Jesse Powell is the CEO of Kracken, an app that lets you buy crypto. Like many tech companies, or really any company in 2022, there are perma-offended woke nincompoops who are miserable to be around. At a company like Twitter, it’s everyone in the company. At Kracken, it was only a handful, but it was a miserable handful who got in the way of actual work. So Powell is offering them a severance package.
As Kracken grew, so did the diverse group of employees working for the company. Powell believes in diversity of thought and foolishly thought employees could have respectful debates with each other. When a handful of imbeciles were always whining about pronouns, DEI, and being “harmed” by “violent” words, Powell realized he miscalculated.
8/ Then it’s about “silencing” people 😂. Funny thing is the biggest activists have the most myopic view of the world. They don’t realize how discriminatory they are to others. You want to be “inclusive” by asking an ESL Saudi candidate his pronouns/gender in a job interview? — Jesse Powell (@jespow) June 15, 2022
So, he went to rid Kracken of the woke menace. Not by firing them, that would be too based. But he offered them a severance because Kracken clearly wasn’t the place for them, says Powell. “Most people don’t care and just want to work, but they can’t be productive while triggered people keep dragging them into debates and therapy sessions. The answer for us was to just lay out the culture doc and say: agree and commit, disagree and commit, or take the cash.”
10/ Unfortunately, that’s not enough for everyone. Someone’s likely been sharing internal chat (in breach of their NDA) devoid of context, with a journalist who we expect to publish a hit piece in the next few days. I just want to say we welcome all, and don’t believe the news. — Jesse Powell (@jespow) June 15, 2022
Powell said that 30 out of 3000 employees took the buyout because being around others with different opinions was too scary for them. The CEO reiterated his commitment to diversity of thought: “If nobody is ever offended, we either don’t have enough diversity of thought or we don’t have enough transparency in communication. We recognize that hurt feelings are inevitable in a global organization that is optimizing for team outcomes above individual sentiment. The ideal Krakenite is thick-skinned and well-intentioned.“
Amen. Otherwise, go get a job at Twitter or the Washington Post. They care less about work and more about your fee-fees.
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Andy Morrow, assistant superintendent and soon to be interim superintendent when Tom Moore departs at the end of June, announced that Hines had been chosen following an extensive search. “There’s a very high bar for Conard’s stewardship and leadership,” he said.
“I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am to be named Conard’s principal,” Hines told We-Ha.com on Tuesday. “This is an opportunity that I am so fortunate to have been considered for, but to go through the interview process and secure the position is amazing.”
Former Conard Principal Julio Duarte was appointed to take over Ledwith’s position with West Hartford Public Schools, becoming the district’s executive director of Human Resources as of Feb. 1.
Hines grew up in Bloomfield, and got his B.A. from UConn in 1993, and after graduating he went to work at Aetna. It wasn’t for him.
“Almost everyone in my family is an educator,” he said in a previous interview. His dad is a former superintendent of schools, his mom was a teacher and named Teacher of the Year in Hamden, and other family members are also in the education field. “I tried to avoid it, but it wasn’t in the cards for me.”
He earned an M.A. in education from Cambridge College, and his sixth year degree in educational leadership and administration from Central Connecticut State University. Prior to coming to West Hartford in 2013, he taught English and coached football, baseball, and lacrosse at Farmington High School.
Hines, who lives in Newington, said as principal he’s looking forward to getting to know more families. “I’m looking forward to learning even more about the community, meeting more families. As principal you get to connect with everyone,” he said in January.
He’s also said how excited he is about further driving Conard’s initiatives to become even more equitable and anti-racist. “I’m the first African American principal at Conard, and that’s cool. I embrace it.” As the founder of the Future Educators of Diversity program in town, he said he’s excited to make the principal role even more relatable to the Black and brown students.
Hines said he thrives on student energy, enjoys being at school, and is excited about graduations, proms, and pep rallies.
He will preside over the Conard as principal as the community embraces its new mascot and nickname.
“Now, the fun really starts,” Hines said Tuesday regarding his appointment to the official role. “I look forward to what we, as the Conard community, will accomplish in the months, weeks, and years to come. Thank you Conard and West Hartford!”
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Early this morning, it was announced that 29-year veteran umpire Ángel Hernández filed a grievance against his employer claiming that MLB had manipulated its internal umpiring metrics in order to make Hernandez look bad.
This is the latest chapter in Hernández’s discrimination lawsuit which started in 2017. Hernández is approaching the legal system claiming that MLB has manipulated its umpire data and altered Hernández’s season-ending reports in an effort to make him seem like a worse umpire than he actually is, therefore, preventing Hernández from being promoted to a crew chief.
Hernández claims that the league has a diversity problem when it comes to hiring and promoting umpires. That claim isn’t necessarily false. Prior to Hernández’s first legal claim in 2017, the league had only had one minority crew chief in its history, Rich Garcia. That number has since grown. There are currently two minority crew chiefs in MLB, Las Díaz and Alfonso Márquez, and in 2020, umpire Kerwin Danley became the first ever African-American crew chief. He has since retired. However, the diversity problem had been brought to attention by Hernández, and prior to tossing Hernández’s initial claim in 2021, a judge did make an official statement claiming that MLB had a “diversity issue.”
In his recent court filing, Hernández states that “The District Court failed to give appropriate weight to evidence of MLB’s disparate treatment of Mr. Hernandez, including evidence that MLB was manipulating the performance of Mr. Hernandez and other minority umpires to make their performances look worse.” Hernández explained that from 2011 to 2016, the midseason reviews he would receive — known as umpire evaluation reports (UERs) — detailed Hernández as one of the best umpires in MLB, but the end-of-year reports were much less flattering. Hernández found it odd that there could be such a discrepancy between his midseason and end-of-year reviews. But is it?
MLB isn’t the only organization that ranks umpires. In fact, there’s a site, umpscorecards.com, which has publicly available up-to-date umpire statistics. They routinely post scorecards for each umpire that detail what each of them got wrong, how they can improve, and what their biggest errors were in each game. According to the site, in 2022, Hernández has been the 10th-worst umpire in the league when it comes to ball and strike accuracy. He is also the fifth-least consistent umpire in the league. That’s not exactly where MLB would like their crew chiefs to be.
In all fairness to Hernández though, there are a few crew chiefs with worse numbers this season. Greg Gibson, Laz Díaz, and Jerry Layne are all crew chiefs with lower accuracies than Hernández this season.
In 2021, both Díaz and Gibson had worse accuracy percentages than Hernández, yet both were promoted to crew chief this past offseason. By that logic, Hernández has the right to be upset.
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Is Hernández the victim of malice on MLB’s end? Possibly. The fact that there are currently two minority crew chiefs in MLB is evidence against that. However, based on umpire data available to the public, Hernández does have a claim for a crew chief position. He’s seen colleagues with worse marks get promoted, all while he gets left in the dust. At the same time though, Hernández has a reputation around MLB for not only being a subpar umpire, but also having a fragile ego that shatters easily when players and/or coaches argue his calls. Perhaps that’s why he hasn’t been promoted. While he may be better at calling balls and strikes, they feel his temperament could be improved.
Contrary to what the court of public opinion would have you believe, Hernández is not the worst umpire to ever walk the Earth. He isn’t good by any means, and is probably a worse umpire than he thinks himself to be, but he’s not as bad (at least behind home plate) as some of the umpires who’ve been granted crew chief positions. Personally, I don’t think Hernández deserves a job as a crew chief, but neither do Díaz or Gibson. If MLB really wants to convince Hernández that he isn’t cut out for the job, they need to do a better job of promoting great umpires.
Zeneta Everhart, mother of Buffalo shooting victim Zaire Goodman, testified before the House Oversight Committee, June 8, 2022.
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The mother of a survivor of the mass shooting at Buffalo, New York, grocery store testified before Congress Wednesday that America is “inherently violent,” telling lawmakers, “This is who we are” as a nation stretching back to the introduction of slavery.
Zeneta B. Everhart, a Buffalo native, former TV news producer and currently the Director of Diversity & Inclusion for the office of Democratic New York state Sen. Tim Kennedy, recounted before the House Oversight and Reform Committee receiving the call from her son that he had been shot on May 14.
“Domestic terrorism exists in this country for three reasons. America is inherently violent, access to guns is as easy as buying a piece of bubble gum from the store, and we have an inadequate education system,” she told lawmakers. “America is inherently violent. This is who we are as a nation.”
Everhart argued that “the very existence of this country was founded on violence, hate and racism, with the near annihilation of my Native brothers and sisters.”
A person walks past the scene of a shooting at a supermarket, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
“My ancestors, brought to America through the slave trade were the first currency of America, let me say that again for the people in the back, my ancestors, the first currency of America were stripped of their heritage and culture, separated from their families, bargained for on auction blocks, sold, beaten, raped and lynched,” Everhart said. “Yet I continuously hear after every mass shooting that this is not who we are as Americans and as a nation. Hear me clearly, this is exactly who and what America is.”
“As a citizen of this country, I believe in the Second Amendment and the right to bear arms. However, no citizen walking the streets needs an AR-15,” she added. “Let me say that again for the people in the back. No citizen needs an AR-15. These weapons are designed to do the most harm in the least amount of time.”
Zeneta Everhart, whose son Zaire Goodman, 20, was shot in the neck during the Buffalo Tops supermarket mass shooting and survived, testifies during a House Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing on gun violence on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, June 8, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool)
She called on legislators to enact “common sense” gun legislation to protect children and citizens.
“To the lawmakers who feel that we do not need stricter gun laws let me paint a picture for you: My son Zaire has a hole in the right side of his neck, two on his back and another on his leg caused by an exploding bullet from an AR-15,” Everhart said. “As I clean his wounds, I can feel pieces of that bullet in his back. Shrapnel will be left inside of his body for the rest of his life. Now I want you to picture this exact scenario for one of your children. This should NOT be my life or yours.”
From left, Zeneta Everhart, whose son Zaire Goodman, 20, was shot in the neck during the Buffalo Tops supermarket mass shooting and survived, Roy Guerrero, a pediatrician from Uvalde, Texas, Miguel Cerrillo, father of Miah Cerrillo fourth grade student at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, and Lucretia Hughes, of DC Project, Women for Gun Rights, are sworn in to testify during a House Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing in Washington, DC, on June 8, 2022. (ANDREW HARNIK/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Everhart recalled how a “racist terrorist” opened fire at Tops Friendly Market in her historically Black neighborhood on May 14 where her 21-year-old son, Zaire Mysaun Goodman, has been employed since the summer of 2020 when he took the job at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
She said she was shopping elsewhere at a BJ’s when Goodman called to say he had been shot, and his grandmother, who home just down the block at the time, raced over to see “bodies everywhere.”
But Goodman was already being rushed by ambulance to Erie County Medical Center, where Everhart said she “pleaded with the nurses to let me see my son.” Eventually she and Goodman’s father were allowed in to see him, and she said they, “drove home from the hospital just four hours after a bullet tore through the lower right side of his neck and through his back.”
The shooting ultimately killed three and wounded 11 other people, including Goodman.
Danielle Wallace is a reporter for Fox News Digital covering politics, crime, police and more. Story tips can be sent to danielle.wallace@fox.com and on Twitter: @danimwallace.
In celebrating Pride this year, we invite LGBTQIA+ communities and allies to unite in their support for justice and equality, and to amplify voices that combat discrimination around the globe. Team Xbox shares our support for the LGBTQIA+ communities within gaming, while raising awareness of current issues impacting these communities.
With more than half of video game players (52% ) agreeing that “my gaming identity is a better reflection of myself than my real-world identity,” video games are an important outlet that gives players – especially those who are LGBTQIA+ – the chance to be who they want to be. At Xbox, we continue to work on creating safe spaces in gaming where all LGBTQIA+ people are welcome and belong, where everyone is invited to play as their authentic self and enjoy a community that welcomes self-expression.
This is also our chance to be truly intersectional by celebrating the vast array of people and identities that make up the vibrant Xbox LGBTQIA+ global gaming communities. It is more important than ever to recognize that systems of inequity based on gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, class, and other forms of discrimination intersect and ultimately affect us all. The global issues that LGBTQIA+ communities face are interconnected and we must seek to address them together. We are inspired by those who are using their voice and actively collaborating across groups and inequities to drive change for and beyond LGBTQIA+ communities.
Xbox will continue to champion a wide array of content and creators, so that games can better represent players from all communities and identities. We also support organizations that are driving change for issues that impact LGBTQIA+ communities, in particular those fighting for transgender equality. This year Xbox, along with Microsoft, is thrilled to continue these efforts with a $170K donation to multiple LGBQTIA+ organizations, as well as feature an increased number of Pride-themed products and designs which can hopefully inspire conversations and rally community actions.
We will help drive these conversations and amplify diverse LGBTQIA+ voices at Xbox as we continue to embrace and uplift the power of voice and identity. Here are a few ways that Team Xbox will be supporting LGBTQIA+ communities and celebrating Pride this year:
Give
Microsoft is donating a total of $170,000 to LGBTQIA+ nonprofits
Microsoft is continuing our long-standing support of LGBTQIA+ organizations. Together with our employees, Microsoft has donated over $8M to organizations that support LGBTQIA+ communities in the last year alone. To recognize the launch of our 2022 Pride campaign and products, we’re contributing an additional $170,000 to OutRight Action International, African Rainbow Family, National Center for Transgender Equality, Mermaids, Lavender Rights Project and Fulcrum UA to help in the fight for LGBTQIA+ equity and equality.
Gaming and Impact with Microsoft Rewards
Microsoft Rewards members in the United States and the United Kingdom can earn and donate points to organizations supporting LGBTQIA+ communities with Xbox. The organizations below will be featured on console throughout June:
Xbox gamers can earn Microsoft Rewards points in various ways, such as playing or purchasing games after downloading the Microsoft Rewards app on Xbox. Earn points and redeem them for real rewards. Join us today and donate through Xbox.
Get the Gear
Xbox Design Lab Features New Controller Inspired by Pride Available June 9
Last year, Xbox shared a vision for a Pride controller. We produced a limited batch of Pride controllers and shared it with LGBTQIA+ players and creators around the world. While the response to the controller was very positive, many asked us to make this design universally available. We heard you, and we’re expanding availability by making this year’s Pride controller customizable through Xbox Design Lab, specifically underscoring the uniqueness of the LGBTQIA+ experience.
This year’s Pride top case design brings together 34 community flags in a fine, interwoven manner to celebrate the nuance, complexity, intersectionality, and strength of the many LGBTQIA+ communities. You can customize all other parts of the controller with a broad color palette, metallic finishes, rubberized grips, and even add engraving to make your Pride controller unique to you.
But this isn’t just a controller. It’s a symbol of the LGBTQIA+ communities that inspired it, and a call to continue efforts toward inclusion and representation across all gaming spaces. So, we’re bringing together dozens of voices of LGBTQIA+ gamers, developers, content creators and Microsoft employees within an immersive storytelling experience. We hope that by interacting with this experience, people will see why LGBTQIA+ representation and visibility matters, how it has already impacted the lives of so many, and how much we can all do to make gaming a matter of Pride.
Create your unique Pride controller starting June 9, available everywhere Xbox Design Lab is available. Share your designs with us using #Pride and #XboxPride. Discover and learn more here.
Show your support with limited-edition t-shirts, bags, and more — all created by and with LGBTQIA+ communities. This year’s collection is packed with even more Xbox Game Studios designs and eco-friendly options. Shop Pride gear now.
Play
XGS Publishing: Tell Me Why Available for Free in June + Charity Livestream
Tell Me Why, the award-winning narrative adventure from Dontnod Entertainment and Xbox Publishing, will be available for free on Xbox consoles, the Microsoft Store, and Steam for the entire month of June 2022. To acknowledge that this year has seen a sharp rise in anti-trans sentiment in the United States, Xbox Publishing is accompanying the free period with donations of $25,000 each to Transgender Law Center and Trans Lifeline, two non-profit organizations offering resources and support to trans, non-binary, and genderqueer people.
Xbox Publishing is also hosting a livestream of Tell Me Why to fundraise for Trans Lifeline on Thursday, June 23. We hope to see you there! Watch here.
343 Industries Celebrates Pride with New “Unity” Emblem and Nameplate!
343 Industries celebrates Pride with a brand-new emblem and nameplate! During the month of June, any players logging into Halo Infinite will receive the “Unity” nameplate and emblem, created for any Spartan who wants to show their true colors!
The Forza Franchise Celebrates Pride
Coming soon in June, an exclusive Forza rainbow livery adorning the 2009 Pagani Zonda Cinque Roadster will be gifted in-game to players in Forza Horizon 5 and Forza Horizon 4, as well as Forza Motorsport 7. Keep an eye on the Turn 10 Studios Twitter to see when it’s been delivered to your in-game Message Center.
Microsoft Casual Games Is Showing Our Pride
Celebrate Pride Month with a new, limited edition Microsoft Casual Games t-shirt and a chance to win a $25 Xbox Gear Shop Gift Card! Join the fun by sharing your love of games in the Microsoft Solitaire Community. View the new shirt here and click to enter the Sweepstakes June 13 – 20 (Editor’s Note: ‘Entry’ links will be live starting June 13). Must be 18+ and reside in an Xbox Gear Shop supported shipping region. Rules can be found here starting on June 13.
Discover
Discover Games Curated by LGBTQIA+ Communities at Microsoft
From GLAAD and the Gayming Awards to lesser-known hits, Microsoft Store on Xbox or Windows visitors and Xbox Game Pass members can easily access some of the most inspiring games making LGBTQIA+ history than ever before and play with pride at any time! Content experiences have increased to over 27 additional regions today as we continue our missions to expand Pride beyond borders and build empathy and belonging through gaming content.
Check out a few highlights from the Xbox games and Windows games reflecting the experiences of and resonating with LGBTQIA+ communities including creators, leads, relationship options, and character creation options.
Unsighted (Available with Xbox Game Pass) – Created by Tiani Pixel and Fernanda Dias, who are both trans and Brazilian, this LGBTQIA+ inspired, stylish hack and slasher features lesbian robots in a postapocalyptic world full of choices.
No Longer Home– Based on Cel Davison and Hana Lee’s life, this game is about two non-binary people, Ao and Bo, who must leave London because Ao is obliged to go back to Japan. This game is about letting go of the life you’ve built due to circumstances beyond your control.
Tiny Tina’s Wonderland– Tiny Tina is your disorderly guide through an extraordinary tabletop realm where rules rarely apply in her own fantasy spin on the Borderlands world. The game explores LGBTQIA+ stories, includes non-binary character creation options, and contributing writer, Sam Maggs, identifies as bisexual.
Dead by Daylight (Rated M and Available with Xbox Game Pass) – The latest chapter of the game, Tome 11: Devotion, explores David King’s backstory as the first openly gay character in this survival horror game.
View the collections in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Columbia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Visitors to both the Xbox and Microsoft Store on Windows can find picks from LGBTQIA+ communities by searching for “LGBTQIA+” and related terms. Content is subject to availability by country.
Xbox Ambassadors Feature Stories about LGBTQIA+ Representation in Gaming
Throughout Pride Month, we will be spotlighting stories about representation in gaming from LGBTQIA+ Xbox Ambassadors within the communities. These are their stories.
Bethesda Roundtable with Arkane Austin and Gay Gaming Professionals (GGP) Scholars
The team at Arkane Austin recently sat down with students within LGBTQIA+ communities for a conversation on mentorship within the gaming industry. The students are aspiring game developers, and scholars selected by Gay Gaming Professionals in partnership with the ESA. You can read more from their Q&A on Bethesda.net.
New Pride Gamerpics, Profile Theme, and Avatar Items
In partnership with LGBTQIA+ communities at Xbox, we’re introducing a new gamerpic, profile themes, and avatar items! The gamerpic and profile theme will be available on console and the Xbox PC app. Get your avatar items here. Content is subject to availability by country.
Tune In
Xbox Plays Celebrates LGBTQIA+ Communities
In celebration of Pride Month, Xbox Plays will be dedicating our livestreaming content in June to LGBTQIA+ communities, featuring streamers/content creators, developers and nonprofits! Follow us on our Xbox Twitch Channel and don’t miss any of the action!
Xbox Podcast Talks Pride, Self-Expression, and Equity for LGBTQIA+ Players
Xbox’s Major Nelson will be joined by Kate Rayner, Vice President, Technical Director at The Coalition and Member of Team Xbox LGBTQIA+ on the Official Xbox Podcast for a special Pride month episode discussing the significance of intersectionality, the power of gaming and identity, and celebrating the diversity of LGBTQIA+ communities. Also, Elliott Hsu, Principal Designer of Devices at Microsoft, will join to talk about the design story behind this year’s Pride controller, which included partnering with LGBQTIA+ communities at every stage. The episode will cover how Xbox is supporting LGBTQIA+ communities to play as their authentic selves and experience the joy of play with a community who values self-expression. Listen to the podcast.
Xbox UKI + DIGIPRIDE Events
The UK’s leading LGBTQIA+ video game event, DIGIPRIDE, is back this summer celebrating all things Pride from June through August on gaymingmag.com. As a presenting partner, Xbox UKI will be serving up major moments over the next 3-months of fun including giveaways, Let’s Play streams, special guests on the Gayming Podcast and even more still to be revealed!
For more details about how Xbox is celebrating Pride, please visit our Unlocked Pride gaming experience, centering on voices of LGBTQIA+ players and allies through the lens of our new Xbox Design Lab Pride controller. You can also join us by exploring the Microsoft campaign at .
Airmen can now have longer mustaches, according to the latest dress and grooming policy released Thursday by the Department of the Air Force. They also have been granted more flexibility to wear certain unit patches when assigned to joint missions with the Space Force.
Meanwhile, the Navy has slightly relaxed its prohibition on beards by allowing them to be worn by retired sailors while in dress uniform, new guidance from that service says.
The Air Force, Space Force and Navy have all released new grooming and uniform policies this week, offering progressive updates to facial hair length, tattoo locations and makeup options.
“These changes will allow Airmen additional flexibilities as to how to wear mustaches,” Gwendolyn DeFilippi, acting deputy chief of staff for manpower, personnel and services, said in a press release. “Additionally, allowing airmen to wear sister-service patches in their current color configuration influences cohesiveness and pride while assigned to joint organizations.”
Similar to the Space Force’s policies unveiled earlier this week, airmen will now be able to grow mustaches an additional one-fourth of an inch.
“No portion of the mustache will extend below the lip line of the upper lip,” the updated policy reads. “Additionally, the mustache will not go beyond a horizontal line extending across the corners of the mouth and no more than 1/4 inch beyond a vertical line drawn from the corner of the mouth.”
It’s a departure from the previous guidance, which said airmen’s mustaches will “not extend downward beyond the lip line of the upper lip or extend sideways beyond a vertical line drawn upward from both corners of the mouth.”
The other policy update, according to the Air Force’s press release, is allowing airmen to wear patches worn by Guardians when working in joint units together.
“Airmen assigned, attached, detailed, or activated in support of sister-service units or joint organizations can now wear the unit’s patches in accordance with the sister service or joint organizations wear instructions,” the updated policy reads.
Those badges or patches can be worn in the Space Force’s or joint organization’s color configuration instead of the Air Force’s spice brown color.
Last year, the Air Force approved more hairstyle options for female service members, allowing them to wear their hair in two braids, a single braid or ponytail that extends as far as the bottom of the shoulder blades. Additionally, the service is developing a maternity flight suit and a wrap-style dress for pregnant airmen.
Beards are still off-limits for airmen, except under certain medical waivers or religious exemptions.
Meanwhile, the Navy, which has long held on to its ban on beards in uniform despite demands from sailors for relief, has relaxed its standards ever so slightly.
In an administrative message released Friday, the service said that it would now allow retired sailors to have facial hair, including beards, “when wearing Navy uniforms during authorized ceremonial events.”
The notice added that the hair “must be neatly groomed and be in keeping with a professional appearance.”
While seemingly minor, the change is the latest in a series of loosening rules around shaving and, more specifically, the ingrown hairs and skin irritations known as pseudofolliculitis barbae, or PFB.
In March, the Navy announced that those who suffer from PFB will not have to shave, and the service’s guidance for treating, maintaining and addressing their beards has been updated as well. The move did come amid growing reports and studies, like this article from Navy Times in April, that the condition disproportionately affects Black sailors.
The Navy’s argument for maintaining its fairly strict no beard policy has largely focused on the idea that sailors with beards would not be able to get an effective seal for a gas mask around their face, thus impacting their ability to fight a potential shipboard fire.
Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro recently launched a study, citing the sea service’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, to study the issue of beards and face masks, prompting the possibility of more significant changes down the road.
Meanwhile, the Space Force released its updated dress and grooming policies earlier this week to match the Air Force — like sharing the same expanded mustache policy.
But the Space Force also unveiled a more progressive tattoo policy. It allows for a single neck tattoo as long as it is appropriate, smaller than one inch and kept to the back of the neck.
Women in the Space Force are also now allowed to wear nail polish and lipstick in a single color “that does not detract from the uniform” and is not a distracting hue such as gold, blue, black, and bright or neon colors.
Men are not permitted to wear lipstick or nail polish, but “male Guardians are authorized to wear foundation and concealer only to cover scars or blemishes,” the policy states.
Google is taking steps toward improving skin tone representation across its products, including Real Tone for Pixel. And now, they’ve released a new skin tone scale designed to be more inclusive of the wide spectrum of skin tones we see in our society.
According to a company blog, in partnership with Harvard professor and sociologist Dr. Ellis Monk, Alphabet Inc’s Google unveiled a palette of 10 skin tones for anyone to use for research and product development.
The 10 shades of the Monk Skin Tone Scale (Courtesy of Google)
Monk has been researching and studying how skin tone and colorism affect people’s lives for more than 10 years. He especially focuses on colorism as it relates to artificial intelligence, machine learning, and computer vision.
An expert researcher, Monk, was tapped to curate Google’s new Monk Skin Tone (MST) Scale executed through Photoshop and other digital art tools.
According to Reuters, Monk and Google found that a significant number of people—out of around 3,000—said a 10-point scale matched their skin as well as a 40-shade palette did.
Courtesy of Google
“In our research, we found that a lot of the time, people feel they’re lumped into racial categories, but there’s all this heterogeneity with ethnic and racial categories,” Dr. Monk said, as per the .
“And many methods of categorization, including past skin tone scales, don’t pay attention to this diversity. That’s where a lack of representation can happen…we need to fine-tune the way we measure things, so people feel represented.”
The company said the Monk Skin Tone Scale replaces the flawed current tech industry standard of six colors, Fitzpatrick Skin Type (FST). Tech companies have often used it to test whether products like facial recognition systems or smartwatch heart-rate sensors perform equally well for various skin tones. On the other hand, the new skin scale aims to better serve those with darker skin tones.
“The MST Scale will help us and the tech industry at large build more representative datasets so we can train and evaluate AI models for fairness, resulting in features and products that work better for everyone — of all skin tones,” the company blog stated.
Google has already begun applying the new skin tone scale. There is now an option to further refine your results by skin tone for beauty and makeup injuries. Images for “everyday eyeshadow” or “bridal makeup looks” can be found more easily to serve people of color better.
Morgan State University will award former NFL quarterback and social justice advocate Colin Kaepernick an honorary degree during its upcoming spring commencement.
In a statement Tuesday, the Maryland HBCU announced that Kaepernick, along with filmmaker David E. Talbert and businessman David Burton were selected as “three exemplary vanguards of social justice and the African-American experience,” according to a statement. Talbert and Burton are alumni of the university.
Kaepernick, who played for the San Francisco 49ers for six years, will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. He is widely-recognized for famously taking a knee during the national anthem to protest against racial injustice and police brutality. He last played in the NFL in 2016.
As a result of his protest, Kaepernick went unsigned after 2016 and has been steadily working toward finding employment in the league, CBS Baltimore reported. While awaiting employment, Kaepernick has founded and helped fund three organizations—Know Your Rights Camp, Ra Vision Media, and Kaepernick Publishing—”that together advance the liberation of Black and Brown people through storytelling, systems change, and political education,” according to Morgan State.
In addition, the Super Bowl quarterback is an award-winning writer and champion for social justice. He won two NAACP Image Awards for Colin in Black & White, a six-episode limited series on Netflix exploring his high school years. In 2022, Kaepernick became a New York Times bestselling author for his children’s picture book, I Color Myself Different.
“Leadership, integrity, innovation, diversity, excellence, and respect are more than just words that appear on the flags that adorn our campus, or words that we utter casually when reciting our core values, they represent the embodiment of who we are and what a Morgan graduate stands for,” university president David K. Wilson said.
He added: “With this notion in mind, we intentionally sought a collection of individuals who truly embody these principles, and thankfully we have assembled a trio of diverse voices who have bravely stood—and kneeled—for the betterment and advancement of the voiceless, the marginalized, and the disenfranchised.”
Talbert, class of 1989, has written and produced 14 national tours along with dozens of writing credits, including novels, plays, and films. While remaining connected to his alma mater, the award-winning filmmaker is set to be awarded a Doctor of Fine Arts degree.
Additionally, Burton, class of 1967, is the founder and CEO of the Diverse Manufacturing Supply Chain Alliance. He currently serves on the advisory board of Morgan State University’s Supply Chain Management and Information Systems Department. He will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.
The 145th spring commencement ceremony will take place on Saturday, May 21 at Hughes Memorial Stadium.
Although the critical and commercial success of Soul and Hair Love has opened the door to amplifying Black voices in animation, the industry is largely exclusionary.
According to a recent report, only 4% of the field is made up of Black animators. Directors, studio owners, and producers are even more sparse.
Jermaine & Whaketa Hargrove are aiming to change this.
The married couple recently announced the launch of The Animation TV Network, a distribution hub aiming to diversify the animation industry. The network is set to come out this summer.
According to a press release, this will make Animation TV the first Black-owned animation network.
“We are using Animation TV and exclusive content to bring awareness to the lack of diversity and inclusion in the animation industry,” said Jermaine. “By offering distribution to global animation creators, we will amplify the voices that sometimes go unheard. Structuring a theatrical partnership with a major film Studio for some of our stronger animation IP’s is also a goal of Animation TV. We are currently looking to finance, develop and distribute all forms of animation content(2D/3D) from creators all over the world.”
Per a press release, Animation TV will offer its content with a subscription and linear channel model for ease of access to viewers. Animation TV will work in collaboration with Small Town Animation Studios to deliver original, exclusive animation content such as the highly anticipated diabetic superhero movie Gumshe: The Type 1 Protector, or faith-based series The Sunday Schoolers, and other originals like Animate My Life, Welcome to Gamerville, Princess Tatenda and the award-winning series Shelly: The Dancing Spider.
The brand is also aiming to delve into the Metaverse as well, with plans to create NFTs reflective of the characters depicted in its programming.
The network will be available via iOS, tvOS, Android, Android TV, and the worldwide web.
Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic By Okla Jones ·
Academy Award-winning actress, producer, and bestselling author Viola Davis will receive the 2022 Women In Motion Award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
Throughout her decorated career, Davis has won a Golden Globe, six Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Tonys, a BAFTA, a Primetime Emmy, as well as the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2016. In a statement released by the Kering Group, they spoke to Davis’ dedication to diversity in film, and also said that she is “known throughout the world for her acting roles and her commitment to the rights of women and minorities, is one of the most influential American actresses and producers of her time.”
The statement also read as follows: “Her talent, hard work, choice of roles and the way she interprets them have earned her the very highest recognitions in the film industry.”
Davis recently sat down with Oprah Winfrey in a Netflix special to discuss her newly released memoir Finding Me, where the actress spoke about her childhood in South Carolina, along with some of her experiences in the entertainment industry. Currently, can be seen playing Michelle Obama in Showtime’s The First Lady.
Since its launch in 2015, the Kering Group has been committed to celebrating women in cinema, both in front of and behind the camera, as well as their contributions to the arts. The previous honorees of the Women In Motion Award include Jane Fonda, Geena Davis, Susan Sarandon, Isabelle Huppert, Patty Jenkins, Gong Li and Salma Hayek – which would make Viola the first person of color to receive this accolade.
François-Henri Pinault, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Kering, Pierre Lescure, President of the Cannes Film Festival and Thierry Frémaux, Executive Director of Cannes, will present the award to Davis during the official Women In Motion dinner in Cannes on Sunday, May 22.
Davis will star in the upcoming film The Woman King, which is slated for release this fall.
Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic By