>A source tells Page Six that Jeff Bezos is quietly shopping his $500 million floating palace, Koru — because it’s just too huge to manage. 

>In 2025, the boat was denied a mooring in Monaco during the grand prix due to its size.

>The yacht was also unable to get anywhere near the lagoon during Bezos and Sánchez’s summer wedding in Venice last summer.

>In 2023, the New York Times reported that Koru was too large to dock in the Florida [Port] Everglades, instead hanging out around far less glamorous oil tankers and container ships. [Slide 1, 2.]

People meanwhile has other rumors denying he’s selling it. Regardless of the yacht, it’s clear he had buyer’s remorse at the Gala; he did not appear on the red carpet. The backlash against him is why he suddenly started talking like a socialist in his recent interview. He tried to talk about taxing the rich, while being scared to say the words. The pressure is working.

From Vogue, via AD it isn't a representation of his wife on the front of the boat:

>In fact, the figurehead is one of Bezos's favorite mythological figures, Freyja, Norse goddess of love, fertility, war, and gold.

Perfect for Bezos in his Trump era.

The great book on inequality The Haves and Have Yachts says much of the appeal of having a bigger yacht is docking it in a marina where the owner can flex on smaller yachts. There’s VIP berths that allow a side view, which take up more space and are limited. Sounds like the Bezos are missing out on this.

Wikipedia says even the ’support yacht' is big: 75-metres (246 ft).

If he sells, DiCaprio should take credit. /s

I think it was specifically showing his role as men's creative director. Either in the office, or in relation to a collab with someone else. I saw it early last year, could be from earlier. Around when Doechii posted with him for her first PFW, but no carabiner in that pic (slide 4.) I never saw anyone wear that many carabiners! I think 5 or more and with keys attached. Like practicality over style.

Maybe it was one of his now deleted IG posts. Maybe one of his deleted IG posts. It struck me as him making a statement about practicality, dressing as himself: dad wearing dad shoes, too many keys to keep track, designs for LV. But it turned out to be a one off unlike his love of dad shoes. I only found pics of him with fewer carabiners/keychains, but he's worn them for years. 2nd slide shows Pharrell wearing LV skateboard keychains with his VLovers take on the logo (incorporating his home state motto, "Virginia is for lovers.") These seem like scratch magnets and might be why he doesn’t have keys on them. 

LV is actually selling an $860 carabiner. On the bag, it looks like it could scratch the metal on the handle. That's prob why it's wrapped but this doesn't seem thought out enough. There's also a few bag charms that they also show as a pant accessory. Like the watering can bag (last slide), these charms are all displayed in the "men" category on the site, Pharrell's responsibility.

The way he spends years on concepts, revising songs like Rich Spirit (good substack post), I’d like to hear him do that just with fye bars. Maybe even harder than Chains and Whips. I think his hard rhyming like on NLU and Heart Part 5 are why so many want the rest of Bodies.

I rap a little. I’m not great but it makes me think of exercises I do, like rapping about a theme, from someone else’s POV or style. I’d like to see him try tight 3 x 16 bar verses, where forces himself to trim it down. The discipline of editing and fitting what you really want to say focuses the power of the punchlines you’re left with. Malice on Community is a good example, just hammering the rhymes and the drama of the  story arc he’s able to fit (even if you don’t buy my interpretation.) Ending it with emphasis like that too, a punchline that captures the whole verse/song. 

Kpop Demon Hunters’ Golden shows how editing concentrates the impact of a song. Its lyrics are relatively short, but years it took to draft and refine. Strict and slow (unlike regular Kpop and it's often silly lyrics) turned it into an organic hit with no rollout or promo. I think this process (very different from normal Kpop) can apply to rap. It focuses emotion in a way any songwriter can learn from by contrasting celebration with pain, so it's easier to relate to and is less forced cheer.

Plot details got trimmed to the point that the song works without the movie, but there's still lots of subtle ties. It's like how Kendrick uses MVs. He'll outsource details to video so they don't weigh down lyrics (later posts.) Think how You're Welcome from Moana is packed with plot detail in a way that you can't separate it from the movie. Golden works so well bc it's an highlight reel of the movie's emotions, not a whole piece of plot description. But unlike Kendrick, it doesn't trim detail in a way that leaves you feeling like you're missing context. It doesn't trim away the impact.

Kendrick might already spend years on some songs, and the Rich Spirit draft shows how extensively he edits. But spending months or years focusing rhymes instead of album concept could be revolutionary. The opposite of Jay-Z or Thug not writing. But I know when I rewrite a rap, I can end up with too many new lines that don't fit.

Holy Key, Chains and Whips, The Heart Part 5 are verses only he could do, but there’s bars I feel he could tighten up. The ginseng line just had me confused. Sometimes the masseuse or tiramisu bars in Bodies feel kinda soft, although Bodies and the setting for the video are part of the luther concept. But he has similar bars in his guest verses. Any rapper has weak lines. But what's specific to him is his bars go hard, then lot of times he has you wondering what he means. Either concept or deep references lessen the impact of punchlines. What if he aligned it so his lines punch harder?

Concepts are why I think he’s the best rapper. I realized that’s more important than strictly rhymes. His apparently simple songs the last 3 albums tend to be part of a complex story. There’s already editing discipline. He advances the plot, but trims lyrics to work on a pop level. But I think lot of us feel like he could go harder, be less cryptic without the filter of a concept. That’s what fans like about NLU and why Bodies got some hoping for more. 

More people are hungry for political awareness, even the mods (see sub banner.) There’s a fundamental problem expecting it from entertainers. But I’d like to see Kendrick do a meaningful song where he uses refined bluntness to hammer complex points. I don’t know if anybody is capable.

Don’t call this the Gilded Age. Human progress finally struck gold a few millennia after the Bronze Age. Gilded Age robber barons got nothing on the Gold Age.

The look unintentionally matches Trump’s America. Gold prices spiked the most in years since he took office, largely from his inflationary policies and threats of political instability. The removable cape unintentionally elicits Trump’s AI superman pic.

Typical couture and Gala tickets are already expensive; the looks are marketing for designers. Still, it’s surprising this Bezos Gala is where solid gold as clothing makes a debut. Will this be a trend, another inequality indicator? Jewelry as clothing. It's like we reached an era when a necklace just isn’t flashy enough. Big gold sheets like this, embedded with gems bigger than thumbnails. I wonder if she’ll wear it again or display it somewhere, or what YSL will do with it. 

To be fair, a number of rappers have worn jewelry they bought and let it be known that it's over $1m. And an Indian woman married to a billionaire wore her own $15m necklace to the Gala.

Gala as marketing?

The look is an elegant contrast to the increasingly complicated costumes. I think the impractical, uncomfortable costumes emphasized at the Gala distorts the perception of ‘fashion’ as stylistic extravagance, when durability and wearability once mattered to couturiers. The great book Deluxe talks about this, but also the influence of movie costumes on fashion. But who wants to display or see a monstrosity like the intestine tumor designed by Marc Jacobs? Or admire this unironic gold clothing? Making for sale as a halo product for VIPs could generate excitement.

Couture isn’t promoted that much, but it does actually function as marketing for the rest of the brand in big luxury. YSL’s parent company Kering has been struggling and could benefit from some positive coverage, though this look has the potential to be as controversial as their Balenciaga clickbait products. Most people overlooked the top being pure solid gold. There’s potential to generate multiples more interest, but also invite a flood of criticism. Combined with the stigma of Bezos, escalating anger over inequality, and last year’s ‘Rosa Parks underwear’ controversy, it seems like there’s diminishing returns on the value of the Gala as fashion/celebrity marketing. 

Strictly as fashion

The flowing blue cape/train evokes those flying dress photoshoots in Santorini, Greece done with single color dresses (slide 4.)

The whole look evokes classical Greek sculptures and armor. This Athena statue for example (modern reproduction, slide 5.) This year, Hailey's look is a lot more effort than the one last year, which some took as disrespecting the black dandy theme (slide 6.) 

I think visually this year’s gold would’ve went well with that black, in dress form. This brings to mind a Schiaparelli season where gold elements on black outfits were big. It was just after COVID, and the designer wrote about the restrained celebration he was going for. Black seeming to represent restraint. I don’t remember which season that was, but Hailey’s bodice is reminiscent of this SS21 Schiaparelli design (Vogue, top.) Their IG describes it as "gilded metalized resin." They did classify it as “jewelry,” and it was part of their couture collection.

5 years later, fake gold feels risky. You could be confused with poor people.

Attached is a picture of the notification I got without the picture. I posted the same picture in a fashion sub that allowed it, see it here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/whatthefrockk/comments/1t4dqpe/comment/ok4i83e/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

To a human it's clearly as SFW as a sculpture. I had a post get auto removed presumably for this picture too.

OpenAI bought a table but Altman was not seen. The Zuckerbergs also avoided the carpet; it was their first Gala. The backlash against this Bezos at the Met isn’t organized resistance at all; memes aren't really a movement. But as imperfect it was, 'performative' as some said, it worked. Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg started to get the message. For all their wealth and try hard desire to be accepted by Trump, to be accepted here as celebrities—no. The place they wanted to be seen is still out of their league. 

Keep in mind that a major reason Bezos dialed back ambitions at Amazon was political pressure, the years of calls to break up monopolies and tax the rich. It had big plans to disrupt clothing, furniture, supermarkets, convenience stores, and grow its own brands. No big government action was taken against Amazon, it was just fear of Lina Khan coming to the FTC. Bezos looked distressed at his congressional antitrust hearing, even in his office via teleconference (2nd slide). Less than a year later, he announced he would step down as CEO, shortly after Biden’s inauguration. Pressure can be enough.

They want to be liked. Bezos: the flashiest wedding with hired friends, throwing a party for Kris Jenner. Zuckerberg spent years as a UFC VIP. Then he got booed when he attended not long ago; it went viral yet major MMA sites didn't cover it. Likewise, that's the kind of pain Bezos and Zuckerberg want to avoid at the Gala. Even when they paid to be there, it was the red carpet from hell for two of the richest people. Like everyone else, they fear criticism and rejection still hurts. It’s something we can use. It’s still too cool for them, even as folks finally realize the Met Gala is not actually cool.

Google: the most profitable company

Sergey Brin isn’t a household name. The cofounder of Google (now Alphabet) went with "MAGA Girlfriend," to quote NY Times. Alphabet recently passed Apple to be the most profitable company: $160b in net income past 12 months, or more than Disney and Nike’s total sales. This is why he’s now richer than Bezos. Brin once joined protests against Trump’s 'Muslim ban' shortly after Trump’s first inauguration, saying “I’m here because I’m a refugee.”

Since then, Alphabet donated to Trump’s 2nd inauguration, which CEO Sundar Pichai attended. Also, the company is about 10x more profitable than it was 10 years ago ($16b net income FY 2015). 

Trump’s corporate tax cuts helped—with profits, then making the switch to Trump. Let him hear the message Bezos heard.

Pressure works, but it needs to be directed

Companies and CEOs are now so powerful they no longer have to pretend to be nice. Musk, Apple's trophy to Trump, or Amazon's Melania documentary—they haven't felt the need to respond to criticism. This backlash is rare evidence that pressure affects them. Pushing them off the red carpet isn’t a coup but it’s a start. I was skeptical at first; it seemed like poorly informed venting. But it showed that more pressure with more focus can work. 

Notice Musk hasn't bent to criticism. Meanwhile, Bezos and Zuckerberg's desire for acceptance is their weakness—keep pushing them. Brin might be after the same recognition. Another weak point is celebrities—the people they want to be seen as—are more susceptible to criticism. It is kind of silly to cancel attendees like the Met Gala has any validity as a moral indicator. But a useful lesson is you could strategically pressure celebrities over these platform founders. You have to think like this unless you just want to stop at the Met Gala and move on to the next trending topic.

He just goes faster and faster before you even have a chance to pause or skip, then it’s all over. He really uses his mouth as an instrument, none of those whiny voices Kendrick does. Just smooth North Carolina flows on the beat. That’s right, he has multiple flows on one song without sounding like a crazy small person. 

First verse got 2 main flows alone, plus the little whisper. Look how methodical this is: hard consonance mixed with a little mumble, turn up, dial down. The whole time he’s switching his volume like rising and falling action! His flow just comes in waves then the chorus, then goes back to a whisper. Before you know it he’s exploding on the beat 😮.

Lil Durk’s All My Life "ft. J. Cole."

OMG. Cole’s voice takes me to church sounding like a whole choir! They make it look like kids singing in the video but it’s clearly all Cole when it doesn’t feature anyone else. Not once have I heard Kendrick sing where it actually sounds good.  

As I said earlier:

>Ay I gotchu bro.. and by bro I mean Cole, not the mod 🤡. Imma explain your art to these fools and free em from 'Kendrick.' 

Kbots finna learn! I don’t got answers today but I’ll figure this out bc I know J Cole is just that deep. Wait till you hear some real knowledge. Facts by the stack. Tell me one thing you actually learned from Kendrick!

Attached: current sub banner and some pictures I had from other posts. It's important to see the sacrifice and physical bravery. I thought Malice referenced Fred Shuttlesworth on JID's Community.

Selma led to the Voting Rights Act

I remember the shot in the banner, and so should all Americans. The march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. A different shot of the marches from is on the cover of a book I got. It's striking how they held American flags, trying to force the country to live up to its own ideals. They walked over 50 miles in a campaign that directly resulted in the Voting Rights Act, which banned the discrimination against voters by race. Black and white people died for this, and repeatedly, knowingly risked death.

Earlier in the campaign, Martin Luther King was physically attacked, went to jail, and met with the president. He doesn't get credit for activism on the ground and strategically because most don't even know about it. Also, Malcolm X came to Selma to speak in support of the nonviolent movement. It was shortly before he was killed by the Nation of Islam. I think that's why he's the sub avatar now.

The Supreme Court overturned part of the VRA, and Republican states are already redrawing districts to try to get more House seats in upcoming midterm elections. Specifically, they're dividing majority Black districts among white ones.

Trump grabs power in the absence of resistance

MAGA has been good at taking advantage of political apathy, like with their long drive against abortion in the past decade. Kind of reviving an issue that seemed settled. Power eventually flows into vacuums, whether it's Afghanistan or Venezuela. Weakness or not guarding your own power is someone else's opportunity. This is why voting matters, even when it seems like it doesn't.

Even the lack of high quality, younger politicians is the result of lack of interest in politics. Partisans on both sides make it distasteful and made a lot of better qualified people not want to take part. Partisan nonsense is a defense mechanism. Polarizing controversy draws attention and pushes intelligent people away. There should be better candidates.

It looks like Trump pushed too far this year. His invasions go against his own stated goals. His ICE campaign forced white people to see the injustice of lawless policing.

Lessons from history

The Civil Rights Movement and French Revolution should be reference points. The former shows how much organization and commitment is needed to actually bring change. You need more than memes and a laundry list of vague goals. Back then they had multiple organizations running campaigns targeting different places and people (like King meeting the president.) This level of commitment goes beyond venting. It seems impossible in the social media age, when respect is channeled through commercialism. It's interesting to think that being part of the Movement itself was an actual power flex, in today's thinking.

I feel the same when I see 'revolution' online. Also, the French Revolution led to chaos and dictatorship. Napoleon filled the power vacuum in a country without a leader. People had enough guillotines and witch hunts. They got an emperor who tried to invade everyone else. The equivalent now would be some 'savior' who promises to be better but invades China and Russia. This doesn't seem likely; Trump already presents himself as such an outsider, savior of the people.

Capitalism weakened activism

The amount of prestige and power being an activist or politician has diluted in the US. The country is less dominant. The money in public service hasn't grown exponentially, unlike in business the past half century. Paradoxically, the economic rise of other countries makes the US less exceptional, but gives bigger markets for businesses. Technology and new markets are how singers like Taylor Swift can become billionaires in a relatively short time, without side hustles.

Music can't replace learning or action

Like Malcolm said,

>show me in the white community where a singer is a white leader

Kendrick is not an activist with political lyrics, I think in part because he knows he won’t do the topics justice. But you'll never learn much politics from him or any other musician, artist, writer at any point in history. You won't truly learn much from most 'smart' influencers and podcasts, or even reading the news every day. You need books and past news for context.

You need artists like Kendrick

Kendrick is literature, not just for the Pulitzer. There's so much more complexity and story that's been overlooked. He shows how a black man from Compton can write a new literary genre: a memoir written with techniques of great modernist novels. Unreliable narrator, stream of consciousness flow/lyrics, complex self references to other 'chapters,' and to other works like the Bible or rap.

You need craftsmanship as a kind of gatekeeper for rap as it gets diluted into other genres. Or more generally, some art that still has complex, original messages even in the social media age. He doesn't dumb down entertainment. He'll simplify lyrics so they work on a surface level, but there's layers of meaning if you want to dig deeper.

This kind of intellectual challenge in music keeps social media addicts somewhat literate, patiently dealing with nuance in messages. Even if most listeners don't catch a lot of it.

Think of black owned businesses like TDE or pglang being able to borrow and transact without discrimination. Kendrick benefits from Civil Rights. As he said, he's not our savior. No more than Picasso was Spain's savior for painting its war. I started to think of Kendrick as a new Ralph Ellison, a genius author. Ellison pushed the limits of art and English as a black man. His masterpiece novel Invisible Man was a flex on language. It wasn't a direct political demonstration, but still a demonstration of how much black person could excel in a white field. Invisible Man came out in the 50s; he wasn't really an activist. They call the great painters of Europe the "Old Masters." We need Black Masters who take all that technique, discipline, craft, and originality to make great art. Not just entertainment, like Hit the Quan.

I think Kendrick has that Master level craft in his concepts. The simple, pop surface of his most complex song is like the Mona Lisa. Layered meanings let him use fewer words, instead of digging himself deep into the underground with overt complexity. All the layers of references and story are like what underlies the painting. The charcoal sketches underneath, plus all the study of anatomy and math that da Vinci did. The hard part is the part most don't see. Yet even the greatest artist can't replace political leaders and freedom movements.

We also need new Kings, Shuttlesworths, marchers and riders

If you care about the culture, you should care about the black power and freedom it's built on. Even just as an American, it's finally clear political apathy is weakness that someone will eventually take advantage of. The redistricting and turning back the Voting Rights Act is part of a big power grab that affects everyone. Kind of like how legally lethal policing was a problem long before the ICE shootings in Minnesota.

The effects are harder to see, but longer lasting than Trump sending ICE and National Guard into states. He backtracked after realizing former made him look bad, and the latter was forbidden by court. A number of his power grabs were stopped in court, but this one was done on his behalf by justices he picked.

Kendrick and Bad Bunny won't save America, one Super Bowl halftime show at a time. Voting is a start.

From Baltimore local news:

>As many as 300 children died in state custody and were buried nearby.

>The marker represents a profound recognition, a historical rescue of the truth about racist incarceration of children, some as young as 5, who were forced into labor and endured abuse and neglect between 1870 and 1961.

>"It was privately run, state-supported and a segregated institution," Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said at a ceremony Wednesday. "The boys were contracted out of labor here. They were whipped and beaten. Their humanity taken away from them…"

>A ledger contains many of the boys' names and circumstances while under lease to farmers and subjected to forced labor. They were struck with three-ply leather whips, rubber hoses and wooden clubs for unruly behavior.

NBC Washington:

>…many of the boys died from disease or natural causes. But at least two did not.

>"They had frostbite and their legs were amputated after horrible neglect,"

>…at least 230 children are buried in the woods… there could be many more, including some possible mass graves.

>Some members of the Black Caucus live a few miles from the graveyard — and never knew it existed.

Earlier article by University of Maryland’s journalism school:

>A 10-year-old dead of exhaustion. More than a dozen dead from pneumonia. About 100 youths succumbed to tuberculosis.

>At the former House of Correction at Jessup… Two of those [buried] were newborns.

>Exhaustion was cited as a contributing cause for nine deaths involving some boys who had not reached puberty. James Tilghman, age 11, died of “cardiac dilation” and exhaustion in 1909.

A reminder of current prisons born of racism:

>the Jessup facility opened in 1879 and was the second prison established in Maryland. …an extension of the facility, now named Jessup Correctional Institution, still operates as a prison.

Notice the difference in naming for black and white facilities:

>The House of Reformation and House of Refuge operated as segregated, privately run reformatories for “delinquent” boys, and were supported by local and state funds. The House of Refuge…opened exclusively for white youth

>Leaders at the House of Reformation, House of Refuge and House of Correction physically abused youths in custody. All three facilities instituted variations of a convict leasing system, contracting out boys to work around the state under the guise of vocational reform.

>Despite some similarities, clear disparities persisted between the House of Reformation and the House of Refuge, including funding, educational opportunities and institutional conditions, 

>Many of the boys also had venereal diseases, according to a 1935 grand jury report from the Criminal Court of Baltimore City. [This might sound baffling but makes more sense in context of current sexual abuse lawsuits at Maryland’s detention centers.]

>“virtual slavery, peonage and a chain gang.” The institution forced boys to work six days a week for contractors around Maryland to help pay for the costs of the reformatory.

>Smaller boys worked in on-site factories for broom making, shoe repair or chair caning…

>Some boys were “paroled to service,” meaning they were forced to exclusively work for private families until they were 21 years old. This practice was not found in facilities for white youth,

The piece says boys got sent to the House of Reformation for no crime. Some went for "incorrigibility," inadequate adult supervision, homelessness, and being "feeble-minded" (intellectually disabled.)

Much like the Washington Post says (no paywall):

>The most common reasons for detention were “incorrigibility,” “stealing” and “vagrancy,” records show, and the teens and boys were malnourished and faced unsanitary conditions.

The article says the state didn't keep track of the death toll, which keeps rising with the Post's new research last year. Also:

>While many of the boys’ death certificates listed disease as their cause of death, news reports from the time call into question those determinations.

>…about 100 graves marked only by cinder blocks.

>Just before he died, a sickly Bloe told a cook and a steward at the hospital that his teacher had struck him in the back with a hatchet, according to a Baltimore Sun story at the time. The teacher admitted to “playing” with the boy and was fired from the facility. But no coroner examined Bloe’s body before it was buried, according to the Sun, and a postmortem report said no injuries were found.

Another Post article::

>About 250 Black children and teens were admitted annually… 

>Established as a privately run corporation… the reform school would eventually include a sprawling campus with a farm on which the children worked, a two-story factory, a hospital, classrooms and living quarters…

>Aside from Alabama, the state charges more children as adults per capita than any other in the nation.

The Post also reported efforts to identify the dead and inform current living relatives.

The ongoing brutality of such places

Maryland recently passed a law to remove statute of limitations and increase the liability cap for victims of child sex abuse at state facilities (including schools and foster homes.) Over 12,000 people filed claims. It could cost the state billions, like what happened in Los Angeles. That would hurt state finances, and leads to a dilemma where justice for victims worsens inequality. A number of states face such lawsuits across the country.

One of these suits in Maryland, from AP:

>Among the plaintiffs in Thursday’s complaint is a woman who said she was only 7 when she endured abuse at Thomas J.S. Waxter Children’s Center in 1992. According to the complaint, an abusive staff member commented that she was the youngest girl in the unit and promised to “protect her in exchange for compliance with the abuse.” …plaintiffs said their abusers offered them extra food, phone calls, time outside and other rewards. Others said they received threats of violence, solitary confinement, longer sentences and transfer to harsher facilities.

Baltimore Beat has more details from other suits, and it mentions:

>To this day, Black children make up 77% of all detained youth in Maryland, though they account for only 30% of the state’s youth population.

All this brings to mind an old Black spiritual, Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child (Jazmine Sullivan's version for Elvis movie). There’s a newer song that's like the other side to this spiritual, about the love a Black mom has for her son. A more optimistic future: Mama's Hand by Queen Naija.

It might leave you in tears. Youtube link. This is one of the hardest hitting, most beautiful and soulful songs you'll hear. I think it should be the Mother's Day anthem. Queen Naija was raised by her mom when her dad returned to Yemen.

It's optimism and love is like the other side of Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child, the old Black spiritual dating from slavery, about slavery. Here's Jazmine Sullivan's version from Elvis soundtrack. I thought of that after recent news about honoring the dead at a Jim Crow jail for Black boys. 

Queen Naija's is so underrated and I hope to see her music catch on again. Her voice is elite. She got some attention for it last year at an NBA game singing the national anthem

From Baltimore local news:

>As many as 300 children died in state custody and were buried nearby.

>The marker represents a profound recognition, a historical rescue of the truth about racist incarceration of children, some as young as 5, who were forced into labor and endured abuse and neglect between 1870 and 1961.

>"It was privately run, state-supported and a segregated institution," Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said at a ceremony Wednesday. "The boys were contracted out of labor here. They were whipped and beaten. Their humanity taken away from them…"

>A ledger contains many of the boys' names and circumstances while under lease to farmers and subjected to forced labor. They were struck with three-ply leather whips, rubber hoses and wooden clubs for unruly behavior.

NBC Washington:

>…many of the boys died from disease or natural causes. But at least two did not.

"They had frostbite and their legs were amputated after horrible neglect,"

…at least 230 children are buried in the woods… there could be many more, including some possible mass graves.

Some members of the Black Caucus live a few miles from the graveyard — and never knew it existed.

Earlier article by University of Maryland’s journalism school:

>A 10-year-old dead of exhaustion. More than a dozen dead from pneumonia. About 100 youths succumbed to tuberculosis.

>At the former House of Correction at Jessup… Two of those [buried] were newborns.

>Exhaustion was cited as a contributing cause for nine deaths involving some boys who had not reached puberty. James Tilghman, age 11, died of “cardiac dilation” and exhaustion in 1909.

A reminder of current prisons born of racism:

>the Jessup facility opened in 1879 and was the second prison established in Maryland. …an extension of the facility, now named Jessup Correctional Institution, still operates as a prison.

Notice the difference in naming for black and white facilities:

>The House of Reformation and House of Refuge operated as segregated, privately run reformatories for “delinquent” boys, and were supported by local and state funds. The House of Refuge…opened exclusively for white youth

>Leaders at the House of Reformation, House of Refuge and House of Correction physically abused youths in custody. All three facilities instituted variations of a convict leasing system, contracting out boys to work around the state under the guise of vocational reform.

>Despite some similarities, clear disparities persisted between the House of Reformation and the House of Refuge, including funding, educational opportunities and institutional conditions, 

>Many of the boys also had venereal diseases, according to a 1935 grand jury report from the Criminal Court of Baltimore City. [This might sound baffling but makes more sense in context of current sexual abuse lawsuits at Maryland’s detention centers.]

>“virtual slavery, peonage and a chain gang.” The institution forced boys to work six days a week for contractors around Maryland to help pay for the costs of the reformatory.

>Smaller boys worked in on-site factories for broom making, shoe repair or chair caning…

>Some boys were “paroled to service,” meaning they were forced to exclusively work for private families until they were 21 years old. This practice was not found in facilities for white youth,

The piece says boys got sent to the House of Reformation for no crime. Some went for "incorrigibility," inadequate adult supervision, homelessness, and being "feeble-minded" (intellectually disabled.)

Much like the Washington Post says (no paywall)

The most common reasons for detention were “incorrigibility,” “stealing” and “vagrancy,” records show, and the teens and boys were malnourished and faced unsanitary conditions.

The article says the state didn't keep track of the death toll, which keeps rising with the Post's new research last year. Also:

>While many of the boys’ death certificates listed disease as their cause of death, news reports from the time call into question those determinations.

>…about 100 graves marked only by cinder blocks.

>Just before he died, a sickly Bloe told a cook and a steward at the hospital that his teacher had struck him in the back with a hatchet, according to a Baltimore Sun story at the time. The teacher admitted to “playing” with the boy and was fired from the facility. But no coroner examined Bloe’s body before it was buried, according to the Sun, and a postmortem report said no injuries were found.

Another Post article::

>About 250 Black children and teens were admitted annually… 

>Established as a privately run corporation… the reform school would eventually include a sprawling campus with a farm on which the children worked, a two-story factory, a hospital, classrooms and living quarters…

>Aside from Alabama, the state charges more children as adults per capita than any other in the nation.

The Post also reported efforts to identify the dead and inform current living relatives.

The ongoing brutality of such places

Maryland recently passed a law to remove statute of limitations and increase the liability cap for victims of child sex abuse at state facilities (including schools and foster homes.) Over 12,000 people filed claims. It could cost the state billions, like what happened in Los Angeles. That would hurt state finances, and leads to a dilemma where justice for victims worsens inequality. A number of states face such lawsuits across the country.

One of these suits in Maryland, from AP:

>Among the plaintiffs in Thursday’s complaint is a woman who said she was only 7 when she endured abuse at Thomas J.S. Waxter Children’s Center in 1992. According to the complaint, an abusive staff member commented that she was the youngest girl in the unit and promised to “protect her in exchange for compliance with the abuse.” …plaintiffs said their abusers offered them extra food, phone calls, time outside and other rewards. Others said they received threats of violence, solitary confinement, longer sentences and transfer to harsher facilities.

Baltimore Beat has more details from other suits, and it mentions:

>To this day, Black children make up 77% of all detained youth in Maryland, though they account for only 30% of the state’s youth population.

All this brings to mind an old Black spiritual, Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child. There’s a newer song that's the other side to this spiritual, about the love a Black mom has for her son. A more optimistic future.

That 0 is a W in my book. It has to be, he’s too smart 😭. Thanks to OP for the knowledge, this comment in the picture. I've learned so much on Reddit! Cole playing 3D chess? He’s my 3D king.

I was skeptical at first, till I remembered cardio is exactly why Kendrick goes running! Most of the time he speaks in code, but this is one of few things he tries to teach us directly. He even runs in public so we have visual confirmation he’s actually, literally running just so that his lungs are in optimal rapping condition. So it’s clear when he says

>Six miles a day, conditionin' my wind

it actually means he runs 6 miles a day to condition his cardio. Who knows how many miles Biggie ran. They didn’t have social media back then. Wait, Kendrick's "wind" might mean black culture. I need Dissect Podcast to teach me. Now I’m confused and don’t know what to think.. 

I’ll let them figure it out that nonsense! No workout plan will change the fact that Kendrick’s a whole foot shorter 📏. But now it’s CERTAIN this comment is facts. Nothing sus whatsoever. This man clearly knows what he’s talking about with Cole's stamina and breath. No pause bc there’s no skips in this catalog! "Trust me"? Yessuh. (I am not affiliated with him.)

I just want Cole to be feeling his best ⚕️❤️.  I’m worried about his breath 😮‍💨. Idk if he'll make me feel it the way he usually does if the cardio plan fell apart. 

I run and rap, but just thinking about Two Six leaves me out of breath! Just stop what you’re doing and watch it right now to see what I mean:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvf_Qv4rmLM

Make sure you got your headphones on. Take a bathroom break if you have to. I have never sung all the songs in a whole Cole album, so I trust the experience of this brother with over 1700 likes. More than I ever got so I know he’s dropping more knowledge than I learned my whole life!

This Cole expert in the picture named himself after Iverson, better known as the J Cole of his era. The unrecognized but greater talent, when you account for his size. (It’s like Cole being a rapper when dissing simply isn’t his style.) But not a lot of people put it together that Post Malone really called himself the white J Cole. 

I got a problem tho, why 1 basketball game 0 buckets? I get Cole’s humble but I can't really follow the chess pieces 😵‍💫. Stamina enhancement is the most important ♟️. I’m just looking out for Cole’s health, don’t want him struggling on stage 🥀💔😭. He won’t work up enough of a sweat riding around that bike!

It’s rare to see this kind of evolution across and within brands. He’s worn a series of unconventional suits, not just these. He seems intent on breaking out of suit norms, not wanting to look too corporate or formal. I do think experimentation is important. Even established suit makers seem to struggle when departing from norms: see the D&G (2nd slide) or Ozwald Boateng on Burna Boy at 2025 Met Gala. This could just show they need to try more often.

Oscars suit with Nehru jacket

This suit rises to the occasion of Jordan's first Oscar. It has arrived: a unique suit that fits him well. It’s unconventional for the US. Much like the Dolce & Gabbana he wore in London, which may have inspired it.

Much better fitting than the D&G, though this is because it uses a more reliable existing design. Nothing is too tight unlike either of the other suits, even when he’s in the same pose with hands together. Nothing is too loose, unlike the Critics Choice suit at the hips. It’s very deliberate tailoring. The fabric itself shines along with subtly contrasting texture of the details, like the pockets and darts (the vertical lines). The mandarin collar (a style originating from China). It fits well, instead of pulling at the neck like the D&G. The glossy black buttons stand out against the smooth front. Look how flat it stays even when he holds up his Oscar (slide 5).  The buttons wouldn’t look as good if the fabric didn’t stay flat to highlight details. Very subtle, very well put together. I like how the pants fabric has a little more sheen than the jacket.

For a while the best all black suit look was Kendrick’s at the 2022 Super Bowl. It’s one of his defining looks, LV designed by Virgil Abloh. The brooches on his chest evoked military medals; with his glove, there was a black militant vibe. The black fabric was a good backdrop to highlight Tiffany jewelry. I think this contrast influenced how Pharrell plays with shiny buttons (below.) He’d probably see it as a challenge. 

With Jordan's Oscar suit, someone finally made an all black suit on Virgil’s level. It matched the occasion. This and the D&G seem intended to appeal to Asian markets in a way Western suits don’t. They're also fresh for the Western market when suits are less popular. The collar brings to mind an Adidas 'Chinese style' jacket that went viral in China.

Jordan’s suits in Sinners actually fit better than the next two (slide 8.)

Dolce & Gabbana (4/2025) is a crazy experiment, like a fusion between Western and Nehru suit jacket.

Visually, there's no shirt, tie, watch, or jewelry to do any lifting. The design is the accessory.

It’s double breasted, one side wrapping over the other, but no folding back for a lapel. The collar stays flipped up almost like a mandarin collar but it doesn’t form a circle perpendicular to the neck. Both lead to fabric bunching on the shoulders. The fabric is wrapped tighter in a less forgiving way than either a Western or single breasted Nehru jacket. There’s less slack for the fabric to fall, magnified by the pinstripes. Maybe some shoulder construction also fights with the cut. I don’t think it’s bad, because it’s an interesting, risky experiment. It feels armor like, the way he’s fully wrapped in uninterrupted wool from the neck down. Everything is too tight, chest, arms, shoulders. It would be better if it were looser like the pants, which are better than the Critics Choice LV. 

Red Critics Choice (1/2026) LV suit

Too tight arms, not matching the looseness of the rest. For some reason the jacket seems to flare at the hips; pants are also wide at the hips, yet taper at legs to exaggerate this width. The double breasted look does the same. Maybe he wanted a more 'athletic' cut but the tapering and tightening defeats the design that I assume is like Pharrell’s earlier 2025 Met Gala suits. None of them had this issue, whatever the perspective. The one interesting thing is in some shots you can see the fabric is actually red. It’s so dark I couldn’t tell at first. The making of this and the Oscars suit could’ve overlapped at LV.

The main problem with the two earlier suits feels like tailoring that Michael might have asked for to flex his arms.

Shiny buttons are like Pharrell’s trademark

Both his LV suits also evolve the pearly buttons Pharrell was playing with since at least last year's Met Gala (last 2 slides). Those suits mostly had pearl effect encased with copper, a few weren’t. Contrasting light buttons on a dark suit are uncommon. The Critics Choice suit doesn’t have the copper, and the plain light buttons just look very noticeably plastic. But it’s an imperfection that implies experimentation. The dark gloss buttons in the Oscar suit works better than if he went light.