Yasmin Shiraz

Give it to shock jock, Howard Stern, for saying what many people were probably thinking. Oprah and all the fans of Precious applauded Gabourey Sidibe’s performance in Precious, but all seemed to ignore that Hollywood is a size conscious place. With stars like Queen Latifah –who had a breast reduction–early in her Hollywood career, Oscar winner Mo’Nique losing bunches of pounds and hey, winning an Oscar afterward, how much you weigh definitely has made a difference in Hollywood.  Many other stars white, black, and otherwise have said that they can’t get work when they are over a size 2, so how is it that Gabourey Sidibe will have the “Cinderella” career that Oprah has espoused? It’d be wonderful. Sure. But old prejudices die hard. Perhaps screenwriters and producers will begin to write characters and support films for actresses that look like Gabourey. Or perhaps, when casting a role they’ll stop casting the typical 5′7″ 105lb chick. Maybe. I’d love to see it.

Truthfully, though, the decision of how Gabourey’s career will shape up is in her hands as much as it is also in the theater buying public’s hands.

Americans, typically, have been loathesome to look at anyone who was not “Malibu Girl” beautiful.

Beautiful black actresses like Halle Berry, Paula Patton, and Vivica Fox have all spoken of the lack of consideration that they are given for roles when the producer or the Hollywood engine thinks a white actress should play the role. Again, these are black women who are beautiful in their own right. As they fight the color line, how does Gabourey fight the size line?

So many successful celebrities including Jennifer Anniston and Tina Fey both admit to how their careers improved once they lost weight. I believe Jennifer Anniston said something to the effect, “The roles all of a sudden came pouring in.” I’m paraphrasing, but you get the idea. If I were one to give Gabourey advice, I don’t know if I’d say keep the weight on and see if you can change people’s perceptions about those who are overweight or if I would say lose weight so that your risk of heart attack, stroke, diabetes will go down. Because I lean on the side of being health conscious, I would probably suggest the latter. Anyway, can one actress and all of her fans really tip the scales of Hollywood in her favor?  I’ll be watching. What do you think?

TV news shows have been buzzing with the news that former Olympian, Marion Jones has joined the WNBA’s Tulsa Shock team. I’m happy that Marion is getting another shot at being an athlete, but I was so disappointed in her for having to surrender 5 medals because of using performance enhancing drugs. In our society there aren’t so many atheletic role models for girls and so I sorta took the Marion Jones doping thing personally. We so need more female athletes like Venus and Serena that represent being the best without drugs, alcohol, or any other negative stuff. But, I’m not gonna stay in the past, Marion should be allowed to start over in her fans eyes, in the media’s eyes and in her family’s eyes. Life doesn’t always give you a do-over, so I hope Marion takes advantage of this and shows us what she’s really made of. I wish her the best of luck.

And also, if my memory serves me correctly, Marion has children.  I think the best part of this story is the fact that she fell, but she’s getting up. That’s a lesson that children all over the world should learn.

We all fall down, but a true warrior keeps getting up. A fighting spirit refuses to allow you to stay down.

Every day I’m sharing quotes from my books to initiate dialogue on the issues that can help us, hurt us, or make us think about life as we know it. Some days it may be an affirmation for living, other days it might be a statement about the stark reality of society, music, culture, etc. Today is a quote from my book, Exclusive. The main character, a journalist, talks about how she sees hip hop videos.

“Guys walk around in the music videos in sweatshirts, baggy jeans, and Timberland boots. The background could be a scene in Alaska, but every girl in the video is wearing a bikini top, butt-cheek shorts, or skirts so high you can see her panties. Women, sex and their bodies are being exploited in every hip hop video.”

Thought of the day: How women are portrayed should matter to everyone, not just women.

This is a movie, I gotta see. The synopsis describes a lot of mother/son relationships. Read the synopsis below and check the trailer. Then, email me and tell me you don’t know several people like this.

A woman devoted to her son struggles to keep him from spending his life in prison in this drama from director Bong Joon-ho. Do-jun (Weon Bin) is a man in his mid-twenties who isn’t especially bright and is easily led. Do-jun lives with his elderly mother (Kim Hye-ja), who loves him fiercely even though she has no illusions about his abilities or his bad habits. Do-jun spends much of his spare time with Jin-tae (Jin Gu), a borderline criminal who takes advantage of Do-jun’s credulous nature, much to his mother’s annoyance. When Do-jun is arrested by police and accused of the murder of a young woman, his mother is certain he couldn’t have done it and sets out to prove her son’s innocence to police detectives, who seem more interested in closing the case than researching other possible leads. At first, mother feels certain that Jin-tae has framed her son to avoid being punished himself, but as she digs deeper she suspects the truth is more complicated. Madeo (aka Mother) was an official selection at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. – Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

I’m going to sit through the subtitles to see this movie. It looks that good!

This is a movie that I plan on seeing this weekend. It involves a family coming together for a wedding. One side of the family is Latino and the other side is African American. Without having to guess really hard, I bet they won’t get a long…. Well, I’m going to go see if this film can make me laugh. It better or you all will hear about it over the weekend. Check out the trailer and full synopsis below.

“Our marriage, their wedding.” It’s lesson number one for any newly engaged couple, and Lucia (America Ferrera) and Marcus (Lance Gross) are no exception. In Fox Searchlight Pictures’ ‘Our Family Wedding‘ they learn the hard way that the path to saying “I do” can be rife with familial strife. When they return from college and too suddenly announce their marriage plans, they soon discover that their fathers–two highly competitive over-the-top egos – can wreak a major amount of havoc on their special day.

With insults flying and tempers running high, it’s anyone’s guess if the alpha dads (Forest Whitaker and Carlos Mencia) will survive to make it down the aisle in one piece. Lucia’s mother (Diana Maria Riva) is busy planning the wedding of “her” dreams and the only levelheaded one in the bunch is Angela (Regina King), the groom’s father’s best friend and lawyer, who manages to keep her cool when the madness reaches a crescendo.

With only weeks to plan their wedding, Lucia and Marcus soon discover the true meaning of love and find there is truth to the saying–that when you marry someone, you marry their entire family.

Yesterday in my Oscar highlight posts, I forgot to include Geoffrey Fletcher’s win. Geoffrey won an Oscar for Writing (Adapted Screenplay) for his adaptation of Precious: Based on the Novel Push By Sapphire. According to Oprah, Geoffrey is the first African American ever to win in this category. As a person who has adapted three novels into screenplays, I am proud of Geoffrey and happy for him! History is being made. Here’s the text of his acceptance speech.

I don’t know what to say. This is for everybody who works on a dream every day. Precious boys and girls everywhere. All the cast and crew, anyone who’s kept believing in me. My two brothers, supported me in every way. My role models, my heroes, Buddy and Todd. My mother, Bettye, angel of my world. My father, Alphonse, who spent so much time with us and taught us everything. I’m sorry I’m drawing a blank right now, but I thank everyone.

I love it! And I, like Geoffrey, am encouraging people to work on your dream every day!

To my filmmaker family, I wanted to let you know that Oscar Micheaux who is considered the Father of African American Cinema is being featured on a US Postage stamp this year! Spike Lee recently said that all of us black filmmakers stand on the shoulders of Oscar Micheaux, so please share this info. The stamp will be issued June 22, 2010.

Here’s info from the US Postal Service’s official press release:

The 33rd stamp in the Black Heritage series, to be issued June 22, honors pioneering filmmaker Oscar Micheaux, who wrote, directed, produced and distributed more than 40 movies during the first half of the 20th century. An ambitious, larger-than-life figure, Micheaux thrived at a time when African-American filmmakers were rare, venues for their work were scarce, and support from the industry did not exist. Micheaux’s entrepreneurial spirit and independent vision continue to inspire new generations of filmmakers and artists.

This stamp features a stylized portrait of Oscar Micheaux by Gary Kelley. The artwork is based on one of the few surviving photographs of Micheaux, a portrait that appeared in his 1913 novel The Conquest.

Although only 15 of his movies are known to have survived in whole or in part, Micheaux has become a cinematic icon. In 1986, he was posthumously awarded a special Directors Guild of America award. In 1995, the Producers Guild of America established the Oscar Micheaux Award to honor “an individual or individuals whose achievements in film and television have been accomplished despite difficult odds.”

Left to Right, Kathryn, Barbra

I don’t know if you watched the Oscars last night, but history was made. Kathryn Bigelow, the director of The Hurt Locker, became the 1st woman to win a best director Oscar for her film. Congratulations Kathryn. This is big news and a great accomplishment. It shows that the women filmmakers deserve the same recognition as their male counterparts!

It was also great to see Barbra Streisand, director of Yentl and Prince of Tides give her the award. Barbra’s no slouch as a director, either. Anyway, I’m just glad to see progress being made. That’s what’s up!

Actress/Comedianne, Mo’Nique became the 5th Black woman to win an Oscar at the 82nd Awards ceremony yesterday. Congrats Mo’Nique. The other actresses to win the award: Hattie McDaniel, Whoopie Goldberg, Halle Berry, and Jennifer Hudson. I’m excited for Mo’Nique and all actresses who are stepping their game up! Mo’Nique dedicated her Oscar win to Hattie McDaniel and so I included both Mo’Nique’s and Hattie’s Oscar acceptance speeches.

Below is Mo’Nique’s speech:

Below is Hattie McDaniel’s Oscar Acceptance Speech:

The Female Condom In Action

According to the Washington Post, the District of Columbia will be giving out free female condoms over the next three weeks as a part of a campaign that will distribute 500,000 condoms through high schools, beauty salons, and convenience stores.The campaign is funded by MAC cosmetics. (Get ya lip gloss on!)

This initiative is aimed at reducing the spread of HIV & AIDS throughout the city. In 2008, a report said that DC had a 3% HIV/AIDS rate which is considered a major epidemic.

HIV/AIDS infection is the leading cause of death for black women 25-34.

What makes me glad about this is that there are women who are faithful and want their “sexually risky” partners to wear condoms but they refuse. Now that women have their own condom, they can utilize it. It gives women a sense of power over their bodies and in the bedroom. Stopping the spread of HIV/AIDS is the best way to control the disease. I call this “positive progress” because for years only the male condom was available and even after the female condom was available it was not widely promoted. So, this is definitely progress.

Women do not be intimidated by the female condom. This is about our empowerment and tools to save our lives. As a matter of fact, I plan on going to DC next week and see how easy it is for me to get a female condom.   I’m going to see if this campaign is exactly what they are saying in the papers.  I’ll keep you posted.

Read the full article here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35736237/ns/health-more_health_news/