Black History Month

by @NerdyWonka and @NoShock

Donna Dem’s (@NoShock) Black History Month ‘Did You Know?’ Series:

In honor of Black History Month I decided to do a “Did You Know” series for the month of February. So often we hear about well known African-Americans who have made history through the ages. In order to give a little more perspective, I wanted to share some of the back stories that are rarely ever spoken of.

Did You Know That?

Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on friend Maya Angelou’s birthday, on April 4, 1968. Angelou stopped celebrating her birthday for years afterward, and sent flowers to King’s widow, Coretta Scott King, for more than 30 years, until Coretta’s death in 2006.

Did You Know That?

Muhammad Ali, Golden Glove champion, Olympic Gold medalist, Heavy Weight boxing champion and Presidential Medal of Freedom awardee is considered one of the greatest athletes in boxing history had a penchant of being controversial and outspoken. He didn’t disappoint when he was awarded a star on the infamous Hollywood Walk of Fame. Ali didn’t want anyone “stepping on him” so of the more than 2500 stars that have been honored he is the only celebrity whose star is not located on the sidewalk. He was installed on a wall of the Kodak Theatre in true “I am the greatest” Muhammad Ali style.

Did You Know That?

Allensworth, CA is the first all-black Californian township, founded and financed by African Americans. Created by Lieutenant Colonel Allen Allensworth in 1908, the town was built with the intention of establishing a self-sufficient city where African Americans could live their lives free of racial prejudice.

It has since been designated Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park.

Did You Know That?

Althea Gibson, the first AA to win a Tennis Grand Slam event, the French Open and then later Wimbledon was also a talented vocalist and saxophonist who appeared at the legendary Apollo Theater and on the Ed Sullivan show before starting her tennis career.

Did You Know That?

After the success of Negro Digest (similar to the Reader’s Digest but aimed to cover positive stories about the African-American community), publisher John H. Johnson in 1945 decided to create a magazine to showcase black achievement while also looking at current issues affecting African Americans. The first issue of his publication, Ebony, sold out in a matter of hours. The magazine has been published continually since the autumn of 1945.

Did You Know That?

Frederick Douglas, Black abolitionist, orator and writer and Moneta Sleet, the first African American to win a Pulitzer Prize for his iconic photograph of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s widow, Coretta Scott King, at Dr. King’s funeral and Gregory Hines, world renowned tap dancer, choreographer, actor, singer and director all share a birthday on ♥ ♥Valentine’s Day ♥ ♥ .

Did You Know That?

Carter G. Woodson, the “Father of Black History“, was an African-American historian, author, journalist and University Dean. In 1926, Dr. Woodson initiated the celebration of Negro History Week, which corresponded with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. In 1972, it was renamed Black History Week. The celebration was expanded in 1976 to include the entire month of February and today Black History Month garners support throughout the country as people of all ethnic and social backgrounds discuss the black experience.

Did You Know That?

In her early life, Coretta Scott King was as well known for her singing and violin playing as she was for her civil rights activism. The young soprano won a fellowship to the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, the city where she met future husband Martin Luther King Jr.

Did You Know That?

Rosa Parks known as “the mother of the freedom movement” because she refused to give up her seat on a segregated bus, in 1965 she moved to Detroit and worked for U.S. Representative John Conyers as a secretary and receptionist until 1988. She was a gifted speaker but would donate all of her speaking fees to charity. At the end of her life she was being financially supported by the generosity of those in her community and was the first woman to lie in state at the U.S. Capitol Rotunda.

The Taliban, America-style

@ConnieSchultz

This and That

****

Steve Benen: We talked earlier about Oklahoma’s junior senator, Republican Tom Coburn (R), announcing last night that he will only support federal disaster relief — for his own constituents — if it’s financed by comparable spending cuts elsewhere. But what about Oklahoma’s senior senator?

Republican Sen. James Inhofe, like Coburn, has opposed emergency aid in the recent past, including voting against a relief package for victims of Hurricane Sandy. This morning, however, the conservative senator said that was “totally different”.

More here

****

Only on CNN: Wolf Blitzer: “You’ve got to thank the Lord for that split-second decision.” Woman, in OK: “I’m actually an atheist.”

— Josh Kraushaar (@HotlineJosh) May 21, 2013

****

Now Obama has WEATHER WEAPONS? This is a million times worse than the last thing about Obama although I forget what that was.

— Thanks4 Sharing Jerk (@Thx4SharingJerk) May 21, 2013

****

****

WH: As the Senate debates bipartisan immigration reform legislation, the President and the Vice President hosted a meeting today in the Oval Office with young immigrants, also known as DREAMers, as well as with the siblings and spouses of undocumented immigrants. The meeting was an important opportunity for the President and the Vice President to hear directly from people whose families are affected daily by our nation’s broken immigration system.

More here

President Obama and Vice President Biden meet with DREAMers who have received Deferred Action and U.S. citizen family members of undocumented immigrants, in the Oval Office, May 21 (Photo by Pete Souza)

****

Socialist stock market soaring to new historic records. S&P 500 hits 1672, Dow at remarkable 15,400. #obamasfault

— Steve Weinstein (@steveweinstein) May 21, 2013

****

It being Gallup, you know yourself, it’s probably a 96-year high:

****

In case you missed it, SmartyPants on the, well, interesting background of Stephen Jin-Woo Kim:

….. The next place a little curiosity might take you is to wonder just who this Stephen Jin-Woo Kim is. As even I was able to find out from a simple look at Wikipedia, he was an employee of a federally funded research and development center that consulted with Rumsfeld via the Defense Policy Board – which was chaired by Richard Perle. In 2008 – just before the Obama administration began – Kim went to work for the State Department. One might be curious about that…..

More here

****

A lovely end to a testing day…..

****

After today, depressing and all a read as it was, maybe Charles Pierce was right: President Obama “should have run for president of a better country than this”.

But, there’s always hope:

Deal reached on background checks for gun purchases politicalwire.com/archives/2013/…

— Taegan Goddard (@politicalwire) April 10, 2013

****

(Almost the) Full concert:

Comforter-in-Chief

President Obama hugs North Point Marina owner Donna Vanzant as he tours damage done by Hurricane Sandy in Brigantine, New Jersey (Larry Downing/Reuters)

More soon

Being There

President Obama and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie speak with survivors of Hurricane Sandy inside a community center while touring damaged areas in Brigantine (Reuters/Larry Downing)

Live streaming of President Obama in New Jersey:

CBS

Eyes on the Prize

Scout Tufankjian

‘See how President Obama has helped your state’

OFA

Retweet!

Thank you:

McCarran International airport, Las Vegas, Sept 30

106 Years Old and Voting for President Obama

****

****

Coming up (all times ET):

Sunday: The President departs the White House (11:15 AM); Arrives Las Vegas (3:55); Delivers remarks at a campaign event at Desert Pines High School, Las Vegas (9:30)

Monday and Tuesday: The President will remain in Henderson, Nevada.

Wednesday: He will travel from Henderson to Denver where he will participate in the first Presidential Debate at the University of Denver. The First Lady will also attend. The President and the First Lady will remain overnight in Denver.

Thursday: PBO will deliver remarks at campaign events in Denver and Columbus, Ohio. He will return to Washington, DC in the evening.

Friday: PBO will deliver remarks at campaign events in Vienna, Virginia and Cleveland, Ohio. He will return to Washington, DC in the evening.

****

Cagle

Cagle

CNN’s silence

Msg from The Obama Diary: Genuine bloggers who create their own posts, are welcome to use anything they ever see at TOD – rebloggers, who just copy others’ posts in an attempt to up their traffic, are not. Especially rebloggers who talk to women like this – explicit – while copying TOD posts on women’s rights. Thanks.

Greg Sargent: As you’ve surely heard by now, two GOP convention attendees were ejected from the festivities last night after throwing nuts at a black CNN camera-woman. The words “this is how we feed animals” were uttered.

…. CNN put out its own terse statement last night confirming the bare minimum about the affair ….. the question is whether CNN, which presumably knows all the details about the incident, will treat this as a news story, and report in full detail what happened.

…. It’s a tough spot for the network, but CNN is a news organization. It’s not in the business of withholding information about newsworthy events. Given the seemingly deplorable nature of this event, and given that it took place on the scene of the biggest story in politics right now, you’d think CNN will eventually err on the side of informing people, rather than the opposite.

Full post here

****

Andrew Sullivan: Why CNN Sucks – Because it has a huge story on its hands – an insight into ugly racism among the GOP base….

…. If I were the camerawoman involved, this would not be enough. CNN has now run a small story on the incident but doesn’t seem to be pushing it. Why? Because this awful notion of balance – which requires journalists to be lobotomized when assessing reality – is “on-brand”. Oy.

Full post here

****

Read more at TPM