News of the day

Microsoft and advertising firm McCann asked the artist Shantell Martin to make a Black Lives Matter mural in Manhattan.
In an email, the duo asked Martin to make the mural this weekend “while the protests are still relevant.”
Martin posted a photo of the email request to Twitter, criticizing the team for insinuating the Black Lives Matter movement won’t be relevant after this weekend.
“There are many layers to why it is wrong and we can start to make excuses about why or how this type of email came about, but the bottom line is it is unacceptable and a part of the problem,” Martin told Insider in a statement via email.

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Microsoft is under fire after mural artist Shantell Martin leaked an email request the company sent her that insinuated the Black Lives Matter movement was a passing trend.

Martin is a well-known mural artist, famous for her black and white designs that have led her to work with stars like Kendrick Lamar.

Microsoft and advertising firm McCann approached Martin via email about making a mural in honor of the Black Lives Matter movement on June 3

The mural was intended to be put up on the Microsoft store located at 5th Avenue in New York City. The store is currently boarded up — as is much of Manhattan – because of the protests in New York over George Floyd’s death at the hands of a police officer.

In the email request, a representative from McCann asked Martin if she could make the mural no later than Sunday June 7, as the movement would not be “relevant” after.

“Hoping to complete the mural while the protests are still relevant and the boards are still up, ideally no later than this coming Sunday,” the email read.

Martin shared a screenshot of the email request to Twitter, slamming both Microsoft and McCann for implying the movement wouldn’t be relevant after this weekend

Apparently the folks at @microsoft and McCann Erickson feel that that the #blacklivesmatter Movement and protests will not be relevant after this weekend. 😳 pic.twitter.com/4zNPw5FbDH

— Shantell Martin (@shantell_martin) June 6, 2020

The email’s implication that the Black Lives Matter movement is a news story that will soon become irrelevant is particularly insulting to demonstrators who have been working to highlight the systematic nature of racism and widespread issues with police brutality in the United …read more

Source:: Business Insider

Detroit Lions offensive lineman Frank Ragnow has felt the power of the past week in terms of discussions and he wants to be a part of the solution moving forward.

Speaking with reporters, Ragnow explained the nature of some of the team meetings that he’s been involved in, and has watched his teammates bear their souls. As he said, it’s something that has made him sick to his stomach in terms of hearing the things they have had to deal with just due to race itself.

However, that only makes him more aware and more ready to help remedy the situation moving forward. As Ragnow explained on the call, his experienced the last few days have been tough but necessary in terms of motivation for the future to get things right.

Here’s what he said:

Frank Ragnow is on a Zoom call with the media right now. He was asked what it’s been like in the team meetings this week. Here’s part of his response: pic.twitter.com/DZKk9pUmTT

— Chris Burke (@ChrisBurkeNFL) June 5, 2020

It’s interesting to hear Ragnow’s take as a white player, and it’s clear what he has heard has opened his eyes. This week, his African American teammates have been speaking out passionately and eloquently on the matter and it’s clear their words have made a very dramatic effect.

It’s possible the entire Lions team has never been close as they are at this moment in time. The words from Ragnow only serve to prove that point.

Frank Ragnow Lions Most Improved Player

For the Lions, PFF writer Ben Linsey had center Frank Ragnow pegged as the team’s most improved player, and explained that a shift back to a natural position helped Ragnow take off in his sophomore season in the league. Here’s what was written in the piece:

“We talked about it before the season, and Ragnow’s move from guard in his rookie season to center in 2019 did, in fact, make all the difference. It was his more productive position at Arkansas, and it is his more productive position through two years as a professional, as well. Ragnow’s 64.4 overall grade in 2018 was a respectable mark, ranking 15th among qualifying left guards, but his 74.9 grade in 2019 bordered on the center position’s elite and ranked sixth among 38 qualifying centers. There was an improvement from Ragnow across the board as both a pass …read more

Source:: Heavy.com

A rival promoter publically contacted UFC stars Jon Jones and Jorge Masvidal while both champs were in the middle of separate but related pay disputes with the company. Luckily for the UFC, that rival promoter was longtime boxing promoter and one-time MMA promoter Oscar De La Hoya.

De La Hoya took to Twitter on Saturday night to tweet compliments to both Jones and Masvidal. First, the former boxing champion sent a message to Masvidal.

@GamebredFighter what’s up my man. Respect your career

— Oscar De La Hoya (@OscarDeLaHoya) June 7, 2020

Next, De La Hoya set his sights on Jones.

@JonnyBones from one fighter to another I respect you and you the man.

— Oscar De La Hoya (@OscarDeLaHoya) June 7, 2020

One might assume De La Hoya would next send a message to former UFC “champ champ” Henry Cejudo who shockingly retired after his last win over Dominick Cruz at UFC 249 due to a similar issue with the company about pay.

But De La Hoya seemed only interested in contacting Jones and Masvidal at the present. He did so around eight minutes apart and in reverse order from which fighter would be the biggest commodity for De La Hoya’s assumed interest in promoting.

Is De La Hoya Offering Fights or Just Trolling White?

Of course, De La Hoya assumed interest is just as likely just the latest public troll of UFC president Dana White as it is anything else.

The two promoters don’t compete for the same audience, save for De La Hoya’s one-time MMA promotion that was deemed a massive failure by most in the sport, including one of its principal participants, Tito Ortiz.

But that hasn’t kept the two promoters from going at each other over recent years.

In fact, De La Hoya blasted White just last month after the UFC boss laughed off the 47-year-old’s chances in a boxing match against UFC superstar Conor McGregor.

De La Hoya tweeted directly to White, “you are such a little b*tch, never laced a glove other than being a box aerobics teacher. The Fertitta brothers are the ones who built the business and you were lucky enough to just have 10% of UFC.”

De La Hoya later deleted the post.

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About Golden Boy MMA’s Failed 2018 Experiment

Ortiz headlined the first and only Golden Boy …read more

Source:: Heavy.com