Google to Donate $1.25M to Nelson Mandela Foundation

By Clutch
Google is working with the Nelson Mandela Foundation to publish more than 10,000 of Mandela’s personal records. They will donate $1.25 million to the foundation so that these never-before-seen documents can be scanned and published.

“If you look at all the people talking about peace with the protests right now, there’s got to be some message we can extract from these documents.” — Daniel Lederman, Google’s director of new business development for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Google spokesman Luke Mckend says These personal records from Mandela span much of his life, including his 27-year imprisonment for fighting against apartheid. The database will eventually be freely accessible on the Internet. Mckend says Google joined the project because they have the capacity and infrastructure to not only preserve historical heritage, but also leverage the potential in classrooms.

(Continue Reading @ Black Web 2.0….)

The No-Boyfriend Zone

By Alysha P. Reid
Last October, I got into a major argument with a friend because I didn’t want a boyfriend.

“How is that normal?” she asked.

“It’s just not what I’m focused on right now,” I said. “I’d rather be single than be in a relationship that I’m not ready for.”

After questioning me like the police, the heated discussion eventually became a drawn-out screaming match in her boyfriend’s Lexus. My friend accused me of lying about my relationship status and being sneaky. I called her desperate. My throat closed in anger, and my eyes began to water. I wish that I carried cash so I could walk out the car, slam the door, and find the subway home.

I didn’t care that it was 3 in the morning, and I didn’t care that I had no idea where I was. I felt frustrated because I was tired of explaining why I don’t currently date. I was pissed off that she accused me of being a lesbian because I refused to throw myself at the next available guy. Most of all, I was hurt that she didn’t even care to know why I felt the way I did.

I grew up with a controlling father and an oppressed mother. At his best, my father was a warm and funny person who worked long hours so my siblings and I could go to Catholic school. At his worst, my father was a bully. In middle school, my mother gave me permission to try out for stepping since I was too afraid to ask my father. That afternoon, my classmates and I sat down in the gymnasium, waiting for tryouts to begin. I saw my mother.

“Let’s go,” she said with her head down. We walked to the car where my father was waiting.

High school was difficult. Guys had crushes on me. Sometimes the feeling was mutual, but I always rejected them. By senior year, I finally had a steady boyfriend who I dated out of habit. No passion; more of a deep friendship than anything else. Just a practical decision. The feeling was mutual.

I’ve been feeling like the Dr. Phil of my friends for more than a decade. They come to me with their relationship troubles expecting an honest answer, and I give it to them straight.

“But you don’t understand!” one said after I told her to throw the deuces to her cheating boyfriend. “I love him.” I rolled my eyes. Time after time, I witnessed females disrespect themselves for a guy. In college, I heard rumors about girls who slept with guys who wouldn’t even say hi to them on the quad. One of my best friends allowed an unattractive, unemployed loser to call her a “dumb bitch” in front of us for months. Friends have called me at four in the morning crying about men who’ve called them ugly, men who have told them to gain weight because they “looked like a crackhead,” men who’ve taken half of their tuition refund checks.

If that’s what love is, then I’ll pass. I have very limited experience with guys, and that’s okay for now. I’m still struggling with self-esteem issues, and I don’t need another reason to feel inadequate. Witnessing the way my father used my mother showed me that I didn’t need a man in my life to validate my existence. I wish more girls were like me.

I’m definitely not bitter, and I do not hate men. I just hate when women like to put men ahead of their own happiness. I think that the main problem is when girls rush into relationships. They go into relationships with unrealistic expectations about how great a guy will be for them. They ignore all of the warning signs that a guy is not right for them, and they stupidly believe that they can change him. Then, women have the nerve to get all emotional when the guy shows them who he always was to begin with.

Guys are NOT problem solvers. They will not make you feel beautiful. They will not make you smart. They will NOT make you confident. Sometimes I wonder if I’m the only girl in the world who knows this. I’m not ready to date, and until that day comes, I will not date. I am not ready because I don’t feel like I can offer a guy the very best of me. I get too insecure with my appearance. I throw temper tantrums. I’m not where I want to be professionally or financially. Sometimes I don’t even believe in myself. I would NEVER accept that from any man. Why should he put up with that from me?

I do believe in love. I suspect that I’m a die-hard romantic at heart. I’ve improved a lot during the last two years, and I know that I’ll be ready to date soon. But there are still a couple of things I’d like to accomplish first. If anything, those accomplishments will be great to talk about on the first date. The first of many that he will pay for, of course. Because I’ll be worth it.

Damned If You Lose, Damned If You Don’t

By Brande Victorian
It’s a new dawn, a new day, and everyone knows J Hud is feeling (and looking) good in her new size 6 figure. And while there’s a segment of onlookers who are congratulatory of her weight loss success with the Weight Watchers Points Plus Program, there’s a slew of critics who (a) suggest she is a fake and lost the weight through gastric bypass, (b) are anticipating and secretly hoping that she’ll go the Kirstie Alley route and be back in a size 16 by Memorial Day, or (c) think she’s sending the message that you have to be thin to be successful.

What is it about our society and weight? If you carry extra poundage, you’re ostracized and told to nix the Mickey D’s and get in the gym and work it off (as if it’s that easy); and then when we have an example of someone who has lost weight through hard work, negativity and skepticism still follow.

I suppose the assumption behind the gastric bypass rumors is that Jennifer had to be lazy to become overweight in the first place, so there’s no way such a person could actually do the work that is required to shed pounds. These individuals are one in the same with other critics who call her Weight Watcher’s campaign fraudulent because she obviously used a personal trainer along with the Points Plus program. Sorry, I don’t follow. “Everyone” knows weight loss requires a sensible diet AND exercise, and I wouldn’t dare consider a personal trainer taking the easy or elitist way out, as some have suggested. Personal trainers put you to (serious) work and plenty of everyday women hire them on a regular basis.

For the people who’ve set up figurative lawn chairs outside of Jennifer Hudson’s home waiting for the slightest evidence of weight gain, I ask, who are you to judge? For every one person who is happy for her, there’s another making the statement, “well let’s just see if she actually keeps the weight off.” If she does end up regaining some weight, what does that take away from what she’s already accomplished? Slimming down is an enormous feat to begin with, especially when we’re talking about 80 pounds, and many fitness experts will tell you that maintaining weight loss is just as hard as losing it in the first place. Are these people really setting themselves on a pedestal as though life and temptation doesn’t ever get in the way of attaining or maintaining goals? I’d even be willing to bet that these naysayers are the very ones who harped on her seemingly unhealthy pre-Weight Watchers image and insisted she needed to lose weight. You can’t have it both ways. Give credit where credit is due.

And for the plus-size community who often feels like they’ve just lost one whenever a full-figured symbol of beauty drops a few sizes, I don’t think it’s that personal. Everyone has to do what they feel is best for their lifestyle. While some people can feel fabulous with a little more to love, others prefer less cushion. To the best of my knowledge, no one from Monique (who was also accused of having gastric bypass surgery) to Jill Scott, to Queen Latifah, to Marsha Ambrosius, to Jennifer Hudson has made blanketed statements about obesity or self-hatred or even career advancement as their motivation for losing weight. They decided weight loss was what was best for them at a particular stage in their life.

Yet in still, people don’t even buy that. Case in point, Raven Symone’s comment to People Magazine that she thought she looked fabulous before she lost weight. The response? If she thought she looked fabulous before then she wouldn’t have lost 35 pounds (because obviously if you’re overweight you must hate yourself. How could you not?).

Weight is something I’ve always seen as a personal issue because of its sheer sensitivity for so many women from anorexic to average, to morbidly obese. I know, for celebs few details of their lives are private issues, but what’s with slapping people on the wrists for carrying a little more weight and then slapping them again when they lose it, or because they didn’t do it the way society says they should (Star Jones), or because they don’t hate their pre-obese bodies?

Is it jealousy, is it the misery loves company mindset, or are we just sticking our noses in somewhere that it doesn’t belong anyway? I hate assumptions about one’s level of health from the outside looking in in the first place. Just because someone has a slim and trim figure doesn’t mean they aren’t putting other pollutants in their body like liquor or drugs, or that they are emotionally healthy. But even more so, I hate the disgust of full figured individuals masked as a health concern. If this was really all about weight and health, there wouldn’t be such a long trail of criticism following people who’ve done the very thing that society says they ought to do.

I think the real issue is that people look at Jennifer Hudson and these other women and wonder what does their weight loss say about them? Does it mean that they too have to lose weight, does it mean that they no longer have an excuse for why they can’t lose weight, does it even mean that the J Huds of the world are now better than they are? To answer those questions, people needn’t look to Hollywood for direction, but rather they ought to look inward and decide what’s best for them based on their own lifestyles.

Proof That Your Lil Kim Mixtape is Finally On The Way

If you’re one of the 110,000 who dropped $10 for rapper Lil Kim’s mixtape, Rap-Up mag online has proof that your mixtape is on the way!

After a few weeks delay, Lil’ Kim is ready to ship out her new mixtape Black Friday. The Queen Bee hand-packaged copies for fans who purchased the controversial release last month, along with posters and T-shirts that read, “Who Da Fuck Want War?!” She tweeted this photo of the bulk shipment, writing, “Packing orders all night for you guys!”

The Brooklyn diva checked in with her loyal supporters in a Ustream session on Thursday night, addressing the tape’s hold up. “I know there was a delay with the mixtape, but it’s gonna be well worth the wait,” she promised. “Just know I love you and everything I do, I always make sure that it’s extra special no matter how long it takes.”

Kimmy Blanco claims she sold a whopping 113,000 copies within the first 28 hours of release.

Out & About: Da Brat, Ciara, Lala Anthony, Savannah Brinson

Every once in a while LeBron James’ beautiful fiancee Savannah Brinson puts her haters in check by revealing just a little bit of her glamorous side. Don’t hurt ‘em Savannah! You can follow Savannah on her Twitter page.
Besties Ciara, La La Vazquez and her son Kiyan Anthony attended the Cleveland Cavaliers vs New York Knicks game at Madison Square Garden on Friday, Mar. 4. After years of being dragged, Ciara is now a friend of the blog. She gets all due respect, as does all of our friends. The Cavaliers beat Lala’s husband, Carmelo Anthony and the Knicks for the third straight time this season.
Here’s a recent photo of rapper Da Brat, center, posing with her “sister” LisaRaye, right, and LisaRaye’s lovely daughter Kai outside Da Brat’s home this past weekend. As you know, Da Brat, 36, is on house arrest following her recent release from prison where she served 3 years for assaulting a cocktail waitress at Jermaine Dupri’s now defunct Studio 72 nightclub in Decatur.

LaLa And Melo Aren’t Feeling Manhattan Living

Carmelo may have just blown life back into the New York Knicks, but he and wifey have not intentions on paying property taxes to the City of New York… or the State of New York for that matter.

According to TMZ, the Vazquez-Anthonys are mansion shopping in Jersey.

Sources close to the NY Knicks star and his wife tell TMZ they have no interest in plunking down “$30,000 a month for an apartment” in Manhattan … no matter how shmancy it is.

Melo just got a $65 million contract extension, so money isn’t the issue — instead it’s all about a backyard and space for the couple’s 3-year-old son to play. We’re told that’s why they’re seriously shopping the wide open spaces of Jersey — and passing on a luxury pad near the one Alex Rodriguez just bought for $6 million.

Other NYC ‘burbs are still in the running, but If Melo keeps dropping 26 per game … he can live anywhere he wants (except Boston) — and Knicks fans will love him.

The Big 3 Crying Again After ANOTHER Loss To The Chicago Bulls

The Big 3? They’re No. 3 in the East at this point, after Derrick Rose scored 27 points, Deng capped an 18-point effort with two free throws on a hotly debated play with 15.9 seconds remaining, and the Bulls beat Miami 87-86 on Sunday to hand the Heat their fourth straight loss. “The Miami Heat are exactly what everyone wanted, losing games,” Wade said. “The world is better now because the Heat is losing.”
In the Heat locker room, some players shed frustrated tears.

“One of these days, we will break through,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

Carlos Boozer scored 12 and Joakim Noah added 11 for the Bulls, who moved a game ahead of Miami into outright possession of second place in the Eastern Conference. Chicago was down by 12 late in the first half, then became the fourth team since Feb. 24 to erase a double-digit deficit against the Heat.

“We have guys who can close,” Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. Few would say that Miami doesn’t — but closing games has been, and continues to be, the biggest Heat challenge.

James had a chance to win it on a drive with 6 seconds left, missing a contested shot, and Wade’s desperation toss from the right baseline bounced away as time expired.

Those were the 12th and 13th consecutive shots that the Heat have missed with a chance to tie or lead a game in the final 10 seconds of regulation or overtime. James has missed four in this four-game losing streak alone.

“I told my team, I’m not going to continue to fail late in games,” James said. “I put a lot of blame on myself tonight. I told the guys that I just keep failing them late in games and I won’t continue to do that.” ames scored 26 points, Chris Bosh added 23 and Wade had 20 for the Heat, who put together a rally to take the lead in the final minute.

The Heat were down 82-76 with 3:30 left when Rose made a jumper over Miller, before Mario Chalmers led the comeback effort. He hit a 3-pointer to tie it with 1:05 left, then blew past a closeout for an easy layup from the left side that put the Heat ahead 86-84 with 25 seconds remaining.

With Chicago down by two, Deng made one free throw, missing the second. Noah got a hand on the ball, keeping James and Erick Dampier from grabbing it cleanly, and in the chase for the carom referee Tony Brothers called a foul on Miller for pushing Deng in the back.