Anyone who has read this blog for any amount of time can tell you that I have a soft spot for children. From time to time I feature stories where children suffer neglect at the hands of the very adults who are supposed to love them. Believe you me, I've featured a host of stories like this and this tragic event, but this next story out of Reno Nevada has me wondering if parental licenses to have and raise children should be issued:
Reno, NV (RGJ.com) - A 41-year-old Reno, Nevada woman is behind bars after police said she was grossly intoxicated when she tried to bring her 1-year-old daughter - riding in a stroller wearing minimal clothes - into a bar.
Around midnight Wednesday, patrons and staff at Russo's Tavern on Clearacre Lane prevented Christine Yvette Lobe from coming into the bar, and called police. Officers later learned she had also left her 2-year-old daughter at home alone, walking to the bar after the toddler fell asleep on the couch.
"She never got inside our bar," said bar owner Jamie Russo. "She tried to get inside with the stroller and they wouldn't let her. The bartender asked what she needed and she was incoherent.
"We did the right thing and called police," he said. "She was never served a drink." Russo said Lobe tried to leave, but that customers had held her until officers arrived.
Sgt. Chuck Lovitt said the child was wearing only a "Onesie," which is a one piece body suit for babies, and had to be taken into a neighboring business to warm up because of the frigid temperatures.
Officers said Lobe's blood alcohol level was nearly three times the legal limit of 0.08 percent.
The baby and her sister were not harmed, and placed in the custody of their father, who was called while he was at work, police said.
Lobe remained in the Washoe County Jail on Thursday on two counts of suspicion of child neglect in lieu of $3,000 bail. She declined to comment through a jail official.
First of all, I have a hard time believing that the woman pictured above - the mother of these children - is actually 41yrs old. And no offense, but doesn't she look like she could be Carrot Top's meth addicted brother?
No seriously, if I saw this woman walking the streets pushing a stroller I'd automatically think something wasn't right, and the authorities would be notified; yeah, I'm a snitch like that especially when kids are involved.
Thankfully neither of the children were hurt, but who's to say that they may not be endangered again? In this case I'm glad that there was a father available to take custody rather than have them end up as wards of the state. Now I have to wonder if the parents of these kids actually live together, and if so, how safe will they be.
TheWe Are Respectable Negroes News Network (producer of such award winning programs as the White in America series, and hard hitting exposes with Jesse Jackson and Pat Buchanan) is proud to bring you the latest installment in our recurring series of interviews with Brother X-Squared, president of the North American Chapter of the Renewed Black Panther Party. Always one of our most popular guests, he has been busy crisscrossing the country and spreading his unique brand of knowledge/power. In this exclusive interview, Brother X-Squared reflects on President Barack Obama's State of the Union Address and the one year anniversary of Obama's presidency.
WARNNN: It is wonderful to see you again Brother X-Squared. We have been trying to interview you for several months now, and you have been a whirlwind of activity. I know all of us here at WARNNN are so happy to see that you have been traveling all across this country spreading your message.
WARNNN: Yes, I did. You are a wonderful ally and friend. Let's get to the interview: With all that has transpired, all the history that has been made with Obama's first year, his State of the Union Address, and Dr. King's birthday--the first time a Black man has been president during that most auspicious of days--what are your thoughts on these exciting and poignant happenings?
Brother X-Squared: First of all Brother Chauncey, I am not your friend or ally. I am no one's friend or ally. I love all Nubians--those black people whose minds are free. I belong to the all powerful pan Asiatic coalition of Black Freedom Fighters. I am only willing to be "friends"--the white man's word for those who give in to his power and whims--with those who will die for the cause. Are you willing to die for the cause of Black liberation?
WARNNN: It would depend Brother....
Brother X-Squared: I have to interrupt you. If you can't say "yes" right away the answer is "no." I like you Chauncey DeVega, but you have a long way to go before you free your mindstate and can become my "friend." Now, my thoughts on this Obama Dr. King anniversary nonsense. Do you want to know how I really feel? Are you ready Brother Chauncey?
WARNNN: Yes, I am eagerly waiting. As are my readers. Tell us, are you happy, how are you feeling?
Brother X-Squared: I am happy like a Pentecostal snake handler feeding his pet raccoon after drinking strychnine and speaking in tongues with a bowl of hot chitterlings (the white man's feces filled pig guts) in front of him.
WARNNN: I am surprised. You are usually so disappointed, angry and upset. What a wonderful change. So, have changed your mind about Obama's presidency? Have we turned a corner? Is America now a post-racial society?
Brother X-Squared: You are still a slave in the White man's Matrix Brother Chauncey. So silly and dumb you can be sometimes. I am happy because every prediction I have ever made about Obama has come true. I am a vessel of truth! Leading the light! I am a Black locomotive rushing through the night destroying every white man's car stalled on the railroad tracks in front of me! Obama, that so called halfrican, confused, transparent black man is running an Empire in decline. The ship that is America is rudderless. It is going in circles ready to hit an iceberg like that Titanic. So wonderful! A white ship hitting a white iceberg and thousands of white devils dead. Talk about poetic justice. I love it! America is that great Titanic and it has hit an iceberg where it will sink. Trust me, the supposed black President Barack Obama will be the first and last Black president this country ever sees.
WARNNN: You have not lost a step have you.
Brother X-Squared: Never. Guess what Brother Chauncey? The White man knew what he was doing the whole time. Those Glenn Beck, Limbaugh soon to be arrested for child molesting and drug use, Tea Party neo-John Birchers, Sarah Palin white trash, Fox news watching populists who howl at Obama and claim he is the devil are the most happy that Obama is President! The White man is a master of tricknology and evil. In fact, they lie so well and so often the Right wing believe--like all White people, especially White Liberals--that their lies are true.
"I think people are dazzled by Obama's rhetoric, and that people ought to begin to understand that Obama is going to be a mediocre president - which means, in our time, a dangerous president - unless there is some national movement to push him in a better direction." - Howard Zinn
"What matters most is not who is sitting in the White House, but "who is sitting in" -- and who is marching outside the White House, pushing for change." - Howard Zinn
So everybody's favorite ashy black Keebler elf got arrested again, for domestic violence. Maybe it's just me, but it's hard for me to even imagine him even thinking about raising his hands on a woman with his little ass. If anything, as far as domestic violence if concerned I can see him getting kicked around the rooms of his home by his wife. Have you seen her? Yeah, she's like the white female version of Manute Bol but not as cute. Uh-huh, and I can see her throwing Ashy Gary around like an over-used jizz rag. But him beating her up? Oh well, I guess when "The Gooch" kicked your ass and took your lunch money everyday as a kid at school you're bound to snap at some point.
In all seriousness, I really feel bad for the guy, especially when I look at that mugshot. Poor bastard looks like an Ewok who just got a bad check from George Lucas. Jokes aside, it's a wonder he hasn't killed himself or has yet become cracked out like his big brother Todd Bridges used to be. I swear life just ain't fair. My man was a big star back in the day, but his most recent appearance on television was on Divorce Court. Which pretty much sucks when you think of all the midgets gettin' work on cable TV on TLC. Personally I think someone should give him a reality show and put some money in his pockets, but that's just me.
But anyway, checkout what my homie of the blog Throat Chop University has to say about Gary Coleman and a lot more in the following video because it's mad funny. You can follow my man on Twitter @ThoatChopU for daily laughs, as well as subscribe to his channel on YouTube - ThroatChopU:
Just when I thought that the ignorance afflicting certain dumbass racists was tempered, here comes the biggest douchebag of 2010, Paul Shirley, a pathetic excuse for an athlete, and supposed basketball player. The guy's basically a jack of all trades, and master of none. He couldn't even be bothered to do the research on Haiti before writing this racist, boorish screed against Haitians and Haiti.
Shirley asks whether what he is about to write makes him a monster. Well, damn! If you need to ask you stupid sumbitch, you probably are a freaking monster! As soon as I read that part, I knew that I was going to have to tune my brain to deal with undistilled fuckery. He did not disappoint, the little oaf.
If you want to read some straight up vitriol, then I suggest you read his ode to his white privilege (Mmmm!!! Privilege! You SUCK if you don't have it, People of Color! Shame on you!) and his inability to be a feeling, compassionate human. It's clear that the guy is a troglodyte when it comes to humanity, and I can't tolerate too much of it. Let me just highlight some of his most ignorant sentiments from his blog post:
I haven’t donated a cent to the Haitian relief effort. And I probably will not.
I haven’t donated to the Haitian relief effort for the same reason that I don’t give money to homeless men on the street. Based on past experiences, I don’t think the guy with the sign that reads “Need You’re Help” is going to do anything constructive with the dollar I might give him. If I use history as my guide, I don’t think the people of Haiti will do much with my money either.
However, it is not outside the realm of imagination to think that the citizens of a country might be able to: A) avoid putting themselves into a situation that might result in such catastrophic loss of life. And B) provide for their own aid, in the event of such a catastrophe.
And the piece de resistance comes in his sickening mock letter to the Haitian people:
Dear Haitians –
First of all, kudos on developing the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Your commitment to human rights, infrastructure, and birth control should be applauded.
As we prepare to assist you in this difficult time, a polite request: If it’s possible, could you not re-build your island home in the image of its predecessor? Could you not resort to the creation of flimsy shanty- and shack-towns?And could some of you maybe use a condom once in a while?
Sincerely,
The Rest of the World
Like Pat Robertson, Shirley insists on speaking for everyone in an effort to validate his racism and classism. And like Pat Robertson, he's dumb as hell and speaking on a topic he has NO business writing about because of sheer ignorance. If he had an IOTA of a clue, he would be congratulating France and the United States for their instrumental assistance in developing the "poorest nation in the world" as well.
I didn't watch the State of the Union address tonight. Instead, I listened to it. I purposely did that because I didn't want to be influenced by the opinions of the regular talking heads before the speech. I also didn't want be distracted by images of disgruntled republicans with fake smiles or any sort of visual reaction by anyone to what Obama had to say. I wanted to internalize the speech and form an opinion by just listening. I did however turn to MSNBC once it was over and I caught this:
Well Chris, I too forgot that he was black as well. Hell, if it wasn't for the fact that they played "Flash Light" by Parliament as Obama entered the building, I would have sworn he was just another asshole lying white politician. I think Chris Matthews' heart was in the right place in trying to express the fact that Obama has been around and visual enough that his race is overlooked. Unfortunately I think he was caught up in the moment and had a brain fart. From a white guys perspective I could understand why he would think that way; I really do. I'm just glad that he didn't make mention of Obama's ability to speak without a Negro dialect unless he chooses to.
"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." - Martin Luther King Jr.
With great anticipation many of us await Barack Obama's State of the Union address this evening. I mean who wouldn't especially the way things have been playing itself out politically lately; that combined with the general sentiment of the general public at large should make it very interesting. From the looks of it, tonight's speech should serve as the perfect opportunity for Obama to reshape and reconnect with the American public who may have fallen out of love with him.
Of course there have been a few leaks of the speech, and yes he's going to try and sell the idea of a potential spending freeze to Congress and the public at large (I guess that's why Robert Gibbs has been all over my TV this morning). But one has to wonder if this generations version of the Gettysburg Address would be enough for him to win favor with his progressive supporters such as myself.
In steps Dr. Cornel West; a man after my own heart, who I absolutely adore. Only the simple-minded among us would see what Dr. West says below as just the words expressed through the lenses of another hatin' ass Negro. Oh how I long for the days when life was that simplistic for us all:
Yes, I'm going to talk about Haiti again, and no I don't care how tired you are hearing me rant about what's happening there [read it here]. As long as there are people suffering and idiots like Bill O'Reilly feel the need to wax philoasstical about the country, I'll be here to open my mouth. Speaking recently on his "Bold and Fresh Tour" which also features another well known conservative knuckle-dragger - Glenn Beck - O'Reilly made the argument that president Barack Obama in no way shape or form could possibly help Haiti.
Yep, according to O'Reilly, Obama couldn't possibly help Haiti because, well, the south side of Chicago is no different than Haiti and obviously he couldn't change things in his adopted hometown:
”If you've ever been to the South Side of Chicago, I mean, it's a disaster. Alright? It's like Haiti. It's like -- I've been to Haiti a couple times, and I support some charities there, but Haiti just never gets better no matter how much money you put in there because they don't have a system.” (Source)
I haven't been to the City of Chicago in ten years and yes I do have relatives there. But, er, um, I had no idea that it was that bad in Chi-town? The south side of Chicago like Haiti where before the earthquake a can of rice cost $8? And it's that way because Barack Obama was a failed politician from that very city?
Well now I'm confused. I'm confused because last week the director of the anti-immigration org Center for Immigration Studies(CIS), said in arguing about refugees being brought to the U.S. said that Haiti was a "screwed up" country. But checkout his reasoning as to why Haiti is as "screwed up" as he says it is:
"My guess is that Haiti’s so screwed up because it wasn’t colonized long enough…But, unlike Jamaicans and Bajans and Guadeloupeans, et al., after experiencing the worst of tropical colonial slavery, the Haitians didn’t stick around long enough to benefit from it. (Haiti became independent in 1804.). And by benefit I mean develop a local culture significantly shaped by the more-advanced civilization of the colonizers." (Source)
Uh-huh, Haiti is a jacked up country because they basically fucked themselves by kicking the French out by fighting for their freedom from slavery. They would have been better off, or would have become better cultured if only they were more patient and endured as did the other "good negroes" who came from Africa in other Caribbean countries.
So why are you confused RiPPa?
Well, is the south side of Chicago "just like Haiti," and or just as "screwed up" because those Negro residents weren't colonized enough? Even after 400yrs? I mean, is it that, or the fact that Barack Obama wasn't a good enough slave owner in Chicago? Aww to hell with trying to find out or answer those questions. The truth is: these comments and thoughts are just more of the same from a couple of racist bastards who just so happen to be the descendants of European colonizers who refuse to acknowledge their part in history. Here's to hoping that somehow his tour bus mysteriously breaks down on Chicago's south side this year and he gets...
Barack Obama is loved abroad by many. However, it's sad to see the ugly head of racism raise it's head outside of America the way it has recently. Featured on the site Iranian.com where as the site says "Nothing is sacred," is former deputy foreign minister Mohammad Javad Larijani who is listed as the Iranian of the Day because of this comment:
Mohammad Javad Ardashir Larijani, is the brother of Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani and Judiciary Chief Sadegh Larijani. In a speech to the Islamic Society of Engineers in Tehran on Saturday, January 23, he called President Obama "Ka Ka Siah" [nigger in Persian] for trying to undermine the Islamic Republic. "I am not a racist but I have to respond to this man somehow," he said.
Apparently this guy wants Iran to have a nuclear weapon really bad that he decided to go there. As you know here in America those are fighting words out in the streets for some. Yep, and I don't think this cat realizes that Obama gained 96% of the black vote in 2008. Suffice it to say, I think he's underestimating the many Obama supporters who just might be brave enough to go over to Iran to knock the sand off of his ass.
So I log on to the internet last Friday and I'm hit with these "rest in peace" messages all over Twitter and Facebook. So naturally I'm wondering since death comes in threes, who's next to follow Teddy Pendergrass as far as black celebrities go. And then I find out it was Apache. Yeah I see you squinting right now asking yourself "Apache? Who the hell is that?!" Don't worry, I did that for about five seconds my damn self before I remembered the one hit wonder rapper from the early nineties.
Yeah, you know the cat who had that one hit 'Gansta Bitch', right? C'mon, I know I wasn't the only one singing the hook "I wanna gangsta boogie with my gangsta bitch", right? Don't lie to me dammit!
So anywhichaways, I was kinda put off by the cliche fake sympathy thrown around by people in social media. I mean people were acting like Apache was that heat! How many albums did the brother have? When was the last time we heard from him? And do you even know the words to Gansgta Bitch other than the hook? Um, I'm sorry, but if you can't answer any of these questions you have no reason to be throwing around that "R.I.P. Apache, I'mma miss you dog!" Um, get tha' f*ck outta here with that if you ain't family or at least went to school with Apache,son! I swear, n*ggas on the internet are so fake.
My wife said I was mean. I told her the only one hit wonder rappers people were allowed to mourn openly would be Rob Base from Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock. If you gotta ask who the hell they are you really should kill yourself. But anyway, the burning question I had wasn't how did he die, it was did he ever find that gangsta bitch he described in his song. Did he ever find that woman with whom he was able to do stickups with on Valentine's Day as he wished for? I mean how far can a relationship with a gangsta bitch actually go; and more importantly, are some of today's lesbians onetime gansgta bitches who were ignored because...?
Oh well, Apache's ode to loser hyper-masculine bitches and the men who loved them wasn't one that was on my radar. But then again maybe that was due in part to Dr. Dre having a ghetto-nerd such as myself all smoked out when The Chronic came out and not so much into sharing my blunt with chicks who weren't gonna have sex with me. At any rate, smoked out or not, I doubt whether many guys would walk around in public with a female like the one pictured above on their arm.
Though I can appreciate women with a little hood in 'em. The whole gangsta bitch thing is just taking it too far, and let's just say I'm more comfortable with a ride or die chick as opposed to fake-ass uppity bougie broads. Let's be real, women will forever be attracted to thugged out men, but men being attracted to gangsta bitches, not so much...
OK tell the truth: How many of you people out there had that fifty inch flat-screen plasma TV already picked out that you were gonna grab if Barack Obama was robbed in the presidential elections in 2008 and shit got ugly in the streets? Anyone? Anybody? Oh c'mon don't tell me I was the only one?!! Shit, I know some of you had an entire house of furniture and appliances picked out, no? As human beings we're just greedy like that and at times our animal instinct takes hold, right? Surely that last idea has manifested itself before our very eyes as we watch the situation in Haiti from a distance; and I'm sorry, but I hate to think that race has anything to do with it, but you already know...
In spite of what the media says, what we see happening in Haiti isn't looting folks. Looting is what black people in America do after police officers are acquitted of any wrong doing after being caught on tape beating a black man to near death. Looting is what you do when a black man is shot to death by a police officer at a train station for no apparent reason as seen on video on YouTube. Yes, I could go on and on with other examples but you get the drift, right? Looting is a foolish and opportunistic act done by "certain people" often in our own communities as a show of protest and rage. An act carried out by mobs which do more harm than good to our communities. In Haiti right now, it is very different than described above.
According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Bristol believes Levi has pulled in "in excess of $105,000 in 2009 through various media interviews and modeling related activities." The $105,000 figure is significant, because under Alaska law a non-custodial parent must pay 20% of income up to $105,000 a year -- which comes to $1,750 a month.
Bristol says in her sworn statement, "I have received limited and sporadic financial assistance from Levi." Bristol says Levi has forked over only $4,400 over the 13 months of Tripp's life -- $3,000 on September 9, 2009, $1,400 on December 19.
I decided to read the comment sections on both reddit and TMZ. There were some that felt that Levi should live up to his parental obligations and then of course there were comments of this vein:
What a F up family.........Maybe Grandmom Sarah needs to also make sure she helps since she is doing nothing for this country except selling books. She is as big of a loser as her daughter. She needs to stop spreading her legs, she and mom need to get a real life. WOW what a F up family all of them.
FOR 1 KID?R U Kidding me...I have 3 and I don't spend that much on them and I am a housewife for 15yrs now! GET REAL GIRL...WAKE UP FROM THE DREAM YOU ARE LIVIN IN.
Geez - $4400 is much more than I've EVER heard of anyone getting from a 19 year old father, and she wants $1750 a month? Why should she get that much? Greedy bitch.
HE NEEDS A DNA TEST TO PROVE HE IS ACTUALLY THE FATHER.
ALONG WITH THAT COURT DOCUMENT, WHY IS THERE NOT A REQUEST FOR PATENITY?
JUST SAYING, HEARD SHE GOT AROUND THE FOOTBALL TEAM
this is crazy. she is not looking for child support she is looking for someone to support her. 1750/mth. is way too much her to get without working for it. she was not used to any kind of life with levi before this that would warrant a change in living standards if she didn't get that much money.
She's a money grubbing bitch, from everything I have seen Palins are all about money. Why do you think she quit? Because she can make more money with her stupid book and being governor of our awesome state was probably below.
She has tried to move the capital from Juneau to Wasilla so all their property values go up, that's it.
How about Bristol pay Levi 20% of her earnings from the "US Weekly" and "Time Magazine" interviews she's done, since they haven't officially decided she gets sole custody anyhow.
She got pregnant. It's her body. Where's her responsibility? She mothered a child irresponsibly and all you can do is blame the man? And now she gets free human welfare every month? More accurate headline: If you're not old enough to vote, then you shouldn't be responsible enough to take care of a child.
To take money from the male is getting fucking ancient. How about instead of single mothers living off of child support, before a woman gives birth, she should ask the husband if he wants to be apart of it... if he doesn't, then the baby is all yours. No child support. Equal rights? When and where, cocksuckers.
So if I had a vagina, I could just trap sperm and have someone pay for my college after I pop out another little nothing?
Is anyone banging their head against a wall yet? One of the major goals of MRA’s is to abdicate the responsibility to financially support their children. It is a well known fact that women make less than men and if a woman is living alone with a child, she is more likely to be living in poverty. Their concern is not for the children that they had a part in producing, rather it is wallowing in their male privilege because of their decidedly misogynistic understanding of reproduction.
They use the argument regarding the autonomy of female bodies to suggest that they are being oppressed. The fact of the matter is that at no point were they being forced to engage in behaviour against their will. They could have chosen not to have sex and they could have chosen to wear a condom or have a vasectomy. Throughout the entire process of reproduction, the male body is always in a position of authority and furthermore; their actions do not require a law to ensure that their rights are being protected.
It would seem to me, that Alaska’s twenty percent law is extremely fair. A child may not cost the 1700 dollars a month that Bristol is requesting, however; a child should be able to to live within the same economic class as hir parents and this is something that the MRA have continually failed to acknowledge. If a child is living at home with two parents, ze would have taken on their class status and receive any ensuing benefits. Why should the father be able to live a life of extravagance with the child receiving no benefit? It is a known fact, that the more money a child has to be raised on, the more opportunities that will be available to hir.
Finally, perhaps what is most disturbing is the idea that a mother who requests child support is just lazy and wants a free ride. Even if the mother is not working outside of the home and is completely dependent upon support to raise a child, she is still working for the money. Simply because parenting does not produce a product that can be sold on the open market for a profit, does not mean that it is not work or that it does provide a measurable gain for society. Unfortunately, for far too many, mothering falls under labour that women are expected to provide for free because we are constructed as the nurturing sex.
Slut shaming Bristol or calling her a lazy bitch is simply reductive and serves the purpose of reducing Levi’s responsibility for their child. Even though she is currently living with her parents, they are not responsible for raising or paying for that child. They had no hand in the creation of the child and to suggest that they should pick up Levi’s slack is ridiculous. They are already providing a home for this child, which is more than he is currently doing. Paying twenty percent of his income will not impoverish him. The idea that women should be solely responsible for the financial support of children has one purpose – impoverishment.
Don't look now, but if a certain Lt. Governor in South Carolina has his way and should succeed Governor Mark Sandford. Government assistance to the poor and needy might just be a thing of the past. Yep, Lt. Governor Andre Baur, the douche pictured above, had this to say at a recent town hall meeting:
"My grandmother was not a highly educated woman, but she told me as a small child to quit feeding stray animals. You know why? Because they breed. You're facilitating the problem if you give an animal or a person ample food supply. They will reproduce, especially ones that don't think too much further than that. And so what you've got to do is you've got to curtail that type of behavior. They don't know any better."
Oh those silly republicans I tell ya; this asswipe had the nerve to suggest that what he said was taken out of context. Yep and it just so happened that he made these statements as part of an argument that people should lose government benefits if they fail drug tests or don't attend parent-teacher conferences or PTA meetings. So the question is, what fuckin context did you mean to imply Andre Baur? Shit, sounds like regular everyday conservative talking points to me, pal.
Once again PeTA reveals that its true objective is not ending cruelty to animals but debasing women. When we consider that there has never been a female president, putting a woman in this mock situation and showing her stripping off her clothes to the cheers and jeers of a mostly white male audience is highly problematic. Black women in particular have been historically constructed as Jezebels. Our femininity is often soundly rejected, unless the goal is to paint us as sexually depraved.
If PeTA cared about how Black women have historically been treated, it would never have staged a mock up with one taking off her clothes in front of cheering White men. To justify the rapes that occurred in the slave cabins, Black women were said to have tempted White men with our uncontrollable sexuality. Even though the power dynamics clearly favoured the White male slave holders, it has him that was constructed as powerless. This ad promotes the idea that Black women exist to perform for White men thereby asserting that Black women's bodies are ultimately consumable for the purposes of sexual pleasure.
PeTA recently ran an ad featuring Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey and Tyra Banks. They used the first ladies image without prior approval causing the White house to demand that PeTA cease and desist. Simply because someone does not wear fur, does not mean that they support PeTA. It never occurred to PeTA to ask beforehand because it does not value women’s bodies and after viewing this video, it is even more clear that they put even less importance to the bodies of WOC and how they are perceived.
At the end of the video, PeTA has shocking images of animal abuse. If their real desire was to end animal cruelty, these images are more than enough to make a significant point. The truth is, PeTA’s objective is to paint all other marginalizations as secondary to that faced by animals and that is why they routinely features ads that are sexist, homophobic, racist, transphobic etc., The oppression Olympics engaged in by PeTA only serves to reify the very same hierarchy that PeTA claims to be against.
PeTA is simply a predatory organization whose message gets lost because it is intent upon reductive tactics. It is their belief that any publicity is good publicity and therefore; they will not acknowledge that continually demeaning marginalized bodies is not only harmful but extremely dangerous. If certain groups are not seen as human, it is much easier to target them for violence, hatred, rape etc.,
I have been asked why I always spell PeTA with a lower case e and the answer is quite simple, they can never be understood to be ethical as long as they continue to use such reductive tactics to get their message out to the public. No PeTA ad I have ever seen, has convinced me of anything other than the fact that isms hurt people.
I remember when 3LW came out. I was like 17 years old or 18 years old and stationed in California. Their first single "No More (Baby, I'ma Do Right)" was so cute. I mean it was perfect for my little teenaged ass. I mean I dug it. Fast forward a decade later, and Adrienne Bailon did some "hoe shit" to get some attention (and failed), and now here comes Kiely Williams (aka The Fast One) with this new song called "Spectacular."
(Editor's Note: This post comes from the ever popular Ms. Thembi Ford of the blog What Would Thembi Do. If you're on Twitter you can follow her @thembithembi because she's a riot. Trust me, it's not everyday you come across a Harvard educated black person with a sense of humor as she shows with the following post.)
It doesn’t seem like most of America is feeling the Hope anymore. Anyone could have predicted the fierce opposition that Obama has faced in office, and sadly he is on track to become a single-term mistake. How can Obama fix this? Well, in addition to the obvious need for progress on his campaign promises – health care, managing our two wars, and reviving the economy – Obama should reach for some low hanging fruit. If he does anything in his four years the least he can do is make things better for black folks, and frankly I think we should be getting more out of our first black president than the popularization of the fist-bump. A little bit could go a long way to fix the specific issues that black Americans face, so what Obama should do is form a Black Cabinet to address said issues. My suggestions…
"You gotta snap some collars and let them motherfuckers know you here to take them out anytime you feel like it! You gotta get the ground beneath your feet, partner, get the wind behind your back and go out in a blaze if you got to! Otherwise you ain't shit! You might as well be dead your damn self!" - "Bishop" (Juice)
Well, what a difference a day and losing a Senate seat makes. My man Barry-O obviously read my recent post instructing him on how to get this thing back on and poppin'. He gave a press conference today and he channeled his inner Tupac à la my man 'Bishop' from the movie Juice:
(Editor's Note: In keeping with everything MLK this week. I bring to you a guest post from my man Eddie Blue Eyes, of the blog [un]Common Sense. Hope you enjoy this offering from my brother from another mother who just happens to be Puerto Rican. Do pay attention to the video from my man @jsmooth995 of illdoctrine.com.)
"A society that has done something special against the Negro for hundreds of years must now do something special for him, in order to equip him to compete on a just and equal basis." -- Dr. King, Where Do We Go From Here? Chaos or Community?
When Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was alive, mainstream society viewed him mostly with fear and contempt. In response to King’s anti-war stance (as expressed in a 1967 speech), TIME magazine called King a “demagogue for Radio Hanoi.” Years later, Ronald Reagan the Great damned King as a near communist.
Today, however, a miracle has taken place in America: Dr. King was a conservative! By taking a snippet from one 1963 address Dr. King has been co-opted by the right as the most quoted opponent of affirmative action in America today.
While the transformation of King from communist to conservative is almost complete, it deserves an explanation.
It should come as no surprise that Martin Luther King, Jr. would have his words taken out of context. After all, King’s status today effectively ensures that writers, academics, pundits, and politicians will feel compelled to borrow King’s words to advance an agenda. What better political plum than claiming the ideological support of an iconic figure such as King? Nowhere is the tendency to “play the King card” more evident than in the claim by dozens of contemporary conservative writers, academics, pundits, and politicians that King’s basic goal was “color-blindness” and that he viewed such visual impairment as the road by which racism would best be addressed.
Remember when some of you were bitching about the movie 'Precious' and the negative perception or dare I say stereotype it promotes of black people? Yeah, remember that? We had a long talk about that a while back on this very blog [read it here]. Uh-huh, a lot of you were concerned about our images, right? Well, how come none of you Negroes got angry because Mo'Nique's hairy ass legs won an award at the Golden Globe Awards the other day? You know from here on out big bonededed (I hate when I hear people say that) sistas are gonna all be considered part gorilla, right? Which is cool with me because I love hairy women, remember?
And speaking of awards, the movie 'Precious', and images. What the hell is up with the NAACP nominating The Real Housewives of Atlanta for a god-damned Image Award? Yes, and why aren't you Negroes upset about that shit as I am. No f'real, I'm pissed about that shit. Giving that show an "Image Award" is damn near, well almost like...aww fuck it, it's just like somebody calling Fantasia a Rhoads Scholar when the chick can't read! Yeah, and that chick has a reality show too. Cecil Rhoades would slit his wrists if that shit ever happened, and hell he's already dead. Not shittin' on Fantasia, but you can understand what I mean, right?
Did ya catch what went down in Massachusetts with the special election for Ted Kennedy's seat yesterday? Did you see that? Did you know that a Republican won a seat in a democratic stronghold? A seat that has held up the butt-cheeks of a Democrat for the last 35yrs? So how did that happen? I really would like to hear your thoughts on that. Was it a poorly ran campaign by Coakley? Bad strategy by the DNC? Health-care? Not enough attention paid to the people on Main Street?
No matter what you think, it's important to note that this was indeed a wake up call for the Democratic party who a few years ago were given a mandate "by the people," to get a handle on this thing and get it working. That was in 2006, and four years later look at where we're at now. New Jersey, Virginia, and now a Massachusetts senate seat lost? I'm not gonna throw out my opinion as to what needs to be done specifically; I think if you've been reading this blog long enough you'll already know where I stand. Even with the people giving another mandate which produced the first black president, it seems that they were not listening in-spite of poll after poll yelling loud and clear.
Everyone knows that Black folks loves them some chicken. It is just one of those racist tropes that keeps on giving. Is it any wonder that when Denver public school board decided to celebrate MLK the lunch menu included, southern-style chicken, collard greens, and a biscuit. After reading the proposed menu was I the only one thinking where is the watermelon? If you are going to go with a racist trope, why not go all out.
Well it seems before the Denver school board could go along with their celebration,a parent complained.
Denver Public Schools changed the Friday meal to the manager's choice for Friday. Jennifer Holladay, the parent who originally complained about the menu, e-mailed KMGH a statement that said: "I'm confident we'll see stereotype-free menus in the future."
Howard said the incident is an opportunity for the school system to become more involved in the annual Marade. Howard said the Denver Public School district has shown low interest in the festivities in past years and it's time for them to get involved.
The Houston School District has offered fried chicken and collard greens on Martin Luther King's birthday for years. Last year, in response to questions, they issued the following statement:
"The Food Service Department often runs a promotion in celebration of his birthday. The promotion includes posters and public-address announcements promoting the special meal served in the cafeterias, as well as his message of remembering to celebrate with the spirit of giving back to the community ... 'a day on, not a day off.' A menu committee researches all promotions and has utilized the MLK Center of Atlanta as a resource for information about this famous leader. Elaine Hall, from the Archives Department at the King Center in Atlanta, has informed the committee that Dr. King's favourite meal includes fried chicken, collard greens, cornbread and sweet potato pie."
This idea is problematic on two levels. We typically feel that we can experience culture through food and in doing so, we are literally eating the “other”. It is reductive and encourages the idea that through food we can experience what it is to belong to a particular subset. This is no different than a non-Asian person going out for Dim Sum to celebrate Chinese New Year. I am sure Dr. King enjoyed the occasional steak but that was not on menu. A steak would not serve the purposes of this celebration because it does not suitably mark Dr. King as “other”.
How many times are people of colour to be degraded through food? If it is not watermelon, it’s fried chicken. Each time some excuse is proffered to pacify us until the next time that Whiteness decided to remind us that we are other. For the millionth time: continually associating Black people with chicken, collard greens, watermelon etc., is RACIST. You cannot excuse it and don’t pretend you didn’t know that it is offensive because Blacks are tired of having to attack this particular meme. Who do you think created the stereotype in the first place? If Black people were going to invent a social meme, we certainly would have choosen something far more positive.
Wyclef Jean doesn't have time right now to make another hit making record as he has consistently in the past. If he did, I think a remake of Queen's "Under Pressure" would be oh so appropriate. As I mentioned a couple days ago on this blog, he has come under fire for the misappropriation of funds for his Yele Haiti foundation; a foundation, which is energetic in raising funds and support for his beleaguered Haitian homeland. Yesterday, an emotional and tearful Wyclef stood before cameras at a press conference to defend his foundation and ultimately himself from the accusations; accusations which he continues to deny.
Fortunately for Wyclef, according to tax experts on non-profits as reported by CNN, there have been no serious wrongdoings by Wyclef or his organization other than not filing their taxes in a timely manner [read it here]. Uh-huh, how about that? Yeah, how about said experts disclosing that it is perfectly routine for non-profits to charge their own charities so long as services are being provided in return. See, this is another one of those incidents in the long line of them always f*cking with us - they're always f*cking with us, even when we're doing good deeds. I felt the need to do a followup on my initial post on this because, well, some of "us" actually felt he was wrong to do what he did as far as charging his charity for services rendered.
So I've already told you folks the reason why we see so many non-singing, no-talent having clowns on American Idol, right? Yes, and I've also said that the DC Sniper would have made for a helluva judge - screw Randy "Pitchy" Jackson. Well the DC Sniper is dead, and losers still show up on Idol all because of their lying ass grandparents. Yes, all these non-singing idiots somehow at the age of thirty two wake up one day remembering the blessings granny bestowed on on them and decide to hop their asses on over to an American Idol audition.
Most times, they stand in line without the realization that granny is trying to get to heaven, hence lying to them so as to not motivate them to commit suicide. I mean why else do you think granny sends you birthday cards with money? It damn sure isn't to help finance a weed habit, but instead for singing lessons and just in case you have to pay for an abortion one day; save that shit people. But then their are people like Larry Platt who show up and use American Idol as a platform for social activism:
(Editor's Note: The following post comes from my blog-brother Brown man of the blog Brown Man Thinking Hard. Brown man listened in to a discussion we had on Freedom Through Speech Radio last night, and this was his take on the conversation. I invite you to check the show out itself as well as put my brother's blog on your blogroll and reader. More importantly, lemme know your thoughts of this piece.)
...the smell of burnt gunpowder and wet cotton, the taste of cold fried chicken and cheap lipstick, the sounds of grown men weeping, of heavy wood hitting dark flesh, of rifles cocking and dogs snarling, tired bodies jumbled together in church buses and auto caravans, always dressed in their best clothes...
For a man who had no idea of the path his life would take, Martin Luther King Jr. was awfully well-prepared for the journey.
I sat and listened to a radio show last night. It was one of those productions by bloggers that are broadcast through an internet connection instead of the airwaves. I believe all the on-air guests as well as the folks who called in were black. And for almost an hour and a half, I listened and typed in comments in the chatroom attached to the site while the most of the callers and guests proceeded to trash the Obama presidency.
I was surprised, at least for awhile, until later, while putting the finishing touches on an article for Big Think about Martin Luther King, it hit me -- nothing has really changed at all.
...the sharp, acrid stench of fear had been omnipresent then, a musk that could not be cleaned from the crotches and armpits of the men’s suits, nor their hatbands and shirt collars; neither from the women’s blouses and skirts, or their bra straps and girdles...
If this was the 1960's these would be the same black people telling Martin Luther King Jr. he was "too soft", that he needed to "man up" and "show some leadership" instead of wasting time negotiating with the enemy. It was this section of the black middle class, then as now, who were not pleased with the way things seemed to be going, even when progress was slowly being made, as if any of the available alternatives would have gotten them somewhere faster.
Media images appear to be prime motivation this week in a collective, mobilized response underscored by Western guilt. Bombarded with dust-covered corpses, blood and broken bones, and bodies rotting in the hot sun, millions around the world have donated their money to various relief organizations in support of Haiti. The United States has even organized a text message campaign which allows cell phone users to donate as little as ten dollars by texting the word “Haiti” to a central national phone line. However, this feel-good effort fails to address the circumstances which created this catastrophe. Haiti cannot afford to the typical, Western, Bono-style activism: here today and gone tomorrow, even as its citizens continue to endure the effects of enormous national debt and unfair trading practices which have historically impoverished the nation.
France considered Haiti to be the pearl of the Caribbean and set about stealing both its natural and human resources at will. The average lifespan of a slave in Haiti was a scant twenty-one years, due to harsh living conditions and limited supplies of food. Instead of recognizing the Haitian struggle as akin to that engaged in by Americans against British tyranny, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson gave foreign aid to the supposedly beleaguered French slave owners. Haitians won their freedom from France through armed conflict, defeating Napoleon Bonaparte and the most powerful army in Europe — this is the history that most outside students are familiar with. But what most miss was a move that cannot be considered anything but extortion.
(Editors Note: This is a post from my man Chauncey DeVega from We Are Respectable Negroes. I watched Glen Beck's attempted Negro love-fest the other night, and wanted to share my thoughts, but I'm trying to get to heaven these days so I'll refrain, and let y'all hear what a respectable Negro has to say)
I firmly believe in highlighting the ideological diversity that exists within the black community. I also subscribe to the idea that there are as many different ways to be black as there are black people. However, I do not confuse "Black" with black. The former is a certain understanding of political blackness (linked fate or group consciousness), a sense of race pride, and an obligation to truth telling against power. The witches coven of black conservatives that Glenn Beck repeatedly features on his show (with brazen provocativeness in honor of all days, Dr. King's birthday) lack these attributes as they enthusiastically enable the inherent racism and racial resentment that undergirds white conservatism.
I have often suggested that black conservatives are psycho-racial projections for and of the white conservative racial id (note the use of "white conservatives" as opposed to "conservatives," as there is a substantial and real difference between the two ideologies). These black folk are the "good ones." These black conservatives are not "confused" by the liberals and Democrats. These black folk are not "angry." Nor, do "they" make "trouble." All the while these happy black conservatives are just pleased to be at the party, to have some table scraps thrown to them by their white conservative masters as they enjoy their positions as 21st century colonial intermediaries who can translate the drums of the natives.
Consider--and this would be my qualifier for distinguishing between principled black conservatives and the peanut gallery of jesters that is Beck's court--why did these guests not call Beck on his own nonsense? Why did not one of them ask Beck if Dr. King was a "Socialist" or "Communist" according to the former's criteria? How about asking Beck about Dr. King's support for the poor, world peace, affirmative action, and health care as a human right for all peoples? What of Beck's assertion that President Obama is a "slave owner" who wants to put Americans in "shackles?" Or how Beck through his support for the Tea-Parties, the seditious 9-12 militia project, the Birthers, etc. has encouraged a particularly venomous white nativism that sees Obama's presidency as being inherently illegitimate because he is not white? Ultimately, why not call Beck on his lecturing Black Americans that they should "just stop using African American" because it is a "meaningless" term anyway?
History echoes through to the present. It is the sea in which we swim, the ether that we all breath. In reaching back through history, it has become fashionable to call black conservatives "slave catchers." The more I think about the term, the more appropriate it seems. But, these racial apologists and collaborators also fit the role of "slave drivers": black bondsmen who worked under the overseer and/or managed the plantation when master was away. Accordingly, in researching the term I came upon The National Humanities Center's helpful entry on the topic:
On large plantations, the person who directed the daily work of the slaves was the overseer, usually a white man but occasionally an enslaved black man—a "driver"—promoted to the position by his master. Some plantations had both a white overseer and a black driver, especially in the deep South or on plantations where the master was often absent. Of white overseers, former slaves relate harsh memories (see the narratives in #1: An Enslaved Person's Life). Of black drivers their memories are more varied, reflecting the ambiguous state between power and impotence inhabited by the black slave driver.
The National Humanities Center also has a handy teaching guide. Ironically, I would suggest that it is a quite fitting tool with which to analyze the black conservatives on Beck's show. A selection of questions from that resource follows:
What news items, forms of respect, requests and questions, etc., occur repeatedly in the drivers' letters?
What tone do you identify in the slaves' letters to their masters?
What construction of reality—information and impressions—do the drivers relate directly in their letters?
What information and impressions do they convey "between the lines"?
What information and impressions do they convey without their awareness?
How would a distant master read and interpret these letters? What would he learn?
How do the masters exercise control from afar? How effective are they as absent masters?
What forms of initiative and power are the drivers allowed to exercise?
How do the drivers differ in using or displacing this power?
What words do the letter writers, slave and master, use in place of "slave"? Why?
How do the black drivers relate to their fellow slaves over whom they hold authority?
How do they adapt to their vulnerable (or empowering) position between master and slave?
History's echoes. Quite fitting, no? What do we make of Beck's trotting out of these black conservatives? What is their agenda? How do these questions help us to interpret the game that Beck's black enablers are running? Is it a profitable shtick, a type of race hustle, that Beck's guests are perpetrating (along with folks like Michael Steele, Clarence Thomas, et al.)? Or do these slave catchers actually believe what they are saying?
This second clip makes me want to throw up in my mouth. I really want to go Mau Mau on these folks as they dare to let any allusion to our honored ancestors come out of their mouths. Disgusting. Truly disgusting. Notice the Freudian slip by the "hip hop Republican"--yes my dear, you will indeed walk chest deep in feces for a job:
Now see, that's that bullsh*t! Every time a brother tries to do something good somebody has to come out of left field trynna shut him down. I read the following story about Wyclef and his foundation - the same foundation that is kicking ass raising funds for Haiti, his native home - over at The Smoking Gun:
JANUARY 14--The Haiti earthquake has already triggered hundreds of thousands of donations to musician Wyclef Jean's charitable foundation, which expects to raise upwards of $1 million a day in the disaster's wake. However, Internal Revenue Service records show the group has a lackluster history of accounting for its finances, and that the organization has paid the performer and his business partner at least $410,000 for rent, production services, and Jean's appearance at a benefit concert. Though the Wyclef Jean Foundation, which does business as Yele Haiti Foundation, was incorporated 12 years ago--and has been active since that time--the group only first filed tax returns in August 2009.That month, the foundation provided the IRS with returns covering calendar years 2005, 2006, and 2007--the only periods for which it has publicly provided a glimpse at its financial affairs.
In 2006, Jean's charity reported contributions of $1 million, the bulk of which came from People magazine in exchange for the first photos of a pregnant Angelina Jolie (the actress reportedly directed that the publication's payment go to Jean's charity, not her personally). As seen on the following pages from the foundation's 2006 tax return, the group paid $31,200 in rent to Platinum Sound, a Manhattan recording studio owned by Jean and Jerry Duplessis, who, like Jean, is a foundation board member. A $31,200 rent payment was also made in 2007 to Platinum Sound. The rent, tax returns assure, "is priced below market value." The recording studio also was paid $100,000 in 2006 for the "musical performance services of Wyclef Jean at a benefit concert." That six-figure payout, the tax return noted, "was substantially less than market value." The return, of course, does not address why Jean needed to be paid to perform at his own charity's fundraiser.
But the largest 2006 payout--a whopping $250,000--went to Telemax, S.A., a for-profit Haiti company in which Jean and Duplessis were said to "own a controlling interest." The money covered "pre-purchased...TV airtime and production services" that were part of the foundation's "outreach efforts" in Haiti. No further description of these services was offered, though the return claimed that "the fees paid are below market" and that the use of Telemax was the "most efficient way of providing these services." The group's tax returns also report "consultant" payments totaling $300,000 between 2005-2007, while the 2006 return reported nearly $225,000 in "promotion and PR" costs. These expenses are not itemized further in the IRS returns. (6 pages)
You see this sh*t?! A n*gga can't even do good deeds without being scrutinized and receiving negative media bullsh*t. Obviously Wyclef is doing something right the way he has exhaustively put in work not only over the years for Haiti, but more so in the last week because of the earthquake. I find it very peculiar that this all comes out now, and not before which makes me suspicious. Sounds like typical hater/hoe-sh*t to me that came with great timing and malicious intent. People are in need of help desperately in Haiti and this is what hits the airwaves? But no, instead some asshole is worried that his $5 donation is going towards funding another Spiderman leather motorcycle suit for Wyclef at another Funkmaster Flex car show.
The question is, who's the clown that dug this up? A part of me wants to think it's former Fugee, Pras, with whom 'Clef has had beef years ago. But then Pras is too himself of Haitian descent so it's hard for me to be convinced that this is all his doing especially since he like 'Clef are encouraging people to help. Lauren Hill maybe? Naah!! I dunno, but my inner conspiracy theorist is telling me that this has Rush Limbaugh's grubby fingerprints all over it. Why not, after all, he's been trying to discourage people from donating to Haiti anyway. Well, if not him then some other like-minded knuckle-dragger then...
Look, Haiti needs our help, and you don't have to donate to Wyclef's foundation Yele Haiti exclusively - there are many organizations to whom you can donate to. Yes there are a number of scams as far as Haitian fundraisers are concerned, but please believe this isn't one of them. In my opinion, and having worked with and for 501(c) Charitable Organizations where as little as 6% of donated funds go directly to the charity people support. I trust Wyclef's Yele Haiti above all right about now and I encourage you to support his efforts not for him, but for the people in Haiti who need us right now.
Shout-out to Wyclef and all the "refugees" the world over:
“He who warned uh, the British that they weren't gonna be takin' away our arms, uh by ringing those bells, and um, makin' sure as he's riding his horse through town to send those warning shots and bells that we were going to be sure and we were going to be free, and we were going to be armed.” -- Sarah Palin on Paul Revere
