Positive Images for Inner City Youth

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Dr. Jaseon Outlaw, is on a mission…to actively change the way inner city youth are often times portrayed in the (mainstream) media, and instead highlight, present and focus on the positive images in the community! I commend his effort and action to create an organization designed to lift, enlighten and create change for the benefit of inner city youth…in his hometown of Oakland, CA!

Positive Images for Inner City Youth is organized exclusively for charitable and educational purposes.  Seeking 501(c)(3) non-profit organization status,  Positive Images seeks to promote and expose inner city youth to realistic and positive images of those representative of the community.  This is a direct response to the mainstream media’s decision to focus on inner city violence and the psychological implications that reality television has on defining the identities of inner city youth.

The vision for Positive Images is to expand the realm of career and lifestyle choices for inner city youth, by providing a barrage of positive imagery in the areas of career, education, arts, healthy living, and family.

Since “Positive Images” is a brand new endeavor, they need your help to grow the organization and spread the message of positive images! So, if you can, please strongly consider donating a few dollars to the organization http://positiveimagesoakland.org/

And — If you have not already mentored a young person in your community, please do so…

Time is Illmatic

Time Is Illmatic, a documentary film that explores Nas’ 1994 debut album, Illmatic. The film is set to debut at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 16 and will hit theaters shortly after. This documentary was Directed and Produced by a friend of mine, One9, and pretty much since I made his acquaintance he has spoken about this project.

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As a hip hop fan (the 90’s was my era), I can’t wait to watch the film and for my friend, I am thrilled and excited for him to finally get to share his hard work, dedication and passion for “Time Is Illmatic” with the world! Watch the trailer below…

Time Is Illmatic is a feature length documentary film that delves deep into the making of Nas’ 1994 debut album, Illmatic, and the social conditions that influenced its creation.

Twenty years after its release, Illmatic has become a hip-hop benchmark that encapsulates the socio-political outlook, enduring spirit, and collective angst of a generation of young black men searching for their voice in America.

Time is Illmatic tracks the musical legacy of the Jones family, handed down to Nas from his jazz musician father, Olu Dara. It also examines the social conditions and environmental influences that contributed to Nas’ worldview.

Along the way, Time Is Illmatic shows how Nas—with the support of his Queensbridge neighborhood crew, the loyalty of his younger brother Jabari “Jungle” Fret, and sacrifices of his mother, Ann Jones—overcame insurmountable odds to create the greatest work of music from hip-hop’s second golden era.

With support from Ford Foundation & Tribeca Film Insitute.

UNFILTERED – A DOCUMENTARY

UNFILTERED – A DOCUMENTARY premiered in March 2014 at Royal Holloway, University of London.

Sunkissed London presents Unfiltered, a mini-documentary that captures the distinct views of a group of globally-influenced women as they craft a life for themselves in the UK. Watch as the women speak openly about the highlights and challenges of leaving their homeland to create a life anew in London.

Filmed modestly in natural light to allow the genuine authenticity of each woman to shine through, Unfiltered will leave viewers with thought-provoking insight from a global community of women living and learning in London.

Executive Produced by: Kelliann McDonald, Gabriel McKenzie, Rachel Hart; Filmed by: Ejovi Agarin; Directed by: Kelliann McDonald; Edited by: Kelliann McDonald.

Click HERE to view the premiere photo album for Unfiltered.

Kudos to Kelliann who I’m sure worked tirelessly to get this project filmed and completed, GREAT JOB!

PhilanthroFest

Philanthrofest has made a huge impact on the South Florida community. The event, now in its third year, connects 1000’s of South Florida residents to valuable resources and services in the areas of Business & Economic Development, City/County Services, Civic Engagement/Community Improvement & Capacity Building, Cultural/Arts/Humanities, Educational, Environmental, Health/Human Services/Disease Prevention, Poverty/Welfare, Animal Related, Food/Agriculture/Nutrition, Recreation & Sports, and Youth Development & Services.The PhilanthroFest Community Engagement Festival features more than 100 South Florida non-profits and community agencies, art, music and dance entertainment, a kid’s zone, a community stage, healthy living section, and other family friendly attractions.

PhilanthroFest is FREE and open to the public with the goal of connecting volunteers and donors to not-for-profit organizations while creating an environment that promotes civic engagement, deepens community connections and sparks the philanthropic spirit of South Florida.

3 ways YOU can support PhilanthroFest TODAY:

GIVE

Donate to support the PhilanthroFest 2014 Festival and we will include your name on our donor recognition page and donor activation at the festival. DONATE VIA EVENTBRITE!
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/philanthrofest-2014-tickets-10897953071

VOTE

Cast your vote for PhilanthroFest in the KIND “Do The KIND Thing” Challenge: VOTE NOW! http://projects.kindsnacks.com/project/philanthrofest-2014-civic-engagement-festival/

SHARE

Share your #PhilanthroSMILE with us and be featured in our social media campaign: SHARE YOUR #PHILANTHROSMILE
http://www.philanthrofest.com/philanthrosmile

ANEIROS Vehicle Child Seat System

Repost from 53 Weeks

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My youngest son and I recently played the “starring” roles in a video created for a crowd funding campaign. The project seeking funding is a vehicle child safety seat called “ANEIROS.” All too often we hear about (preventable) tragedies where a child is mistakenly left behind in a hot car, and ends up losing their life as a result of vehicular heat stroke… Well, the ANIEROS is designed to save those children. It effectively integrates with a vehicles alarm and electrical wiring, giving it the capability to alert a parent or caretaker of a forgotten child, activating the cars alarm, triggering the air condition system to cool down an overheating child, and much more. The system can control and activate the car’s lights, ignition, air conditioner, alarm and door locks.

In the video, Isaiah and I “acted out” everyday scenes to show how the child seat system would work IF a parent or caregiver happened to forget a quiet or sleeping child in the car. It’s easy to think it would never happen to you…but I’m sure the families who have suffered this tragic fate, never imagined it happening to them either. The ANEIROS has a full US patent and its creator needs funding help, to further develop it and get it on the market, and start saving lives. So, I encourage you to please watch the video and visit the Indiegogo crowd funding page >> http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/aneiros-vehicle-child-seat-system If anything, please help spread the word to your social networks about this unique child seat system, if it can save just one child’s life, then it’s worth having on the market! The ANEIROS Indiegogo campaign runs now through April 18, 2014.

Connect with ANEIROS:

Indiegogo – http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/aneiros-vehicle-child-seat-system
FB – https://www.facebook.com/aneirosllc
Twitter – https://twitter.com/AneirosSafety

GNO: Justin Timberlake Concert

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I took a trip to the Bay Area this past weekend and it just so happened a group of my girlfriends were planning to all attend the Justin Timberlake concert for his current 20/20 Experience tour, in San Jose for a Girl’s Night Out (GNO)! It could also have been dubbed Mommy’s Night Out aka Mommy’s Gone Wild! haha! From pre-gaming at Mau’s place to catching the end of teh NFC Championship playoff at San Pedro Square…and the walk to SAP where the concert was being held…..FUN!!

At any rate, JT concert was fun…although I am so unfamiliar with his newer stuff, it really kinda made me feel “dated.” Good times for sure…thankful for the opportunity to get out with the ladies who’ve I’ve known for DECADES… Check out some of the photos from our night of shenanigan’s below.

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Raiderette LOW PAY Lawsuit – MY THOUGHTS!!!

Yes, I was an Oakland Raiderette…and am still a proud alumni! So news of a lawsuit by a current – on her way out former Raiderette from the most recent season has hit the media, and I couldn’t resist giving my 2 cents, okay it’s more like a lot of SENSE!! And this all comes on the heels of a new petition on behalf of ALL NFL Cheerleaders (completely unrelated) to get MORE PAY!

Check these links for background:

Busted Coverage – Cheerleader Sues Raiders for Withholding Pay & Not Paying Minimum Wage **this article contains a copy of the actual lawsuit paperwork filed**
ESPN – Cheerleader Files Suit Against Raiders
Pay Petition – for all NFL Teams Cheerleaders

But seriously, this is sparking so much debate among Raiderette Alumni and people in general, that I just had to put my thoughts down and share…so here goes…

YES…being a PRO TEAM Dancer/Cheerleader is a low paying job…I’ve been on 3 teams in the NBA and NFL. Do I believe the compensation should be more, yes, that would be nice to be paid for my time and talent, but here’s the reality (from my dancing days):

  • Cheerleaders (Raiders) are paid a per game stipend, practice is not paid and certain community/charity events may also be non paid. There are other paid appearance opportunities and you are always told the pay, location and summary of all events before you sign up. Other pro teams do receive a minimum wage for practice. You also receive tickets for the game as part of the compensation.
  • Team members sign a contract acknowledging and agreeing to the terms of pay, attendance, expectations (hair, makeup, nails, citizenship, etc…), duties, hours, and it is often a requirement for those selected to hold some type of job or be a student outside of the team.
  • Members are required to maintain and meet fitness/appearance requirements, all of which are discussed and agreed to…gym membership and stylist discounts are also given by sponsors. And while some of the ladies may take that as required weekly manicures or regular haircuts and color, those are optional expenses the ladies incur at their own discretion…again they AGREED to this.
  • Travel to appearances may sometimes be out of area, but if you sign up to drive 90 miles, I’m saying, don’t complain about it.
  • Fines are incurred when you are late for practice, games, events or if you forget required equipment, attire, etc… I have no issue with this, money is the best motivator to get people to stay on top of their game.

So my thing is, at auditions… candidates are WELL AWARE of what it takes to make the team and what the job entails, if selected among the HUNDREDS, sometimes THOUSANDS of hopefuls. I think the general public assumes it is a full time job and doesn’t realize the reality of what goes on behind the glamour – hours of practice, appearances and prep, but truth be told, after all the hard work, hours of sweat, all the tears shed, dedication and miles driven, what you take home doesn’t even cover gas costs! However, the majority (if not all) of the ladies in the pro ranks aren’t doing it “for the money.” What this job offers are priceless memories and friendships, unique experiences and once in a lifetime opportunities. As a pro team cheerleader I was able to network and meet countless top level executives from a wide range of industries, work alongside community leaders and influencers, travel and represent teams in the most elite sports leagues and given the platform to be part of game day entertainment in front of tens of thousands of adoring fans!

Honestly, this gets me worked up because I am protective of the “sisterhood.” I do see the point of being paid more and it would be well-deserved, but the reality is that being a Raiderette or part of any pro team is a privilege and honor, that is priceless!! IF this suit is successful, I think a few things could happen. It may be possible that teams do away with cheerleaders altogether or make it a volunteer job with NO stipend. However, since the cheerleaders are vital to branding and bring in millions of dollars for the team, maybe they shrink the squads down to only a dozen or less, to make them full-time staff.  But, let’s be honest, the hundreds of women that try out would do it for free, and these days the spots are so coveted that they enlist the coaching of people like me, through Going Pro Entertainment, to give them advice and pointers on how to make a team!

It will be interesting to see what happens. I worked full time outside of my position as a pro team cheerleader/dancer, with each team I was lucky enough to be a member of…and I would do it all over again for the same “low” pay.

Dubs All Day

I spent part of the 2nd day of 2014 at the HEAT vs. Warriors game at American Airlines Arena.

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It’s only once a year (NBA season) when my hometown, Bay Area, Golden State Warriors make it to South Florida, and after many years of struggles and heartache for fans, the team is finally competing (and beating) the competition! Plus, I have to make sure to show some “California Love” …so, it was exciting to see the team in action in Miami and to represent & support a team I grew up watching!

DUBS ALL DAY! I also got to sport a custom shirt design by Tony.psd in the Warriors Blue and Yellow – in fact there were lots of Golden State fans in the crowd Thursday night… so that was fun to see too!!

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And — post game my friend Maite and I were invited to check out “HYDE” – the ‘exclusive” court side club, which was nice because I hadn’t been down there yet when it was “club” time… and coincidentally I ran into my friend Jenn, who was visiting Miami from the Bay! Good times!

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