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The Ripple Effect of Common Courtesy

#Buddhism #Karma #Compassion #Meditation #Mindfulness From the Buddhist point of view, there is always a relationship between cause and effect; this notion is expressed in various teachings about Karma. As we interact with the world, we plant various seeds that will ripen and grow either right away, soon enough or sometime in the future. If we look at nature, small seeds can have big results; for example, the tiny acorn, given the right causes and conditions, can produce the mighty oak tree. In a similar way, in the world of human interaction, small seeds can sometimes come together to produce large-scale results. This is why, if we want to create a good world for ourselves and others, attention to detail can sometimes trump having a huge vision. In that attention to detail, if we can lean toward courtesy and consideration for others, there is no doubt that we will begin to generate a more positive overall outcome. If we manifest grasping, aggression and ignorance in the

Before there was Rosa Parks, there was Claudette Colvin.

#BlackAmerican #BlackHistory #AmericanHistory  #BlackHistorymonth #ClaudetteColvin Most people think of Rosa Parks as the first person to refuse to give up their seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama. There were actually several women who came before her; one of whom was Claudette Colvin. It was March 2, 1955, when the fifteen-year-old schoolgirl refused to move to the back of the bus, nine months before Rosa Parks’ stand that launched the Montgomery bus boycott. Claudette had been studying Black leaders like Harriet Tubman in her segregated school, those conversations had led to discussions around the current day Jim Crow laws they were all experiencing. When the bus driver ordered Claudette to get up, she refused, “It felt like Sojourner Truth was on one side pushing me down, and Harriet Tubman was on the other side of me pushing me down. I couldn't get up." Claudette Colvin’s stand didn’t stop there. Arrested and thrown in jail, she was one of four women who challenged the s

Meet the man who created Black History Month

  #African-AmericanHistory #BlackAmerican #Black History,#AmericanHistory #CarterGWoodson (CNN) February marks Black History Month, a federally recognized, nationwide celebration that calls on all Americans to reflect on the significant roles that African-Americans have played in shaping US history. But how did this celebration come to be -- and why does it happen in February? The man behind the holiday Carter G. Woodson, considered a pioneer in the study of African-American history, is given much of the credit for Black History Month. The son of former slaves, Woodson spent his childhood working in coal mines and quarries. He received his education during the four-month term that was customary for black schools at the time. At 19, having taught himself English fundamentals and arithmetic, Woodson entered high school, where he completed a four-year curriculum in two years. He graduated from Berea College in 1903 and went on to earn his master's degree in history from the University

Brené Brown: The Call to Courage

#BrenéBrown #TheCalltoCourage  #Vulnerability #Shame  #Empathy #Netflix  I've relied pretty heavily on Brené Brown's TEDx Houston Talk "The Power of Vulnerability" to get me through the day-to-day. Her video psyched me up before job interviews, reassured me when I failed, and calmed me when I felt overwhelmed with anxiety. I don't think I'm alone in my respect for Brown — her address is one of the top five most viewed TED Talks ever, with 38 million. She has become a go-to source on the study of shame, empathy, vulnerability, and (of course) courage, the focus of her Netflix special.          The special, filmed in front of a live audience, is a recording of an hour-long speech she gave in Royce Hall at UCLA. She discusses the relationship between courage and vulnerability, plus the journey she's taken since the overwhelming success of her 2010 TED Talk. Of course, viewers familiar with Brown's public speaking and bestselling books can expect

Black History Month is an annual observance in Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States

#BlackHistorymonth #BlackHistory #African-American #BlackAmerican Black History Month, also known as African-American History Month in the U.S., is an annual observance in Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States.  It began as a way for remembering important people and events in the history of the African diaspora. As a Harvard-trained historian, Carter G. Woodson, like W. E. B. Du Bois before him, believed that truth could not be denied and that reason would prevail over prejudice. His hopes to raise awareness of African American’s contributions to civilization was realized when he and the organization he founded, the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), conceived and announced Negro History Week in 1925. The event was first celebrated during a week in February 1926 that encompassed the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The response was overwhelming: Black history clubs sprang up; teachers demanded

Watch Martin Luther King's iconic 'I Have A Dream' speech

#MLK #MartinLutherKingJr #Character #IHaveADream #DrKing  Martin Luther King delivered his iconic I Have A Dream speech on August 28th, 1963 at a civil rights rally in Washington DC that was officially known as the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.   The figurehead of the civil rights movement called for an end to racism in the US, which at the time was still segregated, both legally and in practice, in most areas of life. Some of his most famous lines include “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed.” “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their characters.” Independent Staff 1/20/20

MLK's "content of character" quote inspires debate

#MartinLutherKingJr #MLK #NationalDayOfService #Character "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." This sentence spoken by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. has been quoted countless times as expressing one of America's bedrock values, its language almost sounding like a constitutional amendment on equality. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is honored every year with a National Day of Service.  King, Civil Rights Act remembered Former Secretary Condoleezza Rice, Taylor Branch, Joe Califano, Dr. James Peterson on the power of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the civil rights ... Yet today, 50 years after King shared this vision during his most famous speech, there is considerable disagreement over what it means. The quote is used to support opposing views on politics, affirmative action and programs intended to help the disa