Michael Eric Dyson has slammed suggestions that he was flirting with Congresswoman Nancy Mace after she accused him of calling her a racist in an interview with CNN last month.

The interview with the South Carolina lawmaker and Vanderbilt professor made headlines after Mace repeatedly mispronounced Vice President Kamala Harris’ name during the interview and refused to correct herself. Dyson never called her a racist on air, but he explained why her behavior was problematic.

“When you disrespect Kamala Harris by saying you can call her whatever you want, I know that’s not your intention, that’s the history and legacy of white disregard for the humanity of black people,” Dyson told Mace in the interview.

During a congressional hearing Thursday, Mace showed her fellow lawmakers a screenshot of a message Dyson sent her that included a photograph the pair took after a CNN interview that portrayed them as flirtatious.

“He says in this piece, after he called me a racist on CNN, ‘Don’t tell anyone we look good together,’ and he sent me a kissy face emoji,” the South Carolina lawmaker said at a hearing Thursday. “Then the guy says I’m gorgeous in all these pictures. I don’t think he’s that bothered by how someone pronounces Kamala. And if we’re going to have that standard, it has to be applied to both sides, not just one or the other.”6

Dyson posted a response on Instagram, fuming over Mace’s behavior during the hearing. He read the entire exchange with Mace and explained that he was joking about how united they looked in photos taken after the CNN interview, given their very different political positions.

“I’m not hitting on Nancy Mace. This is a woman trying to take advantage of a situation, trying to pretend I’m trying to hit on her,” Dyson said. “You’re trying to generate meanness and cruelty because you’re so bitter about getting your ass kicked that night because I told you that night what you were doing was wrong,” he said of Mace.

He also condemned Mace’s characterization of the intentions behind the lyrics as “malicious”, “misleading” and ultimately “racist”.

“Your attempt is sad and pathetic, but your bigoted and racist attempt will fail,” Dyson noted. “There was no attempt to do anything other than be nice to you, but you have proven to be what I said you are not — a cruel, white supremacist racist who is incapable of accepting the generosity and kindness of a black man. You are a pathetic, sick soul.”

While some web users found the text flirtatious, others got here to Dyson’s defense.

“This is a very strategic framing of this interaction for her to do exactly this. Why didn’t she share the entire exchange?” one person said.

“She’s clearly trying to extend her 15 minutes of shame on TV. Time to let it go,” one other comment read.

Inflation has been a serious concern for voters in the upcoming election, with many pointing fingers at President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. But is it fair to blame them entirely for the rising cost of products? The answer, like the causes of inflation itself, is complex.

While inflation is currently at its lowest point since March 2021, many families are still battling higher prices. News and social media show that some voters are blaming the Biden-Harris administration for the rising costs. In this episode of “Politics Explained,” we take a have a look at theories about inflation that consider that inflation simply didn’t start with one president.

During former President Donald Trump’s administration, Trump often boasted about low unemployment and economic growth, much of which he inherited from Obama AdministrationHowever, Trump’s decision to engage in trade wars, particularly with China, has led to the imposition of tariffs which have disrupted supply chains and in some cases led to higher prices for consumers.

Then got here the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, which severely disrupted global supply chains and led to skyrocketing prices. As travel restrictions and labor shortages intensified, inflation soared, deepening the economic crisis.

In response to the pandemic, the U.S. government has taken significant steps to stabilize the economy. Trump signed the bipartisan CARES Act in 2020, providing relief funds to tens of millions of Americans. But some economists theorize that the surge in money flowing into the economy, combined with tight supplies, fueled demand and helped drive up prices. When Biden took office in 2021, the economy was still reeling from the effects of the pandemic. His administration signed one other stimulus package despite concerns about inflation.

Global aspects like the war in Ukraine and company price gouging also played a big role in inflation. Companies that posted record profits during the pandemic often kept prices high whilst supply-chain disruptions subsided. Still, many Americans looked to President Biden to fix the problem — but additionally they blamed him.

Historically, U.S. presidents have been blamed for inflation and economic crises, even when their control over them was limited. In the Seventies, President Jimmy Carter faced heavy criticism for high inflation (and his “talking about feeling unwell,” contributing to his loss to Republican candidate Ronald Reagan. Similarly, George H. W. Bush lost reelection to Bill Clinton due to the recession of the Nineties.

So what did Joe and Kamala do about inflation?

The Biden-Harris administration has taken steps to combat inflation. In 2022, President Biden has allowed the release of oil reserves to lower gas prices, passed an inflation-reduction bill and backed the Federal Reserve’s decision to raise rates of interest to slow spending. But the query stays whether these measures will ease voters’ concerns.

As the 2024 election approaches, Harris and Trump have outlined their economic plans. Trump is promising more tariffs, which economists say could further increase inflation. Harris, in turn, is promising support middle and low income families thanks to tax breaks and solving the problem of corporate price gouging.

Ultimately, voters may judge candidates not only by who does more to fix the economy, but in addition by who tells the most compelling story about their efforts to achieve this. The debate over the president’s responsibility for inflation is as much about perception because it is about policy.

With elections approaching, society will soon determine whose narrative it trusts more.

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Nail art is one of many beauty practices that highlights parallels in cultural and temporal evolution. The sociopolitical landscape of the nail industry in America highlights the nuances behind the ritual of beauty and the way it may well be framed as a tool for cultural understanding and collaboration.

The influence of black and Vietnamese on contemporary American and global nail culture has been evident over the past 50 years, especially for those living in Southern California and Los Angeles County. This influence paints a history of class relations, migration, and ethnic identity—stemming from major world events.

The Vietnam War sparked justifiable division and social unrest across the country, as many Americans protested unnecessary violence motivated by U.S. imperial and capitalist goals. As a result, Vietnamese civilians fled the country and sought refuge in America. Their presence It has aroused hostility amongst many individuals and support from others, especially American figures corresponding to Tippi Hedren.

Tippi Hedren is an American Hollywood star of the Nineteen Fifties and Sixties whose starring role in Hitchcock’s 1963 cult classic brought her national recognition. Acrylic nails were already a thing when the film debuted, but seeing them on the massive screen cemented their popularity in mainstream conversation.

Hedren’s beauty practice became something of a buzzword, which she capitalized on in 1975 when the war became a turning point. After her community service led her to the experience of Vietnam War refugees in California, she decided to assist them with their financial circumstances. Together along with her personal manicurist, Hedren trained the primary twenty Vietnamese nail technicians, who later mobilized a complete generation of Vietnamese and other members of the Southeast Asian community to enter the nail industry as a method of financial security and social advancement.

Documentary film Directed by Adele Free Pham, the film details Hedren’s influence, the rise of Vietnamese nail salons in America, and the contributions of Vietnamese and black women to the business. The film also explores the cultural and political significance of beauty in society.

Black women leading the best way in style and cultural innovation is a trend as constant as time itself. Beauty icons like Diana Ross, Donna Summer, and Florence “FloJo” Griffith-Joyner set trends and defied stereotypes with their daring acrylic styles and posed as black women because the faces of daring nail art. The stylistic influence of black women has permeated every layer of culture, starting within the hood, making it to the foremost stage, and continuing throughout the culture to at the present time. Similarly, Wanna Thompson details the importance of nail art for the non-public expression of Black women throughout history and highlights its role for many ladies of color today.

“Base” nail salons, as Kevin Saint Pham affectionately calls them within the documentary, were the birthplace of modern nail culture and creativity. In the Eighties, black women visiting Vietnamese nail salons played an energetic role in cultivating this avant-garde culture and making a space for 2 seemingly different cultures to attach through beauty and art.

The unique collaboration between Vietnamese nail technician Charlie Vo and a black skilled at Olivetta Robinson salon revolutionized the wonder industry and ushered in the primary era of beauty salon chains.

Their pioneering nail shop “Trap” sprouted in a number of locations in South Los Angeles and further developed the American nail industry. The union of Vo and Robinson embodied a fusion of cultural ingenuity and prolonged the legacy of marginalized diasporas who use artistic expression as a method of survival.

However, this cooperation was rare. Hatred and tension, fueled by anti-Black racism, xenophobia and manufactured by white supremacy scarcity mentality has caused conflict between the black and Asian communities for generations. The densely populated but segregated communities comprised of black American, black immigrant, and Asian immigrant communities have had exclusionary and sometimes dangerous experiences on account of racial profiling from all sides.

The brutal murder of 15-12 months-old Latasha Harlins by Korean merchant Soon Ja Du in 1991 in South Los Angeles painted a horrifying picture of the socio-political environment that leaves communities of color in conflict. Racial profiling of black consumers by store owners, together with xenophobic behavior toward non-native English-speaking employees, are ingrained social practices that proceed to divide ethnic groups today.

Having lived in Los Angeles for nearly a decade, there are select Asian-owned, Black beauty supply stores that I can not bring myself to go to on account of the baseless accusations, racist profiling, and aggression I actually have experienced firsthand. While experiences of unity might be transformative, each truths still matter.

In an earlier conversation with Professor Omise’eke Tinsley, which discussed the politics of black femininity, the scholar speaks to the potential for conversations about Asian and black relationships through beauty and politics, noting that she is more enthusiastic about the chances of intersectional solidarity between these groups than in marginalized attempts to realize acceptance through assimilation of beauty standards.

Tinsley states that “Black and Asian women are portrayed as opposites, which always ends up benefiting white supremacy, [but] if we can find a way to work together and have these conversations, it will be truly subversive.” By difficult these narratives, we are able to counter white supremacists around beauty and politics that seek to divide us.

Some of essentially the most moving elements of cross-cultural beauty spaces emerge through the communal environments they cultivate. The deeply resonant love that salon owners have for his or her longtime clients who’ve develop into family, and the mutual support between Asian merchants and their black patrons, are poignant reminders of the unifying power of beauty. Beauty is a strong tool that, when used compassionately, pushes people to see the humanity in one another. A recognition that is crucial to the work of movement and survival.

While cross-cultural solidarity could also be complicated by the inescapable anti-Blackness that permeates the globe, one fact is definite: we is not going to achieve complete liberation by perpetuating the tools of white supremacy—whether through racism, xenophobia, or another means. We would do well to heed Audre Lorde’s admonition: “the master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house.”

The differences and similarities between Black and Asian communities world wide are each beautiful and difficult. Yet, through universal media of self-actualization corresponding to beauty and commerce, we are able to find common ground to weather the storms of global capitalism that plague all of our communities and threaten our collective existence and well-being.

Nail art is one example that proves that beauty is just not simply a practice of vanity. Rather, it’s a method of expression and solidarity.