HBCU Week NOW announces its first student film festival and an open call for submissions that look at the contributions of historically Black colleges and universities. The virtual festival will launch during Black History Month in 2026 with films made exclusively by HBCU students. Harlem-based Black Public Media is in charge of the call. Ten short films no longer than 30 minutes will be chosen and each filmmaker will receive $5,000. Submissions are due by Saturday, April 12, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) and can be entered via the Black Public Media website. Filmmakers should be currently enrolled at an HBCU or to have recently graduated from one within the past three years. An information webinar is available on the Black Public Media site. “We welcome this opportunity to partner with HBCU Week NOW to identify and amplify young talent and their stories,” said Qiona Woffard, director of talent development at BPM. “We look forward to helping push the new voices of the film community to the forefront with this exciting new festival.” 

ATLANTA – The Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda, ACLU, NAACP, Urban League, League of Women Voters, faith-based organizations, and labor unions joined forces under the umbrella United to Save US for Georgia Civil Rights Lobby Day at the Georgia Capitol, mobilizing more than 350 advocates to push for the passage of the Georgia Civil Rights Act of 2025, coinciding with President Trump’s recent address to Congress last week.

The day began with a morning rally at Liberty Park outside the Georgia Capitol, followed by advocacy training and direct engagement with lawmakers. The day culminated in a press conference where coalition members condemned legislative attacks on civil rights, immigration, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies, as well as concerns over the dismantling of federal departments and mass layoffs.

Sponsor of House Bill 670, also known as the Georgia Civil Rights Act of 2025, Rep. Jasmine Clark (D-Lilburn), emphasized the urgency of enacting comprehensive civil rights protections, stating, “Georgia is not only behind in the nation but in the region. We have fewer protections against discrimination than our neighboring states. Given Georgia’s history of slavery, Jim Crow laws, and recent attacks on DEI, this legislation is long overdue.” State Senator Sonya Halpern (Senate District 39), who introduced a companion bill in the Senate, added, “I introduced Senate Bill SB320 to make sure we are codifying civil rights for every person in the state of Georgia. These bills are not just another piece of legislation—they’re a statement of our values, a reinforcement of rights and a commitment to fairness under the law.”

Nichola Hines of the League of Women Voters highlighted the bill’s role in strengthening voting rights, stating, “HB 670 and Senate Bill 320 directly reinforce the Georgia Voting Rights Act, helping to protect voters from suppression and providing tools to combat discriminatory election practices.”

Beyond voting rights, advocates emphasized the broader significance of these protections.” Andrea Young of the ACLU stated, “We must recognize that it is Georgia’s diversity that has created one of the most powerful economies in the nation. We are protecting our individual civil rights, but we are also protecting the golden goose that makes Atlanta the place that influences everybody. That makes Georgia the place that people want to move because we have such a vibrant economy.”

Helen Butler of the Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda connected the coalition’s mission to recent movements, stating, “The first day of legislative session we had a coalition of women here at the Capitol declaring we’re united, unapologetic, and unstoppable. The same thing applies to this coalition; we’re united, we’re unapologetic, and we’re not going to stop until our communities receive the protections they deserve.”

Rev. Dr. Jerry Black, pastor of Beulah Missionary Baptist Church, closed the press conference with a powerful message: “It is a privilege for me to stand in unison with the many groups represented here, showing that clergy and faith leaders across the state are standing with you. We are in this fight for justice. We, the faith leaders, decided that we can no longer sit quietly. We’ve got to move beyond the walls of our churches. We’ve got to come together as one people.”

The Georgia Civil Rights Act of 2025 aims to provide comprehensive civil rights protections by banning discrimination in employment, housing, and public spaces, establishing law enforcement accountability measures to prevent racial profiling, and protecting whistleblowers from retaliation.

The United to Save US coalition remains steadfast in its fight for justice and civil rights protections for all Georgians. For more information or to join the coalition, visit thepeoplesagenda.org.

Fly Anakin’s “The Times” is produced by Mono En Stereo and it’s on his forthcoming album, (The) Forever Dream. The Richmond, Virginia, rapper collaborated with Quelle Chris, who executive-produced the new album. Pink Siifu, BbyMutha, The Alchemist, Turich Bengy, and more appear on Anakin’s sophomore studio album. His Mutant Academy brothers Big Kahuna OG and Sycho Sid also have verses to share. Since 2020, Anakin has been in a race to become an underground legend with the release of a joint project with Pink Siifu, FlySiifu’s. He had been recording since 2014 but FlySiifu’s was a breakthrough moment. In 2022, his studio debut Frank arrived to critical acclaim. The millenial rapper has stood out because of his proud influences from people like Ghostface Killah and Sean Price. He raps more like a Gen Xer instead of the drowsy triplet flow so popular among his peers and Gen Zers. Check out the Phillip Youmans-directed visualizer for “The Times” and look for (The) Forever Dream on April 25th via Lex Records. 

                                                                                (The) Forever Dream

1. Good Clothes (feat. Demae)

2. Teen Summit

3. My N*gga (feat. Quelle Chris, $ilkmoney & Big Kahuna OG)

4. Lil One (Intro)

5. Lil One

6. CheckOnMe (feat. lojii)

7. NOTTOOSHABBY (feat. Quelle Chris, Nickelus F & $ilkmoney)

8. Lord Forgives, I Hold Grudges (feat. Denmark Vessey & Pink Siifu)

9. The Times

10. Forever Dream (Interlude)

11. Forever Dream

12. Corner Pocket (feat. Quelle Chris & BbyMutha)

13. Dr Phil [skit] (feat. Psycho Sid)

14. YOUGOTME!!

15. Foreverever Dream (Interlude)

16. Say Thank You (feat. Pink Siifu & Turich Benjy)

Cosmic hip-hop group Shabazz Palaces and rock band Osees are on the lineup for The Broad Museum’s Intuition Festival. The two-day event is centered on themes explored in the museum’s Joseph Beuys: In Defense of Nature exhibit. The festival will use music and film to explore body healing, social change, environmentalism, and political activism. The event pays homage to the Krautrock movement of post-World War II Germany during the time Beuys was an artist and a professor at Kunstakademie Düsseldorf. The name of the festival comes from the Intuition multiples that Beuys distributed in 1968. Wooden boxes with the word intuition written inside were sold at a low price to people, symbolizing art that is available for all with the option to personalize the boxes. Joseph Beuys: In Defense of Nature and The Broad’s third-floor galleries will be open during the festival. The shows are open to all ages and there is a bar available to ticket holders 21+ with valid ID. 

Intuition Festival Schedule  

March 21, 2025 | 8 – 11pm   

March 22, 2025  | 8 – 11pm 

Tickets: $45 for single night, $80 for both nights; Night 1 Tickets HERE, Night 2 Tickets HERE

Event Location: East West Bank Plaza and Oculus Hall at The Broad, 221 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90012 

Night 1: March 21, 2025 

On the outdoor stage, Osees—torchbearers of Krautrock pioneers such as Can, Kraftwerk, and NEU!—let loose in an energetic special set, moving between songs from their prolific oeuvre and improvisations responding to themes of the festival. East German-born artist, time-based media art professor. German artist and experimental musician Alva Noto presents a specifically tailored, rhythmically driven set accompanied by live projected visuals.

On the indoor stage, harpist Mary Lattimore and accordionist Walt McClements collaborate on a performance that stretches the limits of what their respective instruments are expected to do in a meditative, healing, and uplifting sonic experience. Barr, whose personal reinvention throughout her career echoes the shapeshifting and self-mythologizing Joseph Beuys, performs in a reinvigorated iteration of her former Kill Rock Stars label-era output. Clare Major’s short documentary film, OUTCRY: Alchemists of Rage, follows activist and sexual abuse survivor Whitney Bradshaw as she photographs women mid-scream in cathartic group sessions in a journey from anger and heartbreak to triumph and joy. 

East West Bank Plaza

7:30 – 8:10 pm: DJ Ale Cohen

8:10 – 9:20 pm: Alva Noto

9:45 – 10:45 pm: Osees 

Oculus Hall 

9 – 9:30 pm: Screening of Outcry: Alchemists of Rage by Clare Major????????????????   

9:30 – 10:15 pm: Barr 

10:15 – 11 pm: Mary Lattimore and Walt McClements 

Night 2: March 22, 2025 

On the outdoor stage, German guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Michael Rother and his band perform from his repertoire of works by Harmonia and NEU!, both of which he co-founded in the early 1970s.  Shabazz Palaces simultaneously melds and abstracts jazz, hip hop, and African percussion influences while paying tribute to artists such as Can, Kraftwerk, and Tangerine Dream in a combination DJ set and live performance. Both Rother and Shabazz Palaces integrate custom-projected visuals into their sets. 

On the indoor stage, local punk band Sage Against the Machine delivers a raucous set of songs paying homage to California’s native plant species. Composer, musician, and builder Money Mark demonstrates his innovation and experimentation on keyboard and self-made instruments, and queer musician Saturn Risin9 shares their journey of perseverance with a short film centering self-discovery, healing, and creative expansion through documentary, dance, visual narrative, and performance. 

East West Bank Plaza   

7:30–8 pm: DJ Ale Cohen

8 – 9:15 pm: Shabazz Palaces   

9:30 – 11 pm: Michael Rother   

Oculus Hall   

9 – 9:30 pm: Screening of the eponymously titled Saturn Risin9   

9:30 – 10:15 pm: Sage Against the Machine   

10:15 – 11 pm: Money Mark