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As Black History Month unfolds, it’s imperative to honor and celebrate the monumental contributions of Black women who have reshaped our world. From civil rights pioneers to trailblazing scientists, their legacies continue to inspire generations. Here are 10 remarkable Black women who have left an indelible mark on history:

Black history month

Rosa Parks

Often hailed as the “Mother of the Civil Rights Movement,” Rosa Parks’s refusal to give up her seat on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama, sparked a wave of protests and catalyzed the Civil Rights Movement.

Harriet Turbman

Harriet Tubman

Known as the “Moses of her people,” Harriet Tubman escaped slavery and dedicated her life to leading others to freedom through the Underground Railroad, risking her life countless times to liberate enslaved individuals.

Black History Month

Maya Angelou

Renowned poet, author, and civil rights activist, Maya Angelou‘s literary works, including “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” shed light on the African American experience and continue to resonate with readers worldwide.

Katherine Johnson

A pioneering mathematician at NASA, Katherine Johnson’s calculations were instrumental in launching the first American astronaut into space and played a crucial role in the success of the Apollo moon landing missions.

Madam C.J. Walker

As the first female self-made millionaire in America, Madam C.J. Walker revolutionized the haircare industry for Black women with her line of beauty products and empowered countless individuals through entrepreneurship.

Shirley Chisholm

A trailblazing politician, Shirley Chisholm shattered barriers as the first African American woman elected to the United States Congress and the first Black candidate for a major party’s nomination for President of the United States.

Audre Lorde

A prolific writer, poet, and feminist, Audre Lorde’s works explored themes of race, gender, and sexuality, challenging societal norms and advocating for social justice and equality.

black history month

Oprah Winfrey

From her groundbreaking talk show to her philanthropic endeavors, Oprah Winfrey has become one of the most influential figures in media and entertainment, using her platform to amplify marginalized voices and inspire millions worldwide.

Dr. Mae Jemison

As the first African American woman to travel in space, Dr. Mae Jemison broke barriers in the field of space exploration and continues to advocate for STEM education and diversity in the sciences.

Michelle Obama

As the first African American First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama championed numerous initiatives to promote health, education, and empowerment, leaving a lasting impact on communities both domestically and globally.

These remarkable Black women have left an indelible legacy, inspiring future generations to dream big, persevere in the face of adversity, and work towards a more just and equitable world. As we celebrate Black History Month, let us honor their contributions and continue to uplift their stories for generations to come.

Have you ever wondered what highly successful women do on Monday mornings? Success is not created by luck, but by working hard toward reaching a specific goal. Monday morning routines set the mood for the rest of the day and the rest of the week. Here’s a list of Monday morning habits that highly successful people develop.

  1. They Wake Up Early – Set Your Alarm For 5am

They wake up early to make sure that they have plenty of time to complete all of their tasks. Waking up early also ensures that they are not late for any of their scheduled events and they have plenty of time to take care of their personal chores before jumping into their workload.

In an interview with Oprah, Michelle Obama shared that she wakes up early to take care of herself before her day starts. “Well, I just started thinking, if I had to get up and go to work, I’d get up and go to work. If I had to get up to take care of my kids, I’d get up and do that. But when it comes to yourself, then suddenly, ‘Oh, I can’t get up at 4:30.’ So I had to change that.”

We are only allotted so much time in each day; sleeping the day away diminishes the chances of success.

  1. They Meditate – Start With Just 5 Minutes

Monday morning meditation or prayer are great tools to envision success. It’s important to quiet the mind and let the positive energy in as soon as you wake up. If you start with meditating for 5 minutes and over time increase it to half an hour per session.

Such practices can also answer unanswered questions and lead the way to success.

Oprah meditates two times per day for 20 minutes, and she states, “I walked away feeling fuller than when I’d come in. Full of hope, a sense of contentment, and deep joy. Knowing for sure that even in the daily craziness that bombards us from every direction, there is — still — the constancy of stillness. Only from that space can you create your best work and your best life.” (HuffingtonPost)

  1. They Get Motivated – Personal Development Is Key

Highly successful people get motivated first thing on Monday morning. They read personal development books, watch inspirational videos, listen to motivational speakers. Even 15 minutes of inspirational content on Monday morning can set up your day and your week for success

  1. They Get Active – No You Don’t Need A Gym Membership

Highly Successful people know that getting the body active is imperative on Monday mornings and throughout the week. Exercise helps the body wake up and oxygenate; by doing so, all of the cells become active and ready for the day.

  1. They Only Tend To Urgent E-mails

Most email accounts are bursting with emails on Monday mornings. Highly successful people have a way to tend just to urgent emails in the morning.

Going through a long list of random emails can waste a lot of time first thing in the morning. Tumblr’s David Karp shares, “I used to suck at e-mail. I’d let e-mails pile up, get overwhelmed, and miss important messages; or forget to reply. So I set up filters on my e-mail, and that’s been working pretty well. Now, my inbox gets e-mails only from people in my company and from my girlfriend.” (Inc.com)

You can set up filters in your email account just like David Karp did. Alternatively, you can get an email app for your smart phone. Apps like Boxer, Dispatch, and Hop can help you to quickly go through your email box to separate urgent and non-urgent emails.

 

 

 

First Lady Jill Biden  will make history as the country’s first first lady to hold a paid job outside the White House.

Biden — who worked full-time as a community college English professor during her eight years as second lady — has said she plans to continue teaching during her time in the White House.

“I’m really looking forward to being first lady and doing the things that [I did] as second lady, carrying on with military families and education and free community college, cancer [the Biden Cancer Initiative], that Joe and I have both worked on,” Biden said  in a recent interview .” “And I’m going to teach as well.”

“It’s hard for me to think of it in historic terms I guess because I taught all eight years when I was second lady,” she replied when asked about the historic nature of her decision.

Biden has been an educator for more than three decades. She taught English at Northern Virginia Community College during the eight years her husband, President Joe Biden, served as vice president in the Obama administration.

She is planning to continue to teach at Northern Virginia Community College as first lady, but her office is not releasing any further details.

“As she did as Second Lady, out of respect for the privacy of her students and to preserve the integrity of her classroom, Dr. Biden will keep her teaching at Northern Virginia Community College separate from her public role,” Biden spokesman Michael LaRosa told ABC News in a statement.

Kate Andersen Brower, the author of several bestselling books on first ladies and the White House, described Biden’s decision to continue teaching as “unprecedented” in American history.

“It is unusual for a second lady to work but unprecedented for a first lady,” Andersen Brower told a news outlet in December. “I know from talking to the campaign that there is an understanding that she doesn’t know if she can balance both teaching and being first lady quite yet, but there is a sense of this is her hope and this is what she wants to do because she loves teaching, and it’s the career that she’s carved out for herself that is unique and different from her husband’s.”

Andersen Brower said Biden continuing in her professor role would not only be unprecedented but also hopefully a significant shift in the trajectory of first ladies.

“I think it’s incredibly important for a woman to have her own identity, especially when you’re married to a politician and now to the president,” she said. “The idea that you would have to give up your entire life for your spouse seems very antiquated.”

“I hope that people will accept Jill Biden’s desire to teach, and that she’s a wife and a mother and has a career,” added Andersen Brower, who coined the term “Professor FLOTUS” to describe Biden’s dual roles. “I hope that we’re at the point where we accept that, because I think if it was a man, we would definitely accept it.”

While second lady, Biden worked on support for military families, helped her husband with his Cancer Moonshot initiative and led initiatives to highlight community colleges across the country, all while teaching English and earning her doctorate in education from the University of Delaware in 2007.

In addition to her doctorate, Biden also holds two master’s degrees, both of which she earned “while working and raising a family,” .

Biden was forced to defend her Dr. title last year, after a Wallstreet Journal Publication challenged  her.

The op-ed’s author, Joseph Epstein, wrote that the use of doctor by Biden “sounds and feels fraudulent, not to say a touch comic,” adding that, “A wise man once said that no one should call himself ‘Dr.’ unless he has delivered a child.”

“That was such a surprise,” Biden said on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” in response to the op-ed. “It was really the tone of it that I think that — you know, he called me kiddo.”

“And one of the things I’m most proud of is my doctorate,” she said. “I mean I worked so hard for it.”

Joe Biden also expressed displeasure about the op-ed, telling Colbert of his wife’s accomplishments, “She had two master’s degrees and she kept going to school all the time while teaching at night.”

In response to the op-ed, women took to Twitter to encourage others with degrees to add them to their name.

“Today I added “Dr” to my profile name. Thanks WSJ for the nudge,” wrote Dr. Laura Scherer, an assistant professor at the University of Colorado Medical School.

Biden is entering her role as both First Lady and college professor at a time when women currently make up nearly half of the workforce in the U.S., and nearly one-third of all employed women are working mothers

In his election victory speech, Joe Biden described his wife as both a military mom and an educator who will make a “great” first lady.

“She dedicated her life to education. Teaching is not just what she does, it’s who she is,” he said. “For American educators, it is a great day for y’all. You’re going to have one of your own in the White House. And Jill is going to make a great first lady. I am so proud of her.”

Source: Abcnews.com

Pamela Taylor, the 57-year old white woman who made a racist comment about former first lady Michelle Obama on Facebook two years ago, is now going to prison for embezzling more than $18,000 in FEMA disaster benefits.

Taylor, the former Clay County development director, has recently been sentenced to 10 months in federal prison and to pay $10,000 fine. After serving her sentence in jail, she also has to undergo home confinement for the first 2 months and supervised release for 3 years.

In 2016, Taylor also made national headlines after comparing then-first lady Michelle Obama to an ape. In a Facebook post after Trump’s election, she said, “It will be refreshing to have a classy, beautiful, dignified First Lady in the White House. I’m tired of seeing a Ape in heels.”

She was then suspended from her position as Clay County development director but returned to work about a month after.

In the FEMA embezzlement case, Taylor reportedly claimed her primary residence was damaged by the flooding in West Virginia that damaged other homes and buildings and killed at least 23 people in June 2016. She also said that she stayed in a rental unit after that.

However, it turned out that her home was not damaged and that she was still living there, not in any rental unit as she have initially claimed to receive more than $18,000 in FEMA disaster benefits.

“The flood was a natural disaster. Stealing from FEMA is a man-made disaster,” U.S. Attorney Mike Stuart said in a news release. “The floods of June 2016 were historic and devastating to thousands of West Virginians. Lives were lost. Too many of our brothers and sisters lost everything. FEMA dollars are critical but limited. Stealing critical FEMA dollars is a crime — literally and figuratively. Taylor’s fraud scheme diverted disaster benefits from our most desperate and vulnerable, those most in need of help.

Source: blacknews.com

Michelle Obama admitted her marriage was rocky right after the girls were born .

She attended therapy sessions and realised it was not her husband’s responsibility to make her happy.The author added at the end of the day, Obama was her friend and she was reminded why she fell in love with him – The two are now happy and stronger 28 years after walking down the aisle Former US first lady Michelle Obama has admitted not all marriages are perfect and hers too survived the test of time. The mother of two disclosed she and retired president Barrack Obama went through a rough patch right after their girls were born.

One lesson Michelle learned was her happiness was her responsibility and she was also not in charge of her husband’s joy. She also discovered she and the former president were different individuals who needed to celebrate and recognize their uniqueness before focusing on each other.

The former first lady pointed out her marriage was built on friendship and that always reminded her to stick by the man who was her friend before being her partner. “We went through a tough time, we did some hard things together. But now we are out on the other end and I can look at him and I still recognise my husband.

He is still the man I fell in love with,” Michelle added. As earlier reported, the retired FLOTUS said she and her husband also struggled to comfortably transition to empty nesters. After their daughters went off to college, the duo cried and tried their best to embrace their new reality. She also joked about how Obama is a huge cry baby who gets carried away whenever his daughters achieve any milestones like graduating.

The former First Lady of United States, Michelle Obama, on Sunday, won the Grammy Best Spoken Word Album for her audiobook ‘Becoming’, at the 62nd Grammy Awards, at the Staples Centre, Los Angeles.

The audiobook, Becoming, shared her journey from a little girl from the South Side of Chicago to lawyer and the First Lady of the United States.

Other nominees in the Best Spoken World Album categories are Michael Diamond, Adam Horovitz, Scott Sherratt and Dan Zitt (Beastie Boys Book), Eric Alexandrakis (I.V. Catatonia: 20 Years As A Two-Time Cancer Survivor), John Waters (Mr. Know-It-All) and Sekou Andrews & The String Theory (Sekou Andrews & The String Theory).

Her win, gave the Obama household its third Grammy as former president Barack Obama has already won two Grammys in the same category for his books.

Credit: Nigeria Tribune

Ex-First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama paid a visit to Njideka Akunyili Crosby at her studio.

US-based, Njideka, one of the daughters of the late NAFDAC boss, Dora Akunyili made headlines when her 2017 botanical painting, titled “Bush Babies”, sold for $3.4 million USD.

Her sister, Chidiogo shared the photo with the caption: So this just happened! Casual Saturday in the Akunyili Crosby family. When Michelle Obama pays a visit to your studio! 🌞 Me to my sister, “if it could come up, make sure to tell her about the book.” 🙈


Viola Davis is set to play former US First lady, Michelle Obama, in a brand new White House drama series, titled ‘First Ladies’ currently in the works at Showtime.

The network has given the prospective one-hour drama a three-script commitment, with novelist Aaron Cooleyon board to write and executive produce, Deadline reports.

The series will peel back the curtain on the personal and political lives of First Ladies throughout history, with season one focusing on Eleanor Roosevelt, Betty Ford and Michelle Obama. The series is from Showtime and Lionsgate Television.

 

 

Credit: Bella Naija

Barack and Michelle Obama have made their Hollywood debut in a documentary called ‘American Factory’.

American Factory looks at the economic and personal toll that the closure, which resulted in the loss of 2,000 jobs, had on residents of Moraine, Ohio, and at what happened after the facility was acquired by a Chinese investor in 2014.

The factory was reopened as Fuyao Glass, an auto-glass manufacturer that promised the return of jobs to the community.

Michelle Obama told the filmmakers she was particularly struck by the opening scenes of workers on the factory floor.

“That was my background, that was my father,” she said.

“One of the many things I love about this film… is that you let people tell their own story. “American Factory’ doesn’t come in with a perspective; it’s not an editorial.”

“We want people to be able to get outside of themselves and experience and understand the lives of somebody else,” Obama told filmmakers Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar in a promotional video released by Netflix.

“A good story gives you the chance to better understand someone else’s life,” Mr. Obama said Wednesday in a tweet. “It can help you find common ground. And it’s why Michelle and I were drawn to it.”

The Washington Post called “American Factory,” which arrived on Netflix on Wednesday, “a perfect vehicle for (Higher Ground’s) mission to lift up stories from underrepresented groups.”

Higher Ground Productions has also highlighted the film’s focus on culture wars, describing it as “early days of hope and optimism give way to setbacks as high-tech China clashes with working-class America.”

 

 

Source: fabwoman.ng

Michelle Obama has revealed why it is important for people to marry their equals in order to make a marriage work.

The former US First Lady was interviewed by CBS’ Gayle King for a special piece at the Essence Festival in New Orleans. During the interview, Michelle shared stories with Ms King about her time in the White House, her marriage and the rocky road it took to get to where she is today.

She said: “This is the beauty of finding a partner you really love and respect.

“After all the highs and lows, the ups and downs we’ve been through, we have each other, which makes the journey worth it.”

 

Michelle Obama explains why it

 

Speaking on how important she felt it was for people to marry their equals to make a marriage work, she said: “My husband is my teammate and if we are going to win this game together, he has to be strong and he has to be ok with me being strong.”

Michelle also told Ms King people saw her relationship as “hashtag relationship goals”, but she wanted to let people know there were difficult times too.

Before the interview, Ms Obama revealed in her book ‘Becoming’ that her father Fraser C. Robinson III was fearful of her relationship with Barack Obama and said, “He won’t last due to Michelle’s previous track record of dating.

The ex-FLOTUS wrote: “My father appreciated Barack instantly, but still didn’t like his odds.

“After all, he’d seen me jettison my high school boyfriend David at the gates of Princeton.

“He’d watched me dismiss Kevin the college football player as soon as I’d seen him in a furry mascot outfit.

“My parents knew better than too get too attached.

“According to Craig (brother), my father shook his head and laughed as he watched me and Barack walk away.

“He said: ‘Nice guy. Too bad he won’t last’.”

 

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Credit: LIB