1. Donald &$%*#@^ Trump. 2017 started with Beelzebub's inauguration, and the rest has been downhill from there. In fact, there is simply too much stuff to write about his first year in office. Anybody else feeling fatigued and wondering how the hell we are gonna live through three more years of his foolishness? I swear ... watching the news is more like watching a bad soap opera or reality TV show. Just when I think things can't get any crazier or he can't top the last 'WTF thing' he just did / said / tweeted, more foolishness ensues.
How I feel watching the news now that Beelzebub is in the White House.
2. The Superbowl. Atlanta vs New England. Why, Jesus? WHY?!?!?!? I am a New England Patriots hater, and I just knew at halftime Atlanta was gonna win the game. I was sick!
3. 2017's Oscars was the BLACKEST ever!!!!!
4. Carolyn Bryant. Who is that, you ask? She's the woman who accused Emmett Till of whistling at her. In a book that was published earlier this year, she admitted she lied. SHE LIED. I think all of us knew deep down whatever story she told her husband and brother-in-law wasn't true, but for her to admit that her lie led to the brutal death of a 14 year-old boy some 60+ years after the fact just added insult to injury. I know many years have passed, but I hope she faces some kind of legal prosecution for her role in Till's death. She needs to pay. Period. She needs to pay.
5. And speaking of justice, Philando Castile's family didn't get any when the cop who killed him was acquitted of his murder. There was video, and he was still set free. Terence Crutcher's family didn't see justice when the cop who killed him was set free. And to rub salt in an already deep wound, the cop who killed Crutcher is back at work ... as a sheriff's deputy. Now that's some bull*&^.
6. But ... Michael Slager is going to jail for 20 years for killing Walter Scott. While Slager's sentence is a rare victory in the countless cases of cops killing unarmed Black men, I'm still feeling some kind of way about the length of time of his federal prison sentence. He shot Walter Scott eight times in the back, attempted to plant evidence at the scene, and lied about what happened. 20 years just doesn't seem long enough. But thank God for the video that proved Slager was guilty of murder.
7. The Charlottesville rally. On a Friday evening in August, white men from all over the country converged on Charlottesville, VA. They were dressed in polo shirts and khakis, carrying lit tiki torches, and had a march to protest the removal on a confederate statue. The next day, they marched again but were met by counter-protesters. Before the weekend was over, a young lady named Heather Heyer who was there as a counter protester lost her life when she was run over by a white supremacist who drove a car through a crowd of folks. DeAndre Harris, a Black man from Charlottesville, was beaten by a group of white supremacists in the parking garage of a police station. The photos of Harris' beating were eerily reminiscent of photos from the civil rights era.
Charlottesville 2017
1957
Beelzebub refused to call out the organizers of the march for inciting a hate rally / riot. Instead, he called them "very fine people". I guess he couldn't take the chance of upsetting the folks who put him in office in the first place. Insert eye roll HERE.
8. 2017 was Serena Williams' year, wasn't it? She started the year off getting engaged. She won her 23rd grand slam title at the Australian Open ... while pregnant. She later gives birth to an adorable baby girl, gets married, and then has the largest building on Nike's campus named after her. Can my 2018 be like her 2017? Serena got that Midas touch.
9. Puerto Rico was hit hard by Hurricanes Irma and Maria. But instead of getting aid to the folks there, Beelzebub was too busy trying to pick fights with players of the NFL for not standing for the national anthem. It's almost 2018, and half of Puerto Rico is still without power. Damn shame.
10. The silent protests that started in the 2016 season with Colin Kaepernick continued into the 2017 season. Beelzebub started off the season calling kneeling players "sons of bitches" and stated owners should fire them for not standing for the anthem. Colin Kaepernick became a free agent after the 2016 season, and no NFL team has added him to their rosters. Instead, they brought players out of retirement to avoid offering Kaepernick a spot on any team. A couple weeks ago, the Carolina Panthers owner announced he would put the team up for sale amid allegations of sexual and racial discrimination. Sean "Diddy" Combs threw in his name for ownership talks to buy the Panthers, and Steph Curry and Colin Kaepernick announced they wanted in, too. I am sooooo rooting for this to happen. It could be a long shot, as it appears the NFL team owners group is nothing but a good ol' boys club (read - rich old White men). The owners plotted to keep Kaepernick out of the league? No problem. How about he has part ownership of a team? They should rename the team the Carolina Black Panthers. (Lol. I'm kidding ... kinda.)
11. American soldiers were ambushed in an attack in Niger. Four American soldiers were killed in that ambush. Among the four was Sgt. LaDavid Johnson.
There are just so many unanswered questions surrounding the circumstances of the attack and the events leading up to Sgt. Johnson's death. His remains were found days after the attack, as it appears he was separated from his unit. More of his remains were found weeks after his death and burial. The military wouldn't allow his widow and family to view his body upon return to the United States. What happened, and why isn't there a formal investigation into what happened in Niger?
12. Britain's Prince Harry has become engaged to American actress Meghan Markle. Britain is about to get a sistah princess, y'all!!!
I've never really been caught up in the British royal family, but I can not wait and will be watching this wedding intently in May 2018. Megan's mama has locs. LOCS, y'all!!!! As a fellow loc'd sistah, I am dying to see how Meghan's mama will wear her hair to the wedding. Will they do the electric slide at the wedding? Will there be a soul train line?
13. 2017 saw a lot of men getting fired or resigning from their jobs because of sexual misconduct and assault. Harvey Weinstein. Kevin Spacey. Al Franken. John Conyers. Russell Simmons. Tavis Smiley. Matt Lauer. Charlie Rose. There were many others, too. But even with the "me, too" movement in full effect and men getting outed for their sexual assault on women, Roy Moore in Alabama still ran for the Senate, and Beelzebub is still in the White House.
14. And speaking of the Alabama senate race, accused pedophile Roy Moore LOST the special Senate election to Doug Jones, the prosecutor of the killers of the four little girls in the 1963 church bombing at the 16th Street Baptist Church. While still an overwhelming number of white folks voted for Moore (accused pedophile and the man who said America was at its greatest during the times of slavery), Black folks turned out to vote and put Doug Jones in office. 98% of Black women and 93% of Black men voted for Doug Jones. (I just wonder what the hell is up with the remaining 2% and 7% of y'all, but I digress.) We should learn a few things from the Alabama senate race. One ... if Black folks get out and vote, our candidates will win. Two ... the Democratic party needs to make the time and spend the money on the folks that are their most loyal and supportive voters. PERIOD. Black folks put Doug Jones in office, and it's way past time for the party officials to recognize this and the power of the Black vote. And three ... we need to be ready for the GOP's renewed efforts to suppress the Black vote. 2018 will bring mid-term elections, and the Republicans have the most to lose. They ain't going out without a fight. Believe that.
15. Erica Garner has passed away. Erica, the daughter of Eric Garner, an unarmed Black man choked to death on video by the NYPD, suffered a massive heart attack before Christmas and did not recover. She was not even 30 yet. She has 2 children. She was forced into activism after the death of her father. My heart breaks for her and her family. You can't help but wonder and get angry about the toll racism and injustice affected her young life so unnecessarily.
2018 is on the horizon. It will be interesting to see what this new year will bring.
Happy New Year to you all!!!
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