₦airaland Forum

With a record 99 Grammy nominations and acclaim as one of the most influential artists in music history, pop superstar Beyoncé and her expansive cultural legacy will be the subject of a new course at Yale University next year.

Titled "Beyoncé Makes History: Black Radical Tradition, Culture, Theory & Politics Through Music," the one-credit class will focus on the period from her 2013 self-titled album through this year's genre-defying "Cowboy Carter" and how the world-famous singer, songwriter and entrepreneur has generated awareness and engagement in social and political ideologies.

Yale University's African American Studies Professor Daphne Brooks intends to use the performer's wide-ranging repertoire, including footage of her live performances, as a "portal" for students to learn about Black intellectuals, from Frederick Douglass to Toni Morrison.

"We're going to be taking seriously the ways in which the critical work, the intellectual work of some of our greatest thinkers in American culture resonates with Beyoncé's music and thinking about the ways in which we can apply their philosophies to her work" and how it has sometimes been at odds with the "Black radical intellectual tradition," Brooks said.

Beyoncé, whose full name is Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, is not the first performer to be the subject of a college-level course. There have been courses on singer and songwriter Bob Dylan over the years and several colleges and universities have recently offered classes on singer Taylor Swift and her lyrics and pop culture legacy. That includes law professors who hope to engage a new generation of lawyers by using a famous celebrity like Swift to bring context to complicated, real-world concepts.

Professors at other colleges and universities have also incorporated Beyoncé into their courses or offered classes on the superstar.

Brooks sees Beyoncé in a league of her own, crediting the singer with using her platform to "spectacularly elevate awareness of and engagement with grassroots, social, political ideologies and movements" in her music, including the Black Lives Matter movement and Black feminist commentary.

"Can you think of any other pop musician who's invited an array of grassroots activists to participate in these longform multimedia album projects that she's given us since 2013," asked Brooks. She noted how Beyoncé has also tried to tell a story through her music about "race and gender and sexuality in the context of the 400-year-plus history of African-American subjugation."

"She's a fascinating artist because historical memory, as I often refer to it, and also the kind of impulse to be an archive of that historical memory, it's just all over her work," Brooks said. "And you just don't see that with any other artist."

Brooks previously taught a well-received class on Black women in popular music culture at Princeton University and discovered her students were most excited about the portion dedicated to Beyoncé. She expects her class at Yale will be especially popular, but she's trying to keep the size of the group relatively small.

For those who manage to snag a seat next semester, they shouldn't get their hopes up about seeing Queen Bey in person.

"It's too bad because if she were on tour, I would definitely try to take the class to see her," Brooks said.

President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump are meeting in the Oval Office, resuming a tradition that Trump himself disregarded in 2020.

Biden spoke first and called for a smooth transition. Trump then said that politics is tough but that the transition will be smooth.

They did not answer questions.

The Biden administration is committed to ensuring “every dollar we have at our disposal” is pushed out to Ukraine before Donald Trump takes office, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.

Blinken made a hastily arranged trip to Brussels to reassure NATO and European Union allies that the US will intensify its efforts to send resources to Ukraine ahead of the inauguration of Trump, who has strongly criticized the scale of the US effort to defend Kyiv.

“The purpose of this visit is to focus our efforts on ensuring that Ukraine has the money, the munitions, and the mobilized forces to fight effectively in 2025 or to be able to negotiate a peace from a position of strength,” he told reporters in Brussels.

The resources the US is still trying to get to Ukraine mainly come from a $61 billion package passed by the US Congress earlier this year.

“The drawdowns that we can do from our military equipment, they will go forward. Obligating funds, that will go forward,” Blinken said, mentioning air defense, artillery and armored vehicles.

Ukraine’s European allies have been concerned that Trump will pull the plug on the embattled country and seek to shift the burden to Europe, although a massive change of strategy hasn’t been formally signaled yet by the incoming Trump team.

The Biden administration’s race against the clock to deliver the aid it promised Ukraine is acquiring more urgency as Trump’s picks for key posts emerge. On Wednesday, the president-elect’s choice for defense secretary came as a surprise to many.

In Pete Hegseth, a weekend host on Fox News and an Army combat veteran, he selected a fierce loyalist and a China hawk.

Trump promised during the election campaign that he would quickly end the fighting in Ukraine, but has been ambivalent in his support for Kyiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has urged European leaders to focus on maintaining the supply of weapons and not undermine his position with talk of a cease-fire or concessions to Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

Blinken also had some harsh words about North Korea’s deployment of troops to Ukraine, describing it as “a profound and incredibly dangerous development.” While allies have unanimously condemned the arrival of these troops in Russia, they still have yet to forge a concrete response.

JONSYN7154:
Why won't you be happy because that's the road that leads from aliede to Oju your place abi?

TheChameleon:
Sad but those roads wouldn't be fixed.

No be Benue state ? Too many hopeless and visionless leaders from there.

So sad that the men want to drink and laze about instead of fighting back against herdsmen.

A state that's continuously supported people like David Mark... I'm pessimistic.

The Benue State Executive Council (SEC) has approved the sum of N30.2 billion for the construction of five rural roads in the state.

Chief press secretary to the governor, Tersoo Kula, who disclosed this at a briefing after the SEC meeting held Tuesday at the Government House, Makurdi, said the amount represents 60 percent counterpart fund for the rural roads across the three senatorial zones while the local governments in the designated project areas will provide the remaining 40 percent.

The projects approved for construction are the Awajir-Oju; Adikpo-Kotiyo-Vandeikya, Ushongo-Har; Igwumale-Agila; and Obagaji-Okokolo-Agagbe roads.

Mr Kula also disclosed that the SEC resolved to domesticate the Disability Act in the state for persons with disability as well as approve a donation of N10 million to the Nigerian Legion for this year’s Armed Forces Remembrance Day.

He said the move by the state government was to ensure that the rights of those with disability are protected and the challenges faced in their day to day life reduced.

Similarly, the sum of N567 million was approved as compensation for members of Mbagwa and Mbawa communities of Makurdi local government for their lands earmarked for the federal housing estate project.

Besides, the SEC approved the establishment of Benue State Signage and Advertisement Agency to regulate signposts, billboards and other advertisement activities.

Kula disclosed lifting of suspension placed on the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice and Public Order, Barr Fidelis Mnyim who was sanctioned by Governor Hyacinth Alia for including Benue state as party in the suit challenging the legality of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).

Kula said Barr Mnyim was recalled from suspension after he withdrew the state from the list of those challenging the constitutionality of the laws establishing the two anti-graft agencies

Laurene:
Are you done crying gay?
Benue is under seige

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo visited Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, at the Government House in Akure ahead of the governorship election scheduled for Saturday, 16 November.

The judge in Donald Trump's criminal hush money case in New York agreed Tuesday to delay any decision on the whether to throw out Trump's conviction based on the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision on presidential immunity.

Judge Juan Merchan was scheduled on Tuesday to decide the fate of the case, but the Manhattan district attorney's office signaled that it needs more time to consider how to proceed now that Trump is president-elect.

Cmeo:
Fantastical failure from the same man that said Nigeria is fantastically corrupt!

gaddafe:
The Buhari civilian dministration was more wicked than Abacha but you won't hear that because the US president is happy with him. Also there are some despotic and wicked US president's in the past but they won't tell you that. It was an American president that ordered the use of atomic bomb against civilian target. In Nagasaki and Hiroshima.

Veteran Nigerian comedian, Ali Baba, has narrated how his joke about the former military leader, General Sani Abacha, almost ended his life.

The 59-year-old reflected on the incident during his appearance on Leadership Podcast.

Recalling the tense atmosphere surrounding one of his performances during Abacha’s regime, he said, “The first close encounter I had with death is when general Sani Abacha was the President.

“So, I went to anchor an event in Abuja. So when it was time for the Akwa Ibom cultural group to perform. Abacha was still wearing one of those dark Rayban sunglasses that could be folded.

“I stopped the cultural group dance and faced Abacha, saying, ‘Your Excellency, sir, it’s almost 10 pm why are you wearing dark shades? Remove this shade nah or don’t you want to see their performance?

“Abacha then removed his glasses and talked to his aide. Immediately I saw DSS officers going backstage to wait for me. Immediately I noticed DSS presence, I went down the stage to sit on the ground next to Abacha. He then made jokes about me and questioned why I refused to go backstage.

“I said don’t worry, sir, let them arrest me here. He then looked at me and smiled.”

DAILY POST recalls that late General Sani Abacha ruled Nigeria from 1993 to 1998, after a coup that ousted interim President Ernest Shonekan.

His regime was infamous for abuses, with opposition figures being imprisoned, tortured, or killed.

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby resigned on Tuesday, saying he stepped down “in sorrow” after failing to ensure there was a proper investigation into allegations of abuse by a volunteer at Christian summer camps decades ago.

Welby, the spiritual leader of 85-million Anglicans worldwide, had faced calls to resign after a report last week found he had taken insufficient action to stop a person it described as arguably the Church of England's most prolific serial abuser.

“Having sought the gracious permission of His Majesty The King, I have decided to resign as Archbishop of Canterbury,” Welby said.

“I hope this decision makes clear how seriously the Church of England understands the need for change and our profound commitment to creating a safer church. As I step down I do so in sorrow with all victims and survivors of abuse.”

A man of God was captured in a video seeking to comfort a woman who was burying her late husband The pastor publicly displayed his soft spot for the widow in front of families and other mourners at his funeral The post attracted a lot of comments from social media users who felt that he was disrespecting late husband

A very distasteful video of a man believed to be a pastor making moves on a widow was shared on social media, causing an uproar from the online community members. Social media user @living0od shared the clip on Instagram, attracting over 8.2 comments and 67K likes.

The proposal that got people talking The clip shows the pastor kneeling on his knee in front of the lady, believed to be the widow and inserting a ring on the left finger. The woman hugs the man of God in front of her husband's coffin while attendees cheer and ululate in excitement.

The pastor leaves social media users suspicious After seeing the clip, social media users took to @living0od's comment section to display their shock. Many said the pair probably had a relationship while the late husband was alive, while others felt the pastor might have had something to do with the man's death.

cococandy:
The protest voters for Jill Stein and the ones that didn’t vote Kamala because they didn’t like Biden’s actions are about to find out the truth of a Trump for Palestine.

Triplebigs:
Is a pretty much blessing to me and my family.there is no single week that I don't win above 400k

iwaeda:
CAPITAL Curse. Especially EPL and La liga. Many have lost fortune. I remembered one funny guy, he was sent N50k to buy plumbing materials. He staked on Arsenal to loose against Mancity, alas it was draw.