CYNTHIA

“There was one evening that we were at the plantation.We had worked a long day, and everyone was tired. Beyoncé is standing on stage, and we couldn’t get the playback for the music to work. She said “I’m just going to go ahead and sing it. Let’s just go. We need to do it”. We’re all kind of standing there, and she starts to sing “Freedom” acapella. The hairs on everybody just stood up. That moment, being on a plantation in Louisiana with a black woman standing on this stage, only lit by fire, it was the single greatest moment of my life doing this work. In the front was Oscar Grant’s mother, Trayvon Martin’s mother, Freddie Gray’s mother all sitting there watching.That i got to experience that moment and that her voice filled the air of that plantation, it gave life to the people standing there, predominantly black group. That is something that i will literally never forget as long as i live.”

A Black WOMAN climbed a flagpole in Columbia to take down the Confederate flag.

Three Black WOMEN brought us Black Lives Matter and jumpstarted a movement.

A Black WOMAN was the first African-American to put themselves in the running for a major party nomination for President.

A Black WOMAN refused to give up her seat on a bus.

A Black WOMAN made some 13 trips back to the South to shuttle slaves north to Freedom.

Viral Deer-Feeding Teen Kelvin Peña Creates Everybody Eats Foundation to Help Feed Families

While most people would have taken that 15 minutes of fame to capitalize and make some money for themselves, Kelvin did the exact opposite, he used his newfound notoriety to help others. That all came to a head this Thanksgiving when Kelvin and his Everybody Eats Foundation came together to provide 120 turkeys to churches and food pantries and over 30 thanksgiving meals to needy families.

“Gaining all of these eyes on me made me realize I can make an even bigger impact on this world. And that nothing makes me happier than helping people.”

Ruby Bridges was the first black child to desegregate the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in Louisiana during the New Orleans school desegregation crisis in 1960.

This movie made me cry, I was so heart broken by how Ruby Bridges was treated! She was only 6, but was so strong. She is a very brave girl and she did not care what the white folks called her.

People are simply disgusting to minimize people by skin color!

Ruby Bridges in 2010 

“As Bridges describes it, “Driving up I could see the crowd, but living in New Orleans, I actually thought it was Mardi Gras. There was a large crowd of people outside of the school. They were throwing things and shouting, and that sort of goes on in New Orleans at Mardi Gras.“ Former United States Deputy Marshal Charles Burks later recalled, “She showed a lot of courage. She never cried. She didn’t whimper. She just marched along like a little soldier, and we’re all very very proud of her.“ 

U.S. Marshals escorted Bridges to and from school

As soon as Bridges entered the school, white parents pulled their own children out; all the teachers refused to teach while a black child was enrolled. Only one person agreed to teach Ruby and that was Barbara Henry, from Boston, Massachusetts, and for over a year Henry taught her alone, “as if she were teaching a whole class.”

Every morning, as Bridges walked to school, one woman would threaten to poison her; because of this, the U.S. Marshals dispatched by President Eisenhower, who were overseeing her safety, allowed Ruby to eat only the food that she brought from home.

Another woman at the school put a black baby doll in a wooden coffin and protested with it outside the school, a sight that Bridges Hall has said “scared me more than the nasty things people screamed at us.” At her mother’s suggestion, Bridges began to pray on the way to school, which she found provided protection from the comments yelled at her on the daily walks.”

More info on Ruby Bridges on Wikipedia

THIS SHIT WAS ONLY 58 YEARS AGO. PEOPLE WHO PARTICIPATED IN THIS RACIST TERRORISM AND ACTS LIKE IT ARE STILL ALIVE, AND THEIR KIDS ARE IN THEIR 40′S AND 50′S. 

This is literally how she looks in 2017. 

At just six years old, Romanieo Golphin Jr. could already read college-level chemistry and physics textbooks. He might just be the next Einstein.

Can we talk about how the killer cop, Jeronimo Yanez, is Mexican-American? While not white, this terrible example of pathological anti-blackness demonstrates to us that white supremacy can use non-black people of color to uphold its systems of oppression. I know for certain that my fellow Mexicans can personally attest to the abundance of anti-blackness that exists in our communities. Jeronimo murdered Philando and I’ve not heard any of my woke Latinx or Mexican friends say a peep. He’s a monster, right? He’s also your brother, uncle and cousin. Y'all, this is where the ally work matters.

Jeronimo, a brown man, was acquitted not because of his innocence, but because the 10 white jurors were able to identify with his light-skinned Latinx version of anti-blackness–and established an intersectional kinship built on hatred for black people.

While not always wielding a gun, members of our community routinely express and enact anti-blackness. This happens through words and actual violence. Philando’s case may be extreme but it is not unusual. As Latinx folks who often benefit from a hierarchy of racism, we must be vigilant and dutiful in confronting anti-blackness in others and ourselves. As allies for black liberation, the onus is on us to do coalition work and be willing to sacrifice privilege and relationships in pursuit of the struggle. As a queer Chicano, I don’t take responsibility for the existence of white supremacy but I certainly admit that I can do more to confront anti-blackness around me and within myself.

As Philando’s girlfriend Diamond stated: “He was pulled over because, per officer Yanez, he had a wide nose and looked like a suspect.” “God help America,” she continued. Yes, God help America but also let us Latinx folks help each other confront and act on the problem. This time, the problem is ours.

- Miguel Garcia

Miguel Garcia is a native Detroiter and Chicano queer mental and sexual health advocate. He currently works for a community health agency based in Detroit and is completing his degree in Boston.

spansh translation: 

¿Podemos hablar de cómo el policia asesino, Jerónimo Yáñez, es mexicano-americano? Aunque no sea blanco, este terrible ejemplo de anti-negritud patológica nos demuestra que la supremacía blanca puede utilizar a las ‘personas de color’ que no son negras para defender sus sistemas de opresión. Sé con certeza que mis compatriotas mexicanos pueden atestiguar personalmente la abundancia de anti-negritud que existe en nuestras comunidades. Jerónimo asesinó a Philando y no he oído nada de mis compañeros Latinx o amigos mexicanos que son consientes de estas estructura sociales o “woke” decir ni un pío. Es un monstruo, ¿verdad? También es tu hermano, tío y primo. Compañeros, aquí es donde el trabajo del aliado importa. Jerónimo, una persona de color no negra, fue absuelto no por su inocencia, sino porque los 10 jurados blancos pudieron identificarse con su versión de anti-negritud al nivel que existe entre Latinx de tonos de piel claras—y estableció un parentesco interseccional construido sobre el odio hacia los negros. Aunque no siempre manejan un arma, los miembros de nuestra comunidades Latinx rutinariamente expresan y promulgan anti-negritud. Esto sucede a través de las palabras y la violencia. El caso de Philando puede ser extremo pero no es inusual. Como personas de Latinx que se benefician de una jerarquía del racismo, debemos ser vigilantes y obedientes para enfrentar la anti-negritud en los demás y en nosotros mismos. Como aliados para la liberación negra, nos incumbe la tarea de hacer el trabajo de la coalición y estar dispuestos a sacrificar el privilegio y las relaciones en la búsqueda de la lucha. Como un chicano queer, no me responsabilizo de la existencia de la supremacía blanca, pero ciertamente admito que puedo hacer más para enfrentar la anti-negritud alrededor de mí y dentro de mí. Como dijo Diamond, la novia de Philando, “Lo detuvieron porque, según oficial Yáñez, tenía una nariz ancha y se parecía a un sospechoso.” “Dios ayude a América”, continuó. Sí, Dios ayude a América, pero también permite ayudarnos a nosotros Latinx a enfrentar y actuar en este problema. Esta vez, el problema es nuestro. - Miguel Garcia Miguel García es un nativo de Detriot y partidario de Chicano queer salud mental y sexual. Actualmente trabaja para una agencia de salud comunitaria basada en Detroit y está completando su licenciatura en Boston.

FACE FORWARD - Meet the Photographer Advocation for Black Beauty in the Fashion Industry: Glenford Nuñez

“You photograph what you see around and the things you care about,” Nuñez says. “My mom is a Black woman. My sister is a Black woman. These are the people I love, so I want them to be depicted in the best possible light.” He is on a mission to capture at least 100 aspiring Black models to affirm that our beauty — inside an out — is worthy of praise.

featured models: Ra’Chael Baker, Kennedy McDaniel, Sinmidele Badero,Tene’A Cummings, Ariana Gulford, Emoni Baraka, Tayquana Demery