tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-210836732024-03-07T16:12:32.304-08:00Mirror On AmericaBrian http://www.blogger.com/profile/07872444863142531165noreply@blogger.comBlogger4642125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-50844170970761384342016-02-14T19:42:00.001-08:002016-02-15T11:04:49.859-08:00Why Beyonce Cannot Be Taken Seriously<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4k450XQR2ApP0-n-sQoRce6we-BAGd52NYorJoZg7BSLCONk4n9hLiWSHqOBFLVVoAqZsZddpbVv6BKbq1IkpPr22VbVvZbIEZW6u5y-5oRF8e5bR-upUXrzzjXY2FL8b6dextA/s1900/Beyonce+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4k450XQR2ApP0-n-sQoRce6we-BAGd52NYorJoZg7BSLCONk4n9hLiWSHqOBFLVVoAqZsZddpbVv6BKbq1IkpPr22VbVvZbIEZW6u5y-5oRF8e5bR-upUXrzzjXY2FL8b6dextA/s450/Beyonce+2.jpg" /></a><br />
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The Beyonce halftime performance at Superbowl 50, and the subsequent aftermath were hard for me to watch without my blood boiling. My consternation was not driven by the angst of some White Americans necessarily, or the calls for an anti-Beyonce protest. Although those arguments have merit. I am one of the few black Americans who recognizes the hypocrisy of this whole mess. <br />
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Some say the Beyonce performance was an “attack” on police officers. Others say it was an effort to support the so-called “Black Lives Matter movement” and to highlight the deaths of black people, particularly black men, at the hands of authorities. Others say that it was a salute to the Black Panthers - highlighting the groups emergence in the Bay Area, 5 decades ago. It has also been described as a salute to Malcom X. Beyonce seemed to embrace the spirit of all of these ideas in post-performance interviews. That is what the song ‘Formation’ is supposedly all about. But this raises a ton of questions. I know it did one thing- it hijacked the performance of the other artists who participated that day. I found it ironic that Coldplay seemed to have a healthy, positive theme of ‘coming together’, while Beyonce seemed to bring more division, at a time when we have more than enough. <br />
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Should, or more importantly, can anyone take this woman seriously? Let me get this straight- Mrs. Thug Love is now supposed to be an activist, advocate & catalyst for social change? Mrs. Destiny’s Child is now concerned about the lives of black men & boys and believes that too many are dying in the streets? When I heard that this was the gimmick, I was beside myself. I wondered if I had entered the Twilight Zone. <br />
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Beyonce has spent nearly two decades influencing black culture, young black women in particular. She has shaped fashion, hair, makeup and culture for young women for years. Keep in mind Beyonce is literally treated like a deity in today’s black culture. I often (half jokingly) say that one of the main requirements for being a Black American is that you must love & admire Beyonce. As a consequence of her role and position she has also helped to shape the image of what the ideal mate should be for young women. It’s easier to count the number of young women of color who have not been influenced by Beyonce in some way. <br />
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If you are a Black American like I am and you don’t support “Queen B”, you are considered some sort of freak…uncool, corny, out of the loop, an oreo, etc. So her influence on today’s black culture, young black impressionable women in particular, is massive. <br />
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So what has been the image that Beyonce has promoted as the ideal mate for young women? None other than the badboy/thug. That message and theme is present all throughout her music, spanning 2 decades. Her many collaborations with gangster rappers and her marriage to a former drug dealer only reinforces this message. From the Destiny’s Child hit & signature tune “Soldier”- where she promotes the image of thugs loud & proud, suggesting, very clearly, that this is the only guy for her…. To songs like “Up In The Club” and “Thug Love” (among others), the theme is clear - she prefers thugs, and other women of color should follow suit. The message to women is…if he’s not a thug, tough guy, badass, tattooed, with “street credibility“…don’t date him. Of course, women of color in particular, predisposed to the bad boy have, by in large, heeded that call. <br />
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I cannot help but wonder how many young men have died trying to conform to this image. Black men without a doubt, already stigmatized, are under pressure, mostly from within their own communities and by black women in particular, to fit a certain badboy image, and in many cases they feel that they have to be the toughest mother_____ on the block. This has been made worse by young women lusting for men with this rough badboy image so that they can be just like their pop idols. There is no doubt that because of this pressure, many young black men had to change & conform to the thug image to fit in, even when their true personas represent something else. I have seen this in abundance over the years, both first hand, and through stories from other black men. I have personally never taken the bait and changed myself to satisfy any of these women, but it does have an impact on men of color in a more broad sense. <br />
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I recall a letter from a couple of years ago in the “Dear Abby” section of The Examiner. In that letter a young black man asks if he has to play a thug to peak the interests of black women. He was fed up by what he saw from women around him. They always went for the guy with the thuggish traits. Of course he already knew the answer to his question…. He expressed the fact that changing to fit the thug image was the only way that he was successful with black women, even though his real persona was that of an educated, nice, upstanding, funny, gentleman. I hear these stories constantly and I know this issue is real… my first hand experience has been undeniable.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipMxJq_a7d4ozppIeTQqw4yzRborP60lvqFdzSliRsc98mxxnMW7jkngZo0U7Lsxf53cnrJ97bCOJgdJH4D0vchWTu8aVb2Y0fIjCvW9HJYaS7484e3IrZBhzKsgqpBFUKCYTHJw/s1600/Beyonce+knowles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipMxJq_a7d4ozppIeTQqw4yzRborP60lvqFdzSliRsc98mxxnMW7jkngZo0U7Lsxf53cnrJ97bCOJgdJH4D0vchWTu8aVb2Y0fIjCvW9HJYaS7484e3IrZBhzKsgqpBFUKCYTHJw/s320/Beyonce+knowles.jpg" /></a></div>So how many black men have been indirectly killed or have found themselves in prison because they are trying to live up to this thug image that Beyonce has helped to push (an image that is now supported & validated by large numbers of black women)? This number cannot be quantified, but I am confident in saying that her influence has led to more black men being harmed (pushing more black men to death or prison) than the number of unjustified killings of black men at the hands of authorities. Those of us who actually understand statistics are aware that the number of unjustified police shootings is extremely low, particularly when compared with the number of police interactions. Far more have been killed after being influenced by urban culture…cut down by black on black violence. These are young men who, if influenced differently, could have and in many cases would have, taken a different path.<br />
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Through my life experience and in my line of work, I have seen the devastating impact of the Beyonce’s of the so-called black community. The conveyor belt to prison is always full. Young black men are told that they have to be aggressive and be a bonafide tough guy in order to have a chance at dating or intimacy. In this era of feminism, where women make all the rules, men, by in large, have no choice but to conform under those circumstances. And this is what black men have been doing. If a man is constantly told, both directly and indirectly, that he has to have fancy material things…. that his manhood is tied to what he drives, he will conform. In the absence of adequate entry-level employment, even for someone with a degree, young black men (many with arrest records and convictions that preclude employment) are forced to create their own jobs to meet this Beyonce standard. They have the brains to stay in school…. but the subculture that they live in tells them that they have no time to wait. <br />
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If artists like Beyonce and Rihanna and the like proclaimed love and affection for men who stay in school, get good grades, who pursue college& graduate, and who don’t engage in criminality, there would be a seismic shift (over time) in the black community. Would it eliminate crime or improve conditions overnight? Unfortunately no. But if popular and influential artists proclaimed education to be cool….and something that is the ideal attribute for a man…. It could help to stop the downward spiral. It would certainly reduce the number of black men (by the thousands) in the jail, prison, and funeral home pipeline. <br />
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Beyonce being tied to Black Lives Matter in any way just further highlights the hypocrisy and misguided vision (or lack of vision) from within this so-called “movement”. Dr.’s Glenn Loury and John McWhorter pointed out very nicely the errors of this movement in a discussion from last year. Dr. McWhorter in particular is on point as he so often is, in highlighting the Black Lives Matter paradox. He echoes many of my viewpoints on this group. Hear <a href="http://download.bloggingheads.tv/completed/bhtv-2015-09-24-loury-mcwhorter.mp4">the full discussion.</a> Not a discussion to miss.<br />
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Not only is Beyonce a walking contradiction in the sense that black men are killing each other in droves often in the pursuit of meeting the standard of materialism and thuggery that she has pushed throughout her career, but she also besmirched the memory of Hurricane Katrina and all those who suffered in New Orleans, as pointed out by New Orleanian Shantrelle Lewis, in <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/doublex/2016/02/beyonc_s_formation_exploits_new_orleans_trauma.html">her excellent piece in Slate.</a> (Please stop by Slate for this must read). Beyonce didn’t seem to leave anyone out in terms of offending. I thought it was ironic that part of the effort was aimed at slamming police, yet a large contingent of officers escorted her to and from the venue on Superbowl Sunday. <br />
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So Beyonce is a hypocrit. The real civil rights activists…the folks doing the real work on the ground everyday, especially those from the 1950’s and 60’s, should be outraged that Beyonce is using the imagery of their struggle to sell an album. Selling an album is all that this was really about to her. She doesn’t care about saving the livers of black men (or women for that matter). Beyonce is concerned with Beyonce…and selling units. If she cared, she would do more benefit concerts for the victims of violence in cities like Chicago, Baltimore, Memphis, or my hometown of St. Louis- the nations murder capital by percentage. St. Louis has either had that top spot or has been among the top for the better part of a decade and a half. When 9 year old Tyshawn Lee was assassinated in a Chicago alley by gang members as some kind of revenge, where was Beyonce, her hive and her money? Where was Jay Z? When 1 year old Dillan Harris….a 1 year old baby boy…was killed in Chicago by thugs running from a murder scene… where was Beyonce? Nowhere to be found. She is concerned about black lives? There are countless Tyshawn Lee’s and Dillan Harris’ across the country, particularly in our inner cities. But I don’t see Beyonce stepping in the clean up the mess of the culture of thuggery and violence that she has helped to perpetuate. <br />
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If Beyonce wanted to show concern for black lives, particularly the lives of black men who have been impacted most viciously by the cycle of violence and hopelessnes….if she really cared, she would set up job training centers in these troubled inner cities. She would take her money and her hive and volunteer her time feeding and clothing those in need in these communities. If Beyonce really cared about the plight of black lives, she would change her theme…and stop perpetuating the garbage….the mental trap…that keeps so many black men stuck in a brutal cycle of violence. If the black nerd was deemed sexier than the badass…the troublemakers…who harm the community, we would soon have more young men like those in Chicago’s Urban Prep Academy…and fewer falling into hopelessness and prison. Beyonce should try flipping that message around to try to make a difference. If Beyonce really cared, she would change her outlook and values on what a good man is supposed to be (from the presentation on the outside, to his spirit on the inside). She wouldn’t poison the minds of young black folks, especially young women who listen to her music, adopt her style, and emulate her every move. <br />
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The Beyonce craze is the perfect example of how black folks will too often follow anything with a cool look and a catchy hook. Be aware of who you are supporting. <br />
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A social justice lion who will change the black community for the better? Absolutely not. There is no evidence of that…. not even on the horizon. A slick business woman who is using Black History Month and Black Lives Matter to sell a tremendous number of albums? Absolutely yes. Brian http://www.blogger.com/profile/07872444863142531165noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-41086701764148116152015-03-02T12:57:00.004-08:002015-03-02T12:57:36.702-08:00Will Chicago Elect A New Mayor?<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/chuy-vs-rahm.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-61525" src="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/chuy-vs-rahm.jpg" alt="chuy vs rahm" width="299" height="168" /></a>
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This past Tuesday delivered a shock to TPTB in Chicago: Mayor Rahm Emmanuel has been forced into a runoff.
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His opponent is Jesus 'Chuy' Garcia, who, if elected, would become Chicago's First Latino Mayor.
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When I say that folks just assumed that Rahm would get the 50% +1 of the votes needed to avoid a runoff, I mean it.
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I mean, how could he not. He raised money hand over fist.
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He outspent Chuy 12 to 1.
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TWELVE TO ONE.
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He had all these slick ads, and these slickly made fliers.
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But, here's the thing.
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Rahm doesn't have a base.
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I can't point to anyone, other than the 1% that remotely likes Rahm, and would come out, hell or high water, to vote for him.
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There are those who were afraid of him, and then there are those, like me, who are sick of him, and want an apology from those who voted him in 4 years ago.
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Rahm has brooked no dissention, using the remap to vanquish those who had the nerve to question and oppose them. That is what happened to Mayor Opponent Bob Fioretti, whose longtime 2nd Ward was moved from its eternal spot of downtown and the beginning of the South Side, to far flung reaches onto the other side of town. Rahm when he couldn't remap his enemies, put money into candidates against those who questioned him.
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The story of Tuesday just isn't that Rahm is facing a runoff...
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It's that 40% of the City Council is facing a runoff...
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Including 8 of the 9 largest $$$$ recipients from Rahm's SuperPac.
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I think it's a beautiful thing.
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As it breaks down now, Chicago is one third Black, White, and Latino.
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Mr. Garcia has a base in the Latino Community.
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Rahm will win the White Vote.
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That means the route to the 5th Floor (The Mayor's Office) will run through the Black Community.
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Of the 14 Super Majority Black Wards in Chicago:
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Rahm won 6 of them.
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Black Candidate Willie Wilson won 8.
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Mr. Wilson, so far, has declined to endorse Rahm.
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I can understand Black folks' hesitation in putting their support behind Mr. Garcia. The bonds between the Latino and Black community have been strained over the years, due to certain political decisions by certain Latino politicians (looking at you Luis Gutierrez, and the heads of the HDO)..
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But, I've listened to a number of Black politicos in the know, that have kept up the dissent in the years of King Richard II and now during the time of Rahm...
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And, they say that Mr. Garcia is the real deal, and that we can approach him as an ally.
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I do know that Mr. Garcia comes across as a true public servant, and his humbleness comes through in the few ads that he was able to get on tv during the primary.
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What I know for sure is that Mr. Garcia, who is a former Alderman, State Senator, and now on the Cook County Board of Commissioners. Chuy knows how government works, and how to make it work. Don't let ANYONE convince you that the man, who got into politics with Harold Washington, isn't qualified to be Mayor.
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He may not be 'polished', but I don't need 'polished.
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Chuy lives in the Little Village neighborhood. He has stayed to live among 'the people'. That matters to me. He understands what the average Chicagoan who gets up and goes to work and wants to live in the city that they loved is going through.
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A radio host that I respect was disappointed that Chuy was the second choice, and thus, the runoff candidate against Rahm. He thought that Chuy was the' weaker of the choices'. I disagreed with his assessment. I disagreed with him because it was plain that Rahm couldn't break 45%. Oh, they had some bullshyt poll from the Tribune that had Rahm at 48%, which I thought was bogus and propaganda only to discourage people from coming out because they thought that Rahm couldn't be beat. Make no mistake, TPTB wanted no runoff. They wanted a low turnout election, because they believed it favored Rahm. Rahm was 'inevitable'. Rahm had all the money. All the endorsements. All the slick ads.
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What Rahm didn't have was the people behind him.
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Mr. Garcia was polling in the 20's all throughout the race. He wound up at 34%, which means that damn near every undecided voter in Chicago decided to go his way on election day. None of the undecideds gave Rahm a second chance.
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55% of Chicago said that Rahm had to go.
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Now, the election is ON!
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For the Latino community, I believe where will be more voter registration in the community, because, like the Black community in 1983, they see the possibility of one of ' their own' can occupy that office on the Fifth Floor.
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There are the White Progressives who never liked Rahm, and would relish the chance to get rid of him.
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And then, there are Black folks like me, who have been seething ever since he was elected on the backs of Black folks four years ago. Rahm did everything I thought he would do, and for those Black folks - because it was Black folk that put him in office - you owe the rest of us an apology.
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Nobody likes Rahm.
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Nobody would walk over broken glass for him.
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And, it's about to show.
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Why does Rahm need to go?
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I am a lifelong Chicagoan (outside of the times I left the city for college and graduate schools)
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Rahm’s arrogance knew no bounds.
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It wasn’t just the closing of 55 schools in BLACK NEIGHBORHOODS..
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It was turning around and giving the money – that they said wasn’t there to help improve the public schools..
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To Charter School scams.
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It was not being able to find TIFF monies for the Black and Brown neighborhoods …
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But, the ability to find $125 million dollars for a stadium for DEPAUL who hasn’t had a winning team since I was a child.
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It wasn't just closing 55 schools in Black neighborhoods..
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But finding 20 million dollars for an expansion annex for a public school in the richest part of town….
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Finding 17 million dollars for an expansion of Walter Payton College Prep - a selective enrollment school on the North Side..
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It was deciding to put the Barack Obama College Preparatory School ON THE NORTH SIDE, and then have the nerve to say that the selective enrollment school was going to save THIRTY PERCENT of its slots for 'neighborhood residents'. He has since rescinded that decision, but we got the point the first time, and you best believe if he's re-elected, back to the NORTH SIDE that school will go.
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It was his fundamental disrespect of Black people….
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It was the scam of the redlight cameras that he expanded…
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I could be with you here for hours discussing my rage everytime I drive by the one closest to my house and how utterly ridiculous they are.
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And, don’t get me started on Chicago Snow Etiquette. I have never seen the streets of Chicago look this bad after a snow…in the post-Bilandic era.
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I’m not just talking about the South Side….
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I’m talking about DOWNTOWN CHICAGO looking pitiful after a snowstorm.
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Then, I could begin with you on the scam of the new paying system with the Chicago Transit Authority, when nothing was wrong with the old way we paid on the CTA, except for nobody was making money off of it.
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Do you get my point?
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I don't know what kind of Mayor Mr. Garcia would make. But, I'm willing to give him a chance. I know his life is closer to the one that I lead. I know that the people he is around everyday have lives similar to mine. And, that their problems of living in an urban area are akin to mine.
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If Mr. Garcia doesn't do a good job, then, as my civic responsibility in four years, I will work to vote him out of office.
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But, it's time someone other than the 1% got heard at City Hall.
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Rahm has to go.rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-5476523199678889572014-11-06T22:48:00.001-08:002014-11-06T22:48:37.757-08:00Working Too Many HoursDue to current circumstances... I am forced to work between 50 & 60 hours per week. Also have not been feeling well at all. <br />
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So I had to give up on blogging (at least blogging regularly). I am working 2 demanding jobs.... and they keep me completely stressed.<br />
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Have had plenty to say all of this time. But by the time I get home... I am exhausted. I have given up on the whole political process.... and have been left disgusted by everything... so I have not been motivated.<br />
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Blogs...and the whole concept of blogging has declined in popularity since the mid 2000's. So as the internet changes... I will have to change at some point. If you do not have one of the top 10% of blogs... site traffic is marginal. Only a few of the bloggers/blogs that were around chugging along 5,6, 7 years ago are still going. Many of my peers from years ago have left blogging. So I don't know if it's worth it to write for 100, 200, 300, 400 readers. At it's peak, I was able to draw a few thousand, depending on the material posted. <br />
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But I still hope to revamp the blog at some point. Perhaps a new name... and a more varied focus. I would like to have a blog about restaurant/food reviews. Would like something else on photography. SquareSpace is a great blog host.... but I am not sure if that is something that I can afford. And to cover all of the areas that I would like to cover... would require someone with a normal life. I don't have a normal life right now. Not even close to one. I am working more than I ever have in my life.... and I am earning less than ever (relatively speaking). Nothing is going very well right now. Issues with health and income have had a negative impact on every other part of life. <br />
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But eventually I would like a blog that covers the above all in one. I am still interested in politics... but not with the same passion. It just seems like this Country makes the same mistakes over and over again. With so few political parties... it's just a predictable cycle. We have now come full circle... back to where things started just a few years ago. <br />
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I would really like a biweekly or monthly column for a major paper or established website.... like Salon, Gawker, Slate, Mother Jones, the Huffington Post etc... But that opportunity hasn't come along. That was one of my original goals when I started the blog.... to some day work my way to a column or guest writer opportunity with one of the big sites. I had a couple of breakout opportunities back in 2007, 2008... which would have launched me... but I never took them due to issues of anonymity (I might tell that story some day). But I think a column or guest writer spot is doable under a real name, without much of an issue. <br />
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Doing the research for real writing is time consuming. It has to be worth it for me to divert time & energy forsaking other interests.... (like a personal life, dating, and a family for example). I got tired of doing tons of background reading and spending several hours a week working on narratives and trying to find interesting topics, when I was not getting much reader feedback. It just didn't seem worth it. But when I come back, it will mostly be for me... focusing on things that are enjoyable... so writing won't feel like work. <br />
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I am going to keep everything going for now. Everything has gone to Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. The only public social media that I have is Twitter. I do have a FB page... I finally broke down and joined a couple of years ago (with trepidation) but if I told you about it... or showed it... I would have to kill you immediately afterwards. <br />
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Brian http://www.blogger.com/profile/07872444863142531165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-21860496315254502442014-10-20T06:40:00.002-07:002014-10-20T06:40:50.840-07:00Illinois Folks - Early Voting Begins TodayChicago Folks....Suburban Cook County.....Illinois Folks...
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<b>EARLY VOTING BEGINS TODAY!!</b>
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Now, if you missed the deadline for registering to vote, you can go GRACE PERIOD VOTING- which mean you register to vote and vote at the same time. Grace Period is now possible THRU ELECTION DAY!
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Here are the Hours for Voting from now until Election Day:
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• Mon., Oct. 20 through Sat., Oct. 25: 9 am-5 pm
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• Sun., Oct. 26: 10 am-4 pm
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• Mon., Oct. 27 through Fri., Oct. 31: 9 am-7 pm
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• Sat., Nov. 1: 9 am-5 pm
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• Sun., Nov. 2: 10 am-4 pm
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• Mon., Nov. 3: 9 am-5 pm
• Election Day, Tues., Nov. 4: 6 am-7 pm
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City of Chicago Folks, here's your information:
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ALL 51 City of Chicago Early Voting Sites are now open for Grace Period Voting.
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<a href="http://www.chicagoelections.com/en/grace-period-registration-and-voting.html">LIST OF ALL 51 CITY OF CHICAGO EARLY VOTING SITES</a>
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Suburban Cook County, here's your information:
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ALL Suburban Cook County Early Voting Sites are now open for Grace Period Voting.
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<a href="http://www.cookcountyclerk.com/elections/earlyvoting/Pages/EarlyVotingLocations.aspx">LIST OF ALL SUBURBAN COOK COUNTY EARLY VOTING SITES</a>
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Now, remember, when you go to Early Vote or Grace Period Voter,you will need ID. Grace Period voters need two pieces of ID. Here is the list of acceptable ID.
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Neither needs to be a photo ID, but one must include your current address. Acceptable forms of ID include:
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<strong>Illinois driver's license
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Illinois state ID
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Employee or student ID
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Credit card
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Social security card
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Birth certificate
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Utility bill in applicant's name
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Mail postmarked to the applicant
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Valid U.S. passport
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Public aid ID card
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Lease or rental contract</strong>
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Here is the <a href="http://www.thewillcountyclerk.com/connect/site/index.jsp?menuItemId=101">WILL COUNTY</a> information.
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Here is the <a href="http://www.dupageco.org/Election/Voters/37061/">DUPAGE COUNTY</a> information.
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If you have kids or family that might need Mail (Absentee) Ballots, and the person has an Illinois Drivers License/State ID, you can order a mail ballot ONLINE.
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<a href="http://www.cookcountyclerk.com/elections/mailvoting/Pages/default.aspx">COOK COUNTY</a>
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<a href="http://www.dupageco.org/Election/Voters/37064/">DUPAGE COUNTY</a>
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<a href="http://www.thewillcountyclerk.com/connect/site/index.jsp?menuItemId=101">WILL COUNTY</a>
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The big election in Illinois is for Governor. You don't have to like Governor Pat Quinn, but just remember this, almost 700 thousand in Illinois have been helped because of the full implementation of Obamacare in this state. Of that, over 460,000 were helped because of the Medicaid Expansion. Rauner has already said that he would NOT have done that..because THAT is who he is. So, think on THAT. If Rauner had been Governor, nearly a HALF MILLION PEOPLE in this state - the WORKING POOR - would be without access to BASIC healthcare. Rauner also doesn't believe in the minimum wage. Just thought you should know. rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-42256420007712154662014-08-17T21:56:00.000-07:002014-08-17T21:56:22.781-07:00I Am Tired of the Rioters and Chaos in St. LouisI have been tired of the chaos since before the Michael Brown situation. Urban terrorists have been laying siege to the St. Louis Metro area for years.<br />
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There was no Al Sharpton, no response from Civil Rights Inc. when a grandmother, Juliette Cleveland-Davis, was gunned down like a dog by thugs in front of her grandchildren just a couple of weeks ago. Not a peep from them.<br />
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<iframe width="510" height="290" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/p04BeElmr0o" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Brian http://www.blogger.com/profile/07872444863142531165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-28148936042431420132014-07-04T08:00:00.000-07:002014-07-04T08:00:03.414-07:00Happy 16th Birthday to First Daughter Malia Ann Obama!!
Today is the 16th Birthday of the President's Eldest Daughter - Malia Ann Obama.
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Happy Birthday to someone who is blossoming into a beautiful young woman right before our eyes.
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-17.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-17.jpg?w=640" alt="malia obama-17" width="640" height="426" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-56388" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-18.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-18.jpg?w=640" alt="Senate Hopeful Barack Obama Waits For Election Results" width="640" height="440" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-56389" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-16.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-16.jpg" alt="malia obama-16" width="320" height="240" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56387" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-15.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-15.jpg" alt="malia obama-15" width="640" height="360" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56386" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-14.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-14.jpg" alt="malia obama-14" width="220" height="312" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56385" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-13.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-13.jpg" alt="malia obama-13" width="519" height="393" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56384" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-12.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-12.jpg" alt="malia obama-12" width="290" height="411" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56383" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-10.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-10.jpg?w=640" alt="malia obama-10" width="640" height="502" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-56382" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-9.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-9.jpg" alt="malia obama-9" width="300" height="550" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56381" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-8.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-8.jpg" alt="malia obama-8" width="300" height="400" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56380" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-7.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-7.jpg" alt="malia obama-7" width="634" height="571" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56379" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-6.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-6.jpg" alt="malia obama-6" width="286" height="176" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56378" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-5.png"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-5.png" alt="malia obama-5" width="300" height="168" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56377" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-4.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-4.jpg?w=640" alt="President Barack Obama Takes Part in "Christmas In Washington"" width="640" height="320" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-56376" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-3.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-3.jpg" alt="malia obama-3" width="193" height="261" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56375" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-2.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-2.jpg" alt="malia obama-2" width="225" height="225" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56374" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-1.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-1.jpg" alt="malia obama-1" width="607" height="911" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56373" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-6.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-6.jpg" alt="Malia Obama" width="314" height="425" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2447" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-16.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-16.jpg?w=640" alt="Obama Campaigns Ahead Of Indiana And North Carolina Primaries" width="640" height="866" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-2456" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-26.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-26.jpg" alt="US-POLITICS-OBAMA-IDAY" width="240" height="283" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2463" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-50.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-50.jpg" alt="Sasha & Malia 50" width="300" height="405" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2486" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-60.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-60.jpg" alt="CT wom_obama039.JPG" width="500" height="331" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2496" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/malia-obama-3.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/malia-obama-3.jpg" alt="Malia Obama 3" width="300" height="425" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2505" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/malia-obama-2.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/malia-obama-2.jpg" alt="Malia Obama 2" width="260" height="300" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2507" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/malia-obama.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/malia-obama.jpg?w=640" alt="2009 Armed Forces Inaugural Committee" width="640" height="752" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-2509" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/obama-family-portrait1.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/obama-family-portrait1.jpg" alt="Obama Family Portrait" width="500" height="333" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2518" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/obama4.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/obama4.jpg?w=640" alt="President Obama Welcomes Children To A Christmas In Washington Event" width="640" height="482" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-4838" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/easter-egg-roll20.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/easter-egg-roll20.jpg" alt="Malia Obama holds her dog Bo at the Easter Egg Roll, at the White House in Washington" width="338" height="610" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-8556" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/first-family-arrives-in-chile11.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/first-family-arrives-in-chile11.jpg" alt="U.S. President Barack Obama and family arrive in Santiago" width="413" height="610" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-7554" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/easter-egg-roll40.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/easter-egg-roll40.jpg" alt="President And Mrs. Obama Host Annual Easter Egg Roll" width="441" height="610" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-8600" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/africa6.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/africa6.jpg" alt="APTOPIX South Africa Michelle Obama Africa" width="232" height="132" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-11160" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/malia-obama.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/malia-obama.jpg" alt="Malia Obama +" width="636" height="477" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-11816" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/pardoning-a-turkey-14.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/pardoning-a-turkey-14.jpg" alt="Obama Pardons The National Thanksgiving Turkey" width="610" height="392" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-17390" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/bo-obama5.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/bo-obama5.jpg" alt="The White House Debuts The Obama's New Dog Bo, A Portuguese Water Dog" width="400" height="262" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-14379" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/morning-worship27.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/morning-worship27.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama, Malia Obama" width="484" height="610" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-12280" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/president-obama-book-shopping-with-the-daughters24.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/president-obama-book-shopping-with-the-daughters24.jpg" alt="Barack Obama, Malia Obama, Sasha Obama" width="340" height="245" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-17487" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/white-house-christmas-tree-7.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/white-house-christmas-tree-7.jpg" alt="First lady Michelle Obama receives the 2011 White House Christmas Tree" width="340" height="245" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-17435" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/sea-life-park.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/sea-life-park.jpg" alt="U.S. President Barack Obama walks with his daughters at Sea Life Park in Hawaii" width="610" height="504" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-18947" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/church-at-marine-base3.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/church-at-marine-base3.jpg" alt="US President Barack Obama and his daught" width="340" height="245" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-18838" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/browne-education-campus-2.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/browne-education-campus-2.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama stands with her daughter Malia as Obama delivers remarks during a day of service to honor Martin Luther King, Jr, at a school in Washington" width="610" height="477" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-20008" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/easter-service20.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/easter-service20.jpg" alt="US President Barack Obama and daughter M" width="610" height="429" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-25835" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/sunday-services-18.png"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/sunday-services-18.png" alt="sunday services 18" width="350" height="233" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-34599" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/election-win22.png"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/election-win22.png" alt="election win22" width="594" height="396" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-35397" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/malia-obama-dances-on-the-reviewing-stand.png"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/malia-obama-dances-on-the-reviewing-stand.png" alt="Malia Obama dances on the reviewing stand" width="350" height="233" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-38962" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/malia_obama-147x250.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/malia_obama-147x250.jpg" alt="malia_obama-147x250" width="147" height="250" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-47488" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/fathersdaywh2013-5-e1371304457249.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/fathersdaywh2013-5-e1371304457249.jpg" alt="U.S. President Barack Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha, watch on television as first lady Michelle Obama takes the stage to deliver her speech at the Democratic National Convention, in the Treaty Room of the White House in Washington" width="540" height="304" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-45792" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/first-family-church8.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/first-family-church8.jpg" alt="Obama And Family Go To Sunday Church" width="350" height="241" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-50078" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/forbidden-city15.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/forbidden-city15.jpg" alt="Forbidden City15" width="486" height="339" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-53820" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/christmas-tree-lighting31.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/christmas-tree-lighting31.jpg" alt="President Obama, First Family, Attend National Christmas Tree Lighting" width="594" height="396" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-51020" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-1008.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-1008.jpg?w=640" alt="Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Malia Obama" width="640" height="929" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-52110" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/terracotta16.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/terracotta16.jpg" alt="terracotta16" width="594" height="396" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-54055" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/defining-images14.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/defining-images14.jpg?w=640" alt="Victory" width="640" height="444" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-54965" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-19.png"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/malia-obama-19.png" alt="malia obama-19" width="233" height="350" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56390" /></a>
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rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-41290653606760008062014-06-12T11:39:00.001-07:002014-06-12T11:39:19.128-07:00Actress/Activist Ruby Dee Dead at 91
<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-1.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-1.jpg?w=640" alt="ruby dee-1" width="640" height="900" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-56045" /></a>
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Another Legend has gone home.
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Ruby Dee dead at 91: Legendary stage and screen actress — and Civil Rights leader — frequently costarred with husband Ossie Davis
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Family member confirms death. Dee was living in New Rochelle.
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BY Joe Neumaier , Joe Dziemianowicz , Nancy Dillon /
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NEW YORK DAILY NEWS /
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Stage and screen legend Ruby Dee, who personified grace, grit and progress at a time when African-American women were given little space in movies and on stage, died Wednesday in New Rochelle, N.Y. She was 91.
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The death was confirmed Thursday by a family member, who declined to answer any questions pending the release of a statement.
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"She died late (Wednesday) with her whole family around her," family friend Latifah Salahudin told the Daily News. "All three kids and seven grandkids were there, surrounding her with so much love. She went peacefully from natural causes. We should all be so lucky."
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"She was so full of life and so strong. Such a powerful woman. We're all going to miss her," Salahudin added.
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-8.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-8.jpg?w=640" alt="ruby dee-8" width="640" height="500" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-56052" /></a>
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The Cleveland-born, New York-raised actress and activist — winner of an Emmy, a Grammy and a Screen Actors Guild award, among others — not only starred on Broadway (“Take It From the Top!” “Two Hah Hahs and a Homeboy”), film (Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing” and “Jungle Fever”), and TV (“All God’s Children,” “Feast of All Saints”), but, with her husband and collaborator Ossie Davis, was a major figure in the Civil Rights movement.
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Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/ruby-dee-dead-91-article-1.1827040#ixzz34RwXxx4q
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-4.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-4.jpg" alt="ruby dee-4" width="500" height="658" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56046" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-3.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-3.jpg" alt="ruby dee-3" width="268" height="360" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56048" /></a>
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<a href="https://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-5.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ruby-dee-5.jpg" alt="ruby dee-5" width="269" height="354" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-56049" /></a>
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<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jCheLpvXuzM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-36409581969433790382014-06-10T07:32:00.000-07:002014-06-10T07:32:00.282-07:00Happy 13th Birthday to First Daughter Natasha " Sasha" Obama!Happy 13th Birthday to Sasha Obama!
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/sasha-obama-131.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/sasha-obama-131.jpg" alt="sasha obama-131" width="620" height="420" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-55684" /></a>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-61575037401630153632014-06-07T12:07:00.000-07:002014-06-07T12:12:30.392-07:00The Homegoing for Dr. Maya Angelou<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqHVFRe5jc0SxtxueVsFZWJ77LRRkwqP-C2VeJe1yoiG9M6tCzxqoj95UUPRvWcZuhmygtJU73ZTU6kkDXBz517r10YtyfKd2BK66X68FaQDlX4WXc-r19t_pCBKXphyphenhypheneVTx5h/s1600/maya+angelou.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqHVFRe5jc0SxtxueVsFZWJ77LRRkwqP-C2VeJe1yoiG9M6tCzxqoj95UUPRvWcZuhmygtJU73ZTU6kkDXBz517r10YtyfKd2BK66X68FaQDlX4WXc-r19t_pCBKXphyphenhypheneVTx5h/s400/maya+angelou.jpg" /></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk7_rq-oEd9TsdMZd-eMZBSCzeUCxykYiBBu0DaUeMOYCePVbIM3lJk4cfBqppkn6s2e0ZarcVZukECOmED4nIc_zGsYeH7AeUe5h3o_3tzaj1GUHOOWF5Heu-L7JGt5S_LD0L/s1600/celebration+of+rising+joy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk7_rq-oEd9TsdMZd-eMZBSCzeUCxykYiBBu0DaUeMOYCePVbIM3lJk4cfBqppkn6s2e0ZarcVZukECOmED4nIc_zGsYeH7AeUe5h3o_3tzaj1GUHOOWF5Heu-L7JGt5S_LD0L/s400/celebration+of+rising+joy.jpg" /></a></div>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-73555065751445027562014-05-28T07:16:00.003-07:002014-05-28T07:16:50.266-07:00Dr. Maya Angelou has passed away at the age of 86
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<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/29/arts/maya-angelou-lyrical-witness-of-the-jim-crow-south-dies-at-86.html">Maya Angelou, Lyrical Witness of the Jim Crow South, Dies at 86</a>
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By MARGALIT FOX
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MAY 28, 2014
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Maya Angelou, the memoirist and poet whose landmark book of 1969, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” — which describes in lyrical, unsparing prose the author’s girlhood in the Jim Crow South — was among the first autobiographies by a 20th-century black woman to reach a wide general readership, died on Wednesday in her home. She was 86 and lived in Winston-Salem, N.C.
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Her death was confirmed by her longtime literary agent, Helen Brann. No immediate cause of death had been determined, but Ms. Brann said Ms. Angelou had been in frail health for some time and had had heart problems.
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As well known as she was for her memoirs, which eventually filled six volumes, Ms. Angelou (pronounced AHN-zhe-lo) very likely received her widest exposure on a chilly January day in 1993, when she delivered the inaugural poem, “On the Pulse of Morning,” at the swearing-in of Bill Clinton, the nation’s 42nd president, who, like Ms. Angelou, had grown up poor in rural Arkansas.
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She has received over 50 honorary degrees and was Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University.
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Angelou is famous for saying, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
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<blockquote>Bar sketch, with Pryor as an alcoholic named 'Willie', and featuring John Belushi as the bartender. Willie arrives at home, where his wife (Maya Angelou) expresses her feelings on her husband's behavior, as he's passed out on the sofa</blockquote>
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Maya Angelou and Malcolm X
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<a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2014/05/28/maya-angelou-quotes/9663257/">13 of Maya Angelou's best quotes</a>
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American author and poet Maya Angelou has died, according to media reports.
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She was known for her prolific words. USA TODAY Network lists 13 of her best quotes.
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1. "If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude."
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2. "I am a Woman
Phenomenally.
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Phenomenal Woman,
that's me."
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3. "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
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4. "You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them."
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5. "My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style."
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6. "My great hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done and try to love somebody and have the courage to accept the love in return."
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7. "Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud."
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8. "I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back."
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9. "We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated."
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10. "You are the sum total of everything you've ever seen, heard, eaten, smelled, been told, forgot - it's all there. Everything influences each of us, and because of that I try to make sure that my experiences are positive."
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11. "One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest."
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12. "Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope."
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13. "Nothing can dim the light which shines from within."
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/angelou-and-coretta-scott-king.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/angelou-and-coretta-scott-king.jpg?w=640" alt="angelou and coretta scott king" width="640" height="472" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-55707" /></a>
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Maya Angelou and Coretta Scott King
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Maya Angelou and James Baldwin
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Maya Angelou and Betty Shabazz
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Maya Angelou at Oprah's Legends Ballrikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-87664457624948582452014-05-17T11:19:00.000-07:002014-05-17T11:24:05.110-07:00Why Brown v. Board of Education Is STILL the Most Important Court Decision of the 20th CenturyThis week has been the Anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision.
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The First Lady went to Topeka, Kansas to deliver a speech about the Anniversary.
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<blockquote>On the eve of the 60th anniversary of the landmark Brown v Board of Education Supreme Court decision, First Lady Michelle Obama speaks at Senior Appreciation Day in Topeka, Kansas, where the historic civil rights case began.</blockquote>
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On this commemoration, there is a tendency in some quarters to take the glass half-empty approach to what's happened in the past 60 years.
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Yes, schools have gone back to being re-segregated.
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Yes, there continues to be inequality in the schools, and it's still a funding issue. If the discrepancy in funding didn't seem to follow the re-segregation, I don't think it would be that much of an issue.
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But, don't let anyone tell you that Brown is outdated.
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That Brown wasn't necessary.
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Brown was absolutely, positively necessary.
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Brown v. Board of Education was the death knell to what I call the ' Delusional World of Mad Men'.
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Where we had a group of people believing that they were big fish in a big pond.
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When, in actuality, they were fish in a pond where 90% of the rest of the fish were shoved into sardine cans.
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Brown v. Board opened those sardine cans and let all the rest of the fish come out and swim in the pond. To be given the chance to swim in the pond and make it.
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There is a underlying lie, that there simply weren't qualified Black people to do jobs, and suddenly, after the Civil Rights Movement, all these folks just 'happened' to appear.
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That's a DAMN LIE.
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The truth is, there were generations upon generations of highly qualified Black people who never got the chance to dream. To fulfill their 'passions'. To explore ' possibilities'. All things that the youth of today do routinely.
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I never forget that my father was a man who graduated from college with honors, then went on to score in the top 1% of the CPA exam, and couldn't find a job. Not because he wasn't QUALIFIED, but because he was BLACK. He was condemned because of the year of his birth.
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I never forget that my mother and her three sisters, all honors graduates, with graduate degrees before Brown came down, literally had two professions from which they could choose: TEACHER or SOCIAL WORKER.
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That's it.
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PERIOD.
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My Aunt had a PhD in CHEMISTRY, and the best she could hope for was to be a High School Teacher. That's the closest she would ever get. No teaching in colleges; no going into ' research' - whether for a private firm or for the public sector.
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No. She could take her PhD and either become a teacher or a social worker. Unless she decided to join her fellow PhD's at the United States Postal Service, where she would not have remotely been alone.
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Brown isn't a mere courtcase.
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It is the foundation from which the building of dreams and aspirations were built. It opened the ENTIRE WORLD for people, who before had nothing but wasted potential and frustrations. How many dreams died. How much potential was murdered. How many souls were crushed because of American Apartheid? And how much did this nation lose because of that wasted potential? What cures took longer to find? What inventions came later than they should?
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There's a reason why the right wing hates Brown, because the world of their delusion has been dismantled, brick by brick, since that decision, and they can't stand it.
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Don't let people box Brown in as just as educational decision. Don't let the evaluation about Brown be done on such a narrow focus. The broader focus on Brown must always be studied and validated. The positives brought to this society because of Brown must never be allowed to be denigrated or disrespected.
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We must always fight for a better, more just society. That will never stop. We must always gird ourselves to fight for the betterment of this country. To expand opportunity for all. Thurgood Marshall is a true American Hero. He and his colleagues NAACP Legal Defense Fund brought about the legal foundation for the dismantling of American Apartheid. This country must never be allowed to forget that. And, I will always hold him and his colleagues in the highest of respect and honor.
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<blockquote>MSNBC host Melissa Harris-Perry joined her fellow MSNBC host Joy Reid on Friday to talk about the anniversary of the Supreme Court's historic decision in Brown v. The Board of Education and modern racial dynamics in education. Harris-Perry, an educator herself, said that the metrics used to assess the quality of an education need to include diversity as well as factors like test scores and college attendance.
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Harris-Perry and Reid wrestled with the history of segregation in education and eventually moved on to discuss the rise of charter schooling which both noted are now attracting minority students as well as white students. Reid noted that this phenomenon leaves public schools with fewer students who may not be of the highest academic caliber</blockquote>
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<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Wa-y3-fhwyQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-835795503045720352014-05-10T07:26:00.000-07:002014-05-10T07:26:20.585-07:00First Lady Michelle Obama Gives the Weekly AddressIn this week's address, First Lady Michelle Obama honored all mothers on this upcoming Mother's Day and offered her thoughts, prayers and support in the wake of the unconscionable terrorist kidnapping of more than 200 Nigerian girls.
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<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/PAncJ3nuczI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-90405262344599906262014-04-02T07:19:00.000-07:002014-04-02T07:19:40.468-07:00Kwasi Enin Is Accepted at *ALL* 8 Ivy League Universities!Hat tip-<a href="http://3chicspolitico.com/2014/04/01/kwasi-enin-is-accepted-at-all-8-ivy-league-universities/#comment-246934">3CHICSPolitico</a>:
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Let it be know that Kwasi Enin APPLIED to and was ACCEPTED into <strong>*ALL*</strong> EIGHT (8) Ivy League UNIVERSITIES. He's a high school senior, IVY LEAGUE COLLEGES or UNIVERSITIES, NOT schools. Got it?
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Kwasi Enin has made HISTORY, beacuse he is the FIRST student to achieve this phenomenal feat.
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<strong>CONGRATULATIONS, KWASI!</strong>
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<a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/teen-accepted-ivy-league-school-article-1.1741164">Long Island high school student is accepted at all eight Ivy League schools</a>
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Excerpt here:
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<strong><em> Kwasi Enin, a senior at William Floyd High School in Mastic, applied at each of the eight Ivy League schools and got accepted into all of them. The acceptance rate for upcoming freshmen at these elite schools ranges from 5.9% at Harvard to 14% at Cornell.</em></strong>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/1396289235000-kwasi-enin-william-floyd-high-school-2jpg.jpeg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-54422" src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/1396289235000-kwasi-enin-william-floyd-high-school-2jpg.jpeg" alt="1396289235000-Kwasi-Enin-William-Floyd-High-School-2jpg" width="534" height="401" /></a>
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<a href="http://www.christianpost.com/news/17-y-o-high-school-student-kwasi-enin-gets-accepted-by-all-8-ivy-league-colleges-in-rare-feat-looks-like-hell-be-choosing-yale-117203/">"I think my preference is Yale," he said. "They seem to embody all the kind of things I want in college. The family, the wonderful education, the amazing diverse students and financial aid, as well. I think Yale has all that for me right now. It's tough to compare all these wonderful schools," he ended. </a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/fab-news-meet-kwasi-enin-the-17-year-old-who-got-accepted-to-8-ivy-league-schools-fab-magazine-3.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-54427" src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/fab-news-meet-kwasi-enin-the-17-year-old-who-got-accepted-to-8-ivy-league-schools-fab-magazine-3.jpg?w=640" alt="FAB-News-Meet-Kwasi-Enin-The-17-Year-Old-Who-Got-Accepted-To-8-Ivy-League-Schools-FAB-Magazine-3" width="640" height="424" /></a>
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Kwasi Enin and family- LOL Ya'll know Kwasi's sister is a NERD.
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rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-89431922815232591452014-03-04T09:12:00.000-08:002014-03-04T09:25:04.295-08:00John Kerry In Ukraine - Old Thinking Has Renewed The Cold WarJohn Kerry is now in Kiev getting the U.S. more deeply involved in a Cold War conflict.... pledging Billions of dollars and making more promises of help. It is U.S. meddling since Clinton that led to this confrontation in the first place (pushing NATO eastward when it was not necessary... creating more U.S. defense obligations in the process... while antagonizing the hell out of the Russians; U.S./EU trying to control former Soviet Republics, etc). The U.S. has an interest in maintaining the Cold War so that the massive defense industry will continue to have customers (The U.S. government & other Nation States). Now there is a new line across Europe. Most Americans don't have a clue about the history of Ukranian-Russian relations.<br />
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I would rather see Obama & co take that money and invest it in much needed projects here at home. Where are the billions of dollars for Americans who desperately need it? It's ironic that while offering aid overseas... money for food stamps for Americans was slashed in the recent Farm bill. We need money to build community centers, job training centers, increase the number of job opportunities and to rebuild urban cores like Chicago, St. Louis, Baltimore, Camden....cities all across the Country. We need money to improve education, put more officers on the street (& give them better training), & weed/seed blighted areas. We need money to build/re-build infrastructure, and put together a comprehensive & strategic energy policy (like Germany has done). Money is also needed to fix the debt (a looming crisis). But when it comes to taking care of the homefront... these jackasses can't seem to find the money. But the 'meddling in conflicts & adventures overseas budget' always seems to be limitless. Americans have spent at least a trillion dollars (a trillion....just think about that for a moment) on Iraq & Afghanistan alone (and still counting). And a trillion is a lowball estimate.<br />
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American priorities are out of order.<br />
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Sadly... Americans (who don't know any better) believe that Hillary Clinton would be a great candidate for President. But we can't afford another Clinton. (She's a warhawk like her husband... but even more inclined to go to war). Biden is a joke.... and is too old. There seems to be no good viable candidates.<br />
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Hopefully another progressive will emerge (one with a fresh vision for the Country). Nation is screwed otherwise.Brian http://www.blogger.com/profile/07872444863142531165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-46717852325598015572014-03-01T11:18:00.001-08:002014-03-02T07:34:30.084-08:00Huge Mess In UkraineThe situation in Ukraine has exploded into a huge crisis. I have written here many times on the subject.... and have pointed out that Ukraine was one of the most dangerous flashpoints on earth. Now everyone is seeing why.
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The U.S. & Europe are largely to blame. Meddling and engaging in a Cold War tug of war with Russia (something not in our interests) has basically created this situation. Years of bad foreign policy from the Clinton administration, through the Bush era, and now with Obama, has now led to this. Most Americans, including diplomats & Obama advisers, don't understand Ukraine... so bad policy on Russia and Ukraine was the natural result. This has the potential of being another Berlin or Cuba. Hopefully that can be avoided with diplomatic efforts.
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Wider U.S. policy on Russia over the past 20+ years, particularly under Clinton, created the conditions in Russia that allowed a cowboy like Putin to come to power. The people of Russia once supported the U.S., especially in the 1980's... to around 1991. But years of antagonizing Russia, ignoring Russia...and pushing Russian interests aside...basically disrespecting Russia... the U.S. turned into an enemy once again. The U.S. missed an opportunity in the 1990's to bring Russia into the Western sphere (if you can call it that)...and into the normal community of nations... aligned more closely with traditional Europe. Clinton is largely to blame. I will never understand why Americans want to see another Clinton. The USA can't afford another Clinton. We are indeed still paying the price for Bill Clinton's policies.
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Follow the Ukraine situation on Twitter. Welcome to follow my twitter page.
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E-mail/call your member of Congress and let them know that you want the U.S. & Europe to keep out of Ukraine...with the exception of negotiation/mediation.Brian http://www.blogger.com/profile/07872444863142531165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-14494497017861832272014-01-30T05:53:00.000-08:002014-01-30T10:03:16.359-08:00The Infamous Human Chair Photo: Racist or Misunderstood?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqL6hMAz3XEDjYvW3rZ3mmoQSf0XdhbA13QSkjmhh9u8ac2lWubylvLnvKAJ_O-sLHNYbtgKh_Q6-Gblq4AZVaZUEG2IcYzJMV2nf6gCwBqyCT1bkYMyUdyElKh92UZWeo1W1vPA/s1600/Miroslava+Duma+black+woman+chair.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqL6hMAz3XEDjYvW3rZ3mmoQSf0XdhbA13QSkjmhh9u8ac2lWubylvLnvKAJ_O-sLHNYbtgKh_Q6-Gblq4AZVaZUEG2IcYzJMV2nf6gCwBqyCT1bkYMyUdyElKh92UZWeo1W1vPA/s640/Miroslava+Duma+black+woman+chair.jpg" /></a></div>
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The photo of Russian socialite, art critic and Garage Magazine editor Dasha Zhukova , has sparked an outcry both online & off. The photo above, originally published in the Russian magazine 'Buro 247', shows Zhukova sitting on a human chair made from a Black model. Cautious observers point out that the photo is a remake of a style and a series from previous artists. However, that context doesn't overcome the context regarding race. Racism is rampant in Russia, so how could Zhukova or anyone else believe that this would be viewed as acceptable? Then again, their aim may have been to shock. They were definitely successful at pissing off a large number of people. The aim may have been to gain more exposure for her magazine. If that is the case, then it's like adding salt to the wound. It just makes it that much worse. It has also been reported that the human figure is simply a mannequin... not a real model. Looks like a model to me. But I don't think that makes a huge difference either way.
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I think it's racist just in terms of the publisher not recognizing the social context and environment in which it was put out.
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Any thoughts? Is this defensible? Brian http://www.blogger.com/profile/07872444863142531165noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-84997480641244057352014-01-30T05:34:00.000-08:002014-01-30T05:34:51.918-08:00A Less Ambitious State of The Union <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3d7eql6yE0uS4r7FzzsjTHky4N8N3_8nFzQ-Qc214k2i8oqJanhrL6QN162LgTnbzg2Sij7o0Bbysa1kDObVQg1UoTvEoHpc6VfkDicwDFX4bJmQEQhIAxG_Hq3vrjmyH4XIoqQ/s1600/Obama+stateofunion2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3d7eql6yE0uS4r7FzzsjTHky4N8N3_8nFzQ-Qc214k2i8oqJanhrL6QN162LgTnbzg2Sij7o0Bbysa1kDObVQg1UoTvEoHpc6VfkDicwDFX4bJmQEQhIAxG_Hq3vrjmyH4XIoqQ/s400/Obama+stateofunion2014.jpg" /></a></div>
For the first time in several years, I was not glued to my TV screen for the annual State of the Union. There was not much anticipation surrounding this years speech.
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This was definitely a speech from a President who is on his way out. Unfortunately a Republican Congress was at least partially successful in its mission to block or disrupt most of his major initiatives. At least for the time being, they have at least partially won the argument on healthcare reform.... in part because they have a much better PR game, and Progressives still cannot seem to sell their ideas to a public that, for the most part, already believes in core Progressive principles. This is astonishing to me.... but I predicted as much. The PR surrounding the Affordable Care Act has been a train wreck. Progressives could not sell a lifeline to a drowning man. The fact that Obama and Co outsourced one of their most important projects to a bunch of tech amateurs and didn't triple check the work also didn't help their cause.
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In this speech, President Obama seemed to focus on remaining goals that were actually reachable.
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Unlike previous State of the Union messages, there were no repeated demands in this speech for Immigration Reform. I think Obama & Co has accepted the reality that getting something done regarding comprehensive immigration reform is unlikely. A good PR campaign could help (the public has consistently expressed support for immigration reform), but the Democrats, being so bad at PR, are not even putting up much of a fight, even though it could help them in midterms, and in 2016. It's an illogical approach on their part.
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Most of the speech was trite... much of the same blah rhetoric. I did hear a few positives.... or at least President Obama seemed to lean in a positive direction in a few areas, particularly in foreign policy. He expressed a willingness to stand up against Congress on at least some of his foreign policy moves. He expressed a desire not to allow Congress to interfere with negotiations on Iran. He also seemed to raise the bar, although slightly, on the future use of force, at least until the next pro-war American President takes office. For the first time, in about 15 years (since Bill Clinton's Kosovo adventure) an American President emphasized the need for the U.S. to "move away from a permanent war footing". First, he acknowledged that this was a problem, and secondly, he pointed out other means of asserting American influence besides using military force. However, there were several points where he ended up negating or contradicting those statements. The best example would be the obligatory declaration of support for Israel at all costs (even at the cost of America's best interests and security)...an obligatory declaration that all American Presidents must give because Israel has such a strong influence over money and politics within the U.S.
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I guess it has not dawned on him that putting Israel ahead of the U.S. and blindly supporting and defending Israel, even to the detriment of this country, means that the U.S. will literally be on a war footing forever. So which is it? The U.S. can't have it both ways. Unfortunately with Israel, it's an either/or proposition.
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In describing what America is all about, he went on to say we "free other nations from tyranny and fear. He was basically reiterating America's role as global cop. But I would argue, that's not our job. You cannot really hope to end the state of perpetual war, while at the same time, continue to push the role of the world's police force. So unfortunately, there was no groundbreaking shift from war in this speech at a time when we should have heard something more definitive. All I heard from the President on this front is that for the next couple of years, he was hoping to avoid any wars, and that we might.... just might... be able to avoid a big disastrous war with Iran. It was not the convincing message that I wanted to hear. There were no signs that the country was making a fundamental shift from outdated & nonsensical cold war, Truman Doctrine, or Bush Doctrine foreign policy. The U.S. is still headed in that wrong direction. Meanwhile, the U.S. will not be able to pay down its debt and will continue to fall behind in education, energy, education and tech.
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I would have liked to hear more about student loan debt relief and reform, patches to healthcare reform, immigration, job creation, a national energy strategy that makes sense; and investment in urban communities in terms of eliminating blight, providing jobs and job training.Brian http://www.blogger.com/profile/07872444863142531165noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-15332374134769542672014-01-20T14:06:00.002-08:002014-01-20T14:06:51.433-08:00Happy Birthday, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.Today is the national holiday honoring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
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There are plenty of speeches that one could post about Dr. King, but here's a passage from A Letter from a Birmingham Jail.
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<blockquote> LETTER FROM BIRMINGHAM JAIL
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April 16, 1963
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MY DEAR FELLOW CLERGYMEN:
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We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct-action campaign that was “well timed” in the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the word “Wait!” It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This “Wait” has almost always meant “Never.” We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that “justice too long delayed is justice denied.”
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We have waited for more than 340 years for our constitutional and God-given rights. The nations of Asia and Africa are moving with jetlike speed toward gaining political independence, but we stiff creep at horse-and-buggy pace toward gaining a cup of coffee at a lunch counter. Perhaps it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging dark of segregation to say, “Wait.” But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate-filled policemen curse, kick and even kill your black brothers and sisters; when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society; when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six-year-old daughter why she can’t go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children, and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental sky, and see her beginning to distort her personality by developing an unconscious bitterness toward white people; when you have to concoct an answer for a five-year-old son who is asking: “Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?”; when you take a cross-country drive and find it necessary to sleep night after night in the uncomfortable corners of your automobile because no motel will accept you; when you are humiliated day in and day out by nagging signs reading “white” and “colored”; when your first name becomes “nigger,” your middle name becomes “boy” (however old you are) and your last name becomes “John,” and your wife and mother are never given the respected title “Mrs.”; when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you go forever fighting a degenerating sense of “nobodiness” then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait. There comes a time when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be plunged into the abyss of despair. I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience. </blockquote>
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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/smEqnnklfYs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/wWqeQf135qM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-43201529652554690272014-01-17T06:13:00.000-08:002014-01-17T06:13:00.058-08:00Happy 50th Birthday to our wonderful First Lady: Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama!Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama was born 50 years ago today!
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She makes 50 look fabulous!!
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Thank you Mrs. Obama. You are a wonderful First Lady and represent our country so well. You will never know how deep you are in our hearts, and how much they swell everytime you step into the spotlight. We are blessed to have you and for you to be the bedrock of our wonderful First Family.
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-999.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-999.jpg" alt="michelle obama 999" width="289" height="174" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-52119" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-1000.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-1000.jpg" alt="michelle obama 1000" width="300" height="168" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-52117" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-1006.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-1006.jpg" alt="michelle obama 1006" width="494" height="378" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-52111" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-1014.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/michelle-obama-1014.jpg" alt="michelle obama 1014" width="468" height="582" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-52107" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-1.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-1.jpg" alt="ebony 1" width="197" height="255" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-52106" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-2.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-2.jpg" alt="ebony 2" width="197" height="255" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-52105" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-3.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-3.jpg" alt="ebony 3" width="570" height="733" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-52104" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-4.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-4.jpg" alt="ebony 4" width="198" height="255" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-52103" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-5.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ebony-5.jpg" alt="ebony 5" width="495" height="640" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-52102" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/michelle-obama-ebony.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/michelle-obama-ebony.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama (ebony)" width="498" height="278" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-1012" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/barack_and_michelle_obama2.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/barack_and_michelle_obama2.jpg" alt="barack_and_michelle_obama2" width="500" height="300" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-1041" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/obama-love-6.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/obama-love-6.jpg" alt="USA-POLITICS/OBAMA" width="381" height="500" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2292" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/obama-love1.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/obama-love1.jpg" alt="Barack Obama, Michelle Obama" width="468" height="568" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2286" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/obama-love-36.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/obama-love-36.jpg" alt="Obama Love 36" width="640" height="427" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2335" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-26.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-26.jpg" alt="US-POLITICS-OBAMA-IDAY" width="240" height="283" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2463" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-60.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/sasha-malia-60.jpg" alt="CT wom_obama039.JPG" width="500" height="331" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2496" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-lovely9.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-lovely9.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama Lovely9" width="544" height="728" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2990" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-lovely32.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-lovely32.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama Lovely32" width="460" height="276" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2998" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-lovely22.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-lovely22.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama Lovely22" width="320" height="240" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-3006" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-lovely30.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-lovely30.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama" width="399" height="286" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-3017" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/michelle-captures-the-heart-of-india3.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/michelle-captures-the-heart-of-india3.jpg" alt="Barack Obama, Michelle Obama" width="610" height="408" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-3848" /></a>
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President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama dance with students during a celebration of Divali during a visit to the Holy Name High School in Mumbai, India, Sunday, Nov. 7, 2010. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/capt_92c4e7f9cb85413eb485514644f6a7fc-92c4e7f9cb85413eb485514644f6a7fc-0.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/capt_92c4e7f9cb85413eb485514644f6a7fc-92c4e7f9cb85413eb485514644f6a7fc-0.jpg" alt="Oprah Winfrey, Michelle Obama" width="399" height="277" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-6189" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/correspondents-dinner71.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/correspondents-dinner71.jpg" alt="U.S. first lady Michelle Obama listens to the national anthem at annual White House Correspondents Association Dinner in Washington" width="418" height="610" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-8742" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/first-lady-michelle-and-fitness3.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/first-lady-michelle-and-fitness3.jpg" alt="US First Lady Michelle Obama exercises w" width="350" height="610" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-9221" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/banquet-at-buckingham-palace211.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/banquet-at-buckingham-palace211.jpg" alt="U.S first lady Michelle Obama poses for a photograph before a State Dinner at Buckingham Palace in London" width="273" height="610" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-9884" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/michelle-obama-2011-5-25-15-41-4.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/michelle-obama-2011-5-25-15-41-4.jpg" alt="michelle-obama-2011-5-25-15-41-4" width="492" height="600" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-9941" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/chancellor-merkel-state-dinner14.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/chancellor-merkel-state-dinner14.jpg" alt="Obama Hosts German Chancellor Angela Merkel For Official Visit To Washington" width="610" height="531" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-10674" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/emthonjeni-community-center-5.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/emthonjeni-community-center-5.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama, Malia Obama, Sasha Obama" width="610" height="445" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-11195" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/emthonjeni-community-center-12.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/emthonjeni-community-center-12.jpg" alt="U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama poses for a photo with young women leaders during a visit to the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg" width="610" height="406" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-11217" /></a>
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U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama poses for a photo with young women leaders during a visit to the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg, South Africa June 21, 2011. REUTERS/Charles Dharapak/Pool (SOUTH AFRICA - Tags: SOCIETY POLITICS)
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/archbishop-desmond-tutu28.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/archbishop-desmond-tutu28.jpg" alt="Archbishop Desmond Tutu walks with U.S. first lady Michelle Obama during a visit to Cape Town stadium" width="610" height="445" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-11392" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/madikwe-game-reserve13.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/madikwe-game-reserve13.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama, Malia Obama" width="610" height="431" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-11579" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/morning-worship27.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/morning-worship27.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama, Malia Obama" width="484" height="610" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-12280" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/lets-move24.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/lets-move24.jpg?w=640" alt="Michelle Obama" width="640" height="500" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-14160" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/jump-jacks-15.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/jump-jacks-15.jpg" alt="First Lady Michelle Obama (C) launches a" width="610" height="374" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-14535" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/veterans-day30.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/veterans-day30.jpg" alt="US First Lady Michelle Obama applauds as" width="610" height="390" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-16320" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/basketball-game-20.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/basketball-game-20.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama, Barack Obama" width="610" height="426" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-17494" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/first-family-goes-to-church.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/first-family-goes-to-church.jpg" alt="First Family goes to church" width="630" height="510" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-18160" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/fort-bragg.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/fort-bragg.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama" width="610" height="433" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-18326" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/air-force-one-10.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/air-force-one-10.jpg" alt="Barack Obama" width="610" height="508" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-19173" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-finesse.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-finesse.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama Finesse" width="340" height="361" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-19667" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/bet-honors171.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/bet-honors171.jpg" alt="U.S. first lady Michelle Obama smiles as she departs the BET Awards in Washington" width="610" height="466" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-19905" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-finesse4.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/michelle-obama-finesse4.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama Finesse4" width="325" height="214" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-20241" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/lets-move-iowa13.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/lets-move-iowa13.jpg" alt="U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama hugs children after they danced together to promote her "Let's Move" initiative in Des Moines" width="610" height="393" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-21564" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/lets-move-initiative10.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/lets-move-initiative10.jpg" alt="U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama plays mini-tennis during a "Let's Move!" faith and communities physical activity in Orlando" width="610" height="376" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-21834" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/national-underground-railroad51.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/national-underground-railroad51.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama" width="469" height="610" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-22850" /></a>
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First lady Michelle Obama tours the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Thursday, Feb. 23, 2012, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/flotus-speak-to-governors.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/flotus-speak-to-governors.jpg" alt="Michelle Obama speaks at the National Governors Association in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington" width="610" height="419" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-23055" /></a>
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rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-92086842137870684642013-12-25T00:30:00.000-08:002014-03-02T07:41:30.499-08:00Merry ChristmasMerry Christmas from everyone at MOA!<br />
rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-45935587590670427822013-12-05T17:03:00.001-08:002013-12-05T17:03:15.520-08:00Nelson Mandela - Dead at the Age of 95Nelson Mandela - a worldwide hero
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Thank you, Madiba
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<a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/12/05/nelson-mandela-obituary-south-africa-apartheid/2027237/">Nelson Mandela, South Africa's rights activist, dies</a>
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Source: The Associated Press
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Katharine Lackey, USA TODAY
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William M. Welch, USA TODAY 4:54 p.m. EST December 5, 2013
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Nelson Mandela, whose successful struggle against South Africa's apartheid system of racial segregation and discrimination made him a global symbol for the cause of human rights and earned him the Nobel Prize, died Thursday. He was 95.
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Mandela spent 27 years in South African prisons before his release in 1990. He negotiated with the nation's white leaders toward establishing democracy and was elected South Africa's first black president in 1994, serving one term.
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"He probably will be remembered both inside and outside South Africa as a political saint," said Michael Parks, the former editor of the Los Angeles Times who won a Pulitzer Prize in 1987 for his coverage of Mandela and South Africa's struggles.
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"He had flaws that he had to overcome. He had a temper he had to deal with. He had to deal with what was going to be life imprisonment. Not all his decisions were great decisions, but what political leader's are," Parks said.
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As a young man, Mandela worked as a lawyer and political activist to dismantle white minority rule under which blacks were denied political rights and basic freedoms. He began by emulating the non-violent methods of India's Mahatma Gandhi. But a turn to violence as the leader of the armed wing of the African National Congress that included a bombing campaign against government targets led to his imprisonment for over a quarter-century.
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A worldwide campaign against apartheid pressured the regime into releasing Mandela in 1990 at age 71. He vowed to seek peace and reconciliation with South Africa's whites — but only if blacks received full rights as citizens.
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“He probably will be remembered both inside and outside South Africa as a political saint.”
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— Michael Parks, the former editor of the Los Angeles Times
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Amid tense negotiations with the government and the threat of violence on all sides, Mandela emerged as a leader who guided South Africa to a new democratic government guaranteeing equal rights to all citizens. Four years later, Mandela became his nation's first black president.
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Mandela's charisma, stoic optimism and conciliation toward adversaries and oppressors established him as one of the world's most recognizable statesmen of the 20th century and a hero of South African democracy.
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"If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy," Mandela once said. "Then he becomes your partner."
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Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 along with South Africa's president at the time, Frederik Willem de Klerk, for working together to dismantle apartheid.
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Nelson Mandela's Life Story
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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jgQBoXsxr8w" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-1.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-1.jpg" alt="nelson mandela-1" width="470" height="400" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-46297" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-30-e1372028897799.png"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-30-e1372028897799.png?w=550" alt="nelson mandela-30" width="550" height="395" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-46309" /></a>
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Nelson Mandela giving a speech in Court in 1964 stating that he is prepared to die as he was being sentenced to death.
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<iframe width="515" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/-yGgnot1P-8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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BBC News Nelson Mandela released from prison
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-29-e1372027887276.jpeg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-29-e1372027887276.jpeg?w=550" alt="nelson mandela-29" width="550" height="421" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-46306" /></a>
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<blockquote>
Nelson Mandela speech delivered at the Nelson Mandela: An International tribute to Free South Africa concert on 16/4/1990,at Wembley stadium, two months after his release from prison on 11/2/1990</blockquote>
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<iframe width="515" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jpw8AU3wMsM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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Nelson Mandela Congressional Gold Medal Speech
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http://youtu.be/AO1y1n-XSVs
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-20.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-20.jpg" alt="nelson mandela-20" width="259" height="194" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-46275" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-21-e1372025671341.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-21-e1372025671341.jpg" alt="nelson mandela-21" width="545" height="307" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-46273" /></a>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-23-e1372025548930.jpeg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-23-e1372025548930.jpeg?w=545" alt="nelson mandela-23" width="545" height="449" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-46271" /></a>
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Nelson Mandela elected President of South Africa (Millennium Minutes)
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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/B2NhwFNWBO0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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Nelson Mandela Speech after being elected President
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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/eUMHJ4ELPTI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-17.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-17.jpg" alt="PD*2890189" width="507" height="390" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-46278" /></a>
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[caption id="attachment_46302" align="alignnone" width="540"]<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-26-e1372027264106.gif"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-26-e1372027264106.gif" alt="Nelson Mndela and his third wife Graca Machel" width="540" height="304" class="size-full wp-image-46302" /></a> Nelson Mandela and his third wife Graca Machel[/caption]
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-18.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-18.jpg" alt="nelson mandela-18" width="336" height="450" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-46277" /></a>
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[caption id="attachment_46276" align="alignnone" width="550"]<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-19.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-19.jpg" alt="Nelson Mandela's Prison Cell" width="550" height="367" class="size-full wp-image-46276" /></a> Nelson Mandela's Prison Cell[/caption]
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Nelson Mandela - on OPRAH WINFREY
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<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-14.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-14.jpg" alt="BIO-MANDELA-WINNIE-RELEASE" width="500" height="502" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-46282" /></a>
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Nelson Mandela at the United Nations
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[caption id="attachment_46303" align="alignnone" width="219"]<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-27.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-27.jpg" alt="Nelson Mandela with first wife Evelyn" width="219" height="223" class="size-full wp-image-46303" /></a> Nelson Mandela with first wife Evelyn[/caption]
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[caption id="attachment_46300" align="alignnone" width="545"]<a href="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-25-e1372027079259.jpg"><img src="http://ametia.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nelson-mandela-25-e1372027079259.jpg" alt="Nelson Mandela meets with the family of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. " width="545" height="382" class="size-full wp-image-46300" /></a> Nelson Mandela meets with the family of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. [/caption]
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rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-34059368080994381252013-12-05T06:26:00.000-08:002013-12-05T06:26:22.230-08:00Exclusive: Arrested Rochester teens speak outExclusive: Arrested Rochester teens speak out
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Three teens arrested while waiting for their bus, along with the basketball coach that came to their aid, tell their story to Lawrence O’Donnell.
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<iframe src='http://player.theplatform.com/p/2E2eJC/EmbeddedOffSite?guid=n_lw_3teens_131204' height='500' width='635' scrolling='no' border='no' ></iframe>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-64355804169045153082013-12-05T05:44:00.000-08:002013-12-05T05:44:11.109-08:00Obama: Income inequality is defining challenge for the U.S. Published on Dec 4, 2013
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Speaking at an event sponsored by the left-leaning think tank Center for American Progress, President Barack Obama said the income gap between America's rich and poor is a "defining challenge of our time."Income inequality has jeopardized the nation's middle class, he added.The president is also urging Washington to take steps to ensure that the economy benefits everyone.
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<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/QFxEURB4vtA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-42271683245993011192013-10-30T05:46:00.001-07:002013-10-30T05:46:11.710-07:00Trayvon Martin's mother- Sybrina Fulton- testifies to Senate Judiciary Committee <iframe width="515" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/bkU7d-6DHuo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21083673.post-29524695940431422332013-10-30T05:43:00.000-07:002013-10-30T05:43:06.504-07:00Democratic Congressman Blows Up At GOP During Obamacare Hearing: ‘Are You Really Serious?’Democratic Congressman Blows Up At GOP During Obamacare Hearing: ‘Are You Really Serious?’
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Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) slammed Republicans for failing to support the Affordable Care Act once it became law, challenging them to go back to their districts and tell their constituents that they’ll be taking away their coverage
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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/9owwg1LALxk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>rikyrahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10982657053583534299noreply@blogger.com0