Hello 👋 to someone new who read the blog from Greece and Vietnam respectively (even if you are regulars who were travelling). I love that you take time out to read this blog no matter where in the world you are.
Well today I had to unpublish this submission as I got in trouble trying to share some inspiring messages from some sisters who rock. I realize that in this climate of online "political correctness" for some, I must be careful of the words in my headlines. In September 2019, I was looking for something to watch on cable and I came across BET's Black Girls Rock, the 2019 edition. I have to confess, I tend not to watch much of the BET channel - some content is not to my taste. My background was more like the Cosby Show, although I actually grew up in a partly under-privileged but genteel environment (I guess the best comparison is a modern-day version of the Bennet family in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice) but I spent enough time with the "privileged" parent to have been exposed to how both sides lived. So there are certain BET films I watch but most I don't.
Anyway, the Awards recognizing achievements of African-American women in various fields (entertainment, social-activism, science, education for example) was on television. Indeed, that year's Awards ceremony was so good I watched a repeat! Well, be that as it may, I tried to share some of the motivating acceptance speeches from these women, who are wonderful winners in their respective fields, and I have been blocked😞. So if you wish to hear what veteran actress Angela Bassett and entertainer, Ciara, and the trail-blazing Debra Martin Chase said, you can click on the links (you need a Facebook account for these).
Angela Bassett as Ramonda, mother of Chadwick Boseman's Black Panther
The Annual Diamond Ball
Of course, I have to feature something Barbadian and our national "rock star" is of course Rihanna. This year she held the 5th Annual Diamond Ball in honour of the charitable foundation named for her grandparents, Clara and Lionel Brathwaite, which has reportedly funded more than 50 projects globally. One of the honourees was none other than the first female Prime Minister of Barbados, the Honourable Mia Amor Mottley, pictured here in an ensemble created by Barbados' own Pauline Bellamy and her local team. You can follow the link below for the LOOP Barbados news article highlighting a Variety interview on the occasion:
In honour of these winning ladies, I dedicate Sherry-Ann Maughan's lyric video Winner:
Sherry Ann Maughan – Winner [Credit: Sherry
Ann Maughan, July 2019]
Until the next time...
