tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10777985689624707572024-02-07T19:35:56.810-08:00RevelationsFrom the mind of Dr. Goddess because she is a/muse/d.Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.comBlogger70125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-27435063219657863092010-12-29T01:01:00.000-08:002010-12-29T01:03:23.414-08:00Dr. Goddess Gets a Makeover: We've Moved!Hey Folks,<br />
<br />
I've thoroughly enjoyed my time here on Blogger, from the beginning of my years blogging since late 2007 (amazing, really, I had no idea what I was doing!) and now that I am much more clear of what I'm doing and how my blog is my business, I decided to "Become a Believer" in myself again and invest in a new website that fully incorporates my former website and this blog using Wordpress.<br />
<br />
Three cheers for change! And you know we believe in change at Team Dr. Goddess!<br />
<br />
<br />
So, I need you to embrace this change in three ways:<br />
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Dr. GoddessDr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-20369522910456218232010-12-01T18:21:00.000-08:002010-12-01T18:21:15.949-08:00An Open Letter from Wesley Snipe's Wife on His Tax CaseFolks, if you haven't heard, <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/entertainment-headlines/ci_16752806">actor, Wesley Snipes, was ordered to voluntarily turn himself into a prison facility</a> in Pennsylvania on December 9, 2010, to serve a three year term, reportedly on "tax evasion". <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSbG9dRGlwCu7f-pxBYa7eLT_QMKDiACgbAVUlcG8s9pdM-Jnsgbn1FeoboPgUClyvMW1AJixMLXQZOxWOlpfh8RYIQhglRb_XpxkCCzseGr0ATuevxOKUcR8lBeRmwXd9gznMX9dxplaA/s1600/Wesley+Snipes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSbG9dRGlwCu7f-pxBYa7eLT_QMKDiACgbAVUlcG8s9pdM-Jnsgbn1FeoboPgUClyvMW1AJixMLXQZOxWOlpfh8RYIQhglRb_XpxkCCzseGr0ATuevxOKUcR8lBeRmwXd9gznMX9dxplaA/s320/Wesley+Snipes.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maan, I can't believe this...I may have to turn into a bat and fly away...</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
I was sent the link to the following open letter from Nikki Snipes, Wesley Snipe's wife, and was so astonished by what I read that I had to pass it on. I don't know what's true or not but I do know that I've never heard even half of these details. Thanks, Journalists! You're doing a GREAT job... *side eye*<br />
<br />
Dear Beloved Friends and Families,<br />
<br />
Thank you for giving love and support through all these years as our family has been going through this heinous battle. With much support and love from you all, we are gathering ourselves from the shocking decision in the most recent hearing on my husband’s misdemeanor case. My warrior husband is still standing strong, willing to give his all to defend his liberty, something that had never crossed our minds that he would have to fight to keep. <br />
<br />
At the moment, he is at home with us and has filed a motion for an extension of his bail in order to move forward on going to the Supreme Court to seek the justice that has not been served. <br />
<br />
It’s been 4 years since the indictment literally dropped down on Wesley out of blue when he was filming in Africa and I have been patiently waiting for the truth to unveil and prevail itself, doing whatever necessary for his vindication. Now the misrepresentation and speculations have gone too far as the government moved forward with outrageous, selective prosecution on my husband's misdemeanor conviction. <br />
<br />
I now feel that it is necessary to write this letter for the sake of our five wonderful children’s future in this country and most of all, for the sake of my man’s integrity and dignity that has been attacked and destroyed not only by the government but also by the media who’s been spinning and twisting the whole story and misinforming the public <br />
<br />
I feel like going around and telling every one of you face to face the truth you never got to hear through the media who has been erroneously reporting all of these shocking series of events to look like a lame tax evasion story from the very beginning. <br />
<br />
So please spare me a moment to inform you with the facts and the truth of how it all went down… <br />
<br />
More than a decade ago, Wesley was using an accounting service from Kenneth Starr, the founder of Starr & Company. In 1999, he discovered that Starr had forged his signature on a document and his monies had been stolen. He requested that the Manhattan DA in NYC investigate and warned his fellow actor Sylvester Stallone who was Starr’s client at the time as well.<br />
<br />
In 2000, after parting ways with Starr, Wesley sought for more honest representation and got introduced to Eddie Khan and his accounting firm that represented more than 4000 clients, including lawyers, doctors, business owners and IRS EMPLOYEES and he was offered to try the service for awhile. But soon after, he also parted ways with Eddie and sought other financial advisors. However, in 2006, the government decided to indict Eddie Khan (the founder of the Florida accounting firm) but picked Wesley out of Eddie’s 4000 clients and made him share the same charges they had put on Eddie as a co-conspirator. Wesley was not even his client at the time but had a history of Eddie filing papers for him just like the other 4000 clients he had filed the papers for. <br />
<br />
In 2008, Wesley received a trial followed by the indictment, not in the state of his residency but in Ocala, Florida, a place he had never even been before. Moreover, the given jury pool of 120 people for the trial consisted of mostly non-college graduate, white people except for two (2) African-Americans whom the government rescheduled to come back but conveniently gave them the wrong return date. Therefore, the 12 jurors selected out of that pool were all-white and none of them had a similar background or similar experiences as my husband, unlike what is required by the law. Thus, his attorney filed a motion on this specific issue, but the judge denied it and began the trial in Ocala just as they had planned out. When this incident got out to the press, they made sure that my husband was PLAYING the “race card.”<br />
<br />
During the trial, the government announced that Kenneth Starr was to be their key witness and Wesley’s team raised the issue that Starr’s credibility was in serious question due to not only the fact that he had defrauded Wesley (the very reason why he had to seek for other accountants) but also Starr’s previous involvement in Anthony Pelicano’s illegal wiretapping case back in February 2006. At Pelicano’s trial, the government presented audiotape evidence and witness testimony that Kenneth Starr had hired Pelicano to wiretap Stallone after he got sued by Stallone for misappropriation of his funds. HOWEVER, when Wesley’s team raised this issue at the trial due to the fact that it was Wesley who first discovered Starr’s fraudulent activities and requested an investigation disapproving Starr’s credibility, the government LIED and said that Pelicano illegally wiretapped Stallone on his own and HID the fact that Starr had been investigated as co-conspirator. We got to find this out only after Starr finally got arrested for his overbearing crimes after the trial. Starr, as a key witness who has been bitter since Wesley’s discovery of his crimes, sufficiently prevented Wesley from receiving a fair trial. <br />
<br />
Through it all, Wesley was found NOT GUILTY on every offensive charge but guilty of three (3) MISDEMEANORS of willful failure to file tax returns during the period of three years when he was going through chaotic financial situations, seeking for the right trustworthy advisor. However, as Judge Hodges decided to make him an example (as he literally said it out loud at the trial), he sentenced Wesley to THREE (3) YEARS of IMPRISONMENT for the misdemeanor conviction, instead of sentencing him to probation or public service for such misdemeanor charges as in many other similar cases.<br />
<br />
We realized so clearly at that point that the government was determined to destroy his life, his family, his integrity, his career, and everything he had built and earned in his life. There was no question for us that he should fight to not only defend his liberty but also to vindicate himself. <br />
<br />
As he kept his faith and continued seeking for justice, the truth started to prevail. <br />
<br />
In May 2010, Kenneth Starr was indicted for a Ponzi scheme in which he stole at least $20 million of his clients’ money, the very thing that Wesley had claimed earlier. Starr’s arrest on such charges ended up exposing his poor credibility just as Wesley’s team had claimed during the trial. <br />
<br />
Followed by Starr’s arrest, in July 2010, the 11th Circuit Court rushed an opinion affirming the verdict against Wesley, then the media immediately spread the news even before our attorney found out. We were totally shocked and disappointed again.<br />
<br />
However, shortly after the media spread the news, one juror from the trial sent an unsolicited email to Wesley's attorney offering help. <br />
<br />
According to the email: There were three (3) jurors in the jury that had presumed Wesley to be guilty even before the trial started without seeing any documents, They had to compromise with those three jurors and ended up finding him guilty of three misdemeanors as result of it,They did not think the judge would give him any jail time for the misdemeanor convictions.<br />
<br />
Followed by this email, another juror sent an unsolicited email confirming that most of the jurors believed Wesley would not receive any jail time for the verdict. <br />
<br />
Subsequently, my husband’s legal team filed a motion to interview the jurors after receiving the two (2) emails as well as a motion for a new trial based on jury misconduct on the grounds of the three (3) jurors’ apparent perjury with their preconceived notions of the defendant’s guilt.<br />
<br />
In October 2010,Starr pled GUILTY to most of the charges. <br />
<br />
On November 15, Wesley’s team asked for a new trial at the hearing based on the alleged perjury of the three (3) jurors and perjured testimony of Starr, as well as the prosecutorial misconduct of the government who withheld information about Starr’s previous criminal conduct before Snipes’ trial.However, last week, on November 19, 2010, Judge Hodges issued an order REFUSING to interview any of the jurors, DENYING my husband a new trial and REVOKING his bail as requested by the government. He had simply denied every single one of our requests and with that he denied Wesley’s constitutional rights. <br />
<br />
On top of the government’s effort to take my man’s liberty, the media has been assisting by adding more fuel to the already overwhelming fire. Ever since the jury rendered its verdict on February 1, 2008, the media has repeatedly MISREPRESENTED Wesley as having been convicted of tax evasion. He was NEVER charged with or convicted of tax evasion. He was convicted on three (3) misdemeanor charges of failing to file his tax returns in 1999, 2000 and 2001, respectively while dealing with the Kenneth Starr’s issue which has caused him a great deal of damage in his finances and wellas his ability to trust.<br />
<br />
At this point, it is more than obvious that the government has been abusing their power to use my husband’s fame and popularity in order to make him an example in a crime he NEVER committed. It is clear that excessive and extreme penalty has been given to him for demonstration purposes. Moreover, the media has been playing a HUGE part in the government’s propaganda to make his case appear as a tax fraud crime scheme.<br />
<br />
It is excruciating... to the degree that it is surreal to be wronged in a way that I thought only existed in the movies. And frankly, this is even worse than a movie because the public has heard only one side of the story, which is the side that is far from the truth. <br />
<br />
All we had simply asked and have been asking for was to receive a new and fair trial from the very beginning of this unfortunate incident. Surprisingly, my husband’s constitutional right have not been granted but rather violated throughout the whole process. Yet I keep my faith in the belief that there is justice for us to be found somewhere in this country. <br />
<br />
Wesley has always been an honorable man, wonderful husband, loving father, and most of all, a man of integrity for as long as I have known him and shared my life with him over a decade. He is NOT a tax–evading criminal who needs to be put away and imprisoned for three years but an artist who simply needs an honest accountant who does not deceive. No words can describe the kind of respect that has grown in my heart for him over the years and is still growing right at this minute, watching and learning about him most up-close and personal. He has never rested but has been putting all of his best efforts and passion towards what he does the best: acting and producing films. <br />
<br />
Just as he had confessed at the trial, my husband really is an idealistic, naive, passionate, truth-seeking, spiritually motivated artist who was unschooled and miseducated in the field of finance as I can and would bear witness to and as many of you who really know him would agree as well. <br />
<br />
So please continue to pray with and for us until justice is served in his case. <br />
<br />
Again, I appreciate your love and support. It is important for us that you have an accurate account of the TRUTHFUL information on what happened and continues to happen to your dear friend and brother Wesley regardless of what has been said and played out in the media, as his integrity and dignity remains with those who care and love him. <br />
<br />
Please feel free to share the truth if you happen to come across misinformed people who want to crucify the brother for failing to file the papers just as many citizens in this country fail to file at times for various reasons. <br />
<br />
Thank you for taking your time to read my long letter. From the bottom of my heart, I wish all of you and your loved ones a happy and peaceful Thanksgiving weekend. <br />
<br />
Lastly, writing this letter was truly healing for my soul and emotions. I thank each one of you for the healing. <br />
<br />
May God bless you.<br />
<br />
<br />
Sincerely with Peace & Love,<br />
<br />
Nikki Snipes<br />
<br />
<br />
Wow. Your thoughts, folks? Is Wesley guilty or not? What's up with the dude who doesn't believe in paying taxes? Why haven't we heard of any of this? What's going on, for real?<br />
<br />
Thanks to @Amaditalks for sharing this link. Follow us on Twitter: @drgoddessDr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-45909948041221753512010-11-25T18:38:00.000-08:002010-11-25T18:38:16.675-08:00If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale!<b>If Revolution Were an After Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<br />
a sign, flashing in fluorescent colors<br />
<br />
would declare the revolution<br />
<br />
"NOW OPEN"<br />
<br />
for all the sisters and brothers<br />
<br />
And when the doors opened and the red ribbon was cut<br />
<br />
we would rush to tear down the walls of the prison industrial complex<br />
<br />
and a sign encouraging accountability, self actualization and healing<br />
<br />
would declare each freed man and woman as being<br />
<br />
"Under New Management!"<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<br />
we would push and shove our way to the voting booths<br />
<br />
and if the numbers didn't add up, we would snatch up the red tape<br />
<br />
tie it around the electoral college's neck and relentlessly demand an accurate count<br />
<br />
forcing our way to the truth, justice and righteousness of a fair price<br />
<br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<br />
we would do flying leaps over counter/productive activities<br />
<br />
like unprotected sex, alcoholism and drug addiction<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<br />
We would run to the checkouts with coupons that would guarantee us<br />
<br />
10% off old men hounding teenage girls, 30% off domestic violence<br />
<br />
and 50% off child molestation<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<br />
brothers and sisters would take mad dashes down the aisles of love<br />
<br />
in colorful flowing dresses and white and black adorned suits<br />
<br />
making desperate declarations of Black love, Black love, Black love<br />
<br />
because we couldn't get enough of one another<br />
<br />
and didn't know how to stop ourselves from overindulging<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<br />
Black businesses that cared about their communities and<br />
<br />
communities that cared about Black businesses<br />
<br />
would have two-hour long lines just waiting to get into the store<br />
<br />
and Black investors would teach us how to layaway our money<br />
<br />
and pay ourselves first so that each month<br />
<br />
there would be an increase in savings<br />
<br />
and a decrease in conspicuous consumption<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
Real policemen would do overtime directing drug traffic<br />
<br />
out of my community<br />
<br />
and wouldn't take get out of jail free cards<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<br />
we would see each other out and about more often<br />
<br />
except it would be at community meetings and Saturday schools<br />
<br />
and classic soul concerts<br />
<br />
and food co-ops with harvest goods provided by Black farmers<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<br />
we wouldn't be in an organization that would just debate and debate and debate<br />
<br />
one idea after another finding fault.<br />
<br />
We would immediately run and try things on, just grab it and go<br />
<br />
and if one plan didn't work, then we would simply return it or exchange it for something new<br />
<br />
all the while learning from our experiences to keep on searching for that perfect fit!<br />
<br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><br />
<b>If Revolution Were an After-Thanksgiving Day Sale</b><b> </b><b> </b><br />
<br />
But<br />
<br />
revolution is just revolution<br />
and change never comes that easy<br />
revolutions may be televised<br />
but never celebrated in advance<br />
and flyers advertising social change don't fill our mailboxes<br />
with declarations abolishing the sale of our souls<br />
<br />
because revolution is just revolution<br />
and no matter if I watch or participate<br />
either way I still feel like<br />
one jive turkey<br />
<br />
© November 28, 2003 Dr. Goddess / Kimberly C. Ellis, Ph.D.*<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrLcLXtb1Z2wxlE64mne-RDWpFG71gMQm8XbKoPjI0s_7yVUJR8ebqdfSEXY58J_b_B0U1uJJLZsBOh7RxUXLg3EehTrbsghHEWnvJFtRuEh_QWRbhdIYVtXPu2sigCt6xFePnK62Iemxx/s1600/JiveTurkeyTradingPlaces.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrLcLXtb1Z2wxlE64mne-RDWpFG71gMQm8XbKoPjI0s_7yVUJR8ebqdfSEXY58J_b_B0U1uJJLZsBOh7RxUXLg3EehTrbsghHEWnvJFtRuEh_QWRbhdIYVtXPu2sigCt6xFePnK62Iemxx/s320/JiveTurkeyTradingPlaces.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"It ain't cool bein' no jive turkey so close to Thanksgivin'... YEAH!"</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>All Rights Reserved You may forward, share, repost<br />
<br />
Professional Publishers please do not publish this poem without the EXPLICIT PERMISSION of the author. Email: drgoddess(at)drgoddess(dot)com<br />
<br />
You may see this poem performed in all of its hilarity (including the red, black and green shopping bags rushing in at the start of this trailer LIVE when Dr. Goddess!: A One Woman Show goes back on tour Spring 2011):<br />
<br />
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/oS2ER0izDCQ?fs=1&hl=en_US&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oS2ER0izDCQ?fs=1&hl=en_US&color1=0xcc2550&color2=0xe87a9f" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />
<br />
*"If Revolution..." was inspired by a poem written by the fabulous Tyehimba Jess entitled, <a href="http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/local-lit-can-tyehimba-jess-wake-up-the-world/Content?oid=908783">"When Niggas Love Revolution Like They Love the Bulls"</a> (1992). Thank you, Tyehimba!Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-21039525498556731972010-11-05T22:24:00.000-07:002010-11-18T10:27:45.712-08:00Look Who's Coming to Pittsburgh!Sorry folks! Lizz Winstead's Show has been canceled for now and all refunds have been processed. Not to worry, she'll be back, Pittsburgh! Keep up with Lizz on her <a href="http://www.lizzwinstead.com">Website</a> and on <a href="http://www.twitter.com/lizzwinstead">Twitter!</a><br /><br />Thank ya kindly! *curtsy*Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-56072588424945696672010-10-30T14:52:00.000-07:002010-10-30T14:59:31.505-07:00Are You for Fannie Lou?: The Campaign for Her Statue<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLAUXv7z60Xh7fyA87FDG4ni_zKQS7hAML2QMlBS3PWn5O6CaOKF4ocBo1wIBK0YLX7xJwEEoI0jt0hDSvzjIlADhvIcEqzYkBS4bRFKMC8gZJzsgz-xapi3cV6ttwuOX7Z56TzqSyBbYX/s1600/mississippi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLAUXv7z60Xh7fyA87FDG4ni_zKQS7hAML2QMlBS3PWn5O6CaOKF4ocBo1wIBK0YLX7xJwEEoI0jt0hDSvzjIlADhvIcEqzYkBS4bRFKMC8gZJzsgz-xapi3cV6ttwuOX7Z56TzqSyBbYX/s320/mississippi.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
One of my besties is from Jackson, Mississippi. I met her in college; and despite our immediate bond, when she invited me to her home in the "Deep South", I was entirely horrified. Me, with my New York City entree into the world and my still Northern, Pittsburgh upbringing, having viewed the film, "Mississippi Burning" in the not-so-distant past? Let's just say the invitation gave me pause.<br />
<br />
However, I love to travel so, instead of saying "No, Thanks" to her Thanksgiving invitation, I just sunk lower and lower in the backseat of the car as we sped our way into the state that would forever change my life. I expected that we would be pulled over and slaughtered on the roadside, just like so many of the persons I had read about, not just Goodman, Schwerner and Chaney but that which the nameless, faceless of history, had experienced. I didn't verbalize these fears, as I thought it might be rude, not that my honesty would be met with any level of compassion. Indeed, the tighter I held onto my pillow and peeked over the dashboard onto the highway, the more uproariously my car mates (and so called friends) would point at me and laugh.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Mississippi</b></span>.</div><br />
It's the state we all come to learn how to spell. It's also the state <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAYVaHEMK0I">Nina Simone damned to hell.</a><br />
<br />
But I've come to love Mississippi because, over time, I have learned more about its history and how African Americans organized and inspired more Americans to fight for human rights and, subsequently, changed the world. The WORLD. Now, although we have won some battles, the war is not over. Today, Mississippi has the most African Americans in elected office; but it's the poorest state in America.<br />
<br />
We have only just begun to thoroughly (and critically) engage and understand the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements in America. It's amazing to think that, as recently as 1960, African Americans were still sharecropping and living in stunning poverty in the South---the worst of which was in Mississippi.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSP9hGpbGgdUs7wKakuN1JdUXn0nxeBGHtttMR1AADfIxwMxJyBqkCB_iItO7E0zWF6C3wiKX5Rxk8cT5biKqym4FOGUtz-3bE6gdZlraaC-DZpGIxEqFMLw3eBJluQyKpv7NR7sCIfo2E/s320/n49890617783_1826459_9368.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="206" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>WHAT?!</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSP9hGpbGgdUs7wKakuN1JdUXn0nxeBGHtttMR1AADfIxwMxJyBqkCB_iItO7E0zWF6C3wiKX5Rxk8cT5biKqym4FOGUtz-3bE6gdZlraaC-DZpGIxEqFMLw3eBJluQyKpv7NR7sCIfo2E/s1600/n49890617783_1826459_9368.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr1WtqC6o4xx3H_pTdWQB6Dm4ByIU2PTmeEHbiAAmd79jgz69UwtHQv4xq3jFNZpifVu_CFO_-3rYk4bLaluLCGY8FTynXRNSDX51YCC7IDjS_0GLaWpUk6tnrF77xEGpzwaoXA9xhujRd/s1600/n49890617783_1826459_9368.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>So, imagine, a woman such as Fannie Lou Hamer, a resident of Ruleville, MS, being approached by a young organizer from the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), and asked to come to a meeting on Voter Registration, whereupon she was so overwhelmed with and enamored by the possibility of being free from oppression that she was willing to sacrifice everything (including her home, employment and family as a sharecropper on the plantation) to do so?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiylEFAlvhcY4_4RQOYEvoEB81PGrEMSBn-fiKtrR4mz7dTgZY1xetfQoVp3UQvxxCX_JGxdwH2e_IqE2_GdaSoVuNu9Tv9FmuWFQPcBnr8YdrtLXhHsSHuPG9GCV2HZAkbmNSMoY77UGBA/s320/n49890617783_1826460_6064.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>"We didn't fight this hard for you to stay home and not vote in November!"</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiylEFAlvhcY4_4RQOYEvoEB81PGrEMSBn-fiKtrR4mz7dTgZY1xetfQoVp3UQvxxCX_JGxdwH2e_IqE2_GdaSoVuNu9Tv9FmuWFQPcBnr8YdrtLXhHsSHuPG9GCV2HZAkbmNSMoY77UGBA/s1600/n49890617783_1826460_6064.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">And imagine, that after having walked off of the only livelihood she knew, she became a community organizer, singing church songs such as "This Little Light of Mine" (her favorite) and not only inspiring more persons to take charge of their lives by voting and being engaged in the political process; but also becoming one of the leading spokespersons and representatives of her people?! Amazing.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxHEMhu1W1nv5nvUUfb94dE4fP4fp4APGn_mCLOFxgqRXiGOqu3GyHt4Wp87-aTkMtR-mC_TuAG4mO60i1up7A4miJPVNQ65r9MS6ZwZFJYofljzkQT1_bI9L6VDGEIcwBWtalVfnyBev7/s320/FLHPodium.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="231" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Lawd knows my feet hurt but I ain't no ways tired...gotta represent for the people!</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxHEMhu1W1nv5nvUUfb94dE4fP4fp4APGn_mCLOFxgqRXiGOqu3GyHt4Wp87-aTkMtR-mC_TuAG4mO60i1up7A4miJPVNQ65r9MS6ZwZFJYofljzkQT1_bI9L6VDGEIcwBWtalVfnyBev7/s1600/FLHPodium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>These days, many of us take voting, Black political representation and, certainly, Black women's roles in political power, for granted. But if it weren't for <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Ella-Baker-Black-Freedom-Movement/dp/0807856169/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1288213524&sr=8-1">supreme organizer, Ella Baker</a> encouraging young people to create their own organization (since they didn't want to be the youth wing of the SCLC, ahem) and the young people creating the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) for themselves; and their decision to focus on voter registration (and obtaining the power to exert control over their lives); and Fannie Lou Hamer going to that meeting and not only joining SNCC but becoming one of its most passionate figureheads and organizers; and SNCC helping to form the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP) to further influence the Democratic Party at the National Convention in 1964 (<i>just like the <b>Tea Party</b> is doing within the Republican Party in 2010, ahem</i>); and the racist, Dixiecrats so determined to maintain the system of white supremacy that they left the Democratic Party and joined the Republican Party, thereby focusing on a "Southern Strategy" to get disaffected, angry white men to join in on the backlash against the Civil Rights Movement (and subsequent Women's Rights Movement), championed by the likes of Ronald Reagan (whose harsh policies helped give birth to Hip Hop) and George Bush, Sr. and George Bush, Jr. (who practically destroyed the country), causing a tidal wave of young, disenfranchised Americans fed up with racism, classism and sexism and birthed on Hip Hop to the point where they wanted to get out and vote---there would be no President Barack Obama.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLbHTIQuZVn470d9IAv4FfR1bwk5anauYa82eo4JA5NF9BKA1KQKxax0vibFd67aYdzY7emty5iGc84TMxMu-zu4c4XMa8opesYYcojsDc8aEgwccBoonTKnP-wjpspvBPMoScc5bLecDn/s1600/art.obama.win.ap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLbHTIQuZVn470d9IAv4FfR1bwk5anauYa82eo4JA5NF9BKA1KQKxax0vibFd67aYdzY7emty5iGc84TMxMu-zu4c4XMa8opesYYcojsDc8aEgwccBoonTKnP-wjpspvBPMoScc5bLecDn/s1600/art.obama.win.ap.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>President Barack and First Lady Michelle Obama</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>And that was a stream-of-consciousness, historical rant. Oh yes, President Barack Obama owes much to a poor, Black woman in Mississippi named Fannie Lou Hamer. There's a bit of irony here, since he also owes much to a woman who grew up as a poor, Black girl in Mississippi, named Oprah Winfrey. But, for now, let's give it up for the OGs, Pap and Fannie!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_vncF4axzZvEpspV-wy2HJgyjGdiuFzAOuL0Ju-yV5IiCuzY36UfPioTPL7bvxMFARAOeAbc1YwugSnhMggCiAoMssR7pyMovIZe8R1LP2Srcu4zjyiMt1bonUoIJop4acTV8tay6EaPI/s1600/FLHandPappicNellDraperWinston.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_vncF4axzZvEpspV-wy2HJgyjGdiuFzAOuL0Ju-yV5IiCuzY36UfPioTPL7bvxMFARAOeAbc1YwugSnhMggCiAoMssR7pyMovIZe8R1LP2Srcu4zjyiMt1bonUoIJop4acTV8tay6EaPI/s1600/FLHandPappicNellDraperWinston.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Sharecroppers and Citizens, Perry "Pap" and Fannie Lou Hamer</b><br />
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"And you know, I'm not hung up on this thing about liberating myself from the black man, I'm not going to try that thing. I got a black husband, six feet three, two hundred and forty pounds, with a 14 shoe, that I don't want to be liberated from. But we are here to work side by side with this black man in trying to bring liberation to all people." </td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;">I know that's right, Mrs. Hamer! Speak on it!<br />
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Notice that she didn't say she was trying to work behind her husband either, so get it right, Fellas! And get it right, feminists and Africana Womanists! You see, this is what an organization built upon participatory democracy can do. It is one that allows space for women and everyday citizenry to speak for themselves. According to Historian and Civil Rights expert, <a href="mailto:morris.730@osu.edu">Dr. Tiyi Morris</a> of Ohio State University:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><blockquote>SNCC offered the centrality of grassroots activism on behalf of regular citizens and stressed "letting the people decide"...this is the foundation upon which Barack Obama worked as a community organizer and the philosophical tenets of his campaign. </blockquote></div>Brilliant, Dr. Morris, especially when I think about the manner in which these central tenets were combined with top-notch technology and social media to tilt the world on its axis. The election of Barack Obama was not the change, in and of itself, but (as he has said many, many times), "the opportunity to make a change." I believe that because my consistent mantra has been that Barack Obama is the Activist's President. You bring him the pain to his door and his administration will open it. Make him do what you want like Fannie Lou Hamer, SNCC, the MFDP and those young activists made LBJ sign the Civil Rights Act and change American and World History, forever.<br />
<br />
When Fannie Lou Hamer spoke truth to power in <b>Atlantic City at the 1964 Democratic National Convention</b>, she told harsh truths about being Black in America that were a far cry from a young Senator from Illinois being invited to take <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=3&sqi=2&ved=0CCIQtwIwAg&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DeWynt87PaJ0&rct=j&q=Barack%20Obama%20convention%20speech%202004&ei=Fp_ITJ6fFYWglAfr2LD6Ag&usg=AFQjCNGT9kzpQYo4pqkUbRhIXzxr3NIpNg&cad=rja">center stage in 2004</a>. But one could not and does not exist without the other.<br />
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You see how this picture shows her all heroic and fierce and telling her oppressors off as she gives her testimony?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-xpyw8JTwalCqG7LnswNdHXNzhP-49Y1iabtMO4sAPZM-YhgqXCobHpbYfO-_yb8rR5Ousll-LPiSjhFnqWoJnzOl0dIY59FkW3cF79BQGPHI35tm2yFLL1-G-j5gZ4kbGEWblTAMiU4z/s320/FannieLouTestify.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Testifying before the Credentials Committee and televised before the world.</b></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-xpyw8JTwalCqG7LnswNdHXNzhP-49Y1iabtMO4sAPZM-YhgqXCobHpbYfO-_yb8rR5Ousll-LPiSjhFnqWoJnzOl0dIY59FkW3cF79BQGPHI35tm2yFLL1-G-j5gZ4kbGEWblTAMiU4z/s1600/FannieLouTestify.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div> We do love that... but look closer now... do you see those tears in her eyes?: <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP4aD28UQQ2EKzwhthtRP9F_fv6xbaevHkmISZIfpMZAZTjW_j0qTF9WsEfL4scXLoi1D3qIF_Y_ZIf2nyuVAn5Y7xRZENs5bkTj8lTZC-GEMU5Zr8BtwqTzOmjVpdmZJM0O7BPNKfgSuP/s320/n49890617783_1826464_6809.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>(an "emergency broadcast" interrupted Mrs. Hamer's speech on television) Emergency, indeed...</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP4aD28UQQ2EKzwhthtRP9F_fv6xbaevHkmISZIfpMZAZTjW_j0qTF9WsEfL4scXLoi1D3qIF_Y_ZIf2nyuVAn5Y7xRZENs5bkTj8lTZC-GEMU5Zr8BtwqTzOmjVpdmZJM0O7BPNKfgSuP/s1600/n49890617783_1826464_6809.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><i>THAT</i> was Fannie Lou, too.<br />
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I do not know her kind of pain---and I am so thankful. But since she fought for me, I figure I can fight for her, you know? <a href="http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/sayitplain/flhamer.html">Listen to her give her narrative and read the transcript and a bio here.</a><a href="http://www.fannielouhamer.info/index.html"></a><br />
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This is also why I support Melissa Harris-Lacewell (now Perry), in this interview with Democracy Now's Amy Goodman, as she insists that President Obama acknowledge and address the role of Black women's political activism---the legacy upon which he stands: <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_p9ZHlxJMhk?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_p9ZHlxJMhk?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;">(as an aside, doesn't MHP look <i>just</i> like the woman on the old book cover of <i>For Colored Girls...</i>?)</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Today, in Ruleville, Mississippi (where Fannie Lou Hamer broke the rules of oppression), sits a beautiful Memorial Garden created on the "Freedom Farm" Mrs. Hamer purchased to further assist poor, Black people in becoming self-sufficient and having a place to grow their food, despite leaving (or getting kicked off) the plantations upon which they were sharecropping---just as she had experienced.<br />
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When I first traveled to Ruleville with <a href="http://www.jsums.edu/hamer.institute/">The Fannie Lou Hamer National Institute on Citizenship and Democracy</a> at Jackson State University and sat at Fannie Lou Hamer's grave, I simply had not ever heard of "Freedom Farm" and found myself astonished, ashamed and angry about that which I did not know. Mind you, this was after college and after graduate school---and African American History is one of my specialties. #FAIL<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBVjcmWFC3d_09skS_BMy2k5ey34TaH6TCaUYoyhevhDIFh2-767t37WjruaH8xdQhczcBsBZu6aF9izzyDSvTcRUfR9eREuWhAFpAdmyviLYy_5GsHoihFJCQUDTmAV0kP1fggJxk5j3l/s1600/FLHDrG.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBVjcmWFC3d_09skS_BMy2k5ey34TaH6TCaUYoyhevhDIFh2-767t37WjruaH8xdQhczcBsBZu6aF9izzyDSvTcRUfR9eREuWhAFpAdmyviLYy_5GsHoihFJCQUDTmAV0kP1fggJxk5j3l/s320/FLHDrG.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>I'm feeling mighty unworthy and, yet, grateful...</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Thus, when I visited again this year, I learned that the <a href="http://www.fannielouhamer.info/hamer_statue.html">National Fannie Lou Hamer Statue Fund Committee (organized by Patricia Thompson of ROAR)</a> had been collecting money to erect a statue of Ms. Hamer right there at the Memorial Gardens. They needed approximately $125,000 and, as usual, it was a small, committed group of veterans of the Civil Rights Movement and their friends who had done all of the leg work and had launched the campaign. When Patricia Thompson first encountered Fannie Lou Hamer's grave, the grass was up to her knees and she cried in the middle of the field, vowing to make things right. It reminded me of Alice Walker's search for Zora Neale Hurston's grave and what she found. So, Ms. Thompson and others got to work. They chopped down the grass, then they took Freedom Farm from this:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBICt3gnsfrAVX4G5BAKNKGvik4wY1NdUxQs0LG0P7W4EXqA_Pqw1-ixluu4jmsbqSpQj53QjXtgQANyCbNNwpUIpBDb4ekD6G9hyphenhyphen9KjjbFgpDpT_BpZ7Q4yWFCVVLPTpwVhIciOghooif/s1600/FLHGravesite.jpb" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBICt3gnsfrAVX4G5BAKNKGvik4wY1NdUxQs0LG0P7W4EXqA_Pqw1-ixluu4jmsbqSpQj53QjXtgQANyCbNNwpUIpBDb4ekD6G9hyphenhyphen9KjjbFgpDpT_BpZ7Q4yWFCVVLPTpwVhIciOghooif/s320/FLHGravesite.jpb" width="320" /></a></div><br />
To this, the Fannie Lou Hamer Memorial Garden:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0pPgRgj5xNIT7XA383atMYnmI_TM1WpGyiktygK-sRowRkGkt-2JfXJMdeMMhvfBO58x3i8-q7jFT87dv4L2A6yV7IbhIyJUXksxa8JjNaa_pbKGGgvKtowodMZ9ADdlZNuGH4zynDUWC/s320/FLHEntrance.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Fannie Lou Hamer Memorial Garden, Ruleville, MS</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0pPgRgj5xNIT7XA383atMYnmI_TM1WpGyiktygK-sRowRkGkt-2JfXJMdeMMhvfBO58x3i8-q7jFT87dv4L2A6yV7IbhIyJUXksxa8JjNaa_pbKGGgvKtowodMZ9ADdlZNuGH4zynDUWC/s1600/FLHEntrance.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post"><input name="cmd" type="hidden" value="_s-xclick" /><br />
<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="7GYAYE9UB8BDC" /><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><input alt="PayPal - The safer, easier way to pay online!" border="0" name="submit" src="https://www.paypal.com/en_US/i/btn/btn_donateCC_LG.gif" type="image" /></div><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://www.paypal.com/en_US/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" /></form>Go ahead and give them a standing ovation right now! In your living room, office, at your desk, give them a hand! Now, somebody please tell me why we cannot meet this goal post-stat?! I mean, it's sort of embarrassing, isn't it? There are many more pictures and much more information on the website. <a href="http://www.fannielouhamer.info/hamer_statue.html">Please check it out!</a><br />
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But I am 'sick and tired' of us not properly honoring the persons who sacrificed so much for us---as Black people, as Americans, as women, as Democrats, as elected officials, as human beings who stand up for our principles and each other's rights.... Fannie Lou Hamer was thrown in jail and beaten severely for her activism. Later, she would die (and way too early, she never made it to 60 years old) as a result of heart disease, diabetes, living a hard life on the plantation and, yes, the beatings she suffered in jail.<br />
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But she couldn't do a whole lot of crying in public. She had things to do and young people to continue to inspire, which is why this intergenerational picture means so much to me:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOWK97mPcan5iSu-f_0kAooJbu-2dXdp72IBUEXuCLZ1T1XIWyN_AsaUTxXeRd9ALO4HK41HlMy6JpiIT4Gg1zi98E9Q-fnwplesQPeVveJFWsUPozseNKsiCDFkAlqp-W9EwMsXP2QtPd/s320/n49890617783_1826461_6310.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes, that's Stokely Carmichael aka Kwame Ture in the back and Ella Baker on the far right.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOWK97mPcan5iSu-f_0kAooJbu-2dXdp72IBUEXuCLZ1T1XIWyN_AsaUTxXeRd9ALO4HK41HlMy6JpiIT4Gg1zi98E9Q-fnwplesQPeVveJFWsUPozseNKsiCDFkAlqp-W9EwMsXP2QtPd/s1600/n49890617783_1826461_6310.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>It is because of her activism that I could write a comedy about going to jail but I also did so because as much as folks love Tyler Perry's "Madea Goes to Jail", it is largely without the socio-political commentary that I tend to like in my art, even though "For Colored Girls" may provide it. Nevertheless, I decided to flip the script---literally...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Ui0WO13rgRhVhRtVIGuc3uye9C0BgfH4oY6pCuX6xzTgwh35Hh8y6AM75JvGukK3aozSxzRoHiQMwbvXlcOxI0dsj8MEUjdAiJuibNG_bsTtMI0_UvsO_17JLPa_cVMR_FHqAWpi7hu6/s320/DVD+Front+Half+Cover+PR.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="223" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>http://www.drgoddess.com/merchandise</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Ui0WO13rgRhVhRtVIGuc3uye9C0BgfH4oY6pCuX6xzTgwh35Hh8y6AM75JvGukK3aozSxzRoHiQMwbvXlcOxI0dsj8MEUjdAiJuibNG_bsTtMI0_UvsO_17JLPa_cVMR_FHqAWpi7hu6/s1600/DVD+Front+Half+Cover+PR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>In <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdBADwxCCOo">"Dr. Goddess Goes to Jail: A Spoken Word, Musical Comedy (Unfortunately) Based on a True Story"</a>, I chose to create an intergenerational celebration of the Civil Rights Movement. And, although this came pretty natural for me (after years of unlearning & reconditioning), it is also a Feminist/Womanifesto, which stars "four little girls". And, in my own brand of satiric irony, the hit song in this production about activism and commitment is "Neutrality", a song that revels in fence-riding, apathy and immobility, in which I sing: <br />
<blockquote><b><i>But what about Rosa? What about Rosa? / What about Rosa, Ella Baker and Fannie Lou?</i></b></blockquote><blockquote><b><i>If I were any one of those women, / What would you say? What would you tell me to do?</i></b></blockquote>What about them, folks? Can we put our hands together and get this Fannie Lou Hamer Statue up? <br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Let a Sista know. . . Are <i>YOU</i> for Fannie Lou?</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">If so, please <a href="http://www.fannielouhamer.info/hamer_statue.html">DONATE any amount that you can here or click below</a>.</div><br />
And if you want to get uber-supportive, write anything that inspired you about Fannie Lou (or just share the link to this blog); and put this picture and this code up on your blog:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXL3C1Rale6OwJpAlxhMVFaJiKFR9TzXQGjOoQRt_elxuQd6ecqUqmIvM_cCXlHx4l7ESWGexRAvoM7EPS87Ucidh6FYVqsDV3sFBMvMH2KfHAHIWkJxqzoVV29NWO5L9a8SxA80AccRFT/s1600/FLHObama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXL3C1Rale6OwJpAlxhMVFaJiKFR9TzXQGjOoQRt_elxuQd6ecqUqmIvM_cCXlHx4l7ESWGexRAvoM7EPS87Ucidh6FYVqsDV3sFBMvMH2KfHAHIWkJxqzoVV29NWO5L9a8SxA80AccRFT/s1600/FLHObama.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">It won't take long to raise the money. We want everyone to have BUY-IN, so your small donation is actually preferred ($10 - $100 is perfect!)<br />
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We're also using Chip In to keep track of our progress and donations!:<br />
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<b>Chip In uses PAYPAL and you can PRINT a RECEIPT!</b><br />
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<a href="http://www.fannielouhamer.info/donors.html">These persons have ALREADY raised $20,000, so chip in!</a><br />
Anything over the amount goes to the Education Fund & Maintenance of the Memorial Garden.<br />
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And I thanks ya kindly in the Hamerly way!</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0O7J1OpOm91arimMnxwcDYdfaZ9UjzriS7_2k0FZsxi_kqBixc65bX5UR-BNg7olsi10zRAarFEJYUChW4Jw-dIMkHBNvF7JWiPaAuoMKEulYD9Qi5XbSAb5Fed3zLitSiozdf6zZ1kkE/s1600/hamer_roadsign-198x165-258x217.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>U.S. Highway 49, Ruleville, Mississippi</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0O7J1OpOm91arimMnxwcDYdfaZ9UjzriS7_2k0FZsxi_kqBixc65bX5UR-BNg7olsi10zRAarFEJYUChW4Jw-dIMkHBNvF7JWiPaAuoMKEulYD9Qi5XbSAb5Fed3zLitSiozdf6zZ1kkE/s1600/hamer_roadsign-198x165-258x217.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>We'd also like to further show the <a href="http://www.citytowninfo.com/places/mississippi/ruleville">City of Ruleville, MS</a> (a population of approximately 3,000 persons with a median income of $23,036), that the National Fannie Lou Hamer Statue Fund has a lot of supporters who intend to see Fannie Lou Hamer get her propers. So, stay tuned!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAjUNQvD2BVExJXBfWn2fng0aPnA9Tc-X0Oy2amjTjhNj0E5AAg3vC56ABbihb5puJzcL7fIlK7fFw_nc-RApOP5UzpOpgRt2vkUji7laG8sD8vOWi7qVBl2j3V-EAh9i3OmtFdFQmX-AO/s1600/FreedomsChildren.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAjUNQvD2BVExJXBfWn2fng0aPnA9Tc-X0Oy2amjTjhNj0E5AAg3vC56ABbihb5puJzcL7fIlK7fFw_nc-RApOP5UzpOpgRt2vkUji7laG8sD8vOWi7qVBl2j3V-EAh9i3OmtFdFQmX-AO/s1600/FreedomsChildren.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Euvester Simpson is pictured on the cover. Dr. Tiyi Morris is her daughter.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>By the way, the bestie who invited me to her hometown and laughed at me, mercilessly, on the ride there? Well, she did pull over on the way back and allowed me to pick some cotton up off the side of the road. And, as it turns out, her mother, Euvester Simpson, was just a young, woman, Civil Rights worker when she shared a jail cell with Fannie Lou Hamer, the same day she was brutally beaten. I had no idea, when I decided to visit Mississippi during Thanksgiving Break, that my life would never be the same because of the women and men who paved the road for me to arrive.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i><b>Are You for Fannie Lou? Well, Me Too!</b></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Support us on our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Fannie-Lou-Hamer-Statue-Fund/138253896212780?ref+ts">Facebook Page</a>, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_165965013428830&ap=1">Facebook Group</a> and Follow us <a href="http://www.twitter.com/hamerstatuefund">Twitter</a>!</div><div style="text-align: center;">@FannieLouHamer @HamerStatueFund @FannieLouWho </div><div style="text-align: center;">Use the hashtag #fannielou</div><br />
Special Thanks to: <b>Patricia Thompson</b>, <a href="http://www.fannielouhamer.info/roar.html">Repaying Our Ancestors Respectfully (ROAR)</a>, the National Fannie Lou Hamer Statue Fund Committee and the <b>National Black United Fund (NBUF)</b> for serving as our <a href="http://www.nbuf.org/index.html">fiscal sponsor!</a>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-15671533153030391972010-10-01T13:20:00.000-07:002010-10-01T13:20:22.119-07:00The Personal is Political: No Wedding, No Womb Pt. III'm a fan of Ashley Judd and Marisa Tomei (who got her start as "Maggie" on "A Different World"), so naturally, at some point in 2001, I didn't turn the channel when a movie entitled, "Someone Like You" aired, since they appeared on screen. Unless they're of the Jerry McGuire or Bridget Jones variety, I try not to consume hoards of romantic comedies centered on white people. And you know why, including all the intelligent white folks reading... I'm trying to maintain a high level of self-esteem, a somewhat healthy body image and the hope that Mr. Right will show up with a Malcolm X fedora, a Morpheus trench and set of shades and wearing flip flops like "Black Jesus". We shall see...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_FC_1F4yBdZRrM4OofuYITWesjbP3lyf7k_rAVPFdgJEq3OOposm0n1sxVuSMn7V2TTFg77wloTqQflevpvJ80_c8ObUcBJ2J0O3yaCdSmiJQ1_I6RZsQYDlWb2yA8Qyxzh0PqIWnnJLM/s1600/Someone-Like-You-B00006ZXSO-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_FC_1F4yBdZRrM4OofuYITWesjbP3lyf7k_rAVPFdgJEq3OOposm0n1sxVuSMn7V2TTFg77wloTqQflevpvJ80_c8ObUcBJ2J0O3yaCdSmiJQ1_I6RZsQYDlWb2yA8Qyxzh0PqIWnnJLM/s320/Someone-Like-You-B00006ZXSO-L.jpg" width="227" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>In any event, "Someone Like You" is, well, <a href="http://www.popmatters.com/film/reviews/s/someone-like-you2.shtml">this review</a> is so doggone good and gets right to the point, so let's just read it aloud together:<br />
<blockquote>Consider Someone Like You, in which heroine Jane Goodale (Ashley Judd) is summarily dumped just before embarking on a live-in relationship. This so devastates her that she begins compulsively poring over psychological, anthropological, and philosophical tomes, all in an effort to make sense of the inconstant way the male animal conducts himself. Eventually she alights on a possible explanation in the natural world -- the reluctance among bulls to mate with a given cow more than once -- and less-than-scientifically projects this characteristic across great swaths of the mammalian kingdom to conclude that unfaithfulness is inherent to the male gender, regardless of its species. </blockquote><blockquote>Her research for this theory, which she dubs the "New Cow" theory, takes for experimental subjects not only Ray (Greg Kinnear), the aforementioned ex-lover, but also Eddie (Hugh Jackman), a womanizing coworker with whom she must move in after her falling out with Ray leaves her homeless. As Eddie brings home one sex partner after another, Jane psychoanalyzes him relentlessly -- culling information for a monthly column she eventually begins writing for a men's magazine, yes, but also trying, by proxy, to distill Ray's actions into an abstract principle. This will let her turn her recent breakup into an inevitable act of nature and she can thereby avoid the unthinkable alternative, the possibility that something in her identity leaves her singularly susceptible to rejection: <b>"If this theory's wrong," she wails to Eddie later in the movie, "men don't leave all women -- they leave me."</b></blockquote>The "New Cow" theory was bunk and, ladies and gentlemen, such is the case for the <a href="http://www.noweddingnowomb.com/">"No Wedding, No Womb" campaign</a>. By the way, if you're thinking of any words that begin with the letter "H" right now, I'm judging you---and me. <br />
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As I explained in <a href="http://drgoddess.blogspot.com/2010/09/sloganeering-and-slacktivism-no-wedding.html">Part I: Sloganeering and Slacktivism: The No Wedding, No Womb Campaign</a>, organizer, Christelyn Karazin, was so ashamed of her symbol of unprotected, premarital sex---pregnancy---that she bought a cubic zirconia ring and wore it on her wedding finger to protect herself from the ridicule and judgment of strangers. I guess she didn't like it, so she put a ring on it. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF7EqdggAzt7bPXI63H1m4KRdP-2CF9VYmJtKAlQ7QCVJ-XbR-0ZO1v86JiLCWgu5CVbJTmV8Rr5eSm6vZLOqWg-ksrA_cCVAHm0hs_Bt8j6_TkUrJEh1CCmfntIxDyzf5M2vAyAL8cpbe/s1600/godneys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF7EqdggAzt7bPXI63H1m4KRdP-2CF9VYmJtKAlQ7QCVJ-XbR-0ZO1v86JiLCWgu5CVbJTmV8Rr5eSm6vZLOqWg-ksrA_cCVAHm0hs_Bt8j6_TkUrJEh1CCmfntIxDyzf5M2vAyAL8cpbe/s400/godneys.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is that a ring you're wearing? Look, Bish, don't judge me!</td></tr>
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</div>But without a general understanding of Women’s History and previous attempts at policing women’s expression, in general, and their sexuality, in particular, delineations and reformations of the Victorian-era-derived <a href="http://www.jstor.org/pss/2711179">“Cult of True Womanhood”</a> will continue, in spite of itself. This is why the dichotomy continues and why, even in Black Christian churches, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i903TqgXuDc">various choirs (hilariously)</a> reformulated Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” and turned it into some type of spiritual hymn <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPW-MLHf8GA&feature=related">(or Deacon remix)</a>, curiously wagging the finger <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtP32VgUScU&feature=related">(like Mother Wisdom)</a> at single women in the congregation.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMYiXdsPC6bHpDzpgJKDL2JWdAjy_XK3m6_YGuK-LvfyAl1Jy1PukLrSXC9MmejPuqcUBEu1pM8DTtQ9IXc0qKB16U8gMWcX-xxRXPZiXRTbAY8O7exy3dWKZ5qsFK_RKc2zxRvABQPz7b/s400/beyoncesingleladies.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What? Y'all think I waited? I'm way too flexible for alla that!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMYiXdsPC6bHpDzpgJKDL2JWdAjy_XK3m6_YGuK-LvfyAl1Jy1PukLrSXC9MmejPuqcUBEu1pM8DTtQ9IXc0qKB16U8gMWcX-xxRXPZiXRTbAY8O7exy3dWKZ5qsFK_RKc2zxRvABQPz7b/s1600/beyoncesingleladies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>And, yet, if my understanding of the song, “Yes” on the “Dangerously in Love” album is correct, one could easily conclude that Beyonce had sex before and during her premarital relationship with Jay-Z. Perhaps if she spoke more about their (obviously) effective use of birth control, as opposed to pretending as though “Sasha Fierce” only gets down on the dance floor, then “Single Ladies” might be understood in its proper context. But we can’t blame Beyonce’ for other peoples’ misinterpretations of her lyricism and imagery or how she manipulates the confining dichotomy she didn't create. That's probably why <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBC7pilGoPc&feature=related">this Saturday Night Live skit with Justin Timberlake always leaves me in stitches.</a> But I digress...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZuETaJiC4LvZxdEoyomg0VvATS9KPs8YNZzizTi_x-fxfNjQ_xudQJJPo6tHxeM3iKilwKo5A7PpHCFzDZoUsWPoEhk82fb9BpazeoOxqZXfsVFXh50HPlmuo5El2KEtOwLfeKkbtN4Aw/s1600/beyonceonSNL4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZuETaJiC4LvZxdEoyomg0VvATS9KPs8YNZzizTi_x-fxfNjQ_xudQJJPo6tHxeM3iKilwKo5A7PpHCFzDZoUsWPoEhk82fb9BpazeoOxqZXfsVFXh50HPlmuo5El2KEtOwLfeKkbtN4Aw/s400/beyonceonSNL4.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Uh uh Oh, oh oh oh oh oh ohhhhh...</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
I find myself usually alarmed (and then quickly annoyed) whenever I see attempts at moral suasion without any substantive, socio-political analysis or inclusion of social justice or any form of direct action. For example, listing the many statistics which showcase the results of “single parent” and/or “fatherless households” relative to education, crime, poverty, etc., is important but short-sighted, especially when the focus is placed upon people of color---and No Wedding, No Womb, is nothing if not focused upon African American women who have the highest rates of female-headed households in the country.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMffyjk-RfT-NrKzcviL7pZwUwzX_Mhql9bXMMCA2VFo5T5vRPd-aNkOK3jDZkFg-5u-rJRBEHdY1KeUNh-OEXRp2cQbCrpEJCxN97UkffUafPIGl2TWr-kdrGTcTKjWQn64Y1DLURkF__/s1600/AmINotAWomanSister.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMffyjk-RfT-NrKzcviL7pZwUwzX_Mhql9bXMMCA2VFo5T5vRPd-aNkOK3jDZkFg-5u-rJRBEHdY1KeUNh-OEXRp2cQbCrpEJCxN97UkffUafPIGl2TWr-kdrGTcTKjWQn64Y1DLURkF__/s320/AmINotAWomanSister.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is What an Effective Campaign Looks Like *side eyes* NWNW</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
We all have concern for our families and children in America. But to deny or otherwise diminish the role of the system of white supremacy, the impact of structural inequality, poverty, discrimination against the working poor and to exclude any direct action (or even moral suasion!) against the injustices of ongoing segregation, disinvestment from public education, the school-to-prison pipeline and the prison industrial complex upon people of color, in particular, is wholly irresponsible and ultimately, as Christelyn, participants in “No Wedding, No Womb” and many others have seen, ineffective and irrelevant to the daily realities of our lives---despite seemingly good intentions.<br />
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Why would I talk about the system of white supremacy, structural inequality and the relationship between that and the condition of Black families? Because in 1960, many of our families were in tact, not only as nuclear families but extended as well (yes, the African village some wish to deny exists). But something else happened in 1960 and it was the dramatic, climatic rise of an extraordinarily successful campaign that would further ignite the Civil Rights Movement. I'm going to get to that in my next post.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDS5SOZ4hcjNtK12tM3CEhXpb2JcaBIyuKfneHeN3lgANFo5gysper5OllAZWeUfwpGyXi9wcgrTfME_7Tcptj0K3gl9cutMMtcVwVxFI8CWhFllJ-WXmtDkwPjPIQ-ueedrHPAHpYHbIE/s400/SouthernStrategyMichelleObama.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="262" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Y'all see all this hate? Whatev, I'm not turning back the clock! I'm not your Auntie!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDS5SOZ4hcjNtK12tM3CEhXpb2JcaBIyuKfneHeN3lgANFo5gysper5OllAZWeUfwpGyXi9wcgrTfME_7Tcptj0K3gl9cutMMtcVwVxFI8CWhFllJ-WXmtDkwPjPIQ-ueedrHPAHpYHbIE/s1600/SouthernStrategyMichelleObama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>Suffice it to say, the Conservative backlash to the Civil Rights Movement's successful display that separate was NOT equal, was intended to make Americans think that the reason why equality (measured in equal results) isn't necessary is because there is something inherently wrong with Black people and Black culture. Thus, if the country is "separate", it's because Black people separate themselves from real, hardworking Americans who value education and family. <br />
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It's a white supremacist idea, rooted in economic competition, disguised as a "New Cow" theory. And too many people have fallen for it, including too many persons in the Black Church. Mind you, George Bush's Faith-Based Initiative checks helped, didn't they, Eddie?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPNfBWO6Ne3Q5HkWOJ1QMPidpWh2X3MRLFfSKvnmEW7egYoXUD0LWRJSBdKQocSTXpBMYg2ZdMWiO_TCRh0kG6pmhgm6f_Ea9t4gG5vSALn_SlLvM1WAhWiXzpWX2uSZnuA4rEyIKKaTz2/s1600/EddieLongGeorgeBush.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPNfBWO6Ne3Q5HkWOJ1QMPidpWh2X3MRLFfSKvnmEW7egYoXUD0LWRJSBdKQocSTXpBMYg2ZdMWiO_TCRh0kG6pmhgm6f_Ea9t4gG5vSALn_SlLvM1WAhWiXzpWX2uSZnuA4rEyIKKaTz2/s320/EddieLongGeorgeBush.jpg" width="255" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"You like my cologne? The secret ingredient is holy water. Praise Him!"</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Another such person who seems to be entirely ignorant or in deep denial of what's happening here is Christelyn Karazin. But she has many in the Black blogosphere who unconsciously, unknowingly and unfortunately harbor and perpetuate these notions as well. Quite often, they appear as a brigade of intelligent Black women (and they are) whose painful life experiences with Black men and their clear inability to understand or counter the system of white supremacy has led to the "Black men ain't sh*t" messaging of internalized racism. In some ways, they beckon my compassion, as we have all been hurt, but like Ashley Judd's character realized in "Someone Like You", the "New Cow" theory is not the solution to our problems; and neither is internalized oppression. Instead of theories, take a look at the <a href="http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db18.htm">facts from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention</a> on parenting, especially non-marital parents (thanks, @saigrundy).<br />
<br />
We don’t need a professional, Black, Bristol Palin who feels the need to <b>prescribe</b> an abstinence to which she didn’t <b>subscribe</b>. The fact of the matter is, had Sarah and (ex-patriate promoting) Todd Palin been pragmatic about their daughter’s curiosity and engaged in full sex education and birth control (even with an emphasis on abstinence) as opposed to turning a blind eye to the realities of a teenage life in America while preaching abstinence-only, then we would not have to suffer through seeing her on “Dancing With the Stars” or Levi Johnston’s pitiful run for Mayor or his interview with Lawrence O’Donnell but no, they didn’t spare us, so I won’t spare them.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR0FjiG9yAbLkdcpdZeCYPcE_n1wf72lR9ErhdN-7SmQSllj2_tQwgsKXFotNCTAnZSRt5HWrDPYEMDDsMtCLQOzOWqjNSRRkQNfCfc5UYwu7Hq7osj4NynOej33yZP6Ktjr88HWA98CYm/s400/BristolPalin.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Hmmm, how can I get out of this and still shame other women to please my Mom?"</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR0FjiG9yAbLkdcpdZeCYPcE_n1wf72lR9ErhdN-7SmQSllj2_tQwgsKXFotNCTAnZSRt5HWrDPYEMDDsMtCLQOzOWqjNSRRkQNfCfc5UYwu7Hq7osj4NynOej33yZP6Ktjr88HWA98CYm/s1600/BristolPalin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>And as much as I might like to, I can’t spare Christelyn; because when she appeared on <a href="http://dysonshow.org/audio/DYSON2010/DYSONSHOW/MEDS9-28-10.mp3">Michael Dyson’s radio program</a>, she would not even own up to her own campaign. Despite being the organizer, she insists she’s not the leader. Despite focusing upon African American women in her own narrative, she denies that the focus on fatherlessness leans disproportionately towards Black men. And she insists that despite having intense shame about being a single parent, “No Wedding, No Womb” has nothing to do with shaming single mothers today. She even went so far to (hilariously) suggest that she doesn't even really mean "wedding", per se, but to simply be "wedded" to the children. Oh Christelyn... please immediately head over to the stellar <a href="http://coparenting101.org/">Co-Parenting 101 Website</a> and free yourself.<br />
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On the NWNW <a href="http://www.beyondblackwhite.com/nwnw/?page_id=2">FAQ page</a> (which she tweeted to me), in answering the question, “What gives you the right to do this?”, she responded: I’m a baby mamma’ LISTEN TO MY MISSION: [which was a plug to the theme song] I do this for my daughter, and my daughter’s daughter, and all the children of our future.” I find this more than interesting because a “baby mamma” is actually a woman who has a child and is not married. According to Christelyn, she found a man who happens to be white, they fell in love and he accepted her and her child as a package deal. So, technically speaking, she is NOT a “baby mamma”. But what would make her say such a thing? Being plagued by having been one…<br />
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I should note that almost 24 hours after having written a large portion of this post, I asked Christelyn a few questions on Twitter and she never responded. I was extremely respectful to her (see below). My questions were:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFguWi2q0rEuovoQrRnDN5-Px_iLeAOjYnDnNurkUQEhD9yGMx57QgvzHKnS518s9ockabjbQch_sYysbwkI7lc-5ocpsjrLSeNpMRAdBNxWU0HL1oGpUqi9P18QPzSR08KG_1oNcU8M2m/s640/NWNWChristelyn.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="452" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Start from the bottom and scroll up. That's how Twitter works.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFguWi2q0rEuovoQrRnDN5-Px_iLeAOjYnDnNurkUQEhD9yGMx57QgvzHKnS518s9ockabjbQch_sYysbwkI7lc-5ocpsjrLSeNpMRAdBNxWU0HL1oGpUqi9P18QPzSR08KG_1oNcU8M2m/s1600/NWNWChristelyn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>And she blocked me. I learned shortly thereafter that she had blocked many others who questioned or disagreed with her point of view in any way, shape or form. Way to go Christelyn, excellent campaign strategies you have there… <br />
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There is just too much that doesn’t add up and there are tons of other ways to support children, create a more egalitarian society and provide holistic education about safe sex, the realities of parenting and available options for birth control (including abstinence), that can and will continue despite a campaign that cannot sustain the shame upon which it is founded.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="391" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilhUSjoAYLfc5mSQCNv3CbGAOHbVPEK94T0NLXMKm8UqMIkR16tPHcO0KR3u3r4ZfQLalwDsfJDNOfJB0lxS828nJcYdm5lnAnaiWEVfTriDs8C90lGVLxMpYMY8HTy1hzNY36IzEP06Tl/s400/blacksmagicsnp.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm amazed at this album cover. It's brilliant!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilhUSjoAYLfc5mSQCNv3CbGAOHbVPEK94T0NLXMKm8UqMIkR16tPHcO0KR3u3r4ZfQLalwDsfJDNOfJB0lxS828nJcYdm5lnAnaiWEVfTriDs8C90lGVLxMpYMY8HTy1hzNY36IzEP06Tl/s1600/blacksmagicsnp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>I love Salt N Pepa's fun, sexy and outspoken feminist imagery, so when “Let’s Talk About Sex” and “Do You Want Me?” debuted on their “Black’s Magic” album, released December 8, 1992, it was perfect for my burgeoning sexuality and, apparently, many others’. “Let’s Talk About Sex” became the anthem for a number of different campaigns more than happy to have a theme song that would allow parents and guardians to more comfortably enter into conversations about sex and reproduction with their children. After all, we couldn’t rely on Grease’s “Reproduction” and the characteristic bass line, “I’ve got your pistol right here” forever.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i>Let’s talk about sex, baby</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Let’s talk about you and me</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Let’s talk about all the good things</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>And the bad things that can be</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Let’s talk about sex</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Let’s talk about sex!</i></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ydrtF45-y-g?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ydrtF45-y-g?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></div><br />
Notice how we have a great song which invites open conversation and learning without shaming or placing a heavier emphasis upon the female body? You had no idea Salt-N-Pepa were this deep, hunh? On this same album, “Do You Want Me?” provided an anthem that helped me decipher man-speak and manipulation and gave me a phat beat with which to jam as well: <br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>You said it loud / and I heard ya</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Never tried to hurt you</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Some say I’m old fashioned</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>I like to take my time and do it slow, you know?</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>But don’t try to rush it</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>So, ride it like a horse / and let nature take its course</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Get to know each other</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Be my friend, no just my lover</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Share your thoughts with me</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Love my mind, not just my body, baby!</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Do you really want me, baby?</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Let me know</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Cuz if you really want me, I suggest you tell me so</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Got no time for playing games, that ain’t even why I came</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Cuz I may be / the kinda guy you like</i></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/A61nRTfTF-Q?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/A61nRTfTF-Q?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></div><br />
Those lyrics became an anthem. I was not ashamed to say I was old fashioned and I loved how the question was posed to the man, asking "Do You Really Want Me, Baby?" while rejoicing in the phat beat that could make our booties shake but did not require us to give them up.<br />
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“No Wedding, No Womb” does actually have a nice theme song (which is why they call this a multimedia campaign) to which I promptly did the snake and began gyrating my pelvis:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><object height="81" width="100%"><param name="movie" value="http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F5353608&secret_token=s-Vadzv&"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F5353608&secret_token=s-Vadzv&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%"></embed></object><a href="http://soundcloud.com/ljpress/no-wedding-no-womb-m3">No Wedding No Womb Theme Song!</a> by <a href="http://soundcloud.com/ljpress">LJpress</a></div><br />
So maybe, like other artists, this campaign should stick moreso to its singing than anything else.<br />
<blockquote>We must be ever vigilant so that we do not end up evaluating each other using a standard of measurement created by white supremacist thinking - bell hooks</blockquote>Jesus Be Solange’s Womb Producing Julez.<br />
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Special Shoutout to Saida Grundy @saigrundy for her excellent timeline, @alvinthethird for the bell hooks quote and Twitter's continued elucidation on #NWNWDr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-417449170171260412010-09-30T22:10:00.000-07:002010-10-01T13:25:05.065-07:00Sloganeering and Slacktivism: The No Wedding, No Womb CampaignThe multimedia campaign, <a href="http://www.noweddingnowomb.com/">“No Wedding, No Womb”</a> debuted on my brother’s birthday (Hey Paul!) and while I was in D.C. feeling bad that I had not properly prepared to send my brother a card to make sure it arrived on his actual birthday (My bad, Paul!), a girlfriend asked me if I had heard of the “Movement” and if I knew one of the bloggers participating. I knew nothing of the campaign but I admit the title, alone, made me chuckle.<br />
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I started seeing murmurings and the uproar about “No Wedding, No Womb" (NWNW) on Twitter and still did not understand because I did not make the time to do so. I was still reeling from having attended Ron Walter’s funeral, as well as participating as a <a href="http://www.jmu.edu/furiousflower/73Poemfor73Years.shtml">poet in the Furious Flower Poetry Center’s Tribute to Lucille Clifton</a>, after responding to an invitation from Nikki Giovanni and Dr. Joanne Gabbin.<br />
<br />
I really cannot speak for Lucille Clifton but I imagine she would get a chuckle out of “No Wedding, No Womb”, even as she would deride the male or female too irresponsible to properly care for and/or raise his/her own children.<br />
<br />
Thus, it was perfect timing for me to see a tweet come across my timeline advertising the discussion of “No Wedding, No Womb” on <a href="http://dysonshow.org/audio/DYSON2010/DYSONSHOW/MEDS9-28-10.mp3">Michael Eric Dyson’s radio program</a>. The radio interview included Christelyn Karazin, the organizer, and Jamilah Lemieux, who <a href="http://thebeautifulstruggler.com/">blogs and tweets as "SisterToldja"</a>. The exchange was quite telling and I’m glad I waited to hear the information directly from the source because it became clear that Christelyn was confused and generally lacking in self-awareness regarding her own campaign and the motivations therein.<br />
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There is a disturbing undercurrent of “No Wedding, No Womb” and Karazin's narrative that self-consciously promotes (and then denies) <a href="http://www.beyondblackwhite.com/">interracial marriage as a solution to the problem</a> of fatherlessness in the Black community. And, yet, consistently, I have found that Black women who champion interracial marriage (and, let’s face it, it’s largely with White men) turn a near complete and total blind eye to the many White men who leave White women with children out-of-wedlock, who leave their White wives struggling and suffering with children; and who otherwise use or abuse any woman of any ethnicity, from trying to take her money unjustly in a divorce (ask Whoopi Goldberg about that) to conveniently “discovering” their homosexuality post-marriage and family (ask Jim McGreevy’s ex-wife about that) to cheating on them after decades of support and the birth of five children with women from another continent (ask Mark Sanford’s ex-wife about that) and to great extremes such as killing them to prevent paying child support or revealing an ongoing affair (unfortunately, we cannot ask Laci Peterson about that, now can we?). Indeed, the romanticizing of relationships with White men is unrealistic, categorically racist and out-of-control.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiyGP-uxT5uBFB2DdYRjnMLft8wIBEf4ObP7ovfEoAmxAnnw5yhV8UZR4tjP2KcgmysjAdKODBRhTHfPputsKoeS6jBkatncNEW-pqD7SxZb2YTk7WSJiY-1zwKoK2v-Za_mS5CLLuhgM5/s320/mark-sanford-jenny-sanford-and-four-sons.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yep. I had four boys and a loving white wife and I <i><b>still </b></i>bounced! Hey Sistas!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiyGP-uxT5uBFB2DdYRjnMLft8wIBEf4ObP7ovfEoAmxAnnw5yhV8UZR4tjP2KcgmysjAdKODBRhTHfPputsKoeS6jBkatncNEW-pqD7SxZb2YTk7WSJiY-1zwKoK2v-Za_mS5CLLuhgM5/s1600/mark-sanford-jenny-sanford-and-four-sons.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">Whether anyone will admit it or not, “No Wedding, No Womb” implicitly smacks of a consistent theme I have discovered in the Black blogosphere, in particular, which is essentially, “Black men ain’t sh*t”. And, you know, that really does not help anybody.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div>As she shared in her interview with Dr. Dyson, Christelyn mistakenly believes that her own motives and engagement in an interracial marriage should be excluded from analysis or consideration when discussing, evaluating or critiquing “No Wedding, No Womb”. No way. This campaign is one borne of an intensely personal situation (which she revealed), in that she was a middle-class African American woman in college who, through her own volition chose to:<br />
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1. Engage in sex<br />
2. Engage in unprotected sex<br />
3. Engage in a full-term pregnancy --- all of which she did with an African American male who, for reasons unbeknownst to us, chose to engage in unprotected sex and then failed to live up to his responsibilities as a result of making those choices.<br />
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Christelyn admits that she was so ashamed of being a single, pregnant woman that she purchased a fake wedding ring and wore it to fend off negativity and criticism from strangers. Of course, that type of effrontery does not work on one’s own friends and family, so at some point, she had to face their judgments alone. <br />
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“No Wedding, No Womb” seems to be a full projection of what Christelyn must have feared and, later, endured from her friends and family who had much higher expectations and judgment than Christelyn had of herself at some point in time. Sadly, I can relate, Sistergirl, so I do not stand in judgment of your personal turmoil at that time.<br />
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I think I understand where you’re coming from. It appears as though the underlying message to “No Wedding, No Womb” is “Value yourself more to protect yourself at all times and enter into a committed relationship with someone who is committed to you and your eventual offspring”. I get that. I dig that. I support that.<br />
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Sadly, a public media campaign entitled, “No Wedding, No Womb” does not do that.<br />
<br />
Even Christelyn may admit that she has spent more time than she thought necessary trying to defend and explain “No Wedding, No Womb”, when that is not the sign of a successful campaign. The message should be clear. It should be pointed and it should be understandable and easy to defend. Instead, Christelyn (and some of her supporters) are all over the place with vague, contradictory and sometimes offensive retorts and explanations.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7CoY4mgjUcjp5OPr8cXIh7EEjTV5jUk_8BNy2sD9GM0dmhgi-K8awJ6n89_ZwEu1vGDvoWwkPOgzp4OELVNLDoIf0lspj-OBJw6U59nMOWch4sd3By097kzB6ibkZB_5ihtKEnQIiKB1Z/s320/BlackMarriageDay.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hey, Baby, pass the hot sauce, please? I'm glad I don't have to explain why...</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7CoY4mgjUcjp5OPr8cXIh7EEjTV5jUk_8BNy2sD9GM0dmhgi-K8awJ6n89_ZwEu1vGDvoWwkPOgzp4OELVNLDoIf0lspj-OBJw6U59nMOWch4sd3By097kzB6ibkZB_5ihtKEnQIiKB1Z/s1600/BlackMarriageDay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>"No Wedding, No Womb" is not new; and yet I have repeatedly heard Christelyn say that no one is addressing this issue, "no one cares about the kids". Not only is this idea not new, it’s so old, it’s cliché. Even "Black Marriage Day", founded by Nisa Islam Muhammad, is in its eighth year of successful operation with actual solutions, community-building and hands-on results. And, as <a href="http://www.newpittsburghcourieronline.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1721:saying-i-do-black-marriage-campaign-is-growing&catid=43:lifestyle&Itemid=50">you can read here</a>, even the federal government has an "African American Healthy Marriage Initiative" while yet another wayward campaign entitled "Marry Your Baby Daddy Day" continues as well. At least "Black Marriage Day" is clear, concise, is not policing sexuality, is inclusive of and empowering for men and does not target the female body.<br />
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One cannot help but notice that in all of the aforementioned campaigns, Christelyn's interracial marriage does not apply. Hmmm. Even more, perhaps what inspired “No Wedding, No Womb” was Beyonce’s mega hit, “Single Ladies”, (an anthem which focuses upon a woman's narrative) in which she sings to her jilted ex-lover trying to block on the dance floor: <i> </i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><blockquote><i>If you liked it, then you should’ve put on a ring on it!</i> </blockquote></div>That, coupled with a video based on Bob Fosse’s choreography, heavily showcasing Beyonce’’s gyrations in her now infamous onesie (otherwise known as a leotard in the dance world) as well as her Michael and Janet Jackson-esque flaunting of a single-handed glove and the aggressively strategic point to the absence of a ring on the ring-finger seems to have been the ticket for Christelyn. Perhaps...<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4m1EFMoRFvY?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4m1EFMoRFvY?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object></div><br />
Beyonce’ is a perfect example of the Madonna / Whore dichotomous trap in which women have been wrestling, largely stemming from a Westernized construction of Christianity that seeks to overcome human urges while also chastising (and in some cases, flogging) the self for its seeming inability to control them. Hence, the Victorian era focus upon women being chaste, obedient, submissive and domestic, after a period of wanton displays of sexuality and promiscuity. More often than not, the attempt to control a woman’s sexuality is most often aligned with and maintained by efforts at colonization and nationalism. It has very little to do with morality and much more to do with conquering nations and preventing babies mixed with the blood of “the enemy” (however so defined, given the historic period). Indeed, that's why Victoria had a "secret".<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDnGKpsnJubuQy8BzJHJ8Gf1LUjA5R8TH4Z1dKnz4daisJluKDdqWe4IAM2v13eqHtSnnrC9I5dpd8rmWS5ECHQbmLc6lDzcn5z2xU5ScSAhQQscQa5VOEo_zX3p_rRNgCXVAjQxZJF4zC/s1600/TruthAboutVictoriana.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDnGKpsnJubuQy8BzJHJ8Gf1LUjA5R8TH4Z1dKnz4daisJluKDdqWe4IAM2v13eqHtSnnrC9I5dpd8rmWS5ECHQbmLc6lDzcn5z2xU5ScSAhQQscQa5VOEo_zX3p_rRNgCXVAjQxZJF4zC/s320/TruthAboutVictoriana.jpg" width="299" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>"No Wedding, No Womb" also belies a collective “mothering” and “fathering” tradition in many communities but the African (American) community, in particular, that does not rely on biological parentage. I even saw one blogger laugh at the concept of "It takes an entire village to raise one child", claiming the African American community had abandoned the idea. She apparently had no idea that's why we're still here.<br />
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But it’s not my job to try to sort out the campaign. I believe in women valuing their bodies. Indeed, I believe women are goddesses; but “No Wedding, No Womb” is a race game, a shame game and a publicity stunt that should be understood within its proper context. <br />
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Many other bloggers on the site make perfect sense, are clear, direct and substantive. But they did not come up with the campaign so it's the equivalent of serving a gourmet dish on a garbage can.<br />
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There is no direct action to "No Wedding, No Womb." There is no contextual call for justice or any real attempt at providing solutions beyond a grandiose wagging of a blog & song finger. And this is why Christelyn and far too many of her supporters have have spent more time defending and blocking people online than actually finding peace in this process. <br />
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Stay tuned for Part II.<br />
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Special shout to the Twitter family going in on the hashtag: #NWNWDr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com39tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-64497242746585395822010-09-29T13:44:00.000-07:002010-09-29T16:59:42.016-07:00A Prayer for Discernment: Eddie Long Deserves GraceAccording to Sam Reynold's, an astrologer and one of my great Twitter buddies, <a href="http://return2thesource.wordpress.com/2010/09/29/ecce-homo/">Eddie Long is experiencing his "Saturn Return"</a>. I asked Sam what that meant and if it was along the lines of "what goes around comes around?" and he said "Yes."<br />
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Naturally, this led me to the film, "Boomerang", in which Eddie Murphy plays "Marcus", a consummate ladies' man who thinks he's above reproach until "Jacqueline", a character played by Robin Givens, puts it on him and flips the gendered script (i.e. engaging in powerful, skilled, sexual encounters detached from a particular type of needy emotionalism often characteristically depicted of women).<br />
<br />
One of the most hilarious scenes in what is now a cult classic is that between actors Eddie Murphy and Grace Jones, who plays "Strange`", an outrageously exotic, outspoken and wholly inappropriate artist, let alone spokesperson for a corporate product of any sort. In this interaction, however, her interests are far more personal.<br />
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Here, she is a sexual predator (which brings us to "Bishop" Eddie Long) and a keen observer of human behavior with a strong radar for homosexuals, a skill possession known as possessiong "gaydar" (which brings us to the New Birth congregation). By all means, observe the scene and do pardon the vulgarity:<br />
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You see the way she was able to stand up and point out the gay men---and without being homophobic (indeed, she knows because her brother is gay)? This is the sharp level of discernment I pray for the congregation of New Birth to possess---and swiftly.<br />
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Now, you might be saying to yourself, "But Dr. Goddess, that was a comedy". Oh, I agree. But so is Eddie Long's lacefront jheri curl wig and so were last Sunday's two services at New Birth. Like all great theater, there was great comedy and tragedy to be had (hence the two masks which most often symbolize the substance of great theater).<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpv6QCqoJCteFjuCzM79izEROQGrKtVZiU9KSmaPgNajWbk_hJ8CN24E_tdyKsY1ywDBMdi5x5pc4tl0faoll_1LqEn37eyYobmRDATgd1kh9TOX5OUDHw7N-Qu87CLVuFUBOPeiNFw_NG/s1600/TheaterMasks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpv6QCqoJCteFjuCzM79izEROQGrKtVZiU9KSmaPgNajWbk_hJ8CN24E_tdyKsY1ywDBMdi5x5pc4tl0faoll_1LqEn37eyYobmRDATgd1kh9TOX5OUDHw7N-Qu87CLVuFUBOPeiNFw_NG/s320/TheaterMasks.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I do theater. I'm a playwright, I teach African American Theater and I grew up on one of the best playwrights this world has yet witnessed---August Wilson. So, let's do this. <br />
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The comedy began with my sheer excitement to attend church at 8:00a.m. on a Sunday morning. I was going to ask, "Who <b><i>does</i></b> that?" but Eddie Long made it clear they do it every Sunday at New Birth. Alrighty then, Praise the Lawd and Pass the Collection Plate for Legal Fees!<br />
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<b>Why do I think Eddie Long is guilty of being a sexual predator and engaging in sexual coercion?</b><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw45-LH9HyHyLURrphbJNWgLJ1ZZhuBvDPxoPJW-dxSVbp0aIABKEQx8zTQP1b5mKg7fPXDk0Zbsms8X_06Iz1QZ8_36yMxsVCsqE1wAwS3l0lMdTOUB0RvwAmQh0o6lDWFazwXTuxazLH/s1600/EddieLong.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes, this is a lace-front, jheri curl wig I'm wearing and you <b><i>still </i></b>believe! Praise Him!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw45-LH9HyHyLURrphbJNWgLJ1ZZhuBvDPxoPJW-dxSVbp0aIABKEQx8zTQP1b5mKg7fPXDk0Zbsms8X_06Iz1QZ8_36yMxsVCsqE1wAwS3l0lMdTOUB0RvwAmQh0o6lDWFazwXTuxazLH/s1600/EddieLong.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Perhaps it's the observations I made during my girlhood, while walking home in my Catholic school uniform with girls whom, like me, had conclave chest and bore no resemblance to Britney Spears' "Hit Me Baby One More Time" video, while older men would gaze upon us and catcall something akin to "Pigmeat"(and other such names recounted in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Bluest-Eye-Oprahs-Book-Club/dp/0452282195">Toni Morrison's <i>The Bluest Eye</i></a>).<br />
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Or, perhaps it's because I have watched every episode of <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10912603/">"To Catch a Predator," hosted by Chris Hansen</a>, and witnessed everyone from <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=5&sqi=2&ved=0CDAQtwIwBA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DdZhsfT9wGp0&rct=j&q=To%20Catch%20a%20predator&ei=2najTMSfMMP38AaP_O3eCQ&usg=AFQjCNEsr1NspwesrWvug6-gfcBYoHV67Q&cad=rja">school teachers</a> to <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=2&sqi=2&ved=0CBYQtwIwAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dxt6MmzRRYk0&rct=j&q=To%20Catch%20a%20predator%20rabbi&ei=gHejTOrJEMT38AabhejQCg&usg=AFQjCNEwJ3hascnvUVBjqG0-vjhxr50uUA&cad=rja">Jewish rabbi's</a> seeking out young men and women to prey upon online, even <b><i>after</i></b> they discover that their sexual interests are underage (usually 12 - 14 years old).<br />
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Or perhaps it's the <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/27/AR2007082701235.html">Senator Larry E. Craigs</a> or the <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=17&ved=0CGUQFjAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.msnbc.msn.com%2Fid%2F15536263%2F&rct=j&q=Ted%20Haggard&ei=lHajTNzwI8P_lgfu2MmhBA&usg=AFQjCNE6cw5TCARGYf_JXbrneoFDhADguQ&cad=rja">Ted Haggards</a> of the world, who vociferously denounce and engage in heavy activism against homosexuality, in particular, only to be revealed as closeted homosexuals shortly thereafter.<br />
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Or perhaps its the <a href="http://nymag.com/news/politics/21340/">Jim McGreevys of the world (former Governor of New Jersey)</a>, who know good and well they have homosexual urges and tendencies but via their narcissism and self-hate, think it's okay to marry a heterosexual woman to be their beard, so they can either obtain or maintain a particular lifestyle better suited to their sense of entitlement and exploitation.<br />
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Or perhaps its the <a href="http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Author-Terry-McMillan-and-Her-Ex-Jonathan-Plummer">Jonathan Plummers of the world</a>, who marry rich, famous, heterosexual Black women like Terry McMillan, as a way to "get rich or die tryin'" in America. I'm glad McMillan is "Getting to Happy" but she could have used some of Grace Jones' discernment as well. I believe Jonathan was gay while he was still living as a young resort employee in Jamaica. And I believe this is precisely why he was so incredibly attentive and loving to his wife. But as she said to Oprah Winfrey upon appearing on her show five years after 'the confrontation' with Plummer, "love is blind," so... I'm not judging, just praying...<br />
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And speaking of Oprah Winfrey, perhaps I think Eddie Long is guilty because as recent as February 5 and April 26, 2010, <a href="http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Oprah-Talks-to-Child-Molesters-Part-1-Video">Oprah showcased child sexual predators</a> talking to adults about how they seduce children, explored <a href="http://www.oprah.com/relationships/Traits-of-a-Sex-Offender">common traits of sexual predators</a> and discussed why adults should pay closer attention to child and adolescent behavior. Did we somehow think that because, in this particular episode, Oprah showcased white men, that we don't have child sexual predators in the Black community? Or perhaps we found it more comfortable to rest on our laurels while the Catholic Church caught hell from every direction? Child, please. No, really... child. please.<br />
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<b>Sexual predators come in every race, color, creed, class and sexual orientation. Believe that!</b><br />
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So, I suppose there are so many reasons why I believe Eddie Long is guilty. What amazes me, however, is that so many otherwise intelligent African American men and women will not even allow themselves the possibility that Eddie Long is neither "bishop" nor "prophet" nor "saint" but a stone cold sinner; and one who did not just "fall down" Donnie Clurkin style but whom does not have the character, gumption or wherewithal as a man to admit that he tried to "father" his own sex slaves by having them call him "Daddy" and creating a covenant to enter into and maintain a sexual relationship with his "Spiritual Sons".<br />
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Hence, in my disgust (and necessary amusement---humor is how I cope with the ridiculous), I provided a translation of Eddie Long's "sermon" to his <strike>sheep</strike> congregation, if only to help others understand how religious rhetoric and coded language oft times go hand-in-hand, in the only manner that I could. I live-tweeted both church services at New Birth in such detail that some tweeters thought I was there in Atlanta. Ah, technology, gotta love it...behold, the hilarity of my entire Twitter Timeline. Anything in quotes is my own translation from one of the Pastors (be it Eddie, Bernice or a Junior), the rest are contributions from the great minds on Twitter:<br />
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Scroll Down and read from the Bottom Up (That's how Twitter works) <br />
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<b>Yep. Now, That's Church...and I'm Shaking My Head.</b><br />
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# Now that's church... RT @RayBeckerman: "Khawuleza" Miriam Makeba 1966 http://bit.ly/9CKmkm Sun Sep 26 13:38:34 2010 via ÜberTwitter<br />
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LMAO! RT @eddielongstroke: LongFellows Youth Academy AKA Tenderonis for Jesus. #praise Sun Sep 26 13:38:03 2010 via ÜberTwitter<br />
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I suppose it would help if we understood that ALL religions begin as cults... all of them, so when you recognize the behavior... *shrug* Sun Sep 26 13:18:00 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LOL!! Girl, he changed clothes & was like "get im!" RT @myexpresslane: ROFL @ drgoddess "It was #EddieLong" I can't with you....bwhahahahaha Sun Sep 26 13:17:30 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Thank you! I do my best! *curtsy* RT @Checkandmate: I truly like your irreverent, humorous, unblinking lambasting of that farce of a sermon. Sun Sep 26 13:16:33 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO!!!! RT @LoveMySkip: We got praise wigs and denial wigs y'all!!!!!! RT @elledub_1920: @areefuhstanklin I'm calling it a denial wig. Sun Sep 26 13:16:00 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@chasi863 And look at how New Birth is ready to die on the cross for #EddieLong. The comparison is more than fair, actually... Sun Sep 26 13:15:34 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to chasi863<br />
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@chasi863 The Peoples' Temple had a high degree of communalism and love flowing amongst the congregants. They were true Believers... Sun Sep 26 13:15:01 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to chasi863<br />
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@chasi863 All of that manipulation & ideology is the same. And in Jim Jones's case "the media" & "gov't" became the enemy, too... Sun Sep 26 13:14:24 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to chasi863<br />
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@chasi863 The characteristics of theater, manipulation, exploitation, hierarchy that doesn't follow the same rules, group sacrifice.. Sun Sep 26 13:13:53 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to chasi863<br />
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@chasi863 I can explain this in full later but ppl have alot of misconceptions about Jim Jones. These megachurches are ALOT like his church. Sun Sep 26 13:13:08 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to chasi863<br />
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RT @chasi863: I could be wrong 4 this..but this sounds like jim jones and the peoples temple. All I have to say is DONT DRINK THE KOOL AID!! Sun Sep 26 13:12:33 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Now, that's sayin' ALOT, Miss Reefuh! Whew! they wore even you out! SMH. RT @areefuhstanklin: Girl, even I can't approve of that foolery. Sun Sep 26 13:12:00 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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It was #EddieLong RT @blogdiva: this image right here is gold RT SMH. RT @jelani9: A short black man in an extremely outspoken suit Sun Sep 26 13:11:26 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes she is!! RT @ndcollier: And @profblmkelley is doing a fabulous job discussing the horrors of such behavior (kicking folks out). @jelani9 Sun Sep 26 13:11:04 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@bomani_jones @jamesdillard LOL!!! I have never seen that but the idea is QUITE funny... Sun Sep 26 13:10:26 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to bomani_jones<br />
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RT @bomani_jones: RT @jamesdillard: In Pittsburgh, people wear their Steelers jerseys to church. Its not irreverent, its their Sunday Best. Sun Sep 26 13:09:55 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @eddielongstroke: Pastor doesn't molest, he seduces. Jesus be the age of consent! #praisethelaw(d) Sun Sep 26 13:08:27 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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SMH. RT @jelani9: A short black man in an extremely outspoken suit accused me of lying about being media..armed security took me outside. Sun Sep 26 13:07:58 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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See? RT @jelani9: Security approached me near the end of the event, (falsely) accused me of lying about why I was there and kicked me out. Sun Sep 26 13:05:50 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Her, too! LOL! RT @fannielouwho: I had a righteous commitment. I hope y'all got this same love for me... I wanna walk into the light, too! Sun Sep 26 12:52:18 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO!!!! This Twitter account is off the chain. I can't take it!!! AAHAHAHAHAH!! RT @eddielongstroke: I rebuke me in the name of Jesus! Sun Sep 26 12:51:44 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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The choir competition? At New Birth, of course! Chile... and it's FREE, too... lawd...RT @MGhasspoken: Where? Sun Sep 26 12:46:49 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@girly1121 Truth be told, it will be #EddieLong's congregation that will come out in droves. They need the distraction. #priorities Sun Sep 26 12:45:30 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to girly1121<br />
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Indeed! RT @girly1121: All of u on Twitter and Facebook talking about #EddieLong better be at the polls on election day!!! #priorities Sun Sep 26 12:45:01 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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The only person I can think of who MIGHT approve of #EddieLong's praise wig is @areefuhstanklin ... Hmmm... *scratches chin* lol Sun Sep 26 12:44:43 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LOL!!!! I hope we're not all going to hell... in a handbasket... or in #EddieLong's wig. RT @wizardofoz321: *falls off a cliff* Sun Sep 26 12:44:01 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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I just realized that those invested in hypermasculinity in the church have just caught up with Gangster Rap. Who's more paid, btw? Sun Sep 26 12:43:09 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"There is a choir competition sponsored by the 100 Black Men at 4 o'clock, it's a free event so come back if you'd like to. Amen? Amen" SMH. Sun Sep 26 12:42:20 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes, with recent additions for what could work BETTER at 11am. RT @Choqlate: Well of course the 8am show is the same as the 11am show... Sun Sep 26 12:41:37 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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AHAHAHAAH!!! I want him to do time just to face the truth of his bald head, alone. RT @LoveMySkip: not with that s-curl wig he ain't. Sun Sep 26 12:40:56 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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I love her for her witnessing!! RT @BlackElleWoods: Yeah, she's in New Birth right now, so that's a 1st hand account. Sun Sep 26 12:39:57 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO! I am crying laughing. I never thought Twitter could out-do group television but we just did w/group church. RT @LoveMySkip: *muerte* Sun Sep 26 12:39:07 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>"Maybe you thought you came to hear a man make a confession but actually it's your turn to make a confession..." SMH---the Junior Pastor Sun Sep 26 12:36:27 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
By the way, the choir broke out into "God is an awesome God". They do be jammin' up in New Birth. Yes, Lawd, Yes, Lawd... SMH... Sun Sep 26 12:35:52 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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</b><br />
<b>Amen Corner</b><br />
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Yes, he did! Those are all direct quotes. After that, I add my own spin. SMH. RT @DJ_RideMyStache: WTF? He actually SAID that? Sun Sep 26 12:35:22 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO! NOO! RT @BlackElleWoods: you see this? RT @indigochic5: Someone yelled out we wanna know the truth and got ran out of the Church!!!!! Sun Sep 26 12:34:34 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Wow, he said the SAME five rocks analogy AND threw the mic down in the same way, grabbed his wife & ran up the aisle. SMH... #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:34:00 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
<blockquote><br />
"I feel like Goliath, David, rather, facing Goliath" ---#EddieLong No, you said it right the first time, you power abuser. Sun Sep 26 12:33:30 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"As you know, there are accusations and attacks made against me... and I am going to vigorously fight all of them". Cuz I can't be broke. Sun Sep 26 12:32:34 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
He said curse, nurse, rehearse OR reverse. You know he rhymes! SMH... LOL! RT @Choqlate: I think he said "reverse it," not "rehearse it." Sun Sep 26 12:32:02 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"I have never portrayed myself as a perfect man; but I am not the person they are portraying in the media". I am MORE handsome! #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:31:24 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"The painful situation that I find myself and my church in..." Cuz we're all in this together, right, #EddieLong SMH Sun Sep 26 12:30:46 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"They shall walk and not faint" -- Cuz on Twitter they been faintin' all morning at New Birth. #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:29:50 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"We must not forget our strength is not in man, is not in #EddieLong but the Lord" --- cuz I'm guilty as sin and I need y'all to prepare. Sun Sep 26 12:29:14 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
This is the 2nd time in 1 week that somebody used the alphabet for words of encouragement. Sesame Street would love the Black Church. Sun Sep 26 12:28:30 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
<blockquote><br />
"God would come in the midst of us... and touch folk" --Basically, that's a confession from #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:27:57 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
AHAHAH!!! RT @Checkandmate: Bishop Eddie Long says I've got #5Rocks - DEA to raid church. News at 11 Sun Sep 26 12:27:33 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Please do. I don't own a Bentley, I have a broke down Honda hooptie. RT @JaneBozarth: Excuse me while I go write @drgoddess into my will. Sun Sep 26 12:27:13 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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This is deep. Many aspects of his 11am sermon are different from his 8am sermon. This is a psychologist's playground. Sun Sep 26 12:26:38 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"We can make it through these tough times if WE stay focused on the spiritual things that have brought us thus far" ---Stay out of court. Sun Sep 26 12:26:09 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
Not in any way, shape or form. Not one iota. RT @GreggVoss: Does any of this shock you? Because it shouldn't. Sun Sep 26 12:24:57 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"Or you can rehearse it...and still being beaten by what happened" --He's telling the boys not to retell their stories. SMH. #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:24:29 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"You can curse it...or nurse it... " --- I'm trying to nurse my sons to change their testimony. Please, Lawd... #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:23:39 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
Or theirs... RT @LoveMySkip: whenever he started talking about tsunamis and Katrina I just KNEW that negro lost his fucking mind. Sun Sep 26 12:22:51 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"You have to learn how to still be a spiritual witness" --- cuz I'm about to have state's witnesses against me and I need y'all. #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:22:31 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"The greatest pain in all of that is to love somebody who doesn't love you back" Boys, you better love me back! #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:21:11 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"There are situations of deception that brings about pain...when one has been betrayed by those that they love" Mmm-Hmm... #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:20:50 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Wow. This is a whole new low. He is scaring the church into defending him so they won't lose their sense of community. SMH. #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:20:07 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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OOoohhh NOOO!!!! He done evoked Hurricane Katrina to talk about pain & church communities being washed away!! :-O #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:19:40 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"...and we are subject to taste distasteful and painful situations" Yes, #EddieLong, just long those teen boys you manipulated. SMH. Sun Sep 26 12:18:48 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
@rolandsmartin Because the U.S. is still heavily segregated, ESPECIALLY on Sundays... Sun Sep 26 12:18:03 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to rolandsmartin<br />
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"Our purpose today is two-fold..." Absolutely, #EddieLong, you gotta get a message to your accusers to be silent. Sun Sep 26 12:16:56 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
Alright, everybody, let's listen closely for his messages to his vict--er, accusers... Sun Sep 26 12:16:24 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>"New Birth, y'all stay focused..." cuz I still got another spell to put on you. #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:15:30 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
<b>I Put a Spell On You…Because You're Mine</b><br />
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@rolandsmartin There is something to be said about this crisis, though cuz George Bush's Faith-Based Initiatives helped these mega churches. Sun Sep 26 12:15:02 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to rolandsmartin<br />
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<blockquote>By the way, folks, check out my new iPad! ---#EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:13:35 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"I'm not leaving you if you don't leave me" --- #EddieLong Amen, Preacher, we do get the leadership we deserve SMH... Sun Sep 26 12:11:02 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
Is it me or does #EddieLong's wife posture herself more like his mother? It's just odd. She's beautiful, so don't get me wrong but... Sun Sep 26 12:10:35 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>"God says it. We believe it. That settles it." Oh but not in the court of law of the United States of America, #EddieLong Oh no. Sun Sep 26 12:09:28 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><br />
RT @bmockaveli: RT drgoddess: #EddieLong said, "I am not the man I am portrayed to be on television" -- that's what R.Kelly said!! <--MMPH! Sun Sep 26 12:06:25 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @Aqua174: entire speech. | Video: Bishop Eddie Long Speaks to New Birth Congregation http://t.co/8QZO5sS via @MyFoxAtlanta Sun Sep 26 12:05:56 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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OMG, y'all, I CANNOT get over his lace front, jheri curl wig. I want to harm whoever even made that... Sun Sep 26 12:05:10 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Basically but even that's a bit much 4 him RT @insanityreport: so the Eddie Long translation is: "I want to come out the closet but I can't" Sun Sep 26 12:04:11 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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AHAHAAH!! RT @LDaialogue: How is #BishopEddieLong "David" in the analogy of David vs. Goliath? David wasnt buffled wearing muscle shirts. Sun Sep 26 12:02:00 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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EXACTLY! Same w/Gangsta Rap, imo. RT @MGhasspoken: The music was good, but that is how they draw people just like the music industry. Sun Sep 26 12:01:32 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@TheFreedomTweet AHAHAHAHAAHAHAH!!!!! #ChapelHill #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 12:00:59 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to TheFreedomTweet<br />
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#EddieLong said, "I am not the man I am portrayed to be on television". Well, neither am I. For ex., I'm not really invisible. Sun Sep 26 12:00:03 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote> <br />
Morning! Come getchu some: http://bit.ly/cRi3td RT @TheFreedomTweet: Good Morning Good People!:-) Sun Sep 26 11:59:09 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@BlackElleWoods It's listed at streamingfaith.com under "New Birth MBC" Sun Sep 26 11:57:29 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to BlackElleWoods<br />
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Like I said of Madea this past Thursday, if you don't see why Tyler Perry is popular after watching New Birth, you're not watching. Sun Sep 26 11:56:31 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Right. At the end of the day, that's why everybody's there. Big concert. RT @elledub_1920: you gotta admit the music is on point #doe Sun Sep 26 11:55:33 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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& debit RT @DoktaDivah: While I don't think prosperity is bad in and of itself..I thought the ultimate goal was a deeper relationship w/God? Sun Sep 26 11:55:06 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Exactly. RT @sjean70: also growing up it was an alien concept to us that preachers go paid. my dad had a full time job and a church. Sun Sep 26 11:54:15 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes.. RT @sjean70: I have this discussion re prosperity ministry with actual prosperity ministers ... they're justifications are amazing ... Sun Sep 26 11:53:58 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Girl, yes, if I was a King sibling, I'd be fighting, too. RT @aaw1976: he's the king.....smh King children come get your sister. smdh Sun Sep 26 11:53:15 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Come getchu this blessing! lol http://bit.ly/cQkPuN @BlackElleWoods: Where are you watching the service? Sun Sep 26 11:52:45 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>"We pray... there will be no debt for the next generation"... Bernice, all y'all gotta do is watch Suze Orman. Jesus... Sun Sep 26 11:51:29 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"As we sow this seed...we sow it, Father God, knowing that it's attached to a harvest"... LOL. Oh God... Sun Sep 26 11:50:33 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"We are a people of God...we are a corporate body, a priesthood of believers" Damn. Did Bernice just watch "Wallstreet"? Sun Sep 26 11:49:37 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"We don't fail God. We believe God's word...and contained in what we sow is a harvest" (or a Bentley, however you so define it). Sun Sep 26 11:48:09 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote> <br />
How's Bernice gon' tell congregants not to come before the King empty handed? LOL!!! What if I just have a can of soup? That alright? Sun Sep 26 11:47:43 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Rev. Bernice King is much more bold at 11am service than she was at 8am...cuz she wasn't sure what #EddieLong was gonna admit... Sun Sep 26 11:46:58 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Well, at least Ms. Agnes isn't fake. Cuz in the 8am service, she was crying real hard. Now she's just smiling big. Bless her heart... Sun Sep 26 11:46:24 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@sjean70 No, the fact that churches need $$ is not lost on this discussion of tithing. But you don't need my W2s or a Bentley. Sun Sep 26 11:45:03 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to sjean70<br />
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Yep. LOL!!!! RT @sjean70: Ppl are allowed to follow who they want and I am allowed to criticize them for it. LOL. Sun Sep 26 11:44:32 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@blogdiva And that was up on the Chicago Bull's Jumbotron screen. Ain't nothin' wrong with using technology! Don't hate! LOL! #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 11:43:16 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to blogdiva<br />
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Girl, please. You should have seen the Powerpoint at Savior's Day! lol RT @blogdiva: they use POWERPOINT slides in churches now? #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 11:42:45 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes, because if we were in South Africa doing HIV/AIDS work, there's NO WAY he could've had sex with a young man at night. None. #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 11:41:48 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @Noireboss1: @the previous & following verses talk about following God &exercising his rightousness in order to profit His way (not ours) Sun Sep 26 11:38:53 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Is it just me or do those chords sound strangely like Peter Gabriel's "That's Just the Way It is?" I know a good song when I hear one... Sun Sep 26 11:32:57 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Nope, live tweeting: http://bit.ly/cQkPuN @sjean70: drgoddess -- you preaching? Sun Sep 26 11:32:12 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Interesting...and sad, really but it's a cycle RT @ndcollier: Eddie Long did say that he didn't have an ideal relationship with his father. Sun Sep 26 11:31:14 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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In a related note, I learned on "Larry King Live" that "Saturday Night Live" has a test audience at 8pm before they go "live" at 11:30pm Sun Sep 26 11:29:03 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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I'm pretty impressed that they repeat the service to the exact song, letter & prayer at 11am that they did at 8am. Sun Sep 26 11:28:38 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Isaiah 48:17 Lord, teach me to PROFIT and lead me in the way to go? Oh. My. God... SMH... Sun Sep 26 11:27:50 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Matthew 6:33 is about casting out poverty? Really, New Birth? SMH... Sun Sep 26 11:27:18 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<b>Back to Lies of Biblical Proportions, Act II, Service II</b><br />
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Girl, I'll NEVER forget the Voices of Inner Strength Tour! RT @BernadetteDavis: Um, drgoddess ... what story are you about to tell? Hmmm. Sun Sep 26 11:26:46 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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He told everyone, "say Monneeeeeyy! Moooneeeyy!" Snatch it! Grab it! And the congregation did it. I was like :-O !!! Sun Sep 26 11:25:15 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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The small church was just outside of ATL. The preacher told everyone to pray for money & had folks snatching it out of the air. Sun Sep 26 11:24:36 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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And it was on that tour that I learned, once and for all, the absolute horrors of prosperity gospels, in a small & mega church... Sun Sep 26 11:23:39 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Dear Twitter.. I've been in two gospel choirs (yes, me). One was in college. For Spring Break, we went on a tour... Sun Sep 26 11:23:11 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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!! RT @ndcollier: I heard & saw w/ my own ears & eyes a pastor who said if aren't tithing but wondering why you have cancer, check yourself. Sun Sep 26 11:22:41 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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I have to admit, I'm pretty glad I grew up in a church where the officials take a 'vow of poverty'. Not perfect but we were all broke. lol Sun Sep 26 11:21:54 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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I would put money on it that he was. So was R. Kelly... RT @elledub_1920: I also wonder if #eddielong was himself abused as a teen. Sun Sep 26 11:21:02 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@blogdiva @ashley_is @BasseyworldLive @ljoywilliams @carolynedgar You're right on time for 11am service. Click: http://bit.ly/cRi3td Sun Sep 26 11:20:40 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to blogdiva<br />
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RT @blunted215: If your church asks you for your W2, it's probably safe to say that "come as you are" isn't the official policy there. Sun Sep 26 11:18:27 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @ashley_is: @BasseyworldLive my pastor told us we needed 2 tithe AND give an offering AND contribute 2 the building fund, etc..outrageous Sun Sep 26 11:16:39 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes, Lawd... RT @ajc: New Birth's 11 a.m. service starting now. #BishopEddieLong Sun Sep 26 11:15:43 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<b>Personal Experience in the Pews of Prosperity</b><br />
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Those of you who ONLY protest against police brutality should know what #EddieLong knows: Judges are Elected. Sun Sep 26 10:15:56 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@mdrwhitener True but for the first time, I have alot of hope for midterm elections. #EddieLong will use ANY distraction. Victory is assured Sun Sep 26 10:14:16 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to mdrwhitener<br />
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RT @mdrwhitener: Dear Black Twitter ~ while we are watching Eddie Long, white twitter is somewhere telling Sarah Palin she'll win in 2012. Sun Sep 26 10:13:39 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LOL!! Yes, Lawd... RT @AndreaDMorgan: Like I said, Atlanta is a small town, there are lots of skeletons to unearth.*sips coffee* @aaw1976 Sun Sep 26 10:12:47 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Right! RT @GammasWorld: Okay I've read drgoddess & others but basically he still didn't say "hell naw I didn't do it" - correct? #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 10:11:43 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Excellent point @donlemoncnn #EddieLong loves the attention and could have made that short statement ANYTIME. SMH... Sun Sep 26 10:11:03 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Okay?!!! My soul is weeping for them. I hope they weren't watching but... SMH... RT @carolynedgar: Who's standing by those young men? Sun Sep 26 09:46:43 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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TEACH!!! RT @thefriendraiser: @sfreynolds yet the public is quick to say "he did it" when we see a gang member on the news... Sun Sep 26 09:45:59 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@sfreynolds So Saturn return is sort of like, you're gonna have to face your true self? What goes around comes around? Sun Sep 26 09:45:29 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to sfreynolds<br />
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@sfreynolds ...I wonder how many gay Black men, in particular, have been depressed, suicidal or otherwise distraught & confused cuz of him? Sun Sep 26 09:44:33 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to sfreynolds<br />
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@sfreynolds Oh see, Sam, not for me. He's guilty as sin for so MANY reasons. Improperly spending the money, the prosperity preaching... Sun Sep 26 09:43:27 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to sfreynolds<br />
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LMAO!!!! RT @emokidsloveme Umm, he threw microphone down and ran out like James Brown #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:42:15 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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*FLATLINES* D.N.R.!!! RT @mdrwhitener: When Eddie Long dropped the mic, did someone yell 'SEXUAL CHOCOLATE!'? Sun Sep 26 09:41:27 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO!!!! We are so wrong. And yet so right. RT @Kiratiana: I'm skipping my own church for Church with Bishop Eddie Long...this is a TRIP!!! Sun Sep 26 09:40:42 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Dear God, you know I don't ask for much; but please deliver this New Birth church into the light of truth. Cuz I'm SMH. Sun Sep 26 09:39:41 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@DarthJaeda New Birth is named *in the suit* because the men said the upper administration not only knew about it but set it all up..so, yes Sun Sep 26 09:38:39 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to DarthJaeda<br />
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RT @DarthJaeda: If he goes down, a lot of ppl in the corpo-er, church, are gonna have to answer some questions. This wasn't done in a vacuum Sun Sep 26 09:38:06 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes he DID!!! LMAO!! RT @dumilewis: @ndcollier that dude ran. he grabbed Vaness like he was running for first down and was out. Sun Sep 26 09:37:10 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Pls explain. RT @sfreynolds: ..technically, #EddieLong has no victims. He has accusers. This trial will be his Saturn Return. @SaturnSisters Sun Sep 26 09:36:30 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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THAT is what Cadillac Kim was talking about! LOL!!! RT @myexpresslane: I just said what the hell is on his head...*grabs glasses* Sun Sep 26 09:35:36 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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They did. RT @DarthJaeda: he can't possibly have had these relationships, using church funds, without SOMEBODY seeing the outgoing funds. Sun Sep 26 09:34:44 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>@ajc I am, however, the man lookin' TOO FIERCE in those pictures I sent. Yes, indeed... #BishopEddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:34:27 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to ajc<br />
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RT @ajc: "I have never in my life portrayed myself as a perfect man. But I am not the man who is being portrayed on the television." Sun Sep 26 09:33:35 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote> <br />
I can't WAIT to hear @caddykim 's reaction to this morning's sermon... #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:33:11 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO!!! Yes! RT @sfreynolds: "Our strength is not in man, but in the Lord." I think he's been listening to Cadillac Kim! #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:32:32 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Lemme tell y'all, #EddieLong just further enraged some of his victims. The lawyer's gonna get 30 MORE calls from diff men today. Sun Sep 26 09:32:04 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes, he is, girl! I know FoxTV is so damn mad! LMAO!!! RT @girly1121: #EddieLong is not trying to throw the election season into his mess!!! Sun Sep 26 09:31:03 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>"You're not here by coincidence...there's a purpose for your life" (Um, yeah, I came cuz of the controversy... LOL). #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:30:22 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote><blockquote>"And there's a period behind that. We stand by our pastor, period." (Now please make another donation). #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:29:44 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote> <br />
Those five rocks he ain't used? He's lettin' ERRYBODY know if he goes down, he's takin' the whole DL gospel community w/him! #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:28:49 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO!!! Why on Earth would he wear a lace front jheri curl?! What the hell???! RT @Rena_Morris: It's a lace front wig he's wearing Sun Sep 26 09:27:40 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO!!! RT @pointblank009: The only New Birth I listen to is the funk band from the 70's. For long it's "Time to Go." Sun Sep 26 09:26:42 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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THIS!!! You said it, Sis! RT @swannsong: We are witnessing the ultimate seduction. Salvation thru me ~~> #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:25:44 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>"I feel like David against Goliath but I'll tell you what...I've got five rocks & I haven't used one yet" (if I go down, we all is) #Long Sun Sep 26 09:24:28 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote> <br />
Please hear this...'cause I'm gonna need your continued blind faith to contribute to my lawyers' fees... #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:23:15 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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You're right... SMH... RT @esisogah: my money is on them not believing and evidence, no matter what it is Sun Sep 26 09:22:05 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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How on EARTH can people look at this man with this jheri curl in the 21st century and still take him seriously?! #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:20:22 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Well, of course, #EddieLong, ain't nobody say there wasn't power among the congregants. This ain't about THEM. Sun Sep 26 09:19:30 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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I know Barack Obama is mad as hell #EddieLong tried to use his good name as a distraction in his shenanigans. SMH. Sun Sep 26 09:18:48 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Or you can BUY it and try to settle this lawsuit with money so these boys will go away and stop hatin' on my polyandry... #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:16:09 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>"Deception, when one has been betrayed by those whom they loved" (that's a shout to the men to be silent)... #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:15:11 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote> <br />
AHAHAHAHA!!!! RT @DoktaDivah: I'm mad yall got me glued to my phone right now...let me go feed my children. Sun Sep 26 09:14:03 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Preach! His lies are just... SMH. RT @aaw1976: The sad thing is he still has not humbled himself. That bravado is gonna be the end of him. Sun Sep 26 09:13:52 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @fannielouwho: Life is definitely filled w/painful situations. When I got beaten in that jail until my legs went numb, that was painful. Sun Sep 26 09:13:12 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Don't mind me, the man behind the curtain, keep focusing on Oz! #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:11:23 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Of course you would use your Bible today, #EddieLong, you used it during the "sexual covenant" ceremony with the boys, too, right? Sun Sep 26 09:10:16 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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On a REAL serious note, this congregation is going to be SO hurt when they are faced with the evidence. SMH... cuz he's STILL lyin'... Sun Sep 26 09:09:15 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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MT @sfreynolds: Keywords 2 expect 2 hear in today's New Birth service: faithfulness, trust, authority, service, perseverance, steadfastness Sun Sep 26 09:08:29 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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By the way, I can speak openly to y'all but I'ma need to READ this next statement---from my lawyer. #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:07:43 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Dag, #EddieLong said he'll be in the pulpit next week. Alright, next week don't go cuz lightning is gonna strike... SMH. Sun Sep 26 09:06:55 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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I'm not so sure when it comes to you, that a "loving" congregation is the adjective I'd use but... Sun Sep 26 09:06:27 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>"Good Morning to all our OTHER guests"---Oh, like this is OUR fault, #EddieLong? SMH... Sun Sep 26 09:04:24 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote> <br />
Every hero needs a soundtrack. Every hero needs a live band. I learned that from "I'm Gonna Git You Sucka". SMH. #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 09:03:40 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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He's the Wizard</b><br />
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LMAO!!! RT @fannielouwho: I used to try to get my hair like that... it didn't quite work...I see it still doesn't... Sun Sep 26 09:02:54 2010 via TweetDeck <br />
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Anointed, my Sister. ANOINTED... LOL!!! RT @randomjeweler: drgoddess *is annoyed somehow* Sun Sep 26 09:01:38 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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What's wrong, #EddieLong, no flashy suit or tie today? SMH... Sun Sep 26 09:01:09 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Now y'all know $40,000 is a good down payment on #EddieLong's next Bentley... Sun Sep 26 09:00:27 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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It looks like there's about 8,000 people in this room. Now if each of y'all gave just $5, we'd be blessed with $40,000 #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 08:59:54 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @fannielouwho: Yes, I had to press my way through many-a-crowd, especially during the Democratic National Convention. SMH... Sun Sep 26 08:58:39 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LOL @fannielouwho RT @EbonyStarr55: OMG! When I looked up and saw that name I thought I would die laughing...whew...I can't with y'all! lol Sun Sep 26 08:58:21 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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AHAHAHAHAAHA!!!! Oh my, Oh my... RT @Inkognegro: Cancer...rooted in bitterness? Bone Disease rooted in envy? gotta be a metaphor. Sun Sep 26 08:55:25 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @Dawnavette: So clearly all of ATL had the same idea as moi. We're STiLL waiting in a stand-still line & cars. Keep. Coming. Sun Sep 26 08:55:03 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@EbonyStarr55 AHAHAHAHAHA!!! I knew you would love that, Eb! LOL! Sun Sep 26 08:54:40 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to EbonyStarr55<br />
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Y'all done upset the spirit of Fannie Lou Hamer. She's live tweeting, too! #FF @fannielouwho LOL! #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 08:53:15 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO! Thanks! RT @DoktaDivah: @TheCubicleChick Yep! Follow @drgoddess and you won't need it, tho. I'm on my phone and totally up to speed. Sun Sep 26 08:52:22 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @kismet4: woke up 2 find @drgoddess & @jelani9 live tweeting New Birth's service (ATL) #EddieLong #troubleinmind #wadeinthewaterofscandal Sun Sep 26 08:51:59 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LOL! Followup on those health prayers RT @DryerBuzz: somebody might need to explain the baptist format and why everybody running down front Sun Sep 26 08:51:23 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @fannielouwho: I used to lead people into singing like this, so I can relate... Bless their hearts, music does soothe the savage beast... Sun Sep 26 08:50:41 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @fannielouwho: All I'm gonna say is I hope y'all are this excited about MY resurrection... albeit as a statue but still... #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 08:49:59 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @fannielouwho: This is a trip. See, I worked as a sharecropper so I don't know what riches other than one's character God requires... Sun Sep 26 08:49:35 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LMAO!!! RT @fannielouwho: What? That wasn't enough for y'all?... Sun Sep 26 08:45:52 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @fannielouwho: I didn't get this kind of turnout when I was trying to recruit y'all to vote and I was singing "This Little Light of Mine" Sun Sep 26 08:44:58 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @fannielouwho: Well, Good Morning... Now, see, I am sick and tired of this nonsense right here this mornin'... I can sing gospel, TOO nah Sun Sep 26 08:44:36 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"It comes in the silence of those who have stood up to testify against our King... it comes in denial..." <-- that's me... Sun Sep 26 08:43:28 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Dear Twitter, aren't y'all glad we dissected Rev. Bernice King's prosperity preaching shenanigans earlier this week? LOL. SMH. Sun Sep 26 08:43:06 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Um RT @taghive:the hot new tag #eddielong is most tweeted by @drgoddess, followed by @PinkCottonCEO and @CottonfieldUSA http://bit.ly/awJgqB Sun Sep 26 08:42:35 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Not really, Bernice. Y'all have 25,000 members. Even $1 each is $25,000 to South Africa. It's not hard, really. SMH... Sun Sep 26 08:42:06 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<blockquote>"Know that you never come before a King without a gift and we're in the presence of a King of Kings" Who? #EddieLong or Jesus? SMH Sun Sep 26 08:41:28 2010 via TweetDeck</blockquote> <br />
Oh Lawd... here comes Bernice... to take up the offering??? I can't... I just can't... Sun Sep 26 08:41:03 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<b>King's Things</b><br />
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LMAO!!! RT @DryerBuzz: @drgoddess for today's twitter commentary - follow @drgoddess - please have your co-pay ready if you crack a rib Sun Sep 26 08:40:07 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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My Lawd, they done flew Ms. Agnes in from South Africa. How they gon' use this old lady as a prime distraction. Shame on you! Sun Sep 26 08:39:49 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Well, we know #EddieLong has a powerful prayer. He said it during the "commitment ceremony" before sex with those young men. Sun Sep 26 08:38:57 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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So in other words, when we were in South Africa, we were treating AIDs, not sleeping w/each other on the DL... SMH. Sun Sep 26 08:36:13 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@EbonyStarr55 Good Morning, Honey Buns! Oh Lawd, they're putting up South Africa & HIV. Won't @luvvieig be proud! #YesLawd #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 08:35:44 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to EbonyStarr55<br />
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<b>Sarafina!</b><br />
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Yup RT @jelani9: Sanctuary here is full,ppl on their feet in praise. Have a real sense that it won't matter what Long says today. #rideordie Sun Sep 26 08:34:51 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@tayari My feed is still up. You back up and running? Sun Sep 26 08:33:57 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to tayari<br />
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I know New Birth was named in the lawsuit but it's sad #EddieLong has them thinking they're all wrapped up in the charges LIKE HIM. Sun Sep 26 08:33:17 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<b>What's the Matter, Massa? WE sick?</b><br />
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I am so mad at @CNN for having a "picture in picture" of New Birth in the corner. LOL!!! Sun Sep 26 08:31:48 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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! RT @TB_BT: I see they are telling the guys at the altar to head back to their seats in the event not all are friends & something pops off Sun Sep 26 08:31:27 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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So far, the prayers have been for #EddieLong, his family, his conquering and financial blessings & health of the congregation. SMH. Sun Sep 26 08:30:53 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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I'm not even gonna say anything about these health chants. No I am not. No, I am not... SMH... Sun Sep 26 08:28:48 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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LOL! RT @swannsong: I'm trying to figure out what's wrong with the caterpillar. What did the caterpillar ever do to the New Birthers? Sun Sep 26 08:28:18 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @Dawnavette: There was mad traffic on 285, and now the line to head into the church grounds is at a stand still. Stretches.. to Wal-Mart. Sun Sep 26 08:27:40 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"Lord, bring me into a wealthy place...he also brought them out with silver & gold" Good Lord, New Birth! Sun Sep 26 08:26:16 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"Make me rich. I am blessed going in and I am blessed going out... Jesus, you became poor...so that I might be made rich". LAWD!!!!! Sun Sep 26 08:25:13 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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"Lord, teach me to profit and lead me in the way I should go..." OMG... Blasphemy, Blasphemy, Blasphemy! Sun Sep 26 08:24:42 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Not yet... OMG, they are breaking the curses against all finances, poverty & blessings. SMH. RT @tayari: my feed just went black.. yours? Sun Sep 26 08:24:18 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@JMH7694 Good Morning, no, I did not! Please let me know... Sun Sep 26 08:23:31 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to JMH7694<br />
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This is so sad. You just gon' pray for #EddieLong and no mention for anybody else in the church all hurt & confused? SMH... Sun Sep 26 08:22:57 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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A Powerful Prayer… for Prosperity</b><br />
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I'm sorry but some of us ARE here to "spectate". It's not OUR faults! Sun Sep 26 08:21:46 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Follow #EddieLong and it'll give you all you need. LOL! RT @BlackGod917: please fill me in. I've been under a rock Sun Sep 26 08:19:12 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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RT @jelani9: New Birth also has the uncommon status of having more male than female members. In Atlanta that's saying something. Sun Sep 26 08:18:49 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Sooo much. And it's not just that. How many died? RT @Brandale2221: My concern is the $$$... how much of the Church's tithes did he spend? Sun Sep 26 08:18:31 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Good Morning! To catch up on New Birth, watch here: http://bit.ly/cRi3td , read @jelani9 & @Dawnavette #YesLawd #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 08:15:53 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes, New Birth, God does comfort and does defend...are y'all singing for those young men that your pastor seduced? SMH... Sun Sep 26 08:14:43 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Me too. They SANGIN', ain't they? RT @tayari: I am watching it live. Sun Sep 26 08:13:50 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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You know, I am so very thankful for #EddieLong's shenanigans; because what they're singing right now shows you the games he plays... SMH... Sun Sep 26 08:13:27 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yep! RT @Mamita1123: Commitment and issues...O_o All this getting folk out of their minds with music so whatever he says is cool? #NoBueno Sun Sep 26 08:12:32 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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That's deep... RT @TB_BT: It's interesting how the sea of men is standing at the front of the altar in an attempt to protect it I suppose. Sun Sep 26 08:11:57 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes Sir! RT @jelani9 just pulled up on the campus of New Birth. Maybe a hundred folk are already here, prayer groups outside the sanctuary. Sun Sep 26 08:11:30 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<b>Jesus Be a Fence Around Me </b><br />
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Wait. They are singing way too hard for #EddieLong to be guilty of sexual coercion. No WAY he could do this. Sun Sep 26 08:11:14 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Dear New Birth, nobody's mad at the majority of you. We know y'all ain't do it. But your pastor and those senior "servers" did. #EddieLong Sun Sep 26 08:10:04 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@Mamita1123 @TB_BT How are they singing this hard at 8:00am? Lawd, they got COMMITMENT at New Birth, let me tell you! Sun Sep 26 08:09:30 2010 via TweetDeck in reply to Mamita1123<br />
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LOL!! RT @Mamita1123: Is that Sunday service or a concert? RT Thank you! RT @TB_BT: Here's the feed I'm watching: http://bit.ly/cRi3td Sun Sep 26 08:08:57 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Why didn't y'all tell me #EddieLong produced Christian Hip Hop CDs? Well, that's it, he *couldn't* have done this! No. WAY! Sun Sep 26 08:06:48 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<b>The Kwah (Choir)</b><br />
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Thank you! RT @TB_BT: Here's the feed I'm watching: http://bit.ly/cRi3td Sun Sep 26 08:05:18 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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Yes, indeed! We put him on the job, 2. I told Jelani he had to take one 4 the team! RT @tayari: also @jelani9 is live tweeting from inside. Sun Sep 26 08:04:38 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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CNN's covering it right now but I know Fox TV is covering it too. I prefer CNN... RT @Truely_Tuli: what channel does he come on ???? Sun Sep 26 08:03:45 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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<b>Get Tuned In and Turned On</b><br />
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The Good Lawd is calling you to New Birth, that's why... RT @marcpolite: Why am I up so early? Sun Sep 26 08:00:57 2010 via TweetDeck<br />
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@Orcaspapa So, if we don't have time to make fun of people, we had better MAKE time to do so. It doesn't have to be "your own" per se... 8:00 AM Sep 26th via TweetDeck in reply to Orcaspapa<br />
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@Orcaspapa Believe it or not, comedy is extremely important and what happens on SNL actually shapes public policy and can "un-elect" ppl... 8:00 AM Sep 26th via TweetDeck in reply to Orcaspapa<br />
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MT @Orcaspapa: Perhaps, Intelligent black w have better things to do then make fun of their gender & race on TV for a stupid lowlife public. 7:59 AM Sep 26th via TweetDeck<br />
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Yay AJC! RT @ajc: Parishioners are already filing into New Birth to hear Bishop Eddie Long's first comments since allegations. AJC is there. 7:58 AM Sep 26th via TweetDeck<br />
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Good Morning, Twitter. You've got three minutes to tune in and getchu some New Birth. Let's get it... lol! #EddieLong 7:57 AM Sep 26th via TweetDeck<br />
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<b>It's Sunday Mo(u)rning</b> <br />
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Start Reading Here, Scroll Up to read the Twitter feed in proper, chronological order. The chapter headings are to keep the order of the church (or for your amusement, whichever fits). <br />
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As always, I believe in and prefer primary sources, so don't rely on my shenanigans, read the transcript or watch Eddie Long's non-denial yourself:<br />
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For the New Birth congregation, all I can do is pray that you have discernment. Your pastor looks and feels guilty as sin and you know in your hearts you really do not need a court case (that will never happen, Eddie Long <i><b>is</b></i> going to settle this and claim to have done it to save the church) to consider that these young men are telling the truth about having been preyed upon and manipulated.<br />
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It doesn't matter how many<a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2010/09/long-odds/63583/"> people you kick out of church, even if they're not journalists,</a> nor does it matter how many <a href="http://www.11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=156054&catid=3">private investigators Eddie Long hires</a> to try to smear his adolescent and young adult accusers, nor does it matter <a href="http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/dpp/news/local_news/Pastors-to-Pray-with-Eddie-Long-20100928-am-sd">how many pastors gather in the sanctuary to pray</a> over the potential loss of their bling, spring flings or young dings, it is the meek that shall inherit the Earth and it will be New Birth's parishioners who will be paying the legal fees and settlements for Eddie Long, on behalf of the young men he helped and hurt. Like this one:<br />
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New Birth <i><b>can</b></i> have a bright future. It will be kind of painful to get there, however, so prepare for the "Afterbirth":<br />
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Sorry about that. But removing Eddie Long from your loins is one of the best things you can do for your church.<br />
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Amen! Praise the Law(d)! Yes, Indeed!<br />
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Jesus Be a Liberation Theology. Part One...More to Come...<br />
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To follow our continued conversations on Twitter, use the hashtag: #EddieLongDr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-61036681243502126232010-09-13T12:01:00.000-07:002010-09-13T13:02:49.523-07:00It's Too Late to Apologize: Kanye West, Taylor Swift and the Music Industry Hypocrisy of MTV's VMAs<b>MTV's Video Music Awards</b> used to be a thing of legend. I can still recall those commercials that encouraged us to call our cable companies and say, <b>"I Want My MTV!"</b> I remember how a little Black girl could watch MTV and not see any videos by Black folks on them, as well as the glee she felt when her idol, Michael Jackson, tip-toed on lighted floor squares, testifying that he was <i><b>not</b></i> the lover of Billie Jean or the father of her son. She can remember the mixed feelings of excitement when <b>"Yo! MTV Raps"</b> came on board, as well as the array of music, fashion, great performances and some antics that occurred annually at the VMAs.<br />
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She also vividly remembers <b>Madonna</b> writhing on the floor while gyrating in a wedding gown to the shock and awe of television watchers back home. She doth also remember the beckoning of bad behavior, rudeness, disses, flaming of beef between rockers and rappers and fights that spilled over from the VMAs into other awards shows but always, always at its height at the VMAs. She remembers rockers climbing on the set, causing danger for everybody and, as the years have gone by, how audiences grew a palate for even greater shenanigans. So much so, that there are now countdown shows on MTV and VH-1 that rank the stunts music artists have engaged in over the years, including having a grown man put his genitalia in the face of another grown man who never welcomed such antics? <b>Or did you think we were going to forget that, MTV?</b><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5sW1TXlEZ2idZbS2ZkeNLu4dyCvSpwPXxDZePanVu6akH_HIjYYUrcdpiuZUnwTGlTvsGiuGKW8NBkxYQ308t5ARrC3YP6S34rktcY_SJ_qS8HtOcwfxWWJbCCVdor9s0GIOmvF14CKbQ/s1600/EminemSaschaBaronCohenBruno.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5sW1TXlEZ2idZbS2ZkeNLu4dyCvSpwPXxDZePanVu6akH_HIjYYUrcdpiuZUnwTGlTvsGiuGKW8NBkxYQ308t5ARrC3YP6S34rktcY_SJ_qS8HtOcwfxWWJbCCVdor9s0GIOmvF14CKbQ/s320/EminemSaschaBaronCohenBruno.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>FYI, <b>Eminem</b> did <i><b>not</b></i> stage this entire affair. He had agreed to have <b>Sascha Baron Cohen</b> fly in next to him (and perhaps land in the aisle). Eminem was so angry by the manner in which he was tricked and violated that he purportedly got into a fight backstage with <b>"Bruno"</b>, immediately left the Awards show, retrained his bodyguards and, as we saw for this year, he came, he performed, he picked up his award---and he bounced. I wonder if he ever received an apology?<br />
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Whelp. Things have changed...but not really.<br />
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Once upon a time, as in last year, 2009, the phenomenon of <b>Beyonce's "Single Ladies"</b> video (and it was, indeed, a phenomenon, not the least of which can be attributed to the uber-fabulousness of choreographer <b>Bob Fosse</b> and all of us who learned to keep our index fingers and thumbs poised 'just so', as it can be to the star quality of Bey and her dance leotards)---took the world by storm.<br />
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Simultaneously, a young teenage girl from Tennessee named <b>Taylor Swift</b> had taken the country world by storm by sitting in her room, embracing her own thoughts, writing out her own lyrics, playing her own guitar and being a rather sweet personality, in general. No, she would not be the best singer; but in a country so disappointed by the downfall of Britney Spears, the maturing of <b>Cristina Aguilera </b>(including marriage and child), as well as the increasingly disturbing sexualization of <b>Miley Cyrus aka Hannah Montana</b>, it would stand to reason that this, Ms. Swift, would be given a chance to shine. Thus, she was easily embraced by millions of tweens and parents, alike to the tune of mega record sales and dedicated fans. <br />
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Taylor is a country girl and between she and <b>Carrie Underwood</b>, White Americans were going to make sure their children, at least, would have some good, musical role models that wouldn't inspire teenage pregnancy or upcoming appearances on <b>"Girls Gone Wild"</b>, Volume One Million and counting... When it came time for Taylor to win an award for Best Video by a female artist, up against the likes of Beyonce and <b>Lady Gaga</b>, it did seem unlikely that she might win; but the night was young and Beyonce was due the biggest award of the evening, actually. Besides, Taylor Swift's "You Belong to Me" was a top hit:<br />
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Begging an oblivious, teen boy to recognize your worth is filled with the predictable, low self-esteem produced by being a girl in a patriarchal, misogyynist culture, so of course these girls could relate to Taylor's narrative and sent her into stardom (even <b><i>before</i></b> she went on "Oprah", so you know...)<br />
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Enter <b>Kanye West.</b> Now, I have never been much of a Kanye West fan, not because I don't recognize he is talented but because I grew up with many talented people and I have known early on that you must use (not abuse) your talent. Further, there is a greater responsibility to being a Black artist in America and the world precisely because we are NOT post-racial, in the least. What you sing about, how you perform, the movies you appear in and promote, all of it matters and, while you should not be burdened by it, you do have some responsibility to your audience, to your community and, ultimately, to yourself.<br />
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I was pretty excited when I found out a preppy artist was coming to the fore to not only relieve <b>Jay-Z's</b> guilt for promoting a good portion of nonsense and misogyny but also because the image of a preppy rapper was long overdue for a comeback, as we were missing the balance that artists such as <b>De La Soul, DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince and even Young MC</b> provided with their happy-go-lucky, intelligent spirits. It was the perfect opportunity to bring some human balance to all that thuggery masquerading as manhood on the music scene.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyjw1nSmphmoo8kvJFgfOWgHl80Z7iPV6UpxyTgFO1GbywUS3XZuHZJpv3SFw0iYR0t-W2Zf2FIJLs9FpT7LtMdGRNTrlA-xZ1O0q2v065eN5wfncRf2Rxd4OJnoBtO9Y4qETbc-cigF-y/s1600/KanyeCollegeDropoutMixtape.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyjw1nSmphmoo8kvJFgfOWgHl80Z7iPV6UpxyTgFO1GbywUS3XZuHZJpv3SFw0iYR0t-W2Zf2FIJLs9FpT7LtMdGRNTrlA-xZ1O0q2v065eN5wfncRf2Rxd4OJnoBtO9Y4qETbc-cigF-y/s320/KanyeCollegeDropoutMixtape.JPG" /></a></div><br />
But when Kanye West---who was raised in a middle class environment, whose own mother had a Ph.D. and taught English at Chicago State University (also home to one of the best literary celebrations in the country, the <b><a href="http://www.csu.edu/gwendolynbrooks/">Gwendolyn Brooks Writers Conference</a></b>)---chose to name his debut CD, <b>"College Dropout"</b>, I was pretty much through with him right then and I denounced him as being an extremely irresponsible artist, not to mention intellectually dishonest. Yes, it is true that Kanye West dropped out of college to pursue his music career; but imagine being even informally home-schooled by a Doctor of Philosophy in English. There was simply no excuse for his messaging, especially in light of Soulja Boy telling students to <a href="http://www.urbanlyrics.com/lyrics/souljaboy/justgotmyreportcard.html">"throw some D's" on their report cards</a>. Now, I am not blaming Hip Hop for the system of white supremacy or the continued existence of structural inequality in the education system. I would simply like for these artists to stop creating its soundtrack.<br />
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So, I don't even bothering offering an excuse as to why Kanye thought it would be even remotely acceptable to come onstage and snatch the mic from a 17 year old, impressionable girl (her race is irrelevant in this particular context) and ruin her first-ever acceptance speech for an award, after she worked so hard in her bedroom, writing down her ideas, nervously signing a deal that allowed her to project her own voice into the world, selling tons of records, touring the country with her Mother and maintaining a high degree of professionalism the entire time. Yes, Taylor Swift was a star long before he snatched her mic. What Kanye did was a disgrace; and I heard Taylor's mother was backstage ready to put her entire foot up his rectum. I would have been too, had that been my child.<br />
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But let's be honest. Kanye had been acting up and being immature for years (in fact, at 17 years old, Taylor was more mature and poised than he) and although myself and many others found him annoying, his previous antics were par for the course at award shows and other events involving his narcissistic peers. So, actually, I should not have written that his behavior would not be "even remotely acceptable" because, indeed, it was encouraged. Bad television behavior is ratings heaven and commercial success. Notice that, even this year, <b>Chelsea Handler</b> begged for unacceptable antics and appalling rudeness. Again, it is par for the course and welcomed <b><i>in this context.</i></b> The difference is that Kanye chose the wrong time and the wrong person in the wrong country. <br />
<br />
On one hand, Kanye deserved every piece of ridicule and shunning he received following his rude behavior towards Taylor Swift at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. And once he sobered up, even he realized the extent of his folly. But I also believe that the punishment should fit the crime and after being shunned, after being relentlessly clowned, after having to stay away from awards shows, losing bookings and suffering financially, emotionally and professionally, in addition to offering a sincere apology to Taylor Swift (which he did, actually, and she told everyone she had accepted it), then I feel the punishment has fit the crime and enough is enough, already.<br />
<br />
But this is where pop culture, the hypocrisy of the music industry and, well, the politics of race in America come into play. It is as though the music industry is suddenly appalled at outlandish behavior when they encourage it. It is as though the music industry has not ever witnessed downright rude or disgusting behavior and has not ever allowed for an artist to redeem him/herself. There are so many instances of generally unacceptable behavior at these awards shows, it makes what Kanye did pretty lightweight in comparison. <br />
<br />
But the fact is, Kanye was an uppity negro, an obnoxious Black man, who took something from a young, White girl with long, blond hair and ocean blue eyes. The racial offense has become much more than the actual offense and this is where I step in and call a major foul and an American epic failure. Further, my heart broke when President Obama (admittedly overheard, off camera on a hot mic) called Kanye a "jackass". Yes, his behavior embodied one but to get that type of chastisement from the Leader of the Free World was a bit much, as far as I am concerned. And that is not the same as defending Kanye for his antics.<br />
<br />
Kanye acknowledged his folly immediately after the show on "The Tonight Show with <b>Jay Leno"</b> (of all people):<br />
<br />
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<br />
Kanye was on Twitter just before the VMAs, apologizing to Taylor Swift as though he had never apologized to her before:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9AD4NQL4Wz1arWoqVB0lRv6UvBBUXop6ZvIJ1uuFnfCjYyTB8ca06d7dKURusIjq4AyhvJaPsr_6_TB0GX-rl6_ctg2r-76DSzGJSO4aG49oVrnFRp4Uqrbgj-WyxIjIQvND1CLjGQ4qs/s1600/KanyeSorryTaylor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9AD4NQL4Wz1arWoqVB0lRv6UvBBUXop6ZvIJ1uuFnfCjYyTB8ca06d7dKURusIjq4AyhvJaPsr_6_TB0GX-rl6_ctg2r-76DSzGJSO4aG49oVrnFRp4Uqrbgj-WyxIjIQvND1CLjGQ4qs/s320/KanyeSorryTaylor.jpg" /></a></div><br />
And I saw Taylor Swift repeatedly say she accepted Kanye's apology on various talk shows throughout the year, so imagine my surprise when I saw her appear onstage at the VMAs replaying the Kanye scene as though she were still being victimized by the interruption. Need I remind everyone that this was not the end of her story and that she was allowed to come back on and say her full acceptance speech, this time with even greater, thunderous applause (and rightly so), thanks to Beyonce allowing her to have that moment? Do you not find it interesting that the pop culture historians seem to gloss over that moment as though it did not happen? Whelp, you won't get away with it as long as I'm around. Some of us are not Revisionist Historians. And perhaps it does not matter at this point but did Taylor ever thank Beyonce for that? It was not Bey's fault that it happened and Bey was not under any obligation to give up her time. But I digress...<br />
<br />
In some ways, I think Taylor was trying to tell Kanye that "it was okay" if I heard these lyrics correctly:<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><blockquote><b><i><span class="status-body"><span class="status-content"><span class="entry-content">Who you are is not what you did</span></span></span></i></b> </blockquote><blockquote><b><i><span class="status-body"><span class="status-content"><span class="entry-content">You're still an innocent...</span></span></span></i></b></blockquote></div>That sounds nice; and I am hoping that Kanye fans are aware that one can be disappointed in how he is being treated now without bashing Taylor Swift. Unlike so many other artists, she's actually not an untalented hack.<br />
<br />
But in my mind, we all know how this is done. They do a duet together. They come out holding hands to present an award and make light of the situation. They do a funny skit together somewhere in the middle of the awards show---or at the beginning---or at the end. One way or another, they both demonstrate some type of musical industry love fest to bring fans back to the counter, buying their music and keeping hope alive.<br />
<br />
Alas, it was not to be, which only further incensed me and led me to applaud <b>Kathy Griffin's</b> tweet:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwFHUhzodrFpGeKdXXVZpD_6gQgeYsbAZDIJI_ZqMkB5W2c9HGG-QE9s768IOQmO-BSh8qDoWijoytt7LnNqz0FqPd3zokUExfmpH2Ouc91sFW5jD3EzoBvydSU7lthTu8qL21gxYUDd3j/s1600/KathyGriffinTaylorKanye.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwFHUhzodrFpGeKdXXVZpD_6gQgeYsbAZDIJI_ZqMkB5W2c9HGG-QE9s768IOQmO-BSh8qDoWijoytt7LnNqz0FqPd3zokUExfmpH2Ouc91sFW5jD3EzoBvydSU7lthTu8qL21gxYUDd3j/s320/KathyGriffinTaylorKanye.jpg" /></a></div><br />
"He didn't rape her". Precisely, Kathy Griffin, precisely...<br />
<br />
But in a system of white supremacy, I guess he did. Kathy's message should be directed to the hypocritical music industry and MTV's VMAs, though, not Taylor.<br />
<br />
Which leads me to Chelsea's mishandling of the VMAs and her reenactment of "Birth of a Nation". Stay tuned...<br />
<br />
In the meantime, I guess I'm glad Kanye was able to perform his tribute to "douchebags and a**holes" and the like because he certainly has been one but when it comes to the case of "The Music Industry and Taylor Swift vs. Kanye West", he was tried, convicted, punished and it is past time to bring that case to a close.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Thanks to the Twitter family for the engaging convo. To follow much of our conversation, check out the hashtag: #vmas<br />
<br />
</div><script src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js" type="text/javascript">
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdrgoddess.blogspot.com&layout=standard&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&font=arial&colorscheme=light&height=80" style="border: medium none; height: 80px; overflow: hidden; width: 450px;"></iframe>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-41877541523911019042010-09-06T14:39:00.000-07:002010-09-13T12:22:52.910-07:00My Mic Sounds Nice: So Why Am I Scene, (But) Not Heard?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><embed allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" base="." flashvars="configParams=ord%3D815563708636162000%26tile%3D2%26reportDartNValue%3Dmymicsoundsniceitsadigitalworld083110%26reportDartSubValue%3Dvideohub%26reportDartZone%3Dvideo%26reportPropSubSection%3Dmy_mic_sounds_nice%26reportPropSeason%3D_season_1_exclusives%26reportPropPageName%3Dmy_mic_sounds_nice__its_a_digital_world__083110" height="319" src="http://media.mtvnservices.com/mgid:media:video:bet.com:1306161" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="512"></embed><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0AqcPXYw-H-1pSrPI-tt5_jC7rC1k1ccmUfObvmAwJLiJLWAa8VHxepSzubYjztCziRCPigLgGJRY00N-FKXYJ-2QxTr1nOxavWHaQv7m3t24Mw1yNRHpT_37rAL3HMQ7bLXRfH_lI9QQ/s1600/JeanGrae2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0AqcPXYw-H-1pSrPI-tt5_jC7rC1k1ccmUfObvmAwJLiJLWAa8VHxepSzubYjztCziRCPigLgGJRY00N-FKXYJ-2QxTr1nOxavWHaQv7m3t24Mw1yNRHpT_37rAL3HMQ7bLXRfH_lI9QQ/s320/JeanGrae2.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; margin: 0pt; text-align: center; width: 500px;"><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bet.com/video/1306161" style="color: #439cd8;" target="_blank">BET Videos</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>"It's almost chivalry...but not really" --- Jean Grae</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>"Whew, I know the pressure, Sista, I do..." --- Roxanne Shante </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Initially, I only caught the tail end of BET's premiere of <b><a href="http://www.bet.com/OnTV/BETShows/mymicsoundsnice/default.htm">"My Mic Sounds Nice: A Truth About Women in Hip Hop"</a></b>. I thought it was very good and the visual array of "Femcees" (Female MC's) whom have blessed my life made me feel good about the foundation of artistry that encapsulated my dome as a girl and young woman. And speaking of foundation...<br />
<br />
Dancing was my artistic foundation. I am, as the saying goes, "Once a dancer, always a dancer." This is fact. So, I missed the premiere because I was totally focused upon LaToya winning the <a href="http://dyao.oxygen.com/">Oxygen Channel's "Dance Your A__ Off"</a> in the finale (she did!!!). As a dancer who's gained weight over the years and is trying to lose it, you understand how this show caught my attention, yes? Alright, don't judge me and let us continue...more on LaToya later...<br />
<br />
But thanks to the DVR, I watched "My Mic Sounds Nice" in peace a few days later. Time for self-reflection...<br />
<br />
My stage name-now company name-now nearly replacing my birth name, Dr. Goddess, is undoubtedly inspired by the Femcees who blessed my life. I grew up listening to Miss Harmony, Queen Latifah, Monie Love, MC Lyte, Salt N Pepa, Bahamadia, JJ Fad, Roxanne Shante, B Angie B and many more. So, when it came time for me to find a stage name for myself as a Spoken Word poet, I easily adopted that which had already been suggested to me upon graduating with my doctorate---Dr. Goddess. It's hilarious, on so many different levels and for so many reasons.<br />
<br />
In "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oS2ER0izDCQ">Dr. Goddess!: A One Woman Show"</a>, however, I have two female Hip Hop artists---DJ Special K and MC Daisy B---who remain crowd favorites whenever I perform them and my trailer opens with "<i>Gimme the Mic and I'll change the world, change the world, change the world.</i>" So, you know, the Women in Hip Hop mean alot to me.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN_e234CMo70HGYlTcveZxqMQVxyicz32sbO3QFnUrVDVIdq0R3G7cxsEy7TN3oihjdDcZS4tlfWPimoYBGLpXUTZDabyCl4NSfoZebDTvObhab1KID1XzNvN3jY0zzJWMrNqaW1OIfLs4/s1600/DJSpecialK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN_e234CMo70HGYlTcveZxqMQVxyicz32sbO3QFnUrVDVIdq0R3G7cxsEy7TN3oihjdDcZS4tlfWPimoYBGLpXUTZDabyCl4NSfoZebDTvObhab1KID1XzNvN3jY0zzJWMrNqaW1OIfLs4/s320/DJSpecialK.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Naturally, I was destined to love<b> "My Mic Sounds Nice"</b> and it took me back to the varied Hip Hop influences upon my life. I had so many beautiful and interesting mirrors in which to look and feel good about myself. I was built like Queen Latifah, looked a bit more like Roxanne Shante, danced my butt off like Salt N Pepa (and, to this day, blame them for how long it took to grow my hair out after my asymmetrical do) and, a bit later, was as crazy as Missy Elliott while thinking like Lauryn Hill. And I tried to replicate <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-m8fllPfl6A">Big Lez's dance number during the opening to "Living Single"</a> like she was about to hold auditions for peeps to join her. Oh Ladies, you have given me so much! Thank you!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-m8fllPfl6A?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-m8fllPfl6A?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></div>I feel so sorry for any girl growing up today who didn't have the exposure to the variety of Femcees that I had. It was even revealed in the documentary that the category for "Best Female Rapper" was taken out of the Grammy nominations from 2005 - 2010 because there weren't enough contenders for the category. Now, that's absolutely disgusting. Just imagine if we found out that a company had to stop making guitars because there were no more Princes coming along. That's how I feel about this disgusting array of misogyny and apathy.<br />
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This is why MC Lyte's poignant observation that it's hard to imagine the space for a female MC when the misogyny in Hip Hop has cultivated a palate antithetical to and relatively unwelcoming to a female voice in the public sphere. (Shoutout to Gwendolyn Pough's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Check-While-Wreck-Womanhood-Hip-Hop/dp/1555536085/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1283795363&sr=8-1">Check It While I Wreck It: Black Womanhood, Hip Hop Culture, and the Public Sphere</a>).<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7EKaKeGHOwVx_jcP64iRGczfGj2_viOIM9tYE9TlpAf0lQKF3yk0P4whQHzTm-sz6t7j4_w6kKzyBPDwm-wetCA33Yim2xSBRdCGRRZpCUeKqvZ6oVOIW_jOkDIRnx2VkCNIlRuTEuNKE/s1600/CheckItWhileIWreckIt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7EKaKeGHOwVx_jcP64iRGczfGj2_viOIM9tYE9TlpAf0lQKF3yk0P4whQHzTm-sz6t7j4_w6kKzyBPDwm-wetCA33Yim2xSBRdCGRRZpCUeKqvZ6oVOIW_jOkDIRnx2VkCNIlRuTEuNKE/s320/CheckItWhileIWreckIt.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>But I do have beef with some of the ideas espoused in the documentary (surprise):<br />
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<b>Smokey Fontaine</b> - Lauryn Hill's disappearance is not tragic. She gave us "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" and we can hit "replay" anytime we want. If anything is tragic, it's the music industry. Focus on that the next time you'd rather lay blame on Lauryn's person or any of her circumstances.<br />
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<b>Trina</b> - Lauryn Hill and Missy Elliott prove that men can and do listen to women with clothes on. Define, don't be defined.<br />
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<b>Ladies</b> - Don't be fooled by the notion that you need "so much more than the men do". Umm, NO. Just because you need hair and makeup, don't let these cheap industry execs try to cost-effect your voice into silence. Men get dressed, too. They get designer jeans, shirts, shoes, haircuts, hats and weigh themselves down with bling. Men also need greater security and higher insurance costs cuz they're always taking their beef off-wax and they inspire violence. Add up the lawsuits, the funeral costs, the bail money, the list goes on... Please, please don't let these people fool you into thinking YOU are more expensive to manage. No, you are cheaper. Period.<br />
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Overall, what I most appreciated about the documentary was hearing the sisters' voices. It was just so refreshing, so wonderful and so many of them are brilliant, even if lacking in a bit of self-awareness and empowerment (Trina). The editing of the documentary was a bit questionable, at times, but I'm so appreciative, I won't focus upon its imperfections. Just getting a documentary such as this on BET is a feat in and of itself, so let us all bow our heads and say, "Amen"...or "Awomen" as the case <strike>should</strike> may be...<br />
<br />
As usual, <b>all glorious moments occur on Twitter these days</b> and we all started tweeting femcees who tweet. It was so beautiful seeing Monie Love (@mobrocka) tweet her memories of performing and building, it felt good to see Bahamadia (@Bahamadia) getting the love she's always deserved and watching young femcees like Mia X (@TheRealMiaX) and Invincible (@InvincibleDET) appreciate the foundation Queen Latifah (@IAmQueenLatifah) built for them and seeing the tweets of appreciation to Rah Digga (@TheRealRahDigga), Tiye Phoenix (@TiyePhoenix), MC Lyte (@McLyte) and Jean Grae (@JeanGreasy). I made sure to give a special shoutout to Glennisha Morgan, who keeps "The Fembassy" (@thefembassy) alive. It's a beautiful thing and when we do Twitter well, we do it best.<br />
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<b>More Femcees are coming at the bottom of this post. </b><br />
<br />
And a few good tweets:<br />
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<a class="tweet-url username" href="http://twitter.com/aisha1908" rel="nofollow">RT aisha1908</a>: Bahamadia + Precious P + Heather B + Rah Digga + Paula Perry + Nicki D <a class="tweet-url hashtag" href="http://twitter.com/search?q=%23femcees" rel="nofollow" title="#femcees">#femcees</a> ♫ <a class="tweet-url web" href="http://blip.fm/%7Evt5g4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://blip.fm/~vt5g4</a><br />
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Plus, we hashtagged it on Twitter, so check us at: <b>#mymicsoundsnice</b><br />
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Now, despite the fact that I teach aspects of Hip Hop music and culture in the classroom or in workshops, I was saddened by how much I did NOT know about these women and their stories. It's truly a travesty. Every last one of them deserves an epic film showcasing their stories.<br />
<br />
Which leads me to <b>Maori Karmael Holmes</b>, her <a href="http://www.karmalux.com/">Karmalux</a> company and her fantastic documentary which debuted in 2005, entitled, <b>"Scene Not Heard, A Story of Philadelphia Women in Hip Hop." </b>While Philadelphia is called the "City of Brotherly Love", the ladies have a greater claim to this legacy, in my mind. First, you had Phillis Hyman who was actually from Pittsburgh but (I guess) had to claim Philadelphia to bolster her street cred. Most of us love that city because it gave us "Jilly from Philly". That's right, Jill Scott. Love that woman. But I digress...<br />
<br />
I first saw "Scene Not Heard" at the Pittsburgh Hip Hop Film Festival. I spoke on a panel at the Kelly-Strayhorn Theater, which I believe was organized by journalist, Brentin Mock. Gee, I wonder if this is even on my resume? #CareerFAIL<br />
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What I most appreciate about Maori and this fantastic documentary is that she was a Black woman filmmaker, doing a film about Black women, talking about being a woman in Hip Hop. Pay attention to her angles, to what is included in film, to what she chose to represent via her lens. It's extremely important and although I tire of the Tyler Perry controversy, my major emphasis is to make sure that Black women get to tell our own stories, in our own way and in our own time. We don't need anyone to speak for us. We can speak, quite perfectly, for ourselves, thank you. This requires supporting Black women filmmakers, writers and directors who allow Black women to speak for themselves.<br />
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And speaking of speaking for ourselves...<br />
<br />
Most persons have seen <b>Byron Hurt's</b> fabulous documentary, "Beyond Beats & Rhymes", which deconstructs notions of masculinity and explores the abuses of unbridled patriarchy---and I do love it. But I MUST point out that his documentary seems to be more popular, despite the fact that there is only about 20 seconds where any of the Black women in his documentary speak for themselves (it's the scene where they are in Florida and say that they are NOT b*tches just because they chose to be scantily clad on the beach).<br />
<br />
The <b>DC Film Festival</b> got it right and did a dual screening of Byron and Maori's films, back to back. Even Byron agreed that his documentary is BEST viewed in a dual mode with Maori's, since she allows Black women to speak for themselves and own their own voices. Maori also took herself out of the film and does not speak in the first person or center these MC's' narratives around her own growth process. There is something to be said about that type of filmmaking.<br />
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So, you may have seen "Beyond Beats & Rhymes" but allow me to (re)introduce you to "Scene Not Heard". Enjoy and let me know what you think:<br />
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<img border="0" height="0" src="http://counters.gigya.com/wildfire/IMP/CXNID=2000002.0NXC/bT*xJmx*PTEyODM3ODk3MTIwOTgmcHQ9MTI4Mzc4OTczNjM2NyZwPTEwNjExOTImZD1mLTE4NzYtc2NlbmVfbm9*X2hlJmc9MSZv/PTIwYmMzY2QxNjkzYjQxZDhiMDc5M2MyOTA5Mzk4NzVmJm9mPTA=.gif" style="height: 0px; visibility: hidden; width: 0px;" width="0" /><object data="http://o.snagfilms.com/film.swf" height="255" id="f-1876" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="300"><param name="allowNetworking" value="all" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://o.snagfilms.com/film.swf" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="flashvars" value="id=1876&cid=f-1876-scene_not_he" /></object><a href="http://www.snagfilms.com/" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration="none"" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration="underline"" style="color: #008cb9; display: block; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11px; line-height: 30px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 300px;">Watch more free documentaries</a><a href="http://www.snagfilms.com/" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration="none"" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration="underline"" style="color: #008cb9; display: block; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11px; line-height: 30px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 300px;"> </a><a href="http://www.snagfilms.com/" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration="none"" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration="underline"" style="color: #008cb9; display: block; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11px; line-height: 30px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 300px;"></a><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Tell me that "Scene Not Heard" doesn't need to be on BET <b>post-haste!</b> Let's get on it, BET!</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
Finally, even though I started off the call to list the <b>Femcees on Twitter</b>, Davey D (@mrdaveyd) is always trying to upstage me because I reside in Steeler Nation and he rides with the Oakland Raiders. It's cool, though, peep his timeline following the viewing and feedback of "My Mic Sounds Nice" on BET:<br />
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RT @STICKSCLA: @mrdaveyd DON'T FORGET @pamfunkstress AND @STICKSCLA more females who hold it down within Hip Hop <br />
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@pamfunkstress check the timeline..<br />
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@STICKSCLA I didn't.. <br />
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@therealEternia digital.. hit me on DM for email<br />
<br />
@Fritsvandewerel Damn it.. I did not mention Conscious Daughters.. where's my damn gun...LOL They are and continue to be dope<br />
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@SuBRepublic oops sorry, the odeo site where they were housed came down so I have to find a new home.. <br />
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@VMay the odeo site where I housed them came down.. not sure if they gonna put it back up.. the original folks of odeo made twittert <br />
<br />
@therealEternia where's my other v5 albums? <br />
<br />
A few others @BrazenWords @lahtere Yoli of Public offenders, The Poetess , Bahamadia, @MariaIsa Chihualt Ce, Toni Blackman, Kelly Maize <br />
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@DearestAnja also dont be telling @dessadarling I left her off the list.. I was trying to do special presentation.. LOL <br />
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Another resource is @HIPHOPSISTERS website is http://bit.ly/9jD6By also where u find female producers Femmixx.com http://bit.ly/azcg4g <br />
<br />
Also before I get racked and quarted do not forget my homegirl @dessadarling here's our intv http://bit.ly/bGWld0 <br />
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@DearestAnja LOL I couldnt remeber everyone's twitter.. I'll do it one better.. #recognize <br />
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@papalote415 I included more than just emcees.. and yes @KuttinKandi has been a spitter for years.. shes a raw on mic <br />
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I would also encourage folks to hit up @KuttinKandi who addresses this issue frequently peep her open letter http://bit.ly/bU9R0D <br />
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Theres a bunch more, but I cant remember everyone's twitter I would encourage folks to hit up @invincibleDET she has a phat list <br />
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@amandadiva @DjNina9 @canarysing @BigNay @1stLadyEL @DJBgirl @NICKIMINAJ @@Desdamona1 @QueenDelah @QueenNasim pt5 <br />
<br />
@jenniferjohns @RockyRivera @djchela @DjNomadik @DJKSLY @pamfunkstress @rosaclemente @Adriennemaree @pattydukesnyc @LegendMedusa pt4 <br />
<br />
pt2 @drgoddess , @mclyte , @PsalmOne , @KuttinKandi @mizkorona @thatgirlmystic @IAMQUEENLATIFAH @NewGirlOrder @TheOnlySilk_E , pt3 <br />
<br />
Here's alist of female emcees to reach to @invincibleDET @therealEternia @HopieSpitshard @juliechang206 @JeanGreasy @tiyephoenix pt1 <br />
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If u peep my radio show most of the time I make it a point to include lots of women voices.. Too many dope sistas on the mic<br />
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If we go to a Hip Hop show first question we all should be asking is where are the female emcees in ur line up.. not one or two but WOMEN <br />
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This is not about simply playing NM & calling it day.. as Hip Hoppers we have a duty to crate dig & seek out lot of women out there <br />
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More than half the population is women, but we would never know that listening mixtapes & going to concerts etc.. we have a obligation<br />
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This is not make token gestures.. its a commitment to make sure we bring balance, open doors & help keep them open & set a new tone..<br />
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As a male who plays Hip Hop on the radio & writes abt out..I challenge my collegues to make sure women are included in EVERY offering..<br />
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Shout out to many of my favorite emcees who just happened to be women.. My Mic Sounds Nice.. http://bit.ly/d0SCu6 (via @Missinfo ) <br />
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Please head Davey D's advice.<br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">I want to hear more of these ladies on the mic, check one! *strikes B-girl stance*<br />
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Thanks to @WrittenByBene and @GlennishaMorgan for the date correction! <br />
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</div><script src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js" type="text/javascript">
</script><br />
<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdrgoddess.blogspot.com&layout=standard&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&font=arial&colorscheme=light&height=80" style="border: medium none; height: 80px; overflow: hidden; width: 450px;"></iframe>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-92057126361211106962010-08-24T18:40:00.000-07:002010-08-29T10:50:14.050-07:00To Be or Not To Be: Revisiting the Ebonics Controversy<blockquote>Please understand that we realize that all these hebe's, shebe's and webe's</blockquote><blockquote>Can cause, for connoisseurs of speech, to get the heebeegeebees</blockquote><blockquote>But after all, if you don't <b>be</b> and they don't <b>be</b>... who do? </blockquote><blockquote>So allow us to personify and conjugate the verb, <b>"to be"</b>---for you </blockquote><blockquote>We're the Human <b>Be</b>ing band!</blockquote><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/etuI3gZdx-8?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/etuI3gZdx-8?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />
<b>"WeB. Doinit", Quincy Jones, Back on the Block</b><br />
<br />
I love you, Quincy! This is one of my all-time favorite albums!<br />
<br />
I promise you that I don't set out to create controversy. I really don't. So, what had happened was... Jamelle Bouie (@jbouie) tweeted the link to her excellent, intelligent response <a href="http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/tapped_archive?month=08&year=2010&base_name=dea_looking_for_a_few_good_ebo">here in <i>The American Prospect</i></a>, to what was apparently yet another dumb, journalistic response (this time, Frank James) posting yet another dumb response to an issue of Black culture in the mainstream media. While grabbing the link to Jamelle's post for this blog, I discovered <a href="http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/tapped_archive?month=08&year=2010&base_name=an_ebonics_primer">Adam Serwer's smart and succinct Ebonics Primer as well. Please read it.</a><br />
<br />
Now, this Frank Jame's post intimated that he found it rather dubious that the DEA would ask for someone who might be able to translate Ebonics (African American Vernacular English), thus he posted this picture on his brief, <a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/08/23/129388204/speak-ebonics-uncle-sam-wants-you">snarky blog</a>:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix4Nkmsc__UJxUwKIldsYJyCkyb4zy9AAotfpDXckzgYMdbIAMc4HR6R7Gtx0Qd2xMHo_kVdVkv8dRDWstNvXvlbjMoNYOinUkFXhyjyxPXAV8IOAh4dejjvtTOlnl3YX-nNWwb5UpvqlB/s1600/deanprpic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix4Nkmsc__UJxUwKIldsYJyCkyb4zy9AAotfpDXckzgYMdbIAMc4HR6R7Gtx0Qd2xMHo_kVdVkv8dRDWstNvXvlbjMoNYOinUkFXhyjyxPXAV8IOAh4dejjvtTOlnl3YX-nNWwb5UpvqlB/s320/deanprpic.jpg" /></a></div><br />
...to show the irony of something as serious as the DEA needing something as "silly" as Ebonics, right? His post reflects that he does not think Ebonics is real or should have any degree of legitimacy in being listed with the other languages outline in the DEA's request, which showed up on <i>The Smoking Gun</i> (yet another example that it should be interpreted as a joke) under the title, <a href="http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/bizarre/justice-department-seeks-ebonics-experts">"Justice Department Seeks Ebonics Experts: DEA to hire nine 'Black English' linguists" here</a>:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj2MiC6R1BrR7D1PvizKEd8uA4KiD0G_8CZOiw0ti-GX3-XHVxa7BovjC7tVuxPx8nj9QUqPDCfibXtZ7rDpKCCloCf0PEfESO8zvMA8oM_A4GR9CRMujJYvuutgirVf6aNoqWXWbB1wmG/s1600/DEA+EbonicsAdSmokingGun.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj2MiC6R1BrR7D1PvizKEd8uA4KiD0G_8CZOiw0ti-GX3-XHVxa7BovjC7tVuxPx8nj9QUqPDCfibXtZ7rDpKCCloCf0PEfESO8zvMA8oM_A4GR9CRMujJYvuutgirVf6aNoqWXWbB1wmG/s320/DEA+EbonicsAdSmokingGun.jpg" /></a></div><br />
That <span style="color: red;">red arrow</span> is just screaming, "Can you believe this? Ebonics?! EBONICS???!!! BWAAAAHHH".<br />
<br />
But that's just ignorance. And <i>The Smoking Gun</i> knows it, too, which is why they went so far as to look it up, undoubtedly with incredulous looks on the writers' faces.<br />
<br />
And if there is one thing we must learn, as a people, as Americans or as the last collective of intelligence on the planet (that means you, if you're reading this), we cannot and should not define ourselves based on racist or otherwise ignorant, mean-spirited or just dumb assertions of who we are.<br />
<br />
There are pieces of the truth in all stereotypes. It does not mean we need to be defined by them, nor do we need to deny the truth upon which some of them are based. Case in point: Black people like fried chicken and watermelon. And? Perhaps if you fried more of your chicken, you wouldn't be catching salmonella, feel me?<br />
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I kid, I kid. But really, watermelon is one of the best fruits on the planet. Be ye not ashamed.<br />
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Having said that, my retweet of <i>The American Prospect</i> article led to a flurry of inquiries, debates, assumptions, denials and downright hilarity regarding the legitimacy, purpose and/or use of Ebonics.<br />
<br />
The debate led to my swiftly pulling down my (autographed copy, thankyouverymuch) of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spoken-Soul-Story-Black-English/dp/0471399574/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1282697878&sr=1-1">John R. Rickford and Russell John Rickford's text, Spoken Soul: The Story of Black English (2000)</a>. It's a faboulous book, in which I found some great quotes.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8iN7du1jBP4H6qF0kTebaebKiOsJ_cLf5MgnCD39u5ybbipqh28rjXdlK8knl43QJpaORkWUZvNmGWVqY22IvMRPAzeUXCOPP_8v4sPART5vDHI_eA73NL8nXVclR1FG5gNVA2SVCZNvk/s1600/SpokenSoul.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8iN7du1jBP4H6qF0kTebaebKiOsJ_cLf5MgnCD39u5ybbipqh28rjXdlK8knl43QJpaORkWUZvNmGWVqY22IvMRPAzeUXCOPP_8v4sPART5vDHI_eA73NL8nXVclR1FG5gNVA2SVCZNvk/s320/SpokenSoul.jpg" /></a></div>Regarding the importance of mastering Standard English, the Rickfords' quote from a Frederick Douglass speech that clearly exemplifies mastery of the English language and insist:<br />
<blockquote>By bequeathing to us such eloquence, Douglass commands us not only to master Standard English but also to learn it in its highest form. And we must. For in the academies and courthouses and legislatures and business places where policies are made and implemented, it is as graceful a weapon as can be found against injustice, poverty, and discrimination... </blockquote><blockquote>We must learn to use it, too for enjoyment and mastery of literature, philosophy, science, math, and the wide variety of subjects that are conducted and taught in Standard English, in the United States, and, increasingly, in the world. We must teach our children to do so as well. This, as you know, is no mean feat. It requires time, money and other resources, patience, discipline and understanding, all of which tend to be tragically in short supply in schools with large black populations. </blockquote><blockquote><b>But treating Spoken Soul like a disease is no way to add Standard English to their repertoire</b>. On the contrary, building on Spoken Soul through contrast and comparison with Standard English, is likely to meet with less resistance from students who are hostile to "acting white". It is also likely to generate greater interest and motivation, and as experiments have shown...to yield greater success, more quickly. </blockquote> Teach, Rickfords, TEACH!<br />
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Still, this did not convince some of the naysayers and disbelievers in Ebonics to convert to the true wisdom of the universe. I even asked "the white man" for help and he verified it:<br />
<blockquote>Tell 'em, white man! LOL! RT @StrandedWind: FYI my background in languages tells me Ebonics IS a real language, a new sort of Patois.</blockquote><blockquote>Teach 'em! LOL! RT @StrandedWind: I mean that outside the racist way it's used, programmers know a lot about language syntax & semantics <br />
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THIS! RT @StrandedWind: it's ridiculous - can't talk facts due to concerns over racism.</blockquote>But it wasn't enough. Plus, he was white so you know… the *side eye* ensues... <br />
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So, I highly recommended some consult the texts of the preeminent expert on Black linguistics, <a href="http://amzn.to/9b2t1Z">Geneva Smitherman: Talkin' and Testifyin': The Language of Black America</a>.<br />
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Our discussion led me to observe four pertinent issues/questions that arose from the debate:<br />
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1. What is the extent of African culture on the Diaspora (especially in America?)<br />
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2. To what extent does mainstream mockery of all things Black/African influence our desire to disassociate from them? <br />
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3. Does racial discrimination in education and employment mean we should assimilate, fight or be otherwise ashamed? <br />
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4. What parts of slavery or slave culture are actually African culture misunderstood and how do we determine the difference?<br />
<blockquote>And now for the weather. Tiffany?</blockquote> That's a True Blood reference, forgive me and don't judge me.<br />
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These questions led me back to the Rickfords' text and I found more great gems, including the fact that, in 1972, psychologist Robert L. Williams [not the DEA, not "The Man"] coined the term, "Ebonics" and via his varied testing, demonstrated that:<br />
<blockquote>Many of the terms are not slang...these historically "black" words refer to unique aspects of the black experience, including the physical attributes, social distinctions, and cultural practices and traditions of African Americans.</blockquote> Perhaps the funniest example is when he relayed the following:<br />
<blockquote>Many blacks don't realize that their use of many of these words differs from that of other Americans....When a group of African American college students was told recently that <b><i>ashy</i></b> in the sense of "dry skin" was not standard English usage---you wouldn't find it with that meaning in standard American dictionaries, much less British ones---they were bowled over.</blockquote>Hilarious. Cue Ashy Larry.<br />
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<br />
And enter my restraint from putting up <a href="http://bossip.com/?s=Gary+Coleman+ashy&x=0&y=0">Bossip's relentless teasing of Gary Coleman's near-permanently ashy hands.</a> RIP Gary Coleman. You didn't deserve how your wife treated you. We're peeping you, Ms.-Divorced-but-Power-of-Attorney-Shadiness! Curiously, even Bossip's title to the DEA Ebonics Job Search was, <a href="http://bossip.com/279527/dea-hiring-ebonics-speakers-30346/">"What the Hell?"</a><br />
<br />
The Rickfords went on to explain that this all came about when the <i><b>Dictionary of American Regional English (DARE)</b></i> was being prepared during the 1970s, they conducted surveys among 2, 777 varied Americans of different classes, ages and educational levels: <br />
<blockquote>One result was a comprehensive picture of which terms were used among Black speakers...[such as]...ace-boon-coon...bid whist...bubba...bad-eye...bad-mouth...big-eye [and even suck-teeth. And guess what?].....Like suck-teeth, these are translations into English of literal & metaphorical expressions in West African languages (e.g. Mandingo da-jgu & Hausa mugum-baki for bad-mouth, and Igbo ima oso, Yoruba kpose, Hausa tsaki, Efik asiama, Kikongo tsiona & Wolof cipu for suck-teeth sound).</blockquote>"African. Very African. Come and step into my world and see what's happenin'" --- X-Clan, To the East Blackwards. And they continue: <br />
<blockquote>The mention of African languages raises a larger question about the major sources and domains of black vocabulary. Besides African languages, these include music (shout, Amen corner); sex and love-making (grind, johnson, mack); superstition and conjure (obeah, boodoo, mojo); street life, including prostitution, drugs, gangs, fights, and cars (trick, pimp walk, numbers, cracked out, bus a cap, hog); people (cuz, posse, saddity/seddity, the Man); abbreviations (CP time, HNIC, on the DL); and slang or youth culture (fresh, phat, bustin out).</blockquote><blockquote>When it comes to slang, which overlaps to some extent with the other categories (e.g. sex and lovemaking), variation by region and social class is widespread, as is rapid change over time.</blockquote>Perhaps this is where the ignorance of African culture, the denial and mockery of Black culture and the ridiculousness of mainstream media and law enforcement meet. After all, it is often the poor context in which Black culture is introduced that leads us to such misery, mayhem and foolishness. But the Rickfords advise:<br />
<blockquote>As hip-hop culture and the language, body movements, dress and music that embody it spread among young Americans of virtually every ethnicity and are adopted by teenagers in countries as distant as Russia and Japan, the status of black language and culture at the popular level is rising, and young African Americans of every class proudly claim it as originally and most authentically theirs.<br />
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We shouldn't let this mention of teenagers delude us into thinking, as many do, that Spoken Soul figures in the identities of young people only. Black adults of all ages talk the vernacular, and it functions to express their black identity, too. While it is true that African Americans with less education and earning power use the grammatical features of Spoken Soul more extensively than do those with more education and earning power, <b>the vernacular is often wrongly associated with ignorance.</b> The use, enjoyment and endorsement of the vernacular by blacks who are well educated and hold good jobs reveal that much more is going on.</blockquote>Hence, finally, one of the quotes I particularly enjoyed was found in the chapter, quite appropriately entitled, "The Crucible of Identity":<br />
<blockquote>One of the most frequent explanations that the parents gave for wanting to retain the vernacular was its role in the preservation of their distinctive history, worldview, and culture---their soul. The sentiment is not unique to African Americans. As T.S. Eliot observed some fifty years ago: "For the transmission of a culture---a peculiar way of thinking, feeling and behaving---and for its maintenance, there is no safeguard more reliable than language."</blockquote>In other words, talk that talk, talk that smack and fight the power! Or, as I concluded, I just want some of you all to:<br />
<blockquote>1. Understand that code switching is important<br />
<br />
2. Language / Cultural retention is all we have<br />
<br />
3. Be Ye Not Ashamed</blockquote><b>Enjoy a small snippet of the engagement and hilarity from my Twitter Timeline </b>(largely out of order and highly excerpted, with deepest apologies to anyone omitted). For those unaccustomed to Twitter, any words that appear before the first "@" or "RT" sign or after "@drgoddess" are likely to be mine.:<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>With words to live by:</b><br />
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RT @TheRealJayMills: @thepbg we determine the difference by discovering our African roots and overstanding our bloodline<br />
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RT @HoneyBuzzz: the danger is not that we speak our own language- it is that we do not acknowledge that it is in fact, a language, HENCE..<br />
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RT @LDaialogue: Black Amers' linguistic duality is not respected in a sense. Latinos has Spanglish & others have their own patois of sorts<br />
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Yes! RT @bmockaveli: Yes! And many Afr languages don't conjugate infinitives -- so we be talking like dat, 'cause dey be talkin like dis :)<br />
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DIS!! --->>RT @kozmic_kid: #ebonics is a afrikanization & personalization of something foreign. a healthy hybrid.. but yea.. speak both! <br />
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THIS!! -->>RT @kozmic_kid: speaking #ebonics is a link back to our ancestral energy.. speech is an expression of mental+spiritual energy.<br />
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<b><i>And my absolute favorite of the day:</i></b><br />
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THIS!!! ---->>> <b>RT @laurenriot: BEV/Ebonics is not ignorance or bastardized english (chitterlings), it is an heirloom.</b><br />
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<b>And more from the Discussion and Debate:</b><br />
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@FrenchieGlobal @drgoddess @balancedmp but my mom made it clear to us that she didn't escape Duvalier Haiti so her kids cld act/speak like stereotypes in US<br />
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@1SunRisen We are not born into miseducation. We are born into culture. Ebonics is not miseducation. Miseducation is miseducation.<br />
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@BLAKOBEN Many of us do African cultural things all day, everyday and would be appalled by the knowledge of it, actually... <br />
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@BLAKOBEN I agree with that but being aware of one's culture is not a requirement for practicing it, doing it. Case in point...<br />
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@TheNewsHawk Yes, I think the DEA wanted Black thug codes, slang AND pronunciation but used #Ebonics to make their request less embarrassing<br />
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@BLAKOBEN: You never answered my question.. HOW YOU DOING? Thats important to me. Your conclusions on this #ebonics topic I CANT & WONT!!<br />
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THIS! RT @Amesoeur: @FrenchieGlobal the disadvantage comes in if people don't code switch or never learned to speak standard English.<br />
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RT @Jazzzyone: Why the hell are you on Twitter if you can't fathom the possibility that your opinions/facts could be misguided or incorrect?<br />
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RT @FrenchieGlobal: RT ..should understand #Ebonics, it's recent immigrants < we understand the futility of it as something that typecasts u<br />
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I am here crying laughing. RT @kiarapesante: @OwlAsylum you just kept saying "I don't agree with @drgoddess" and I kept asking "why?!" Lol <br />
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RT @Jazzzyone: I'm talking to YOU AND ALL OF THE PEOPLE who keep putting @drgoddess's patient ass in #twitterjail w/stupidity. <br />
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@FrenchieGlobal If anyone should understand #Ebonics, it's recent immigrants. They tend 2 speak standard Eng at work & native lang at home.<br />
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So can I. It's called "code switching". RT @OwlAsylum: All blacks don't have the same speech patterns. I can say, "TH" quite easily!!<br />
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RT @kiarapesante: I'm proof lol RT Yes they do RT @OwlAsylum Black children that don't grow up in impoverished/all black communities don't speak it<br />
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Yes, Maam RT @prettypoodle09: #Ebonics as an expression of Black identity? Really? RT"...it functions to express their black identity, too."<br />
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LMAO! RT @GQMJoy: Tell it! I joke about how I have to get My head and mouth back to "mainstream" after a solid week with My family. <br />
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LOL!! RT @OwlAsylum: @kiarapesante Meaning I dont support the notions that @drgoddess is presenting with regard to the concept of "ebonics".<br />
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Yes! RT @Orig_Glamazon: or as specific 2 the language used by ur fam unit. Toni Morrison is a master of the many idiolects of black ppl #IMO <br />
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Yes, minus the "minority". Every culture has language. RT @Call_Me_Liz: so it its simply a venacular pronunciation in a minority dialect? <br />
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Yes! RT @rw_ny: Shouldn't it be pointed out that Ebonics has been a part of US English for [a pretty long time]? (Louis Armstrong, anyone?)<br />
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Cultural retention, communication... RT @FrenchieGlobal: also, what is the utility of ebonics if you cant get a job speaking in that way? <br />
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Word, keep it up! RT @thepbg: See, i know some stuff, but i don't comment much cuz #Pegroes don't respect well-read ppl. Only degreed ppl. <br />
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Teach! RT @bmockaveli: but chitlins are food. kept slaves alive RT Not true! RT @_Basiyr_: Ebonics is language as chitlins to food<br />
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@OwlAsylum Ebonics is a CLEAR demonstration of the RETENTION of our African culture even w/in colonial rule & slavery. <br />
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RT @FrenchieGlobal: but there is no standard "ebonics" I barely understand what Too Short& the CA peeps are saying in comp to Southern slang<br />
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No.. RT @OwlAsylum: One of my issues is that the similarities aren't based on our African roots, they are based on colonial rule & slavery. <br />
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YES! @TheFreedomTweet just said that. GREAT example bcuz retention of African language is stronger. RT @aquababie: or the Gullah language <br />
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No, no, No, not true! RT @_Basiyr_: @aisha1908 @1SunRisen Ebonics is to language as chitterlings is to food <br />
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@NaijaCandy Sarah Palin speak is just her slang, regional accent or otherwise... #youbetcha <br />
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"TH" is not a common African phoneme. RT @Call_Me_Liz: @soulrebelJ re: etymology of 'dem', could u plz explain? It was a Lil over my head...<br />
<br />
Yes! RT @thepbg: i learned abt in in a Public Speaking class. Black professor. Black school. She said it was important that we know. *shrug*<br />
<br />
Teach! RT @saitonne: not just with ebonics but even on the continent, urban youth are less likely to know their mother tongue. <br />
<br />
YES! RT @izabellaspoppa: @drgoddess has said much of what needs to be said. 4 those who are having a hard time grasping the diff betw slang & ebonics look at how Jamaicans speak english; it's a perfect example of African speech patterns being applied 2 the english language <br />
<br />
@prettypoodle09 It may seem odd but one day, somebody on twitter came on w/ "chall tambout?" (what are yall talking about?) & I *DIED*!!!!<br />
<br />
Yes! & more! RT @prettypoodle09: so when the DEA says they want an Ebonics expert, u think they want some1 2 translate "dem", "dis", "dare"?<br />
<br />
RT @CoachMalikCCSF: I'm glad drgoddess has distinguished slang and ebonics! Nothing irritates me more when the 2 are mixed up....nice going!<br />
<br />
Perhaps one of the best dignified examples of Ebonics & our culture lies within ALL of Zora Neale Hurston's novels. Right, @jonubian?<br />
<br />
Peep da thrill RT @jonubian: YASS!! I can't think of any1 who captured our dialect better than Zora & partly b/c of her ethnography studies.<br />
<br />
This RT @jonubian: I also love Zora cause she showed our complex systems of belief, folklore & philosophy in such a simple way & w/OUR words<br />
<br />
TY! RT @schomj: Of possible interest 2 ur readers "Spoken Soul: The Story of Black English" by J.R. Rickford amazon.com/gp/product/047… via @amazon<br />
<br />
Interesting! RT @ShantaFabulous: it makes me think of gil scott heron's "ghetto code"<br />
<br />
Yes! ----> RT @bmockaveli: drgoddess is playing the post on #Ebonics; @bmockaveli playing the wing<br />
<br />
<b>Hilarious Responses:</b><br />
<br />
RT @Jazzzyone: LOL! Cc: RT @candicecd: @Jazzzyone http://bit.ly/bG1DHU<br />
<br />
MT @dannahbear: @drgoddess has SO much patience. I wlda told yall to READ A BOOK, READ A BOOK, <a href="http://youtu.be/GlKL_EpnSp8">READ A M'F'ING BOOK </a><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdYWoOuwFrWk2b_4IaIwlVKcKCrMXZeBMjhm2Hqj160zAOVxkrGNjTvWycv52dOCO3GXzOdIm8_zCEynRJVp_WAeBshDNunH-0r1KLVXP71ASNOoZc4aewPV2CYe_xaCxUesFU3NqaOctX/s1600/TalkinandTestifyinSmitherman.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdYWoOuwFrWk2b_4IaIwlVKcKCrMXZeBMjhm2Hqj160zAOVxkrGNjTvWycv52dOCO3GXzOdIm8_zCEynRJVp_WAeBshDNunH-0r1KLVXP71ASNOoZc4aewPV2CYe_xaCxUesFU3NqaOctX/s320/TalkinandTestifyinSmitherman.gif" /></a></div><br />
<b>Shout Outs to Dr. Robert L. Williams, Dr. John R. & Russell R. Rickford and Dr. Geneva Smitherman</b><br />
<br />
@DivaliciousMoni @drgoddess I feel u.. I got spoken soul too... Its been years since i looked at it! LOL<br />
<br />
@ Negrointellect @drgoddess Small world...Dr. Williams was one of my mentors at MU...just talked to him last week. Much respect for him.<br />
<br />
@quincee [I love all her books] @drgoddess Perhaps Geneva Smitherman's "Talk that Talk:The Language of Black America" will suit your fancy?<br />
<br />
RT @izabellaspoppa: that's my SH*T!!!! RT Perhaps Geneva Smitherman's "Talk that Talk: The Language of Black America" will suit your fancy? <br />
<br />
@girlybap @drgoddess I have that Spoken Soul book. It's a good read. <br />
<br />
@odell_jackson @drgoddess I had never heard of John Rickford before today. Just bought Spoken Soul on Amazon. Thank you!<br />
<br />
@areefuhstanklin RT @drgoddess: FYI, Robert L. Williams, a psychologist, coined the term "Ebonics" in 1972 (MY PSYCH PROFESSOR IN COLLEGE! HE'S AWESOME!)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCZvnwWi-T8TDsJ2QOVHTl-Kywo7sNH-0gbXrltWP9m5w-GMLqnG-Adhripyf_8dmg9Wl8y_vT7e7qdoWbdrS8FUzg8ABZ8SK1Dr1s_WDphwJITKdgV11geOs6AaZLVj_sOckK1S5ebkr/s1600/DrGBTBEbonyBest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCZvnwWi-T8TDsJ2QOVHTl-Kywo7sNH-0gbXrltWP9m5w-GMLqnG-Adhripyf_8dmg9Wl8y_vT7e7qdoWbdrS8FUzg8ABZ8SK1Dr1s_WDphwJITKdgV11geOs6AaZLVj_sOckK1S5ebkr/s320/DrGBTBEbonyBest.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<b>Shout outs to Dr. Goddess (I thanks ya kindly!):</b><br />
<br />
Thank u, Sweetie! Humbling. I'm just tweeting. RT @thepbg: I'm so glad i put u in my TwitterFaves group. I never miss ur awesome Tweetage.<br />
<br />
RT @CeeTheTruthy: Yes! I love me some @drgoddess! Can't join in due to work but lovin it! Ibo folks in SC & GA is a great example too! #bye<br />
<br />
RT @Marvelous1908: Thank you to drgoddess for presenting a different point of view on Ebonics and for making me think.<br />
<br />
@janico44 @SocialLifeAvl Check out @drgoddess' timeline for some Ebonics knowledge. I learned a WHOLE lot from her today. (This is why I love Twitter)<br />
<br />
@aaw1976 @Jazzzyone @drgoddess Dr. Goddess girl you need to get yourself a twitter jail account. that way you can continue to debate the raggedy<br />
<br />
@TheFreedomTweet @drgoddess been in meetings all afternoon & couldn't jump into the thread. Tonight it's a cup-o-coffee & your timeline!:-)<br />
<br />
@angiewrites I ♥ @drgoddess . Follow her and learn ya something... Amazingly she never (publicly) tires of teaching!<br />
<br />
(Special thanks to my Twitter family for your stellar contributions, RTing the blog and adding to a great discussion. Follow the hashtag: #Ebonics)<br />
<br />
<script src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js" type="text/javascript">
</script><br />
<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdrgoddess.blogspot.com&layout=standard&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&font=arial&colorscheme=light&height=80" style="border: medium none; height: 80px; overflow: hidden; width: 450px;"></iframe>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-87361954036944008822010-08-13T11:10:00.000-07:002010-08-21T06:56:50.195-07:00Our Fascination with the Antoine Dodson Situation<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLtCpozVorzdH4TiUaevkhwr9elLE499Fw0Xbll_Xy60qr1lGyZm86EZ88_NJvoP2gq48VP1QCSWOrgjak7S3KhvyudzOG2-6LuWNMkMhREHH4ClTYNurmbbe_VtJakxnBGcv5mOTTvycV/s1600/antoine.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLtCpozVorzdH4TiUaevkhwr9elLE499Fw0Xbll_Xy60qr1lGyZm86EZ88_NJvoP2gq48VP1QCSWOrgjak7S3KhvyudzOG2-6LuWNMkMhREHH4ClTYNurmbbe_VtJakxnBGcv5mOTTvycV/s320/antoine.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Antoine received his own Brown Twitter Bird. He's Our Hero.</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>So, I was trying to at least partially explain why Black people love Twitter and what we do on the medium when I decided to include the overnight sensation of Antoine Dodson.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Thus, I wrote the following: <br />
<blockquote>Thus, if they can't understand something so simple, then they wouldn't understand why, even though we are really (really!!!) appalled by both home invasion and rape, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJVwfJs8Eqo&NR=1">we love the Antoine Dodson story</a> and find he, his sister, Kelly, (and his other family members) so funny. <br />
<br />
And if that's the case, they REALLY wouldn't understand why a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzEt_m1V4Ho&feature=related">remix (auto-tune) song was made of his rant</a>, why <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Antoine-Dodson/102461723145137?v=wall">Antoine has 13 Twitter accounts</a>, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Antoine-Dodson/102461723145137?v=wall">a website, is selling T-shirts and has a hotline</a>---all this from the attempted rape of his sister by a roving rapist in their Huntsville, Alabama, Lincoln Park neighborhood. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hdC16-cTQ0&NR=1">America, gotta love it. </a></blockquote>But I couldn't let that be the end of my commentary on Antoine. His story, how and why he became an overnight sensation says so much about America, Black folks, race, class, gender and sexuality, so I HAD to write on it.<br />
<br />
<b>The Reasons Why We Love Antoine And Think He's Funny is Because:</b><br />
<br />
1. His sister, Kelly Dodson, said she was "attacked by some idiot from out here in the projects...and it ain't just 'cause I'm cute. I KNOW that! Okay, first, we all know an idiot in our community but we think it's hilarious that she applied this term to an attempted rapist. Second, saying "in the projects" is just funny, period, probably because it's unnecessary or maybe because it's even funnier that she pointed it out. Third, because unlike the popularized notion that poor people who need public housing are synonymous with lacking intellect or reason, Kelly is here to let you know otherwise, hence the distinction---and we love it! Kelly also seems to have a very healthy self-esteem...<br />
<br />
2. Antoine begins the (aired) phase of his interview with "Well, OBVIOUSLY, we have a rapist in Lincoln Park". For me, it sounds like a retort to the reporter who, undoubtedly asked something akin to "So, what do you think about your sister's attempted rape?" And, despite lacking media training, Antoine delivered (well!) what media experts say you should do, breaking down his thought into <b>three main points:</b><br />
<br />
a. They're climbing in your windows<br />
b. They're snatching your people up<br />
c. They're trying to rape you<br />
<br />
<b>And then a call to action:</b><br />
a. Hide your kids<br />
b. Hide your wife<br />
c. Hide your husband<br />
<br />
<b>With a repeated main point and public warning:</b><br />
a. They rapin' everybody out here!<br />
<br />
3. Antoine is signifying VERY well. Not only does he know his multiple audiences, he is unafraid of the camera, so he tells the news reporter what is "obvious", warns the community and then has a message for the rapist, while personifying and rolling up on and into the camera. <br />
<br />
4. Antoine threatens the rapist with bodily harm, even though he looks like he weighs approximately 105lbs, soaking wet. Nevertheless, when Antoine heard his sister scream, he ran into her bedroom and fought off the attacker, who eventually got away The camera shots in the bedroom demonstrated some heavy physical activity in the bedroom, which shows that Antoine is a man of his word. Still, the footage was funny because it points us back to Antoine's use of his lean, muscle mass. <br />
<br />
5. Antoine produced an excellent soliloquy (in exactly 14 seconds) ending with, "cause they rapin' everybody up in here". How Antoine turned one home invasion and attempted rape into a maelstrom of kidnappers and rapists to inspire public mayhem is beyond me; but then, if there was more protection perhaps hyperbole wouldn't be necessary. (Update: After I wrote this, I found out how real this statement actually was. Keep reading...)<br />
<br />
6. We are a bit unsure as to where we should hide everybody. And, yet, we feel safe with Antoine. What I most appreciate about his soliloquy is that he holds marriage and the family unit in high esteem (hide your kids, wife, husband). It's not the religious right, it's Antoine that knows about family values!<br />
<br />
7. Antoine exposed the utter lack of concern for security in "the built environment" of the projects by demonstrating how easy it was for someone to just to a "two-step" (garbage-can-to-ledge, ledge-to-window) climb up into a resident's bedroom. It's appalling, really---and yet shamefully funny when we laugh to keep from crying.<br />
<br />
8. Antoine's (lack of) faith in (or understanding of) the justice system that leads him straight to a declaration that is simultaneously inclusive of the police investigators ("you left your fingerprints and everything!") and completely devoid of their further involvement ("we gon' find you and when we do...").<br />
<br />
Do recall that "9-1-1 is a Joke" was a very popular song by the rap group, Public Enemy. <br />
<br />
9. Although it would be easy to try to classify Antoine as one of the lesser visible "homothugs" in the Hip Hop music world, it is probably more accurate to simply acknowledge that Antoine is just a more "feminine" man and/or gay. He is also neither a rapper nor a musician.<br />
<br />
10. Interestingly, in this interview, the newscasters revealed that they received some backlash at the station for airing Antoine's interview. And we certainly know why, don't we? Lazy news reporters usually find the first (and sometimes only) ignorant person they can find (usually with rollers in her hair or him only partially dressed) to interview about a story in the Black community, despite how many other persons are standing around that could offer a more articulate analysis (and a seemingly better representation of Black folks).<br />
<br />
And in that context, they are most certainly right.<br />
<br />
But herein lies the problem of what Cornel West calls "the white, normative gaze" and our seeming need to promote middle class sensibilities; because there is nothing wrong with Antoine. Or his story. Or how he chose to express himself. Kelly and Antoine were very clear...they live in the projects. They are also Southern...they live in Huntsville, Alabama. And they both had a right to be exceptionally angry about Kelly's attempted rape. Yet, even in their rage, they exhibited more intelligence and articulated a sense of well-being than many of the persons who have been elected or otherwise appointed (and some self-appointed) to represent us.<br />
<br />
Embarrassed by Antoine?! Please. We should be thankful he's here. He may just force us to redefine our priorities and how we think we understand one another.<br />
<br />
<b>Antoine Dodson's character seems to be better than most.</b><br />
<br />
This is what led me to delve further into his story. I had written all of the above before talked to a girlfriend who sent me to <a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2010/08/05/129005122/youtube-bed-intruder-meme">this NPR news story</a>. I like it and agree with it. It just did not go far enough for me. When I found <a href="http://www.youtube.com/antoinedodson24%20">Antoine Dodson's YouTube Channel</a>, I watched an NPR Interview.<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/antoinedodson24#p/a/u/1/paL5fDx-084%20">What I Learned from Antoine’s Interview on NPR, August 11, 2010:</a></b><br />
1. The damage done to the room in which his sister and he fought off her attacker was much worse than what we saw on television.<br />
<br />
2. His sister, Kelly and her mother were so afraid during the attack that they both urinated on themselves.<br />
<br />
3. Before calling the police, they called six friends to help and for support.<br />
<br />
4. After telling the Housing Authority officer, she just laughed the situation off and never took it seriously.<br />
<br />
5. The police “eventually” showed up and opened an investigation.<br />
<br />
6. It was Antoine, his sister and friends who were infuriated that no one was taking the situation seriously, so they started calling the news stations themselves. They did not receive an answer. They called WAFF first.<br />
<br />
7. To their surprise, WAFF News showed up and Antoine and Kelly willingly gave interviews because they wanted everyone to know what happened to them and what could potentially happen to others.<br />
<br />
Unsurprisingly, some people wondered if Antoine was acting, to which he offered a negative and said, “I was so mad, I wanted to choke the camera…” and when he was asked whether or not the perpetrator had been found, he answered:<br />
<blockquote><b>No, they haven’t found the guy, yet, that’s why it’s still not safe to bring the kids out… hide your kids, hide your wives and hide your husbands…but when he do get caught, we will let the world know.</b></blockquote>Just remember, Antoine, that catching the perpetrator is not your responsibility.<br />
<br />
Now, I enjoyed The Gregory Brothers’ AutoTune The News Remix and heard it, for the first time, driving down the highway in Los Angeles. I, too, was shocked by the popularity of the “bed intruder”. And by the time you have read this post, Antoine Dodson will have been viewed 10 MILLION TIMES.<br />
<br />
In response to his newfound fame, Antoine offered the following and as he shared his story, it forced me to spring into action:<br />
<br />
I went to bed a nobody. Woke up, all of this happened. Woke up again the next day and it’s like, bam, Antoine Dodson, everybody knows him.<br />
<blockquote>We wanted our stories to be heard so, be careful what you ask for… ‘cause now the whole world knows and now I’m glad because I want the whole world to know. You can’t sweep situations like this under the rug… and it’s been a lot of complaints…and even before my sister [was] attacked, there was <b>a lot of people complaining about how people [were] getting raped in the projects…and people would just sweep it under the rug and not talk about it.</b><br />
<br />
The next day [after] that happened, a lady came to us and was like, “There was a man standing at my window but I called my boyfriend, he went to the window and the guy left. Same projects, the very next day. So, I’m like, are you serious, you know what I’m saying?<b> Like, what do we need to do as people to keep our community safe?...You know what I’m saying like..’cause nobody’s talkin’ about it now, I mean, the world knows but here, locally, here in Huntsville, it’s like, okay, it’s a joke, everybody’s takin’ it to be a joke, it’s funny to them, you know what I’m sayin’… I’m makin’ their city look bad, I’m makin’ their community look bad, you know what I’m sayin’ so, I guess…?</b></blockquote>Stupid interviewer guy sweeps that issue under the rug (even after Antoine told him earlier that Kelly WAS hurt in the struggle) and reminds Antoine that “thankfully, no one got really hurt…it was an intrusion, you intervened…everybody’s okay, people need to watch out for this guy who’s on the run…but I mean, as far as how you’re dealing with it now, as someone with a celebrity status…”Can you believe it? He goes right to Antoine’s newfound fame on the internet. Darn you, interviewer! Darn you!<br />
<br />
Antoine thinks the Gregory Brothers’ Remix is quite funny, also. It makes him laugh and since it doesn’t seem as though Antoine is a singer or a rapper, he seems to enjoy the part-fantasy of himself as a singer. But Antoine is not so blinded by his fame that he ignored the central issue nor abdicated his responsibility to articulate what other community members have shared. <br />
<br />
So, I have a different message for Antoine because Kelly and his family are VICTIMS and although I appreciate their resilience, the interview makes it clear there is a pattern of disempowerment, disengagement and even disbelief that these issues keep being “swept under the rug”. <br />
<br />
Kelly and Antoine Dodson, I just sent a letter to Mayor Battle and Mr. Michael Lundy of the Huntsville Housing Authority on your behalf because I am a concerned citizen and can’t just sit back and laugh at the hilarity of the videos on YouTube and then not do something to assist you all.<br />
<br />
Since YOU were the ones that were proactive about the lack of proper safety in Lincoln Park and having your needs taken seriously, please make sure you follow up with these persons and please pass this information on to every single one of your neighbors. You all do not have to be silent and, although the auto-tune song is funny, all of you all’s claims need to be taken seriously. So, please use this information as you see fit and I will encourage everyone else to do so as well. Your story has only just begun, Sweethearts!<br />
<br />
<b>Please keep us updated and I'll do the same. We have to hold these people accountable. </b><br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://www.huntsvillehousing.org/">Your City Housing Authority Office is:</a></b><br />
Michael O. Lundy, Executive Director/CEO<br />
<a href="mailto:mlundy@huntsvillehousing.org">His Email</a><br />
200 Washington Street • P.O. Box 486 • Huntsville, Alabama 35804-0486<br />
Phone: (256) 539-0774 • Fax: (256) 535-2245<br />
Assisted Housing (Section 8) Fax: (256) 539-5982<br />
<br />
“Growing community one family at a time.”<br />
<div style="color: black;"><b>HHA's next Board Meeting is scheduled for</b></div><div style="color: black;"><b>Wednesday, August 25, 2010, at 12:00 noon</b></div><div style="color: black;"><b>Oscar Mason Center, 149 Mason Court. </b></div><br />
<b><a href="http://www.hsvcity.com/">Your Mayor and Boss of the Housing Authority is:</a></b><br />
Mayor Tommy Battle is on Twitter!<br />
@TommyBattle <b style="color: red;">(<---Tweet Him!!!)</b><br />
@huntsvillecity <br />
<a href="mailto:contact@hsvcity.com">Email</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/HsvCity?v=app_4949752878">Facebook Page</a><br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://www.hsvcity.com/citycouncil/CD1/index.php">Your City Council Representative is:</a></b><br />
Dr. Richard Showers, District 1, Huntsville City Council<br />
308 Fountain Circle<br />
7th Floor<br />
Huntsville, Alabama 35801<br />
256-427-5011 Tel<br />
256-427-5024 FAX<br />
<a href="mailto:richard.showers@hsvcity.com">His Email </a><br />
<a href="mailto:pearlie.stamper@hsvcity.com">Assistant</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/HUD/contact"><b>Your Regional HUD Office is:</b></a><br />
Cindy Yarbough<br />
Field Office Director (205) 731-2617<br />
Fax (205) 731-2593<br />
<a href="mailto:AL_Webmanager@hud.gov">Email Region IV</a><br />
Atlanta GA<br />
<br />
Birmingham Field Office<br />
950 22nd St North<br />
Suite. 900<br />
Birmingham, AL 35203-5302<br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b><a href="http://capwiz.com/state-al/dbq/zs.dbq?azip=35801&bzip=&submit.x=21&submit.y=13&submit=go&state=AL&address_action=%2Fstate-al%2Fdbq%2Fzs.dbq%20">Your State Representative is on Vacation but can be found here.</a></b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b><a href="http://griffith.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=7&sectiontree=4,7">Your Congressional Representative is:</a></b><br />
Congressman Parker Griffith, 5th District of Alabama<br />
He doesn’t have a regular email address and only wants to hear from Constituents.<br />
Others can contact him here:<br />
<br />
Huntsville District Office<br />
2101 Clinton Ave. W. Suite 302<br />
Huntsville, AL 35805<br />
Phone: (256) 551-0190<br />
Fax: (256) 551-0194<br />
<br />
Antoine, I want you and Kelly and the community of Lincoln Park to have "the last laugh", so <b>here is a letter any of your supporters can use to contact the Mayor and the President of the Housing Authority.</b> I sent a longer one already that I will email to you for your records. Your supporters should feel free to change this letter or write their own. Let's make sure they take care of the issue and protect the community.<br />
<br />
August 13, 2010<br />
<br />
Dear Mayor Tommy Battle and Mr. Michael O. Lundy:<br />
<br />
I am writing out of concern for the safety and quality of life of the Lincoln Park residents residing in the Huntsville Housing Authority properties, in general, and Kelly and Antoine Dodson’s family, in particular. <br />
<br />
When I looked on the Huntsville Housing Authority website, I observed that, “the mission of The Authority is to eliminate the negative influence of poverty in public housing.” I am inspired by your mission but troubled by what appears to be the lack of application of your mission by one or more HHA employees. When I listened to Mr. Dodson’s interview, I was struck by his narrative (outside of the hilarity of his flamboyance and the creativity of the two brothers who created the song now popularized on the internet) because it pointed to a particular failure on Housing Authority officials to take the home invasion and subsequent attack upon his family members seriously. They did what they were supposed to do. They called the police and reported it to the Housing Authority.<br />
<br />
According to Antoine Dodson, despite his internet fame, no one is addressing the issue locally and his story is treated as more of a joke and an embarrassment to the community and the city, as opposed to the real threat of public well-being that their horror demonstrates.<br />
<br />
I am writing this open letter to you because the situation is already out in the open and by the time you read this, 10 MILLION people will know about Antoine Dodson, his sister Kelly and the attempted rape in the Lincoln Park projects in Huntsville, Alabama. As you know, being poor does not have to mean being a perpetual victim and never heard. This is why we love Kelly and Antoine Dodson, are proud of their heroism, resilience and outspokenness.<br />
<br />
The only thing embarrassing about this situation is the manner in which the Dodson family has been dismissed by the very persons who are supposed to represent them and help provide for their well-being.<br />
<br />
I would appreciate hearing back from you and wish you and the community the best as you seek to resolve this issue and further empower your residents to live in a safe and wholesome environment, “Growing community one family at a time.”<br />
<br />
<br />
Sincerely,<br />
<br />
INSERT YOUR NAME<br />
<br />
UPDATE: Both @happybrowngirl and @Wakandan_Knight sent me this video of North Carolina A & T's band playing the Gregory Brother's Auto-Tune "Bed Intruder" song:<br />
<br />
<object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/TsKS-WmjQmw?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/TsKS-WmjQmw?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object><br />
<br />
This is amazing talent and I love it. <br />
<br />
All that I ask is for all of you reading and all of you making pictures and T-Shirts and all of you posting & RT'ing the videos and sending it on your phones (and that makes about 11 MILLION (!!!) of you now, PLEASE just take 10 more seconds to post this blog, email a letter and RT this message:<br />
<br />
<b>Petition Mayor @Tommybattle to protect Kelly and #AntoineDodson and the Lincoln Park Comm. http://act.ly/2aq RT to sign </b><br />
<br />
Please remember there are Human Beings and a Horror Story behind this great curiosity and explosion of creativity. Taking a moment to help Kelly and Antoine Dodson and the entire Lincoln Park community will make all of you as genuine a hero as they are. Let us support their resilience with a piece of ACTION to end the nightmare. <br />
<br />
I say this especially to all of you White people and Black college students on the internet and the Brothers and Sisters in the hood on their cell phones. You don't realize how influential you really are. Take 2 seconds to tweet the Mayor by signing the petition on Twitter.<br />
<br />
Poor people deserve civil and human rights, too, no matter what they look like, no matter how they sound, no matter how much or how little education they have had.<br />
<br />
And often times, we as young people, as Black and Brown and/or poor and/or White and poor, rarely understand how policy decisions affect our lives and how we can live as empowered beings. You have a voice. Use it. Antoine and Kelly did, so follow their great example. <br />
<br />
Sincerely and With Love,<br />
<br />
Dr. Goddess<br />
<br />
(Special thanks to my Twitter family for keeping this story alive, RTing the blog and adding to a great discussion. Follow the hashtag: #AntoineDodson)<br />
<br />
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdrgoddess.blogspot.com&layout=standard&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&font=arial&colorscheme=light&height=80" style="border: medium none; height: 80px; overflow: hidden; width: 450px;"></iframe>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-58553046970305127142010-08-12T08:43:00.000-07:002010-08-18T15:48:24.733-07:00Why "They" Don't Understand What Black People Do on Twitter<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOyUaavRThme2B2iAY03ozguGKoPLaGRzqXlM702RXarbApyviyFAUxf8VV4fSIF9CWj0i8MAi471YN2S-LjvBOX1d-_pr54ak8oHsGFTstWxeN_SKUw38j1eJKWd3V5Ylu8zBNH42ddAt/s1600/TwitterbirdsBarack.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOyUaavRThme2B2iAY03ozguGKoPLaGRzqXlM702RXarbApyviyFAUxf8VV4fSIF9CWj0i8MAi471YN2S-LjvBOX1d-_pr54ak8oHsGFTstWxeN_SKUw38j1eJKWd3V5Ylu8zBNH42ddAt/s320/TwitterbirdsBarack.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">President Barack Obama Signs BrownTwitterBirds into Law<br />
Original Graphic by http://lidia-anain.com/ </td></tr>
</tbody></table>Yesterday, Twitter was all a-flutter for yet another ignorant article trying to tell readers about Black people. For me, the best response to the <a href="http://www.slate.com/id/2263462">Slate article on "How Black People Use Twitter" </a>was not the poor manner in which the article did NOT explain how Black people use Twitter. Rather, it was the immediate response of one Tweeter named <a href="http://www.innyvinny.com/2010/08/10/oh-slate/comment-page-1/#comment-10044">@InnyVinny who, in her frustration, wrote on her blogsite</a> in all caps, "BLACK PEOPLE ARE NOT A MONOLITH" and then went on to, literally, remix the basic brown twitter bird with the diverse array of Black people---on Twitter. Hers was a visual art protest that parallels, if not supercedes the artist who created the Fail Whale and other popular images on Twitter. In one fell swoop, (now a hashtag: #browntwitterbird), @InnyVinny put on display what is so painstakingly obvious for most of us --- "you don't know me! You don't know my LIFE!" <br />
<br />
You see, in this list are the loc-wearers, the wig doners, the sports enthusiasts, the hometown reppers, the Afrocentrists, the ghetto fabulous, the afro'ed up, the regal ones and the graduates, the lovers of Prince, Michael, Rick James or even Grace Jones...and the hi top fade. Other than the celebrities, it's clear that not only Slate but the rest of mainstream America has no real idea who Black people are, no real clue about our humanity, in general, so of course they would have no real idea what we're doing on Twitter and how we express our culture. For us, Twitter is an electronic medium that allows enough flexibility for uninhibited and unfabricated creativity while exhibiting more of the strengths of social media that allow us to build community.<br />
<br />
Sadly, when the mainstream attempts to describe or otherwise represent us and our lives, they choose the #browntwitterbird with the boombox, watermelon (and no Blackberry) in hand, standing next to the bucket of chicken. Yes, mainstream America, that is how you see us and, truthfully, that's a slice of how some of us are (at times). You, however, think it's us in totality, so we laugh at your lack of intelligence and observation skills and continue to 'Make Me a World'. This is why <a href="http://www.innyvinny.com/">@InnyVinny's Brown Twitter Birds were adopted, in less than 12 hours, as a revolution on Twitter</a>, by throngs of users expressing, adopting and requesting customized birds that reflect our beautiful, Black and multifaceted selves.<br />
<br />
Indeed, the best part of the Slate article (outside of the wisdom of quoting @Baratunde Thurston and @ElonJames White) were the revelations that more Black Twitter users than not create a far more balanced, reciprocal relationship to one another, as opposed to the silly, somewhat mindless, stalking behavior of "following" a celebrity and never receiving a response: <br />
<blockquote>Nevertheless, <a href="http://www.cs.cmu.edu/%7Ebmeeder/" target="_blank">Brendan Meeder</a> thinks he's got a good hypothesis about what's going on. Meeder, a Ph.D. student at Carnegie Mellon University, has downloaded the tweets of more than 100 million users. (Twitter gave him special permission to do so for research purposes.) He's been probing this collection to see how Twitter users interact with one another; he's particularly interested in how trends begin and spread through a social network. While analyzing his database a few months ago, Meeder noticed something strange—he found a cluster of hundreds of users whose profiles were connected to one another. When he looked up the users, he noticed that a lot of them were black. It's in exactly these kinds of tight-knit groups that Twitter memes flourish, Meeder says. </blockquote>Understandable, right? But it gets better!<br />
<blockquote>Not only are the people who start these trends more tightly clustered on the network, they're also using the network differently. Most people on Twitter have fewer followers than the number of people they're following—that is, they're following celebrities, journalists, news organizations, and other big institutions that aren't following them back. But according to Meeder, the users who initiate blacktags seem to have more reciprocal relationships—they're following everyone who follows them.</blockquote>For the record, Black people use Twitter hashtags, thanks! But one final piece of wisdom from the only person to do any actual research here (Brendan Meeder):<br />
<blockquote>These patterns suggest that the black people who start these tags "are using Twitter as a social tool," Meeder says. "They're using Twitter like a public instant messenger"—using the service to talk to one another rather than broadcast a message to the world.</blockquote>Actually, we talk to each other AND we broadcast a message to the world, hence the popularity of the Trending Topics and Twitter usage, yes? Now, if only we were left alone in the real world the way we are on Twitter, perhaps we could effect more change.<br />
<br />
It's not until the third to the last paragraph that, authour, Farhad <span class="byline">Manjoo</span> chooses to explain, in any intelligent manner the obvious flaw of the entire article:<br />
<blockquote>There is an obvious problem with talking about how black people use Twitter, as many of the black Twitter users I spoke to took pains to point out: Not all black people on the service are participating in these hashtags, and there are probably a great many who are indifferent to or actively dislike the tags. </blockquote>Okay, so "many of the [B]lack Twitter users" Manjoo spoke to "took pains to point out" how we are not a monolith and, yet, you all over there at Slate (editors and all) still decided to run with the title, "How Black People Use Twitter", eh? Brilliant.<br />
<br />
<span class="byline">Further, Manjoo</span> wonders (aloud) how and why the trending topics begun by Black people on Twitter are so "successful" without bothering to consider the numbers game. How do I explain that comedian, MarlonWayans, who, with his brothers, captured the attention of the next generation with hilarious films such as "White Chicks" and "Scary Movie", has been a source of some of the sillier hashtags ever since he arrived on Twitter? At present, he has 310,00 followers, quite enough to produce a Trending Topic all by his lonesome, yes? And with masses of Black teenagers following him, it just makes sense, right? I suppose this was too logical an answer...<br />
<br />
Thus, if they can't understand something so simple, then they wouldn't understand why, even though we are really (really!!!) appalled by both home invasion and rape, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJVwfJs8Eqo&NR=1">we love the Antoine Dodson story</a> and find he, his sister, Kelli, (and his other family members) so funny. <br />
<br />
And if that's the case, they REALLY wouldn't understand why a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzEt_m1V4Ho&feature=related">remix (auto-tune) song was made of his rant</a>, why <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Antoine-Dodson/102461723145137?v=wall">Antoine has 13 Twitter accounts</a>, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Antoine-Dodson/102461723145137?v=wall">a website, is selling T-shirts and has a hotline</a>---all this from the attempted rape of his sister by a roving rapist in their Huntsville, Alabama, Lincoln Park neighborhood. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hdC16-cTQ0&NR=1">America, gotta love it. </a><br />
<br />
As for what trends, I wonder if we should bother sharing that in addition to the more fun, unpredictable, silly or outrageous Trending Topics, we can also (proudly, thankfully) add the hashtags of #OscarGrant and #AiyanaJones to the list. And would Slate's audience even know who these people are? Probably not, which further exemplifies the segregation of our communities as well as the problem of race in the 21st Century.<br />
<br />
Dare I even mention the <a href="http://www.blackweblogawards.com/">Black Weblog Awards </a>or would that be going too far and doing too much? Would we overwhelm the populace?<br />
<br />
Over this last year, I observed the fascinating manner in which Black people were expressing their culture and building community on Twitter, particularly those of us in the "Hip Hop Generation", which is why I decided to focus upon how we were using the medium to effect change. Thus, I put a panel together for <a href="http://www.netrootsnation.com/">Netroots Nation</a> 2010. As it turns out, not all of my panelists could attend but <a href="http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/8438963">"Tweeting the Revolution: How Hip Hop Transformed 140 into 360" was, nonetheless, an excellent panel---and videotaped and live streamed just for you!</a><br />
<br />
I felt the need to frame our conversation (because unlike Slate, I KNOW Black people are not a monolith), so I wrote up an introduction (which was a gamble), that proved to be quite fruitful and elicited major response from attendees. And it's funny because I was in my room typing up the last edits and trying to add some of my favorite Tweeters' names and folks who had answered my questions prior to the panel, so I am glad I did the intro. During the run down, comedian and co-panelist, @ElonJames White <a href="http://thisweekinblackness.com/">(This Week in Blackness)</a> tweeted "@drgoddess is giving a State of the Black Twitterverse speech". Hilarity.<br />
<br />
I promised to provide it for you in written form---and I shall. Oh yes. I shall. <-----[Melodramatic repetition included for ultimate effect and to inspire shivering due to fright and/or impending doom}<br />
<br />
In the meantime, for the mainstream and those trying to figure out Black people on Twitter...<br />
<br />
Jesus Be a Brain and a Human Heart.<br />
<br />
(Special Thanks to @Punch_VJ @EbonyStarr55 and @Vizionheiry for the links!)<br />
<br />
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdrgoddess.blogspot.com&layout=standard&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&font=arial&colorscheme=light&height=80" style="border: medium none; height: 80px; overflow: hidden; width: 450px;"></iframe>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-16238249675424749752010-08-09T12:23:00.000-07:002010-08-12T08:46:19.220-07:00Real Questions for Haiti and Its Presidential Candidates<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEittlue3e3dm9CoVeHcqacvaK4J-SoU9VYJ_TJKKHBZ2wmtllcss3uV9jo5ZkaI7_E0qLBT9OyZcPZx08TTgNzYY0lKAcLU916NoUD6e28ExLPLPYZsYCK9skLH8Ng3uTUr3ZUb-zrrvz1T/s1600/WyclefPrezGetty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEittlue3e3dm9CoVeHcqacvaK4J-SoU9VYJ_TJKKHBZ2wmtllcss3uV9jo5ZkaI7_E0qLBT9OyZcPZx08TTgNzYY0lKAcLU916NoUD6e28ExLPLPYZsYCK9skLH8Ng3uTUr3ZUb-zrrvz1T/s320/WyclefPrezGetty.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Don't Believe the Hype---or Your Own Press</td></tr>
</tbody></table>If you want something done right, you'll have to do it yourself. So... These are the questions that I have yet to see asked by the media to Haiti Presidential Candidate Wyclef Jean, to any of the other Presidential candidates or to current President Preval:<br />
<br />
1. President Preval, what do YOU think have been the primary obstacle to getting sufficient aid into Haiti (immediately after the earthquake to now preparing for the Hurricane Season)? We can understand not having an airstrip; but once it was rebuilt, what then?<br />
<br />
2. What of the hundreds of millions of dollars pledged to aid Haiti? How do we get those pledges to become actualized assistance for Haiti?<br />
<br />
3. President Preval, why are you banning the Fanmi Lavalas party from presenting their own candidate? You do realize this is anti-Democratic, right?<br />
<br />
4. President Preval, why does the Constitution not allow for members of the Haitian Diaspora to run for office? Why is the residency requirement five years prior to placing a bid for office? At bare minimum, Haitians in the Diaspora should have dual citizenship.<br />
<br />
5. President Preval, if you allow for Wyclef to run by subverting your Constitution (which should be amended, anyway) and yet do NOT allow for Fanmi Lavalas to have positioning in the political structure, you will have (further) failed on all accounts. What do you say to that?<br />
<br />
6. What makes you qualified to run for political office in Haiti? How will you parlay your experience in Haiti with making sure the country is prepared to take advantage of the 21st century?<br />
<br />
7. Why run for the Presidency? Is there no other way for you to see change in your country without being in the highest office of the land?<br />
<br />
8. What is your vision for the status of women in Haiti? As you know, "a nation can rise no higher than its women." And that's a platitude worth repeating... how will you empower the women in Haiti?<br />
<br />
9. How will you manage and leverage the competing interests in Haiti, from the wealthy families, to the neocolonialists, to the U.S. and France, to the NGOs, etc.?<br />
<br />
10. Tell us your story. Who are you? What do you do in Haiti and why do you care?<br />
<br />
<b>To Wyclef Jean:</b><br />
<br />
1. What have you done with Yele Haiti since the initial investigations and the money started flowing in immediately after the earthquake in Haiti? Can you present a full report, pictures and an accounting? Can you have people and organizations you have helped report back on your progress and assistance? If you have not spent much of the money, why not? The people need immediate and longterm relief. Is it true you have over $8 million dollars that have NOT been spent. If so, why?<br />
<br />
2. While it may be true that you were not the accountant in charge of Yele Haiti's funds and, certainly, no one would put you at the helm of the Haitian Treasury, the fact of the matter is that you MUST take responsibility for the sloppy bookkeeping and management of Yele Haiti. For those of us who do not believe you did anything inappropriate yet are still concerned that you did not enact enough oversight to prevent your problems and, thereby, these accusations, how can you convince us that you won't make similar mistakes with the Haitian Treasury and the donations that will continue to come into the country? What safeguards will you put into place to ensure that no one (else) takes advantage of your lack in management skills?<br />
<br />
3. Who do you plan to have in your cabinet and what roles would they fulfill? You know you are inexperienced as a political office-holder, so how will you compensate for your lack of experience?<br />
<br />
4. You spoke about jobs, security, education, agriculture and housing. As always, the devil is in the details. Please tell us your specific policy plans and ideas to bring these ideas into fruition?<br />
<br />
5. Please clarify your position on Aristide, why you supported the rebels against him and asked him to step down (in the MTV interview in which you've been quoted on this issue)?<br />
<br />
6. What is the relationship like between you and "Uncle (Raymond) Joseph"? Why is he running against you? And if you win, will he be in your cabinet? And vice versa?<br />
<br />
7. What do you envision for the Haitian Diaspora's relationship to Haiti if you win? You have called for the assistance of the Diaspora in providing monetary assistance but I suspect you envision much more for the role Diasporans can play in building Haiti for the 21st Century. What does that look like to you?<br />
<br />
8. As an artist with a unique position in the world, what is your relationship like to the rest of the international community? What did you do to spread "goodwill" as the Goodwill Ambassador to Haiti and how will you leverage your international relationships to pull down the rest of the aid pledged and create more opportunities for Haiti? <br />
<br />
9. What, exactly, is your relationship like to Bill Clinton beyond being "a fan" as you stated in the interview with Wolf Blitzer on Larry King Live? How will you talk to and deal with former President Clinton's complex relationship to Haiti moving forward in the 21st century? Surely you know that even Bill Clinton has regrets regarding his policies towards Haiti when he was in office? How will you learn from HIS past and try to do better for Haiti with the United States's foreign policy as a backdrop to its future?<br />
<br />
10. You have mentioned receiving your calling and being "drafted" to be the President of Haiti by so many of the young people in the country. And yet, you know that young people are also easily duped by conspicuous consumption, uber-celebrity and great promises. How will you prepare yourself and the Haitian people for the extremely unglamorous side of nation-building that requires the kind of change you have discussed in the past? Further, you said you did not mind giving "5 years" but what if the people need you for a second term. Will you give ten years of your life to Haitian governance?<br />
<br />
Bonus: What has it been like having an adopted Haitian child? And when you look in your daughter's eyes, what do you see as the future for Haiti?<br />
<br />
Bonus+: You've seen "The Matrix Revolutions", right? At first, being Neo seemed fun. All that training under Morpheus, swimmingly dodging bullets and leaping from cars to taste the crisp air flowing underneath his trench coat... But remember when he came back to the ship and all of the hungry, the tired, the poor were waiting for him to attend to them and he had to postpone having sex with Trinity until later? Do you have the level of compassion that would make you want to tend to the needy and yet the discipline to postpone sex with Trinity? Inquiring minds want to know...<br />
<br />
I'm serious. If you can answer these questions (well), not only will you be a great President, you just may be one of the greatest persons ever!<br />
<br />
Updated: Interestingly enough, I saw this interview a few hours after I posted my questions. See if you think Wyclef is "incoherent" or ANYTHING like Sarah Palin. I think he did a GREAT job, kudos to Wyclef Jean and see for yourself!:<br />
<br />
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdrgoddess.blogspot.com&layout=standard&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&font=arial&colorscheme=light&height=80" style="border: medium none; height: 80px; overflow: hidden; width: 450px;"></iframe>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-67608897193419628912010-08-09T07:26:00.000-07:002010-08-09T12:25:01.441-07:00A Low Blow to Wyclef<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk83WA8gyHeGlv-akxc0Ih93ijlbTyXFySdguW7NFPS5QKfgBcNxsLlsJHoq4DV6rnBsy_xljNtnn2AE5YHHngkQr-gDVmd6BmbTKiIytcr4AvJoYHFnGHPmq85h0cp4IGuO-p5_Ua-46L/s1600/wyclef_cars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk83WA8gyHeGlv-akxc0Ih93ijlbTyXFySdguW7NFPS5QKfgBcNxsLlsJHoq4DV6rnBsy_xljNtnn2AE5YHHngkQr-gDVmd6BmbTKiIytcr4AvJoYHFnGHPmq85h0cp4IGuO-p5_Ua-46L/s320/wyclef_cars.jpg" /></a></div><br />
In a <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/07/opinion/07blow.html?_r=1">New York Times article entitled, "Haiti's (Would Be) Hip Hop President"</a>, author, Charles M. Blow took a few cheap shots at Wyclef Jean, echoing the now-consistent phrase among quite a few bloggers and pundits that Wyclef is "incoherent". I already knew he was trying to start something with the title of his piece, although sometimes editors choose titles, so it would still mean they were trying to start something, especially upon the heels of the disastrous, Kwame Kilpatrick, former "Hip Hop Mayor" of Detroit. That's another blog topic for another day but the association is purposeful and clear.<br />
<br />
I learned from <a href="http://www.mediahacker.org/2010/08/wyclef-jean-haitis-sarah-palin/comment-page-1/#comment-6907">Mediahacker's article, "Wyclef Jean: Haiti's Sarah Palin"</a> that the above picture is the first picture that comes up when anyone googles Clef. Mind you, I have never seen this picture before but you know somebody paid to have that listing pop up first, to showcase all of the hedonism, conspicuous consumption and narcissism that has come to define Hip Hop---and is oh so American!<br />
<br />
As I wrote in my previous blog, I disagree with the charge that Wyclef is incoherent; but what bothers me about the accusation is the unfairness of it.<br />
<br />
First, there is this description of Wyclef's interview on CNN:<br />
<blockquote>CNN’s Wolf Blitzer put the question to Jean on Thursday on “Larry King Live.” Here is the sum total of Jean’s rambling, somewhat incoherent, answer: “Well, after Jan. 12th, I would say over 50 percent of the population is a youth population. And we suffered for over 200 years. Now that our country has a problem, it’s a chance to rebuild from the bottom on up. And I don’t even say I’m trying to be president. I’m being drafted by the youth of Haiti. Right now is a chance for to us bring real education into the school, infrastructure, security and proper jobs. So this is some of the reasons that I’m running.” <br />
Wow! Let’s just say that he’s no Demosthenes. </blockquote>No, Wyclef may not be Demosthenes but he's also not the bionic man. There were sound/connection problems from the start of the interview, to the point where Wolf had to stop it and come back to Wyclef. Further, you could hear the chanting and cheering of the people behind him, as he struggled to hear the question and there was a clear delay. Yes, that paragraph, seems "somewhat incoherent" as WRITTEN; but it also seems like the attempt to start (or restart) a few independent thoughts that were being interrupted by background noise during a live interview (such as why he's running, what made him run, what the people seem to want, Haiti's history and what he wants to fix). This was clear to anyone who watched the interview. Look, Wyclef is not dumb, so if you don't want him to run for President, then just say that. <br />
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Wyclef is not Barack. But he's not Sarah Palin either.<br />
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Another unfair and rather slick editing job came with the description of Wyclef's troubles with Yele Haiti. After repeating the whole $400,000 allegation (something which has never been proven, no fines, no fees, no penalties), Blow then writes:<br />
<blockquote>Jean has denied any wrongdoing and stepped down from the foundation on Thursday. </blockquote>It's interesting. Both of these statements are fact and, yet, Wyclef denied any wrongdoing when The Smoking Gun first accused him of improprieties with Yele Haiti---in January 2010! It is now August and, for the purposes of running for President of Haiti, Wyclef stepped down from the foundation. Two separate and unrelated facts, seemingly put together to throw even more shade upon Wyclef.<br />
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As I've said, it's entirely fair to hoist a mountain of scrutiny and questions upon Wyclef. After all, he asked for it and it comes with the territory. I just expect for people (especially journalists) to be fair.<br />
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Having said that, Blow's last paragraph definitely struck me and it is something that has been weighing on my conscience for a while now. Yes, I am excited about Wyclef's candidacy in the same way I was excited about Al Sharpton's candidacy for President of the U.S. At the time, things were so bad, I did not care if Sharpton was simply clamoring for attention and raising his political profile (and therefore, speaking engagements, relevance, etc.) but the fact is, unlike Sharpton running for President of the U.S. with little chance of success, Wyclef has an actual chance at becoming the President of Haiti, so when Blow offered this final thought, it has echoed what others have shared regarding their concerns and I have to admit that it scares me, too. Blow stated:<br />
<blockquote>Jean seems sincere, earnest and eager. He wants to help, and that’s noble. And the country has had so many poor leaders that it’s tempting to simply say: “Why not Wyclef?” But now is not the time to gamble. Haiti needs a serious and seasoned leader at this critical juncture — someone dedicated to the difficult and unglamorous work of applying the principles of good governance on a daily basis. In addition to rebuilding from the earthquake, Haiti’s next president must have the commitment and know-how to build viable health, educational and security infrastructures to support the country’s citizens, nurture domestic industries and attract foreign investment. It’s hard to see Jean as that leader. A Jean presidency could not only prove unwise, it could prove disastrous. And the last thing Haiti needs right now is another disaster. </blockquote>Ooof. <br />
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That hurt...because it's true. Now is really NOT the time to gamble and, yet, I would greatly appreciate learning more about the other candidates that have the experience Haiti needs.<br />
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These latest articles, posts and challenges have inspired another post on what is NOT being asked about Wyclef or his Presidential run, that I think should be asked. As usual, if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.<br />
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Stay tuned... and see you on Twitter! (#haiti #wyclef)<br />
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdrgoddess.blogspot.com&layout=standard&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&font=arial&colorscheme=light&height=80" style="border: medium none; height: 80px; overflow: hidden; width: 450px;"></iframe>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-81067272900773472432010-08-06T23:56:00.000-07:002010-08-09T07:30:50.323-07:00Wyclef for President of Haiti?! NAW!Well! What a difference a day and a filing of election papers makes, yes? Whew! The dialogue has been off the charts about Wyclef Jean running for President of Haiti. Did you see his arrival and welcome in Haiti, yet? Look no further!:<br />
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While we were gone, I thought of 10 facts that should be clarified about Wyclef but I will save that. Instead, I will give you the <b>Top Ten Criticisms</b> I have read, heard or seen for why Wyclef should NOT be the President of Haiti. I am still excited about his candidacy but here goes:<br />
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1.<b>"Wyclef couldn't keep The Fugees together."</b> Lauryn's mad at him. <a href="http://www.ice-dotcom.com/2010/08/pras-explains-why-he-isnt-supporting-wyclef-as-president-of-haiti-video/">Pras isn't even endorsing him</a> and if he couldn't keep his own band united, what makes him think he can unite the country enough to take it into the 21st century? For me, this is the funniest and probably the most irrelevant criticism. If Wyclef ran the predatory music industry, then I might be able to concur but since he doesn't, I can't.<br />
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2. <b>"Wycelf did a bad job with the books for his charity foundation, Yele Haiti, so he shouldn't be in charge of Haiti".</b> This past January, months after the earthquake hit Haiti and after Wyclef was on television fundraising for Yele Haiti, <a href="http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/crime/wyclef-jean-charitys-funny-money">The Smoking Gun published an article claiming impropriety</a> and illegal activity. Clef hadn't filed taxes for 3 years (turns out, if you've not made money during the first 3 years of your non-profit organization, you did not have to file taxes. They have since changed the rules. Darn you, Wyclef!). Still, it wasn't illegal. Further, <i>TSG</i> alleged that Clef's tax return showed payments to himself for a charity show he did (it was lazy book keeping) and later on, <i>TSG</i> accused him of paying off a mistress who was also an executive in the organization. None of these accusations have been proven, to this day and the media became suddenly silent. You know what that means, when they accuse you on the front page and then print the retraction in a tiny box on the backpage. Just shameful. In any event, there are still doubts out there and many of Wyclef's critics are saying just to be in this situation, to do a sloppy job with one's own charity demonstrates one's inability to run a country---and certainly the budget. I agree with the latter but not the former but let me stay focused here. The mistress question leads me to:<br />
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3. <b>"Wyclef is a Lothario who has demonstrated bad judgment and bad character."</b> I certainly can't deny this. We all know the story of Lauryn & Wyclef by now and if you haven't heard, then listen to the song, "X Factor" off of the album, <i>The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill</i>. For the record, I still love Lauryn and I blame Wyclef for this. But as Warren Buffet says, "every saint has a past and every sinner has a future." Besides, let me know if a hungry Haitian gives a damn about Wyclef's infidelities if his belly's full. That's how we felt about Bill Clinton and our economy, right? Right. Let's stop being so hypocritical here. But I digress...<br />
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4. <b>"Wyclef supported the coup with his Uncle Raymond" </b>(currently the U.S. Ambassador to Haiti---or is that the reverse?), who also supported it, against democratically elected Jean Bertrand Aristide, still presently in exile in South Africa. Now, I don't exactly know what "supported" means in this case but perhaps you should <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPwRJB-1pFE">listen to this interview Wyclef gave with Davey D in 2004</a> and let him explain how he felt about Aristide.<br />
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5. <b>"Wyclef supports Bill Clinton."</b> Ooookay, so did/does the majority of African America and for far less than bringing business and tourism (which translated into millions of dollars) to a country we own. <a href="http://dir.salon.com/books/int/2002/02/20/clinton/index.html">Hell, we like Bill Clinton for playing the saxophone and eating McDonald's and had the nerve to call him the first Black President.</a> Now that we have Barack Obama, aren't you ashamed of yourself for thinking so low of us? Tsk. First Lady Michelle Obama replaced McDonald's with the first, organic Whitehouse garden and Barack doesn't sing, dance or play an instrument. Thank God!<br />
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But back to Bill. Supposedly, Bill Clinton wants to turn Haiti into a neocolonial business venture for himself and the U.S., paying $1 - $2 per hour for Haitians to work in factories and to engage in tourism. It's all relative. If $1 - $2 an hour is the equivalent of minimal wage in the U.S. and it can provide food, clothing and shelter, it might not be so bad, especially to get the country up and running and remain "open for business" as Wyclef said.<br />
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This is an ongoing debate. On the one hand, brilliant Civil Rights Historian and friend to Bill Clinton, <a href="http://www.esquire.com/features/bill-clinton-haiti-1994-0996">Taylor Branch offers this analysis</a> he presented in 1994. And on the other hand, <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-01-19/bill-clintons-shameful-haiti-legacy/">this is a scathing criticism of Bill Clinton's legacy in Haiti. </a><br />
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I know we all want to revel in ideological perfection but, my people, we are dealing with people who are destitute but still prideful, illiterate but still trying. If the Haitian people are okay with this general set up, then please let them shape their lives as they see fit. If they are NOT okay, then let us raise our voices and assist in the best manner we can. Until then, it would be great to hear from some economists about the best path with which Haiti should take.<br />
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6. <b>Sean Penn is upset with Wyclef</b> because, <a href="http://video.tvguide.com/Larry+King+Live/Sean+Penn+skeptical+of+Wyclef+Jean/6125401?autoplay=true">as he said on Larry King Live</a> (hosted by Wolf Blitzer that evening), he has not seen Wyclef around much, he was appalled by the "vulgar" display of large vehicles rolling (undoubtedly Hip Hop style) through Haiti, he wants to know where $400,000 of aid that allegedly came through Yele Haiti's hands have gone and stressed that Haiti doesn't need a social revolution built upon the cult of personality. <br />
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It appears as though Sean Penn has some real concern for Haiti, so I won't clown him for talking about the "vulgar" display of vehicles but he should understand that the people dream of precisely what they see on television and in ads from the country Penn represents---America, not Haiti. Media culture is America's greatest export and Sean Penn has been quite the beneficiary of the film industry, so I feel it's something called "you reap what you sow". If it's vulgar, it's vulgar because it's what our own hands have wrought and we sell American pipe dreams all across the world, so much so that everyone thinks Americans are rich. Obviously, since most of us are literate, we have running water, public housing and clothes on our backs, we ARE richer than the rest of the world but the gaudy display of spoils is misrepresentative and certainly not Wyclef's fault. I won't pin that on him for the people wanting to see such a display themselves. <br />
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I also found Sean Penn's unwillingness to address the class disparity and signifying involved in that "vulgar" display to be rather interesting. In any event, <a href="http://larrykinglive.blogs.cnn.com/2010/08/06/wyclef-jean-responds-to-sean-penn/">Wyclef responded to Sean Penn</a>, stating:<br />
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<blockquote>It is unfortunate that Sean Penn is unaware of Wyclef's magnificent commitment to the people of Haiti and his independence. His campaign has nothing to do with corporate or special interests and everything to do with his calling and belief he can lead and make a difference. Some of Mr. Penn's comments seemed so out of sorts that those close to Wyclef worried about Mr. Penn, who has also done important, life-saving, inspirational work for the people of Haiti. This is a time to think productively about solutions and long-term strategies to rebuild, not to insult anyone who dares to care. Haiti needs everyone to collaborate for a 21st century safe, productive nation..</blockquote> That actually sounds like an answer from Wyclef's PR team but I'll take it!<br />
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7. <b>Many Haitian Americans aren't satisfied with the idea of Wyclef as President of Haiti.</b> I'm getting a lot of pushback from Haitian Americans about Wyclef running and it's understandable. Many Haitian Americans also have dreams for a better Haiti, came to the U.S. for better opportunities and with staunch intentions to assist their beloved homeland. I get that. I also get that there is a great level of debate regarding what ex-pats are doing throughout the Diaspora, how much they are or are not sharing and why the brain drain remains consistent in Haiti. So, I don't know. I enjoy hearing from Haitian Americans, though and I intend to keep an even closer eye on Haitians who will be voting. It's important to see, hear and feel what the people want whose lives will be most affected by the election.<br />
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8. <b>"Wyclef is just a rapper who thinks he's in a Hip Hop video. He's an opportunist of the worst sort."</b> This is probably the weakest argument against Wyclef. As a rich Haitian man who "made it" in America, Wyclef could do absolutely nothing, spout platitudes and continue to travel around the world making music and earning more millions. We should keep in mind that before Hip Hop became a curse word, we had (and still have) some great artists in the genre. Wyclef is one of them. Before Hip Hop was dumbed down by corporate media, Wyclef was reppin' for Haiti and policitizing his music, like most of the Old School. And before Hip Hop became synonymous with apathy, sloth, hedonism and narcissism, Wyclef, Pras and Lauryn emerged on the scene as a group called "The Fugees". You cannot make that up or recreate history. Their music was presented upon an historically collective platter, so eat that up if you can. Besides, <a href="http://specials.msn.com/A-List/Entertainment/Celebrity-politicians.aspx?cp-documentid=25095188&imageindex=1&cp-searchtext=celebrity%20politicians">he's not the only entertainer who has taken political office</a>, get off his back.<br />
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9. <b>"Wyclef is not educated enough."</b> According to <a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Americas/2010/0805/Wyclef-Jean-for-Haiti-president-Four-challenges-he-ll-face?sp_rid=NTk4ODU2MDA2NwS2&sp_mid=4529496">this article</a>, Wyclef graduated from a Newark, NJ school with his high school diploma. Since he has not gone to college or earned any professional degrees, he is not qualified to be the President. I disagree with this assessment but I have heard it frequently. I find it elitist and inaccurate. Wyclef is not running to be the Secretary of Education for Haiti. As President, he can hire excellent staff and appoint persons to his cabinet whom are supremely educated and can pointedly map out an excellent plan to increase the literacy rate and prepare Haitians for the 21st Century. Why does he have to be a rocket scientist just to articulate the needs of the people? He doesn't. Let's move on to another criticism:<br />
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10. <b>"Wyclef doesn't have enough experience". </b>This pointed criticism is probably the most valid anyone can offer to Wyclef. Because, in truth, he doesn't have enough experience to just jump up and be the President. And if he does not intend to have an extraordinarily strong cabinet with persons who will support and challenge him when necessary, then he will be doing the country he claims to love, an incredible disservice. <br />
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There are 19 other persons who believe they can do a better job than Wyclef, including his own Uncle Raymond!!<br />
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I still believe in Wyclef. But I thought you should know there are at least 10 reasons why at least a cadre of other people are NOT excited about Wyclef's candidacy and potential win to become the President of Haiti. We must remember, however, to <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rup4qrkXxVg&feature=youtu.be">let the Haitians speak for the Haitians. Fas a Fas!</a><br />
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdrgoddess.blogspot.com&layout=standard&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&font=arial&colorscheme=light&height=80" style="border: medium none; height: 80px; overflow: hidden; width: 450px;"></iframe>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-58291784870691331392010-08-05T16:23:00.000-07:002010-08-06T23:57:32.756-07:00If I Ruled the World (Imagine That)<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaVA1P9AKNapNcOcoHsr3DA9gCRSMdxrMIZd6jHcb-OgP3lzkkSAe6NnxYUoP_H2NrCnHyLmySvNJcFxNVDOypvzThSIyg_5vo5ygRG2Nxi8cZDm_KbxiA4-WN0B94zeld1ee6Yj-1sj6e/s1600/WyclefJeanAugust42010.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502103356403882594" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaVA1P9AKNapNcOcoHsr3DA9gCRSMdxrMIZd6jHcb-OgP3lzkkSAe6NnxYUoP_H2NrCnHyLmySvNJcFxNVDOypvzThSIyg_5vo5ygRG2Nxi8cZDm_KbxiA4-WN0B94zeld1ee6Yj-1sj6e/s400/WyclefJeanAugust42010.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a>Wyclef Jean Files Papers for Haitian Presidency, is Received by the People<br />
(photo credit: @MelkyJean)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">If I Ruled the World (imagine that) / I'd free all of my sons / </span> <span style="font-style: italic;">I love 'em, love 'em, baby /</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Black diamonds and pearls (could it be? If you could be mine, we'd both shine)</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">/ If I ruled the world (still livin' for today, in these last days and times)</span></div><br />
I remember how long we, lovers of Hip Hop, rocked Nas' 1996 political manifesto, asking us to imagine what the world would look like if he ruled it. His was a collective narrative that asked us to see ourselves in power and the problems we would correct if that were so.<br />
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My favorite part of the song is when Lauryn Hill (then of The Fugees) bursts into her melodic, "If I Ruled the World..." and Nas breaks in with an inviting and almost sarcastic "Imagine that!" because he knows that you know it would be tough to imagine.<br />
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Now, here we are in 2010 and Barack Hussein Obama is the 44th President of the United States and, imagine that, a Black man. I have great fondness for our President and his mission (and that is the first time I have ever written that, let me tell you) but I'm not uncritical of his role as head of the American Empire. That, friends, is another post for another day.<br />
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Today is my first blog post in quite some time. It is inspired by, well, me and the revelations I had when I found out that Wyclef Jean might run for President and subsequent conversations with my Twitter family, especially @sjean70, @FranceinCairo, @sablikatriumph , @FreedomTweet, @EmpressVal and @AfaceAface and I thought I'd start it off right by giving you the:<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Top Ten Reasons Why I'm Excited Wyclef Jean is Running for President of Haiti!:</span><br />
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1. I've been teaching about the importance of Haiti and Toussain't L'Overture for years. Haiti's independence (January 1, 1804) had a direct effect upon North America and inspired the strength and courage for my then-enslaved ancestors and freedmen to not only continue to revolt against slavery but to also imagine themselves independent and free, rulers of their own destiny. It appears as though that is what playwright, Ntozake Shange, envisioned when she wrote <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Colored-Girls-Considered-Suicide-Rainbow/dp/0684843269"><span style="font-style: italic;">For Colored Girls Who've Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">(1974)</span></a>, in which the lady in brown summons her girlhood, imaginary, Creole boyfriend (who bore the namesake of "Toussaint"). She thinks he is the famed Haitian soldier and leader, living in New Orleans---whether audience members believe it or not. It's one of my favorite scenes. And brown is the only color not in the rainbow. Hmmm... sing it, Nas:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">"More conscious of the way we raise our daughters"<br />
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</div>2. There is something extremely romantic, biblical and karmic about "the lowest of these" and the first becoming last and the last becoming first. Having a Haitian boy come to America, become a super celebrity rapper, musician and producer extraordinaire and then return to the country of his origin to elevate the quality of life of the people is amazingly wonderful to me. <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/01/12/haiti.facts/index.html">Eighty percent of Haiti lives in poverty and it's one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere.</a> This is totally unacceptable. Hip Hop, at its core structure, is democratic, innovative and technological. In a song similar to that of Nas' tome, Wyclef made a song entitled, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pq_3OheqzU">"If I Was the President"</a> in 2004 (thank you @redbully04 & @jazzzyone), which was serious, contemplative and offered great socio-political commentary. Wyclef is not dumb, by any stretch of the imagination and, thankfully, he comes from Old School Hip Hop, not the kind of clap-trap the mainstream is used to these days.<br />
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3. Like you, I sat in horror watching so many people die in Haiti as a seemingly cruel Mother Nature pelted people with falling rocks and crushed their bones between rubble. It's in these times that I wonder where is God in the presence of human suffering? I don't know the answer but I believe that Wycelf's run for President will maintain attention upon a country that still requires great assistance. Haiti is already "old news" in the U.S. media and I am so excited to see the country infused with even more reasons to stay at the forefront of our consciousness. Sadly, we live in a celebrity-obsessed culture that will keep their eyes on Wyclef, if for no other reason than to catch him if he messes up. But either way, if they follow Wyclef, they will follow Haiti and that's all that matters. Americans tend to have short memories.<br />
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4. I have read and heard the criticism about Wyclef running and, while some of it is most certainly valid, like <a href="http://freedomtweet.net/?p=354">@FreedomTweet's insistence that Haiti needs experienced leadership</a> and can't afford a gaffe at the Presidency, I am not sure that experience, alone, is necessary and it seems as though something more along the lines of a miracle is needed for Haiti. Divine intervention. I believe that, having seen these dead bodies and the extent of the destruction in Haiti up close and personal, Wycelf's spirit was shaken to its core, his humanity was touched in a manner unparalleled and he feels "called" to do something much bigger than bringing in $10 million into Haiti via his foundation, Yele Haiti. I have no proof. It's simply what I believe. There's a reason why <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8467212.stm">Wyclef was crying on television</a> and that level of shamelessness in a hypermasculine culture is only brought about through divine intervention.<br />
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5. I'm appalled at the present government infrastructure in Haiti. I will never forget the looks of exasperation on @AndersonCooper and @SanjayGupta's faces as they struggled to comprehend the reason why so much aid was poised (and stopped) along the airstrip and unable to reach the people that needed it. Since their looks of horror and outrage, I have since learned from @EmpressVal that President Preval is an alcoholic (who apparently remained in a drunken stupor throughout this travesty) and that people were actually taking bribes to get aid through certain passageways. I have no words for this type of criminal activity. No words...<br />
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6. I believe Wyclef can do a good job. I know it seems outrageous that someone with little official, political experience would be able to govern; but we must accept that Haiti is still in a state of emergency and remains a disaster area. What is needed in this particular day and time is for someone to keep the attention on Haiti, collect the projected $105 million dollars pledged to the country, BE VISIBLE and PRESENT and put together an excellent cabinet that can meet the needs of the people. Wyclef must surround himself with excellent cabinet members. But as the President, it seems as though the greatest qualification is to care enough to seek new opportunities and bring about the impossible dream. I believe Wyclef can do that.<br />
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7. We must let our Western expectations relax a bit. Wyclef does not need to figure out how to turn the Haitian people into rocket scientists (at least not overnight). Haiti's needs, at this point, are massive but fairly basic. Food. Clothing. Shelter. Education. Jobs. Security. A major reconstruction project can put people back to work rebuilding their country and a major push for educational infrastructure will elevate the literacy and capacity levels of the people. Not that this is easy but he will have alot of support as President, including that of the U.S.<br />
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8. It will be interesting to see what it will be like if Wyclef is the President of Haiti while Barack Obama is the President of the United States. After all, the U.S. offered temporary status swiftly, and humanely, I might add, after the earthquake. These are new and trying times. They are also times for new possibilities. I have read criticism that Bill Clinton wants to turn Haiti into a new colony (as if, in its tremendous poverty and need, it isn't already), working in factories and engaging in tourism. Well, if I recall correctly, that's exactly what drew Americans (especially African Americans during the Great Migration) to the North. We came for new opportunities, to work in factories, to have jobs and to make new dreams. Let the Haitian people grow and if they want those jobs, let them take them. Generally speaking, there is nothing wrong with working in factories and it's 99% better than what they have now---which is next to nothing! As for the tourism, Royal Caribbean was still docking on Haitian water during the immediate post-earthquake period but how much of that revenue was shared and how much made it into Port-Au-Prince? We must stop fooling ourselves. There's nothing wrong with tourism, as long as we have more fairness and opportunity for the Haitian people.<br />
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9. I saw <a href="http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/economy/artikel.php?ID=9360">this article</a> in 2000 when I was still a graduate student in American and Africana Studies. I have never forgotten how insulting it was to read the headline, <a href="http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/economy/artikel.php?ID=9360">"Ordinary Dutchman is African King"</a> and I think it's important for us to remember how African people (which includes Haitians, by the way) are seen throughout the rest of the world---and why. So now, let an "Ordinary Haitian" be a Haitian President and let us re-imagine what the African can do and be in the world. Haiti is the size of the State of Maryland in the United States. Wyclef can do this.<br />
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10. And finally, my last reason is because it seems as though THE MASSES OF THE POOR PEOPLE OF HAITI want Wycelf to be their President and he is clearly inspiring a level of hope in a people so downtrodden and disgusted by their present leadership and longterm corruption (Duvalier, etc.), that they will accept the leadership of a seventhsonofaseventhson to come and lead their country. Further, Wyclef's work in Haiti has been in the poorest, roughest "scariest" and apparently most violent and gang-ridden neighborhoods. If he can go in as peacemaker and provide aid to "the least of these", then he should be able to help everyone from the bottom up. I couldn't care less what the Haitian elites want, quite frankly. Over 50% of the Haitian population are YOUNG people who want something new. And they seem to want Wyclef. Who am I to argue with the people? All I can do is pray for the country, offer my support when I can and, for certain, encourage all of us to dream of a better world filled with great possibility and allow for the unexpected.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">"Better livin' / the type of place to raise kids in"<br />
<br />
Imagine that!</div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-10888173">Watch this interview of Wyclef in his own words on BBC UK!</a></div><br />
Stay tuned for more posts, I would love to hear from you and if you follow this on Twitter, please use the hashtags: #Haiti and #Wyclef<br />
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fdrgoddess.blogspot.com&layout=standard&show_faces=true&width=450&action=like&font=arial&colorscheme=light&height=80" style="border: medium none; height: 80px; overflow: hidden; width: 450px;"></iframe>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-6879047789953381142010-01-01T20:08:00.000-08:002010-01-09T20:16:03.835-08:00Happy Holidays & Happy New Year!Um, as embarrassing as this is:<br /><br />Happy Holidays!<br /><br />Merry Christmas!<br /><br />Happy Hannukah!<br /><br />Happy Kwanzaa!<br /><br />Happy New Year!<br /><br />Sorry about that. I've been busy or otherwise preoccupied. I'm going to do better in 2010.Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-36506054678785383142009-09-15T08:20:00.000-07:002009-09-15T08:49:37.067-07:00Michael Moore Premieres "Capitalism: A Love Story" in The Burgh!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_rUBq9GkCeH3YcYA2hI7aqxaSA2M5V3mg8k8OVLkbPuF1AGyoaHCjRd_ndknlnykyYhU5XulMgMrAPXVXrNobipVPyvrbUrwpkpXSbn7yt7oKIxDQJr6ywNwfmFzoXCWZC6akt5qGlSJV/s1600-h/P1030618.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 270px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 209px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381720702296068194" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_rUBq9GkCeH3YcYA2hI7aqxaSA2M5V3mg8k8OVLkbPuF1AGyoaHCjRd_ndknlnykyYhU5XulMgMrAPXVXrNobipVPyvrbUrwpkpXSbn7yt7oKIxDQJr6ywNwfmFzoXCWZC6akt5qGlSJV/s400/P1030618.JPG" /></a><br /><div>The AFL-CIO Conference is here and at the last minute, they were able to get Michael Moore to do the world premiere of his new documentary, "Capitalism: A Love Story". He said it's the culmination of his 20 years of filmmaking---and it shows. As usual, Moore interlaces old film clips and commercials in between his poignant observations and commentary on contemporary events. The use of older Westerns prove to be some of the most hilarious scenes, especially one, in particular that demonstrates Ronald Reagan's response to the Women's Rights Movement. <br /><br />But what I most love about Moore's "Capitalism..." is, ironically, what I most love about HBO's "True Blood" series. In the end, it's a heartfelt engagement, dialogue and challenge to that which we hold most sacred --- our beliefs, our faith, our ideas about humanity, equality, shared goods and responsibilities, what it means to actually "provide for the common welfare" (an actual clause in the American Constitution, folks) and how much one considers to be "enough". <br /><br /></div><div></div><div>As a scholar, I absolutely love the fact-checking and the manner in which the money trail is so eloquently (and sadly) outlined. Even my present-cynical attitude regarding government powers and personal enrichment did not prepare me for the level of evil I witnessed in this documentary. Point blank: America is a plutocracy and the only way to wield back power to the people is via real democracy. The richest 1% of the population simply cannot outvote the other 99% of the American people. Thus, Americans have revolted and that is part of the reason why Barack Obama is in office. <br /><br /></div><div></div><div>Unearned privilege and rampant exploitation of the working class and the everyday person is slated to come to an end, as long as we stand up. Michael Moore can't do it alone and he shouldn't have to. Barack Obama can't do it alone and he shouldn't have to. And he'll have to figure out a way to deal with Goldman Sachs and Tim Geithner, for sure. Count me in that number. It's time to continue to change the course of human history in this country, as Kwame Ture always believed would happen, anyway. I credit him, more than anyone, with spreading the message about the evils of capitalism, its inevitable demise and the natural evolution to socialism---even Democratic Socialism---an idea Cornel West has touted for quite some time. These are exciting times and I'm glad to be here. Thank you, Michael Moore, for being a great educator! See you next week!</div>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-21651166687850089492009-07-21T09:05:00.000-07:002009-07-21T09:11:33.816-07:00Back and Better Than Before, As If That Was Possible!Hey Folks,<br /><br />Now you know I haven't really been gone, just not blogging much but in the words of MC Lyte, I'm "back and better than before / as if that was possible!"<br /><br />Catch Daily updates of <a href="http://www.twitter.com/drgoddess">Dr. Goddess on Twitter!</a><br />And become a fan of <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dr-Goddess/27825406185#/pages/Dr-Goddess/27825406185?ref=ts">Dr. Goddess on Facebook!</a><br /><br />So much is happening, so let me fast forward since my last blog:<br /><br />1. The <strong>State of the Black World Conference</strong> was phenomenal in New Orleans. You'll find pictures, updates and conversation here on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dr-Goddess/27825406185#/group.php?gid=36663192769&ref=ts">our Facebook page.</a><br /><br />2. I have to admit, while I have some criticism for our new POTUS, I disagree with the Far Right (obviously) and also the Black and White Left (sadly). I'm quite proud of Barack Obama's first 100+ days in office. From the Inauguration to his volunteer work with Black, homeless, teenage boys to the Lilly Ledbetter decision to the creation of the Women and Girls Commission to the plans to close Guantanamo Bay to his talks with the Muslim World and showing respect for the human family in a manner no other U.S. President had (really) to having Spoken Word Poetry Night at the Whitehouse (whether I was invited or not, I am not bitter! He supports the genre! ;-) to getting out into the actual D.C. community to Michelle Obama planting an organic garden in the White House to their trip to see the Queen of England and Ben's Chili Bowl in DC before that, to the G-8 Summit and sashaying through France to ensuring that he stopped in Ghana (the first nation Independent of British Colonialism in 1957) before returning home to the soon-to-be appointment of another woman and the first Latina Supreme Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor (please pronounce her name correctly, which means don't say the word "mayor" as if she is the Mayor of your City, okay? --- 'So-toe-my-your'!!).<br /><br />3. I'm sorry, did I not mention that <a href="http://www.netrootsnation.org/">NetRoots Nation </a>will be in Pittsburgh August 13 - 16?<br /><br />4. Oh dear, did I neglect to note that the <a href="http://twitter.com/pittsburghg20">G-20 Summit </a>will be in Pittsburgh Sept. 24 - 25?<br /><br />5. And back in my own neighborhood, the Historic Hill District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, we have embarked upon the Masterplanning process. RFP's were accepted from various firms and 26 applications were short-listed to 4. "Planning School" was enacted by the Hill Consensus Group for four consecutive Mondays, the last of which was a presentation by a couple from Fayetteville, NC who helped put together their community plan and revitalize their neighborhood. The week prior, the short-listed firms gave their presentations to the Hill Community as well as to the Masterplan Steering Committee, which consists of various elected officials and community representatives. We could have been here a long time ago but at this point, I am not complaining, just happy to be here. "And still we rise." You can follow the Historic Hill District neighborhood (personified LOL) on <a href="http://www.twitter.com/historichill">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dr-Goddess/27825406185#/group.php?gid=88673702308&ref=ts">on Facebook!</a><br /><br />Oh yes, these are exciting, exciting times. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dr-Goddess/27825406185#/pages/Dr-Goddess/27825406185?ref=ts"><br /></a><br />Check this <strong>Revelations</strong> blog for updates on our collective stories but follow Facebook and Twitter for those daily updates you've come to know (and hopefully love. LOL).Raise Your Hand! No Gameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06201854465616243392noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-87471361606438898722008-11-08T07:45:00.000-08:002008-11-08T07:49:25.965-08:00Countdown to the Conference!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHntRf_kWXTsh_JT0_ERRNaKHJPBIE_K4fkViGG6yusTNpvcn1_20o0BoGtWSOt3xJTDFgntb0LEypgP0Mb1fC7GraLpP0x3ewtM9a5UqYUHBp-Bb0kVQFjyLptlLZFMHeSF9kisGqMnOg/s1600-h/SOBWC+Final+Blast.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5266313706954179922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 368px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 472px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHntRf_kWXTsh_JT0_ERRNaKHJPBIE_K4fkViGG6yusTNpvcn1_20o0BoGtWSOt3xJTDFgntb0LEypgP0Mb1fC7GraLpP0x3ewtM9a5UqYUHBp-Bb0kVQFjyLptlLZFMHeSF9kisGqMnOg/s400/SOBWC+Final+Blast.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Alright, folks, you ready?</span></strong></div><div> </div><br /><strong>Purchase your plane ticket here</strong> (they're still cheap right now):<br /><a href="http://www.blackworldtravelandtours.com/">http://www.blackworldtravelandtours.com</a><br /><br /><strong>Register and get Hotel Information</strong> here:<br /><a href="http://www.stateoftheblackworld.org/">http://www.stateoftheblackworld.org</a><br /><br /><strong>Check Us Out on Facebook Here (See Our Video Trailer!):</strong><br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/State-of-the-Black-World/30181455055?ref=ts">http://www.facebook.com/pages/State-of-the-Black-World/30181455055?ref=ts</a>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-14419073855571225932008-09-29T23:12:00.001-07:002008-09-29T23:15:41.961-07:00Pa(l)infully FunnyWow. Build the Hill was great last weekend! Thanks everybody! There were three days of activities but some of the reporters were particularly interested in the unsung heroes and sheroes in the Community. <a href="http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_590537.html">Here's one article.</a> Odd sort of twist, eh? Will follow up soon.<br /><br />In the meantime, I get to get some laughs in, as the economy tanks:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.hulu.com/watch/36863/saturday-night-live-couric--palin-open">Here's the latest Tina Fey impression of Sarah Palin.</a><br />It's a parody of the latest interview Palin did with Katie Couric.<br /><br />This is so funny, it's sad.<br /><br />I'll be doing mine this Thursday at the Obama Fundraiser.Raise Your Hand! No Gameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06201854465616243392noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-33630518242142277022008-09-23T02:53:00.000-07:002008-09-23T03:19:22.396-07:00Build the Hill This Weekend!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9HWyE_wHZROzTIirBZYwyCRmM_yOChUCWO-k7g6VfZ1MRV2jreOajnZgx2NQRTjT7cVV6cHSP-MNv3-leZFHKNdGOk06mptBh1fhT6ANfxDqHtJant8kV0DYPwIxx_ea1ZwPaE43JUOBP/s1600-h/BuildtheHill+Logo+final.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 241px; height: 260px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9HWyE_wHZROzTIirBZYwyCRmM_yOChUCWO-k7g6VfZ1MRV2jreOajnZgx2NQRTjT7cVV6cHSP-MNv3-leZFHKNdGOk06mptBh1fhT6ANfxDqHtJant8kV0DYPwIxx_ea1ZwPaE43JUOBP/s400/BuildtheHill+Logo+final.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5249156006522615522" border="0" /></a><br />Hey Folks,<br /><br />Last weekend, I opened for <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Last Poets.</span> Love them, love them, love them and excellent job, Kente Arts Alliance!<br />I also unveiled my Sarah Palin character and that's about the only time she'll be a hit in my world.<br /><br />This weekend . . . Build the Hill! <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 26-28, 2008</span>!<br /><br />We had the Kickoff in May and now it's time for the Conference, itself!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">http://www.buildthehill.org</span> (not hyperlinking so you can memorize it and tell everybody else)<br /><br />I'm so excited! We have a lot of registrants and have exceeded our expected numbers! We have lots of volunteers!<br /><br />A youth <span style="font-weight: bold;">talent showcase on Friday</span> . . . at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Margaret Milliones University Prep School, 3117 Centre Ave. at Ewart St.</span><br /><br />On <span style="font-weight: bold;">Saturday</span>, same place, the Conference filled with a <span style="font-weight: bold;">Recognition Breakfast</span> (get up!) information, activities and fun for adults and youth, alike (<span style="font-weight: bold;">youth have their own track</span>), and then later that night (8:30pm), an <span style="font-weight: bold;">OUTDOOR film screening </span>of Chris Ivey's "East of Liberty Chapter 2: The Fear of Us" at Ozanam Basketball Court, 1833 Wylie Avenue at Sweeney Way.<br /><br />On <span style="font-weight: bold;">Sunday</span>, at the Legacy Apartments (2121 Centre Ave), we have the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Crown Contest and Bake-Off</span>, where we get to see who's the biggest and the baddest baker and hat-wearer in the Hill.<br /><br />Y'all better be lucky I'm not allowed to enter because my banana pudding is lethal! However, one of our contestants has written in, "I bake a mean chocolate mousse cake". Yummy! We'll discuss issues, r<span style="font-weight: bold;">ecord oral narratives of the Hill</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">from Seniors</span> and then wrap up the Conference.<br /><br />Check the website for all of the details, speakers, etc. It's going to be quite lovely.<br /><br />We are out of space for vendors!<br /><br />We are almost out of space for registrants!<br /><br />If you're bringing kids, <span style="font-weight: bold;">PLEASE register </span>for yourself and them here: <span style="font-weight: bold;">http://www.buildthehill.org</span><br /><br />Any questions? Call our <span style="font-weight: bold;">toll-free number</span> and someone will get back to you: <span style="font-weight: bold;">1-877-277-9066</span><br /><br />Check out the flyers! See you there!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFz2pPX9S1Q9oawvQ3UaiFDzs7OKS8F2AHv1r4MAkT3eJ017ufndrLAEdcDUWefZ0pSdqmwyhCHWTHAKC5nyLKFVpVkYDk-PcKrdVC5EBizovhoHVnOduwEezoeQ27aR9I25dsfwvqxbpP/s1600-h/BuildTheHill_Weekend_Sept26_27_28.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFz2pPX9S1Q9oawvQ3UaiFDzs7OKS8F2AHv1r4MAkT3eJ017ufndrLAEdcDUWefZ0pSdqmwyhCHWTHAKC5nyLKFVpVkYDk-PcKrdVC5EBizovhoHVnOduwEezoeQ27aR9I25dsfwvqxbpP/s400/BuildTheHill_Weekend_Sept26_27_28.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5249156385437298514" border="0" /></a>Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-35238188834064079282008-09-09T18:44:00.000-07:002008-09-09T18:47:06.471-07:00Will Sarah Palin Be the Grandmother of a Black Child?Okay, I don't know how valid any of these rumors are; but this person is speaking on camera, in the first person and telling his story. According to this video, a young Black man is claiming to be the father of Bristol Palin's child and wants to be a part of the child's life and is being told to "stay away" because he's Black and because of Palin's career.<br /><br />If any part of this is true, John McCain and Sarah Palin will need to look for alternative employment this November.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.blackbottom.com/watch.php?v=WdBJd9b9i8A">Click here</a> to watch the video.<br /><br />Let me know what you think.Dr. Goddesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10391508073605640275noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1077798568962470757.post-63337974546197750852008-08-31T09:18:00.001-07:002008-08-31T09:20:28.748-07:00My Favorite BullyLong before the Wu Tang Clan, there was Sho' Nuff from "The Last Dragon"<br /><br />R.I.P. Julius Carey.<br /><br />"Who's the Master?"<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ylCvCwn9OG8&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ylCvCwn9OG8&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Raise Your Hand! No Gameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06201854465616243392noreply@blogger.com0