African American Interests

The girl who captured the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police on video is not in a good space right now ... and it's all because of hate she's receiving online.

17-year-old Darnella Frazier tells TMZ ... she is utterly traumatized after recording the officer using his knee to suffocate George. Odd as it might sound, Darnella tells us a lot of people have criticized her for doing nothing more than shoot the encounter.

She says people on social media are telling her she should have done more to help George, like physically step in and intervene. While that emotion might be understandable, it's not really a practical notion for an African-American teenager.

Not just that, but folks are accusing Darnella of only posting the video for "clout" or attention, and possibly a payoff. She's vehemently refuted that.

She's also been facing a media frenzy surrounding her video -- dealing with reporters, and an onslaught of attention. And, of course, just witnessing George's death first-hand has scarred her as well, we're told.

Darnella's mother tells us her daughter was simply out making a store run, and never should have experienced this, including the nasty aftermath. She's concerned going forward because she says Darnella already suffers from social anxiety.

However, Mom believes her daughter was where she needed to be -- in order to capture the tragic event and share it with the world. To that point, without Darnella's video, we might not know what really happened.

As for those saying she should have done more. Keep in mind, she and several others on the scene shouted for several minutes at the officers ... pleading with them that George was dying.

The fact is ... Darnella's video could ultimately be the evidence that brings George's killer to justice. Internet trolls should think about that before attacking a teenage girl.

The killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer is the latest example of a shockingly disturbing reality in America ... leading many to conclude it's "open season on black people" ... this according to the lawyer representing George's family.

Attorney Ben Crump joined "TMZ Live" Tuesday to express the shock, outrage and sadness so many are feeling following Monday night's brutal incident ... in which a cop, who was responding to a forgery call, choked off George's air supply until he died.

Crump says George's family is having a terrible time comprehending what's captured on video -- the cop kept his knee on Floyd's neck for 8 MINUTES, despite his pleas that he couldn't breathe ... and everyone's in disbelief at what Ben calls a lack of humanity.

As we reported ... the Police Dept. released a statement saying no weapons were used during the incident, but as Crump points out -- that statement doesn't address the officer's brutality, and there's no explanation or justification for what happened anyway. The P.D.'s initial statement seemed to justify the incident, and it appears it was released before the video surfaced.

The Mayor of Minneapolis has expressed outrage, saying, "When you hear someone calling for help, you're supposed to help. This officer failed in the most basic, human sense."

Of course, the cop responsible for the knee to the neck had a partner during the arrest, and Crump believes that officer's actions make him complicit in the killing. As Crump says ... this cop also ignored Floyd's cries and protests from people watching, and didn't do a thing to help.

Minneapolis PD Chief Medaria Arradondo seems to have reached a similar conclusion -- on Tuesday afternoon he announced the firing of 4 officers involved in the incident. The officers names have not been released yet.

Crump feels it's long overdue for police officers to be held accountable for their actions -- or inaction -- like this ... no more benefit of the doubt or obligatory moral high ground given. Listen to how Ben explains it, though ... he makes a very good point.

Finally, this case is being compared to the death of Eric Garner in 2014 because of the obvious similarities, and Crump says he's going to try to get Eric's family in touch with Floyd's ... a request made by Eric's mother.

The Ahmaud Arbery murder is galvanizing folks around the country to join the fight for social justice ... they're sending money to the NAACP and adding to its ranks.

The NAACP received nearly $100,000 in donations in the week after the murder video surfaced, with contributions rolling in from coast to coast ... according to NAACP spokesman Marc Banks.

We're told the national organization will divide the money between the Georgia NAACP and Ahmaud's family ... and the donations will help the NAACP put boots on the ground in Brunswick to help rebuild and unite the community.

The org says people turn to social justice groups like the NAACP when they see injustice, because they want to get involved.

People across Georgia are also becoming more active in the fight for justice ... according to James Woodall, State President of the Georgia NAACP.

We're told the Georgia NAACP has seen an influx in members since Ahmaud was killed ... there were about 10,000 members before the fatal shooting, but that number is rising exponentially.

Woodall tells us lots of people are reaching out to the Georgia NAACP with the aim of having a presence in their communities after seeing what happened to Ahmaud ... he says they want to do more than complain on social media.

Fighting for social justice is no easy task ... Woodall says NAACP members are pulling 10 to 12 hour days and aren't getting paid a dime.

In Brunswick, we're told NAACP members are meeting with the Sheriff's department to make sure there is not a lasting feeling of mistrust within the community, and organizers are helping plan gatherings and rallies, some of which have drawn about 300 protesters.

NAACP members are also working with city and country officials to unite and rebuild the community ... and the work will continue long after news crews ship out.

Ahmaud Arbery's murder case is drawing national attention and outrage similar to the slaying of Trayvon Martin in 2012 ... and TMZ's learned the parents of both young men want to meet.

Lee Merritt -- attorney for Ahmaud's mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones -- tells us ... the goal is to get both sets of parents together on a phone call soon, but so far, they've not been able to get schedules to line up.

We're told both sides have expressed interest in talking as they have something incredibly tragic in common -- losing children to violence, apparently racially motivated, and targeting unarmed young black men.

Merritt says a meeting of the 2 families will hopefully allow them to encourage each other, learn from each other and advocate for their sons. He's hoping Tracy Martin and Sybrina Fulton can provide guidance for Ahmaud's parents on handling the case, while also trying to recover from his death.

Of course, it will have to just be via a phone or video call for now due to the pandemic ... but we're told both sides are eager to make it happen.

The parents also have a legal connection -- Ahmaud's father's attorney is Ben Crump, who's worked with Trayvon's family.

As you know ... Ahmaud was killed on a Brunswick, GA road back in February after being confronted by 2 armed white men -- Travis and Gregory McMichael -- who claim they thought he was a suspect in a series of recent burglaries. They weren't arrested until last week when video leaked of the incident, which has since been described as "modern-day lynching."

Gregory McMichael, one of Ahmaud Arbery's alleged murderers, was a point person for cops just months before the killing ... because we've learned police told at least one neighbor if there was a trespass, he should call McMichael and not them.

According to text messages between an officer of the Glynn County Police Department and Larry English, the owner of the home under construction where Ahmaud's alleged killers claim he was trespassing, police told English to call Greg instead of cops whenever Larry needed assistance.

The officer texted Greg's phone number to Larry, informing him McMichael was his neighbor and instructing him to call Greg when his motion-activated camera catches someone at the construction site.

The text from Dec. 20 reads ... "Greg is retired Law Enforcement and also a Retired Investigator from the DA's office. He said please call him day or night when you get action on your camera."

Larry's attorney, Elizabeth Graddy, confirmed the text exchange is real ... and says she received it a couple days ago in a batch of emails.

As you know ... Gregory and his son, Travis McMichael, are charged with felony murder and aggravated assault in Ahmaud's February shooting death.

Gregory retired in 2019 after working as an investigator with Brunswick D.A. ... and he previously worked as a police officer in Glynn County.

Remember ... Ahmaud's alleged murderers also came face to face with a young black man at the construction site less than 2 weeks before the fatal shooting, and another neighbor claims they confronted Arbery.

The text raises incredibly serious questions ... among them, why were police telling a homeowner to call a vigilante?

Van Jones says while America's now coping with a pandemic, black America's been battling epidemic violence, poverty and disease long before coronavirus came along.

The Reform Alliance CEO was on "TMZ Live" Friday to talk about his CNN special, "The Color of Covid" -- and he didn't mince words when describing the challenges facing many minority communities.

Van says there's always been an epidemic of death in neighborhoods of color. He says, "You’re worried about invisible bullets from the virus? We've been dodging real bullets the whole time." He says that mentality explains the recent massive crowds gathered for parties in Atlanta and Chicago.

Black and Latino communities also face different health risks as the nation reopens, due to underlying health problems that have gone unchecked for years. As Van, and many doctors, point out ... hypertension, heart disease and diabetes immediately put you in the at-risk category for COVID-19. Of course, staying home only creates economic hardship.

Van says the federal government needs a better battle plan, one that offers better medical AND economic stimuli to people of color.

LeBron James is sickened by the shooting death of 25-year-old black man Ahmaud Arbery ... saying African-Americans are "literally hunted EVERYDAY/EVERYTIME we step foot outside the comfort of our homes!" ... and he's demanding justice.

Back in February, Arbery was jogging when he was chased down and killed by a white man named Travis McMichael.

Graphic video of the fatal shooting surfaced online this week ... which has prompted a nationwide call for justice as McMichael has not been arrested or charged.

LeBron is joining the fight for Ahmaud ... speaking out against the horrific shooting on Twitter.

"We’re literally hunted EVERYDAY/EVERYTIME we step foot outside the comfort of our homes!" James says.

"Can’t even go for a damn jog man! Like WTF man are you kidding me?!?!?!?!?!? No man fr ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!!"

McMichael has not been arrested because he and his father claim they were attempting a citizen's arrest ... claiming Ahmaud fit the description of a suspect in a string of recent break-ins in the area.

LeBron -- who also previously protested over the death of Trayvon Martin -- joins a list of athletes including Reggie Bush and Ed Reed, who spoke out after the video surfaced on Tuesday.

"I’m sorry Ahmaud (Rest In Paradise) and my prayers and blessings sent to the heavens above to your family!!" LeBron added.

"One of the topics covered in a Major League Baseball course at Arizona State is this player who broke the color barrier in 1947."

COME ON -- EVERYONE KNOWS THE ANSWER ... right?

Wrong.

Because when Xiaoke Ying buzz'd in on "Jeopardy!" on Wednesday night -- she replied, "Babe Ruth!"

WHAT?! NOOO!!!!

It's Jackie Robinson. Obviously.

We thought everyone knew that ... but Xiaoke (from USC) blew it on an episode that coincidentally aired on "Jackie Robinson Day."

Whoops.

Some facts. Babe Ruth did not break the color barrier. He was white. Like super white. German ancestry white.

Jackie Robinson (who went to Xiaoke's rival school UCLA) famously broke the color barrier while a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947.

Robinson made such an impact in the sports world and on society as a whole, there have been countless movies, documentaries and books written about him.

Also, his jersey #42 has been retired across MLB to honor the legend.

There's a special piece of Martin Luther King Jr. memorabilia up for sale ... a handwritten note where he shares his personal definition of love.

It's pretty cool ... one of MLK's admirers asked him the meaning of love, and the civil rights icon scribbled a super-deep quote ... the note is hitting the market through the memorabilia company Moments in Time -- and they're hawking this slice of history for a cool $42,000!!!

Martin's message is from sometime in the mid-1960s... and he says, "Love is the greatest force in the universe. It is the heartbeat of the moral cosmos. He who loves is a participant in the being of God."

Powerful stuff, for sure.

Anything written in MLK's handwriting is super rare and valuable ... there's not much out there other than inscribed books ... and he even slapped his John Hancock on the bottom of the parchment.

It's kinda funny ... the note was acquired from a memorabilia dealer in England who apparently didn't have a clue as to what he had in his possession.

See, it pays to know your world history.

Kyrie Irving SHOULD be comparing himself to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ... so says Common, who tells TMZ Sports the NBA superstar's recent comments were NOT out of line.

Of course, Uncle Drew faced backlash for calling out his team's roster last week ... and later compared the criticism to what MLK had to go through.

“When I was out for those seven weeks and not saying anything and still people are still saying things about me. It’s inevitable," Irving said.

"They crucified Martin Luther King for speaking about peace and social integration. You can go back to historical leaders and great people in society that do great things, and they’re still going to talk s**t about them. It is what it is."

We spoke with the rapper/actor/Oscar winner about Irving comparing himself to MLK ... and he's all for it.

"I love Kyrie," Common says. "He's a really intelligent and brilliant young dude. I love that he speaks his mind."

"Dr. King is Dr. King. I have no problem with us aspiring to be great like that. Sometimes people compare themselves like, I might say in a rhyme, like, I'm the Dr. King of rap."

Common says Irving clearly knows he's not actually MLK ... but that doesn't mean he should stop himself from striving to make an impact.

FYI -- Common was wearing Kyrie's signature kicks while leaving Equinox .. so there may be a little bit of bias. But, clearly, he thinks there was no disrespect.

LeVar Burton is shooting down the theory that America's more racist now than ever before ... saying the difference now is President Trump's emboldened racists to come out of the woodwork.

We got the iconic "Reading Rainbow" host out Thursday at LAX and just had to know if he thinks America's more racist now than ever ... what with Trump's administration establishing divisive policies since being ushered into the White House in 2016.

You'll remember Trump once described African nations as "shithole countries." His anti-immigrant rhetoric also inspired a Texas man to kill Hispanics at an El Paso Walmart.

LeVar dropped some serious knowledge ... saying what we're experiencing now was ALWAYS lying under the surface champing at the bit to be out in the open. And, now they are.

Common says it's despicable a white teacher dressed up as him -- in blackface, mind you -- and adds he just might tell him so ... in person!!!

We got the rapper and actor Thursday at LAX and he had A LOT to say about the teacher who's since been suspended by the Milpitas Unified School District, just north of San Jose. If you haven't seen it ... the video is shocking for, if nothing else, the lack of judgment the teacher showed.

As luck would have it, Common says he's heading to the Bay Area, and seems dead serious about possibly going to the school to attempt to link up with the teacher.

Common would love a face-to-face with him, but says it would have to be a very REAL convo ... not a photo op. He's got some tough questions for the guy, some of which he shared with our photog.

A student posted the video of her teacher, shot on Halloween, as he imitated Common's Microsoft artificial intelligence commercial. He's now on administrative leave pending an investigation.

Eddie Griffin's got beef with a famous NJ comedy club, because for him ... rule number one when booking black comedians in your club is make sure you can LIGHT said black comedians!!!

Eddie was onstage Friday night at the Stress Factory in New Brunswick when he said enough is enough ... and ripped into management for what he considered inferior lighting and sound.

This clip is from his 9:45 PM headlining show, but witnesses tell us he'd stormed out earlier ... immediately after his 7:00 PM gig. We're told he was angry about some technical malfunctions during the set -- so when he came back for the second show he couldn't hold back.

The good news for the crowd is he turned it into big laughs ... even if they couldn't see him.

Now, we don't know the club's side of the story yet ... we've reached out to management. Eddie definitely put 'em on notice during his act -- which included him pretending to call in the Nation of Islam to help the club find skin-appropriate lighting.

You've heard about the Stress Factory -- even if you're not in Jersey -- because this is where Pete Davidson blasted a customer for heckling him about Ariana Grande and Kate Beckinsale.

It's also where Margaret Cho pissed off the crowd by going off about white people ... and rape.

Come for the laughs ... stay for the anger???

Daymond John is adamant the NFL partnering with Jay-Z helps its brand, but says make no mistake ... Hova's not going to be the league's puppet just to help them save face.

We got the "Shark Tank" star out Wednesday in NYC and got his take on the NFL teaming up with Jay-Z's Roc Nation for a music and social justice campaign. Daymond's all for it, despite some critics feeling Jay abandoned Colin Kaepernick.

Daymond firmly believes Jay did NOT undercut Kap's cause. Daymond says, if anything, there's no one better who can champion Kap ... now that he's working on the inside.

When our guy straight-up asks if this is all an NFL publicity stunt, Daymond scoffs ... saying Jay-Z's too smart, and would walk from the deal if that were the case.

In fact ... Daymond says he saw right through the NFL when he turned down The Shield to perform at the Super Bowl. Now, things are different.

Rick Ross is siding with Kenny Stills in his beef with the Miami Dolphins owner ... telling TMZ Sports he feels Stephen Ross doesn't do enough for the black community.

The NFL receiver publicly criticized his boss earlier this week ... calling Ross a hypocrite for running a charity championing "equality" while being one of President Trump's biggest financial supporters.

We spoke with the Miami legend and Dolphins superfan and asked what he thought about the beef  ... and Rozay didn't hold back.

"I never cared about Stephen Ross," the "Port of Miami 2" rapper says. "It's been rough for me and the Dolphins for years."

Rick says he sees through any talks of equality ... claiming the billionaire doesn't try to build a relationship with the local African-American youth.

"Stephen Ross, he ain't surprising nobody. No black young kids in the community ever got invited to their football games."

Of course, there's also a huge public boycott against the fancy gym chain, Equinox -- which Stephen owns -- after people found out he was hosting a big fundraiser for Trump's 2020 campaign.

The Bawse -- who once told us he wanted to buy the Fins -- says he's still gonna support his hometown team ... but makes it clear he wants nothing to do with the people running it.