Instagram evolved from a glossy photo sharing app into a hilariously messy playground filled with attention-thirsty weirdos, heartless savages and the funniest people on the internet.
Hit the flip for the funniest people on Instagram.
Test your wildlife knowledge and see if you can name these 10 African predators!
It’s been difficult to cope with what happened in Charleston on Wednesday night. My emotions have been a mix of sadness, rage, hopelessness and fear. Mostly, I’ve been just absorbing the news and dealing with the trauma of yet more Black lives taken away in America. I’ve watched the victims get eulogized by just about every outlet imaginable and – while their lost lives are obviously tragic and something that should be remembered – something about their memorials have disturbed me.
There seems to be a slight shift in rhetoric to insinuate that these nine victims of the Charleston Terrorist Attack are more innocent than other Black lives lost. And that’s simply not the case. The victims in Charleston are not victims of some anomalous instance of violence and irrational rampaging. They’re victims who hold the same amount of innocence as countless other Black men and women killed by police in this country. The Charleston victims are innocent bystanders caught in the line of racist gunfire. They’ve been rightfully characterized as nine Black men and women who were simply minding their own businesses in a place of worship. Then they were gunned down. They’re victims of racism.
But Trayvon Martin was murdered while minding his business and buying Skittles. Freddie Gray was murdered while merely riding his bike. And Tamir Rice was just playing in the park.
And then there’s Aiyana Jones. What would have happened if Aiyana Jones were in that Charleston church during the massacre? After all, Aiyana Jones was also minding her business, sleeping on a couch at her home when terrorists bombed her living room and murdered her – forcing her family to sit in a pool of her blood. But since Aiyana was killed by police, her death isn’t eulogized. She isn’t treated like a victim of a violent rampage.
Conversely, if Aiyana Jones were in that church when a “lone gunman” killed her, America would treat her death as a tragedy. Conversely, if a police officer had gone into that church and opened fire, America would be wondering what Reverend Pinckney did to deserve being shot. His past would be brought up as an excuse for his death.
I’m disheartened by the way America is differentiating the people killed in the Charleston church from the hundreds of Black boys and girls murdered by police officers and racists across the country. Myra Thompson, who was murdered in Charleston, is just as much a victim as Tamir Rice was. The same thing that killed the Charleston Nine is the same thing that killed Mike Brown: fear of Blackness, hatred of Black America and a desire to see Black men and women die in this country.
When the Charleston Murderer – no, I’m not saying his name – walked into the church and said, “you’ve raped our women, and you are taking over the country … I have to do what I have to do,” he’s stating out the loud that same motive that compels a police officer to open fire on a 12-year-old boy in the park. Or the same fear that makes George Zimmerman follow a Black teen to see what trouble he’s up to. “I have to do what I have to do” is basically the same justification as “I was being attacked” or “I was acting in self-defense.”
The Charleston victims are not outliers of the #BlackLivesMatter movement – killed by a happenstance shooting spree. They’re victims of the racist construct that is America. The nine victims of the Charleston massacre are not exceptions to the 500 or so Black people killed by police in America. Their deaths are extensions of that racism.
South Carolina will hang flags at half-staff for nine days in response to the lives lost as part of the massacre. I hope that the state, and the rest of the country, are prepared to keep flags at half-staff for longer because racism in America is likely to claim more Black lives before those nine days are up.
NBA superstar LeBron James has it all: beautiful family, mega-success and zillions in the bank–Well, almost everything, except a trustworthy hairline and four more Championship rings (that he tragically lost) as the most beloved/slandered athlete of his generation.
Hit the flip for must-see comments on Bron-Bron’s IG.
As black folks, many of us are still grieving the loss of 9 lives at the hands of a racist, terrorist, murderer inside the holy confines of Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston, South Carolina.
While much ado has been made about the shooter and his background, we choose to recognize those who died at his hands.
Flip the page to get some info on those who are truly victims of a sad and senseless crime.
Images via Facebook/AP/Twitter
Wale and The Dream hosted Gold Room Nightclub in Atlanta for the official Birthday Bash kickoff. The two turnt up on the mic in front a packed house and an even more packed section. This event was brought to you by AGentertainment and for more exclusive photos, hit the flip!
Photo Credit: Prince Williams/ATLPics.net
Tell a friend to tell a friend that @mrshutupandtrain has your back!!! The #TotalFit Challenge starts soon … 6.21.15 Who is READY??Signup today and then tag your whole friend list!! Reserve your spot and then begin to get your mind right!!! www.totalfitgroup.com/challengeThe plan is to get 1 Million people worldwide signed up for the Free Total Fit Challenge! The challenge is 100% free we just ask that you help us get the world healthy by sharing the videos and links w/ fam and friends on Facebook, instagram, twitter, pinterest etc…1⃣ follow @mrshutupandtrain & Sign Up(link in his bio)2⃣ #Repost this Graphic on your social media & let people know you are participating in the #TotalFit Challenge (more people = more prizes)3⃣ #tag friends, family and coworkers…
Family members of the nine men and women gunned down in a historically black church by a gunman who allegedly wanted to start a “race war” spoke directly to the 21-year-old Friday accused of killing their loved ones, saying they forgive him.
PYNK Magazine hosted a #PYNKPowerDinner honoring singer/actress Brandy, presented by Creme Of Nature. The event was filled with great music, good food catered from Omar’s Kitchen, and good vibes from the VIP guests in attendance. The dinner was held at Harlem Haberdashery in NYC.
Before the delicious appetizers and entrees were served, memories and kind remarks were shared amongst the guests about the Chicago star. PYNK founders Mecca Moore and Meeka Claxton reminisced on their first cover shoot with Brandy, emphasizing on how humble she was then and continues to be now. How sweet! For more photos see below!
Rasheeda recently opened the doors to a new boutique in Atlanta alongside local celebs.
The “Love & Hip Hop ATL” star held a grand opening celebration for her Pressed boutique at the city’s posh Phipps Plaza…
and brought out the likes of Toya Wright, Kandi Burruss and Phaedra Parks.
as well as Keri Hilson.
You liiiiiiiike????
FreddyO
Hit the flip for more photos from Rasheeda’s store opening.
Congratulations are in order for everyone’s favorite “Basketball Wife!” Draya Michele and Orlando Scandrick’s relationship has been on-again, off-again for the past year — with the duo announcing their latest breakup only one month ago.
Well, they must have patched things up at some point over the last 30 days, because Draya just took to Instagram to let her followers know that Orlando finally hopped down on one knee and asked to make an honest woman out of her yesterday:
Good for these two! Hopefully Draya and Orlando can make it work for good now. They make a cute family, right?
Hit the flip for more pics of the happy couple…
Now you see them, now you don’t. Get the lowdown on where to see lions and other big cats on safari in Kenya.
Looks like baby Titan is getting big… Kelly Rowland brought her baby boy with her to get some work done at the studio. Looks like he’s sporting a new hairdo too…
He didn’t have it two weeks ago when the singer and her hubby made this video:
Check out more photos below:
SplashNews
Via RawStory:
During a discussion about mass shootings in the United States, Fox News host Martha MacCallum said the country’s cultural diversity may be a contributing factor to their high frequency.
The discussion took place on today’s broadcast of the Fox News program, America’s Newsroom with guests Marjorie Clifton, former Obama campaign consultant, and journalist Mary Katherine Ham talking about often-cited factors like mental health and gun control laws.
At the 3:40 mark in video procured by Media Matters, after discussing shootings in Norway and the Czech Republic, MacCallum makes the remark.
“Now it may be statistically, Mary Katherine, that it has happened here more,” she says. “That may be because of the kind of society we are. We have a lot of different cultures living here together. We’re a very unique society and that’s a very wonderful thing, in large part. But that may be a contributing factor here.”
SMH. So it’s Black folks’ fault for living too close to white people? So by her logic, maintaining segregation would have just kept everything calm and peaceful…since that worked SO WELL the first time around. SMH.
Awwww, poor things…SMH
Via NYDailyNews
The father of Dylann Roof is afraid for his life and telling cops he is the victim of unending threatening phone calls in the wake of his son’s arrest for the execution of nine black churchgoers.
Franklin Roof called cops to his Columbia, S.C., home at noon Friday, according to police records.
“The victim states that individuals claiming to be with the Black Panther Party have called several times and left messages stating, ‘I’m coming to see you real soon, buddy boy,'” records say.
“The victim states that another individual claiming to be from the Nation of Islam called and stated that they wanted to interview him and make sure his whole family was there. The victim states he believes that these phone calls are implied threats.”
On Friday, the same day Franklin Roof told cops he was being threatened, he released a statement to the media expressing “shock, grief and disbelief” over his son’s arrest for the Wednesday massacre at a bible study group at the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston.
Save the “shock, grief and disbelief”, you d-bags bought him the cotdamn gun in the first place.
Image via YouTube
Back again with another must-see collection of hilarious Vines for your weekend pleasure.
Hit the flip for the funniest Vines of the week.
Possibly the only thing more brutal than getting beaten with a baseball bat…would have to be calling the cops on yourself so they can come arrest you after you’ve already been beaten with a baseball bat. Via The Toronto Sun:
A Saskatoon man says when he heard his female neighbour being attacked, he grabbed his baseball bat and headed next door.
Jean-Pierre Veilleux was getting himself and his kids ready for the day when he heard a loud noise Friday morning and ran to his neighbour’s place and saw a man.
“I hit him with my baseball bat just to kind of subdue him and then we kind of had words back and forth, I hit him a couple more times and pretty much chased him out of the house,” Veilleux said.
He chased the man down the back alley and hit him again before pinning him to the ground.
“He was just begging ‘please don’t hit me’ and I said ‘take out your cellphone and call the cops right now buddy. You’re going to jail,'” said Veilleux, who held the man until police arrived.
Unbeknownst to Veilleux during this time, his neighbour had been stabbed multiple times by the man with a pair of scissors. She and the man were taken taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Saskatoon police are still investigating but say the woman and man know each other and this was not a random act.
SMH! That lady should be thankful to have such a concerned neighbor…
Sometimes when you fall off, you just have to dust yourself off and try again. Other times though, you have to know when to let it go and walk away with some shred of dignity. Here we’ve compiled a list of celebs who have tried to make a comeback and failed miserably. Flip on over to see which celebs made our list.
Riley Curry had another moment in the spotlight Friday, joining dad Stephen Curry during the NBA Championship parade in Oakland. She even briefly graced the mic to say “Way” when her dad addressed the crowd of 500,000 fans.
Hit the flip for more precious photos from Riley’s day at the parade.
APImages/Instagram
Don’t call it a comeback for Lauryn…
Via Complex
Just days after her cover of “Feeling Good” added a fair amount of fuel to the hype fire surrounding both the forthcoming Nina Simone tribute album entitled Nina Revisited: A Tribute to Nina Simone and the Netflix documentary What Happened, Miss Simone?, Lauryn Hill is teasing even more Simone-inspired new music. Though Hill calls the tease a “snippet,” the clip’s 2:30 length gives a much less nuanced hint of the full track’s tone than the average 15 or 30-second teaser.
“I’ve Got Life” is a raw and welcomed interpolation of Simone’s 1968 single “Ain’t Got No, I Got Life, ” with Hill’s vocal energy pulling the timely interpretation tastefully into the modern age.
Are you over L-Boogie and all her shenanigans or are you eagerly anticipating new tunes from the former Fugee?
Image via WireImage
