Breaking news of the day – December 13, 2017
Black Women turn out in record numbers to elect Doug Jones to the Senate for Alabama
Alabama elects Democrat Doug Jones to fill the seat vacated by Attorney Jeff Sessions. In a hugely contested race, Doug Jones beat out the Republican Roy Moore. Moore was the subject of many controversial accusations of sexual misconduct throughout this race. But forget about his personal issues, Roy Moore was removed from the Alabama Supreme Court for refusing to comply with a federal law requiring that he remove the 10 Commandments monument from the State Supreme Court building grounds.
But back to the Doug Jones win. The story here is that Black women turned out in record number to get Doug Jones across the finish line in this race. Exit polls show that 98% of Black women voted for Doug Jones compared to 32% of White women and 23% of White men
Black voters in general came through in a big way for Doug Jones, totaling 29% of the total electorate for this race. That is comparable to the Black voter turnout for Barack Obama’s historic 2008 election. But again, Black women made the difference in this race. #blackgirlmagic
Girls Trip Snubbed by the Golden Globes
In the other news of the day, Golden Globe nominations came out and Girls Trip was not on the list. Girls Trip starred Jada Pinkett-Smith and an ensemble cast that included breakout star Tiffany Haddish, Queen Latifah, and Regina Hall. Jada Pinkett-Smith was vocal about her disappointment at the oversight by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. According to her Twitter, members of the press association would not even attend a press conference or viewing. Pinkett-Smith makes a valid point that while the film was not nominated, Tiffany Haddish has been asked to present at the ceremony. To call this gender bias or racism, really oversimplifies the issue facing women in all professional settings. We are so critical to the success of many industries, but our opinions and bodies of work continue to be overlooked.
Girls Trip was one of the most successful films this summer & Tiff was hands down the funniest person on screen in 2017 and we couldn't get eyes on the film or a press conference. How could a nom happen & how much more critical acclaim must a movie have to simply get a screening?
— Jada Pinkett Smith (@jadapsmith) December 12, 2017