1. Hundreds Of Black Women Beseech Biden

What You Need To Know:

More than 200 Black women signed and sent a letter Friday urging Joe Biden to pick one of their own— a Black woman-as his running mate.

2. Celebrations In The Age Of The Coronavirus: Michigan Man Exonerated In Murder Celebrates Freedom In Quarantine

What You Need To Know:

After years of declaring his innocence, a second black man was released from a Michigan prison last week.

3. Coronavirus Update: IRS Sets Deadline for SSI, Veterans Benefits Recipients To Receive Stimulus Money For Child Dependents

What You Need To Know: 

The IRS late Friday announced a May 5 deadline for recipients of Supplemental Security Income and Veterans Affairs benefits to submit information to the agency if they want to receive extra money for children in their household to be included in the coronavirus relief payments. 

4. State Attorney General Office To Investigate Racist Text Sent To Atlanta Mayor

What You Need To Know:

The Georgia Attorney General has responded to a call by state Democratic lawmakers to find out who sent a racist text to the personal cell phone of Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.

5. Say Her Name: Vanessa Guillen, Soldier Missing from Fort Hood

What You Need To Know:

Fort Hood Military Police have issued a “Be on the Lookout” notice to civilian and military police as a part of the extensive search for Private First Class Vanessa Guillen. 

SUBSCRIBE to my newsletter, “What You Need to Know” ]]> https://blackinfonow.org/coronavirus-update-irs-sets-deadline-for-ssi-veterans-benefits-recipients-to-receive-stimulus-money-for-child-dependents/ Mon, 27 Apr 2020 09:11:58 +0000 http://blackamericaweb.com/?p=881300 The IRS late Friday announced a May 5 deadline for recipients of Supplemental Security Income and Veterans Affairs benefits to submit information to the agency if they want to receive extra money for children in their household to be included in the coronavirus relief payments. Payments of $1,200 will be issued to people...]]>

If you ask Lori Harvey where she gets her favorite pizza from, her answer may come as a surprise. The 23-year-old Harvey claimed her mother, Marjorie Harvey, makes some “next level” pizza. Lori is apparently not the only person in their family who enjoys her mother’s cooking. Marjorie posted a video to Instagram of her husband, Steve Harvey, indulging in a slice of her famous dish.

On Saturday, April 25, Marjorie whipped up a pizza for dinner. The comedian apparently asked his wife to make her signature Chicago-style pie. Steve can be seen cutting a slice of pizza in the social media clip. Marjorie asks her husband, “Is it good?” He said, “Yes, it’s pretty good, baby.” She responded, “Pretty good, or …” Steve replied, “It’s excellent.” Marjorie told her husband “thank you” at the end of the video.

Marjorie, the founder of The Lady Loves Couture blog, revealed in her caption that she hadn’t eaten meat in a while but on this occasion she treated herself to a slice of her “delicious” pizza. But it was Steve’s reaction to her meal that caused fans to crack up.

“Really Steve…You bypass the slices close to you just to get the big slice!  #thinklikeaman .”

“He love Pizza.”

“Why did he cut the pizza like that Lolol ,” a third asked.

“Steve is sharp, even in quarantine!.”

“Mr. Harvey looks Happy LOL.”

“his anxiousness to eat that meat looks like a kid in a candy store ready to chow down with zero disturbances .”

A seventh wrote, “It’s the quarantine in all of us.. it’s ok @iamsteveharveytv.”

“That looks SO good! UNC love his pizza. .”

The Harveys temporarily resided in Chicago from 2012 to 2016, so it’s no surprise the couple fell in love with the city’s pizza. Steve’s “The Steve Harvey Show” talk show was filmed in the Windy City for five seasons, but its production relocated to Los Angeles for season 6. The network executives made a decision to rename the talk show “Steve” once production moved to the West Coast.

Steve was canceled and replaced in its TV slot by “The Kelly Clarkson Show” last year. “The Think Like A Man” author landed a new talk show on Facebook titled “Steve On Watch.”

“Real Housewives of Atlanta” reality star Kandi Burruss recently shared some family moments that featured her posing with her youngest daughter Blaze Tucker alongside her 4-year-old son Ace Tucker for Blaze’s 5-month birthday. 

“Guess who’s 5 months old today! @blazetucker ,” Burruss captioned the April 22 gallery of photos. 

Burruss, Ace, and Blaze’s bright smiles had fans gushing over the trio’s portrait. 

“ Awwwww,” “Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta” reality star Rasheeda Frost posted. 

“OMG Blaze and that smile!” fellow housewife Kenya Moore wrote.

“Too darn cayyyuuute!! .”

“Beautiful family @kandi .”

“I LOVE these pictures .” 

“Awww Kandi… they are so beautiful. You guys are amazon .” 

“She so beautiful, and Ace is so handsome , God Bless.”

“You sure do make beautiful children!”

Fans not only noticed the smiling faces of the Burruss and Tucker family, but they also noticed how much she and baby Blaze resemble each other. 

“Omgggg, so beautiful your Twin .” 

“That’s your entire face .” 

“You both look gorgeous, Mom and daughter twins.” 

Baby Blaze was born via surrogate on Friday, Nov. 22, 2019. Burruss and husband Todd Tucker announced that they were expecting their youngest daughter together in September of last year. 

The pair documented their surrogacy journey on season 12 of “RHOA.” Burruss shared the first glimpse of Blaze to the world on Nov. 23, 2019.

“Our little angel is doing well! She was born yesterday 11-22-19 at 6:54 pm. 8lbs & 1oz! Her name is Blaze Tucker,” Burruss captioned the photo.

“Thank you to everyone for the love & well wishes! She’s gonna Blaze a path to greatness! @blazetucker is our newest heartbeat.”

The Bravo TV star is also the mother to an older daughter, Riley Burruss, 17, from a previous relationship and the stepmother to Tucker’s 23-year-old daughter, Kaela Tucker. 

Masika Kalysha posts thirst trap photos on Instagram often, and Thursday, April 23, was no exception. Kalysha, a former cast member of “Love and Hip Hop: Hollywood,” uploaded a photo that showed her taking the ultimate mirror selfie. Fans claimed her body “looked good” during her shelter-in-place life but hinted that her mirror needed some cleaning.

On Thursday evening, Kalysha posed in her bathroom dressed in a gray crop top and a pair of Calvin Klein boxers. Unlike most of her recent pictures, she decided to sport a 40-inch black wig instead of her natural hair. The reality star admitted in her caption that she puts on perfume just to head to her bathroom.

Fans complimented the 34-year-old Kalysha for her shape but called her out on her seemingly messy bathroom.

“Not even being funny but is the mirror dirty or the tub dirty?”

Kalysha responded, “mirror .”

“Ok Sika quarantine doing that bawwwdy right@masikakalysha #kharisMommaGotitGoinOn.”

“You look so good babe @masikakalysha .”

“That mirror is kind of dirty but you look so bomb,” a fourth pointed out.

“Such a milf.”

A sixth confessed, “You look awesome, but I’m jealous that your nails are still popping mines are looking real snag a tooth.”

“LOOK AT THE BODY LOOK AT THE FACE.”

An eighth jokingly said, “Damnnnnn soooo how is Khari going to look if you look like this .”

Kalysha is the mother to 4-year-old Khari Barbie Maxwell. The former “Growing Up Hip Hop” cast member named her vegan cosmetics line, Khari Barbie Beauty, after her daughter. Kalysha suggested on her website that she created her business in the hopes of building a legacy for her baby girl. “I wanted to start a business for my princess. I wanted to teach her how integrity, honesty, and hard work pays off,” she wrote.

Khari and her father Fetty Wap appear to have an estranged relationship. Kalysha has emphatically spoken up on social media about her struggles to co-parent with the “Trap Queen” hit-maker. Kalysha accused the 28-year-old rapper of not spending time with Khari during the holiday season in a tweet that dates back to December.

Welcome back to week three of Season 4 of HBO’s Insecure.

Our opening scene begins with Lawrence (Jay Ellis) practicing his interview pitch of how he can be a valuable asset to the Meridian team — the tech company he currently works for. He’s suddenly interrupted by Condola’s (Christina Elmore) alarm clock, so loud that Lawrence says that it’s not healthy to wake up that way. Condola replies that she once slept through an emergency landing, and of course we all, including Lawrence, have questions.

The season has shifted from Halloween to Thanksgiving this week, and Condola is hosting a Friendsgiving get together at her place. Lawrence invites himself, asking her, “Do you want me to come?” 

Things are not so great for Lawrence at his job. There’s little to no lateral movement or upward mobility at the company. Meanwhile, Lawrence confides in Chad (Neil Brown Jr.) about his lackluster career. Chad is also dealing with the housing bubble crisis and hasn’t sold a property in over a month. Chad, of course, is doing the absolute most by purchasing a new car just to keep up appearances and claiming that Bradley Cooper has “fell off” and is basically a nobody.

Okay, Chad. Bradley Cooper is definitely somebody.

Apparently Los Angeles is the smallest city in the world, because Lawrence manages to bump into Issa (Issa Rae) at Condola’s favorite spot, and the two start talking about old movies. As they reminisce and it’s clear that the chemistry between these two is brewing like a cup of warm tea ready to be sipped, Condola walks in and completely ruins the vibe.  It becomes uncomfortable, and Issa, who should teach a masterclass in awkwardness, takes her entire meal with the tray and all outside with her to avoid the tension between the three of them.

Next we see Issa and Molly (Yvonne Orji) shopping for groceries. Molly asks Issa if she should invite Andrew (Alexander Hodge) for Thanksgiving. Issa throws lowkey shade in jest and says that “the old Molly may come out.” This doesn’t bode too well with Molly, and she snaps back hitting Issa below the belt about having sex with TSA bae for freebies. It’s at this point that Issa points out that things have been off between the two of them.

By the way, is it just me who is little disappointed there’s no more TSA bae this season?

Issa and her brother Ahmal (Jean Elie) have scheduled Thanksgiving, but it takes a detour when their mom’s boyfriend has an accident and is taken to the hospital. Luckily it’s a minor injury, but now the two find themselves spending their holiday elsewhere. This disrupts Issa’s planned “pie time” at Molly’s place. When Issa texts Molly about her timeline, Molly’s not pleased.

Meanwhile at Condola’s Friendsgiving, one of her friends, Nikki (Robin Thede), has clearly had a little too much to drink. Lawrence decides he wants to get more to drink and Nikki joins him, even though she needs to lay off the booze. It’s at this moment that tipsy Nikki tells Lawrence a little too much about her friend Condola. She reveals to Lawrence that Condola wanted to let loose and have fun after her recent divorce.

This disappoints Lawrence, but also makes it clear where he sees things going in their relationship. This later leads to a confrontation with Condola, and he bluntly asks if she’s over her ex. Condola says she is and retorts back, asking if Lawrence is over Issa. You can see where this is going.

Issa inevitably stands up Molly given the day she’s had, but she’s mentally exhausted and can sense the fracture between her and Molly.  However, Molly does have a redeemable moment in this episode where she makes up with her father whom she disconnected with after he cheated on her mom. The final scene ends with Lawrence scrolling through his Instastories and stumbling onto Issa’s account, where he sees how she spent Thanksgiving at the Mexican restaurant with Ahmal. 

Lawrence then sends a message via a smile emoji, and we see Issa in the process of responding.

Oh dear. Here we go again.

Insecure airs Sundays on HBO at 10:00pm ET/PT.  See you again next week!

The post ‘Insecure’ Season 4, Episode 3: “Lowkey Thankful” — RECAP appeared first on Black Girl Nerds.

There is a disconcerting resemblance between how Senegalese talk about homosexuality and how they discuss COVID-19.

On March 31, I received the following WhatsApp message (in a mix of Wolof and French, which I have translated directly for readability) from Selly, a young woman in Senegal. (Selly and the names of others in the piece have been changed to protect their anonymity.)

I’m sorry but I wanted to tell you something. I don’t know how to put it, but … it’s just that they have found a husband for me, and they are telling me that I have to get married. They announced it to me yesterday. I don’t know what to do […] I’m madly in pain.

“They” refers to Selly’s maternal family in Casamance, in the south of Senegal, where she had returned two weeks earlier. Selly had moved to the Gambia last fall, to play in the Gambian national football competition for the 2020 tournament. But the competition was now cancelled, and without having much else to do in the Gambia but play football, and with the borders between the two countries closing, it was better to go home. Or so she thought.

COVID-19 is hitting societies all over the world. Beyond the obvious threat to public health, it poses economic and social challenges, particularly in countries where the majority of the population depends on daily earnings for survival. The Nigerian writer, OluTimehin Adegbeye, convincingly argued that social distancing cannot work in Lagos, Nigeria. A similar analysis has been made for Nairobi, Kenya, where hundreds of thousands of citizens live in cramped informal settlements. (The virus itself is not the only threat to Kenyan lives: on April 16, The Washington Post reported that 12 people have died so far from police brutality exerted on those who did not respect the curfew. The COVID-19 death toll in Kenya currently stands at 14.) The Senegalese researcher Dr. Massamba Gueye warns of another danger of COVID-19, which is that “it attacks the social foundation of our communities.” In Senegal, this social foundation rests for an important part on large-scale religious gatherings and ceremonies that mark important life stages: birth and baptisms, initiation, marriage, and death. Such ceremonies have all been suspended until further notice.

But COVID-19 does not only threaten the social fabric of society. It can also fuel the opposite—a tightening of control over people’s behavior, in order to perpetuate a conservative social order. Now that many people find themselves more or less locked at home with their families, with inter-urban transport halted and a curfew in place from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m, families have more direct power over their children, especially adult children, than before. In an attempt to preserve the normal order of things, Selly’s family is exerting pressure on her to get married. The current pressure is not solely COVID-19-induced; it is an unfortunate coincidence in timing. Selly is 21 years old, which in the eyes of her maternal family means it is high time that she marries. (Her female cousins who are around the same age have all married, and some of them have given birth to children.) Selly does not want to marry a man however, and she does not display any interest in what is deemed appropriate behavior or dress for women in Senegal. Her family is not just finding out about these things. On the contrary, during the time she played on a local women’s football team, whenever she had a fellow female football player visit her at home, her cousins would make fun of them and call them lesbians.

If we understand queerness to comprise the fluidity and instability of our social lives, as Stella Nyanzi argues in the article “Queering Queer Africa,” then the COVID-19 induced containment is perhaps its antithesis. If COVID-19 were not there and the problem of marriage had presented itself to Selly (which it inevitably would have at some point), she would have had more options. She had already called her older sister for advice when her family told her it was time to marry; her sister, who lives in Dakar with her husband, knows about Selly’s queer life, and expressed her support for Selly. In another situation, she could have gone to Dakar to stay with her sister; moving in with siblings, friends, aunts or uncles is very common in Senegal. Selly could have also argued to her family that she needed to go to Dakar because her football career demanded it, or because she wanted to pursue her studies or look for work, and therefore might have been able to negotiate the postponement of marriage. Now she has few options.

There is a disconcerting resemblance between how Senegalese talk about homosexuality and how they discuss COVID-19. For one, in an attempt to explain the sudden emergence of this puzzling and unpredictable virus, there have been people who have suggested that the virus is a punishment from God for the morally reprehensible behavior of people, and of queer people in particular. This idea seems to have gotten a foothold in some popular perceptions of the pandemic; my queer friends in Senegal confirmed that this idea is currently circulating.

Fatou, a 29-year-old woman living in Dakar, said that she had watched videos in which kilifa (leaders) of Muslim brotherhoods suggested that people’s bad behavior are the cause of the virus. Homosexuals (as a catch-all for gender and sexual dissidents) are the central figures in the image of the morally reprehensible subject in Senegal. Nafissatou, a Dakar-based human rights activist, added: “everyone is saying this now, either plainly or in a nuanced way. I’m awaiting Mame Makhtar Gueye, I’m sure he will play his part.’’

Gueye is vice-president of the Islamic NGO Jamra, and her most ardent antagonist. He has given numerous television interviews in which he denounces Nafissatou as Senegal’s “biggest lesbian” who “contaminates” today’s female youth to “all turn into lesbians.” He will most likely attribute the cause of the virus spreading, in part, to the queer population. While being called out as a cause of the virus, Nafissatou works to address the outbreak’s consequences. When we were on the phone one recent evening, I heard a lot of background noise. I thought it was her television, but it was the chatter of a group of queer men in her living room. These men, who’ve lost their meagre income as a result of the crisis, and lack a safe family environment to return to, now sleep in her living room.

Selly cannot make use of the safe space that Nafissatou provides. Being stuck at home for the duration of the crisis, she is confronted with her family’s stigmatization of her behavior. Less than two weeks after I received her first message about the marriage proposal, the pressure has mounted. The neighborhood imam, an important and respected figure in the community who regularly mediates in family issues, had been asked to interfere in the matter. On April 10, he asked Selly to come see him that day after the afternoon prayer. He spoke to her about the need to accept her so-called destiny as a woman, which is to marry a man and to have children. He also asked her to stop playing football, and to start dressing and behaving herself “as a woman”. Unsurprisingly, he warned her about the possibility of divine retribution should she continue “to behave like a man”, and worse, should she be involved in what he called the “new” practice of women dating women. It was her aunt who had informed the neighborhood imam.

In his opinion piece about the necessity of a social revolution to combat COVID-19, Dr. Massamba Gueye argues that “ignorant people in whose minds prejudices are born” should be transformed into the vehicles to combat the virus. Let stories such as Selly’s serve as an example for all of us who in one way or the other currently experience the negative impacts of being contained on a psychological level. In line with this, post-COVID-19, let our societies realize that containing queerness, a contradiction in terms, is detrimental to people’s mental state. Or in Selly’s words: “What sense does it make to be free physically, when you are not free mentally?”

Written by: April Prince @LyricAiLove

This time has been hard with everyone in quarantine and worrying about the state of the world.

But there are always ways to get a break from the stress and escape to another world, where our problems don’t exist and we can laugh and be one with ourselves. Why not watch some anime to do just that? In fact, why not try a classic anime like the one we’re talking about today? What anime might that be? It’s Ouran High School Host Club. 

Ouran High School Host Club is a 26-episode anime based on the manga of the same name by Bisco Hatori. It follows the day-to-day of Haruhi Fujioka, a first-year scholarship student at the prestigious private institute of Ouran Academy. While looking for a place to study, Haruhi stumbles into music room #3 and finds the school’s Host Club.  After accidentally knocking over a very expensive vase, priced at 8,000,000 yen, Haruhi is forced to join the Host Club to repay the debt of breaking the vase. 

Each episode centers around events and the Host Club and Ouran Academy, while Haruhi gets acclimated to the culture shock of now going to school with rather wealthy classmates and the differences in how Ouran functions compared to a normal public school. In addition to that, there are also episodes that center on the other club members and how being in the Host Club has changed their lives for the better. 

The other club members consist of third-year students Mitskuni Haninozuka (also known as Honey Senpai) and Takashi Morinozuka (also known as Mori Senpai), first-year students and twins Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin, and second-year students Kyoya Ootori and self-proclaimed king of the Host Club, Tamaki Suoh. Throughout the anime, you’ll see each of the other members grow and change as the series goes on through their interactions with Haruhi and her different worldview compared to the ones they grew up with. 

It’s watching each character learn and change that makes watching the anime so much fun and so rewarding. It may also teach you about yourself in some ways, just by watching these characters learn new things about themselves or realize things that they’d never noticed before. Like Hikaru and Kaoru learning to be more independent from each other or Tamaki learning to ask for help just as much as he’s willing to jump in and help others. 

One of the most interesting tidbits of the series is the genderfluid expression. You may have noticed that Haruhi’s gender hasn’t been mentioned as of yet. Well, that’s because one of the interesting things about the anime is that Haruhi is a teenage girl who’s presenting as a boy while in the Host Club. Even at the beginning of the anime, in the first episode, she says that she’s not worried about whether people recognize her as a boy or a girl. She’s more interested in being seen for who she is and not what gender she presents as. This idea of gender identity being fluid comes up a lot and it’s led to Ouran being an anime that resonates with many in the LGBTQ+ community. Even Haruhi’s father expresses his gender identity in a fluid way. 

In fact, one of the central themes of the series is that no person is ever meant to be singular in any part of their life. Tamaki doesn’t have to be the hero all the time, Kyoya doesn’t have to fit into the role his father has laid out for him, The twins don’t have to be dependent on only each other, Honey can be tough and still love cute things, Takashi can be a sweetheart even with his intimidating demeanor. Even Haruhi learns that though she’s grown up taking care of herself and not relying on anyone, that even she needs help sometimes and that it’s okay to reach out to others. As mentioned earlier, seeing the characters learn more about themselves and grow is one of the most rewarding parts of this anime. 

Another amazing part of Ouran is the top-notch humor. You’ll catch yourself laughing at least once every episode. Whether it’s Honey scheming to get his hands on some sweets or the twins getting into an all-out food fight, there’s always something happening or someone making a slick comment that will cause a chuckle. Most of the time it’s Tamaki and his emotional outbursts that give most of the hilarity each episode. But the rest of the cast carries their weight in this regard as well. Haruhi’s father never leaves a scene without doling out his own brand of hilarious behavior. From playing the protective father to giving heartfelt but funny portrayals of the well-meaning but embarrassing parent. 

With all that said, if you’re looking for a series that’s short enough to be binged in one day but full enough to not leaving you with a shallow experience, Ouran High School Host Club is the anime for you. It’s the slice of life anime that never stops giving and always leaves you with a message to take away.

The post Review: ‘Ouran High School Host Club’ Explores Gender Identity in a Fluid Way appeared first on Black Girl Nerds.