Category Archives: Personal Empowerment

Gorgeous and glowing with an inner calm. That was Dia Mirza as a guest on Ladies Study Groups (LSG) Beyond The Stardust, a virtual session of April 24. The actor and producer who is an UNEP Goodwill Amabassador, United Nations SDGs Advocate, Wildlife Trust of India ambassador and an IFAW global ambassador among the many other hats she wears, spoke of her choices, career, empowerment and her commitment to nature. I found my balance through meditation and the work that I do, she smiled and left us with this lovely message: The world needs more empathy and love and action. Please continue to question all that is unfair and do everything you can to help others and please dont lose faith in humanity. Excerpts from the Hyderabadi beautys chat with LSG president Diya Jaiswal.

Growing-up years...

I think the foundation that each of us gets is in the education system that we are exposed to and also of course our parentage, what they teach us through their own actions and choices. I went to Vidyaranya High School, which directly translates to forest of education. Conversations about human behaviour and practices were constant right through school. We had a rare kind of assembly. We would talk about and debate current affairs and we would be compelled to think about things that we normally didnt think about. Consumerism was one of them and the fact that advertising in a capitalist society was driving consumerism, what kind of an impact that would have on nature and how we as human beings were moving further and further away from nature. Alongside that they taught us how to compost. A lot of our classes happened under trees, a lot like in Santiniketan. The school was inspired by J. Krishnamurti and a lot of the foundation of the school and the attitude of teaching was similar to what Rabindranath Tagore did with Santiniketan and what J. Krishnamurti did with Rishi Valley. Our school did not believe in the concept of competition and putting children in school uniform. There was no examination, grading, ranking in the percentile system till Class VIII. Even when we did start doing tests and preparing for the board examinations, we were still never ranked in class. On sports day, we would all get a laddoo. We were always only competing with ourselves.

It was a very similar environment at home. Both my parents loved nature. I spent many afternoons and evenings with my mother, planting trees, rescuing injured birds and animals, treating them and setting them free, watching her cry over the pain and anguish she would feel over an injured animal or bird that she couldnt save.

We had carpenters at home and they found a baby python. They put it in a thick black box and brought her home to us and my father decided to save it and take care of it and release it into the wild till it was big enough. Fear was also another concept that was never introduced to me as a child.

Being independent...

I was 14-and-a-half or 15 when I saw this really expensive pair of boots which was about Rs 8,500 at that time and I asked for them. My mother said there is absolutely no way she would spend that much money on a pair of shoes. You earn your money and buy them, she said. I was so hurt! (Laughs) I felt in that moment of rage that I was considerate and didnt make unnecessary demands. I said to her you wait and watch, by the time I am 18, Id be making my own money, by the time I am 19, I will be having my own car and by the time I am 20, Ill have my own house. Interestingly the chronology of events unfolded exactly like that. I was 18 when I won Miss India (Asia Pacific 2000) and I won this car. By the time I was 20, I had bought my own house where I still live, in Bombay.

I never consciously thought that I want to model and was planning to pursue a career in law. I was spotted by Roma Gill at Secunderabad Club in Hyderabad. I was reading a book and she came up to me and said they were doing a fashion show... you are a really pretty girl and would you walk for the designer? I think she said I would be paid

Rs 5,000 or 7,000 and I just sat up! (Laughs) That led to other jobs. It was extremely empowering to earn your own money at 15-and-a-half, 16....

I think the challenge really lay in the fact that I was on my own and was not being chaperoned by my parents, had to really find my own voice and rhythm and learn how to navigate egos and all kinds of people. It was terrifying also at many levels, but I did okay. I wanted so much to be independent... I really valued it when I got independent. I started filing my returns when I was 18 and set up my home when I was 18. Simple things like getting a landline connection or a gas connection, these are things that were not easy to do in a new city.

Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein...

This was actually the third film I filmed and was the first one to release. The film was a giant box-office disaster. Again a huge lesson for me. Being put up on a pedestal at such a young age and everything was going my way and things were happening the way I wanted them too. I was earning well, getting to travel and see the world, explore... and suddenly I had to face this enormous rejection... a flop. It made me lose projects overnight, changed peoples attitudes towards me. It was much later I realised that if something is meant to connect with people, it will in its own time.

A fresh lease of life...

A lot of the mainstream work happening at the time was misogynistic and patriarchal. I didnt feel respected on a film set and was determined to do substantive work that would contribute to my growth as an artist. The way I looked didnt help at all. (Laughs) The result of absolute abject frustration was me wanting to set up my own production company. If people are not going to create the opportunities I deserve, I will create them for myself. Thats when I set up Born Free Entertainment and made my first feature film at 26 as a producer (with Love Breakups Zindagi). I really enjoyed the process.

Kaafir (Zee5s web series) came to me at a wonderful time because I think I was so ready to understand the politics of the story, the social and the psychological distress of the character.... It was a life-altering experience for me as an artist. It was deeply gratifying given the substance, the depth, the length and the gravitas of the part. It is a noble story. It gave me a fresh lease of life.

Dia, the advocate...

There is no separating the two (the actress and the advocate). The kind of parts I am choosing now stands for something, share about something, speak of something that is important to me. The work I do outside of cinema has in so many ways contributed to defining my purpose and helping me understand what it is that I possibly want to do and giving me unadulterated joy. A lot of this work is deeply personal and painful and I cant tell you the levels of anxiety we feel because of the magnitude of the issues we are dealing with but the joy of being a part of the solution is unparalleled.

The sustainability journey...

I discovered in the early 2000s that so much of the ill health that the young children and people were suffering from was caused by environmental degradation. What I realised early was that scientists, environmentalists and those who work with wildlife and natural habitat protection werent getting an opportunity to reach mainstream society. I realised that I needed to act on it. What if I could become between a bridge between these incredible people who had the knowledge and science and take that to mainstream society by using my platform and voice.

While doing this work, there were so many big shifts that I had to create in my own life. I am learning to be a better citizen of the planet than ever before. Our choices and actions have an impact on the planet and on all other lives and living beings. We have the power of personal choice and we can make better choices and have the power to compel governments, industries and civil society to do better.

I think something you and I can easily do is to switch to a mostly plant-based diet, refuse all single-use plastics, compost and segregate waste at home and just reduce your levels of consumption and waste. I made a switch from regular cleaners to completely natural cleaners and my personal hygiene items have been completely replaced with totally sustainable and natural products... from regular sanitary napkins to biodegradable sanitary napkins because I didnt know for the entire duration of my life that the sanitary napkins were mostly made of plastic. It is so ironical that something that is supposed to empower women and take care of their health and hygiene is actually causing cervical cancer... and polluting the soil, air and water.

We also need to choose forever fashion (over fast fashion). I look for the story behind the garment and choose textiles and garments that uplift lives, (are) sustainable, natural and have a long, durable lifespan.

Her sustainable wedding...

I think the most sustainable thing about the wedding was the fact there were very few people who travelled. It was a very intimate wedding and 99 per cent of our guests were local and the decor was completely natural with locally-sourced flowers. We did it in our garden at the back of the building where I spend every morning listening to bird songs. Every other element of the decor was reusable and recyclable. The food was also catered with specific instructions. We knew exactly who ate what and the kind of quantities, so we had no waste. We ensured that there is absolutely no plastic at the wedding. You cannot achieve any kind of sustainability without gender equality. Sheila Atta, our priestess, was absolutely divine.

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Dia Mirza on her sustainable way of life and more... - Telegraph India

Margy Vogt| Special to The Independent

TheMassillonMuseumsWomen of Resilienceexhibition curated by Priscilla Roggenkamp, Judith Sterling, and Patricia ONeill Sacha can be viewed in MassMus Aultman Health Foundation Gallery through May 23.Theexhibition complementsthethemes of this years NEA Big Read book selection,Circeby Madeline Miller.

Exhibiting artists include ClareMurray Adams, Ruthie Akuchie, Kathleen Browne, Heather Bullach, Sarah Curry, Annette Yoho Feltes, J. Leigh Garcia, Laura Kolinski-Schultz, Charmaine Lurch, Sarah McMahon, ErinMulligan, MichelleMulligan, Patricia ONeill Sacha, Mary Kaye ONeill, Cynthia Petry, Priscilla Roggenkamp, Judith Sterling, Sylvia Treisel, Gail Trunick, Michele Waalkes, Gwen Waight, Jo Westfall, Gail Wetherell-Sack, Laurel WintersandKiana Ziegler.

Artists were tasked with creating art representing positiveattributes ofthewomens movement and female superheroes.Their artwork is an array of styles and materials painting, clay, jewelry, fabric, and mixed media. Fifty works of art are included.

TheWomen of Resilienceexhibition is part of local and national celebrations ofthecentennial of womens suffrage, Roggenkamp said. Twenty-five artists have explored a variety of topics in traditional and non-traditional media … personal empowerment, overcoming barriers,thecapacity to recover, acts of strength and resistance, and healingtheworld and ourselves.Twenty-three oftheartists are from Ohio.

Visitors totheWomen of Resilienceexhibition can also seeAndrea Palagiano: Self-Conscious(through April 25) in Studio M;Massillons Pro and Semi-Pro Teams, 18901926andMassillon Womens Tiger Teams from Gym Class to Title IXinthePaul BrownMuseum;theImmel Circus; and exhibits intheMassillon History Gallery,theAlbert E. Hise Fine and Decorative Arts Gallery,thePhotography Gallery, andtheFlex Gallery.Free copies ofCirceremain availableattheMuseum.

DETAILS

WhatWomen of ResilienceExhibition

WhenThrough May 23. Hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. TuesdaysSaturdays; and 2 to 5 p.m. Sundays.

WhereMassillonMuseum, 121 Lincoln Way East, Massillon.

Moremassillonmuseum.org, or 330-833-4061.

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New at the Mu: Women of Resilience Exhibition - Massillon Independent

The new application helps first-time homebuyers and low- to moderate-income consumers prepare to buy and own a home, according to its creators.

St. Louis, Missouri-based FinLocker, a leader of next-generation, digital, consumer-permissioned personal financial assistance tools, has partnered with Equity Prime Mortgage (EPM), an independently owned national mortgage lender based in Atlanta, Georgia, to provide the FinLocker app to its first-time homebuyers, low-to-moderate income consumers in underserved communities, especially the Hispanic community, and their existing borrowers across 49 states.

EPM has white-labeled its FinLocker application "Empower," reflecting the company's mission of providing their customers and partners "Freedom Through Empowerment."

This partnership aims to empower consumers with the financial tools and educational resources to improve consumers' financial literacy and financially prepare them to qualify for a mortgage.

Additional tools will sustain the new homeowners' financial health, enable them to monitor their home's value and equity, and achieve their next financial goals.

"As a national mortgage lender, EPM is committed to expanding the opportunities to lend in the communities we serve," said Eddy Perez, CMB, EPM's Founder and CEO, who also serves as the Chairman of the Corporate Board of Governors for The National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals. "As a first-generation Cuban American who has found my piece of the American dream, I want to provide the same opportunity to more consumers in underserved communities. EPM will be making the Empower app available free of charge to our borrowers, so they have the opportunity to achieve their American dream and start to build their personal wealth through homeownership."

Consumers will use the EPM Empower personal financial well-being app to build credit, manage their finances, reduce debt, create budgets and goals to save for their down payment and closing costs. After closing on their home, the new homeowners will continue to use their Empower app powered by FinLocker to maintain their credit and positive financial habits so that they can become successful homeowners.

"The primary reason for mortgage denial among first-time homebuyers, particularly in underserved communities, is credit history and a low credit score, two barriers to homeownership that FinLocker can help aspiring homeowners overcome," said Brian Vieaux, President, FinLocker.

"The growth of Hispanic households is on a sustainable upward trajectory, and young Hispanics have a strong aspiration for homeownership. We are committed to serving all consumers, so some of the homebuying educational resources are available in Spanish, too, to give more of EPM's consumers an equal opportunity to improve their finances and prepare them for the financial responsibilities of homeownership."

More about EPM

EPM was founded at the height of the mortgage crisis in 2008 and has grown to become one of the leading mortgage lenders in the U.S., operating 18 office locations across the nation. EPM strives to offer top financial service, communication, and assistance to the communities we serve.

... and FinLockerFinLocker provides a comprehensive personal financial well-being app that financial institutions, mortgage originators, and credit counselors can white-label, and provide to their customers to create goals, save, budget, monitor credit, manage debts, and receive net worth and cash flow analysis, to achieve their financial goals. Within the FinLocker app, users can take a readiness assessment before applying for a mortgage, begin their property search, and securely store personal and financial documents, which can be transferred to a lender directly from the app to start their loan application. Financial service providers utilize FinLocker to generate and convert leads, gain market share, cross-sell value-added products, reduce loan processing costs, decrease risk, and create customers for life.

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FinLocker Partners with EPM on Financial Wellbeing App - DSNews.com

Vancouver Island Universityssuluqwa Community Cousins Aboriginal student mentorship programis celebrating its 10thanniversary in September 2021. In honour of this important milestone, we are sharing stories of people closely connected with the program every month leading up to the anniversary. Stay tuned for a celebration of this important milestone in February 2022 when we hope to be able to gather in-person.

The suluqwa Community Cousins program builds capacity for mentors to gain leadership and employability skills through outreach and mentoring activities. Students hone skills in self-awareness, communication, leadership, self-care and an exploration of personal values, with an emphasis on telling ones story as a path to self-empowerment through outreach to others.

In the final year of her Bachelor of Education Post-Baccalaureate degree, Falon Crosby is gearing up for a career as an elementary school teacher. She intends to bring Indigenous perspectives into the classroom, sharing what she has learned through her program and through the Community Cousins to make a positive impact on students as they navigate colonial systems.

I wanted to connect with community, culture and learn more about who I am and my ancestral ties. I am proudly a woman of blended ancestral origin: Shshlh, Quwutsun, Tsimshian (Kitselas: Laxgibuu), English, Welsh, Norwegian, Irish, Swedish, French, Scottish, Hawaiian, Japanese and Central and South American.

I received my certificate of recognition for the suluqwa Community Cousins Aboriginal Mentorship Program in December 2015. I have been involved with the Cousins while completing various degrees over the years. However, the past two years have brought particular depth and meaning. There have been so many invaluable teachings. The skills that I have gained through the program include but are not limited to:

Additionally, I have learned through the Elders teachings and from my peers about how to navigate colonial systems in a good way. I tend to take myself far too seriously and it has been such a joy connecting with the Cousins and the Elders. One key takeaway is the incredible gift of connecting with other Indigenous scholars on their journeys.

Colonization left my path fraught with many misconceptions about different Nations and my own lineage. My journey with the Cousins has been one of truth-telling and honouring each others stories. The program has played a strong role in helping me to shed the fear and shame of honouring my Indigeneity, as well as learning to stand strong as an Indigenous woman. Its more than just a mentorship program; its a family. The bonds made are truly from the heart; the program infuses love into academia.

I am passionate about helping others overcome personal and systemic obstacles. I would like to bring cultural perspectives into school systems, which have historically been unsafe spaces for Indigenous peoples. My academic achievements, as well as personal and professional development, will enable me to make a positive impact within systemic structures. I have spent considerable time reclaiming my ancestral lineage and actively decolonizing my mindset. Diverse representation in academic settings helps ensure equitable treatment of Indigenous peoples within colonial structures.

Excerpt from:

Infusing love into academia: Falon Crosby - Vancouver Island University News

School of Rock. Photo: Andrew Schwartz/Paramount/Scott Rudin Prods/Mfp/New Century/Sor Prods/Kobal/Shutterstock

This article is updated frequently as titles leave and enter HBO and HBO Max. *New additions are indicated with an asterisk. Dont have HBO Max yet?You can sign up here.

HBO Max has one of the deepest and most impressive catalogs of any streaming service in the world, and their selection of comedies reflects the dense quality of their catalog overall. Theres a little bit of something for anyone looking for something to make them laugh, from silent classics to recent hits. Pick your favorites, and then come back here for more.

In the subgenre of body-swap comedies, this is one of the sweeter entries, a nice showcase for Jennifer Garner and one of the lighter pieces of escapism you can find on HBO Max. Garner plays a 13-year-old girl who wishes she could be popular and wakes up to find out that shes now 30. Just enough nostalgia and self-empowerment mix in this sweet fable that co-stars Mark Ruffalo, Judy Greer, and Andy Serkis.

Long before he tackled Harry Potter, Chris Columbus made his directorial debut with this 1987 comedy about a long night for a Chicago babysitter. Elisabeth Shue plays Chris Parker, a 17-year-old who gets stuck babysitting an eight-year-old girl and eventually her 15-year-old brother. She ends up taking them downtown to save a friend and, well, things dont go well.

Martin Scorsese directed this fantastic comedy about an ordinary guy who has the longest night of his life. Released in 1985, After Hours stars Griffin Dunne as a guy just trying to get home from Soho on one crazy night. Scorsese won Best Director at Cannes for this great comedy.

Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini wrote and directed the 2003 biopic thats as strange as its subject: the one and only Harvey Pekar. The film features fantastic work from Paul Giamatti, Hope Davis, Judah Friedlander, and James Urbaniak, who plays the inimitable Robert Crumb.

Mike Myers never could have imagined that his goofy superspy parody would launch a franchise, but all three films about Austin Powers are on HBO Max, just waiting for a rainy-day marathon. The reason these movies work is Myerss complete fearlessness hell do anything to make you laugh.

Hal Ashby (Harold & Maude) directed an adaptation of Jerzy Kozinskis satirical novel of the same name, and the result is one of the best comedies of its era. Its also one of Peter Sellerss most unforgettable performances. The man who played Inspector Clouseau stars here as Chance the gardener, a man who sort of wanders aimlessly into the sphere of the President of the United States, played by Jack Warden. Melvyn Douglas won an Oscar for his supporting work here.

Movies dont get funnier than Christopher Guests brilliant mockumentary about people obsessed with their canine counterparts. Reuniting with most of his favorite colleagues and friends after the success of Waiting for Guffman, which is also on HBO Max, Guest and his ensemble dropped what is quite simply one of the best comedies ever made.

The 1989 flick stars Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves as the title characters, a pair of average California teens who go back in time to complete their high school history class presentation. Hysterical and influential, Excellent Adventure has held up beautifully, and so has its sequel, Bill & Teds Bogus Journey, also on HBO Max.

Adam Sandlers feature comedy debut is over a quarter-century old. Now that everyone feels ancient, take the nostalgic pick-me-up and watch this goofy comedy that announced the SNL star as a major movie talent. It really defined his man-child persona, one that hes still working to this day.

One of Eddie Murphys top performances is in this 1999 satire from the great Frank Oz. Steve Martin stars as a filmmaker who is trying to make a film so low-budget that his star doesnt even know hes in the movie. Martin also wrote the script, which is razor sharp and consistently hysterical.

Kevin Smiths best film is also one of his most personal, the story of a man who falls in love with a lesbian and destroys his friendship in the process. Smith has never been better than he is here at capturing believable, funny human relationships, and he gets his best acting work of his career as well from Ben Affleck, Joey Lauren Adams, and Jason Lee.

Charlie Chaplin helped define comedy in his string of major motion pictures, and City Lights is one of his most beloved works, a romantic comedy that centers Chaplins Tramp character in a love story with a blind girl and a friendship with an alcoholic millionaire. There are several Chaplin classics on HBO Max. Consider this an entry that recommends watching all of them.

Billy Crystal was at the peak of his fame here. The 1991 blockbuster comedy that was so popular that it won co-star Jack Palance an Oscar. Crystal stars as an average guy who channels his mid-life crisis into a week on a cattle drive with two of his best buddies, played by Daniel Stern and Bruno Kirby.

Kevin Smith rocked the indie-filmmaking world with a comedy that was shot for almost nothing and became a worldwide hit. No one could have expected that Clerks, filmed at the convenience and video stores at which Smith worked in real life, would still be influencing writers a quarter-century later.

Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future) directed this twisted horror comedy way back in 1992 and its themes of superficiality and wealth have kept it current, along with fearless performances from Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn, and Bruce Willis. The two actresses play rivals who drink a potion that promises eternal youth, and things get zanier from there.

One of Albert Brookss best films, this 1991 comedy is about a man (played by the writer-director) who dies and discovers that the afterlife includes a trial where one must answer for their life decisions before moving on to the next plane of existence. Brooks is charming, as is the wonderful Meryl Streep.

Richard Dreyfuss and Bette Midler are perfect in this 80s classic as a pair of rich socialites whose life is turned upside down when they save the life of a suicidal homeless man, played by a perfectly cast Nick Nolte. Some of it is a bit dated now when it comes to social and class issues, but the cast and sharp writing for its era make it work.

Long before he was an Oscar darling, David O. Russell wrote and directed this indie comedy starring Ben Stiller, Patricia Arquette, Tea Leoni, Mary Tyler Moore, George Segal, Richard Jenkins, Josh Brolin, Alan Alda, and Lily Tomlin. What a cast, right? Stiller plays a guy trying to find his biological parents, with hysterical results.

Barry Sonnenfeld directed one of the better adaptations of an Elmore Leonard novel and anchored it with one of John Travoltas most memorable performances. Its a perfectly calibrated comedy with phenomenal performances all around, including Rene Russo, Danny DeVito, Delroy Lindo, and Gene Hackman. (The sequel, Be Cool, is also on HBO Max.)

Sometimes a comedy needs great writing. Sometimes a comedy just needs to cast two legends and point a camera at them. Such is the case with 1993s Grumpy Old Men, which reunited Odd Couple stars Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon and just let them do what theyre best at.

Netflix may have all those new Adam Sandler comedies, but HBO Max has the classics. Just ignore (most of) the recent stuff and go back to the beginning with Happy Gilmore, which for my money is still Sandlers funniest movie overall.

Stephen Frears directed an adaptation of the beloved 1995 Nick Hornby novel, and the result is one of the best films of John Cusacks career. The actor plays Rob Gordon, a Chicago music store owner who struggles with relationships and responsibility. Its a smart, funny movie with a fan base that has only grown in the two decades since its release.

Only two-thirds of what is referred to as Edgar Wrights Cornetto Trilogy is on HBO Max (The Worlds End is missing), but Hot Fuzz is probably the best of the bunch anyway, so its okay. The movie is not just a parody of dumb action movies but a love letter to flicks like Point Break and Bad Boys too. The best parodies come from fandom, and this is definitely one of the best.

Nicole Holofcener wrote and directed a great character study starring Catherine Keener, Brenda Blethyn, Emily Mortimer, and a young Jake Gyllenhaal. Its really just a film about a believable woman and her daughters, but Holofcener and her cast find so much truth in the comedy to make these people feel real.

Whit Stillman made his directorial and screenwriting debut with this clever 1990 film about a group of rich kids in Manhattan. Its a simple movie thats more reliant on witty dialogue and the texture of its setting than narrative, but its an incredibly smart, too, and earned Stillman an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay.

Martin Brest directed one of the best 80s buddy comedies in a charming gem that paired Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin. The Oscar winner plays a bounty hunter assigned to bring back Grodins embezzling accountant, who stole money from the Chicago mob. Grodin and De Niro have perfect comic chemistry.

Compare and contrast the Chevy Chase comedy classic with the remake starring Ed Helms, as both are now on HBO Max (along with European Vacation). Youll find that the original is clearly better, a wonderfully constructed piece of 80s comedy that features Chevy Chases best onscreen performance.

The 1940 George Cukor classic revitalized Katharine Hepburns career, but it also features incredibly charismatic performances from Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart opposite her. Hepburn plays a divorced woman who is about to marry again when her ex-husband (Grant) and a reporter (Stewart) complicate things. Its clever in ways that would redefine comedy, and its still influencing the genre.

Shockingly, Mel Brookss directorial debut wasnt that well received when it was released, but the film went on to develop a very loyal following over the years, leading to a Broadway musical version and even a remake. HBO Max has the classic original, the one that stars Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder as a pair of producers who try to make the biggest flop they can and fail.

Richard Linklater directed Jack Black at the height of his career in this 2003 movie about a guitarist who becomes a substitute teacher at a prep school and, yes, teaches the stuck-up kids there how to rock. Its got a huge heart and one of Blacks most lovable performances.

The true genius of Edgar Wrights 2004 horror-comedy is that it takes both sides of its clever genre coin completely seriously. Yes, the story of a zombie attack on a small British town is laugh-out-loud hysterical, but this is also a legitimately great horror movie at the same time. It kicked off Wrights Cornetto Trilogy, followed by the also-fantastic Hot Fuzz (also on HBO Max) and The Worlds End.

Movies dont get more delightful than this beloved classic about backstage drama on the advent of the talkie. Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, and Donald OConnor are as charming as charming can be, and the movie contains some of the best choreography of its era, and not just in the titular number. Its joyous from front to back.

Every few years, a comedy comes completely out of nowhere and taps something in the zeitgeist that makes everyone involved a star. No one knew who Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn were the day before Swingers came out, but it launched them into the celebrity sphere, where they still reside. This movie is still money, baby, as it captures the posturing of young men trying to get work and get laid in Hollywood in the mid-90s.

All mockumentaries owe a massive debt to Rob Reiners 1984 directorial debut. Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer made musical and comedy history when they stepped into the leather boots of Spinal Tap, one of Englands loudest bands. While a lot of comedies from the 80s are dated, this one still lands every single joke.

Arguably the best of the Christopher Guest ensemble improvised comedies. The brilliant 1996 mockumentary about a community theater group led by the unforgettable Corky St. Clair (Guest himself) allows so many brilliant comedic talents a chance to shine, including Eugene Levy, Catherine OHara, Fred Willard, and Parker Posey.

Bruce Robinson wrote and directed this 1987 black comedy, which became a massive cult hit in the era of VHS. The wonderful Richard E. Grant plays one of two unemployed actors who share a flat in Camden in 1969 and head off on a weekend holiday. They drink a lot and generally hate the world. Everyone could see a little of these two nihilists in themselves.

All recommendations are made independently by our editors. Services you subscribe to through our links may earn us a commission.

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The 40 Best Comedies on HBO Max - Vulture

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CHICAGO, April 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In times of crisis, repayment prioritization of credit products often provides a clearer view of how consumers are meeting the financial burdens they face. A new TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) Global Payment Hierarchy study found that the COVID-19 pandemic had a pronounced effect in a short period of time on how people paid their debts, particularly when faced with financial stress. In the United States, the changes were prominent across multiple credit products, with consumers clearly prioritizing their mortgage loan payments over auto loans and credit cards.

TransUnion has tracked payment hierarchy dynamics for more than a decade, including how these patterns changed in the U.S. following the Great Recession and in many other countries when they have encountered localized financial challenges, said Charlie Wise, head of global research and consulting at TransUnion. This study is unique in that it highlights how and why payment dynamics changed in different countries as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic a global crisis that has impacted consumers worldwide. These insights will better equip both financial institutions and consumers, fostering more trustworthy interactions between them as the world begins to normalize and recover from the pandemic.

Credit Cards v. Personal Loans What is the World Prioritizing?

TransUnion analyzed and compared trends for wallet profiles that are popular across the countries studied, including the United States, Canada, Colombia, India and South Africa. The study observed within each country those consumers with one or more credit cards and at least one personal loan, to identify if any changes took place in the payment hierarchy. To determine which credit product was prioritized over the other, TransUnion observed payment performance of the credit products over a 12-month time period, including whether or not one of the credit cards or personal loans went at least 30 days delinquent.

In the U.S., the study observed that personal loans were prioritized when consumers possessed multiple credit cards, though the gap between delinquency ratesindicating the degree of preferencenarrowed during the pandemic. Similar trends were seen in Canada and India, which suggests that credit cards took on increased importance during the pandemic and that consumers were more focused on keeping their cards in good standing by making timely payments.

A flip in the payment hierarchy happened during the pandemic in South Africa as credit cards were prioritized over personal loans, reversing the pre-pandemic hierarchy in favor of personal loans. Colombian credit usage showed no clear prioritization of either product until March 2020, when more value was placed on personal loans.

An interesting dynamic occurred in the U.S. and other countries wherein the payment hierarchy flipped for those consumers possessing only one credit card and at least one personal loan. In those cases, credit cards were prioritized during the pandemic, in contrast to the pre-pandemic preference for personal loans. In the U.S., this particular group comprised approximately 20% of the overall study population. This shift further demonstrates the increased importance of credit cards for consumers during the pandemic and the need to maintain access to this valuable source of credit. For those consumers with at least one credit card and at least one personal loan, on average, U.S. consumers possess three credit cards and one personal loan.

Personal Loans Mostly Prioritized Over Credit Cards

*30 or more day delinquency rate at 12 months for consumers who possess at least one credit card and personal loan.

But Dynamic Shifts if Consumers Only Possess One Credit Card

**30 or more day delinquency rate at 12 months for consumers who possess one credit card and personal loan.

Cash was clearly not king during the early parts of the pandemic. Millions of people opted to use their credit cards to make digital transactions from the safety of their home for groceries, clothes or other everyday items, said Matt Komos, TransUnions head of research and consulting in the U.S. If you only have one credit card and you were worried about visiting stores at the height of the pandemic, theres a strong likelihood you will preserve that card to continue spending and making digital transactions. If you possess three cards, though, its far more likely that you will go delinquent on one of them before you do so with a personal loan if you are facing financial hardship, as many consumers can continue to get by as long as they have access to at least one card.

These findings were corroborated by a global survey of 2,667 consumers who possessed credit products in Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Hong Kong, India, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. Consumers across the globe recognized that there will be consequences if they miss at least one payment of any of their credit products. For instance, more than half (53%) of global respondents with a credit card said they expected to receive a call from their lender if they missed one payment.

The negative implication of a missed payment to a credit score was understood most by credit card and personal loan holders. Approximately 68% of credit card holders and 65% of consumers with personal loans said a consequence of a missed payment would result in a lower credit score. Comparatively, consumers with auto loans (55%) and mortgages (57%) were not as aware of this consequence.

Deeper Dive Into U.S. Payment Hierarchy Dynamics Shows Mortgage is Priority #1

In the U.S., TransUnion also conducted a payment hierarchy study focusing on the three most popular credit products in the country auto loans, credit cards and mortgages. Approximately 27.8 million consumers held all three loans as of Q3 2020, and mortgages were clearly prioritized over the other credit products. This dynamic has held true since Q4 2017.

The pandemic, though, has caused even greater prioritization of mortgages over the other credit products. For those consumers possessing auto loans, credit cards, and mortgages, the 30+ days past due delinquency rate at 12 months following observation was lowest for mortgages, at 0.75%, as of Q3 2020. Auto loans had the second lowest delinquency rate at 1.13%, followed by credit cards at 1.95%. This is very likely connected to the growth in home prices over the last several years as housing markets across the country have remained strong, and consumers desire to protect the equity in their homes. As well, as lockdowns and the shift to work/school from home permeated during the pandemic, keeping current on home loan payments took on increased importance in 2020.

Consumers Prioritizing Mortgages Above All Other Major Credit Products

**30+ days past due rate at 12 months for those borrowers possessing all three credit products.

Mortgage is once again the clear priority for U.S. borrowers, said Komos. The mantra, you cant drive your home to work doesnt have the same effect when millions of Americans are waking up, showering, eating breakfast and taking only a few steps to their home office.

In addition to more people working from home and rising home values, mortgage loan performance is likely benefitting from thousands of mortgage borrowers entering accommodation programs soon after the onset of the pandemic. The study points to both subprime and near prime credit risk mortgage borrowers benefitting the most from these programs as they were able to delay payments and maintain their accounts.

Similar to the global study comparing credit card and personal loan performance, prioritization of payments shifted if a consumer possessed only one card. Of the 27.8 million U.S. consumers in the study possessing an auto loan, credit card and mortgage, only 5.3 million people had one credit card in their wallet. For this subset of the population, mortgage remains the clear priority, but consumers with only one credit card valued it more than their auto loan beginning in Q2 2020. This shift suggests the heightened importance of maintaining access to at least one credit card as online commerce and digital transactions have become a daily necessity for many U.S. households.

Survey data highlight that U.S. consumers valued their mortgages over other loans because the credit product has the highest perceived value of all expenses. Furthermore, six in 10 U.S. consumers expected to receive a call from their lender if they missed one mortgage payment and more than half (52%) said their missed payment would have a negative impact to their credit score. Nearly one in five consumers (17%) said they would experience foreclosure or their home would be repossessed if they miss a mortgage payment.

The pandemic has changed so much in the world, but understanding why consumers are making important credit decisions only serves to better help the lending ecosystem in the future, concluded Komos.

To learn more about consumer payment prioritization shifts during the pandemic, register for TransUnions April 22 webinar here. For more information about TransUnions Global Payment Hierarchy Report, please click here.

About TransUnion (NYSE: TRU)TransUnion is a global information and insights company that makes trust possible in the modern economy. We do this by providing a comprehensive picture of each person so they can be reliably and safely represented in the marketplace. As a result, businesses and consumers can transact with confidence and achieve great things. We call this Information for Good.

A leading presence in more than 30 countries across five continents, TransUnion provides solutions that help create economic opportunity, great experiences and personal empowerment for hundreds of millions of people.

http://www.transunion.com/business

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Consumers Shifted Credit Payment Behaviors in the US and Other Global Markets as a Result of COVID-19 - StreetInsider.com

According to Inc, over the past two decades, the number of female entrepreneurs has increased by 114%. Women in business is the latest trend as more and more small businesses are being opened by female entrepreneurs. The popular business and entrepreneurial media conglomerate, Business Blurb has set out to emphasize that entrepreneurship is thriving amongst females.

Bethany Simpson has teamed up with Business Blurb to help highlight female-run businesses amongst their hundreds of thousands of followers.

Bethany Simpson, better known as Beth Simps is a rising social media star, with over 600,000 Tik Tok followers on her personal account. Simpson creates acting POVs and videos about what its like to attend a performing arts school. She is currently in her final semester at Columbia College in Chicago, with big plans to move to Los Angeles post-grad.

The media company also recently launched a new podcast called Women Running Businesses which is available on YouTube, Spotify, and most major streaming platforms. Francisca Li, a Honors Information Technology and Systems & Finance student at The University of Texas at Dallas is kicking off Season I as the host. The podcast is described as a weekly podcast that dives deeper into the minds of successful female entrepreneurs.

Business Blurb Women is a new initiative designed to highlight, inspire and empower female entrepreneurs worldwide. Brendan Cox, founder of Business Blurb, recently told Disrupt Magazine that Entrepreneurship is becoming more and more prominent amongst women around the world and we wanted to create a special platform to highlight female visionaries in the business space.

Along with running her personal Tiktok account, Bethany also creates content for Business Blurb Women. This page centers around videos of motivational speakers, womens empowerment, and unique examples of female entrepreneurs in the business industry. She uses her already-established personal platform to do so, by encouraging her audience (which is made up of of mostly young girls) to follow Business Blurb Women.

When I asked Simpson why she decided to team up with Business Blurb Women, she emphasized that I aim to be a positive light for the young girls who watch me. I aim to inspire them to be the best versions of themselves, and Business Blurb Women was the perfect opportunity to do just that.

Published April 17th, 2021

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Beth Simps is Empowering Women on Tik Tok with Business Blurb's New Initiative - Influencive

The play will premiere via livestream at the Knutson Theatre April 22-25. Submitted | The Volante

The upcoming USD production of She Kills Monsters empowers women through adventure and growth. Premiering via livestream at the Knutson Theatre April 22-25, She Kills Monsters brings strong, complex LGBTQ+ characters to the stage.

Senior theatre studies major and acting, stage management and technical directing emphasis, LD Dowell plays Tilly in She Kills Monsters.

Dowell said her character builds strong relationships between the other characters in the play and builds a community on stage.

Director Ann-Houston Campbell uses different techniques to add depth the characters, Dowell said.

We have done a lot of journaling work and (Campbell) has encouraged us to think about a lot of different aspects of the show and our characters and this has helped us to develop unique relationships with each other that are true to the story, Dowell said.

She Kills Monsters was written by Qui Nguyen and centers around Agnes who has lost her family in a car accident. The plays combines reality and fantasy to empower the female and LGBTQ+ characters.

Freshman musical theatre major Skyla Sanders plays Kaliope/Kelly in the production.

Sanders said her character brought new challenges to the role.

One challenge that Ive faced in my role is portraying a character who isnt an everyday human being, but instead, a creature who exists because of a game, Sanders said, Its forced me to find a new approach to knowing my motives for the choices I make and the things I say.

Since the production faces heavy topics such as sexuality, Dowell said Campbells directing has helped her to separate herself from her character.

One thing (Campbell) has done that has helped us is the putting on of our characters at the beginning of rehearsal and the taking off of our charactersat the end of rehearsal, Dowell said, The exercise can help the actor differentiate the characters heavy topics versus the actors personal topics and emotions.

Sanders said she enjoys being part of She Kills Monsters because it is a new type of play at USD.

This is definitely a stand-out production at USD because it includes themes of female empowerment, mourning, and the LGBTQ+ community, Sanders said.

Sanders also said the play has been a learning experience about energy and performing as an actor .

Ive learned that theatre is really built on energy; the energy of one person can affect everyone around them and can affect the quality of the performance and the energy of an audience can have a tremendous amount of impact, Sanders said.

To learn more about the production or to attend the livestream performances, visit usd.edu/theatre.

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She Kills Monsters brings empowerment and fantasy to the stage - The Volante

Cudi and I have history that goes back 10 years. He was on the set of a film shooting on an odd time zone and goes, I need a dress for SNL. I said, Say no more. Im on it.

The silhouette differs from Kurts dress, which is more grunge girlborrowed from Courtney (or one of her acolytes). This ones more borrowed from a hot woman at brunch, or the bridesmaid stealing the show at her best friends wedding. Can you say more about the silhouette?

100%, youre catching the nuance. For me, this moment exemplifies the power garments possess to tell a story. Thats the essence of Off-White since its inception. Derail the notion that fashion only tells stories that my culture consumes, but harness the potential and tell our own stories.

Garments travel. That dress and all Cudis looks have an homage to Kurt Cobain and Chris Farley. The heritage of the setting was important from the beginning. The dress fits the way it does precisely on purpose. It doesnt cop out at the very end and get loose at the top so it looks more safe. No, its a dress from a loved ones closet. Cudi and I are faux against the grain for fun, we really are independent thinkers.

For me, it represents personal empowerment despite any social norm. It vehemently represents confidence. Its Cudi knocking on your television screen saying, Hey! Be yourself. Day one fans of Cudi know that he isnt the norm. He has only ever been himself.

Tell me about the word PATTERN across the bodice of the dress? Pattern like a cut and sew dress? Pattern like Kurt wrote the rule book?

Off-White has a history with the word Pattern on all over prints. Its an entendre to mean all things. In my mind, thats how garments leap from reality to mean something more. So youre onto it all. It means it all.

The dress and the skirt seem to be taking over menswear. You had a lot of them in your LV show; weve got Harry in Chopova skirts and Gucci gowns... and the wearers always look so at ease, liberated. And of course they do: dresses are comfortable! (No wonder Greek philosophers wore them.) What Im getting at is where you think the dress fits into the landscape of menswear now? As Cudi demonstrated, it now seems less about provocation (as it did with, say, the NY Dolls, or even perhaps with Thugga) and more about comfort and freedom. But maybe you disagree! Is the dress displacing the mens suit as the norm from which other fashion deviates or derives? Or do you see it in another way?

The beauty about now, is our generation, piece by piece, can dismantle norms. 2020 was a year of reckoning about how the system in place that governs us as people is out of date. My work exists in the space of pop culture. Gender norms and racial freedoms are amongst the most important things in society that need to be updated. As a fashion designer, moments like this let me know that there is space for intellect and risk for the sake of expanding space. I could care less about the attention. I hope today theres some kid in middle America that feels empowered by what Cudi used our privilege and platform to do.

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Kid Cudi's Off-White SNL Appearance Is Another Sign That Dresses For Men Are Becoming the Norm - GQ

Steven C. Cannon

Friday Jones

Ellen Scully-Russ

Apr 15, 2021

The FHTE (From Here to Equality) Reparationist Quick Guide Response was initially established in October of 2020, as the ADOS Reparationist Quick Guide, and is designed to be a civic engagement resource for anyone. It allows supporters to take an ownership share in our online social justice advocacy. Authorship is being encouraged from every sector and community of citizens concerned with restorative justice for black AmericanDescendants of Slavery (i.e., ADOS) by the closing of the black-white racial wealth gap. The book From here to equality: Reparations for black Americans in the twentieth century (Darity & Mullen, 2020) will serve as our base source for the volumes invited authors. Each issue will contain reparations-related topics and five quick points from featured guest authors who offer their responses to commonly held questions raised and positions taken in opposition to reparations.

The multi-generational inherited disadvantages of slavery and the inability to transfer wealth to ADOS descendants have been significant contributors to the marginalized class status of this ethnic group. This series is published to encourage study and dialogue. It is an instrument for personal empowerment. The guide creates a space for the civic engagement and participation of Reparationists in national coalition-building, including petitioning for significant revision (or replacement) of the bill H.R. 40 (S.1083) currently under consideration in the U.S. Congress.

1. How did the Japanese Americans get reparations before black Americans?

Japanese Americans were successful in obtaining reparations from the United States government, in part, because their claim was specific to a defined group, and identified the particular harms committed within a date-defined time frame. Like the Japanese claim native black Americans have a date-defined time frame for our claim, 1776 to the present. Japanese Americans benefited from the presence of two elected officials in each house of Congress who were fully committed to a plan for restitution that incorporated direct payments to eligible recipients. And the primary organization that led the lobbying effort, the Japanese American Citizens League, had a similar commitmentunlike NAARC and NCOBRA who want thefunds to be funneled through a National Reparations Trust Authority.

Though certainly not an easy victory many of the victims were living when the demand and approval of U.S. reparations was granted to Japanese Americans. Nevertheless, there are other instances of reparations where the direct victims are no longer with us and their heirs and descendants have been compensated (e.g., federal government payments to the families who lost loved ones during the 9/11 attacks), including the heirs and descendants of victims of the Nazi Holocaust.

Moreover, in the context of black American descendants of US slavery, the effects of slavery carry over to the living descendants in part because no restitution was given at the end of the Civil War. But also, there are still many living victims of Jim Crow, and the case for ADOS reparations is not based on slavery alone. Chattel slavery was the initial atrocity inflicted upon black Americans; however, the injuries and demand for redress span subsequent generations.

Reflective juxtaposition to the Japanese American justice award is very much in order relative to the contemporary ADOS reparations project. The native black Americans hold a historical claim for justice outstanding for over 150 years. Groups who have identified as people of color or have voluntarily immigrated to America do not share the same specificity of grievances outlined for the formerly enslaved and their descendants. As mentioned in prior Issues 1 and 2 of the From Here to Equality Reparationist Quick Guide (FRQG), other racial or ethnic groups are within their prerogative to make a separate and distinct claim for repair from the U.S. government.

The black American claim is not a social equity project. It is a lineage-based project of equality with direct payments used to rectify the racial wealth chasm caused by the past and ongoing offenses. For example, The first indictment must be the failure to fulfill the promise of the Special field Order No. 15 grant of forty acres and a mule to families who had been enslaved. Had that promise been kept had ex-slaves been given a substantial endowment in southern real estateit is likely that there would be no need for reparations to be under consideration now. (FTHE, p. 207-208, paragraph 2).

2. What role does the U.S. Census have relative to a reparations project and national coalition-building?

The U.S. Census is a valuable tool in identifying, enumerating, and locating black American descendants of U.S. chattel slavery for whom reparations are merited. Law Professor Boris Bittker discussed a technique for estimating the reparations bill due based on black and white per capita income. However, even that metric is insufficient or appropriate as reparations should be based upon the wealth gap, not an income gap. Unfortunately, the Census does not offer wealth data for the necessary purposes of calculating the bill which is more appropriately found by extracting from the Federal Reserve Boards Survey of Consumer Finances.

A black American reparations outlay of the type proposed by Darity and Mullen (2020), would be centered on wealth disparities, not income. The U.S. Census could serve as one important instrument in the toolbox for group identification. For example, from an educational perspective, Census data can assist with targeted civic engagement messaging and strategies that can build popular support for and understanding about U.S reparations for Americans; particularly among tertiary non-white groups (i.e., POCs) where forms of bigotry and anti-blackdiscrimination toward ABAL ethnics are sometimes disregarded.

3. Why does the plan for reparation have to center black Americans when all people of color face discrimination and need repair?

Discrimination is an abhorrent human practice and must be discouraged. While some racial and ethnic groups have a shared experience of discrimination in common with black Americans, they do not share centuries of history in America that was not only baked into the Constitution of the emerging Republic but that also literally became institutionalized and perpetuated (by law and force of government) in the society. Also, no other group experienced the same processes that separated their level of wealth from white levels of wealth. The legacy of enslavement for blacks in America included a perpetual exclusion from full citizenship and civil rights.

4. How do people who are not from the Ancestral Black American Lineage (ABAL) ethnic group help them obtain reparations?

People who are not ABAL ethnics can assist the reparations movement by investing in self-education on the historic claim for reparations (e.g., reading From Here to Equality) to best understand the urgency of long-overdue restitution. Advocates (i.e., Reparationists) can incorporate support for black American reparations into their national advocacy platforms and insist candidates in pursuit of elected office have a clearly defined reparations plan consistent with those advanced by Darity and Mullen (2020). Reparationists should use their social, civic, and political organs for black American reparations political advocacy such as social media platforms and online groups. Examples of contemporary mass public advocacy movements that can serve as a guide include, Moral Mondays activism in North Carolina, the #ADOS movement, the Black Lives Matter Movement, as well as, on the opposite side of the political spectrum, the rise of the Tea Party and MAGA movements, all representing passionate citizen advocacy. Engaging young Americans to do informed social justice work can serve to energize the push for black reparations. (FTHE p. 270, paragraph 3).

5. If reparations are because of how black people suffer from racial discrimination, why would there be any resistance to include the global black family in this claim?

ABAL ethnics are United States citizens, and the demand for reparations is unique and specific to chattel slavery, and legal segregationand their ramifications are the primary causes of the demand for reparations. It is a specific lineage that is not shared by all those who may necessarily self-identify as black. The ABAL ethnic reparations project is not a restorative justice claim or movement for all people who identify as black. Its focus does not include those who may have a history of enslavement via the trans-Atlantic slave trade in other parts of the world or have been subjected to European colonization. All of those members of the African diaspora have legitimate claims for reparations, but not from the United States government. They have claims that should be directed at the countries that colonized and enslaved them.

The U.S. black American reparations movement dates to at least the 18th century, as an economic justice and repair solution for the formerly enslaved people and their descendants. For example, even Thomas Paine called for land reparations for those he hoped would be granted to the formerly enslaved. And certainly, the unfulfilled promise of 40 acres land grants predates Callie Houses efforts. Yet, Callie D. Guy House [] took up the cause of the ex-slaves after seeing a copy ofthe pamphlet Vaughans Freedmans Pension Bill: A Plea for American Freedmen, which began circulating in black communities in central Tennessee around 1890. (FTHE, p. 77, paragraph 1). House most certainly was a very important figure in the historical fight for black restitution, but the reparations project did not begin with her.

6. What is the authority and scope of State governments that would make it different fromwhat the Federal government would do about reparations?

Comparatively, the ability of the Federal Government to meet the bill of a national reparations project is a significantly larger budget than any single (or combination) of states and municipalities in America. All states and municipalities have a combined budget amounting to $3.1 trillion. Collectively, the various Federal department and bureaus, per the 2020 Congressional Budget Office data, showed a $5.8 trillion outlay. The Congressional funding response to the pandemic in the forms of the CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan demonstrate that additional large sums of monies can be mobilized rapidly without raising taxes.

This author holds that the closing of the black-white racial wealth gap must privilege direct cash payouts to eligible recipients (an estimated 40 million Americans). It is reasonable to spread the monetary outlays realized over a

designated period; for example, ten years to mitigate the inflation risk. Or perhaps, proposed restitution plans should mirror the close to 250 years of bondage and atrocities suffered by slaves and their descendants. Nevertheless, it is time to reframe the pure reparations conversation from a position of both knowledge and power. If France, for over 187 years, as an enslaver country can exact, ironically and unjustly, a reparations debt from the people of Haiti who they held in bondage, it seems only fitting that the United States be a model for justice by paying reparations to the enslaved people group and their descendants who it harmed and disenfranchised.

7. Under what circumstance could a State reparations plan override a Federaldirective?

Absent a federal reparations legislation and policy, state governments have free reign to undercut the need for a national program. Article VI, paragraph 2, of theU.S. Constitution, establishes that Federal law generally takes precedence over state law (i.e., preemption) and that includes a States Constitution. This was also deemed the case following the outcome of the Civil War. Since there is no current federal reparations policy in place on behalf of ABAL ethnics, it leaves the descendants of U.S. chattel slavery (i.e., ADOS) highly vulnerable.

In fact, in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War, the anti-Freedmen laws that were adopted were known as the Black Codes. Although the minstrel character JimCrow was introduced as early as the 1830s, his representation came to serve as acultural meme to represent anti-black laws in the post-Civil War period. National neglect of jurisprudential protections exposed the Freedmen to harsh laws established at the discretion of the states.

Hence, it is important to remind readers that the self-advocacy and civic participation of citizens in their respective locales is crucial toward directing national or local reparations efforts. Darity and Mullen (2020) insist that Instead of seeking piecemeal reparations on a one-by-one basis, activists should push these institutions to join the lobbying effort for congressional approval of black Reparations. (FHTE, p. 269, paragraph 5).

8. How might state reparations inhibit a federal reparations project or a grassroots advocacy effort?

The Evanston Illinois local reparations effort is instructive in this regard. It has been presented by some in the media as a national model for black American reparations. However, Evanston is a municipal government, neither a state nor a federal government. Its housing voucher program is not an effective prelude to true reparations at the national level; in fact, it may function as a diversion.

For example, basic parameters Ancestor/Direct Descendant of Evanston that experienced housing discrimination between 1919 and 1969 can apply for a benefit up to $25,000 for a home down payment assistance and/or home improvements, for a property in Evanston. An applicant may also claim either Black or African American ancestry and show that they had experienced housing discrimination due to City ordinance, policy, or practice after 1969. Applicants must use an FDIC-insured institution for the mortgage. Currently, the fund comes from private sources and a three-percent Municipal Cannabis tax. The projected funding from a cannabis excise tax totals $10 million, but as of April 2021, only $400,000 is available to meet 16 claims.

In summary, despite whatever efforts local, municipal, or state actors may take to repair acts of discrimination endured by its citizens, they will not substitute (nor satisfy the bill) for the massive debt owed by the United States Government to black Americans who are the descendants of slaves.

9. How do prior Civil Rights legislation and successful lawsuits serve as a guide for a reparations project?

Legal segregation (i.e., legal apartheid) and Jim Crow laws in the United States were set to end fifty years ago via the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1965. The big problem is that the courts are not a mechanism for producing a comprehensive,national program for reparations (FHTE, pp. 24, paragraph6). Federal affirmative action (AA) policy has been used to desegregate elites, chiefly in employment, university admissions and government procurement. (FHTE, p. 248, paragraph 4), yet it has been white women who have been its largest beneficiaries.

Affirmative action in terms of policy has not been a guarantee or protection from anti-black racism, nor did it ever provide restitution for past harm. Many today lament the fact that Civil Rights providing racial preferences for black Americans have been eroded. However, affirmative action focuses largely on employment and access to universities, so it does not have a direct impact on wealthand the expected indirect effect may be weaker than some economists believe.

In 1997, the class action suit of Pigford vs Glickman served as a landmark discrimination case which asserted that the USDA officials in counties across the country violated the Equal Opportunity Credit Act. The case was successfully argued by Alexander J. Pires Jr., and in 1999 a $1.25 billion settlement was reached. The Washington Post writes that the suits settlement was designed to erase the farmers debts to government creditors, put $50,000 in each of their pockets, and give black applicants priority for new loans. However, this was not a model for national black American reparations. We now know this settlement has not resulted in wide benefits for the black farmers harmed.

The recent American Rescue Plan sets aside $5 billion for farmers who have experienced distress (not necessarily all of whom are black). Darity (2021) andother scholars contend that this was a pittance relative to the magnitude of what black American farmers are owed. Moreover, the settlement put a burden of proof on the black farmers for evidence of past discrimination while not demanding that farmers be granted access to USDA records to assert their claims. Farmers were not granted access to bank records to support their claims while neighboring white farmers had easily obtained loans. The case is instructive for those advancing the H.R.40 bill, without essential edits. The proposed legislation, as currently written, is misdirected and can be detrimental toward achieving a viable black American reparations project.

Similarly, in 1997, the Oklahoma legislature authorized funding for a Commission to study the Tulsa Riot of 1921. Three years later, it recommended the 125survivors be paid reparations. The commissions restorative justice plans alsospecified solutions such as scholarships, and economic development zone, thereburial of any human remains that might be found. (FHTE, pp. 18;19, paragraphs 6;1). Unfortunately, the Oklahoma legislature enacted no mandate to act and made no payments. If the eligible group (ABAL ethnics) is not vigilant in the construction of our reparations project, we have the potential to be in the same poor position as those families who survived the Tulsa massacre, yet received no reparations.

10. How might States go about administering a decentralized Federal reparations program?

This author holds that States should not be directed to allocate a Federal reparations program. Decentralization of authority over federal programs with potential benefits for black Americans has a horrendous history (see the GI Bill in FHTE, pp. 247-248). Historically, the constitutionality of states rights has been harmful in delivering programs initiated to provide targeted relief and equality for black Americans (as previously indicated via AA programs).

In their book From Here to Equality, Darity and Mullen (2020) recommend the formation of a National Reparations Bureau. This author contends that the Freedmans Bureau should be reestablished and maintained as is the case for Native Americans who benefit from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). The native black American-focused bureau should have access to every US government department and be able to introduce policy and protections on behalf of ABAL ethnics who are the descendant of the formerly enslaved group. The Bureau should remain as a standing government agency for the duration of the process of acknowledgment, redress, and closure (ARC) to fulfill the reparations project.

11. How can a focus on reparations enhance anti-racism initiatives underway in adulteducation and workforce development institutions?

Anti-racism initiatives are conscious efforts to dismantle racist structures in education and workforce organizations and programs. Reparations for black Americans who are the descendants of the formerly enslaved would include a program ofacknowledgment, redress, and closure (FHTE, p 2-4), hence providing a robust framework to guide this challenging, anti-racism work.

Acknowledgment: The case for reparations is the story of the intergenerational history of white supremacy in American and the harmful effects on black lives today. One cannot understand structural racism, its impact on our education and workforce policies and programs, nor how to undertake redress without first understanding how this history has given rise to the racialized education structures and programs we operate today. Once exposed, we must then acknowledge how the American education and workforce systems intentionally privilege whites and disadvantage blacks. White educators, in particular, are being called upon to recognize their advantages and commit to a reparations program of redress for ABAL ethnics.

Redress is required to eliminate racial disparities in adult education and workforce development programs (and other political-economic institutions) to ensure black people have full access and equal opportunity in education and the workforce.Redress would require systemic change in educational policies, programs, curriculum, and new labor market regulations to close the inequality gap in educational outcomes between whites and blacks in the workplace.

Closure: Mutual conciliation between blacks and all beneficiaries of white supremacy would provide closure and give rise to a transformed, anti-racism nation. The nation needs to have an accurate narrative of slavery, the Civil War, and Reconstruction and reject the Lost Cause narrative that has dominated our national story since the end of the Great War (FHTE, pp. 173, paragraphs 4). Though our anti-racism journey has just begun in America, education and workforce development must help move us towards this end. Indeed, the comprehensive program of reparations (FHTE, pp. 258-270, paragraphs, 2) calls on educators to foster a transformative national process of reinterpretation of history and learning. This initiative must include education on reparations and the impact on black Americans and the entire nation.

12. How can reparations contribute to the new adult education and workforcedevelopment policies required to respond to the social and economic crisis created by theCOVID-19 pandemic?

Perhaps the most critical contribution reparations can make to the development of education and workforce policies that respond to the social and economic crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic is a historic analysis of the racist education system that leads to poor outcomes for black people in America. Adult education and workforce development in America emanated in part from policies intended to provide a second chance for adults who may have fallen short at their first attempt at education. In reality, however, this author contends that the system has failed ADOS. Examining more deeply the concept of failure among particular groups of adults would go a long way toward reframing the system of adult learning and reposition those black Americans underserved by traditional venues of formal and nonformal adult education.

Specifically, reparations can help practitioners and policymakers understand the legacy of the dual system that tolerated the systemic underinvestment in the education of blacks pre- and post- a formal lifelong learning endeavor. The racial wealth gap highlights how far too many black families and communities lack the resources to provide for quality post-secondary or higher education. Moreover, the lifelong leisure opportunities that non-formal adult education has afforded more economically resourced adults in America are reduced for ADOS men and women. In short, black workers who are from an ancestral heritage shaped by slavery, Jim Crow segregation, and anti-black terrorism and economic discrimination continue to face educational disparities in comparison to whites. The inability to transfer resources and wealth to your children as a direct consequence of the adverse actions taken against black citizens by our government must not be met with erasure or the simplistic lens of equity initiatives.

These disparities notwithstanding, recent trends show that enrollment in adult basic education and workforce development programs has increased during the pandemic. Adults who lost their job are seeking an educational pathway to a more secure career. The time is right to move away from short-term training in second chance skills to support motivated learners in a significant course of study, leading to a valuable credential or training that helps secure a family-supporting job. New program models that will allow learners to earn while learning will encourage adults to complete longer-term programs and foster deep, applied understanding. Tapping other educational funding sources to support adult learners, such as restorative access to Pell grants for certificate-based training, would bolster the quality and quantity of educational opportunities available to black adult learners.

13. Why should adult education and workforce development practitioners and policymakers focus on reparations when it seems training and technical skills are what many black adults need?

We see that education does not have an equalizing effect for blacks in the American labor market. As noted in FHTE, blacks with a college degree can expect to make up to $10,000 per year less than whites who have not completed high school. Further, theblack poverty rate has not changed much since the 1950s, even though black educational attainment has risen over the same period. So, while training may provide black adults with access to new career pathways, it does little to address the racial inequalities that prevent blacks from achieving social and economic equity in America. A focus on reparations and rejection of anti-black discrimination would help practitioners and policymakers address the opportunity gap facing ADOS in education and the labor market. Anti-discrimination policies must be maintained and enforced as reparations alone will not sustain or replace a system of white supremacy with a preferable system of justice.

14. Many adult and workplace education programs include diversity, equity, and inclusion training; why should black American reparations exist as a distinct learning module?

A module on reparations would enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion training in adult and workplace education programs. Adult education focused on reparations can provide essential knowledge of the intergenerational effects of white supremacy on black Americans and the legacy of structural racism in American workplaces and institutions today. This information could lead to awareness among learners about the inequities in their workplace and how their professional attitudes and practices are structured to privilege whites and exclude blacks. The inclusion of a reparations roadmap to equality in the training will provide learners with concrete steps they can take in their organization and lives to address and redress discrimination and create a more open and inclusive workplace culture.

15. As a white person in the field of adult learning where might I begin to educate myself since the field is all but quiet on this topic?

As a white, educated, American woman in my early 60s, I was truly astonished to learn just how little I knew about black slavery, Jim Crow, and the legacy of these atrocities in ongoing systems of racial inequality and racism in America today. Reading Darity and Mullens (2020) From Here to Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the Twenty-First Century was enlightening but also transformative for me as an educator. Additional recommended works include Karolyn Tysons Integration Interrupted, WEB DuBois Black Reconstruction, and Isabel Wilkersons Caste.

In plain language, before reading FHTE, I was ignorant of the inter-generational effects of white supremacy in America on black life and well-being today. The book led me to reflect on my practice and ask myself critically, how can I be an effective adult educator in American without acknowledging the history of white supremacy and its impact on educational opportunity and outcomes for black Americans today? It is imperative that white people in adult learning educate themselves on our racist history and how we can mitigate its effects through a systematic program of black reparations. Darity and Mullens (2020) From Here to Equality is a great resource for white educators and others who choose to embark on a journey of anti-racist self-education.

FRQG Editor, Lisa R. Brown, BS, MPA, University of Akron; Ph.D. Adult Education, University of Georgia @Ambidextrous_X

Special thank you to William Sandy Darity Jr. and A. Kirsten Mullen for their editorial review and contributions to this issue.

From Here to Equality (FHTE) Reparationist Quick Guide Issue 3 sharable hyperlink to the PDF:https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-qtvmjugDq-rdi3OK2tWzjgYCtyJUV6t/view?usp=sharing

Read more:ADOS Reparationist Quick Guide October 2020, Volume 1 Issue 1 Read more: ADOS Reparationist Quick Guide October 2020, Volume 1 Issue 2

Listen to GHOGH with Jamarlin Martin | Episode 74:Jamarlin MartinJamarlin returns for a new season of the GHOGH podcast to discuss Bitcoin, bubbles, and Biden. He talks about the risk factors for Bitcoin as an investment asset including origin risk, speculative market structure, regulatory, and environment. Are broader financial markets in a massive speculative bubble?

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From Here To Equality (FHTE) Reparationist Quick Guide Issue 3 - Moguldom