“Growing up, there was just a negative connotation with being a single mom," says Candase Chambers, "and now that I am one, I'm not that stereotype. I feel like I have to work hard to dispel the stereotype for myself, because when you meet new people the first thing people do is look at your ring finger and see you aren't married."
Bella Vista Principal Felicia Phillips addressed the crowd. “Most of our 5th grade students last year revealed that while most of them felt safe at school, far fewer of them felt safe outside of school. Crime and violence not only impact our students' physical and emotional safety, but it can impact their success as learners. Yet we all choose to continue to work here because we feel connected to the community and are willing to partner with the community to make it safer for everyone.”
“I’m an evangelist and a motivational speaker. I can read people. I could see that you were a guarded person when you asked if you could talk with me.” I couldn’t disagree with her. “You’re passive-aggressive. Writing down what people say. I used to be passive, too. I can show you how to use aggression. Give me three hours, I can have you rewired.” Just three hours? I asked Ward if she could give me a weave, and joked that I’d come in for one and she could straighten me out then. She laughed. “Give me three hours. I’m gonna call you! I’m serious!"
Mary misses her friend who recently died, a retired fireman who lived at end of block. She was kind of sweet on him, but it never went anywhere. The man never told his age, and she never understood the point of that because he looked like a senior citizen. “He wasn't going to fool anyone,” she said.
To me, Pride has always been a celebration of our status as sexual outsiders. By being outrageous, gender-fluid, kinky, and obscene, we hoped to change society and make it more accepting of gender and sexual variance - work that is far from over. Now more than ever, we need to shock, disgust, inspire, and teach. Including within our own community. The LGBT rights movement is now equated with gay marriage, the ultimate goal being acceptance of our relationships as "normal." I fear that with each victory, the LGBT movement will loose a little more of its edge and increasingly turn against those that fall outside the new norm.
If good food, exercise, and low stress are keys to fitness and beating back obesity, then I know lots of communities that are in big trouble. In order for us to even move the needle on this obesity issue, we have to consider so much more than what people or eating and how physically active they are. Bear in mind why people are eating what they eat, and why they aren't being as physically active as they would like to be.
