Monthly Archives: March 2015

Mar
07
2015

50th anniversary of historic civil rights march

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50 years ago, brave people marched across a bridge to demand equal rights for Black people in the USA. This weekend we honor their action gratefully. See President Obama speak in Selma, Alabama.

▶ Selma to mark 50th anniversary of historic civil rights march, ‘Bloody Sunday’ – YouTube.

Mar
07
2015

Bullied “dancing man” is to have the party of a lifetime with Pharrell Williams and Moby

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A man who was mocked for dancing, with his picture uploaded online, will be the center of a VIP dance party with nearly 2,000 women – thanks to the internet.

Someone posted a split-screen image to an online forum, with one side showing a picture of the man dancing, the other with him standing there looking down at the ground. The poster captioned it “Spotted this specimen trying to dance the other week. He stopped when he saw us laughing.”

That’s when an online group of women in LA decided they wanted to reach out to the so-called “Dancing Man.” One of the women, known as Cassandra, tweeted out the picture asking for help identifying the man, saying the group of women wanted to throw him a special dance party.

Several hours later, someone tweeted them a picture of what appeared to be Dancing Man. Cassandra wrote she was able to get a message to him online, and he sent a photo to confirm his identity  and his real name, Sean. He also said he’d gladly accept their invitation to a dance party.

“My conversation with Sean has restored my faith in humanity,” Cassandra wrote. “Despite this cruel attempt to shame an innocent man, at the end of our talk, he said ‘Big-hearted people far outweight the small minded, every day of the week.”

The search for Dancing Man quickly went viral online, with many people joining the effort to help fund the party or offer services. Musician Moby tweeted he would DJ the party for free. And even pop star Pharell tweeted him and said he would attempt the party.

dancing-man

Mar
03
2015

Because I am a girl… I deserve an education!

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This is what Michelle Obama has to say about this program:

“Right now, 62 million girls across the globe are not in school. These girls are our future doctors, teachers, and entrepreneurs – they are the dreamers and visionaries who could change the world as we know it if they just had the chance to get the education they need.

This issue is personal for me, because I see myself in these girls. I see my daughters in these girls. And I refuse to just sit back and accept the barriers that keep them from realizing their boundless promise.

That is why I am thrilled to announce that we’re expanding our efforts to “Let Girls Learn” with a new, community-focused girls’ education initiative across the globe. Through this new effort, we’ll be collaborating with the Peace Corps to support hundreds of new community projects – from building school libraries to creating girls’ technology camps – to help girls go to school and stay in school.”

via Because I Am A Girl on Vimeo.

Mar
03
2015

Blind man sees his wife with bionic eye

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After being fitted with a “bionic eye,” a blind man has been able to see his wife again for the first time in a decade, and they are both pretty overwhelmed…

The device needs further adjustment alongside some physical therapy. However, Mr Zderad can already see things like human forms and outlines of objects in intermittent flashes, and is even able to see his own reflection as a silhouette. He will probably never be able to see the details of faces, but he will be able to navigate his way around without a cane, which is a big boost to his quality of life.

“What an exciting, emotional thing to say:  ‘Yes, that is my wife,’” Zderad said. “I am grateful they made this as much about the person as the technology.”

via Mayo Clinic patient’s first impressions with bionic eye – YouTube.