Commentary

COMMENTARY: #FirstThem Movement Highlights White Predators

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Producer Harvey Weinstein is currently fighting charges of sexual assault and recent documentaries have revisited decades-old allegations against singers R. Kelly and the late Michael Jackson.

Published

7 years ago

February 2, 2019

Oakland Post

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

The #MeToo movement began a little more than two years ago, and some of the most famous and powerful men – like Matt Lauer, Charlie Rose, and Louis C.K. – have lost their high-profile jobs, or have seen their careers derailed.

Producer Harvey Weinstein is currently fighting charges of sexual assault and recent documentaries have revisited decades-old allegations against singers R. Kelly and the late Michael Jackson.

And while some, like Louis C.K., have made comebacks, Bill Cosby, who sits in prison serving a sentence of up to 10 years because of a previously settled and decades-old allegation, remains the only high-profile person jailed as a result of the movement.

And, according to many legal experts, Cosby’s conviction remains questionable at best, and a set-up at worst.

Now, a new movement is afoot that seeks to reveal that the #MeToo movement – a movement that was started by a black woman – has unfairly targeted black men.

The fledgling #FirstThem movement wants to ensure that those who are alleged to have committed sexual assault or abuse aren’t targeted just because they’re black – something those involved said is a major problem and counts as a serious injustice.

The founders of that movement, which has gained momentum on Twitter and other social media platforms, said they want to ensure that the focus will shine on white men and women who are accused instead of what they see as the lynching of those of color over unfounded allegations.

In one of many tweets, film producer and media personality Tariq Nasheed highlighted what he believes is one of the primary reasons for the #FirstThem movement.

“While the white media is trying to make any Black entertainer the face of sexual abuse, they are putting accused serial abusers like Charlie Sheen on magazine covers,” said Nasheed, a founder of the movement.

Nasheed, who couldn’t immediately be reached for a telephone interview, noted that Sheen has been accused of abusing women and exposing them to HIV.

“There is a wave of corporate sponsored movements that were created under the narrative of addressing sexual misconduct particularly within the entertainment industry. Many organizations behind these movements have racially tailored their agenda and our mission is to counter the racial targeting from these organizations,” Nasheed said in a post.

Nasheed readily acknowledges that sexual misconduct “is wrong on every level.”

“No group should be given a pass for sexual assault on their race,” he said. “So, get involved now and contribute to the #FirstThem movement so we can replace the system of racial privilege with a system of justice.”

Using the hashtag #FirstThem, one Twitter user noted that former Hollywood Producer Gary Goddard stands accused of sexual misconduct by 8 former child actors, yet his case hasn’t had the focus of Cosby or even R. Kelly, who recently was the subject of a scathing documentary about his alleged sexual assault of underage black girls.

In 2017, actor Anthony Edwards alleged that Goddard molested him and raped his best friend for a number of years beginning when they were just 12.

Goddard has denied the allegations.

In the case of R. Kelly and Jackson, Nasheed eagerly defends them, lambasting the media for its repeated coverage of those cases.

Another #FirstThem post noted that actor Rob Lowe “is still being glorified and getting gigs… I think it’s time to introduce him to #FirstThem,” the Twitter user Kobe Denzel wrote.

In 1988, Lowe was involved in a scandal over a videotape of him having sex with two females, one of whom was 16.

Lowe has claimed that he didn’t know that the girl was underage and later he cut a deal in which he agreed to perform 20 hours of community service.

While it’s not only celebrities called out for their alleged misdeeds, #FirstThem has listed a host of icons whose mideeds supporters of the movement believe the media and history have overlooked or forgotten.

Iggy Pop, the late David Bowie, Jimmy Paige, Mick Jagger, Jim Morrison, Jeff Beck, Alice Cooper, and football great Peyton Manning have drawn the attention of #FirstThem.

Singer Courtney Love was also among those mentioned by #FirstThem because she reportedly admitted to performing a sex act on singer/songwriter Ted Nugent when she was just 12.

“When I was a single man, I liked younger women,” Nugent told reporters last year, without directly addressing Love’s claims. “I haven’t had relations with underage women since I was underage,” said Nugent, a Republican supporter who performed at a number of President Donald Trump’s campaign events.

Trump himself has also been accused of sexual abuse by several women.

A recent article in the United Kingdom’s The Guardian, also touched on the allegations of Iggy Pop, Bowie, Paige, Jagger, Beck and Cooper.

The article noted that, in 2001, when the Mötley Crüe biography The Dirt was published, barely an eyebrow was raised at the debauchery described within.

Even one of the darkest tales, in which Nikki Sixx said he “pretty much” raped an intoxicated woman after he had sex with her in a cupboard and then sent Tommy Lee in to do the same, did little to damage Sixx’s reputation.

Dr. Rosemary Lucy Hill, from the Centre for Interdisciplinary Gender Studies at the University of Leeds, told the newspaper that the idea of a groupie is a complex one – citing the example of Pamela Des Barres, who claims she slept with Jagger, Page, Morrison and numerous others, and wrote five books about her experiences – an updated version of the most famous, I’m With the Band, hit stores again last year.

Lori Mattix (sometimes known as Maddox) told The Guardian that she was just 14 when she lost her virginity to Bowie. Her next lover was Jimmy Page, she said.

Though she recently acknowledged that the #MeToo movement she founded has appeared to have left Black women behind and that the message has been lost, Tarana Burke responded to the #FirstThem on Twitter to defend her stand.

“These #FirstThem folks are attacking me like I haven’t spent the greater part of my life in service for Black folks,” Burke wrote on Twitter. “There is not a bone in my body that hates Black men or that would intentionally target them for attack,” she said. “But we have to have a real conversation.”

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of BlackPressUSA.com or the National Newspaper Publishers Association.

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Oakland Museum Presents Landmark Retrospective Celebrating Beloved Bay Area Artist Mildred Howard

“Poetics of Memory” coincides with a year of major recognition for Howard. In 2026, she received the California Arts Council’s 50th Anniversary Award, honoring artists whose work has shaped California’s cultural and civic life, as well as the Museum of the African Diaspora’s Artist Impact Award. In 2025, she was awarded a prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship in recognition of her transformative contributions to American cultural life.

Published

3 days ago

June 24, 2026

Oakland Post

Mildred Howard. Photo by Christine Cueto for the Oakland Museum of California, 2025.

Special to The Post

The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) opened “Mildred Howard: Poetics of Memory,” the first major museum survey of Bay Area artist Mildred Howard, on June 12.

The exhibition spans five decades of Howard’s influential work, bringing together immersive installations, found-object sculptures, archival materials, and new commissions that explore memory, identity, and power in American life.

Howard was born in San Francisco in 1945 and raised in the East Bay, where she went on to study Afro-Haitian dance, make and sell clothing, and experiment with collage and sculpture.

Her multimedia art practice emerged from these experiences, later becoming associated with West Coast conceptual art, San Francisco funk, and a vibrant community of artists like Oliver Jackson, Betye Saar, and Raymond Saunders. Since the 1970s, she has used found materials and family stories to explore memory—both individual and collective.

At OMCA, visitors enter “Poetics of Memory” through a series of intimate galleries featuring Howard’s early mixed-media pieces and sculptures, along with a large video projection of a number of her public artworks.

Together, they emphasize Howard’s interest in everyday objects as powerful carriers of individual and shared stories. Highlights include collages that remix images of the artist herself; found-object sculptures like The History of the United States with a few Parts Missing (2007) that address omissions in dominant narratives; and public works like “Locks and Keys for Harry Bridges” (2001) that transform urban space into a meditation on access and labor.

This culminates in a richly detailed “studio” environment, where works in progress, archival exhibition flyers, historic photographs of Howard and her community, postcards from fellow artists, and other materials offer insight into her creative process and daily life.

The exhibition then opens into a high-ceilinged, dramatically lit space that brings together Howard’s signature immersive installations. On one end, “Crossings” (1997/2026) – a field of hundreds of ceramic eggs leading to an ornate mirror – suggests cycles of birth, motherhood, and transition, while drawing on the emotional echoes of the Middle Passage. On the other end, “Blackbird in a Red Sky” (a.k.a. “Fall of the Blood House”) (2002) – a red glass shack bordered by a pond – also uses reflection and transparency to draw viewers into the work and prompt consideration of themes of identity and home.

Howard’s newest video installation, “Moving Stills” (2026), repurposes never-before-seen family footage she took as a teenager on a train trip to the American South. Projected onto cascading layers of translucent fabric that stretch across an entire gallery wall, the piece immerses viewers in a layered meditation on memory, migration, and time.

The “Mildred Howard: Poetics of Memory” exhibit will be on display through Oct. 11 at the Oakland Museum of California, 1000 Oak St., Oakland, CA 94612. Museum hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with extended hours on Fridays to 9 p.m.

This story is sourced from the Oakland Museum of California press office.

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Stop the Hate Symposium Brings Oakland Together Through Dialogue, Partnership, and Community Healing

More than a meeting and panel discussion, the annual symposium serves as a powerful example of what can happen when neighbors, community leaders, and organizations choose conversation over division, and unity over silence.

Published

3 days ago

June 24, 2026

Oakland Post

Speakers and guests at the annual ‘Stop the Hate Symposium posed with Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council ambassadors. Photo by Marcus Calloway.

By Dr. Maritony Jones, Special to The Post

With the purpose of creating safer, stronger, and more inclusive communities, and in partnership with the Oakland Private Industry Council and other community organizations, the Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council (OCIC) hosted the ‘Stop the Hate Symposium’ on June 13 at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center.

The free event featured keynote speakers, breakout sessions, cultural programming, creating a space where people from many backgrounds sat together with a shared purpose.

The turnout itself reflected the urgency and importance of the topic. The room was packed with community members eager not only to listen, but also to participate. Throughout the event, speakers shared data, personal experiences, research, and practical solutions designed to address hate, violence, social inequity, and community safety.

The keynote panel featured respected leaders and advocates, including Ray Bobbitt, founder of the African American Sports & Entertainment Group (AASEG); Ryan Takemiya from RAMA; Caheri Gutierrez from the Unity Council; honorary guest speaker Oakland City Councilmember at-Large Rowena Brown and City Councilmember Charlene Wang; representatives for Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee and U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon, with Gia Vang of NBC serving as moderator.

The symposium also offered multiple breakout sessions that addressed issues affecting communities across Oakland and Alameda County:

Session 1, 2, 3: Building Safer and More Inclusive Communities, led by Pastor Raymond Lankfort, CEO of Oakland Private Industry Council (OPIC), Jessica Kang, research manager for Stop AAPI Hate, Kara Guerra of The Unity Council, and Gabriela delaRiva of the Spanish Speaking Citizens Foundation
Session 4: Talk Story: Collective Healing and Relationship Repair, presented by Ryan Takemiya, executive director of RAMA
Session 5: Sexual Violence Prevention, presented by Tunisia Owens, interim deputy director of Realized Potential
Session 6: Violent Attacks on Teens, presented by MaryAnn Alvarado, program manager of Youth Alive

Every session contributed to an important truth: meaningful change begins within communities, through honest dialogue and a willingness to work together.

One of the strongest themes to emerge from the day was the need to create more conversations and stronger partnerships—not just during times of crisis, but consistently and intentionally. Relationships among organizations, neighborhoods, and community leaders often operate behind the scenes but are not always highlighted or celebrated.

Bobbitt spoke powerfully about this issue, noting that partnerships and relationships often go unrecognized despite being essential to community progress. He pointed to examples such as the partnership between OPIC and OCHIC, emphasizing that these collaborations deserve more visibility, investment, and expansion.

Perhaps his most memorable message resonated deeply throughout the room. Bobbitt explained that when a grandparent is attacked or harmed, the impact extends beyond race or ethnicity because today’s families and communities are increasingly multicultural and interconnected.

“We are not going to see our grandparents as just Latino, Asian, Caucasian, or African American,” he shared in essence. “We are going to see them simply as our grandparents.”

Those words reflected the heart of the symposium. Hate may target one group, but pain and loss are felt by everyone. Likewise, healing and progress are shared responsibilities.

For more information about the Stop The Hate Program visit the website: https://www.oaklandchinatownchamber.org/stop-the-hate (or) https://oaklandpic.or

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Six Months in, Probate Reform Coalition Marks Progress in Protecting Elders From Financial Abuse

Despite the cited obstacles, NPRC has made some promising inroads towards their mission. NPRC has identified that nationwide the Attorneys General must be engaged and encouraged to implement oversight, protection and enforcement of the law; members find support from each other as they advocate for redress via “letters of compassion” sent to judges, nursing facilities and law enforcement agencies and members are instructed on their rights, how to take constructive action to protect those rights through access to resources that allow them to intelligently represent themselves in court.

Published

3 days ago

June 24, 2026

Oakland Post

NPRC member Stewart E. Handte, a former Mineral County, Nevada, Sheriff and 27-year veteran of police work, currently wears an ankle monitor after he was arrested on kidnapping charges for helping his friend, Roger Hilligus, remove Hilligus’ mother, Susan Hilligus, from a nursing facility after finding her bruised and neglected. NPRC has submitted a “Letter of Compassion” for both Handte and Hilligus requesting that charges be dropped. Courtesy photo.

By Tanya Dennis

The National Probate Reform Coalition, a loose-knit national coalition of advocates, victims, and families dedicated to protecting elder rights, especially within the probate court system, was formed by the Post Newspaper Group (PNG) after more than a decade of reporting on the mistreatment of elders and the plunder of their estates.

In response, PNG Publisher Paul Cobb set in motion a series of monthly town halls to address the problem and propose workable solutions, designating it a “year of action.”

At six months, the coalition has attracted families, advocates, and experts across the nation whose strategies have proven effective in their respective states, and who are moving forward collectively with the mission of engaging judicial, legislative, and enforcement agencies to ensure elders are not exploited or abused.

“The issue of elder abuse is multi-layered”, says NPRC planning committee member Venus Gist. “Elders are our most vulnerable population, next to children, and they are easily exploited by strangers, their own family members, and the judicial system designed to protect them.”

Since January, NPRC has, via monthly virtual meetings held on the first Thursday of each month, clearly defined the issues and formulated workable solutions that can be implemented nationwide.

“There are amazing laws on the books that protect elders and their assets,” said NPRC member Zakiya Jendayi. “The problem is they are ignored, and that lack of oversight has led to systemic abuse in the Probate Court system, not just in Alameda County, but nationwide.

“The scary part is the collusion and wall of silence NPRC has encountered when reaching out to the Judicial Council, legislators, and the State Bar for assistance. It’s so obvious that one hand is washing the other, that they’re protecting each other, that it’s difficult to initiate any type of meaningful reform much less dialogue.”

Stacy Drake, a Texas member, says, “I’ve been looking for help for over 10 years with my situation, and I finally found it within the NPRC coalition. God answered my prayers.”

Broadening its reach within Alameda County, NPRC has invited Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee to assist with outreach, education, and resolution.

“We hope to host an elder abuse/elder protection symposium annually, if not twice a year, to let our elders know that Alameda County and the City of Oakland are a safe place, a place where in their golden years they have no worries regarding exploitation and abuse,” said Cobb. “Society is defined by how the care for its children and elders.”