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Data centers continue to use public water supplies without authorization, leaving residents in water-stressed communities to bear the consequences. During the first week of May, two separate data center developments were found using restricted public water sources in areas already struggling with limited water availability, Fortune reports. Residents were the first to notice the problem and alert regulators, reporting issues such as low water pressure in Fayette County, Georgia, and dust suppression efforts in Tucson, Arizona. Data Center Water Disputes Emerge in Georgia and Arizona In the Annelise Park subdivision in Fayette County, GA, residents began noticing declining water pressure last year, per Fortune. An investigation by county utilities uncovered two industrial-scale water connections serving Project Excalibur, a 615-acre data center campus owned by Blackstone and developed by Quality Technology Services (QTS). County officials notified QTS in May 2025 that one meter had...
As the streaming industry continues to grow, many Black artists still struggle to own their music and capture its full value — a gap Connect Music aims to close. Founded in 2020, Connect Music is a Memphis-based independent music distribution, publishing, and rights management company that helps independent artists and labels monetize their work, secure funding, and retain 100% ownership. It operates as a curated, closed platform, meaning artists can’t simply sign up through a public portal. The company’s catalog success includes Dee Mula’s viral hit “Blow My High,” alongside collaborations with Grammy-nominated producers Mike & Keys and artists including Sauce Walka, Don Trip, Boosie Badazz , and BIG30. Scaling Connect Music At its helm are President and CEO George Monger and Chief Technology Officer Ivan Walker. Together, they lead a tech-driven company operating at the intersection of finance, data, analytics, and culture — where strategy guides every move. “When you recognize...
Residents in a majority-Black neighborhood in DeKalb County, Atlanta, are raising concerns about increased surveillance in their community, driven by AI-powered policing. What Is The Atlanta Public Safety Training Center? In April 2025, the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center (APSTC), commonly known as “Cop City,” officially opened, according to a press release. The 85-acre police training facility in DeKalb County includes horse stables, a K-9 unit center, a driving course, a six-story rescue tower, and a mock city designed to simulate real-world crisis scenarios. According to a joint report from Capital B News and Counterstream Media, the APSTC is also equipped with over 60,000 public and private cameras. Lined with real-time crime center feeds and AI-powered cameras, the system tracks vehicle movements — capturing license plates, locations, and timestamps — and feeds the data into a searchable database shared with nearly 2,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide, per Capital B...
Food vendors participating in Keith Lee ‘s inaugural FamiLee Day festival in May will do so at no cost, as the popular TikTok food critic and influencer has announced he’s waiving vendor fees. In a TikTok shared Tuesday, March 24, 2026, Lee said he “finally got approved.” “On what, you might ask?” he continued, explaining that the festival is now “a complete marketing platform for small businesses, local businesses, and staples of the community.” He added that “all vendor fees [are] completely waived” in what he described as a “first-of-its-kind” move — at least based on his experience. Lee said vendors will keep 100% of their sales, with the only cost being rental equipment. “Show up, sell your product, sell your food, market your business, market your social media, market where they’re going to see you at, market your location and everything, and make your money,” he said. @keith_lee125 Keith Speaks 💕 now let’s see what media talks about this 🫡 💕 @Familee Day ♬ original sound –...
The NAACP has released findings from a new report examining health equity across the United States. As one of the largest contemporary grassroots assessments of community health resources to date, “ACE Your Health” is backed by rigorous, science-based analysis from global pharmaceutical company Sanofi. According to a news release shared with AFROTECH™, the report draws on responses from nearly 23,000 people across 47 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. It provides insight into the real-world conditions shaping health outcomes in under-resourced neighborhoods and historically underserved communities, offering data to help local leaders, policymakers, advocates, and health systems drive meaningful change. “The voices of nearly 23,000 people are a powerful reminder that health is shaped, or undermined, long before anyone walks into a doctor’s office. Our collaboration with the NAACP on the ACE Your Health report reflects Sanofi’s belief that the most powerful innovations happen...
The long-awaited Obama Presidential Center will officially open to the public on June 19, 2026 — Juneteenth — on Chicago’s South Side. In a press release on Saturday, March 7, the Obama Foundation announced that the center’s dedication will take place on Thursday, June 18, with the campus opening to visitors the following day. Celebrations will run through June 21 with “a series of events that bring together the changemakers, community members, volunteers, and supporters who made the Obama presidency a reality and welcome visitors to celebrate the power of hope and change,” the Foundation said in the release. What Is The Obama Presidential Center? As AFROTECH™ previously reported, the Obama Presidential Center — first announced in 2015 — is an $800 million museum and public gathering space honoring former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama. Once completed, it will be the most expensive presidential center in the nation’s history. The 19-acre campus will tell...
Bristol Myers Squibb and Microsoft will partner for medical advancements in lung cancer. An agreement was signed that will allow biopharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb to benefit from Microsoft’s AI-enabled radiology platform that can detect lung cancer in its early stages, Reuters reports. The drugmaker markets itself as a global leader in addressing complex diseases such as cancer and HIV, per its website . This agreement between the two will open doors for the deployment of radiology AI algorithms via Microsoft’s Precision Imaging Network — tools that have been cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration , according to a press release. The network can analyze X-ray and CT images, which is helpful in detecting lung nodules sometimes difficult to recognize, the release added. The technology would also contribute to the improvement of radiologists’ workflows and be used by the majority of U.S. hospitals, per the release. “By combining Microsoft’s highly scalable...
Golden Krust Caribbean Restaurants, a family-owned Jamaican food company with more than 100 locations across the United States, has launched a 3 million Jamaican dollar agricultural recovery initiative to support small farmers in Jamaica impacted by Hurricane Melissa, according to a press release shared with AFROTECH™. The first phase of the initiative is being carried out in partnership with the American Friends of Jamaica (AFJ) and provides direct assistance to 10 farmers across Saint Elizabeth, Clarendon, Saint Catherine, Saint Mary, and Manchester. Each farmer received J$300,000 in seedlings, farming equipment, fertilizer, and essential supplies to replant and restart production after sustaining crop losses, flooding, and damage to farm infrastructure during the storm, notes the release. Golden Krust’s leadership team traveled to Jamaica as part of the rollout. They distributed supplies, assessed damage, and met with farmers who supply the ingredients used in the company’s...
Tracy Morgan finds fulfillment in his charity work. The actor and comedian recently told PEOPLE that through his partnership with the Edison, NJ–based Hackensack Meridian Health Foundation, he has donated more than $200,000 to provide food and support to 19,000 families. According to the foundation’s website, it raises funds for programs and services across the Hackensack Meridian Health network, helping modernize facilities, advance treatments, support research, train future physicians, and strengthen healthcare delivery in local communities. “It’s fun to get the love and support, but it’s better when you give it back,” Morgan said, according to PEOPLE. “That’s what I want to teach my children. More than a great education, I just want [Maven] and her brothers to be empathic.” Morgan, 57, told the outlet that his personal experiences, including a serious car crash in 2014, shaped his outlook on life. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, he was among several people injured in a...
Students at Queens High School for the Sciences — the New York borough’s only specialized high school — are pushing to move to a brand-new building, relocating from the second floor of York College’s Jamaica building. Citing issues including overcrowding and the lack of a kitchen and auditorium, students hope to move into the new city-built school at 165-15 88th Ave., scheduled to open in fall 2026, ChalkBeat New York reports . Sophomore Vinny Dong has twice addressed the Panel for Educational Policy, the school board that handles school location proposals, about his school’s conditions. “We have a gym shared with a college that’s two blocks away, for 514 students. We have a library that’s also shared, even though it’s critical for our educational content and classes,” Dong told the panel in October 2025, per ChalkBeat. At least three of the seven parent boards in the borough, along with the citywide high school parent council, also support relocation or creating an entirely new...
A vending machine has opened to feed families in The Bronx. According to a report from the New York State Department of Health in January 2024, among New York City boroughs, The Bronx had the highest percentage (39%) of people who were food insecure. Challenges may have only heightened after Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits were halted during the recent U.S. government shutdown, as AFROTECH™ previously reported. Although benefits were restored, estimates from the Congressional Budget Office report that, as a result of President Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill, 2.4 million people could lose SNAP benefits altogether between 2025 and 2034. The bill adjusted requirements for those receiving SNAP, and now individuals will have to work, volunteer, or participate in job training totaling at least 80 hours per month, CNN reports. If they don’t meet the requirement, they can only receive SNAP benefits for three months every three years. Change Food For Good, a New York...
Medicare Part B premiums are set to rise in 2026, affecting monthly costs for millions of beneficiaries. According to a press release, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has updated premiums, deductions, and coinsurance for Part A, Part B, and Part D of Medicare. In the announcement, the standard monthly Part B premium was shown to increase to $202.90 for 2026, up $17.90 from 2025. The 9.7% adjustment marks the program’s second-largest increase on record, as Newsweek reports. The highest jump came in 2022, when it went up to $21.60. CMS said the latest change reflects anticipated shifts in medical costs and expected growth in service use, consistent with historical trends. According to the press release, Part B covers services such as doctor’s visits, outpatient hospital care, preventive care, lab tests, durable medical equipment, and certain home health services. Enrollment is optional, but most Medicare-eligible individuals participate to fill coverage gaps not...
Americans may have to wait until next year to learn whether a proposed $2,000 tariff-funded dividend check becomes a reality, according to new comments from President Donald Trump. President Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday, Nov. 17, that his administration is preparing for what he described as “dividends” tied to national tariff revenue, USA TODAY reports. He said the goal is to send “thousands of dollars” to Americans, estimating that the earliest timeline would be sometime around mid-2026. According to the outlet, during his conversation with the press, Trump said the government expects to start issuing payments “probably in the middle of next year, a little bit later than that,” adding that the proposed amounts would specifically support “moderate income, middle income” households. His remarks echo messaging he has repeated for months, including a Nov. 10 post on Truth Social where he said $2,000 checks would go to “low and middle income USA Citizens.” The idea...
President Donald Trump has proposed a bold plan to return some of the tariff revenue collected by the federal government directly to Americans — potentially putting $2,000 in the pockets of middle- and low-income households, according to Business Insider. Trump outlined the idea in a series of posts on Truth Social, where he described a “dividend” funded by tariffs. “A dividend of at least $2,000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone,” he wrote, emphasizing that those earning above certain thresholds would not be included. Although posts about the tariff rebate checks have attracted significant attention, they do not represent official government action. How The Proposal Would Work In corporate terms, a dividend is a distribution of profits to shareholders. In this case, Trump’s plan, according to Business Insider, would treat Americans as “shareholders” of the federal government, distributing a portion of revenue collected from import tariffs. Trump...
Filmmaker and philanthropist Tyler Perry has donated nearly $1.4 million to several nonprofit organizations supporting families affected by the loss of benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) amid the ongoing federal government shutdown. According to People, the funds are directed to groups that serve children, seniors, and low-income working households. Perry, 56, distributed the donation across multiple organizations, including Atlanta Community Food Bank, Baby2Baby, Meals on Wheels Atlanta, Caring for Others, All for Lunch, Ron Clark Academy, and Goodr. In a statement shared with People, Perry spoke about the impact of reduced food assistance on families. “If you’ve never been poor then you may not fully understand the life-changing impact SNAP benefits mean to hard-working people, to our seniors and to our children,” he said. “For millions of people, it could mean extreme hunger. For newborns, it could mean a lack of access to formula.” Perry described...