What have you heard, lately?

My people are just destroying the English language, bit, by bit, by bit. Yes – my people: my Black people and my Caucasian people. I’m not so sure about my Hispanic and Asian people, because half the time I have no idea what they're saying. More on them later.

My Black people - wow! Usually, I am lambasting the younger generation for the way they speak. They kinda get a pass today. I’m not talking about “Ebonics”. Ebonics have flavor - wrong - but, they have flavor. My thoughts about language, today, span every generation.

My Black people do not use “Mayflower”. They have to do it themselves, so when they move, they go out and rent a “U-Haul-It” truck. Come on, people! If they have a letter or package that needs to be somewhere quickly, they use “Partial Post”. What? I remember my childhood and playtime after school. We would come down the steps at the front of the house, and after we hit the last one at the bottom, we were standing on the “palement”. O – M – G! Directly opposite was another “palement” and in between the two was a “skreet”. By summer’s end, inevitably, a ball has gotten away from our grips and fallen into the “zooey hole”. Of course, when we got back in the house we would wash our hands in the “zinc”. Goodness gracious! What always happens when my Black people have a few extra dollars in their pockets? We order some “swimps”. Yes- I’m talking about the little curled up seafood that has the head off and the tail still attached – swimps.

Like most of America, Pennsylvania, at one point, was inhabited by the American Indians. Their tribal names are in use today all over the state as County names, City names, and street names. In Philadelphia, you will find just about every one: Dauphin, Susquehanna, Chamonix (pronounced “sha moe knee”), Wissahickon (pronounced “wis a hickken”), and Schuylkill. Schuylkill (pronounced “skoo kill”) is not (to my knowledge) a tribal name, but, I had to throw that one in because of the spelling, and because it appears everywhere. Now, take a moment to review those names and look at those weird spellings. Which one do you think my Black people have the most trouble with? Believe it or not, as difficult as those words look, most people in Philadelphia have no trouble with their pronunciation. Instead, my Black people have a big problem with “Hunting Park Avenue”!! You see, “Hunting Park” obviously refers to a place where the Indians once hunted, and is often confused with another street named “Huntingdon Street”. Invariably, my Black people will say “Huntingdon Park Avenue” - every time! There IS no “Huntingdon Park Avenue”, people! It’s “Hunting Park Avenue”!! Get it right! Across town, there is an avenue by the name of “Haverford Avenue”. Again – invariably – my Black people will say “Halford Avenue”. What the humina humina? Please tell me how “Haverford” progressed over the years to “Halford”. But, hey, that’s my Black people and their own sense of language. Gotta love ‘em.

OK. Let’s move on to my other people – my Caucasian people. Our football team is “The Eagles”, but leave it to my people, my Caucasian people, to give it their own spin – “The Iggles”! Yes, that’s their very own personal pronunciation. We have a section in the city called “Kensington”, which is a poor, Caucasian, working class neighborhood. In South Philly, we have an Italian neighborhood. My Caucasian people from both neighborhoods have the distinct and erroneous manner of saying “I bet ya”. No – I’m not talking about making a wager. That’s their way of saying that they got there first. You know what I mean - the word that really should be “beat”, as in “I beat you”. What? “Bet” is not a replacement for “beat”! But, that’s my people, my Caucasian people. Gotta love ‘em, too.

I grew up with an Asian guy and an Hispanic guy. I guess with all of this “political correctness”, I should say “Puerto Rican” guy, as he hails from the island of Puerto Rico. Both he and the Asian friend have been in this country for at least thirty years or more, by now, but for the life of me, I still can’t understand a word they’re saying. Their accents are so thick that you can cut them with a knife. They may be using proper grammar and vocabulary, for all I know. Perhaps they are cussing me out for something that I agreed to a long time ago on which I never followed through. After all, all that I’ve ever done while in the midst of conversation with either of them was nod my head, as if to say “I understand”, when I really didn’t. It keeps the conversation moving and gets it over with. I still have no clue as to what words come forth from their mouths.

Well, there you have it. That’s my people. My Black people, my Caucasian people, my Asian people, and my, er . . . my Puerto Rican people. No matter how they choose to say the words . . . you gotta love ‘em.

This is blackstarr saying “Vive La Renaissance”.

copyright © 2008 blackstarr

blackstarr52@gmail.com

Renaissance, New Renaissance, Millennium, New Millennium, have you heard, Wissahickon, Chamonix, Dauphin, Susquehanna, Schuylkill, language, U Haul, Parcel Post, my people

The Harlem Renaissance: Part 2 of 5

One of the most well-known writers to come out of the Harlem Renaissance was Langston Hughes (1906-1967). His father disapproved of his choice of careers (writing), and suggested that he take up engineering. Hughes enrolled at Columbia University. Although he maintained a B+ average, he dropped out after a short time. In 1923, he took a stewardship aboard a freighter bound for Africa. He soon found himself in Italy. Shortly thereafter, he spent time in Washington, D.C, but by 1926, he returned to Harlem which he loved so much. Whether his time was in D.C. or in Harlem, he spent a great deal of time in cafes and clubs, listening to Jazz and Blues. It was those very places where much of his famed works were conceived, including “Weary Blues” (1926).

Normally, one writes, gets recognized, and then goes on to fame. At some point, one of his/her works becomes renown, usually a later work. Ironically, one of Langston Hughes’ most famous poems ever was his first published poem, “The Negro Speaks of Rivers”. My personal favorite, not just of Hughes, but of all time and of all poems is “I, Too, Sing America”, penned in 1925. Although he was an icon of the Harlem Renaissance period, he continued his writing well into the 60’s, up until his death in 1967. One such writing was “Harlem”, written in 1951. Most of us know the poem by the question posed in its first line “What happens to a dream deferred?” That very line went on to become the muse for Lorraine Hansberry’s play “A Raisin in the Sun”, which became the first Broadway play by an African-American female.

During his rise to fame, while in Harlem, he became friends with and partied with the likes of Zora Neale Hurston, Countee Cullen, and Carl Van Vechten. Two of his closest relationships were with Arna Bontemps and Jean Toomer. It was in 1926 when he met Zora Neale Hurston. After about a year of friendship, he accompanied her throughout the South on her famed quest for folklore. Although the two collaborated on the play “Mule Bone”, they had a falling-out and the play was neither published nor produced until 1991. Carl Van Vechten coaxed Hughes to align himself with Alfred A Knopf Publishing, who published “Weary Blues”. Many would say that there were other writers who were more prominent during the Harlem Renaissance than Langston Hughes, but, this writer would beg to differ. Nevertheless, his name invokes the ideal of “poet supreme”, and conjures up images of life in Harlem like no other. What makes him even more endeared to me is that although the years may be different, we share the same birthday, February 1st. Hughes finally attended Lincoln University, in Pennsylvania in 1929, where he received his bachelor degree.

Langston Hughes died of cancer on May 22, 1967. His home at 20 E. 127^th St, in Harlem, was declared a landmark.

This is blackstarr saying “Vive La Renaissance”.

(more blackstarr at "the wordsmith's alley")

Blackstarr52@gmail.com

Langston Hughes, Harlem Renaissance, New Millennium, poetry, Renaissance, New Reanaissance, Millennium, New Millennium

Guest Contributor: Lavender Rain

The World In Black And White . . .

Racism is still alive and thriving - oh not blatantly as it once did, but quietly, humorously, and at times, it runs unobtrusively. Remarks, images and jokes that seem to be nothing to one group, affect another with an all too familiar, devastating sting that evokes deep feelings that don’t disappear or vanish with the turning of a cheek or a change of venue. Do we simply assume that they don’t get it and that we do, or have we merely decided that we bear no responsibility for our forefathers or for the history that we did not write?

I have not lived what many others have experienced; I did not grow up with a family heritage of fear and segregation, or unworthiness. I can only imagine how I might feel if my family roots were in slavery, fear-based in degradation and disposability. We take education and the joy of success for granted. However, not all have had those choices throughout the years. We can blame history and our forefathers. However, the legacy of demeaning others leaves scars lasting throughout ages, on many sides. Humanity does not heal as quickly as the wounds were inflicted. It takes generations to finally believe and trust again, and some will never surpass the wounds, and others continue to hate.

We live under the colorful umbrella of one race, the human race that comes in a variety of colors and ethnicities!

We all bleed red, we all break, and we all come from history, teachings, and concepts that differ, as do our defining moments. We all carry labels, accepted or not. However, we are not all racially profiled or looked at with disdain for simply being who we are. Not all of us have had to live those moments or had to carry the labels of responsibility for an entire group because of others' errors or simply because of our color or ethnicity.

We can rewrite the legacy we leave with caring, compassion and understanding, or we can remain stagnant and angry in this divide. All groups must work towards a common goal of understanding, losing attitudes deeply ingrained by either side or by different religious convictions. It starts with each one of us moving forward in truth and dropping labels. There are wonderful examples of change in each group. Listen and learn from them.

Barack Obama gave a wonderful speech on racism. The transcript can be found here. His understanding of multiculturalism and the scars of racism remind me of a great Canadian - the Late Right Honorable Pierre Elliott Trudeau. He made us believe in ourselves as Canadians and that we can be greater than we imagined if we believed in multiculturalism; and to find peace in all people, even if they are different. We all had the freedom and rights to express ourselves. We learned to dream not an impossible dream but an achievable dream, so in 1982 he signed into law The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms found here. It has been an example used around the world and something that many here have taken to heart - a mantra to live by.

We as individuals all have rights and freedoms to express ourselves. They include gender, color, creed or religion, and we can not discriminate against others. We must be accepting and tolerant of the diversity of others if we are to have a peaceful and “just society” for all.

History shows our errors. Our heroes teach us there is a better way for peace and respect for all. It is up to us to learn and seek change within ourselves, for ourselves and for humanity . . .

We must be the change we wish to see in the world – Mahatma Gandhi

copyright © 2008 BDE

lanerain@hotmail.com

Tranquility and Lavender Rain

multiculturalism, racism, responsibility, segregation, history, ethnicity, Canada, Barack Obama, Trudeau

Rwanda

While we’re getting set up, chew on this.

5/15/2007

Rwanda

Technorati tags:

No matter how long it's been, no matter how long it gets to be, one must never forget the Holocaust. For one-hundred - no - not that Holocaust. I am referring to the small east African nation of Rwanda. For one-hundred days, during 1994, approximately 800,000 Rwandans were slaughtered, butchered, if you will, by the majority ethnic group, the Hutus. Of the 800,000 killed, about 50,000 were moderate Hutus and Tutsi sympathizers. The remainder of the 800,000 were Tutsi. To understand the situation, I will provide a very short, very abridged history.

Prior to 1994, the ruling government, or occupying force, was Germany. They placed the Tutsis in a position of higher status than the Hutus because the Tutsis had more prominent European features. The Germans left and Belgium took over. The Belgians continued the separation of the Tutsis and Hutus by issuing national identity cards, which declared each citizens ethnic heritage. By the 1950's the Tutsis were seeking their independence, and the Belgians began to switch the high status to the Hutus, as they felt they were less civilized and easier to control. In 1959, ethnic clashes broke out, and the Belgians allowed the Hutus to burn down Tutsi houses with no interference. After two weeks, 300 were dead. Ironically, the majority of those arrested by the Belgians were Tutsi. This internal fighting continued until, finally, the Hutus were in total command. By 1961, the Belgians had allowed the Hutus to engineer a 'legal' coup, thus declaring their independence. Then, in July of 1973, Major-General Juv‚nal Habyarimana, a Hutu, took over governance in a bloodless coup. He asserted, falsely, that he would allow the Tutsis to remain in virtual peace, as long as they did not get involved with politics.

Fast-forward to April 6, 1994. General Habyarimana was returning to Rwanda, by plane, when the plane was shot down, killing everyone on board. No one person or group was blamed for the downing of the plane, but it is almost certain that it was the work of the Hutus, who were convinced that General Habyarimana was beginning to give in to international pressure. Others say that the Hutus were simply willing to sacrifice the general to incite the population. An hour after the plane was downed, roadblocks were set up, and the hunt was on for those whose names were on a pre-prepared list of moderate Hutus, slated for execution. At that point, the Hutus went after every Tutsi in the country, slaughtering them with automatic weapons, machetes and farm tools. The final outcome: 750,000 Tutsis dead and 50,000 Hutus. Rwandan Tutsi refugees (in Uganda) had formed the RPF (Rwandan Patriotic Front) back in 1985, and by now, had finally gathered up enough power to overcome the ruling Hutus in Rwanda by the end of the one-hundred days. By then, the damage was done.

Today, those acts have been condemned as pure and simple genocide. That term, genocide, only came into play after the Tutsi rebels had finally gained control, and put an end to the violence. During the time that the genocide was taking place, the international community was particularly careful not to call it 'genocide'. Some of the most blatant efforts to carry out such a denial were perpetrated by the United States. No politician, no part of the media, and no diplomats were to ever refer to the violence as 'genocide'. The senseless killings were referred to as 'acts of genocide' and 'ethnic in-fighting'. It was never to be referred to as 'genocide'. That would mean that, as a super power, the United States, or any other world power, would be obligated to step in. As it stands, Rwanda was left to all but perish. The UN Security Council voted unanimously to abandon Rwanda, finally pulling out the remainder of its peace-keeping troops.


In 1994, for one-hundred days, a wholesale slaughtering of human lives took place in the small east African nation of Rwanda, leaving 800,000 people dead. No one stepped in. No one even recognized it for what it was - genocide. No matter how long it has been, no matter how long it gets to be, one must never forget the Holocaust.

This is blackstarr saying “Vive La Renaissance”.

Blackstarr52@gmail.com

Rwanda, Hutus, Tutsi, rebels, 1994, Habyarimana, 80000, genocide, ethnic cleansing, murder rate, homicides, RPF, Uganda, holocaust, media manipulation, ethnic in-fighting, civil war

Oreo

I was going to post a poem, but after reading blackstarr’s insightful article on "Celebrities & Racism", I decided to take what he’d written a step further.

I am one of those so-called “mutts.” Like blackstarr, I grew up in ‘da hood’ and while I was never called a “mutt,” I was referred to frequently as “a mongrel”; in junior high I was nicknamed “Lite-Brite”. But most often I was referred to as “Oreo”.

My life has been defined by race since I can remember. My mother is white and West Indian; my father (now deceased) was black. My maternal grandmother was white, my maternal grandfather West Indian. My paternal grandparents were both black.

Given the fact that my father hated white people, it is amazing that he married my mother. I am sure lust played a part here, as my mother (now 72) was a stunningly beautiful woman in her youth. My parents married during a time when miscegenation was illegal in 16 states. Of my siblings - one brother and two sisters - I am the only one who took my mother's fair coloring. If you’ve seen Spike Lee's film School Daze, that pretty much sums up my life: people either liked me because I was light-skinned, or they reviled me for the same reason. Needless to say, this made life difficult on both sides of the fence I had to learn to straddle as the result of my parents' love for each other.

Despite my father’s hatred of Caucasians, he and my mother raised us to treat people the way we would want to be treated, regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender, disability, religious beliefs, socio-economic status or sexual proclivities. I took them at their word: my friends were white, black, Mexican, Italian, gay, Catholic, Jewish...a vast and diverse group that I took pride in being a part of; we referred to ourselves as “The Rainbow Tribe.” However, this was not seen as “cool” during the “say-it-loud-I’m-black-and-I’m-proud” era I came of age in. So I took a lot of ass-whuppin’s during the years I was held in thrall to public education.

My siblings - and the few black friends I had who remained loyal – did not understand why I felt the need to have friends outside my race. “What you wanna hang around dem honkies (or spics or wops or kikes or fags) for?” I was constantly asked. I was accused of trying to be ‘better’ than my peers. I was called “white girl” and “wannabe”.

No one was interested in my reason, which was simple: it was because they were different that I liked them. I have always had a curious nature, and I realized at an early age that I could learn from those who were different – we could learn from each other.

I grew old with the Rainbow Tribe. We got our asses whupped for and on behalf of each other. We attended each other’s weddings, bought presents at the births of each other’s children, commiserated with one another as some marriages hit those fabled rocks, and sometimes we cried together as our parents aged and began to die. Our lives may have traveled divergent paths, but the path that led to the heart of those friendships remains straight and steadfast, and our various colors has had nothing to do with it. Personally, I think the world would be much better off if we could leave color where it belongs: in a box of crayons.

Time for my Oreos and milk.

copyright © 2008 KPMCL


Oreos, mongrel, mutt, race, miscegenation, rainbow

Black Hawk Down!!!

While we're getting set up, chew on this.

5/17/2007

Do a search for Somalia, July 12, 1993, and you will certainly find quite a bit of information available. Most of the information will give a brief summary of what took place that day in Somalia. The most (so-called) significant information that is placed in the forefront is that the U.S. fired upon a house which was to have been occupied by the one person they so desperately sought. In the forefront, you will read that, afterwards, five (5) journalists went in to investigate and were killed. Always associated with that story, you will read that several months later a Black Hawk was down, downed by the leader that the U.S. had so desperately sought on that fateful day. The one thing that most reports fail to include is that the targeted house which the U.S. destroyed, housed not the enemy that was being sought. The house contained more than fifty (50) of the clan elders from Somalia, the eldest and most respected in their community. Ironically, they were gathered together to discuss a plan to stop the fighting and bloodshed. When the day was done, they all lay dead.

It never fails to bring a tear to my eye when I read that yet another U.S. soldier has been killed. The tears formed in the seventies, during the Vietnam War. They formed in the eighties during the fighting in Grenada. Finally, they formed again in the nineties, when I read the headlines "Black Hawk Down!" Unfortunately, as with most of the media, reports about what happens on any given day, highlight one aspect of a story, and downplay some very significant part of what really took place. July 12, 1993 was one such rearranging of the facts. Five (5) reporters were killed because a few moments earlier, Somalia's most revered leaders were blasted to smithereens without provocation. Later that year, a" Black Hawk was down" because the U.S. had launched an attack on those who were trying to put an end to that very same type of action. General Thomas Montgomery (ret), who was in charge of operations that day, was interviewed by PBS's FRONTLINE, regarding the events of that day. He would not state that there were leaders left dead in the house. He danced around the issue by saying "When the soldiers got in the building, there were either dead or wounded . . .".

Before there was a Black Hawk down, more than fifty (50) of Somalia's leaders lay dead.

This is blackstarr saying "Vive La Renaissance".

copyright © 05.17.2007 blackstarr

Somalia, Grenada, Black Hawk, July 12 1993, elders, reporters, Vietnam, bloodshed, clan leaders, Mogadishu

Celebrities and Racism

While we're getting set up, here's something to chew on.



I was all set to do a piece on celebrities and racism. If you are near my age, I bet I know what came to your mind first: Elvis Presley and John Wayne. That was to be my topic, and I did extensive research to come up with some insight and perspective. To my surprise, after spending countless hours of searches, I ended up with Kanye West! I will admit that my disappointment with Hip Hop and Rap has led me to put them in the back of my mind. Unfortunately, in doing so, I have missed out on some very important issues. This piece focuses on the words said by Kanye West in an interview in Essence magazine, back in 2006. Since it was that long ago, I have included this article under "How Soon We Forget".

In the event that, like yours truly, you missed the hoopla of the Essence article, Kanye West was reported as saying "If it wasn't for race mixing, there'd be no video girls." He went on to say "Me and most of my friends like mutts a lot . . .Yeah, in the 'hood they call em mutts." I did not read the article, but every search came up with the exact same words, so I guess that's as close as I will get to actually quoting him. I was disgusted when I heard the news of Michael "Kramer" Richards' comments, and I was ghastly appalled at the racist remarks made by Imus. However, this takes the cake. I have lived in "the 'hood" way longer than Kanye West, and in all of my 55 years, I have never called any woman a "mutt".

The first problem is comparing our women to dogs. It is even further humiliating when I can find no news article or web page that prints an apology from Kanye West. Heaven knows, I tried to find something that said he was worthy of at least some type of forgiveness, but I have found not a shred of evidence that he has made an apology. Perhaps he meant what he said and that it was not some off-the-wall remark - it came from deep inside. He apparently hates his own likeness. Whether one is of mixed-origin or from two parents of the same ethnic origin, one should never be called a dog.

The second problem comes in his claim that "If it wasn't for race mixing, there would be no video girls", which further extends his self-hatred. Of all the women that apply to be on music videos, of all the diverseness in style, complexion, and shapes, there is no one worthy of becoming a video girl other than those of mixed- origin? I have seen some of the women who did not make it into the music video world, and I must tell you that any given one makes my heart skip more than a beat. For that matter, those who were turned away at the door without so much as a "howdy do" are pedestal material.

The third problem is not with Kanye West, but with the young people who buy the cd's, the products, and attend the concerts of such vile people as Kanye West. They have the power to boycott, they have the power to say "Enough". I don't understand how they can listen to the horrendous lyrics that degrade our Black women, and feel that there is no problem, or that they have no obligation to take a stand. I suppose that if slurs don't come from Caucasians, it does not injure their hearts and souls.

I am not one who would purchase his CD's, so my boycott of his music does very little. However, my opinion from this day forth is that Kanye West is deeply rooted with a hatred of his own kind, and, regardless of his musical aptitude, he should not be looked upon as someone who should be esteemed in any way.

His remarks were printed back in the December, 2006 issue of Essence, which makes this news 'old hat'. And that being the case, this is just a reminder that we should not fall victim to "How Soon We Forget".

This is blackstarr saying "Vive la Renaissance". Peace.

copyright © 5.29.2007 blackstarr blackstarr52@gmail.com


racism, video girls, mutts, mixed race, hip hop, Essence, rap, Kanye West