Leaderboard

Well, Negroes put these images and behavior out there for the world to see. The behavior you mentioned is not a fractional minority nor is it representative of a limited geographical area. It's pandemic and widespread whereever you go! The OJ trail? Ha! it's in the history books along with all the hysteria, race baiting, denial, unprecedented media hype and mindless race pride theatrics. Move on...nothing to see here folks....

If you live long enough, some time you get to see things come full circle. After I enrolled as a Freshman at the University of Illinois in September of 1951, I soon became immersed in a tight little community consisting of about 300 black students on a campus whose total population was an eclectic mix of 25,000 or so young mid-westerners from the farms and villages, towns and cities all over the state of Illinois, fresh-faced sons and daughters of the heartland, venturing out into the world, eager to further their educations at the flagship state university whose alma mater statue towered over the campus broad walk, welcoming all comers with open arms. Among the black group who converged on this campus during this era was a contingency from Chicago, a confident, city-bred bunch providing a contrast to us small town squares from Chicago's various suburbs. But we co-existed and learned a lot from each other and the good and bad times we experienced remain imprinted on my memory. Once my college days ended and the civil rights movement began picking up momentum, it was not uncommon for me to run into friends I had attended Illinois with. We’d chat briefly and they’d always kid me about seeing the inflammatory letters to the editor and later a monthly column I wrote in my capacity as token black person hired by a Chicago newspaper to scold its racially prejudiced white readership. “Give em hell”, my old pals would always encourage and I was glad to be a position to do this. Among those ol college chums was a gal who I'd never hit it off with. I was reminded of those days when I started seeing her by-line in the famous Chicago Defender, the black newspaper where she held the position of society columnist, reporting about events and activities, gossiping about who was seen where with whom. By this time I was married, raising a family and working a regular job that had nothing to do with being a journalist. And I could just picture her gloating, and luxuriating in her glamorous career. Years passed and The Chicago Defender fell on hard times, its circulation plummeted, and poor management resulted in financial woes. Still it managed to stay afloat and cobble together a thin week-end edition and whenever I happened to pick up a copy I’d notice that the society columnist was still around, keeping readers informed of what was happening in Chicago's social circles. Earlier this week, roused from my hibernating, reading my morning newspaper skimming over its OpEd page, I noticed a letter , praising Chicago’s police force, portraying them as victims of political correctness, heroes who should be respected instead of reviled. I set the paper aside and thoughts began to converge in my head. Gradually something began to stir inside of me and a dim flame flickered. Slowing rising from the ashes of my lethargy, I headed for my computer, sat down in front of the console, placed my fingers on the keyboard and fired off an e-mail to the editor, responding to the cop apologist, informing him that the duty of a policeman was to serve and protect, and how every citizen had a right to expect that, where law enforcement was concerned, the punishment should fit the crime and the so-called good cops were guilty of covering for rogue cops who racially profiled and shot unarmed suspects in the back! Yesterday, once again, settled in with my morning newspaper, just out of curiosity, I checked to see if they’d run my letter to the editor. And much to my surprise there it was, word-for-word, leading off the reader feed-back section, leaving me to chuckle as the years fell away, and once again my pen was sharp. Smiling to myself, leisurely riffling through the rest of the paper, a small headline suddenly caught my eye and I paused to read what it announced. It turned out to be an obituary reporting, of all things, the death of The Chicago Defender’s long time society columnist, my old college acquaintance referred to in the article as a “grand dame” who left no survivors, only a legacy of scrap books and photo albums. I felt a little sad. No, I wasn’t a grand dame society editor, but beside being a wife, and a mother, I am not only a grand mother but a great grand mother whose irate letters still make it into to print. Guess we’re even. May the ol girl rest in peace. Me, I’ll opt to snooze in contentment. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Here's something you don't hear a lot of about. While I was working on a piece about the absurdity of life, I found out middle aged white males have the highest suicide rate of all groups here in the U.S. In fact out of the more than 42,000 suicides in 2013, 7 out of 10 were committed by white males. Next highest were American Indians/Alaska Natives who ranked up there at 11.7% out of every 100,000. Guess who is near last on this list with the fewest suicides per 100,000? You guessed it, at 5.4% per 100,000 suicides for African-Americans. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the percentage is less for African-American women. The report indicates women overall make more suicide attempts but rarely succeed. Sadly, however suicides are increasing among African-American children according to SAMHSA 's statistics from JAMA Pediatrics. I have no clue, and none was offered as to why so many white men here in the U.S. end their own life. I don't take the findings lightly either. I was curious. Initially, when I went looking for the statistics I thought African-Americans would have the highest suicide rate since many of us report experiencing high rates of stress. The CDC statistics, however, doesn't support my theory. If I had to guess why the rate was so high for white males here in America; My guess would be influenced by Edward Bruce Bynum, Ph.D. (Dark Light Consciousness: Melanin, Serpent Power, and the Luminous Matrix of Reality). He says the deepest level of the mind in modern humans is an African structure or an African Template. Dr. Bynum suggest in his lecture "African Genesis" "Most nations, most cultures fear the darkness and part of that fear is of one's own origin - 'The Threatened return of the repressed'." African-Americans already know where they come from. Maybe they don't have the location of the village but they have a clue they come from the African continent. Maybe it's hard for other cultures to reconcile they also originate from the Motherland. And that could be their undoing. I don't know of course but I'm fascinated by the theory. Self-Destruction comes in many forms.

I did not know Miles Davis went around shooting at people so often. It is surprising he did not land in jail. Interesting how they worked the white guy so prominently into the film; even in the trailer his presence seems forced. It looks like yet another brilliant performance from Don Cheadle.

I decided since I celebrate Black History every day that I'd ditch the 29 days of Black history month, and just do what I do can call it 366 days of celebrating Black history (or literature in this case). Today I'm celebrate Literary Events.

I love that the Schomburg Center held this event! This is an exciting time for writers of black speculative fiction and comic books!

I agree with Troy. What some call, negativity, I call reality. The Black Lives Matter movement may not be lacking in enthusiasm but is political power really the answer to the problem or is it comparable to using anti-biotics to fight a virus? Bright-eyed young women can organize all they choose but they need to target the right culprit. This group seems focused on convincing white people that black lives matter when it's obvious that they don't matter due to the proliferation of black-on-black crime that is rampant in the inner cities of this country. This is not about politics it's about culture. The violence and disregard for human life that plagues black communities, is spawned by a baby-mama/baby-daddy, FaceBook, street gang culture that is very entrenched in the ghetto. This is where the movement needs to make inroads, where change needs to occur. And this is all but impossible because the self-destructive lifestyle that has broken down the family and made shame non-existent is passed down from generation to generation. Black unity is elusive because it requires the race to become a tribe with a cookie cutter mentality where everybody is going to walk in lockstep and adopt a herd mentality. Black folks are not monolithic enough for this to prevail. So what is the answer? Not all problems have solutions, mainly because by the time a solution has been settled on, the original problem has morphed into something else. But keep hoping for change, Ladies, even if Obama has proved that doing this is an empty pursuit. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

"Good point", said the woman with 3 daughters. For now, however, I draw the line where "art", "religion", "politics", or any of our socio-cultural activity that draws its popularity and energy from harming women. Example nwa. Anyone who sings about offin' hoes and bitches - is obviously doing it in real time. so I won't support them. I don't believe Dre an'em have made one dime off of me. I probably watched "Friday" one too many times because I got tired of being left out of the jokes - but I will not support a group that is too stupid to realize without women their future is nonexistent. Still it is surprising to me how many people cosigned that brand of 'entertainment.' Then again, the labeling mentality is prevalent among those guilty of sloth.

Exactly! I read a washington post article this morning re: Deray McKesson filing for his Mayoral Candidacy in Baltimore. The founding members of #blacklivesmatter serve on his advisory committee. I'm so proud of the young women who started the movement; they are showing how politics is really a grassroots project. They even have a call to action - "Campaign Zero" with solutions. This call can and may end up on a ballot in our precincts. If anyone is familiar with - Florida's Stand your ground law, they know it was started by a group just like BlackLivesMatter - except their group ALEC ( American Legislative Exchange Council) , is against the people, not for. Unfortunately, ALEC has a farther reach and bigger influence than BLM. Still these young folks are doing something with their voices and they are UNIFIED! I think that is what really scares the mainstream.

Followed you on Amazon @CDBurns I think it might please you to know, Amazon sends me updates on the latest book you published. I have them all in my wish list now.

Miles was a woman abuser. That is definitely an indicator of the imagery shown in this video. So I had no problem at all believing the behavior in the trailer. http://www.avclub.com/article/miles-davis-beat-his-wives-and-made-beautiful-musi-105904

Such a dope back and forth. I have nothing at all to add. (Googles self just for fun).

BELIEVE THE MOVIE COMES ON TONIGHT ABOUT OJ. SIMPSON TRIAL, COMMERCIAL SHOWN MILLION TIMES/ANYBODY CARE TO WATCH// ON THE OXYGEN CHANNEL IRRITATING SHOW COMMERCIALS ,PREACHERS OF ATLANTA, WHERE EVER ELSE,PRANCING ELITES, BLACK MEN WEARING CHEER LEADER,MAJORETTE OUTFITS,/WHERE IS THE NAACP/THE NAACP FEW YEARS AGO PROTESTED, THE OXYGEN CHANNEL,HAVING A SHOW CALLED ALL MY BABY MAMAS,ABOUT A RAPPER WITH 7, OR 8 CHILDREN WITH 7 OR 8 WOMEN/WHY ARE THE NAACP NOT PROTESTING THIS,PRANCING ELITES, FALSE PROPHETS,PREACHERS OF L.A.,DETROIT AND ATLANTA////THEY CONCERNED ABOUT HOW BLACK MEN IMAGE IS ON TV SHOWS/////O.J. SIMPSON IN PRISON, THEY CANNOT LET THAT TRIAL GO,THE VERDICT.///////

Ya know, I watched the trailer and I was disappointed for the most obvious reasons. Being that I am a serious hard core follower and junkie of Miles Davis's music (pre-1970) all my adult life -I have never heard of any of the behavior I saw in the trailer. Yes, Miles had a mercurial temper and he had zero tolerance for those who annoyed him. But the trailer looks like something out of "Good Fellas" or "Black Mass". Miles was not a wildly violent drug dealer or gangster as he appears to be in this trailer. Don Cheadle is the obvious choice to play Miles just as Viola Davis was the obvious choice to play Nina Simone (vice Zoe Saldana which is beyond stupid and ridiculous). But from what I have seen in this trailer, I have never heard of such extreme gangsta style behavior by Miles. I'm not sure about this biopic's accuracy. Again, from what I saw it seems more about hyperbole and myth making than reality. Perhaps I need to see the film in its entirety....

Oh Snap! Forget facebook and google (alphabet) amazon is living up to its name...this is crazy!

You really aren't obscure at all...lol And See what I mean - it doesn't happen automatically - I even have a browser that identifies that I'm in GA even when I go incognito. Dr . Troy Johnson came up because he's in Covington, GA. So unless you know something more about why my search would include you - I'm thinking you may hit first page results for others too... and how you did it is extremely valuable! So maybe you're "broke" but you are definitely a wealth of knowledge

Re: Zane screenshot in your quote... This is pretty much what I get when I google my name... with AALBC.com coming in right after Amazon... Now what I did find, is when I type in "The LeadStory" my media communication business web site - it is #1 ... which is really confusing - after what @CDBurns mentioned about google webmaster tools ... because I didn't do it with that site... but I will keep pushing! "@Mel Hopkins, Google's search results OFTEN push "official sites lower in search results." Google is also a book seller, so people can learn more about books and buy them from Google without even leaving the search results page!" I'm giggling because a lot of what you respond to here, I mentioned in my last correspondence to you. I'm glad because it really allows me to know I'm on the right track. Google allows you to search inside the book which I believe is why it often comes up when I search for typical academic references. Also if you search for African Antiquity which I do quite often - those eBooks are free and Google allows you to save them to your digital library. Of course you have to sign into google to read your "free" book...so maybe some of us authors might be willing to do the same here on AALBC.com. Of course you can only read the book when you sign in but at least you can read for free...even if it's for a limited time. The method to my madness is I'm always looking for the pitch and placement angle - "AALBC... offering a digital library to readers/book club members " is pitch-worthy... But Zane is famous and has earned millions. I'm obscure and broke, so what do I know? I didn't know you wrote erotica too! But seriously, with the wealth of information you have here on the site - I already branded you, wrote and published several books for you (even if only in my head). I'll do you one better, when I do an incognito search for Troy Johnson ; your photo is included in the image - and aalbc is on the first page

I generally don't do anything special for Black history month, because "every month is Black History Month" as far as I'm concerned. That said, I'm going to introduce 29 new features on AALBC.com every day this month. 1st Day of Black History Month: 100+ Recommended African-American Children’s Books

What you are about to read is my 1st homework assignment for Gotham Writers' Workshop. I created this narrative based on my African-American cultural experience. My perception of Mr. Sanders may well be different from others due to my prior knowledge of the man. The Bernie that you will read about comes solely from my limited research and overactive imagination of what he might be like in the mornings. The homework assignment was to pick one person from a list of people that intrigued me. I was tasked with writing a scene showing this person getting up in the morning and getting ready to go out. I had to imagine my person getting out of bed, asking myself where is he? What is the place like? What is his attitude about having to get up? What is his morning ritual like? And what, if anything, does he eat or drink? Please be aware that this narrative contains colorful language that may be offensive to some in this reading audience. As a writer and new author, I would welcome your feedback on this assignment. Rise ‘N Shine You Old Fart 4:00 a.m. The alarm clock was blaring Ray Charles’ 2004 hit song, “Hit the road Jack and don't cha come back no more no more no more no more. Hit the road Jack and don't cha come back no more.” It was time for Bernie to get up. Since starting the campaign, he’d set the radio-clock alarm to its maximum. He couldn’t afford to miss a beat. “Oh, shut the hell up,” he said, hitting the snooze button. After having to get up to pee during the night, Bernie had just managed to fall back to sleep at 2:30 a.m. “Bernie,” his wife yelled, having been awakened by the loud blast of song, “You didn’t!” “Of course, I did,” he said. “It’s better out than in.” “That smells awful,” she said, turning away from him and pulling the heavy covers up over her face. “You need to get your old ass up right now!” She ordered. “Look, that’s the way a good fart is ’pose to smell,” he said, laughing and kicking back the covers. He could depend on his faithful morning gas to give him the boost he needed to get kicked out of his own bed. In his mind, he believed that his loud, obnoxious farts deserved to win a trophy. Filled with a lethal concoction of smelly gas and a bladder filled with ammonia-strength pee, Bernie willed himself to get moving. 4:20 a.m. “Time to rise and shine to give God the glory,” he said, half singing his favorite verse. Before putting on his famous wire-framed specs, he curiously rubbed an old crusty booger from the corner of his bad eye while digging deeply into his right nostril to find a competitor. Absent-minded, he rolled the hardened mucous between his pointer finger and thumb and plucked the tiny ball out into the darkness. Such was Bernie’s get out of bed ritual—farting and tossing crusty nasal remnants into oblivion. “Damn it’s cold in here,” he said, taking quick steps toward his ever faithful, white porcelain toilet that patiently awaited his return visits. “Ahhh,” he said, watching the golden fluid drain steadily from his slightly crinkled-up man part. Ain’t no dialysis happening here, he thought, giving a proud gaze at the flow, eventually shaking off the last of the few drips. Bernie considered himself to be in pretty good shape for an old man. Flexing his muscles in the bathroom mirror, he was all too pleased that he could still have a good morning pee of this magnitude. He knew of younger fellows in Congress who could not drain nearly as well as he could. 5:00 a.m. The hot steam coming from the shower head seemed to huff and puff, hanging billows of fluffy clouds in the bathroom. Bernie looked forward to having the hot water send its warmth to his cold extremities. Often feeling like a cold-blooded reptile, the shower was the perfect heat source to warm his aged bones so that he could move with the competitive swiftness of his younger opponent. 5:10 a.m. The shower having done its job, the aged man staggered out of the bathroom like a happy drunk. Admiring the man still tucked inside of him, he stood in front of his full-length mirror wearing nothing more than his wrinkled, old, ghostly-white skin. “Got to get going,” he said as he looked over at the clock that was eating away his precious minutes. “I know she’s already out there. I can’t afford to let her retake the lead—there’s just too much at stake.” 5:20 a.m. Damn that coffee smells good, he thought. The coffee pot, percolating with lively song, was as old and faithful as he—always willing to serve. He grabbed himself a huge cup and filled it to the brim. Strong and black, he thought. Just the way I like it. Sipping cautiously, the hot liquid would be the energy he needed to stand down those insatiable reporters. 5:30 a.m. “Bernie Sanders is still holding onto a slight lead over Hillary Clinton…” the TV reporter announced. His television channel was permanently tuned to MSNBC or CNN. “Shit, I’ve got to get on out there,” he said, talking out loud to himself. “A slight lead is nothing against her.” 5:35 a.m. “Oh, quit your honking—I’m coming,” he yelled to the door. Looking almost homeless in a semi-wrinkled suit with his white hair untouched by a comb, Bernie headed toward the front door to meet his impatient driver. “See you later Baby,” he called back to his wife. “Gotta go kick ’em in their political asses.” 7:59 a.m. Arriving in the nick of time, a reporter waiting in the front lobby of the Iowa State Capitol asked, “Mr. Sanders, do you still think you can maintain your lead and secure the Democratic nomination for President?” 8:01 a.m. Fully rejuvenated, Bernie responded, “Yes, Son, I sure do!” ********** I have a deep respect and admiration for Presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders. This assignment has been critiqued by my esteemed instructor. His comments and suggestions proved to be valuable in teaching the elements of Character Development I.

Tracy Bradshaw 1st Sawbear got to go camping, visit Orange Beach, and fly on an airplane! He got his picture made with the pilots and had great adventures in Kansas City. The rough drafts are completed and can be viewed on Shutterfly. Dear Shirley Perry-Church, I love your writing about Bernie Sanders. It makes him a real person. We don't always think of presidential candidates as real people. He doesn't want to get out of bed in the morning, and for goodness sake he even farts! You bring candidates to a regular people level, and I like that. Thank you for sharing. Tracy

The problem isn't starting a publishing company, it's distribution. In order to publish and build up authors, someone has to be willing to sit on thousand of books and then get those books distribution into the mainstream outlets as well as into Ingram so smaller accounts can buy those books. It's really hard to run any company when you sit on inventory, so it's not going to happen. You would need a six figure reserve to just get started. The best we all can do is to support sites like AALBC and to take the time to visit other websites that discuss books, which I can't really think of any right off the top of my head.

Continued from Part One In order to give life and purpose to the three faceless mermaids that hang on my wall, I had to first give them names. Shimmer, StarFire, and SeaStar came to life in my literary vision. I could see them at long last and they were beautiful, brown-skinned,orphaned, mermaid sisters. They reached out to me every time I passed their stilled images on the wall. I had to tell their story. The voice that continually awakened me up in the middle of the night, beckoned me to write a book. Always three and four o’clock in the morning, I could be found in my dimly lit bedroom frantically writing. The question that plagued my thoughts was this: What were my mermaids doing out there in the vastness of the mighty ocean? Of course, they were hunting. But, hunting for what? Well, in my mind, since they weren’t supposed to be there in the first place, they were hunting for magic. Why magic? Because, magic had to be found in order to protect them. Protect them from what? They needed protection from predators. What kind of predators? The Great White Sharks, of course. So, where would this magic come from? And why would they need protection? So many questions popped into my mind. I often looked into the vastness of their blank faces for the answers. Now, that I had the beginning of the plot for my fantasy, I still needed to see the three mermaids on the pages of the book that I’d titled The Hunt for the Magic Pearl. With pencils and paint brushes in hand, I set out to give my half human, half fish their faces—beautiful brown faces. However, each time, I contemplated making them African-American, something inside of me cautioned against it. I had to keep telling myself that I wasn’t doing anything wrong. Why shouldn’t they look like me in skin color, hair texture, and body build--strong hips and thighs? Why at my age and cultural experience was I having trouble with my own skin color and reflection? Could I, me, still be subconsciously brainwashed in some way--influenced by a horrible history that should be relived only in my past? I know that I loved me and I also knew that I wouldn't change one single thing about who I am--especially my skin color... My struggle served to let me know what our children are still experiencing in terms of acceptance of their African-American features and identity. This realization also warned me that there is not nearly enough diversity in our children's literature. I was in a battle to resist my warped concept of beauty. Despite my unfounded reluctance, I did it. I drew samples and painted them to have brown skin. But I still did not like these images as much as I liked them with White skin. I forced myself to move ahead with illustrations and had my illustrator to produce exactly what I was visualizing. My three mermaid sisters came to life at long last on the pages of my book. They are beautiful renditions of myself. I am pleasantly pleased that they are very much a part of the audience that I seek to reach and teach. I am still drawing and painting my mermaids--turning them from blank, penciled images on white sheets of paper to strong, dark, powerful princesses that protect the Kingdom of Merland. Please see Part Three for the conclusion of this story. Part Three: Diversity is Not Racism—The Difficult Road through Publication for Three Mermaid Sisters “Why didn’t you make the mermaids White?” he said. “You would sell more books if they were white.” These words still echo in my head. Support diversity in Children’s Literature. Please visit my website, www.readtoachieve2.com to purchase The Hunt for the Magic Pearl today.