By Mark Kennedy, Entertainment Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --An angry and emotional Dave Chappelle spoke on the killing of George Floyd in a surprise Netflix special, saying America was being punished for its mistreatment of black men.
"I don't mean to get heavy but we got to say something," said Chappelle, who added that America is enduring "the wrath of God" for a string of police assaults on black men.
The special was released Thursday and is streaming free on Netflix's comedy YouTube channel. It was taken from a show at an outdoor pavilion in Yellow Springs, Ohio, with about 100 attendees on June 6.
Floyd died May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee on his neck for more than eight minutes even after he pleaded for air and stopped moving, an ordeal caught on video. Chappelle called his special "8:46" in part after the length of time the officer was on top of the handcuffed Floyd.
It is also the time Chappelle was born on Aug. 24, 1973. "I can't get that number out of my head because it was my time of birth on my birth certificate," he said.
"When I watched that tape, I understood this man knew he was going to die," said the comedian. "I can't tell you, as a man, watching another man, go through something like that, what it makes you feel like."
Chappelle added that he has been quiet until now for a reason. "Answer me: Do you want to see a celebrity right now?" he asked. "No, this is the streets talking for themselves. They don't need me right now."
Chappelle also explored the violent deaths of such black men as Eric Garner, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown and Philando Castile. "One after the other," the comedian said. He also slammed the National Rifle Association and celebrated Kobe Bryant.
He ended by noting that his great-grandfather — once a slave — was part of an African American delegation that was asked to come to the White House following a lynching during the presidency of Woodrow Wilson.
"These things are not old. This is not a long time ago. It's today," Chappelle said. "These streets will speak for themselves whether I am alive or dead. I trust you guys."
California governor signs law to protect children from social media addiction
California will make it illegal for social media platforms to knowingly provide addictive feeds to children without parental consent beginning in 2027 under a new law Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Friday.
California follows New York state, which passed a law earlier this year allowing parents to block their kids from getting social media posts suggested by a platform's algorithm. Utah has passed laws in recent years aimed at limiting children's access to social media, but they have faced challenges in court.
The California law will take effect in a state home to some of the largest technology companies in the world. Similar proposals have failed to pass in recent years, but Newsom signed a first-in-the-nation law in 2022 barring online platforms from using users' personal information in ways that could harm children. It is part of a growing push in states across the country to try to address the impacts of social media on the well-being of children.
"Every parent knows the harm social media addiction can inflict on their children — isolation from human contact, stress and anxiety, and endless hours wasted late into the night," Newsom said in a statement. "With this bill, California is helping protect children and teenagers from purposely designed features that feed these destructive habits."
The law bans platforms from sending notifications without permission from parents to minors between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m., and between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. on weekdays from September through May, when children are typically in school. The legislation also makes platforms set children's accounts to private by default.
Opponents of the legislation say it could inadvertently prevent adults from accessing content if they cannot verify their... Read More