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Two Black Women Accuse Beverly Hills Victoria’s Secret Of Racial Discrimination

2015 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show - Hair And Makeup

Source: Kevin Mazur / Getty

Two African-American women are each seeking $4 million in damages from lingerie powerhouse Victoria’s Secret for racial discrimination.

According to Beverly Hills Patch, the lawsuit states that Shaunda McDaniel and Tammi Robinson were kicked out of the Beverly Center store by management after a confrontation with an aggressive customer. According to the women, the incident took place on June 16, 2015 when they were shopping at the chain’s semi-annual sale. A woman “who appeared to be white” pushed and shoved the two Black women and when the women demanded the white woman apologize, she  refused.

Soon after, management got involved with one manager assumed the two Black women were at fault. That manager called security and the two  were escorted out. According to the lawsuit, the white manager even apologized to the white customer who was allegedly aggressive toward McDaniel and Robinson.

Each woman is suing for $2 million dollars for “negligence, slander, intentional infliction of emotional distress, false arrest and violations of various state codes.” Plaintiffs were shocked and humiliated to be accused of wrongdoing and to be thrown out of the store as if they were criminals,” the lawsuit wrote.

Spokespeople fro Victoria’s Secret has yet to comment publicly on the lawsuit.

#BoldMove: Washington DC Mayor Muriel E. Bowser Calls For Statehood

On April 15, in a passionate speech celebrating President Lincoln freeing the slaves in D.C., its Mayor Muriel E. Bowser called for the District of Columbia to be the 51st state of the United States of America, The Washington Post reported.

“I propose we take another bold step toward democracy in the District of Columbia,” Bowser said. “It’s going to require that we send a bold message to the Congress and the rest of the country, that we demand not only a vote in the House of Representatives. We demand two senators—the full rights of citizenship in this great nation,” she added.

According to the Post, this request is causing some serious tensions given that the mostly Republican House approves the budget and finances for D.C., which Bowser and other local politicians are fighting against. And while some GOP Congresspeople want to give D.C. more control of their money, statehood is off the table in their eyes.

“I’m a big one for local control” of tax dollars, said Rep. Mark Meadows (Republican), chairman of the subcommittee that handles D.C. affairs. But “when it becomes a slippery slope in an effort to give de facto statehood, that is not something that is going to be met with the same kind of genteel receptivity.

Time will only tell is Bowser’s request will actually happen.

MacArthur Foundation Bails Out Jurisdictions That Jail Too Many

Empty Corridor In Jail

Source: Jeremy Kohm / EyeEm / Getty

Mostly known for their “Genius Award,” the MacArthur Foundation is also using it hefty endowment to make a difference in the prison industrial complex.

According to the Huffington Post, eleven different jurisdictions will receive between $1.5 million and $3.5 million each over a period of two years as part of MacArthur’s Safety and Justice Challenge. This grant will go toward paying the bails of individuals who cannot afford it and are waiting in jails for their court cases to begin. Monies are also given to areas where jai populations are incredibly high, such as New York City, New Orleans and Philadelphia, but also smaller rural areas such as Pima County, Arizona and St. Louis County, which includes Ferguson.

Laurie Garduque, director of justice reform at the MacArthur Foundation, told the Huff Post that the organization also took into consideration areas where those with power were “push[ing] for reform.”

“We made a conscious decision to pick tough places, because those are the places that needed reform,” Garduque said. “We’ll continue to support them as long as they have demonstrable effect. In turn, we’re going to press them and encourage them to tackle some of the underlying structural issues that advocates are concerned about,” she added.

 Not a bad idea.

For 2024’s iteration of MadameNoire and HelloBeautiful’s annual series Women to Know, we knew we wanted to celebrate the people who help make the joys of film and television possible. To create art is to create magic. This year, we spotlight Hollywood Executive’s changing the face of cinema.