Women are often made to feel like being groped, leered at, and shouted at in the streets is normal and that they should just shut up about it. Yeah, so do you know what? That is NOT cool, and I wish something was being done about it. Oh hold up, there is! Watch to see what happens when this woman brings together the power of social media and other women from all around the world who have finally had enough of this treatment.
Brandon Conway sounds remarkably like Michael Jackson when he sings.
When Michael Jackson died 13 years ago, the pop music world lost a legend. However markedly mysterious and controversial his personal life was, his contributions to music will go down in history as some of the most influential of all time.
Part of what made him such a beloved singer was the uniqueness of his voice. From the time he was a young child singing lead for The Jackson 5, his high-pitched vocals stood out. Hearing him sing live was impressive, his pitch-perfect performances always entertaining.
No one could ever really be compared to MJ, or so we thought. Out of the blue, a guy showed up on TikTok recently with a casual performance that sounds so much like the King of Pop it's blowing people away.
Brandon Conway posted his first TikTok video ever on July 24, and in less than three weeks it's been viewed more than 27 million times. It's just him standing in a parking lot snapping his fingers and singing "The Way You Make Me Feel," but when he opens his mouth, whoa.
As he keeps going, it gets even more whoa. Then he hits Jackson's signature "he he" and the whoa turns into what?!?
First post on tiktok let me know what you guys think! More videos coming soon feom mj to country to rock so yall be sure to stay tuned!#fyp #singer #usherchallenge @usher @tpain #letsgo #firstvideo
Uncanny, right? If you need a reminder of how Jackson himself sounded when he sang it, here's a live performance from Auckland during his 1996 world tour.
If you don’t like a TV show, change the channel. If you don’t like a song, change the radio station. If you don’t want to read a book, don’t read it. If you don’t want your children to do something, tell them what to avoid.
Makes sense, right? Not to the majority of voters in Jamestown Township in western Michigan. On August 3, they rejected a millage to fund their local library to protest its inclusion of LGBTQ-themed books. A millage is what some municipalities use to calculate property taxes.
The voters rejected the millage by 62% to 37%. The vote gutted the library's operating budget in 2023 by 84%. Larry Walton, the library board president, told Bridge Michigan that without the funding the library will close late next year.
The library became the center of controversy for carrying “Gender Queer: A Memoir,” in the adult graphic novel section. After protests, it was removed from the shelves and put behind the counter.
A review on publisher Simon and Schuster's website says that the book, written by Maia Kobabe, is “a great resource for those who identify as nonbinary or asexual as well as for those who know someone who identifies that way and wish to better understand."
But conservative activists in Jamestown Township accused the library of indoctrinating local children by having the book on the shelves. There were also complaints about a book called “Spinning” about a teen girl's attraction to other girls and “Kiss Number 8,” a graphic novel with similar LGBTQ themes.
“They are trying to groom our children to believe that it’s OK to have these sinful desires,” Amanda Ensing, a member of the group Jamestown Conservatives, said of library officials, Bridge Michigan reported. “It’s not a political issue, it’s a Biblical issue.”
If you don’t like the library's books, why not tell your kids not to go there? Problem solved.
Did the people who supported closing the library consider the fact that by closing it they weren’t just eliminating access to a few books on LGBTQ issues but countless topics and stories that they may support?
The news of the library’s impending closure inspired a backlash by people who support the LGBTQ community and reading. More than $90,000 has been raised through two GoFundMe campaigns.
Jamestown resident Jesse Dillman has raised $87,000 for the cause through his campaign that has a goal of $200,000, the amount needed to keep the library open for the good part of a year.
“The Patmos Library in Jamestown is a core part of the community fabric,” he wrote on his GoFundMe page. "I firmly believe most residents here don't share these views and desire to continue funding our local library. Funds raised here will be donated to the Patmos Library so that we can keep it open long enough to consolidate community support for our library millage."
Michelle Barrows has raised nearly $5,000 on her page.
“I was very disheartened that the majority of this community believes in defunding the library because it has books with subjects they don't like or understand,” Barrows wrote on her GoFundMe page. “If you don't like the book, don't check it out! Books don't make people gay. Books DO provide understanding, teach tolerance, and love of differences.”
"I hope you get to your goal, but it is a very very sad day when a public library has to get funded this way due to extreme views of a minority wishing to impose their will on others. Keep on reading!" GoFundMe donor Nancy Stryker wrote.
The people of Jamestown’s decision to punish themselves and their community by shutting down the library over a few books they disagree with is a sad display of irrational political and religious outrage. Banning books has a long history of being connected to oppressive political regimes and is antithetical to living in a society that values freedom of speech.
But it is heartening to see that people from across the world have stood up and donated money to help keep the library alive. Perhaps those who voted to shut it down will hand back their library cards.
And considering how many "kids these days" laments we see coming from older generations, it's also heartening to see kids showing excellent character qualities when no one directly asked them to.
A viral video from a Little League baseball game is giving us a nice dose of both—good sportsmanship and basic human kindness from two players from opposing teams.
As reported by USA Today, Isaiah (Zay) Jarvis, a batter from Oklahoma, took a pitch from Texas East pitcher Kaiden Shelton right to the side of his helmet. It was a hard blow that caused Jarvis to spin around and crumble to the ground, grabbing his head. The replay in slow motion shows that the ball basically just knocked his helmet off, though it was undoubtedly jarring and probably painful as well.
Jarvis was able to continue playing, but Shelton was shaken up. No matter how fierce the competition, no one wants to be responsible for injuring another person. He was visibly upset on the mound, so Jarvis left first base and approached him.
Watch the classy interchange:
\u201c"Hey, you're doing just great"\n\nOklahoma little leaguer gets hit in the head and then comforts the pitcher who is shaken up afterward\u201d
That a kid this age would approach a player who hit him with a ball and comfort him with a hug, especially knowing that all eyes were on him, is just so lovely. Someone raised this young man to put people's feelings ahead of competitiveness and not worry about what others might think.
And the fact that the pitcher was so distraught at the possibility of having hurt someone is also so sweet. This was a moment that showed the true character of both of these boys, and both of them exemplified caring and compassion.
\u201c@JakeOffield @Jomboy_ Same with the pitcher. His instant remorse is such a human aspect that\u2019s missing in sports these days.\u201d
"Both of those boys are what you want your kids to aspire to," wrote one commenter. "One willing to forgive and knows it wasn't intentional and the other showing remorse and sorrow. I love it!!"
\u201c@PaganLady3 @Jomboy_ thanks for the smart comment. exactly my reaction. there is hope. what a great kid, and compliments to his parents.\u201d
