In the first episode of “Your Best Accessory”, celebrity fashion and luxury stylist Kimberly V. talks about her personal style and shares her favorite accessorizing trends and tips.
Presented by UPTOWN and Colgate Optic White, the series gets beauty and fashion experts to talk about their favorite accessories, including, of course, a bright white smile.
A Florida sheriff has his panties in a bunch over an upcoming Florida Gulf Coast University concert featuring Ludacris and Kendrick Lamar. Lee County Sheriff Mike Scott sent a series of emails to university president Wilson G. Bradshaw criticizing him for allowing performers with “rancid profanity, violence, gender and racial insensitivity” in their lyrics.
In one of his emails, he states, “I respect and like you more than you know, but I can’t for the life of me begin to imagine why a black university president would sanction such vile content; especially so proximate to the golden anniversary of Dr. King’s speech.”
Jeez! Tell ‘em why you mad! Don’t get me wrong, I know Luda and Kendrick aren’t exactly rated PG, but come on. As rappers go, they’re definitely on the lighter end of the “vile content” spectrum—we’re not talking Chief Keef here.
Scott cast a wide net with his gripes, emailing several staff members in the sheriff’s office, the public safety director of the school and groups like the NAACP.
In one email, he cites George Zimmerman and Paula Deen in his argument against the rappers. Personally, I don’t understand how someone who doesn’t see the Trayvon Martin case as racial can fins such racial discrimination in “Poetic Justice” or “Dirty Dancing”, but I digress.
For his part, Bradshaw basically says his hands are tied. “As a university president—black or white—periodically there are expressed views related to students and faculty that the president doesn’t personally or professionally sanction or share.”
Lee County’s NAACP chapter president James Muwakkil sided with the university saying, “FGCU, President Bradshaw and the student body have the right to choose the entertainers of their choice.
Baylor Johnson, head of the American Civil Liberties Union also questioned Scott’s position on the concert.
“This is a public school, so it therefore cannot favor one type of speech or another, or prohibit one type simply because it disagrees with the language in the lyrics.
Protect and serve’ is not conditional. Law enforcement doesn’t have the option to not do its job and keep the community safe because they don’t like or agree with a particular expression at an event.”
FGCU holds the concert, called Eaglepalooza, annually and this is the first time the sheriff’s office has objected to the performances. Past acts have included Busta Rhymes, Pitbull, Flo Rida and LMFAO. Kendrick and Ludacris are decidedly less pop-y than most of the aforementioned acts, but that should have no bearing on the sheriff’s decision.
The university is filing the permit this week for the concert slated for November 24th at Jet Blue Park.
Courtesy of CocoaFab
After some “hair-raising” comments Friday got comedienne and “The Talk” co-host in some very hot water, Sheryl Underwood tweeted CocoaFab to apologize for her comments.
The creator of new website GhettoTracker.com insists that he did not intend to offend anyone when he chose the name of the site and mobile app. According to him, the site was designed to assist students, travelers, and new residents in identifying unsafe areas. But instead of using crime statistics, law enforcement releases, and news reports, Ghetto Tracker relies on the user ratings of local citizens (presumably those who look like the family on their “About” page). This allows every Tom, Dick, and George Zimmerman to make claims that predominantly ethnic, low-income areas are “unsafe,” without any concrete evidence.
The Ghetto Tracker creator, who has been identified as Tallahassee Web Design President Casey Smith (although he denies responsibility), says he thought that the name of the site would be satirical and easy to recall, not racist.
“This was originally seriously developed as a travel tool and the name was meant to be something that people would remember. Well, it worked, but unfortunately, it appears to have brought a lot of negative baggage along with it,” he told Nitasha Tiku of Gawker.
He also suggested that he is not to blame if Ghetto Tracker users make racial associations with unsafe areas.
“I am not concerned about racial implications between good areas and bad areas. If a certain part of town has a lot of crime and is considered a bad area, I can’t be held responsible for the assumptions people may make in regards to factors like race and income.”
The site creator shared that amid the flack he received after the site launched, two emails caused him to change his mind about the comedic and functional value of the name. One came from a woman whose family was forced into an actual WWII ghetto. The other came from a man whose childhood neighborhood would have been marked “unsafe” on the site, but who earned a degree from Rutgers University and was able to rise above his circumstances.
Ghetto Tracker was re-branded to be called GoodPartOfTown.com, and Black and Latino family stock photos were added to its home page.
On Wednesday, the site was taken down. A message at the web address now reads, “The site is gone. It’s not worth the trouble.”
According to a Manhattan jury, the office is no place for the n-word, even among Black people. Brandi Johnson was awarded $280,000 after her boss, Rob Carmona (who identifies as Black and Puerto Rican) repeatedly used the word towards her and a coworker, in an angry rant.
Johnson recorded the entire harangue on her phone. Carmona had apparently compared her to a fellow employee, and she was looking to learn why. His response was peppered with the racial epithet.
“I’m not saying, using the term ‘n*gger’ derogatory, ’cause sometimes it’s good to know when to act like a n*gger. But y’all act like n*ggers all the time,” Carmona said.
When Johnson expressed that Carmona’s speech offended her, he replied with, “You can be offended, but it’s true.”
Listen to the full recording below.
Carmona founded STRIVE, a non-profit organization that works to find jobs for the disadvantaged, in 1984. Since then, the organization claims to have to have assisted over 50,000 people. STRIVE’s tagline reads, “Where attitude counts.” But Carmona’s attitude on his use of the n-word needs some adjusting.
The 61-year-old claims he comes from “a different time” and that he often used the word as a term of endearment. He maintains that the word has “multiple contexts” and that he was using the word toward Johnson out of love, to explain that she was “too emotional” and concerned with “the negative aspects of human nature.” She says she cried for 45 minutes after their meeting.
“It was extremely hurtful. I was extremely offended,” Johnson said.
Marjorie Sharpe, Johnson’s attorney, said the verdict solidified that the n-word, which she called “the most offensive word in the English language,” is not welcome in the workplace.
“People have tried to take the sting away from the word. The reality is that can’t happen,” Sharpe said.
The federal jury ordered STRIVE to pay Johnson $250,000 in a discrimination case, as well as $30,000 in punitive damages. Carmona will have to pay $25,000 to Johnson out of his own pocket.
By Dale Thomas Vaughn
“Courage is a chameleon” and other things Dale Vaughn has learned from his fellow men.
Back in 2010 I realized that I had a serious deficiency of good man friends. I didn’t have anyone regularly checking me on my BS, and I didn’t have anyone I felt sure I could call and ask for advice over a beer or coffee. I’ve always had good guy friends, but I had been in Los Angeles for a few years and nothing naturally consistent had cropped up. So I got a couple of guys I knew I respected and we started a group for forward-thinking men who seek self-improvement. We know that men are creatures of action, and we often do our best thinking and growing when we are physically and energetically moving forward, so we made it a weekly hiking group and The Moving Men’s Group was born.
RELATED: A Man’s Perspective On Street Harassment
We literally walk the walk and talk the talk every Sunday in Griffith Park, where we work on finding real clarity, formulating goals and, most of all, connecting with other like-minded men who will strive to make us accountable to ourselves. (Ladies, Like us over at NextGent.com if you’re psyched about this too.)
It’s been nearly three years, the group has grown and evolved, and I’ve gotten a lot from the group. I wanted to share a short list of some key lessons I’ve learned with the help of my peers:
[Image: Shutterstock]
[Image: Shutterstock]
[Image: Shutterstock]
[Image: Shutterstock]
Originally appeared on The Good Men Project
Read more from our partner The Good Men Project
Also read A Guy’s Guide on When To Refuse Sex
[Image: Shutterstock]
According to People, Lamar Odom has entered rehab.
The 33-year-old NBA player and husband to Khloé Kardashian Odom made headlines last week, after he was arrested Friday on suspicion of driving under the influence in Los Angeles. He was also missing for 72 hours after a marital dispute, according to TMZ.
In 2001, Odom violated the NBA’s drug policy twice in eight months, and he admitted to using marijuana in 2003.
“I just couldn’t control myself in L.A,” he said.
People reported that Odom’s father also struggled with drug addiction, and that a source close to him said, “He realized he needs help.”
Odom played for the Los Angeles Lakers for seven seasons, during which he won two NBA championships (2010, 2011) and a Sixth Man Of The Year award (2011). He was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in 2011, which shocked many fans and supporters, including his in-laws, the Kardashians.
Odom played his last season with the Los Angeles Clippers, and is currently a free agent. His former Clippers coach, Vinny Del Negro, told the Los Angeles Times that Odom’s career was not over just yet, despite the recent setbacks.
“Lamar can still play. It’s not the basketball skills that are the problem. Once he gets himself in shape and gets his mind wrapped around basketball, he can help somebody.”
Courtesy of Ebony.com
Jill Scott is very happy to be your shade tree psychologist. She understands that as a musician—the kind who makes psychotherapy-like anthems that assist through breakups, make-ups and those real nasty moments where a happy hour special isn’t quite enough—that’s her role.
Bear with her, she pleads, as she tweaks her next therapeutic session in the form of her fifth studio album. She has no idea when it’ll be done. Because in Jilly from Philly’s world, it ain’t done until it’s done. But she’s working steadily on it. Know that.
Still, if you need a hit of something from Jill, why not check her out on the big screen?
Many of today’s household names in technology began their companies young. Steve Jobs was 21-years-old when Apple Computers was born, and Mark Zuckerburg started Facebook after his sophomore year in college.
For 15-year-old Jaylen Bledsoe, there’s still plenty of time to join their ranks. The high school sophomore founded Bledsoe Technologies just three years ago, and the global web design firm is now worth a reported $3.5 million.
Jaylen, of Hazelwood, MO, first developed an interest in web design while taking classes through his middle school’s gifted-education program. The company, which he started with just two employees, now has a staff of over 150 people nationwide. On the Bledsoe Technologies website, his background reads like that of someone twice his age.
He has expertise in start-up businesses, entrepreneurship, Venture Capital Funding, & directing marketing platforms targeted towards small and mid-sized businesses. In the past 3 years, he has focused on expanding Bledsoe Technologies, LLC and growing the number of youth involved in start-up businesses. Under Jaylen’s leadership, Bledsoe Technologies, LLC has achieved consistent revenue & client growth, quarter over quarter, and has built a roster of hundreds of customers worldwide. Some typical clients include Hazelwood West Middle School, NLAthletics & many other private clients. He is a frequent speaker on youth entrepreneurship, youth rights and start-up financing.
Jaylen plans to attend Duke University and then Harvard University in the future, where he wants to major in both Business Administration and computer science. He was given this advice by his mentor, grocery store chain CEO Scott Schnuck.
“Take risks. As a minor, there’s nothing you can do that will shoot you down for too long. You can always jump back up and keep going.”
Courtesy of Vibe Vixen
Technically, he’s never been married, but the idea of holy matrimony is still unappealing to Djimon Hounsou. During a press interview for Baggage Claim, the actor was very vocal about his views on monogamy.
“The idea of marrying somebody can actually ruin the union.”
RELATED: Sometimes Marriage Can Ruin A Good Relationship
I’d seen the link a few times on my Facebook feed, but I had always been browsing from my phone so I wasn’t in a place where I could listen to it. “I’ll get to it when I’m on my computer,” I thought. Finally, yesterday, I got around to watching the short two-minute clip and found myself staring off into space for an extra five minutes after.
If you haven’t seen the viral video “I Forgot My Phone” yet, please take a couple of minutes to watch it.
I think the scene that really struck me the most was the proposal. I’ve always preferred the more intimate approaches to proposals because I see it as the moment that you begin the journey of bonding your souls together and I think that deserves some privacy. The thought of someone simultaneously filming the process, as if the recording of it takes precedence over the moment, is horrifying to me.
What’s scary is, I can see myself in so many of those scenes—flashing pictures at concerts, checking my phone before fully getting out of bed, scrolling through twitter while “watching” TV—and I’m disappointed in myself. When did I become a robot? When did I become more concerned with documenting a moment than living it?
I know I’m not the worst offender (I often stare at the top of my boyfriend’s head at dinner before snatching his phone and hiding it in my purse), but I don’t want to be that person at all. I don’t want to miss the real experience of a concert because I was too busy trying to figure out how to get the zoom on my camera just right (especially since those tickets cost like $400 now!). I don’t want to be so concerned with social media that I don’t socialize with the real life people in front of me. I can’t help but to feel like this is what they were talking about in The Matrix. I need to unplug.
One day, last year, I forgot my phone at home. At first, I was pissed. After the day had passed though, I was amazed at how wonderful the experience was. Just to actually be in the moment for once. Walk through the streets of New York City without music blasting through your ears and you remember why you love it. Have lunch with a friend without interruptions or taking 35 pictures to find the right one to post on Instagram. I’m deciding today that I’d like to make that a weekly ritual.
I realize that with my phone glued to my hand, I’ve been having a secondhand experience of my own life. We’re living our lives for the photos rather than remembering life through them. Life is much more fulfilling when you are immersed in a moment. From now on, I am going to make a valiant effort to dive headlong into the waters of my life and stop recording from the beach chair.
Courtesy of Elev8
It can really be puzzling to think that the divorce rate among church goers and non-church goers is relatively the same. When looking at the research that has been collected the divorce rate among Americans is between 40 and 50 percent. While among American church goers the rate is 42 percent.
[Image: Shutterstock]
By Colby Carrington
She’s been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom – the country’s highest civilian honor. She’s won three Grammys for best spoken word album. She’s won a National Medal of Arts and has over 30 honorary degrees.
Now, the book world is finally honoring literary legend Dr. Maya Angelou. The National Book Foundation announced that the 85 year old will be the 2013 recipient of the Literarian Award, an honorary National Book Award for contributions to the literary community.
According to the Associated Press
Angelou said she couldn’t wait to be in the same room as “some very big names in the literary world” and that the Literarian prize made her feel that she was “picking in high cotton.”
The foundation’s executive director, Harold Augenbraum, said in a statement. “She has been on the front lines of history and the fight for social justice and decade after decade remains a symbol of the redemptive power of literature in the contemporary world.”
To borrow from her most famous work – I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings – “Preach it, I say preach it.”
No tea, no shade! All tea, all shade! This week in celebrity quotes, Tami Roman wants you to know she is not jealous of “Basketball Wives” cast-mate Evelyn Lozada, Dave Chappelle discusses his most recent “meltdown” in front of an all-white audience, and Brandy finally fills an audience after her South African fiasco! Plus, Sherri Shepherd calls Miley Cyrus out on her ratchet ways. And Lil’ Wayne said what?! AND I QUOTE …
“She going to hell in a twerking hand basket.”
Sherri Shepherd discussing the hot mess that is Miley Cyrus, in an interview on “The Tonight Show” with Jay Leno.
“I wanted to pull a reverse Kramer and call them all crackers or something crazy like that.”
Dave Chappelle responding to rumors that he had a meltdown while performing to a mostly white audience in Hartford, CT, via Da Laughing Barrel.
Continue reading more on UPTOWN
“You never see us at the hair place going ‘Look, here, what I need here is, I need those curly, nappy beads…That just seems nasty.”
Sheryl Underwood criticizing natural African-American hair, while talking to Heidi Klum who revealed she saves her children’s hair, on CBS’s “The Talk.”
Continue reading on UPTOWN.
“Yeah, so can you imagine some old white motherf*cker whippin’ my ass? He got a better chance of Hitler comin’ back!”
Johnny Gill responding to rumors that he was assaulted at a hotel by an old white man, in an interview with EUR Web.
“Wow. Like Oh My God! It’s like more than 40 people out here! Like OMG!”
Brandy joking that she was able to fill an arena, unlike her last attempt in South Africa, during Chicago’s African Festival.
“I done lost a couple h–s, but I’m still a pimp. Just changed the face of my Rollie, shout out Lil’ Kim.”
Lil’ Wayne referencing Lil’ Kim and her numerous plastic surgery procedures, in his track “Pure Colombia,” off the new Dedication 5 mixtape.
“B*tches I dont hate – ALL OF YALL KNEW MY MOM WAS IN THE HOSPITAL…come on stop trying to f*ck me and keep it 100..Lets talk about reaching…for drama!!! I NEVER HATE & ALWAYS SUPPORT YALL. Dis right here, right here IS STRAIGHT BULLSH*T … I didnt hear either of yall say this to me…wear ur big girl panties in private or we’ll address it at the reunion #thatisall.”
Tami Roman lashing out about rumors surrounding her disappearance from “Basketball Wives” cast-mate Evelyn Lozada’s PETA campaign/birthday party, via Twitter.
Monica and Shannon Brown have welcomed their baby girl Laiyah Brown to the family.
Fans speculated that Monica delivered on September 3rd but Shannon confirmed the news last night via Instagram.
Proud father Shannon wrote, ”I THANK GOD for her!!! JOY has been restored in my LIFE!!!”
Laiyah is the first child for the couple and also the first girl from the Browns, who met on the set of Monica’s 2010 video “Love All Over Me”.
Looks as if Laiyah is a daddy’s girl already. Congratulations!
A yoga studio in Santa Barbara, Calif. made waves this past week when they hosted “A Ghetto Fabulous Yoga Event.”
Power of Your Om Yoga, which frequently has themed classes, looked more like a racially insensitive frat party than a trendy fitness facility during their stereotype-themed event. Pictures from the workout showed yogis installing grills, wearing bandanas and throwing up gang signs, and outrage ensued. One commenter on Jezebel wrote, “… I am a white yoga chick, but I can still understand cultural appropriation and racism. Not a single bit of this is okay and I already commented on their Facebook page and left them a terrible review. I’m going to make sure everyone I know avoids that place.”
But backlash about this event began long before the first sun salutation, when the event was posted on Facebook with taglines like “hOMies….Getting Ghetto Fabulous – For Reals,” and “It ain’t no fun if the homies can’t have none.”
Each month we will be featuring a new funky class…this month let’s get ghetto fabulous! You sport the white tank, roll up one leg of your tight black pants, and we’ll make sure to have a rockin’ playlist bring the bling, lip liner and bandanas….seriously. This class has no extra charge. Just a chance to do something a little whacky.
The flyer featured a parental advisory sticker, and the letters “N.W.A” scrawled across the side (which they clarified at the bottom of the flyer to mean “Namaste With Attitude”). In case attendees were confused on what to wear, the event creators even shared a link to a WikiHow article titled “How To Be Ghetto Fabulous.”
Dozens of viewers expressed their distaste for the event. In an effort to hush critics, Power of Your Om staff changed the name of the event to “Hip Hop Yoga.” They assured the public that they meant no harm by the original title or the class theme. But the damage had been done.
“Please cancel this racist event,” commenter Jaimie Baron wrote.
Another commenter, Cecilia Aldarondo, responded with, “You should cancel this class and issue a public apology. Or use the class time to have a discussion about racism. Changing the name is, pardon the pun, a form of white-washing. You guys should be ashamed of yourselves.”
Leilani Monfort said, “This is real insensitivity and real racism. A true apology and some serious education for yourself and your studio might sound like a tall order, but I believe that it would help you ‘be the change’ that I imagine you might strive to be from the inside of your privileged and sheltered bubble.”
Despite the discourse, the class was still held and these photos still showed up online, which discredited the studio’s apologist attempts. Still, owner Adrienne Hengels’ released this statement.
Thank you all for the eye-opening discussion and I do apologize for offending anyone – those of you that commented, emailed, and anyone else for that matter. The class happened and we are doing other themed classes in the future that may include various types of music/genres and we have made note to focus on the music versus singling out any group of human beings that has the potential to offend others as that was not the intention. I can see how it could be offensive and we do apologize for offending you or anyone.
In the video, Williams tackles issues of poverty, self mutilation, beauty standards while inspiring people to see things from a different perspective. The single is pulled from Williams’ forthcoming inspiration album Journey to Freedom, slated to be released January 2014.
Black men have failed Black women in many ways, but probably the most egregious offense is that we’ve failed to PROTECT our women.
As an avid follower of any and everything that has to do with Malcolm X, there is a segment of one of his speeches that will ALWAYS stand out to me:
That speech was made about 5 decades ago, and the FACTS show that our community STILL has a big problem on our hands:
- 60% of Black girls have experienced sexual abuse before the age of 18
– For every 1 Black woman that reports her rape, 15 DO NOT (for every 1 white woman that reports her rape, 5 do not)
– African-Americans are more likely to blame the VICTIM for being sexually assaulted
– Black people account for a disproportionate number of intimate partner homicides
– Almost 1 in 3 African American women have been subject to intimate partner violence
Aside from not protecting our women physically and being the main cause of their pain, Black men also have failed to protect our women’s honor, integrity and image. When I look around today I see the Black female form being continually oversexualized in the media, Black women being overtly disrespected in music to the point it’s viewed as normative behavior, and Black women being abandoned as parents.
The loud, angry, uncontrollably violent and classless caricature has become fodder for the entertainment of the general public – all while far too many Black men stand by and either laugh or just ignore it, with no meaningful intervention ever considered. We’ve allowed Black women to be disrespected at all turns without any REAL resistance, but worse of all we’ve been active participants in dishonoring them, which is really terrible because Black women are achieving A LOT right now in spite of our lack of protection:
- Black women are enrolling in post-secondary institutions at a higher rate than any race and gender group
– Black women are overcoming unemployment at a faster rate than any race and gender group
– The rate of Black female entrepreneurs is quickly rising, and sales for businesses owned by Black women have reached nearly $37 billion
These modern day realities make Malcolm’s sentiment just as relevant today as it was years ago. And it comes down to one sad truth: Black men don’t know HOW to protect Black women. If you’re a man reading this and you’re preparing to get all up in your feelings and write a long dissertation filled with excuses and unrepentant misogyny because you REFUSE to hear about your own flaws, please leave this discussion. If you are a woman who wants to use these points solely to fuel your Black male misandry, please exit stage left. This is a serious conversation for people who are actively engaged with bettering the Black community – and the first step is Black men realizing that there IS a huge problem and accepting it.
At the end of the day, the Black community is essentially a team, and like any team, one cannot divorce themselves from the interconnectedness they share with their teammates. So it’s NOT good enough for a Black man to solely care about protecting his family while actively participating in and supporting a culture that demeans sisters all around him. There’s SO much worth protecting in Black women, and it’s time Black men stepped up to the plate.
(Photo credit: Vibe, Shutterstock)
Lincoln Anthony Blades blogs daily on his site ThisIsYourConscience.com, he’s an author of the book “You’re Not A Victim, You’re A Volunteer” and a weekly contributor for UPTOWN Magazine. He can be reached via Twitter @lincolnablades and on Facebook at This Is Your Conscience.
Two-time NBA champ LeBron James is getting his feet wet in the television game with a new sitcom for Starz titled Survivor’s Remorse.
The Miami Heat forward will executive produce the half-hour series centered on two men (one an NBA star, the other one not) who make it out of North Philadelphia’s inner city to a more extravagant life of fame and fortune. Along the way, they fight with the guilt of their struggling peers left behind.
James, who entered the league at age 18, said in a recent phone interview with ESPN:
“I think the main thing for me is, first of all, making it out of a place where you’re not supposed to. You’re supposed to be a statistic and end up like the rest of the people in the inner city — [and] being one of the few to make it out and everyone looking at you to be the savior. [...] When you make it out, everyone expects — they automatically think that they made it out and it’s very tough for a young, African-American 18-year-old kid to now hold the responsibility of a whole city, of a whole community. I can relate to that as well.”
James is working on the project with business partner and longtime friend Maverick Carter, as well as The Cosby Show producer Tom Werner. Mike O’Malley has also signed on to executive produce.
In the same interview, Carter stressed that the series was not a autobiographical story about his or James’ life– just fictional characters in a fictional world.
There is no word on when production will being.
Courtesy of ABC News
George Zimmerman’s wife Shellie has filed for divorce less than two months after he was acquitted of murder in the death of teenager Trayvon Martin.
She filed the paperwork just days after she said in an interview aired exclusively on ABC News that the ordeal of the trial had put a strain on their marriage.
The petition says the couple, married in 2007, “separated on Aug. 13, 2013 and are not presently cohabiting as husband and wife. The marriage between the parties is irretrievably broken.” They have no children.
Shellie Zimmerman, 26, has asked for “equitable distribution” of their assets as well as their debts. She also seeks sole custody of their two dogs, a Rottweiler named Oso and a smaller dog named Leroy.
She filed for divorce Thursday in Seminole County, Fla.
According to the financial disclosure form, she said she is unemployed. She listed her monthly expenses as $755. The couple owes $3,700.20 on their 2011 taxes, according to the form.
Since they separated, George Zimmerman has given her $4,300 for living expenses and the “source of funds appears to be Zimmerman Legal Defense Fund,” according to the financial disclosure form.
