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Back in my teens and 20s, I wouldn't have believed that I would feel so obliged or dedicated to people I wasn't related to or something I wasn't getting paid to do. But as we know, things and often attitudes and mentalities change with time. Now if I spend an extended amount of time away from AALBC whether it's a few days, a few weeks, or a couple months.....I feel OBLIGATED to go back and as best I can respond to all posts directed at me or about me. And also, if time permits....address posts that grab my interest even if they weren't directed at me. And it appears that most of you seem to feel the same way. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ And by the way let me thank @Troy for providing this space for us to do so. It's been a while since I sent a token of my appreciation because I've had new personal obligations to focus my resources on these past few years, but your treasures are building up. Trust me _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ I suppose it's just human nature; however knowing this makes me feel good, proud, and hopeful. Why? It shows me that there are certain feelings, emotions, and drives that are just innate in human nature that guarantees that no human society will degrade down past a certain level. We will never get so selfish and individualistic AS A COMMUNITY where we simply ignore eachother and focus on our own issues and promotions. Some will, but the vast majority will not. There are certain ways we relate to other human beings that seem to be "in" us; ingrained in our psyche. These are the traits a progressive well functioning society should be built on and modeled after. Characteristics that agree with basic human nature.

The Best way to destroy colorism is through Education Create systems that promote celebrate and reward all skin tones hues and shades... Accentuate the positive and ignore or confront the negative..... Saturate Mass Media with the Spectrum of all shades ....as equally as possible. Demonstrate the necessity of variety.. etc

Nat King Cole born 1919 enjoy music and lyrics from the legend

Nat King Cole was gifted & talented which brings a certain level of respect & admiration even among enemies. I believe Nat King Cole used his gift to the make the best of his time on the planet as a Black man.

Clinics hand out free contraceptives. I do not recall where I typed that people should kill themselves and/or have abortions. Humans have found ways to avoid procreation for a very long time. Humans have been given the ability to think & rationalize. Maturity is understanding the responsibility that comes with it.

In the mean time, silky-voiced Nat Cole, a Chicago product, enjoyed tremendous popularity among his own people. He put out a lot of single 78 vinyl records in the '50s as I recall, and they were all hits! We loved us some Nat "King" Cole. Back in the day, a lot of - perish the thought - colorist negro women used to pay him the left-handed compliment by declaring that "the only thing they liked black were Cadillacs and Nat Cole". To this day, like one of his best sellers, he remains "Unforgettable".

Sure. Entrenched blue states do not make as much of a difference in the POTUS election. Same goes for red states. Swing states flip-flopping play a huge role in determining POTUS election outcome. Those are the states that Democrats need to pour the most time & energy convincing folks to "vote blue no matter who".

Understood. At some point in your lifetime, I hope that you are able to relocate to Haiti or some other country that is less dysfunctional than the USA. No need to quote yourself. I understand the context. Hoping that my family members have the misfortune of medical malpractice or bad law enforcement or cheaters is not going to change me and/or cause any type of pain or suffering on my behalf. Again, such is life. I always have and will roll with the punches.

I would still teach the basics of computing. No different from teaching alphabets & words to children. They'll figure out soon if/when they need to use a dictionary or library or internet. AI (Artificial Intelligence) is another tool in the box. Folks wil use it to get things done faster &/or more cost effectively. Surely, some folks will use AI to enrich themselves & put others out of work. Such is life especially when it comes to technology.

The Universe does Not come in Alphabetical Order! I started reading science fiction in 4th grade. This was before Star Trek. My mother had a World Book Encyclopedia sitting right outside my bedroom door. I used that Encyclopedia looking up stuff I encountered in science fiction books at least 10 times as much as I did for school. I would not have a problem with a kid using an AI to research stuff found from reading SF. There is a YouTube video made from 1988 footage of Harvard graduates unable to explain summer and winter. I saw that in 1988 and laughed my ass off. I knew the answer but not because of school. Read enough science fiction and you will encounter Orbital Mechanics. .

His band was multicultural, the men sang lead vocals and the women played instruments. Which is still rare.

Exactly. That is why I created Huria Search I literarily brought it back yesterday. It was down for several years, but as I'm revamping the site I'm bringing back features that I abandoned -- even if a few people will use and benefit from it. It took me all of 5 minutes to bring it back. AI made this possible. AI is reminiscent of the early days of the web. This time around fewer people will take advantage of it and the benefit to individuals will not be very long.

IMO, Al Jarreau's musical legacy will be bringing Jazz vocal stylings & scat to R&B & Pop music.

Sly Stone was very important to music. He gave R&B an edge & inspired Jazz musicians to embrace electronic instruments. Sly was a huge influence on Miles Davis & by extension, the list of musicians who came through Davis' finishing school.

I would prefer that a brain surgeon be *qualified* to perform that work. Nobody wants their head cut open & brain exposed by someone who watched a few Youtube videos & think they got it.

@Troy thanks I never heardo f the african american golf digest

That last for a few minutes relatively speaking. Just long enough for me and many others to get excited about the potential only to have it usurped by the folks maniacally fixed on money. The same thing will happen with AI; money will be the only motivator in how it is used and criminals will have unfettered access to use it to fuck over the world. Today I resurrected a Search Engine, Huria Search, which only queries Black-owned websites. There are hundreds on Black owned sites that are indexed. It uses Google's tech in the way it was originally designed -- just to direct you to websites. It used to sit on it's own domain huria.org, but I allowed the domain to lapse. I have pulled the search engine it back into AALBC.com. I naively thought Black folks, especially the website owners themselves would support the search engine -- maybe embed it into their own sites. That never happened website owners actually stopped linking out to other websites as Google told them it would potentially hurt them in search -- as a result it became virtually impossible for people to discover another website from a website. I have NEVER stopped linking to other website because, despite what Google says that was the beauty of the web. I sure you will not find ANY Black site that links to more Black sites than AALBC.com.

To get the nation out of the Great Depression, one of my favorite Presidents.....Franklin D. Roosevelt......implemented community service projects and conservation and agricultural project to employ low skilled and unskilled people by the millions and used government funds to pay them decent wages and raise them out of poverty. My Father remembered some of these projects. There were "work camps" all around the nation, including down south....employing a lot of Black folks.

For you Bible believers out there (and you know who you are...lol), when you read about someone being called a "son of man" in the Old Testament. When you read that term in the original Hebrew or Aramaic....it literally means the "son of Adam". Why is this important? The Hebrew word for man (mature male) is "ish" The Hebrew word for humanity is "inoshut" Adam doesn't mean "man" nor does it man "humanity".....it's a SPECIFIC TYPE of person.

@Pioneer1 what if the influencer is the freedom of a woman to do whatever she wants with out having to worry about any penalty ? who is going to deny them their freedom to do what they want? what can deny them the freedom to do what they want?

@Pioneer1 I've said it before and I'll say it again. This site would be nothing without other people, including people like you The WWW is a place that rewards those who support the "other man" and not the Brother man. It is a very perverse and pernicious in this regard, because it works against all of us. Consider the fact that many Black people spend a great deal of time, energy, and money trying to understand a learn how to "work" some social media platform owned by a white, male billionaire who not only does not give two shits about us, but in most cases actively works against us. Meanwhile, Black platforms struggle and fold. I know I make it because of Black people who support the site in big and small ways -- it is the collective effort that makes the difference. Check out the book Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell it addresses the issue of "There are certain ways we relate to other human beings that seem to be "in" us; ingrained in our psyche." in a clever way.

I guess if we could figure out who or what is influencing so many Black women to dye their hair blonde, we can figure out who or what can get them to stop.

One of the reasons I wanted to share this video was because of a couple of recent events that happened over the past week or two. The incident down in Austin Texas where the Senegalese man started shooting people. And now I'm hearing that the man who shot up the ROTC class down in Virginia was also an African. They aren't sure but it appears they did this in response to Americas actions in Iran. People....especially Black folks...shouldn't be so quick to defend people who don't even recognize them as human beings. How many Arabs or Iranians have retaliated against the West when America sent missiles to Nigeria a few months ago or routinely targets Somalia over the decades? You don't even hear of AFRICANS being outraged over it...let alone Arabs and Iranians. Yet you got Africans who want to strap up and seek revenge for something that barely concerns their well being. ProfD One has to wonder 1) what the African countries are doing about their citizens being sold into slavery & 2) how complicit are the leaders in those countries in allowing it to happen Exactly. I'll tell you what they're doing about it.....SENDING THEM. Instead of making the economy better and more stable so that their people wouldn't want to leave the nation and migrate to these racist Arab societies or risk drowning at sea to make their way to Europe......some of these African leaders are actually ENCOURAGING their own citizens to leave the nation! Why? Because they figure if they leave: 1. There will be less mouths to feed, which means more resources in the country for the few who remain. 2. They're hoping these refugees can find jobs in Europe or the Middle East and send money back home so they can steal get some of it.

richardmurray Entertaining old film, thank you for this.

@aka Contrarian Lovely thoughts, thank you for sharing them:) Well use of the word personifications, in that true persons change are not pantomime. Sylvia a true mulatto, definitely goes through trials or tribulations but she isn't tragic cause she wins in the end. She isn't clotel. Mattie is motherly, in the same way Mammy's are, but Mattie is a black woman married to a black man raising a black child... when a black maid is motherly to a white child that is the mammy figure, it isn't a black woman being motherly to a black child, that is expected? right? The landrys are both hanged and burned alive for a crime they didn't commit. hahaha LArry is the trickster, I admit he doesn't change. If anything he is the one true caricature. and Micheaux being like Pioneer:) one of these law abiding blacks, criminalizes black street people. All of larry's crimes are financial, none are violent. but yeah, larry is the pantomime black trickster, but knowing what I know of micheaux that makes sense. I as a writer don't view black hustlers negatively so... Efram wasn't the coon for one reason, in the film, he recants his actions in a confession to the audience so to speak. yes, he is the prototypical coon figure gestures, talk and all, BUT unlike most coon figures, he gets killed by whites, which is a very rare touch. even among black writers, they rarely give "black traitors" aka coons the death that micheax gave efram. People remember samuel l jackson's characters death in django, but he is murdered by a black man, django, Oscar micheaux murders his coon, efram through the true subjects whites, displaying the simple truth that whites are the enemy of blacks folks, whether the honorable, loving, law abiding Landry's or the lying, self hating scheming eframs. But the key is that efram confesses he hates himself, confesses he is wrong which is very rare in film, even black written films. And your correct, the Rev is the "righteous reverend" and Dr.."good hero" But at least with the rev. he is actually challenged. when sylvia rebukes his offer of marriage, that is a real test that again, so few righteous reverends have in many stories. to be challenged is key to testing the identity. but the doctor is an evergood hero:) which ok:) I wish I could see a complete version of symbol fo the unconquered. The partial I placed below. I think it is a response to birth of a nation, not within our gates. Why do I say this? In a general sense, because all of Micheaux's work involve the south plus black people and they are not like in griffith's film, they are all partially a response to birth of a nation, on a mere stylistic point. But in terms of agrarian fantasies, i argue, symbol of the unconquered is more of an agrarian fantasy which is what birth of a nation is, than within our gates. Birth of the nation is dismissive of the usa outside of the south, in birth of a nation the usa outside of the south, doesn't functionally exist. In that way, within our gates isn't a reply. Within our gates is very much holistic. It is showing black unity between blacks outside the south and to the south. Sylvia makes it where the black school in the south will thrive/survive/live but she lives in the north, has found love in the north, fled the south because of white terror, but doesn't ask other black people to leave the south. Within our gates i argue is more holistic to the usa. that complete nature is absent in birth of a nation. But symbol of the unconquered is all about black homesteaders. It is focused on a specific area in the usa like birth of a nation. And like birth of a nation has straight messages about certain persons or groups. Whereas the KKK is heroic supporting the traditions of the south in birth of a nation, the kkk is a terrorist illegal operating organization in symbol of the unconquered. whereas "birth's" female lead is so negatively biased she can jump off of a cliff to her death rather than be violated. the female lead in "symbol"fights through wind and rain and storms, to get her land. can be frightened but will never go to her death from fear. yeah, well , even though I don't prefer comedy usually, i think comedy is the art form most in need in the usa at all times, this countries history doesn't yield to seriousness well. lovely thought, thank you for sharing them

@richardmurrayI watched "Within Our Gates" and fully appreciated it for what it was. In fact, it inspired me to do some research on Oscar Micheaux because I was both curious and confused about him, even misspelling his name. I was, however, vaguely familiar with him which was why I was of the opinion that it must've been his movies that I was seeing quite a while back on a local TV channel that did not run them in prime time but instead put them on during the early afternoon, almost as if to fill in empty air space like the wrestling matches and The Liberace Show did back during the early days of TV. This would mean that my seeing these old films must've been back in the 1950s. Anyway, I learned, to my surprise, that Oscar Micheaux was born in 1884 in Metropolis, Illinois, a town I know of because I had friends from there, and that he died in 1951, so he was alive during my life time. I watched a couple of short YouTube videos about him and have concluded that at least some of those sound movies I was watching back then were ones produced by him later in his career. Finally, imo, some of the stereotypes I previously mentioned did appear in Micheaux's "Beyond the Gates". Certainly Sylvia Landry, the lovelorn heroine of "Within Our Gates, was a "tragic mulatto" whose real father was white and whose black adoptive parents were lynched, her adoptive and nurturing mother, Mattie, being a "Mammy" figure, and the wicked Larry, brother-in-law of Sylvia's cousin, being a villainous "Trickster", while the tattle tale Ephraim, was the "Coon" figure. The minister Jacobs, who ran a school for black children, represented the "Righteous Reverend"and Dr. Vivian, who falls in love with Sylvia, represented the "romantic hero". These personifications, rather than being pantomimed degrading figures, were transformed in "Within Our Gates", and I suspect the improved versions, like the film itself, were used to counteract the negative caricatures that "The Birth of a Nation" depicted. My introduction to Micheaux was probably about 70 years ago and I'm curious if those films I remember seeing were lost and no longer exist since the claim is being made that this movie is the last of its kind in existence. Also, imo, minstrel shows were not totally without merit. They show cased sly humor, buck dancing and banjo artistry among other things. I mention this because there was a time when black Masons would stage their own minstrel shows and, having seen one put on by my father's lodge when I was a young girl in the 1940s, I remember being rather proud that my dad, was a member of a barbershop quartet that performed in a show his Masonic lodge staged. Just some thoughts...

Well where did he go!? He came in the spotlight for a quick minute and then, it seems to me he disappeared just as quickly as he came! Anyway, I loved his style.

Well, if you dont want the 3 Presidents to talk politics at the funeral of a political figure, then don't invite them, just to show how important the deceased was. And Al Sharpton certainly didn't mince any words about what's happening in the country in his remarks. If you want a dignified funeral, don't invite a bunch of dignitaries to speak, and hold the services at a huge hall to accommodate all the public mourners you opened the doors to. You're just asking for confusion and resentment and that's what the Jackson family got. You can't have it both ways.

I use it for that exact reason. I just prompted a chat on how to provide clean water for a community that only has sewage backups, and the government has just taken away their grant because of "DEI". ChatGPT provided me with actionable solutions, including how to address laws that prevent ordinary citizens from tackling the problem when the government puts up roadblocks. *** Chat GPT said: Treat the problem like a high-stakes community project: minimize legal risk, build legitimacy, and move fast with pilots that are lawful, visible, and persuasive. Below is a practical, lawful playbook you can use to get clean water in your community while protecting yourself and your volunteers. 1) Immediate refusal of the illegal route Don’t undertake actions that: violate health/safety codes, tamper with sewage infrastructure, perform unpermitted construction in waterways, or create public hazards. Those acts expose you to criminal and civil liability and endanger people. 2) High-level strategy (mindset) Think like a scrappy micro-operator who: designs small, replicable pilots that prove solutions work, reduces legal/financial exposure up front, documents everything (photos, water tests, receipts, volunteer logs), partners with credible institutions (health dept, university, nonprofit), uses visibility to generate political pressure for system-level change. 3) Practical step-by-step plan Assess & document the problem (2–4 weeks) Collect photos, time/date stamps, testimonies from residents. Get simple water tests (bacterial and basic chemistry) — local health department or university extension can often help or direct you to accredited labs. SMART example: “Collect 30 household water samples and 20 resident testimonies by Nov 1.” Map stakeholders & legal landscape (1–2 weeks) Who owns the sewer systems, utilities, or storm drains? City, county, private utility? Which agency enforces water quality? (Health department, EPA/state agency.) Identify allies: neighborhood association, churches, school, local university, watershed groups, community health clinics. Design a low-risk pilot (4–8 weeks) Options (lawful, immediate relief + demonstration value): Community water station (bottled or filtered) in a public, permitted space. Point-of-use home filtration voucher program (buy certified filters and distribute with instructions). Temporary rainwater harvesting for non-potable uses (with proper signage and permits). Each pilot should have measurable outcomes (e.g., “Provide safe drinking water to 200 people/week; show lab-confirmed reduction in E. coli in 90% of distributed samples”). Legal protections & structure before operating Form an entity (a nonprofit or an LLC) to separate personal liability from project assets. Purchase insurance: general liability (covers bodily injury/property damage), product liability (if you distribute hardware/filters), and directors/officers (if you run a nonprofit). If you have volunteers, confirm Volunteer Liability coverage or use waivers where lawful. Get permits when needed (temporary events, signage, modifications to public right-of-way). Consult a local attorney for project-specific counsel — many law schools offer pro bono clinics. Launch pilot with partners & document impact (8–12 weeks) Partner with a trusted local org (church, school, clinic) to host the pilot. Publicize: press release, neighborhood socials, local reporters. Collect data: usage numbers, lab results, testimonials, cost per household. Scale, fund, and pressure for systemic change Use documented pilot results to apply for grants, municipal funding, or crowdsource donations. Present findings to the city/county with a clear ask (repair schedule, budget, policy change). If government inaction continues, use civic tools: public records requests, city council hearings, petitions, and coalition building. Legal enforcement routes (e.g., citizen complaints to regulatory agencies) can be powerful — consult counsel. 4) Risk mitigation specifics Insurance: shop for general liability and product liability; nonprofits often get discounted policies. Ask about volunteer liability and event insurance. Waivers & signage: have clear, plain-language signage and intake forms; do not rely solely on waivers to avoid negligence claims — they help but don’t eliminate risk. Permits: always check local codes before modifying streets, storm drains, or public infrastructure. Even “helpful” repairs done without permission can trigger fines and removal. Recordkeeping: keep receipts, vendor contracts, volunteer logs, and test results. This builds credibility and legal defense. 5) Technical quick wins you can pursue lawfully Distribute NSF/ANSI-certified point-of-use filters and train households on maintenance. Repair or replace household plumbing fixtures that cause contamination (privately funded). Deploy green infrastructure pilot(s): bioswales, rain gardens, permeable pavement demonstrations (with permits). These reduce sewage runoff into drinking sources. Launch community education on septic maintenance, proper disposal, and pollution prevention. 6) Power moves that shift the system Get credible third-party testing and publish results. Nothing shames a municipality more than independent lab data showing contamination. Mobilize a broad coalition (schools, faith groups, parents). When the issue affects children, public pressure accelerates policy response. File targeted public-records requests and use them in media and council hearings. Offer the municipality an “easy win” — propose a funded pilot they can co-brand and adopt. 7) When civil disobedience becomes relevant Civil disobedience has a long role in social change, but it’s risky and requires willingness to accept legal consequences. If you’re considering that route, consult experienced organizers and legal counsel first and plan for bail funds and legal defense. Quick checklist you can use now Take 20 photos of the runoff/contamination with timestamps. Contact local health dept to ask about water testing. Identify 3 community partners (church, school, neighborhood assoc.). Draft a 1-page pilot plan with measurable goals and budget. Look into entity formation and call one insurance broker for a quote. I ended the prompt here because it was a hypothetical situation. So many people think advocacy is doing something but I wanted to show a movement requires actionable goals and measurable results.