A Queen doing good works and leaving haters to stew in their own misery.
Commentary by BlackKos editor JoanMar
I clicked on Twitter the other day and saw “Where’s Obama” trending. Even after going through a dozen or so tweets, other than the fact that this was primarily about Barack Obama, I still didn’t get why he was trending. What I did notice, however, was that the typical vile racists, who are not known for making an opportunity to share their bile go to waste, were out in full force attacking Michelle Obama. Oh, they were giddily and freely enjoying their little hate-fest. Nowadays, it’s a waste of time & energy to report these deplorables. They revel in the knowledge that Apartheid Man is their s/kinfolk and that because of him they now have free rein to plumb the depths of their depravity.
While the haters were busy hating and slandering her, Michelle Obama was busy doing good works in Africa. Some of us may have forgotten the groundbreaking initiatives she launched while she graced the White House… initiatives that the squatters who came after her — you know, That Mutha and his Queen Birther plagiarist wife — did everything in their power to destroy. You remember her “Let’s Move” campaign, the “Joining Forces” initiative, the “Better Make Room” initiative, her “Kids State Dinners,” to name a few. Michelle’s stature has only grown since her White House days. She’s written two best sellers, she and her husband have a major Netflix deal, she’s a major player in the Obama Foundation, and she’s still finding ways to make a difference in the lives of the underserved.
Mrs. Obama joined by Amal Clooney, and Melinda French Gates in Africa:
LILONGWE, Malawi, November 15, 2023 -/African Media Agency (AMA)/- Former First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama, global philanthropist Melinda French Gates, and leading human rights lawyer Amal Clooney, were in Malawi to support the fight against child marriage, advance gender equality, and learn how their three organizations can best support grassroots organizations and experts who are actively engaged in this work.
The three women are committed to continuing their work around the world, in partnership with local organizations, to eradicate child marriage and ensure girls and women have the power to make decisions over their own lives. In addition to furthering the impact of their work, they hope to inspire others to join them on their mission to ensure girls everywhere can reach their full potential.
Michelle Obama will be remembered as one of the most consequential first ladies in this country’s history. Soulless little bigots crawling around on Twitter and Fox will not succeed in tarnishing her legacy. She will not be diminished.
And while we are at it, in case you have a dollar or two to spare, you may consider donating to http://gofundme.org/girls-opportunity-alliance.
The Girls Opportunity Alliance seeks to empower adolescent girls around the world through education, allowing them to achieve their full potential.
Hope you all had a beautiful Turkey (or Callaloo & Jerk) Day!
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News round up by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor
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After Oklahoma Republicans targeted public school lessons on race and gender, some Black teachers and parents in Tulsa have banded together to ensure their kids still get honest Black history. NPR: Oklahoma restricted how race can be taught. So these Black teachers stepped up
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The schoolchildren arrived at the community center's cafeteria on a Saturday morning, their parents in tow. Some adults came without children, because they, too, wanted to learn the African American history that a new law has made many Oklahoma schoolteachers too afraid to teach.
Kristi Williams, a leader and activist in Tulsa's Black community, led them in the pledge they recite each time they gather for a day of lessons.
"We will remember the humanity, glory and suffering of our ancestors," they said in unison, "and honor the struggle of our elders."
Williams started offering these lessons early this year, after the state law — adopted by Republican legislators in 2021 — placed restrictions on how race and gender can be taught in Oklahoma's public schools.
The law has had a chilling effect on teachers who now fear that touching on race and racism in their classrooms could cost them their jobs if a student or parent complains that a lesson made them uncomfortable.
"They're just staying away from it and not teaching it," Williams said. "So I had to create a space for families to come in, and teach it."
She called it Black History Saturdays. It's one local, grassroots initiative among numerous that have sprung up across the country in places where Republicans have adopted restrictions that make it harder for teachers to discuss race in classrooms.
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The Gullah Geechee are fighting to save the structures, used as places of worship by enslaved people, before they’re erased by sprawl and fading memories. NYT: Saving Praise Houses Before Their African Lineage Is Forgotten
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The Rev. Kay Colleton will never forget the time she first laid eyes on Moving Star Hall, a tiny white clapboard building with a leaning chimney, a crooked roof and a storied history. The hall is a rare surviving example of a praise house — humble one-room structures used as places of worship by enslaved people on coastal plantations throughout the Carolinas and Georgia. They have been providing spiritual sustenance for generations of African Americans ever since.
“There were no keys, so we just came right in,” Pastor Kay recalled of that day in 1989. “It was in a
Pastor Kay and her church, Manna Life Center, on Johns Island, S.C., vowed to breathe new life into the hall. And on a hot and humid day last summer, rife with tiny no-see-ums — and the ubiquitous hand-held straw fans in these parts providing little relief — about a dozen longtime congregants of Moving Star Hall came together for prayer, song and reflection. All of them were Gullah Geechee, whose enslaved ancestors had been abducted from west and central Africa; and their knowledge of rice cultivation and other crops was used to generate incomparable wealth for this region’s brutal white planters.
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Since it was founded in 1912, the Girl Scouts of the USA has been the best-known option for preteen girls interested in joining a youth organization with a nationwide presence. It took 102 years, but an alternative is gaining steam.
First established in 2014 in the San Francisco Bay Area, Radical Monarchs is a troop for Black and Brown girls—as well as children who identify as nonbinary—from 8 to 11 years old.
Its mission, says Marilyn Hollinquest, who started it with her friend Anayvette Martinez, is to teach children to “advocate for themselves and their communities and make the world a more just and joyful place.” There are 104 kids enrolled in cities across the US, including Denver, Minneapolis and Washington.
Just as in Girl Scouts, Radical Monarch troop members earn badges to show they’ve mastered specific skills. But these aren’t your typical certifications for first aid or painting.
The first, called Radical Roots, requires delving into history. For the troop in Richmond, California, this could mean a stop at Rosie the Riveter National Historical Park to learn how Black women helped the cause in World War II. In Minneapolis, they learn about Native environmentalist Winona LaDuke, who in 1985 helped form the Indigenous Women’s Network whose members focus on empowering themselves and others in society.
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The rapper has been charged under the same law as the ex-president in a case fueling debate over the use of lyrics in court. The Guardian: What the Young Thug trial means for hip-hop, mafia laws and Donald Trump
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In November of 2021, Young Thug appeared on Saturday Night Live to promote his second studio album, Punk. Introduced by the actor Rami Malek, the Atlanta rapper appeared sporting a puffy fuchsia fur coat and baby pink pants. He was joined on stage by the rapper Gunna, the pop singer Nate Ruess and the drummer Travis Barker. His two performances that night played up the genre-bending, psychedelic sensibilities that the rapper had long infused into his art.
That night, in his performance of Tick Tock, a song that didn’t make the final tracklist for Punk, he rapped: “I was a capo in my hood way before a plaque or a mention.”
Two years later, as the rapper faces a racketeering trial in Georgia that begins on Monday, the pre-trial hearings have featured fierce debates over lyrics including this one. Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, is arguing that his lyrics are fictional works of art that do not serve as admissions to any crimes. His attorney, Brian Steel, says the prosecution is simply pulling out lyrics by a “prolific, accomplished songwriter” and saying they speak to his character.
Young Thug is one of the most lauded rappers of his generation, releasing scores of mixtapes and albums, including two No 1 albums (2019’s So Much Fun and the 2021 compilation Young Stoner Life: Slime Language 2) and collaborating with the likes of Elton John, Drake and Camila Cabello (including on her No 1 global hit Havana.) Outside of rap, he’s become a staple in the fashion world thanks to his gender-fluid style, including a dress he wore on the artwork for his mixtape Jeffery.
As well as his success as a solo artist, Williams was also the lead figure in the Young Stoner Life, or YSL, music collective and record label, which released his music as well as records by collaborators like Gunna. This is where things get complicated for Williams. Prosecutors say that YSL also stands for Young Slime Life, which they characterize as a criminal street gang in which Williams was the head.
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