M.I.A. - "Born Free"

Here is the new video for M.I.A.'s latest single "Born Free" by director Romain Gavras.  The video is probably NSFW unless you happen to work for some sort of revolutionary establishment, yet I would say the video is important enough to risk a lunch break viewing. 

In nine minutes the video gives a graphic example of the lunacy and perils of military sponsored violence towards civilians in a society.  You may not identify specifically with any of the people in the video, but you should be able to understand how violence similar to that in the video has been acted out on countless numbers of groups with equal force and reasoning.  This video should make you think, and if it does not you need to think again.

M.I.A, Born Free from ROMAIN-GAVRAS on Vimeo.

Celebrating the Confederacy Shames America

Last week Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell declared April to be Confederate History Month in the state of Virginia, and the controversy quickly ensued.  Most of the angered Americans directed their frustrations at the fact that Gov. McDonnell failed to mention slavery as a part of the Confederacy, yet not at the fact that Virginia felt compelled to celebrate an institution that desired to destroy America.  In no way am I trying to down play the significance of slavery in the shaping of America, but focusing on slavery instead of current acts that undermine the foundation of America at present would be a disservice to America as a whole.  The Governor of Virginia last week declared that the citizens of Virginia celebrate a group that not only attempted to destroy America, but whose President Jefferson Davis was found guilty of treason.  Should states be allowed to celebrate treasonous institutions?

I have lived the vast majority of my life in Georgia, so I fully understand the sensitivity of this issue.  I understand the anger that the Confederacy invokes in African Americans, and I have also witnessed the pride with which Southerners revere the Confederacy.  The former still carries the scars from slavery, and the latter celebrates the fact that their ancestors fought for what they believed.  For the most part African Americans would prefer for White Americans to understand the pain that slavery has caused on our families, but realistically this request will constantly fall on deaf ears as long as so much pride is still attributed to the Confederacy.  When these conflicts begin the emotions on both sides become heightened and the chance for progress disappears, and this situation is a prime example.  America focuses on slavery instead of the Confederacy, and in response influential white Southerners like Mississippi Gov. Haley Barber defend the Confederate History Month proclamation by saying that the controversy surrounding slavery “doesn’t matter for diddly”.  (Southern vernacular never ceases to amaze me, and now I have to decide whether I should add ‘diddly’ as a word in Microsoft Word.)  However, despite ‘diddly’ hardly being a word, Gov. Barber does have a point.  The controversy over slavery does not matter nearly as much as the controversy that should surround celebrating the Confederacy.

By exploring the writings of Jefferson Davis, the first and only President of the Confederacy, you see a consistent theme of white supremacy throughout.  Davis regards slavery as a benevolent paternal system that spreads Christianity and benefits the economy by reducing the price of cotton, yet the most important aspect of his writings is that he states that the main benefit of slavery is to sustain the superiority, dignity, and equality of whites by reserving only menial positions for blacks.  As an African American I would never want to live in a society that advocated or celebrated beliefs such as these, and I would hope that most Americans would share this opinion, yet sadly this is a question that needs to be asked.  As a society does America want to favor one group of people over another based solely on race, and then reserve menial labor for all other races with the hope that their inexpensive backbreaking labor spurs the economy to increase the riches of the one favored race?  If you ask most Americans this question I bet most would disagree with this opinion, yet many of those who disagree may still favor a Confederate History Month.  This is where the inconsistencies arise, and this needs to be the focus of the controversy.

Focusing on slavery or calling someone a racist will not further the progress of America.  Those who embrace the Confederacy and omit slavery will only see the anger of others as a misunderstanding that can be fixed by acknowledging slavery, and they will only view calls of racism as misguided anger.  They will then be able to continue celebrating a rebellion that prioritized their race above all others and was very influential in creating the person they are today.  We instead should address the tenets of the Confederacy, and discover if those who support the Confederacy also support these beliefs.  If they agree with the beliefs of Jefferson Davis then it would be fair to call them a racist because they would have just admitted to being a racist, and that is obviously not something America can support.  If those who support celebrating the Confederacy do not support the beliefs of Jefferson Davis then we would need to find out exactly what they do support about the Confederacy, and if they feel that it would be possible to celebrate the areas that they feel are worth celebrating without accidentally celebrating the unsavory racist practices of the rebellion.  This forces people to address difficult questions, and requires them to be accountable for their actions.  These are attributes that are seriously lacking from our society.

When we address issues such as slavery and the Confederacy we need to understand that the people who are racists will not be inclined to view themselves as racists.  Being a racist is bad, and most people want to feel as if they are good, so they will form a logical reason for their negative acts.  A white person may agree with the idea of favoring a white person over a black person because he was brought up with the idea that blacks are inferior to whites.  To himself he is not a racist because he would be treating people properly.  He would treat the better race better than the other race, and this would be logical because it would make sense to give the best to the best.  A white person may favor his white friends over a person of another race because he is not comfortable around other races since he did not grow up with them.  This logic makes sense to many people, but the foundation of this logic resides in the idea that white people should initially be suspicious of other races because they are either dangerous or inferior.  If they viewed other races objectively and with curiosity then I doubt they would be as hesitant to engage with them.  Therefore, to counter racism you need to objectively show holes in the logic and reasoning of others.  Racists do not know that they are racists until you objectively show it to them.  Focusing in the emotional aspects of an issue quickly destroy the objectivity of all arguments, and therefore diminish the chance of progress.  The handling of Virginia’s Confederate History Month has only showed why America still has much room for improvement concerning the past, present, and future of race relations of this nation.

I will be continuing this discussion tonight on the blogtalk radio show Black America Rising tonight from 8:00 to 9:30PM.  You can listen to the show by calling (347) 237-4331 or by visiting the website.

Capturing the Struggle for Civil Rights

A young African American male turns to face his attackers after being sprayed by a hose in 1963 Birmingham

Civil Rights photographer Charles Moore died on March 11th, 2010 at the age of 79, but his images live on.

Charles Moore's photographs brought the mostly regional issue of segregation to the forefront of American thought.  The image of Dr. Martin Luther King being arrested in a Birmingham cafe for loitering, and being treated as a common thug awoke the national consciousness to the evils of segregation.  Charles Moore's additionally photographed Blacks in the South being attacked by dogs and water hoses with the cocky police commissioner Bull Connor proud of the actions he has condoned. 

Charles Moore brought to light an issue, and issues, that are too easily ignored, yet should never be.  We thank him for widening the perspectives of many people, and facilitating changes that America desperately needed.

Charles Moore

For more info on Charles Moore go to the BBC, and Powerful Days

Student Protests

Many college students in California last week protested proposed statewide tuition increases, and in addition to the outrage induced by the prospect of higher education now becoming unaffordable or financially crippling, the anger only grew due to a series of racially motivated events that occurred throughout California's higher education system.  At the University of California-San Diego a student hung a noose in the school's library, predominately white students had a ghetto-themed party, and a school television show questioned the need for Black History Month.  Students at UC Irvine also questioned the need for Black History Month in the school paper.  For many Californians this is not a great time to pursue higher education.  For many students the financial burden of pursuing a higher education may make education undesirable, and for minority students the growing reality that some segments of the student body do not enjoy your presence only compounds that same burden.  However, regardless of how unsavory these events may be the focus of this issue is the response.

The events created anger and frustration, but a response has been discussed for quite a while.  The students would protest the events, and ideally they would be peaceful protests.  The students' protests should disrupt the usual course of people’s lives.  If everything stays the same then nothing has changed, so the essence of a protest is to disrupt the normal.  The normal is no longer enough, thus we will change that and we will do so peacefully.  However, with peaceful protests comes the reality that those whose lives have been disrupted may not respond peacefully.  The police may want to beat your ability to reason or to recognize injustice into submission and replace them with the fear of further beatings.  That is what happened in California, and that is all I have to say. 

The appropriate act is to watch the video below because protests are simple acts both major and minor in size with the intention of eradicating the insignificant normalcy that can so easily encompass ones life.

On the Radio with Black America Rising

Yesterday, I was again a guest host on Malik Green's radio show Black America Rising and our topic for the day was Crime in the Urban Community and the Relationship with Law Enforcement.  Enjoy.

You can download the episode HERE.

Black America Rising Radio Show

I again was the co-host of Malik Green's radio show Black America Rising this past Thursday and the topic of this episode was "Is There A Leadership Void in the African American Community?".  Enjoy.

You can download the episode HERE.

I'm on the Radio

 Yesterday, I had the pleasure of being the guest host on Malik Green's blog talk radio show Black America Rising.  The topic of the show was "'Black' or 'African American' The Debate Continues..."  On this episode Malik and I discussed the relevance of the terms "Black" and "African American" and which one had the greater relevance to the community of Americans that have resulted from an African diaspora.  It was a very informative and engaging show and I hope you enjoy it.

You can listen to and download the show below.

Black America Rising - "'Black' or 'African American' The Debate Continues..."

The Role of the President for the African-American Community

The New York Times recently had an article that discussed how many African-Americans feel that the President is not doing enough to benefit the African-American community, and I find this frustrating.  The disappointment from many African-Americans exists in that the President has not created enough programs that directly address African-American issues.  The Kirwan Institute warns that the President’s “continued failure to engage race would be devastating”.  Professor Michael Eric Dyson bemoans “All these teachable moments, but the professor refuses to come to class”.  These are the frustrations and these are the warnings, but all I see is a failure to see the broader picture.

The Kirwan Institute may be right that a “failure to engage race would be devastating” but do they seriously feel that one must engage race by focusing predominately on the people who have been historically oppressed?  Race and racism obviously at the very least incorporate two dissimilar groups, and therefore to solve the issue one would need to focus on both sides.  Has anyone even considered that the best thing for Barack Obama to do to address race in America may be to engage with those who have historically been the oppressors?  White America did not enslave Africans because the Africans did anything wrong.  They did so because they felt it was in their best interest, and their ensuing prejudices originated out of this notion that it was all in their best interest.  By being the President of the United States, Barack Obama is already making it more difficult for people to hold African-Americans in low esteem because that belief would no longer be in their best interest.  As you can see from across the United States many people are having a hard time coming to terms with this, but Barack Obama has brought this hidden reality to the forefront. 

Additionally, the professor may be refusing to come to class because he currently teaches many different classes.  Barack Obama is not merely a professor, but he is the principal for the entire school.  The new leader for African-Americans is no longer that great teacher that everyone loves and remembers.  He cannot be that one person who is able to stay after class and give you that extra encouragement.  You will be less inclined to stand on your desk and say “Oh Captain, my Captain” while the teacher is being reprimanded.  The harsh reality is that President Obama is the principal of a school that has many absent teachers.  He has to substitute for absent economics, accounting, and health teachers.  Additionally, he has a board of directors that constantly tries to undermine everything he aims to accomplish.  The principal sadly does not have the time to teach African-American studies with the desired vigor that both pupil and professor have come to expect.  African-Americans may not be pleased that they do not have a full-time professor, yet this should be the happiest moment of their entire life.  Before Barack Obama becoming principal, or president, was viewed as impossible, yet that is no longer the case.  However, African-Americans have had many great professors in the past, so we should probably focus on finding a new professor instead of expecting the principal to run the entire school and teach our class full-time.

Over the past year many Americans have grown frustrated with President Obama.  Most say that he is not doing enough, yet when you find out what enough equates to it is nearly everything.  The Congress is frustrated that the President did not force through health care reform, yet forcing through legislation is the only role of the legislature.  The Republican Party complains that he is not listening enough to their requests, yet he still has to explain to them the difference between listening and agreeing with everything they say.  Frankly, for a political party that has so little power and no formal plan I feel he has spent a lot of time listening to Republicans.  Despite all of this there are still African-Americans who complain that the President is not passing enough legislation that specifically benefits African-Americans.  We need not be reminded that Republicans are still holding up Presidential appointments and threaten to filibuster every piece of legislation they see.  We have African-American educators complaining about how the President is not teaching enough, when the reality is that there is now a vacancy that needs to be filled in the African-American studies department because the former professor was promoted to principal, yet no one seems inclined to apply.

The President has a very full schedule, and the incompetence of others occupies most of it.  Instead of adding to the incompetence wouldn’t it be nice if the African-American community decided to give the President a hand by firstly understanding his job, and secondly trying to hire a new professor.  I think this would be more productive than growing frustrated.



Racism in Italian Football

 Mario Balotelli

Mario Balotelli is an Italian footballer of Ghanaian descent that has suffered many abuses from Italian fans because of his race. 

This week the Italian football club Nuovo Casteltodino abandoned a match after two of their Italian players of African descent received repeated abuses.

Every weekend I watch football.  I watch football from England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France.  I watch a lot of football, yet watching a match on television does not compare to being in the stadium.  The atmosphere inside a football stadium is hard to duplicate and many sports pale in comparison.  Seeing a football match live is truly something everyone should witness even if you are not a fan of the sport.  It is an environment that should be experienced and not just viewed from afar, yet there are aspects that need to be removed.

During my times in Europe I’ve attended a handful of matches, and I enjoyed them all, but I do remember a few occasions where there were chants that I did not appreciate or sections of the stadium that I was advised not to purchase tickets in, and all of this was solely due to the color of my skin.

In modern day society, and past societies, racism and/or prejudices towards other groups are nearly inevitable.  People may be unfamiliar with a group of people and their initial judgments towards the character of those individuals could be based on appearance and/or habits.  At some point people must find a way of dealing with these differences.  Some may respond negatively, some positively, and others completely indifferent, but the main theme should be that although the end result may be similar the process of getting their was most likely completely different.

In Italy people may be inclined to racist actions not because of an overwhelming belief that people of African descent are beneath them, but instead because their country is in a very vulnerable geographic location that makes them ripe for invasion and therefore the people are wary of individuals that one could deem as foreign.  Italian racism could arise from opinions that originate from the slave trade during the Roman Empire.  The method for addressing this problem could reside in their Roman Catholic faith, as the audio clip alluded to.  This perspective does not make their racism any less significant to that which exists in the United States, which originated solely from the slave trade, but it may gave a better method for which we can address and hopefully solve the problem.

Racism may be an international problem, but addressing it domestically may be the ideal method for solving this issue.

For more info on this topic go to the BBC.