The Breakfast Club - The Boycott, The Mistrial, and The Weed Rules

Episode Date: May 21, 2026

Mimi Brown breaks down the day. The NAACP is urging Black athletes to rethink playing for Southern schools over voting rights.  A mistrial motion took center stage in the Virginia elementary school shooting trial. And the TSA is changing the rules for travelers carrying weed. Plus The Headlines We Didn't Take Seriously Enough.  From the Black Effect Podcast Network.YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BreakfastClubPower1051FMSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey guys, it's us The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it.

We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it. But, you know, tired and sick. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it.

Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform?

We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Joey Dardano, and on my new podcast, Hope from a Hippocrite, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with thoughtful solutions. Sike, I'm a comedian. I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff, rant, recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to me.

This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from a Hypocrite Wednesdays on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Hey, it's Edwin Castro, also known as Castro 1021. And I'm Kunky, his best friend, and business manager. And we've got a new show called the 1021 podcast. I'm taking you behind the scenes on how I became one of Twitch's most popular streamers. We also love sports. And with the World Cup right around the corner, we'll be breaking down the biggest storylines ahead of the big tournament here in the USA. Listen to the 1021 podcast on the IHeart Radio. Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

The NAACP is urging black athletes to rethink playing for Southern schools over voting rights. The silence of these institutions is complicity. And a mistrial motion taking center stage today in the Virginia Elementary School shooting trial. Under law, they can't ask questions of the witnesses. And TSA is changing the rules for travelers carrying weed. We'll explain. The page does not give. details on the specific reason for this rule change.

It's Thursday, May 21st. From the Black Effect Podcast Network, I'm Mimi Brown. This is Front Page. And here are today's biggest stories. Plus, today on the headlines we didn't take seriously enough, the Supreme Court ruling from 2013 that's behind everything happening right now. Stay with me. If you're a parent with a child being recruited right now,

if your son is hoping to play college football or basketball, If your family is looking at schools like Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Florida, or Texas, the NAACP wants you to start asking a brand new question before signing day. Not just how big the stadium is, not just about the NIL money, and not about playing time, but whether the state your child is about to spend four years in respects their right to vote. Because the NAACP just launched a new campaign urging black athletes and their families to reconsider attending public universities in states they say are weakening black voting rights.

The campaign is called out of bounds and it's aimed directly at some of the biggest college sport programs in America. We're talking SEC country. Schools making hundreds of millions of dollars every year powered largely by black athletes on the field. NAACP President Derek Johnson says schools should not profit from black talent while staying silent as black political power is reduced in those same states.

And now the Congressional Black Caucus is backing that effort too. Here's House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. This is an unprecedented moment featuring an unprecedented attack on black political representation and therefore it requires an unprecedented response. We are here standing in solidarity with the NAACP and its call for athletes to boycott institutions within the SEC that belong to states that have unleashed these Jim Crow-like racially oppressive tactics. And we believe that the silence of these institutions is complicity. But here's the other side of this debate that I think people are struggling with.

Is this too much to put on a 17 or 18-year-old kid? Because once you move past the headlines and the politics, the reality is for a lot of these athletes, football and basketballs are not hobbies, their exits, their opportunities. The NIL money at schools like Alabama, LSU, Georgia, Texas, Florida can be life-changing. The TV exposure is bigger. The facilities are bigger. The NFL and the NBA pipeline is bigger. Now, yes, people immediately say HBCUs and I understand why Dion Sanders showed what was possible at Jackson State. and for a moment it felt like the culture was shifting. But when Dion left, it also felt like a lot of that momentum left too.

So now the real question becomes, can HBCUs realistically compete right now with the money, the exposure, the professional opportunities these powerhouse schools offer? And if the answer is not fully just yet, is it fair to ask a teenager to potentially sacrifice part of their own future for a political fight? Here's one perspective that's getting a lot of attention online. First of all, we have to acknowledge the hypocrisy of these states that use black bodies as economic engines on Saturdays and on Sundays. They're taking away their votes of their me-maws, of their big mamas, of all their family members. So that part of it is real.

And that part of it we cannot deny. Also, at the same time, I think it's really rough to speak out to these 18-year-olds and ask them to make these decisions. When I was 18, I was 17, actually, to make the decision, I had studied so hard and so long to figure out what it was for me to get to Tennessee. And then not only that, but the main pipeline to get to the NFL. So my main mission at that age was trying to get to the NFL. I think it's really difficult. These are real issues that need to be addressed. But I think it's difficult for me to push on these 18-year-olds, these 19-year-olds, to get them to make a decision of this magnitude at such a young age.

And that's the part of the conversation I think is complicated. Because on one side, the NAACP is asking black athletes to think about political power and community responsibility. But on the other side, some families are thinking my child has one shot. And I honestly do not know where the easy answer is here. So I want to hear from you guys on this one. Send me your take on this. If you're a parent, coach, former athlete, current student, or just someone with an opinion, send me a voice memo. keep it to 30 seconds or email me at front page with Mimi at gmail.com.

Or you can DM me your voice note as well at Mimi Brown TV. Tell me where you stand. The question again, should black athletes think twice about playing for schools and states accused of attacking black voter rights? Or is that too much to put on teenagers just trying to build a future for themselves and their families? I'll play the best voice memos on next Thursday's show. Day three of the Dr. Ebony Parker trial wrapped Wednesday in Newport News, Virginia, and by the end of the day, prosecutors had officially rested their case.

So if you miss yesterday's episode and you're just catching up, Parker is the former assistant principal accused of failing to act before a six-year-old student brought a gun into Richneck Elementary School and shot first-grade teacher Abby's Werner back in 2023. She now faces eight felony child abuse charges and up to 40 years in prison. And Wednesday may have been one of the most. important days of the trial so far. So first, the defense tried to stop the trial altogether. Parker's attorneys asked the judge for a mistrial after a juror reportedly asked other jurors whether they should see clarification on testimony they had heard in court. Jurors in this matter

are actually the trials of fact. And under law, they can't ask questions of the witnesses. The defense called it juror misconduct. But the judge disagreed and denied the motion allowing the trial to continue. Then came the prosecution's biggest moment of the day. Jorahs watched a recorded Zoom interview conducted just days after the shooting between Parker and the school's district HR director. In the video, Parker claimed that the teacher, Abby Zornner, never directly told her she believed the child had a gun or that she felt unsafe. This Zornner never came to me and said anything about her film that the student had a weapon or that she felt unsafe. She was. She did it. She did it. So it is.

But jurors heard very different testimony earlier this week from Zerner herself. We played that here. The prosecution also highlighted another key moment from the interview when Parker said the school had, quote, never searched a student. Prosecutors then pointed directly to the district's own handbook, which states that school administrators do have the authority to search students when there's reasonable suspicion. A jurors also heard emotional testimony from parents whose children were inside the classroom during the shooting. Recently, we went, she went back to counseling. They said that she has depression, anxiety.

Stomachates, headaches, school avoidance, just a general anxiousness, just extreme fear. Now the prosecution's case is over. The defense is expected to continue presenting its case on Thursday, with closing arguments possibly coming before the end of the week. Every Thursday on front page, we pull back to look at a story that was treated as small at the time, but ended up shaping the world we live in right now. Today's pick, June 25th, 2013. That was the day the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a major decision in a case called Shelby County v. Holder. In a five to four ruling, the Supreme Court struck down a key part of the Voting Rights Act, known as Section 5, or preclearance. States with long histories of racial discrimination in voting, mostly in the

used to have to get federal approval before changing voting laws or redistricting maps. After that ruling, they no longer had to. So at the time, some people thought the ruling was mostly about legal procedure. Civil rights groups, though, they warned it would weaken protections for black voters. Others argued the law was just outdated. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the majority opinion that, quote, things have changed in the South. But fast forward to now, 12 years later.

Tennessee just carved up Memphis. Alabama is moving to eliminate a black congressional seat. Louisiana redrew its maps. Virginia voters approved a new map and the Supreme Court threw it out. And just this week, the NAACP launched a campaign urging black athletes to rethink attending schools in states tied to these voting rights battles. A lot of states at the center of today's fights were once covered under that exact section of the Voting Rights Act. So this isn't really a history story. it's a now story because whether people agree with the Supreme Court decision or not, the ripple effects are still playing out across the country today. That's your throwback Thursday.

If you're flying somewhere this summer and planning on traveling with medical marijuana or cannabis products, there's a new TSA update that you should know about. The TSA quietly changed the wording on its website about marijuana. The agency removed older language that specifically highlighted marijuana as illegal under federal law. This was all updated April 27th. The page does not give details on the amount of medical marijuana allowed per person on a flight or the specific reason for this rule change. In its place, TSA now says its officers are focused on security threats, not actively searching for drugs. But here's the important part. TSA also says if agents happen to find marijuana during screening, they can still refer the matter to local law enforcement. So this does not mean marijuana is suddenly legal.

to fly with. In fact, major airlines, including Delta, American, United and Southwest still prohibit marijuana on their planes, even in states where recreational or medical cannabis is legal. And depending on where you're flying, local laws may be completely different once you land. So while TSA may not be looking for weeds specifically, traveling with marijuana is still legally tricky, especially across state lines. That's your front page. I'm Mimi Brown. This podcast is Brought to you by the Black Effect Podcast Network. Hey guys, it's us. The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe.

I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts.

We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it. But, you know, tired and sick. Tired and sick. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends.

Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Why are we all so obsessed with romance? On the Radio 831 podcast, join us, Sanjana Basker and Tyler McCall, as we unpack all the trending tropes, fuzzy adaptations, book talk drama, and celebrity love stories with hot takes and sharp guests. Each episode digs into what these stories reveal about desire, fantasy, identity, and how we love now.

Listen to the Radio 831 podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is Saigon, the story of my family and of the country that shaped us. From IHeart Podcasts, Saigon. You don't think I'm serious about a free Vietnam? One city, a divided country, and the war that tore America apart. This is for Vietnam. They're pouring Patrick all over here.

Freedom for Vietnam! There's a fire coming to this country, and it's going to burn out everything. Listen to Saigon on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast. Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.