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Cynique, no one really likes reading a review, from an entity they respect, that is negative. Of course, if they respect the entity the take the critique, not personally, learn what they can from it and move on. I've published many unfavorable reviews of authors books over the years--especially during the Thumper era. Sometimes authors react very negatively, but they are a small minority. Readers however always appreciate an honest review. Now that does not mean the reader will agree with the reviewer. But many readers appreciate a well written honest review written by an informed reader. Of course a favorable review on a respected platform is great for the authors. I still remember the grief Wanda Coleman got for writing an unfavorable review of one of Maya Angelou's books. You would have thought she pimp slapped Michelle Obama given the public's reaction; “In writing that is bad to God-awful, Song is a tell-all that tells nothing in empty phrases and sweeping generalities. Dead metaphors ("sobbing embrace," "my heart fell in my chest") and clumsy similes ("like the sound of buffaloes running into each other at rutting time") are indulged. Twice-told crises (being molested, her son's auto accident) are milked for residual drama. Extravagant statements come without explication, and schmooze substitutes for action… There is too much coulda shoulda woulda. Unfortunately, the Maya Angelou of A Song Flung Up to Heaven seems small and inauthentic, without ideas, wisdom or vision. Something is being flung up to heaven all right, but it isn't a song.” —Wanda Coleman, April 14, 2002   Sara, I first covered Dyson back in 2001, I was unfamiliar with him at the time. It was one of the first audio file I put on the site. His delivery was exactly the same back then, and I found him interesting. A couple of years later I did meet him, and gave him a card. He said, "I've heard of y'all." That was over a decade ago, over that period of time the site has only grown, and there are fewer sites like mine nowadays, but it is possible he forgot. It however is more likely that he does not appreciate why the support of folks like him is crucial to the Black book ecosystem. The video I shot of Michael was during the National Black Writers Conference, one of the things I would like to see happen, during that even is for us to develop strategies that will empower and enrich us.

@TroyI touched on this subject briefly, during a discussion you and I recently had about reviewing the work of new authors. I observed that such writers, especially self-published ones, tended to be very sensitive about their work and resentful of unfavorable reviews, something they were most likely to get because the self-published are often people who think they can write, but can't. You remarked how there was no such thing as bad publicity implying that a bad review was better than none at all. Nobody wants to hear anything but good feed back about their endeavors. In a recent post by Mel she theorized how people lusted after being stroked and praised. I agree. Personally, once i accepted that I am far from perfect, criticism lost its sting. In the twilight of my years, I seek the truth. Others perceive this as being negative because so often the truth hurts and people like to preserve "feel-good" illusions. I would, however, be the first agree that the truth is relative. Certainly nowadays. This is why I try to take an overview, because there's the truth; then there's the whole truth. I find the phrase "it is, what it is" to be true.

Cynique No, I'm not a mason. I'm sorry, I didn't intend for my reference to God to be taken as a RELIGIOUS reference. I'm speaking from a non-religious point of view, though I do consider myself spiritually inclined with a strong belief in the Supreme Being. Nor do I believe in that "Noah cursing Ham" garbage. Most of the stories of the Bible were written by Semites....desert Caucasians who had to justify their racist genocidal takeover of Black lands in the Middle East.

Oh lord, the girl done picked her gun back up....... Cynique I too used to say "Whatever floats your boat"....until everybody else started saying it. Now I like to end disagreements with, "Well...whatever helps you sleep at night". CD Though I'm not quite ready to lable the United States the BEST nation in the world because I haven't been to every nation to qualify that statement....I believe it's up there in the top 10. ((smile)). Personally, I like Canada better. I fell in love with it the first time I went there after experiencing females actually hitting on me. That was something that used to rarely happen in the United States. I remember going to the mall and seeing Chinese girls wearing Fila with their hair braided up, and Chinese men with fades and earrings. I thought to myself, something is DIFFERENT about this place. Then at the airport a White woman asked me to hold her purse while she took a picture of her relatives and I started looking around for a video camera thinking it was a joke....lol. The social attitude there as compared to here was like day and night. The taxes are high, but in my opinion Canada is a healthier place for Black psychological health. But if America is indeed the best nation on Earth, best believe it's because we FORCED her into greatness! And we can't stop....we have to keep pushing. We can be grateful, and we should be. But once you get SATIFIED with the way things are and stop adding more fuel to the fire....like a car in neutral if you aren't going forward then you go backwards. We're seeing now what happens when people stop fighting for more and more government benefits...they start stripping them away. Look at how expensive healthcare and college tuition has become. You had to go to the military and risk your life and disability just to get a good college education, meanwhile the German, the British, the French boy your same age was able to go to college for FREE during that same time period. Why? Because while the United States was spending hundreds of billions of dollars to protect Europe.....since they didn't have to spend money building their military Europe could focus it's revenue on benefits for it's own citizens like free healthcare and free college education. Sara When a system is set up to ensure you fail, you will most likely be prevented from taking advantage of "said" freedoms. Yes, there will always be a token, but as a group, well, since everything is interconnected, SAID system will fail if it permits the group to partake of its goodies, unmolested. Reform only goes so far. Surely the system is set up for certain people to fail, but I believe God has the power to override ANY system and bless whom He chooses to prevail. Even during slavery there were Black people who were wealthy and prosperous. There have always been Black people who were blessed to achieve greatness despite the pressures against them. There is a certain type of Karma that tends to balance things out, even on the racial level. You think you wiped out the Native Americans, but they return to the land...this time speaking Spanish as Mexicans and Central Americans. I've even heard that America was secretly set up with the knowledge that Blacks would not only eventually gain thier freedom, but the forefathers also knew that through this nation we would eventually gain our rightful place on the planet.

One of the biggest problems we face culturally is that we have essentially lost our ability to critically critique ourselves. One of the things I hear over and over again from books reviewers is that, "If I'm too harsh on an author, they'll get mad and I'll lose access." or, "If I can't write a favorable review I won't bother writing one at all?" Far worse is the reviewer who writes favorable reviews simply to get on an author's good side or who write a positive review to as a way to promote the book--all unbeknownst to readers. It is very difficult for a reviewer to write a review, of book written by a Black writer, and be paid for their effort. As a result, far fewer reviews are written, and the quality of what is written is weakened. Any decent reviews that do get published are usually published on blogs few people read or rendered undiscoverable on social media. In the world of books it is crucial that we critically critique our literature and literary nonfiction. This came to mind as I was thinking about the apparent lack of support shown on Michael Eric Dyson's website for indie Black book platforms (Websites, booksellers, magazines, etc). Then it occurred to me that Michael may not be very supportive of an AALBC.com because we've been pretty critical of his work; “As a critic who has reviewed several of his books, I have been so underwhelmed by the earlier work of Dyson that I had, quite frankly, long since dismissed him as an intellectual lightweight more given to a superficial sensationalism than to anything of substance. How else might one respond to his building a biography of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. around a false FBI allegation that the slain civil rights leader was gay? Or, by contrast, his uncritical veneration of Tupac Shakur despite the late rapper's felonious, misogynistic, profane, violent and self-destructive ways? In fact, I found one opus so awful, that I put in unreturned calls to Dyson's colleagues to ask why they had praised it in blurbs on the back cover, because it was readily apparent that they couldn't possibly have bothered to read it.” —Kam Williams, January 2006 “Dyson correctly points out that the current situation faced by African Americans is a "complex nexus of poor education, and limited life options leading to self-destructive choices made out of desperation." But he offers no suggestions for improvement, only repeating the importance of loving one another and being compassionate. These are necessary components, but only part of what is needed. Many readers will conclude that "Michael Eric Dyson Has Lost His Mind", for 288 pages of one-note, convolutions of Cosby's remarks wears real thin, real quick.” —Paige Turner, January 2006 It would not be unreasonable to assume that Michael would choose not to support an AALBC.com. As I said in the other post I do not share Michael's work to get anything from him. I share his work because he is a prominent voice in the Black community, but one that also must be critiqued. This does not just go for authors. We see a Donald Trump go around exaggerating, lying, saying anything he wants, while never being seriously challenged by journalists in a meaningful way, treating him as if he deserves to be considered as a serious candidate. We also know the major media conglomerates do not want to risk losing access to Trump and the huge windfall in revenue he has created for them. Sooner or later we will have to figure this out. Otherwise we will just be lied to in our nonfiction and told our fiction is great when it is really is not.

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Yes, Dyson is a glib hustler who pimps publicity but, to me, his redeeming value is that he does well in one-on-one exchanges with white talk show hosts. He usually puts them in their place with his dazzling rhetoric. I feel confident when he is articulating the black message against a white adversary. I think everybody is hip to Dyson's game now. Does he really wield a lot of influence?

I watched the debate between Hillary and Bernie off and on and I don't think there was any clear cut winner. Observing the body language of both candidates, I found it somewhat revealing. Hillary is cool and unflappable; criticism rolls off her back. Bernie is uptight and agitated and thin-skinned. IMO. I know polls are misleading and often wrong, but Clinton is leading in New York...

Oh there is another reason Michael Dyson may not have been supportive of AALBC.com; we've been pretty critical of his work.

Obviously, Chris you get no arguement from me on the power of people working together and doing things in an organized fashion in their own self-interest. The problem is that we rarely do this. Rather we do what what is in some corporation's best interest or what is in our own individual best interest. Corporations are great at helping people do what is the individual's best interest, often at the expense of everyone else. If that makes sense. To your point about Michael Eric Dyson, Omar Tyree, and Bernice McFadden participating on this site in a conversation. If course if that happened people would come here to participate or read and AALBC.com would grow stronger as a result. I'd be able to help many authors more easily with the additional revenue, and readers would be better served, and I'd also be able to pay more writers. It would be a win for all. But the likelihood of that happening is small, because individuals can enrich themselves more through their own efforts or through a corporation. But I wrote the likelihood is not, but not non existent. First, I would not lump Bernice and Omar in the same category as Michael. @CDBurns check out something Bernice did that you would DEFINITELY appreciate: If you visit Bernice's website, you will see that she is using AALBC.com affiliate codes for her Amazon links! If you go to Omar's site you see he has a list of Black owned bookstores. He continues to support Black owned business on his website long after other authors have stopped doing this. In stark contrast, if you visit Dyson's website he does not link to another Black site (bookseller, reviewer, articles), or even mention one. But his own platform is weak given his resources; he latest book is not even mentioned. Image if Dyson directed readers to a Black bookseller, image if he linked to a Black book reviewers sites (I've published reviews of his work). Of course I could go on and on about prominent Black folks who make no effort to support their own, but I'm sure it is just a matter of ignorance rather than a lack of desire, so i try to help these folks understand why it matters. Now if you visit my Michael Eric Dyson Page, you'll find it is actually more complete than his own website, and I'm just getting started. If someone supported my work to the extent that I support Michael's, there would usually be some form of reciprocation, acknowledgement, or gratitude. But this is nothing to complain about, for it is not unusual. While I'm not motivated by Michael's reciprocation, I know it would help. One day this type of thing may change. For now I get by with the support I do get; for therein lies the hope, not ust for AALBC.com but for all of us.

I'm not sure what's on television, I hear it going in the other room....but it would be haaard for a brutha to find something that would beat this Richard Pryor flick I got on right now: "Which Way Is Up"

I rarely sit down and watch television now. For some reason I've just lost interest in most of what's on nowadays. I find more enjoyment on the computer looking at old movies and documentaries hooked up to a large monitor and speakers.

Once again I love the dialogue, but I choose to look at what we are doing right that is working. The last 40 years have seen the decimation of the Black family, increase in incarceration and a collapse of the middle class Black family. This same 40 years saw the rise of multi-millionaire Black stars in sports and entertainment. An explosion of Black literature and publishing opportunities, an increase in enrollment into higher education, more women graduates and entrepreneurs than we've ever seen. As bad as things are, is as good as things can be. You spend each day finding a fact about Black people. This affects someone on a daily basis. If it stops, you may indirectly take out the next Maya Angelou. Without regard to whether you know what you are doing is working, you keep doing it. What you are doing is not exceptional and it changes things. What you are doing is what you needs to be done. I'm saying people in dire situations may not be aware of what needs to be done, but they know right from wrong. While there are excuses made for people who sell drugs, they don't have to do it. I don't want to hear, "people are going to do what they do to survive." That's bullshit. You can stop before you pull the trigger and kill another Black man. You can stop and say I will die before I sell dope to another Black man. As naive as this sounds, I really don't care. We have choices to make, difficult choices, life or death choices, but we have to lift us up. If we don't all of our discussion becomes moot. Cynique The Last Poets said it best, "Niggers are scared of Revolution." Black folks are absolutely terrified of waking up and not killing each other, hurting each other. Black folks are terrified of helping one another. That is the real revolution helping each other. Like I said I love this dialogue, but I have few more last examples of why I think the action from the people is more powerful :-) Troy, if it was Michael Eric Dyson, Omar Tyree, Bernice McFadden having this back and forth on AALBC what would happen to AALBC? While earlier it was noted that President Obama could have made an author, what would happen if the authors you profile actually made other authors? Literature would change immediately. If every parent in the hood decided for one month to visit the school and make it to every teacher's meeting. I'm not talking both parents at least one of them, what would happen to the schools? If every parent planned an unexpected visit to the school at least once a month, what would happen in the schools? If every student made a commitment to not be disruptive for themselves, not to help the teacher or for the parents, if a kid decided to be dedicated, even in the worst school, what would happen? If gangbangers stopped banging, what would happen in the hood. I know it's all simplistic and there is more to it than this, but my point is there are very subtle shifts that could occur in the Black community that would empower the hell out of the people. Rappers just say not to destructive music, etc. All small and simple things that don't require us to wait on government. You said doing the right thing is easy. I don't believe that. Obviously it has never been easy and really that's why we are where we are.

OK Chris given you statement, obviously all those Black people gunning to make Memphis the nation's murder capital are inherently more violent. What do we do with those people? What do we do with the people who refuse to work? If racism (laws and behaviors) is not the problem, then attacking racism, or the legacy of racism, is not going to fix a thing. What is the solution? Pioneer while I agree with most of your position, particularly historically, today the problem is mostly greed. People (Black and white) who have an insatiable appetite for more and don't really care very much about who they hurt or how they get it. A few individuals were willing to see millions of people lose their homes to earn more money. The are willing to poison millions more for generations with cigarette. Of course enslaving people is not above them either... @CDBurns, racists materially, and adversely, impact my ability to run my business--today. This is not speculation; this is my objective and daily reality; and there is a real financial cost. I don't know how many white owned websites have to deal with Black racists trying to take them down. Rather, I suspect, there are more Black people are doing everything they can to get on these websites, and uplift them, rather than hurting them. This is just the blatant, overt racism, I have to deal with that I'm sure my white peers don't deal with.