SMH Moments of 2011
What made you shake your head in shock?
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SMH Moments of 2011 - In the following pages, BET.com reflects on some moments that made the Black community “shake their heads” in shame and/or shock during the past year.
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Dyson Compares President to Black Man Running From a Cop - In January, Michael Eric Dyson appeared on an NBC political show, and although he said that President Obama deserved a “C-“grade for his policies, it was Dyson’s statement that “Obama runs from race like a Black man runs from a cop” that made us shake our heads. (Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images for Meet the Press)
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Reggae Artist Bleaches Skin - Yet again, skin color was a hot topic in 2011, and the fact that reggae artist Vybz Kartel lightened his skin what looks like 10 completions lighter made us shake our heads. #Loveyourself(Photo from left to right: Scott Gries/Getty Images, Cipha/Rosenberg/K.Foxx)
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Steve Harvey’s Ex-Wife Goes Public - In a series of videos released by Steve Harvey’s ex-wife Mary, we weren’t sure if we should have shaken our heads at her for exposing her ex over YouTube, or at him for being an alleged deadbeat husband. Either way, SMH.(Photo: Paul Abell/PictureGroup)
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Cocaine Dreadlocks - Dreadlocks are a hairstyle embraced in the Black community and worn by many, but when they’re used to smuggle cocaine in an overseas flight like Nobanda Nolubabalo, 23, did, it makes us all look bad. #SMH.(Photo: John Chiasson/Liaison)
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Some Detroit Students Still Don’t Have Textbooks - In another SMH story, it was sad to know that 29 of 127 Detroit Public School buildings reported more than 8,300 missing books. We’re hoping for a better 2012. (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
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Eddie Long’s Camera Phone Pics - The accusations of Bishop Eddie Long went down in 2011 history books, and for a man who pastors one of Atlanta’s largest mega churches, we couldn’t help but shake our heads at the reports that said he allegedly sexually assaulted young Black boys, not to mention those camera phone pictures he took in the bathroom mirror. SMH. (Photo: John Amis-Pool/Getty Images)
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T.S.A. Black Hair Pat Down - 2011 has been the year of the TSA pat down, but when the government agency made headlines for searching through African-American natural hair, you would have thought all hell broke loose. Was it racial profiling or standard procedure? Either way, “Don’t touch the hair!” was the message from most women searched.(Photo: Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
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Black Man Fakes Hate Crime to Get His Wife Back - When Florida police suspected that the Ku Klux Klan was to blame for a burned cross in an interracial couple’s driveway, we had to shake our heads when we found out that it was LB Williams, 50, a Black man.(Photo: T. O'Keefe/PhotoLink/Getty)
Photo By T. O'Keefe/PhotoLink/Getty
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Penn State Investigation - We’re not sure if we should shake our heads or cringe when reflecting on the 2011 Penn State investigation into former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. Sandusky is accused of sexually abusing young boys, including raping them and showering with them. **Cue shivers**(Photo: Reuters/Pennsylvania State Attorney General's Office/HO /LANDOV)
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NeNe Leakes Calls Latoya Jackson Casper the Ghost - In the Black community there are multiple shades of complexions, but when Real Housewives of Atlanta co-star Nene Leakes called Latoya Jackson “Casper the Friendly Ghost” on Celebrity Apprentice, she took color insults to another level that didn’t need to be seen. (Photo: Jason Merritt/Getty Images)
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Malcolm X’s Daughter Back in Jail - Daddy wouldn’t be happy and neither are we. In July, Malikah Shabazz received a sentence of five years of probation for stealing the identity of 70-year-old Khaula Bakr, and racking up more than $55,000 of debt in the family friend’s name, and this month, she’s in jail again for violating her probation.(AP Photo/Madison County Sheriff's Office)
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Sports Lockouts - It seemed like the NFL and the NBA just couldn’t get it together this year, but the two finally pulled it together, just in time for the NFL to end their lockout in mid-August, and the NBA to end its lockout in early December.(Photo: Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
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Dutch Magazine Apologizes for Calling Rihanna a "n*gga b*tch" - It’s one thing to have a voice as a reporter, but it’s another to cross the lines, and that’s exactly what Jackie magazine did. The magazine tried to show readers how to adapt Rihanna’s style in the Netherlands, by describing her as “the ultimate n****r b****h,” but they should have known better.(Photo: Fame Pictures)
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X Factor Judges Receive Death Threats - We all have our reality television shows that we love, but some have taken their love for the show X factor a little too far. Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger both received death threats from angry fans after sending 14-year-old singer Drew home, but don’t we think that’s a little too much. Yes. It’s TV people!
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Chris Paul Reneged Trade - This has been the year of NBA drama, and in early December on the same day that reports indicated that the New Orleans Hornets had engineered a 3-team trade that would have sent All-Star point guard Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers, the trade, which also was to include the Houston Rockets, was vetoed by NBA Commissioner David Stern. SMH.(Photo: Jeff Gross/Getty Images)
Photo By Jeff Gross/Getty Images
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Did Someone Report Beyoncé Miscarried? - Not only did Jay-Z, put a ring on it, but he has a little one on the way. In not so happy news, however, after Beyoncé appeared on an Australian talk show, her pregnant belly seemed to fold on itself, starting the widely circulated rumor that the Jay-Z’s baby mama miscarried. SMH.(Photo: Anthony Harvey/PictureGroup)
Photo By Anthony Harvey/PictureGroup