News — New York Post

Sheila Brown walked out of WUFO in Buffalo, New York, after working at the radio station for 14 years. She left after the station changed management and their operations were not in line with her vision. Brown however plans of returning to the station had but was not sure in what capacity. After eight years, she came back and purchased the station. Today, she is the first Black woman to own a radio station in Buffalo, New York.

According to reports, she started her career at the station in the ’80s. True to her vow, Brown returned and bought the station. “I looked at the building and I waved and said, don’t worry baby, I’ll be back,’” Brown told reporters. 

It was not an easy journey for the Buffalo native who grew up in Hamlin Park. The banks did not believe in her vision and at a point, she was told to revise her business plan. Her church and Bishop had faith in her from the onset.

“I went through everything, we had banks say no like three times before they said yes, and credit unions said no your business plan needs to be updated, but True Bethel and Bishop Daris Pridgen, and they had faith in me.”

Not only has Brown taken over the station which she worked hard to get, but she has also elevated their frequency and added an FM channel to it in partnership with Power 96.5. Now the WUFO brand is reaching more folks than it has over the years.

This has made it more attractive and lucrative because advertisers know they can reach millions with the new visibility. Also, many influencers and popular DJs have walked through their doors for business.

WUFO is certainly going places under the leadership of Brown. Prominent figures are interviewed at the station and the station hosts a weekly talk with the mayor. The station runs the WUFO history collectible containing about 60 years of WUFO memorabilia.

Brown admits that being the youngest of three siblings and growing up in an extremely supportive family gave her the confidence she needs to take on the world.

She grew up wanting to pursue greater exploits. “My uncles coming to see us would go hey here comes our superstar,” she said. “Not saying it to boost me but just positive affirmation, so I never was afraid of anything I was going to do.”

Her only reservation is, it has been a long time coming for her to own the station but that should not have been the case. This only goes to show there are many aspects of our potential as Black people and women to be precise that we are yet to explore.

Vice President Kamala Harris is certainly proud to be the first Black-Asian female second in command in the country and she certainly has made it clear she does not want to be the last. The same goes for Brown who intends on using her platform to open more doors for many who aspire to step into their greatness.

“It feels good, but it’s sad in 2021 we’re still talking about the first if anything, but I’m just proud that the lord used me to be the first woman of color to own a radio station,” shared Brown. “The Vice President said she might be the first but not the last so my goal is to prep other people.”

A 29-year-old New York man who was arrested for allegedly attacking women unprovoked at a subway stop in Brooklyn is facing a 52-count indictment and could be sentenced to up to life behind bars if found guilty.

According to New York Post, Khari Covington allegedly attacked five women at the Morgan Avenue subway station somewhere between November and January. He also allegedly assaulted two other women around the vicinity on August 5 and January 4 respectively. Covington faces a slew of charges including burglary as a hate crime, strangulation as a hate crime and assault as a hate crime. Asked about the motive behind his attacks, Covington allegedly told investigators he targeted the women because they were light-skinned.

“This defendant’s alleged violent and unprovoked attacks endangered the women he targeted and caused widespread fear in the community,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said in a statement on Wednesday. “I am committed to prosecuting all hate crimes where victims, including as alleged in this case, are targeted because of their gender, skin color or race.”

One of the victims who earlier spoke to the news outlet condemned the police for not doing enough to warn women of Covington’s unprovoked attacks at the subway when they got to know about the pattern.

“I was stunned that this had happened so many times. I didn’t see any police stationed there. There were no flyers,” Bianca Fortis said in January. “There’s not enough security. After it happened the first time, or certainly the second, there should have been more information. Even just a flyer saying be on alert.”

Elizabeth Wakefield, another victim, also narrated her ordeal to NBC New York, saying: “He was coming down behind me, and he must have — from the angle and from what I’ve gathered — kicked me in the side of the face and head from behind. My immediate thought after it happened to me was, I really hope this doesn’t happen again to somebody else.”

And though police did not confirm to NBC New York if the attack on Wakefield was connected to the other incidents, she said it was possible Covington was behind them following conversations she had with the other victims.

“It sounds like similar descriptions of what he looked like and pretty much the exact same style of attack, and the same exact subway stop,” Wakefield said.

Covington was arraigned in court on Wednesday and his bail was continued at $150,000.