African American Interests

Danica McKellar's still breaking hearts after all these years ... 'cause unless someone invents a time-traveling machine, there's ZERO chance of seeing her in the 'Wonder Years' reboot.

Danica was out Thursday in Studio City grabbing a cup of Joe when she was asked about her involvement in the reboot centered around a middle-class Black family in late-1960s Montgomery, Alabama. Naturally, fans wanna know if Winnie Cooper's making a cameo?!?

The short answer is ... nope. Danica explained why that would be more like 'Mission: Impossible" for her or Kevin to pop up in the reboot.

The new take on 'Wonder Years' -- which originally aired from 1988 to 1993 to critical acclaim -- is being executive produced by Lee Daniels, and the original star, Fred Savage, is also involved.

You're looking at an ultra-rare autographed Colin Kaepernick rookie card featuring a piece of a game-used jersey.

It's awesome. It's valuable. And, the only reason the owner is parting ways with it is because he wants to raise money for the QB's "Know Your Rights Camp."

The story behind the card is great ... the owner tells us he started buying up CK items in 2016 when collectors thought Colin's kneeling protest would cause his collectibility value to plummet.

Among his purchases, the guy bought a 2011 Topps Platinum Rookie Patch Autograph Red Refractor card featuring Colin ... a 1 of 1 card.

He bought the card for just under $1,800 -- but experts tell us the card could sell now in the neighborhood of $25,000 ... maybe more!

The owner took the card to Goldin Auctions with the caveat that half of the winning proceeds would go toward Colin's "Know Your Rights Camp."

In case you're wondering, Colin's KYRC says it's mission is to "advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass-mobilization and the creation of new systems that elevate the next generation of change leaders."

We're told the Camp is thrilled about the auction and appreciates the forthcoming donation.

The auction -- which already has a $1,000 bid -- closes later this month.

Charles Oakley is straight-up confused about why the Brooklyn Nets hired Steve Nash as their new head coach ... when there are so many other qualified coaches with actual coaching experience!

The NY Knicks legend didn't beat around the bush when we asked him about the Nash hiring ... telling us straight up, "We need more Black coaches in the NBA."

Oakleys says like everyone else in the NBA world, he had no idea Nash was even interested in a coaching gig ... "but that's how the world is."

"People hire their friends, people that they believe in. Somebody must believe in Steve Nash, a great player."

But, Oakley says there are plenty of Black coaches -- like Mark Jackson, Pete Myers and Jason Kidd -- who have been waiting for jobs ... and got beat out because "this guy comes out of the blue."

"That goes to show you we're still behind the 8 ball," Oak says ... "That's what we're trying to fight for, equal opportunity."

"Hopefully, We can get more Black coaches in the NBA because it's a Black league. We should have more Black coaches. More Black owners and GMs."

In case you're wondering, in the 2018-19 season, roughly 82% of NBA players were people of color, according to an ESPN report.

G Herbo says the police will kill black people at any moment ... and he's warning black youth to learn this lesson early so they know how to act in certain situations.

We got the Chicago rapper Friday at LAX and asked how he's coping with the Jacob Blake shooting, and how it's affecting black kids across the country.

G Herbo says there's a harsh reality to be learned from what happened in Kenosha and elsewhere -- he says cops want to kill black people, so you gotta take that into account during interactions with them.

The way G Herbo sees it ... the only way to solve the problem is to face the facts ... he says black people are at a disadvantage in dealing with police, and they've got to realize the odds are stacked against them if they want to survive.

The Weeknd hit the stage multiple times at the MTV VMAs, but his message remained the same ... demanding justice for Jacob Blake and Breonna Taylor.

The singer took home awards for Video of The Year and Best R&B Video Sunday night during MTV's virtual show. Both trophies came courtesy of his song, "Blinding Lights." However, Abel was somber when accepting his awards, saying there wasn't much to celebrate given the climate of the country.

At the end of each acceptance speech, he demanded justice for Breonna Taylor, who was gunned down by cops while she slept, and Jacob Blake -- who was shot 7 times in the back by cops -- while getting into his vehicle.

The Weeknd also took the stage -- hundreds of feet in the air above Manhattan -- to perform the hit song.

The Weeknd has been extremely charitable over the last few months, donating more than $2 million to COVID, Beirut relief and social justice causes.

Ex-NBA player Royce White says his friend Draymond Green is just wrong to say NBA players should continue the playoffs ... explaining why the right move is for everyone to exit the bubble ASAP!!

White spelled out his case during an episode of TMZ Sports Roundtable featuring NFL player Brandon Marshall, and WNBA star Angel McCoughtry.

The video is awesome ... the group gets into a spirited conversation about how professional athletes should move forward after demonstrations from players in the NBA, WNBA, MLB, NFL and more.

In other words ... what's the next step?

Royce White -- a former 1st round NBA draft pick -- says he thinks the NBA needs to ditch the bubble and head back to their communities and get out there with the people.

It's exactly the opposite of what Draymond Green said earlier this week when he encouraged players to stay and use the NBA platform to effectively send their social justice messages to the masses.

"He's mistaken, he's off the path with that," White said about Draymond ... "This is not about awareness campaigns anymore. Report to the front lines. If you can't report to the front lines, then send aid."

White also had advice for LeBron James -- "Go to Akron Ohio. March with the people. Stay there until something really changes, and If they choose to be all the way violent, let your body be laying in the street when it's over."

As for McCoughtry ... she weighed in on everything from the WNBA's plan of action, to the rift between Atlanta Dream co-owner Kelly Loeffler and the players.

As we previously reported, Loeffler is strongly against the league support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Some players have called for Loeffler to sell the team ... claiming she has different values than the players she is profiting off of.

Angel -- who played 10 years for the Dream -- tells us why she does NOT believe Loeffler is a racist ... but could better educate herself on social justice issues.

Brandon Marshall -- one of the first NFL players to kneel with Colin Kaepernick back in 2016 -- told us why he still doesn't fully accept Roger Goodell's Mea Cupla about how the league treated the QB back in the day.

Marshall says he doesn't feel progress can truly be made until Kaepernick has a job in the NFL again.

Terrell Owens says the Hall of Fame, the TD's and the millions of dollars he's earned means nothing ... 'cause he's a Black man in America -- and he's afraid for his life.

TMZ Sports talked to the 46-year-old NFL legend ... and as you might expect, T.O. was visibly shaken by the latest police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, WI.

"As Black men bro, we're getting killed at an alarming rate now," Owens bluntly told us.

"This is why we as Black men, Black people, we're scared. Honestly, I really didn't think about it until like just driving around today, like honestly, it's scary to be a Black man in America, especially if you come in any type of encounter with law enforcement."

Of course, T.O.'s one of the greatest -- and most recognizable -- athletes in the United States ... but he says these days, that provides him no comfort or protection at all.

"There been times where, obviously, I knew my status or what have you can get me out of a situation," Terrell says.

"But, I'm sure if I get pulled over, I'm sure my heart will probably be beating 90 miles an hour. Especially considering everything that has transpired since the George Floyd murder."

Owens ended the conversation by explaining that, straight up, cops have to be better going forward.

Scholar Eddie S. Glaude Jr. says starry-eyed Americans who now say they want equality will NEVER achieve it ... without accepting the truth about the country's roots in racism.

Glaude -- an author and Professor of African-American Studies at Princeton -- joined "TMZ Live" Tuesday to address the major problem with our nation's history ... essentially, that it's not told honestly.

The professor cites several examples of systemic racism and injustices that are far more recent than slavery, yet are sugar-coated or downright omitted when teaching Americans about their past.

Glaude says it all manifests itself even today in something he calls the "value gap" ... which is the belief that white people are more important than others.

Again, he points to specific things happening right now that make him feel that "value gap" still isn't being addressed -- and believes that will crush any progress toward racial equality.

The good news ... Glaude believes there's positive momentum along with the Black Lives Matter movement, and offers a James Baldwin quote about hope that sums it up perfectly.

RZA's giving whole new meaning to dropping bars ... after releasing a brand new ice cream truck jingle to replace the original one, which is rooted in racism.

The Wu-Tang Clan leader partnered up with Good Humor to come up with the hot new track as a family friendly alternative to "Turkey in the Straw" -- the jingle you probably grew up hearing as you chased the ice cream truck.

RZA's new ice cream joint has that same hot summer day feel, but with a better beat ... and zero racism.

So, what's the problem with the OG jingle? If you hadn't heard ... "Turkey in the Straw" had no racist undertones when it originated from British and Irish folk songs, but took a sad turn when it got popular in the U.S.

It was big at American minstrel shows during the 1800s, and some blackface performers added incredibly offensive and racist lyrics. It was eventually played inside ice cream parlors, and then ice cream trucks too.

RZA and Good Humor are now urging ice cream truck operators to replace "Turkey in the Straw" with their version ... and it won't cost 'em a thing cause he says the jingle will be free.

And, just like Wu-Tang, he says that's foreva!!!

A Milwaukee Councilman is slamming Republicans for what he believes is a trick to lure black voters in Wisconsin to cast their ballots for Kanye West and steal votes from Joe Biden ... but he predicts it will backfire.

Cavalier Johnson has been the Alderman for Milwaukee's 2nd district, and he's sounding the alarm for what he calls a "shameful, pitiful" ploy attempting to take advantage of a man struggling with mental illness.

There have been reports Republican operatives are behind Kanye's efforts to get on the Wisconsin ballot. As you know, Wisconsin was a swing state in 2016 and if it's close again, a spoiler like Kanye could make all the difference.

Johnson says ... "It’s hard to imagine how this president and the GOP could top the racism, xenophobia, white supremacy, COVID failures, apologies for Russia, pocketing millions in taxpayer dollars with visits to Trump-branded golf courses, etc.," but he accuses them of doing exactly that in Wisconsin.

Despite his outrage and disgust, the councilman doesn't think the plan will work, saying when the word gets out it will further unite the black community in support of Biden.

As we reported ... Kanye has enlisted the help of a third-party organization in order to acquire enough signatures needed to get him on the presidential ballot, especially in major swing states like Wisconsin and Ohio.

Michael Jordan says Tiger Woods is one of the most important figures in golf history -- crediting him with evolving it from a "white man's sport" into a game for everybody.

It's all part of newly released footage of a sit-down interview with Cigar Aficionado from 2017 ... when MJ was asked who's the G.O.A.T -- Tiger or Jack Nicklaus?

"Obviously Jack won more during the time he played," MJ said ... "Tiger evolved it to where it crossed a lot of different boundaries -- where it's not just a white guy's sport."

MJ says Woods paved the way for other minority golfers to get a shot on the big stage ... which led to a bigger audience and more interest in the game. In other words, Tiger made golf cool.

"Now, does that constitute him being the greatest? Does that mean he's any less than Jack -- I think [the sentiment] is unfair."

MJ noted at the time of the interview Jack had 4 more majors than Tiger (now, he has 3 since Tiger won the 2019 Masters) ... but Jordan says an apples to oranges comparison isn't really fair since they played in different eras.

"I won 6 championships, Bill Russell won 11 --  does that make Bill Russell better than me or make me better than him? No, because we played at different eras."

"So, when you try to equate who's the greatest of all time, it's an unfair parallel. It's an unfair choice. I think those are the demons that obviously Tiger had to live with and he's gonna be challenged, he's gonna be graded upon that but for me, I think they're both great. I would never say one is greater than the other."

There's more in the interview ... Jordan also reveals he smokes 6 cigars every day and tries to play 36 holes of golf almost every day!

That's so much golf!!

Rosa Parks' handwritten letter remembering Martin Luther King Jr. as someone she admired and respected is going up for sale ... and as you'd expect, this kinda history won't be cheap.

Rosa honored her fellow Civil Rights icon in a letter she sent to an autograph collector way back in 1979 -- 11 years after MLK's assassination, and the high regard in which she held him is obvious.

The letter, a response to the autograph collector's question about what Rosa thought of MLK, has been sitting in a private collector's hands for the last 15 years, but now it's going up for sale through Moments In Time ... and being sold for a cool $54,000.

Rosa wrote in cursive ('memba that) ... "I admired and respected him as a truly great man committed and dedicated to freedom, peace and equality for all oppressed humanity."

She also remembered MLK as "the leader of the masses in Montgomery, Alabama and the nation ... a devoted husband, and father to his wife and children. A loving and loyal son to his parents."

MLK famously organized the Montgomery Bus Boycott after Rosa was thrown in jail for refusing to give up her seat on a public bus to a white man -- a violation of the city’s racial segregation laws.

Tiffany Haddish is opening up about the idea of motherhood, but says one thing above all else scares her -- bringing a child into a racist world.

The actress and comedian discussed the topic on NBA star Carmelo Anthony's hit podcast, "What's in Your Glass?," saying everyone's always asking her when she's going to have some babies.

Her answer ... "There's a part of me that would like to do that, and I always make up these excuses like, 'Oh, I need a million dollars in the bank before I do that, I need this, I need that.' But really, it's like, I would hate to give birth to someone that looks like me, knowing that they're gonna be hunted or killed."

Tiffany teared up as she added ... "Why would I put someone through that?"

Carmelo -- who has a teenage son -- said, "It's scary to even think about that" ... and Haddish pointed out that white people don't have that concern.

George Floyd's set to be honored in an historic way, and the City of Minneapolis just got some funding to move the process along.

The city was recently awarded the "Vision Grant" by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, through its African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, to help preserve the memorials that have sprung up for George since his death.

The fund was created in 2017 to preserve sites and stories of Black history, and clearly ... Minneapolis has been a significant spot lately.

So, along with preserving the murals and other tributes already created for Floyd ... we're told the city is discussing plans to honor him permanently.

A Minneapolis city official tells TMZ ... they've held more than 40 listening sessions, inviting community members and local government workers to share thoughts on how to best memorialize George.

We're told the city is specifically designating 38th St. and Chicago Ave. -- the location where Floyd took his last breath -- as a location for a special tribute. A makeshift memorial popped up there shortly after he died at the hands of police.

So far ... street names, memorial plaques or statues and a community center are all being discussed as official ways to honor George with the new grant money, but nothing's set in stone yet.

BTW, $1.6 million was awarded to 27 different sites and organizations by the AACHAF ... Minneapolis got $50k.

The National Trust's Brenda Jones tells us the planning grant could potentially lead to "other opportunities to invest in the preservation and protection of African American history in Minneapolis, including the murals commemorating the sacrifice of George Floyd."

Jrue and Lauren Holiday are making a MAJOR donation with his remaining game checks this season ... with the Pelicans guard contributing up to $5.3 MILLION to social justice causes and Black-owned businesses.

The couple announced the gesture to ESPN on Wednesday ... saying they are starting the Jrue and Lauren Holiday Social Justice Impact Fund, which will aid communities in Indianapolis, New Orleans and the L.A. area.

Of course, Lauren -- former US soccer team member -- is from Indianapolis and both of Jrue’s brothers (Aaron and Justin) play for the Indiana Pacers.

Los Angeles was chosen because the Holiday family is from there ... and Jrue and Lauren met in the City of Angels while attending UCLA.

The Holidays say they will be giving the majority of the money to nonprofits, Black-owned businesses and local initiatives with missions dedicated to "equitable outcomes for Black and Brown communities."

Holiday -- who is in the middle of a 5-year, $131,805,000 deal -- is set to make up to $5.3 million through the rest of the 2020 season ... so it's a huge contribution.

Here's the breakdown -- up to $1.5 million will go to Black and Brown communities in NOLA, another $1.5 million to Los Angeles ... and $1 million will go to similar communities in Indianapolis.

The Holidays will also donate another $1 million to Black-owned businesses throughout the country ... and $500k to HBCUs and other educational institutions.

"God has blessed us with so much. We know a couple of things that are important are time and money, and right now, we have both," Holiday told ESPN.

CNN's Bakari Sellers says bias in the health care system forced his family to make a critical decision -- one he believes helped save his wife's life hours after she had their twins.

Bakari joined "TMZ Live" on Monday and talked about why they chose black doctors instead of white ones when he and his wife, Ellen, were expecting. It's a fascinating story from his new book 'My Vanishing Country.'

The former South Carolina state legislator didn't mince words ... saying, "the pain that black folk go through is not looked at with the same urgency as white folk in this country." Case in point ... the day his twins, Stokely and Sadie, were born in January 2019. A mere 5 hours after Ellen gave birth, she passed out after hemorrhaging 7 units of blood.

Check out the video ... Bakari says it's a known fact black women are 3 times more likely to die during childbirth than white women.

In his book, he explains the thought that Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam was a physician -- who infamously wore blackface while in medical school -- gave him pause about the kind of bias that exists, even in medicine.