First of all, Happy 4th of July! I’ll see y’all on Monday, Lord willing. Be safe and don’t eat any bad potato salad. As for me, I shall be at the movies all weekend long its too hot for anything else. Here are some farewell reminders and mentions.
Did you Report BET to the Authorities Yet?
Did you call the child labor enforcement people on BET?
Bureau of Field Enforcement
Division of Labor Standards and Enforcement
320 West Fourth St. Suite 450
Los Angeles, CA 90013
213-620-6330
Watch the video while you can:
Send a Blogger to Antartica
Did you remember to vote to send a Black Tech Blogger to Antartica? If not, VOTE HERE. We’ve almost quadrupled her votes, let’s put this sister in the lead! Use you email to do something other than send chain letters threatening folks with death if they don’t forward the email to 7 other people.
Howard Kurtz’s Hit Job on Black Women
You can head on over to Michelle Obama Watch to read my response to what can only be called a HIT JOB that Howard Kurtz did on Black women journalists. In stead of focusing on the BLATANT SEXISM and RACISM that could allow a young White male blogger to leap frog over these more experienced women kept in the shadows. Howard Kurtz slams them with specious innuendo that they can’t objectively cover First Lady Michelle Obama… because they are Black.
In a week of foolishness and chicanery, this is a welcome relief.
Greetings Friends!
AAAS - the organization that publishes Science Magazine and serves as the online hub for all things Science, Engineering and Math has mentioned my name on one of their online outlets - Science Careers Blogs - the place to go and stay informed about all things science and career related.
Why was I mentioned by Science Careers? There is a great science outreach opportunity up for grabs and I think I am perfect for it — becoming the official Blogger for an upcoming Expedition to the Antarctic! I’m hoping my background in science, outreach, and ecology plus my experience in blogging will make me a shoe-in. But it does require votes from the general public. That’s one reason I am so honored that the writers of Science Careers Blog mentioned me.
Please visit the contest page and consider voting for me. You will be required to submit your email in order to vote. One vote per valid email. Voting ends September 30th!
P.S.: My blog has also been nominated for the 2009 Black Weblog Awards in the Best Science and Technology Blog category. I’d love your support in this effort, too. Nominations close July 25th!
Thank you all again for your support and community!
Support this Sister. Stop what you’re doing and go vote NOW.
Draw a line in the sand now, or next year, Debra Lee is going to allow topless toddlers wearing diapers onstage talkin’ bout they the “Pampers Posse” throwing up gang signs and pouring out Similac from their baby bottles onstage singing “This is for my homies.” WAOD on the use of child performers at the 2009 BET Awards
Ohlook. Is that OUTRAGE I see being expressed because Debra Lee broadcast pre-adolescent girls taking the stage of the BET awards to gyrate and gesticulate to Little Wayne’s performance of an unedited version of his song “Every Girl”? Check out the Lyrics.
According to upset parents, the youngsters gyrated onstage as Wayne rapped his tune “I Want To F*ck Every Girl in the World” — or whatever the name of the track is.
As most of you know, the group’s lead singer is Zonnique, 12, daughter of Tameka “Tiny” Cottle. The other three members are Reginae Carter, 9, Wayne’s daughter with Antonia Carter who stars on Tiny & Toya (which premieres on BET tonight at 10pm); Bahjah Rodriguez, who turns 12 in August, and her sister Lourdes Rodriguez, who turns 11 in September. Sandra Rose
Now according to Sandra, the teeny bopper booty shaking was impromptu, but that doesn’t explain why the curtains didn’t crash or why Debra Lee OR THE GIRL’S PARENTS didn’t storm the stage and grab somebody by the scruff of their ponytails. I know MY parental unit would only have had to rise from their seats and I would have been headed off stage of my own volition.
I just heard from a source close to Tiny’s camp who informed me that the appearance of Tiny’s preteen group OMG onstage with rappers Lil Wayne and Drake at the BET Awards was neither planned nor rehearsed.
My source said the group’s appearance onstage was a last minute decision by Wayne and no one else. Sandra Rose
Sorry, but that little tidbit right there sounds like some rear end covering in retrospect. Especially now that BET is airbrushing out the little girls on the BET Awards replay ( yes I said those ig’nant fools at the network, instead of cutting out the performance completely blurred out the girls in the rebroadcast frame by frame as if they are some marijuana leaves on a baseball cap on MTV circa 1999)
I don’t believe folks are truly outraged. You’re not truly distressed. Because if you were, you would be calling the child labor officials in California to call for an investigation into whether having purportedly 12,9, 10, and 11 year-olds performing in this manner violated any labor regulations. I’m not saying they did, but its hard to believe that Cali doesn’t regulate child performances since its the ENTERTAINMENT CAPITAL OF THE WORLD!
Were the young women paid? If so, did BET follow the appropriate regulations. Right after you get off of the phone talking with the Department of Labor, you might want to ask the child welfare folks in California and Georgia ( where some of them live)if its in the best interest of a purportedly 9 year old girl to be placed in such an adult situation on NATIONAL TELEVISION.
Many people don’t realize that the child actors on their favorite television show are protected by state child labor laws. While state requirements vary, many have restrictions on the number of hours a child actor can work in a day or week, require special permits, or even require a teacher to be present on the set. At this point, it’s unclear what alleged violations may (or may not) have occurred on the set of Jon & Kate Plus 8. Regardless, this seems to be yet another hurdle in the controversial show’s path this season. Source
Spare me your blog posts declaring that Debra Lee should be ashamed. DEBRA LEE HAS NO SHAME! I’ve said this once, I’ll say it 1000 times. The people who run BET don’t actually like the people who WATCH or perform on BET. So Debra Lee likely has no problem with 9, 10, 11, and 12 year old girls from “urban” families getting on stage to dance while vile disgusting lyrics about women and girls are spewed around them. Its not HER precious child up there. Why should Debra Lee care?
I didn’t see the show nor have I seen the video- I’ve only read descriptions and your outrage in response. If y’all can’t take decisive action against this travesty, then you’re not serious. Stop complaining online and start complaining to someone who can prevent this outrage in the future. You may even get authorities to get BET to agree never to allow any children under the age of 16 to perform on stage EVER.
For those whining that calling the LAW on Debbie Lee is a bit much, my response is that if this was any other network, Debra Lee and Stephen Hill would have already have issued a heart-felt public apology, but then that’s impossible for those two demons because they have no hearts. If they won’t be lead by common sense and a conscience, then let them be controlled by the jack-booted foot of the guv’ment. And for that matter why are 9 year olds even allowed into a facility where there are R-rated performances?
Draw a line in the sand now, or next year, Debra Lee is going to allow topless toddlers wearing diapers onstage talkin’ bout they the “Pampers Posse” throwing up gang signs and pouring out Similac from their baby bottles onstage talkinbout’ “This is for my homies”. You . JUST. WATCH!
Just to get you started on your quest for additional information, you might want to inquire here first. Contact:
Bureau of Field Enforcement
Division of Labor Standards and Enforcement
320 West Fourth St. Suite 450
Los Angeles, CA 90013
213-620-6330
Now when I inquired at the headquarters of the California Department of Industrial Relations, the person on the phone indicated that you have to have an entertainment work permit in order to do a performance. Now maybe BET had such permits, I don’t know, but someone may want to take time to inquire if the teeny bopper troup had permits before they “performed. ”
Let us know what you discover in the comments section.
PPS. and NO, blurring them out in rebroadcast only makes it worse as I still haven’t heard an apology from the demonic duo. And who paid for this MESS in the first place?
Okay normally I would have chucked this email in the ole’ annoying publicist email trash can of doom, but I am always surprised when publicists A) bother to address me by name (you’d be surprised how many do not in their mass emails and b) actually send me an email promoting something that my audience is interested in.
Today, June 30th, the Allstate Foundation is attempting to raise awareness of “Economic Abuse.” We’re all familiar with economic abuse already, we just didn’t give it a name. Its basically where an abuser controls you through finances.
As a child I remember quite clearly that my Mama had “HER” own credit union account She even took us to credit union meetings. The parental unit also had the joint banking account, but I think without intending to, she basically taught us to have a bank account that was OURs even when we got married. From the Allstate Foundation:
Economic abuse is a tactic commonly used by abusers to control their victims’ finances and
prevent them from leaving a dangerous relationship. However, the survey also revealed nearly
eight out of 10 Americans link economic abuse to Wall Street woes or irresponsible spending.
“Many people associate domestic violence with physical cuts and bruises, but bruises on your
credit score and being cut off from access to money, create lasting scars that make it hard, if not
impossible, for abuse victims to recover,” said Jennifer Kuhn, manager of the Economics
Against Abuse Program at The Allstate Foundation. “For victims of domestic violence,
economic abuse is much more personal - and dangerous.”
To better educate Americans about this often overlooked aspect of domestic violence, The
Allstate Foundation provides the following signs to recognize economic abuse:
• Taking money, credit card or property from a partner without their permission
• Racking up debt without a partner’s knowledge
• Purposely ruining a partner’s credit score
• Forbidding a partner from earning money or attending school
• Being forced by a partner to hand over paychecks
• Cancelling insurance or credit cards without the partner’s knowledge
• Harassing a partner at work to negatively impact a job
“A downturn in the economy impacts us all, but it disproportionately impacts the most vulnerable
members of society, including domestic violence survivors,” said Rene Renick, director of
program and operations at The National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV). “Now
more than ever it’s important that domestic violence survivors build economic skills to overcome
financial instability, a major barrier to escape and stay out of an abusive situation.”
The Allstate Foundation, in partnership with NNEDV, recently developed a Financial
Empowerment Curriculum to help victims achieve financial independence. The Financial
Empowerment Curriculum includes financial tools and information designed to enable survivors
of domestic abuse to fully understand their financial circumstances, as well as engage in shortterm
and long-term
planning (e.g., budgeting tools, step-by-step planners, tips, etc.) to accomplish their personal
goals.
“Our goal is to raise awareness about how economic empowerment can lead to a safe and
financially secure future,” said Kuhn. “With resources like the Financial Empowerment
Curriculum, we’re providing tools to domestic violence survivors and others who may need
financial guidance in these tough economic times.”
The user-friendly curriculum is available in a variety of formats, including hard copy, Spanishlanguage,
DVD and downloadable versions at www.ClickToEmpower.org. Also available are elearning
modules to help people of all incomes and earning power work toward long-term
economic empowerment.
Other national survey findings include:
• More than three-quarters of Americans (76 percent) believe the poor economy has made
it more difficult for victims of domestic violence, and two-thirds (66 percent) believe it has
caused an increase in domestic violence.
• 44 percent say the most difficult barrier to leaving an abusive relationship is financial
security.
• Almost 60 percent of Americans don’t see a connection between harassing a partner at
work and economic abuse, even if it may cost the victim their job and ultimately limiting
income.
About the National Poll
The Allstate Foundation “Crisis: Economics and Domestic Violence” poll was a nationwide
telephone survey of 708 Americans conducted in May 2009 by Murphy Marketing Research.
The survey sample was generated by random digit dialing and represents a margin of error of
+/- 3.7 percentage points. The survey sample was designed to closely mirror the breakdown of
the current U.S. population with 10 percent African-American and 10 percent Hispanic
respondents. For the full survey results, please visit www.ClickToEmpower.org.
I know this goes without saying, but I just want to stipulate the following requests for the record. In the event that I should predecease you:
Under no circumstances is any preacher by the last name of Sharpton or Jackson to be in the general vicinity or camera shot with you at any Posthumous Press conference.
Under no circumstances are more than one lawyer allowed to speak on behalf of the estate.
Last but certainly not least, under no circumstances are you to use said posthumous Press Conference to promote a record label, a clothing line, fragrance, deluxe grill, bootleg DVDs, rental property, fruit, inkjet toner refills or any other commercial venture.
Eternally Your Child,
The What About Our Daughters Commissioner of Chicanery & Foolishness Prevention.
PPS. Don’t let me see y’all in the audience at the BET Awards either!!! (**leaves to make some revisions to the will regarding disinheritance upon appearance on any BET-related show.**)
I thought these things went without saying, but Joe Jackson, Father of Micheal Jackson, has ruined it for all parents hoping to use a press conference regarding the mysterious death of their children. Katherine Jackson, it ain’t 1975 anymore, get cha’ boy PLEASE!
Every time I do a “Detroit” post, I lose readers How do I know? Because they take the time to email me to say they are NEVER reading this blog EVER AGAIN! EVER! Because I have repeatedly pointed out that the voting populace is glutton for punishment. They keep electing embarrassments like Kwame Kilpatrick and then get mad when I point out, they ought to be embarrassed.Well prepare to stop reading this blog again, because our second most favorite Detroit politician, second only to Mama Kilpatrick, is in the news AGAIN. I’m shocked. In fact some readers tried to clown me last week about not posting this as soon as I learned about it. I’m still recovering from BWB and was out of town.
As you know, THIS BLOG was the first to offer up an unsolicited endorsement of Detroit Councilwoman, Monica Conyers to be Mayor.
We even printed up these nifty Monica Conyer’s t-shirts.
Quite frankly after reelecting Kwame “textual healing” Kilpatrick we think MOCO, our affectionate name for Monica Conyers is the leadership Detroit deserves, not to mention that she’s a boatload of trainwrecky goodness that bloggers LOVE. LOVE. LOVE!!
I mean she got clowned by an 8th grader after she referred to the Detroit Council President, Ken Cockrel as “Shrek.”
While her description of Cockrell might have been dead on, it was not something one would expect from a sitting councilwoman. MoCo got into at a hotel in Denver during the Democratic National Convention. She’s allegedly been in bar fights, threatened to shoot someone and threatened to have someone killed. She’s fought LOUDLY with other council members and mayoral staffers and generally been an undignified MESS, yet none of this placed her political future in jeopardy because this is DETROIT!
From tawdry text messages and a mayor resigning in disgrace to the 0-16 Detroit Lions and the collapse of the auto industry, it had been a tough year for Detroit’s image even before Friday. So tough, in fact, that the corruption plea by Detroit City Council President Pro Tem Monica Conyers was met by some with a shrug. For scandal-weary Detroit, where residents are becoming inoculated to the jokes of late-night comedians and the scoldings of Washington politicians, Conyers’ plea was just a “part of a long line of abominations,” said Michael Bernacchi, professor of marketing at the University of Detroit-Mercy. “We’ve been in a cesspool for so long, laden with so much bad imagery, this doesn’t change the image.” Freep
The only way to get rid of a political leader with no discernible leadership qualities other than the ability to get elected is to have them plead guilty to a FELONY and have the prosecutor demand that they resign. Oh did I mention that she hasn’t resigned and it is unlikely that the citizens of Detroit will force her to resign.
Conyers has now admitted to taking a paltry $6,000 in bribes in connection with a $1.2 billion sludge contract. She faces five years in prison, which should leave her with plenty of time to draw up those bras. But I’m going to miss her in public life. She is an enigma wrapped up in a Sam Riddle.
When the spotlight is elsewhere, Conyers can be a bright, intelligent, well-spoken woman. But when the camera is trained on her — and Conyers can’t resist a camera — her personality veers toward the erratic and infantile. Freep
On a serious note. When will out politicians stop selling their freedom for a two piece and a biscuit? $6,000?? $6,000??? Are you serious? $6,000??? If you are going to risk your liberty and your political future, can it be for six figures instead of 5? Why sell yourself and your community so short. If you are going to be corrupt go ALL THE WAY like Blago! Two payments of $3,000 on a billion dollar contract? Definitely a two piece and a biscuit alert.
Now this is why I blog. This lurker sent me an email asking what she could do to help in a case we covered a few weeks ago in her area of the country. I made a few suggestions about making contact with a local organization on the ground and instead of sitting back and telling me what else I needed to do, like some sad souls, she TRIED what I suggested. I can feel her beaming through the email. I told y’all the WAOD lurkers are the bestest lurkers ever!:
Hi Gina,
I hope that this email finds you well and refreshed from your BWB conference. I just wanted to let you know that you ARE an inspiration. So I took your advice and talked to one of my friends my congregation (she has tons of experience with Victim Assistance and she is a former Domestic Violence victim herself).
I believe that we are going to begin some type of program or ministry dealing with these issues because she says that she has already talked to the Congregational Leader about it and he was cool with it. However, I believe the focus will be on minority women in general because I don’t attend a “Black Church” (left them eons ago). The Messianic Jewish Congregation that I attend is extremely diverse (read: Spanish, West Indians, black s, whites, etc.), so it would be very difficult to get just a black group, although my friend with the experience is black and she will probably be heading the program - so I’m sure that’ll make a difference too.
Anyway,said all this to say that I wanted to thank you for being my inspiration to do something, however small it may be.
p.s. I’ll keep you posted
I’m so proud of you zoe1231! You get it! You have figured it out! That each of us in our own small ways can make a difference in our local community. You didn’t wait on some charismatic leader to show you the way. You reached out within your own local community and found someone doing important work on the ground. Let us know if we can support you from 35,000 feet in the air. I know that your service in your community will do as much for you as it will for the women and girls you help. Definitely keep me posted. YOU inspire ME
I’m in meetings all week. Here is your open thread. I’mma keep my mouth shut. If you want to know some of my contemporaneous thoughts, follow my Black ops twitter account
Nothing is impossible. be careful about giving up young women because of their circumstances. Roslyn sent in this story about Khadijah Williams. She’s 18 years old and she’s headed to Harvard:
Around here, Khadijah is known as “Harvard girl,” the “smart girl” and the girl with the contagious smile who landed at Jefferson High School only 18 months ago. What students don’t know is that she is also a homeless girl.
As long as she can remember, Khadijah has floated from shelters to motels to armories along the West Coast with her mother. She has attended 12 schools in 12 years; lived out of garbage bags among pimps, prostitutes and drug dealers. Every morning, she upheld her dignity, making sure she didn’t smell or look disheveled. LA Times
Khadijah was born to a 14 year old mother. Who dragged her from place to place. Khadijah, understandably is reluctant to criticize her mother even though the woman packed up and left with Khadija’s sister when she was in the 11th grade:
When her college applications were due in December, James and Patricia London of South Central Scholars invited Khadijah to their home in Rancho Palos Verdes to help her write her essays. When they went to return her to skid row, her mother and sister were gone. Khadijah accepted the Londons’ invitation to spend the rest of her school year with them. LA Times
Its a poignant story. I emailed the reporter to see if she has a scholarship fund.
Next Gen Web, one of the conference sponsors has placed the full video of all of the conference workshops and panels online. You will likely find panel IV of interest. its a panel featuring Monroe Anderson, Bruce Montgomery, and Eric Easter of EbonyJet. com. From Regina Hopper of NextGenWeb:
Overall the conference was terrific; full of passion, information and great people. Congratulations to the Blogging While Brown Conference host committee! NextGenWeb
Thank you! You can see all the panels over at NextGenWeb, but I’ve embedded the most “lively” one here. They all were good and I learned something life changing from everyone. Y’all will be particularly interested in what I learned about Buddy Press as it will be changing your reading experience here.
She even took us to credit union meetings. The parental unit also had the joint banking account, but I think without intending to, she basically taught us to have a bank account that was OURs even when we got married. From the Allstate Foundation:
