Lola Bakare’s Post

Conference Organizer: I know! I so hate that we don't have budget for speakers too...something really has to change and I am pushing this conversation internally, TRUST me. Email from Conference Organizer 7.5 hours after your keynote: Lola, thank you so much for attending! (I guess they meant speaking?) We have some exciting sponsorship opportunities that we're sharing with VIPs before official announcements! Here's my scheduling link, talk to you soon!!

Why am I so critical of our United States of America? Simple! Because I love this damn place so much! My sister Layo is an atypically abled adult who will require care from her family and the many professionals whose expertise and empathy keep that gorgeous smile you see below pretty much perpetually on her face. This is us today enjoying her #july4th cookout (hey whatever Layo wants Layo gets!) There are many more people like Layo in the world who deserve the same standard of care she has access to through federal and state support of all kinds - emotional, medical, financial, administrative...you name it. So how could I not love this place? How could I not do everything in my power to make sure we all remember how much more similar than different we are. I mean if I'm wrong, do tell us how humans enjoying life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness...is a nefarious thing. Life. Liberty. The Pursuit of Hapiness. Whatever that means for Layo... Whatever that means for me... Whatever that means for you. Are any of us "against it?" #independenceday #ittakesavillage #july4 #loveofcountry #novemberisonedaysooner #whowillprotectlayo #unity #responsiblemarketing

The Economist How. DARE. You. My beloved sister, whose atypical mobility and intellectual strengths make the world a better place (just ask anyone who has ever been graced by her presence...) she and many others do not deserve to see this cruel, crass, and shameful imagery. She loves perusing the magazine aisle as part of her daily routine, so sadly, I know she probably will. She also has a better memory than anyone I know, so when she goes to her weekly bowling league with other atypically abled adults, some of whom use walkers, I fear this will come up. I am sitting here trying to figure out how I am going to explain that the differences that make her and her friends extraordinary are by some nincompoops (AT THE ECONOMIST OF ALL PLACES) wrongly perceived as weaknesses...but that we know better, and they are just jealous because they have to be ordinary. (brainstorming this breaks my heart to a million pieces btw, don't get it twisted. This makes me very very sad because what if we were not here to protect her? Who would have this talk with her then?) The last chapter of my soon to be released book (December, preorders avails now at the visit my store link above) is called "Getting it wrong the right way." Let's see what happens. Not that they deserve any free hints from me, but alas - here are a few: 👉🏾 We want to know how the many many rounds of approvals everyone who has ever worked in publishing knows took place failed to flag such an obvious miss. 👉🏾We want to know if whistles were blown, but ignored by more powerful voices. 👉🏾We DON'T want to hear how it wasn't their fault because they worked with a contractor on the art. 👉🏾We want to hear how the atypically abled workforce at The Economist is being supported. 👉🏾 We want to hear what external experts in this particular space are being brought into the fold as long term, well paid thought partners...and we want to know that you understand we are not talking about the gargantuan consulting firms that I'll spare us all from tagging because so many of my friends are employed by them and this is not their mess. CALL TO ACTION: Please tag thought partners/consultants/etc with expertise in the #disability community whom should be top of mind to the crisis PR folks over there trying to clean up this mess with some fugazi paper towels (doubt they even use Bounty) #dobetter #extraordinaryisbydefinitionnotordinary #disabilityrights #culturalliteracy #culturalintelligence #thisoneispersonal #responsiblemarketing

The AI generated comments are giving me the ick. If you don't have a comment...don't make a comment. It's okay. LinkedIn is to be used, not "won". Just ask my buddy Richard Moore. He explains this better than any one. You cannot take attention to the bank. Stop trying to get it by any means necessary for no apparent reason. I like to honor as many of the thoughtful comments I get with a thoughtful response, whether that comment is a challenge or a cheer. What I don't like to waste time doing is reading a nonsensical comment devoid of contextual relevance 4 times in a row...only to realize it is AI generated and missing the mark. So you get a shortcut and expect the person who already wrote original copy to write more original copy in response to your shortcut? ........ ........ Nah.

Thank you Simone Foxman + Ella Cerón for reminding us that journalism beyond listing "here’s what everyone said” still exists. Your angle and insights here are spot on and the people at Tractor Supply Company are listening to you…trust and believe! While I did not see your request for comment in time for this one, you now have a direct line to me day or night, I care about the work you are doing that much. We need the fourth estate more desperately than ever, and when I say the fourth estate, I don't mean the latest brain bleed inducing basic-ass listicles. THANK YOU Simone Foxman + Ella Cerón and thank you Bloomberg News for empowering your staff to SAY THE THING. Read the full piece 👉🏾 https://lnkd.in/eDj_ZvRP

I'll never forget sitting at a sidewalk cafe with Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity colleagues from across the globe as this news hit and Campaign US hit me up for comment. If I could visibly blush, I would have been beet red. The looks from my companions from all over the world said one thing without even needing to say it...and that one thing says it all... This is what the freedom fighters have chosen to fight for? We live in a country where it is easier to voluntarily reconstruct one's bum than it is to voluntarily control one's reproductive destiny. But pass me a hot dog or whatever and let's crush some brewskies because we are free. 🇺🇸 #murica #reclaimingpatriotism #thinkforyourself #dontbooVOTE #responsiblemarketing

Happy 4th to all the "illegals" aka everyone who is not a descendant of the people indigenous to what we now call the United States of America. Yep - I'm talking to you Joe the Plumber. You are an "illegal" and when Donald Trump is president, he will issue an executive order banning all "illegals" and send us all back to where we came from..himself included...which of course he won't realize until those zip ties are secured firmly around his wrists. The difference is, some of our ancestors will welcome us with open arms. For the rest of ya'll... Good luck and Godspeed ✌🏾 #firstnations #thislandwastheirland #thislandwasnotmadeforusorbyus #thislandwisheswewouldkeeptryingit #thislandwillejectusifwekeepplayin