January 26, 2017 

By Niele Anderson 

Contributing Writer 

California continues to lead the progressive movement by drawing the largest crowd in the Women’s March movement. Over 750,000 women filled the streets of downtown Los Angeles in solidary with the Women’s March on Washington.

 

Historically Women have been fighting for rights dating back to 1848 with the first women's rights convention held in Seneca Falls, New York. 68 women and 32 men signed the “Declaration of Sentiments”. The Sentiments demanded equality with men before the law, in education, employment and demanded that women be given the right to vote.

 

Other highlights in the Women’s Movement included:

 

1869 the National Association of Colored Women is formed, bringing together more than 100 black women's clubs. Leaders in the black women's club movement include Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, Mary Church Terrell and Anna Julia Cooper.

 

1920 The 19th Amendment to the Constitution granting women the right to vote, is signed into law by Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby.

 

1921 Margaret Sanger establishes the American Birth Control League, which evolves into the Planned Parenthood Federation of America in 1942.

 

1935 Bethune, Mary McLeod organizes the National Council of Negro Women, a coalition of black women's groups that lobbies against job discrimination, racism, and sexism.

 

The battle has been a journey and in 2017 memories of past oppression swelled up like a 9-month pregnancy and the next birth of the Women’s movement was born. The Women’s March!

 

With chants, posters and one love, Angelenos far and wide responded in resistance to Republican party policies and President Donald Trump. One day after Trump’s inauguration America resisted to unprecedented numbers worldwide with the main march held in DC and sister marches worldwide.  The march drew at least half a million in Washington, and there were some estimates of worldwide participation at 4.8 million.

 

It started with a Facebook event post by Teresa Shook a retired attorney and grandmother living in Hawaii. Devastated by the Nov 8 election results, she created a Women’s March event. The idea picked up nationally, and recruiting co-chairs included: Tamika Mallory, a gun control advocate and former executive director of Al Sharpton’s National Action Network; Carmen Perez, head of the Gathering for Justice, a criminal-justice reform group founded by Harry Belafonte; and Linda Sarsour, who recently led a successful campaign to close New York City public schools on two Muslim holidays.

 

Planned Parenthood and the National Resource Defense Council were listed as the two premier partners. Other organizations listed as partners included the National Newspapers Association, AFL_CIO, the Mothers of the Movement, NAACP, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the National Organization for Women, National Action Network, Moveon.org, Human Rights Watch Black Girls – Rock! , Emily's List, and the League of Women Voters. Over 400 organizations participated.

 

Symbolic gestures filled the day. The sea of pink hats was created by the Pussycat Project a nationwide effort to knit pink hats to be worn at the march. Their name refers to the resemblance of the hats' corners to cat ears and attempts to reclaim the derogatory term "pussy", a play on Trump's widely reported 2005 remarks that he would "grab women by the pussy".  The streets of downtown Los Angeles were so packed, a majority of the crowd could not get near the stage so break out rallies and chants filled the streets.

 

Locally the organizers of the Los Angeles march have gone as far as starting a foundation with an interesting committee. All of its donations go towards MALDEF (Mexican Ameri­can Legal Defense and Education Fund), Planned Parenthood & Los Angeles LGBT Center. It should be noted Civil Rights; Criminal Justice Reform or Gun Control donations are not listed and the website does not say if some of the donations go to the national Woman’s March. “The Los Angeles website is mysterious and vague about leadership and diversity in donation allocation,” griped some rally participants.

 

Overall the unity of the movement has carried on to a national call to action for “EVERY 10 DAYS TAKE ACTION ON AN ISSUE WE ALL CARE ABOUT. The first action is to write a postcard to your Senators about what matters most to you - and how you’re going to continue to fight for it in the days, weeks and months ahead”, the website states.

 

They encourage visitors to host a postcard party with family, friends and neighbors. They also provide a postcard to download to keep unity in messaging. The detailed information can be found at https://www.womensmarch.com.

 

The question remains as the Republicans continue to move swiftly to change America. Will America move past the msarch and hold these elected officials accountable by going beyond the march to aggressive civic participation. Time will tell.

January 19, 2017 

By Niele Anderson 

Contributing Writer 

 

Creative, innovative, a scholar of Harvard and Princeton all the while still the home girl from the Southside of Chicago. Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama has been one of the most relatable first ladies in modern history. She has given us LIFE through her style of dress, her beauty and brains, her passion for public service and her example of family by being a loving daughter, sibling, nurturing mother, a devoted wife and an AWESOME First Lady.

 

She’s given dozens of Commencement speeches, graced the cover of just about every national and international magazine and has appeared on every late night and daytime talk show at least twice a year during her tenure. She’s taken multiple foreign affairs trips sometimes giving her daughters a taste of diplomacy and world affairs. America was not ready and was caught off guard by her love of country and ability to inspire.

 

We will miss Michelle Obama in the Whitehouse but we’re even more excited about what’s next. Until then let’s reminisce on some of her inspiring words, speeches and heartfelt moments. Sometimes controversial but always relevant.

 

#1 February 18, 2008

 

Michelle Obama gave America a taste of her American experience of a child raised on the Southside of Chicago when she spoke on the campaign trail for her husband speaking in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Michelle Obama said, “People in this country are ready for change and hungry for a different kind of politics and … for the first time in my adult life I am proud of my country because it feels like hope is finally making a comeback.”

 

#2 Feb 9, 2010

 

First lady Michelle Obama took on childhood obesity with the thought to change the younger generations mind set as to how they viewed healthy food and exercise. The successful Let’s Move campaign also launched the Whitehouse fruits and vegetable garden. Before she leaves she’s made a bigger version of the garden, which uses cement, stone and steel to make it a more permanent fixture on the South Lawn. The updates are seen not just as preserving Obama’s garden recognized globally, but also making it slightly difficult for the next administration to uproot.

 

Underneath, a large paving stone carries an inscription: “WHITE HOUSE KITCHEN GARDEN, established in 2009 by First Lady Michelle Obama with the hope of growing a healthier nation for our children.”

 

The White House noted that the new structures incorporate both wood, chosen for “durability,” and steel. The wood includes pine and walnut harvested from the estates of founding fathers Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe and the birthplace of Martin Luther King Jr.

 

 

 

#3 June 11, 2011

 

First Lady Michelle Obama visited with former South African President Nelson Mandela about his book during a visit at Mandela’s home in Houghton, South Africa. This time around we did not know what was said but the love in the picture captured a moment that will go down in history.

 

#4 December 14, 2011

 

 

 

In 2011, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden launched Joining Forces, a nationwide initiative calling on all Americans to rally around service members, veterans, and their families, supporting them through wellness, education, and employment opportunities.

 

“It’s a campaign that we hope goes beyond words.  It’s a campaign that is about action.  It’s about rallying all Americans to give you the honor, the appreciation and the support that you have all earned.  And I don’t have to tell you that this hasn’t been a difficult campaign.  We haven’t had to do much convincing because American have been lining up to show their appreciation for you and your families in very concrete and meaningful ways.” –Michelle Obama

 

#5 2014 & 2015

 

In 2014, First Lady Michelle Obama launched her Reach Higher initiative, an effort to inspire every student in America to take charge of their future by completing their education past high school, whether at a professional training program, a community college, or a four-year college or university.

 

You cannot be successful hanging around people who drag you down. You have to fill your bucket with positive energy and if you have people hanging around you that are bringing you down and not lifting you up, whether that’s your boo or your best friend, you’ve got to learn how to push those people to the side. And you’re going to be doing that for the rest of your lives.”“There is no boy, at this age, cute enough or interesting enough to stop you from getting an education. If I had worried about who liked me and who thought I was cute when I was your age, I wouldn’t be married to the president of the United States.”

 

– First Lady Michelle Obama Glamour’s The Power of an Educated Girl panel in Harlem, NYC.

 

In March 2015, the President and the First Lady launched Let Girls Learn, a global initiative which brings together the Depart­ment of State, US Agency for In­ternational Development (USAID), the Peace Corps, and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, as well as other agencies and programs such as the U.S. President’s Emergency Fund for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), to address the range of challenges preventing adolescent girls from attaining a quality education that empowers them to reach their full potential around the world.

 

“I believe that a society’s willingness to truly value women and girls is directly connected to its willingness to invest in them as full people.  And if we’re being honest with ourselves, we must recognize that these kinds of gender inequalities aren’t just limited to the developing world.”Remarks by The First Lady at Let Girls Learn Event in Madrid, Spain

 

#6 May 9, 2016

 

Remarks by the First Lady at Tuskegee University Commence­ment Address where the first lady was candid and encouraged the graduates with her own experiences where she touched on the challenges she’s dealt with…

 

“Back when my husband first started campaigning for President, folks had all sorts of questions of me:  What kind of First Lady would I be?  What kinds of issues would I take on?  Would I be more like Laura Bush, or Hillary Clinton, or Nancy Reagan?  And the truth is, those same questions would have been posed to any candidate’s spouse.  That’s just the way the process works.  But, as potentially the first African American First Lady, I was also the focus of another set of questions and speculations; conversations sometimes rooted in the fears and misperceptions of others.  Was I too loud, or too angry, or too emasculating?  Or was I too soft, too much of a mom, not enough of a career woman?

 

Then there was the first time I was on a magazine cover — it was a cartoon drawing of me with a huge afro and machine gun. Now, yeah, it was satire, but if I’m really being honest, it knocked me back a bit.  It made me wonder, just how are people seeing me.

 

Or you might remember the on-stage celebratory fist bump between me and my husband after a primary win that was referred to as a “terrorist fist jab.”  And over the years, folks have used plenty of interesting words to describe me.  One said I exhibited “a little bit of uppity-ism. “Another noted that I was one of my husband’s “cronies of color.”  Cable news once charmingly referred to me as “Obama’s Baby Mama.”

 

And of course, Barack has endured his fair share of insults and slights.  Even today, there are still folks questioning his citizenship.

 

And all of this used to really get to me.  Back in those days, I had a lot of sleepless nights, worrying about what people thought of me, wondering if I might be hurting my husband’s chances of winning his election, fearing how my girls would feel if they found out what some people were saying about their mom.

 

But eventually, I realized that if I wanted to keep my sanity and not let others define me, there was only one thing I could do, and that was to have faith in God’s plan for me. I had to ignore all of the noise and be true to myself -- and the rest would work itself out. 

 

So throughout this journey, I have learned to block everything out and focus on my truth.  I had to answer some basic questions for myself:  Who am I?  No, really, who am I?  What do I care about?

 

And the answers to those questions have resulted in the woman who stands before you today.  A woman who is, first and foremost, a mom. Look, I love our daughters more than anything in the world, more than life itself. And while that may not be the first thing that some folks want to hear from an Ivy-league educated lawyer, it is truly who I am.  So for me, being Mom-in-Chief is, and always will be, job number one.”

 

 

#7 July 25, 2016

 

First Lady Michelle Obama gave a personal speech of her pride of country and personal hope at the 2016 DNC and made the now famous phrase “when they go low, we go high”.

 

“I will never forget that winter morning as I watched our girls, just seven and ten years old, pile into those black SUVs with all those big men with guns.  And I saw their little faces pressed up against the window, and the only thing I could think was, “What have we done?”  See, because at that moment, I realized that our time in the White House would form the foundation for who they would become, and how well we managed this experience could truly make or break them.That is what Barack and I think about every day as we try to guide and protect our girls through the challenges of this unusual life in the spotlight -- how we urge them to ignore those who question their father’s citizenship or faith.  How we insist that the hateful language they hear from public figures on TV does not represent the true spirit of this country. How we explain that when someone is cruel, or acts like a bully, you don’t stoop to their level -– no, our motto is, when they go low, we go high.I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves and I watch my daughters -- two beautiful, intelligent, black young women –- playing with their dogs on the White House lawn.  And because of Hillary Clinton, my daughters –- and all our sons and daughters -– now take for granted that a woman can be President of the United States. So don’t let anyone ever tell you that this country isn’t great, that somehow we need to make it great again.”

 

#8 July 20, 2016

 

First Lady definitely utilized Pop Culture and the arts to help spread her initiative messages. Always deliberate she participated in James Corden famous Carpool Karaoke with Missy Elliot where she sang Stevie Wonder and Beyoncé and rapped with Missy Elliot. An effort to debut “This Is for My Girls” a song for her Let Girls Learn initiative.

 

#9 October 13, 2016

 

Michelle Obama stomped hard for Hillary. On this day she gave a passionate speech describing the pain and humiliation women have endured for generations in a speech denouncing Donald Trump, with a trembling voice at times.

 

“I can’t believe that I’m saying that a candidate for president of the United States has bragged about sexually assaulting women, and I can’t stop thinking about this. It has shaken me to my core in a way that I couldn’t have predicted.This is not normal; this is not politics as usual.  This is disgraceful, it is intolerable, and it doesn’t matter what party you belong to. ... No woman deserves to be treated this way – none of us deserves this kind of abuse. This wasn’t just a lewd conversation;this wasn’t just locker room banter. This was a powerful individual speaking freely and openly about sexually predatory behavior and actually bragging about kissing and groping women, using language so obscene that many of us are worried about our children hearing it when we turn on the TV.”

 

#10 January 6, 2017

 

 

 

In Tearful Finale, First Lady Michelle Obama gave her final speech to Honor 2017 School Counselor of the Year and reminded us why we’ll miss her so much as First Lady of the United States of America.

“Do not ever let anyone make you feel like you don’t matter or like you don’t have a place in our American story, because you do. And you have a right to be exactly who you are. Though with a lot of hard work and a good education, anything is possible, even becoming president. That’s what the American dream is all about.  And know that I will be with you, rooting for you and working to support you for the rest of my life. Being your first lady has been the greatest honor of my life, and I hope I’ve made you proud.”

January 19, 2017 

LAWT Report 

Obama wins in 2008 

On November 4, 2008 Senator Barack Obama was elected president of the United States. On January 20, 2009 Senator Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States, making history as the first African-American to hold that position.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cairo Speech

 

Fresh off the new from becoming the United States first African American president, Obama reached out to those who follow Islam with a powerful speech. “A New Beginning” is the name of the speech President Obama delivered to the world's 1.5 billion followers of Islam at Cairo University, Egypt in 2009. The speech fulfilled the promise Obama made during his presidential campaign to address Muslims, from a Muslim capital during his first few months as president. During his speech, Obama quoted from the Quran, the Talmud and the Bible. It’s stated that several times during the hour-long speech, audience members could be heard shouting, “We love you.”

 

Obama wins in 2012

 

November 6, 2009 Barack Obama wins re-election as president of the United States against Republican challenger and former Governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney.

 

 

 

 

 

Opening of Smithsonian Museum of African American History

 

First lady Michelle Obama, center, hugs former President George W. Bush, as President Barack Obama and former first lady Laura Bush walk on stage at the dedication ceremony of the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture on the National Mall in Washington, Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016.

 

 

 

Climate Crisis

 

In this Dec. 18, 2009 file photo, President Barack Obama speaks at the morning plenary session of the United Nations Climate Change Conference at the Bella Center in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Obama administration took action to combat climate change. In June 2013, President Obama outlined the Climate Action Plan — his Administration took steps to cut carbon pollution, help prepare the United States for the impacts of climate change, and continue to lead international efforts to address global climate change. AP Photo

 

Graduation Rates

 

During his presidency, Barack Obama has made it his mission for youth to gain access to college, closing the gaps between rich and poor; black and white. He has one of the highest U.S. high school graduation rates on record. The high school graduation rate rose during President Obama’s terms in office, growing by about four percentage points since the 2010-2011 school year. According to the White House, U.S. high school graduation rates for the 2014-2015 school year was the highest number on record at 83.2%. The graduation rate went up about 1 percentage point from the 2013-2014 school year which saw graduation rates at 82.3%. White students in the 2014-2015 year, saw a graduation rate of 87.6%, Black students 74.6%, Hispanic students 77.8% and American Indian/Alaska Native students 71.6%.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sandy Hook Massacre (Gun Violence)

 

 

 

December 16, 2012 President Obama gives a speech at the interfaith vigil in Newton, Connecticut in honor of the Sandy Hill Elementary School victims who died at the hand of gun violence.

 

 

 

 

The Death of Osama Bin Laden

 

May 1, 2011 President Barack Obama holds a televised press conference announcing to the world that al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has been killed during a raid in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reopening Relations with Cuba

 

December 17, 2017 President Obama announces his plans to reopen diplomatic relations with Cuba, relieve economic restrictions on the nation and allow some travel and trade.

 

 

 

Black Farmers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For decades, Black farmers fought the United States Department of Agriculture over racial discrimination. President Obama signed the Claims Resolution Act of 2010, which allows the government to finally start cutting checks in the $1.2 billion settlement case known as “Pigford II.” The legislation will allow for about 80,000 blacks to settle claims expected to average $50,000. Critics have charged that the Pigford settlement and claim process is rife with fraud, and that some who alleged discrimination never attempted to farm or receive loan assistance from the USDA.

 

Obamacare

 

March 23, 2010, President Obama signs the Affordable Care Act also known as Obamacare. The healthcare reform bill made health insurance more affordable and accessible to more Americans.

 

 

 

 

 

Iraq, Afghanistan & Syria

 

President Obama brought an end to the combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan that brought home more than 100,000 troops. U.S. troops took on more of aa supportive role in the Middle East during his terms. In 2014, Obama authorized U.S. airstrikes inside Syria with expanded strikes in Iraq as part of “a steady, relentless effort” to root out Islamic State extremists AKA Isis. He also urged Congress anew to authorize a program to train and arm Syrian rebels who are fighting both the Islamic State militants and Syrian President Bashar Assad. Obama said his approach in Syria is modeled after those long-running U.S. counterterrorism campaigns.

 

 

 

 

Iran Nuclear Deal

 

On July 14, 2015, President Obama delivered a speech on the Iran Nuclear deal. The deal is seen as one of his biggest diplomatic achievements during his presidency.

 

 

 

Boston Tragedy

 

April 18, 2013, President Obama gives a speech during the interfaith memorial service for the victims who were injured and killed by the Boston Marathon attack. The double bombing attack took place on April 15, 2013 near the finish line of the Boston Marathon killing three people and injuring 264.

 

 

 

Selections For Supreme Court Justice

 

President Barack Obama chose appeal court Judge Sonia Sotomayor. As the first African American president, he has chosen as his first pick, the first Hispanic to be on the nation’s highest court. In 2016, Obama introduced Merrick Garland, chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, at the White House. Obama has accused Republicans of blocking Garland for political reasons. He noted that Garland follows his earlier nominations of Sonia Sotomayor, a Latina, and Elena Kagan, who is Jewish, to the high court.

 

 

 

Legalizes Gay Marriage

 

May 9, 2012, President Obama becomes the first president to endorse same-sex marriage. On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court made history ruling that same-sex couples can marry nationwide.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Immigration

 

President Obama made it his duty to fix as much of the broken system which is immigration. During his presidency, his office took actions to help secure the border, prioritize felons, not families, and hold undocumented immigrants accountable by requiring them to pass a criminal background check and pay their fair share of taxes, and modernizes the legal immigration system. His efforts to streamline immigration have been met with much opposition. Recently, the Supreme Court took steps to block Obama’s plan to spare millions of immigrants in the country illegally from deportation in a split ruling that heartened political foes who had accused him of overstepping his powers.

 

Selma Anniversary March

 

March 8, 2015, President Obama and the First Family joined thousands of Americans in Selma, Alabama for the 50th anniversary of the Selma March. The march was in honor of the men and women who gave up their lives in 1965 support of voting rights for African Americans.