The Texas Department of Criminal Justice reports that its recidivism rate is 16.9% — one of the lowest in the nation. Part of that success comes from workforce programs like a new solar installation training designed for Black, low-income residents in Houston. Many individuals are formerly incarcerated and from neighborhoods historically affected by poverty and pollution. Leon Dillard, who calls his hometown “the energy capital of the world,” spent two years in prison before his September 2024 release. According to Capital B News, he joined about 50 others this past summer in the 22-week solar training program led by the Black United Fund of Texas, the City of Houston, and Green Thumb Academy. “It gave me a sense of purpose,” Dillard said. For the first time, he says he felt part of an educational program that offered support and life-changing benefits. The program provided students with $18 an hour in wages, industry-recognized certification from the National Center for...

In Roseland, LA — a predominantly Black town a little more than 60 miles northeast of Baton Rouge — residents are reeling from the aftermath of a massive explosion. On Aug. 22, 2025, a blast at Smitty’s Supply, a major lubricant manufacturer, sent oily droplets raining down as far as 20 miles away, covering homes, cars and the community in a tar-like film, according to Capital B News. When more than 80% of the town’s residents, who were forced to evacuate, returned home on Aug. 26, the air remained thick with the stench of petroleum, the outlet reports. “In the long run, this is gonna mess up for a long time, and they don’t care because of who lives here,” said Roseland resident and previous Smitty’s Supply employee, Tyreik Taylor, pointing to racial discrimination. “We don’t know what’s in this air right now or what might be in our water and bodies,” Taylor continued. Taylor, 26, and Tevin Moore, 33, are among hundreds of employees laid off from Smitty’s since the explosion, per...

President Donald Trump has signed another executive order pertaining to AI. However, this time, it’s requiring AI companies that work with the federal government to remove “ideological agendas” from their models. “Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence,” which was ordered on Jan. 25, 2025, mandates that agencies only use large language models (LLMs) aligned with “Unbiased AI Principles” focused on truth-seeking and ideological neutrality, per a White House Fact Sheet released on Wednesday, July 23, 2025. On the same day, Trump unveiled his “AI Action Plan.” “This order revokes certain existing AI policies and directives that act as barriers to American AI innovation, clearing a path for the United States to act decisively to retain global leadership in artificial intelligence,” the order states. Under the order, AI tools must prioritize “historical accuracy, scientific inquiry, and objectivity” — while avoiding outputs influenced by frameworks like...

The Supreme Court upholds the U.S. bill that would essentially ban TikTok. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, the Court demonstrated that it was “likely” to rule in favor of banning the application owned by ByteDance. A ban would result in the app no longer being available in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, and over time U.S. users who have already downloaded the app would no longer be able to make system updates. TikTok has said the app would be wiped from phones if the ban is enforced. The Supreme Court’s stance supports a bipartisan bill that had been signed in April 2024 by President Joe Biden requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok to a U.S.-based company or face a ban of the app, according to NPR. There were national security concerns by the president and Congress surrounding China’s data access and the spreading of misinformation. TikTok is not in favor of the ban that would go into effect Sunday, Jan. 19, as its owners believe a ban restricts free speech. “The Supreme...

Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. Corporate companies have gutted and targeted diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs throughout 2024. As we head into 2025, efforts to reverse these changes will only increase. DEI programs have been the center of several political battles since Republicans wrongfully came to attack critical race theory. Just as conservatives have a woeful misunderstanding of critical race theory and where it applies, DEI has become a buzzword associated with the aforementioned cultural wars. What Is DEI? DEI initiatives are implemented in schools, businesses, and government agencies to address inequities within historically marginalized groups. According to Erica Foldy, a professor at NYU’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, initiatives could include training, organizational policies and practices, and organizational culture. DEI isn’t just a rule or legislation created for organizations to pat...

Everyone wants to know what “Black jobs” are after Donald Trump suggested that they’re on the decline during the first 2024 presidential debate. As the countdown to the 2024 presidential election is underway, Trump and current President Joe Biden are ramping up their approach to gain support from Black voters. During the debate, one key issue that Biden and Trump honed in on was the current state of the economy, particularly the job market, The Hill reports. “The fact is that his big kill on the Black people is the millions of people that he’s allowed to come in through the border,” Trump said during the debate on June 27. “They’re taking Black jobs now – and it could be 18, it could be 19 and even 20 million people. They’re taking Black jobs, and they’re taking Hispanic jobs, and you haven’t seen it yet, but you’re gonna see something that’s going to be the worst in our history.” Originally, CNN anchor and debate moderator Dana Bash had asked Biden what he has done for Black...

Colorado is taking a stand to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) in the workplace. On May 8, 2024, the Colorado General Assembly passed Senate Bill 24-205 (SB205), Forbes reports. In the bill’s summary, it wrote that it “requires a developer of a high-risk artificial intelligence system (high-risk system) to use reasonable care to avoid algorithmic discrimination in the high-risk system.” Moreover, the bill described high-risk artificial intelligence systems as any machine-based system that plays a role in consequential decisions being made in education enrollment and education opportunities, employment and employment opportunities, financial and lending services, essential government services, healthcare services, housing, insurance, or legal services. According to Forbes, the bill marks Colorado as the first U.S. state to establish a comprehensive law that not only addresses utilizing AI in employment but also in other critical sectors. On May 17, Governor of Colorado Jared...

President Joe Biden is unveiling plans that will provide relief to minority borrowers. A press release shares the Biden administration is looking to build on its efforts to eradicate debt for Americans. Already, it has provided financial relief to 4 million borrowers. Now, pending on approval of its latest proposal, the Biden administration is looking to scale its efforts to more than 30 million borrowers and projects it will positively impact Black borrowers, among other targeted demographics including Hispanic borrowers as well as working- and middle-class families. According to Education Data Initiative, Black graduates owe an estimated $25,000 more in student loan debt than their white counterparts. Furthermore, four years after graduation, Black students will be burdened with over 188% more debt than white students. A separate study looking into students who started college between 1995 and 1996 showed the median debt for white borrowers  decreased by 94% 20 years later, with...