Today In Black Excellence: Shirley Chisholm, The First African Americanand The First Womanto Seek Nomination

Today in Black Excellence: Shirley Chisholm, the first African American—and the first woman—to seek nomination for President.

“I want history to remember me... not as the first black woman to have made a bid for the presidency of The United States, but as a black woman who lived in the 20th century and who dared to be herself. I want to be remembered as a catalyst for change in America.”

—Shirley Chisholm

Chisholm wanted to be remembered as a “catalyst for change.” What did she do?

Shirley Anita Chisholm was a politician, educator, and writer. There would be no Barack Obama or Kamala Harris without her—she was a trailblazer in every sense of the word.

Citing her “double-handicap” of being a Black woman, Chisholm initially rejected a political career but became increasingly engaged in fighting racial and gender inequality. She eventually joined the Democratic Party in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, winning a seat in the United States Congress in 1968, and becoming the first Black woman to do so.

What did she achieve in politics?

With a seat at the table, “Fighting Shirley” introduced over 50 pieces of legislation on behalf of the poor, protesting racial and gender inequality. She became a fierce critic of the Vietnam War when opposition to the war was considered radical. Her outspoken assault on injustice earned her few friends in the white political establishment.

While campaigning for the 1972 primaries, Chisholm was allowed only one speech in televised debates and was otherwise blocked from participation. Despite this, students, women, and minorities proved loyal supporters: In 12 primaries, she garnered 152 (10%) of delegates’ votes, despite a poorly financed campaign and widespread political hostility.

The 1972 primaries also displayed her remarkable character, when she chose to visit racist and segregationist Governor George Wallace of Alabama in hospital after a failed assassination attempt.

After retiring from Congress in 1983, Chisholm taught at Mount Holyoke College and co-founded the National Political Congress of Black Women.

Original portrait by Tumblr Creatr @banana-peppers

“It was an honor to create a piece celebrating Shirley Chisholm. She was the first Black woman elected to Congress and to seek a major party nomination for presidency. Her trailblazing career is truly inspiring and I wanted to capture her power, her bravery and her magic. Her motto Unbought and Unbossed implores us to forge our own path no matter what obstacles try to stand in our way."

—@banana-peppers

pairing: bokuto x femblack!reader

synopsis: um bokuto and his gf spend a morning together

word count: 536

type: one-shot

a/n: bhm isn't over yet! i'll get back to gender neutral stuff in the second week of march. in the meantime enjoy black history month!

The banging sound of pots and pans filled Y/n's family's home as the sun rose into the sky. She reluctantly covered her ears with a pillow before turning to her side. She was met with hard abs pressed against a loose t-shirt. Hints of her boyfriend's cologne filled her nose as Y/n closed the space between the two. Y/n glanced up and saw Bokuto smiling back at her.

This was one of the rare times his hair wasn't slicked up with gel, but rather framed his face. Y/n could tell he needed hair dye because his black roots were more visible then usual. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her forehead. "Its Sunday do we have to get out of bed?" Bokuto whined. "My family made breakfast for us though. The least we can do is eat it."

His lips brushed across hers softly just long enough to tell that Y/n hadn't brushed her teeth. Bokuto playfully pushed her away, "Eww go brush your teeth." Y/n pouted. "Yours smells so much worse then mine." She begrudgingly got out of her bed and stretched. She flicked the switch on the baby pink lamp sitting on her nightstand.

Her favorite color slippers awaited by her bed as she slipped them on and headed to her bathroom. She flicked the switch to reveal white tile on the walls and floor. Y/n walked up to her sink and reached in the cabinet underneath for her toothpaste. The toothbrushes resided in a cup on the right side of the sink's counter. Bokuto barged in behind her and grabbed the second toothbrush.

He began hogging the mirror so she pushed him out of the way. "You two better not be doing anything up there!" Y/n's mom called from the first floor. They both agreed they were just brushing their teeth and would be down soon. Bokuto whisper yelled in his girlfriend's ear, "You need to be quiet before your mom comes up here."

Y/n whisper yelled back, "Your the one making all the noise. I'm just trying to brush my teeth." Bokuto grumbled and spit into the sink. He rinsed his toothbrush off and Y/n could hear him grumbling down the stairs. Sensitive little shit, Y/n thought. She wiped her mouth off with a towel and headed downstairs.

The smell of freshly baked cinnamon rolls filled the air as Y/n took a seat at the kitchen table. Bokuto was already stuffing his face with cinnamon rolls, bacon, and eggs before she even got a chance to sit down. Y/n's mom laughed and expressed how glad she was that he liked her cooking. Y/n rolled her eyes and told her boyfriend to slow down. Once breakfast was finished, he insisted on helping with the dishes.

Y/n was more then happy to let him take over the chore and get Mariokart ready in the living room. She sat cross-legged on the rug and popped the cartridge into the Nintendo Switch. Just as the opening began to play, Bokuto popped his head in the living room and sat right next to Y/n. "Eager today aren't we?"

name for a ballet iwaizumi fic?

In love with mitsuya at the moment

i can’t stop losing my marbles over these dude 😭😭😭

PLEASE I— 😭😭😭 THEY’RE ALL SO FUCKING CUTE

Pt. 4

pairing: tanaka x oc

synopsis: Ayano Shimizu is the perfect student, the perfect daughter, and everyone looks up to her. Her only problem is Tanaka keeps playing with her heart.

word count: 821

warnings: heartbreak lol i luv crushing hearts

type: fanfic

a/n: one of my old stories so might be some mistakes loool but enjoy^^

Tuesday August 5th

"Hey Ayano your friends are here," Yuuka called from downstairs. Ayano yawned and checked herself out in the mirror. She wore a cropped white hello kitty shirt and pink shorts with matching pink and white shoes.

Her hello kitty purse was laying on her bed that she had spent the previous night looking for. "Tell them I'm coming down now." Ayano pulled two strands out of her buns and grabbed her purse.

Doing one last twirl in the mirror, she headed downstairs. Toshiaki was in the kitchen on the phone arguing with someone and Yuuka was at the front door with her head sticking out.

"Bye Yuuka, bye Toshiaki. Tell Mom I got milk last night." Toshiaki gives a thumbs up and Yuuka moves away from the door. "You never told us your sister was so pretty," was the first thing Kazuo told Ayano as soon as she closed her door.

"She looks prettier when she's actually trying. So where to today guys?" Ayano asked the other four. "There's this cool roller rink about an hour from here. I heard basically everyone is going there," Saori gushed.

"You seem pretty excited, any food down there?" Okazaki chuckled a bit. "I think there is I mean it is Tokyo after all." Kimura swiped her student id first before boarding the train.

Ayano was grateful for the air conditioning considering how hot it was outside. She noticed the man on the news talking about how it was a record in how hot it was. Kimura must have been thinking the same thing as Ayano.

"Is this indoors or outdoors? It is sooo fucking hot outside." "I think indoors. They also have go karts upstairs I think," Saori replied barely able to contain her excitement.

Ayano debated texting Tanaka, but decided not to. Plus, she had gotten his number from Kazuo, so it would have been a bit weird if she texted him. The train lurched to a stop and the majority of the passengers including Ayano and her friends got off.

There were about four block they had to walk to get to the entrance. Even though it was ten in the morning, the line to get in was already crowded. Kazuo and Okazaki sighed as they leaned against the wall.

"You didn't say there would be a line. Just how popular is this place?" Kazuo complained. "I don't know I just saw it in a chatroom. Chill out we'll get in there soon."

Saori was right and in ten minutes tops they were in. The line to get skates was relatively short, but Kimura and Kazuo insisted they do go karts first.

Ayano was hesitant, but followed them into the line. "Hey Saori isn't that Kiyoko?" "Huh?" Saori glanced for a second where Ayano was pointing. "Yeah I think it is, who's that guy she's with?" Ayano shook her head, "No idea, his hat is covering his face."

The line moved ahead and Kiyoko and the mystery boy were getting on. "Oooh we're next," Kazuo said in anticipation.

The boy took his hat off and all at once, the group's faces morphed into looks of shock and horror. "I'm um I'm going to be downstairs," Ayano managed to choke out before leaving the line.

Saori went to follow her, but Kazuo pulled her back. "Maybe she just needs some alone time. Let's find her after the ride, yeah?" Saori huffed but agreed with Kazuo and let Ayano go.

Ayano didn't know where she was running, but she couldn't stay there. Leaving the building, she sat down on the steps outside where people were already gathered.

𝗞𝗶𝘆𝗼𝗸𝗼 𝗁𝖾𝗒 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗀𝗋𝖺𝗍𝗌 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗀𝖺𝗆𝖾 :)

𝗔𝘆𝗮𝗻𝗼 𝗄𝗂𝗒𝗈𝗄𝗈 𝗐𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗍𝗈𝖽𝖺𝗒?

𝗞𝗶𝘆𝗼𝗸𝗼 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝗍𝖺𝗇𝖺𝗄𝖺 𝗐𝗁𝗒? 𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗌𝗄𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈 𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗀 𝗈𝗎𝗍

𝗔𝘆𝗮𝗻𝗼 𝗈𝗁...

𝗞𝗶𝘆𝗼𝗸𝗼 𝗌𝗈𝗆𝖾𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗐𝗋𝗈𝗇𝗀?

𝗔𝘆𝗮𝗻𝗼 𝗇𝗈𝗉𝖾, 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝗈𝗇 𝗆𝗒 𝗐𝖺𝗒 𝗁𝗈𝗆𝖾 𝗇𝗈𝗐

𝗞𝗶𝘆𝗼𝗸𝗼 𝗀𝗈𝗈𝖽 𝗅𝗎𝖼𝗄 𝖺𝗍 𝗇𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅𝗌 :)

"HEY AYANO WHERE ARE YOU?" Ayano heard Kazuo screaming and turned back towards the door. Saori was running with Kazuo on her heels.

Kimura and Okazaki were no where in sight so Ayano assumed they had already went home. "Why'd you run off like that?" Saori pestered her with question after question.

"I'm going to head home guys, see you tomorrow," Ayano began to say. "No way your going home. Kimura and Okazaki are getting us food then we can go to the park and talk," Kazuo attempted to convince her.

Ayano sighed but knew she had no room to argue. She waited on the steps for Kimura and Okazaki with Saori and Kazuo. They didn't take long and the park was ten minutes away.

While they walked, the four of them tried to distract Ayano and cheer her up. "Thanks guys, I appreciate it but I'm fine. Let's just sit down on a bench somewhere."

The others nodded in agreement and Kazuo ran ahead to find a bench at the playground.