{"id":1430,"date":"2021-05-20T15:20:26","date_gmt":"2021-05-20T15:20:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/?p=1430"},"modified":"2021-05-20T15:20:59","modified_gmt":"2021-05-20T15:20:59","slug":"women-dont-get-a-break-especially-black-women","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/2021\/05\/20\/women-dont-get-a-break-especially-black-women\/","title":{"rendered":"Women Don\u2019t Get a Break; Especially Black Women"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
Cheryl Smith<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Cheryl Smith, Publisher, Texas Metro News
\nGuest Column<\/p>\n

I hope you\u2019ve paid attention to the chatter following the \u201cbombshell\u201d announcement by Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who has decided not to seek another term this Fall. Full disclosure. I have mad love for the mayor. On a number of fronts our lives parallel: roots in Crawfordville, GA; attended Florida A&M University; journalism majors; pledged the Beta Alpha Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and, we are both mothers, but not by birth.<\/p>\n

So, some may want to stop reading now because \u201cCheryl is going to be biased\u201d and to those critics, I have two things to say: first if you think the majority of stuff you read and see does not have biases embedded within, well I say \u201cchile please\u201d and; secondly, the longer I live and the more I have to live with things like COVID, Trump and self-haters who tear their people down, I say, \u201cdon\u2019t come for me unless I send for you!\u201d<\/p>\n

In three words: I\u2019m not apologizing. In another eight words, I\u2019m sick of people tearing Black women down. We\u2019re too strong, weak, mean, angry, et al. I can\u2019t go on because I get sicker with every adjective. Black women catch hell from all sides and angles and then the ones who should be the most supportive are the biggest damned critics! OTHER WOMEN! No, let me call it like it is \u2014 OTHER BLACK WOMEN! Which brings me to my truth. <\/strong><\/p>\n

It was frustrating to hear and read comments as folks far and wide speculated about why Mayor Lance Bottoms would not seek another term. There was talk about President Biden, a large drugstore chain job, pursuit of another office, etc. Atlanta\u2019s rising crime rate, jail issues, investigations of previous administrations, and more were fodder for those needing something to say. There was also talk of her being \u201ctired, angry,\u201d and yes, \u201csalty.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In her video, the mayor talked about challenges and triumphs. She definitely had to face some situations that no one could have prepared her for because there\u2019s no one else alive who has encountered a pandemic of the magnitude of COVID-19 and it is so disingenuous to hear people try to reason that COVID -19 is not having an impact on everything.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been challenging for leadership and I know folks have to have something to do, so they speculate. It makes them feel good inside. But haven\u2019t you learned anything from the death of actor, humanitarian Chadwick Boseman. Da 5 Bloods<\/em> co-star Clarke Peters, following Mr. Boseman\u2019s death, said he recalled seeing his co-star being pampered on the set and thinking, \u201cmaybe the Black Panther thing went to his head.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr. Peters said he regretted those thoughts, because at the time he didn\u2019t know that Mr. Boseman had been battling colon cancer for the past four years. We don\u2019t know Mayor Lance Bottom\u2019s journey. What we do know is that she has some serious receipts and if you do the homework her legacy is intact because she has served in numerous capacities throughout her lifetime and prayerfully she has many more decades to go.<\/p>\n

Heck, if she wants to put her law degree to work to serve, joining the likes of Atty. Ben Crump; or if she wants to put that J-School degree to work, doors are open even right here at Texas Metro News; or if she wants to stay home with the children; teach at FAMU\u2019s Law School or she can go back to the bench as a judge; assume a leadership post with Delta Sigma Theta; or, become a college, preferably HBCU, president; it\u2019s her life, her journey.<\/p>\n

Get yourself some business, because when your time is all said and done, will it have been spent talking about what others have done or will you have done something worth celebrating or sharing in history books? Wow! Yes, I am here in Texas with enough issues of my own as I am sure I am going to be accosted by some unsuspecting person who comes for Fort Worth Mayoral Candidate Deborah Peoples as she faces a candidate in a runoff election where if elected she will become the Cowtown\u2019s first Black female mayor.<\/p>\n

Heck. First Black mayor! Unfortunately Ms. Peoples, is dealing with some of the same hateration where folks just have something negative to say. I\u2019m not saying don\u2019t criticize. What I am saying is \u201cknow what you are talking about.\u201d Bring receipts or shut up. If you want help living a life without regrets: you can begin by pledging to stop being so damned judgmental! Mayor Keisha is living her life. Live yours.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Cheryl Smith, Publisher, Texas Metro News Guest Column I hope you\u2019ve paid attention to the chatter following the \u201cbombshell\u201d announcement by Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who has decided not to seek another term this Fall. Full disclosure. I have mad love for the mayor. On a number of fronts our lives parallel: roots […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[],"wf_post_folders":[56],"class_list":["post-1430","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-editorial-opinion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1430","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1430"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1430\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1434,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1430\/revisions\/1434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1430"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1430"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1430"},{"taxonomy":"wf_post_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_post_folders?post=1430"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}