I Don't Know her anymore ... (that's a good thing)

I Don't Know Her Anymore ... (That's a good thing)
Discourse: change, history, adaptation Type: poetic style


I was told all about her;
Her nasty past - filled with chains, whips, confinement, guns;

She was troubled;
Filled with hate and fear for others, she built her self-esteem at the expense of others;
Breaking spirits, hopes, and dreams was synonymous with her name - as she rose to great powers;

Everyone wanted to have a piece of her though, a piece of her 'dream' - as her dream promised personal fulfillment for others whom worked hard and were dedicated;
For a long time, many were scared of her sight, her glare, her voice, her disdain for others;
She even separated herself from others - only to associate with those that resembled her;
And for those that were separated from her, were meant to feel below feces;
She enacted rules to sustain her behavior, guns to enforce her behavior, and persuasion & repetition to germinate her behavior;
However, the 'goodness' in man eventually led to a subside of her behavior;
And even thought her rules were gone, she had left a mark - a putrid stain that will never be forgotten;

Now, I don't get her, she seems so different;
Giving hopes and dreams to those she views different, but the difference I can't measure - don't even no where to start;
As it appears she is allowing a pigment change over her deep-entrenched red heart;
Maybe she has changed for the good - a complete 180 of what she was before;
Or perhaps it’s a change that will only be understood with time - as no amount of money could provide solace to all she hurt;
But her change may be retribution enough to those that had lost all hope with her;
One man is testing how much she has changed or is changing;

She was lost, and maybe, just maybe she has been 'found' or is in the process 'finding' … only time will tell


.:: d.b ::.

Blue Devils

Blue Devils
Jon Hope feat. Terminology

Hip-Hop isn't dead, the real hip-hop is just a lot harder to find, is not in the mainstream, and lives on the Internet as opposed to your pop radio station. Hip-Hop has always been the first medium/media to report on social injustices; from "The Message", "Self Destruction", and other songs, Hip-Hop gives insight to what problems are affecting the community.

This song by Jon Hope & Terminology was inspired by the recent events of the Sean Bell incident, and comments on police brutality and injustice.

.:: d.b

Super D's & Bill Clinton

Super Delegates & Bill Clinton
The Power, and the Questions the Super D's must ask

This Democratic race between Senator Barack Obama and Senator Hilary Clinton is a nasty contest; as both candidates are fighting to secure the democratic nomination. In an election year, where the general public wanted to see a change from the Bush regime, that is to say to avoid another 4 years of Bush style politics in a John McCain, the Democratic party is so divided that they may have hurt their chances to win the general election. At the beginning of 2008, heck even 2007, the democratic party expected to win the '08 election because of the many ills the current administration has administered on the American people and the world.

Mathematically, Obama has the nomination locked - but not all math is equal; meaning all values are not treated the same. We all have been introduced to the term 'Super Delegates', and it is the super delegates that ultimately have the power to decide and can override what the delegates decide. And it appears that Clinton will have more Super Delegates than Obama.

Thus, the Super Delegates have some tough questions to ask of themselves:
1. What will be the social cost of selecting Clinton over Obama, even though Obama had more votes than Clinton.
Answer: This will send a message (direct/indirect) that even if a Black Man can win, ultimately he will lose. Furthermore, this can cause social upheaval as the cost of this decision is not just Obama vs. Clinton, but will also regress the progress that black people have accomplished.



2. How much loyalty do I have to Bill?
Answer: To the Democrats, Bill Clinton is the best thing since slice bread - on a whole, the Clinton presidency was one of the best eras in U.S. history in terms of economic and social progress; the economy was soaring, jobs were booming, and the healthcare industry was improving. Thus, a lot of the Super Delegates owe their status to Bill Clinton - meaning that Bill still has a lot of pull within the upper echelons of the Democratic Party, and if it comes to the Democratic nomination being decided by a bunch of Super D's in a back room, then Bill Clinton will be a power to be acknowledged.

In all, whoever the democratic nominee will be, they will have the daunting challenge to reunite a dilapidated party that is divided by gender, racial, and ideological differences, and will have to mount a tight campaign in a short period of time.

...... Looks like the Bush Regime will die another day, McCain can't be any worse, right?

.:: d.b

Major Taylor: An Unknown Great, Cyclist

Major Taylor
A Great Unknown

From Wikipedia:

Marshall Walter ("Major") Taylor (November 26, 1878–June 21, 1932) was an American cyclist who won the world one-mile track cycling championship in 1899, 1900, and 1901.

Taylor was the second black world champion in any sport, after boxer George Dixon. The Major Taylor Velodrome in Indianapolis, Indiana, and a bicycle trail in Chicago are named in his honor. On July 24, 2006 the city of Worcester, Massachusetts, changed the name of part of Worcester Center Boulevard to Major Taylor Boulevard. His memory is honored not only for his athletic feats, but for his character. Taylor was a devout Christian who would not race on Sundays for much of his career, making his success all the more remarkable.

Taylor was born to a large family on a farm in rural Indiana to parents Gilbert Taylor and Saphronia Kelter, who had migrated from Louisville, Kentucky. He began as an entertainer at the age of thirteen. He was hired to perform cycling stunts outside a bicycle shop while wearing a soldier's uniform, which resulted in the nickname "Major."



As an African-American, Taylor was banned from bicycle racing in Indiana once he started winning and made a reputation as "The Black Cyclone." In 1896, he moved from Indianapolis to Middletown, Connecticut, then a center of the United States bicycle industry with half a dozen factories and thirty bicycle shops, to work as a bicycle mechanic in the Worcester Cycle Manufacturing Company factory, owned by Birdie Munger who was to become his lifelong friend and mentor, and race for Munger's team. His first east coast race was in a League of American Wheelmen one mile race in New Haven, where he started in last place but won. In late 1896, Taylor entered his first professional race in Madison Square Garden, where he lapped the entire field during the half-mile race. Although he is listed in the Middletown town directory in 1896, it is not known how long he still resided there after he became a professional racer. He eventually settled in Worcester, Massachusetts (where his nickname was naturally altered to "The Worcester Whirlwind"), marrying there and having a daughter, although his career required him to spend a large amount of time traveling, in America, Australia, and Europe.

Although he was greatly celebrated abroad, particularly in France, Taylor's career was still held back by racism, particularly in the Southern states where he was not permitted to compete against Caucasians. The League of American Wheelmen also excluded blacks from membership. During his career he had ice water thrown at him during races and nails scattered in front of his wheels, and was often boxed in by other riders, preventing the sprints to the front of the pack at which he was so successful. In his autobiography, he reports actually being tackled on the race track by another rider, who choked him into unconsciousness but received only a $50 fine as punishment. Nevertheless, he does not dwell on such events in the book; rather it is evident that he means it to serve as an inspiration to other African-Americans trying to overcome similar treatment. Taylor retired at age 32 in 1910, saying he was tired of the racism. His advice to African-American youths wishing to emulate him was that while bicycle racing was the appropriate route to success for him, he would not recommend it in general; and that individuals must find their own best talent.

He was reported to have between $25,000 and $30,000 when he returned to Worcester at the end of his career, but lost it to bad investments (including self-publishing his autobiography), persistent illness, and the stock market crash. His marriage over, he died a pauper in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood, survived by one daughter. In 1948 his body was moved to a marked grave in a more prominent section of Mount Glenwood Cemetery thanks to funding by Frank Schwinn. A monument to his memory is being planned for Worcester, and even Indianapolis has finally confronted its racist past by naming the city's bicycle track after Taylor.

-----
Commentary:

Imagine getting respect for your skills and ability around the world, but at home, such skills are not even acknowledged, and such, you are treated inferior. I never heard of Major Taylor until recently, as it appears to be that he is a great black hero that is unknown by many ... thus, spread the knowledge.

Peace

.:: d.b

Silly Monkeys! Part 0: An Abstract

Silly Monkeys! Part 0: An Abstract
Virtues: 'Yuh tek man fi fool/joke', deceit, respect for others


Abstract: One day I was sitting in the offices of my business partners place of employment at an executive school. One of their co-workers who was an older white lady, let's say in their mid-40's made an off-color comment, it went something like, "What are you silly monkeys doing". Now, we are three young black men, and we have an older lady calling us silly monkeys - albeit she said it in a joking context. I had never met the lady before, but I took her comment as someone that was clueless to what that phrase signified to a black person. However, one of my business partner took gross offense to it - which I understood why, but deep down inside I believe that she honestly did not say those words in a racist context.

But the story mentioned above is not what this piece is about, at least not the historical/racist aspect of what 'silly monkey', 'monkey', or 'porchmonkey' means to the black community. I think silly monkey is an interesting concept that can be tied to when one treats another like an idiot; one whom is deceitful, manipulative to another, and they believe that the 'silly monkey' has no clue of what they are up to. I always had this concept in my mind, but I could not phrase properly - better yet, I could not phrase in such a sweet, concise catch phrase that captured the essence of the concept.

So thank you, middle-aged white lady who was trying to make a joke and be hip with her peers, you have armed me with a definition that is timeless, transcends races & borders, and describes a daily occurrence that I, and I think a lot of us have to go through - dealing with people that take us for joke.

.:: d.b

Black Like Me

Black Like Me
Virtues: race, distinction, etiology

Black like me, like who? Whether your background is Caribbean, American, or African, if you are black you share traits – people look at you with common expectations. However, amongst black people, we like to distinguish ourselves from each other, even though we essentially come from the same place – Africa. My background is Caribbean, but now I reside in North America (Toronto to be specific), and I once talked to this African woman; I thought that it would be just as usual if I was talking to a Jamaican or Trini, but I soon realized that I felt that our cultures were so different; I almost thought that I was dating a white girl. I was learning about different foods, traditions, heritage, attitudes that I thought that I should know (because we share the same race), but I was grossly mistaken.

Historical Sense
In North America, you generally have two classes of black people: domesticated/westernized blacks & Africans. The former group comes from a diverse background; they have either migrated from the Caribbean islands and/or are the offspring of slavery. From the shores of Halifax Nova Scotia which was Canada’s first black population settlement, to the deep south of Mississippi, there is similarity of a shared struggle throughout history that exists even to this day; their heritage only spans from somewhere in the 1800’s – anytime before that, and the details of their heritage gets sketchy, fuzzy, like channel ‘01’. Similarly, the Caribbean people that have migrated to Canada & the U.S. for better prosperity share a similar heritage-like progression as they too have lost details about their history from around the 1800’s and even early 1900’s. This is significant to the domesticated/westernized blacks because they have a loss of culture; a loss of roots.

I know the enlightened person is like, ‘you shouldn’t group Caribbean’s with domesticated westernized blacks because their culture is different’, such a person would be right; but they share the same etiology - the etiology they share is different from African blacks.



Noticeable Differences
It is the etiology that essentially creates the distinction and divide that exists amongst blacks – so much so that both groups are prejudice to each other. And with all types of prejudice behavior – it is a result of a lack of knowledge and respect for others. Meaning, that the Westernized blacks may know about the history of Africa (i.e. slavery), but currently, the Westernized blacks do not know much about the current state of their brethren across the Atlantic. According to the media, Africa is still full of savages, AIDS, poverty, and tribes.

In my experiences, both groups have an inherent bias towards themselves. The domesticated/westernized blacks believe that they are better than the Africans because they have been in the West longer, understand the western culture & ideals better, and have better language skills. Whereas, the Africans believe that they are better than the domesticated/westernized blacks because they believe that they have more heritage, know their roots, and are more ‘black’ (pure) than their brethren. So basically, this correlates into a subdued (or at times overt) attitude that people develop of ‘frowning’ and/or ‘looking down’ on others. Which really shouldn’t be the case, because in the end, while we battle ‘looking down’ at each other, the ‘man’ is looking down at us – laughing, exploiting as usual.

Think about that!

.:: d.b

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The boys in blue, black, brown

Law Enforcement & Race

In the black community, there is a strong disdain for law enforcement. Historically, the law enforcement has enforced the racist and segregation laws of the government. Thus, it is only fitting that the black community did not trust and/or respect law enforcement (since it wasn't being reciprocated). Out of this frustration grew the Black Panther Party, which was an organization of individuals (primarily black) who 'policed' their own community; which is somewhat noble, however we all know what happened to the black panther party (google it if you are unaware). Even the Crips, the notorious gang out of Westside L.A. that now spawns the world in crip blue attire, started off as a child (not literally, but metaphorically) from the Black Panther Party; the Crips had a mandate to initiate social change in their community - however, the allure of drugs trumped that ideology.

So it can be said that from generation to generation, has attitudes and behaviors are passed down from parent to child, it is not hard to understand that even up to this very day, the black community, specifically the young black community have a strong disdain for police. Movements such as 'Stop Snitching' are not just a slogan on a T-shirt, but the Stop snitching campaign represents a concept that is shared by many.

What I find funny, and let me know if this has happened to you, is that some of my friends whom claim that cops are always harassing and 'racially profiling' them are the same individuals that actually engage in illegal activities and/or have been involved in the legal system before. Has this ever happened to you?

The Black Type

We all know that stereotypes exist for all races & cultures. In a definitional construct, a stereotype can be defined as a generalized statement regarding behavior or attitude for a group of people. Stereotypes are usually developed from either personal experiences or are absorbed from various media texts. Personally, stereotyping is a part of human functioning - on a cognitive level it is applying a mental framework (set of ideas & concepts) to a situation, problem, or interactions. The problem for the 'art' of stereotyping comes in its application - treating people a certain way because of a stereotype. I'm sure we have all experienced that feeling - some more than others, and I accept this reality. My qualm is not really the 'treatment', but the "limits of potential" that stereotypes can exert.

I get that being a young black male that I am maladapted, aggressive, may have several illegitimate children, very fashionable, do several drugs, and have a lack of respect for authority figures - due primarily to the absence of a father figure in my childhood. Now with that fact(s) I am also an entrepreneur. In regards to entrepreneurs, when I tell others that I have businesses, the primary assumption is that I am either creating a music label or clothing line. Whats alarming is that black, white, asian, brown people like place the same limit: the extent of the 'Black Entrepreneur' is limited to Music & Fashion. So one can imagine the shocking expressions I receive when I tell others that I have a Media & Event Planning Company; worse when I get into rich descriptive detail regarding concepts & terms. The change in behavioral expression (facial, body, verbal) is almost instant - the limits that were disposed on me had been shattered & something significant has happened. I am now no longer a "constant, predictable negro" in their eyes - I now represent a variable that can not easily be defined by existing stereotypes. Making my potential limitless - of course, I knew this all the time, but it brings me a sense of joy to 'school' others from time to time whom try to limit me.

NOTE:
Ironically, when you stereotype others & place limitations on their behavior, you kind of limit your own abilities to think outside the 'box' or paradigm.

Irony is a Bitch isn't it?