This is the Black Christian News Network One podcast. Here are the top stories you need to know about today.
According to PEOPLE, Tyler Perry is kicking off Thanksgiving week with a major act of kindness. On Sunday, the star opened up his Atlanta movie studio, Tyler Perry Studios, for four hours to feed 5,000 families with a combination of food boxes and gift cards for local supermarket chain Kroger. Perry, 51, personally funded the event, called TPS Giving, and studio employees donated their time to volunteer and hand out all of the goods. “Tyler was heartbroken seeing people all over the country stand in line for food so he decided he wanted to give back to his community in Atlanta,” a source close to Perry tells PEOPLE. “Hopefully this encourages others who are able to, to give back during the holiday season in a year that has been difficult for many.” Cars lined up over 12 hours before the official start of the event. To maintain proper COVID-19 safety protocols, the event was drive-thru only, and all employees working the event were tested ahead of time.
According to WGNTV, A popular South Side pastor has died. Bishop Willie James Campbell has died, according to a Facebook post by his wife Lori Campbell. Campbell was the pastor of St. James Ministries – Church of God in Christ, known as the Judah Complex in the West Pullman neighborhood. “The family, St. James Ministries and I are broken and will need your prayers and love. Please allow ample time for processing this huge loss,” the post said. It is unknown how he died.
According to the Associated Press, A Black man who died while being beaten by supermarket security guards was buried on Saturday following protests that echoed those of the racial justice movement in the United States. João Alberto Silveira Freitas, a father of four, was buried wearing a white T-shirt in a coffin draped with the flag of his favorite soccer team in the city of Porto Alegre. “I just want justice,” his partner, Milena Borges Alves, told Globo news. “That’s all. I just want them to pay for what they did to him.” She said they had planned to formally marry in a few days after living together for nine years. Demonstrators enraged by Freitas’ death painted “Black lives matter” on the pavement of Paulista Avenue, one of the most famous in São Paulo, following a series of protests across the country, many of them at branches of the Carrefour supermarket chain. The outrage was fed by a widely circulated video showing one guard restraining Freitas as another hit him repeatedly in the face. Another clip later showed a guard kneeling atop Freitas’ back in the parking lot of the store in Porto Alegre. On Saturday, a political movement that had backed conservative President Jair Bolsonaro tweeted a video that appeared to be from earlier in the confrontation, showing the two guards escorting Freitas out of the store without touching him when he suddenly punched one of them, and both then grabbed him. Both of the guards were detained and face possible homicide charges, according to police authorities.
According to Slate, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson said that he “became desperately ill” with the coronavirus but is now “out of the woods.” Carson tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this month and was one of several people who tested positive for the coronavirus after attending an election night party at the White House that was largely mask-free. White House chief of staff Mark Meadows was also at the party and tested positive for the virus the day after the election. Carson, a neurosurgeon who is also a member of the coronavirus task force, wrote a Facebook post in which he said he was “extremely sick” and revealed his wife also contracted the virus. He said he saw “dramatic improvement” after taking a botanical treatment derived from the oleander plant, which has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Trump has spoken favorably of the unproven treatment before. His symptoms later worsened and Trump, who had been following his condition closely, “cleared me for the monoclonal antibody therapy that he had previously received, which I am convinced saved my life.”
According to Associated Press, Millions of Americans bought tickets to fly somewhere for Thanksgiving before the nation’s top public health agency pleaded with them not to travel for the holiday. So what are they doing now? In many cases, they’re still crowding airports and boarding planes. That’s despite relatively lenient cancellation policies that major airlines have implemented since the coronavirus pandemic emerged earlier this year. According to the Transportation Security Administration, more than 2 million people were screened at U.S. airports on Friday and Saturday. While that’s far lower than during the same time last year, Friday was only the second time since mid-March that daily airport screenings topped 1 million. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said Americans should skip Thanksgiving travel and not spend the holiday with people from outside their household.
According to Associated Press, Auburn University has renamed its student center after the chief justice of the Georgia Supreme Court, who was the school’s first Black student government president. The formal ceremony was held Friday to honor Harold D. Melton, with a banner unfurled at the top of the building revealing its new name. “In 1987, this young kid comes over here, he gets the whole student body excited, and they elect him their president,” Auburn University President Jay Gogue said in a statement released by the Georgia Supreme Court. He told Melton: “You honor Auburn by allowing us to honor you.” The Harold D. Melton Student Center is the first building on Auburn’s campus named after an African American. “I never imagined this kind of honor,” Melton said in a statement.
According to the Associated Press, “Coming 2 America,” the sequel to the 1988 Eddie Murphy comedy, has landed on a date to come to audiences. The film which reunites Murphy and Arsenio Hall will debut on Amazon Prime Video on March 5, 2021, Amazon Studios said Friday. Originally a Paramount Pictures theatrical release, the studio sold the film to the streamer last month but had yet to finalize a date. “Coming to America was a cultural phenomenon that is one of the most loved and celebrated comedies of all time,” said Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios, in a statement. “We know audiences around the world will fall in love with this hilarious, joyful movie that will surely become a timeless favorite.” James Earl Jones, Shari Headley and John Amos will also be reprising their roles alongside new additions like Wesley Snipes, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan and KiKi Layne. The 1988 movie, featuring Murphy as Prince Akeem Joffer, tells the story of an African prince who must decide whether to uphold or break away from the long-standing traditions from his homeland, the fictional African nation of Zamunda. The original film celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2018, the same year another film celebrating African royalty took hold of moviegoers: Marvel’s “Black Panther.”
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In closing, remember, God loves you. He always has and He always will. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” If you don’t know Jesus as your Saviour, today is a good day to get to know Him. Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died, was buried, and rose from the dead for you. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart and He will. Romans 10:13 says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Thanks so much for listening and may God bless your day!
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