BEWARE...SOME DAYS ARE NOT VERY PRETTY. I GET CRABBY LIKE NORMAL PEOPLE DO. AND I DO SPEAK MY MIND.
DO NOT READ IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE TO TRUE, REAL, EVERYDAY FEELINGS LIKE MINE.(But I think you would enjoy it)
DON'T FORGET...FREEDOM OF SPEECH !
Attendees at the "Reparations Happy Hour" in Portland, Oregon.
(Cameron Whitten/Twitter)
On Monday night, a bar in Portland,
Oregon hosted people of color and gave them $10 as they arrived — a
symbolic gift funded primarily by white people who were asked not to
attend the “Reparations Happy Hour.”
A local activist group, Brown Hope,
wanted the event to be a space for people of color in a mostly white
city to meet, organize, discuss public policy and potentially plan
various actions.
The notion of full-scale reparations — sought by some as compensation for the horrors of slavery, Jim Crow and the large wealth gap
between white and black U.S. households — was supported by 58 percent
of black people and 46 percent of Hispanic people in a 2016 poll.
However, 68 percent of white Americans do not support
reparations; when the topic was brought up during the 2016 presidential
campaign, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders said it was “divisive” and unlikely to get through Congress.
The economist Robert Browne once estimated
a fair value for reparations of $1.4 trillion to $4.7 trillion and
wrote that reparations should ''restore the black community to the
economic position it would have had if it had not been subjected to
slavery and discrimination.''
U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan and President Barack Obama stand
together at the end of a ceremony commemorating the 150th anniversary of
the 13th Amendment, which formally abolished slavery in the aftermath
of the U.S. Civil War, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, December 9,
2015.
(Reuters)
Eric J. Miller, a professor at Loyola Law School, said
the case for reparations involves a reckoning with the country's
history.
“Part of our history is our grandparents participating
in these acts of terrible violence [against black people],” he told
HuffPost. “But people don’t want to acknowledge the horror of what they
engaged in.”
“The cognitive dissonance of learning that your
property is got and preserved on the back of the misery of others is not
an incredibly nice thing to live with. So people would rather discount
it,” Miller said.
Cameron Whitten, the 27-year-old activist who organized
the event, said that attendees felt seen and valued by the Portland
event — but noted there are much larger goals.
Attendees are seen at the "Reparations Happy Hour" in Portland, Oregon.
(Cameron Whitten/Twitter)
“We’re creating a platform to make sure our leadership is being seen and honored,” Whitten told Blavity.
“This isn’t just, ‘We’re here to socialize.’ We’re here to do the work.
In a place like Portland, where our community is so fractured … our
first step is to bring us back together, and then from there organize
and mobilize to create policies to create justice in our communities.”
There was enough interest in the idea, which was funded
by about 100 people who were mostly white, to hold other happy hours,
which will be called "Reparations Power Hour" to accomodate those who
don't drink.
Whitten anticipated some of the criticism he's faced,
telling the New York Times the event is not meant to diminish the
seriousness of reparations.
In 2014, the writer Ta-Nehisi Coates made the case
for reparations in the Atlantic. H.R. 40, which was introduced in
Congress in January 2017, would study various reparations proposals.
Meghan’s pot farmer nephew, 25, hands police a PEPPER SPRAY after
being caught with a KNIFE outside a London nightclub following whirlwind
tour of the capital’s tourist attractions
Meghan Markle's family travelled to London ahead of wedding to Prince Harry
They uploaded photos to social media including cardboard cutouts of the royals
Megan's nephew Tyler Dooley, 25, busted with a knife at a nightclub on Sunday
Bouncers confiscated the blade and Dooley fled before cops arrived at the club
Published:
22:35 EDT, 20 May 2018
| Updated:
13:25 EDT, 21 May 2018
Meghan Markle's estranged family have uploaded photos of their time in London after being snubbed from the wedding guest list.
The
newlywed's former sister-in-law Tracy Dooley and her son, Meghan's
nephew Tyler, arrived in the UK ahead of the nuptials last week.
The pair were set to appear on Good Morning Britain as commentators on Meghan's wedding to Prince Harry but were dropped by ITV at the last minute.
Despite
the rebuff however, they have been documenting their time in the
capital, enjoying British classics including Toad-in-the-hole, posing at
landmarks and alongside cardboard cut outs of the royal family.
Meghan's
cannabis-growing nephew was caught trying to take a knife into a London
club on Sunday claiming he brought the blade because Donald Trump
warned the capital was like a 'war zone'.
It is also reported that he handed police a pepper spray when officers arrived, according to Sky News.
+16
Photos uploaded to Tracy Dooley's Facebook page show her in London bars and pubs
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Meghan's nephew Tyler Dooley, 25, enjoyed the pub-grub classic Toad-in-the-hole
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The pair were joined by their friend Ronnie Tanner, pictured here at Hampton Court Palace
Video playing bottom right...
Tyler Dooley, 25, was one of a
number of the Duchess of Sussex's family to fly into the UK and try to
cash in on her big day despite not being invited to the royal wedding.
But
he ran into trouble in the early hours of Sunday morning at Kingston
nightclub Bacchus after he surrendered the four-inch lock-blade knife to
club bouncers.
He reportedly said he
brought the weapon from the US to London because President Trump had
warned that the city is 'like a war zone'.
The
Met said they were called to Bacchus but he reportedly 'ran off' before
they arrived and Scotland Yard has confirmed they would not be taking
any further action.
Mr Dooley's
attempts to make money off the back of his tenuous link to Meghan
includes trying to sell a new strain of cannabis he has called Markle's
Sparkle from his Oregon farm.
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Despite being snubbed from the guest list, the mother and son have clearly been enjoying their time in the capital
+16
Tyler Dooley (seen far left
arriving at Heathrow) said he brought the knife from the US to London
because President Trump had warned that the city is 'like a war zone'
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Tracy Dooley has uploaded several pictures, including this one from Hampton Court Palace Golf Club
+16
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Tyler
Dooley and his American girlfriend (above) spend part of the royal
wedding festivities rocking out to a cover of Oasis' Don't Look Back In
Anger at Druids Head in Kingston
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They have been posing at landmarks and alongside cardboard cut outs and masks of the royal family
+16
Dooley clan then headed to
nearby Bacchus (above), a pulsating late-night dance club. Bouncers were
taken aback when Tyler Dooley announced he had a knife
+16
Tyler Dooley (above) is a legal
pot farmer from Oregon. He was not invited to the royal wedding but flew
to London and was busted with a knife by club bouncers hours after the
ceremony
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Tracy has been sharing tourist photographs during her time in London
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Tracy shared this image, captioning it: 'The after party is always the best!'
Dooley,
25, was not invited to the royal wedding, but was celebrating
in Kingston, southwest of London, early Sunday when he surrendered the
four-inch lock-blade knife to club bouncers,The Sun reported.
The
incident occurred after midnight at nightclub Bacchus, where Dooley was
celebrating with his girlfriend, mother Tracy and older brother TJ.
Dooley,
a legal marijuana farmer from Oregon, and his family arrived in London
earlier in the week and had planned to appear on Good Morning Britain as
commentators on Meghan's wedding to Prince Harry. They were dropped by ITV on Thursday, however.
Cut
out of the official post-wedding celebrations at Frogmore House in
Windsor, the Dooley clan apparently decided to observe the occasion by
barhopping in Kingston.
Video of the
evening shows the Dooleys rocking out in the Druids Head, as rock band
The Jaxx play a cover of the Oasis hit single Don't Look Back In Anger.
Later, the family would cross Kingston's market square to Bacchus, a pulsating late-night dance club.
'They were all obviously a bit tipsy from celebrating the wedding, but not in bad spirits,' a witness told the Sun.
'As
Tyler came up to the bouncer, he said, "I have a knife on me." He
pulled it out and handed it to the staff,' the source added.
The
Duchess of Sussex's nephew explained to the bouncers that 'he’d brought
it from America because Donald Trump had said London wasn’t safe.'
Earlier
this month, Trump claimed that knife crime in London is so bad that one
unnamed hospital is 'like a war zone for horrible stabbing wounds' with
'blood all over the floors'.
Police
figures for London show a 44 per cent increase in homicide for the year
ending in April 2018, as well as a 21 per cent increase in knife crime.
+16
TJ (left), Tracy and and Tyler
Dooley (right) had been scheduled to appear on Good Morning Britain to
comment on the royal wedding, but were dropped by ITV on Thursday
+16
The Dooley clan are seen out on the town on their eventful trip to London for the royal wedding
Bouncers at Bacchus were not impressed by Dooley's explanation, however.
'They
acted very calmly and dialed 999 and that’s when some local guys told
him he’d get arrested. At that point he ran off,' the source said.
It
is illegal to carry knives in public in the UK, unless they are folding
knives with a blade under three inches. Police do not consider lock
knives to be folding, since the blade does not always immediately fold.
It's
unclear if Dooley would have broken any laws by bringing the blade into
the country from the US, as he allegedly told bouncers he did.
London's Metropolitan Police Service said in a statement that they were called to the club at around 1.55am on Sunday.
Cops said they recovered the knife from bouncers but no arrest was made, as the suspect had left the scene.
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Tyler Dooley is seen arriving at the family hotel in Waterloo on Wednesday
Dooley's brother TJ is said to have returned to the scene to apologize and attempt to explain the incident to bouncers.
When
a reporter from the Sun approached the Dooleys at the DoubleTree hotel
in Kingston, the family declined to comment and hid inside a utility
closet.
Mother Tracy Dooley was married
to Meghan's half-brother Tom Markle Jr, and Meghan used to babysit the
elder brother TJ as a child.
Tyler Dooley, through the company he runs with his mother, has introduced a specialty cannabis strain called 'Markle Sparkle'.
The family were bound back for America on Sunday night, according to Tracy Dooley's Facebook posts.
'Had a great time mate!' she wrote. 'We had loads of fun in London.'
Pint-size pickpocket, 14, convinces blind man he is a cop before
stealing his wallet in Manhattan subway station and using his credit
card to blow $500 in clothes store
Subway surveillance cameras caught a teen boy, 14, robbing a legally blind man
The boy pretended to be a police officer, offering to help the man get to his train
He can be seen unzipping the man's backpack and stealing his wallet
The boy's own mother turned him in to police a week after the incident occurred
A wily
14-year-old boy who posed as a New York City police officer while
snatching a legally blind man's wallet in a Manhattan subway station on
pretense of helping him was arrested on Sunday.
His
mother turned the baby-faced youth in to police nearly a week after
authorities said he fled the subway station at 34th Street and Eighth
Avenue, near Macy's, leaving his victim behind.
On
May 14, police said he approached the 64-year-old man, identifying
himself as an officer and offering to lead him through the station and
past a turnstile to his train.
Video playing bottom right...
+5
A
14-year-old teen was arrested Sunday after pretending to be a police
officer so he could rob a legally blind man in the New York City subway
Surveillance video shows the man standing quietly as the teenager unzips his backpack and takes the wallet.
The boy then bolts out with the wallet, which police said contained $85 cash and several credit cards.
One card was charged $500 at a nearby store, police determined during an investigation that is ongoing.
Authorities released the video with the victim's face blurred out and several still images that led to Sunday's arrest.
+5
Police released surveillance camera footage and pictures of the teen who robbed the man
+5
The teen can be seen unzipping the unsuspecting man's backpack and taking items out of it
+5
The teen's own mother turned him into police a week after the robbery occurred
+5
The subway robbery occurred at the subway stop in midtown Manhattan near Macy's
In the video, he is wearing a dark blue shirt, black and white pants, boots and has his own backpack strapped on.
The teenager's name was not released because of his age. The victim was not named either.
The boy faces charges of grand larceny and criminal impersonation of a police officer.
It
was not immediately clear if the young suspect had an attorney, or
whether he has been arraigned, appearing in court to admit or deny the
alleged offense.
Teen, 14, pretends to be a police officer to steal a legally blind man's wallet in the subway
Mail Online•
Teen, 14, pretends to be a police officer to steal a legally blind man's wallet in the subway
A
wily 14-year-old boy who posed as a New York City police officer while
snatching a legally blind man's wallet in a Manhattan subway station on
pretense of helping him was arrested on Sunday. His mother turned the
baby-faced youth in to police nearly a week after authorities said he
fled the subway station at 34th Street and Eighth Avenue, near Macy's,
leaving his victim behind. On May 14, police said he approached the
64-year-old man, identifying himself as an officer and offering to lead
him through the station and past a turnstile to his train. A 14-year-old
teen was arrested Sunday after pretending to be a police officer so he
could rob a legally blind man in the New York City subway Surveillance
In the crazy times that we're living in, there's been one piece of news that everyone is rejoicing about this week: Prince Harry's engagement to actress and former Suits star Meghan Markle, who will likely earn the title "Duchess of Sussex" after their marriage in May. The couple released the news via an official statement from the Palace and also sat down for an interview with the BBC about their adorable proposal story.
Markle, of course, was eventually asked about the scrutiny and focus on her ethnicity. She called it "disheartening," and "a shame" that the world is focusing so much on that. But at the end of the day, she said, "I'm really just proud of who I am and where I come from."
Of course, there is indeed so much more about Markle to focus on other than her race; she's an accomplished actress, a dedicated philanthropist, and, I can happily say from having met her a few years ago, a genuinely nice person. Still, many folks — like myself — are focusing on her race because we're simply proud that someone like Markle has finally made their way inside the historically white British monarchy. In fact, when I learned they were dating last year, I was ready to stand outside the palace blasting Solange from a boombox. But after doing some hardcore Googling way back then, I realized something: Markle, whose mother is Black and father is white, is actually not the first Black or bi-racial woman to join the royal family. That distinction likely actually goes way back to the 18th century to Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.
I know, right?! A Black woman in the royal family in the 1700s?! History nerds, prepare yourselves. Turns out that, while many Englanders were in denial at the time, the wife of King George III, who was Queen from 1761 until her death in 1818, was of mixed race.According to PBS, Charlotte was "directly descended from Margarita de Castro y Sousa, a black branch of the Portuguese Royal House." So not of slavery-related mixed-race origins, as I feared, but actual Black royalty. Her race mostly went under the radar over the course of history until, decades later, art historians began to take a closer look at the distinctly Black features in her portraits. Her regal nose, those full lips; as a mixed girl myself who can often spot a person with even a small amount of Black ancestry from a mile away, it's pretty blatant just from looking at her painting.
The fact that her Black physical traits were visible in those paintings was, in itself, noteworthy, because it was customary at the time for artists to "play down, soften or even obliterate undesirable features in a subjects' face," also according to PBS. Even more controversial is the fact that the artist who depicted Queen Charlotte in all of her portraits was Sir Allan Ramsay, an anti-slavery advocate who went on to marry a Black woman himself. All that being said, many historians believe the mere existence of Queen Charlotte and these portraits could have played a major role in the slavery abolition movement of the time. And that makes total sense. I mean, think about it: As we saw on The Crown, Queen Elizabeth II wouldn't even allow her sister to marry a man who had once been divorced. And that was in the 1950s. Can you imagine the existence of a Black queen back in the 18th century?! Photo: Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images.Now here's another major plot twist: Queen Charlotte, the actual first Black and bi-racial member of royalty, also happens to be Prince Harry's great-great-great-great-great-grandmother. Yup, that's right. She's Queen Victoria's grandmother, which makes them relatives, several generations removed. So not only is it possible that Prince Harry's 14th great-uncle may have beheaded one of Markle's ancestors, but now, it's looking like Prince Harry himself has some — albeit, far-removed — interracial genes. Although, don't we all?
It also turns out that even Queen Charlotte might not be the lone mixed royal — and potentially not even the first, either. Philippa of Hainault, a fourteenth-century Queen of England, was also rumored to have African ancestry. And in 2004, former sheep sheerer and builder Gary Lewis became the first Maori — or aboriginal New Zealander — to join the extended royal family by marrying Lady Davina Lewis, daughter of the Duke of Gloucester and 28th in line to the British throne. (I know, I know. Let me know if y'all need me to draw a family tree for all of this.)
Regardless, I think it's long overdue (like, seven generations long) for Queen Charlotte to get some credit for being an early trailblazer among the royals. And even though the official title of the first Black member of royalty was technically taken a long time ago, I'm still cheering hard for Meghan Markle. Because if this recent engagement reminds us of anything, it's that at the end of the day, nothing matters more when it comes to love than pure happiness.
Still: Meghan, if you're down, I'm happy to come over to the palace for A Seat At The Table jam session any time. Just saying.
No wonder Meghan hasn¿t invited them! You can bet your life...
EXCLUSIVE: Meghan's pot farmer nephew's tasteful wedding...
