A Family Photo at the Door

 An excerpt from the Washington Post - 

I keep a family photo at my front door. It’ll stay there until toxic attitudes toward Black lives go away.

Opinion by Michele L. Norris

I keep a framed family photo next to my front door, positioned on a table, so you see it as soon as you enter. It captures a moment of joy while on vacation. We’re leaning on each other, smiling wide. Family Strong.

I keep that picture by the entry in case police ever enter my home, they know that the people in that photo belong in the house where they live.

That paragraph you just read is a litmus test. Some of you will read these words and wonder, “Why would she ever do that?”

But some of you will read this and nod your head in recognition. Or perhaps conclude, “Maybe I should do that, too.”

Those of us in that second category are not worried about police entering our home because we’re engaged in criminal behavior. We worry — actually, we know, that we could be seen as criminals or intruders in our own homes even if we consistently and even obsessively live by the rules. A steady stream of raids-gone-wrong buttresses those fears and yet it goes far beyond all that.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/i-keep-a-family-photo-at-my-front-door-itll-stay-there-until-toxic-attitudes-toward-black-lives-go-away/2020/09/28/0e9027fe-01bb-11eb-a2db-417cddf4816a_story.html

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Swearing Birds

An excerpt from CNN - 

Parrots in wildlife park moved after swearing at visitors

By Rob Picheta

London (CNN) — Five parrots have been removed from public view at a British wildlife park after they started swearing at customers.

The foul-mouthed birds were split up after they launched a number of different expletives at visitors and staff just days after being donated to Lincolnshire Wildlife Park in eastern England.

"It just went ballistic, they were all swearing," the venue's chief executive Steve Nichols told CNN Travel on Tuesday. "We were a little concerned about the children."

"I get called a fat t**t every time I walk past," Nichols complained.

The African grey parrots -- named Eric, Jade, Elsie, Tyson and Billy -- were given to the park from five different owners within the same week, and shared a quarantining facility together before being placed on display.

But staff immediately noticed that the birds shared a propensity to fly off the handle.

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/swearing-parrots-moved-park-scli-gbr-intl/index.html 

9/21/20

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Is Racism the Reason?

 An excerpt from Deadspin - 

Racism is Why Your Favorite Team Might Have Drafted a Sorry White Quarterback

By Carron J. Phillips

This is not a story about Black quarterbacks.

It’s a story about how your favorite team may have a mediocre, on his best day, white quarterback because your general manager drafted him over the really good Black quarterback you could have had.

Life is all about decisions.

When Deshaun Watson signed his four-year, $177.54 million deal on Saturday, with over $111 million guaranteed, it meant that, for now, no one in the NFL will make more than him over the next four years.

That led to Field Yates dropping these staggering numbers in this tweet.

The highest-paid QB in the NFL on average money per new year:
1. Patrick Mahomes: $45M
2. Deshaun Watson: $39M
3. Russell Wilson: $35M
4. Ben Roethlisberger: $34M
T-5. Aaron Rodgers: $33.5M
T-5. Jared Goff: $33.5M

Due to be paid soon QBs include: Lamar Jackson & Dak Prescott.

— Field Yates (@FieldYates) September 5, 2020

Of the six highest-paid quarterbacks on average money per year, the top three are all Black, and the list doesn’t even include the large paydays that Lamar Jackson and Dak Prescott are headed for.

But this isn’t about the Haves. It’s about the Have Nots.

Here’s a look at some of the franchises that blew it all because they wanted basic white guys to lead their teams instead of the Black quarterbacks that are rolling in the dough.

https://deadspin.com/racism-is-why-your-favorite-team-might-have-drafted-a-s-1844970698

Black-Owned Bulletproof Vests

 From Black Enterprise - 

BLACK-OWNED LINE OF BULLETPROOF VESTS FOR ADULTS AND CHILDREN SEES 400% INCREASE IN SALES

by BLACK ENTERPRISE Editors

Thyk Skynn, a Black-owned line of fashionable bulletproof vests for men, women, and children, has seen a nearly 400 percent increase in sales over the past few weeks as Americans continue to grow concerned about their protection from police shootings and other random acts of violence.

Mike Tyree, the founder and CEO of Thyk Skynn, was a police officer in the city of Atlanta for 9 years. He says he left his career and decided to start the business to give innocent people a safe way to peacefully protect themselves.

https://www.blackenterprise.com/black-owned-line-of-bulletproof-vests-for-adults-and-children-sees-400-increase-in-sales/

For more information about Thyk Skynn, visit www.thykskynn.com or follow the brand on Instagram @ThykSkynn

Young, Black, and Rich

From Women's Health Magazine - 

'Black Girl Sunscreen' Founder Shontay Lundy Became A Self-Made Millionaire By Taking Risks.  But she doesn’t do 7 a.m. meetings.

BY SHONTAY LUNDY, AS TOLD TO ALEXIS JONES

I'm Shontay Lundy, the founder of Black Girl Sunscreen, and I'm a millionaire—a title I never considered possible for myself.

I was born in the small town of Newburgh, New York. Today, it's one of those places that people from the city migrate to because you get more for your dollar. And it's undergoing gentrification. But when I was a kid in the 1980s, there was a lot of drug use and limited job opportunities in my hometown. If you were really doing something for yourself, you were taking the metro to Manhattan to work a better-paying 9-to-5.

I grew up having to work for whatever I wanted. I was raised part-time by my grandparents (my parents were both in the military). Eventually, I became the oldest of six kids, though the only child between the two of my parents. My mom and dad divorced and had children with their new spouses after they both came out of the service. Our age gaps span from a year and a half to 13 years.

Now, when I think about the meaning of leadership as a company founder, I realize this experience really groomed me from a young age to lead by example. I wasn't afraid to be the first or take risks.

I got my first real job running a paper route at 15 years old. I took pride in it. I'd get up at 4 a.m. every day and make sure the paper arrived at my customers' homes dry and secure. This job paid for things my parents or grandparents couldn't afford—like a landline for my room. But it wasn't part of my career goals.

https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/a33758806/millionaire-shontay-lundy-black-girl-sunscreen/

Black Boys | Official Trailer | Peacock

Dog Goes to School

rudy goes to doggy school every day on a bus and he loves it
(jukin copyright management) pic.twitter.com/SuIO0I6XMT

— Humor And Animals (@humorandanimals) September 10, 2020

 

A Powerful Message

 From David Brooks - 

“It occurred to me that there were two sets of virtues, the résumé virtues and the eulogy virtues. The résumé virtues are the skills you bring to the marketplace. The eulogy virtues are the ones that are talked about at your funeral — whether you were kind, brave, honest or faithful. Were you capable of deep love? We all know that the eulogy virtues are more important than the résumé ones. But our culture and our educational systems spend more time teaching the skills and strategies you need for career success than the qualities you need to radiate that sort of inner light. Many of us are clearer on how to build an external career than on how to build inner character.”

― David Brooks, The Road to Character

BREAKING NEWS: The@MiamiDolphins players will stay inside for both national anthems. They express their discontentment with what they call “fluff and empty gestures” by the @NFL pic.twitter.com/ghUktHhPt9

— Jay Williams (@RealJayWilliams) September 10, 2020

 

funny monkey telling secrets @memes

When Hispanic Families visit you at the Hospital. �� #TeamLeJuan