Events

The Black Men XCEL Virtual Experience Presented By BLACK ENTERPRISE Focused On The Leadership Excellence Of Men Of Color, Oct. 22-23

By bigced 6 months ago

BLACK ENTERPRISE will present its 4th annual Black Men XCEL Summit, Oct. 22 and 23, as

McDonald’s Inspiration Celebration Gospel Tour Returns

By bigced 7 months ago

McDonald’s Inspiration Celebration Gospel McDonald’s USA, through its Black & Positively Golden movement, is excited

Angela Yee Day Friday August 28th

By bigced 8 months ago

Angela Yee Day It’s that time of the year again for Angela Yee Day! The

The Roots Picnic 2020 Partners With Michelle Obama’s When We All Vote For Virtual Festival Experience

By bigced 10 months ago

This year, in partnership with Michelle Obama’s national, nonpartisan nonprofit organization, When We All Vote, The Roots are

Niko Brim Speaks at Mount Vernon City Hall’s ‘We Can’t Breathe’ Rally

By bigced 11 months ago

Crowd gathers at Mount Vernon City Hall for Youth and MVPD rally against police brutality

Kobe Bryant and Daughter Laid to Rest Two Weeks After Fatal Helicopter Crash

By Hana G 1 year ago

Revered NBA legend Kobe Bryant and 13-year-old daughter Gianna were given burial to last Friday.

The 5Ws: Asya Shein

By bigced 1 year ago

Who: Asya Shein What: Fusicology FUSICOLOGY is an event, music & cultural lifestyle marketing

Cocktails & Cinema: Bakoso: Afrobeats of Cuba – Thursday, Feb. 20 at 6PM

By bigced 1 year ago

Apollo Film Presents Bakosó: Afrobeats of Cuba as part of ImageNation’s Cocktails & Cinema Thursday,

Apollo Theater and WNYC Announce 14th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration and Uptown Hall

By bigced 1 year ago

The Apollo Theater and WNYC Announce the 14th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Hampton Art Lovers Presents Point Comfort Art + Fair during Miami Art Week -December 5-8, 2019

By bigced 1 year ago

Hampton Art Lovers (HAL) introduces their Point Comfort Art Fair + Show, December 5-8, 2019, in

AEG Presents The LIT AF Tour Hosted by Martin Lawrence

By bigced 1 year ago

AEG PRESENTS BRINGS THE LIT AF 2020 TOUR, HOSTED BY MARTIN LAWRENCE, TO 25+ US

Global Mixed Gender Basketball League to Host Fusion vs. Vikings Game at Entertainment & Sports Arena, WASH., DC

By Hana G 1 year ago

Global Mixed Gender Basketball League will host their sixth game at the Entertainment & Sports

Kevin Liles to Deliver Keynote Interview at NY:LON Connect Music Business Summit

By Hana G 1 year ago

300 Entertainment’s Kevin Liles is slated to deliver a keynote interview at the 2020 NY:LON

ESSENCE Festival to Remain in New Orleans for the Next 5 Years

By bigced 1 year ago

ESSENCE Communications Inc., the leading media, technology and commerce company serving Black women, announced an

The Industry Cosign Spotlight: Briahna Gatlin

By bigced 1 year ago

Company: Swank Public Relations City: Chicago, IL Title: Principal Publicist/CEO Briahna Gatlin is an established

A 104-page audit of the Mississippi Department of Human Services exposed spending not being used for the purposes the money was earmarked for according to USA Today.
Money that was meant to assist poor residents was used to purchase buy luxury cars, sponsor a college baseball tournament, and encouraged nepotism by hiring family members of a top state official, according to a report from State Auditor Shad White.
The audit, which was released earlier this week, shows how federal welfare grant funds flowed from DHS into two nonprofit groups, which allegedly spent money in inappropriate or questionable ways.
In a written statement, White stated that the report “shows the most egregious misspending my staff have seen in their careers at the Office of the State Auditor.” He said, “If there was a way to misspend money, it seems DHS leadership or their grantees thought of it and tried it.”
White said his office will forward the information they found to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the welfare program. White said this could lead to cuts in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) allotments or other sanctions placed on the state.
The audit found these items questionable:
The two nonprofit groups used welfare money to hire lobbyists, often without paperwork describing the work they were supposed to do.
MCEC gave contracts to, and hired, family members of Davis, sometimes making lump-sum payments. The payments and salaries to his nephew and brother-in-law totaled more than $1 million over the past several years, auditors said.
Both nonprofit groups gave welfare money to a trio of wrestlers, Ted DiBiase, Ted DiBiase, Jr., and Brett DiBiase – some of it for work never performed, some for “unreasonable” travel costs.
MCEC paid Victory Sports Foundation with welfare money to run fitness programs, some of which Mississippi legislators and other officials or staffers participated in, free of charge. The trainer who runs Victory said he did not know he received welfare money.
MCEC bought three cars with welfare money, each worth more than $50,000, for New and two sons. Salaries, cellphones, and other expenses were paid using welfare money. The vehicles included a 2018 Nissan Armada, a Chevrolet Silverado, and a Ford F-250. In each case, the vehicle was registered to MCEC, but in each case, auditors said the vehicles were for personal use.
MCEC used welfare money for sports-related purposes, including sponsoring a college baseball tournament and other NCAA events.
MCEC cut a $3,000 check to a bookkeeper of MCEC, though a handwritten note says “$3,000 cash was given to” Davis, the DHS executive director.
MCEC moved $6 million to a private school and organization run by New and bought supplies for the school.