People share supposed racist photo on Twitter, then the “Victim’s” mom set the record straight

By
Nicole
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The tragedy in Santa Fe deeply touched the nation. 10 innocent people lost their lives and 13 were injured. That was a devastating news that shattered the nation.

The students, the employees of the High School and the first responders were invited to the Game 5 of the Rockets Western Conference Finals.

A group of nine girls were supposed to sing during this event. Prior to the singing, the girls observed a moment of silence, a situation that caused people react in totally different way.

Many pictures were taken of this moment, but one sparked a major controversy.

The photo that caused such a controversy features all girls holding hand, except one. The one who isn’t holding hands is the African-American girl. People immediately applied racism to this act and they started thinking the white girls are discriminating the black girl.

One comment said:

“Who the white girls?? Yeah, they did have one job and refused to hold the black chicks hand…their racisms showing BIG TIME.”

Another person wrote:

“Y’all see 2nd girl from the right smirking while not holding her hand.. yeah OK”

A third one said:

“But why is nobody holding the black girl’s hand?”

Such kind of comments were not acceptable by the girl’s mother.

The mother wanted to make the things clear, so she wrote:

“The ‘black girl’ is my daughter. It’s people like you that keep the race crap stirred up. You just look for ways to make things about race. These girls are her friends. You have no idea what you are talking about so you just need to shut up.”

Her idea was to point out that people tend to see negative things where there are none.

“My daughter didn’t want to cry before she had to sing and holding hands would have caused her to start crying that’s the story nothing about race”, she said.

However, the mother’s efforts gave no results. People even asked Lynda to provide evidence that she is the girl’s mother. Having in mind the fact that the girl’s parents are white, the situation got even worse. Lynda indeed had the birth certificate of the girl, but she didn’t want to share such a personal thing. Instead, Lynda posted some photos of the family. Nicole is between her father and her mother.

Lynda wrote:

“I have a birth certificate which you will not be seeing. This is us at senior parent night for the band.”

Because the situation developed into something unwanted, the Nicole and Lynda spoke together in an interview in order to settle the things out.

Nicole Janice told:

“It’s very disappointing that people are going to take a race issue out of a picture with nine grieving girls in it. I grieve in my own different way. I don’t like to be touched. When we had that moment of silence, I didn’t want to grab anyone’s hands because I didn’t want to break down before we sang [the National Anthem].”

Nicole was shocked and couldn’t believe her eyes when she read the comments. She adds that people invented a problem out of nothing.

“When Nicole came out of her room Saturday morning, she was upset that they had turned this into a race thing because she knew what was real. To make something so simple into a race issue was just absolutely ludicrous.” – says her mother.

Lynda and Nicole are happy to settle the things out. Racism is not the thing that people should play around with. The terrible outcome of such experimenting can be very serious.

Nevertheless, the family was criticized for nothing. Later, it was concluded that the photo was photoshopped and Nicole was not the only girl who wasn’t holding hands.

While discussing racism, one person asked Lynda :

“I wonder how you explain racism to her in all your privilege?”

Lynda replied:

“I let her read these posts. Y’all are doing a damn good job.”

Cab driver prevents elderly woman from losing $2,000 in new scam – Here’s what to be aware of

By
Monica Pop
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If you were lucky enough to grow up with your grandparents by your side, you know the meaning of the purest form of love. There is really nothing these people wouldn’t do for the well-being of their grandchildren. From spoiling them rotten while they are little kids, to taking them to the park, and being supportive all the way, grandmas and grandpas are simply the best.

Actually, this is something everyone is pretty much aware of, even fraudsters and conmen who would do anything to take advantage of the affection these loving people feel for their grandkids.

The so-called ‘grandparents scams’ are becoming popular among criminals who trick the vulnerable individuals into thinking how their granddaughter or grandson are done for and in need of urgent financial aid.

They do this scam by pretending to be lawyers, doctors, and even police officers. The grandparents fall for this easily believing they are getting their loved ones out of trouble.

The first thing the criminals do is come up with excuses of why would they need the money for. Sometimes it’s a sudden surgery, costs for lawyers, or paying for a driving ticket. After they present this well-planned stories, they ask the grandparents to send them the money, which most are willing to do.

This operation isn’t as simple as it sounds. The scammers spend certain amount of time learning about both the victim and their family members. They usually do this by going through the grandchildren’s social networking sites accounts trying to exploit the relationship they have with their grandparents.

Since the fictional situations and problems the scammers present the victims with are sort of embarrassing and personal, the grandparents don’t share them with the rest of the family members or their friends. They believe they’ve been loyal, without being aware they are not actually helping anyone.

The latest victim of this sort of scam was an 87-year-old lady from Quincy.

The lady was already tricked into spending around $4,000 on gift cards that she sent to the criminals. They, however, realized she was an easy target and decided they wanted more money. She agreed on sending them Walmart gift cards that would cost additional $2,000. As she headed to the store, she shared this story with the taxi driver who suspected this elderly woman had been set up.

Richard Spencer, the yellow cab driver, didn’t fall for this strange story and knew the lady had been scammed.

“I said excuse me ma’am, but that is not your grandson,” the cab driver said. “It’s someone posing.”

She told Spencer how someone called her earlier that day saying how her grandson was involved in a car accident that he caused and now he needed gift cards he would use to pay in order to be spared jail time.

“I don’t think so lady,” Richard said to her. “I think you’re getting scammed. I heard this before, you know.”

The trip to Walmart turned into one to the nearest police station.

“I said, no, no we’re not going to Walmart. I’m calling the Quincy Police,” he later said to WBZ-TV. “I said I believe your being scammed and we’re going to try to save you some money.”

It turned out Spencer was right. This grandma was a victim of a scam.

The police, however, says catching these criminals is not easy since they usually operate out of the U.S.

If it wasn’t for this quick-thinking taxi driver, the lady would lose even more money.

“I think it’s one of the scummiest crimes you can do,” the cab driver concluded. “It just goes to show what scumbags they are, they’re too lazy to go out and steal like a real criminal, they go scam people on the phone.”

Everyone praises Spencer’s action. He knew something was wrong and trusted his intuition.

“Thank you Mr. Spencer for caring. You could have chosen to remain silent and ignore the signs. But you didn’t. And for that we say THANK YOU” the police department wrote on their Facebook page.

While Spencer was helping his passenger that day, he got a traffic ticket. But we hope the officers would let him out of the hook because of his kind deed.

Ireland’s Got Talent judges and audience stunned by medical student

By
Nicole
-

February 2 marked  the beginning of the second season of Ireland’s Got a Talent. With the same format, Virgin Media One once again began entertaining the audience and the loyal fans. As expected, the judges remain the same. Louis Walsh, Michelle Visage, Denise van Outen and Jason Byrne will try to find out the future most talented Irish performer.

Ireland’s Got a Talent keeps the same format as last year. The first steps that are done are the open auditions held in the major cities across Ireland. If the contestants meet the criteria of the show, they move on to the Judge’s Auditions. This second part of the auditions includes singing in front of a big audience. The major part of the show are the live rounds. In order to move on and be part of the semi-finals, the contestants have to win the majority of the judges.

Tara Jamieson, born in Canada, was one of the contestants in the show. She stepped on the stage and in front of the crowd and the judges she started singing ‘One and Only’ by Adele. The amazed and pleasantly shocked faces of the judges say it all.

Tara is a medical student at the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin. Her passion for the medicine, particularly paediatrics,  is not the only passion she has. Her love for the music is equally the same and because of that she is an alumnus of Berklee College of Music. These two totally different areas are reason for the jokes that are told during her performance. To this, Michelle Visage adds: “[she will] sing to kids while she gives them a shot”.


She gave us an impression of a very relaxed girl who loves being on stage. And she knows how to perform on stage very well. The Judges and Tara’s jokes about the herself prove that the girl is not that stressed, which is a good sign. These jokes were just the introduction to her performance, and man, she performed amazingly.

The semi-final rounds are what all contestant dream about. To be part  of that, one has to pass through a process of selection, done in two ways: phone votes and judges’ votes. Each semi-final round selects two winners, ready to face each other in the final round.

The public voting is the only factor that determines Ireland’s Got a Talent winner. Besides the nation-wide fame, the winner also gets € 50.000. The winner even gets her/ his own prime-time Christmas TV special. No wonder why so many contestants try to win the show.

Play the video and enjoy with this beautiful performance!

Granny and Steve Harvey have audience roaring with dance moves

By
Nicole
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Steve Harvey – you just can’t miss that man on TV. His dedication to entertain us and keep us laughing resulted with numerous shows. Whether it is on the Internet or on TV, it is always easy to find Steve’s shows. For years he has been making the nation laugh and he still continues doing the great job.

Steve Harvey’s career started in 1985. During this time, he has been acting and performing as a stand-up comedian in several local club. That experience helped him to master his skills, especially acting. As a result of that he made it to the finals of the Second Annual Johnnie Walker National Comedy Search.

That was just the beginning. Soon afterwards, he ended up hosting Showtime at Apollo. The nation-wide success was guaranteed with his The Steve Harvey Show. Nowadays, his Hey Steve is amusing the audience like never before. This talented comedian and host never fails our expectations.

Hey Steve prepared us another pleasant surprise. This time, the show’s star was accompanied by an elderly lady. Since Steve Harvey is well-known for his interaction with the audience, he almost never refuses a proposal given by the crowd. The lady proposed a challenge and of course Steve accepted it.

The lady asked Steve if he can show some of his moves on the dance floor. Steve was more than glad to accept it. Their dance began slowly. They took their positions and started amusing the crowd. Even though they have never planned anything prior the show, they looked like a perfect dancing match. As the music was speeding up, so these two dancers started dancing more energetically. The fun they had is  obvious and the crowd enjoyed in this lovely act.

Nevertheless, in his professional career Steve Harvey proved that he is not good only in acting. In 2009 Steve became a best-selling author with his relationship advice books. His thinking and pieces of advice are appreciated by millions of readers. In 2010 he even took over Family Feud. He indeed amazes us whenever a project is undertaken by him.

Steve’s special characteristics is that he knows how regular people think and feel. His life prior becoming a famous host helped him a lot in understanding people. People indeed feel that Steve is part of them, not considering him as those untouchable celebrities. 

Enjoy the dance show Steve has prepared for us!

Man’s remark about woman’s family brings her to tears

By
Nicole
-

The common understanding that the family is strong and compact only if the its members share the same genes and physical characteristics is slowly losing its popularity among people. We have witnessed that families that do have related DNA or genes fall apart and lives are being destroyed. There is, however, something totally different that keeps the families together.

Jessica Satterfiled and her husband proved just that. Families can be happy and they can enjoy the life no matter what’s the DNA code of its members. They are showing the world that being physically similar does not guarantee a stable and happy family.

 Jessica and her husband are parents of three healthy, happy and beautiful kids. They have adopted them when they were younger and now they try to raise them up into independent adults. They share everything and talk about various different topics. Like every family out there, they enjoy the life.

However, this family differs from the rest in one thing. The kids have different skin color than the parents. During the years, this skin color difference has caused many people to stare at them and wonder what’s going on. From time to time strangers will give them surprised looks and that sometimes puts the family in an awkward position. One such situation occurred while the family was out in a restaurant having their lunch.

All five members of the family decided to eat some burgers in a restaurant. While they were having a good time and enjoying each other’s company, Jessica noticed an old man staring at them. She began feeling even more uncomfortable when she saw the old man approaching them. To her surprise, the man said something very unexpected.

The old man shook her husband’s hand and said:

“I just wanted to tell you that you have such a beautiful family.”

This stunned them. They were left speechless when they saw the man, with tears in his eyes, saying such a good thing. Jessica nor her husband chased the old man, they didn’t  get his name, but this line of words shook their emotions. They will remember him for the rest of their lives.

The family is accustomed to hearing words of surprise and in all these years they have been stared at very often. This man’s compliment was something totally different. Unexpectedly, the man’s acknowledge of their success as a family made them very happy and proud.

Regarding her family, Jessica says:

“Families don’t have to match to be a family. What makes a family is their love.”

Jessica’s words are true. Love is the thing that bonds us and keeps us strong and united. The moment we lose it, is the moment when we realise that we are alone with no one besides us. That sucks!

Couple with Down’s syndrome married for 25 years overcome all hurdles

By
Monica Pop
-

It’s in the humans’ nature to strive to love and be loved. This feeling that is described by many as the strongest of all helps us overcome obstacles and ordeals and is capable of healing our heart and soul. But when it comes to romantic relations and that type of affection, not everyone gets to find the soulmate whom they would spend the journey called life with. Those that do, however, know they are lucky to have someone they could rely on when things get rough.

Kris Scharoun-DeForge and her husband Paul Scharoun-DeForge are a perfect example of how love conquers all. These two met some 30 years ago, and have been married for the last 25. If this doesn’t really sound like something special to you, you’ll change your mind once you learn these spouses both have Down Syndrome. They are longest married couple with this condition and their story continues to inspire people around the world.

The affection they feel for one another only grows bigger with each passing day. They speak of their relationship with sparks in their eyes and give us hope that one day, we could have what these two share as well. They also teach us to never settle for anything less.

“I looked into his eyes and saw my future. He opened up my world.”

Both Kris and Paul never miss a chance to let the other one know how much they are loved and cared for. Every Valentine’s Day, this loving wife crafts a handmade card for the love of her life and the two have a romantic dinner at a restaurant. This has become sort of tradition throughout the years. The last year’s holiday was, however, even more special because they were given the chance to tell the whole world how true devotion and fondness break all the barriers by celebrating their 25-year anniversary. As many believe how people with Down Syndrome aren’t capable of getting emotionally involved in a union, Scharoun-DeForges prove those people wrong and are going stronger than ever.

Sadly, Paul started suffering from dementia which is currently in it’s early stage, but it required that he was placed at a facility where he would receive all the care needed for him to function properly. His wife never leaves his side and is paying him frequent visits, constantly reminding him how much he is loved and cared for.

She said:
“When they told me, I started to cry. He’s my life. I don’t want to be without him.”

It’s amazing how in this world full of people who would like to see you fail, Kris and Paul never gave up on one another. They are each other’s support and are very lucky to have found that special person. We wish you a long and even happier life. You indeed are a true inspiration.

Alan Jackson’s daughter reveals another side to country music star

By
Nicole
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Alan Jackson is one of those music stars that modesty overcomes fame. The 60-year-old country music star is one of the best sold country music singers.

With more than 80 million records sold, he is undoubtedly one of the best-known representatives of this music genre.

He is member of Georgia Music Hall of Fame and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Furthermore, Alan Jackson  owns two Grammy awards, 16 CMA awards and 17 ACM awards.

However, even with all these recognitions, Alan Jackson is still keeping his modesty on higher level. As an illustration, here are his words spoken to the Rolling Stone:

“Even though I’ve done a lot, I still don’t feel quite worthy, but I feel like it’s an honor to qualify for what it requires to be in here with these great people.

“I’ve always tried to make music my first priority – not being a star, not being in the spotlight, just trying to make music that I loved.”

Luckily, we have his daughter Alexandra Jane Jackson. She knows her father’s values and status and does not hesitate talking about the music star. Regarding her father, Alexandra says:

“I see you as: my best friend, the guy that taught me how you treat people matters more than anything else and taught me just how to stand on my own two feet,” she said.

Alexandra is one of the three siblings. Alan and his wife Denise have three daughters, Mattie Denise and Dani Grace. Since 15 December the couple’s marriage is full of love, respect and mutual support. On one occasion Alan even credits his wife with getting his career off the ground.

Alexandra’s tribute to her father continues:

“You’re every daughter’s dream father. Thank you for raising us in a house filled with Jesus and music, and always making sure we knew whatever our dream was could be our reality.”

Thanks to Alexandra’s tribute we can learn something about the private life of this music star. Even though he is extremely popular, with millions of fans, he does not forget his family and his duties as father.

This kind of modesty and giving priority to you family is a rarity in the world of celebrities. Alan Jackson is a very good example for the future music or film stars.

Now, we would like you to enjoy with one of Alan’s songs!

Autistic child interrupts Broadway show, so star writes open letter

By
Nicole
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Generally speaking, we do not like to be interrupted. Whether it is a speech, a play or a song, we usually get annoyed if someone interrupts us. It’s an unpleasant feeling that can lead into failure of the success of the things we planned to show the audience.

Sometimes we can manage such a situation, depending on the nature of the interruption. In most cases such situation, like it or not, can cause some unwanted feeling overcome our bodies.

Being interrupted by someone or something can make us nervous and distracted. The unexpected distraction can defocus us from the things that we have had in our minds. However, Kelvin Moon Loh, a Broadway actor, is not like the rest of us.

Since Broadway shows are expected to be one of the finest performances in the world of stage acting, they require high concentration and focus. With that in mind, Kevin and his team started their play ‘The King and I’. However, in the middle of the show, very unexpected visitor disturbed the flow of the show.

A kid diagnosed with autism started shouting loudly in the middle of the act.

What Kevin did after this situation is not something most us will do.

Broadway shows are expensive part of fine arts world. With such high price for a ticket, the audience and the actors expect to have a show almost like a perfection. Slightest disturbance may be strongly criticized.

Kevin’s show was going very well. However, during a whipping scene, the kid started reacting quite loudly. He started shouting and his mother had to take him out of the theatre.

When the kid interrupted the show, part of the audience was not happy to witness that, while some of them had understanding about the incident. With all these mixed feelings in the audience, Kevin realised that he had to do something to settle the things out.

Kevin posted a letter on the social media regarding the kid’s interruption.

Kelvin’s letter

“I am angry and sad,” he wrote.

“Just got off stage from today’s matinee and yes, something happened. Someone brought their autistic child to the theater.

That being said- this post won’t go the way you think it will.

You think I will admonish that mother for bringing a child who yelped during a quiet moment in the show. You think I will herald an audience that yelled at this mother for bringing their child to the theater. You think that I will have sympathy for my own company whose performances were disturbed from a foreign sound coming from in front of them.

No.

Instead, I ask you- when did we as theater people, performers and audience members become so concerned with our own experience that we lose compassion for others?

The theater to me has always been a way to examine/dissect the human experience and present it back to ourselves. Today, something very real was happening in the seats and, yes, it interrupted the fantasy that was supposed to be this matinee but ultimately theater is created to bring people together, not just for entertainment, but to enhance our lives when we walk out the door again.

It so happened that during “the whipping scene”, a rather intense moment in the second act, a child was heard yelping in the audience. It sounded like terror. Not more than one week earlier, during the same scene, a young girl in the front row- seemingly not autistic screamed and cried loudly and no one said anything then. How is this any different?

His voice pierced the theater. The audience started to rally against the mother and her child to be removed. I heard murmurs of “why would you bring a child like that to the theater?”. This is wrong. Plainly wrong.

Because what you didn’t see was a mother desperately trying to do just that. But her son was not compliant. What they didn’t see was a mother desperately pleading with her child as he gripped the railing refusing- yelping more out of defiance. I could not look away. I wanted to scream and stop the show and say- “EVERYONE RELAX. SHE IS TRYING. CAN YOU NOT SEE THAT SHE IS TRYING???!!!!” I will gladly do the entire performance over again. Refund any ticket because-

For her to bring her child to the theater is brave. You don’t know what her life is like. Perhaps, they have great days where he can sit still and not make much noise because this is a rare occurrence. Perhaps she chooses to no longer live in fear, and refuses to compromise the experience of her child. Maybe she scouted the aisle seat for a very popular show in case such an episode would occur. She paid the same price to see the show as you did for her family. Her plan, as was yours, was to have an enjoyable afternoon at the theater and slowly her worst fears came true.

I leave you with this- Shows that have special performances for autistic audiences should be commended for their efforts to make theater inclusive for all audiences. I believe like Joseph Papp that theater is created for all people. I stand by that and also for once, I am in a show that is completely FAMILY FRIENDLY. The King and I on Broadway is just that- FAMILY FRIENDLY- and that means entire families- with disabilities or not. Not only for special performances but for all performances. A night at the theater is special on any night you get to go.

And no, I don’t care how much you spent on the tickets.”

Morals

Kevin’s letter is a great message sent to all of us. Being interrupted, no matter the level of defocusing of our concentration, is not the end of the world after all. Judging kids with mental disabilities, or the parents that try to give that kind of kid a normal life, is very wrong. As Kevin points out, some plays are for the whole family and, as such, is it ok to exclude some of the family members from enjoying the show?

Kevin did a great job with the letter. Whether you agree with him or not, he indeed made his point quite clearly. How would you react in such situation?

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