Joe, Chains and Other Things

You know, every so often,  a politician tells the truth.  Such is the case with Joe Biden.

A few days ago,  Biden was out doing his thing for #teamObama, and he made the comment “the Republicans are trying to put y’all back in chains” while he was speaking to a large group that was majority black.  Of course, there was a collective “What did he just say?” from pundits, analyst, and of course, black folks.  Mitt Romney said Obama’s team was preaching “hate” and “division”.  *insert eye roll*
Blacks said that Biden was trying to hard.  *add another eye roll* Pundits and analyst said that Biden should be dropped from the ticket. *annoyed face*

You know what I say?  I say that Biden was right on track.

Between sheer laziness, interest rates, taxes, the education system, and the job market, the African American community has become a stagnant population.  Now,  add the new voter laws that are disenfranchising millions of black and lower income voters, and what you have? A group of people shackled by debts, unfair laws, and misinformation given by the ones in charge.  The plans that many Republicans want to implement will hurt many and will place many blacks in the position of being in said debt and suffering from unfair laws and circumstances, mainly because we aren’t just middle class….we make up the majority of the middle class.

Besides….how can we be mad at Biden for saying something that we ourselves say?  Don’t we say all the time that blacks are in slavery because the mindset and actions?

#thinkaboutit

The Creative Spirit

Damn, good dick really fucked up Lauryn Hill’s creative spirit. — @HarrietThugman (Follow her on the twitter)

I wonder.  How many times has this happened to people we know? People we love? Hell, to ourselves?

And I don’t just blame it on “dick” either, because I’ve watched guys that I thought were pretty well adjusted lose their mind over a peice of poon, so it’s not just one sex or the other.  But what is it about sex that makes us lose our heads?  Is it the act? The actual person?  The time spent?

Now, don’t get me wrong. I believe sex is an awesome thing. I really do. You should see the books on my kindle. Erotica’s presence is in my life. Yet I think its the power of the other person. The energy that they posses. It can hold us down. Cover us in filth. So we lose ourselves. Lose what made us who we are. Lose that spirit that made us go after our dreams.

What do we do when we are held captive by our desire, and it seems that the ransom is our talent?

It’s Been Awhile

Sometimes,  even the biggest mouth has to close.

See, me getting “fired” (or laid off, depending on what employment specialist on the news is speaking) was bad, mainly because I’m a busy body. I like moving, but because I’m moving so much, I do more speaking than listening.  Not saying I don’t listen, but at times, we are put in a position to where people want to hear your voice, so we oblige. Without thinking.  So, while the firing was terrible, it put me in a position to shut up because…well….my feelings were hurt.  Its hard to expand on thoughts when your thoughts are filled with anger and bullshit.

I didn’t tweet. Or facebook. All my blogs and forums fell behind.  I maybe talked to three people on a regular. What can I say? I was pissed.  But in bring pissed, I had to be focused.  And focusing included being quiet, and in being quiet, my thoughts were allowed to vented themselves.

I will not say that I’m just peachy. I’m not.  My ego is bruised and cut, and some times, salt is poured in the wounds.  But I have found a more….aggressive…approach to my stories and poetry. If that job and the subsequent events surrounding it taught me nothing else, it taught me to not be scared of how uneducated I may sound, because there are so many that have more education and sound like a damn fool.

Closed mouth = a bit of learning.

#seeIvebeenthinking

No Black Bachelor For You!

You know, let’s keep it 100. If there was a black Bachelor, no one would be happy.

For one, black women would have a conniption fit. Why? SOME form of fault would be found in the black women they picked.  The women would be too dark, too light, too natural, not natural enough, too much weave, too skinny, too fat, too manufactured, blah, blah, blah. It’d would always be SOMETHING.  The one thing that WOULD be agreed on however is that the women are “too hood” or “not black enough.”  Yea. It would be some fight or some sort.

And speaking of fights….you know fights are egged on during reality shows, right?  Don’t you think VH1 did enough with “Flavor of Love”, “For The Love of Ray J”, “Real Chance at Love”, etc, etc, etc.  Do we really need a show on Primetime TV that shows up being catty? Don’t you think we have enough of that on cable?

Oh, and PLEASE don’t let ABC decide to throw some white girls in the mix.  Can’t you see the controversy now?  Can’t you read the headlines? “Black Bachelor says Producers Pressured him to Pick Exotic or White Women” or “Black Bachelor: I Don’t Understand. Why Are They Mad That I Picked White.”  Honey, I do NOT have the time.

Reality TV is about ratings, and bullshit produces ratings.  But um…ABC is SO unprepared for anything that having a black contestant on the Bachelor will bring. So um…yea…no black bachelor for you!

 

Endangered Species (Open Season II)

Black man in the cross fire–

Another body to raise the ire

Of an already unstable nation–

See, the black delegation

Is restless, very uneasy.

Watch the news and get queasy

From the injustice and the mass hate.

To date,

Black men overpopulate

Prisons, disease cases and

cemeteries–

This should be scary if

One is thinking about survival.

Who will help aid in the revival of

Black family,

If the head of the group

Is being killed off;

assassinated–

Baited,

Into killing others and themselves.

“Americano Blackus Homo Sapiens”

Is what museum tags

Will read if our black men

Continue to feed

Into this

vicious cycle–

Endangered species

Of the most beautiful kind,

Please keep in mind

It’s open season.

No rhyme or reason,

They want you dead

Don’t be mislead,

Don’t fall in line.

Don’t be blind

To what’s in your face…….

Respect Me In The Morning

We stand here.

Tension high,

Breathing scattered.

I wish that “be a lady” shit

Didn’t even matter, because

I want to be

Cradled and handled

By you.

Will you still see me

As the black queen

Or will an impromptu love scene

Change your scope, your views?

In the midnight light

Our will can be done

But will you respect me

When I leave?

I’m not saying cleave,

Be a couple, be as one,

But when we are done….will you still

See me the same?

Between me moaning your name

And grabbing your ‘locs

Promise you won’t put me in some little box

And say

“Oh this is what she is”

And not see me for who I am.

As I whisper a soft “damn”

and or “right there” or an “oh please”

Don’t reduce me

To something so unclean.

I’m not obscene;

You just entice and excite.

So I stand here.

Tension high,

Wishing that womanhood

Was banging in my head

Because while I crave to be led

To your bed, I also

Desire your respect later…..

Leroy Wilton Homer Jr. — Know Your History

**Author’s Note:: I got this from my brother Alfonse, who is an active member of Phi Beta Sigma.  Find him on Facebook**

How many knew about the black pilot who crashed his plane in Shanksville, PA Sept 11, 2001. Maybe not his name or history, but just knew that the pilot was an educated black man who was married and a …father. The short bio below will bring us all up to date who should know and care.

In September, America marked the 10th Anniversary of 9/11. A tragedy that seems as if it only happened a short while ago. One thing that some people might observe and question is what was the impact of 9/11 on African-Americans. The majority of 9/11 media focus has been on white families and white children.

Leroy Wilton Homer Jr. was an African-American first officer operating the flight that tragically fell in an act of terrorism in Shanksville, PA on Sept. 11, 2001.

Pilot Homer’s plane was the 4th attacked that day.

The Long Island, New York native dreamed of flying as a child. He was only 15 years old when he started flight instruction in a Cessna 152. By the time he was 18, Homer had obtained his private pilot’s license. That same year, he joined the Air Force and became a second lieutenant. He served in Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield and later supported efforts in Somalia . During his tenure, Homer was named the 21st Air Force Air Crew Instructor of the Year. Homer achieved the rank of captain before his honorable discharge from active duty in 1995.

For his actions on board Flight 93, Homer received many posthumous awards and citations, including honorary membership in the historic Tuskegee Airmen, the Congress Of Racial Equality’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Award, the SCLC Drum Major for Justice Award and the Westchester County Trailblazer Award.

Ironically, Homer was depicted by a white actor in the film, United 93, the drama that told the story of the passengers and crew, their families on the ground and the flight controllers on the day of the attacks.

Homer is survived by his wife, Melodie, and daughter, Laurel.

He is remembered as a soft-spoken, well-mannered man, with a permanent smile on his handsome face. He was one of nine kids (7 girls). He was well-loved by people of all races, nationalities, creeds, religions and ethnicities. He is an inspiration to everyone on the rainbow of race and ethnicity. Time magazine last week published Beyond 9/11: Portraits of Resilience, a photo-rich commemorative edition dedicated to 9/11’s 10th anniversary. No identifiable African-Americans are pictured in its 64 pages.

America just does not get it. In history there are three kinds of sins: sins of commission; sins of omission; and sins of distortionSee More

**The next time you try to kick me some  black history, American history, WHOEVER’s history, keep brothers like this in mind.  It ain’t all about the commercialism**

The Chrissy Complex

You ever watched Love and Hip Hop?  You know, the “reality” show on VH1 that follows the lives of women who love and work in the industry?  Unless you’ve been under a rock, you’ve at least heard about it.  We talk about, laugh and joke at the lives of Chrissy, Olivia, Emily, Yandy, Erica, and Kimbella, but I think the one that catches my eye the most is Chrissy.

Chrissy reminds me of the average black female.  Loving, but aggressive.  Slightly confrontational. Lightening quick mind with a lightning quick mouth.  All of these things are good and bad, depending on who is talking.  The one thing that gets us talking is the fact that Chrissy has been with rapper Jim Jones for the better part of almost a decade, and she JUST got the ring this year.  For some people out there, it seemed preposterous; “Girl, why would you wait that long? Dogs ain’t that loyal!”  But the reason she caught so many women’s attention, including mine, was because her story is too far off from a personal one.

We all know a “Chrissy”.  She holds her man down.  She may nag, but it’s well-intentioned.  She assists in whatever hustle he may be involved in.  And she’s loyal. To a fault.  So loyal, you almost pity her, because you wanna shake her.  And chances are, if you don’t know a female like that *leans in* she may be you.   Hell, I know I’m her. I can’t really knock Chrissy.  My guy and I will be together five years this fall, and to many, including me, all that time without a ring is….asinine.

I guess what I’m trying to say is, the Chrissy Complex is rampant and real, and maybe that’s why we are so hard on her.  We see more of her in ourselves than we’d like to admit.

We’ll Keep Holding On

Why are ya’ll holding on to the Chris Brown/Rihanna situation?  Seriously.

Like I said on the twitter, If Rihanna the pop star would have been Regina & Charles, the College Freshmen, half of you yamps wouldn’t give a shit.  Why? Because Rihanna and Chris fly first class and eat at Mr. Chow’s, while Regina and Charles eat in the cafe.

On the real.

How many of you, especially you self-righteous males out there, give of your time and effort to women’s shelters or other causes that deal with domestic violence?  How many of you have taken the time to mentor a young man who you SEE is talented, but on the path of destruction? How many of you are mentoring this young girls to let them know what is and isn’t appropriate in a relationship? Don’t worry. I’ll wait.

Then, for some reason, everyone is like “Oh, it’s rumored he is still seeing her”. Um, for that to happen, doesn’t that mean she has to AGREE TO IT? Once again, the self-righteous is placing blame on someone, when OBVIOUSLY she is okay with the situation.  But let’s go ahead and call it what it is: Black men are only mad when a female is getting beat up if she is 1) his mother 2) his sister or 3) someone he wants to dig into. Oh, that’s too randy for you? Sorry. It’s the truth. The only reason that 90% of the males give Chris Brown the flack that he gets is because they want to bone Rihanna. Has nothing to do with her virtue as a battered woman, or as a woman period. It’s pure. It’s simple. It’s carnal.

Oh, and for the record, hell yea that boy deserved a Grammy.  If Roman Polanski and Woody Allen can get Oscars and they molested little girls, I think he can get the Grammy.  Lil’ Wayne pops pills, has MULTIPLE baby mothers, and numerous felons under his belt, but no one complained when he got his Grammy.  Let this boy be great, something that he can’t be if we keep holding on.

Open Mouth, Insert Stacy Adams

Roland, Roland, Roland.

Now, look brotha, you know that I know that we know the type of world we live in.  You know it’s a hyper sensitive time in America, where everyone feels bullied and no one wants to hear mean words.  The days of playing “The Dozens” or joking the way you did are over. Unfortunately.

Personally, I was NOT offended by your statement on twitter. I do believe that you’ve probably tweeted worse, just as I have.  Was it “insensitive”? Sure. Physical harm to people is a serious thing. But homophobic? Nah. Not when I see gay females and males tweeting the word “Queer” as if it’s some term of endearment.  Not when I hear gay boys toss around the word ‘faggot’ like it’s someone’s name.  It’s not that serious.

But I will say this, sir. As a black male in media who works for…*ahem*…THE MAN, you should know better.  You defended Tracy Morgan’s little rant, and that put you on the hit list.  Actually, you are a black successful man, so you were already on the hit list.  THEN you defended Tracy, THEN you tried to backtrack. C’mon guy.  If you gone say it, then say it.  Don’t come out and try to say “Oh, this is what I meant.”

Hopefully, this little lesson is learned, the fiasco soon forgotten and we can go back to seeing you and your many ascots on CNN in the near future.  But hey, remember guy: There is no such thing as free speech, especially for the journalist.