t use the devices. Madison, the Common Council president, said Thursday that she expects a police request for $400,000 to be approved, enabling the cameras to be phased in over the next three years. Others lamented that cameras weren’t already being used. The mayor said her budget, which has not yet been released, will include funding for body-worn cameras. Rhodes-Conway said the city needs to put together a policy for their use before the budget takes effect in January. The shooting has quickly infused itself into the race to succeed Gov. Tony Evers, who is not seeking a third term. Voting is already underway in the Aug. 11 primary. Democratic socialist candidate Francesca Hong called the shooting “state sanctioned violence.” Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, a Democrat, said the reports are “painfully reminiscent of the tragedies we have witnessed in Kenosha, Minneapolis, and far too many communities.” Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany called on his rivals to let the state investigation “establish the facts without politicians rushing to judgment.”

This month, specifically July 16th, marked the birth of Assata Shakur, a Black liberation activist who passed away in September of last year.  She passed away in the capital city of Havana reportedly due to her "health conditions and advanced age," Cuba's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. Shakur's daughter, Kakuya Shakur, confirmed her mother's death in a Facebook post. Officials in New Jersey, where Shakur was previously imprisoned, said she was 78.

Before Tony Brown became one of the most recognizable faces in television, he helped build one of Washington’s most influential institutions for training Black journalists. Brown, the founding dean of Howard University’s School of Communications and Hampton University’s Scripps Howard School of Communications and the longtime host of Tony Brown’s Journal, died June 17 at his home in Newport News, Virginia. He was 93.

Onyx Impact built Aisha to prove AI isn't neutral—and that centering Black voices makes the technology better for everyone.

This month, specifically June 15th, marked the birth of Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu, a national educational consultant, publisher and the author of over 30 books that address effective means by which to counter the negative impact of white supremacy on the development of black youth. He passed away at the age of 71 last year on April 25.

Mother Khadijah Farrakhan, wife of Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, has died at the age of 90.  A message posted to the Final Call website from Student Minister Ishmael R. Muhammad, On Behalf of The Executive Council of the Nation of Islam read as follows: The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan with deep sadness yet with profound gratitude to Allah informs you that his beloved wife of 72 years, the First Lady of the Nation of Islam, Mother Khadijah has returned to Allah (may Allah be pleased). We thank Allah for the precious life of a loving wife, mother, a faithful devoted follower of The Honorable Elijah Muhammad. Mother Khadijah will forever be cherished and remembered. May Allah give His unequaled comfort to the family as we mourn this tremendous loss and lift the family in our prayers and thoughts. Allah, there is no God but He, He gives life and to Him is our eventual return. Funeral (Janazah) services will be sent as soon as it’s available. The Farrakhans married in 1953 at St. Cyrpian’s Episcopal Church in Boston, and they had 9 children together, including Louis Farrakhan Jr., who preceded his mother in death in 2018; Mustapha; Joshua Nasir; Abnar; Donna; Hanan; Maria; Fatimah; and Khallada. The Farrakhans were celebrated last year in a “sacred celebration” at The Salaam Restaurant in Chicago, which marked the 92nd birthday of Minister Farrakhan and “the unwavering strength and grace of his wife, Mother Khadijah Farrakhan, on the occasion of Mother’s Day.” More from the Final Call: Throughout the night, expressions of love and gratitude for Mother Khadijah Farrakhan, known as the First Lady and Mother of the Faithful, rang out with reverence. Her quiet strength, dignity, and commitment to her husband’s divine mission were repeatedly honored. “She is the wind beneath his wings,” said Student Minister Abdul Rasul Muhammad, general manager of The Final Call and the evening’s emcee, quoting Minister Farrakhan. “She provides support, encouragement, and strength—often behind the scenes—that enables another to soar.” He added, “She is one of the most beautiful women on the earth and will be remembered for generations to come for her sacrifices—known and unknown.”