Lauryn Hill Sentenced for Tax Evasion

Lauryn Hill pleaded guilty last year to failing to pay taxes on more than $1.8 million earned from 2005 to 2007. The Grammy-winning singer stood in federal court Monday for sentencing. Monday's sentencing took into account unpaid state and federal taxes in 2008 and 2009 that brought Hill’s total earnings to about $2.3 million.

Despite having paid more than $900,000 in the past several days, Hill still owes interest and penalties, the U.S. attorney's office said. U.S. Magistrate Madeline Cox Arleo sentenced her to three months in prison for failing to pay about $1 million in taxes over the past decade.

Essence Celebrates Black Women

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"Tall ones, short ones, black ones, brown ones...I like the girls"  Remember that song?  Well what about this one..."she's a bad mamma jamma".  Songs like these remind us that women come in all shapes, sizes and hues, but all of them are beautiful.

Essence Magazine did a tribute to thirty Black Women in a recent issue.  When I first became aware of the tribute, I couldn't wait to see who would be featured. Would you believe it if I told you I looked for my name and photo as soon as I found the material?  Okay, stop laughing!

Reviewing the photos, I took a trip down memory lane.  I went from Pam Grier to Dorothy Dandridge, from Jayne Kennedy to Lauryn Hill, and from Josephine Baker to Eryka Badu. Photos of the First Lady, Michelle Obama mixed with Susan Taylor, Lena Horne, Whitney Houston, and Beyonce. Florence Griffith Joyner, Sade, Iman, Leslie Uggams and Phylicia Rashad...the names and faces spanned the years.  Each was unique and beautiful in her own way. It was a great way to spend sometime in reflection during Black History Month.