President Biden has butchered yet another speech during which he referred to legendary rapper LL Cool J as a ‘boy’ after mispronouncing his name at the Congressional Black Caucus on Saturday night.

LL Cool J and MC Lyte received Phoenix Awards for their musical contributions at the annual ceremony in Washington DC.

While on stage, Biden, 80, said: ‘Two of the great artists of our time representing ground-breaking legacy of hip hop in America, LL Jay Cool J, uhhh…’ – as the audience laughed at his latest gaffe over the rapper’s name.

But he then added: ‘By the way that boy – that man’s got biceps bigger than my thighs’.

The footage of the speech was quickly re-posted by RNC Research on social media where commentators swiftly pointed out that referring to African Americans as ‘boy’ is widely considered a derogative term. 

On X, formerly Twitter, one user said: ‘Ohhh god make it stop PLLEASE. He’s making a total mockery of this country’.

Another accused him of being an ‘ignorant racist Democrat’.  

This is not the first time the president has found himself in hot water for using the term. 

Biden was heavily criticized earlier this year when referring to Maryland‘s first black governor Wes Moore as a ‘boy’. 

‘You got a hell of a new governor in Wes Moore, I tell ya,’ Biden told members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in February. 

‘He’s the real deal, and the boy looked like he could still play. He’s got some guns on him,’ he added.

In May he also raised eyebrows after telling a White House attendee to ‘hush up, boy’ during an event celebrating Islamic holiday Eid-al-Fitr.

The awkward exchange came as the audience member, who is believed to be a Muslim man, interrupted the president as he marked the occasion before a packed crowd.

‘You want to come and make a speech?’ Biden responded after he was heckled.

‘Hush up, boy, as my mother would say’ he continued in a mimicked Southern drawl. 

In 2019, Biden made a similar slip-up when he told a crowd on the campaign trail that he could work with all people – even those who he did not agree with.

He told how he worked with James Eastland, a Mississippi senator and plantation owner, who was an open white supremacist. Eastland resigned as a senator in 1978 and died in 1986, aged 81.

Biden said that Eastland respected him, declaring: ‘He never called me ‘boy,’ he always called me ‘son.”

Senator Cory Booker, who is black, rebuked Biden for downplaying the use of the word ‘boy’ to diminish black men.

Booker, on CNN, said it was inappropriate. ‘You don’t joke about calling black men “boys”,’ he said.

He later added that he’d had a constructive conversation with Biden about his use of the term, adding: ‘This is about him invoking a terrible power dynamic that he showed a lack of understanding or insensitivity to by invoking this idea that he was called ‘son’ by white segregationists who, yeah, they see in him their son.’

In 2021, the president also clumsily referred to Japanese golfer Hideki Matsuyama, who was 29 at the time, as a ‘boy’.

He told the Japanese prime minister during a press conference: ‘You’ve got a Japanese boy coming over here and guess what? He won the Masters. He won the Masters. He won the green jacket.’

Biden’s Saturday night blunder is just the latest in a long line of recent speech disasters as critics increasingly raise concerns about the president’s age and health. 

During a speech in Washington on Thursday at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s 46th Annual Gala, Biden had celebrated Sister Norma Pimental, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, for her gala award.

Biden praised her for living the lessons based on the Gospel of Matthew before adding: ‘The Congressional Black Caucus embodies all those values.’

Just days ago Biden repeated the same story twice within minutes at a private fundraising event in New York, sparking further concerns about his age.

The story was one the president tells often about how events in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017, and the reaction of Donald Trump, inspired him to run for the White House.

On Aug 11, 2017 white supremacists and neo-Nazis descended on the city and clashes continued into the following day.

Biden, who was in New York for the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, attended a fundraising gathering hosted by food security expert Amy Goldman Fowler at her home.

According to a White House pool report of the private event he began speaking just after 4pm in a living room in front of about two dozen people.

Biden talked about his economic record and reflected on his decision to seek the presidency and ‘talked about the events of Charlottesville’ as the reason for his campaign, the report said.

‘A few minutes later, he told the story again, nearly word for word,’ the report went on.

The incidents have sparked further concern about his age and health after he seemingly wandered off a stage failing to shake hands with Brazil’s president.

When in Vietnam earlier this month, his rambling press conference was brought to a sudden end with his mic cut and jazz music playing him off the stage, like he went too long in an awards speech.

Biden was mid-flow and answering questions from journalists when he was interrupted and forced to shuffle away and head backstage.

‘We talked about stability, we talked about the Third World, excuse me, the Southern Hemisphere has access to change. It wasn’t confrontational at all….’ Biden said as he rambled on.

Suddenly, the booming voice of his press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, could be heard butting in.

‘Thank you everybody. This ends the press conference. Thanks everyone,’ she said as she brought the presser to a close.

Thrilling gang warfare drama Top Boy came to an explosive conclusion earlier this month after more than a decade – with Netflix and Canadian rapper Drake helping to see the series to a satisfying conclusion after it was dropped by Channel 4.

The show became one of Netflix’s most-viewed shows in the week that its third and final season post-renewal went out.

Viewers tuned in to see what became of Ashley Walters’ Dushane and Kane Robinson’s Sully as their warfare with other drug gangs in the fictional Summerhouse estate in Hackney, London, reached a dramatic climax.

But the show had humble beginnings on Channel 4 when it first aired in 2011 – and featured a number of actors who were relative unknowns at the time, and have since gone on to appear in huge Hollywood productions.

Michaela Coel, Letitia Wright and Benedict Wong are among the stars to have used Top Boy as a springboard to launch themselves into Marvel movies, while others have since starred in big dramas, Netflix films and other blockbusters. 

It bodes well for the breakout stars of the rebooted series such as Micheal Ward – some of whom are already picking up plaudits across the industry.

Michaela Coel 

The Ghanaian-British actress, 35, appeared in series two of the show in its Channel 4 era, as Kayla – a woman charged with killing her own boyfriend. 

Her 2013 appearance was brief – across just two episodes – but Coel went on to star in E4 sitcom Chewing Gum and Black Earth Rising before writing and starring in I May Destroy You – a powerful BBC drama about a woman seeking to rebuild her life after being raped on a night out that won BAFTAs and a Primetime Emmy.

She famously turned down $1million from Netflix for rights to the show after it refused to let her retain the ownership rights, and was named one of Time magazine’s most influential people. It noted: ‘You don’t just watch Michaela Coel shows; you experience them.’

She published a book, Misfits, based on her experiences of racism and misogyny, in 2021. And since then, she has appeared in Marvel blockbuster Black Panther: Wakanda Forever as Aneka, a member of the royal family’s bodyguards in the fictional African nation of Wakanda.

Letitia Wright

Letitia Wright, 29, appeared in the first series of Top Boy as Chantelle, a drug dealer on the Summerhouse estate. She left after the first series as her character goes to work for a rival gangster.

She also made other early career appearances in the likes of Casualty and Doctor Who – but came to the fore as the star of coming-of-age drama Urban Hymn, set against the backdrop of the 2011 London riots. 

An appearance in the Netflix reboot of Black Mirror was then followed by the role that many know her best for – as Shuri, the quick-witted inventor sister of superhero T’Chala in Marvel flick Black Panther. 

She made appearances in subsequent comic crossover films Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame – but she was unexpectedly thrust into the lead role of Black Panther sequel Wakanda Forever when star Chadwick Boseman died of cancer and Shuri was written into an expanded role.

Benedict Wong

Wong, 52, was a prolific actor before appearing on Top Boy – in radio and on stage, with a role in 2002 thriller Dirty Pretty Things. His profile grew as he appeared in sitcom 15 Storeys High opposite the late Sean Lock with guest appearances on programmes such as The Bill and comedies like The Peter Serafinowicz Show and The IT Crowd.

But it was after his role in Top Boy, as scheming rival drug dealer Vincent, that he was catapulted into stardom and became a fan favourite with Marvel moviegoers as Wong, the sardonic and deadly serious sorcerer who befriends Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange and helps him to master mystical powers.

Appearing in both seasons of the original Channel 4 programme, he recruited characters including Letitia Wright’s to run a cannabis farm.  

Around the same time, he began making appearances in big films like Johnny English: Reborn and Alien sci-fi prequel Prometheus. But it is his appearances as Wong in Doctor Strange, its sequel, and other interconnected Marvel films and TV shows that have brought him a huge new audience of adoring fans.

Micheal Ward 

The young actor first appeared in Top Boy in the rebooted Netflix series as Jamie – a fearsome rival gangster on the Summerhouse estate – in 2019, at the same time that he appeared in controversial crime drama Blue Story.

The film was at the centre of an incident in Birmingham in which police were attacked by a group armed with machetes; cinema chain Vue later said that 25 incidents of violence were reported in screenings on the first day.

However, Ward was praised for his performances in both Top Boy and the music-led gang film – the latter of which earned him a Rising Star BAFTA – and since then he has appeared opposite Colin Firth and Olivia Coleman in Sam Mendes’ racial drama Empire of Light, and worked with Steve McQueen on his BBC anthology series Small Axe.

Next year, he will appear in The Book of Clarence as part of a star-studded ensemble cast including the likes of David Oyelowo and James McAvoy, and will feature opposite Bill Nighy in sports drama The Beautiful Game.

Sharon Duncan-Brewster 

Duncan-Brewster, 47, was an established TV actor before appearing in Top Boy – appearing as central character Crystal in ITV prison drama Bad Girls, with parts in EastEnders as Trina as well as appearances on Holby City, Waking the Dead and Doctors.

But after appearing in Top Boy as Lisa, mum of central character Ra’Nell in seasons one and two, the actress has appeared in Sex Education, Star Wars prequel Rogue One and even the FIFA series of football games, where she appears as the mother of fictional footballer Alex Hunter as he dreams of making it big in the game.

But she has received high praise following her appearance in Denis Villeneuve’s rebooted Dune as scientist Liet-Kynes. Her performance in the sci-fi flick led to Vanity Fair branding her ‘Dune’s secret weapon’ that ‘brings (her role) to life’. 

This year, she has continued her intergalactic ascension with a voice role in Disney+ sci-fi series Star Wars: The Bad Batch.

Nicholas Pinnock

Pinnock, 50, had long established himself as a stage actor but prior to Top Boy had made only guest appearances in UK programmes such as Casualty, Doctors, EastEnders and Holby City.

But it was when he appeared as central character Leon in series one of Top Boy that his career found new energy. His reformed gangster spent his episodes trying to warn others off of a life of drug-dealing, with tragic consequences. He then went on to appear in The Ice Cream Girls on ITV.

In 2020, he starred in legal drama For Life, as a man who obtains a law degree behind bars while serving time for a crime he didn’t commit, which was produced by rapper Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson. Pinnock previously told Hollywood news website Gold Derby that Top Boy won him the role – because the musician was a fan.

He is currently appearing in Sky Atlantic series Django, a reimagining of the classic Italian spaghetti western from the 1960s.

Paul Anderson

Anderson, 44, appeared in Top Boy in 2013.as Mike, a psychotic would-be rival drug dealer to main character Dushane, fresh out of prison after committing armed robbery.

A year later, he starred in Troubles drama ’71 before appearing in The Revenant alongside Leonardo Di Caprio.

Now, he’s best known for starring opposite Cillian Murphy as his right-hand man, Arthur Shelby, in Peaky Blinders, and appeared in the modernised 2018 Hollywood retelling of Robin Hood.

Weruche Opia

Weruche Opia appeared in the second series of Top Boy as drug dealer Nafisa – before landing roles in hits like Bad Education and surreal BBC anthology series Inside No. 9.

These led to a leading role in Michaela Coel’s I May Destroy You as Terry, the best friend of Coel’s character Arabella, who tries to help her piece together the events of the night that she was raped. Opia has since appeared in Netflix film Slumberland, and appeared as herself in an episode of the most recent series of Black Mirror.

Opia has since distanced herself from her Top Boy role as well as her appearance on Bad Education, disparaging the parts as ‘stereotypical young black girl’ roles. She told The Observer in 2020: ‘I did it for a while – in [the TV series] Bad Education, in Top Boy – but then I made a conscious decision and told my team I didn’t want to do those roles any more.’

Saffron Hocking  

Up-and-coming actress Hocking, 31, appeared in the rebooted Netflix series of Top Boy as Lauryn, a pregnant mum-to-be who suffers domestic abuse before taking matters into her own hands. She has been nominated for a TV BAFTA for her role.

Prior to her role in the series, she appeared in Strangeways Here We Come – but since taking to the Netflix drama she has appeared in Marvel Disney+ series Moon Knight as well as Prime Video series Riches and The Devil’s Hour. 

She also appeared as the cover star on the digital edition of this month’s Cosmopolitan UK, speaking about how she has become an ambassador for domestic abuse charity Refuge after consulting the non-profit while researching for her Top Boy role.

‘Del Boy billionaire’ behind the Range saves the Wilko name (but only 36 jobs)

By Emily Hawkins

Updated: 09:35 EDT, 15 September 2023

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This is the first image of the ten-year-old girl whose murder in a children’s home allegedly by a fellow child resident has shocked Germany.

The picture emerged as the father of little Lena spoke about his loss for the first time.

Lena was found strangled in the boy’s room by staff at the facility 12 hours after she died and astonishingly after she had been raped by an opportunistic burglar who broke in through an opened bathroom window.

Speaking to MailOnline, Lena‘s father, who asked to be named only as Werner, expressed his outrage at how father-of-two Daniel Troger, 25, had been able to break in with apparent ease.

And he lashed out at authorities for letting the boy, who had a history of violence and had attacked other residents with a baseball bat, stay in the facility.

Germany has been left reeling by the atrocity which happened in April at the St Josef children’s home in the picturesque Bavarian town of Wunsiedel, 90 minutes north of Nuremburg.

Speaking to MailOnline at his home in the village of Mantel, civil servant Werner, who has been on sick leave since the death of his daughter, said: ‘I just don’t understand how this can happen. How was this man able to get into the home and attack my daughter?

‘The place should be secure. What were the staff doing that night? Why was the window left open? The children are supposed to be safe there but clearly they weren’t.

‘But the other big question is why was this boy even in there? I’ve read he had a history of violence and attacked other children there so why was he there and not in a proper institution with trained staff?

‘There is so much more the police and the authorities should be telling me but they are not. I feel as if I am being kept in the dark here and it is my daughter who is the victim.’

Lena, who was a gifted musician, swimmer and gymnast, had been at the home since November following a custody battle between Werner and his former wife of twelve years Regina.

Their daughter had been temporarily placed in the home but Werner told MailOnline he had successfully applied for her to be allowed to go on holiday with him to the Canary Islands during this year’s Easter break.

Werner said: ‘The day before she was supposed to come out, they said I couldn’t take her with me and so she had to stay there.

‘I still don’t know why they said that but if she had been allowed to come with me as they initially said she would still be here. That’s why I am so angry.’

Werner added: ‘I’ve spoken with the police numerous times and I have seen that this man has been charged with sexually attacking my daughter and the boy killed her but he is too young to face justice.

‘Lena hated it at that home. She was always crying about it whenever I saw her and she said she wanted to be with either me or my ex-wife but they wouldn’t allow it.

‘The best solution would have been for her to stay with one of us. If that had happened, she would have still been alive. That’s why I am so angry.

‘I was allowed to see her once a month for two hours and so was my wife, and every time I saw Lena she was always crying that she didn’t meant to be there.

‘She said one of the other children was trouble and picking on her. I can only assume it was this 11-year-old boy. We wanted joint custody but the court didn’t give it to us – I still don’t know why.’

When asked to describe Lena, Werner blinked back tears and said: ‘How can I have only one memory of her? I have many memories of her, all wonderful, all good. She was my first and only child. I loved her dearly.

‘She was a good girl. She didn’t deserve this and had dreams for when she grew up like any other girl. She was good at swimming; she was a musician and she loved playing the piano and the drums.

‘She liked going out riding and we spent many happy times together and now that is all I have memories.’

Werner added: ‘The police say the case is now closed because the boy cannot face justice because he is under 14 and this other man will go on trial but for me it’s not closed. It’s the authorities who are also the culprits here.

‘If Lena had been admitted to the home she would still be here. She should have been allowed to stay with either me or my wife.

‘But I would also like to know why the window was left open to allow this man to get in and why was he even there? What did he expect to steal from a children’s home? Is there is information I am not being told?

‘I haven’t taken any action yet against the home and the authorities who run it but I am thinking about it.’

In a further shocking revelation, it has emerged Troger and the boy drank beer and watched pornography together at the home in the hours before Lena was attacked and then killed.

But because he is below the age of criminal responsibility in Germany, which is 14, he will not be punished and he has since been moved to another facility elsewhere in the country.

Bin man Troger was arrested by police three weeks after the murder when he turned up for his shift at the local depot where he works in Wunsiedel.

Police linked him to the crime through DNA found at the scene and also through his mobile phone which was picked up in the building.

Troger – who is married with two young children and married to wife Cassandra – has since been charged with rape, burglary and arson.

He is suspected of having broken into five construction containers in the last year and stolen building machinery with more than £12,000.

On his now-deleted Facebook page he describes himself as a ‘proud father’ and that ‘family is the most important thing in the world’, alongside pictures of him his wife and children.

He worked as a rubbish collector in Wunsiedel and lived in nearby Thiersheim where locals remember him as a ‘loner’.

One neighbour said: ‘He didn’t really mix much with anyone. They moved here a few years ago from another part of Germany.

‘I know they have a child of around 18 months old and an older one, who is seven, as she is in the same year at school as my daughter.

‘The wife and he must have had the children very young as she can’t be more than 25 years old.’

When MailOnline knocked on the pastel blue painted house close to the village football pitch, there was no answer, but a trampoline and swings were in the garden.

On her TikTok page Cassandra has posted videos of the children playing in the garden but there are no images of her husband.

Kader Catal, who went to school with Troger, told MailOnline: ‘I was shocked when I saw the news and it gave me goosebumps as I had known him when he was younger.

‘It left a deep impression on me because of what happened to the girl and because I know he has children of his own.

‘To be honest he was a loner when I knew him at school and also quite weird – I can’t believe that someone I knew and who has children himself did something like this.’

A spokesperson for the local prosecutor said: ‘An eleven-year-old boy is suspected of murder and a 25-year-old man has been charged with rape, burglary and arson.

‘There is no evidence that the man participated in the murder of the ten-year-old girl but rather, the 11-year-old boy killed the girl after the man had left the facility, after a dispute arose between the two.

‘Due to the boy’s criminal immaturity, no criminal proceedings can be carried out against him and he has been taken into the custody of responsible authorities.

‘The older man is still in custody and he has confessed during initial questioning.

‘Investigations into possible breaches of duty by the authorities responsible for the dare of the children are still ongoing.’

Shake It Off, Alejandro! Barcelona star Balde’s lead in the Golden Boy 2023 awards PLUMMETS after angering Taylor Swift fans by claiming he didn’t like her music… as Jude Bellingham soars past him in the vote

• The Golden Boy Web award is hosted by Italian outfit Tuttosport for public voters
• Both Balde and Bellingham have mounted strong cases as rising star players 
• Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s podcast It’s All Kicking Off 

By Tamara Prenn For Mailonline

Updated: 08:29 EDT, 6 September 2023

Maui boy found burned to death in car amid fears for hundreds of kids

By Lewis Pennock For Dailymail.Com

Published: 15:37 EDT, 17 August 2023 | Updated: 15:37 EDT, 17 August 2023

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A seven-year-old boy has been found dead in a burned out car in Maui amid fears children will make up a large number of those who perished in the devastating wildfires. 

The death toll from the fires increased to 111 on Wednesday night but lawmaker Elle Cochran, who is in the Hawaii House of Representatives, said it could grow to hundreds as search operations continue.

Cochran fears many of the dead could be children because many schools in Lahaina, the historic town that has been ruined, were closed on the day of the fires due to power outages. A lot of children stayed at home while their parents were at work and might have been trapped and perished.

A kindergarten teacher in Lahaina said that a seven-year-old boy – who is the cousin of two of her former students – was found dead alongside his family in a burned out car.

Jessica Sill, who teaches at King Kamehameha III Elementary School, told the Wall Street Journal: ‘Our parents work one, two, three jobs just to get by and they can’t afford to take a day off.

‘Without school, there was nowhere for [kids] to go that day.’

Public schools on Maui have started the process of reopening and traffic has also resumed on a major road, in signs the painful recovery process is underway.

At least three schools untouched by flames in Lahaina, where entire neighborhoods were reduced to ash, were still being assessed after sustaining wind damage, Hawaii Department of Education superintendent Keith Hayashi said.

‘There’s still a lot of work to do, but overall the campuses and classrooms are in good condition structurally, which is encouraging,’ Hayashi said in a video update.

‘We know the recovery effort is still in the early stages, and we continue to grieve the many lives lost.’

Elsewhere crews cleaned up ash and debris at schools and tested air and water quality.

Displaced students who enroll at those campuses can access services such as meals and counseling, Hayashi said. The education department is also offering counseling for students, family members and staff.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency opened its first disaster recovery center on Maui, ‘an important first step’ toward helping residents get information about assistance, FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell said. 

At a news conference, Herman Andaya, Maui Emergency Management Agency administrator, defended not sounding the sirens during the fire. 

‘We were afraid that people would have gone mauka’, he said, using the Hawaiian directional term that can mean toward the mountains or inland.

‘If that was the case then they would have gone into the fire.’

There are no sirens in the mountains, where the fire was spreading downhill.

Hawaii created what it touts as the largest system of outdoor alert sirens in the world after a 1946 tsunami that killed more than 150.

Andaya said they are primarily meant to warn about tsunamis and have never been used for wildfires. The website for the Maui siren system says they may be used to alert for fires.

Beyond the decision to not use sirens, state and local officials have faced public criticism over shortages of available water to fight the fire and a chaotic evacuation that saw many trapped in their vehicles on a jammed roadway as flames swept over them.

Avery Dagupion, whose family’s home was destroyed, is angry that residents weren’t given earlier warning to get out and that officials prematurely suggested danger had passed.

He pointed to an announcement by Maui Mayor Richard Bissen on Aug. 8 saying the fire had been contained, ‘instilling a false hope in residents of Lahaina,’ when hours later the fire exploded.

That, he said, lulled people into a sense of safety and adds to the mistrust that he and others have over officials’ efforts now.

At the news conference, Gov. Josh Green and Bissen bristled when asked about that mistrust and how they can assure the public they will do all that’s needed to help the community rebuild.

‘Did mistakes happen? Absolutely,’ the governor said, later adding: ‘You can look here to see who you can trust,’ referring to the police, fire, emergency and Red Cross officials standing behind him.

‘I can’t answer why people don’t trust people,’ Bissen said. ‘The people who were trying to put out these fires lived in those homes — 25 of our firefighters lost their homes. You think they were doing a halfway job?’

With the death toll rising by four since Tuesday, a mobile morgue unit with additional coroners has been brought in to help.

Pictured: Boy, five, killed in quad bike accident after travelling from Britain with his family for holiday in Ireland

• Kerry community in ‘deep shock’ after George Francis Freddie Davenport’s death

By Ian Begley

Published: 11:55 EDT, 9 August 2023 | Updated: 12:02 EDT, 9 August 2023

Atten-shun! Adorable moment little boy who dreams of becoming a beefeater salutes his idols during changing of the guard at St James’s Palace

By Alanah Khosla

Updated: 14:14 EDT, 4 August 2023

Five-year-old boy drowned in Cornwall holiday park pool when his parents ‘didn’t see him struggling because of low lighting and barriers’ – moments after family took pictures of them putting up tent together at the start of their summer trip

• Robin Caliskan, five, drowned at the Atlantic Reach holiday park in Newquay

By Katherine Lawton

Published: 09:30 EDT, 1 August 2023 | Updated: 13:56 EDT, 1 August 2023