Saturday, July 24, 2021
17-year-old Black girl makes color changing sutures that detect infection
Allow Athletes to be Human
From the Hollywood Reporter -
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Let Athletes Lead the Way on Mental Health
Instead of demanding perfection from sports stars who get candid about their health, viewers should admire their perseverance — and take cues from their coping skills.
BY KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR
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| Kevin Love, Naomi Osaka and Michael Phelps. MICHAEL REAVES/GETTY IMAGES; MARK BRAKE/GETTY IMAGES; LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES |
When four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka dropped out of the French Open and Wimbledon because of anxiety and depression associated with compulsory press interviews, many fans were shocked at her bold confession. While most professional athletes rallied to support her “bravery,” some critics dismissed the player, who will represent Japan at the Tokyo Olympics, as a “diva” and “narcissistic.” The same thing happened in 2018 when NBA star Kevin Love wrote an essay in The Players’ Tribune about his anxiety and depression despite his fear that others, especially his teammates, would see it as a “form of weakness that could derail my success in sports.”
Within the past few years, dozens of celebrities and athletes — among them Adele, Britney Spears, Demi Lovato, Beyoncé, Miley Cyrus, Emma Stone, DeMar DeRozan, Michael Phelps and Dwayne Johnson — have openly discussed their struggles with mental health. Richard Sherman, arrested July 14 after his family called 911 during a domestic incident where he threatened to harm himself, promised to get “the help I need” in an Instagram post.
Yet the stigma of somehow being damaged, tainted, a diva or unable to perform lingers because the public perception is that, unlike with a sprained ankle, people can’t heal from or cope with mental health issues. They forget that these people have been dealing with these challenges at the same time they’ve risen to elite athlete or star celebrity status. Rather than cautionary examples of weakness, they are often models of strength and perseverance.
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The problem is the desire for the public to hold up performing artists and athletes as paragons of perfection and then punish them when they are anything less. They see mental health issues as a character issue — to suffer is to be weak. This despite the statistics: one in four adults and one in five teens experiences a diagnosable mental disorder. Rather, the public should admire public figures’ perseverance and character strength for all they’ve accomplished despite their challenges — and learn coping skills from them. Actually, it’s a reflection of our own character whether we choose to be supportive or derisive, because that reflects either our capacity for compassion — or the depth of our own personal fears.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/kareem-athletes-mental-health1234985129-1234985129/
Triple Crown
From Hypebeast -
The Antetokounmpo Siblings Become First Brother Trio to All Win NBA Championships
Back-to-back NBA champs.
By Joyce Li
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| Joe Scarnici/Getty Images |
The Milwaukee Bucks have officially claimed the title as the 2021 NBA Champions, giving brothers Giannis and Thanasis Antetokounmpo their first championship ring in the league. The two siblings are now on the same level as younger brother Kostas Antetokounmpo, who previously won the 2020 NBA Championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. The historical feat marks the first trio of brothers in the NBA to all win a league title.
Post-championship game, Giannis said during an on-court interview, “A lot of people was making jokes last year when Kostas won his championship with the Lakers. Obviously at the dinner table it was awkward a little bit because he had the ring before me. But now me and Thanasis have ours. But now me and Thanasis have the ring too, so we’re happy.”
https://hypebeast.com/2021/7/antetokounmpo-siblings-first-brother-trio-all-win-nba-championshipsGiannis' reaction to him, Thanasis and Kostas all being NBA champs 🥺❤️ pic.twitter.com/njD2vxW8pa
— ESPN (@espn) July 21, 2021
A Classy Gesture
From the Irish Mirror -
Olympics 2021: Huge amount of goodwill for Ireland's Olympians after classy gesture during opening ceremony
Aren't we a great bunch altogether?
BY DAVID KENT
The whole Irish team bowed in unison towards the Japanese welcoming party in what was a lovely nod to the different culture they are immersed in for the duration of these Games.
And that gesture in particular has got huge praise online.
You have done us proud @Kelly64kg @weerooster @TeamIreland @PattyFblp 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/Y30u9XWSu4
— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) July 23, 2021
https://www.irishmirror.ie/sport/olympics-2021-huge-amount-goodwill-24604744.amp
Friday, July 23, 2021
Mr. SOUL! Trailer
Thursday, July 22, 2021
Pulled His Car Over to Have Some Fun
I just pulled my car over, and served these girls 🤣🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/cBLjrQ7o6A
— Julian King (@itsjulianking) July 19, 2021
Eric. Eric. Eric.
From HuffPost -
Eric Clapton Says He Won’t Perform Where Vaccine Is Required, Gets Feedback
“I reserve the right to cancel the show,” the “Tears in Heaven” singer wrote in defiance of Boris Johnson’s vaccination order.
By Ron Dicker
Veteran rocker Eric Clapton declared Wednesday he would not perform where proof of vaccination is required, defying U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s order on large indoor gatherings.
Britain, where the delta variant of COVID-19 is threatening pandemic recovery, eased coronavirus restrictions this week. But Johnson said nightclubs and concert venues must require verification of inoculation status.
Eric Clapton: “I won’t perform on any stage where there is a discriminated audience present.”
— Tony Rossi (@toeknee_rawsee) July 21, 2021
Also Eric Clapton: pic.twitter.com/LgPjGTe8Fs
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/eric-clapton-vaccine-concert_n_60f92b68e4b0ddf0097ba9de?ncid=NEWSSTAND0001I'm sure Eric Clapton and all the Republicans claiming it’s their right not to prove they’re vaccinated in a pandemic—because of “liberty”—won't mind the people serving their food in restaurants deciding not to wash their hands after using the restroom—because of “freedom.” https://t.co/JaLNLr942V
— Mrs. Betty Bowers (@BettyBowers) July 21, 2021
I Love Bear!
From HuffPost -
Watch This Viral TikTok Singer Blow Minds In The Most Unexpected Place
Bear Bailey had given up on his dream of being a singer. Then TikTok and his local gas station changed everything.
By Josephine Harvey
At age 33, Bear Bailey thought his dream of being a singer was dead. Then TikTok and his local gas station helped bring it back to life.
Bailey has gained more than a million TikTok followers in less than two weeks since he started posting videos from the Super Serve station near his home in Houma, Louisiana. In the viral clips, the cashiers make song requests and Bailey serenades them at the checkout counter, provoking heartwarming (and often hilarious) reactions from surprised shoppers around the store.
“Bear! I’ve been waiting for you,” cashier Melissa McGee, known to locals as Mama, shouts in one clip as Bailey walks in and breaks out into a cover of John Legend’s “All of Me.”
@bearbailey1 All Of Me by @johnlegendofficial #cover #foryou #foryoupage #tiktok #adayinmylife TikTok muted the sound on last one! #viral #letsgo #tag him yall!
♬ original sound - Bear Bailey
@bearbailey1 Night shift by the ##commodores ##cover ##foryou ##foryoupage ##adayinmylife ##gasstation ##letmeknow ##unity
♬ original sound - Bear Bailey
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/tiktok-singer-bear-bailey-gas-station_n_60f76b4ce4b0d1bafbf83b00
Wednesday, July 21, 2021
Tuesday, July 20, 2021
Sell Your Old Tech. Here's How.
From Readers Digest -
If You Have This at Home, You’re Losing out on $264
By Carrie Madormo
Anyone up for making a quick $200? Go ahead and sell these items you aren't even using. We'll show you how!
When was the last time you upgraded your smartphone, tablet, or laptop? OK, now try to remember what you did with your old tech once the shiny new products arrived. Chances are, you stuffed them in the kitchen junk drawer or in the basement—where they’re now collecting dust. Yep, that’s what most of us do…because we don’t know what to do. We can’t just throw them away, and we’re not sure how to recycle them. Luckily, there’s a third option, and it comes with cash. Selling your old tech items is a way to give them new life while clearing out your clutter and making some extra money.
According to Decluttr.com, the average American household has about $264 worth of old tech items just sitting around. It can feel intimidating to jump in and start selling those items, though. We sat down with Decluttr CMO Liam Howley to learn the fastest, easiest ways to start cashing in on your old tech.
https://www.rd.com/article/old-tech-thats-worth-money/
Shocked But Not Surprised
From The Nation -
Our ‘Racial Reckoning’ Is Turning Out to Be a White Lie
Black demands for full citizenship are being treated as entitlement and calls for racial accountability redefined as white persecution.
By Kali Holloway
With inevitable regularity, racial injustice and violence lead to moments of national conflict when even white Americans can no longer ignore the issue. And just as inevitably, instead of addressing this country’s pervasive racism and anti-Blackness, white Americans locate the problem somewhere within Black people themselves.
We’re in yet another of those moments, as last summer’s promised “racial reckoning” turns out to be a white lie. Black demands for full citizenship and equality are being treated as entitlement, calls for white racial accountability redefined as white persecution, and anti-racism falsely construed as anti-whiteness. To reestablish unchallenged white dominance, a movement of white resistance, or anti-anti-racism, is working tirelessly to blot out what it sees as a problematic presence—purging Black folks from democracy by stripping voting rights, erasing Black struggle from history by banning the teaching of slavery and its legacy, and prohibiting protest that threatens the white supremacist status quo.
We can be shocked, but certainly not surprised. This nation has a long history of counterbalancing any move toward Black liberation with the insistence that Black existence is better wholly removed or more tightly controlled. In an 1814 missive addressing the prospect of African American emancipation, Thomas Jefferson advocated for Black expatriation to another country, contending that without the yoke of slavery around their necks, African Americans were “pests in society.” Abraham Lincoln, even as he drafted the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862, told a delegation of Black leaders invited to the White House that “your race suffer very greatly…by living among us, while ours suffer from your presence,” and placed the blame for “white men cutting one another’s throats” on Black folks requesting equality, claiming “but for your race among us there could not be war.” Lincoln suggested the solution was for Black people to “sacrifice something of your present comfort” by picking up stakes and relocating abroad, an idea the president would support until days before his assassination.
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/black-lives-matter-backlash-2/
The Rock is Small Compared to . . .
He's 6'5! But Charles Barkley makes the Rock look small, and Shaq makes him look like a shrimp! pic.twitter.com/xjogU83L51
— JustLizzy🖤🤍💜 (@LustJizzy) July 17, 2021
First Black Graduate of Grinnell College
From Black Enterprise -
MEET 107-YEAR-OLD EDITH RENFROW SMITH: THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO GRADUATE FROM GRINNELL COLLEGE IN IOWA
by Andrea Blackstone
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| Edith Renfrow Smith, left, was the first Black woman to graduate from Grinnell College. Facebook - Bethany Retirement Community |
Naomi Osaka Making History With SI Swimsuit Cover
From USA Today -
Naomi Osaka becomes first female Black athlete on a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover
By Scott Gleeson
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| Sports Illustrated magazine cover image for 2021 Swimsuit issue on sale July 22 featuring a photo of Naomi Osaka by Yu Tsai, Sports Illustrated |
Naomi Osaka appears on the cover of this year's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition, becoming the first female Black athlete to do so.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/tennis/2021/07/19/naomi-osaka-cover-sports-illustrated-swimsuit-issue/8011368002/
Black Girls on FIRE!
From Black Enterprise -
UNDEFEATED: FIRST BLACK GIRL DUO WINS INTERNATIONAL DEBATE COMPETITION AT HARVARD
by BLACK ENTERPRISE Editors
https://www.blackenterprise.com/undefeated-first-black-girl-duo-wins-international-debate-competition-at-harvard/
Dude Says What We're Thinking
From Bored Panda -
Dude Keeps Protesting Annoying Everyday Things With Funny Signs (35 New Pics)
By Liucija AdomaiteIlona and Baliūnaitė
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| dudewithsign |
When you see the fast fashion giant Zara proudly selling “Dude With Sign” shirts for their summer collection, you know the Dude has gone mainstream. And how couldn’t he? With a whopping 7.5 million followers, New Yorker Seth Phillips has gained a cult following for his truth bombs that protest anything from loud engines, phones that shatter easily, “x” in espresso, and other very specific, small things that add up to our daily lives.
And luckily, there’s always something new to protest against. Like, hot coffee in summer or verifying you’re not a robot. So today, we collected some of the Dude’s most recent signs for y'all dudes and dudettes who have had enough. Of what? Let’s say, just everything.
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| dudewithsign |
https://www.boredpanda.com/dude-holding-signs-protesting/