Winners
Black Youth
Aside from their two dollar White House visit, the Baylor Lady Bears have much to celebrate with their championship win, and they’re not the only young people making major moves this week.
Black youth have been winning for the past several days, starting with 18-year-old Kaliegh Garris, who took home the crown for Miss Teen USA 2019. The Connecticut native defeated 51 other contestants with her natural hair looks and undisputed brilliance.
“During the contest you know you have self-doubt because there are so many great people,” Garris acknowledged in a press release. “I am just happy, proud, and grateful for the support system I have.”
Along with being a competitive dancer, Garris also founded an organization called We Are People 1st that assists people with disabilities. She was motivated to start the organization because of her older sister, who has a disability.
On Thursday, more young talent gained the spotlight when 19-year-old Phillip Youmans won a top prize at Tribeca Film Festival. His movie Burning Cane won the festival’s Founders Award as the best U.S. narrative feature film, according to nola.com.
The New Orleans filmmaker shot the movie when he was only a 17-year-old in high school and two years later, he took over the Tribeca Film Festival. Along with best narrative feature, the movie starring Wendell Pierce also won awards for best cinematography, and best actor for Pierce, who plays a preacher grieving the loss of his wife.
Star filmmaker Ava DuVernay congratulated Youmans on Twitter, writing, “The brother is just 19 years old. He wrote, directed, shot and edited his film while in high school. And he just won big at Tribeca.”
https://twitter.com/ava/status/1124305926968762370
Youmans also makes history as the first Black filmmaker to have a project win Tribeca’s Founders Award.
Not too shabby for a 19-year-old freshman at New York University.
Black youth stay winning.
The White House Is The New McDonald’s & Black Teens Make History: This Week’s Winners & Losers was originally published on globalgrind.com
