Gymnetics Fitness is a Black family-owned fitness venture led by Lana and Ellen Ector, an incredible mother-daughter duo. They encourage women who desire to improve their lifestyles, but are hindered by the lack of Black females in the fitness world. The Ectors have been pretty successful and improved their brand to involve a famous fitness DVD series titled ‘Black Girls Workout Too‘ and a fashion fitness apparel line. They have had multiple celebrity clients like Toya Wright and Keisha Knight Pulliam.
25 year old Lana Ector and her youthful 62 year old mom (Ellen Ector) began their journey in 2010 when they launched Gymnetics Fitness studio in Atlanta, Georgia. The discreet studio provides personalized nutrition consultations, customized fitness remedies, and training to anyone prepared to embrace a healthy lifestyle. The duo share over 200,000 followers on Instagram and are famous for the hashtag “snatchitback”.
Gymnetics Fitness has been successful due to their thorough market research, in which they realized that keeping fit was a crucial aspect of everyone’s life. Though, the main factor that keeps this fantastic business going is the couple’s passion for fitness. Their training sessions are crazy fun to help clients enjoy the workout as they witness a transformation in their bodies.
You can learn more by visiting their website at gymneticsfitness.com or you can follow them on social media:
A group of 19 Black families banned together to purchase what some are calling the new Black Wall Street. The website states that their vision is to “develop our vast resource-rich 96.71 acres of land in Toomsboro, GA for the establishment of an innovative community for environmentally sustainable-living, health & wellness, agricultural & economic development, arts & culture for generations to come. Our aim is to be a premier recreational, educational, and cultural destination for Black families across the African diaspora. We welcome you, your family, and all Black allies to support us in our vision to be the change we want to see!“
Ashley Scott was a realtor living in Stonecrest, Georgia and was reaching her breaking point after watching the murder of Ahmaud Arbery. In a Blavity op-ed, she wrote that she was distraught, and for the first time in her life, she felt disempowered, which caused her to seek help.
“I sought counseling from a Black therapist, and it helped. It helped me to realize that what we as Black people are suffering from is racial trauma. We are dealing with systemic racism. We are dealing with deep-rooted issues that will require more than protesting in the streets,” Scott wrote. “It will take for us as a people, as Atlanta rapper and activist Killer Mike so eloquently put, “To plot, plan, strategize, organize and mobilize.” So that’s what I and my good friend Renee Walters, an entrepreneur and investor, did.“
After attending local zoning and city council meetings, Scott said she realized creating a new city would create change and build “real Black power… We figured we could try to fix a broken system, or we could start fresh. Start a city that could be a shining example of being the change you want to see. We wanted to be more involved in creating the lives we really want for our Black families… And maybe, just maybe, create some generational wealth for ourselves by investing in the land. Investing in creating a community that is built around our core values and beliefs.”
The Freedom Georgia Initiative website states “When the “Toomsboro, GA For Sale” site went viral we thought it would be cool to create a New Black Wallstreet and revitalize a small town that could use some development and jobs. Upon arriving at the open house for the parcels of land, residential units, and commercial properties that were for sale at $1.7M we learned the City of Toomsboro was not completely for sale. We also learned that it had a small-town culture, a black woman mayor (shout out to Mayor Joyce Denson), and a Black Chief of Police that is ready for good things to come to their community rather than the 20-minute commute they have to take to other cities.“
The founding families intend to build homes, farms, and generational wealth for their families. We pledge to provide opportunities to black-owned and women-owned vendors and contractors in the development of our community. Moreover, we hope to create an apprentice program and provide consultation to other small collectives that too want to build it for themselves!
They are extending an invitation for everyone to join them at their first Big Black Campout:
“Hey Fam! We wanted to formally invite you to our land in Toomsboro, GA with a special event that we thought would allow everyone to appropriately social distance while turning up. Thus, the BIG BLACK Campout was born in hopes of bringing #blackcampers and first time campers together for an EPIC experience on our newly acquire 96.71 acres of land. (Sorry, but we will never get tired of saying 96.71 acres of land 🤷🏾♀️😁 ) And, we hope that you will grab your family, your camping crew, that one adventurous homie and roadtrip or RV on down during Labor Day Weekend, because what else do you have better to do?“
The police released their bodycam footage of Ahmaud Arbery from 2017. The video shows him being handcuffed and arrested:
The video was posted on YouTube on Tuesday and it is dated December 1, 2017. It shows Arbery and 3 other kids being approached by cops in a Walmart parking lot:
“Tell me about the TV,” a police officer asks.
“TV? What? We don’t have any TV,” Arbery, wearing shorts and a parka, responds.
“What about the 65-inch TV?” the cop says.
“Sixty-five-inch TV?” Arbery says.
“Do me a favor,” the cop replies. “All of you take a seat.”
“Take a seat for what?” Arbery snaps back. “I don’t know nothing about no TV. … I don’t steal no TV.”
Another man, presumably a Walmart employee, approaches and the police officer tells him, “it’s that one right there with the fur jacket” — suggesting Arbery — and the man nods.
“What TV?” Arbery says. “The TV is in there,” motioning toward the store.
Arbery then says he has a receipt and attempts to get up but is placed in handcuffs and put in a squad car.
They drive him to the store, where he and the three teenagers walk in the back of the store and in the back office. The outcome of the shoplifting arrest is not clear.
