August 2007
Feel Good Friday Video: Florida A&M University Marching 100 playing Duckmouth drum cadence
Friday, August 31, 2007
It's college football season and I'm psyched because I'll get to see my alma mater's marching band perform. Now, if you've not heard of the FAMU Marching 100, there's way too much for me to share on this page. I'll post some links for you to check out at the end of this post.
The video is of the percussion section playing the cadence titled "Duckmouth." I don't know the year or the location of this particular performance but I did learn that the cadence is played by many marching bands throughout the nation. That is largely due to the expansive network and influence of the Marching 100.
For a little Marching 100 trivia, you should know that "Duckmouth" is a memorial cadnce written for a band member who died in 1995. It is my understanding that there are cadences for other members.
Related links:
Florida A&M University Marching 100
Tailgate Tour - FAMU Marching 100
FAMU Marching 100 Grammy 2006 Performance with Kanye West and Jamie Foxx
Day of Blogging for Justice: Free the Jena 6!
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Most of this post is from one of my entries a couple of weeks ago I am re-posting it today as August 30th has been established as a Day of Blogging for Justice to focus attention on the disparate, shameful punishment of six black students in Jena, LA.
This case of the Jena Six began almost a year ago and the media coverage has been abysmal, at best. If you are not familiar with this case, read the enitre post below and be sure to check out the videos. After you've done that, sign the petition online (I'm #24417) and spread the word about The Jena Six.
The Jena Six: An American Tragedy and a Shameful Reality
Six black students from Jena, Louisiana have been incarcerated since December of last year because of a protest and violence that ensued as a result of one black student sitting under the "white tree" at their high school. The "white" tree --- such a throwback in time. Many using the internet today will not understand or even get the significance of asking "permission" to do something that one takes for granted in the United States. We live in America where we all have rights, don't we?
Yeah, many of you black and white, especially if you're 40 years old or younger, probably thought 'old people' were just tripping behind all this racial stuff. You probably didn't want to read 'Roots', forget about watching it on television. Black people have Oprah with her millions of dollars, top-rated television show and other enterprises, right? Shoot, Denzel, Queen Latifah and Will Smith make millions from the big screen and Barack Obama is positioned to become the next president of the United States.
Then the reality checks kick in. Remember the derogatory words of Don Imus, murder of Martin Lee Anderson, incarceration of Genarlow Wilson, Marcus Dixon, Shaquanda Cotton and the Jena 6. Wake up. This is the real deal. This is the same shameful treatment of black Hurricane Katrina survivors portrayed as 'looting' for food and white Hurricane Katrina survivors 'finding' food. Give me a break. Remember Rosa Parks? Well, the Jena 6 is this century's Rosa Parks.
In Spike Lee's movie about Hurricane Katrina, When the Levees Broke, actor Wendell Pierce made a statement about a permanent underclass in Louisiana. By this Jena 6 situation, I understand how the blatant, inhumane mistreatment of blacks occurred so easily in the New Orleans area immediately after Katrina. The courageous young black people in Jena took a stand. Right-minded folks must stand with them. Expose this shameful situation to the world. Ask the presidential candidates about the Jena 6 and Genarlow Wilson.
Watch the videos below for background information and to get brought up to speed on the Jena 6 case. Take action and spread the word about this story.
Call and write. Let your voice be heard.
The Jena 6 Defense Committee
PO Box 2798,
Jena, LA 71342
[email protected]
Murphy McMillan, Mayor
P.O. Box 26
Jena, La. 71342
Phone (318) 992-2148
To contact District Attorney Reed Walters directly:
Reed Walters, District Attorney
28th Judicial District
PO Box 1940
Jena, Louisiana 71342-1940
(318) 992-8282
Fax: (318) 992-4731
Please contact:
Senator Mary Landrieu
webpage contact link
(202) 224-5824
Senator David Vittner
webpage contact link
Phone:(202) 224-4623
Rep Bobby Jindal
webpage contact link
Phone: (202)-225-3015
Rep William Jefferson
Phone: (202) 225-6636
Rep Charlie Melancon
webpage contact link
Phone: (202) 225-4031
Rep Jim McCrery
webpage contact link
Phone: (202) 225-2777
Rep Rodney Alexander
webpage contact link
Phone: (202) 225-8490
Rep Richard Baker
webpage contact link
Phone: 202-225-3901
Rep Charles Boustany
webpage contact link
Phone: (202) 225-2031
Jena High School bans 'Free the Jena 6' T-shirts
JENA, La. (AP) - The LaSalle Parish schools superintendent says T-shirts supporting six black students accused of knocking out a white student, then kicking and stamping on him are a "threat to the order of the campus" at Jena High school. [MORE]
Did Civil Rights movement pass Louisiana by?
Racist incident leads to harsh justice for black students
August 30, 2007
When I ran across a tale on the Internet about six African-American teens from Jena, La., who are facing decades of prison time for allegedly beating up a white classmate, I couldn't believe their ordeal started with a tree.
A tree holds powerful symbolism for black people. While traveling in the South, legendary singer Billie Holiday saw a tree that inspired her to write "Strange Fruit," a song which contains references to lynching.
Still, it is difficult to comprehend that in 2007, black students at any high school in America felt compelled to go to a school official and ask if it would be OK to sit in the shade of a tree usually enjoyed by white students.
There's no dispute that is what happened on Aug. 31, 2006 in Jena, a town with a population that is about 85 percent white and 12 percent black.
A vice principal apparently told the students they could sit "wherever they pleased." And the next day, Sept. 1, 2006, three nooses were found hanging from said tree.
Just three years ago the nation celebrated the 50th Anniversary of Brown vs. Board of Education, the Supreme Court ruling that declared racial separation was inherently unequal. Yet, Jena High School seems stuck in the pre-civil rights era. [MORE]
Afrosphere Bloggers Ask Media to Cover Jena 6
The Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition “ask that the mainstream traditional media step forward and discharge their duty to provide coverage of this vitally important event to their viewers and readers and act as “the fourth institution” of governmental “checks and balance” that constitutional framers intended the press to be.”
List of Bloggers for Justice
1. Wayne Hicks electronicvillage.blogspot.com/ Cincinnati, OH
2. D. Yobachi Boswell www.blackperspective.net Nashville, TN
3. Daz Wilson purplezoe.blogspot.com/
4. Francis Holland afrospear.jconserv.net/
5. Jim D. Walton www.blackinbusiness.org/
6. Cooper wonderlandornot.net
7. Yolonda ebonymommy.com/blog/
8. Vanessa Byers vanessabyers.net/ Miami, FL
9. Sincere sincere-thoughts.blogspot.com
10. Pia courtingdestiny.com
11. Adrianne George blackwomenineurope.blogspot.com/ Sweden
12. Eddie Griffin www.eddiegriffinbasg.blogspot.com Fort Worth, TX
13. PB www.savantwriter.blogspot.com Kansas City
14. Tom Autopref automaticpreference.wordpress.com/
15. Dave J. wanderingether.blogspot.com/ Haslett, Michigan
16. B. Medusa www.mnemosyne-blog.net/
17. Shawn Williams www.dallassouthblog.com Dallas, Texas
18. Deidra blackandmissing.blogspot.com Baton Rouge, LA
19. AAPP www.AfricanAmericanPoliticalPundit.com & www.Africanamericanopinion.com
20. Invisible Woman invisible-cinema.blogspot.com/ San Fran, CA
21. Plez pajoyner.blogspot.com Atlanta, GA
22. Shanikka www.maatsfeather.com/frontPage.do
23. Mahogony Diva mahogonydiva.blogspot.com/
24. Saba charlotte.greasyguide.com
25. outofthejungle.blogspot.com
As expected, the media picks up Mychal Bell's juvenile history to distract from the nooses hanging from the "white" tree and the punishments applied to the black students and no punishment for the white students.
Prosecutor: "Jena Six" defendant had four juvenile convictions
| 8/25/2007, 6:36 p.m. CDT The Associated Press |
JENA, La. (AP) — The teenager convicted of beating a student at Jena High School in December 2006 had been convicted as a juvenile for attacking someone a year earlier, then committed three more crimes while on probation for that one, prosecutors say.
That makes Mychal Bell's aggravated second-degree battery conviction his fifth conviction for a violent crime, state District Judge J.P. Mauffray Jr. said Friday.
Because of that record, the judge said, he will not reduce the $90,000 bond he set for Mychal Bell, one of six black students arrested in the attack which left a white student bleeding and unconscious.
"We shall have to repent in this generation , not so much for the evil deeds of the wicked people, but for the appalling silence of the good people.” --- Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Mark Your Calendar for the 14th Annual Unity World Day of Prayer - September 13, 2007 [RE-POST]
Thursday, August 30, 2007
If you became a regular reader of this blog after the end of July of this year, it's likely that you missed the purpose of the affirmations posted as the countdown continues for the Unity World Day of Prayer.
Here's a re-post of the blog entry that explains these daily affirmations and what you can do to get the full Day of Prayer experience.
The Unity World Day of Prayer is an opportunity for humankind to experience a transformation of health, abundance, and love on a global level. This year is focused on world peace. There are a variety of ways you can participate in World Day of Prayer:
- Peace Flag—Download, personalize, and send in a Peace Flag to display at Unity. As we receive these flags, they will be placed in a prominent location to make visible the shared intention for peace during World Day of Prayer. Download the Peace Flag now and view pictures of flags on display at Unity.
- Each year Unity invites their friends to fill out a prayer list with the names of those they would like remembered during World Day of Prayer. When you fill out the form and submit it, Unity employees, ministers, and special guests will unite with you to enfold these dear ones in prayer throughout September 13. Submit your Prayer List now.
- You may also choose to join in from a Unity church or center during World Day of Prayer. View the list of host centers to find a participating church or center in your community.
- Listen to a World Day of Prayer audio meditation.
- Request their World Day of Prayer information packet (limited quantities).
This is a sacred time to unite in prayer, and you are invited to read a special invitation to pray from Silent Unity®, worldwide prayer ministry. Click here to read the letter from Silent Unity.
This World Day of Prayer, make a sacred connection with God and with the world by affirming:
Please join in affirming 30 days to world peace with a special prayer for each day. When we pray for any intention for 30 days, that time allows us to shift our perspective, create a deeper awareness of divine possibilities, and know that our intention is becoming a reality.
Contact Unity at 816-524-3550 for more information on World Day of Prayer.
Day 16: 30 Days to Peace
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Today's Affirmation:
We bless the world with acceptance, understanding, and peace.
Day 15: 30 Days to Peace
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Today's Affirmation:
With every prayer, we are contributing to world peace.
Day 14: 30 Days to Peace
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Today's Affirmation:
We bring peace to all situations as we bring them to God in prayer.
Miss South Carolina Teen USA has a “Blonde” moment
Monday, August 27, 2007
I feel worse for Miss South Carolina Teen USA, Lauren Caitlin Upton, than I did when Miss USA, Rachel Smith, fell in the Miss Universe pageant. This is a true "blonde" moment that will surely be parodied by comedians everywhere.
I hope she has thick skin because she's going to need it. If she's really smart, she'll parlay this debacle into a few talk show visits, televison and movie roles, etc.; she may as well use it to her advantage.
Here's her response when she was asked the question "Recent polls have shown a fifth of Americans can't locate the U.S. on a world map. Why do you think this is?"
Day 13: 30 Days to Peace
Monday, August 27, 2007
Today's Affirmation:
Through an outpouring of God's love, there is peace in the world.
I'm Peaceful; How about you?
Sunday, August 26, 2007
| You Are 80% Peaceful |
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