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Its looking like Tekashi69 was beaten up and pummeled by his security force. As previously reported, the people that beat him up were clearly past acquaintances. They knew him.

And then the Internet went and did its thing, and that result is his security team. Now, one of the guys has actually been identified in the vicious assault. And he is also the guy in the video that commands them to record him as he does the stomping on his alleged former client. He really gives it to him. I will say this, he got up. So, this was not a BROOKLYN mash out or anything like that. But they gave him enough of a message.

Now, the question is why? Why would they beat him up so viciously, personally, and publicly? There are a couple of theories out there, but the main one is Money. MOOLAH! It has been theorized over and over that he did not pay them and they got revenge. If youre going to have security, it is important to pay them. They know who you are, where you live, and all the little particulars like where you go to work out. They probably know your schedule. So, its probably a good idea to pay these people because theyve been inside your house and around you intimately.

Anyway, it is interesting that we are dealing with someone who has already worked with authorities. The word on the street is that the guy doing the stamping in the video did eight years in prison. I think it is likely that he could go back to prison, because we are dealing with someone who clearly works with the authorities in Tekashi 69. Also, how does this work with future security clients? I dont think anybody is going to hire him/them, knowing in the back of their mind, he might beat the sh#t out of them!

I wish George Zimmerman owed them money.

What do you think?

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Was Tekashi Beat Up By His Own Security Force? - AllHipHop

Editors note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the authors own.Read moreopinionson theGrio.

Some Republicans are demonizing and redefining a word popularized in the Black community: woke. Theyve turned the word into a slur, using it to attack diversity, equity and inclusion, along with additional policies that benefit Black Americans and other oppressed and marginalized people.

The reaction by many Republicans chief among them Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to wokeness resembles the hysterical response of Chicken Little in an old childrens story. When an acorn falls on her head, Chicken Little panics, yelling The sky is falling! The sky is falling!

DeSantis and other Republicans now screaming about wokeness make as much sense as a frightened chicken. But the governor, who is expected to announce his Republican presidential candidacy in the spring, clearly hopes his anti-wokeness obsession will get him the nomination in pursuit of moving into the White House.

Meanwhile, DeSantis is not alone. Some Congressional Republicans have even laughably said the recent failure of Silicon Valley Bank in California was caused by the bank devoting too much attention to pursuing woke policies. In fact, Republican-backed banking deregulation legislation signed into law by then-President Donald Trump may have played a far greater role in the banks collapse.

The word woke used to just mean awake, as when we say: I woke up at 7 this morning.

But beginning in 1923 with Black nationalist and civil rights pioneer Marcus Garvey, Black people began urging each other to stay awake or stay woke to the dangers posed by Jim Crow-styled racism and social injustice and to work against these evils. The expression gained circulation over the decades and was picked up in music popular with Black audiences.

Indeed, two years after the historic 1963 March on Washington, in a commencement address at Oberlin College, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. also challenged the students to prepare for the great revolution of their time by essentially being awake:

There are all too many people who, in some great period of social change, fail to achieve the new mental outlooks that the new situation demands. There is nothing more tragic than to sleep through a revolution. There can be no gainsaying of the fact that a great revolution is taking place in our world today. It is a social revolution, sweeping away the old order. The wind of change is blowing, and we see in our day and our age a significant development. The great challenge facing every individual graduating today is to remain awake through this social revolution.

The hashtag #StayWoke spread on social media after neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman shot and killed Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Black 17-year-old, in 2012 and was later acquitted of second-degree murder. The phrase and hashtag were picked up by the Black Lives Matter movement and gained traction following police killings of unarmed Black people.

DeSantis and other Republicans have turned the meaning of woke on its head, changing it from a warning and a sign of awareness of injustice into an insult. They use the terms woke and wokeness to ridicule people and attitudes they consider to be absurdly far left, hypersensitive and obsessed with political correctness.

Advocates for people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, womens rights, accurate public school education on race and gender issues, and social justice have been denounced as woke by Republicans including DeSantis, Trump (again seeking the Republican presidential nomination), and longshot GOP presidential candidate and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.

The Republican war on wokeness illustrates the sad decline of the party, which once took a principled moral stand against slavery. Sadly, Republicans today are obsessed with stoking the fires of hatred and grievance and dividing Americans. Not quite a winning strategy to make it into the White House, but we will have to prepare ourselves for this battle ahead.

Rather than accepting responsibility for their own shortcomings that have worsened Americas problems, particularly under Trumps incompetent administration, many Republicans now choose to scapegoat Black people and others opposed to GOP policies with the label woke, blaming them for our nations ills.

DeSantis boasts about signing the Stop WOKE (Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees) Act, which bars public school instruction that could cause students to feel guilt, anguish, or any form of psychological distress due to their race, color, sex or national origin. That absurdly broad prohibition now being challenged in lawsuits is being used to block lessons on slavery, racism, sexism, religious bigotry, prejudice against the LGBTQ+ community and more.

Think about it: how can an accurate lesson about the way enslaved Black people were horribly mistreated as subhuman property with no more rights than farm animals not cause psychological distress? Its not as if once unburdened with the chains and shackles could Black folks gain their rights as citizens. Our ancestors had to fight for their own freedom and this struggle persists today as other grave injustices cause psychological distress among some other students.

But schools arent supposed to be free of negative information about America. Theyre supposed to teach students about the real world the good, the bad and the ugly. Schools are supposed to open up our curiosities about the world we live in and how to navigate our place in it.

To ensure Florida students are not exposed to the truth about slavery and racism, the Florida Education Department even banned a new Advanced Placement course on African American studies from being taught in the states high schools. The department said in a January letter that the content of this course is inexplicably contrary to Florida law and significantly lacks educational value. I am so glad my relatives in Florida were able to get a good education before this nonsense started.

As the anti-wokeness nuttiness spreads across the country, growing numbers of states and school districts controlled by Republicans are imposing censorship on teachers and ordering books removed from school libraries for being woke. A RAND Corporation study published in January that surveyed a nationally representative sample of 8,000 teachers found that a quarter have changed their courses to limit or remove any discussions of race and gender topics.

Incredibly, an eighth-grade social studies teacher in Iowa recorded a Zoom meeting with his school superintendent in which she told him she wasnt sure if he was allowed to teach that slavery was wrong. The uncertainty was generated by a new Iowa law barring teachers from telling students that the United States of America and the state of Iowa are fundamentally or systemically racist or sexist. In response, the teacher quit and left the teaching profession.

What has our country come to when teachers are silenced from telling students basic and indisputable truths, like denouncing the immorality of slavery? When book banning is so prevalent in our schools? When elected officials refuse to deal with the real problems facing our nation and fixate on silly culture war issues and disputes over wokeness?

Weve heard enough wokeness nonsense from Republican Chicken Littles. Americans need to reject this alarmism and believe that we can work together to share our stories, embrace our family history and start working together to solve the real problems facing our nation.

As Dr. King would remind us, the wind of change is still stirring in our midst. Lets make sure this phony war of wokeness doesnt take us off our mark towards a more perfect union for all.

Donna Brazile is an ABC News Contributor, veteran political strategist, an adjunct professor at Georgetown University, and the King Endowed Chair in Public Policy at Howard University. She previously served as interim Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and of the DNCs Voting Rights Institute. She managed the Gore campaign in 2000 and has lectured at more than 225 colleges and universities on race, diversity, women, leadership and restoring civility in politics. Brazile is the author of several books, including the New York Times bestseller Hacks: The Inside Story of the Break-ins and Breakdowns That Put Donald Trump in the White House. @DonnaBrazile.

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The Republicans war on woke has turned the party into a group of hysterical Chicken Littles - TheGrio

George Zimmerman this week announced that he would be putting the gun he used to kill Trayvon Martin in February 2012 up for auction. In the description of the item, Zimmerman called the Kel-Tec PF-9 9mm a "piece of American history." The bidding was set to start at $5,000, but before the auction could commence on Thursday, the listing was removed. Later in the day, another auction house picked it up. Zimmerman plans on using some of the proceeds to fight "Black Lives Matter violence against law enforcement officers."

Putting the gun up for auction was a bizarre and, some would say, deplorable move by a man who has failed to demonstrate any remorse for killing Martin, who was 17 at the time of his death. It was hardly surprising, though. Since being acquitted of murder charges in July of 2014, Zimmerman has found his name in the headlines for a variety of reasons, each seemingly stranger than the last.

February 26, 2012: Zimmerman kills Trayvon Martin, an unarmed 17-year-old, in Sanford, Florida. He would be charged with murder on April 11. Two days prior to being charged, Zimmerman launched a website to raise funds for his legal defense. Supporters donated over $200,000 before the site was shut down two weeks later. He is released on $150,000 bail on April 22.

July 13, 2013: Zimmerman is acquitted of all charges relating to Martin's death.

July 17: Days after being acquitted, Zimmerman rescues a family trapped in an overturned SUV in central Florida.

July 28: Zimmerman is pulled over for speeding in Texas. He is let off with a warning after telling the officer he has a firearm in the glove compartment. Dashcam footage captured the exchange.

August 19: Zimmerman is pulled over again, this time because the tint on his windows is too dark. According to TMZ, he got out of a ticket by citing the death threats he had been receiving.

August 22: Zimmerman shops for a tactical shotgun and poses for pictures in Cocoa, Florida. The gun he is looking at is made by the same manufacture of the handgun with which he killed Martin. Here is the shotgun in action:

September 3: Zimmerman is once again pulled over for speeding, this time in Lake Mary, Florida. He is issued a $265 ticket.

September 5: Zimmerman's wife Shellie files for divorce.

September 9: Shellie Zimmerman calls 911 after her soon-to-be-ex-husband punched her dad in the face and threatened to kill her family. "He is in his car and he continually has his hand on his gun and he keeps saying, 'Step closer.' He is just threatening all of us," she told the dispatcher.

Zimmerman is taken into custody, but no charges are filed.

November 18: Zimmerman is charged with aggravated assault after pointing a shotgun at his girlfriend, Samantha Scheibe. Zimmerman allegedly broke a table with the shotgun before pointing it at Scheibe "for a minute." He is released a day later on $9,000 bail.

December 11: Scheibe recants her statement and all domestic violence charges against Zimmerman are dropped.

December 21: Zimmerman sells a piece of artwork on eBay for $100,099.99.

Januray 22, 2014: Zimmerman debuts a new piece of artwork, titled "Angie," featuring prosecutor Angela Corey. His brother proudly tweets an image of the new work.

February 5: After agreeing to participate in a celebrity boxing match, Zimmerman says he wants to fight rapper DMX. "DMX has promised to 'beat his ass,' but no contract or paperwork has been signed or agreed to yet," DMX's spokesman told CNN.

February 8: After a fight with DMX had been scheduled for March 15, promoter Damon Feldman announced that the bout had been canceled. "Zimmerman was the wrong person to have in this," Feldman told Rolling Stone. "I looked into the eyes of my son and daughter today and couldn't imagine someone killing them and getting off scot-free. It just really hurt. It was a tough decision because I could have made two million dollars here, but at least I have my dignity. I'm happy. Thank you."

February 16: Zimmerman says he is homeless, receiving death threats and suffering from PTSD in a televised interview with Univision.

March 8: Despite protests, Zimmerman appears at a gun show in Orlando, Florida, to sign autographs. The show was relocated from its original venue because of backlash.

June 30: A Florida judge throws out a lawsuit filed by Zimmerman against NBC. The defamation suit claimed that NBC edited a story on Trayvon Martin's death to make it seem like Zimmerman voluntarily told a 911 operator that Martin was black.

July 27: A police report states that Zimmerman is working as a security guard at a gun and motorcycle store in DeLand, Florida. It was later discovered that Zimmerman was not employed by the store; he was only "patrolling" the area as a favor to the owner because of a recent burglary.

September 2: Zimmerman allegedly threatened to kill a man in a road rage incident in Lake Mary, Florida. Not only that, but he later showed up at the man's workplace. According to local police, Zimmerman pulled up next to the man in his truck and yelled, "Why are you pointing a finger at me?" After the man pulled into a gas station to call 911, he realized the truck driver was Zimmerman, who, gun in hand, allegedly said, "Do you know who I am?" and threatening to kill him. The man saw Zimmerman outside his workplace two days later. As always seems to be the case when Zimmerman gets into trouble, no charges were pressed.

October 1: Citing insufficient evidence, officials say federal charges are not likely to be brought against Zimmerman for the death of Trayvon Martin.

January 9, 2015: Zimmerman is arrested for aggravated assault with a weapon after allegedly throwing a wine bottle at his girlfriend. Once again, charges will not be filed.

February 24: The Justice Department officially closes its investigation into the death of Trayvon Martin.

March 24: In an interview posted online by his lawyer, Zimmerman criticizes Obama's response to Trayvon Martin's death, referring to the president as "Barack Hussein Obama."

Unfortunately after even after Jay Carney, his press secretary stated in the White House briefing that the White House will not interject in a local law enforcement matter and at most a state criminal matter, President Obama held his Rose Garden speech stating if I had a son he would look like Trayvon. To me that was clearly a dereliction of duty pitting Americans against each other solely based on race. He took what should have been a clear-cut self-defense matter and still to this day on the anniversary of incident he held a ceremony at the White House inviting the Martin-Fulton family and stating that they should take the day to reflect upon the fact that all children's lives matter. Unfortunately for the president I'm also my parent's child and my life matters as well. And for him to make incendiary comments as he did and direct the Department of Justice to pursue a baseless prosecution he by far overstretched, overreached, even broke the law in certain aspects to where you have an innocent American being prosecuted by the federal government which should never happen.

May 16: A man is charged with firing shots into Zimmerman's truck in Lake Mary, Florida.

August 18: Zimmerman unveils a new piece of artwork featuring the confederate flag to benefit a Muslim-free gun shop in Florida.

September 28: Zimmerman goes on a Twitter rant after retweeting a picture of Trayvon Martin's corpse. "Gee..I sure hate offending people that have plotted and tried to kill me and my family...," he wrote in one tweet. His account has since been suspended.

January 6, 2016: Zimmerman criticizes President Obama for crying while discussing mass shootings, calling him a "disgrace to the country" and "a piece of garbage."

January 23: Zimmerman's divorce is finalized.

May 12: Zimmerman attempts to sell the gun he shot Trayvon Martin with at auction. The listing is removed shortly after it is posted, after which another auction house picked it up.

A previous version of this article mispelled the name of the town in which Trayvon Martin was killed.

Read more:
A Timeline of George Zimmerman's Post-Trayvon Life

June 24, 2013— -- The shooting of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman and the investigation leading up to the murder trial has spanned 16 months and many legal bombshells.

Here is a recap of how the case has unfolded:

Feb. 26, 2012 At about 7:17 pm George Zimmerman shoots Trayvon Martin as the 17-year-old is walking back from a convenience store in Sanford, Fla., Zimmerman, a neighborhood watchman, had called 911 about the "suspicious teen" and allegedly followed him. He immediately told police he shot Martin in self-defense after a scuffle. He is taken into custody but released that night. No charges are filed.

March 8, 2012 - Tracy Martin and Sybrina Fulton, the teenager's parents, create a Change.org petition calling for Zimmerman's arrest. Within 10 days it would have 200,000 signatures, and would swell at the pace of about 10,000 signatures an hour for several days.

March 9: Two weeks after Martin was killed, Trayvon Martin's family attorney Benjamin Crump demands that police release the 911 tapes or make an arrest. Police declined to comment at the time, but told ABC News the tapes would be released the following week.

March 13: Sanford Police Chief Billy Lee said there is no evidence to dispute Zimmerman's assertion that he shot Martin in self defense. That same day the lead investigator on the case Chris Serino files an affidavit recommending Zimmerman be charged with manslaughter.

March 16: Martin's family first hears 911 calls made the night of the shooting. The cries for help send the boy's mother screaming from the room and prompted his father to declare, "He killed my son," a family representative tells ABC News. In a letter a day earlier Zimmerman's father insists it was George's voice crying for help. Tracy Martin's account is later disputed, when a police officer quotes Martin as saying the voice crying out was not his son.

March 19: The U.S. Justice Department announces it will investigate Martin's death.

March 22, 2012 State Attorney Norm Wolfinger recuses himself from the case, does not provide an explanation. Sanford police chief Bill Lee announces he will resign "temporarily." Rallies calling for George Zimmerman's arrest start taking place across the nation.

March 23, 2012 - President Obama comments on the case, saying he thinks the shooting should be investigated and telling reporters: "If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon."

Florida Gov. Rick Scott appoints state attorney Angela Corey as a special prosecutor to look into the case. He also creates a task force to look into the state's "stand your ground" self-defense law.

March 26, 2012 - Martin's family confirms that Martin had been in Sanford visiting his father because he was suspended from school after school officers found a plastic bag containing traces of marijuana in his backpack.

March 28, 2012 ABC News obtains surveillance video from the Sanford Police station showing George Zimmerman in police custody and without significant visible injuries approximately an hour after the shooting is released. Later, enhanced video show marks to his head and a swollen nose.

April 3, 2012 - The FBI announces it has opened its own investigation into the Martin shooting.

April 9, 2012 - Zimmerman launches TheRealGeorgeZimmerman.com, replete with a paypal account for donations for his legal fund.

April 10, 2012 In a bizarre press conference, Zimmerman's attorneys, Hal Uhrig and Craig Sonner, announce they have lost contact with their client and no longer represent him.

April 11, 2012 - Special prosecutor Angela Corey announces that Zimmerman is being charged with second-degree murder in the shooting and that he is in police custody. Mark O'Mara, an Orlando defense attorney is retained.

April 20, 2012 ABC News obtains a photo of Zimmerman taken moments after the shooting. The photo shows Zimmerman with a bloodied head. His lawyers allude to the photo during his bail hearing later that morning. Judge Kenneth Lester grants Zimmerman $150,000 bail provided he wear electronic monitoring devices.

April 29, 2012 Zimmerman's attorney creates a website called GZlegalcase.com promising to continuously update the site with content. A donation tab is also placed on the site

June 1, 2012 Zimmerman's bond is revoked after the state provides evidence indicating that he and his wife were speaking in code concerning their finances. Zimmerman claimed during his bail hearing that he was financially indigent. However, it was revealed that he knew that he had at least $135,000 in his bank account after receiving donations from supporters online.

June 3, 2012 - Zimmerman wearing a bullet proof vest is booked back behind bars

June 12, 2012 Shellie Zimmerman is arrested and charged with one count of perjury for lying under oath about the state of her finances during her husband's initial bail hearing.

June 21, 2012 A trove of information including video re-enactments are released on GZlegalcase.com showing relatively consistent statements provided to police by Zimmerman in the initial days after the shooting. Among them: "He took my head and slammed it against the concrete several times, and each time I thought my head was going to explode."

July 5, 2012 Judge Kenneth Lester once again gives Zimmerman bond. But this time he sets the amount at $1 million.

July 13, 2012 Zimmerman legal team files a motion to disqualify Judge Lester from the case.

Aug. 30, 2012 Following the ruling of the 5th District Court of Appeal, Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester disqualifies himself from the bench and is replaced by Judge Debra Nelson

April 30, 2013 Zimmerman waives a hearing under the states "Stand Your Ground" Law. This means the state will not see the defense presentation of its evidence until the trial.

May 23, 2013 Zimmerman defense releases new photos taken from Trayvon Martin cell phone including a picture of what appears to be a marijuana plant and gun. The controversial images are met with outrage by the Martin family and others who claim they are meant to tarnish the reputation of Martin and are irrelevant to the case.

June 20, 2013 Both sides agreed on an all-women jury plus four alternates.

See more here:
Timeline of the George Zimmerman Murder Trial - ABC News

For the six Florida jurors who decided the fate of George Zimmerman, four minutes likely proved crucial. Saturday night, after hours of deliberation, a jury found Zimmerman not guilty of second-degree murder or manslaughter in the death of Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman claimed he shot the unarmed teen in self-defense following a confrontation in Sanford, Fla., in February of 2012.

During those four minutes the 29-year-old Zimmerman claimed he was attacked by the teenager and brutally beaten before he reached for his concealed nine-millimeter handgun and shot Martin in the chest in order to save his own life.

Zimmerman's defense attorney Mark O'Mara set aside four minutes of his closing remarks during which the jurors heard only silence. While prosecutors claimed that Zimmerman spent that four minutes stalking Martin, Zimmerman claimed he followed a police dispatcher's advice to abandon pursuit and headed back to his car when Martin attacked him.

Prosecutors sought to sow doubt in jurors' minds about Zimmerman's honesty, pointing to inconsistencies in his story they claimed were designed to concoct a narrative of self-defense Zimmerman allegedly knew would be necessary to prove his innocence. But even if the jury did not trust Zimmerman, the burden of proof was on the state to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that his story was untrue. The defense needed only to sow enough doubt for an acquittal, not prove that everything Zimmerman said was accurate or honest. The defense didn't have to prove that Zimmerman was a good person or model citizenor even that he was telling the truth about what happenedthey only needed to prevent the state from ensuring that the jurors felt certain beyond a reasonable doubt about what happened during that four minutes.

Removing reasonable doubt was what the prosecution believed the testimony of Rachel Jeantel, who was speaking to Martin on the phone before his encounter with Zimmerman, would do. Jeantel testified that Martin was frightened because he was being followed, and that she heard Martin ask someone why that person was following him, before shouting "get off." After that, Jeantel said, the call went dead.

There were prior inconsistencies in her account regarding her age, and whether she had attended a wake for Martin, leading observers to speculate on whether the jury would find Jeantel believable. Given the jury's verdict, it seems likely that they did not, or that even if they did, it was insufficient to account for those four minutes during which only two people truly know what happened.

Only one of them is still alive.

See the article here:
Why George Zimmerman was acquitted - MSNBC.com