Bye 45 👋🏾 Welcome 46 & Madam VP
VOL 26 - THURSDAY, JANUARY 21
Happy Thursday, #NoteddTribe! Wow, it indeed has been a week. We commemorated the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. We celebrated the Inauguration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris — the first woman, African American, and Asian American VP in our history.
Just like we watched the Inauguration Day of President Obama, we felt a nostalgic feeling as we watched yesterday’s events near and dear with joy, excitement, and most of all — hope for something better that we all deserve.
On the heels of a historic week, we’re excited to share that you’ll start to see us more often. We will be sending out our newsletters weekly 🤗 , and there’s more. If you haven’t been following us on Twitter, you’re missing out on our new daily dose of “What We’ve Notedd In The News.” We’re now providing five to six articles of news, perspective, and cultural highlights every morning.
Stay tuned for our upcoming virtual event on Building Your Professional Trifecta: Mentors vs. Sponsors vs. Coaches scheduled for next weekend and an opportunity for you to be a part of what we are planning for February, but first find out what we’ve Notedd for you this week, the big news recap of the Inauguration, and the honorable mentions we suggest giving a try. As always, #staynotedd.
We’re excited to see the launches of new networks dedicated to Black programming, from the first Black-owned cooking network (Taste on TV) to Black-owned streaming services (kweliTV and ALLBLK).
Did you see the latest inventions at CES 2021? No worries, we notedd a good recap, but you have to check out YSL’s lipstick pod gadget that will create whatever shade you want.
Congratulations to one of our favorite reporters, Cecilia Vega, who is now ABC’s Chief White House Correspondent!
Don’t pick up your feelings just yet, as Jazmine Sullivan is set to sing the national anthem at this year’s Super Bowl LV.
Make sure to grab copies of the Rihanna/Lorna Simpson collaborative Essence January/February 2021 issue and the limited print release of the Vogue issue with VP Harris.
We all watched history, better yet herstory, unfold yesterday. There were touching moments of watching Fire Captain Andrea Hall leading the spoken and signed Pledge of Allegiance to Howard University’s Showtime Marching Band escort of VP Harris and her family at the inaugural parade. Then, there was the powerful messages shared in 22-year-old Amanda Gorman’s poem titled The Hill We Climb and implied through the support of women everywhere wearing pearls and chucks yesterday in honor of our 49th Vice President. On top of the fact that THEE Forever First Lady Michelle Obama graced us.
That even as we grieved, we grew.
That even as we hurt, we hoped.
That even as we tried, we tried.
That we’ll forever be tied together, victorious.
— Amanda Gorman, youth poet laureate of Los Angeles, “The Hill We Climb”
Despite this day being socially distant and virtual, this was a very well-thought-out day of events with continued excitement and high energy throughout. Credit is due and owed to the many organizers, planners, and executors behind the day’s events. Most importantly, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden deserves a celebration of her very own. She introduced us to the youngest inaugural poet. She also created history by choosing a painting by Robert S. Duncanson as a gift for the Capitol Rotunda as part of the traditional gift-giving ceremony. A Cincinnati native, Duncanson was “the best known African-American painter during the years of the Civil War.”
We can now also talk about fashion as style and good taste has finally graced us again in the White House. VP Kamala Harris and Michelle Obama wore black designers Sergio Hudson, Christopher John Rogers, and Pyer Moss throughout this week.
Black and brown women are keenly aware of the complex calculus they must learn to navigate Eurocentric beauty standards, notions of respectability and professionalism, and the need to be seen as capable in their jobs—especially in a place like Washington, D.C.
— Terryn Hall, writer and digital strategist
Shuttered fashion and beauty norms date back to the stylish choices from Michelle Obama. Still, we continue to see trends within Congress, from Congresswoman AOC’s bright red lipstick to Congresswoman Ilhan Omar’s hijab to Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley’s beautiful and bold look. Our very own Madam VP navigated her career with pantsuits and chucks. We’re excited to see the traditional, eurocentric fashion and beauty standards break down as women of color like our congresswomen, Madam VP, and many others like yourself crush them every day.
“How It Feels To Be Free” launched earlier this week on PBS, a documentary based on the book How It Feels To Be Free: Black Women Entertainers and the Civil Rights Movement by Ruth Feldstein. Award-winning filmmaker behind The Killing of Breonna Taylor Yoruba Richen directed the film and Alicia Keys was an executive producer. It explores the lives and perspectives of Lena Horne, Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, Diahann Carroll, Cicely Tyson, and Pam Grier — whose activism and choices to support “controversial causes paved the way for today’s celebrities to support the Black Lives Matter Movement openly.”
We love a good newsletter, and don’t mind adding a new one, especially when you’re like us reading 20+. TheLexMix is a weekly music roundup newsletter that includes founder Lex Gabrielle’s top picks for the week, along with an accompanying playlist available on all major streaming services (Apple Music and Spotify). She recently dropped a newsletter titled “Blue-eyed Bops” with a playlist of 20 tracks of her favorites from blue-eyed legends such Teena Marie and Lisa Stanfield. Check out the newsletter by clicking the link below, and make sure to follow their Twitter to join the chats on all things music.
Mimconnect is a professional network and community helping professionals of color navigate their careers. Whether you’re transitioning into a management position, looking to make an industry switch, or wanting to connect with more professionals that align with your experience, Mimconnect is here to help you along your journey. As we near the closing of our monthly series on growth, we’ve enjoyed this community and the programming produced centered around career transitions, mental health in the workplace, and so much more. Make sure you join today!
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