Posts Tagged ‘Feminism
A Feminist Vs A Neanderthal
A Tweet Or Two
"Our economy created nearly 300,000 new jobs last month." —President Obama http://t.co/URqot1KF0P
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The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 06, 2015
Obamacare has not forced employers to push workers PT: all the employment gains since it went into law have been FT brook.gs/1DSPFGY
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Brookings Econ (@BrookingsEcon) March 06, 2015
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.@repjohnlewis on bus in AL. "Selma, more than any place in America, literally wrote the Voting Rights Act" he says http://t.co/8drYgnal1Z
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Ari Berman (@AriBerman) March 06, 2015
John Lewis is the only person still alive today who was on the speaking program of the 1963 March on Washington. http://t.co/e3EKM0nDYK
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Michael Skolnik (@MichaelSkolnik) March 06, 2015
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Half a century later, take a look back at the marches from Selma to Montgomery → wh.gov/Selma #MarchOn http://t.co/6ysHGSNjPA
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The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 06, 2015
Why ‘Selma is Now’ sp.lc/JYM1B #Selma50 #SelmaNow by @rickhasen http://t.co/E81EU7iYY8
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SPLC (@splcenter) March 05, 2015
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John Lewis honoring four little girls who were killed in bombing at 16th street baptist church in Birmingham in 1963 http://t.co/Pi6peN2drs
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Ari Berman (@AriBerman) March 06, 2015
Best way to honor Selma marchers is by restoring Voting Rights Act thenation.com/blog/200193/fi… h/t @civilrightsorg http://t.co/PwJAXboDgB
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Ari Berman (@AriBerman) March 05, 2015
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"Think about more than just yourself. Think about how you can have an impact beyond just yourself." —President Obama http://t.co/jI1ny0D01j
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The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 06, 2015
Tomorrow, President Obama will commemorate the 50th anniversary of the marches from Selma to Montgomery: wh.gov/Selma #MarchOn
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The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 06, 2015
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On this day in 1857, SCOTUS upheld slavery in #DredScott v Sandford. clarionledger.com/story/journeyt… http://t.co/QS5gQcX144
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Jerry Mitchell (@JMitchellNews) March 06, 2015
Reliving Selma's "Bloody Sunday" before the 50th anniversary of the historic march #Selma50 — bit.ly/1AkuMqg http://t.co/UuusvVGij1
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(@Newsweek) March 06, 2015
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Today @BarackObama talked to us about #Selma50, #Ferguson and the legacy he wants to leave for his daughters | LISTEN bit.ly/18nPdYu
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Tom Joyner (@TJMShow) March 06, 2015
Ferguson "not an isolated incident," Obama says: ow.ly/K0Pm9 http://t.co/3dY4C0eovN
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The Hill (@thehill) March 06, 2015
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20 photos of the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches: buff.ly/1CGUgAK http://t.co/IBNIyyIl6f
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National Journal (@nationaljournal) March 06, 2015
I wrote about today's civil-rights movement:
latimes.com/nation/la-na-s…
...and its new leaders:
latimes.com/nation/la-na-c… http://t.co/m28UpyOQOv
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Matt Pearce (@mattdpearce) March 06, 2015
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Some days, Twitter can be magic 🙂
#BlackOutDay: "It's a celebration of black beauty and our individuality" - abcn.ws/17YuN8n http://t.co/WEowugcIrm
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ABC News (@ABC) March 06, 2015
For those of you that are so against #blackoutfriday just take a second to acknowledge the impact.... http://t.co/bDyyCfDOSI
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avi (@MARYSKINSWEAT) March 06, 2015
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The @FCC just voted to keep the internet open & free. That's the power of millions making their voices heard. Thank you! #NetNeutrality -bo
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The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 26, 2015
RT to share the news: The @FCC just voted to keep the internet open and free → wh.gov/net-neutrality #NetNeutrality http://t.co/n5Uec5mqLU
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The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 26, 2015
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Three years ago today, young Trayvon Martin was murdered.
May he forever Rest in Peace. http://t.co/xVxlL3nQ0H
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meta (@metaquest) February 26, 2015
President Obama marks the third anniversary of Trayvon Martin's death: ow.ly/JHDi8 http://t.co/v1fU3egtTr
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The Hill (@thehill) February 27, 2015
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Trayvon. http://t.co/1arBRiS7w0
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deray mckesson (@deray) February 26, 2015
big push to undo "Stand Your Ground laws" post-Trayvon Martin. As @alicesperi notes: laws survived in 22 states washingtonpost.com/news/post-nati…
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Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 26, 2015
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Trayvon Martin was shot and killed 3 years ago today washingtonpost.com/news/post-nati… http://t.co/Tqd5ui2MPn
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Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 26, 2015
February 26, 2012. We haven't forgot about you, Trayvon. http://t.co/WgWg7jaL17
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Aristotle Jones (@Stotle_9) February 26, 2015
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If you saw Selma, (which you should. There are no excuses) this moment hit you like a punch to the gut. 47 years later, and another innocent life taken away. May both their souls rest in peace
Jimmie Lee Jackson died 50 years ago today at 26. First martyr of Selma struggle thenat.in/1EaHiub http://t.co/XPcMCttqaN
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Ari Berman (@AriBerman) February 26, 2015
Tragic anniversaries today: Trayvon Martin died exactly 47 years after Jimmie Lee Jackson thenat.in/1EaHiub http://t.co/5nmyRZ0Byw
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Ari Berman (@AriBerman) February 26, 2015
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These 19 photos of Black activism through the years are so eerily similar, they'll stun you huff.to/17VGpK7 http://t.co/lb69nOCy12
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HuffPost BlackVoices (@blackvoices) February 18, 2015
34 Vintage Photos of Those Who Fought The American Civil War
#BlackHistoryMonth bzfd.it/1Ddby6S http://t.co/nfRAm0Z1ru
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(@BuzzFeed) February 09, 2015
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13 Famous Black Americans Whose Ancestors Endured Slavery #BlackHistoryMonth
bzfd.it/1AcLJOM http://t.co/gX70L4tBqf
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(@BuzzFeed) February 26, 2015
110 Days: Loretta Lynch has waited longer for a confirmation vote than any AG in modern history. Time to #ConfirmLynch
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Marcia L. Fudge (@RepMarciaFudge) February 26, 2015
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A Tweet Or Two
President Obama is taking action to #ProtectYourSavings from a conflict of interest → go.wh.gov/YCUui6
Watch → youtu.be/dBs6H1P7Wd0
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The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 23, 2015
Dem Rep: Obama 'One Of The Best Presidents Our Country Will Ever Have Seen' bit.ly/1FM1Fj9 (VIDEO) http://t.co/HYpmoErDrx
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(@Mediaite) February 22, 2015
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5 sit-ups ✓
5 mile run ✓
5 veggies ✓
Share how you’re getting healthy, then tell your friends to #GimmeFive: go.wh.gov/ZiwwHe
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The First Lady (@FLOTUS) February 23, 2015
Two First Ladies: Mrs. Obama hosts Mrs. Ghani of Afghanistan for tea at the @WhiteHouse → flic.kr/p/rkjMNP http://t.co/8yvQs0169b
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The First Lady (@FLOTUS) February 23, 2015
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Obama Wants Rules That Force Brokers To Put Clients' Interests First n.pr/1a63aLU
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NPR News (@nprnews) February 23, 2015
"Since 2013, 17 states have joined companies like Gap and Walmart to raise their minimum wage" —Obama #RaiseTheWage http://t.co/CeBzHXnunj
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The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 23, 2015
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FACT: More Jobs are Created When Democrats are in Power tinyurl.com/oo4a42z #UniteBlue #ObamaLovesAmerica http://t.co/DzMw8XRaPC
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Blue Nation Review (@BlueNationRev) February 21, 2015
VA #hiring 19,000 doctors, nurses, other personnel in 2015 bit.ly/1yXpr38 via @federaltimes http://t.co/TtcVxkqQ2m
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Veterans Affairs (@DeptVetAffairs) February 21, 2015
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Congratulations to @common & @johnlegend on their #Oscar win! Such a powerful performance & impactful speech. #Glory http://t.co/g6Bdi2TxcC
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Viola Davis (@violadavis) February 23, 2015
Viva Mexico! http://t.co/wWCnrOsKSZ
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Mario Lopez (@MarioLopezExtra) February 23, 2015
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In 1773 Phyllis Wheatley published the 1st book by a black woman, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral #BHM http://t.co/dgj00wKPoQ
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Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) February 22, 2015
Valerie Smith of Princeton to become Swarthmore's first African American president po.st/Bjxmi6 via @phillydotcom
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Alycee (@jazziz2) February 22, 2015
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by @zizii2
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Listen, Misses Michelle Cottle, Keli Goff, Time Mag’s Kay Hymowitz, and your ilk:
This is 2013 not 1851, or 1619 for that matter. FLOTUS Michelle Obama is NOT Sojourner Truth who carried the cause of the Suffragettes on her burdened shoulders in Akron Ohio, knowing perfectly well that the women on whose behalf she spoke were not going to fight her battles with her against slavery, and certainly not her particular oppression as a black woman. And Ms Truth said as much in her famous speech “Aren’t I a Woman”?
“Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-puddles, or gives me any best place! And ain’t I a woman? Look at me! Look at my arm! I have ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And ain’t I a woman? I could work as much and eat as much as a man – when I could get it – and bear the lash as well! And ain’t I a woman? I have borne thirteen children, and seen most all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother’s grief, none but Jesus heard me! And ain’t I a woman?”
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And what were the Suffragettes fighting for? Repeal of women’s status as legal minors, recognition of their rights to property, and the right to vote. None of these were ever going to accrue to Sojourner Truth.
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But she knew the value of the recorded word and like a Troubadour, used it to full effect to wedge her place into American history. As for those on whose behalf she spoke, the fact that as recently as 1998 there was even a battle over her inclusion in the statue of 19th Century Women’s Rights activists belatedly installed in the Capitol Rotunda, says volumes about the rifts between modern day heiresses of the Women’s Rights Movement, and People of Color, as well as economically disadvantaged women of all races. Incidentally, those claiming the need to preserve the “artistic fidelity” of the 1920s sculptor of the statue won that fight to exclude Ms. Truth from that effigy in 1997-1998.
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It was only in 2009 that FLOTUS Michelle Obama helped unveil the stand alone bust of Sojourner Truth in the Capitol Rotunda. She is the one who Michelle Obama looks up to fully appreciate the long road women of color have traveled from the plantations and ghettoes to pave the way for her own current perch.
She said (starting from 2:10 min mark):
“I hope that Sojourner Truth would be proud to see me, a descendant of slaves serving as the First Lady of the United States of America. So I am proud to be here on this day for this dedication…”
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If you privileged snobs had your druthers about you you’d realize that Michelle Obama’s chosen causes to fight for are all founded on the principle of “EXPANDING ACCESS TO OPPORTUNITY” to as many people as possible who would otherwise have those DOORS PERMANENTLY SHUT in their faces. Her concern is about the broad base of the pyramid not about how high the tip can pierce clouds and ceilings, glass or otherwise.
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Shocking, I know, that a highly accomplished woman in her own right would forego the pedestal altogether in order to bring the largest number of potentially talented but economically disadvantaged young’uns along to sit, read, dance or stoop with her, be it at the children’s state dinners she pioneered, read-ins at schools, founding a seldom publicized mentoring program pairing accomplished women with teenage girls, or encouraging kids and parents to see exercise as fun not drudgery, or plant, harvest, cook and drool over fresh produce.
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That you think what she is doing is “safe” and “inconsequential” says a lot more about your hubris and poverty of imagination, than it actually measures the worth of her actions. You, ladies are blinded by your beltway status and privileged life.
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Have you walked to any of the run-down schools in communities surrounding your beltway cocktail junket circuit? Know why several of those bright eyed kids become sad statistics? They are no less intellectually endowed than you were at their age. Opportunity. Access. Simple.
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And Michelle Obama’s doing her bit to ensure those young bodies survive physically, live healthily, thrive intellectually, and gain confidence professionally. It is the unsexy work most in need of doing. She chose to spend her unpaid tenure as First Lady to help crack those doors a little wide open. And you in your infinite wisdom, or is it stupidity, have a problem with that?
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Many commentators have already said plenty to debunk both your premise and arguments about Michelle Obama’s relevance to “the feminist cause” (there is only ONE? Right there is the problem). I just wanna ask you.
Have you already Deconstructed the “patriarchal trap” embodied in the FLOTUS position itself at your most recent professional conference? And you expect Michelle Obama to turn into Superwoman and instantly transform an unelected position into the ramparts of the battleground to fight your ideological battles? For the insults you’ve rained on her, exactly HOW MUCH ARE YOU PAYING Michelle Obama to serve as First Lady?
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Your feminist forebears rode Sojourner Truth and all unsung heroines like her, like mules, expecting them to leave their own children (if they’ve not been sold downriver!) caterwauling in their shacks, to take care of your children, spiffy up your manses, lace up your stays and undergarments, fetch your chamberpots, your stirrups and riding clothes, primp your hair.
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Now about that war you want Michelle Obama Joan of Arc-ing herself for, where are you yourselves positioned on that front? You Ms Cottle, praise Sarah Palin then expect someone else to fight back against her religious fundamentalists’ and Tea Party’s War on Women? Did I see you jump up to defend 9 year old Quvenzhane Wallis when she was viciously attacked by your fellow media? How about the myriad times Mrs Obama herself has been ferociously attacked? Did you speak up to defend her? See, as we say in my homeland, “hand go, hand come”.
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I’m sorry, but SHOW MICHELLE THE MONEEEEEEEEEYYYYYY, then we’ll talk. Until then, Ms Obama gon take care of her own. “You better call Tyrone, but you can’t use Michelle’s phone.” Secret Service on line One…Ma’am!