Photos of Juneteenth celebrations commemorating end to slavery
Juneteenth celebrations took place across the U.S., commemorating the day in 1865 when enslaved Black people in Texas learned of their freedom. While long honored by Black Americans, the holiday has gained broader recognition since becoming a federal holiday in 2021 under President Joe Biden, who attended an event in Galveston, Texas, where Juneteenth began.
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Telegraph
41 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Come on Whoopi, the US may not be fun but you're hardly in danger of being flogged
Whoopsi Goldberg. When will she learn that acting and activism are two very different skill sets? I'm not sure we want more of the former from her but we want absolutely none of the latter. Her latest toweringly stupid prime-time pronouncement is that for black people, living in the US is as bad as living in Iran. Appearing on The View, a topical panel show, Oscar winner Goldberg was enraged when her co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin stated, perfectly reasonably, that 'it's very different to live in the United States in 2025 than it is to live in Iran'. 'Not if you're black,' snapped Goldberg, who then proceeded to shout the other woman down, wildly claiming time and again that the prevailing culture in the democratic US is in lockstep with the systematic oppression imposed by the Iranian theocracy. We know you're a lefty. We know you hate Trump. But really? 'Let's just remember, too, the Iranians literally throw gay people off of buildings. They don't adhere to basic human rights,' pointed out Griffin, an Arab-American. This cut no ice with Goldberg, who by now had clambered onto her bandwagon and refused to concede a single point as it would represent an unthinkable climbdown. 'Let's not do that,' she countered crossly, 'because if we start with that, we have been known in this country to tie gay folks to the car.' Her false equivalence was as ugly as it was ignorant. Call me a bigot, but conflating state-sanctioned execution with illegal acts of murderous criminality is mortifying, stupid and dangerous. In a new report presented to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council on Wednesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that Iran was executing people at 'an alarming rate'. At least 975 people received capital punishment in 2024, an increase on the estimated 834 in 2023 and the highest rate of executions since 2015. Flogging, torture and amputation are accepted forms of punishment in a country where the security forces act with impunity and women are 'disappeared' for refusing to wear the 'correct' veil. But Goldberg, who is worth an estimated £45 million, appeared to have no intention of listening – or allowing the audience to hear – any point of view other than her own. Even when Griffin pointed to the actress's clothing and argued that in Iran she wouldn't be allowed to walk around with her hair and legs showing, Goldberg predictably dragged the debate – such as it was – back to her specialist subject of race relations in the US. A worthy topic – but this was a programme focusing on Iran. 'Nobody wants to diminish the very real problems we have in our country,' responded Griffin carefully (to her credit, she didn't just reach over and turn off Goldberg's mic). 'But there are places far darker than our country.' She's right. But Goldberg wasn't interested. Her empathy doesn't appear to extend beyond her home turf. Or beyond colour. In 2022, she was suspended from the selfsame show for 'wrong and hurtful comments' after she asserted the annihilation of six million Jews in the Holocaust wasn't about race because 'these are two white groups of people'. Wow. You'd think Goldberg might have learnt something – anything. But no. She inhabits a myopic world of privilege in which her opinions are the only opinions – and if you're not with her, you are against her. The sorry truth is that now Hollywood no longer comes calling, she's plying her trade as a TV loudmouth. She doesn't need the money, but she clearly craves the attention – a deluded egotistical actress clinging to the excruciating belief that she's still the star of the show.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Mark Cuban reveals why he turned down Kamala Harris's VP offer in 2024
Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban has revealed that Kamala Harris invited him to submit vetting materials in order to be considered as her running mate last year, but he declined. In an interview with The Bulwark 's Tim Miller on Thursday, the host asked the former Shark Tank reality TV personality about rumors linking him to the failed Harris campaign. 'There was some green room gossip at MSNBC,' Miller said. 'You ready for this? You ready? I wouldn't tell you this if it wasn't pretty good. Somebody I kind of trust said that they asked you to send in VP vetting papers and you said, 'No, the list would be too long.' Is that true?' 'It is true,' replied Cuban, who once supported Donald Trump but remained a prominent Harris supporter throughout the 2024 campaign while denying harboring any ambition to serve in her cabinet should she win. 'Why didn't you consider, I mean, you ended up there campaigning with her, advising her,' Miller asked. The Dallas Mavericks owner replied: 'The second part of that, my response was I'm not very good as the number two person. And so if the last thing we need is me telling Kamala, you know, the president that, no, that's a dumb idea. Right. And I'm not real good at the shaking hands and kissing babies.' Harris ultimately chose Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her vice presidential nominee from a final three that also included Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Arizona Senator Mark Kelly. Walz initially enjoyed success with his attack on Trump and JD Vance, labeling them as 'weird,' and offering a friendly, folksy, blue-collar alternative that ultimately proved insufficiently appealing to prevent a Republican win. Miller told Cuban that he had sold himself short with that negative assessment of his own qualities. 'I don't know about that. I mean, I was talking to Pete Buttigieg a couple of weeks ago and I was like… I want to, you know, give you a time machine. We're going to go back in a DeLorean. Like, what can we do different?' he said. 'So I want to ask you that same question, but also in the context, like if it was you instead of Tim Walz, who the hell knows? I don't know. It feels maybe different. It feels maybe different.' Cuban responded: 'I mean, obviously it would have been different. My personality is completely different than Tim's. My experiences, my backgrounds are completely different. I think I've cut through the s*** more directly. I'm not a politician. And so it would have been different, but it would have been awful. 'She would have fired me within six days!' he joked. 'It would have been better than the present situation, you know?' Miller insisted. 'Well, yes, that's true. But, you know, I really thought she was going to win,' Cuban answered. The interviewer concluded: 'Here's why I want to pick on that. And I know you don't want the clip here. You're like, 'We would have won if Mark Cuban was VP.' And I get that. I don't even know if I believe that, but maybe. 'I think it would have been meaningfully different in a way that like picking Josh Shapiro or whatever wouldn't have been meaningfully different in a way that's kind of hard to predict.'
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
Rod Stewart reveals why he can no longer consider Donald Trump a friend
Veteran rocker Rod Stewart has renounced his friendship with Donald Trump, claiming the businessman completely changed after becoming president of the United States. The 80-year-old singer said he previously had a close relationship with Trump as the pair have owned nearby multi-million pound properties in Palm Beach, Florida since 1991 and 1985 respectively. Speaking to Radio Times , Stewart said: 'I'm not a great fan of Trump. I knew him very, very well. I used to go to his house.' He added that he lives 'literally half a mile away' from him. 'We're both on the beach. I used to go to his Christmas parties. He's always been a bit of a man's man. I liked him for that. But he didn't, as far as I'm concerned, treat women very well. 'But since he became president, he became another guy. Somebody I didn't know,' he said. Asked if he could still count Trump as a friend, Stewart responded: 'No, I can't anymore. As long as he's selling arms to the Israelis – and he still is. How's that war ever gonna stop?' Stewart's remarks come amid a rough friendship patch for Trump as the president's so-called 'bromance' with tech billionaire Elon Musk came crashing down earlier this month. Rod Stewart has renounced his friendship with Donald Trump (Getty) 'Without me, Trump would have lost the election,' Musk claimed on X as the relationship disintegrated. Meanwhile, the president hit back on TruthSocial: 'Elon was 'wearing thin,' I asked him to leave. I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!' Elsewhere in Stewart's interview, he opened up about his forthcoming set at Glastonbury Festival, which will see him perform in the Legend's Slot at 15.45pm on the Pyramid Stage on Sunday, 29 June. Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 30-day free trial. Terms apply. Try for free ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 30-day free trial. Terms apply. Try for free ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. 'It's like when you're playing a cup final: you're trying to treat it like another game. But, of course, it's not. It's special,' he said. 'It'll be glamorous, it'll be sexy and we've got a little orchestra coming on to play with us… and we may have some bagpipes.'
