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Editorials/Column
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His Style. Her Wardrobe.
have something to ask that I'm sure will, un- doubtedly, be viewed as politi- cally incorrect. The question? Is gay swag part of a new fash-
ion trend for men?
I know that, on the surface,
this controversial inquiry probably comes off as a diss to the LGBTQ community. But, in actuality, it's more of a dig directed toward the way some individuals, who claim to be heterosexuals, are acting and dressing these days.
What started off with the wearing of super skinny jeans a few years ago has now mor- phed into something that can best be described as going full- on drag. And, apparently, there's even a term used to de- scribe guys who follow this ambiguous dress code.... "Gen- der Neutrals."
I can't say with certainty what being "gender neutral" means. But I can only assume that it's probably defined by the idea of not conforming with the typical behavior or clothing usually assigned to a certain sex. And, I guess, not choosing a side leaves a person open to following whatever
mood they feel more comfort- able with on any particular day.
The curious thing about this fad, if that's what you want to call it, is that the main peo- ple who seem drawn to repre- sent the gender neutrality movement are young Black males. A group that doesn't seem to mind sacrificing their masculinity at the alter of what they believe is "cool."
What I'm trying to figure out, though, is who or what convinced them that donning women's clothing was a good look? I mean, seriously, who's responsible for making Ru- paul the new fashion inspira- tion for the hip-hop generation?
From wearing Capri pants, blouses and even dresses, rap- pers and athletes appear to be leading the way in male-femi- nization. It has gotten to the point where you can't even tune into a sporting event without seeing a football player making his ass clap after scoring a touchdown or watching a 7-foot, 300 lb, NBA center walk into an arena wearing form-fitting jeans
tucked into a pair of knee-high boots. And I truly wish I was exaggerating.
The crazy part of it all is that someone recently tried to convince me that women are ok with the cross-dressing. Re- ally? Have we actually arrived to the point where women want men who can borrow their outfits? "Bae, I'm going jet-skiing with the fellas later. You mind if I wear your boy- shorts?"
It may all sound like a bad joke, but what we're witness- ing could, in reality, be Black manhood in America taking its last breath. The sad thing is that we still, somehow, have the nerve to wonder why the rest of the world has lost a cer- tain amount of respect for us. But, the truth is that, it's kind of hard to take any group seri- ously whose warriors are just a suggestion away from sporting purses and high heels.
Hopefully, at some point, it will begin to register with these young brothers that there's nothing hip, fly or sexy about being self-emasculating. While it may be no big deal to them, those of us who know better understand that, at this critical juncture in our history, it's an image of weakness we can't af- ford to display.
Reality On Ice is © by the Florida Sentinel Bul- letin Publishing Com- pany. You can TEXT C.B., II, at (+18133080849).
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C. Blythe Andrews 1901-1977 (1945)
C. Blythe Andrews, Jr. 1930-2010 (1977)
Randolph Kinsey: The Word-Warrior
is best ideas may have not been seen nor heard,
perhaps, lost in a dream/ However, when he set to speak/ he wrote his conscience twice a week./ To speak for more than forty years/ as a Black newsman who had no fear/ But saw the world as a boxing ring/ and wrote like a fighter as to what he had seen.
Randolph Kinsey was nobody’s pushover. He said what he meant, meant what he said, and in his younger years would not have hesitated to back up his words with a knuckle sandwich free of charge. But this isn’t about a Randolph Kinsey who took no guff, who was a sports jock who may have dreamed of being Major League, or the Randolph Kinsey who was a ferocious high school coach who hated losing worse than he hated sin.
Instead, this Editorial is about a man who somehow transformed his love for basketball and the gridiron into a passion for journalism and politics that for the next four decades became undoubtedly one of his driving rea- sons for waking up in the morning.
With a head full of facts and arguments, the late Ran- dolph Kinsey would churn unsung two columns a week for the rest of his life to be read and enjoyed in Florida’s largest Black newspaper, our newspaper, The Florida Sentinel Bulletin.
Therefore, we doubt that we could ever repay the honor received for having carried the comments of a ge- nius, home-grown. But one thing is clear: For as long as our paper exists on this earth, we will be proud to re- member the legacy of Randolph Kinsey who handled words like a boxer throws a good left hook.
A Government Of Rich People, By Rich People, And For Rich People!
F our years from now Americans will not recognize the American government if the Republican-led Senate approves all of President–elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks. Certainly, President Abraham Lincoln did not envision a government led by deep- pocket millionaires and billionaires, many of whom have been appointed to head depart-
ments that they swore to eliminate or deregulate.
We certainly hope Trump supporters and our readers will get to know each ap-
pointee’s philosophy about the department he/she will head up.
We should watch Secretary of State appointee Rex W. Tillerson, CEO of Exxon Mobil,
because he has a reputation for “losing emotional control” as a tactic of winning people over and has close ties to Russia as a result of drilling oil out of Siberian tundra.
Next is Steven Mnuchin whom Trump chose to serve as Treasury Secretary.
Mnuchin, former investment banker, hedge fund investor and former partner at Goldman Sach’s, was involved in questionable foreclosures on homeowners during the 2006/2007 housing crisis.
Next in our line of unlikely suspects is CKE (Hardees and Carl’s Jr.) Restaurants CEO, Andrew Puzder, picked for Labor Secretary. Puzder, criticized worker protections en- acted by President Obama, which included the expansion of overtime eligibility, increase in minimum wage and the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).
Then there’s Rick “Brer Rabbit” Perry who Trump has chosen to head the Energy De- partment even though Perry wanted to eliminate that very same department in 2011. And finally, there’s new Secretary of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Scott Pruitt, who was welcomed by the climate change-deniers throughout America.
So, there you have it. There of course, is always hope that the impossible may happen (a sow’s ear may turn into a silk purse). But personally, we doubt it.
BREAKING NEWS!! BREAKING
Report: Russian President Vladimir Putin Was Directly Involved In Election Interference
USA --- U.S. intelligence officials say they believe Russian President Vladimir Putin was directly involved in efforts to dis- rupt the 2016 U.S. presidential election, NBC News reported Wednesday.
NBC’s bombshell story comes days after The Washington Post reported that the Cen- tral Intelligence Agency believes Russia sought to influence the election and help secure Pres- ident-elect Donald Trump’s victory.
Those efforts reportedly included hack- ing the emails of the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, and providing them
to WikiLeaks.
The New York Times, in an extensive report on the hacks, offered
details on how the attacks were carried out and reported that Dem- ocratic House candidates were also targeted.
According to NBC, officials believe the meddling went all the way to the very top of Russia’s government.
VLADIMIR PUTIN
NEWS!! BREAKING NEWS!! BREAKING NEWS!!
Attorney For Cop That Killed Philando Castile Says It Was His ‘Own Fault’
PHILANDO CASTILE
MINNESOTA --Attorneys representing the Minnesota police officer who killed Philando Castile during a traffic stop in July are claiming that Castile was negligent in his own death and are asking for the charges to be dropped.
Court documents filed Wednesday and obtained by the Associated Press charge Castile was high on marijuana when he was stopped by St. Anthony, Minn., Police Officer Jeronimo Yanez and did not obey the of- ficer’s commands. Attorneys say that if Castile was negligent, the charges against Yanez should be dropped.
Castile, who was Black, was killed July 6 after being pulled over in Falcon Heights, Minn. The aftermath of the shooting was captured in a Face- book Live video by Castile’s girlfriend, who was in the car along with her young daughter. Castile, 32, was shot by Yanez after telling him that he was armed and licensed to carry a weapon.
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