ICYMI: our President used a despicable racist phrase this weekend to bully and disparage members of Congress who have challenged him. In a series of tweets that should’ve been deleted the second they left his tiny, racist brain, he told “‘Progressive’ Democrat Congresswomen” they should “go back to where they came from.” The tweet was most likely directed at AOC, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, and Rashida Tlaib, all women of color who represent, and are from, the United States. It’s disgusting; it’s racist; and it’s not surprising given that Trump is a known disgusting racist. It’s also far from the first time this wording has been used by racists to belittle, insult and harm immigrants and people of color who live in the U.S.
AOC and many others were quick to call him out.
It’s important to note that the President’s words yday, telling four American Congresswomen of color “go back to your own country,” is hallmark language of white supremacists.
Trump feels comfortable leading the GOP into outright racism, and that should concern all Americans.— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 15, 2019
Many folks have taken to Twitter to share their experiences with being told to “go back to where they came from,” and their stories highlight just how ignorant and hypocritical these words are and also how damaging and painful they can be.
“Go back to your country” is a taunt immigrant kids hear on the playground, it’s a threat I get from unhinged people in my DMs, and it’s also something the President of the United States says to strong women of color who oppose him.— Padma Lakshmi (@PadmaLakshmi) July 15, 2019
It’s rooted in centuries of ignorance, violence and white supremacy. This man does not represent us. And in 2020 we will vote him the f**k out.— Padma Lakshmi (@PadmaLakshmi) July 15, 2019
In high school, I was out with a black friend when someone yelled at her to "go back to Africa." He did not tell me to "go back to Germany."
It didn't matter that her family had been in the U.S. longer than mine. That's not the point. Only one of us was seen as American.— Grace Segers (@Grace_Segers) July 14, 2019
My father told me stories from when he was in the Navy, a relatively rare officer of Italian descent at the time, being told by some to “go back to where he came from”. Given that he was from NJ & a volunteer, it always rankled him. The was the early 1950s, nearly 70 years ago.— Jim Sciutto (@jimsciutto) July 15, 2019
Latinos have been told for many decades to go back to their country. Many are told “go back to Mexico” even if their heritage is from some other Latin American country or their family was in parts of what is the U.S. before it became the U.S. It’s racist.— Suzanne Gamboa (@SuzGamboa) July 15, 2019
When I was in middle school, the 12-year-old boys’ favorite insult was to tell me to go back to Russia.— Julia Ioffe (@juliaioffe) July 14, 2019
I’m sure many JOC have been. “Go back to your country,” “go back to Iran,” “go back to where you came from” or something like that drops into my inbox anytime I write about identity, race, immigration or a similar topic. I’m from San Diego. https://t.co/HMk7fiTUzd— Sarah Parvini (سارا) (@sarahparvini) July 15, 2019
I will say that while it is a first to hear words like “originally from” and “go back” from the President of the United States, I’ve heard these and variants my whole life. Sometimes more hostile than others. 1/— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) July 14, 2019
The less hostile ones are the ones that go something like this:
The insinuation being that somehow I’m not fully “from here” because of how I look.
It’s irritating but not nearly as much as it is to my friend who is also Chinese-American & whose family came to America in the 1860s to help build the Transcontinental Railroad. 3/— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) July 14, 2019
He likes to point out to questioners that his family has been in the United States often longer than the families of some of the questioners. 4/— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) July 14, 2019
And then there are the overtly hostile ones – which I remember as a child and which have popped from time to time my whole life, including one vividly threatening incident on a street in Washington in 2013 (note pre-Trump). 5/— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) July 14, 2019
And while it’s mostly been white people who make these sort of comments, a lot also have come from African Americans. I think perhaps a reflection the lingering sense in many quarters that the United States is a black & white nation. The rest of us are just awkward guests. 6/— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) July 14, 2019
Of course, African Americans also get (the probably even more annoying) “go back to Africa” – my point is that while it is great that people are shocked by POTUS, no person of color will find any of this the least bit new. 7/— Michael Li 李之樸 (@mcpli) July 14, 2019
This article originally appeared on SomeeCards. You can read it here.
Reddit user Girlfriendhatesmefor’s three-year-old pitbull, Otis, had recently become overprotective of his wife. So he asked the online community if they knew what might be wrong with the dog.
“A week or two ago, my wife got some sort of stomach bug,” the Reddit user wrote under the subreddit /r/dogs. “She was really nauseous and ill for about a week. Otis is very in tune with her emotions (we once got in a fight and she was upset, I swear he was staring daggers at me lol) and during this time didn’t even want to leave her to go on walks. We thought it was adorable!”
His wife soon felt better, butthe dog’s behavior didn’t change.
Girlfriendhatesmefor began to fear that Otis’ behavior may be an early sign of an aggression issue or an indication that the dog was hurt or sick.
So he threw a question out to fellow Reddit users: “Has anyone else’s dog suddenly developed attachment/aggression issues? Any and all advice appreciated, even if it’s that we’re being paranoid!”
The most popular response to his thread was by ZZBC.
Any chance your wife is pregnant?
ZZBC | Reddit
The potential news hit Girlfriendhatesmefor like a ton of bricks. A few days later, Girlfriendhatesmefor posted an update and ZZBC was right!
“The wifey is pregnant!” the father-to-be wrote. “Otis is still being overprotective but it all makes sense now! Thanks for all the advice and kind words! Sorry for the delayed reply, I didn’t check back until just now!”
Redditors responded with similar experiences.
Anecdotal I know but I swear my dog knew I was pregnant before I was. He was super clingy (more than normal) and was always resting his head on my belly.
realityisworse | Reddit
So why do dogs get overprotective when someone is pregnant?
Jeff Werber, PhD, president and chief veterinarian of the Century Veterinary Group in Los Angeles, told Health.com that “dogs can also smell the hormonal changes going on in a woman’s body at that time.” He added the dog may “not understand that this new scent of your skin and breath is caused by a developing baby, but they will know that something is different with you—which might cause them to be more curious or attentive.”
The big lesson here is to listen to your pets and to ask questions when their behavior abruptly changes. They may be trying to tell you something, and the news may be life-changing.
Throughout history, women have stood up and fought to break down barriers imposed on them from stereotypes and societal expectations. The trailblazers in these photos made history and redefined what a woman could be. In doing so, they paved the way for future generations to stand up and continue to fight for equality.
While conspiracy theories are not limited to any topic, there is one type of event that seems particularly likely to spark them: mass shootings, typically defined as attacks in which a shooter kills at least four other people.
When one person kills many others in a single incident, particularly when it seems random, people naturally seek out answers for why the tragedy happened. After all, if a mass shooting is random, anyone can be a target.
