#Karen Washington

[2bpoliticallycurious]

This has been the most painful Black History Month in my recent memory, what with many GQP politicians legislating the teaching of a whitewashed American history in public schools, criminalizing the discussion of systemic racism in the classroom, and censoring books that could make white students feel “uncomfortable.”

As always, Karen Attiah provides insightful commentary regarding some of the current struggles in our nation regarding Black history. But the third section of her three-part essay broke my heart. 

You see, in 2021, the former Fifth Avenue in Nashville was renamed the Rep. John Lewis Way, after one of the courageous leaders of the Civil Rights Movement.

However, two white male Republican state legislators now want to rename part of the Rep. John Lewis Way--the President Donald Trump Boulevard. To add insult to injury, the Senate bill was introduced on the first day of February 2023--Black history month.

Below is Karen Attiah’s take on this.

Home Front: In Nashville, an attack on Rep. John Lewis Way

Speaking of Black people fighting for their own history, let me turn to a recent story out of Nashville.

The late civil rights icon and Georgia congressman John Lewis had a special connection to Nashville. He led many of the famous lunch counter sit-ins in the city to protest segregation. He was one of the 13 original “Freedom Riders.” He later attended Fisk University there.

In 2020, the Minority Caucus of the Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County sponsored an ordinance to rename Fifth Avenue, where the historic sit-ins occurred, to Rep. John Lewis Way. The street was officially re-christened in 2021.

Fast-forward to 2023, and Tennessee state Sen. Frank Niceley and Rep. Paul Sherell have introduced a bill to rename a portion of the road — Donald Trump Boulevard.

Yeah, you read that right.

I spoke with Jerrick Lewis, the nephew of John Lewis and the executive director of the John Robert Lewis Legacy Institute, to get his take on this direct attack on his uncle’s legacy. “It’s just very disheartening,” he said. “And my main question is — why? I have no disrespect for any president having a street named after him, but why John Lewis Way in Nashville?”

White backlash to Black progress is nothing new. Why else was Confederate Heroes Day being put on the calendar in Texas in the 1970s after Black lawmakers succeeded in making MLK day a holiday?

Lewis told me his uncle’s family is extremely hurt at the proposed renaming. “It’s like, we’re not supposed to be elevated to be celebrated? People want you to stay down at a certain level, and that’s just not the way John Lewis thought.”

Sounds like plenty of people are prepared to cause good trouble to protect John Lewis Way. Last weekend, hundreds rallied to protest the proposed name change. I’ll be watching this story to see how it pans out.

______________

photo source

[pedroam-bang]

Courage Under Fire (1996)

[loser-vuitton]

If I can’t eat a grilled cheese at the function, I’m not going.

[bevanne46]

The 1876 Centennial Quilt Project When quilt historian Karen B. Alexander saw a photo of the extraordinary 1876 Centennial Quilt on Facebook, she set out to find the quilt’s owner, in the hope that her group of quilting friends on Lopez Island might make replica 1876 quilts of their own. Barbara Menasian agreed to share her quilt with the group, and Anne Dawson set out to draft the complex pattern. Two and a half years later, 23 replica quilts, in a wide variety of styles, were completed, and The 1876 Centennial Quilt Project exhibit premiered at the International Quilt Festival in Houston, Texas.

[ruleof3bobby]

THE CREATOR (2023) Grade: B-

The visuals were great & some cool looking shots. The script wasn't like a Nolan film for sure. Little on the nose and long. Still like John David Washington, he turned a good performance.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s (R) administration recently pulled resources for LGBTQ youth from the state’s Department of Health website, after receiving an inquiry from a conservative outlet, according to The Washington Post.

The online resources for LGBTQ youth were reportedly removed May 31, the same day that the administration received questions from The Daily Wire, an outlet co-founded by conservative commentator Ben Shapiro.

The Virginia Department of Health website previously featured links to Q Chat Space, a national LGBTQ center where teens can join online support groups moderated by professionals, as well as the LGBTQ and social justice website Queer Kid Stuff, among other resources.

The state’s health commissioner, Karen Shelton, told colleagues in one of several messages obtained by the Post that she was directed to pull the webpage by Health and Human Resources.

Employees with the Virginia Department of Health’s Office of Family Health — which was at the center of this and other recent cases in which public health resources were removed — expressed concerns about the removal of the LGBTQ resources without their prior consultation.

“I’m having a bad case of déjà vu,” Vanessa Walker Harris, the director of the Office of Family Health, said in one email, according to the Post.

Walker Harris went on to voice concerns that the division’s staff were being directed to remove the resources in response to “a politically motivated inquiry, yet again.”

“[H]ere we go again with removing things from the webpage without consulting OFHS,” another member of the Office of Family Health, Emily Yeatts, said.

Shelton later apologized for the way that the change was handled, saying that “there wasn’t much time to communicate about it,” the Post reported.

In the wake of the decision to remove the LGBTQ resources, Youngkin spokesperson Macaulay Porter said in a statement to the Post that the government “should not facilitate anonymous conversations between adults and children without a parent’s approval.”

“In Virginia, the Governor will always reaffirm a parent’s role in their child’s life,” she added. “Children belong to their parents, not the state.”

[magicpotiondaily]

Met Gala 2023 - “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty.” (fave looks) Part 2

~ Part 1 here

~ Kendall Jenner, Nick Jonas, Maude Apatow, Karen Elson, Madelyn Cline, Ashley Park, Letitia Wright, Dwyane Wade, Gigi Hadid, Billie Eilish, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Kerry Washington, Priyanka Chopra, Jordan Roth, Lily James, Rita Ora, Lily Aldridge, Jennifer Lopez, Ashley Graham, Julia Garner, Naomi Campbell, Sydney Sweeney, Suki Waterhouse, Stormzy,  Charlotte Tilbury, Anok Yai, Kaitlyn Dever, Kylie Jenner, Labrinth, Pedro Pascal, Salma Hayek

[ijustthinkevilunoisneat]

Puberty pushing you into watching Being The Dark Order

Disclaimer: I don't know if calling someone dyslexic as an insult is appropriate but I sure ain't gonna mess with Mama Dark Order. Just a friendly reminder not to do that unless you're telling Uno off for puberty pushing.

Also remember to keep an eye out for this week's episode

[shakespearenews]

Malik Work says of the project, “We didn’t just bring back Shakespeare. We brought back the issue of the prison system, how it affects Black people, and, most importantly, what all that has to do with memory.” The play itself begins with the release of an aging emcee known as SOS from a twenty-five-year prison sentence. Upon his diagnosis of dementia, SOS has one last chance to reconnect with his now grown twins, Vi and Will. What follows is an epic scavenger hunt infused with music, memory, and a touch of Shakespearean magic. On this journey, Vi and Will connect with their father’s friends and extended family and begin to understand who their father is and how his legacy will be remembered in time to come. Staged in the round, Our Verse in Time to Come received a full run at eleven different branches of the DC Public Library as well as at Woolly Mammoth Theatre in April of 2023.

[newmosbiusdesigns]

Seattle Freeway by Karen Portin

[xtruss]

Arab World Sees Crackdown on RT as Admission of Role Russian Media Plays 'Conveying Truth to People'

— Ilya Tsukanov | Saturday September 14, 2024

© Sputnik/Evgeny Biyatov

The State Department has leveled fresh accusations against RT, claiming the Russian broadcaster is linked to Russian intel and engaged in a global influence operation. Journalists from the Arab World told Sputnik about the real reasons for the crackdown.

"You've asked questions for months and months about the Global South, and why there's not more support for Ukraine in this part of the Middle East or that part of Latin America or this part of Africa," US State Department Global Engagement Center director James Rubin told reporters at a briefing in Washington on Friday as the US government rolled out fresh allegations and restrictions against the Russian foreign language broadcaster.

"One of the reasons why so much of the world has not been as fully supportive of Ukraine as you would think they would be...is because of the broad scope and reach of RT, where propaganda, disinformation and lies are spread to millions if not billions of people around the world," Rubin said, complaining about Russian media's global reach and ability to get alternative viewpoints across.

Secretary of State Blinken, President Biden and other officials will be "talking" with counterparts "in Latin America, in Africa, in Asia and are going to be working with their colleagues to try to show all of those countries that...to broadcast, with no restriction of control, RT and allow them free access to their countries," and "has had a deleterious effect on the views of the rest of the world about a war that should be an open-and-shut case," Rubin added.

'Shocking' Hypocrisy and Duplicitousness

“These events clearly show that the world has once again been deceived by [US] claims of supporting a free media. Blinken leading the campaign against RT is more shocking than it is surprising, especially since the US is making these accusations against a channel expressing the views of many people around the world, not just in Russia,” Palestinian-British Journalist Abdel Bari Atwan told Sputnik.

“The US has a regime closer to a dictatorship than a democracy, and the campaign against RT contradicts Washington’s false claims that it seeks different opinions and democracy, which Americans no longer have,” Atwan suggested.

The Biden administration is “projecting onto RT its own favorite method of using the media for insidious purposes,” Ibrahim Awad, vice president of Lebanon’s National Media Council, told Sputnik.

It’s stunning “that the foreign minister of a superpower has become involved in such a matter, but on the other hand, the US’s deceptive position and attempts to sit on two chairs at once is not surprising,” Awad said.

US Sanctions on Russian Media Reveal Fear, Insecurity of Dying Empire – Ex-CIA Analyst! Former US State Department official and retired CIA intelligence officer Larry Johnson spoke with Sputnik about the new sanctions against Russian media announced by Secretary of State Antony Blinken Friday.

“Freedom of speech in America is under assault,” said Johnson as the Biden administration announced its latest punitive measures against Rossiya Segodnya, the parent company of RT and Sputnik. “I'm waiting to see if they're going to come down and sanction me, for example, for daring to appear on RT and offer commentary. I'm not compensated for that in any form or fashion.”

“The only thing that can kill free speech is this kind of persecution,” said the former CIA analyst.

— Ex-US Defense Department Analyst Karen Kwiatkowski:

“This really is divorced from reality.”

“They are creating news and media coverage of something that very much fits into their narrative, which is an anti-Russian narrative which is related to the campaign.”

What this reflects is just… one more symptom of a dying empire where they have to go out and attack others.”

“The only thing that can kill free speech is this kind of persecution,” said the former CIA analyst.

“It's irrational. And again, I think it's a symptom of a weakness on the part of the United States. Weakness and fear. That's where this originates… the United States is acknowledging that what it can't handle is the truth.”

“We are not allowed to speak freely about American foreign policy,” Kwiatkowski warned. “We see it in terms of the demonstrations across the country in support of Gaza, trying to end that genocide. We are not allowed in this country to criticize the American neoconservative foreign policy. That is a done deal. We do not have freedom of speech in that area at all.”

Zombie ‘Russiagate’ Conspiracy Persists as US Stokes Fear, Hatred of Moscow! — John Miles

The narrative has proven to be a useful tool as the United States supports economic, diplomatic, and military aggression against Russia.

“Russiagate continues to survive like a science fiction monster, resilient to bullets,” writes former CIA analyst Ray McGovern in a piece on the website Consortium News, noting the longevity and usefulness of the conspiracy in continuing to stoke hostility towards Moscow among the American public.

The notion that Russia interfered in the 2016 US presidential election or played a role in hacking leaked Democratic Party emails has persisted even after sworn testimony from the cyber security firm CrowdStrike confirmed the lack of evidence for the claim.

“The mainstream media has been incredibly adept at suppressing all this stuff,” McGovern noted on Sputnik’s The Critical Hour program Wednesday. “No matter what we write in Consortium News or other outlets – it's on antiwar.com now, too – or however much you and I share this information, we're fighting an uphill battle.”

“Why is this important? Just to remind folks who might not reflect on this, Russia has been demonized to the point where Donald Trump has been blamed on the Russians – think what you will of that,” he continued.

“And all kinds of other things have been blamed on the Russians to the point where if these not very emotionally stable people in the White House decide to go after the Russians in Ukraine or even get involved against the Russians in Syria or elsewhere in the Middle East, most of the American people say, ‘oh yeah, those damn Russians, didn't they give us Donald Trump?’”

The ingrained hostility towards Russia from the American public – and from Democratic Party supporters, in particular – has served as a useful tool in justifying continued US involvement in Ukraine’s proxy war against the country.

Former CIA head James Clapper, who presided over the agency’s illegal surveillance of the Donald Trump campaign during the 2016 election, has been instrumental in perpetuating the narrative. Clapper has made his distrust of Moscow clear, appearing to suggest nefarious qualities are somehow hardcoded into the DNA of Russian people.

“[Clapper claimed] the historical practices of the Russians [make them] almost genetically driven to co-opt, penetrate, gain favor, whatever, which is a typical Russian technique,” McGovern recalled, calling him a “Russophobe extraordinaire.”

“I Was The CIA Director… We Lied, We Cheated, We Stole,” Declared Former CIA Director Mike Pompeo During a Candid Moment In 2019. “We Had Entire Training Courses.”

A gene for dishonesty has yet to be found. But if one exists, Pompeo’s comment suggests it is most likely to predominate among CIA officials like Clapper, who have been responsible for the overthrow of dozens of world leaders and the deaths of millions of civilians.

Truth Hurts

Nasser Abu Bakr, head of the Palestinian Union of Journalists, says Washington’s assault on RT is an “admission of the role the channel plays in conveying the truth to people.”

The US elite “only wants one version of the world – their version, which entails falsification, lies and propaganda, and they don’t want the world to see the truth, hence the attempts to restrict all free media spreading truth and justice,” Bakr said.

Algerian professor of media studies Hakim Bugrara says the US regularly “undermines the humanitarian and democratic values it claims to defend” when someone falls outside its orbit.

“Washington does not accept the existence of strong media contradicting its position, and the Americans are particularly worried about Russian media, which has enormous reach and distribution, despite all attempts to interfere with its broadcasts.” Russian journalists have broken through the information blockade with their content and diversity of opinions, and most importantly, offered the world “a different perspective on current events and their underlying causes,” Bugrara said.

US Recognizes Russian Media Play Important Role in Reporting Truth - Experts

On September 4, the United States imposed sanctions against the Rossiya Segodnya media group, RIA Novosti, RT, Sputnik, and Ruptly. The new measures also affected Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of Rossiya Segodnya, Sputnik's parent media group.

Commenting on the US accusations against RT, political scientist and international relations expert Ruhollah Modabber told Sputnik that the US recognizes that Russian media, especially RT and Sputnik, play an important role in reporting the truth and countering false Western propaganda.

"People around the world turn to Russian media for the truth. RT and Sputnik have attracted a large audience. Western information sources fail at the same time as they try to show another reality through censorship. The Russian media have once again defeated the hegemony of the US and Europe in the information space", Ruhollah Modabber said.

The US wants to achieve information "censorship" against Russia because it has "failed" in Ukraine, Chilean political scientist Ingrid Urgelles, PhD told Sputnik, commenting on Washington's introduction of new sanctions against Russian media.

"This is another of the many attempts by the US to censor platforms that broadcast a point of view that differs from the imperialist agenda they promote. In this case, it is the conflict in Ukraine, and because the US lost, it also lost [global] support. That is why they are resorting to such extraordinary measures to blame the media, which is quite absurd, because it is not just about RT, but about the form in which people receive information," Ingrid Urgelles said.

In her opinion, RT as a media outlet has "always shown the other side of the coin and criticized US colonialism in different parts of the world."

The editor-in-chief of Russia's Rossiya Segodnya international media group and the RT broadcaster, Margarita Simonyan, said on Friday that she felt she had made a difference with her work, commenting on the new US sanctions.

"The US Department of State says RT is one of the reasons why Ukraine does not have larger support in other countries. I haven't lived my life in vain. Seriously," Simonyan wrote on Telegram.

RT Editor-in-Chief Cites Channel's Success as Key Factor Behind US Sanctions! © Sputnik/Evgeny Biyatov/Go to the mediabank

VLADIVOSTOK (Sputnik) - The editor-in-chief of Russia’s Rossiya Segodnya* international media group and the RT broadcaster, Margarita Simonyan, called RT's success as one of two reasons for US sanctions against Russian media, along with the elections in the United States.

"Why did they do it now? For two reasons — firstly, the projects turned out to be incredibly successful: our audience has grown very significantly compared to what it was when we broadcast openly. Last year alone, our English-language projects had almost 14 billion views. This hurts them. This is more than our closest competitors BBC and CNN," Simonyan said on the air of Rossiya 1 broadcaster.

"Plus they have elections — this is a scenario they have already worked out: as soon as there are elections, they need to quickly distract everyone with Russia," she added.

Simonyan recalled earlier that after the start of the Russian special operation, a number of Western countries supporting Ukraine had restricted the work of the TV channel and media group, including revoking licenses.

"In these countries and, in particular, in the US, we began to work, how can I say, underground. Guerrilla warfare is a well-known, familiar, and beloved business for any person born in the Soviet Union, and raised on Soviet textbooks, and educated in a Soviet school. We organized a number of 'guerrilla' projects," the journalist said.

She also emphasized that the audience in other countries had even increased.

"In addition to what we, of course, have left, broadcasting has been strengthened in those countries that allow us to do this. This is Latin America, this is the Arab world, we have grown very well in Africa," Simonyan said.

On September 4, the US Department of the Treasury announced sanctions against Simonyan and her deputies Anton Anisimov and Elizaveta Brodskaia. Deputy Director of the RT English-Language Information Broadcasting Andrey Kiyashko, RT’s Digital Media Projects Manager Konstantin Kalashnikov and a number of other employees of the broadcaster were also added to the sanctions list.

The US State Department, in a parallel move, tightened the operating conditions for Rossiya Segodnya and its subsidiaries, designating them as "foreign missions." Under the Foreign Missions Act, they will be required to notify the department of all personnel working in the United States and disclose all real estate they own.

US authorities also announced restrictions on the issuance of visas to individuals they allege are "acting on behalf of Kremlin-supported media organizations." However, the Department of State refused to disclose the names of those subject to the new visa restrictions. Commenting on the new sanctions, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller claimed the measures did not target any particular individual Russian journalists, but rather the employees of the targeted companies who were involved in "covert activities."

Meanwhile, US authorities have charged Kalashnikov and another RT employee, Elena Afanasyeva, with money laundering conspiracy and violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).

*Rossiya Segodnya is the parent media group of Sputnik News.

[thenewdemocratus]

Early Start With Kasie Hunt: 'You're Lying': George Conway Clashes With Republican Commentator Over Donald Trump Guilty Verdict'

Source:CNN with a George Conway vs Scott Jennings live TV debate. Source:The New Democrat “Lawyer George Conway and CNN Senior Political Commentator Scott Jennings joined “CNN This Morning” to discuss Donald Trump’s guilty verdict in his criminal hush money case.” From CNN I’m not going top try to play mindreader and argue that Scott Jennings is lying here. He just might be complete idiot when it…

[rabbitcruiser]

International Color Day

International Color Day is celebrated every March 21, and we are going to show you how you can celebrate the day. Do you know that it has been 14 years since the idea for International Color Day was proposed by the Portuguese Color Association? International Color Day was created to celebrate color. The date was chosen as March 21, as it is the day of the equinox, which means the lengths of day and night are almost the same as the sun’s rays are straight on the equator. This day is celebrated by setting up exhibitions, science shows, and interactive programs for children, among other activities.

History of International Colour Day

Color has always made humans curious since the beginning of time. Aristotle believed that the colors came from heaven. He believed that the origin of all colors was black and white. However, it was in the 1660s when Issac Newton experimented with light and its different spectrums, that color became a topic of study. After 2000 years, Aristotle’s postulates were replaced by the ones Newton created. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, a German novelist, playwright, and scientist argued that color was something that was perceived by individuals differently. He is well-known for his quote, “Colors are light’s sufferings and joy”. The distinction between primary and secondary colors was made by Jacob Christoph Le Blon.

In 2008, Maria Joao Durao, the president of the Portuguese Color Association, came up with a proposal to ‘Association Internationale de la Couleur (A.I.C.)’ for recognizing the importance of color and dedicating a day to it. In 2009, the proposal was accepted by the members. The date was chosen to be March 21 as it is the day of the equinox. Competitions, science fairs, art fairs, etc. are held to celebrate. In 2012, an art competition was held in Taipei, Taiwan for deciding on the logo for International Color Day. Hosana Yau of Hong Kong won the competition with his diagram of two circles that made an eye. Half of the circle consisted of rainbow colors and the other half was black. They represented light and darkness.

International Colour Day timeline

350 B.C.

The Theory by Aristotle

Aristotle states that the origins of all colors is black and white and that colors came from heaven.

1704

The Discovery by Newton

In his book “Opticks,” Issac Newton describes the phenomenon of the spectrum of light.

2008

A Day for Color Is Proposed

The Portuguese Color Association proposes a day dedicated to color.

2009

The International Color Day

International Color Day is created for the sole purpose of celebrating color.

International Colour Day FAQs

What is the color of March?

The color of March is Aquamarine. It represents Spring. It is also a symbol of youth and hope.

Is color actually color?

Actually, color does not exist. What exists is light, and how our brains perceive the light reflections.

How many colors exist in the world?

Scientists have determined in the labs that there are 10 million colors in the world.

International Colour Day Activities

Participate in the eventsTake part in the exhibitions and webinars that are held on International Color Day and learn new things. This can be particularly useful for kids.

Wear your National colorWear your national flag as a tee shirt or wrap the flag around you. Share your sense of patriotism even as you celebrate colors.

Share it on social mediaLet everyone know you're celebrating this day. Take pictures of you taking part in International Color Day celebrations and share them on social media.

5 Intriguing Facts About Colors

Blue is a favorite color: The color blue is known to be the favorite of most people in the world.

There’s a fear of color: The fear of color is called Chromophobia.

Women see color better: There are two X chromosomes in women, and that helps them see certain spectrums better.

Newborns see red first: Since the color red has the longest wavelength, it is the first color that a baby sees.

The gray before dark is a phenomenon: The gray we see the second we turn off the lights is called eigengrau.

Why We Love International Colour Day

It gives us a chance to appreciate color: We live in a colorful world. But sometimes, we forget to appreciate all the colors around us. This day is a reminder to be grateful for color.

It’s a day to engage family: This day gives us a chance to participate in events with friends and family. It brings families closer.

It improves our general knowledge: The exhibitions and science fairs held on this day are educational. This can be beneficial for the kids.

Source

[goonmilk]

Juneteenth

Juneteenth

The Celebration of the actual day black people were freed from slavery.

This year I celebrated with my bro and his Fam at a Juneteenth cookout in the city. My brother Eli just became a Father of a beautiful baby girl, my God Daughter Sa’mya. I’m excited to see bro grow into fatherhood much like how I did last year with Phoenix. Life changing experience to say the least.

Feel like my friend group has reached the point where we’re planning playground dates and family functions more than hittin’ the club or partying, and I’m perfectly fine with it. Family is most important to me and having my own now is a beautiful thing, so why wouldn’t I foster that environment for myself and others. It truly takes a village, and ai feel like our village is thriving.

You know Karen was intrigued by all the black people in the alley lol