+
upworthy
More

In 5 fiery tweets, Maxine Waters explains how Trump's been terrible for black people.

Standing in front of a sea of mostly white supporters at an August 2016 campaign rally in Michigan, Trump argued that life in America is so horrific for black Americans, they might as well change things up and vote Republican.

“You’re living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs, 58% of your youth is unemployed. What the hell do you have to lose?"

Trump speaking to supporters in Michigan in August 2016. Photo by Jeff Kowalsky/AFP/Getty Images.


Let's look past the inaccuracies and oversimplifications in his statement for a moment (most black people are not living in poverty, that 58% figure is wildly off the mark, and the assumption that every predominantly black school is "no good" is, at best, incredibly offensive), and take his assessment at face value.

What would black Americans have to lose under President Trump?

Many of us knew the answer, of course: a lot. Reporters and activists jumped on Trump's condescending remarks, pointing out that black voters would, in fact, be harmed by several key points of the then-candidate's policy agenda.

Six months into Trump's term, Rep. Maxine Waters of California hasn't forgotten Trump's now-infamous question.

And she's helping us understand just how much damage has already been done.

Photo by Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images.

In a fiery five-tweet response, Waters recalled the president's remarks from last year and lambasted what's happened since.

In her first tweet, Waters pointed out that Trumpcare would have a devastating effect on black Americans (fact check: true), that the president's massive budget cuts would slash housing assistance to low-income communities of color (fact check: true), and that his more recent attacks on universities' affirmative action policies would make college less accessible for black students (fact check: true).

Then she went in on Attorney General Jeff Sessions, calling him "a threat to our democracy."

With the power of the federal government at his disposal, Sessions has dismissed reports of police brutality, is working to stomp out the growing national consensus that our criminal justice system needs reforming, and voted against expanding protections under the Violence Against Women Act — all moves that disproportionately harm black Americans.

As Waters pointed out, we should have listened to Coretta Scott King when she warned us about him in 1986.

"Trump wants to fire Sessions [because] he can't count on his protection," Waters concluded in her final tweet, referring to Sessions' recusal from the Russia investigation. "[Sessions] should be fired for his racist agenda — but that's why Trump chose him."

So, what do black voters have to lose, according to Waters?

Apparently, quite a lot.

"At the end of four years, I guarantee you," Trump said during that 2016 speech in Michigan, "I will get over 95% of the African-American vote. I promise you.”

Considering Trump's approval rating among black Americans remains laughably poor, I wouldn't hold my breath through 2020.

A pitbull stares at the window, looking for the mailman.


Dogs are naturally driven by a sense of purpose and a need for belonging, which are all part of their instinctual pack behavior. When a dog has a job to do, it taps into its needs for structure, purpose, and the feeling of contributing to its pack, which in a domestic setting translates to its human family.

But let’s be honest: In a traditional domestic setting, dogs have fewer chores they can do as they would on a farm or as part of a rescue unit. A doggy mom in Vancouver Island, Canada had fun with her dog’s purposeful uselessness by sharing the 5 “chores” her pitbull-Lab mix does around the house.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joy

Kudos to the heroes who had 90 seconds to save lives in the Key Bridge collapse

The loss of 6 lives is tragic, but the dispatch recording shows it could have been so much worse.

Representative image by Gustavo Fring/Pexels

The workers who responded to the Dali's mayday call saved lives with their quick response.

As more details of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore emerge, it's becoming more apparent how much worse this catastrophe could have been.

Just minutes before 1:30am on March 26, shortly after leaving port in Baltimore Harbor, a cargo ship named Dali lost power and control of its steering, sending it careening into a structural pillar on Key Bridge. The crew of the Dali issued a mayday call at 1:26am to alert authorities of the power failure, giving responders crucial moments to prepare for a potential collision. Just 90 seconds later, the ship hit a pylon, triggering a total collapse of the 1.6-mile bridge into the Patapsco River.

Dispatch audio of those moments shows the calm professionalism and quick actions that limited the loss of life in an unexpected situation where every second counted.

Keep ReadingShow less

A woman looking at her phone while sitting on the toilet.


One of the most popular health trends over the last few years has been staying as hydrated as possible, evidenced by the massive popularity of 40-oz Stanely Quencher cups. The theory among those who obsess over hydration is that, when you pee clear, you’ve removed all the waste in your body and are enjoying the incredible benefits of being 100% hydrated. Congratulations.

However, according to Dr. Sermed Mezher, an NHS doctor in the UK, peeing clear isn’t always a sign of being healthy.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joy

Yale's pep band had to miss the NCAA tournament. University of Idaho said, 'We got you.'

In an act of true sportsmanship, the Vandal band learned Yale's fight song, wore their gear and cheered them on.

Courtesy of University of Idaho

The Idaho Vandals answered the call when Yale needed a pep band.

Yale University and the University of Idaho could not be more different. Ivy League vs. state school. East Coast vs. Pacific Northwest. City vs. farm town. But in the first two rounds of the NCAA basketball tournament, extenuating circumstances brought them together as one, with the Bulldogs and the Vandals becoming the "Vandogs" for a weekend.

When Yale made it to the March Madness tournament, members of the school's pep band had already committed to other travel plans during spring break. They couldn't gather enough members to make the trek across the country to Spokane, Washington, so the Yale Bulldogs were left without their fight song unless other arrangements could be made.

When University of Idaho athletic band director Spencer Martin got wind of the need less than a week before Yale's game against Auburn, he sent out a message to his band members asking if anyone would be interested in stepping in. The response was a wave of immediate yeses, so Martin got to work arranging instruments and the students dedicated themselves to learning Yale's fight song and other traditional Yale pep songs.

Keep ReadingShow less

An English doctor named Edward Jenner took incredible risks to try to rid his world of smallpox. Because of his efforts and the efforts of scientists like him, the only thing between deadly diseases like the ones below and extinction are people who refuse to vaccinate their kids. Don't be that parent.

Unfortunately, because of the misinformation from the anti-vaccination movement, some of these diseases have trended up in a really bad way over the past several years.

Keep ReadingShow less
Innovation

A student accidentally created a rechargeable battery that could last 400 years

"This thing has been cycling 10,000 cycles and it’s still going." ⚡️⚡️

There's an old saying that luck happens when preparation meets opportunity.

There's no better example of that than a 2016 discovery at the University of California, Irvine, by doctoral student Mya Le Thai. After playing around in the lab, she made a discovery that could lead to a rechargeable battery that could last up to 400 years. That means longer-lasting laptops and smartphones and fewer lithium ion batteries piling up in landfills.

Keep ReadingShow less