11 posts tagged “aa culture”

I think I'm expected to make a big post about how proud I am to be an American today.  Or at least an African-American.  Or something along those lines.  Hmmm.  Well, since I've never been ashamed to be an American or an African-American, I can't say that I feel any differently today than I did yesterday or Monday or last week.  I've always been proud of my ethnicity and nationality. Yes, even when members of my community did something I didn't like, I was still proud to be a member of that community. 

See, pride isn't something you turn on and off.  You can't be proud of your country today, but rant about how you were ashamed of it for the last 7 1/2 years prior.  Nothing that happened on November 4, 2008, erased anything that happened in the last 7 1/2 years.  And I have news for you, nothing that's happened in the last 7 1/2 years is any worse than what's happened in this country for the last 224 years preceding it.  You have take the good with the bad and realize that everything, every creature, every entity on this planet is in a state of flux.  It's a journey.  Obama is not infallible and Bush is the devil incarnate, but we are a reflection of our leaders whether we voted for the other guy or not.  We don't get to lay claim to all the positive aspects of our society, but refuse to take responsibility for all the negative aspects as well.

Rejoice, but be humble.  Sing, dance, shout, march, love.  But be humble.  It's just another step on our journey.

*****
Now, down to the good stuff.  I didn't get to go to any major celebrations last night.  I wanted to find a smaller, more intimate shindig with my buddy Chaise in South L.A., but who knew they were going to call it for Obama at 8:00 pm PST?  So, I was on the I-405 South when she called me to say that Brian Williams just called the election for Obama.  After I got off the phone with her, I called my mother in Pennsylvania, who confirmed it.  So, my story about where I was when I heard the news isn't all that fascinating, but, hey, now you know.

I arrived at Chaise's house around 8:15 pm, and instead of going out to some local clubs and parties in Inglewood/Ladera Heights, we stayed in and talked, watched news, and gabbed with family and friends on the phone.  We kind of wished we had made it out to Leimert Park, where there was a big celebration earlier in the evening, but it started to break up around 9:30, 10 pm from what we could tell on the news.  Oh well.

One of my favs

This photo of Obama with his hand on the little boy's head is one of my favorites taken during the primary season.  I could easily see that pic being framed on every wall in every black household in America.  :-D

My mother said she would buy me an Obama T-shirt because she ordered a few for her, my stepfather, and a couple folks at the office.  I told her she didn't have to because I probably wouldn't wear it.  I'm not the type of person to wear T-shirts with photos, logos, or clever witticisms on the front.  I don't like drawing attention to my chest, and, frankly, I just probably won't wear it.  But my mother's hardheaded, so I'll just keep it with the Time magazine commemorative issue that's coming out tomorrow that I plan to buy.

To be honest, I'm an Obama supporter, but I'm not an Obama fan.  He doesn't inspire me or make me believe that this nation is on the road to recovery or anything of that nature.  I didn't cry or faint or shout to the highest hill as the news settled in on his victory.  I haven't really been emotional about his campaign at all, except when I acknowledged this past weekend that I wished my grandmother was alive to see this day.  But other than that, I've been pretty chill.  I did get up and dance to a YouTube video of McFadden and Whitehead's "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" that someone posted online yesterday, but I love that song anyway.

But you know what did get to me after all of this is said and done.  The photos of others' celebrating all over the U.S. and all over the world.  To see the slideshows on Huffington Post of people in Sydney, Australia; Tokyo, Japan; Kisumu, Kenya; Ruby, Nebraska; Dearborn, Michigan; and Jakarta, Indonesia filled me with more emotion than anything else.  A photo of woman in Paris crying a single tear as she watched the election results roll in.  International students cheering as they gathered in a restaurant in Shanghai.  Those pics, along with shots of Americans voting all across this nation -- a true representation of our diversity, really touched me more than anything Obama has ever said in any speech or debate or commercial or advertisement.  People coming together to believe in something bigger than themselves and rejoicing in something they made happen that is what moves me.  That's what I'm proud of.  I'm proud to be a citizen of the world, a member of this insane species of awkward creatures whom often choose to destroy rather than create because fear of rejection refuses to make way for humility and grace.

McFadden & Whitehead - Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now (stereo)

Great.  Now, I'm all verklempt.  Moving on. 

I don't begrudge Jesse Jackson or Christine King Farris or any other person of color over the age of 55 of being overwhelmed by the sight of an African-American man accept his win for the Presidency of the United States.  I have no idea what it feels like to be where you are, to see what you've seen, but I know you never thought you'd see the day that a black man would sit in the Oval Office.  And my heart is full because I know your heart is full.

But I do need to issue one warning.  White people.  You knew this was coming, so listen closely.  You know I love you, but please do not come at me sideways with claims of a "post-racial" America or the end to racism.  You know when racism will be over?  When we no longer know what the concept of race represents.  When will we know this?  When people of color tell you.  You will never be in a position to declare the end of racism in America or abroad.  Only those oppressed by the institution of racism and the tools of disenfranchisement will be able to do that.  Write that done.  Memorize it.

And of course, white liberals will never fail to fail.  Case in point: While working at the bookstore yesterday afternoon, my boss (the manager, who happens to be Armenian) offered me and a customer some free passes to a screening of Madagascar 2.  I accepted them graciously, but the customer said that she wouldn't be able to use them because she had to teach that Friday morning.  My boss asks her what subject she teaches and the lady says: "10th grade history and 11th grade U.S. government."  To which, my boss replied the following:

Boss:  Wow.  I can't imagine what it would be like to teach those subjects today of all days.
Nice White Lady:  Yeah.  It's amazing to drive through high poverty areas and see kids wearing Obama T-shirts and Get Out The Vote shirts.  It's amazing they even know an election is going on right now.
Boss, looking at me:  Yeah, it's astonishing really. 

I just shook my head and went back to work.  Like I said, white liberals will never fail to fail.  It's somehow "amazing" and "astonishing" that young black people know that there's an election even happening today?  Really?  I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that I know a lot of black people; I grew up around them, I'm even related to a couple, like my mother and father.  There are plenty of blackfolks who are apathetic about the political process (just like millions of whites, Latinos, Arab-Americans, Native Americans, Asian-Americans, etc.), but we are always f#@*ing aware that there's an election going on.  Our lives are affected moreso by the political scapegoating heralded from administration to administration, so we always know that there's an election going on.  The Democratic Party has taken advantage of our continued support -- without anything substantive to show for it -- for the last 50 years.  And before that, we fought to bring about the Voting Rights Act of 1965 so we could be honored with the same hollow pandering that white people take for granted.  We always know that there's an election going on.  Like I said, white liberals will never fail to fail.

Combo Breaker

In other news, my GLBT friends, I understand your anger, but let's need not fret.  Calfornia took a step backwards yesterday, but the fight isn't over.  They're still counting the ballots, but it looks like Mormon meddling and misplaced religious fervor (yeah, I said it!) has won the day.  Forget them.  I've said before that I'm not all that up in arms over the fight for gay marriage.  I don't believe it's the most salient human rights-infringement facing the homosexual community today, and my perspective hasn't changed.  But the f#@*ing nerve of the Church of Latter-Day Saints to come to our state and influence legislation that would alter the state Constitution to revoke the rights determined by our Supreme Court for citizens in our community...!  Who the hell do you think you are!?!

You know, at first, I was pretty nonchalant about the whole issue.  I took the "Hey, everybody has the right to be miserable" attitude.  But now, I'm pissed.  You don't change the Constitution to infringe upon another group in society to suit your bigotry.  I get it.  You believe gay marriage is a mockery of the holy matrimony held between a man and a woman.  But guess what, your church is not the law of the land, nor was it meant to be.  And the California Supreme Court says it's unconstitutional to deny homosexuals the right to marry in the eyes of the law, your church doesn't get to overturn that law.  Oh no, this fight isn't over.  Not by a long shot.  You don' stepped in it now!

Having said that, I would like people to acknowledge the fact that Prop. 8 was not the only proposition on the ballot and that it was not the only injustice suffered in this election.  ::snaps fingers::  Hey, pay attention!  Propositions 5 and 9 also passed.  Just in case your weren't paying attention, Prop. 5 was a wonderful proposal that dared shine a light on the fact that incarcerating nonviolent criminals for long periods of time in state prisons only increases recidivism.  Here's an idea, maybe if you send them to rehab and drug treatment centers instead of having them serve multiple jail terms, maybe they won't be back in there 6 months later for drugs charges.  It saves the state money and reduces prison overcrowding.  But hey, who cares that the U.S. has more citizens behind bars than any other industrialized nation?  Not me.  Guess what?  Martin Sheen supported Prop. 5.  F#!k you, Ramon Estevez.

The travesty that is Prop. 9 robbed parollees of a right to legal counsel should their parole be revoked.  Nice going, Cali.  Robbing more citizens of their human rights guaranteed to them by federal law.  What is this I keep hearing about California being so "progressive"?  Well, apparently, if your are a black, Latino or Filipino male between the ages of 12 and 25, the state will help you progress to a life sentence behind bars as quickly as possible.  And once incarcerated, they'll happily make sure your brown ass stays there. 

Thankfully, Prop. 2 (reduces animal cruelty on state farms and ranches) passed.  And Prop. 4 (mandatory parental notification for minors seeking an abortion) and Prop. 6 ( increasing mandatory jail time for gang members, meth sales, and GTA; permitting hearsay as evidence; denying bail to undocumented immigrants) were defeated.  That's a reason to rejoice alone.  But California being California, you know that garbage is going to be on the election ballot again two years from now.

Okay, I'm depressing myself.  So I'll end it here with one of my favorite illustrations of the last 24 hours.  Enjoy.

Obama and Uncle Sam

Yeah, it's another one of those posts ... except I didn't write this one.  That's probably why it's damn near flawless.  :-)  And for those who don't know about Tim Wise.  Get on that.

*****

From his Myspace page, Sept. 14:

This is Your Nation on White Privilege

(NOTE: I added some things to this piece, and made a few changes to other parts for accuracy and clarity. So, if you are going to send the piece around to more people m please send this version if possible)

This is Your Nation on White Privilege
By Tim Wise
9/13/08

For those who still can't grasp the concept of white privilege, or who are looking for some easy-to-understand examples of it, perhaps this list will help.

White privilege is when you can get pregnant at seventeen like Bristol Palin and everyone is quick to insist that your life and that of your family is a personal matter, and that no one has a right to judge you or your parents, because "every family has challenges," even as black and Latino families with similar "challenges" are regularly typified as irresponsible, pathological and arbiters of social decay.

White privilege is when you can call yourself a "fuckin' redneck," like Bristol Palin's boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll "kick their fuckin' ass," and talk about how you like to "shoot shit" for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.

White privilege is when you can attend four different colleges in six years like Sarah Palin did (one of which you basically failed out of, then returned to after making up some coursework at a community college), and no one questions your intelligence or commitment to achievement, whereas a person of color who did this would be viewed as unfit for college, and probably someone who only got in in the first place because of affirmative action.

White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don't all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you're "untested."

White privilege is being able to say that you support the words "under God" in the pledge of allegiance because "if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it's good enough for me," and not be immediately disqualified from holding office--since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the "under God" part wasn't added until the 1950s--while believing that reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because, ya know, the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school requires it), is a dangerous and silly idea only supported by mushy liberals.

White privilege is being able to be a gun enthusiast and not make people immediately scared of you.

White privilege is being able to have a husband who was a member of an extremist political party that wants your state to secede from the Union, and whose motto is "Alaska first," and no one questions your patriotism or that of your family, while if you're black and your spouse merely fails to come to a 9/11 memorial so she can be home with her kids on the first day of school, people immediately think she's being disrespectful.

White privilege is being able to make fun of community organizers and the work they do--like, among other things, fight for the right of women to vote, or for civil rights, or the 8-hour workday, or an end to child labor--and people think you're being pithy and tough, but if you merely question the experience of a small town mayor and 18-month governor with no foreign policy expertise beyond a class she took in college and the fact that she lives close to Russia--you're somehow being mean, or even sexist.

White privilege is being able to convince white women who don't even agree with you on any substantive issue to vote for you and your running mate anyway, because suddenly your presence on the ticket has inspired confidence in these same white women, and made them give your party a "second look."

White privilege is being able to fire people who didn't support your political campaigns and not be accused of abusing your power or being a typical politician who engages in favoritism, while being black and merely knowing some folks from the old-line political machines in Chicago means you must be corrupt.

White privilege is when you can take nearly twenty-four hours to get to a hospital after beginning to leak amniotic fluid, and still be viewed as a great mom whose commitment to her children is unquestionable, and whose "next door neighbor" qualities make her ready to be VP, while if you're a black candidate for president and you let your children be interviewed for a few seconds on TV, you're irresponsibly exploiting them.

White privilege is being able to give a 36 minute speech in which you talk about lipstick and make fun of your opponent, while laying out no substantive policy positions on any issue at all, and still manage to be considered a legitimate candidate, while a black person who gives an hour speech the week before, in which he lays out specific policy proposals on several issues, is still criticized for being too vague about what he would do if elected.

White privilege is being able to attend churches over the years whose pastors say that people who voted for John Kerry or merely criticize George W. Bush are going to hell, and that the U.S. is an explicitly Christian nation and the job of Christians is to bring Christian theological principles into government, and who bring in speakers who say the conflict in the Middle East is God's punishment on Jews for rejecting Jesus, and everyone can still think you're just a good church-going Christian, but if you're black and friends with a black pastor who has noted (as have Colin Powell and the U.S. Department of Defense) that terrorist attacks are often the result of U.S. foreign policy and who talks about the history of racism and its effect on black people, you're an extremist who probably hates America.

White privilege is not knowing what the Bush Doctrine is when asked by a reporter, and then people get angry at the reporter for asking you such a "trick question," while being black and merely refusing to give one-word answers to the queries of Bill O'Reilly means you're dodging the question, or trying to seem overly intellectual and nuanced.

White privilege is being able to go to a prestigious prep school, then to Yale and then Harvard Business school, and yet, still be seen as just an average guy (George W. Bush) while being black, going to a prestigious prep school, then Occidental College, then Columbia, and then to Harvard Law, makes you "uppity," and a snob who probably looks down on regular folks.

White privilege is being able to graduate near the bottom of your college class (McCain), or graduate with a C average from Yale (W.) and that's OK, and you're cut out to be president, but if you're black and you graduate near the top of your class from Harvard Law, you can't be trusted to make good decisions in office.

White privilege is being able to dump your first wife after she's disfigured in a car crash so you can take up with a multi-millionaire beauty queen (who you go on to call the c-word in public) and still be thought of as a man of strong family values, while if you're black and married for nearly twenty years to the same woman, your family is viewed as un-American and your gestures of affection for each other are called "terrorist fist bumps."

White privilege is being able to sing a song about bombing Iran and still be viewed as a sober and rational statesman, with the maturity to be president, while being black and suggesting that the U.S. should speak with other nations, even when we have disagreements with them, makes you "dangerously naive and immature."

White privilege is being able to claim your experience as a POW has anything at all to do with your fitness for president, while being black and experiencing racism and an absent father is apparently among the "lesser adversities" faced by other politicians, as Sarah Palin explained in her convention speech.

And finally, white privilege is the only thing that could possibly allow someone to become president when he has voted with George W. Bush 90 percent of the time, even as unemployment is skyrocketing, people are losing their homes, inflation is rising, and the U.S. is increasingly isolated from world opinion, just because white voters aren't sure about that whole "change" thing. Ya know, it's just too vague and ill-defined, unlike, say, four more years of the same, which is very concrete and certain.

White privilege is, in short, the problem.

Generations ... of disposable people.

As someone else said, it's going to be a long, hot summer in NYC.

_________

Police not guilty in groom's death

• Story Highlights
• NEW: Crowd angry but orderly; union chief praises verdict
• Detectives acquitted of wrongdoing in Sean Bell shooting case
• Judge cites contradictory prosecution testimony, witnesses' demeanor
• Victim's fiancee runs from courtroom as verdicts are read

From Deborah Feyerick

NEW YORK (CNN) -- A judge acquitted three New York Police Department detectives of all charges Friday morning in the shooting death of an unarmed man in a 50-bullet barrage, hours before he was to be married.

Detectives Michael Oliver, left, Gescard Isnora and Marc Cooper were accused in the 50-bullet barrage." Detectives Michael Oliver and Gescard Isnora were found not guilty of charges of manslaughter, assault and reckless endangerment in the death of Sean Bell, 23, and the wounding of two of his friends.

Detective Marc Cooper was acquitted of reckless endangerment.
Justice Arthur Cooperman said he found problems with the prosecution's case. He said some prosecution witnesses contradicted themselves, and he cited prior convictions and incarcerations of witnesses.

He also cited the demeanor of some witnesses on the stand.
As the judge read his decision, Nicole Paultre Bell -- Sean Bell's fiancee before his death -- ran from the courtroom, saying, "I've got to get out of here."

The announcement immediately sparked anger among some in the crowd outside the courthouse, but the protests were generally orderly.

One woman shouted at a black police officer, "How can you be proud to wear that uniform? Stand down! Stop working for the masters!"

Patrick Lynch, president of the New York Police Patrolmen's Benevolent Association, said "there's no winners, there's no losers" in the case.

"We still have a death that occurred. We still have police officers that have to live with the fact that there was a death involved in their case," Lynch said.

But, he added, the verdict assured police officers that they will be treated fairly in New York's courts.
The Rev. Al Sharpton, who has been advising Bell's fiancee and family, left the courthouse about an hour after the verdict without making a public statement. He had called for calm Wednesday.

Bell, 23, was killed just before dawn on his wedding day, November 25, 2006. He and several friends were winding up an all-night bachelor party at the Kalua Club in Queens, a strip club that was under investigation by a NYPD undercover unit looking into complaints of guns, drugs and prostitution.

Undercover detectives were inside the club, and plainclothes officers were stationed outside.
Witnesses said that about 4 a.m., closing time, as Bell and his friends left the club, an argument broke out. Believing that one of Bell's friends, Joseph Guzman, was going to get a gun from Bell's car, one of the undercover detectives followed the men and called for backup.

What happened next was at the heart of the trial, prosecuted by the assistant district attorney in Queens.
Bell, Guzman and Trent Benefield got into the car, with Bell at the wheel. The detectives drew their weapons, said Guzman and Benefield, who testified that they never heard the plainclothes detectives identify themselves as police.

Bell was in a panic to get away from the armed men, his friends testified.
But the detectives thought Bell was trying to run down one of them, according to their lawyers, believed that their lives were in danger and started shooting.

In a frantic 911 call, police can be heard saying, "Shots fired. Undercover units involved."
A total of 50 bullets were fired by five NYPD officers. Only three were charged with crimes.
Oliver, who reloaded his semiautomatic in the middle of the fray, fired 31 times, Isnora fired 11 times, and Cooper, whose leg was brushed by Bell's moving car, fired four times, the NYPD said.

No gun was found near Bell or his friends.
Soon after his death, Bell's fiancee, Nicole Paultre, legally changed her name to Nicole Paultre Bell. She is raising the couple's two daughters, ages 5 and 1.

"I tell [them] that Daddy's in heaven now," she said. "He's watching over us. He's our guardian angel. He's going to be here to protect us and make sure nothing happens to us."

Detectives Endowment Association President Michael Palladino said forensic and scientific evidence presented during the seven-week trial contradicts the testimony of prosecution witnesses.

But Paultre Bell's father, Lester Paultre, said, "For those naysayers who say the police was doing their job, they should imagine their child in that car being shot by the police for no reason."

Paultre Bell, Guzman and Benefield have filed a wrongful-death lawsuit in federal court that has been stayed pending the outcome of the criminal trial. Guzman was shot 16 times, and four bullets, too dangerous to remove, remain in his body, according to his lawyer, Sanford Rubenstein.

Federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York have been monitoring the trial. In the event of an acquittal, it is likely authorities would conduct a review to determine whether there were any civil rights violations.

Sean Bell and Nicole Paultre Bell

Which popular slang expression drives you nuts?

Some people may not consider it a slang expression, but I do, especially in this context.  The term I loathe to hear as often as I do is: "ghetto."  Particularly out of the mouths of white people.  I'm sorry (or to be frank, I'm really not sorry at all), but there is no way this term escapes a white person's lips without bearing the weight of racist overtones.

I bounced this idea off of someone else recently to see if I'm just being nitpicky/persnickety/overly sensitive/[insert dismissive phrase here].  Granted, I could've cast a wider net and talked to more people about it before posting, but since this Vox QOTD came up yesterday, I figured I might as well get this off my chest and onto the chest of my inferiors.  Simpsons reference.  And no, I'm not being touchy about this, so if you're not ready for some tough love, just click on that Back icon in the upper left-hand corner of your screen.  It's about to get all racial up in this piece. 

White people.  Please, pull up a chair.  ::pats cushion::  I know I count some of you as friends, buddies, acquaintances, cronies, etc.  So I say this with as much patience as I can possibly muster.  Your use of the term "ghetto" is 99.5% of the time completely f#!ked up and offensive. 

Why, you ask.  Allow me to break it down for you.

Let's set aside the fact that most of you wouldn't know a real ghetto if it fell out of the sky and started to wiggle on your lap.  The most salient issue concerning your use of the slang term involves your egregious application to anything remotely associated with African-American (and to a lesser extent, Latino-American) culture.  Cadillac Escalades are ghetto.  Tyler Perry movies are ghetto.  Kool-aid is ghetto.  Bad credit is ghetto.  And so on, ad nauseam.

And none of these are in any way an expression of anything truly "ghetto."  This leaves me to conclude that the majority of you who enjoy throwing the term into your everyday speech so haphazardly have no clue as to what it truly refers to.  Yes, the term was borne from the strictly segregated Jewish enclaves of Eastern Europe that were little better than a concentration camp, but we all know that in the modern U.S., this connotation no longer dominates our cultural psyche.  No, instead, it's the image of the predominantly African-American neighborhoods populated with more liquor stores and 7-11s than banks, parks, and supermarkets.  It's identified as sections of any major city overrun by gang bangers, prostitutes, and corner drug dealers; the places were you rush to lock your car doors as you drive through because you're certain that if you don't, you'll be yanked from your Ford Taurus, thrown to the ground, bludgeoned within an inch of your life, and left for dead.

And guess what?  That is a ghetto.  But that is NOT North Hollywood, Van Nuys, Reseda, West Adams, Panorama City, Northridge, Inglewood, etc.  When I first moved to L.A., I slept on my uncle's couch for a month while searching for a room to rent.  I quickly found this new condo-owner in Reseda on Craigslist, and she invited me to stop by and take a look.  When I mentioned it to my uncle, he told me that a lot of people say that Reseda's the ghetto.  Well, after driving around the area for a bit, let's just say that if Reseda's a ghetto, L.A. residents need to keep their asses in California because they have severely lost perspective with the rest of America. 

Ghetto =/= working class neighborhood.  Ghettos are severely economically depressed areas often inhabited by members of a specific ethnic group.  And believe it or not, those ethnic groups can be and are Latino, White, Asian-American, Arab-American, and Native American, as often as they're Black.  Never seen an Asian-American ghetto?  I have a buddy in Houston who would be happy to point them out to you anytime you want to stop by for a visit.  Check the U.S. map for any major cities in Western Kansas known for their slaughterhouses.  They're certain to have quite a few.  Hey, they may not be American, but feel free to venture up to Vancouver.  There are plenty of CBCs* living in ghetto neighborhoods up north.

Personally, I view ghettos as areas hit extremely hard by the economy in a country where the government doesn't give a shit about anyone living there who isn't white and middle-class to help rectify the situation.  These areas deserve our help, not our disdain.  But hey, that's just my conscience talking.  Please feel free to continue the elitist wankery.  I wouldn't want you to feel any less enlightened than you've already convinced yourself that you are.

***

Okay, so let's set aside that reality for a moment.  I know how uncomfortable it makes some of you.  The most important fact I want to make clear with this slang term is this: Ghetto =/= anything that isn't middle-class Anglo-American approved.  It is when this usage creeps into polite conversation it conjures racist overtones.  I had a particularly interesting weekend where I found myself in a number of conversations with people I either didn't know or only knew as an acquaintance.  And in 3 of these conversations, I heard a white person use the term "ghetto" in a derogatory and/or slanderous manner.  I'll only address 2 of those instances here because I'm still deconstructing the third.

The first semi-pleasant conversation came to a brief halt while I was speaking to a young, white, Jewish male at my favorite coffee stand in NoHo.  We'll call him Ben.  Ben and I were talking about, among other things, the lack of clubs in the NoHo area.  I said that I'm kinda glad there aren't that many because the last thing I want to see is NoHo turned into a wannabe-Silverlake/Los Feliz.  Goodness knows they're trying to do just that.  ::shudder::  But then I asked young Ben:

Me: What ever happened to the Bank Heist around the corner?  That club that was open for a minute.
Ben: I heard it attracted the wrong kind of crowd.
Me (bracing myself): What do you mean? 
Ben: I heard that a lot of ghetto people started showing up.
Me (mentally counting to 10): That's odd.  This doesn't seem the kind of area that would attract a crowd like that.
Ben: I know, but maybe it's because there's so few good clubs in the Valley.

Did I stop and correct Ben about the number of clubs in the Valley, particularly how there are considerably more than he thinks?  No.  Did I stop and tell him that there's plenty of places that truly ghetto folks would love to hang and it isn't anywhere near the NoHo Arts District?  No.  Did I explain to Ben that my interpretation of the slang term was clearly different from his because no one who would ever describe themselves as ghetto would be caught dead at the Bank Heist?  No.

Why?  One: I'm a coward. And I try to avoid conflicts, especially face-to-face ones.  Two: I'm too nice.  Believe it or not, my contrary nature is often offset by my desire to not hurt people's feelings, even when they need to put their egos aside and be schooled on their possibly unintentional asshat behavior.  Three: Educating privileged white folks about their racism is a full time job foist upon people of color (POC) that tires us to the point of exhaustion on a daily basis.  We have to pick and choose our battles every time we engage anyone who is not a member of our own ethnic community.  And the higher POC move up the social ladder, the more often we are saddled with the imposition of #3.

Listen.  I sincerely doubt the folks partying at the Bank Heist were ghetto at all.  He or his friends or [insert white hipster/yuppie/jackass] probably walked into the club, saw that the white folks chilling there did not significantly outnumber the POC -- it seems that anything less than 8 to 1 causes alarm -- and labeled the venue as GHETTO.  I'd wager good money that this person or persons didn't observe any ghetto behavior, slang, style, etc.  And here's the tricky part: "ghetto" is ALL about behavior.  It's the only way you can label anyone as such.  If you would label both Lil Kim and Ashanti as ghetto, you don't know what the hell you're talking about.  If you think both Jay-Z and Kanye West grew up in similarly ghetto nieghborhoods, you don't know what the hell it is.  If your white male neighbor blasts music at 2 am on a late Saturday night and you label him "an asshole," but when your black male neighbor on the other side blasts music at 2 am on a late Saturday night and you label him as "ghetto," you not only don't know what you're talking about, you're a racist dipshit who needs to check him/herself.

No, I won't sit here and delineate everything that deserves to be labeled "ghetto" and "not ghetto" because I haven't the time and Marlon and Shawn Wayans already did that.  But let me say this, when POC, particularly African-Americans label someone as ghetto, it is by and large a reference to that person's behavior.  I like to call it, "Now, you know your Mama raised you better than that" behavior.  It's roughly the same POV that most white folks have of, dare I say it, rednecks, shitkickers, good ole boys, and poor white trash.  (And no, those groups are not the same thing.)  It's a term used to refer to people who are thought to have no class.  Please note, I didn't say lower class or low class, I said no class.  Toby Keith is as redneck as the day is long, but Toby Keith is richer than anyone reading this blog right now.  Jay-Z was born and raised in New York's Marcy Projects, but Jay-Z can buy and sell everything you own fifty times over.  Your income does not determine whether or not you're ghetto, your behavior does.

And I'm not sure if white people who use the term with abandon to describe anything related to working class people and African-Americans know this.  I once heard Amy Sedaris refer to using a teaspoon to curl your eyelashes as "kinda ghetto."  What?  Seriously?  Okay, I adore Amy, but someone needed to hip check her on that one.  Again, working class is not the same as abject poverty, and having the common sense not to blow money on an unnecessary beauty device when you have a reasonable, convenient alternative is not ghetto.  I'll take frugal or cheap, but not ghetto.

***

The second instance where the slang term "ghetto" made me bristle as it spewed from the mouth of a white person occurred on Sunday.  Briefly, during a friendly conversation, I was asked which dance classes I'm currently taking during the week.  I replied one Hip Hop class on Saturday and 2 Jazz classes on Wednesday.  This somehow prompted the question of whether I ever have to do a move or step often referred to as poppin' (not to be confused with the breakdance move) in my Hip Hop class.  I said yes, if the number calls for it.  Then, in a moment of confusion that I'm still trying to decipher, I hear in a derogatory tone that that move is "ghetto."

Pause.  Scratch head.

Um, wasn't Hip Hop borne from the streets of New York ghettos in the late 1970s?  Wasn't Hip Hop used as a way for people raised in the slums and ghettos of New York and New Jersey to express themselves about their environment?  Isn't it continually used all over the world as a means to communicate the same frustrated and passionate experiences shared by those who live or lived in similar environments?  Thus my confusion.  Why is a dance form created by those who live in the ghetto, set to music created by those who were raised in the ghetto (some of them, not all obviously), somehow derided for being "ghetto."  That's like saying, "I can't stand the Polka.  It's just so Slavic."

Then, in the next breath, the same person expressed an appreciation for Krumping.  ::long sigh::  Why do white people who seem cool always have to harsh your squee with such ass-backward-ness? 

Did I tell him that the poppin' move is one of the first steps you learn in Clown Hip Hop and Krumping?  No.  Did I ask him how he could have contempt for a "ghetto" dance move, but appreciate Krumping, another dance form created in the ghettos of South Central Los Angeles?  No.  So what did I do?  I mentioned that I was interested in Krumping as well, but I felt that I better start off on something a little more generic.  I also pointed out that Miss Prissy from the Rize documentary teaches classes at my dance studio in NoHo on Thursday and Sundays.  Then the subject was changed.

See my previous mentions of cowardice, kindness, and battle strategy.

Yes, poppin' is a ghetto move.  And when executed well, it can light up a Hip Hop routine.  It can also be worked seamlessly into a Jazz, African, Tap, Afro-Fusion, Burlesque, and Latin Ballroom performance.  It's not inherently bad or vulgar.  I understand the incessant appearance in booty shakin' rap videos may lead you to believe otherwise, but again, I think that interpretation carries the same racist overtones reminiscent of a time when Rock 'n Roll was called "jungle music" and Jazz music was banned from radio programs because it led to the "corruption of youth."

If you've never seen poppin' done right, check out this dude on YouTube.  I don't know many women who can move that well, even at DR's dance studio.

ETA: Damn.  Sugar Britches removed his video from YouTube.  For anyone who didn't get to see it, he was really something else.  Oh well.  I'll leave the video code embedded just in case he decides to make a comeback.  In its place, I'll use this example from one of the gazillion contest entries for the "Pop, Lock and Drop It" online video competition that Huey ran a year ago.  If you don't know what I'm talking about, consider yourself blessed. 

Anyway, here's one of the better entries.  This sister really put her thing down.  I'm going to play the envy card and say it's the sneakers on the carpet floor that helped her out.  In an alternate universe, I'm just as good.  Anyway, for a proper example of poppin' (or booty poppin', as it is sometimes called in its unabbreviated form), pay close attention to the vid between the 13-15 second mark.

So take that move and watch it go from poppin to krumping to poppin around the 44 second mark in this vid:

Again, I'm just a little confused how you can find the first vid dance unseemly, but the second vid dance makes you want to take lessons.

In the end, I know I can't stop anybody from saying anything they want to say.  But by the same token, no one should be allowed to silence my protest as I'm subjected to ignorance and prejudice.  I think what it boils down to is this: Are these people bringing enough positives to offset the negatives?  In other words, do I really want to have a relationship with someone who maligns my culture, while in the same breath claims to be my friend.  My 31 years of experience tells me the answer will be "no."  I have to put up with family and work colleagues who let their bigotry show when you least expect it, but I shouldn't have to put up with friends who do the same.  In that area of life, you have more of a choice.

I guess we'll see what comes of it.

* Canadian-Born Chinese

I'm a little late on this week's "In the News" post, but with the Martin Luther King, Jr.-holiday and me playing catch-up at work yesterday, blogging had to take a back seat.  But not for long because some of the tags and events that have caught my attention of late occurred this week, not last week. 

Actually, I'm only going to share 2 stories and links with you.  This is where my head is right now, so some other issues have to wait until another time.

1.

I know that the passing of Heath Ledger may have usurped the big news about Australia's Black Tuesday and the general flailing that's taken the national and international economic world by storm, but I'm afraid I couldn't just let it slip by without commenting on it.  In case you haven't heard, Australia's stock market had the biggest crash since 1989 yesterday, the UK's FTSE doesn't know which end is up, and India's doing its best to maintain its economic solvency while the U.S. slips into its "Big Bad American Recession" that some feel is long overdue, but I could've sworn was well underway at least 9 months ago.  (Color my face red.)  Now, I am neither an economist nor a fortune teller, so I can't break all this down into convenient sound bite-sized Cliff Notes.  But needless to say, bad times are ahead, although I wonder how a person of color is supposed to differentiate this bad time from the previous period where things were supposed to be all-well-and-good but weren't?  *SMH*  Either way, I still loathe my job, I'll still keep on looking for a new one, and my debt will only decrease by a fraction whether the world comes to an end or not.

2.

Alisa Valdes-Rodriquez wrote a fascinating rebuttal to a New York Times article declaring that Barack Obama has very little support throughout the Latino-American community, where it expertly cited the "common man and woman" on the streets of East Los Angeles as proof.  Since I rarely look to the NYT for news unless a compelling headline comes up on my iGoogle news feed, I, of course, missed the story.  Which is great because I don't need the agitation.  However, I am glad that I found my way over to Miss Alisa's blog because it offered some fine points on Latino/African Diaspora relations and a well-constructed commentary on how the media picks and chooses how to view those relations and the communities themselves.  I highly recommend you take the time to pop over and see what the hubbub was all about.

That's it for this week's Kelleah's brain probe "In the News".

This year I hope to make my Vox more representative of what's going on in my life, not just what's going on on my TV set.  You may have noticed that I've been blogging about more political and social issues than usual.  This is neither accidental nor deliberate; it's just me being more me-like.  I'm not interested in turning my Vox into a political pundit blog or waxing effusively about where I stand on every single issue no matter how controversial or mundane.  But I do hope to include a little bit of this and that which keeps popping up on my radar and taking me away from things less important.

Why the change?  Well, back in late 2007, I said to myself, "Self. You know your Vox blog kind of makes you appear a wee bit shallow, yes?."  To which I responded, "Shut up! You don't know me! ... Okay, well, maybe it does."  And unlike so many other things in my life that annoy the crap out of me, I'm actually going to do something about this.  No, it's a not desperate effort to appear more multi-faceted.  If anything, it's an effort to allow myself to feel more comfortable about who am I in public.  (Don't worry. No flashing. I wouldn't sprain your eyes like that.)  So, each week (hopefully), I plan to post an "In the News" entry, which will feature 3 links to news stories that I've been following throughout the previous week that demanded my attention, and maybe, pique your interest as well.  Here we go.

This week's 3 spotlights fall on . . . .

1.

If you have a moment, take a look at Angry Black Bitch's response to Gloria Steinem's NYT letter endorsing HRC.  I have a fair amount of respect for Ms. Steinem, and I certainly don't hate Mrs. Rodham-Clinton, but Shark-fu's commentary easily sums up why many women of color have splintered from the Feminist movement time and again.  There's a dichotomy there that never fails to rear its ugly head whenever those in power (namely middle-class white women) don't feel that things are going quite their way.  And once again, it's WOC who are forced to stand back and wonder how their lives are constantly being dictated by people who have precious little knowledge of their experiences.

2.

Okay, now many people would consider it a given if I blog about issues affecting the African-American community because, duh!, I'm African-American.  However, some may or may not be surprised that my identity does not begin or end there, and although there are issues where my ethnicity certainly colors my stance (pun intended), it does not necessarily determine my stance altogether.  What am I getting at here?  This.  I am wholeheartedly an opponent of capital punishment.  Write it down.  Take a picture.  Recite it in your sleep.  I have no intention of browbeating anyone with my perspective, and I'm not interested in engaging anyone (online or F2F) in an attempt to see things from their opposing point-of-view on this issue.  I'm a firm believer that much in life exists in shades of gray, but on this salient matter, my perspective sees it clearly as black-and-white.  It's either right or wrong.  No exceptions, no special circumstances, no get-out-of-jail-free cards.  Therefore, the current Supreme Court deliberation regarding the "cruel and unusual" methodology of lethal injections concerns me greatly.  If you see this issue come up again and again on my Vox, now, at least you'll know why.

3.

Speaking of capital punishment, I happened to take a gander over at MoJo's little Primary Color graph a few weeks back, and noticed that my Primary candidate of choice (as of today; there's always the possibility of it changing before February 5th) does not see eye-to-eye with my stance on the issue.  No surprise there; even though my attention was focused on other hot button topics, I kind of already knew.  Of course, that might explain why I'm leaning more toward Mr. Kucinich every day.

Although, to be fair, the likelihood of any candidate matching my stance perfectly on every issue is highly doubtful.  So the question becomes: Do I vote for the candidate who matches my stance on as many issues as possible? Or do I vote for the candidate who matches my stance on the issues that matter to me the most?  (Wait, did that make sense? I hope so.)  If it's the former, I'll likely pull the lever for Edwards.  If it's the latter, I might pull the lever for Kucinich.  But hey, according to this quiz, I'm supposed to be cheering for Mike Gravel.  Hmmm.  Interesting. 

88% Mike Gravel
87% Dennis Kucinich
82% John Edwards
81% Chris Dodd
81% Barack Obama
80% Hillary Clinton
79% Joe Biden
70% Bill Richardson
38% Rudy Giuliani
28% Ron Paul
24% John McCain
23% Tom Tancredo
19% Mitt Romney
18% Mike Huckabee
9% Fred Thompson

2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz

I'm not sure what more there is to say at this point that hasn't already been said by those far more eloquent than I.  But in the spirit of justice and community, I'll add my name to the roster of those standing up to be counted.  Yes, count me among the subversive.  Granted, I can't be there in Jena, Louisiana, today, but I am definitely there in spirit.

For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, allow me to share a little background on this insignificant, little court case currently working its way through the system in the tiny town of Jena, LA.  I know it's not as fascinating as the O.J. Simpson QOTD earlier this week (thanks Vox!  /sarcasm), but please try to follow this lengthy tale until the end.

–––––––––––––––––––

A rough timeline of the events so far (courtesy of the Newport News Daily Press [formatting mine]):

The Jena 6 case so far: September 2006 – Three nooses are found hanging from the "white tree" at Jena High School the day after a black student asked to sit under the tree. The principal recommends expelling three white students involved but is overruled by the superintendent. The white students get a three-day suspension, and black students organize a sit-in under the tree to protest.

Fall 2006 – Racial tensions mount, and there are a series of fights between black and white students at the high school. In late November, arsonists set fire to the high school's main building. Off-campus, a white youth beats up a black student who shows up at an all-white party. A few days later, a young white man pulls a shotgun on three black students at a convenience store.

Dec. 4, 2006 – White Jena High School student Justin Barker, 17, is beaten during a fight with black students. Barker was temporarily knocked unconscious and suffered cuts and bruises. He was treated and released at a local hospital. Six black students – 17-year-old Robert Bailey Jr., 17-year-old Theo Shaw, 18-year-old Carwin Jones, 17-year-old Bryant Purvis, 16-year-old Mychal Bell, and a 14-year-old boy – are arrested in connection with the assault. All but the 14-year-old are charged as adults with attempted second-degree murder. All six are expelled from school.

June 26, 2007 – On the morning of Bell's trial, the district attorney reduces the charges against him to aggravated second-degree battery and conspiracy. Bell is tried and convicted by an all-white jury. He faces up to 22 years in prison.

Sept. 4, 2007 – A Louisiana District Court judge dismisses the conspiracy charge against Bell but lets the battery conviction stand, although he said Bell should have been tried as a juvenile. Charges against Jones and Shaw are reduced to aggravated second-degree battery and conspiracy.

 

Sept. 10, 2007 – Charges against Bailey Jr. are reduced to aggravated second-degree battery and conspiracy.

 

Sept. 14, 2007 – The Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeals reverses Bell's aggravated second-degree battery conviction, ruling that he had been tried improperly as an adult.  The local district attorney may appeal to the Louisiana Supreme Court or refile the case in juvenile court.

But that’s just the bare bones of the situation at hand.  Allow me to flesh out some of the details.  In July, ColorofChange.org began to circulate an online petition in hopes of encouraging Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco to put pressure on the Jena police force and justice department, not in the name of special treatment, but in the name of fairness and equality.  Those who signed the petition were offered the following template if they are unsure of how to voice their concerns: 

Dear Governor Blanco,

Last fall in Jena, the day after two Black high school students sat beneath the "white tree" on their campus, nooses were hung from the tree. When the superintendent dismissed the nooses as a "prank," more Black students sat under the tree in protest. The District Attorney then came to the school accompanied by the town's police and demanded that the students end their protest, telling them, "I can be your best friend or your worst enemy... I can take away your lives with a stroke of my pen."

 

A series of white-on-black incidents of violence followed, and the DA did nothing. But when a white student was beaten up in a schoolyard fight, the DA responded by charging six black students with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

 

It's a story that reads like one from the Jim Crow era, when judges, lawyers and all-white juries used the justice system to keep blacks in "their place." But it's happening today. The families of these young men are fighting back, but the story has gotten minimal press. Together, we can make sure their story is told and that the Governor of Louisiana intervenes and provides justice for the Jena 6. It starts now. Please join me:

 

http://www.colorofchange.org/jena/?id=2273-187765

The noose-hanging incident and the DA's visit to the school set the stage for everything that followed. Racial tension escalated over the next couple of months, and on November 30, the main academic building of Jena High School was burned down in an unsolved fire. Later the same weekend, a black student was beaten up by white students at a party. The next day, black students at a convenience store were threatened by a young white man with a shotgun. They wrestled the gun from him and ran away. While no charges were filed against the white man, the students were later arrested for the theft of the gun.

 

That Monday at school, a white student, who had been a vocal supporter of the students who hung the nooses, taunted the black student who was beaten up at the off-campus party and allegedly called several black students "nigger." After lunch, he was knocked down, punched and kicked by black students. He was taken to the hospital, but was released and was well enough to go to a social event that evening.

 

Six Black Jena High students, Robert Bailey (17), Theo Shaw (17), Carwin Jones (18), Bryant Purvis (17), Mychal Bell (16) and an unidentified minor, were expelled from school, arrested and charged with second-degree attempted murder.  The first trial ended last month, and Mychal Bell, who has been in prison since December, was convicted of aggravated battery and conspiracy to commit aggravated battery (both felonies) by an all-white jury in a trial where his public defender called no witnesses. During his trial, Mychal's parents were ordered not to speak to the media and the court prohibited protests from taking place near the courtroom or where the judge could see them.

 

Mychal is scheduled to be sentenced on July 31st, and could go to jail for 22 years. Theo Shaw's trial is next. He will finally make bail this week.

 

The Jena Six are lucky to have parents and loved ones who are fighting tooth and nail to free them. They have been threatened but they are standing strong. We know that if the families have to go it alone, their sons will be a long time coming home.  But if we act now, we can make a difference.

 

Join me in demanding that Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco get involved to make sure that justice is served for Mychal Bell, and that DA Reed Walters drop the charges against the 5 boys who have not yet gone to trial.

 

http://www.colorofchange.org/jena/?id=2273-187765

Thanks.

I imagine Gov. Blanco’s response to the inundation of protest e-mails and letters was not a pleasant one.  As a matter of fact, it was so unpleasant she felt the need to have her representative issue the following insult to anyone who contacted her about the situation:

Dear:

 

Your email to Governor Kathleen Blanco regarding the Jena Six case has been forwarded to me for a response.

 

Your input and concerns are vital as we make critical decisions to move this state forward.  The Jena 6 case is a matter in the Judicial System and any defects must be addressed in that system with the appeals court.  The State Constitution provides for three branches of state government - Legislative, Executive, and Judicial - and the Constitution prohibits anyone in one branch from exercising the powers of anyone in another branch.  Certainly, the Governor hopes for and expects fairness.

 

Thank you for emailing and if this office can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Cheryl Shuffield, Director

Constituent Services

Well, if Governor Blanco thinks that her indifference and pithy dismissal would easily deter us from speaking up and fighting for what’s right (seriously, why is this heifer still in office?), she is sorely mistaken.  This is just a small sample of the fight that’s being waged without the help of state or federal intervention:

Protest Set For Racial Beating Case, Thousands Expected in Small La. Town; Black Teens Accused

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/09/19/national/main3274097.shtml

Rocker Donates to Jena 6 Defense Fund

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iIs7BlqlbOcI-_Jj9tEmcWt-1x8g

Concerned Blogosphere Launches Grassroots Virtual March in Support of Jena 6

http://www.pr.com/press-release/52561

Jasiri X’s song, “Free the Jena 6”

http://www.myspace.com/jasirix

That’s right, Governor.  We shall not be moved.  Feel free to sit back and pretend that your hands are tied while 6 young men face 15-20 years in prison for some trumped up charges on your watch.  We’ll remember that come election time.  Barack Obama, John Edwards, and Hillary Clinton have spoken out against this Jim Crow-justice that’s brought your state under a very painful microscope.  But don’t worry.  You just relax and put your feet up.  We got this.

And to anyone out there who can’t make it to a rally, but still want to support the cause, remember that the fight isn’t over at midnight.  This isn’t the last day you’re going to hear about what’s going on in Jena, Louisiana.  And this certainly isn’t the first or last time young black males will be treated harshly and unjustly by the American justice system.  Like many have said, it’s not about letting the black students involved in the fight off without punishment, but it’s about having the punishment fit the crime.  The white students who hung the nooses from the tree received 3 days suspension.  The black students who got into a fight received expulsion and criminal charges of attempted second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.  That’s the legacy of injustice that black men and women face everyday.  Speak up or condone the status quo.

Also, any Angelinos who are interested in attending the candlelight vigil for the Jena 6 Day of Action, there’s one at Leimert Park in the Crenshaw District (off of Vernon Ave. and Crenshaw Blvd.).  It’s supposed to last all day, but if you’re going to be there after 6:30pm, you might be able to catch me somewhere in the crowd dressed like this:

Day of Action

**Yessshh.  This is my third attempt to post this today.  The computer has been giving me nothing but trouble.  Hmm?  I smell c-o-n-spiracy.**

It's not all work and no play, folks.  Whenever I can steal a moment away from working in a coal mine, I like to skim entries in my Friends' list over on Livejournal.  Well, while skimming the various posts I've missed lately, I came across a link in the LJ Blackfolk community posted in response to a member calling out MTV's Punk'd.  The OP was pissed at how Punk'd continually involves the police in so many of their pranks against African-American celebrities.

Denim_queen echoed her sentiment and pointed us in the direction of Derek over at MindSay, who downloaded a mp3 version of Dave Chappelle's ode titled "F*#@ Ashton Kutcher" from Russell Simmons' Def Poetry Jam.  I liked it enough, I just had to share.  :-)

"F*#@ Ashton Kutcher" and "How I Got the Lead on Jeopardy"

Click on the A Poem By Dave Chappelle to listen.