Black on Black crime

I watched a video on CNN today and learned that about half of the homicide victims in America are Black and 93% of those victims where killed by other Black people. This fact is astounding. There are many factors contributing to this, education (or lack there of) even economics. Until the mentality changes things will inevitable stay the same. We should try to reach out to our people and show them things are not hopeless. I wanted to share this fact with you. Spread the word.

Use black history to empower

February 13, 2007
BY DESIREE COOPER
FREE PRESS COLUMNIST
It's great that there's at least one month when black history is celebrated in our schools, communities and even on television.
But one African-American educator, Carmen N'Namdi, offers this cautionary note: What children are learning during Black History Month may actually be the opposite of what we think we're teaching.
Words for the wise
"What if I said that George Washington was the first white president?" said N'Namdi, who's been an educator for 28 years.
First, she said, it would imply that it was a rare white person who could qualify to be president. And second, it would imply that most presidents are black.
"Language has the power to make you a victim," said N'Namdi. "Especially during Black History Month, when we focus upon all the 'first' and 'only' African Americans who broke color barriers."
N'Namdi has been teaching what she calls the "psychology of the norm" to her students at her own charter school, Nataki Talibah Schoolhouse of Detroit. Named after her daughter who passed away at 14 months, the school was founded in 1978 to form a "normalized" learning environment for children of African ancestry.
According to N'Namdi, African Americans are the only people who refer to their own ancestors simply as "the slaves."
"They were more than an enslaved people; they were herbalists, artists and craftsmen," she said. "By defining black history as the history of slavery, we're losing sight of the fact that they were people with rich lives and customs."
She also warns about the pitfalls of teaching about racism to young children.
"Little ones are into superheroes," she said. "They like power, and they like to know that things can be fixed. So if you talk about the Jim Crow laws in the South, they want to know who had so much power that they could boss around their parents and grandparents?"
Instead, stories like the Rosa Parks story should be couched in terms of justice, not race, she said.
"Unless the man who asked for Parks' seat was older or carrying a child, he had no reason to ask her to get up," she said. "Then we talk about what she did to address the injustice -- she boycotted. That engages their creativity: 'How do I fix things that are wrong?' "
Liberating language
I agree with N'Namdi, who taught both of my children in elementary school. At 8, my son was at an indoor park when he and his classmates -- all African American -- were refused service by a white sales clerk. The children were outraged and demanded service. When I asked him why he thought he was snubbed, my son answered: "Because she was rude."
I'd perceived a racial incident. How much more liberating for my son to perceive rudeness detached from his own skin color.
"Seeing yourself as the norm can make a difference in whether you can transcend racism," N'Namdi said. "It's empowering."
That may be the best history lesson of all.
Contact DESIREE COOPER at dcooper@freepress.com or 313-222-6625.

The Doll Baby Test

Kiri Davis is a young filmmaker whose high school documentary has left audiences at film festivals across the country stunned -- and has re-ignited a powerful debate over race.

http://www.komotv.com/home/video/5001856.html?video=YHI&t=a

We are in mourning.... A Great African American has passed

James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006), commonly referred to as "The Godfather of Soul", was an American entertainer recognized as one of the most influential figures in 20th-century popular music.

As a prolific singer, songwriter, bandleader, and record producer, Brown was a seminal force in the evolution of gospel and rhythm and blues into soul and funk. He left his mark on numerous other musical genres, including rock, jazz, reggae, disco, dance and electronic music, afrobeat, and hip hop music.

Brown began his professional music career in 1953 and skyrocketed to fame in the late 1950s and early 1960s on the strength of his thrilling live performances and a string of smash hits. In spite of various personal problems and setbacks, he continued to score hits in every decade through the 1980s. In the 1960s and 1970s Brown was a presence in American political affairs, noted especially for his activism on behalf of African Americans and the poor.

Brown was recognized by a plethora of (mostly self-bestowed) titles, including Soul Brother Number One, Mr. Dynamite, the Hardest-Working Man in Show Business, Minister of The New New Super Heavy Funk, Mr. Please Please Please, The Boss, and the best-known, the Godfather of Soul. He was renowned for his shouting vocals, feverish dancing and unique rhythmic style.

from wikipedia.com

Racism Research

CNN's published research

(CNN) -- Most Americans, white and black, see racism as a lingering problem in the United States, and many say they know people who are racist, according to a new poll.
But few Americans of either race -- just one out of eight -- consider themselves racist.
And experts say racism has evolved from the days of Jim Crow to the point that people may not even recognize it in themselves. (Watch people in a Texas town where blacks are still afraid to stop )

A poll conducted last week by Opinion Research Corp. for CNN indicates that whites and blacks disagree on how serious a problem racial bias is in the United States.

Almost half of black respondents to the poll -- 49 percent -- said racism is a "very serious" problem, while 18 percent of whites shared that view. Forty-eight percent of whites and 35 percent of blacks chose the description "somewhat serious."

Asked if they know someone they consider racist, 43 percent of whites and 48 percent of blacks said yes.

But just 13 percent of whites and 12 percent of blacks consider themselves racially biased.

Professor Jack Dovidio of the University of Connecticut, who has researched racism for more than 30 years, estimates up to 80 percent of white Americans have racist feelings they may not even recognize.

"We've reached a point that racism is like a virus that has mutated into a new form that we don't recognize," Dovidio said.

He added that 21st-century racism is different from that of the past.
"Contemporary racism is not conscious, and it is not accompanied by dislike, so it gets expressed in indirect, subtle ways," he said.

That "stealth" discrimination reveals itself in many different situations.
A three-year undercover investigation by the National Fair Housing Alliance found that real estate agents steered whites away from integrated neighborhoods and steered blacks in to predominantly black neighborhoods.

Racism also can be a factor in getting a job.

Candidates named Emily O'Brien or Neil McCarthy were much more likely to get calls back from potential employers than applicants named Tamika Williams and Jamal Jackson, even though they had the same credentials, according to a study by the University of Chicago.

Racial bias may even determine whether you can flag a cab.

New York Times writer Calvin Sims wrote a recent article about all the cabdrivers that refused to stop for him.

"If a cab passes you by, obviously it is frustrating, it's degrading and it's just really confusing, because this is akin to being in the South and being refused service at a lunch counter, which is what happened in the 60s and 70s," he said.

Victimized

The Opinion Research poll shows that blacks and whites disagree on how each race feels about the other.

Asked how many whites dislike blacks, 40 percent of black respondents said "all" or "many." Twenty-six percent of whites chose one of those replies.

On the question of how many blacks dislike whites, 33 percent of blacks said "all" or "many," while 38 percent of whites agreed -- a wash because of the poll's 5 percent margin of error.
About half of black respondents said they had been a victim of discrimination because of their race. A little more than a quarter of whites said they had been victims of racial discrimination.
The poll was based on phone interviews conducted December 5 through Thursday with 1,207 Americans, including 328 blacks and 703 non-Hispanic whites.

Man Up! Nobody Is Coming To Save Us

Hartford, CT (BlackNews.com) - This highly acclaimed novel has caught the attention and support of Bill Cosby and Rev. Al Sharpton. Each agree that it is a must read book for the community!

Man Up! states that internalized racism is the number one reason why the Black community is filled with: absentee fathers, mothers who raise their sons to be mamma's boys, bad eating, drinking and sexual habits, negative" thug" imagery, Black professional organizations mismanagement of resources, opportunistic Black intellectuals, and nobody is supposed to talk about it publicly. And most Black churches stand idly by as the band plays on.

Mr. Perry was born to a teenage mother and raised in public housing. He received his masters in social work from the University of Pennsylvania and his undergraduate degree from the University of Rhode Island. He has worked for various politicians (US Senators, Mayors and presidential candidates) and as the director for a homeless shelter. Mr. Perry is the principal and founder of the Capital Preparatory Magnet School in Hartford, CT. A school that prepares low-income high school students for college.

Steve Perry is currently on a national book tour! Steve has spoken on at least 50 different radio stations and will be speaking at: Lander University in Greenwood, SC; University of Louisiana at Shreveport, LA; and St. Philip's College, San Antonio, TX.

Check out his website: www.manupbook.com for additional information, booking, or interviews.

Title: Man Up! Nobody Is Coming To Save Us
Author: Steve Perry
ISBN: 0-9708929-2-6

"The Trivialization Of Black Suffering" from FN

This is from a brillant man's blog... I am in no way taking credit. This is merely a snippet. I encourage you to read the rest. From field-negro.blogspot.com

"So anyway, this charlatan is on Bill O'Rielly's FAKE NEWS television program, discussing the Danny DeVito meltdown on "The View". Of course, they were upset at not at his alcoholic induced meltdown, and lack of decorum, but of his rant against their beloved President Bush. So after some discussion about the issue, Goldberg makes what I think is probably as outrageous a comment as the ones made even by Richards: He says, and I am paraphrasing here, that he, DeVito, being on the "View" was like being at a Klan rally-I guess he should know-because every one on the show was agreeing with him-DeVito- about the President,and it was all these like minded people gathered in one place. So what the f**k!!! Are you serious? Comparing an appearance on a television show to being at a Klan rally. Maybe Mr. Goldberg doesn't realize how serious the sh** is that he is saying. Klan rallies were where plans were made to lynch my people and burn out and scare hard working families from the South off of their property and their land. Klan rallies are where groups were organized-and still are- to terrorize my people and keep us oppressed and in fear for years. And Klan rallies were held in secret with many prominent towns people and citizens taking part in the conspiracy of hate. The last time I checked, "The View" actually had black people on it.-Yeah I know Star Jones is gone, but they have had a token on damn near every day since- So how dare Mr. Goldberg makes that comparison? And why isn't America talking about it except on maybe a few left wing blogs like News Hounds?"

Obama 08'

I came across this video and thought i would share. I'm looking forward to see him run... if he decides to. This is him at his best.

NO, he didn't!

Watch this video.

Jon Stewart has the point at the end.

The Segregationist Returns!

Reacquaint yourself with the new Senate minority whip...




I ran across this great video this morning. Everyone is focusing on KKKramer, like Rev. Jesse Jackson said,"What about Trent Lott?".

This is the article from the Post

According to Hotline, Trent Lott is set to become the Senate Minority Whip.
In 2002 Trent Lott was one of the earliest casualties of blogger vigilance, when his praise of the racist, segregationist presidential candidacy of Strom Thurmond was picked up and amplified by the blogs. The corporate media simply couldn't ignore it.
It's not as if it were an isolated gaffe. As Wikipedia points out:
As a Congressman, he voted against renewal of the Voting Rights Act and opposed the Martin Luther King Holiday. Lott also maintained an affiliation with the Council of Conservative Citizens, which is described as a hate group by the ADL, NAACP and SPLC.
Or, if you prefer, watch PTV's and one of my favorite bloggers, Terrance Heath of Republic of T's, Video to the right.
After enough people noticed Lott's remark and it became a political liability, then -- and only then -- did the president and republican leaders speak out against the Mississippi senator, forcing him to resign his position as Senate Majority Leader.
They replaced the bigot with a failure, Bill Frist, while Lott will now become second in command to the post he once resigned in shame and ignominy. Frist will return to making ill-advised video diagnoses in Tennessee.

Source

... makes me speechless

"If I could have convinced more slaves that they were slaves, I could have freed thousands more."
-Harriet Tubman

Birth Defect

In April, 2006 in a interview Condelezza Rice referred to the US coming into being with slavery as an initial birth defect. I know it is an old interview but I liked that and thought i would share. That doesn't mean the rest of the interview was any good. She says we have come a long way since slavery but I say the racist ideal has just been suppressed. The people that were spraying the water hose at Black kids in the street are still alive. There children are the ones making the decisions in this country.

Roots

This information I got from the Wikipedia is interesting. It shows how deep rooted the separated or races are. Its like a White mother saying to her daughter,"Don't dare have babies with that Black man, don't dilute our precious race." Racism is so deep rooted, most of the time it isn't even seen. Because of that it continues, not enough people are standing up. Also a problem is a significant part of the Black population is not goal oriented. I know I am saying things that you already know. But here in this blog I am all about loving yourself and your race. Embracing your heritage.

I went off on a rant there but here is the info from the wikipedia

"British North America imported only about 500,000 Africans out of the 11 million shipped across the Atlantic.[2] Nevertheless, the United States has been astonishingly successful at preserving two distinct genetic populations: one of mostly African ancestry, the other overwhelmingly European.[3] All other New World states (except Canada) that imported African slaves have unimodal Afro-European genetic admixture scatter diagrams. Indeed, two thirds of white Americans have no detectable African ancestry at all (other than the ancient African ancestry shared by all members of our species, of course). Only one-third of white Americans have detectable African DNA (averaging 2.3 percent) from ancestors who passed through the endogamous color line from black to white.[4] Furthermore, U.S. government's surveys continue to categorize on a strict color-line. The federal census has no provision for a "multiracial" or "biracial" self-identity and, until 2000, forbade checking off more than one box. The EEOC has strict regulations defining who is black or white and implicitly denies the existence of mixed people."

Great African American

Bert Williams (November 12, 1874 – March 4, 1922) was the pre-eminent African American entertainer of his era.
Williams was born Egbert Austin Williams on the island of Antigua, then part of the British West Indies. In 1888 his family moved to Los Angeles, California. He began his entertainment career in 1892 in San Francisco.
Bert Williams was a key figure in the development of African American music. In an age when racial inequality and stereotyping were an 'accepted' part of life, he became the first black American to take a lead role on the Broadway stage, and did much to push back the racial barriers during his career. His songs (mostly self-written and displaying a dry wit and observational humor) such as "Nobody" and "All Going Out And Nothing Coming In" proved popular with audiences of all races, paving the way for future generations of black artists. Fellow vaudevillian W.C. Fields described Williams as "the funniest man I ever saw—and the saddest man I ever knew."

Change.

"Tears will get you sympathy. Sweat will get you change."
-- Jesse Jackson, minister and activist

Today in Black History

November 25

1895
National Negro Medical Association founded.

1883

Sojourner Truth dies.

Background

Sojourner Truth (c. 1797–November 26, 1883) was the self-given name, from 1843, of an American abolitionist born into slavery from Hurley, New York. (Her original name was Isabella Baumfree, but some sources list her name as Isabella Van Wagener.)

Great African Americans

Bobby Seale (born October 22, 1936) is an American civil rights activist, who along with Huey P. Newton co-founded the Black Panther Party in 1966.
Seale joined the African American Association in college and this is said to have inspired him to start the Black Panthers, which at one point had over 2000 members. Seale went on to become the chairman of the party and underwent FBI surveillance as part of its COINTELPRO program. He was one of the original Chicago Eight defendants charged with conspiracy and inciting to riot, in the wake of the 1968 Democratic National Convention, in Chicago. Judge Julius Hoffman sentenced him to four years of imprisonment for contempt of court because of his outbursts, and eventually ordered Seale severed from the case, hence the "Chicago Seven." During one of the court trials Bobby Seale's many outbursts led the judge to have him bound and gagged, as commemorated in the song Chicago written by Graham Nash.
Seale was also tried in 1970 in the New Haven Black Panther trials for the murder of Alex Rackley and acquitted by a hung jury. The trials were widely decried as an example of political repression by such relative moderates as Yale University president Kingman Brewster, Jr., and were accompanied by a large demonstration in New Haven, Connecticut, on May Day, 1970, which coincided with the beginning of the US college student strike of May, 1970.
In 2002, he began dedicating his time to Reach!, a group that focuses on youth education programs.
Today Bobby Seale is popularly known for marketing a line of barbecue products.

Moments in Black History

J. Edgar Hoover vs. Black Panter Party

Hoover's involvement with the Black Panther Party came as the party began to gain prominence during 1967 & 68. As COINTELPRO had been established in 1956 to police "political radicals" within the United States, focus and pressure now came onto the Black Panther Party. On June 15, 1969, J. Edgar Hoover declared, "the Black Panther Party, without question, represents the greatest threat to internal security of the country"; he pledged that 1969 would be the last year of the Party's existence.

As Roger states in the film (A Huey P. Newton Story), "if you read the FBI files you will see that even Mr. J. Edgar Hoover himself had to say that it was not the guns that were the greatest threat to the internal security of the United States of America; it was not the guns, it was the Free Children's Breakfast Program that was the greatest threat to the internal security of the United States of America. Grits. Now why was it the Free Children's Breakfast Program? It was the Free Children's Breakfast Program because the Free Children's Breakfast Program engendered a certain following on the Black community's part, a certain respect on the Black community's part. I mean, nobody can argue with free grits. So Hoover saw it as a kind of, he saw the Free Children's Breakfast Program as a kind of, what's the word he used? He said it was a kind of, look in the file, you'll see, he said it was a kind of infiltration. That's ridiculous isn't it? Infiltration? How are Black people, who are born and raised in the Black community, who live and work in the Black community, going to infiltrate their own Black community? If anybody's infiltrating I think its J. Edgar Hoover.

Source

KKKramer!

By now everyone should have seen the Michael Richards tirade from his stand up at a certain comedy club, well you should also know that he went on Letterman to apologizes. I want to state now I do not except his apology. Hes worthless and washed up and needs to sit his behind down somewhere in a dark hole where he might possibly be able to stop offending us "afro-americans", apparently we are our hair.

One of the worst sites on the internet

In my quest to scour the net for information to provide on my blog I came across a rather corny site
www.blackpeopleloveus.com/

Now normally I wouldn't want to link my page to something like this but I have to put it out there. This is one of the worst sites I have come across. It is not funny, in fact I am slightly offended (I say slightly because being completely offended would mean that I cared about this site). View it if you would like to see what is not appropriate.