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AALBC. Was. Created. In. 1998. ..25. Years. Of. Troy. Bringing. Black,Books. By. Black. Authors.....Poetry. ,And. Black. News, ,Culture ,,Discussions. .....Congratulations 25 years......Church. ,Sunday. The. Black. Christians. Will. Go. To. Church. Helping. The,Snake. Preachers. Pay. For. Their. New. Cars. ..Amazing........

This is Cynique. As previously announced, my new user name is "aka Contrarian" so "A" is now me. I don't know why I'm still alive. But I am. Since I have nothing better to do, unless I sudndenly croak, I'll be hanging around here, injecting my contrary opinions from time to time. zzzzz

@Mel&Del I've been thinking about the idea of thinking being overrated. What else can you do with your mind? I'm thinking about it... Listening to music is a good alternative. Music really is magic. It requires you to do nothing but listen, and if you enjoy what you hear, that's icing on the cake! Lately, for some reason I've been thinking how 73 years ago in1951, as a Freshman at the University of Illinois, one of the favorite songs of the little black colony of students on this large campus was a song named "For All We Know." At the end of every social event, those gathered would form a circle, grasp hands, and sing this song followed by a chorus of "Auld Lang Syne". Listening to that old favorite by Nat Cole, the years fall away and I'm swept back to the innocent carefree days of my youth. I imagine. And listen. And no thoughts are necessary. For all we know...

If I ever needed a definition of what it looks like to Love another - this is the best definition, "Caring for someone without expecting a return on the investment"

1. We as Black people don't have a dog in this fight because BOTH the Israelis and Palestinians have shown themselves to be racists against Black people. Not all of them obviously, but collectively. Ask the Ethiopian Jews about the racism they've faced in Israel by the Ashkenazi Jews. Ask Black people in Palestine and other parts of the Middle East what "abeed" means and how they're treated by Arabs. I say let them handle that between themselves. 2. Going back to what I said earlier. You have Egypt, Iran, Syria, Iraq and other nations with militaries who COULD help out the Palestinians. But they aren't.........to any noticeable extent atleast. There's a reason. I don't want innocent people to be killed or even injured ANYWHERE on this planet. Not in Israel, not in Palestine, not in Congo, not in Nigeria, .....nowhere. All of this focus on Gaza and what's going on over there, where was the focus of the world while fighting goes on in Eretria and Congo and Ethiopia? Do not THOSE lives matter too?

It is really hard to craft a good short story. I though this one was fascinating.

@Niccolo Machiavelli, Leader of the black community. Do you need directions?

Thank You! And thank you for sharing! I hope to write more. Kim gave a great interview. Yes -I kind of new she was close because we knew the same alumni. She was in. the band and graphics major when they had to typeset advertisements and articles lol. So much has changed

You best believe that if that 77 year old woman, who can "look up" longer than a man can "look down", is of a mind to have an active sex life, she ain't looking for no 77 year old coot trying to hold it together and pull it off, Ideally, she'd be just fine with a 30- something hottie right out of her fantasy, with a body to die for, and a "size matters" probe that searches for love in all the right places, viagra personified, a human vibrator, a - well you get the idea. Misogynists, indeed. Don't get me started...

I don't know whether to feel sorry for you or applaud your efforts! Probably both. Being a caregiver is one of the hardest jobs. Harder than raising children. .... because atleast with children you usually see progress as they age and it makes you feel proud of your work. I honestly don't know what to say besides thank you.

OMG I've missed you, the woman formerly known as Cynique @aka Contrarian A woman I used to be in a rap group with back in the early 90s now has a YouTube channel (Stephanie Danger). She asked her followers what name we would choose for our alter ego, and I decided on Contrarian. Today, I would choose "Neutral." During these last two years, I also questioned the meaning of life after my mother underwent major heart surgery and two of my three daughters had major surgeries, one after battling stage 3 cancer. I couldn't be with my daughter (thank goodness for dads) because my brother is severely disabled - and during my mom's treatment (I almost lost her twice), I had to care for him. Everyone pulled through, and by December 2023 - I concluded no one knows an effing thing. We make this bullshish up and look for followers to cosign our beliefs. The more believers we acquire, the more it becomes our collective reality. So, thank you, Contrarian, for remaining here in this dimension. I can confidently say that part of your mission is to remind us that the majority is nothing more than a bunch of weak-minded and lazy folks who chose to follow the beaten path instead of dazzling us with their Divine creativity.

Africans do not totally dislike AfroAmericans. Africans are afraid and wary of us because they have been fed a narrative that AfroAmericans are lazy, ignorant, violent, drug abusers, etc. Unfortunately, AfroAmericans have no control over the propaganda that goes out into the world about us. As I've mentioned several times here, there are quite a few Africans in my tribe. I'm a very proud AfroAmerican man in being able to show Africans our success on several levels. I tell them to f8ck what you have heard about us...watch me. I've toured my African brothers and sisters through the streets on which I grew up to where I live in the cradle of AfroAmerican affluence. Education is priceless. It is a key to shared understanding and eliminating ignorance.

@aka Contrarian i dunno what your day to day life is like, but i find you inspirational. i think it is your sharpness of mind, wit, and intellect. You probably can’t see it, but I bet others do. I’m sure your husband did I’m @ing @Mel Hopkins and @Chevdove so that they see your message. if you have Netflix check out This is Us. I think it is an interesting series. It won’t be boring. I’ve been watching it, almost exclusively, for a couple of months now.

@Troy You said you were curious to know who Jeromex's reverend was? Well, here he is. He's preaching now....let's take a listen........ Pastor Manning

I could not help but think of Mushmouth from the Cosby Kids, as I was looking at this "Brother."

Every bookstore owned is not conscious; this bookstore owner is.

Pastor Manning is living proof that Black men are not overly violent. Otherwise, his azz would have been in the dirt a long time ago.

Thank you for addressing this @frankster @Jeromex I’m curious about your backstory and who your reverend is. It might help me understand how you’ve come to your worldview . you say “I love my black brothers and sisters” but then you proceeded to go on to show how much you hate us. It is not clear to me why you don’t see the inconsistency. it is also not clear me how you hold our level of crime at a completely different level than you hold Europeans. Even if we completely ignored the genocide of the indigenous populations here in America and the enslavement and extreme violence against Africans and their descendants. The Civil War over 600,000 dead World war one over 20 million dead World War II over 50 million dead the most violent conflict in human history! And that’s just the last 160 years or so, not even counting the Spanish, American war, the Vietnam war, the Korean war, the wars of the Middle East, etc. Of course, they are the lynchings Frankster mentioned. Think about it, there are white people, alive today, who attended actual lynching celebrations with picture postcards and everything! Were Black people behind any of this violence? You’re blaming Black people but we live in a culture of violence look at how many guns people own in this country. look at how many mass shootings there are. we lead the Western world in executing people — too often innocent black people. there were more than 40,000 gun deaths in the United States last year half of these are suicides, mostly white men people killing themselves. Black people are arguably the most docile group in this country. Historically, whenever we stand up for ourselves, we are brutally crushed and our leaders assassinated. Any effective leadership today is just bought off or marginalized, in some other most sophisticated way. You’re proclaiming, Black people in this country the most violent in the world?! You sound woefully uninformed at best, or rabid hater of Black people at worst.

Our Rights are God Given....Evil and Racist Individuals denied us our Rights - We fought and won them. Stop it.....One Family or Company in the White community is responsible for 100's of thousand of deaths....so bad it's called an epidemic - and it is on going. National Safety Council | The opioid crisis (2021 Data) The Nazi's cooked Millions of Jews Southern Confederate Racist whites Lynch thousand of Black and destroyed 100's of Black towns throughout the South. Practical committed Genocide on Native Populations. Show or tell me about these so called opportunities? Good for you. I love our Culture...It shines in Music Sports Science Family Entertainment Politics etc Which Liberal Politicians are saying that "we aren’t intelligent enough to make it on our own."? If as you say Liberals do not care for us..........Do You think Conservatives Care about us? I say we should do our own dirty work.... Whose do you say we should do?

What?! ROTFLMBAO! Sometimes I wish the WWW was never invented...

There is no simply no stopping our women! The Associated Press Serena Williams and Ruby Bridges will be inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 2024 year, adding the tennis great and civil rights icon to a list of women to be honored during Women’s History Month in March. “The 2024 inductee class has broken barriers, challenged the status quo, and left an impact on history,” the Hall of Fame said in its announcement. Eight other honorees were announced in the spring. Williams and Bridges became available after the date and location of the ceremony were changed, a spokesman said. Williams, 42, is a 23-time Grand Slam tennis champion who holds the record for the longest player ranked No. 1. She retired from tennis last year and earlier this month became the first athlete to win the Fashion Icon award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Bridges, 69, was a 6-year-old first-grader when she became one of the first Black students at racially segregated schools in New Orleans in 1960. In 1963, painter Norman Rockwell recreated the scene in the painting, “The Problem We All Live With.” The Ruby Bridges Foundation she established 24 years ago promotes tolerance and change through education. Others in the class include Peggy McIntosh, 88, an activist known for her explorations of privilege; Kimberlé Crenshaw, 63, who helped develop the academic concept of Critical Race Theory, the idea that racism is systemic in the nation’s institutions. Judith Plaskow, 76, regarded as the first Jewish feminist theologian for calling out an absence of female perspectives in Jewish history, will also be honored.

Since my sight is failing because I haven gotten around to getting the minor cataract surgery that I need, what i currently read has a lot to with how large and how clear the print is. Nowadays, it's more convenient for me to utilize my Android phone rather than my old desk top computer to go on line, but the print on some of these threads and sites is really small and light and hard for me to read on my phone and unfortunately, for some reason, although I can access this board from my smart phone, I am unable to log into my account in order to post something. I have to go on my computer to do that. I say all this, to say that this tends to limit what I read when I do come here while on my phone. Just one of the many frustrations that vex me in my old age. Everything seems so much more complicated. Anyhoo, while catching up on things here, this post by Mel caught my interest because like, Chevdove, although he isn't my contemporary, I am intrigued by Jay Z's persona, his way with words, his back story and his phenomenal success. and I am a fan of his! ( Not surprising, I disagree with Pioneer who says JayZ is ugly. Like everything else about him, I think Jay's looks are unique.) I also got a charge out of other posters on this thread thwarting nels' feeble attempts to diminish JayZ. For somebody who often asks others if they know how they sound when they make observations that don't register with him, nels obviously doesn't know how he, himself, sounds much of the time. How? Like someone who isn't even an effective troll. Until next time...

Jay-Z rose from the Marcy Projects in Brooklyn, NYC to becoming a Hip-Hop icon. It's awesome that Jay-Z's hometown library has an exhibit on him especially while he's still in the prime of his life. Jay-Z is to music what Denzel Washington is to theater/cinema. They're both extremely talented masters of their craft and highly respected in the entertainment business. Jay-Z turned his pen and word play into a billion dollar business enterprise. That's no small feat. A young person would be well served in applying Jay-Z's hustle in their own positive endeavors.

@nels Your shade is misdirected. Jay-Z is a product of America. Most of Jay's wealth comes from white people, not "needy black youth" -- they don't have any money to spend. Why this activity interests people beyond a certain stage of development and age and always puzzled me. Gossip is for bored people without lives of their own, so they cast shade, judge, and hate on others -- a sad, pathetic form of amusement. Social media has exploited this base behavior for massive profits brining everyone's inner yenta to the fore.

This time, they followed JAY-Z to the library and got a card. A library card that will give them access to a lot of worlds for a long time after this exhibit ends. However, I won't comment on Jay-Z's personal life or what he buys. That doesn't interest me. And further, none of that is on exhibit. I'm sharing my perspective on the powerful display and how anyone can tell their story in this age of digital media to inspire others. The exhibition does an excellent job providing insight into Jay-Z's career and what he does with his celebrity to help those impoverished people you've mentioned; it also shares how others can follow their dreams and ascend the ladder to financial and professional success. This is a generous endeavor on a scale I've not seen from any other celebrity thus far. https://www.bklynlibrary.org/exhibitions/book-hov

Kassahun Checole Has Been Named Winner of PEN Eritrea’s Freedom of Expression Award 2023! Publisher Kassahun Checole, the founder of the world-known Africa World Press and the Red Sea Press, has been named the winner of PEN Eritrea’s Freedom of Expression Award 2023. This year’s Awards Committee comprised Habtom Weldeyowhaness, Yirgalem Fisseha and Yonatan Tsighe (Dr), received a long list of contestants, and after an in-depth examination of the conditions, the judges selected Kassahun Checole as the winner of the Award. Kassahun’s colossal contribution to Eritrean and African literature requires another volume to give it full justice. Kassahun’s publishing activities, which he began in 1983, have enabled the voices of the subaltern to be heard. He produced books and magazines that inspired and continue to inspire many young, would-be African writers. Kassahun has published over 3,500 titles by thousands of authors in some 20 languages on various themes—African history, indigenous religions, and literature and art. He was one of the organisers of the January 2000 “African Languages and Literatures” conference held in Asmara, rightly named “Against All Odds”. He was also one of those who toiled for the political liberation of post-independence Eritrea— the G-13, a group of Eritrean academics and professionals— signatories of the “Berlin Manifesto”, in which they stated their grave concerns about the overall deteriorating situations and demanded genuine reforms in Eritrea. The Berlin Manifesto was a forerunner of the G-15, a group in Eritrea that opposed the policy of President Isaias Afewerki, his postponing of elections and his failure to implement the constitution. Kassahun has produced thousands of literature and hundreds of books – used as textbooks in various educational settings, in addition to his outstanding services in documentation for educational and research purposes. He has published books by many prominent Eritrean writers such as Abeba Tesfagiorgis, Alemseghed Tesfay, Ghirmai Negash, Bereket Habteslasie, Rev. Ezra Ghebremedhin and many others. Nobel laureates East Timorese José Ramos-Horta and the South African bishop Desmond Tutu, Kenyan writer Ngugi Wa Thiong’, Noam Chomsky, Sonia Sanchez as well as Basil Davidson are among the hundreds of international authors and laureates their works published by Kassahun. He is a strong supporter and activist of the Pan-African movement. Award committee chair Yonatan Tsighe said: “Checole’s efforts and achievements in documenting and researching indigenous knowledge of Eritrea is phenomenal. The Award committee members are honoured to present him with this Award on behalf of all member writers and journalists.” Poetess and journalist Yirgalem Fisseha commented: “Kassahun has devoted his prime and old age to publishing literary works, and his unremitting efforts and productivity stand exemplary to all lovers of literature and art”. The PEN Eritrea Freedom of Expression Award was established in 2019 by PEN Eritrea in Exile to recognise an individual, a group, or an institution with outstanding merits for advancing literature and freedom of expression in an Eritrean context. The Award is announced every year on September 18th to signify the date of the assault on freedom of expression and to champion the courageous journalists, writers and government critics languishing in inhumane conditions in Eritrean prisons since September 2001. The award winner receives a certificate of recognition, a medal and $1,000. Accordingly, the 2023 PEN Eritrea Awards Committee has unanimously decided that the world-class publisher Kassahun Checole will be the winner of the 2023 PEN Eritrea Awards for his contributions to printing and freedom of expression. Kassahun said, “I feel honoured because the award places me within the circle of those Eritreans who have paid and continue to pay a heavy price for acting on their patriotic duty to stand for democracy and freedom in our beloved country and Africa as a whole.” A graduate with distinction from SUNY Binghamton in Sociology and Political Economy, Mr. Checole has taught at Rutgers University and El Colegio de Mexico in Mexico City. He was one of the founders of the first graduate program in African Studies in Latin America. Kassahun will receive the Award at a ceremony hosted by PEN Eritrea on October 8th in Antwerp-Belgium, alongside its annual meeting, which will be held from October 7th to 8th. The event will be live on fb@PENEritrea Former winners of the PEN Eritrea Freedom of Expression Award are Abrar Osman (2022), Ghirmai Negash (2021), Saleh Gadi Johar (2020), Yirgalem Fisseha (2019)

Brother D - How We Gonna Make the Black Nation Rise? Gil Scott-Heron - Revolution Will Not Be Televised (Official Audio) Bid Em In

Allow me to be the second person to enter your brand new forum! Thank you.

LOL! I have never understood the victimhood perspective! I've heard people say things like, I am not going to be the victim anymore, etc., but I just do not understand that position in many circumstances. For instance, there have been many people that have been wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for years and then later due to such evidences as DNA testing, released from prison, and I ask myself, 'SHOULD THEY TAKE THAT POSITION OF NOT PLAYING THE VICTIM ANYMORE!?' This just sounds crazy to me because in this case, they have certainly been victimized severely. For them, it's not playing the victim, rather, they are the victim and this should be acknowledged and deserve some kind of recompense. In other words, if the law just simply released them from prison, and gave them no economic recompense and more, then that would be wrong.

I have largely given up on TikTok. It is just not my thing. I logged on today to post a graphic of my bestselling books and saw this post of a woman, I don't know, recommending AALBC! At first, I actually had trouble reconciling what I was seeing. Was this lady actually promoting AALBC. I'm not sure if anyone has ever gone onto a social media platform and added a video explicitly recommending AALBC.

Well, i see the crabs in the barrel are on the crawl, throwing shade on a black woman in a high position. I find these petty attacks on VP Harris ironic, considering that they're coming from the likes of those who when they had an articulate, knowledgeable, well-spoken black man as president, among his severest critics were other black men, petulant and pissed because Obama didn't fulfill their unrealistic expectations. Nor am I surprised, by the remarks of Jeromex and Nels, the 2 right wing coons among us, lackeys who have the gall to attack Kamal Harris' qualifications and morals when among their own ranks have been such terrible Vice Presidents as the corrupted and disgraced Spiro Agnew, the inept Dan Quayle, the airhead Sara Palin, and of course , the dufus Gerald Ford who ascended to the presidency after the despicable Richard Nixon was forced to step down, whereupon Ford pardoned him for his sins against the nation. And just to cap Jeromex's ignorance, let's cite Lincoln's vice president, Andrew Johnson, who turned out to be an alcoholic blatantly racist presiden!. But what kind of remarks would you expect from members of the same party as the semi-literate, Marjory Taylor Greene and the idiotic Lauren Boebert; the lecherous Rep. Matt Gaetz and his penchant for teenage girls, and Rep George Santos, the lying sociopath guilty of being an imposter. Let's also throw in the numb skull ex- jock, Congressman Jim Jordan who, as a college athletic director, looked the other way when it came to sexual hazing. What's really ludicrous about this whole subject is that, in the view of candidates like Donald Trump and Joe Boden, suddenly certain critics expect the office of POTUS to be held by experienced capable respected males above reproach. Puleeze. I find the attacks on Kamala reeking with misogynistic contempt. Especially when you consider the sorry caliber of males making up the Congress and Senate - not to mention the population in general, LOL It's depressing. Nothing that's going on the world at large, including the African American community, gives me any reason for optimism. When my time comes, I'll be glad to get the hell outta here.

Coffee is extremely popular. Wrap it up in the right branding, flavors, creams and sugar/sweetener choices and as 50 Cent said.... watch the money pile up.

Well, Yall. today is my birthday. I made it; the big 9-0. i don't know why I'm still here and so many young blacks are gone, losing their lives on a daily basis to gun violence. Life is a bitch... Here i am, chillin on my daughter's porch, bidding my bucket list "good bye". I have no idea why this picture is sooo huge! In fact, "i know that i know nothing." I may be back sooon to share some of my ignorance with you.

@Delano LOL! Yeah, preferable to kickin the bucket...I guess. -hmmmm???? Good question. Let's see if we can figure it out together. Perhaps....maybe.....possibly....it MIGHT be due to the fact that you spend much of your time lounging on your daughter's porch and grinning at us with some red-framed shades on, instead of hanging out down on the Wild 100's set tripping and selling diluted cocaine across the street from your competition.....lol. @Pioneer1No, the majority of those losing their lives on a daily basis around Chicagoland, are not drug dealers nor drug users. They are children and other innocent bystanders, road rage, car-jacking and robbery victims, petty slights and personal beefs victims, everyday folks just trying to make it through the day without being the target of violent gun users who place no value on human life! @ProfDThank you for your kind words. You're a gentleman, and a scholar! @Chevdove Thank you, Girlfriend! I did have a great birthday, thanks to my family and friends. @TroyYes, i had in-laws who died at age 93 and 94, a sister-in-law who is still alive and kicking at 93. Also one of my bffs from childhood turned 90 in January, and I have several other acquaintances who are in their 90s. There are quite a few of us still around, comedienne Carole Burnette, who has always been a favorite of mine because she's the same age as I am is still with us, and she hasn't changed a bit. Also Kim Novak, Joan Collins and Willie Nelson are other celebs my age. And, yes, my great-grand parents on both sides of my family were slaves. I, myself, have lived longer than any female in my family. 90 is the new 70, y'all! In our discussions, we have talked about time being a construct and an abstract concept. To this, I agree. I, by no means, feel as spry and energetic as i used to but, mentally, I feel the same as I did at about age 30. Looking back over my life, do i have any regrets? A few. Would I have done anything differently? Yes. To what do attribute my longevity. Luck. God? A force, not an imaginary friend in the sky. Religion? A man-made security blanket reinforced by legend and myth, enforced by fear. Advice? Do "you". Philosophy? Life is the question. Love is the answer. I think, therefore I am. It is, what it is. the future? I think the world is on the brink, of drastic change. The American Empire may very well, implode... PEACE.

that is nonsense. Nobody is sitting around waiting for reparations. Where are you getting this information? the truth is that Black people have done astonishingly well given hundreds of years of violently imposed oppression. Question for you @Jeromex independent of your exaggerated description of Black people or America’s willingness to pay, do you believe that America owes Black people compensation for slavery and Jim Crow?

What black people did on that boat dock was long overdue. White people need to be put on notice that racist violence especially mob action will not be tolerated. Black people are willing and able to meet such action by whites with force. LIFT EVERY CHAIR AND SWING TILL EARTH AND HEAVEN RING !

I don't care how Clarence Thomas views himself. Of how the majority of folks with a steady pulse describe him. Without a doubt, Thomas has nothing but contempt for all other Black people. He will gladly defecate on their rights and talents in public as if HE is the only Black person deserving of respect and admiration. That's why he looked at Anita Hill as a female who existed solely to sexually satisfy him. And when she refused to play that role, he condemned her. His disgusting view of this brilliant woman is NOT up for debate. Because it became fodder for a U.S. Senate hearing. How Clarence Thomas saw Anita Hill stunned the nation I have no idea why Thomas thinks he is above all other Black people. I also fail to understand why he tries to portray himself as not needing no one's help to get through law school. But he got that help. I also have no idea why anyone Black wastes their time trying to understand Thomas because it's been clear for years he's out to do as much damage to the psyche and reputation of Black America as he can. You see, Thomas has never forgot, nor forgiven, his childhood tormentors. They made fun of him because of the poor part of Georgia where he grew up. And he regurgitates this resentment and hatred on every major case that involves the people he despises the most - his very own.

One of the TV stations shows him being a Black Panther when he younger. What is interesting is his 'relationship' over race that has been formed between him and Katangi Jackson in light of recent Supreme Court decision on Havard affirmative action case. Three pages below from the decision at https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/22pdf/20-1199_hgdj.pdf Jackson's dissent is a must read. Two Blacks, married to White spouses, one claims race matters, the other says no. This 'mental silliness' got us onto slave ships for 300 years. We are our own worst enemies.

Respect. For. All. The. Black. Mothers. ,Raising. Their. Children. ..Those,Raising. Their. Children. Along. .........Black. Mothers ,Speaking. ,,The. Importance of. Education ,Black. History. And,,Discipline. .....Mothers. Telling. Their. Sons. To. Treat. Females ,With. Respect. ...........To. Be. Responsible. Fathers......Telling. Their,Daughters. Not. To Be. Controlled. By. Men. ,Tolerate. Being,Beat. On. By. Violent. Irresponsible. Men........Remembering. ,Those. Mothers. That. Are. No. Longer. Living........

Hi @Kathleen I see this your 4th post, but the first one I've read, so please excuse my tardy welcome to the forums College teaches you how to work for someone else, to be an effective corporate tool. Learning to change the system, or even understanding why it needs to be changed is not part of the program. @Pioneer1 your comparison between the past and today's opportunities resonates. I also believe there is some grade inflation going on: Someone who graduated from high school in the 50's is as well "educated" as someone with a college degree in the humanities today. Don't ask me to cite a study or prove what I just wrote; it just seems that way. Maybe @Cynique can provide some insight on this observation. Meanwhile, colleges have lost their way; for example, It is obscene what many schools spend to field a football team, while charging exorbitant tuition and fees to students. Many of these students don't graduate or come away with a degree that does not server them in the marketplace or for staring their own business. I have two masters degrees (engineering and business). I have never had a job that actually required anything I learned in college. For me the degree was a credential required to get in the door -- one many of my white peers did not require. I learned everything I needed to know on the job.

Hello, Fellow Writers and Readers I have been away too long. I have missed you. I will return with the continuing saga of my promotion for The Culinary Art Portfolio of Josephine E. Jones. But right now, I want you to see my first published work under my pen name: Wendy Ebo Jones. Since there are at least 300 people named Wendy Jones in North America and one other writer who shares my name --after attending an Independent Book Publishers Association webinar on the subject of making sure your work stands out, (they used the term "branding," which brings up the smell of the burning flesh of enslaved people, so I don't use it)-- I decided to differentiate myself. Why Ebo? It's a family name. Here is a link to the essay, On the Bus (approx. 500 words): https://theravensperch.com/on-the-bus-by-wendy-ebo-jones/,

Black people want freedom and to benefit from living in this society. They don't want to be deprived of rights, opportunity, or material well-being. Whether these things come from living in Black neighborhoods and having black businesses; it can also be found in the White mainstream. That includes elite universities or professional jobs in Corporate America. Black people often feel like we're losing something we need or want. It's not about segregation or assimilation. It's about pluralism and agency. All Black neighborhoods with thriving businesses should be possible along with opportunities in the White mainstream whether it's a job or going to an amusement park like Disney World. It's important to realize that during the era of Jim Crow segregation whites did business in black communities and rented property to blacks. None of this is about optics. It's about power and control with all its benefits. That's what most Blacks want.

From Nathan McCall’s article linked above: I have come to accept that, while America is my homeland, it’s also been my fiercest enemy. In a country that brags about its greatness and exceptionalism, much of what I’ve achieved has been despite — not because of — the system. I hear Nathan but I disagree. I worked in corporate America long enough to see white folks who are less qualified, than their black peers, and be advanced more frequently and be paid more. I also noticed that Black people are usually more impeccably credentialed than their white peers. I’ve worked with ignorant, mildly racist, white people, and I’ve worked with some really decent ones. I would argue. I’ve been held back by some and advanced by others. Every Wall Street job I’ve gotten has been through a white connection. I seriously doubt that an ex con like Nathan McCall has gotten to where he is without the help of a few halfway decent white people. I argue strongly even that much of his success is because of the system. The Salon was a bit more nuanced as illustrated by the quote below: The truth is that both stories are real, and they have coexisted—albeit uneasily. This kind of truth can be difficult to assimilate. It does not fit with a portrait of American history as the story of freedom. Neither does it jibe with an understanding of America as the story of oppression. The larger tale weaves together these warring strands—it is a story befitting a nation that boasts an African American president as well as staggering racial and economic inequality. I grew up in the north, and heard all the stories about the deep racism in the south, the segregation, and all of that. I grew up in New York City and was educated in completely segregated schools. In stark contrast, my cousins, in the south, went to integrated schools. I used to marvel at the fact that in grade school they knew white people. In fact, the first white people I met as a kid were the ones my cousins introduced me to in the south. I did not meet or attend school with a white person until I was in high school and that was largely because I went to magnet school that you had to take a test to get into. If I went to my zoned high school it would’ve been more of the same poor and wrong class black and Puerto Rican kids. The police were never our friends. Our communities were never serviced properly, dirty, and rundown. The south for me was arguably less racist and cleaner. I also worked in corporate environments in the deep south and in the north, and I found the north to be more oppressive than the south.

If anything, they should have kept Professor Griff and ditched Flav.....lol. I still think it was wrong they way they did Griff. He didn't say anything that Public Enemy as a group weren't rapping about anyway. His remarks CERTAINLY weren't nearly as anti-semitic as Ice Cube's were in No Vaseline....yet Ice Cube went on to have a major successful career in Hollywood. Troy Are you talking about this video? .....the video and radio version was the EDITED version, lol. I come to find out later that about a quarter of the actual lyrics were edited out to shorten the song! Here's the song in it's original totality:

Black Greatness: Have you seen the movie, 'Something the Lord Made'? Vivien Theodore Thomas (his mom just knew she was having a girl, and chose the name Vivian in spite of the fact that she had a son) was an American laboratory supervisor who developed a procedure used to treat blue baby syndrome Thomas did not have any professional education, nor experience in a research laboratory; however, he served as supervisor of the surgical laboratories at Johns Hopkins for 35 years. In 1976, Hopkins awarded him an honorary doctorate and named him an instructor of surgery for the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.. Without any education past high school, Thomas rose above poverty and racism to become a cardiac surgery pioneer and a teacher of operative techniques to many of the country's most prominent surgeons. *************************************************************** There are other Black Greatness movies out there that shine light on other contributions that we made to the WORLD, yet have gone undiscovered until recent years. Gifted Hands is a Story about neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson whose life went from a failing student to the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He was the first to successfully separate conjoined twins who were joined at the back of the head, *************************************************************** Hidden Figures is a story of NASA's segregated group of African-American women hired to process aeronautic data in the space era. These African-American female mathematician's math skills helped put a US astronaut into orbit in 1960s. This is just some of the ladies *************************************************************** What other Black Greatness movies are out there?

I've never heard of this film.

To @Pioneer1's point, I find it interesting that white folks feel comfortable showing up @ AALBC a discussion forum primarily for Black folks. Whenever said white folks do post anything, it's mostly to criticize and/or point out the flaws in Black folks. The same white folks who show up here don't seem to offer anything positive or constructive nor do they provide a solution for what white folks will do to eliminate the system of racism white supremacy. I would dare not show show up on a white extremist or KKK or Duck Dynasty website talking about how white folks need to stop inbreeding, smoking crystal meth, mass killing each other and eating squirrels. I would hope that intelligent white folks are capable of having those discussions among themselves or at least find something else to eat. White folks don't need my point of view. I certainly don't need theirs when it comes Black folks and the conditions we face resulting from a system of racism white supremacy.

I celebrated it having drinks with a group of Astrologers. We talked about free will. I was the lone voice saying it doesn't exist. Believing in the efficacy of Astrology is incompatible with the belief in free will. One Astrologer was somewhat swayed by my argument.