Leslie Jones, I LOVE YOU!

July 19, 2016

Leslie Jones, I LOVE YOU!

The way we value black beauty has changed. I'm single now, but back in the slave days, I would have never been single. I'm 6 feet tall and I'm strong. Look at me, I'm a Mandingo.
Leslie Jones

Happy Tuesday, July 19th, 2016!
July 19 is the 201st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 165 days remaining until the end of the year.
As I began my blog today, I was listening to Barbra Streisand sing Just Leave Everything to Me from the film version of Hello, Dolly! I, for one, actually love the film version AND I LOVE Barbra in it!
I remember reading a quote when Barbra was just starting her meteoric rise in this business in which she said she was so far out that she was practically in.

Judy Garland always battled body image based on things she was told as a kid

That other worldly voice of hers took her to places that some of us can only dream of. I don't think there is another person in this profession who has ever or ever will achieve her iconic status.
There were people before we got to know "Barbra Streisand" who formed an opinion based on her appearance before she opened her mouth to speak.
I look at Barbra and I think she is one of the most beautiful women who has ever lived.
I feel the same about Judy Garland.
When I read that Judy Garland did not consider herself a

"conventional" beauty, it blows my mind.

"Concerned about her weight, the studio demanded that she take "pep pills" to suppress her appetite and keep up her energy. Then, at the end of each shooting day, they'd supply all the child stars with sleeping pills. When Judy was cast in The Wizard of Oz, her weight drew constant criticism from Louis B. Mayer and other studio executives.
Her insecurities about her weight combined with her grueling work schedule resulted in her taking even more pills. Judy's steady diet of amphetamines and barbiturates slimmed her physique and enabled her to get through shooting." (Biography.com,2012)
Karen Carpenter was another who was goaded

Karen Carpenter

into body shaming. According to one blog I read, she had been a little overweight as a teenager—she loved tacos and chili. When she was 17, she went on the Stillman Diet with a doctor's guidance, and she lost between 20 and 25 pounds. She was at her best weight—between 115 and 120—until 1975, when the illness first became serious.
These three iconic women have something in common with another artist who's career is on the rise.
All of them have been body shamed. One thing I have learned from all of them and am continuing to learn: Don't get comfortable; it'd dangerous.
I have also learned that if you begin to rise above the pack, there will be those who quickly try to knock you back down. You can never make succeeding your primary goal.
When I got up today, I had no idea what the topic of today's blog would be.
It came to me when I was watching The View this morning. One of the hot topics today was the fact that Leslie Jones left Twitter because of all of the negative comments after her performance in Ghostbusters, which opened last weekend.

I had heard nothing about this and decided to do a little research. Leslie Jones, one of the most visible and accessible stars in the all-female remake of the “Ghostbusters” movie, said that she would leave Twitter after becoming the target of online trolls who sent her a stream of pornography, racist speech and hateful memes. (Read MORE)

Retweeted Leslie Jones (@Lesdoggg):
I leave Twitter tonight with tears and a very sad heart.All this cause I did a movie.You can hate the movie but the s!@# I got today...wrong

Many on the internet were shocked and appalled when Leslie Jones started retweeting some of the racist and misogynistic abuse she has been receiving in recent days. But just as there were articles and tweets going out standing in solidarity with Jones and expressing outrage at the abuse, there were those who quickly wrote it off. (Source: The Guardian)

As you read this blog, think about where your relationship with yourself stands right now. When I look at Leslie Jones, I see a gorgeous woman who I consider to be one of the funniest women on the planet.
As a matter of fact, a dream of mine is to interview her. A few weeks ago, prior to the premier of Ghostbusters, she tweeted that designers did not desire to design for her "body type" for the premier.

Leslie, you are an incredible artist, and I am excited to see where your career takes you and how you continue to grow in this difficult business.
I LOVE Leslie and my heart aches for her. Here she is starring in a major motion picture and it is tarnished with this kind of negativity. Why? What is it in the human psyche that makes some people want to tear others down...especially when those people that are being ripped apart have done nothing to bring this upon themselves.
Please know Leslie that this is not about YOU as much as it is about those that post these negative comments.
You are being rewarded with accolades and riches for your work. Focus on that.
If this negativity doesn't stop, it will eventually be the death of all of us.
We live in a bullying culture. What do Leslie Jones and the Republican National Convention have in common? They are shedding a light on our bullying culture!

Serena Williams … victim to Twitter trolls. Photograph: IBL/REX Shutterstock

Eliza Anyangwe in The Guardian wrote, "Last week, London nightclub Dstrkt was accused of turning away two young black women for being “too fat” and “too dark”, prompting a swift, strident response on social media. The club was quick to deny the allegations and the council equally quick to express its concern.
News outlets went into overdrive, to find “voices” to give the incident context.

We ALL must come together rather than tearing each other apart

In the Guardian, one writer explained that young black people often resort to unlikely methods to get into certain clubs – the kind, like Dstrkt in Soho, that aren’t really about the music anyway – while in the Independent, DJ Edward Adoo discussed the pervasive racism of London’s nightclubs as a matter of fact." Read MORE.
Scott Baio spoke at the Republican National Convention last night. He was part of the “Make America Safe Again” lineup for the evening.

We're all looking for the BEAUTY of Oz in our Lives

WHO are they making America safe from? Certainly not the Republican Party!
Yesterday, he posted a vile post that used a vile term for a female body part. It is a word that I won't even utter, I find it so despicable.
Tonight, Governor Chris Christie is speaking. Another bully!
When it was announced on Friday that Trump's running mate was officially Governor Mike Pence, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy blasted Trump's choice of Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate on the Republican presidential ticket, calling both men bullies and bigots on Friday.
Trump's entire platform has been spent on bullying. Name calling is never acceptable.
He did it with each of the other candidates in his party. He has done it constantly to Hillary and Senator Elizabeth Warren.

Never Mind that Man Behind The Curtain!

This is a Tweet from Donald Trump two days ago: I hope that Crooked Hillary picks Goofy Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to as Pocahontas, as her V.P. Then we can litigate her fraud!
His goal is to keep us from trusting Hillary and Warren and to trust him to make our lives better.

The RNC spews hatred constantly and they need to be outed for it. I have written in the past of the fact that I was a bullied child. I have even experienced bullying as an adult.
I KNOW bullying when I see it.

Maya Angelou — 'When someone shows you who they are believe them; the first time.'

There are many in the Republican Party, led by Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell, who believe that Donald Trump will eventually pivot and become more presidential. Paul Ryan has been called a bully by those within his own party: Conservative members of the House are pushing back against Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) demand to nullify the procedural rule put into place by Founding Father and President Thomas Jefferson, which was used by Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) and the House Freedom Caucus to oust Rep. John Boehner (R-OH). (Read MORE)

We should be careful of each other, we should be kind while there is still time - Larkin

I am not one to retreat. I never have been. By the very nature of who I am and what I do, every time I walk

on stage, write a blog, post on Facebook, and/or tweet, I'm open to the scrutiny of the world.
I posted the question on Facebook this AM asking if anyone has ever made you feel "less than" and if so, how you rose above it. I received the following from my friend Jamie Lee Farrar,
"The short answer is yes. As a physically disabled person from birth, I live in a world that isn't made for me-- and I've had to adapt my life around that. Simple things people take for granted, take me longer to accomplish. People look at me differently and most of the time, I'm treated less than simply because I'm sitting down. There have been times when I'm in public with an able-bodied friend or family member , and someone will take about me or ask a

question to that person about me --ignoring the fact I'm in the room. "How long has she been in a wheelchair? What's wrong with her?
It's very kind of you to bring her out today". These are the types of questions I'm feilded on a daily basis from people that don't have that level of empathy because disablity hasn't affected them . Sometimes, you have people who are able bodied that are just jerks-- there will always be those people. But,that's okay, I've met plenty of jerks with disablities-- those who like play the victim or the blame game, How do I deal with it? Kindness. Everything begins and ends with kindness."

What's your narrative today ? Are you being kind and supportive or beating yourself up once again ?
Life's too short - be kind.

Every moment of every day of our lives we have a choice as to what we are putting out to the world. Before you read further, please take a moment to think about the last hour of your life. Your last phone call, your last email, your last post on Facebook, your last Tweet, your last thought...did it create something positive for yourself and/or someone else, or was it negative?
The negative messages that flood our minds distract us from what we know is true.
Sometimes, the very things that we desire to do cripples us.
Be MORE connected with your inner being, the very heart of your solar plexis which makes you who you truly are.
We all can add value to the world without tearing each other down.
Thank you, Leslie Jones for reminding us once

again of the negativity that lurks throughout the internet.
One of the great things about this, however, is that it is also showing me people for who they truly are. I have no room in my life for bigotry, hatred, and/or prejudice.

What you plant today you reap tomorrow, or further down the road. -Die Empty

Thank you, to all mentioned in this blog for the gifts you have given to the world and continue to give!

With grateful XOXOXs from YOUR pro-active friend,

Check out my site celebrating the legacy of Dolly Gallagher Levi!

At Fullerton’s Plummer Auditorium, 3-D Theatricals’ revival of the 1964 classic is a grandly glamorous exercise in nostalgia and a joyous theatrical experience. Skip it and risk disappointment and regret. Read MORE

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Please do what YOU can to be more aware that words and actions DO HURT...but they can also heal and help!