#african american marriage officiant

[qcsupermom]

How To Get Married in North Carolina

As an ordained minister, I’m often asked what is the process to get legally married in the state of North Carolina. Which is a smart move, because each state has unique requirements for marriage licenses, waiting periods, and documentation. Knowing these in advance can save you time and stress, ensuring your special day goes smoothly. 💍✨ To get legally married in the state of North Carolina,…

[foreficfandom]

Alastor - Historical Trivia And Headcanons

Alastor was a mixed-race Creole man living in New Orleans, and was in his 30's/40's when he died in 1933. We don't know much else about him, but historical context can provide us with possible additional details:

The population of New Orleans in 1930 was 458,762, more than it is now. 27.2% of the people were black, 3.1% were foreign-born, and roughly half of America's bipoc population was unemployed thanks to the Great Depression. New Orleans' original Francophonication was still strong, and it was common to run into locals who only spoke French dialects (Cajun French, Louisiana Creole). The city has had a huge Chinatown, a small Little Italy, and multiple other districts known for their immigrant African/colonized French cultures.

The Jim Crow laws were heavily enforced, as was the 'One Drop' rule. If Alastor was a mixed race black man, he would not have been able to attend a white school, use the same public transport, and would have shopped at black-local stores and restaurants under threat of violence. If he was mixed with any other race, some Jim Crow laws didn't apply, but state or city laws might specify differently.

Just because Alastor wears a suit, it doesn't mean he was rich in life. Radio personalities often didn't earn a fortune. Unless he owned his own broadcast, he was paid by a private company for long shifts of hosting music, news, and radio plays. In 1930, 40% of households owned at least one radio, which means that a popular radio host would have been easily recognized.

If he was in his late 30's in 1933, he might have fought in WW1, so long as he was over the age of 21. Some cities gave veterans small benefits, or encouraged the community to give them jobs. This often did not include veterans of color.

New Orleans was famous for being one of the least Christian cities in America, thanks to its unique immigrant and slave population. Haitian-based faiths and practices (such as voudo), indigenous cultures, Asian Buddhism, and atheism were common. But Christianity was still the official, law-enforced religion. Schooling involved reading the Bible, laws were sworn to Jesus, etc.

Alastor's outfit in Hazbin Hotel isn't very accurate to real-life American men's fashions of the time. Back then, deviating from the norm with the smallest detail would have stuck out like a sore thumb - like his white-lined lapels. Men always wore a hat. They were allowed to go without a waistcoat, but not a jacket. Belts were becoming more popular than suspenders. The silhouette was bulkier than the slimmer, Italian cuts of our modern times, especially the pants. Hair was kept short, and oiled down in a side part. Americans preferred the clean shaven look. Ties were essential unless you were a blue-collar laborer. Colors were almost universally muted neutral tones for everyday wear. The most colorful textiles for men were sporting outfits, like a tennis jacket.

If Alastor was a middle-class single man, he likely would have lived in an inner-city apartment, in an ethnic neighborhood. He probably didn't own a car, and took public transit like the streetcars. If he owned a house, it would likely have been an inheritance, and even the more opulent houses of the time would have looked small and plain to our eyes.

Because of the Great Depression, unmarried men were becoming the norm, rather than the exception. Men of the community who were sought after but remained single were suspect to gossip, but less ire than you might think; in the '30s, American queer culture was going through a very sharp revival, escaping the rigid Victorian era and before the puritan 40's/50's. But as a mixed-race man, it may have been illegal for a white woman to marry him, as the Jim Crow laws forbade the marriage of white people and Black/Asian people.

A middle class city household would have had electricity, gas heating, indoor plumbing, but may not have had running taps or a gas stove. Even with decent means, Alastor might have been using a potbelly woodburning stove, a dry sink/washbasin, wooden bathtub, and did his own laundry instead of sending it to the neighborhood laundresses. He may or may not have bothered with an icebox. Fresh groceries needed to be cooked and eaten soon, as things like pasteurized milk or store refrigeration wasn't a thing.

If he had enough money, then he almost certainly hired maids or other servants. Whether the maid came over just once a week, or did the shopping and laundry every other day, hired help was much more common back then, especially if he had no wife.

The most popular musicians in 1933 were Bing Crosby, George Olsen, and Leo Reisman. As you might have noticed, it was trendy for the lead singer to be backed by an orchestra, not a 'band' of just four other people like today. The most popular radio shows were Dick Tracy, Sherlock Holmes, and Doc Savage. They were recordings the radio station would buy and then broadcast, or sometimes the actors were live on the air. The radio host was usually not the journalist - the production team was responsible for writing his script.

[dwellordream]

“The Great Depression reached into every corner of the country, but it did not affect all people equally. For many middle-class women of all races, the depression required certain changes in spending patterns: buying cheaper cuts of meat, feeding the homeless men who stopped at the back door, and doing without new clothes. Some of these women continued to do community volunteer work, raising money for the unemployed. They saw the food lines, but they did not have to join them.

Among women workers, race played an important role. The fierce competition for jobs fueled racial resentments. Mexican-American and African-American women were the first to lose their jobs and the last to get relief from welfare agencies. Often, they were already living on the margin of survival. Before 1933, when the Prohibition amendment making the manufacture or sale of alcoholic beverages illegal was repealed, many of these women turned to bootlegging, making their own beer or liquor and selling it.

…Even relatively prosperous farm women--owners, not tenants--in general produced as much as 70 percent of what their families consumed in clothing, toys, and food. They not only gardened but raised poultry. During the depression, women increased the size of their gardens and the number of their hens. They made more butter from their dairy cows and sold it. They cut up the sacks that held large amounts of flour and sewed them into underwear. In the previous decade, they had proudly begun to participate in a culture of store-bought goods. Now they began to can food again. Government agents dragged huge canning kettles across the mountains of northern New Mexico and eastern Tennessee so that women in remote farming villages could preserve their food.

Even with all this work, rural children suffered from malnutrition, and rural women faced childbirth without a doctor or midwife because they could afford neither the medical fees nor the gasoline for transportation. The women resented their declining standards of living, particularly those from better-off farm families who owned their own farms and had, during the 1920s, aspired to participate in the new domestic technology of indoor bath-rooms, modern stoves and heating, and super cleanliness.

…In 1936, a federal appeals court overruled an earlier law that had classified birth control information as obscene and thus illegal to dispense. That decision still left state laws intact, however. The number of birth control clinics nationwide rose from 55 in 1930 to 300 by 1938, but in some states and in many rural areas women still had no access to birth control. In 1937, North Carolina became the first state to provide contraceptives with tax dollar, and six others soon followed. Ironically, North Carolina’s reasoning was not that birth control was a human right but that birth control would reduce the black population.

Despite statistics showing that black women had fewer babies than white women with similar incomes and living situations, many white southern officials in states with large black populations feared a black population explosion. In 1939, the Birth Control Federation of American responded to eager southern state governments by developing “The Negro Project,” a program to disseminate birth control information, which they carefully staffed with local black community leaders. Whatever the logic, one quarter of all women in the United States in their 20s during the depression never bore children. This was the highest rate of childlessness for any decade. Many people simply decided not to get married, and marriage rates fell.

…In the mass media women seemed to be receiving mixed messages. On the one hand, in 1930, the Ladies’ Home Journal featured a former career woman confessing, “I know now without any hesitation… that [my husband’s job] must come first.” In 1931, the popular magazine Outlook and Independent quoted the dean of Barnard College, a women’s college in New York City, telling her students that “perhaps the greatest service that you can render to the community… is to have the courage to refuse to work for gain.” And on its front page in 1935, the New York Times reported that women “suffering from masculine psychological states” and an “aversion to marriage” were being “cured” by the removal of their adrenal gland. In this atmosphere, not only were women workers under fire, but women who centered their lives on women rather than on men came under attack. Lesbianism was no longer chic. Lesbian bars almost disappeared. Homosexuality was now seen by many people as just one more threat to the family.

On the other hand, movie houses showed zany screwball comedies with more complicated lessons. Often deliciously ditsy, incompetent women were rescued by sensible, capable men. Yet, the men in these movies were frequently portrayed as bumbling or slower-witted than the women. Sometimes the men were people who needed joy and whimsy restored to their lives, not an unexpected theme for a nation in the throes of an economic depression. In other movies, however, women were by no means incompetent. The women portrayed by Katharine Hepburn, Bette Davis, and Joan Crawford in the 1930s were often intelligent but needed men alternately to tame and to soften them.”

- Sarah Jane Deutsch, “Making Do with Disaster.” in From Ballots to Breadlines: American Women, 1920-1940

[bookish-bi-mormon]

Hey there. I had a question for you. I was wondering what kind of resources someone might look into if they were interested in learning more about Mormonism, particularly if the person is LGBTQ+ and also has a witchy spiritual side too? Not sure if the latter is relevant, but I thought I'd mention it anyways just in case.

oh boy oh boy this is quite a question. I do feel like both the LGBTQ and the witchy stuff are relevant because it kinda changes how I would approach it.

This is long so I put it under the cut

So, the official way to get to know more about the LDS church is to contact the missionaries. These are young adults who are dedicating 18-24 months of their lives to teaching people about the core aspects of Mormon doctrine, with the goal of baptism (usually within a month). They give out free copies of the Book of Mormon, as well as pamphlets that explain basic tenets of our religion.

That's not necessarily the path forward I would recommend to an LGBTQ person, or someone interested in the potential witchy/folk magic side of Mormonism. Most missionaries are young, and although some of them are queer themselves (I was a missionary and out as bi) most of them will be deeply steeped in the homophobia that is unfortunately all too common and perpetrated by our leaders. If a queer person wanted to get baptized into the LDS church, they would have to repent of any past queer activity and promise to live a 'chaste' life moving forward (no sex outside of a heterosexual marriage.) A lot of missionaries also will never have learned of the folk magic that Joseph Smith and other early saints practiced, because those things have all but been erased/denounced from church culture. Most missionaries aren't even comfortable acknowledging that Heavenly Mother exists.

That's not to say you shouldn't try if you feel called to the LDS church. We can use all the queer members we can get if we're gonna fight for change. But I just want to acknowledge that it is an uphill battle.

I would recommend reading the Book of Mormon, which you can access free online, plus there's an app you could download.

Saints Unscripted is a youtube channel run by members of the LDS church, where they talk about doctrine, culture, and all things mormon. Some of the videos get into some of the more controversial aspects of our history/doctrine, while other are just fun conversations about Mormon culture. I think it's a great place to go if you just wanna get to know some mormons.

Beyond the Block is a podcast run by a gay convert to the LDS church (like I said, it does happen!) and an African-american member of the church. They're on a hiatus right now but they have over 100 episodes so you'd have plenty to listen to. The LDS church has a curriculum called "Come Follow Me" where each week we are assigned certain chapters to read out of our scriptures (Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants). Brother Jones and Brother Knox talk about the reading from each week specifically from a perspective of marginalized identities. Although they are speaking for an audience who is already familiar with Mormonism, I think it's a good example of what we believe, and the Mormonism that I personally strive for.

Queer Mormon Theology is another personal favorite of mine. Although also intended for a familiar audience, I think it provides enough background information (and sources you can look at to learn more) about what Mormons believe, AND it explains how these core beliefs include queer identities, and why the current queerphobic policies should be abandoned.

Witchy stuff is more difficult to find resources for. I started with Early Mormonism and the Magic World View by D. Michael Quinn, but that's a hefty book and I don't know if I would necessarily recommend it if you are new to Mormonsim.

Most resources I have found online that explore Mormon folk magic are made by nonmembers, or exmembers, in an attempt to discredit or make fun of our founders. I've also discovered a few off-shoot groups that attempt to blend Mormon beliefs with Kabbalah (which seems like cultural appropriation to me) or psychedelics (drugs scare me idk man).

That being said, two resources I could point you to is this wikipedia article that is just like, an overview of some of the folk magic the early saints practiced. And this website which collects information about some of the less often talked about aspects of our history/culture/practices.

Most members of the LDS church don't know much about this stuff, or they just don't care. It doesn't really impact the typical LDS life, but as someone who is trying to expand my spiritual practice to include more magic/witchy stuff, it's interesting to me.

OH I CAN'T BELIEVE I FORGOT. There's this music artist named Marcie Dawn who is a Mormon Witch. She has an instagram and here she is on spotify . She doesn't talk a whole lot about her personal beliefs, it's mostly ~vibes~ but I love her and I love her music so I had to give her a plug.

And that's what I've got for you! I hope this is helpful, sorry it's so long. Please feel free to send more asks/messages about this!

[kemetic-dreams]

The unspoken history hidden behind a surname

ByLolly Bowean

Chicago Tribune

•

Dec 26, 2017 at 8:00 am

Only the truly curious even ask.

And when a Harvard University student recently inquired about my name, she was clear that she wanted to know about my surname. She repeated it three times out loud and then began probing for something deeper.

She didn’t have to say it, but I knew she was trying to better understand my heritage and ethnic background. My surname, Bowean, is puzzling. And for some, it doesn’t match my physical presence.

When I’m in the Boston region, people ask me if it’s French and I think they are trying to determine if my heritage is Haitian. Others will ask if it’s Celtic, a question that would connect me to the Irish.

The truth is, my last name was probably supposed to be Bowen, but somewhere in the past someone misspelled it and the lives of my family clan were forever changed.

This was a common occurrence. Some Southern African-Americans struggled with literacy after emancipation, and so names took on new spellings. In other cases, white officials didn’t bother to document the correct spellings on public records and the mistakes lived on.

I learned this when I tried to research the history of my last name.

In this country, there are hundreds of Bowens.

Yet, my immediate relatives are the only people I have found with the “Bowean” last name.

I explained this all to the young, curious student. I went on to tell her that the Bowean surname came to my people through marriage.

Before we were Boweans, we were Norwoods and Wakefields rooted in a small town in western North Carolina — near the mountains. Those names are connected back to England.

“Those are my people,” I told her.

“I know some Norwoods and some Wakefields from western North Carolina,” she piped up, almost with an instant giddy excitement. It seemed that for a moment she thought we had found common ground. I’m sure she thought that maybe we knew some of the same people.

The next sentence she almost whispered: “But they’re white.”

As we both stood in the silence, we didn’t speak about the legacy of American slavery.

Yet this is the moment when race and what it means to be African-American comes creeping into the most fleeting of encounters. It’s these unexpected confrontations with history that trigger what writer and social commentator James Baldwin called the “constant state of rage.”

I didn’t tell the student that during slavery, African-Americans were assigned names by their owners, and many times didn’t even have a surname, records show. I didn’t talk about how those residents were at times given the last name of their owner so that they could be identified as that white family’s property.

I also didn’t bother to talk about how, even after the 13th Amendment brought enslaved people a form of freedom, some chose the plantation name as their last name in order to reveal where they were from. African people held on to these names for many reasons — one being the hope to reunite with other family members who would only be able to identify them by these familiar markers.

These are the names that so many African Americans still wear.

The decision to stay bound to these names is deeply personal. I would never change my name — even if I married — mainly because it connects me to a fragmented people. It is the name that binds us together. And I hold on to hope that my relatives, disconnected long ago, can locate me through that shared legacy.

It is in these innocent moments that the troubling history of this country becomes real and the residue reveals itself as still present. I’ve never been ashamed that I am a descendant of people who were enslaved. Yet it is in subtle, seemingly innocent moments that the trauma strikes me.

I began to feel weighted as I stood staring at the college-age woman with a classic, sophisticated Latin name that means purity. I felt the weariness of being pushed into an emotional space and frustrated from having to contemplate whether to delve deeper into a topic I didn’t expect during idle small talk.

Then I remembered that this history is one we don’t like to discuss anyway. We were only making small talk.

“There’s probably a relationship between the two families,” the African-American one and the white one, I remember telling the student. “But I don’t know exactly, specifically, what it is.”

And then to be polite, we left the rest unspoken and parted ways.

[perfectlyyoungtimetravel]

Music Mondays

Today I drew James Brown aka 'The hardest-working man in the Show Business','Godfather of soul','Soul brother No.1' and 'Mr. Dynamite'.He was born on May 3rd in 1933. In Barnwell, South Carolina in a small wooden shack. His name was supposed to be Joseph James Brown but his first name and middle name got switched by accident. His dad was a mix of African American and Native American descent meanwhile his mom was a mix of African American and Asian descent. His family lived in poverty in Elko, South Carolina which was an impoverished town in 1933. And when he was 4 or 5, his family moved to Augusta, Georgia, they first settled in one of the aunt's brothel then they later shared a house with another aunt, his mom left the family because of contentious and abusive marriage and moved to New York (I don't know if his dad or mom had custody of him).He then began singing in talent shows as a young child, first appearing at Augusta's Lenox Theater in 1944. Winning the show after singing the ballad 'So Long'. While in Augusta, he performed buck dances for change to entertain troops from Camp Gordon at the start of World War II as their convoys traveled over a canal bridge near his aunt's home.Now this is where he first heard the legendary blues musician Howlin' Wolf play guitar.Then learned to play the piano, guitar, and harmonica during this period (so he was a multi-instrumentalist). He became inspired to become an entertainer after hearing 'Caldonia' by Louis Jordan and Tympany Five. In his teen years James had a career as a boxer for a short time.At the age of 16 he was convicted of robbery and sent to a juvenile detention center in Toccoa.In juvenile detention center, he formed a gospel quartet with four fellow cellmates, including Johnny Terry.He met singer Bobby Byrd when the two played against each other in a baseball game outside the detention center. Byrd also discovered that James could sing after hearing of 'A guy called music box', which was James's nickname at the prison. Bobby has since claimed he and his family helped to secure an early release, which led to James promising the court he would sing for the Lord. Brown was released on a work sponsorship with Toccoa business owner S.C. Lawson. Lawson was impressed with James's work ethic and secured his release with a promise to keep him employed for two years.He was paroled on June 14 in 1952.James went on to work with both of Lawson's sons, and would come back to visit the family from time to time throughout his career. Shortly after being paroled he joined the gospel group the Ever-Ready Gospel Singers, featuring Bobby's sister Sara. From 1954. Till 1961. He joined the band that changed its name into 'The Famous Flames' after their composition 'Please, please, please' became their hit. And the band would break up and be renamed as 'James Brown and his famous flames' and he released the ballad 'Try me' which was a hit in 1959. And the band then got revived. The band released their top 10 hit called '(Do the) Mashed Potatoes' on Dade Records, James released an album called 'Think!' under 'the famous flames' and even more such as 'Bewildered','I'll go crazy' and 'think' which hinted his shouting style. From 1962. To 1966. He became famous as Mr. Dynamite for the hits 'Lost Someone', 'Baby you're right','Joe Tex', 'Prisoner of love','Papa's got a brand new bag' (to which he won Grammy awards),'I got you' and his No.1 hit 'It's a Man's Man's Man's world'.From 1967. To 1970. He became known as Soul Brother No.1 for his hits 'Cold Sweat', 'Give it up or turnit a loose', 'Licking stick','Funky Drummer','Mother Popcorn','

I got the Feelin'','Gettin' Down to it','Soul on top' and 'I can't stand myself'.He did was active in social issues such as racism, He communed with the presidents and elected officials of all political stripes,made groundbreaking black pride anthems and may have saved Boston from being burned by rioters. He had Type 2 Diabetes that was not diagnosed for long and survived prostate cancer. Unfortunately on Christmas in 2006. He did from congestive heart failure. He won so many honors and awards throughout his life and after death,in 1993. The bridge is named after him 'James Brown Soul center of the universe bridge',he was inducted in Georgia music hall of Fame, Rock and roll hall of Fame,UK music hall of Fame, Atlantic city hall of fame,R&B music hall of Fame.He was awarded with lifetime achievement award after 34th annual Grammy award after that he got another lifetime achievement award for rhythm and blues pioneer award.He even got the star on the Hollywood walk of Fame.He got BMI urban icon at the BMI urban awards, he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievements.Mayor Charles DeVaney of Augusta held a ceremony to dedicate a section of 9th Street between Broad and Twiggs Streets, renamed 'James Brown Boulevard'.For his 72nd birthday, Augusta unveiled the bronze statue of him that was life-sized.The officials renamed the city's civic center the 'James Brown Arena'.president of Paine College, a historically black college in Augusta, Georgia, bestowed posthumously upon his an honorary doctorate in recognition and honor of his many contributions to the school in the times of need from the Paine College May 2007 commencement.During the 49th Annual Grammy Awards presentation on February 11 in 2007.James Brown's famous cape was draped over a microphone by Danny Ray at the end of a montage in honor of notable people in the music industry who died during the previous year. Earlier that evening, Christina Aguilera delivered an impassioned performance of Brown's hit 'It's a Man's Man's Man's World' followed by a standing ovation, while Chris Brown performed a dance routine in honor of James Brown.In his honor there was an art competition to create a James Brown tribute box on the corner of James Brown Blvd. (9th Ave.) and Broad St. The winner was Ms. Robbie Pitts Bellamy.

We feel good!

[lboogie1906]

Bishop Michael Bruce Curry (born March 13, 1953) is a bishop who is the 27th and current presiding bishop and primate of The Episcopal Church. He is the first African American to serve as presiding bishop in The Episcopal Church. He was bishop of the Diocese of North Carolina.

He graduated with high honors from Hobart College. He earned an M.Div from the Yale Divinity School, in association with Berkeley Divinity School. He studied at The College of Preachers, Princeton Theological Seminary, Wake Forest University, the Ecumenical Institute at St. Mary’s Seminary, and the Institute of Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies.

He has received honorary degrees from the School of Theology-Sewanee, Theological Seminary, Berkeley Divinity School, the Episcopal Divinity School the Seminary of the Southwest, and the Church Divinity School of the Pacific. He was appointed a serving brother of the Order of St John by Elizabeth II. He received the James Parks Morton Interfaith Award.

He was elected the eleventh bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina. When he was consecrated at Duke Chapel, he became the first African-American diocesan bishop of the Episcopal Church in the American South.

He served on the board of directors of the Alliance for Christian Media and chaired the board of Episcopal Relief and Development. He had a national preaching and teaching ministry and was a frequent speaker at services of worship and conferences around the country.

He was active in issues of social justice, speaking out on immigration policy and marriage equality. He instituted a network of canons, deacons, and youth ministry professionals to support preexisting ministries in local congregations. He led the Diocese of North Carolina to focus on the Millennium Development Goal to buy malaria nets that saved over 100,000 lives.

He served as the officiant for the state funeral of Senator John McCain. He officiated at the funeral of George H.W. Bush. He delivered a sermon-like address at “The Spirit of Apollo” program organized by the National Air and Space Museum. He spoke at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[briamichellewrites]

5

Bria hired a team of a manager, live agent, publicist, music publisher, lawyer, and distributor. They would help build her career. Since she was eighteen, she had the right to give her opinions. She wanted to be an alternative rock. Not a pop star. They were a dime a dozen. She wanted to stand out against other artists. Did she want brand deals? Yes. She would make a great model because she was five feet, nine inches tall and very thin.

Though she was very healthy. Her thin body came from genetics and her diet. She wanted to try acting, as well as doing music and modelling. At her age, the sky was the limit. She could do whatever she put her mind to. Her measurements were taken, so they could be sent to modelling agencies. She was very excited about her future!

Mike was also excited about what she could do. He hoped one day he and his band would have the same success. Joe got used to her coming over. He enjoyed having her because she was fun to hang out with, even when he didn’t show it. Since she was Mike’s girl, he wasn’t going to try anything with her. She came over as usual with some excitement. Her mother was talking to her grandmother, who lived in Daytona Beach.

Back in the 1630s, her Italian immigrant grandfather married a woman from somewhere in Africa. She couldn’t remember what country she was from. They had a daughter together named, Mary Johnson. Mary was African Italian American. So, she was part African. What side of the family was that? Her mother’s. The family kept the woman and Mary a secret for hundreds of years.

The marriage was illegal and stigmatised. It wasn’t until 1940 that the secret was revealed. Her daughter got married and had children, who got married and had children…. Gradually, they lost their African DNA. That’s why she was white. She thought that was interesting. It was very interesting. Was Mary free or a slave? She was a slave who escaped to the north. Her grandfather took her in and hid her from slave catchers. They had their daughter and got married in secret.

He passed her off as a woman who helped him with household chores. She had the same duties as a slave, except she was paid.

“Yeah, I see what you mean. You’ll have to do research into who she was and her life. Your mother never knew that”, Mike asked.

“No, my grandmother is getting older. She has moments where she will remember something random from their family, like Uncle Henry owned a deli in New York City in the 1900s and he used to give lollipops to the neighbourhood children. Stuff like that. This was one of those moments.”

Yeah, that happened with older people. Especially as they lost more of their memories. Her grandmother was sixty-five years old and was still young. She had her mother when she was eighteen years old. It was right after the war during the baby boom. Her mother was twenty-five when she married her father. They had her five years later.

Joe did the math in his head. Her parents were very young. Only forty-seven years old. Yeah, they were. They were both still in medical school when they got pregnant. Their parents wanted them to place her for adoption because they were worried about their futures. But they fought against them and kept her. They juggled medical school with taking care of her. During the day, she stayed at a daycare provided by the school.

What school did they attend? The University of California. They did four years of undergraduate. Then, medical school, residency and fellowship programs before they officially became doctors. Plus internships. They both came from middle-class backgrounds.

Since it was right after the war, the country was picking itself back up. Her grandmother got a job at a factory as a receptionist. She had to work to provide for her baby, instead of being a stay-at-home mother. What about her grandfather? He left. She didn’t know where he was. It was suspected he had a mental illness. She wanted her daughter to go to college because she never got to. Her mother liked to joke about how her grandmother didn’t like her father right away.

Why not? She thought he was “boorish.” It took six months for him to win her over. Joe asked what boorish meant. It means someone rough and bad-mannered. He had never heard that before. It was a phrase older people use.

Our fathers are already giving their blessing

For our mothers to start planning our wedding

Your brother knew we would get together

Look at us now

Yes, we’re dating. Mike’s parents were THRILLED! That was a huge understatement! They loved Bria and they knew they would fall in love. No, he was not thinking about getting married. Not yet. He wanted to finish school and establish his career first. Maybe they would get married in the future. At the moment, they were having fun together. She let him know she was on birth control to prevent pregnancy. Good. He was not ready to be a father.

He had forgotten to wear protection, so she took the Morning After pill at the doctor’s office. Her parents were very relaxed about her being sexually active. If she was, they just asked that she be careful. Since they were at the hospital a lot, they couldn’t control what she did. At eighteen years old, they couldn’t tell her what to do anymore because she was an adult.

The door would always be open for her to come in if she ever got in trouble or needed help. She confessed he was her first. Was she waiting for him? Maybe a little. That was cute. He loved being with her in bed. They made time to sneak over to her place to be together. She wasn’t innocent and he loved that about her. He was in love with every part of her. She was his best friend and she cheered him on. He laughed when he heard the song she wrote for him.

That sounded like their parents. He kissed her forehead. When her episode aired, they watched it with Joe. They couldn’t recognise her at first because of her costume and wig. She did a great job, though Mike was biased. Because of her cameo, she was receiving other opportunities. Her agent was sorting through them all. Brands wanted her to be the face of whatever they were selling.

She had the look to be a successful model. They were going to go over them during a meeting. She had the date and time written on a piece of paper at home. Her mother asked her if she would get an assistant. Yes, that sounded like a good idea. She had a one-track mind sometimes, like her father. Hers was due to her ADHD. She could be hyper-focused on something she was interested in while shutting everything else out. It drove her parents crazy.

She could spend hours on the piano. They had to get her to stop. Just so she could go to sleep. An assistant would help keep her organised.

“I’m going to get a kitten.”

“I thought you said kitchen. Never mind”, Mike said with a laugh.

“Dude, I already have that. I’m going to the animal shelter tomorrow afternoon.”

“You’re going to come home with every animal there”, he joked.

“I don’t think the county of LA would let me do that. They might put me in jail for animal hoarding or something.”

“What about a puppy? I would get a puppy.”

“You can get a puppy. I’ll get the kitten.”

He laughed. Maybe in the future, he would get a puppy. It was dinner time and they were hungry. They decided to go out somewhere close by. He grabbed his jacket, keys and wallet before following her downstairs. Joe already left to get something to eat, so he locked the door behind them.

@zoeykaytesmom @feelingsofaithless @alina-dixon

[aviationgeek71]

The Path to Freedom is Love

When you chase sunsets, it's not always the sky that takes center stage, but what you discover along the journey.

Everything tells a story... While this simple old house is ignored in a run-down section of Zanesville, Ohio, it tells a tale of love, devotion, and perseverance.

Born into slavery on a tabacco plantation in Loudoun County, Virginia, on May 10, 1821, Nelson T. Grant grew up in the torturous world of forced servitude; however, unlike many African-American slaves, he slowly gained the respect of his owner through the years. As a household slave, he had more freedoms than most, even allowed to run errands into town unsupervised.

It was during one of these errands that he fell in love with Anna Maria, a slave from another plantation.

In 1843, both slave owners permitted their marriage, yet were required to remain on their separate plantations.

Upon the death of Nelson's owner in 1845, he was granted freedom, but one problem remained... Anna was still enslaved.

Under Virginia law, a freed slave was allowed to stay one year; however, if they failed to leave, they would be enslaved again.

No income, no way to free his bride, limited time, helplessness descended within Nelson's heart. A harsh world encouraging him to flee north to freedom. Yet one thing drove him forward... deeper than hope, more beautiful than faith... love!

After a year of back-breaking work selling firewood, he saved enough to free his beautiful wife. With time running out, pleading eyes, he offered to purchase Anna's freedom, only to hear the heartbreaking words from her owner, "No!"

Tears flowing, heart crushed at the decision he now faced... freedom or slavery, yet both did not include Anna. His only hope... a promise! 

Gently caressing her face, looking into her beautiful eyes, he firmly said, "No matter what it takes, I'll be back for you! I'll never give up on you!" A soft kiss, he turned and fled to the free state of Ohio.

With the help of abolitionists, Nelson raised additional funds to free Anna. Yet in another crushing blow, the answer was still, "No!"

Years passed, but Nelson refused to give up on his promise, refusing to leave the woman he loved! With all avenues to freedom now closed, only one option remained... attempt a rescue!

As the gears of the underground railroad moved, Nelson successfully freed Anna. Moving quickly north, and the hope of freedom so close, they met again the spector of disappointment. Betrayed by one of their own, a Virginia jail cell was now their fate!

Under threat of sending Anna to the deep south, local officials demanded that she testify against Nelson. Her chin raised high, she promptly said, "No!"

No hope, an unfair world closing around them, their fate of forever being separated now a reality, only a single defense lawyer stood between them and freedom.

In a passionate defense, the case was made that because Anna was lawfully married to a free man, she should be allowed to remain with her husband. Anna's owner finally relented, allowing abolitionists to pay for her freedom. Charges dropped, they quickly fled north into Ohio.

After finding freedom, the couple settled in Zanesville, Ohio, eventually becoming wealthy farmers and continued to support the underground railroad as escaped slaves moved north to freedom.

This house is all that remains of their love... A house that only exists, because one man refused to give up on the woman he loved.

[egoschwank]

al things considered — when i post my masterpiece #1183

first posted in facebook april 22, 2023

william edouard scott -- "a study for 'interruption'" [a mural at the 1940 american negro exposition in chicago] (ca. 1940)

"the major problem of life is learning how to handle the costly interruptions. the door that slams shut, the plan that got sidetracked, the marriage that failed. or that lovely poem that didn't get written because someone knocked on the door" ... martin luther king jr.

"as a result of the discrimination towards african americans at the 1933 century of progress exposition, james washington, a real estate developer, conceived of the american negro exposition. on july 4, 1940, president franklin delano roosevelt, from his hyde park home, pressed a button to turn on the lights, officially opening the american negro exposition. [...] artist william edouard scott created a series of 24 murals for the event, which took him three months to complete" ... wikipedia

"i ask you, america, is this not signing witness in your soul? who are you to deny me the right to cast my vote in the streets of america in the senate halls of america? who are you to deny the right to speak? i who am myself also america. i who cleared your forests and laid your thoroughfares. who are you to be presumptuous to tell me where to ride, and where to stand, and where to sit? who are you to lynch the flesh of your flesh? who are you to say who shall live and who shall die? who are you to tell me where to eat and where to sleep? who are you america but me' ... margaret walker

"there may be some difficulties, some interruptions, but as a nation and as a people, we are going to build a truly multiracial, democratic society that maybe can emerge as a model for the rest of the world" ... john lewis

"please ... do not pardon these interruptions" ... al janik

[pashterlengkap]

Over 25,000 LGBTQ+ people attend call for Kamala Harris as enthusiasm mounts

Over 25,000 LGBTQ+ people attended the Human Rights Campaign’s “Out for Kamala Harris” virtual event last night. During the event, over 40 LGBTQ+ and allied actors, activists, government officials, and drag performers all shared their enthusiasm for presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris. Together, the attendees and featured guests helped raise over $300,000 for the Harris campaign, and 1,500 attendees signed up to help get out the vote for Harris. The event, which was live-streamed via Zoom and YouTube, included queer actors George Takei, Raven Symoné, Sophia Bush, Wilson Cruz, Zachary Quinto, and Jonathan Del Arco; Democratic LGBTQ+ elected officials such as Sen. Laphonza Butler (CA), Rep. Mark Takano (CA), Rep. Becca Balint (VT), Rep. Angie Craig (MN), Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride, and Pennsylvania state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta; drag performers Tara Hoot and Veronica Electronika; CNN anchor Don Lemon; Wonder Woman actress Lynda Carter; and various activists and queer members of the Harris campaign. Related How much do you know about Kamala Harris and her stance on LGBTQ+ rights? She could become president. Here’s a closer look at her history on LGBTQ+ stances. “We were dedicated supporters of Joe Biden,” Takei said, speaking alongside his husband Brad. “But when he made that magnanimous decision to pass the baton to his vice president… we were enthusiastically for her. Just in that act, Joe Biden made history that has never occurred before, and we’re going to continue making history with Kamala Harris. She is going to be a history maker: the first biracial African American, Asian American candidate for the president of the United States.” Your LGBTQ+ guide to Election 2024 Stay ahead of the 2024 Election with our newsletter that covers candidates, issues, and perspectives that matter. Subscribe to our Newsletter today “You can just see it in her big smile and that wonderful guffaw of hers, she brings optimism to the campaign, and that is a winning quality: strength, optimism, and joy. And she is the very personification of diversity. You can see it in her. Her diversity embraces the world, from Jamaica all the way down to South Asia, India, and beyond that what she has done proves her embrace of diversity,” he added, noting that she officiated same-sex marriages as far back as 2004. When asked why she’s supporting Harris, Black trans activist and author Hope Giselle said, “When I look at what this woman stands for, when I look at where she came from. I see myself, and when I can see myself, I can embody what hope really looks like.” Giselle referred to her own Blackness, queerness, and neurodivergence and said that Harris represents a presence and an advocate for diversity that she never saw while growing up. “When I think about the other side,” she added, referring to Republicans, “and I think about the exclusivity that they wish to have. I say this all time: ‘Everything exclusive goes on sale at some point.’ And I think that [former President Donald] Trump and the America that he wants have gone on sale so many times that they’re in the bargain bin at Walmart, unable to be fished out by even the most thirsty of grandmothers with a coupon…. We need to remind them of where they belong. We need to remind them of where they will stay.” Black voices were numerous during the virtual event, including that of Florida’s first gay Black state Sen. Shevrin Jones, who said that anti-LGBTQ+ Republicans and their policies in his home state represent the alternative that awaits if LGBTQ+ people and their allies don’t give their support to Harris. “We have the opportunity, y’all, we have the opportunity to reshape the future that our children will see. We have the opportunity to reimagine what America can be because we’ve done it before,” Jones said. “The Republicans are extremely scared, because they know what we have known all the while, and that is that she can win,” Jones added. “And we know she can win, and… http://dlvr.it/TB6MTy

[zooterchet]

"Spiral":

Masterminds Dispatched:

NSA Admin: Lincoln Chaffey.

"Max".

The molestation of minors as bit for radio pranks, for NEC Comics; the Rhode Island PD's mechanism for refusing officers having matched a print villain, however "The Tick" is the writer's staff, a male pedophile in cause of found to have beaten his wife with physical knuckles of the rear of hand.

UMass-Amherst CI: Scott Peterson.

"Batman Begins".

The attempt at fraud of United States election through MI-6 NSA HUMINT in refusal of potluck, police; the Irish Provisionals, the United States civil services. The found nominal as having promoted an Amish marriage, for transition of ICBM stocks, outside of MI-6 Gentile stock into American Judaism, to betray Britain for Canadian independence in Parliament and an end to the Orange Order of Zulus and their Friendkin.

Air National: John McCain.

"Sons of Anarchy".

The funding to the Church of Satan as an officially registered denomination of domination, mandatory for all Romalians to join, under auspice of leadership of Brian Warner, alias Marilyn Manson, and an end to the refusal of the gay precipice of claim, from that provoked of agency of Romalian.

Homeland Security: Queen Elizabeth II.

"SPECTRE".

The Boston terror bombings, to hide involvement of her grandson, Crown Prince William, prior the office held by Charles III, to prevent amnesty being removed for all Latinos, Africans, or Romalians; the turning of national benevolence, of Saudi Arabia, into ire, at the framing of Chechnyan national allies of Saudi Arabians into a pro-Israeli position unwanted and against Saudi-Jewish identity.

DC Comics: Benjamin Netanyahu.

"Gotham".

The doom of Jews to factory jobs and warehouse labor, at the hands of MENSA, the Mormon faith of found prostitutes having wed and in dismissal of drug and prostitution; unnecessary, already an American police position, however in refusal of African-Americans, essential parts of Washington, Madison, Johnson, Grant, Garfield, and Cleveland, as well as supported by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, as housing for Germans to merge with African lines, to forgive the Holocaust of the Irish.

Army Reserve: Donald J. Trump.

"Fool's Paradise".

The sabotage of American markets to favor the Japanese intelligence services, to pay own daughter, Ivanka, for her police service, at having defaulted on loan to his very own name, due to service in the World Wrestling Federation; Vince McMahon's merger, with the World Wildlife Federation, to produce Atavan; the terrified cat's death, to produce adrenochrome, for management of grocer's unions outside of proper rearing of local town tradition, instead siding with large chains to produce law professors of improper ilk outside own honesty of origin logic. Using film, instead.

NSA HUMINT: Kim Jong-un.

"Assassin's Creed: Syndicate".

A fitting challenge, from an old friend. Webb, would you take Angus, by pale deviled moonlight?

[geneajournals]

Matilda Byers - Midwife

Last month I was researching the Byers branch of my husband’s family tree. The Byers branch resided in St. Clair County, Alabama after the antebellum period. While looking at St. Clair County birth registers, the name of Matilda Byers appeared as an informant on births of known collateral Byers ancestors.

Matilda Byers is on the official list of doctors and midwives in the 1899-1906 Register of Births for St. Clair County, Alabama.[1]

St. Clair County, Alabama, Register of Births, 1899-1906 : “Mrs. Matilda Byers".

How Matilda became a midwife is unknown. The usual path to this occupation was through an apprenticeship with an experienced midwife. Before childbirth was medicalized, about 50% of all babies were delivered by midwives.[2] Prior to 1940 the percentage of midwife-attended births in the African American communities in Alabama would have been more than 75%.[3]

Matilda Byers is recorded as the midwife for several collateral ancestors in my husband’s family tree:

1895 - A son of Lee and Malinda Byers. [4]

1902 - A son of Lee and Malinda Byers. [5]

1913 - Child of Rich and “Dealey” [Delia] Woods. [6]

1913 - Child of Jessie and Pearl Kidd. [7]

NOTE: Lee Byers (1860-1909) is my husband’s granduncle. Delia Byers (1894-1941) and Pearl Byers (1889-1964) are the daughters of Lee Byers. Delia and her sister Pearl are my husband’s 1st cousins, once removed (1C1R).

Very little is known about Matilda Byers. Records show that Matilda Loony married Hudson Byers on 7 November 1867 in St. Clair County, Alabama.[8] She and her husband Hudson Byers are in my on-line and off-line records as “unverified”.

Sources

St. Clair County, Alabama, Register of Births, 1899-1906 :  front of book, for “Mrs. Matilda Byers Col Ashville”; imaged, “Alabama, County Birth Registers, 1881-1930,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9B3R-3KM : accessed 6 June 2024) > digital film 5176112 > image 126 of 792; citing St. Clair County Probate Court, Ashville.

Dominique Tobbell, “Black Midwifery’s Complex History,” 21 February 2021, UVA School of Nursing: News (https://www.nursing.virginia.edu/news/bhm-black-midwives : accessed 5 June 2024).

Helen Varney and Joyce Beebe Thompson, A History of Midwifery in the United States: The Midwife Said Fear Not (New York : Springer Publishing, 2015), 10.

St. Clair County, Alabama, Register of Births, 1893-98 : 31 January 1895 entry for male child of Malinda Byers and Lee Byers; imaged “Alabama, County Birth Registers, 1881-1930,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:WXY5-DSMM : accessed 6 June 2024) > digital file 5176112 > image 48 of 124.

St. Clair County, Alabama, Register of Births, 1899-1906 : 19 January 1902 entry for male child of Malinda Byers and Lee Byers, certificate 19 ; imaged “Alabama, County Birth Registers, 1881-1930,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:WXY6-JMT2 : accessed 6 June 2024) > digital file 5176112 > image 61 of 128.

St. Clair County, Alabama, Register of Births and Deaths [January 1913 - May 1916] :  22-23, 18 June 1913 entry for female child of “Dealey” Woods and Rich Woods; imaged “Alabama, County Birth Registers, 1881-1930,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:WDXQ-TVZM : accessed 23 May 2024) > digital file 8501930 > images 26-27 of 283.

St. Clair County, Alabama, County Birth Registers [January 1913 - May 1916] :  22-23, 16 June 1913 entry for male child of Pearl Kidd and Jessie Kidd; imaged “Alabama, County Birth Registers, 1881-1930,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:WDXQ-TVPZ : accessed 23 May 2024) > digital file 8501930 > images 26-27 of 283.

St. Clair County, Alabama, Marriage Record 1866-1887 : 24, Hudson Byers and Matilda Loony, 7 November 1867; imaged as “Alabama County Marriages, 1809-1950,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99HV-CB65 : accessed 6 June 2024) > digital file 7316689 > image 119 of 733.

[paulodebargelove]

Patti LaBelle - All This Love (Official Music Video) Happy Birthday Patricia Louise Holt-Edwards (born May 24, 1944), better known under the stage name #PattiLaBelle, is an American singer, author, actress, and entrepreneur. LaBelle began her career in the early 1960s as lead singer and front woman of the vocal group, Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles. Following the group’s name change to Labelle in the early 1970s, she released the iconic disco song “Lady Marmalade” and the group later became the first African-American vocal group to land the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. After the group split in 1976, LaBelle began a successful solo career, starting with her critically acclaimed debut album, which included the career-defining song, “You Are My Friend”. LaBelle became a mainstream solo star in 1984 following the success of the singles, “If Only You Knew”, “New Attitude” and “Stir It Up”, with the latter two crossing over to pop audiences becoming radio staples.Less than two years later, in 1986, LaBelle scored with the number-one album, Winner in You and the number-one duet single, “On My Own”, with Michael McDonald. LaBelle eventually won a 1992 Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for her 1991 album, Burnin’, followed by a second Grammy win for the live album, Live! One Night Only. Her 1990s albums, Burnin’, Gems (1994) and Flame (1997), continued her popularity with young R&B audiences throughout the decade. Following the release of two mildly receptive solo albums in the early new millennium, she reunited with her Labelle band mates for the album, Back to Now, followed by a briefly well received promotional tour. LaBelle’s success has extended as an actress with a notable role in the film, A Soldier’s Story, and in TV shows such as A Different World and American Horror Story: Freak Show. In 1992, LaBelle starred in her own TV sitcom, Out All Night. A decade later, LaBelle hosted her own lifestyle TV show, Living It Up with Patti LaBelle on TV One. In 2015, LaBelle took part in the dance competition, Dancing with the Stars.In a career that has spanned fifty years, she has sold more than 50 million records worldwide. LaBelle has been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Apollo Theater Hall of Fame and the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame. In 2005, the World Music Awards recognized her years in the music business by awarding her the Legend Award. Possessing the voice of a soprano, LaBelle was included in Rolling Stone on their list of 100 Greatest Singers. LaBelle is commonly identified as the “Godmother of Soul”.Early life and careerPatti LaBelle and the BluebellesLaBelle was born Patricia Louise Holte on May 24, 1944 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the third of four girls to Henry and Bertha Holte. Her father was a railroad worker and her mother was a domestic. Despite enjoying her childhood, LaBelle would later write in her memoirs, Don’t Block the Blessings, that her parents’ marriage was abusive. When Patti was seven, she was sexually molested by a family friend. At twelve, her parents’ marriage came to an end, though Patti remained close to her father. Patti joined a local church choir at the Beulah Baptist Church at ten and performed her first solo two years later, while she also grew up listening to secular music styles such as R&B and jazz music. When she was fifteen, she won a talent competition at her high school. This success led to Patti forming her first singing group, the Ordettes, in 1960, with schoolmates Jean Brown, Yvonne Hogen and Johnnie Dawson. The group, with Patti as front woman, became a local attraction until two of its members left to marry. In 1962, the Ordettes included three new members, Cindy Birdsong, Sarah Dash and Nona Hendryx, the latter two girls having sung for another defunct vocal group. That year, they auditioned for local record label owner Harold Robinson. Robinson agreed to work with the group after Patti began singing the song “I Sold My Heart to the Junkman”. Initially Robinson was dismissive of Patti due to him feeling Patti was “too dark and too plain”.Shortly after signing them, he had them record as the Blue Belles and they were selected to promote the recording of “I Sold My Heart to the Junkman”, which had been recorded by The Starlets, but was assigned as a Blue Belles single due to label conflict. The Starlets’ manager sued Harold Robinson after the Blue Belles were seen performing a lip-synching version of the song on American Bandstand. After settling out of court, Robinson altered the group’s name to “Patti LaBelle and The Blue Belles”. Initially, a Billboard ad cited the group as “Patti Bell and the Blue Bells”. In 1963, the group scored their first hit single with the ballad “Down the Aisle (The Wedding Song)” which became a crossover top 40 hit on the Billboard pop and R&B charts after King Records issued it. Later in the year, they recorded their rendition of the standard “You’ll Never Walk Alone”; the single was later re-released on Cameo-Parkway Records where the group scored a second hit on the pop charts with the song in 1964. Another charted single, “Danny Boy”, was released that same year. In 1965, after Cameo-Parkway folded, the group moved to New York and signed with Atlantic Records where they recorded twelve singles for the label, including the mildly charted singles “All or Nothing” and “Take Me for a Little While”. The group’s Atlantic tenure included their rendition of “Over the Rainbow” and a version of the song “Groovy Kind of Love”. In 1967, Birdsong left the group to join The Supremes and by 1970 the group had been dropped from Atlantic Records as well as by their longtime manager Bernard Montague.That year, Vicki Wickham, producer of the UK music show, Ready, Steady, Go, agreed to manage the group after Dusty Springfield mentioned signing them. Wickham’s first direction for the group was for them to change their name to simply Labelle and advised the group to renew their act, going for a more homegrown look and sound that reflected psychedelic soul. In 1971, the group opened for The Who in several stops on the group’s U.S. tour.LabelleLabelle signed with the Warner Music imprint, Track Records, and released their self-titled debut album in 1971. The record’s psychedelic soul sound and its blending of rock and soul rhythms was a departure from the group’s early sound. That same year, they sang background vocals on Laura Nyro’s album, Gonna Take a Miracle. A year later, in 1972, the group released Moon Shadow, which repeated the homegrown gritty sound of the previous album. In 1973, influenced by glam rockers David Bowie and Elton John, Wickham had the group dressed in silver space suits and luminescent makeup.After their third successive album, Pressure Cookin’, failed to generate a hit, Labelle signed with Epic Records in 1974, releasing their most successful album to date, with Nightbirds, which blended soul, funk and rock music, thanks to the work of the album’s producer, Allen Toussaint. The single, “Lady Marmalade”, would become their biggest-selling single, going number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and selling over a million copies, as did Nightbirds, which later earned a RIAA gold award, for sales of a million units. In October 1974, Labelle made pop history by becoming the first rock and roll vocal group to perform at the Metropolitan Opera House. Riding high on the success of “Lady Marmalade” and the Nightbirds album, Labelle made the cover of Rolling Stone in 1975.Labelle released two more albums, Chameleon and Phoenix in 1975 and 1976 respectively. While both albums continued the group’s critical success, none of the singles issued on those albums ever crossed over to the pop charts. By 1976, Patti, Nona and Sarah began arguing over the group’s musical direction. Personal difficulties came to a head during a December 16, 1976 show in Baltimore, Maryland where Nona Hendryx went backstage and injured herself during a nervous breakdown. Following the incident, LaBelle advised the group to separate.Solo careerEarly solo career (1977–1984)Signing a solo contract with Epic Records in 1977, she recruited David Rubinson, producer of Chameleon, to record her self-titled debut album, which was released that year. The album was noted for the disco hits, “Joy to Have Your Love” and “Dan Swit Me” and the gospel ballad, “You Are My Friend”, the latter song becoming her first career-defining single despite its low entry on the R&B chart. Three more albums were released in succession on Epic through 1980, with the songs “Eyes in the Back of My Head”, “Little Girls”, “Music is My Way of Life”, “Come What May”, “Release (The Tension)” and “I Don’t Go Shopping”, the latter song co-written by Peter Allen, being the most successful.After four albums on Epic, LaBelle signed with Philadelphia International Records where she recorded her career-defining version of “Over the Rainbow” on the album The Spirit’s in It. In 1982, she was featured on the Grover Washington duet “The Best Is Yet to Come”, and earned accolades that year for starring in the Broadway musical Your Arms Too Short to Box with God. “The Best Is Yet to Come” later earned LaBelle her first Grammy Award nomination. In 1983, LaBelle released her breakthrough album I’m in Love Again which included her first top ten R&B singles, with “Love, Need and Want You” and “If Only You Knew”, the latter song also becoming her first number-one single as a solo artist in early 1984. Later in 1984, she scored another hit with Bobby Womack on the song “Love Has Finally Come at Last” and appeared as a club singer in the film A Soldier’s Story.Crossover success (1984–2009)In 1984, LaBelle recorded the songs “New Attitude” and “Stir It Up” for the soundtrack to the Eddie Murphy film, Beverly Hills Cop. Following the release of the film, “New Attitude” was released as a single in late 1984 and became LaBelle’s first crossover solo hit, reaching number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and becoming a signature song. “Stir It Up” found similar success on pop radio and as a staple in dance clubs. In 1985, LaBelle performed on the TV special, Motown Returns to Apollo and also as part of the all-star benefit concert, Live Aid. LaBelle’s notoriety from performing on these two specials made her a pop star and led to having her own television special later that same year. Also in the same year, a video of a performance from her tour of that year was issued on VHS. During this period, LaBelle ended her contractual obligations to Philadelphia International and signed with MCA Records.In 1986, LaBelle released her best-selling solo album to date with Winner in You with the album reaching number one on the pop charts. The album included the international number-one hit, “On My Own” and the hit ballad “Oh People”. The success of Winner in You would prove to be the peak of her solo success, though she continued her acclaim with the 1989 release of Be Yourself, which featured “Yo Mister” and the hit ballad “If You Asked Me To”, which found bigger success in a remake by singer Celine Dion. In the year of that album’s release, LaBelle began a successful stint in a recurring role on A Different World, the success of which spawned a brief sitcom of her own, titled Out All Night, which only lasted a season. In 1991, she recorded a hit duet version of the Babyface composition, “Superwoman” with Gladys Knight and Dionne Warwick. The trio had previously appeared in the Sisters in the Name of Love TV special in 1987. The same year of the release of “Superwoman”, LaBelle issued the solo album, Burnin’, which went gold, with three successive top five singles on the R&B charts. This success led to LaBelle winning her first Grammy Award in the Best Female R&B Vocal Performance category, sharing the win with singer Lisa Fischer, who won for her hit ballad, “How Can I Ease the Pain”, in a rare tie in the history of the Grammys.LaBelle’s 1994 album, Gems, also went gold and featured the hit, “The Right Kinda Lover”. Three years after that, LaBelle released the album, Flame, which included the dance hit, “When You Talk About Love”. LaBelle released her best-selling memoirs, Don’t Block the Blessings, in 1996, and released the first of five best-selling cookbooks in 1997. In 1998, she released the live album, Live! One Night Only, later resulting in a second Grammy win the following February. It remains her most recent Grammy win. In 2000, LaBelle released her final MCA album, When a Woman Loves, before signing with Def Soul Classics to release the 2004 album, Timeless Journey. Following the release of her 2005 covers album, Classic Moments, LaBelle engaged in a rivalry with Antonio “L.A.” Reid over the direction of her career, leading to her leaving the label. In 2006, she released her first gospel album, The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle on the Bungalo label, the album later peaking at number one on Billboard’s gospel chart. LaBelle also released the book, Patti’s Pearls, during this period. She returned to Def Jam in 2007 and released her second holiday album, Miss Patti’s Christmas. In 2008, LaBelle briefly reunited with Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash as Labelle on the group’s first new album in more than 30 years, Back to Now.Later career (2010–present)On September 14, 2010, LaBelle made a return two decades after her last Broadway performance to star in the award-winning musical Fela! about Afrobeat legend Fela Anikulapo-Kuti. LaBelle replaced Tony Award-nominee Lillias White as Fela’s mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, and remained with the production through the end of its run on January 2, 2011.On May 23, 2011, LaBelle appeared on “Oprah’s Farewell Spectacular, Part 1” the first show in a series of three shows constituting the finale of The Oprah Winfrey Show, singing “Over the Rainbow” with Josh Groban. LaBelle was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the BET Awards on June 26, 2011. LaBelle and Aretha Franklin, among others, performed at the “Women of Soul: In Performance at the White House” concert hosted by President Barack Obama at the White House, recorded on March 6, 2014.On June 10, 2014, LaBelle returned to Broadway as the cast and creative team of the Tony Award-nominated smash hit Broadway musical After Midnight, welcomed her as “Special Guest Star”. In August 2014, it was announced that LaBelle would appear in a guest role on the upcoming fourth season of the FX horror anthology television series American Horror Story, subtitled Freak Show.On February 24, 2015, LaBelle was announced as one of the celebrities who would compete on the 20th season of Dancing with the Stars. She partnered with professional dancer Artem Chigvintsev. The couple was eliminated on Week 6 and finished in eighth place. LaBelle has consistently toured the United States selling out shows in various markets. In 2012 and 2014 she appeared with Frankie Beverly & Maze on cross-country USA tours. In 2015 LaBelle made a guest appearance on Fox’s television series Empire as herself.She is scheduled to be a “key advisor” on the NBC series The Voice.Her first jazz album, Bel Hommage, was releaased in 2017.Personal lifeLaBelle later accounted in her memoirs that she was sexually assaulted by Jackie Wilson while at the Brooklyn Fox Theatre in the 1960s. Around 1964, LaBelle was engaged to Otis Williams, founding member of The Temptations, but broke it off due to scheduling conflicts. In 1969, LaBelle married a longtime friend, Armstead Edwards. After LaBelle started a solo career, Edwards became her manager until the couple separated in the late 1990s. In 2000, the couple announced they had legally separated. Three years later, their divorce was finalized. They have a child, Zuri Kye Edwards (born 1973), who is now her current manager. In addition to Zuri, LaBelle has two people in her life who are like sons to her, Dodd and Stanley. LaBelle came to know them after the death of their mother, Veaunita, a neighborhood acquaintance.In 1972, her eldest sister Vivian Rogers died of lung cancer at 42. In 1982, she lost her second-eldest sister, Barbara Purifoy, to colon cancer at 41. ln 1978 she lost her mother, Bertha, to diabetes. In 1989, she lost her father Henry to emphysema brought on by complications of Alzheimer’s disease and her youngest sister, Jacqueline “Jackie” Padgett, to lung cancer. Jackie was only 43 when she died. LaBelle dedicated her album, Burnin’ and her rendition of “Wind Beneath My Wings” in her 1991/92 concert tour to Padgett. After burying Padgett, LaBelle shot the music video to “If You Asked Me To”. In 1995, LaBelle was diagnosed with diabetes. LaBelle has a home in the Philadelphia suburb of Wynnewood and also has condos in Los Angeles and in the Bahamas.Civil suitIn June 2011, a West Point cadet filed a civil suit against LaBelle after he was allegedly assaulted by her bodyguards. LaBelle and her entourage were on their way to a gig in Louisiana when Richard King, a 23-year-old cadet on spring break, approached her limousine. Having been drinking, he then verbally assailed LaBelle and exchanged heated words with her son Zuri Edwards, working as her driver at the time. King punched Edwards, and Holmes stepped in, striking King several times. According to court documents, King’s intoxication level was almost 3.5 times the Texas legal limit that day. Initially, he could not remember what happened and authorities reported him as the aggressor, but no one from LaBelle’s team pressed charges.King was later given a suspension from the U.S. Military Academy. He sued LaBelle and Holmes for assault, seeking $1 million in civil court. LaBelle filed a counter-suit. Efrem Holmes, Labelle’s bodyguard, was acquitted of misdemeanor assault on November 12, 2013, a charge stemming from the 2011 incident at George Bush International Airport in Houston, Texas.VoiceLaBelle is a dramatic soprano, with a range spanning approximately 3 octaves, 2 notes and 2 semitones (Bb2–E6). With exceptional control over every aspect of her voice- including its dynamics, tone, timbre and phrasing- she wields it with freedom and an instinctive edge. LaBelle is distinctly known for her explosive, powerful and incredibly emotive voice.InfluenceAs lead singer of the idiosyncratic group Labelle, Patti LaBelle has been called one of the pioneers of the disco movement due to singles such as “Lady Marmalade” and “Messin’ With My Mind”. In turn, “Lady Marmalade” has been also called one of the first mainstream disco hits (Jones and Kantonen, 1999). Rolling Stone included LaBelle in its 100 Greatest Singers list in 2011, citing her as an influencing factor to “generations of soul singers” including Luther Vandross, Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige, and Christina Aguilera.Pop cultureLaBelle made some headlines in late 2015 when a vlogger known as James Wright (No Chanel) spoke enthusiastically on YouTube of her brand of sweet potato pies. The video went so viral that one pie was sold every second at Walmart, selling out across the country. She also appeared in two Walmart commercials, one of which was for her sweet potato pie.DiscographyThe Bluebelles & LabelleSolo career“You Are My Friend” (1977) – R&B #61“If Only You Knew” (1983) – US #46 R&B #1“Love Has Finally Come at Last” (with Bobby Womack) (1984) – US #88 R&B #3“Love, Need and Want You” (1984) – R&B #10“New Attitude” (1985) – US #17 R&B #3“Stir It Up” (1985) – US #41 R&B #5“On My Own (with Michael McDonald)” (1986) – US #1 R&B #1“Oh, People” (1986) – US #29 R&B #7“Kiss Away The Pain” (1986) – R&B #13“If You Asked Me To” (1989) – US #79 R&B #10“Yo Mister” (1989) – R&B #6“Feels Like Another One” (1991) – R&B #3“Somebody Loves You Baby (You Know Who It Is)” (1991) – R&B #2“When You’ve Been Blessed (Feels Like Heaven)” (1991) – R&B #4“The Right Kinda Lover” (1994) – US #61 R&B #8“When You Talk About Love” (1997) – US #56 R&B #12“New Day” (2004) – US #93 R&B #36

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Voice of America 0417 16 Feb 2024

9775Khz 0359 16 FEB 2024 - VOICE OF AMERICA (UNITED STATES OF AMERICA) in ENGLISH from MOPENG HILL. SINPO = 55344. English, Official Editorial opinion in progress. @0400z VoA News read by Michael Brown. The new national security threat that sent some in Washington into a tizzy and sparked calls urging Americans not to panic, is a new Russian anti-satellite capability, the White House confirmed Thursday, again emphasizing there is no immediate threat. White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby declined to go into details about the emerging Russian capability but said that U.S. intelligence agencies have been tracking Russia’s pursuit of such systems for a while, and that Washington has been reaching out to allies on next steps. "This is not an active capability that's been deployed," Kirby told reporters. "And though Russia's pursuit of this particular capability is troubling, there is no immediate threat to anyone's safety." The United States does not see signs of "imminent" war by North Korea despite a slew of confrontational actions and its refusal to talk to Washington, a top policymaker said Thursday. Jung Pak, the State Department senior official handling North Korea, said the United States was taking no chances and would work to bolster deterrence with allies Japan and South Korea, but saw no recent notable shift. The mass shooting that unfolded amid throngs of people at the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl celebration appeared to stem from a dispute between several people, authorities said Thursday. Three people were detained — including two juveniles — and firearms were recovered during the mayhem, police said. But investigators are calling for witnesses, people with cellphone footage and victims of the violence to call a dedicated hotline. Greek lawmakers overwhelmingly adopted a bill legalizing same-sex marriage and adoption on Thursday. It was seen as a landmark victory for LGBTQ rights, as the bill was promoted by the conservative government despite opposition from the country’s powerful Orthodox Church. Senegal's Constitutional Council on Thursday ruled that parliament's unprecedented postponement of the February 25 presidential vote was not in line with the constitution, pitching the country into a new phase of electoral uncertainty. Opposition presidential candidates and lawmakers last week filed several legal challenges to the bill that delayed the vote to December and extended President Macky Sall's mandate in what critics said amounted to an institutional coup. @0405z “Daybreak Africa” anchored by male announcer (w/African accent). Backyard fence antenna, Etón e1XM. 100kW, BeamAz 350°, bearing 84°. Received at Plymouth, United States, 14087KM from transmitter at Mopeng Hill. Local time: 2159.