George Floyd

It’s been a year since those horrifying 8 minutes and 46 seconds stole George Floyd’s life. Today, I am thinking of this clip of his daughter Gianna, and all the young people out there who have seen so much, but refuse to give up hope. pic.twitter.com/VclaQksyso

— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) May 25, 2021

All of us have a role to play to hold our leaders accountable and speak out about injustice. Let’s make sure that “Daddy changed the world” isn’t a fleeting moment online, but a lasting change across the country.

— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) May 25, 2021

I’m sending all my love to Gianna and to the rest of the Floyd family today. Her dad did change the world, and now it’s up to the rest of us to continue changing it for the better. 💕

— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) May 25, 2021

George Floyd was murdered one year ago today. Since then, hundreds more Americans have died in encounters with police—parents, sons, daughters, friends taken from us far too soon. But the last year has also given us reasons to hope.

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 25, 2021

Today, more people in more places are seeing the world more clearly than they did a year ago. It’s a tribute to all those who decided that this time would be different—and that they, in their own ways, would help make it different.

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 25, 2021

When injustice runs deep, progress takes time. But if we can turn words into action and action into meaningful reform, we will, in the words of James Baldwin, “cease fleeing from reality and begin to change it.”

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 25, 2021

It’s been a year since then 17-year-old Darnella Frazier recorded the murder of George Floyd. She has not done media interviews or made public statements outside of her trial testimony. Today she released her first full public comments. Worth a read: pic.twitter.com/P9xKdo1IoL

— Wesley (@WesleyLowery) May 25, 2021

There Is No Reforming This

You cannot reform a system that not only would lie on a child, but kill a child.

— Shay Stewart Bouley (@blackgirlinmain) April 15, 2021

The Adam Toledo was so horrifying that Chicago boarded up municipal buildings before the video was released. That tells you all you need to know.

— roxane gay (@rgay) April 15, 2021

https://twitter.com/rgay/status/1382796296159911936 https://twitter.com/rgay/status/1382798976613761024

After chasing him, the police officer says, "Show me your fkin hands."

Adam Toledo turns around w/ his hands up, and the officer shoots him.

After he shoots him, the officer says, "Look at me, look at me. You alright?"

Adam Toledo died. He was 13.

You cannot reform this. https://t.co/VtVfq1UQyI

— Britni Danielle (@BritniDWrites) April 15, 2021

The prosecutor did not “make an error.” He lied.

He lied about the police killing a child.

Ending this isn’t just about consequences for who pulls the trigger. It’s about admitting to and confronting an entire system that exists to protect, defend, and cover up state violence. https://t.co/pKkb8PMchR

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) April 16, 2021

The executive officer of internal affairs in the Norfolk Police Dept. donated $25 to Kyle Rittenhouse with a message:

“Every rank & file police officer supports you. Don’t be discouraged by actions of the political class of law enforcement leadership.” https://t.co/VVuiAfG3iX

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) April 16, 2021

Norfolk Police Department announces this officer “has been reassigned to another division pending the results of the administrative investigation” https://t.co/aLNNUMxdrY

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) April 16, 2021

pic.twitter.com/xJfvZe48RR

— Lesley-Ann Brandt (@LesleyAnnBrandt) April 13, 2021

400 hundred CONVICTIONS. He is twenty-five. There is no reforming this. https://t.co/BiP9OGhdAS

— Vackie Joyner-Kersee (@themelaniedione) April 19, 2021

7 Years Old

I was smacked in the mouth, handcuffed & made to sit in the back of a patrol car. I was walking through a predominately white neighborhood on my way home from the store. Cop pulled over, got out, asked me my name. I asked him “why?” That’s it.

I was 7 years old. 7.

— DB Woodside (@dbwofficial) June 1, 2020

Your Education Begins Now

I’ve been getting a lot of questions from my non-Black friends about how to be a better ally to Black people. I suggest unlearning and relearning through literature as just one good jumping off point, and have broken up my anti-racist reading list into sections: pic.twitter.com/gj5uko69OY

— Victoria Alexander (@victoriaalxndr) May 30, 2020

pic.twitter.com/MNTWneS83q

— Victoria Alexander (@victoriaalxndr) May 30, 2020

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While you’re expanding your anti-racist knowledge and book collection please also support Black Owned Bookstores! Many of them will ship your new literary treasures to you right now! https://t.co/PxwED5BNbq

— Victoria Alexander (@victoriaalxndr) June 2, 2020

Thanks so much to everyone who has engaged with the Anti-Racist Reading List! To support folks in further engaging anti-racism, I have put together an Anti-Racist Resource Guide: https://t.co/8Cb7t7oPp8

— Victoria Alexander (@victoriaalxndr) June 2, 2020

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Teacher in me had to do this..

CHILDREN’S BOOKS THAT DISCUSS RACE & RACISM THREAD:

— Brittany, M. Ed (@wanderingbritt_) June 2, 2020

pic.twitter.com/ibsEEovWSE

— Brittany, M. Ed (@wanderingbritt_) June 2, 2020

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We believe in the power of story. #JustMercy is one resource we can offer to those who are interested in learning more about the systemic racism that plagues our society. For the month of June, #JustMercy will be available to rent for free on digital platforms in the US. @eji_org pic.twitter.com/3B2IHMNk7E

— Just Mercy (@JustMercyFilm) June 2, 2020

Please read happy Black books too. We don't just write about slavery and colonialism. Consume Black history and art about anything. It all helps to decenter whiteness

— Athena Kugblenu (@athenakugblenu) June 1, 2020

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https://twitter.com/felixevraftr/status/1267234409603895296

Here are some black YA authors who just released books:@byleahjohnson (You Should See Me In A Crown)... @BCMorrow (A Song Below Water).....@rosiesrambles (A Song of Wraiths And Ruin)...#BlackOutTuesday pic.twitter.com/cnoSmOfN5A

— Bookishness (@Khrysweetie) June 2, 2020

President Obama: A Fundamentally Decent Human Being

Steve Schale

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Zeke Miller

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Chat Away

Pete Souza: “You’re missing a tooth.” President Obama interacts with children of U.S. Embassy staff in Laos today

A Rose For The President

Pete Souza: President Obama smells a rose given to him by Sophia Ahmadi, 2, during the Eid al-Fitr reception yesterday.

Children In Search Of Refuge

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Gazelle’s thoughts on the recent events

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Gazelle

Children In Search Of Refuge

As a child, a refugee child,
My Mama taught me Caution.
Run from the marauders of the streets,
Especially those carrying guns
Beyond their natural height.
Run from machete wielding persona.
Run from The Toothless Angered,
They’re mastered by the powers du jour.
Run for dear life.
If speed is of essence,
Drop your school books upon the dusty path,
Run!
Make it home,
To your Mama’s anxious arms.
Pray you do,
And live another hour

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As a child, an American child,
The ghosts of yonder history hovered.
Waiting their turn to fully manifest,
Yet again.

My Mama taught me,
Before I was double digits,
To be cautious out there.
The marauders, the ghosts, the egregious,
The Toothless Angered
Will menace my being.
Don’t run for dear life.
Learn to stay still

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There is nowhere to run.
Nowhere to stay still,
Except in shocked death.
No school books dropped on a dusty road,
They lay stained in unrequited blood along the school hallway.
Bullet strewn sidewalks splatter my paths.
The Toothless Angered
Are again mastered,
The daily Puppets of Avarice

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Sanctuary is a scarcity in my universe
While The Toothless Angered,
With ample, unjustified impunity,
Continue to menace my being.

Pray I make it home Today, and all Tomorrows,
To my Mama’s anxious arms,
So I can hug her.
And just once, of many more, say
I love you Always

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Happy Father’s Day: Dad-In-Chief

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Joshua Kendall: Obama’s Most Unusual Legacy? Being A Good Dad

Shortly before the 2004 Illinois Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate, which he was to win by a landslide, Barack Obama was riding high. After about a year of nonstop campaigning, the Illinois state senator had raised far more money than any of his rivals, and his path both to the nomination and to the floor of the U.S. Senate seemed assured. But his closest advisers sensed that the 42-year-old candidate and father of two — 5-year-old Malia and 2-year-old Sasha — was feeling a bit down and listless. As Valerie Jarrett later told biographer Richard Wolfe, she suggested that the candidate meet her for lunch at Chicago’s posh gym, the East Bank Club.

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“What’s wrong?” Obama asked “the principal,” as he referred to his chief aide. Jarrett replied, “Your heart isn’t in it. What’s wrong with you?” “I miss my girls,” Obama said as tears welled up. “I don’t want to be the kind of father I had.” But after composing himself, he added, “I’ll work it out. I’ll be okay.” This hands-on dad, who helped coach Sasha’s grammar school basketball team, puts a high premium on both connecting with and providing direction to his girls. At 6:30, Obama and his wife sit down with the girls for a family dinner without any outsiders. The evening meal, observed Obama’s former body-man Reggie Love, was treated “like a meeting in the Situation Room. There’s a hard stop before that dinner.” While aides sometimes call him back to work at 8:30 or 9, they rarely dare to go upstairs to bother him during the sacred dinner hour.

More here

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Happy Father's Day ❤️ pic.twitter.com/peU8VZASRm

— First Lady- Archived (@FLOTUS44) June 19, 2016

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. Glad to be spending this one with my family in Yosemite. https://t.co/SaNJgmoIK1

— President Obama (@POTUS44) June 19, 2016

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Early Bird Chat

A baby plays with President Barack Obama while he greets people after arriving at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado

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All Times Eastern

1:40PM: President Obama departs the White House

4:20PM: He arrives in Miami, Florida

4:50PM: He participates in a fundraiser for Senate Democrats at a private residence in Miami

7:20PM: He delivers remarks and takes questions at a DNC fundraiser at a private residence in Miami

8:35PM: He departs Miami

9:15PM: He arrives in Palm City, Florida

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