Hello World,

I’m back with my monthly roundup of blog posts and or magazine articles for black Christian women in Black History Month no less! Below is my Top 10 monthly roundup of blog posts and or magazine/newspaper articles for black Christian women for January, but you don’t have be a black Christian woman to to check them out. As usual, let me know if you like my list! Enjoy and share!

1. “Kamala Harris’ Husband Doug Emhoff puts her Career First as Second Gentleman, Breaking Gender Stereotypes” by Jessica Guynn & Charisse Jones

Excerpt: Emhoff and Harris met on a blind date in 2013 after being set up by a friend and married the following year. Harris became “Momala” to his two adult children, Cole and Ella from his first marriage. So what will the country’s first-ever second gentleman focus on during his time in Washington? “Everyone’s got an opinion on this, which is nice to hear,” Emhoff said during a September fundraiser. “Which means people are actually excited about the prospect of someone like me in this role – and I get that.” See more at: usatoday.com.

2. “Amanda Gorman Will be the First Poet to Ever Perform During a Super Bowl” by Salvador Hernandez

Excerpt: Amanda Gorman, the young poet who grabbed the national spotlight at President Joe Biden’s inauguration with her inspirational and powerful reading, will recite more of her work at Super Bowl LV.According to an NFL list of past performances during Super Bowl half-time and pre-game shows, she will be the first poet ever to perform at the event, which is one of the most watched broadcasts in television. See more at: buzzfeednews.com.

3. “Inaugural Poet Amanda Gorman Signs With IMG Models” by Chris Gardner

Excerpt: The 22-year-old Los Angeles native, who recited her original work “The Hill We Climb” on Jan. 20 and instantly became the breakout star of the inauguration ceremony as the world looked on, now has a team of reps that includes Writers House, WME and the law firm Gang, Tyre, Ramer, Brown and Passman. As Gorman’s partner in the fashion and beauty industries, IMG Models will focus on building her profile through brand endorsements and editorial opportunities. See more at: hollywoodreporter.com.

4. “New CEO on Return of Ebony, JET: ‘I Want my People Back’” by DeMicia Inman

Excerpt: “This is personal for me,” said Michele Ghee who has been hired to relaunch a new era for the Black legacy magazines. Former NBA player and entrepreneur Ulysses “Junior” Bridgeman purchased Ebony and Jet magazine last month and is ready to bring the publications into a new era. Now, Michele Ghee has been tapped as CEO to work with the Bridgeman family and in a new interview, she detailed her desire to get to work. See more at news.yahoo.com.

5. “Walgreens Taps Starbucks Operating Chief Roz Brewer as its Next CEO” by Amelia Lucas, Melissa Repko, Marc Gilbert & Christina Cheddar Berk

Excerpt: Starbucks Chief Operating Officer Rosalind Brewer will replace Stefano Pessina as CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance, the drugstore chain confirmed in a statement Tuesday evening. Starbucks had announced Brewer’s departure earlier in the day, saying she is leaving at the end of February for a CEO position at an undisclosed publicly traded company. As CEO of Walgreens, Brewer will be the only Black woman leading a Fortune 500 company. See more at: cnbc.com.

6. “Biden Moving Forward With Placing Harriet Tubman on the $20 Bill” by Shannon Pettypiece

Excerpt: President Joe Biden will move forward with a plan announced five years ago and stalled by the Trump administration to place abolitionist Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill. “The Treasury Department is taking steps to resume efforts to put Harriet Tubman on the front of the new $20 notes,” said White House press secretary Jen Psaki. She said it is important that the country’s money “reflect the history and diversity of our country, and Harriet Tubman’s image gracing the new $20 note would certainly reflect that.” See more at: nbcnews.com.

7. “Celebrate MLK Day by Honoring the Women who Worked Alongside Dr. King” by Victoria Uwumarogie

Excerpt: Dorothy Cotton: A leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Dorothy Cotton got her start in activism after joining a church in Virginia and working alongside Wyatt T. Walker, who was then the regional head of the NAACP and would go on to be the chief of staff for Dr. King. Cotton rose to prominence after training young people to picket for the civil rights movement. After Dr. King spoke at her church and met Cotton, he encouraged her to move to Atlanta to help form the SCLC. Her biggest contribution would be the Citizen Education Program, where she help thousands of Black men and women learn the requirements for voter registration, and help them get over efforts to suppress the Black vote. This was possible by teaching reading and writing to help people pass literacy tests. A collaborator of Dr. King’s, she was with him in Norway when he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. See more at madamenoire.com

8. “Woman Celebrates 105 Years of Life, Reflects on Marching with MLK” by Ashley Gooden

Excerpt: “Well I wanted to be right. Just right, like Martin Luther King was. Yeah, he was a real Christian man,” she says. Being right has gotten her this far. “We just couldn’t let 105 years go by and not do anything. Really it just turned out to be way more than we’d ever expected,” says Robin Dial, Strait’s granddaughter. She loves having visitors, but also loves having her independence. Her secret to 105: serving God and serving others. “Today it’s paying off. People is so nice to me. I don’t mean just this day, everyday. They good to me,” she says with a smile. See more at: wpde.com.

9. “Janice Johnston Becomes the First Black Woman Executive Producer for ABC’s ’20/20′” by Shanique Yates

Excerpt: ABC’s “20/20” just named Janice Johnston as its newest executive producer making her the first Black woman to hold the title, reports The Root. No stranger to the network, Johnston got her start as a network associate, producing segments for “World News Now” and “World News Tonight with Peter Jennings.” She also served as supervising producer of “Good Morning America” for a decade. See more at: afrotech.com.

10. “Taiwo Agbona, the 23-year-old Medical Laboratory Scientist Ruling in Nigeria” by Theodora Aidoo

Excerpt: Agbona was born in the royal family, headed by her father, Oba J.B Agbona, Orimoro 11th, the late king of Aaye. She is the first daughter of the king. The death of her father has had a lasting mark on the fate of the young princess, who probably never imagined she’ll ever be a ruler. “The chiefs consulted the oracle and told me that I was the chosen one and that I was worthy to be enthroned”, she told BBC. The 23-year-old student said she requested the chiefs to give her three weeks to decide to be the regent.She said for as long as she sits on the throne, she is forbidden to get pregnant or marry. However, she enjoys ruling her people. See more at: face2faceafrica.com.

If you know of any black Christian women bloggers and or writers, please e-mail me at jacqueline@afterthealtarcall.com as I’m always interested in expanding my community of black Christian women blog, magazines and websites. As I noted before, while this is a roundup of interesting blog posts and or magazine and newspaper articles for black Christian women, you don’t have to be one to appreciate these pieces  .

Any thoughts?

The post The Top 10 Blog Posts and or Magazine Articles for Black Christian Women in January 2021… appeared first on After the Altar Call.

Hello World,

The need for unity in this country is more necessary now than ever before. The National Baptist Convention has aligned with producers, Terk Entertainment Group and OCTET Productions, to produce “The 2021 Inaugural Gospel Celebration: An Evening of Inspiration and Unity.” The two-hour virtual event features performances from inspirational music artists to celebrate the January 2021 Inauguration of President-Elect Joe Biden and Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris, who are special invited guests of course. The celebration lends a voice of hope, unity and healing to the world.

Throughout the event, a number of the nation’s top gospel artists such as Shirley Caesar, Fred Hammond, Marvin Sapp, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Dietrick Haddon, Jonathan McReynolds, Leandria Johnson, Tye Tribbett, Koryn Hawthorne, Bryan Popin, Jokia, JJ Hairston, Todd Dulaney, Titus Showers, and Spencer Taylor and the Highway QCs in addition to notable celebrities such as Anthony Anderson, Taraji P. Henson, Morris Chestnut and Lamman Rucker (formerly Jacob Greenleaf!) will join together for a cohesive, COVID-compliant celebration to give viewers a semblance of healing and optimism during this time of crisis.

This necessary celebration will be shown domestically and internationally. This event will also serve as a fundraising effort, benefiting The National Baptist Convention, “I’m In”, a strategic initiative aimed at narrowing the disparity in healthcare in the African American community that has been highlighted during the current pandemic. For more information about the organization, go to https://nbcimin.com. In this new season, we are clear that progress must be made. By standing united together, we’re stronger!

To buy tickets, click HERE.

Also, click HERE to learn more about the Rev. Dr. Silvester S. Beaman, pastor of Bethel AME Church in Wilmington, Delaware, who will be delivering the the inauguration benediction.

Any thoughts?

The post Tune Into the 2021 Inaugural Gospel Celebration: An Evening of Inspiration and Unity Tomorrow at 8 p.m. appeared first on After the Altar Call.

(Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in January 2009, and since I won’t be able to make the inauguration of President Obama this time around, I wanted to remind you and me of the first time our nation’s first black president was inaugurated….oh the joy and wonder of it all…and it’s happening again…Glory to God!)

Hello World!!!

I know the hearts of the single ladies are palpitating as they read this post…Let me stop the madness right now! No, this is not a post about me meeting “The One” per se. But this is a post about the wedding of sorts that took place less than a week ago on Jan. 20.

As you may have guessed, yes, I am referring to the swearing in of our 44th president, Barack H. Obama.  And by the grace of God, I was among that number that bombarded the mall to nearly witness the miracle. (By nearly, I mean I was there but I saw the ceremony via a JumboTron.) While I was in our nation’s capital, I was able to take part in many events. Thanks to the hook up of my girl, I, I was able to attend the “Refresh The World” Symposium at Howard University. Movie director Spike Lee was one of the sponsors, along with Pepsi, of the event.  It was off the chain, but more about that later!!!

Rev. Jesse Jackson was one of the panelists in the “Refreshing Black America – The Impact of Barack Obama” discussion.  CNN commentator Roland Martin served as the moderator for this discussion. The other panelists were Princeton University professor Dr. Cornel West, National Action Network President Rev. Al Sharpton, CNN contributor and political analyst Donna Brazile, “Washington Times” deputy editorial director Tara Wall and CNN contributor and political analyst Amy Holmes. I told you it was off the chain, but again, more about that later…

But back to Rev. Jackson. He mentioned that the whole rise of President Obama was similar to a great romance. It started off with the introduction. For many of us, that was Obama’s primary win in Iowa although I do remember his wonderful speech at the Democratic National Convention years earlier. The election cycle was the courtship phase. His election in November was Obama’s proposal to us, and we happily said, “Yes!” or rather, “Yes, we can!” And the inauguration activities represent a grand wedding celebration.  When he offered that analogy, it clicked! Yes, that’s exactly what it felt like in DC last week. It felt like we were all basking in love as we braved the bone-chilling temperatures (at one point, me and my girls had to walk a few blocks from a Metro station to our hotel one night…It was so cold I had to tell myself that  if the ancestors braved the Middle Passage, surely I could make it although the wind and cold were steadily turning my hands into frostbitten claws)  and overwhelming crowds to usher in history.

The morning of the inauguration at approximately 6 a.m. , throngs of people were nearly shutting down the Metro station as we began our trek to the mall. As we made our way through the station, a voice that sounded like Miss Sophia  from V-103 in Atlanta greeted us over the Metro PA system.  “Good Morning everybody,” the voice said. “Obama not getting up for five more hours so y’all be patient and be courteous. We want y’all to be patient, courteous and smile.” Of course, everyone laughed, and whatever tension was in the air melted even as the frigid air greeted us as we rode the escalator up to exit the station.

I imagine that God was pleased as people of all races didn’t mind bumping up against one another to show support for our new president. I saw as many white people as I saw black people. I saw Indians and Asians. I saw the very young and the very old. I saw people who were wheelchair bound. I heard accents from across the world. While at the mall, I got separated from my friends and so for many hours, I was alone among the million. As I waited for the hours to pass in the cold before the inauguration ceremony began, I spotted a nearly inconsolable little boy to my right.  I know he was crying because it was so cold. His tears probably froze on his little face.  I wanted to cry too. It was that cold.  I mean at one point, I thought about fainting right there…I thought maybe if I lost consciousness, I couldn’t feel the cold. I consoled myself by saying, “this is for Barack” and other similar statements. Surely, this is what being in love feels like…you find yourself doing things you wouldn’t ordinarily do to show your support and love.  Please believe this Island girl wouldn’t brave the cold for just any ole body.

And did I mention that I was drugged up on TheraFlu and ibuprofen the whole time? Yes, I was feverish the whole week. But every morning I was there, I drug my body out of bed, wore thermal underwear for the first time along with other layers of clothing, took some swigs of TheraFlu, popped some pills and went on my way.  (Actually, a whole week later, I’m still not quite right so y’all pray for me.)

Now, I know Barack ain’t the Savior! Dr. Cornel West made sure that everyone in the symposium knew that with his eloquent quips and quotes. One of my favorite quotes was when he said Obama has been able to “neutralize white anxiety while capitalize on black solidarity.”  West also warned us not to confuse “the cross with the flag.” Of course since the symposium was held on MLK day, he mentioned that at the time of his death, Dr. King had the same approval rating as Bush had at the end of his presidency. I believe West was referring to King’s approval rating among blacks. As you probably know, King was waging a war on poverty when he was assassinated meanwhile blacks had gotten well-adjusted to being well-adjusted, said West. I think he was saying that if Obama really intends to enact true change, his decisions will not please everybody…y’all know how the saying goes. ( “You can’t please everybody all of the time.”)

I was especially pleased with how Donna Brazile made sure to mention that Obama didn’t get to the presidency all by his lonesome. She gratuitously “big upped” Rev. Jackson for paving the path with his presidential campaigns in 1984 and 1988.  I so love it when we black women publicly lavish praise on our black men. It’s not done enough.  In fact, her words showed a generosity of spirit that officially made me a fan of hers. My favorite moment of the symposium was at the end when the song “Happy Birthday”  by Stevie Wonder blared throughout the auditorium. Rather than leave the auditorium peacefully, Dr. West, in his too tight pants, began shakin’ it fast. Donna Brazile, who reminded me of myself at that moment, got up and began dancing on his behind – not closely of course- while shaking a white handkerchief in the air. Roland Martin, an Alpha man, began doing steps. And of course, the audience, including me, began dancing in the aisles.  I felt the love. I felt the love. I felt the love.

I like to think that Jesus Christ was a romantic too. After all, his first miracle was performed at a wedding. Hopefully, God will bless our union with President Obama. And so now it feels like we’re honeymooning…Although, I’ve never been married, I’ve been told that the honeymoon doesn’t last forever. At some point, real life sets in…but for right now, I’m just happy that Obama is “The One.”

Any thoughts?

For those of you who were there, please share your thoughts. I couldn’t possibly share everything…

The post A Wedding…He’s the One…(Repost) appeared first on After the Altar Call.