Friday, December 31, 2021
Thursday, December 30, 2021
Black-Owned Small Kitchen Appliances @ Target Only
An excerpt from The Kitchn -
This New Black-Owned Small Appliance Line at Target Has Some of the Best Stuff I’ve Ever Tested — and Y’all, Lots of It Is on Sale! (Sorry folks. This was published before Christmas when the sales were happening).
By SAVANNAH WEST
 |
| Credit: CRUXGG |
For Black families, connection and community have been centered in the kitchen for centuries, especially around the holidays. Just in time for this year’s festivities, Target dropped a new collection of stylish and affordable kitchen electronics from CRUX in partnership with Ghetto Gastro, and I can’t wait to incorporate some of these pieces into my own holiday traditions.
If you haven’t heard of Ghetto Gastro, they’re a Bronx-based culinary collective comprised of chefs and food enthusiasts that formed back in 2012 and now includes members Jon Gray, Lester Walker, and Pierre Serrão. Last year, the group and CRUX co-founder Shae Hong launched a wildly popular, exclusive line of seven CRUXGG products in partnership with Williams-Sonoma. The double rotating waffle iron sold out in just 48 hours! Based on the success of that collection, Ghetto Gastro partnered with CRUX again on an even more competitively-priced line of electric countertop appliances only available at Target, and they’re flying off the shelves again.
1000 New Texans Arrive Every Day!
An excerpt from the NY Times -
1,000 New People Arrive in Texas Every Day. Half Are Newborns.
A surge in births in Texas comes amid a declining birthrate nationwide.
By Edgar Sandoval
 |
| All across Texas, the cry of newborn babies has become a common sound at hospital maternity wards. Credit...Matthew Busch for The New York Times |
SAN ANTONIO — Every three minutes, a child is born somewhere in Texas.
At one hospital in North Texas, 107 babies were delivered over 96 hours this summer, shattering local records. At a hospital in San Antonio, more than 1,200 babies have been born this year, up nearly 30 percent since 2018.
Across one of the nation’s fastest-growing states, an average 1,000 new Texans arrive every day. Half of them are newborns.
“Our population is going up. So just with that, I would expect our birthrates to increase,” said Shad Deering, a department chair with the Children’s Hospital of San Antonio. “We will become very busy.”
We spent a day last month with Dr. Deering and his staff and witnessed the arrival of several new residents to the Lone Star State.
~~~~~~~~~~
Between 2010 and 2020, the state’s population grew by four million — or the entire population of neighboring Oklahoma. Babies made up the largest number of new arrivals to Texas (about 48 percent), with migrants from other states (31 percent) and countries (21 percent) rounding out the rest.
And hospitals are trying to keep up.
“It has not slowed down,” said Michelle Stemley, vice president of patient care at Baylor Scott & White All Saints Medical Center in Fort Worth, which broke its four-day delivery record this summer.
The surge in births comes amid a declining birthrate nationwide. Couples have waited longer to have children, a trend that continued during the coronavirus pandemic and an uncertain economy, Mr. Potter said.
But a spike in sales of pregnancy tests — a 13 percent increase since June of last year — may signal that a so-called millennial baby boom may be on the horizon, according to Nielsen’s data and Bank of America’s research.
Many longtime Texans are contributing to the uptick in tiny new residents.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/26/us/texas-newborns-birthrate.html
What Does Home Mean To You?
From the Bitter Southerner -
A Letter From Home
By President Jimmy Carter
 |
| President Jimmy Carter. Photo by Dustin Chambers |
https://bittersoutherner.com/a-letter-from-home/jimmy-carter
10 Black Women Who Made History in 2021
From mymajicdc.com -
10 Black Women Who Made History In 2021
By BreAnna Holmes
1. Michaela Coel
Source:Getty
Michaela Coel is the first Black Woman to win an Emmy for ‘Limited Series Writing’!
2. Beyoncé
Source:GettyBeyoncé Makes History As The Most Grammy Awarded Artist Ever!
https://mymajicdc.com/playlist/black-women-who-made-history-in-2021/item/2
Thursday, December 23, 2021
Designing HBCU Clothing for Urban Outfitters
An excerpt from WXii12.com -
North Carolina A&T student helps design HBCU clothing line for Urban Outfitters
By Louie Tran
 |
| Ulia Hargrove - North Carolina A & T State University |
GREENSBORO, N.C. —
A North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University student helped design an HBCU clothing line for Urban Outfitters.
U'lia Hargrove, a native from Henderson, North Carolina, is a junior at North Carolina A&T. She's double majoring in fashion merchandising and design and supply chain management.
Hargrove finished a 10-week internship with Urban Outfitters in Philadelphia. It took place from June to August.
During her experience, Hargrove said she had the chance to work as a buying intern and in a summer class where she was able to work alongside four other HBCU students to help design an HBCU collection line.
Each intern was responsible for designing the outfits, including the colors, style, material, accessories, etc., she added.
Hargrove helped design a clothing line that represented North Carolina A&T. The collection included sweatpants, sweatshirts, tote bags, varsity jackets and playing cards.
Critical Race Theory Explained With a Cake
From CNN -
This Cake May Change Your Mind on Critical Race Theory
He Broke the NFL's Color Barrier. Have You Heard of Him?
An excerpt from Slate -
Why Isn’t Kenny Washington an American Icon?
The forgotten story of the man who broke the NFL’s color barrier—before Jackie Robinson got to Major League Baseball.
BY JOSHUA NEUMAN
 |
| Washington at UCLA, where he played in the late 1930s. Courtesy of Kirk Washington |
If you were able to go back in time and tell sports fans of the late 1930s and early 1940s that a young Black athlete would become an American icon for breaking a color barrier, they’d likely think you were talking about Kenny Washington. Few would imagine you were describing Jackie Robinson, who followed Washington at UCLA as a football and baseball player. In 1940, a Los Angeles Times sports writer worried that Washington was irreplaceable on the gridiron. “It is going to take a piece of doing,” he wrote, “for Jackie Robinson to fill his shoes.”
Today, it’s Washington who’s been engulfed by Robinson’s shadow. In the decades since Washington broke the NFL’s color barrier in 1946—the year before Robinson got to the Brooklyn Dodgers—the league has hardly acknowledged his importance, especially compared with the way Major League Baseball has burnished Robinson’s legend. A 2006 exhibition at the Pro Football Hall of Fame called “Breaking Through: The Reintegration of Pro Football” focused on the Cleveland Browns’ Marion Motley and Bill Willis—half of the sport’s “forgotten four” of pioneering Black players, along with Washington and Woody Strode (who signed with the Los Angeles Rams two months after Washington). In 1946, Motley and Willis integrated the All-America Football Conference, a newly formed league that launched without a color barrier. Washington, meanwhile, was the first of the four to integrate pro football.
This year is the 75th anniversary of Washington’s groundbreaking season, and he’s barely a footnote in the annals of sports history. During the lead-up to this past Super Bowl, a CBS segment at last acknowledged his singular breakthrough—calling it a “Jackie Robinson moment.” So why, all these decades later, don’t we talk about Jackie Robinson’s debut as a “Kenny Washington moment”? Why did America forget Kenny Washington?
Monday, December 20, 2021
A Celebrity Holiday Cookbook
Wolf Entertainment -
The “One Chicago” Holiday Cookbook
"One Chicago" Holiday Cookbook
https://wolfentertainment.com/news/special-delivery-the-one-chicago-holiday-cookbook/
Black Girls Sport Mentorship
An excerpt from the Washington Post -
Black girls are more apt to drop out of sports. This mentorship program aims to change that
By Andrew Golden
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| Zoe Matthews, a 14-year-old midfielder from Southlake, Tex., is an aspiring soccer player. She participates in the Voice in Sport mentorship program, which paired her with National Women’s Soccer League player Brianna Pinto. (BJ Garcia) |
Ifeoma Onumonu was asked recently what she saw when she looked at the National Women’s Soccer League logo. Until that moment, the NJ/NY Gotham FC forward hadn’t reflected too deeply about the image or what it signified.
But Onumonu’s first thought was about what it didn’t represent: her. She said she believes the silhouette of a woman with a ponytail kicking a soccer ball depicts a White woman. And as a Black woman, she was reminded of the trophies she won growing up that looked the same as the logo — not like her.
“Trophies that I have that represent a person are White girls,” Onumonu said. “This is not me. I do not see myself in these trophies. I do not see myself in this logo, you know? When you don’t see yourself in something, you don’t know if that is something that’s achievable for you.”
Onumonu grew up not having a Black, female role model in soccer, which she said affected her career trajectory because she didn’t realize it was possible for someone who looked like her to play professionally. Now, after finishing her fifth season in the NWSL, Onumonu wants to serve as a reminder to young, Black soccer players that there is a place for them in the sport.
She became a mentor for Voice in Sport (VIS), a company that encourages advocacy for women’s sports and aims to provide mentorship to Black female athletes ages 13 to 23. Onumonu is also on the board of the Black Women’s Player Collective (BWPC), an organization formed by Black players in the NWSL to advocate for opportunities and build a community for Black women in soccer.
While some members of the BWPC have already been mentoring girls through VIS, the two organizations recently announced a formal partnership through which the BWPC will host three free mentoring sessions per month to young, Black female athletes. The goal of the program is to make an impact both on an individual level and more broadly.
“If girls see themselves in sport through this mentorship program, stay in the game and then get more confidence and develop leadership skills, I really believe they will go on to drive significant change in the industry,” said Stef Strack, the CEO and founder of VIS. “It’s going to take time to prove that out, obviously, but that’s what we’re hoping.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/12/20/nwsl-players-mentor-young-black-athletes/
Saturday, December 18, 2021
Fix it, Black Girl
Fix it, Black Girl. Fix us, Black Girl. Nurse us, Black Girl. Teach us, Black Girl. Be the help, Black Girl. Clean up our messes, Black Girl. Vote for us, Black Girl. Don’t complain, Black Girl. Let us touch your hair, Black Girl.
— Hannah Drake (@HannahDrake628) October 15, 2019
He's Bringing Black Illustrations to the Medical Field
An excerpt from NBC News -
Meet the student bringing Black illustrations to the medical field
Chidiebere Ibe said he hopes his creations will help change the field of medical illustration, which is predominately white and male.
By Char Adams
 |
| Chidiebere Ibe started drawing medical illustrations featuring Black bodies about a year ago. "I made a deliberate action to constantly advocate that there be inclusion of Black people in medical literature,” he told NBC News.Chidiebere Ibe |
 |
| Chidiebere Ibe. Courtesy Chidiebere Ibe |
Have you ever seen a medical illustration featuring a Black body? Social media users admitted they hadn’t when an image of a Black fetus in a Black woman’s womb went viral this month.
Chidiebere Ibe, 25, is behind the image. The Nigerian medical student, who will enter Kyiv Medical University in Ukraine next month, describes himself as a self-taught medical illustrator. He said he’s spent at least a year learning to draw anatomy, focusing on Black skin every step of the way.
“I wasn’t expecting it to go viral,” Ibe, an aspiring pediatric neurosurgeon, said of the image in an interview. “I was just sticking up for what I believe in, advocating for equality in health through medical illustrations. I made a deliberate action to constantly advocate that there be inclusion of Black people in medical literature.”
He began publishing the images on social media, showing conditions like empyema thoracis and seborrheic eczema on Black skin. Many of the images show skin conditions prevalent with Black people, combating a misrepresentation that often leads to misdiagnosis. The fetus illustration went viral after a Twitter user shared the photo, writing, “I’ve literally never seen a black foetus illustrated, ever.” The post was retweeted more than 50,000 times, and the illustration garnered more than 88,000 “likes” on Instagram and even made its way to TikTok. Ibe drew praise from medical professionals far and wide.
“Little did I understand what the drawing meant to a lot of people. On my LinkedIn, on my Twitter, on my Instagram, I read the comments and they really touched me. I was crying,” Ibe said. “It was amazing to see how good people felt about it. People could see themselves in the drawing.”
Adding Color to the Nashville Stage
An excerpt from Buzzfeed News -
Jason Isbell Is Tired Of Country’s Love Affair With White Nostalgia
“I think it’s possible to acknowledge that you have benefited from a system that’s unequal without feeling shame or even guilt from it.”
By Elamin Abdelmahmoud
 | ||
| Jason Isbell during soundcheck at the Ryman Auditorium, Oct. 19, 2021 |
When you’re standing in front of the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, you might feel under siege. It sits a few feet away from Nashville’s rowdy Broadway strip, which means you have to wade through an army of bros and bachelorettes — folks who descend upon the city for a good time, if your idea of a good time is throngs of partyers in matching outfits, open-top buses aggressively blasting music, and more country cover bands per square inch than you can possibly count.
In sharp contrast to the loud nostalgia cosplay that surrounds it, the 2,300-seat auditorium, with its imposing Victorian Gothic architecture and distinctive stained glass windows, projects dignity and history. It’s one of music’s holiest sites, a storied hall that has been dubbed the Mother Church of Country Music. Everyone from Bruce Springsteen to Willie Nelson has a reverence for it. Word is Harry Styles once planned a whole tour just so he could perform here.
In mid-October, I arrived for the second show of Jason Isbell’s eight-night residency at the auditorium. The occasion is a perfect marriage of artist and venue: Isbell is one of America’s most potent songwriters, and the Ryman is a cathedral of song. For Americana fans, the singer-songwriter’s annual residency here has become a coveted pilgrimage. It’s for good reason that Isbell has come to be associated with the Ryman: In 2015, he played four consecutive nights backed by his band, the 400 Unit. He expanded this to six in 2017. In 2018, he did another six and released a live album called Live From the Ryman. In 2019, Isbell and his band performed at the venue for seven shows. This year, they’re doing eight. Every single one of these runs has sold out.
But if the Ryman has become a kind of home for Isbell, this year’s residency carried a different energy. It was historic. For seven of the eight evenings, he had a different Black woman opening for him. In an industry and genre that is consistently failing white women and is downright hostile to Black women, the choice to feature these openers is a small revolution.
The openers vary in age, fame, and career stages. Between them, they cover a variety of genres under the roots music umbrella, ranging from country to soul, blues to folk, Americana to rock ‘n’ roll. For many of them, it was their first time playing the Ryman at all.
History in the Making at Jackson State
An excerpt from Yahoo Sports -
Jackson State legends beam over Travis Hunter's trailblazing choice, a decision they never had in segregated South
By Dan Wetzel·Columnist
Had college football recruiting services been around in 1963, scouts would have flocked to 33rd Avenue High School in Gulfport, Mississippi, to watch a gifted, mobile, do-it-all quarterback named Lem Barney.
At 6-foot and with game-breaking speed, Barney would have been a five-star recruit long before his Hall of Fame career as a defensive back/return man (and even punter) for the Detroit Lions.
He may have even been rated as high as current 18-year-old Travis Hunter, who hails from Suwanee, Georgia, but like Barney six decades prior, can play all over the field – defensive back, cornerback, kick returner. Hunter is considered the No. 1 recruit nationally in the Class of 2022.
Of course, there were no scouting services back in Barney’s day. There was hardly any attention paid to him at all. Gulfport’s schools were still segregated almost a decade after the Supreme Court ruled such a thing illegal. Such was the racist foot-dragging in Mississippi.
Barney and so many young African American men like him were largely ignored; including by the major universities of the South, which still fielded all-white teams. Alabama head coach Bear Bryant or Ole Miss coach John Vaught didn’t consider a kid from 33rd Avenue High, no matter how good he was.
So Barney went off to Jackson State, a Historically Black University located about 160 miles north of his home, where he joined a Southwest Athletic Conference (SWAC) that was so brimming with talent, he had to switch to defense to find playing time.
Even now at 76 years old, there are no regrets. Jackson State football, SWAC football, HBCU football, he says, forged him to the point where he was a Week 1 starter in the NFL.
“I was so nervous,” he said years later.
Not so nervous that it prevented him, on the first drive of that first game, from intercepting Green Bay legend Bart Starr and returning it for a touchdown. It turns out, he hadn’t missed a thing by not going to those big-name schools, he says.
Still, when word broke Wednesday that Hunter, a generations-later, Lem Barney play-a-like, had stunned the football world by signing with Jackson State despite being coveted by the powerhouses that once refused to even consider someone like him, there was no minimizing the significance.
Supply Chain Chaos Explained
An excerpt from the Mercury News -
Q&A: What got us into this supply chain mess? When will it end? Stanford professor has answers
Kostas Bimpikis explains what it will take to end our supply chain nightmare
By LISA M. KRIEGER
Confronted by a pandemic, we suddenly couldn’t find what we needed: Hospitals ran short of N95s and ventilators, auto manufacturers didn’t have crucial components and store shelves suddenly emptied of everything from sneakers to sofas.
Kostas Bimpikis, an associate professor of operations, information and technology at Stanford Graduate School of Business, talked with this news organization about how to keep our supply chains reliable – even when the world is upended. His remarks have been edited for length and clarity.
Q: What did COVID-19 reveal about our supply chain?
A: It revealed two things. The first is how interconnected supply chains are. A disruption in Italy, Taiwan or Korea may be felt all over the world. The second thing it revealed was how fragile the supply chain is. Any deviation from normal operations creates a huge shock all over the world.
Q: What got us into this mess?
A: One trend is so-called “just in time” manufacturing. Typically, firms produce only as much inventory as they need to satisfy short-term sales. It keeps costs low. They do not necessarily hold excess inventory.
The second reason is the specialization of product lines. For example, cars are being manufactured that consist of thousands of components. Disruption in a supplier for a specific component – such as a small screw somewhere in the car — may hold up production of the entire car.
And the third thing is outsourcing and globalization of manufacturing. So a disruption in Taiwan, for example, affects our domestic supply chain, as well.
Q: What’s driving these trends?
A: Typically, companies take the view of minimizing costs, maximizing speed, maximizing efficiency and maximizing choice for consumers.
Costs are minimized by having very low “safety stocks,” because carrying excess inventory is very costly. Maximizing speed and efficiency means lean operations and “just in time” manufacturing. Maximizing choice for customers points to the specialization of the line. You can buy Nike sneakers in a zillion colors.
These have big advantages, but they do have disadvantages.
At the beginning of the pandemic, the shortages were mainly driven by a surge in demand for products. Now, more of the problems originate from problems with the supply chain.
Google's Treatment of Black Women Under Investigation
Excerpts from NBC News -
California investigates Google’s treatment of Black women workers
A state agency has already interviewed several Black women who have worked at Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company.
By Reuters
California’s civil rights regulator is investigating Google’s treatment of Black female workers following alleged incidents of harassment and discrimination, according to two people familiar with the matter and emails from the agency seen by Reuters.
Attorneys and analysts at the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) have repeatedly interviewed several Black women who have worked at Alphabet Inc., Google's parent company, about their experiences there, according to the documents and the sources. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid jeopardizing the work.
Questions have centered on alleged harassment and discrimination in the workplace, according to the emails. Conversations have taken place as recently as last month, one of the sources said.
The DFEH declined to comment.
Google said it is focused on “building sustainable equity” for its Black workers and that 2020 was its largest year for hiring what it calls “Black+” workers, a designation inclusive of people belonging to multiple races.
~~~~~
For years Black men in the tech industry have said they have faced disparaging comments and discouraging experiences, such as being shut out of offices because security guards and colleagues questioned whether they actually worked there.
As more Black women have joined the workforce, such complaints have increased. Seven current and former Google employees told Reuters this year about being marginalized on projects as Black women and not taken as seriously as colleagues with different backgrounds.
Also earlier this year, an investigation by NBC News revealed that several Black, Latino, and other Google employees of color who had reported incidents of bias and discrimination were instructed to take medical leave. Some said they were eventually pushed out of their roles at the company.
Artificial intelligence researcher Timnit Gebru has said Google fired her a year ago for criticizing its lack of workforce diversity and for fighting managers who objected to publishing a critical paper she co-wrote. Erika Munro Kennerly, who oversaw diversity and strategy teams at Google before resigning last year, told magazine Corporate Counsel in January that “there’s an overall tone of being undervalued” as a Black woman at Google.
Richly Deserved
An excerpt from BlackAmericaWeb -
Simone Biles Named As TIME Magazine’s 2021 “Athlete Of The Year”
By Keenan "HIGz" Higgins
 |
| Simone Biles |
After a year of experiencing both career highs and personal lows, Olympic medalist Simone Biles has shown the world a strength that truly sets her apart from many in the realm of sports.
TIME Magazine recognized that excellence and all she had to overcome in 2021 by bestowing Biles with the prestigious honor as “Athlete Of The Year.”
Thursday, December 9, 2021
No D's and F's. Is That a Good Thing?
From Newbreak -
Large California school districts eliminate ‘D’ and ‘F’ grades
By Nexstar Media Wire, Nancy Loo
LOS ANGELES ( NewsNation Now ) — Bad report cards could soon be a thing of the past in California as some of the state’s largest school districts are dropping “D” and “F” grades.
Sacramento City Unified, Los Angeles, Santa Ana, Oakland Unified and other California districts have decided to limit the use of “Ds” and phased out “Fs” in grading. High schoolers who fail a test or homework assignment can get a do-over or more time to complete the work.
Students who don’t ever finish the assignments or who fail the final exam would earn an “incomplete,” according to Bay City News .
The move is called competency-based learning. Advocates argue that assessment should be based on mastery of learning — what students have learned instead of how they test. Supporters also hope it will help kids re-engage after nearly two years of virtual learning during the pandemic.
The FBI is Recruiting at HBCUs
An excerpt from NPR -
The FBI is trying to add diversity to its ranks by recruiting at HBCUs
By Ryan Lucas
The FBI has launched a new diversity initiative aimed at reaching out to historically Black colleges and universities to try to recruit more African Americans to be special agents.
AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:
Many things about the FBI are secret. This one is not. It has a diversity problem, particularly when it comes to its special agents. The bureau says it's trying to change that and has recently launched a new initiative reaching out to historically Black colleges and universities. NPR Justice Correspondent Ryan Lucas reports.
Saturday, December 4, 2021
Friday, December 3, 2021
We're Moving to Costa Rica
An excerpt from the Guardian -
‘It feels like home’: why are Black Americans moving to Costa Rica?
By Brianna Holt
 |
| Davia Shannon in Costa Rica. Photograph: Davia Shannon |
The Caribbean coast of Central America’s safest and most stable country offers Black expats a life that is less stressful, more affordable, and free from the burdens of everyday racism
When she first set foot in Costa Rica, Davia Shannon knew instantly that she would eventually return permanently. She loved being able to do yoga with the jungle as her backdrop and surf whenever she pleased. Even more, she valued the sense of freedom she gained. Free of the fear, anxiety and pain driven by not feeling accepted in the US, Shannon had found her future home.
Upon arriving back in California after her 10-day visit, Shannon, now 46, developed a one-year exit plan which consisted of renting out her house, selling her car, rehoming her furniture and downsizing to 12 suitcases.
In March 2016, Davia Shannon packed up her belongings and left her lifelong home in Los Angeles to move 3,500 miles away with her twin daughters.
The adjustment wasn’t simple. Shannon, who comes from a large family, was hoping to recreate the same communal atmosphere in Puerto Viejo, with people who understood her struggles and came from a similar lifestyle, but admits that settling in was challenging. “I couldn’t find anybody that looked like me and when I did, I felt like I couldn’t really connect with them,” she says.
Even the Caribbean women proved difficult to get close to, and Shannon says they rarely showed her kindness. “I was even having a really difficult time getting information and doing the basic things, like figuring out where to pay my light bill,” she says. Most of the Caribbean people in the area speak English and Shannon is fluent in Spanish, so a cultural barrier played a greater role than language.
Learning from her struggles, Shannon decided to open a relocation business, Life-A-Holic Costa Rica, to assist other Black American expats moving to the country. Since launching in 2017, the business has assisted 176 Black and brown people with their desire to relocate to the south Caribbean coast of Costa Rica. The relocation company also offers membership into a support group, referred to as the Tribe. Shannon describes the group as a ready-made family that helps expats comfortably transition to life in Puerto Viejo. A directory, numerous resources and social events like Soul Food Sundays, karaoke nights, family dinners and birthday celebrations, are just a few offerings provided in the Tribe.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/sep/09/black-americans-expats-costa-rica
HBCU Black Santas
An excerpt from Black Enterprise -
BLACK SANTAS WITH A ‘CAUSE’: BLACK WOMAN SELLS HBCU-THEMED BLACK SANTA FIGURINES FOR THE HOLIDAYS
by Alexa Imani Spencer
 |
| (HBCU Black Santas by Debra L. Mars/Etsy, Restore The Hope) |
After years of collecting Black Santas, this enthusiast has partnered with HBCUs to sell figurines themed after Black colleges and universities.
The figurines—designed by Debra L. Mars—feature sweaters, flags, bags, and ornaments repping Howard University, Morehouse College, Grambling University and FAMU, Good Black News reported.
The Inglewood, Calif. resident began stocking up on Black Santas more than 35 years ago.
~~~~~
For her, it’s an honor to represent HBCUs in this way. Though she didn’t attend one, while researching and finding out many great influential people, like Thurgood Marshall and Samuel L. Jackson attended, she was “so proud and a little remorseful that I did not attend a HBCU.”
“This dream was planted in me over 25 years ago to create this line. This has been a master class on perseverance. Having the opportunity to represent our sacred jewels: The HBCUs is an honor that I do not take lightly.”
Through her esty.com store, Restore The Hope, Mars also offers Black nutcrackers, Santa-themed bracelets and more holiday goodies.
Thursday, December 2, 2021
Bidets or Bust
An excerpt from the Washinton Post -
Bidets are big, but do you really need one? Health experts weigh in.
Fans of the toilet attachment can’t imagine life without it, and doctors agree it’s good hygiene, but there are pros and cons to consider
By Angela Haupt
 |
| (stock) |
Carrie Verrocchio has a theory: Once you go bidet, you never go back. She’s so smitten with the toilet attachment that sprays water to clean your bum that her family had one installed in each of their four bathrooms — and they’re shopping for a travel bidet, a water-bottle-sized contraption to use when they’re on the road.
Where to start on the appeal? “It’s feeling clean all the time,” says Verrocchio, 55, a motivational speaker who lives in Binghamton, N.Y. “You know how when you go to the bathroom, you have to wipe a zillion times with dry paper? You don’t do that with the bidet. It literally just rinses it off, puts it in the toilet and you pat dry. I wish we’d done it years ago.”
Nikki Webster, 47, a writer from the United Kingdom who now lives in Florida, similarly considers her bidets essential. “When you wipe, you’re basically wiping what can be reached,” she says. “When you spray, you get into every nook and cranny, which leaves you way cleaner.”
Indeed, health experts generally agree that bidets elevate the bathroom hygiene experience, at least when used properly. What’s less clear is whether they serve any medical purpose beyond that: While there’s some indication that they could, for example, be helpful for those with hemorrhoids or mobility issues, research isn’t conclusive, and there are concerns that bacteria could fester on the device; plus, users could be scalded if the water gets too hot.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2021/11/30/bidet-hygiene-pros-cons/
~~~~~~~~~~
This is Faye -
An alternative to the bidet described in this article is the bidet sprayer that can be found on Amazon. I was introduced to this when I lived in the Middle East and was thrilled when I could find it here. I ordered it, installed it myself, and have been enjoying the freshness it provides with every visit to the toilet.
You're welcome.
Bidet Sprayer for Toilet, Handheld Cloth Diaper Sprayer, Bathroom Jet Sprayer Kit Spray Attachment with Hose, Stainless Steel Easy Install Great Water Pressure for Bathing Pets, Feminine Hygiene
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DR83GQB/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Coach Prime's Advice: "You Better Call Snoop"
An excerpt from the Mississippi Clarion-Ledger -
Deion Sanders says Lincoln Riley 'better call Snoop' Dogg for recruiting help at USC
By Khari Thompson
 |
| AP USC SNOOP DOGG S FBC USA A ENT USA CA |
Sanders said recruiting in California versus Oklahoma is a whole different ballgame as well. Sanders suggested that Riley call rapper Snoop Dogg to help him navigate the recruiting landscape.
"California kids are a little different than these kids in other parts of the country, my man. I'm telling you what I know, not what I heard," Sanders said. "I'll tell you what, you better get some recruiters called Snoop Dogg and some other guys that's into the youth football that know dogs, and got dogs, and that's bringing dogs because it's a little different out there, my man."
Sanders also said he feels that recruiters don't get enough credit compared to head coaches for bringing in major recruits.
"This is what the reality is," Sanders said. "You've got certain guys who are up for certain positions all the time. Ain't nothing wrong with that, because I think they deserve it. I think they're a heck of a coach, coaches. They're more than worthy, they're really smart, savvy, they coach their butts off.
"But guess who is doing all the recruiting? The brothers. Isn't 70-75%, might be 70% of college athletes African-American? Who do you think they are sending into those homes?"
Wednesday, December 1, 2021
Proud Momma Moment
Please indulge me for a minute with this very proud momma moment. My oldest son Ben, a civil engineer, is featured on this podcast, "The Big Switch: Heavy Duty Truck." He begins at 7:12.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/heavy-duty-trucks/id1571177675?i=1000543648091
Sunday, November 28, 2021
A Sweet Victory
An excerpt from People -
Lawyer Recalls Winning His First Case in Same State Courts Where He Was Wrongfully Convicted
PEOPLE’s Voices from the Fight Against Racism will amplify perspectives on the push for equality and justice
By People Staff
When he was just 17 years old, Jarrett Adams' college plans — and his whole life — were blown apart when he was wrongly convicted of rape by an all-white jury and sentenced to 28 years in jail. In 2007, after nearly a decade in prison, Adams was exonerated. He went on to become a defense attorney, working with the Innocence Project, the same nonprofit that helped secure his freedom. Adams details his life before, during and after this nightmarish — and all too common — experience in his new memoir, Redeeming Justice. "I needed to hurt in order to give people this story, so we can prevent other people from being in pain," Adams says of the triggering writing process. Here, the founder of Life After Justice, a nonprofit that supports and empowers exonerees, remembers winning his first case in the same state courts that had sent him to prison years before, despite his innocence.
During my own trial, it was so painful to sit there and be accused of a crime — a heinous crime against a woman — after being raised by all women. My mother was in tatters. I kept asking her, "Mom, you know who you raised. Why are you so nervous? Why are you so afraid?" She looked at me and she said, "When I see you, I see Emmett Till. You don't know what it's like. You don't know that being innocent ain't a savior when you Black."
When I appeared before the same state court 10 years after my release, I was working as a defense attorney with the Innocence Project. My client was also wrongfully convicted. During the hearing, I often relived certain moments in my own case, how vulnerable we were, how much we didn't know. It felt amazing to not only know the law, but to be able to calm my client and his family's anxiety by simply saying, "I understand." Because I do.
She Caters to the Divine 9
An excerpt from Black Enterprise -
Black Woman Entrepreneur Launches Shoe Company That Caters to Sororities and Fraternities In The Divine 9
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| b.c.e Shoes (Blacknews.com) |
Meet Kam Ballard, founder of b.c.e Shoes, an online company that customizes shoes for the sororities and fraternities in the Divine 9.
Ballard says that she started the company to offset college costs for her children.
“I started this company as a way to pay for my children’s college education. I wanted to break the cycle of graduating from college with a mountain of student loan debt. It has evolved into something bigger than I ever could have imagined,” Ballard said.
She is a member of and a certified vendor for Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and is also an approved vendor for the following organizations within the Divine 9: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., and Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.
b.c.e.’s products include a variety of shoes that can be worn in the board room or the ballroom. She has recently added an athletic shoe line.
Ballard’s goal is to provide stylish, comfortable, and affordable shoes. “I want to make shoes that cater to the seasoned professional, but also, keep them affordable where a Neo on the college campus is able to obtain them without breaking the bank.”
He Revolutionized the Video Game Industry!
An excerpt from Black Information Network -
Jerry Lawson: The Black Engineer Who Revolutionized The Video Game Industry
By Zuri Anderson
 Gerald "Jerry" Lawson - Photo: Jerry Lawson Estate |
The new generation of video game consoles is here, and we have one man to thank for making it possible: Jerry Lawson.
Gerald "Jerry" Lawson is a self-taught electrical engineer who took the gaming world by storm in the 1970s. Back then, the industry was a fledgling compared to the multi-billion dollar beast it is today.
Born on December 1, 1940, in New York City, the Brooklyn native was inspired by the work of scientist George Washington Carver. Dabbling with electronics, he eventually became one of the few engineers working in Silicon Valley at the time.
Lawson worked for a company called Fairchild Camera and Instrument when he pioneered a historic invention: the Fairchild Channel F. If you're wondering what the "F" means, it stands for fun! "Channel Fun," to be more specific.
What made the 1976 console special was that it was the first video game console to utilize cartridges, paving the way for consoles like the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), the Playstation, Xbox, and other popular consoles.
Unfortunately, Lawson never got much credit for his work over the years. He passed away in 2011 at age 70.
It wasn't until the recent decade that more people started becoming more acquainted with his influential work -- a legacy his two children are working to continue.
Anderson and Karen Lawson remembered their father as a "gentle giant" who tinkered with many electronics.
Smokey Robinson & the Temptations
From USA Today -
The Temptations team with Smokey Robinson for the first time in decades with new single
By Brian McCollum
He's Getting His Due
An excerpt from Rolling Stone -
After 50 Years, a Gospel-Soul Legend (Finally) Gets His Due
Five decades after T.L. Barrett released highly regarded but largely unknown funk and soul gems, a new, career-spanning box set helps spread the Chicago pastor’s message to the masses
By DANIEL KREPS
“About five years ago, they told me that Kanye West was sampling — I had never heard the term — my music. And I said, ‘Well, I hope he likes it.’ I thought they meant he was listening to it,” Pastor T.L. Barrett tells Rolling Stone. “But my record company said, ‘No, it’s on his album. They want to use two of your songs.’ And it just took off like a rocket.”
A famed Chicago preacher, civil rights activist, community organizer, power broker and — among a small congregation of music fans — a significant yet largely unknown gospel artist, Barrett pinpoints the exact moment where his name began gusting out of the Windy City: When West sampled his 1976 song “Father I Stretch My Hands” for the 2016 The Life of Pablo standout “Father Stretch My Hands.”
Fifty years after Barrett first recorded his debut LP — and nearly four decades since he created any new music — his devotional catalog has proliferated its listenership in unlikely ways outside of his weekly church service: The end credits of a movie here, the theme song for the NCAA basketball tournament there, a commercial, a sample, an interpolation, a Leon Bridges cover… little by little, music fans have come to discover the talent that Chicagoans have long cherished as their own.
“He’s not an obscure figure in Chicago. He’s got a street named after him now,” says Rob Sevier, whose archival record label Numero Group will release the first in-depth exploration of Barrett’s musical career, I Shall Wear a Crown, on Friday. For over 50 years, Barrett has preached within a two-block radius in Chicago. With the new collection, the pastor aims to spread his musical message to the masses.
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/pastor-tl-barrett-numero-group-box-set-1229569/
She's Got the Goods!
An excerpt from Black Enterprise -
NAILAH ELLIS-BROWN RUNS ONE OF THE BIGGEST BLACK-OWNED BEVERAGE COMPANIES IN THE COUNTRY
by Jeroslyn Johnson
 | |
| Nailah Ellis-Brown (screenshot) |
Nearly 10 years after dropping out of college to launch her beverage company, Nailah Ellis-Brown is making history by running one of the largest Black-owned beverage company.
Years after launching Ellis Island Tea from her parent’s basement and landing the homemade product in Whole Foods locations across the mid-West, Ellis-Brown credits her hometown of Detroit with her company’s success.
“Growing up in Detroit, I knew nothing was going to be handed to me. I expected doors to be closed and knew I would need to work hard and never take ‘no’ for an answer,” she said. “I’ve heard ‘no,’ but I haven’t let that stand in my way. There is always a way forward,” she said previously.
Through partnership deals with major retailers and after winning Centric TV’s reality competition show Queen Boss, Ellis-Brown’s Jamaican-inspired line of naturally sweetened hibiscus tea beverages has caught the attention of Beyoncé, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, and even received investment from Kevin Hart.
The recipe behind Ellis Island Tea comes from her great-grandfather, who immigrated to America from Jamaica by way of Ellis Island. The family’s last name and the history of their journey to America add to the special meaning behind the company’s name.
Black Home Shopping Channel Creatives Making Moves
An excerpt from Black Enterprise -
MARRIED COUPLE, FOUNDERS OF BLACK HOME SHOPPING CHANNEL TO PRODUCE NEW CHANNEL ON AMAZON, ROKU AND APPLE TV
by BLACK ENTERPRISE Editors
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| Chris Roberta Holmes Black HSN (Blacknews) |
Chris and Roberta Holmes, the founders of The Black Home Shopping Channel streaming on Exposure Network TV, have announced that they are producing a new channel on the network. The Streaming Home Marketplace expands the power of 24/7 stream shopping at affordable rates.
The kickoff for the channel is an international vendor event that provides a platform for entrepreneurs to create infomercials to showcase their products or services worldwide. Content is accessible on Roku, Amazon Fire Stick, Android TV, Apple TV along with iOS & Android mobile devices the network’s app is currently reaching over 160 million homes in 128 countries.
During the pandemic, Exposure Network TV managed to gain over 800,000 app downloads. The meteoric growth of Exposure Network TV caught the attention of media executives and over the summer Exposure TV Network President, Tam Lawrence was awarded a $2.5 million dollar content merger with HBO.
Champion Racer Boosting Number of Black STEM Teachers
An excerpt from Skysports -
Lewis Hamilton's charity aiming to boost number of black STEM teachers in England
Lewis Hamilton's charity, Mission 44, has partnered with Teach First to help recruit 150 black science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers in England; Hamilton keen to help improve diversity in the profession
By PA Media
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| Lewis Hamilton hopes to create a framework the wider education industry can implement |
Lewis Hamilton's charity is launching a partnership aimed at increasing the pool of black science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers in England.
Mission 44, launched by the seven-time Formula 1 world champion earlier this year, has partnered with Teach First to work on research, mentoring and marketing campaigns designed to help recruit 150 black STEM teachers to work in disadvantaged communities across the country.
The hope is that the framework the partnership creates can then be adopted by other educational bodies to further improve diversity in the profession.
The project, which is launched on UNESCO's World Teachers Day and during Black History Month, follows findings from The Hamilton Commission that highlighted the lack of black STEM teachers as a barrier to students engaging with these subjects.
Mercedes driver Hamilton is keen to help improve diversity in STEM after noting it had been a "lonely path" as a black individual in the F1 industry.
Speaking about the new partnership, Hamilton said: "We know representation and role models are important across all aspects of society, but especially when it comes to supporting young people's development.
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