...read, write, discuss

Hopes for "Good Hair"

2009-10-03T11:47:00.000-07:00

Good Hair is a comedic documentary on the perils of Black women and their hair. It is
“[a]n exposé of comic proportions that only Chris Rock could pull off, GOOD HAIR visits beauty salons and hairstyling battles, scientific laboratories and Indian temples to explore the way hairstyles impact the activities, pocketbooks, sexual relationships, and self-esteem of the black community,” according to goodhairmovie.net.
Vanity Fair calls it “Hilarious” and Variety says it is “ Fresh, funny and altogether fascinating. Audiences will wig out.” But, at whose expense I ask.
I understand that his film is a comedy. However, why is it that the bodies of Black women get put on display, once again, as deviant from Amerikkkan culture. Black people have always had a history of being seen as different and more “fascinating.” Furthermore, any culture that is not white is seen as "fascinating" and exotic. It is no wonder that in this “comedic film,” Chris Rock chooses to explore another dimension in the "absurdity" and "hilarious"-ness of Black culture. What I see as being more comical, is that White women do the same thing to their hair: perm, weaves, sew-ins, bleach, clip-ons, wigs, etc. However, I doubt if white women will appear as examples in this movie. My guess is that they will be the commentators on “funny” things Black people do.
The problem is that the bodies of Black women are continually offered as space for commodity consumption i.e. music videos, television shows. The ideological equation of race has maintained that white people = normal = human race, therefore anything beyond that is abnormal – deviant, bad, black. Hair, which has represented the idea of beauty for women, then becomes soo powerful as to become the embodiment of Amerikkkaness, whiteness. Even Malia Obama doesn't stand a chance:
“Anyone who thought such preconceptions were outdated would have been reminded otherwise by some negative reactions to the president’s 11-year-old daughter, Malia Obama, who wore her hair in twists while in Rome this summer. Commenters on the conservative blog Free Republic attacked her as unfit to represent America for stepping out unstraightened.” ---- Catherine Saint Louis
There are a number of articles written on the hair and body of the first family. It is a fetishization for Blackness that continues to find popularity in mass culture.
Thus, I have 'Hopes for Good Hair.' I hope while “entertaining” audiences, Rock enlightens as well. I hope he at least gives some kind of intellectual thought on how “whiteness” has accounted for the reasons why many Black women feel the need to damage their hair. That the complexity of hair treatment by Black women is a consequence of colorism. "Good hair, light-skinned, pretty eyes, Blue Vein Society, brown paper bag test; these are just a few of the derogatory references used by Black people to create skin color divisions within the our community. However, this occurs in all communities of color; Asian, Latino, Native American, Indian; Blacks are not the only victims to this ideology.
Furthermore, Black men too, hope for “good hair,” constantly claiming “waves,” as a result of the same white beauty standards Black women measure themselves against. And I hope he talks about when he hoped for “good hair." Yes, Chris Rock rocked a jheri curl.
“I used to get perms—I had a Jheri curl for years, and it used to burn my scalp like crazy,” says Chris Rock in an interview.
It is important for Rock and others to recognize the root of why many women and men of color feel the need to straighten their hair. It is an issue that can be laughed at, at first, but then must be examined closely. My argument is that it is not funny when Black women’s struggle and suffering for privilege and power become a spectacle for audiences. Our accepted beliefs as Black people, for white value systems and standards of beauty, are a result of colonial expansion and racial capitalism - all racism. And this is a subject that should be taken seriously. Chris Rock’s talent and privilege as an acclaimed actor and comedian, lend him the responsibility as a Black person, to communicate crucial issues to mass audiences, which I hope he does.
Black is more than beautiful, it is extraordinary!! Breathe it, Live it, and Wear it. You can choose how you want to maintain your hair, but for me, how you dress and how you look have always reflected what you have to say about yourself. So, what are you saying sisters, brothers?
CHECK THIS WEBSITE OUT:

Celebrate Freedom: Juneteenth or NOT

2009-06-19T14:09:00.000-07:00

Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States. Dating back to 1865, it was on June 19^th that the Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free. Note that this was two and a half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation - which had become official January 1, 1863. The Emancipation Proclamation had little impact on the Texans due to the minimal number of Union troops to enforce the new Executive order. However, with the surrender of General Lee in April of 1865, and the arrival of General Granger’s regiment, the forces were finally strong enough to influence and overcome the resistance.

*********

In a written statement, Mr. Obama said the Juneteenth anniversary serves as a time of reflection and appreciation. He said African Americans have helped build the nation "brick by brick" and have contributed to its growth in every way, even when they were denied rights and liberties.

Mr. Obama, the country's first African-American president, said the occasion carries "even more significance" considering Thursday's resolution passed unanimously in the Senate apologizing for slavery and segregation.

The resolution apologizes for "the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of slavery" and system of institutionalized racism and segregation known as "Jim Crow."

The resolution, introduced by Senators Tom Harkin and Sam Brownback, "expresses its recommitment to the principle that all people are created equal and endowed with inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." It also calls on all people of the U.S. to "work toward eliminating prejudices, injustices and discrimination from U.S. society."

The House of Representatives is also expected to take up the measure soon. A similar resolution passed by a voice vote in the House last year.

*********

Library Lovin

2009-06-17T15:40:00.001-07:00

While watching one of my favorite episodes, Bad Timing, from my favorite show Girlfriends, I was introduced to Pablo Neruda.

In this episode Joan has to decide between Sean, the man who "may be the one" and Davis, all on V Day!

******************

Pablo Neruda is described as one of the greatest poets of all time. However, it was not until I watched this episode for the umpteenth time that I actually paid attention and decided to learn more about the great poet.

From then, I had to read and learn more. Thus, after reading some of his love sonnets, all inspired by his wife, I searched the Internet looking for copies of his literature. However, because I remembered that there was an independent bookstore right next to where I worked, Amaranth Books, I decided to go there in support of the business and for a better deal J. I had wanted to go in since passing by for the past 3 weeks and now I really had a reason to.

While I did not find exactly what I was looking for, Neruda's 100 Love Sonnets, I did find a book entitled The Essential Neruda Selected Poems. It was not until after I checked out that I then remembered how I wanted Black Skin, White Masks. So I went and searched for that within the African American section. That then led me to The Souls of Black Folk and Images in Black: 150 Years of Black Collectibles. It was some good Library Lovin. In the meantime, I must get trough Race Matters and The Autobiography of Malcolm X, from last summer, and The First R: How Children Learn Race and Racism.

I share with you 2 sonnets that I have come to Love thus far:

Sonnet XVII

I do not love you as if you were a salt rose, or topaz

or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.

I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,

in secret, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that never blooms

but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers;

thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance,

risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.

I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;

So I love you because I know no other way

than this: where I does not exist, nor you,

so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,

so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.

Sonnet XI

I crave your mouth, your voice, your hair.

Silent and starving, I prowl through the streets.

Bread does not nourish me, dawn disrupts me, all day

I hunt for the liquid measure of your steps.

I hunger for your sleek laugh,

 your hands the color of a savage harvest,

 hunger for the pale stones of your fingernails,  

I want to eat your skin like a whole almond.

 I want to eat the sunbeam flaring in your lovely body,

 the sovereign nose of your arrogant face,

 I want to eat the fleeting shade of your lashes,

 and I pace around hungry, sniffing the twilight,  hunting for you,

for your hot heart,

 Like a puma in the barrens of Q

im out for PREZidents to REPRESENT ME

2009-06-02T15:50:00.000-07:00

classics

Just In Case U Were Wondering

2009-05-28T00:28:00.000-07:00

...i'm Black

"Black Shows": We've Scene It Already

2009-05-27T23:50:00.000-07:00

I put quotations around Black Shows because shows featuring all Black casts are seen as just that. Arguably, shows featuring all white casts can be seen as having stereotypical white humor, white interactions, white style and dialect – catering to a white audience, however these mainstream shows are not labeled “White shows, ” but simply Television shows. It is only in the absence of white actors are shows with all black casts seen as negative in the alienation of white viewers. I presume if it is not Rap or Hip Hop, then it’s just not kosher.

(TV BIT: CW’S ‘THE GAME’ HAS BEEN CANCELED)

I am inspired to write this piece after the recent cancellation of The Game and Everybody Hates Chris. While I am not an avid viewer of The Game, Chris Rock’s show, Everybody Hates Chris, always had me amused. It was not until reading a post through “Black Gossip” that I really began to question the lack of quality entertainment by and for African Americans. Today, it hard to find a television series that operates outside the notion of viewing Black people as spectacle. Presence and portrayal become crucial notions here. Both notions have heightened the dramatization of Blackness by appropriating fabricated stereotypical images of African American people. The lines become blurred as audiences feel the need for the presence of any Black person on television at the cost of any portrayal.

“What you talking about Willis?”

Well, I am talking about several shows. Lets take The Wire. I would go as far as to say that I am the only person, both African American and female who does not like, love, watch, or am entertained by The Wire. While the show does succeed in its complex story lines, ‘brilliant writing,’ and multilayered characterizations, it continues the cycle in representing African American males in demeaning roles. Now, I am not reducing the show to age-old caricatures, however, what I am saying, is that The Wire is all to familiar with television series, news coverage’s, and movies featuring African American males as criminals and gangsters: Training Day, COPS, popular ‘hood’ films of the ‘90s such as Boyz ‘N’ the Hood, your local 6 and 10 o’clock news.

"In the end, The Wire falls somewhere between Birth of A Nation and the Six O'clock news as urban propaganda: a unique compilation of white liberal science fiction and hip-hop gun porn.”

--- Jimi Izrael The Root

Word to ya motha Brotha!

Tyler Perry…hmmm…. I would hope and pray that I would not have to expound upon the tomfoolery and ignorance of both his television series and movies, but alas, someone out there will charge me to praise his work.

Don’t get me wrong. I think Tyler Perry has overcome many obstacles in obtaining the privilege and success of where he stands. Clearly the numbers explain it all, right?:

Tyler Perry By the Numbers

Number of Tyler Perry Films: 7 

Number of Films That Have Opened at No. 1 or No. 2: 6 

Combined Domestic Gross: $356 mil

Everybody must be watching it. Yes, indeed a lot of audiences are watching it. However, I do not think his television shows are conducive to the future of African American presence on television. His show The Browns is not far from the all to familiar and popular radio and television series Amos N’ Andy. “[Amos N’ Andy] was the first television series with an all-black cast (the only one of its kind to appear on prime-time, network television for nearly another twenty years).” --- The Museum of Broadcast Communications. Furthermore, among both Black and white viewers, “At the peak of Amos 'n' Andy's success, 40 million listeners - a third of America - tuned in six nights a week, making it the longest-running and most popular radio program in broadcast history.” --- PBS.org. Or how about The Flavor of Love television series? It is one of the most successful shows in Video Hits One (VH1) television history, captivating more audiences on the days it airs than on any other channel.

Accordingly, shows of this caliber continue to generate success, but at what costs??

What’s the point?

I am not trying to revert to looking at the negative and positive representations of Black films and actors. My point is that we have seen this films already and we need more dynamic presence and portrayals of African Americans on television and in films. And this does not mean simply inserting 2-3 Black actors in mainstream TV series and films. We need shows with all Black casts.

But even with the half good shows featuring an all African American cast, television networks are still not giving these programs an opportunity.

In an article written by Zurawik in 2006, on the demise of Black sitcoms, he writes, “The new lineup will include the shows that exhibit the widest appeal among young viewers and thus command top advertising dollars. None of the eight UPN shows under review, though popular with African-American viewers, has achieved the kind of crossover hit status that ensures high ad rates.”

“Although UPN's One on One is the 170th-most-popular show among all network television viewers, it is tied for 11th among black viewers. Half & Half is ranked 167th among weekly series in overall network viewership and is the seventh-most-popular show with black viewers.”

But it’s not fair right. If African Americans make up less that ¼ of the total population how ever will our viewership be recognized among “all network television viewers”? While the presence of Black actors in mainstream television shows are essential, it does not suffice for the lack of Black themed programs.

Today, we must rely on weak channels such as BET and VH1 for the presence of Black themed shows. However, such networks as TVOne and HBO prove to provide entertainment television network for African Americans in some capacity. But it’s still not enough. The problem lies both off an on screen:

“The 2006 Diversity Report by the Directors Guild of America offers a glimpse into the state of ethnic representation at the networks. After examining all episodes of last season's top 40 network dramas and sitcoms, the guild found that 83 percent of the shows were directed by white men, 10 percent by white women, 5 percent by minority men and 2 percent by minority women.”

As a community, we need to understand at what costs the presence of Madea and Omar have on the portrayal of us all.

Until then, re-runs will have to do.

What’s the reality?...shows that I endorse: Girlfriends and Soul Food, the HBO series. All created and executed successfully.

.happy birthday.

2009-05-19T19:56:00.000-07:00

Malcolm X aka El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz الحاجّ مالك الشباز

(May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965)

"one of the greatest and most influential African Americans in history.period."

CHI - town

2009-05-09T21:33:00.000-07:00

...comin' home again

Kanye West - New Music - More Music Videos

sad

2009-03-31T10:51:00.000-07:00

i will never understand how people can fathom the idea of hurting children. i read about his story yesterday and i was heartbroken:

via Huffingtonpost

MILTON, Mass. — A man fatally stabbed his 17-year-old sister, decapitated his 5-year-old sister in front of a police officer and then turned toward his 9-year-old sister with a knife in his hand before officers shot him dead in what their chief described as "a killing field."

There was no clear motive for the events that unfolded Saturday, the day after the 5-year-old's birthday, in a tony Boston suburb that also is home to Gov. Deval Patrick. But there was no doubt about the carnage wrought by 23-year-old Kerby Revelus against his sisters in the two-family home they shared with their parents and grandmother.

Five-year-old Bianca was killed as a cake for her birthday, which investigators believe was Friday, sat on the kitchen table. Nine-year-old Sarafina dialed 911 and watched police shoot her brother as her elder sister, 17-year-old Samantha, lay dead on the floor.
Sarafina was hospitalized Sunday with defensive wounds to her hands and stab wounds in her abdomen and one of her legs, police said.

"In policing, we see the raw human emotion every day, but to think that a human being could afflict such an atrocious, violent act on his own family is unbelievable," Milton police Chief Richard G. Wells Jr. said. "When I walked up to the first officer (on the scene), I could see the whole story right in his face. This just told me that this was something very bad."
Saturday's attack came about 24 hours after Revelus had gotten into a fistfight with a man living next door, Wells said.

"Blows were exchanged," he said. "I don't know the cause of it, but we're confident that did happen. He had been agitated in the hours that followed that, going into the day and last night."
Investigators believe Revelus targeted Samantha, a senior at Milton High School, and fatally stabbed her with a household knife while their grandmother, who neighbors say lives on the first floor, was doing laundry in the basement. The children's parents were away; their mother, identified by friends as Regine Revelus, is a nurse at a Boston hospital, Wells said.

BTW i was also disturbed by the titles given to this story in news articles!

read more.

May these beautiful girls Rest In Peace and may God have mercy on their brothers soul.

* this post references the black innocence we could not see. Samantha, Princess, was supposed to appear in a fashion show and perform her poem, entitled: "She's a woman, a queen, a goddess."

random thoughts

2009-03-31T09:57:00.000-07:00

because most of us share the same secrets.

J A M A I C A

2009-03-16T00:07:00.000-07:00

...one of my favs when i was younger.

...ill be home away from home in t minus 12 hours

black innocence

2009-03-12T10:34:00.000-07:00

Now im not a President Obama-fanatic, stalker, obsessor, or worshiper, but I am a people watcher. :0/ …in fact, im watching u….right now. :0)

But when I came across these photos in an article I read, there was something about them that made me stop and gaze. There is something very pure, innocent, and inspiring about these photos. It’s not about Malia Obama, but a notable innocence rarely captured with African American children. Mass media photos of Black children are usually footnoted with some charity story, abuse, neglect, death; no sense of agency, giving these children a space to show their capacity.

So, I think these are powerful images that speak beyond Malia and I hope to see more of other children of color.

__________________

BTW – they need to add Obama to the dictionary…spell-check wants to change it to Osama (hmph!)

i Lykke Li

2009-03-10T21:48:00.000-07:00

...recently, i have been obsessing over Drake's album: So Far Gone

i think he's a mix between Kanye and Lil Wayne. he's very talented, but many people don't even know who he is: actor, rapper, singer.

here's a sample of my favorites:

upon obsessing over those songs, i discovered Lykke Li, featured on the song Little Bit (the song is originally hers).

not only is her website hot, but she too is very talented. her style is fresh and unique. i have now begun to obsess over a couple of her songs:

______________________________________

"Its funny when you comin' in first, but you hope...that you last. I just hope...that I last." - Drake

revolutionary, ya dig - knowledge is power

2009-02-12T22:50:00.000-08:00

So everyone’s talking about a revolution, but what does this revolution look like? Who is involved and what are we revolting against?
--------------------------------
A revolution (from the Latin revolutio, "a turn around") is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time. Aristotle described two types of political revolution: Complete change from one constitution to another Modification of an existing constitution. Revolutions have occurred through human history and vary widely in terms of methods, duration, and motivating ideology. Their results include major changes in culture, economy, and socio-political institutions.

"Revolution is not a dinner party, nor an essay, nor a painting, nor a piece of embroidery; it cannot be advanced softly, gradually, carefully, considerately, respectfully, politely, plainly, and modestly. A revolution is an insurrection, an act of violence by which one class overthrows another."
— Mao Zedong

Taken from Wikipedia
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A fundamental change. An important argument to this piece is a discussion about ideology, knowledge, and power. Ideology has operated as a tool of the elite to disseminate certain knowledge as a regime of life. For example, racism. Racism is based on the belief in the existence and significance of racial groups based on difference, but extends into a hierarchy between races to support political or ideological positions of racial supremacy – Whites in power. Thus, these ideas operate as common sense, a kind of truth in fallacy that we live our lives by. More importantly, these ideologies manipulate the minds of the masses as a means to divide and conquer. If you continue to have groups in opposition of one another, then they will never come together and acknowledge a greater power of domination that controls them both. What you will end up with, are groups of individuals fighting over limited resources, that aren’t even theirs for keep.

What is essential to this notion is the relation of knowledge and power within society, operating as a strategic response to articulate difference. Social institutions play a pivotal role in reproducing structured forms of thoughts and domination, especially within racial and class based societies. By creating and making difference seem real through race and class, knowledge works to manipulate the power structure by focusing the attention on outer group relations.
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Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Marxism holds at its core a critical analysis of capitalism and a theory of social change.

Marxism holds that class struggle is the central element of social change.

Taken from Wikipedia
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While I agree to some degree with Marxism, I would go further to argue that until we can battle the struggle of racism, a class struggle will not be the central element to social change. Moreover, it is because we have become trained to recognize our physical differences that we struggle to negotiate our place within society which inherently positions us into certain classes.

So, how will the masses ever revolt against the small number of elite who control most of the world? Well, if we look to the past, we can find some clues to the solution: Haitian Revolution (1791–1804), The Cuban Revolution, and others.
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Ok, so I threw out a lot of ideas in this piece, but I think it is important to flesh out the fulcrum from which ideology and power are developed. It is only ‘til we recognize the structures of power that we can acknowledge the domination they have over our lives. I’ll continue to investigate this issue more. In the mean time, think about the ways the MAN has led you to think about yourself, others, and your place in society!
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To Mr. Blah Blah Blah

2009-02-03T10:36:00.001-08:00

i was reading over some fascinating posts and articles on relationships and i couldn't help but feel overwhelmed yet vindicated for the feelings and thoughts i had in relation to the topics discussed. dating is a tricky thing that allows you to learn more about yourself then you could have ever imagined. however, many individuals don't take the time to explore who they are and how that translates into the mates they choose to date.

Nonetheless, as we continue to learn more about ourselves each day, lets us cherish the moments we share with others and the essence of those relationships that makes them unforgettable and extrodinary.

i leave you with a poem the site provided as a "required reading for every single person looking to date":

THE INVITATION
by ORIAH MOUNTAIN DREAMER
copyright © 1999 by Oriah Mountain Dreamer

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.

It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dream, for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain!I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it or fade it, or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own, if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, to be realistic, to remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul; if you can be faithless and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see beauty even when it's not pretty, every day,and if you can source your own life from its presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine, and still stand on the edge of the lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, “Yes!”

It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up, after the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done to feed the children.

It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.

It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you, from the inside, when all else falls away.

I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.

What's the reality? listen to Love

...i hear change is good

2009-01-27T11:57:00.000-08:00

....soo im searching for a new design, with Homer's help of course....dope

*i should have paid attention in ADV:3?? i forgt how to use Photoshop and Illustrator

Am I Dreaming?

2009-01-19T19:40:00.000-08:00

Today, as we celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I have seen individuals get confused by comparing him to the life and presidency of Barack Obama.

President Elect Barack Obama has achieved what would have been considered an inconceivable position of power by many, just years ago when no one who he was. Yet today, in fact tomorrow, Barack Obama, who happens to be Black, will become the 44th President of the United States. As an African American woman, I, like many other Americans, felt “hopeful” for a post-racist society and am proud at the fact that a Black male was elected in office. However, personal beliefs and what some might deem “revolutionary” ideals, led me to not vote for him or any other candidate who did not represent me.

Nevertheless, what concerns me the most is the parallel that many individuals have made with Obama and King. Am I dreaming? Is It that individuals see Barack Obama as a fruition of Dr. King’s Dream or do they see Obama as the continuation of King's legacy. Either way, both ideas can be argued since they both fall short of the “oasis of freedom and justice” that Dr. King proclaimed. My point is, Barack Obama is not to be compared to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. They are both two very different individuals, politician versus prophet. One appeals to an insouciant White American society, while one fought for the inequality of African American people.

Michael Eric Dyson eloquently shares my thoughts:

"But if King and Obama mirror each other as twins of destiny, their divergent roles shatter easy assumptions of their common vocation. Prophets and politicians often collide as they orbit the same world with different social interests and moral purposes.

Prophets thunder difficult truths that shake the culture to its core. "I have not come to bring peace, but a sword," Jesus proclaimed of his duty to disturb the social order. That same duty fell to King as he angered millions of whites—and scared many blacks—in challenging the white supremacy that was the lifeblood of social inequality. Even though King lashed out at injustice in love, he was widely viewed as a pariah who undercut democracy and disturbed the racial peace. But King believed that any peace that rested on injustice was false and fleeting.

Politicians, on the other hand, often aim to quell social disturbance and keep the peace at nearly all costs. Their function is to preserve as much as possible the smooth operation of society and to make the machinery of governance effective. Politicians seek to unite disparate concerns in a manner that balances group interests and the greater good.

King and Obama—the prophet and politician—have much in common: the racial roots they share and mending the nation's tattered racial history. But King's voice rang as a trumpet against injustice by challenging society in civil disobedience and in breaking unjust laws. As president, Obama is the most powerful man in the world, sworn to uphold the laws of the land and bring prosperity to its citizens.

Barack Obama may be the realization of King’s dream, but he is not the extension of King's prophetic ministry. Neither should he be expected to carry that mantle. As the first president who is black, Obama has made millions of black hearts, including mine, swell with pride. But he is a politician, not a prophet, and should be judged as a political figure. It may be on King's shoulders that Obama has climbed to reach farther than any other black person before him, but it is King's vision and work that made his efforts possible. The prophetic and the political are both crucial elements of our success, and survival, as a people."

Click here to read more: Here, No Here...No no HERE

What’s the reality?... “It is [still] obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check -- a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

most muthfu&^%s support the nonsence but aint nothin wrong with being conscious

2009-01-19T14:09:00.000-08:00

not familiar with his work...but i like:

iselyfenation

Top 4 Things I'm Sick of Already

2009-01-18T14:18:00.000-08:00

1. Barack Obama

there's a sickness called barackitis and i've got it! i'm sick of hearing about Barack Obama!

2. Single Ladies by Beyonce

if i hear that song one more time....

3. Mexican Food

i used to dislike authentic Mexican food. last year for spring break, my friends and I went to Mexico and I fell in love with the food. recently, while i was at home in Chicago for break, i visited this famous Mexican restaurant several times. Currently, i live in Texas where "TexMex" rules. Needless to say, I'm sick of Mexican food!

4. People Who Do Not Listen

recently, I've encountered several individuals who talk a lot, but are not good at listening. So, I'll be having a conversation, I think, and then these individuals will start dominating the convo and interrupting me! At that point, I begin to tune them out and start wondering about random things:

What's the reality?...some might call me a "hater," i just like to keep it real

back down memory lane

2009-01-10T22:37:00.000-08:00

What I love about music and pictures are the memories captured through words and moments in time; times that were both once good and bad, but definitely good enough to remember. Friends, family, flings…. the moments shared always brings me back…back down memory lane. The best part is seeing those who once or still hold a special place in your heart, the moments you shared, the what ifs…damn. Its like when your in that moment and it feels soo good, soo good, like being intoxicated with happiness and everything is perfect, you hope for one second that God doesn’t take it away from you; that perhaps He’ll even add an extra second to life so that that moment can be shared moments longer. Long enough to remember, yet short enough to never once embrace again. And then you look up the next moment and there you are…back down memory lane…listening to that song that played, browsing over those photos you took, wishing once again...that God will extend that moment once more, only to feel how you felt then at that moment; intoxicated with happiness.

I feel the happiness... I feel the pain

Here am I... back down memory lane

I'm in the sunshine... I'm in the rain

I don't wanna go traveling down

Faster than the speed of sound

Back down memory lane

Be still my foolish heart

Don't let this feelin' start

Back down memory lane

I don't wanna go... save me save me

What's the reality?...i don't wanna go

a New Year solution

2009-01-02T17:33:00.000-08:00

My New Year's Resolutions

1. No Worrying in '09

in '08 i did a lot of worrying, believing that i had the right or even the power to determine my circumstances. but i realized that worrying did me no good and only heightened my anxiety for the matter. many people regard crime, sexuality, and violence as sin, yet do not consider worrying as a sin. to worry is a sin, for to worry is to not trust God. in '09 i plan on trusting God entirely and living faithfully:

Then Jesus said to his disciples: Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

Luke 12:22-31

2. Be Happy

in '08 i chose not to be happy in ALL my circumstances. i realized that life is too short to worry about my shortcomings or the situations that i have been placed in. i learned that people who are close to you and the world around you can begin to posses the power in determining your happiness, but it is only through acknowledging the strength and power that we already have within, that true happiness can be experienced. in '09 i am determining my happiness:

"When one door of happiness closes, another opens, but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us."

Helen Keller

“Being happy doesn't mean that everything is perfect. It means that you've decided to look beyond the imperfections.”

Goal 4 '09

i want to become a Dj! I want to pursue Dj-ing as a serious hobby. they'll call me Dj ONE love. BET!

What's the reality?... "my imperfections and failures are as much a blessing from god as my successes and my talents, and i lay them both at his feet." mahatma ghandi

my MUSE sik: J*DaVeY, Baby!

2009-01-02T07:30:00.000-08:00

i might be late on this, but I am introducing you to J*DaVeY: something like a soul funk celebration

now listen:

Christmas: A Pagan Holiday?

2008-12-25T11:59:00.000-08:00

random thoughts for today: why do you suppose when people have the knowledge and resources or are perhaps even reveled the truth, they choose not to accept?

recently, I have found myself thinking about the latter of - it might not make sense, because i just wrote:

even though I know that i might revel something that people will not agree with or people will actually be mad at me for, something in me just has to say it! since i have came home for the holidays, i find myself wanting to disrupt people's thinking of the world. ( i.e thanksgiving is a day of mourning, Christmas day is false worship, "i didn't vote - didn't want to choose the lesser of the evils"). but the thing is, that is how ideology works. it becomes a normative set of ideas and practices that validates our very being. thus, when you tell people the truth about thanksgiving and the truth about Christmas, they will shun you with disbelief. everything they stand for and believe in begins to make no sense, life masks the reality that we choose to ignore. many choose to perhaps even acknowledge the truth, yet deny the reality and indulge in false consciousness. i am constantly asking myself WHY? Why do people continue to accept what is false and wrong, when the truth lurks around the corner? People are hypocritical. I too, find myself having to 'forward' and 'reply' to text messages saying "Merry Christmas" and whatever, going along with the seasonal 'spirit.'

it's soo scary though, once you start learning and reading. like everything you believe in and everything you have been taught, you learn, is wrong. so then u have to reevaluate who u are and your being. to know what's right is one thing, knowledge is power! but to do what's right is something else, that's courage. not too many people have courage.

my wish is for people to have courage. courage to step outside of their common knowledge and search for the hidden truth, and to not just stop there, but to continue to challenge their beliefs, and THEN to TELL OTHERS. i'm going to work on that too!

i just heard this song on the radio, as my mom astonishingly 'rapped' along:

What's the reality? I guess it's what you make of it - whatever keeps you warm at night.

Wack Arnolds Cont.

2008-12-21T13:13:00.000-08:00

what they didn't tell u happened to Calvin

Watch more My Video videos on AOL Video

I'm Beggin'

2008-12-19T00:28:00.000-08:00

So with the continuous proliferation of the Adidas Originals commercials I have become obsessed with their current television advertisement and the song. Its soo dynamic and creative:

So, I had to find the original song by Frankie Vallie and The 4 Seasons but what I found to be the treasure of the quest was a remake by Madcon:

Then I downloaded it!

Wack Arnolds

2008-12-18T23:50:00.000-08:00

So, is it me or is McDonalds and Walmart getting too good at advertising to black people. Don’t get me wrong, I do think it is essential to create specific marketing tactics and advertisements for communities of color, but most of the commercials, if not all, are soo stereotypical. In fact, I think there is a BLACK CODE when it comes to advertising to African Americans, perhaps something to do with music, food, and family [reunions].

The thing is, McDonalds has always sought the guidance of outside media agencies, such as Burrell Communications, an African American owned Advertising agency, to target their African American consumers. So, in some way, the MAN is not to blame directly in this situation. Could it be that we are exploiting our own culture to make a profit on our own communities? I’ll answer YES!!! Look at Hip Hop. The problem with these commercials is their highly racialized and stereotypical campaigns that lure our communities in to ordering more big macs and fries. Super size that please!

Yes, Black people possibly eat more McDonalds, however, there is one on every other block in predominately African American communities, along with liquor stores, and churches (praise HIM). No Whole Foods in sight!

I just don’t know what to think of McDonalds with such sites as www.365black.com or their support in African American communities, honoring black individuals. Maybe they got me too, but something is just too McFishy!

McDonalds and Walmart are just doing too much too black!

What’s the reality?...can I get a big mac meal, no pickles and no onions, with lemonade. Oh and can I get that cinnabon thing yall have, oh and a yogurt parfait! Thank You!

My Birthday

2008-12-09T09:22:00.000-08:00

i don't think its any coincidence that Common's CD came out today on my birthday.....but anyways, Happy Birthday to Me!

Rebirth of Hip Hop:Rennaisance Rap

2008-12-04T23:13:00.000-08:00

Rennaisance Rap

GEttin' UP

Move

What's the Reality?.....still ill but no credit

"Don't remove the kinks from your HAIR. Remove them from your BRAIN"

2008-12-02T12:03:00.000-08:00

the title is a quote from Marcus Garvey. recently, I started dreading my hair. Thus has grown my curiosity in Black Beauty, Black hair, and how We define ourselves as people? Look at what I found:

"The Black Man in America has been colonized mentally, his mind has been destroyed. And today, even though he goes to college, he comes out and still doesn't even know he is a Black Man; he is ashamed of what he is because his culture has been destroyed; he has been made to hate his skin; he has been made to hate the texture of his hair, he has been made to hate the features that God gave him."

"Malcolm and James Farmer Separation & Integration Dialogue", May 1962

"And what was the result? They ended up with 22 million Black people here in America who hated everything about us that was African...We hated the African characteristics.We hated our hair...We hated our nose, the shape of our nose, and the shape of our lips, the color of our skin. Yes we did. And it was you who taught us to hate ourselves simply by shrewdly maneuvering us into hating the land of our forefathers and the people on that continent. When you teach a man to hate his lips, the lips that God gave him, the shape of the nose that God gave him, the texture of the hair that God gave him, the color of the skin that God gave him, you've committed the worst crime that a race of people can commit. And this is the crime that you've committed. Our color became a chain, a psychological chain. Our blood -- African blood -- became a psychological chain, a prison, because we were ashamed of it. We believe -- they would tell it to your face, and say they weren't; they were! We felt trapped because our skin was black. We felt trapped because we had African blood in our veins. This is how you imprisoned us. Not just bringing us over here and making us slaves. But the image that you created of our motherland and the image that you created of our people on that continent was a trap, was a prison, was a chain, was the worst form of slavery that has ever been invented by a so-called civilized race and a civilized nation since the beginning of the world. You still see the result of it among our people in this country today. Because we hated our African blood, we felt inadequate, we felt inferior, we felt helpless. And in our state of helplessness, we wouldn't work for ourselves. We turned to you for help, and then you wouldn't help us. We didn't feel adequate. We turned to your for advice and you gave us the wrong advice. Turned to you for direction and you kept us going in circles."

..:::MESSAGE:::..

------------------------------------------------------

honestly, this discussion has been made several times, however i felt the need to remind others that self-hatred still exits within communities of color. We have to continually remember that America taught us to hate ourselves and it is only through loving where we came from, that we can truly love US!

*just because u weren't born in Africa or have never been, does not mean you are not connected spiritually and/or mentally.

What's the reality? ....wake up?

The Amero: The Dollarization of Canada and Mexico?

2008-11-29T13:09:00.000-08:00

A close friend recently told me how rumors had been circulating on the theory that the American dollar will no longer be worth anything in the near future, perhaps 2010. She went on to explain that America, Canada, and Mexico would be merging their currency and creating what’s called: The Amero. So, I decided to investigate, cause I aint got no gold!

“The North American Union is a supranational organization, modeled on the European Union, that will soon fuse Canada, the United States, and Mexico into a single economic and political unit. The details are still being worked out by the countries' leaders, but the NAU's central governing body will have the power to nullify the laws of its member states. Goods and people will flow among the three countries unimpeded, aided by a network of continent-girdling superhighways. The US and Canadian dollars, along with the peso, will be phased out and replaced by a common North American currency called the amero” (http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/25/america/25Amero.php)

Thus, the government is either good at keeping yet another secret from the people or the NAU is a figment of our imagination and motivates no concern for ill intentions.

* Lou Dobbs is known for highlighting and obsessing over issues of immigration.

This moment can be termed, The Dollarization of Canada and Mexico. But how would this help Canada, Mexico, and the United States: Canada – Would save up to $3 billion in currency transactions and Canada's GDP could rise by up to 33 percent in a 20-year period given the adoption of a single currency. United States – A unified currency under the domination of the USA would illustrate another palpable form of control by American powers.

"The adoption of the amero could threaten the seignorage that America currently gains from its American dollar. While seignorage would still be gained from the amero, this would be shared among the Bank of Canada, the Federal Reserve, and possibly the Banco de México. Therefore, even if the amero were used just as much as the U.S. dollar, the advantages would be shared among two or more countries, and not exclusively earned by the United States" (http://www.anomalies.net/object/amero.html).

Moreover, there are very different economic situations happening within each of these countries, which could bring some countries down or up, complicating the economic future for all the countries involved.

Article 1, Section 8 of the constitution marks this act unconstitutional anyways, but we shall see what the future holds. As we have seen before, many things have been labeled unconstitutional, i.e. discrimination, and that hasn't stopped the privileged yet.

Gold Predictions: So, with the condition of our economic state, what should we be investing in and how should we be learning from history?

So, not even Obama can save us huh? CASH IS TRASH!! lol

What's the reality?...invest in Silver or perhaps just move to Mars

Thanksgiving: A Day of Mourning

2008-11-26T22:37:00.000-08:00

Would you be mad if I told you? Would you be mad if I told you that the greatest genocide in American history is celebrated today? Would you be upset if I told you, you gather around the table and celebrate the death of millions of Native Americans? What would you do if I told you what they don't teach you, what they didn't teach you? Will you still gather around the table perhaps around 6 or 7, and thank America for taking the lives of the true natives of America?

im gonna tell u....

"It was a fearful sight to see them thus frying in the fire and the streams of blood quenching the same, and horrible was the stink and scent thereof; but the victory seemed a sweet sacrifice, and they gave the praise thereof to God."

Gov. William Bradford, Plymouth Colony, Massachusetts.  William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation, ed. Kenneth B. Murdock

(Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1977)

These are the words of a Pilgrim leader glad to see the Native American people being tortured and on their way to extermination.

The story began in 1614 when a band of English explorers sailed home to England with a ship full of Patuxet Indians bound for slavery. The Pilgrim crop had failed miserably that year, but the agricultural expertise of the Indians had produced twenty acres of corn, without which the Pilgrims would have surely perished. The Indians often brought food to the Pilgrims, who came from England ridiculously unprepared to survive and hence relied almost exclusively on handouts from the overly generous Indians-thus making the Pilgrims the western hemisphere's first class of welfare recipients.

As word spread in England about the paradise to be found in the new world, religious zealots called Puritans began arriving by the boat load. Finding no fences around the land, they considered it to be in the public domain. Joined by other British settlers, they seized land, capturing strong young Natives for slaves and killing the rest. The Indians were engaged in a ruthless war of extermination against their hosts, even as they falsely posed as friends. Just days before the alleged Thanksgiving love-fest, a company of Pilgrims led by Myles Standish actively sought to chop off the head of a local chief.

In 1637 near present day Groton, Connecticut, over 700 men, women and children of the Pequot Tribe had gathered for their annual Green Corn Festival which is our Thanksgiving celebration. In the predawn hours the sleeping Indians were surrounded by English and Dutch mercenaries who ordered them to come outside. Those who came out were shot or clubbed to death while the terrified women and children who huddled inside the longhouse were burned alive. The next day the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony declared "A Day Of Thanksgiving" because 700 unarmed men, women and children had been murdered.

Cheered by their "victory", the colonists and their Indian allies attacked village after village. Women and children over 14 were sold into slavery while the rest were murdered. Boats loaded with a many as 500 slaves regularly left the ports of New England. Bounties were paid for Indian scalps to encourage as many deaths as possible. Their chief was beheaded, and his head impaled on a pole in Plymouth, Massachusetts -- where it remained on display for 24 years.

The killings became more and more frenzied, with days of thanksgiving feasts being held after each successful massacre. George Washington finally suggested that only one day of Thanksgiving per year be set aside instead of celebrating each and every massacre. Later Abraham Lincoln decreed Thanksgiving Day to be a legal national holiday during the Civil War -- on the same day he ordered troops to march against the starving Sioux in Minnesota.

A combination of the Pilgrims' demonization of the Indians, the concocted mythology of Eurocentric historians, and standard Hollywood propaganda has served to paint the gentle Indian as a tomahawk-swinging savage endlessly on the warpath, lusting for the blood of the God-fearing whites.

----------------------------------------------------------

Taken from:

http://www.danielnpaul.com/TheRealThanksgiving.html and http://www.manataka.org/page269.html

...what if i showed you...

What's the Reality?...what are you thankful for?

The TRUTH

2008-11-21T11:20:00.000-08:00

ahhhhhh shizzle fizzle...this is pretty hott....i been meaning to investigate

The Silent Genocide

2008-11-20T09:08:00.000-08:00

In the wake of many events around the world that affect Black people, I have to ask myself, what’s going on? Black people all across the world continue to face the most turmoil and tribulation, despite the “progress” we have made.

What is to be said of mans original inhabitance? It is as if we have ALL forgotten where we have orginally came from, in order to find what we have never known. Even Mama Africa left us behind for a better tomorrow. As we move towards a “hopeful” future, I encourage you to help bring change within your communities in order to transform change EVERYWHERE.

Let’s think about Darfur:

What –The War in Darfur is a genocide. Sudan's government has "orchestrated and participated in" war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.

Where - The war is a conflict in the Darfur region of western Sudan.

When - Since 2003, the region has been in a state of humanitarian emergency.

Why - A rebellion started in 2003 against the Arab-dominated Sudanese government, with two local rebel groups - the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA) - accusing the government of oppressing non-Arabs in favor of Arabs. The government was also accused of neglecting the Darfur region of Sudan. In response, the government mounted a campaign of aerial bombardment supporting ground attacks by an Arab militia, the Janjaweed. The government-supported Janjaweed were accused of committing major human rights violations, including mass killing, looting, and systematic rape of the non-Arab population of Darfur. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum estimates that 100,000 have died each year because of government attacks.

How - Gérard Prunier, a scholar specializing in African conflicts, argues that the world's most powerful countries have largely limited their response to expressions of concern and demands that the United Nations take action. The UN, lacking both the funding and military support of the wealthy countries, has left the African Union to deploy a token force (AMIS) without a mandate to protect civilians. The lack of foreign political will to address the political and economic structures that underlie the conflict labels this atrocity, genocide.

Taken from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darfur_conflict

----------------------------------------------------------------

What is the United States doing to assit? Nothing

Most of White America did not care about us then and they certainltly do not care about us now. Furthermore, most do not even know what Darfur is.

I recommend you read, The Lost Boys of Sudan.

How YOU CAN HELP

What’s the Reality?...I hope this issue is on President Obama’s agenda.

George Bush Doesn't Care About Black People

2008-11-18T12:45:00.000-08:00

I’m sure we’re all familiar with Kanye’s West criticism of Bush during the aftermath of Katrina. And if you are human and/or Black, you might have also experienced anger with the treatment and coverage of African Americans whom resided in New Orleans versus the privileged. Everything from the media reports to the Government’s leisurely response made me angry during that year. Their behavior was simply criminal and inhumane.

“Despite days of warning, the government made no effort to help its most vulnerable citizens. In the wake of the hurricane, it has exploited the disaster to hand over reconstruction to private corporations and to advance its plans for the militarization of civil society.”

And today, I still wonder, where are those who have been displaced, what has been done, and what else needs to be done?

Many of you are familiar with Spike Lee’s documentary When the Levees Broke. Well, there is a new documentary that has given audiences an intimate view of those who stayed during the Hurricane. It is a documentary called, Trouble in the Water.

I recommend you try and see it, if it is showcasing your area.

What’s the Reality…Kanye West said it best in the song titled Go Hard -- “imma tell you like george bush told me, fuck ya'll ni@@&s im out of here.”

Magical Negro - Obama?

2008-11-13T10:00:00.001-08:00

Magical Negro - The magical negro (sometimes called the mystical negro or magic negro) is a term generally used to describe a supporting, often mystical stock character in fiction who, by use of special insight or powers, helps the white protagonist get out of trouble.

Typically he helps the white character recognize his own faults and overcome them. Although he has magical powers, his "magic is ostensibly directed toward helping and enlightening a white male character."Although from a certain perspective the character may seem to be showing African-Americans in a positive light, he is still ultimately subordinate to European-Americans. He is also regarded as an exception, allowing white America to "like individual black people but not black culture." To save the white protagonist, however, he would do anything, including sacrificing himself.

----------------------------

Sound familiar anyone? Will Obama save White America from its troublesome past? We shall find out in the next episode of Obamanation, The Blue Mile.

What's the reality?...After these messages we'll be right Black

Heartless Hottness

2008-11-12T22:27:00.000-08:00

the song will take some getting used to but the video is creatively hott...

Just In Case U Were Wondering

2008-11-10T13:37:00.001-08:00

“A friend once said, and I found to be true
That everyday people, they lie to God too
So what makes you think, that they won't lie to you”.
--- Lauryn Hill

While Hill is not my friend per se, she speaks the truth.

I believe there are 2 kinds of people in your life, those who add to your life and those who take from your life. I further believe that everyone in your life is there for a reason and a purpose, whom give you both positive and negative experiences to learn from.

The most riveting thing about this theory, is the journey in which it takes us to discover the role that each person plays and the meaning of the part in which they perform.

Now, imagine these people to be your “close friends,” family, peers, church congregation, and/or partner. They could even be living under the same roof.

Can you see the faces behind the masks?

My President Is Black

2008-11-04T20:06:00.000-08:00

My grandmother said, "they have to accept him you know. Dem neva want him fi win, but its time for ah change."

At 10:00pm Nov 4, 2008 our Nation elected the 44th President, the first African American, Barack Obama!

Racism Still Remains, Don't Get It Twisted And America STILL Needs To Work Hard To Fight Against Racial Discrimination But, This Country Has Made Some Strides!

Can you imagine the Black American who went from sitting in the back of the bus, drinking from "colored fountains," being called nigger, to seeing a Black President...AMAZING!

While I did not vote, my eyes did water to see Jesse Jackson cry, knowing that he had marched with Dr. Martin Luther Kind Jr., only to see this day.

Let's just hope and pray President Obama and his family remains safe and our New President guides us into a future of progress!!

FIVE THINGS WE BLACK PEOPLE SHOULDN'T DO, NOW THAT PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS WON:
http://www.theroot.com/id/48696

1. No Negro spirituals or quotes from Dr. King. John Hope Franklin can get away with this. The rest of us cannot.

2. Don't go up to every "redneck-y" looking person and gloat. "It hurts don't it? It burrrrnnss!" Dave Chappelle warned us about parading our pride too much.

3. Don't corner your white coworkers to give them a tutorial on black culture just because "the president is black and it's 'bout time y'all learn!"

4. Don't go to your local DMV, post office or other government office and try to jump the line, talkin' 'bout, "Barack's got my back."

5. Do not promise to name your first child after Barack Obama. We've come far, but Barack Obama Jackson does not have as much of a ring to it as you think.

FIVE THINGS WHITE PEOPLE SHOULDN'T DO, NOW THAT PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS WON:
http://www.theroot.com/id/48691

1. Don't personally congratulate all your black friends.

Black people are not a sports team, and Obama did not win the Super Bowl.

2. Don't declare that you "never thought you'd see the day."

You never thought you'd see the day?

3. Don't start crossing the street in order to walk next to a black person.

President Obama is glad you support racial reconciliation, but he takes a hard line against jaywalking.

4. Don't name drop "Dr. King."

If you absolutely must make some comment about how this is a victory for civil rights, pick a marginally less obvious figurehead.

5. Don't use the phrase "white people" in any way that suggests it doesn't include you.

Contrary to popular belief, having voted for Obama does not make you even "semi-down." Sorry if there was any confusion there.

What's the reality?...RACISM is STILL ALIVE AND WELL..don't get it twisted!!!

Lies About Black Men

2008-11-02T21:32:00.000-08:00

While researching on the web, I found this video at: What Black Men Think

What's the reality?...don't believe the hype!

Library Lovin

2008-11-01T19:34:00.000-07:00

I forgot how much fun the library was. Just the other day, I went to check out some books that I needed for a research paper I'm working on entitled: Framing Black Males: Exploring the Status of African American Males in Television and Society, Historically and Contemporarily.

Earlier that day I was ironically shocked that there was not an African American library or section within the library. All other marginalized groups, except for Native Americans, had a space in which students could go to explore topics on that group. A part of me wants to charge the Administration for disregarding and not entertaining the idea of having an African American section. However, I am weary of the challenge that might lie ahead, but we shall see.

As I browsed through the sections of the library, having to go from floor to floor, again because there was not an African American section, I was soooo excited to glimpse over the titles and the many possibilities of learning from great scholars and authors. One section had the Crisis magazine, subscriptions from 1932!! A big part of me wanted to rip out certain pages to keep and or even steal, just because I wanted a piece of that history sooo bad. Then I realized how much of a disfavor I would be doing to those, just like me, who wanted to explore that part of OUR history.

I had forgotten how much fun the library was and I could have stayed there all day looking at titles, flipping through pages, wondering how I could fit a book into my busy schedule. But I just ended up getting the books I needed: “I Will Wear No Chains,” by Christopher B. Booker, “Watching Race,” by Herman Gray, “Split Image: African Americans In the Mass Media,” by Jannette L. Dates and William Barlow, “Racism and Anti-Racism in American Popular Culture,” by Catherine and John Silk, and “Prime Time Blues,” by Donald Bogle. And I got a special book I have ALWAYS wanted to read and will make time for: “The Souls of Black Folks,” by W.E.B. Dubois.

I forgot how much fu the library was and I remembered how much I loved to write, and that one day students, just as I, will be reading my books, wanting to rip out the pages to keep.

What’s the Reality? …the library is cooler than that!

keepin' it real

2008-10-24T18:12:00.000-07:00

this is a shout out to Robert and our conversations about our daily encounters with the privileged.

one day, we gotta keep it real

....but not quite like Chappelle

A Phenomenal Woman: Dr. Maya Angelou

2008-10-21T19:50:00.000-07:00

Just an hour ago, I had the honor and privilege to hear the legendary and distinguished speaker Dr. Maya Angelou.

It was truly an amazing experience, one that will never be forgotten! From the time she walked on stage ‘till the moment she left her chair after eloquently reciting her poem, there was a remarkable spirit within the room. I felt as though I had been graced with the presence of a mystical and fascinating being that only the blessed are able to see and feel, and she was nothing short of that, Maya Angelou.

She spoke of her past and recited poetry that had touched her spirit, while singing the tune of an old “Negro spiritual.” Her theme entitled “I Can Be A Rainbow In Somebody’s Cloud” reminded us that we can be the ray of sunshine that uplifts the spirit of a single soul; encouraging listeners to dance and sing in harmony with those whom we share this earth with.

Giving words of wisdom she says:

“Whining does nothing to anyone’s displeasure and shows the brute there is a victim in the room” and “be ashamed to die before you have done good to anyone’s humanity.”

Again, nothing short of amazing! I myself am truly inspired and encouraged. “Our ancestors have already paid the way,” she says. Whether it’s the smile from a casual encounter or a wave of hello from a person across the street, know that the very essence in ones soul shines bright in the presence of their spirit.

I leave you with a recent poem she read for us and a song that reminded me of her kind words, Beautiful by India Arie.

A Brave and Startling Truth

We, this people, on a small and lonely planet
Traveling through casual space
Past aloof stars, across the way of indifferent suns
To a destination where all signs tell us
It is possible and imperative that we learn
A brave and startling truth

And when we come to it
To the day of peacemaking
When we release our fingers
From fists of hostility
And allow the pure air to cool our palms

When we come to it
When the curtain falls on the minstrel show of hate
And faces sooted with scorn are scrubbed clean
When battlefields and coliseum
No longer rake our unique and particular sons and daughters
Up with the bruised and bloody grass
To lie in identical plots in foreign soil

When the rapacious storming of the churches
The screaming racket in the temples have ceased
When the pennants are waving gaily
When the banners of the world tremble
Stoutly in the good, clean breeze

When we come to it
When we let the rifles fall from our shoulders
And children dress their dolls in flags of truce
When land mines of death have been removed
And the aged can walk into evenings of peace
When religious ritual is not perfumed
By the incense of burning flesh
And childhood dreams are not kicked awake
By nightmares of abuse

When we come to it
Then we will confess that not the Pyramids
With their stones set in mysterious perfection
Nor the Gardens of Babylon
Hanging as eternal beauty
In our collective memory
Not the Grand Canyon
Kindled into delicious color
By Western sunsets

Nor the Danube, flowing its blue soul into Europe
Not the sacred peak of Mount Fuji
Stretching to the Rising Sun
Neither Father Amazon nor Mother Mississippi who, without favor,
Nurture all creatures in the depths and on the shores
These are not the only wonders of the world

When we come to it
We, this people, on this minuscule and kithless globe
Who reach daily for the bomb, the blade and the dagger
Yet who petition in the dark for tokens of peace
We, this people on this mote of matter
In whose mouths abide cankerous words
Which challenge our very existence
Yet out of those same mouths
Come songs of such exquisite sweetness
That the heart falters in its labor
And the body is quieted into awe

We, this people, on this small and drifting planet
Whose hands can strike with such abandon
That in a twinkling, life is sapped from the living
Yet those same hands can touch with such healing, irresistible tenderness
That the haughty neck is happy to bow
And the proud back is glad to bend
Out of such chaos, of such contradiction
We learn that we are neither devils nor divines

When we come to it
We, this people, on this wayward, floating body
Created on this earth, of this earth
Have the power to fashion for this earth
A climate where every man and every woman
Can live freely without sanctimonious piety
Without crippling fear

When we come to it
We must confess that we are the possible
We are the miraculous, the true wonder of this world
That is when, and only when
We come to it.

What’s the reality? Maya Angelou is a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, that is truly her!

Continuous Thoughts

2008-10-20T23:08:00.000-07:00

If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.
1 John 4:15 (New International Version)

Facebook

2008-10-14T21:27:00.000-07:00

Three Questions:

1. Why do people add you as their friend but don't say anything to you in person - do these relationships only exist within the virtual world?

2. Why do people spend time in the bathroom or in the mirror taking pictures of themselves with their camera phones?

3. Why do people reveal their business in their status's?

these are the things i wonder after a long day of school work

Facebook is phony. Yup, I said it!

*meaningful posts coming soon!

Looking Forward

2008-10-05T22:49:00.000-07:00

I am looking forward to seeing The Secret Lives of Bees:

Set in South Carolina in 1964, the film is the moving tale of Lily Owens a 14 year-old girl who is haunted by the memory of her late mother. To escape her lonely life and troubled relationship with her father, Lily flees with Rosaleen, her caregiver and only friend, to a South Carolina town that holds the secret to her mother's past. Taken in by the intelligent and independent Boatwright sisters, Lily finds solace in their mesmerizing world of beekeeping, honey and the Black Madonna. Written by Fox Searchlight.

Two Qualms:

1. With the plethora of dedicated and talented African American actresses, producers are continually choosing music performers for large roles within films. I think mainstream audience appeal has triumphed the talent of many African American actors within the film industry. But, from the preview, it does look as so this cast has done a great job.

2. I'm mad that on the commercial trailer, they premise the movie with "Never has their been a cast that has captured your heart since Waiting to Exhale." Ummm did "they" forget such films as Soul Food or even Set it Off, just to name a few of the few that are even out there. I think the statement devalues the small amount of great films with an all African American cast. For too long, "these casts" have existed, but have not gotten the recognition that they all should have been afforded. Capture that producer "Man"! The statement was unnecessary.

What's the reality?...With the small amount of films featuring African Americans, I am REALLY excited to see this movie!

my MUSE sik

2008-10-02T17:20:00.000-07:00

recently, while browsing i rediscovered one of my favorite songs, Makeda by Les Nubians. even though it's not in english, it doesn't even matter cause the melody is sik!

and i think i remember songs such as this from a show i used to stay up at night when i was younger to watch. They would always begin an episode with a song. I loved it!! Remember New York Undercover? Good times yo!

What's the reality?...my music is sick!

Dolla Dolla Bill Yall!

2008-09-30T13:35:00.000-07:00

"US lawmakers on Monday debated a 700-billion-dollar bailout plan for struggling Wall Street banks as US President George W. Bush appealed to Congress to quickly approve the deal to free up frozen credit markets."

By a 228-205 vote, the bill was not passed. Since then, stocks have plummeted.

"The plan would mark the largest government economic intervention since the Great Depression of the 1930s, and is designed to shore up a troubled economy suffering from a burst US housing bubble that has ravaged the global banking system. The proposal grants the Treasury secretary authority to buy up toxic mortgage-related assets in troubled banks in hopes of easing the flow of credit and reviving the moribund housing market. The plan would have also limited the salaries of top bankers and would put an end to the practice of giving out huge payments when they leave the firm."

"Both Democrats and Republicans immediately began to place the blame on each other for the bill’s failure. House Republican leaders blamed Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi because of her 'partisan speech' shortly before the vote. She cited 'the Bush administration’s failed economic policies — policies built on budgetary recklessness, on an anything-goes mentality with no regulation, no supervision and no discipline in the system'."

Taken From: www.afp.com & www.cnn.com

----------------------------------------------------

I have mixed feelings on the plan, but now at least taxpayers will not have to "bailout" Wall Street for the failures of their financial institutions. While the Bush administration continues to seek other solutions, it will ultimately be up to our New President, along with Congress, to save us financially and protect the economy.

$700 Billion Bailout Bill

* you would be amazed at the myriad of documents that are available for your use online.

What's the reality?..."your money no good here"

AIDS: Get Tested Or Die

2008-09-29T01:27:00.000-07:00

Why isn't AIDS - Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome - still a major issue that people are talking about?

The United States of America has one of the largest HIV epidemics in the world!

We are all for the campaign to "Vote or Die," and every one has urged Americans to vote, but why aren't we still concerned with encouraging EVERYONE to get tested for AIDS?

In 2007, globally, about 2 million people died of AIDS, 33 million were living with HIV and 2.5 million people were newly infected with the virus.

GET TESTED

By race, 54 percent of the new infections in the United States occur among African Americans, and 64 percent of the new infections in women occur in African American women. Black women are most likely to be infected with HIV as a result of sex with men who are infected with HIV. They may not be aware of their male partners’ possible risk factors for HIV infection, such as unprotected sex with multiple partners, bisexuality, or injection drug use.

GET TESTED

Half of all new infections in the United States occur in people 25 years of age or younger.

GET TESTED

75 percent of the new infections in women are heterosexually transmitted.

GET TESTED

He/She says, I don't want to use a condom, "it feels better without one" or "don't you trust me?"-- Every time you lay with someone and choose NOT to use a condom, you put yourself at RISK at getting an STD or HIV.

GET TESTED

In the African American community AIDS can sometime be seen as a "White man's disease" or a "gay man's disease." Those who become infected or affected by AIDS often choose not to reveal that their family member died because of AIDS. When they pass on, AIDS is never revealed as the cause of death. Instead, family members choose to reveal that their family member died of an illness, which was essentially caused by the virus. But, we need to speak up!!

Infected or affected, those who are suffering with HIV or AIDS are just like you and I. Make the choice and GET TESTED! USE A CONDOM!

What's the reality?...HIV/AIDS is STILL an issue, GET TESTED!!!

Bamboozled

2008-09-25T23:25:00.000-07:00

recently, i learned that there are less then 1% of African Americans in graduate school at the University of Texas at Austin. needless to say, i realized this when i saw that "I" was the only one admitted out of all PhD and Masters students in my (Media Studies) program.

everyday i go to class, i gotta remind myself why I am doing this

Donald Bogle describes it as the blackface fixation:

Directed by whites in scripts authored by whites, and then photographed, dressed and made up by whites, the Negro actor, like the slaves he portrayed, aimed (and still does aim) always to please the master figure. To do so, he gives not a performance of his own, not one in which he interprets black life, but one in which he presents for mass consumption black life as seen through the eyes of white artists. The actor becomes a black man in black face (Bogle 2001, 27).

What's the reality?..."I say and I say it again, you've been had. You've been took. You've been HOODWINKED, BAMBOOZLED, led astray, run amok" --Malcolm X

Single & Happy

2008-09-23T22:55:00.000-07:00

So, I have recently heard sermons and am currently reading a book on relationships and being single. I wanted to share some words of wisdom I have learned:

I think we have come to believe that being with someone physically and/or intimately will make us happy and fulfilled. But how many of us have felt blessed to be single-belonging to the Lord spirit, soul, and body? Or felt joy for not being in a relationship? It's okay to want a relationship and to get married, but relationships should not become an idol to us. In due time, God will bless you with your perfect soul mate. But before you can be blessed, you must learn to love yourself, and in order to love yourself, you must learn to love God and be committed to Him. Then, you can truly love someone else. For if you have no time for God, whom you cannot see in the physical sense, how can you have time for a mate, whom you will spend much of your time with.

We have to learn to embrace our singleness, in order to appreciate our union with someone else. It is more important to be single and whole as an individual before we can be together and make whole with someone else.

Just check out the definition of being Single. Embrace it!

So, learn to be happy and single and enjoy loving God and experiencing life. Wait for love!

1 Corinthians 13: 1-8

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.

What's the reality?...wait patiently!

Continuous Thoughts

2008-09-20T21:35:00.000-07:00

"Thoughts don't do anybody any good inside your head." ---?

but i can't seem to tell them that thought.

The Complexity of Colorism

2008-09-18T15:40:00.001-07:00

“‘Colorism’ is the discriminatory treatment of individuals falling within the same “racial” group on the basis of skin color. It can occur between members one race and between members of another race.”

Good hair, light-skinned, pretty eyes,” Blue Vein Society,” “brown paper bag test;” these are just a few of the derogatory references used by African Americans to create skin color divisions within the African American community. With the approval and preference of lighter-skinned people of color by Whites, racism has continued through the practices and beliefs of colorism. Being light-skinned has translated into a notion of Whiteness; "light bright and damn near white." This ideology has worked to assert White supremacy by endorsing the subjugation of African Americans, and those specifically who are darker skinned; repression of those who are “non-white.” This means that while one segment of the African American population benefits socially, economically, and politically, due to skin color, another is left behind due to colorism. As we move toward a society that struggles to get beyond issues of race and discrimination, people of color must work to eradicate White standards of beauty to promote unconditioned ideals.

50 Years later and Black children still choose the White doll.

What's the reality?...we gotta get it together and work against these White ideologies!

White Privilege: Presidential Election

2008-09-17T11:45:00.000-07:00

It doesn't get more real than this:

This is Your Nation on White Privilege by Tim Wise

For those who still can't grasp the concept of white privilege, or who are constantly looking for some easy-to-understand examples of it, perhaps this list will help.

White privilege is when you can get pregnant at seventeen like Bristol Palin and everyone is quick to insist that your life and that of your family is a personal matter, and that no one has a right to judge you or your parents, because "every family has challenges," even as black and Latino families with similar "challenges" are regularly typified as irresponsible, pathological and arbiters of social decay.

White privilege is when you can call yourself a "fuckin' redneck," like Bristol Palin's boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll "kick their fuckin' ass," and talk about how you like to "shoot shit" for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.

White privilege is when you can attend four different colleges in six years like Sarah Palin did (one of which you basically failed out of, then returned to after making up some coursework at a community college), and no one questions your intelligence or commitment to achievement, whereas a person of color who did this would be viewed as unfit for college, and probably someone who only got in in the first place because of affirmative action.

White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don't all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you're "untested." 

White privilege is being able to say that you support the words "under God" in the pledge of allegiance because "if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it's good enough for me," and not be immediately disqualified from holding office--since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the "under God" part wasn't added until the 1950s--while believing that reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because, ya know, the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school requires it), is a dangerous and silly idea only supported by mushy liberals. 

White privilege is being able to be a gun enthusiast and not make people immediately scared of you. 

White privilege is being able to have a husband who was a member of an extremist political party that wants your state to secede from the Union, and whose motto was "Alaska first," and no one questions your patriotism or that of your family, while if you're black and your spouse merely fails to come to a 9/11 memorial so she can be home with her kids on the first day of school, people immediately think she's being disrespectful. 

White privilege is being able to make fun of community organizers and the work they do--like, among other things, fight for the right of women to vote, or for civil rights, or the 8-hour workday, or an end to child labor--and people think you're being pithy and tough, but if you merely question the experience of a small town mayor and 18-month governor with no foreign policy expertise beyond a class she took in college--you're somehow being mean, or even sexist. 

White privilege is being able to convince white women who don't even agree with you on any substantive issue to vote for you and your running mate anyway, because all of a sudden your presence on the ticket has inspired confidence in these same white women, and made them give your party a "second look." 

White privilege is being able to fire people who didn't support your political campaigns and not be accused of abusing your power or being a typical politician who engages in favoritism, while being black and merely knowing some folks from the old-line political machines in Chicago means you must be corrupt. 

White privilege is being able to attend churches over the years whose pastors say that people who voted for John Kerry or merely criticize George W. Bush are going to hell, and that the U.S. is an explicitly Christian nation and the job of Christians is to bring Christian theological principles into government, and who bring in speakers who say the conflict in the Middle East is God's punishment on Jews for rejecting Jesus, and everyone can still think you're just a good church-going Christian, but if you're black and friends with a black pastor who has noted (as have Colin Powell and the U.S. Department of Defense) that terrorist attacks are often the result of U.S. foreign policy and who talks about the history of racism and its effect on black people, you're an extremist who probably hates America. 

White privilege is not knowing what the Bush Doctrine is when asked by a reporter, and then people get angry at the reporter for asking you such a "trick question," while being black and merely refusing to give one-word answers to the queries of Bill O'Reilly means you're dodging the question, or trying to seem overly intellectual and nuanced. 

White privilege is being able to claim your experience as a POW has anything at all to do with your fitness for president, while being black and experiencing racism is, as Sarah Palin has referred to it a "light" burden. 

And finally, white privilege is the only thing that could possibly allow someone to become president when he has voted with George W. Bush 90 percent of the time, even as unemployment is skyrocketing, people are losing their homes, inflation is rising, and the U.S. is increasingly isolated from world opinion, just because white voters aren't sure about that whole "change" thing. Ya know, it's just too vague and ill-defined, unlike, say, four more years of the same, which is very concrete and certain… 

White privilege is, in short, the problem.
-----------------------------
In short, the media misconstrues reality with the motives of a monopoly of larger political forces that are conducive to a white hegemony.

Check out Nas' video: Sly Fox

What's the reality?...re-read the media

my MUSE sik

2008-09-16T11:23:00.000-07:00

Yeah, no one on the corner got swagger like us, but I wonder if they got that knowledge of self, determination.

K.O.S - Talib Kweli/Mos Def
At exactly which point do you start to realize
That life without knowledge is, death in disguise?
That's why, Knowledge Of Self is like life after death
Apply it, to your life, let destiny manifest

---------

Stand in ovation, cause you put the Hue in Human
Cause and effect, effect everything you do
and that's why I got love in the face of hate
Hands steady so the lines in the mental illustration is straight
The thought you had don't even contemplate
Infinite like figure eight there's no escape..
From that what? (Knowledge Of Self) Determination

What's the reality?....my music is sik

Survive Your Blackness: Language

2008-09-14T18:00:00.000-07:00

Black people in America communicate in a variety of ways, which includes language, style and dress, and even hand gestures, with the inclusion of the occasional neck roll and head boppin', but I digress.

As a Jamaican American female, who grew up in a suburb outside of Chicago, my speech was mocked for sounding "white," by other African Americans. So, along the way, I had to pick up on some words to survive my "Blackness." Words that form a dialect know as African American Vernacular English (AAVE).

So, I compiled a small list of words so you too can survive your "Blackness." I'm not going to explain "Blackness" at this point, "cuz if u black, then u kno what I'm talkin' bout." <----- AAVE---HOLLA!!!

- What up?, Wuzz hannin?

- Haters (also referred to as B*^%$s, Hoes, Chicken Heads, Skanks, oh and Ni&%#a's)

- Yo!

- Dip out!

- B!, G! (yes, letters having meanings too, several)

- Ni$%a, Nicca, My Nig (I don't recommend these, "dey played out in my book")

- Bet

- Cakin'

- Playa

- Baby daddy, Baby momma

- Drama

- Phony (one of my fav's seeing how I have phony phriends, HA)

- I feel you!, I got you!

- Hell naw!

- Fo real?!, Fo sho!

- Bogus

- Jukin

Now, I may not be the most "down" or "ride or die" chick, but I'm Black and I know what I hear when I hear it. And then I just repeat.

So, my list might be short for your liking, but it'll get you through most AAVE conversations that will affirm your "Blackness" with Black people.

Here's an instructional video on the word "no homo", oh and a DICTIONARY for further use:

What's the reality?...dey kno, dey kno

Continuous Thoughts

2008-09-11T21:24:00.000-07:00

---

friends are overrated

Free Your Mind FREE your SOL

2008-09-10T18:10:00.000-07:00

Recently, I discovered .::Free Sol::.

With a rhythmic mixture of Jimi Hendix and Van Hunt, over the back drop off ill rhymes like Lupe, Pharell, and Common; Free Sol is truly FREEing your Standards.Of.Listening. Stemming from Memphis, Tennessee, Free Sol intertwines Hip Hop, rock, and soul to please the ears of a new generation of listeners that want their soul rocked and Hip Hopped.

Just Listen To: Coming Home, Cigarillos, and Bigger Than That

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

I then saw this photo for Erykah Badu's single The Healer, one of my favorite songs of Spring and recently listed on My MUSE sic list. I post the song for you to listen and the picture for you to reminisce.

What's the reality?...listen to your soul...

Just In Case U Were Wondering

2008-09-09T22:02:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I stopped caring....

but tomorrow I know I'll start remembering.

White Valedictorian: Morehouse College

2008-09-06T23:48:00.000-07:00

"They approached me and said, 'Yeah, I have a problem with you being valedictorian. I know you've earned it and even though I know you on a personal level - I like you a lot - but it disturbs me that out of roughly 3,000 black men - there's not one that's done as well as or better than you academically,' " says Packwood.

What's the reality?....interesting...

Does My Vote REALLY Count?

2008-08-31T03:53:00.000-07:00

"For this reason, nobody votes hoping that his vote will change the outcome. We vote instead because we like to feel involved, out of a sense of duty, or—importantly—to avoid being criticized by our friends and loved ones. These motives are enough to get about half of us out to the polls, but not enough to persuade us to engage in pointless research into the details of each candidate’s policy platform. All of which explains why many people vote, but few do so in an informed fashion." --- Tim Harford

Election Process

Electoral College

Compare the Candidates

If you choose, Register to Vote

What's the reality?...do what you think is right and what you believe you should do.

What's Your Racial Identity?

2008-08-29T20:00:00.000-07:00

So, I am thinking of doing my Master's thesis on how stereotypical representations in the media shape the racial identity and self-esteem of African American adolescents. Only cause I luh da kids and my people.

Anyways, while researching for HW, I stumbled upon the Nigrescence Theory. Nigrescence is a French term meaning, the process of becoming black. By the way, Nigrescence sure does resemble the n-word, but I digress, it was conjured by an African American male.

Essentially, African Americans traverse through certain stages/attitudes that shape their racial identity, which is initiated by an encounter that reaffirms their "Blackness". For example, a moment in one's life where they first realize that as a Black person, they are different; this can be triggered by actions, conversations, and/or differential treatment by White individuals.

Research has shown that these stages/attitudes change over time as we grow from adolescent to adult. We can move forward or go backwards depending on our social environments, and possibly SES (socioeconomic status). Personally, I know I have certainly gone though several of them. The question is, where u at?

Pre-Encounter Assimilation

"I am not so much a member of a racial group, as I am American."

Pre-Encounter Miseducation

"Blacks place more emphasis on having a good time than on hard work."

Pre-Encounter Self-Hatred

"Privately, I sometimes have negative feelings about being Black."

Immersion-Emersion Anti-White

"I have a strong feelings of hatred and disdain for all White people."

Internalization Afrocentricity

"I see and think about things from an Afrocentric perspective."

Internalization Multiculturalist Exclusive

"I believe it is important to have both a Black identity and a multicultural perspective, which is inclusive of everyone."

What's the reality?...I'm back and forth between 5 and 6.

Who The Hell Am I Doing This For?

2008-08-27T20:19:00.000-07:00

So, I’m working on a master’s degree in Media Studies, hoping to get a PhD in Media Effects. I have recently had conversation or situations where I have wondered, who the hell am I doing this for?

Professors encouraging me to get a PhD, saying African Americans need the highest graduate degree.

Students and peers looking at me, judging my critiques, like I don’t know the difference between Stuart Hall and Robert McChesney.

So I think to myself, who the hell am I doing this for?

Black people tellin’ me I’m too black, always talkin’ about race, never stepping back and accepting our place.

White people asking why study race and representation, what’s the importance of black people in the media contextual space.

So I think myself, who the hell am I doing this for?

Constantly struggling to make my mark, studying, writing, and reading, just to be one step ahead.

Everyday battling critics about what I do, how I think, what I like; everyone critiquing all that I have said.

So I think to myself, who the hell am I doing this for?

What’s the point of me trying to free your mind; trying to find a way to escape the racist, sexist, elitist, theories of time?

Researching Hall, West, Dates, and Bogle, dissecting the dichotomy of being Black and American; defining that thin line.

All I'm trying to do is find my place, discover my passion, and recover the notion of the strong Black race.

In the end when no one cares, not even the ones who will be enlightened by the knowledge that has been displaced, who the hell will I have done it for?

I'm gonna make my path, doing what I love. I want to succeed, make an impact on my people, never forgetting, hoping for a better future; always giving myself and so much more.

But when it comes to the end and I look to those faces, I think to myself, who the hell am I doing this for?

What's the reality?...a reality I don't know.

Oh No You Didn't!

2008-08-27T17:24:00.000-07:00

I just like this video. I think its funny. Someone should make a track off this!

What's the reality?....Ohhhhh advertisers are good!

Out of Many, One People

2008-08-21T09:02:00.000-07:00

Nuff sed seen?

Big ups to all ah di Jamaica dem. Coo yah, jus one more ting for di American people fi priase us for.

BTW, people need to lay off with the negative criticism. Peace OUT with all that!!!

What's the reality?...Let Usain Bolt become a household name.

My Drugs

2008-08-19T18:08:00.000-07:00

Yes yall, I am addicted! I can't help it. I need at least 3-4 does of each, everyday. When absorbed into the body, they alter my normal bodily function, producing an abnormal combustion of sensations fulfilled through music, the web, pictures, and contacts. Lack of these narcotics can cause hallucination and habituation: iPot, Camheroine, Macijuana, and Crackberry.

What's the reality?.... I'm a tech druggie!

Let's Hope!

2008-08-12T12:04:00.000-07:00

So, I used to believe that Barack Obama was not going to win in the upcoming presidential election; that a White woman or even a Hispanic/Latino American would win before an African American would become president. I would learn that in the case of Obama versus Clinton, sexism triumphs racism, and I am proven wrong.

Yesterday at my internship, I discovered that Obama was front page news for Time magazine, along with every other magazine, which read: And The Winner* Is… *Really, we’re pretty sure this time. And today I have begun to believe. I’m beginning to believe that Barack Obama will be the first African American president, but it’s a scary thought. It’s scary because I am afraid of what this country will do to him physically, mentally, and or morally.

I went to dinner with my God family and I asked my God-mother how she felt about the election. She told me that Obama was going to win. She began to explain to me how several years ago a White colleague told her that the U.S. economy was going to face a crisis and that she should move to Europe. He said that Europe contained strong forces within the government that even U.S. officials could not match. Now we know that together EU and US forces are the world’s strongest countries, but alone Europe seems to be a power that will prevail over the United States. There’s even a book that talks about it: The United States of Europe: The New Superpower and the End of American Supremacy by T.R. Reid. But what stood out about what she said he told her, was that America was becoming a Black country with the increasing diversification of races. That America is no longer being seen as a country of power – symbolically a White older male - but would soon be known as a Black power (people of color being in control), and soon countries would recoil their alliances with the United Sates. Thus, while in the hands of a person of color, the Unites States shall plummet, and white countries shall rise.

So ultimately, it makes sense that Barack Obama would win, because he is fulfilling the ‘conspiracy’ of the powers that be. It is a perfect time for an African American person to run this country, everything is wrong and as he fulfills this position we can all blame him for our circumstances. If we think about it, the Unites States is experiencing a rough time, possibly even a time of crisis, and the presidential candidate will soon step into a position where he will have to make difficult decisions for our country, and if he fails or if any other issues within our country goes wrong, the Black young man – Barack Obama - will be blamed and – Europe - our White older male counterpart, will succeed in becoming a country of higher power.

Hmmmmm….I’m just saying, give it some thought. Now I’m not saying that Obama cannot alleviate some, if not all the issues, what I’m saying is that this idea holds some truth, in that we are experiencing trying times that we will one day have to blame someone for, besides Bush.

This stuff is deep and I’m beginning to believe that what this man, "THE MAN"...lol ...said was true. But I’m going to vote for Obama because I think he is the best option for the position and I hope that he will instill hope in the minds of all Americans for a better future for the United States of America.

What’s the reality?...All of our Black leaders in some way or another have been corrupted by White forces. Lets “HOPE” they don’t succeed with Obama.

Randomocity

2008-08-07T14:27:00.000-07:00

Ten random things about me:
1. I like the smell of gasoline, markers, and cement glue. Not a hype!
2. If there was a surgery where you could impair the muscles in your cheeks to have a dimple, I would do it. J
3. I secretly look at people’s hands and feet. I like them clean and purty.
4. I LOVE the smell of clean hair. I like to smell people’s hair.
5. I like being by myself.
6. I recently smuggled something questionable across the Canadian border.
7. If I had second chance at life, I would pursue acting.
8. I wish I had been born in Jamaica. Mom and Dad were. I’m still Jamaican, now what?!
9. I want to teach for the rest of my life; donate my time in the prison systems schools too.
10. I think that horoscopes are WITCHCRAFT..lol.

Nine ways to win my heart:

1. Smell good from a mile away.

2. Serve the African American community.

3. Have dimples. (On the real, no one can get mad at people with dimples).

4. Be honest about everything.

5. Have dreads. (drooling)

6. Love children!

7. Be a dork/weird/lame. March to the beat of your own drum.

8. Give me food. MMmmm Chipotle salad with chips.

9. Figure me out before I figure you out.

Eight things I'd like to do before I die:

1. Go skydiving.

2. Learn how to break dance.

3. Have children, then adopt.

4. Trace my family origin from Jamaica back to Africa.

5. Run a marathon.

6. Make a television show/documentary.

7. Make an impact in the African American community.

8. Buy my mother her own Jamaican restaurant.

Seven ways to annoy me:

1. Say the word ghetto.

2. Say you’re going to do something and then don’t.

3. Tell me to calm down...I’m never not calm.

4. Miss-pronounce my name several times when I have corrected you several times, then ask me why my name is pronounced the way it is. My name is pronounced Dome-inique, cause it is!

5. Be annoying – don’t say HI after I have said Hi to you. Don’t “bless” me after I sneeze, don’t say “thank you.” Be fake, be materialistic. Be a man and not hold the door for me.

6. I call you after you just call me and you don’t answer.

7. TEXT MESSAGING!! If you can’t tell me over the phone or face to face, then don’t tell me at all. A waste of time and energy. Ahhhhh!

Six things I believe in:

1. God died on the cross for you and I.

2. Everything happens for a reason.

3. One day I’ll need you just as much as you’ll need me.

4. Heaven and hell.

5. I believe in me. I just have to execute it.

6. Duppies (Jamaican version of ghosts…lol..but only when I’m in Jamaica)

Five things I'm afraid of:

1. Duppies…lol

2. Being successful, yet not married. (The statistics are soo real for African American women)

3. Not having my own children

4. My grandparents passing away before I can provide for them.

5. Growing up! I don’t wanna grow up!

Four of my favorite things:
1. Food. I need to stop before I get diabetes. (Grandparents have it)
2. KIDS!!

3. Wearing sweats on the weekend when it’s cold outside, while eating a chipotle salad w/ chips, watching an old episode of Girlfriends.

4. Being on the train in the morning listening to my iPod, while staring outside daydreaming. I love to daydream.

Three things I do every day:

1. Talk to God.

2. Check Gmail 199,037,283,927 times a day.

3. Get stressed out for no reason.

Two things I want to do right now:
1. Not be at my internship, outside socializing with friends.
2. Take a shower then take a nap.

One person I want to see right now:

1. Jeeter ;-) (Get out my business).

What’s the reality?...I’m random

my MUSE sik

2008-08-05T11:54:00.000-07:00

My music is sick. But it makes me feel all good.

These would be some of the top "Recently Played" songs on my ipod. I could listen to these songs on repeat for the whole day and still not get sick of hearing them.

1, 2, Check it!

Shhh...It's A Secret

2008-07-31T08:46:00.000-07:00

I recently tripped over the idea of The Law of Attraction, the most powerful law in the universe. The law basically says,

“Your life is a physical manifestation of the thoughts that go on in your head.”

So, essentially think happy and your life will be happy. I know it sounds simple, but once you watch the video you’ll see just how interesting and riveting this idea can be.

What's the reality?...What you think and feel today is ultimately determining your future; your life. Try to think positively about today, so tomorrow will be worth living.

Race Matters

2008-07-27T13:24:00.000-07:00

As I watched the CNN special, I was happy knowing that America would finally get a glimpse at what it was like to be Black in America. During the commercial, I logged on to Facebook to see how many people were updating their profiles about watching the CNN series. I found that a number of people were actually upset about the way in which the program portrayed the injustices of America, that were misconstrued to look like a myriad of problems in the African American community. I then reevaluated the program and I began to feel the same way. The media continues to hold African Americans exclusively accountable for the injustices they face with out giving a holistic view, and advocating that America be responsible for the discriminatory practices assigned in American institutions. As W.E.B. Du Bois once said, the problem of the the 20^th Century, and now the 21^st Century, is the color-line, and until America realizes its own wrong doing, then we cannot solely hold those accountable for trying to survive in a world that makes it clear, that a White life is prized over “others.”

I am reading Race Matters, by Cornel West. He eloquently explains it as such:

“Our truncated public discussions of race suppress the best of who and what we are as a people because they fail to confront the complexity of the issue in a candid and critical matter. To engage in a serious discussion of race in America, we must begin not with the problems of Black people but with the flaws of American society-flaws rooted in historic inequalities and longstanding cultural stereotypes.” (2 - 3).

African Americans are not a "problem people." America is a flawed society. My next read is The Souls of Black Folk, by W.E.B. Du Bois. Check it out!

What’s the reality?...In order for our country to move forward as a nation freed of racial and social inequalities, we have to be willing to hold hands in harmony with our neighbor to achieve our goal. (That sounds so MLK’ish). But how can we be proud of our own country who was once proud to showcase lynchings on postcards or recently, threatened to lynch our own presidential candidates wife? How can you love your country, if you don’t love your brethren?

Stuff & People White People Like

2008-07-23T08:53:00.000-07:00

I stumbled upon these websites, either from class or a co-worker. They're funny, so check them out! They sooo crazy! (awkwardly laughing)

Stuff White People Like

Black People Love White People....We really Do...(awkwardly laughing)

What's the reality?...White people like a lot of things.

CNN: Black In America

2008-07-22T11:53:00.000-07:00

I encourage you to watch it! I'm soo excited! It's like a fuzzy feeeling:Black In America!

What's the reality?...hopefully we will see when we watch it!

Modern Black Face?

2008-07-22T09:23:00.000-07:00

Disparaging images of African Americans have long been a part of popular American culture. Negative images of African Americans solidified white hegemony in the eighteenth century. During the antebellum period, negative portrayals of African Americans were used as tools to keep slaves oppressed under the domination of white American society. And today African Americans have become commodities of entertainment for mass media consumption.

Whether it was white men dressing up in blackface or African American actors portraying images developed by white producers, minstrelsies sought to interpret African American culture by displaying pervasive stereotypes concerning blackness. Blackface was originated as the act of White performers using burnt cork and later greasepaint or shoe polish to blacken their skin and exaggerate their lips, often wearing woolly wigs, gloves, tailcoats, to perform theatrical performances of African American life and culture. Later, African American performers would also perform in blackface. These performances were always exaggerated stereotypical presentations of "Blackness." The very first minstrel show occurred in the 1800s in New York City and within a year it became the most popular form of live entertainment in America.

There is a movie coming out called Tropic Thunder. Robert Downey Jr. essentially plays a White character playing an African American character in the film. The biggest question that comes to mind is why could they have not got an African American character to play the role. Perhaps it’s funnier when a White person plays an African American character, because black people are funny. The movie is meant to be a comedy, but like traditional American popular culture, so were minstrel shows.

There has been minimal controversy over the film and Downey’s role, but Downey seems to have no problems with playing the character.

“Downey, meanwhile, is confident he never crossed the line. ''At the end of the day, it's always about how well you commit to the character,'' he says. ''I dove in with both feet. If I didn't feel it was morally sound, or that it would be easily misinterpreted that I'm just C. Thomas Howell in [Soul Man], I would've stayed home.'' –Entertainment Weekly.com

I watched the trailer and did laugh at one of the scenes in the end. But I don’t know. It just doesn’t sit well with me. Minstrel shows were meant to be funny, lynchings were meant to be entertaining, and African Americans were once meant to be property. Thus, the intention is much larger then the proposed effect. While many will argue, “It’s JUST A MOVIE!” The fact is, the effects are much larger then getting a few laughs at your local theater. As taught by The New Yorker, Obama is a muslim.

What’s the reality?... “The ‘Nigger’ [was and continues to be] one of the most significant and popular themes in American entertainment” (LaGrone 2000, 117). Yeah, I typed the N Word.

Thanks New Yorker: Obama is a Muslim

2008-07-17T19:03:00.000-07:00

A 25-year-old New York City graduate student is threatening to sue a T-Shirt designer after being assaulted for wearing one of his designs.

The woman bought a $69 shirt from Apollo Braun's Manhattan boutique that bore the words, "Obama is my slave." When she wore the shirt on Tuesday, four teenage girls accosted her - shoving her, pulling out her earphones, and spitting in her face, according to the New York edition of Metro News.

"The unnamed woman is reportedly seeking solace by suing Braun - born Doron Braunshtein - for "all he's got," the designer claims. He, of course, is shirking any responsibility for the incident and says that the shirt reflects the views of "ordinary WASPs."

“For a lot of people, when they see Obama, they see a slave. People think America is not ready for a black president,” the Israeli-born designer said.

“I can’t stand Obama,” Braun says, but claims that it's not because the candidate is black. “That’s the only thing I like about him. He opens the door for other minorities.”

“He reminds me of Adolf Hitler,” Braun explained, adding he does not like the Illinois senator because “he is a Muslim” — a myth that Obama apparently cannot escape.

The designer has sold several other anti-Obama styles from his boutique, including shirts with slogans such as “Jews Against Obama,” “Obama = Hitler” and “Who Killed Obama?”

http://www.livesteez.com/news/news_detail/934

What's the reality?....the Media is real and creates false perceptions.

The New F@%#$*R!

2008-07-15T20:00:00.000-07:00

.pardon the cursing. in reality I rarely, if ever, curse.

“The New Yorker magazine has received some backlash for this week's cover, showing Barack Obama dressed as a Muslim in the presidential Oval Office. In the cartoon Obama is fist-bumping his Afro-wearing wife Michelle, who is outfitted with camouflage and an AK-47 slung over her back. The controversial cover, obviously meant to satirize false stereotypes of the presidential hopeful, has been accused of being too over-the-top." --- Los Angelas Times

OK, so my passion in life is to promote more quality images of African Americans in the media.

So, when I heard of this New Yorker issue, I was upset. IMAGE IS EVERYHTHING! And because Barack Obama is up for presidency, it is important to represent him in the most diplomatic way. Never mind the critics and their “backlash” against “liberal sensitivity.” Caricatures are representative of stereotypes and whether or not anyone is laughing, everyone is looking, and ones perception can have devastating effects when evaluating Obama’s platform.

Now this is important because African Americans have had a history of being portrayed as caricatures. These representations encouraged negative attitudes and beliefs about African Americans. Because the media is an effective vehicle in communicating messages, the effects of stereotypes, images, caricatures, are important because they can promote negative beliefs and ideas.

So, give Barack a BA-reak!

What’s the reality…. The New Yorker is not funny.