article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (follow @lakinhutcherson)
You’ve surely heard about it by now, and likely seen it too – U.S. gymnast phenomenon Simone Biles easily captured individual all-around gold at the Rio Olympics Thursday by out-performing the best of the world’s best and fulfilling what many felt was her long-awaited destiny. Teammate Aly Raisman won the silver and Russian gymnast Aliya Mustafina took the bronze, repeating her finish in London four years ago. It was the second time the U.S. women went 1-2 in the all-around, having also done so in 2008.
But what I find to be challenging about the major media coverage of Biles beyond the footage of her feats (which I could watch all day every day) is how much it focuses primarily on three things: 1)her “humble beginnings” family story 2)how “girly” she is and 3) how she is preternaturally genetically gifted for the sport she so clearly dominates. If you need to see examples of any or all of this, simply turn on NBC to catch whatever package is running on her as they show the gymnastics competitions (I’ve personally seen the footage of her at the nail salon three separate times), go to nbcolympics.com, read pretty much any major newspaper’s feature on her (many with some tagline about what a “giant” the 4′ 8″ teen is), or heck, just click through the internet.
In addition to hearing about her once-in-a-generation, God-given talent or her twitter crush on Zac Efron, can’t we please hear, see, read and learn more about how Biles’ team crafts her routines to capitalize on her strengths? Or how exactly did she and/or her coaches come up with her signature move for the floor routine – the Biles? (Okay, I just found that one – it’s on inc.com – a business site!).
If I Google and scour a bit, I do find what I want – coverage of Biles’ discipline, work ethic and what kind of discrimination, if any, she faces as a black gymnast in a predominately white sport – like this very strong piece published in deadspin.com. I do believe, however, this should be the standard of mainstream media coverage on a sports superstar of Biles’ caliber, particularly from the official network covering the Olympics she is currently crushing. (Yes, it’s cute to see her dance to “Uptown Funk” with Hoda and reveal her and her teammates’ Kellogg’s cereal box on “The Today Show”, but c’mon Peacock – there is so much more to this athlete!)
Hopefully this weekend during the broadcast of the individual skills events, NBC will step it up – way up – because Biles surely will, and she deserves nothing but the best as she gives us all her best.
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article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (follow @lakinhutcherson)
First and foremost, the headline above is the main story. Team U.S.A. member Simone Manuel made Olympic and U.S. history by becoming the first African-American female to win gold in an individual swimming event when she tied Canadian swimmer Penny Olesiak for first place in the 100-meter freestyle at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics Thursday night, with a time of 52.70. We congratulate her heartily, and are as proud as we can be of and for her.
According to theroot.com, Manuel used her time and her platform afterwards to speak on the ongoing racial issues the United States grapples with as she addressed the importance of her historic win.
“It means a lot, especially with what is going on in the world today, some of the issues of police brutality,” the young swimmer said. “This win hopefully brings hope and change to some of the issues that are going on. My color just comes with the territory.”
Manuel acknowledged that her race does carry a bit of weight, especially as a swimmer, given the stereotype that black people cannot or should not be able to swim well.
“It is something I’ve definitely struggled with a lot,” she said. “Coming into the race, I tried to take [the] weight of the black community off my shoulders. It’s something I carry with me. I want to be an inspiration, but I would like there to be a day when it is not ‘Simone the black swimmer.’
“The title of black swimmer suggests that I am not supposed to win golds or break records, but that’s not true because I train hard and want to win just like everyone else,” Manuel added.
The ensuing story surrounding this momentous event and its coverage has also been historic in its own right. Thanks to social media, the calling out of the faulty, biased reporting by the mainstream media on this unprecedented triumph has been equally thrilling to behold. Not only was NBC’s lack of coverage been taken to task by colorlines.com and scores of twitter fans, so has the San Jose Mercury News‘ initial insulting headline of “Michael Phelps Shares Historic Night with African-American” been dragged via a great Huffington Post article.
Personally, I am very satisfied to see a growing trend on speaking out against systemic racism in mainstream reporting and for apologies having to be publicly made and headlines re-written. Please click through the links above and enjoy the tweets and comments in their entirety.
In the meantime, I’m setting my DVR for Manuel’s next race tonight in the 50-meter freestyle to see if NBC, etc. can do better by this undeniable champion for the ages.
article by Hadassah Egdebi via venturesafrica.com
The invention of a secondary school student has gotten Namibia’s social media abuzz for the right reasons. Simon Petrus has created a mobile phone that works with radio frequencies, no sim card nor airtime credit required. Calls can be made to anyone, anywhere, without interruptions, as long as they are done in an area with radio frequency.
The invention, which took two years for him to complete, was put together using scraps of old television and mobile phones, and required over $2,000 funding from his unemployed parents who sacrificed a lot to ensure their son’s project was successful.
Other than the sim-less phone, Petrus’ invention is a whole unit comprising of a working radio, television, a light bulb, a fan, and a socket. According to reports, the phone is not Petrus’ first invention, just his latest.
Last year, the young man won first place at a competition for young innovators in Namibia for creating a machine that doubles as a seed drier and a cooler. Going by the looks of things, this young man is set to clinch another gold medal in the forthcoming competition, having already won first place at the regional level for his “free-to-call” phone last Friday. “When he won last year, some judges were of the opinion that there was an engineer at home who was helping him. But the only help he has is from us the teachers here at school. He came up with his own project,” Taimi Vatileni, Petrus’s science teacher told New Era.
To read more, go to: A teenager from Namibia invents a “sim-less” and “airtime-free” phone – Ventures Africa
article via jbhe.com
Calhoun Residential College at Yale University has been in the news a great deal lately. The college was established in 1932 in honor of John C. Calhoun, who graduated from Yale University in 1804. He went on to become vice president of the United States, serving under both John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson. A native of South Carolina, Calhoun was a major defender of the institution of slavery.
In February 2016, Yale University announced that it was removing a portrait of Calhoun that was displayed over the fireplace in the dining hall in the residential college. In June, a worker used a broom handle to break a stained-glass window in the dining hall of the college that depicted slaves carrying cotton on their heads.
Now the university has announced that the dining hall at Calhoun Residential College will be renamed to honor Roosevelt L. Thompson. A resident of Calhoun College, Thompson was killed in an automobile accident during his senior year at Yale, after he had been selected as a Rhodes Scholar to study at Oxford University.
A documentary film on Roosevelt Thompson was produced by PBS. A trailer for that documentary can be viewed below:
article via theurbandaily.com
Following his generous contributions of $1 million to the Institute for Community-Police Relations and $1 million to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Michael Jordan is doing a lot more sharing these days.
According to reports, Jordan has donated $5 million to the National Museum of African American History and Culture Museum. Officials revealed that the gift is the largest from a sports figure to the 19th Smithsonian museum and pushes private donations to $278 million. Including federal aid, the museum, which President Obama will open in September, has raised more than $548 million.
The NBA legend said in a statement, “I am grateful for the opportunity to support this museum. I also am indebted to the historic contributions of community leaders and athletes such as Jesse Owens, whose talent, commitment and perseverance broke racial barriers and laid the groundwork for the successful careers of so many African Americans in athletics and beyond.”
Source: Michael Jordan Donates $5 Million To African-American Museum | The Urban Daily
article by Julia Fincher via nbcolympics.com
If there was any question that the U.S. has the best women’s gymnastics team in the world, it was answered today for the fifth time.
With two consecutive Olympic golds and world championships titles in 2011, 2014 and 2015, the U.S. women have made a seemingly unbreakable habit of winning. And not just edging out their competitors by a few tenths, but leading the competition from start to finish and claiming victory by multiple points
Throughout the team final at the Rio Olympics, 2012 Olympians Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman, along with first-time Olympians Simone Biles, Laurie Hernandez and Madison Kocian, looked focused but confident, never faltering under the weight of the world’s or their expectations.
The other teams in the final gave their best efforts to make a run at the long-reigning queens of the sport, but nearly every team suffered a fall over the course of four events.
Not the U.S., who clocked 12 hit routines over the four events. They started with a nearly-stuck Amanar vault, the one made famous by McKayla Maroney in 2012, from Raisman. Next up was uneven bars, where Kocian and Douglas earned two of the highest uneven bars scores of the day. Hernandez, Raisman and Biles all scored over 15 points on balance beam, looking a little less steady than usual but keeping in control.
Finally, floor, again with Hernandez, Raisman and Biles. Raisman is the reigning Olympic champion on floor while Biles is the reigning world champion, and they showed why. Raisman stuck nearly every landing while Biles nearly flipped to the rafters in her routine that uses music from the movie Rio.
They finished with a team total of 8.209 points. It was the largest margin of victory since the “Perfect 10” scoring system was replaced by the current open-ended scoring method was implemented in 2006. They easily surpassed the previous record of 5.066 points, set by the Fierce Five in London.
Russia finished in second place, followed by China in third. It was Russia’s second consecutive silver, while China was missed the podium in London but won team gold at their home Olympics in Beijing.
For full article, go to: ‘Final Five’ win gymnastics team gold in Rio | NBC Olympics
article by Breanna Edwards via theroot.com
Earlier this month, 10-year-old Tyran Bell, a boy from North Carolina, used his mother’s Facebook page to seek jobs mowing lawns because his mother could not afford to buy his school supplies for the school year.
According to an earlier news report by WECT, Tyran’s mom had missed a lot of work recently because his uncle was hospitalized. Tyran’s request was met with an overwhelming response from local businesses, community members, neighbors and friends. One local business, A1 Security Services LLC, started a donation drive for Tyran, WECT reports. “He’s 10 years old. And for a 10-year-old to take that initiative and want to help his mom because she was struggling, I just thought that was amazing,” A1 Security Services President Theresa Babb told the news station.
Tyran is now more than covered for his school supplies, but the precocious 10-year-old is passing on his fortune and giving back to the community that helped him out. “I’m gonna put them in bags and go around the community and pass them out to whoever needs school supplies,” he told the news station. Babb is also looking for ways to give away the extra donations from the drive, telling WECT that her company is speaking with social workers to see which local schools need the supplies.
Source: Donations Pour In for 10-Year-Old Boy Who Asked to Mow Lawns to Pay for School Supplies
article by Charise Frazier via newsone.com
The USA women’s gymnastics team obviously did not come to play in Rio – they literally vaulted ahead of the competition during the qualifying round on Sunday.
Veteran Aly Raisman and it-girl Simone Biles will advance to the all-around final, where they will battle with China, who scored second in the qualifiers. In total, Team USA scored an unprecedented 10 points higher than China on Sunday. Team USA holds the chance to win 10 gold medals in every finals event, including vault, beams, bar, and floor exercises.
In the vault competition, Biles was utter perfection as she nailed two of the hardest vaults in the competition, scoring 16.050, the highest of any gymnast during the meet. Raisman came in second with a solid 15.766.
On the bars, Madison Kocian led the team with a high score of 15.866, while Douglas came in third behind Russia’s Aliya Mustafina, with 15.766.
But it was the beam exercise that most were looking forward to. Douglas and Biles both fell during last month’s Olympic trials. On Sunday, they didn’t disappoint, landing explosive performances. Biles came in first for Team USA with 15.633, and Laurie Hernandez came in second, scoring 15.366 and beating out Brazilian gymnast and crowd favorite, Flavia Saraiva. Douglas came in third for USA with 14.833.
To read full article, go to : Watch Simone Biles, Gabby Douglas At 2016 Rio Olympics | News One
article by Angela Bronner Helm via theroot.com
Chris Bentley and Carlos Miller, two African-American men who have been friends since middle school, have started an innovative way to help the homeless of Palm Beach County, Fla. The two started a nonprofit—Live FRESH (Feeling Revitalized Encourages Sustainable Happiness)—and have launched a mobile shower facility, an air conditioned trailer equipped with six private shower/changing area rooms, to assist the area’s transient population.
The Palm Beach Post reports that the two chose showers specifically: “For us, that’s where dignity and self-respect starts … with the ability to stay clean and be presentable,” says Bentley. “Cleanliness is a fundamental need. We actually see it as basic human right and because the homeless population can be hard to reach, we knew we would have to come to them and make ourselves available in areas they could easily reach.”
Miller writes on the website: “To see a human being, living in the United States of all countries, walk inside a store with apprehension over being shunned or offensive to the atmosphere due to their odor or disheveled state grabbed at the core of my heart.”About 250 people have participated since the program began March 31, reports the Post.
Each participant gets a packet with personal hygiene essentials including deodorant, towels, soap, shampoo, conditioner, toothbrush, toothpaste and dental floss. The organization was able to launch its fund with a $100,000 grant from Impact the Palm Beaches and smaller donations from other organizations.
To read full article and see video, go to: Longtime Friends Start Mobile Shower Facility for the Homeless in Fla.
After Hilarious Series of Die-Hard Team USA Tweets, Leslie Jones Officially Joins NBC Olympics Coverage Team
article by Daniel Holloway via Variety.com
“Ghostbusters” star Leslie Jones is headed to Rio de Janeiro to join NBC’s Summer Olympics coverage. Jones announced the news via a video posted on Twitter Monday, which featured her wearing an NBC Olympics hat, waving an American flag and singing “Guess who’s going to Rio!” NBC Sports confirmed to Variety that Jones will be joining its coverage team.
As a contributor to NBC’s Olympics team, Jones will attend live events such as swimming, track and field, gymnastics and beach volleyball and provide coverage on air and online. Olympics executive producer Jim Bell invited Jones via Twitter last week to join NBC’s coverage team after the comic went on an epic Twitter tear commenting on the games.
The “Saturday Night Live” cast member has been posting Olympics-related comments and videos — mostly of Jones talking over the games on TV — since shortly after the opening ceremonies Friday night.“We’re thrilled to have Leslie come to the Olympics,” said Bell. “She’s a member of the family, and her passion for the Olympics is remarkable.”
Source: Leslie Jones Joins NBC Olympics Coverage Team | Variety
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