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  • Leah Remini accuses Scientology of ‘covering up’ Danny Masterson’s alleged rapes – National | Globalnews.ca

    Leah Remini accuses Scientology of ‘covering up’ Danny Masterson’s alleged rapes – National | Globalnews.ca

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    Leah Remini is once again taking the Church of Scientology to task, posting a lengthy Twitter thread that accuses the organization of “covering up” member Danny Masterson’s alleged crimes.

    The King of Queens actor, a former Scientologist, urged her followers to keep a close eye on the trial in which Masterson is facing charges for the alleged sexual assaults of three women in separate incidents between 2001 and 2003.

    Remini created and co-hosted a hit show about the Scientology, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, which ran for three seasons on A&E Network. The show told the unheard stories of people who managed to leave the religious organization — many who said they suffered dire and ongoing consequences in the church and beyond.

    Remini’s latest thread revisited many of the themes explored on the show.

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    “Did you know that if you are a Scientologist, you are forbidden from contacting law enforcement when another Scientologist has committed a crime against you?” Remini’s first tweet read. “If you do, you will be declared a suppressive person and lose your family, friends, and livelihood overnight.”

    Her second tweet directly addressed the Masterson trial, saying it’s “not getting enough attention on social media.”

    She went on to claim that Scientologists are “controlled” and that the organization’s policies, which were written by founder L. Ron Hubbard, “can never be altered and must be interpreted literally, allowing this criminal (organization) to control members and insulate itself from bad PR.”

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    She then dove into a multi-part explainer of what happens when someone in the organization accuses another member of a crime, noting that “most” of the women who have accused Masterson were at one point Scientologists and first reported their alleged rapes to top ethics officials in the church.

    She said that these ethics officials immediately turn around and report what they’ve been told to Scientology’s leader, David Miscavige.

    She said once the reports get to Miscavige, these accusers are essentially abandoned by the organization.

    “Most people would be too frightened to move forward if the cost of reporting the rape meant their entire life, from their family to their livelihood, would disappear overnight,” she continued, calling Scientology a “totalitarian cult.”

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    “This policy permits Scientologists to do horrific things to protect Scientology and makes Scientologists unreliable witnesses.”

    Remini said she’s hoping people pay attention to Masterson’s trial, as she believes his lawyer Philip Cohen “is doing everything he can to strip the involvement of Scientology from this trial.”

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    “Scientology has obstructed justice in covering up Danny’s crimes,” she wrote, calling those who came forward to accuse Masterson “courageous” due to the repercussions they may face.

    Remini claimed that Scientologists who go to law enforcement to report crimes about another Scientologist are declared a “suppressive person” and that the organization then gives its members “permission to do whatever they have to do to destroy your life.”

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    This includes the loss of family, friends, and job if you work within the organization, she said.

    “You will lose everything and everyone.”

    She said these consequences are dire enough to keep people from reporting crimes such as rape.

    She also encouraged people to follow the trial and post about it on social media, especially “if you’re frustrated that Scientology has never been truly held accountable for its crimes.”

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    “It’s not just about a Hollywood celebrity,” she concluded. “It’s about what a multi-billion dollar cult does to cover up horrifying sex crimes.”

    In May of this year, the three women accusing Masterson each took the stand in a preliminary hearing to share the details of their allegations.

    After the three-day hearing, which included graphic and emotional testimony, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo determined that the actor would head to trial.

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    The trial began mid-October. The first woman to take the witness stand broke down in tears while testifying that Masterson pushed her face into a pillow in 2003, smothering her to the point where she couldn’t breathe. She also said he choked her and she thought at the time “that he was going to kill me. That I was going to die.”

    She said she was in and out of consciousness that night after she drank about half a glass of a fruity vodka drink that was given to her by Masterson. She also testified that Masterson pulled out a gun when he heard commotion outside the door.

    Masterson, 46, who at the time was a star of the Fox TV sitcom That ’70s show, has pleaded not guilty to the counts of rape.

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    Click to play video: 'Actor Danny Masterson must stand trial on 3 rape charges'


    Actor Danny Masterson must stand trial on 3 rape charges


    All three of Masterson’s accusers were members of the Church of Scientology at the time they claim the rapes happened, but have since left. Masterson remains a member. Judge Olmedo said before the trial that she would not allow Scientology to become a de facto defendant but would allow limited discussion of it.

    Scientology did come up. The woman testified that some of her mutual friends filed so-called “knowledge reports” signalling their unhappiness with her after she told them about the initial incident with Masterson, and she was summoned by an ethics officer who forced her to make peace with him and take responsibility.

    “You can never be a victim,” the woman said. “No matter what happens, you’re always responsible.”

    Asked if she still feared retaliation from anyone for coming forward about Masterson, she replied “about half this courtroom.”

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    She testified that she signed a non-disclosure agreement with Masterson in 2004, and accepted $400,000 over the course of a year, because the church was going to tar her as a “suppressive person” otherwise. She said she had violated the agreement “about 50 times” since signing it.

    Last week, another accuser took the stand, saying she was in a relationship with Masterson for approximately six years, beginning in 1997. She said that in 2001 she woke up to find Masterson having sex with her.

    “I told him I didn’t want to have sex, and he wouldn’t stop,” she said, as reported by E! News. He pinned her arms, she continued, making her feel “trapped … I was screaming at him to get off of me.”


    Click to play video: 'Tom Cruise credits Scientology for his success'


    Tom Cruise credits Scientology for his success


    She also testified that he was “very sexually aggressive” and that he would often call her “fat.” She said she would have sex with him despite not wanting to, because otherwise he would become mad at her and refuse to talk to her until she apologized to him.

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    She said when she reported the alleged assault to a church ethics officer in 2003, she was told not to use the word “rape.”

    “She explained to me that you can’t rape someone you are in a relationship with,” the witness said. She said the officer told her she “had done something to cause it … We’re all responsible for the condition we’re in.”

    Further testimony is expected this week. If convicted, Masterson faces 45 years to life behind bars.

    — With files from The Associated Press

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    Michelle Butterfield

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  • Meghan Markle chats motherhood with ‘dear friend’ Sophie GrĂŠgoire on podcast – National | Globalnews.ca

    Meghan Markle chats motherhood with ‘dear friend’ Sophie GrĂŠgoire on podcast – National | Globalnews.ca

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    Sophie Grégoire Trudeau⁠ — wife of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ⁠— sat down for the latest episode of Meghan Markle‘s Archetypes podcast, joining a long list of esteemed women have joined the Duchess of Sussex to talk about the pressures and judgements placed on women in today’s world.

    Released Tuesday, the podcast featured discussions under the title of “Good Wife/Bad Wife, Good Mom/Bad Mom,” exploring themes of loneliness and the unattainable expectations many mothers and wives face.

    The episode opened with Markle recalling a visit she had with Grégoire Trudeau and their children over the summer — they spent a day at Prince Harry and Markle’s Montecito pool, chatting and drinking wine, while the kids enjoyed the water.

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    Markle and her “dear friend” Grégoire Trudeau met around seven years ago when Markle was working and living in Toronto.

    Markle described the reunion as a relaxed and low-key affair.

    “This wasn’t our day of being the wives and moms, all perfectly quaffed with updos and pearls and demure smiles,” said Markle.


    Click to play video: 'Royal family praised for letting Harry, Meghan go'


    Royal family praised for letting Harry, Meghan go


    “This was the other version of us both with wild curly hair and swimsuits and loose linen and huge belly laughs. Big cuddles with our little ones, quiet whispers of girl talk on the terrace, giddy like absolute schoolgirls.

    “We were just having so much fun.”


    Prince Harry chats with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as they watch a sledge-hockey match Mattany at the Athletic Centre on May 2, 2016 in Toronto, Canada.


    Chris Jackson/Getty Images

    Markle had nothing but warm things to say about the Prime Minister’s wife, describing how Grégoire Trudeau would send her “little meditations” during her first pregnancy and voice notes “of encouragement.”

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    The encouragement was extra meaningful at the time, said Markle, as it coincided with a wave of particularly negative press from a ruthless British media.

    She also shared that she’s relied on Grégoire Trudeau’s advice over the years.

    The Duchess said: “So she’s not just a wife or a first lady. She’s the type of person who cares really deeply about her friends.


    Sophie GrĂŠgoire Trudeau and daughter Ella-Grace greet revelers at Canada Day celebrations at Parliament Hill on July 01, 2019 in Ottawa, Canada.


    The Canadian Press

    “She knows what it feels like to be a mom and a partner and specifically a mom and a partner in the public eye.

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    “And also how crushing the guilt of expectations can become.”

    The pair chatted about the scrutiny they’ve each felt over the years.


    Click to play video: 'Was media scrutiny responsible for Harry and Meghan leaving?'


    Was media scrutiny responsible for Harry and Meghan leaving?


    “I don’t want to get too emotional, but the stress and anxiety that people are feeling these days — whether it’s the pandemic, whether it’s because you’re a struggling mom and your kids can’t make it to school, whatever your situation is — the stress and anxiety is real,” revealed Grégoire Trudeau.

    “And our sense of community has completely exploded. We have sisters who can mother, we have aunties who can mother, we have friends who can mother; mothering is a way of being, it’s not just biological,” she continued, as the pair chatted about how lonely motherhood can be, agreeing that the “villages” once available to help mothers raise their children have diminished over the years.

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    Markle then asked GrĂŠgoire Trudeau to describe her childhood self in three words.

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    “Sensitive, courageous and funny,” replied Grégoire Trudeau.

    When asked what three words she’d use to describe herself now, Grégoire Trudeau responded with the same three words, adding: “I’ve been doing so much work to go back to that little Sophie inside of me. Through all the adversity, through all my own struggles, and I found her. So I’m going to continue to take care of her.”

    Markle had high praise for her longtime friend, saying that Grégoire Trudeau​​​​​​​⁠ is “emblematic of strength that comes from embracing your humanity, even in the face of all these family and home and public pressures.”

    &copy 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

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    Michelle Butterfield

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  • Lee Jihan, K-Pop singer and actor, dead in South Korea crowd crush – National | Globalnews.ca

    Lee Jihan, K-Pop singer and actor, dead in South Korea crowd crush – National | Globalnews.ca

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    A South Korean singer and actor is among the more than 150 people dead after a crowd surge during Halloween festivities in Seoul, South Korea.

    Lee Jihan was celebrating Halloween in the Itaewon neighbourhood on Saturday when chaos ensued on the intensely overcrowded streets, causing a crowd crush. He was 24 years old.


    Lee Jihan, who was killed during a crowd surge in Seoul on Oct. 29, 2022.


    935 Entertainment

    The crowd surge — which killed more than 153 people, including 26 foreigners as of Monday morning — is the worst disaster in South Korea’s recent history.

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    Lee’s agencies, 935 Entertainment and 9Ato Entertainment, both confirmed the star’s death in a public statement. With plain text on a black background, the statement, which is in Korean, read: “We are sad to deliver such news today, but Lee Jihan has passed away in the crush in Itaewon last night.”


    Click to play video: 'Canadian among those injured in Seoul crowd surge'


    Canadian among those injured in Seoul crowd surge


    “We would like to express our deepest condolences to his family, who are saddened by the sudden tragic news, also to everyone who loved him,” the statement continued.

    Lee’s agency also said he was “a sweet and warm friend to all” who had a “bright smile” and “passion for acting.”

    Lee rose to popularity after he appeared as a contestant on the Korean TV program Produce 101, a singing competition where hopefuls battled for one of 11 spots in a new Korean boyband. He auditioned with a cover of EXO’s Overdose.

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    He also performed INFINITE’s Be Mine alongside several other competitors on Produce 101. 

    Though Lee did not win the competition, he garnered a considerable fanbase after the show.

    Lee later used his new popularity to earn an acting role in the K-Drama Today Was Another Namhyun Day.

    Saturday’s disaster was concentrated in a sloped, narrow alley, with witnesses and survivors recalling a “hell-like” chaos with people falling on each other like dominoes. They said the entire Itaewon area was jammed with slow-moving vehicles and partygoers clad in Halloween costumes, making it impossible for rescuers and ambulances to reach the crammed alleys in time.

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    How and why do crowd surges turn deadly? Experts explain

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    Halloween festivities in Itaewon have no official organizers. South Korean police said Monday they don’t have any specific procedures for handling incidents such as crowd surges during an event that has no organizers.

    More than 80 per cent of the dead were in their 20s or 30s and 11 were teenagers, the South Korean Interior Ministry said.

    The crowd surge was South Korea’s deadliest disaster since 2014, when 304 people, mostly high school students, died in a ferry sinking.

    According to the website AllKPop, Lee’s funeral will take place on Tuesday.

    — With files from The Associated Press 

    &copy 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

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    Sarah Do Couto

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  • Julia Roberts says Martin Luther King Jr. and wife paid hospital bill for her birth – National | Globalnews.ca

    Julia Roberts says Martin Luther King Jr. and wife paid hospital bill for her birth – National | Globalnews.ca

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    In honour of Julia Roberts‘ 55th birthday, fans of the actor are sharing a little-known fact about how Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife, Coretta Scott King, played an integral role in her birth story.

    Roberts’ Oct. 28 birthday congratulations included several videos shared to Twitter in which the Academy Award winner discussed with journalist Gayle King in September how the civil rights leaders helped her parents pay for her birth.

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    Zara Rahim, a former strategic advisor for Barack Obama, shared the video to the social media platform, writing, “Can’t stop thinking about this since I read it.”

    In the video, which shows Gayle and Roberts chatting as part of an A&E Networks and History Channel HISTORYTalks event in Washington, D.C., King asks Roberts to share the story of her birth and who helped her parents pay for the hospital stay.

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    “OK, her research is very good,” the smiling movie star told the crowd. “The King family paid for my hospital bills.”

    Roberts went on to explain that her parents, Betty Lou Bredemus and Walter Grady Roberts, were unable to afford the hospital bill after she was born in 1967.

    “My parents had a theatre school in Atlanta called the Actors and Writers Workshop,” she explained. “And one day Coretta Scott King called my mother and asked if her kids could be part of the school because they were having a hard time finding a place that would accept her kids. And my mom was like, ‘Sure. Come on over.’

    “And so they just all became friends and they helped us out of a jam.”

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    Noted Gayle: “Yeah, because in the ’60s, you didn’t have little Black children interacting with little white kids in acting school. And your parents were like, ‘Come on in.’ I think that’s extraordinary, and it sort of lays the groundwork for who you are.”

    “Oh, absolutely,” Roberts replied.

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    The Kings’ youngest daughter, Bernice King, also shared the clip on Twitter, writing that she was “grateful” the video was circulating.

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    “Grateful that #JuliaRoberts shared this story with @GayleKing and that so many people have been awed by it,” wrote Bernice, 59, on Sunday.

    “I know the story well, but it is moving for me to be reminded of my parents’ generosity and influence. #CorettaScottKing #MLK.”

    &copy 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

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    Michelle Butterfield

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  • ‘That’s what I call trashy:’ News 6 anchor Matt Austin fires back at trolls in defense of his daughters

    ‘That’s what I call trashy:’ News 6 anchor Matt Austin fires back at trolls in defense of his daughters

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    ORLANDO, Fla. – As a public figure, News 6 anchor Matt Austin is used to being in the limelight and potentially exposing himself to criticism, ranging from commentary on his delivery of the news to viewers encouraging him to change his haircut.

    However, Austin was away from the studio lights and cameras of a live broadcast when he found himself confronted by a line of finger-wagging he did not expect — dozens of comments questioning his parenting and the decency of his daughters’ attire.

    “I thought it was innocent,” he said. “I posted just a picture of me with two of my daughters. It is the first time they’re both going to homecoming — because one’s a freshman, one’s a senior. I always post a picture, whether it’s homecoming or prom, and did not think twice about it.”

    The post ended up receiving hundreds of comments on Facebook, some of which got very ugly.

    “I look in and I see the people who say, ‘I would never let my daughter go out in that,’ ‘My father would not let me,’ ‘I would never be in that kind of outfit around my father’ — insinuating that I’m a bad father,” Austin said.

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    The negative reactions to Austin’s children left him incensed, both at what was said and that he had been the one to expose his daughters to such vitriol.

    “I tried to not post anything that would put them in a light where people would take shots at them and unfortunately… I felt a little responsible at first and guilty and then I was like, ‘There’s nothing wrong with this,’” he said.

    To vent his frustrations, Austin turned to social media again. This time, he had a message for the people who had attacked his family.

    “So, I put up what I thought was a pretty innocuous post about my daughters looking beautiful for homecoming, but you would be shocked about some of the comments,” Austin’s TikTok post begins.

    The video then transitions to several of the negative comments left on his Facebook post.

    “One thing that has always pissed me off as a father of girls is when people say things like, ‘Oh, these girls need to dress so they don’t distract the boys,’ or even worse, ‘They’re dressing in a way in which they’re asking for it,’” the video continues. “Let’s get something crystal clear now, it’s not my daughter’s job to make sure your son is focused in school. It’s also not her job for her to dress hideous enough to where your son doesn’t assault her.”

    Austin wraps the video by turning the criticism back on the trolls who had gone after his family.

    “You know what would really disappoint me? If my girls grew up to be the kind of adult who goes on social media and demeans a teen’s appearance on her father’s Facebook page. Now that’s what I call trashy,” he said.

    Before posting the video, Austin got the blessing of his daughters.

    “I said, ‘What do you think of this? I don’t know what will happen with this, but I don’t want to embarrass you,’” he said. “The response I got was, ‘This might be a little embarrassing, but you’re right, go ahead and do it.’”

    Austin’s original post was seen by hundreds of his followers, but his response on TikTok has been viewed more than 5 million times and received more than 35,000 comments, largely in support of him and his daughters.

    “It’s really impossible to keep up with,” Austin said. “Every few seconds there’s another five comments. It’s been weird. I’m used to people commenting on my things, but usually, my focus on social media is somebody else’s story. So having the focus on me and my family has been a little disjointed.”

    Disjointed, but not disappointing.

    “I’ve been overwhelmed by the positivity,” he said.

    Austin added that as the father of daughters, he has not always been willing to let his children express themselves through their clothing. There was a point where he would make them dress more modestly, but there was a moment when he realized that would lead to bigger problems.

    “It was my daughter’s first homecoming,” he said. “I still see her as this little baby in my arms and she’s like, ‘OK, I’m gonna try on this dress,’ and she picked out her favorite dress to walk out and show me.”

    The reveal was more than he was prepared for as a father.

    “She’s all excited. She’s in her little heels, got a big smile on her face and she walks out and all I see is this woman,” Austin said. “It was so jarring to me that I go ‘Nope, turn it back around. You’re not going out in that go try on the next one.’”

    He watched as his oldest daughter instantly deflated and she slunk away to change.

    “My wife was like, ‘You feel good about that?’” Austin said. “I didn’t, it sucked. It taught me a lesson. You know, like who do I want to be? What are my priorities in this dad thing.”

    As a father to daughters, Austin said it upsets him to see the double standard to which they are held in school and in society.

    “I think our society for far too long has put the onus of sexual assault on the women,” he said. “For the girls, there’s just this extra expectation and we’ve been doing this in society for a long time where it’s their fault if something happens and as a father of daughters, it drives me crazy.”

    Despite the attention, both positive and negative, Austin believes this has ultimately been a good experience for him and his daughters.

    “My biggest worry is always what my daughters think in a situation like this,” he said. As the views have piled up and the comments have piled up, I think the thing they realize is their dad will always have their back, no matter what. No matter the internet trolls, no matter what human being or creature ever comes against them, their father will always have their back.”

    For his part, Austin said that he appreciates having the support of the team at News 6, especially his bosses.

    “My bosses have been very supportive,” he said. “In a public role like I have, I do worry. The things you say on social media can affect your job if you don’t have the right bosses and my bosses have been super supportive.”

    Austin added his role as a father is paramount in his life and it is that job he ultimately cares the most about.

    “When I die, if people think I’m a good news anchor or a bad news anchor, whatever,” he said. “I don’t identify myself as that. I’m a dad. That’s the most important thing to me.”

    Copyright 2022 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.

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  • Report claiming Sacheen Littlefeather faked Indigenous ancestry met with backlash – National | Globalnews.ca

    Report claiming Sacheen Littlefeather faked Indigenous ancestry met with backlash – National | Globalnews.ca

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    Three weeks after the death of Sacheen Littlefeather, a report has emerged claiming that the activist and actor lied about her Indigenous ancestry, sparking controversy among Indigenous critics who say the report’s author is instigating a “witch hunt” and sullying Littlefeather’s legacy.

    The report also comes four months after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences sent Littlefeather an apology for the way she was treated at the 1973 Oscars, when she famously declined the Best Actor award on Marlon Brando’s behalf as an act of protest against Hollywood’s racist portrayal of Indigenous people.

    Littlefeather, who was just 26 at the time, faced threats of violence and was blacklisted from Hollywood following the stunt, she said.

    Read more:

    Sacheen Littlefeather, who declined Marlon Brando’s Oscar, dies at 75

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    But an opinion piece published on Saturday in the San Fransisco Chronicle contends that Littlefeather is an “ethnic fraud” that posed as Indigenous despite having no connection to an Indigenous nation.

    Littlefeather’s sister Trudy Orlandi told the Chronicle, “It’s a lie. My father was who he was. His family came from Mexico. And my dad was born in Oxnard [California].”

    Rosalind Cruz, another of Littlefeather’s sisters, said, “It is a fraud. It’s disgusting to the heritage of the tribal people. And it’s just… insulting to my parents.”

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    Littlefeather was born in Arizona to Manuel Ybarra Cruz and Gertrude Barnitz. Her birth name was Maria Louise Cruz.

    The author of the article, Jacqueline Keeler, who is also Indigenous, reviewed Littlefeather’s father’s ancestry, where Littlefeather claimed Indigenous heritage, and found no formal ties to Indigenous nations in the U.S. Keeler says she went through immigration documents that showed Littlefeather’s family identified as Caucasian and Mexican when they crossed the Mexican border into the U.S.

    Due to assimilation policies in Canada and the U.S., not every Indigenous person is listed as a First Nation member or has concrete documentation to show their affiliation with a specific community.

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    There are often strict requirements that people must meet in order to gain citizenship to an Indigenous nation — requirements that may not accurately reflect the realities of Indigenous identity. For instance, in the U.S. the “blood quantum” measurement system is used to determine if someone has enough Indigenous “blood” to claim status, and has been criticized as a way to control and erase Indigenous peoples.

    Keeler’s article has drawn significant backlash from Indigenous critics who accuse her of harassment and policing Native identity with colonial tactics. Keeler herself is a controversial writer in Indigenous circles for creating and maintaining a list of Indigenous figures she deems “Pretendians” — people who claim heritage with no real Indigenous ancestry.

    “I hate that Native people have to spend a single breath talking about Jacqueline Keeler,” Anishinaabe writer Ashley Fairbanks said on Twitter. “There’s so many things hurting our communities, and there’s so many beautiful things to celebrate, and her witch hunt sucks up all the oxygen.”

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    She added: “It’s up to people’s home community, or the one they claim, to speak out if they feel they’re being harmed. Using tribal enrolment as the only measure of Native identity is so colonial.”

    Laura Clark, a deputy editor at Yahoo who is Cherokee, wrote for Variety that “some Natives have had their tribes nearly erased to the point that organized citizenship records simply don’t exist.”

    Littlefeather, who died on Oct. 2 of breast cancer, claimed heritage from the White Mountain Apache, a tribe in Arizona, and the Yaqui, whose people can be found in Arizona and the Mexican state of Sonara.

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    “It’s a mess, this Native life,” Clark adds. “And for a reporter to go after a deceased woman who was just honoured for her contributions to Native American existence, who claimed the Yaqui Nation — a tribe that has fought extinction, partly by moving from its origins in Mexico to Arizona — has understandably riled up a community that feels constantly threatened by erasure and genocide.”

    Twitter user CarlyMButton, who identified herself as Yaqui, wrote that “The trouble with Yaqui history is that we were so nearly wiped out by colonization, we don’t have clear knowledge of our ancestry/culture. Any crumbs we get are like the pearls our ancestors dove for & we’re often invalidated by Natives who’re lucky enough to have a whole necklace.”

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    Littlefeather’s sister also disputed the actor’s claims of coming from an impoverished, abusive family. Both her sisters learned about Littlefeather’s death through the internet and neither were invited to her funeral.

    Littlefeather was a longtime activist who organized for the civil rights of Indigenous people in America. Her protest at the Oscars drew attention to the 1973 standoff at Wounded Knee.

    She participated in the occupation of Alcatraz in 1970, and she is credited with co-founding the American Indian Registry for Performing Arts and the Red Earth Indian Theatre Company.

    &copy 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

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    Kathryn Mannie

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  • Judi Dench says ‘The Crown’ is ‘cruelly unjust,’ presses Netflix for disclaimer – National | Globalnews.ca

    Judi Dench says ‘The Crown’ is ‘cruelly unjust,’ presses Netflix for disclaimer – National | Globalnews.ca

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    Judi Dench has criticized Netflix for not adding a disclaimer to the popular series The Crown, which she claimed is “cruelly unjust” in its portrayal of the British Royal Family.

    In an open letter to The Times UK, the Oscar-winning actress wrote that the “fictionalised drama” presents “an inaccurate and hurtful account of history.”

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    The Crown follows the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth II, who died in September at the age of 96, having served 70 years on the throne. In the upcoming fifth season, the queen (now played by Imelda Staunton) approaches the 40th anniversary of her ascension to the throne amid troubling years for the Royal Family in the 1990s.

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    “Indeed, the closer the drama comes to our present times, the more freely it seems willing to blur the lines between historical accuracy and crude sensationalism,” wrote Dench, 87.

    While also praising the Netflix original as “brilliant,” Dench echoed grievances made by former British Prime Minister John Major.

    Major, represented as a character on Season 5 of The Crown, told The Mail on Sunday the series was “a barrel-load of malicious nonsense.”

    “Sir John has not co-operated in any way with The Crown. Nor has he ever been approached by them to fact-check any script material in this or any other series,” read a statement from his office.

    In the latest season of The Crown, Major (played by Jonny Lee Miller), is seen talking to Prince Charles (now King Charles) about the queen possibly abdicating.

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    “The Crown has always been presented as a drama based on historical events,” responded a Netflix spokesperson. “Series five is a fictional dramatisation, imagining what could have happened behind closed doors during a significant decade for the Royal Family – one that has already been scrutinised and well-documented by journalists, biographers and historians.”

    In her open letter, Dench wrote that Major is “not alone in his concerns.”

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    “I fear that a significant number of viewers, particularly overseas, may take (The Crown‘s) version of history as being wholly true,” she wrote.

    Dench insisted there should be a disclaimer at the beginning of every episode, despite the streaming giant’s earlier claims that they have no plan, and see no need, to add such a warning.

    “No one is a greater believer in artistic freedom than I, but this cannot go unchallenged,” Dench wrote.

    “The time has come for Netflix to reconsider – for the sake of a family and a nation so recently bereaved, as a mark of respect to a sovereign who served her people so dutifully for 70 years, and to preserve its reputation in the eyes of its British subscribers,” she concluded.

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    Dench previously played Queen Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in Love (for which she won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress). She also portrayed Queen Victoria in Victoria & Abdul in 2017 and Mrs. Brown in 1997.

    Season 5 of The Crown premieres on Netflix on Nov. 9. The series recently paused production “out of respect” following the queen’s death.

    &copy 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

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  • Danny Masterson trial: Woman testifies Masterson raped, choked her in 2003 – National | Globalnews.ca

    Danny Masterson trial: Woman testifies Masterson raped, choked her in 2003 – National | Globalnews.ca

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    A woman broke down on the witness stand Wednesday while giving graphic testimony about a 2003 night when she said she emerged from unconsciousness to find actor Danny Masterson raping her.

    She is the first of three women who say Masterson raped them to testify during his Los Angeles trial. She said at one point she grabbed Masterson’s hair to try to pull him away, but he shoved a pillow into her face.

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    “I was smothered,” she said, crying. “I could not breathe.”

    She said she later grabbed his throat to try to push him away, but he held her down and began choking her.

    Asked by the prosecutor what she was thinking at the time, she replied: “That he was going to kill me. That I was going to die.”

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    By this point she was weeping. After she said, “I can’t do this,” the judge called for a brief break and a court victims’ services advocate comforted her at the witness stand.

    When she took the stand again, she testified that Masterson pulled a gun from a drawer in his bedside table and ordered her to be quiet when there was a commotion — and voices — at the door.


    Click to play video: 'Actor Danny Masterson must stand trial on 3 rape charges'


    Actor Danny Masterson must stand trial on 3 rape charges


    She said that, throughout the night, she passed in and out of consciousness despite drinking only about half of a fruity vodka drink Masterson had handed her.

    Masterson, 46, who at the time was a star of the Fox TV sitcom That ’70s show, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of rape.

    In brief cross-examination before the trial ended for the day, questions from Masterson’s attorney Phillip Cohen suggested that he would challenge her over differences in the story she told police in 2004, which did not lead to charges for Masterson, and her testimony Wednesday.

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    She conceded that she omitted elements of the story at the time, “to protect people.”

    At a preliminary hearing last year, a previous defence lawyer for Masterson emphasized that there was no mention of a gun in the LAPD report from 2004 and contended the three women had each reframed consensual sex as rape.

    The Associated Press does not name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly.

    Masterson, sitting at the defense table in a suit, looked toward the woman as she testified, but had no visible reaction. His wife, actor and model Bijou Phillips, sat behind him at the front of the gallery, along with several of his family members and friends.

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    The woman, then 27, was the best friend of Masterson’s assistant and part of the same social circle of Church of Scientology members.

    She testified that she had only intended to go to Masterson’s house to pick up a set of keys, and that her relationship had been uneasy with Masterson since the two had sex several months earlier, an incident she told police was consensual in 2004 but later decided she hadn’t consented to. She went back to police in 2016.

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    In his cross-examination, Cohen asked whether it was her position in 2004 that Masterson had raped her the first time they had sex, and she answered “no.” Asked whether that was her position now, she also answered “no.” Court adjourned before he could press her further.

    All three of Masterson’s accusers were members of the Church of Scientology at the time they say they were raped but have since left. Masterson remains a member. Judge Charlaine Olmedo said before the trial that she would not allow Scientology to become a de facto defendant but would allow limited discussion of it.

    Before the woman took the stand Wednesday after beginning her testimony Tuesday, the judge warned her not to stray too far into discussions of the religion, an issue she had already admonished Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller about.

    Scientology still came up. The woman testified that some of her mutual friends filed so-called “knowledge reports” signaling their unhappiness with her after she told them about the initial incident with Masterson, and she was summoned by an ethics officer who forced her to make peace with him and take responsibility.

    “You can never be a victim,” the woman said. “No matter what happens, you’re always responsible.”

    Asked if she still feared retaliation from anyone for coming forward about Masterson, she replied “about half this courtroom.”

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    She testified that she signed a non-disclosure agreement with Masterson in 2004, and accepted $400,000 over the course of a year, because the church was going to tar her as a “suppressive person” otherwise. She said she had violated the agreement “about 50 times” since signing it.

    She testified that she had only expected to be at Masterson’s house, a social hub for their friend circle, for a few minutes.

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    Masterson’s is one of several trials with #MeToo themes going on simultaneously on from coast to coast. They include Harvey Weinstein’s second rape and sexual assault trial just down the hall, and civil trials in New York for actor Kevin Spacey and for screenwriter and director Paul Haggis, who are both being sued for sexual assault.

    Scientology also has a major role in the trial of Haggis, a church dissident who is being allowed to argue that the institution is behind the allegations against him.

    &copy 2022 The Canadian Press

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  • Netflix delays Prince Harry and Meghan documentary as ‘The Crown’ comes under fire – National | Globalnews.ca

    Netflix delays Prince Harry and Meghan documentary as ‘The Crown’ comes under fire – National | Globalnews.ca

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    Outrage over Netflix‘s fictional series The Crown reportedly has the streaming giant a bit “rattled,” to the point where they’re planning to postpone an upcoming documentary about defected British Royal Family members Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

    Deadline reports that Netflix execs think “it would be foolhardy to stream The Crown in November followed by the Harry and Meghan documentary in December.”

    The Crown, a fictionalized drama that follows the sometimes-true, sometimes-exaggerated history of the British Royal Family, has raised eyebrows and ire amongst both the public and some of the show’s real-life subjects, after trailers for the upcoming episodes allegedly paint a season full of invention and insensitivity.

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    Former British Prime Minister John Major is one of the people addressing the issue, saying The Crown‘s portrayal of the then-Prince Charles trying to recruit him in a scheme to dethrone the queen was “malicious” and “a barrel-load of nonsense.”

    Deadline reports that particular episode, titled Queen Victoria Syndrome, was based on a poll conducted by the Sunday Times in 1991, which argued that Queen Elizabeth had grown stale as a monarch and should abdicate to her first-born son.

    The barrage of criticism has forced Netflix to issue a rare defence of the show, reminding people that it’s a “fictional dramatization.”


    ‘The Crown,’ Claire Foy (as Queen Elizabeth II), ‘Smoke & Mirrors,’ (Season 1, ep. 105, aired Nov. 4, 2016).


    CP / Everett Collection

    A spokeswoman for The Crown told the BBC: “The Crown has always been presented as a drama based on historical events. Series five is a fictional dramatization, imagining what could have happened behind closed doors during a significant decade for the royal family—one that has already been scrutinised and well-documented by journalists, biographers and historians.”

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    The Daily Beast points out that Netflix has refused to add a disclaimer to the show’s opening credits, warning viewers of the show’s fictional status; because of this many believe that the show’s events are overwhelmingly accurate.


    Click to play video: '‘The Crown’ cast: royal family live ‘innately fascinating’ lives'


    ‘The Crown’ cast: royal family live ‘innately fascinating’ lives


    Although no broadcast date was ever set for the untitled documentary series, produced by Netflix and Harry and Meghan’s Archewell Productions, Netflix had said several times this year it intended to run The Crown and the documentary series back-to-back.

    According to Cosmopolitan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex allowed camera crews into their life for more than a year, and were filmed while they travelled internationally. The magazine reports that the couple is “expected to talk extensively about other members of the Royal Family, including King Charles III, Queen Consort Camilla and the Prince and Princess of Wales.”

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    The Crown is grappling with a few overlapping real-life royal issues going into its Season 5 release next month — the show is trying to be respectful following the queen’s death, and is also getting set to shoot scenes that tell the story of Princess Diana’s death.

    Prince Harry has largely remained mum on The Crown, despite his very vocal disdain for the press and photographers.

    He told James Corden in an interview: “It’s fictional. But it’s loosely based on the truth. Of course it’s not strictly accurate, but it gives you a rough idea about what that lifestyle — the pressures of putting duty and service above family and everything else — what can come from that.”

    He continued: “I’m way more comfortable with The Crown than I am seeing the stories written about my family, or my wife or myself, because it’s the difference between fiction—take it how you will—and being reported on as fact because you’re supposedly news. I have a real issue with that.”

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    Click to play video: 'New book details the tumultuous relationships and rifts within the Royal Family'


    New book details the tumultuous relationships and rifts within the Royal Family


    The pushed-back date on the documentary comes after news earlier this month that a tell-all memoir penned by Prince Harry and scheduled to come out this fall will also be delayed.

    The “accurate and wholly truthful” account of his life is said to be delayed so the prince can reconsider some of the content in the wake of his grandmother’s death, as well as address the funeral and surrounding events as he returned to the U.K. with his wife to be close to his grieving family.

    &copy 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

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  • BTS to enlist in South Korean military and regroup ‘around 2025’ – National | Globalnews.ca

    BTS to enlist in South Korean military and regroup ‘around 2025’ – National | Globalnews.ca

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    The longstanding debate is over — the seven members of BTS will fulfil their legal duty to perform military service in South Korea.

    BigHit Music, the management company responsible for the internationally successful K-pop band, released a statement on Monday confirming the member’s upcoming miliary service.

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    For years, BTS fans have called for the members — Park Jimin, Kim Seok-jin (Jin), Jeon Jung-kook, Kim Nam-joon (RM), Min Yoon-gi (Suga), Jung Ho-seok (J-Hope) and Kim Tae-hyung (V) — to be exempt from mandatory service for their contributions to the South Korean economy and country’s reputation.

    However, as is mandatory of all able-bodied South Korean men, the members of BTS will each serve almost two years in the military.

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    “Group member Jin will initiate the process as soon as his schedule for his solo release is concluded at the end of October,” BTS’ management wrote in the statement. “He will then follow the enlistment procedure of the Korean government. Other members of the group plan to carry out their military service based on their own individual plans.”

    The two-time Grammy nominated band BTS will regroup “around 2025” when all seven men have finished military service, their management claimed.

    In June, the members of BTS announced they would pause their group activities to pursue solo projects.

    The break now allows the members to fulfil the South Korean military requirement for all men under 30 to serve between 18 and 21 months. (The members of BTS were all born between 1993 and 1997.)

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    Refusing military service is a crime in South Korea that carries a possible jail sentence and negative social stigma.

    The South Korean government has long since upheld that military service must be mandatory to protect against possible attack from North Korea. The two countries are still technically at war and have been since the 1950s.

    There have only been a very select few South Koreans exempted from military service because of their international careers, including pianist Seong-jin Cho and Tottenham footballer Son Heung-min.

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    Earlier this year, BTS released their first anthology album Proof.

    “We support and encourage our artists and are beyond proud that they will each now have time to explore their unique interests and do their duty by being of service to the country they call home,” wrote BTS’ agency.

    The agency referenced the BTS song Yet To Come (The Most Beautiful Moment), writing that the ballad “is more than a track from their latest album, it is a promise, there’s much more yet to come in the years ahead from BTS.”

    &copy 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

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  • Kanye West to buy conservative social media app Parler – National | Globalnews.ca

    Kanye West to buy conservative social media app Parler – National | Globalnews.ca

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    Kanye West (now known as Ye) has agreed to purchase the controversial, conservative social networking site Parler.

    Parler, which advertises itself as “the premier global free speech platform,” announced the acquisition on Monday morning. The app is often viewed by its predominately right-wing users as an alternative to existing social media options like Twitter or Facebook.

    Read more:

    Kanye West defends ‘White Lives Matter’ T-shirt, calls Black Lives Matter a ‘scam’

    Parler’s parent company, Parlement Technologies, wrote in a statement, “The acquisition ensures Parler a future role in creating an uncancelable ecosystem where all voices are welcome.”

    Last year, Parler was forced offline after major service providers accused the app of failing to police violent content related to the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by followers of then-U.S. president Donald Trump. It launched its new platform in Feb. 2021 with “sustainable, independent technology.”

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    Parlement Technologies did not disclose the amount to be paid by Ye. However, as part of the agreement in principle, Parler staff will continue to provide technical support for the app, such as private cloud services.

    “Ye has become the richest Black man in history through music and apparel and is taking a bold stance against his recent censorship from Big Tech, using his far-reaching talents to further lead the fight to create a truly non-cancelable environment,” the Parlement Technologies statement reads.

    In early October, Ye, 45, was restricted from posting on Instagram and Twitter following several erratic, antisemitic comments.

    The rapper turned fashion designer tweeted that he would go “death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE.” (A reference to the defence readiness condition — DEFCON — used by the United States Armed Forces.)

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    Ye also posted text screenshots between him and Sean “Diddy” Combs to Instagram with the caption “Jesus is Jew.”

    In the since-deleted post, Ye accused Combs of being controlled by Jewish people. The conversation between Ye and Combs was spurred by the recent release of Ye’s highly controversial “White Lives Matter” T-shirts as part of his Yeezy Season 9 event at Paris Fashion Week.


    Kanye West and Candace Owens wearing ‘White Lives Matter’ shirts at the Yeezy Season 9 event at Paris Fashion Week.


    Twitter / Candace Owens

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    “In a world where conservative opinions are considered to be controversial we have to make sure we have the right to freely express ourselves,” Ye said in the Parlement Technologies statement.

    In the statement, Parlement Technologies CEO George Farmer said, “Ye is making a groundbreaking move into the free speech media space and will never have to fear being removed from social media again.”

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    “Once again, Ye proves that he is one step ahead of the legacy media narrative,” Farmer said.

    The purchase agreement is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2022.

    — With files from Reuters 

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  • Victoria Dennis Releases New Single ‘Booty Pop’

    Victoria Dennis Releases New Single ‘Booty Pop’

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    Press Release


    Jul 29, 2022

    Reigning out of the city that never sleeps, New York City is the lyrically inclined and talented Victoria Dennis. Singing and dancing her way into hearts, dance floors, and stages with songs like “Miles Away”  “Rooms” and “Out of Your Mind ” she released her new single titled “Booty Pop”. The nineteen-year-old singer, songwriter, drummer, and dancer has always had her eyes and heart set on one thing,  performing and connecting with people on social media platforms liik Tik Tok. When writing “Booty Pop”, Victoria stated she wanted to “push the envelope and create something FUN.”. When this record comes on it gives you this feeling that makes you just want to dance wherever you’re standing. Whether you are at the grocery store, subway station, at work, or driving. 

    Victoria aims to not only entertain her fans but also is big on girl power, confidence, and sexiness while still remaining poise, which are values Victoria gets from her modeling career she started at age 5. When writing this song with her co-writer Shatic Mitchell, the beat gave Victoria this old-school vibe which helped curate these melodies and chorus breakdowns that embodies a classic “Brittney Spears” like aura. Victoria states, “We talk about women, and how sexy it is for a female to be dominant! Women are beautiful, and using our charm and power can lead to desirable things.”.

    Victoria, an advocate for anti-bullying, has always gone by the motto “Take your negative and make it positive” using her music as an escape where she can express herself and her feelings with unlimited creativity. Her writing style oozes vulnerability and gives her listeners something to relate to in all of her songs throughout many phases of their lives; this is what made “Booty Pop” special for the young star. Dennis wants to leave a legacy behind that will always encourage her fans to walk in their destiny and always have fun.
    “Hours and hours of work went into this record across the board with everyone who had hands on it, and I feel so relieved that it’s finally out because it was something out of my comfort zone, but I tried it and believe I might’ve just created one of my favorite songs to date!” Victoria says. Be sure to check out “Booty Pop” on all streaming platforms, and catch this fun, energetic music video. To stay updated on Victoria, you can follow her on Instagram @VictoriaDennisMusic

    For all media/press related inquiries contact: 

    Kameran Bryant

    kameranbryantpr@gmail.com

    Source: Victoria Dennis

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