Plog Number 394
Hazel Scott
Hey Ploggers, how are you. I am hoping all is well. We are fine as long as we don’t turn on the news right. As hard as it t ignore, it’s even harder once you see it. I have to be careful even turning on the TV in the morning. I woke up, turned over and saw a full “read” of 47 telling off the Democratic Governor of Massachusetts Maura Healy. I didn’t hear her remarks but he said something like “If you don’t do what I say you won’t get any Federal💲 funding and I will see you in court, you don’t stand a chance, this will be easy and I hope you enjoy your life after Governor because I don’t think you will be in elected government”. He basically bullied her, threatened her and shamed her publically. The whole verbal tirade against her was hard to watch. There was no class, no subtlety, no attempt to appear fair or principled. I thought of two things. One, if Maura Healy was a Democrat, she never would’ve opened her mouth in opposition to 47. And number two, this is why the Republicans don’t dare speak up to him. He is like a petulant and power drunken👶 baby. I am sure bullying always took place in politics, but it was probably done behind the scenes. With this guy it is in your face. It was hard to watch and I felt bad for her. I had started my day with a volatile and ugly exchange by a👾 man I don’t respect. Not a good👎 way to start any day. So lets go into👍 another direction. Let's talk about a legendary, talented and brave black woman. Let's get into it.
As I learn more and more about🎹 piano, I try to take it all in. My sisters and daughter asked me if I knew of Hazel Scott. I didn’t, so I did a little research and Wow! She was born in Trinidad and Tobago on June 11, 1920. She was born a “Trini”. She died October 2, 1981 at age 61 in New York City from pancreatic cancer. She was a jazz and classical pianist and singer. She was an outspoken critic of racial discrimination and segregation. She used her influence to improve the representation of Black Americans in🎥 film. She married contoversial Congressional Representative Adam Clayton Powell and had one son Adam Clayton Powell III. She refused to perform in venues where black patrons couldn’t attend. She was trained in 🎼piano from age 4 by her mother. She was known as a prodigy and composed and played music well by age 8. She studied in 1933 at the Julliard School of Music. She became the first black American to host her own TV📺 show. She performed on📻 radio and television extensively, her life was grand. I have seen videos of her dressed beautifully, playing two pianos at the same time and not missing a🎵 note. She was a woman with many🎁 gifts.
But she testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1950 and later became a victim of McCarthyism. Remembering the January 6th House committee hearings, I can see the parallel, IJS. After that testimony her talk show was❎ cancelled and she was shunned and had to go to Europe to perform and live for 10 years. After living in Paris, she moved back to the states in 1967 but things were never the same. She had married a second time for a brief period. She finished her life single and focused on her grandchildren. A short but very active life. A life worth talking about during Black History Month or any time at all.👍 RECLAIM!
Comments