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Showing posts with label Black Commentator. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Black Commentator. Show all posts
Given all the hype and controversy around Chris Brown’s alleged beating of Rihanna, I feel compelled to post this essay I originally wrote in late 2007, so that some of us can have an honest jump off point to discuss male violence against females, to discuss the need for ownership of past pains and traumas, to discuss the critical importance of therapy and healing. Let us pray for Rihanna, first and foremost, because no one deserves to be beaten, or beaten up. No one. And let us also pray that Chris Brown gets the help he needs by way of long-term counseling and alternative definitions of manhood rooted in nonviolence, real love, and, alas, real peace. And let us not forget that Rihanna and Chris Brown happen to be major pop stars, hence all the media coverage, blogs, etc. Violence against women and girls happen every single day on this planet without any notice from most of us. Until we begin to address that hard fact, until we all, males and females alike, make a commitment to ending the conditions that create that destructive behavior in the first place, it will not end any time soon. There will be more Rihannas and more Chris Browns.
In my recent travels and political and community work and speeches around the country, it became so very obvious that many American males are unaware of the monumental problems of domestic violence and sexual assault, against women and girls, in our nation. This seems as good a time as any to address this urgent and overlooked issue. Why is it that so few of us actually think about violence against women and girls, or think that it’s our problem? Why do we go on believing it’s all good, even as our sisters, our mothers, and our daughters suffer and a growing number of us participate in the brutality of berating, beating, or killing our female counterparts?
With the recent victory of President-Elect Obama, many have speculated a change of attitude in young black men, vis-à-vis the thirst for educational prowess. Whilst this prediction does seem, by all measures, accurately reflective of the lingering emotion within Black circles, some have suggested the need for a handbook of sorts, as necessary in guiding Black students, male and female, toward a more promising future. Of such is Zekita Tucker, a St. Louis author and publisher, whose advocacy for Black students builds on the legacies established by W.E.B. Du Bois, Carter G. Woodson, Janice Hale, etc. Zekita Tucker, of fame “Don't Call Me Nigga,” has a new book out titled, “Reggie Wakes Up.”
Reggie Wakes Up is a blueprint for teachers and students alike – with an emphasis on public schools. In a moment when numerous questions abound, concerning the fulfillment of a Black presidency, Ms. Tucker has provided some suitable and reliable answers, in dealing with Black students. Meant for ages 8 and up, Reggie Wakes Up takes a hard look into the public school system, and its effects on the psyche of Black students. Though written in simplified terms, and intended for a young readership, Zekita Tucker takes into strong consideration the impact teachers have on their students. With subtle advice for tutors confused about their role(s) in the education relationship, Ms. Tucker has written and published a great resource for combating the sleeping giant of black academic inferiority in the public and private school systems.
Reggie, the book’s main character, is presented as a representation of young black masculinity in society. With a clear overdose on commercial Hip-Hop and other forms of mindless entertainment, Reggie’s view of life is infinitely limited to the Black characters he sees repeatedly on TV, and hears on the radio. With a nickname of “Dolla,” Reggie’s outlook is blurred by the pursuit of temporary pleasure, and endless gains. As he strolls late into class, Reggie feels at home in a classroom filled by nonchalant and directionless students. Prompted by Ms. Roberts (his 6th grade teacher) to take off his hat, Reggie refuses as he furthermore declines the offer to pay close attention to her subsequent demands.
In public schools across the country, marred by unenthusiastic, frustrated, ill-equipped and financially-challenged instructors, most similar scenarios unveil an all-too-familiar ending: The protagonist gets suspended, the rest of the class revolts, teacher takes leave of absence, less-enthused substitute teacher is hired, and the vicious cycle repeats itself – until each student has been suspended, or placed in detention, at least once. In this case, however, Ms. Roberts lays out a manuscript for future, and present, inner-city school teachers.
“Going rogue,” as it’s colloquially known, she employs some creativity in engaging her increasingly lifeless classroom. “How many of you would like to be important in your community and make lots of money?” she asks. At this point, every hand goes up. Leading through a series of succeeding questions, she stumbles while inquiring how many of her students “want to study hard, focus and go to college or university.” Puzzled by the intense decline in enthusiasm, as expressed by her students, in pursuing some form of advanced education, Ms. Roberts curiously inquires what each student foresees as a successful future, devoid of any substantive engagement with education. In a highly predictable move, the words “model,” “go ‘pro’ (baller),” and “rapper,” swing high from the lips of her students.
Those who have struggled for many years with the hoop/mic-dreams of younger Black males/females understand the dire need for, as Dr. King might put it, a revolution of values in the younger generation. The psychological warfare waged by big-media companies against the mental-fiber of Black children is bearing poisoned fruits, as more, and more, Black kids see no future worthy of aspiration, beyond the entertainment realm. For a disturbing number of Black younger adults, a deliberate avoidance of critical interaction with intellectual stimulation is a viable route toward financial empowerment.
Aware of this trend, Ms. Roberts, a diligent, skilled and empathetic tutor, enlightens her students on the powerlessness of most Black entertainers: “...I’m sure that those things probably look really good and make life seem much easier than it really is,” she says, “but why not start a business or choose a career that will give you the money that you want and some form of power?” With a look of bewilderment overwhelming her students, leading one to ask if “money doesn’t,” ultimately, “give them [Black entertainers] power,” Ms. Roberts explains that the ones who “seek them out to do those jobs for entertainment” are the characters with “real power.” This foreign language, of empowerment beyond entertainment, is carried on as Ms. Roberts informs her students that “the people who control TV, politics, and big companies… decide on how things… work.” Ms. Roberts advises that to “break” this “cycle… of bad habits,” it’s “important” to begin the process of mastering education as a weapon for liberation.
What the fictional Ms. Roberts understands, which many inner-city tutors sadly struggle with, is the degree to which the educational system, as it stands today, works in harmony with enemies of Black advancement. Inner-city Educo has lost its inspiration “to draw out” passions for greatness in younger Black students. Ms. Roberts is aware of the necessity for a re-education, within the education paradigm, to take place – if a future of possibilities is to be unraveled in the next generation. As the Hip-Hop artist Nas, remarked earlier this year, in a song titled N.I.G.G.E.R. (The Slave and The Master), from his controversial album Untitled, “They say we N - I - Double G - E – R/ We - are - much more/ Still we choose to ignore/ The obvious/ Man, this history don't acknowledge us/ We was scholars long before colleges.”/ It goes without saying that the Eurocentric educational model is a misfit for most Black students.
With the attention span of her students at an unprecedented high, Ms. Roberts snags the opportunity to inspire her students toward becoming marathon runners in the seemingly endless race for educational excellence in the Black Community. Ms. Roberts confirms the potential for distinction in her once-nonchalant pupils: “Even though most African Americans have had many challenges and disadvantages in the past,” she says, “we have a chance now to catch up.” Raising the stakes, Ms. Roberts announces her students as “the key” to the Promised Land of equality.
Breaking conventionality seems to be the least of her worries at this point. As she sees it, the depth of concern for her students could not be, and should not be sugar-coated to fit into the presumed mold of an acceptable educator. To Ms. Roberts, conventionality – otherwise known as eurocentricity – in inner-city schools was/is the cause of the jaw-dropping statistics of Black students, and an end to the vicious cycle is optimum. Ms. Robert’s leadership is a blueprint for success for any aspiring educator, who holds dear the value of her/his students.
In a symbolic gesture to highlight the sacred relationship between a teacher’s words and a student’s consciousness, Reggie, who had remained visibly silent through the whole ordeal, asks how much of Ms. Robert’s comments affect “our community.” Before Ms. Roberts can chime in, a classmate mentions that “because we are all a small part of our communities… we can change things from bad to good.” With the intense level of emotion and excitement tethering on the brink of explosion, Reggie wakes up from his mental slumber and removes his hat of insouciance.
At a time when most administrators are scrambling to develop creative models that incorporate the victory of the President-Elect into school curriculum, Ms. Zekita Tucker has written a blueprint for what such a model must look like. Reggie Wakes Up is a must-read for students, teachers, parents, activists and other concerned citizens.
In light of Sen. Obama’s historic win on Tuesday night, certain perspectives must be taken into consideration in order to avoid being taken for a 4 year ride, which provides nothing, having promised NOTHING! In the long and winded 20-month battle for a seat at the table of presidency, Sen. Obama has often conducted himself with an unimpeachable level of dignity, grace and humility. Nevertheless, there have been times when the Good Senator has fallen short of those ranks. In fact, he has, throughout the course of his presidential bid, played the 90% hand that fed, clothed, nurtured and made him: The Black Community. Whilst many Black progressives seem quite comfortable with being snubbed – in exchange for a Black presidency – not every card-carrying member of the Black Community appreciates the Illinois Senator’s disposition on the issue of Race. They are fully aware of the tightrope which needs to be walked for a Black man to transport himself to the pedestal of history, but many see a tension between overt opportunism and the potential for a progressive Black president. In my humble judgment, there are ten issues of concern to the Black Community on which Sen. Obama has failed woefully in the course of his political career and this historic campaign:
Hurricane Katrina: Shortly after the furious storms ripped asunder New Orleans, and Black folks waited hopelessly for 5 days without any governmental intervention, Barack Obama chose to deposit his two cents into the tense discourse surrounding the correlation between skin pigmentation and FEMA’s ineptitude. On September 5th 2005, Obama remarked: “There's been much attention in the press about the fact that those who were left behind in New Orleans were disproportionately poor and African American. I've said publicly that I do not subscribe to the notion that the painfully slow response of FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security was racially-based. The ineptitude was colorblind.” With 84% of Blacks endorsing the sentiment that the “painfully slow response” was, in fact, directly tied to discrimination, Sen. Obama, a Black man, appeared to have intentionally pitted himself against the Community which has steadfastly stood with him every step of the way.
Ronald Reagan: He is perhaps the most hated figure in Black circles. Nowhere has his name been more circulated, in unflattering terms than within the Hip-Hop (young Black and Brown) Community. Yet, Obama’s admiration for the Conservative Icon seems too huge to contain: “I think Ronald Reagan changed the trajectory of America in a way that Richard Nixon did not and in a way that Bill Clinton did not. He put us on a fundamentally different path because the country was ready for it.” With such public affection for a man who reveled in the characterization of destitute Black Women as “Welfare Queens,” Obama’s assault on the same constituency seemed appropriate.
Inequality: Having praised Ronald Reagan for eliminating “the excesses of the 1960s and 1970s” – otherwise known as the struggle for equality – it came as no surprise when Sen. Obama stood in the midst of Civil Rights leaders – who wouldn’t dare challenge him – and declared the Black Community to have come “90 percent of the way” to equality with whites. Obama’s statements do a fine job of spitting in the face of a 2004 Pew Hispanic study which displayed, in explicit terms, how “the wealth of Latino and Black households is less than one-tenth the wealth of White households even though Census data show their income is two-thirds again as high.”
Black Fathers: On June 15th, earlier this year, Obama chose to spend his Father’s Day on the South Side of Chicago in the Apostolic Church of God. With a clear agenda at play, Obama took to the pulpit and rendered unilateral and generalized swipes against Black men for abandoning “their responsibilities, acting like boys instead of men.” Acclaimed Scholar and Obama supporter, Michael Eric Dyson, noted that Obama’s “rebuke” of “his own race” was a clearly “aimed at those whites still on the fence about whom to send to the White House.” Sen. Obama’s decision to use Black men as the sacrificial lamb for presidential victory is strikingly reminiscent of Clarence Thomas’s decision to pawn his financially-challenged sister as the stepping stone to greater success.
Sean Bell: When a man’s body is desecrated by the bum rush of 50 bullets, it’s safe to say an injustice was wrought. Commenting on the exonerating verdict rendered in favor of the police officers, Obama described the execution-style murder of the soon-to-be bridegroom as a “possible case of excessive force.” Referring to any form of violence as “unacceptable and counterproductive,” Obama asked Black folks to “respect the verdict that came down,” because “the judge has made his ruling, and we're a nation of laws.” The Rev. Al Sharpton, clearly disappointed, was quick to accuse Obama of trying to “grandstand in front of white people.”
Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright & TUCC: When Sen. Obama defended Rev. Wright’s right to free speech, many neo-liberals praised his unwillingness to throw his 20-year mentor under the bus. But when Rev. Wright hit the public airwaves to reclaim his dignity, Obama suddenly felt the urge to distance himself from his “old uncle who says things I don't always agree with.” Obama’s condescension toward the widely-respected Black theologian and scholar blossomed into full-fledge status, following Rev. Wright’s press conference on April 28th. With his description of Wright’s remarks as “a bunch of rants that aren't grounded in truth,” Obama chastised Wright’s decision to focus so “much on the plight of the historically oppressed,” and lose “sight of what we have in common.” Following this logic, Black people, being historically oppressed, should not have that much faith in the possibility of an Obama presidency to “focus so much” on their abysmal plight.
40th Anniversary of Dr. King’s Legacy: Whilst Hillary and John McCain were in a rush to express manufactured admiration for Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Obama, perhaps too big for Memphis, chose to speak 400 miles away in Indiana. Taking his 90% Black-voting bloc for granted, Obama would rather give a stump speech in Fort Wayne, Indiana, than pay homage to one of the greatest moral crusaders the world has ever produced. Upon hearing this, many Black wondered: “Who does he think he is?” Indeed, who does he think he is?
Democratic Convention Speech: Having intentionally structured the last day of the DNC on the 45th anniversary of Dr. King’s historical speech at the Lincoln Memorial, it was highly disappointing for many Black scholars to see Obama relegate Dr. King’s legacy to simply, “a young preacher from Georgia.” Two renowned Black scholars, Dr. Julianne Malveaux (BC Editorial Board member) and Dr. Cornel West, expressed immediate disdain with Obama’s obsession with political expediency. Dr. Malveaux’s description of Obama’s speech as a “whitewash of our history,” correlated with Dr. West’s opinion that Sen. Obama was attempting to both “ignore” and “run” from history and memory.
Affirmative Action: In a discussion with Journalists of culture/color at the annual Unity Convention, Obama was asked about his present stance on Affirmative Action. Obama responded that the race-based system, under which it currently functions, is faulty and, under an Obama presidency, would undergo reform. Sen. Obama mentioned that he believes Universities and Colleges “should be able to take into account race, but they should also be able to take into account class, and hardship, and difficulty in making assessments about whether or not a young person is deserving of - of opportunity.” Such statements only promise more hardship for an already fractured and disenfranchised community.
Iraq War: Through his hawkish rhetoric, Senator Obama has shifted his Iraq War stance as far to the right as the Democratic platform permits. Once an opponent of the War, Obama has skillfully reneged on his promise to end the War within 2 years of his presidency. His increasingly moderate views on the Iraq/Afghanistan/Iran/Pakistan Wars are definitely in constant conflict with 71% of the Black Community, which opposed the War from the start.
If Black folks are not vigilant enough, and choose to be sucked in by the aroma of “firstism,” Clarence Thomas v2.0 might as well be sitting in the White House on January 20th. Sen. Obama has displayed an unprecedented level of apathy in dealing with his own race. That’s not, however, to charge him irredeemable (Indeed, there have been moments when he has functioned in ways that insinuate a deep desire to do right). It simply suggests the amount of work cut out for Black progressives. For a man who hasn’t shown unseemly eagerness to put integrity before income, sincerity before success and verity before victory, an uncritical level of support of Obama is as much 4 more years as one can imagine.
