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Mel Hopkins

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Status Updates posted by Mel Hopkins

  1. Third World Press Celebrates 50 Years in Publishing -

    merlin-to-scoop-128125610-445400-master7...I'm a man of action and two, that ideas, and the creative carriage of ideas can change lives.  I didn't go out there deciding to start a book publishing company.  But I knew, I'm not going to be digging ditches for these bad boys."  Dr.  Haki R. Madhubuti , Publisher -  on what inspired him to found a publishing company in 1967.

    1. Show previous comments  1 more
    2. Troy

      Troy

      Thanks. I'd read the article. It appears in the same issue as one in which Ta-nehisi Coates was featured above the fold on the cover of the Arts section.  If I had the resources I would have attended the 50th Anniversary celebration.

       

      It is a good thing that the New York Times covered the milestone, check out The Chicago Crusader's coverge: https://chicagocrusader.com/hundreds-gather-to-celebrate-50th-anniversary-of-third-world-press-foundation/#comment-9705

    3. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      Thank you for the link! I will definitely add it to my website!

    4. richardmurray

      richardmurray

      what if all the writers on aalbc submitted a written work, based on one theme, something short, whether prose/poetry... opinion/fiction and then submitted it as a book to third world publishing?  @Troy @Mel Hopkins

  2. blitter-personal-profile-sq.jpg

    Blitter, a Black-owned micro-blogging social networking site created by Patrick Francis - launched on October 5, 2017... Check out my initial thoughts on the service 

  3. Never Forget  - N'EM

     

    1. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      ‘N’em

      They said to say goodnight
      And not goodbye, unplugged
      The TV when it rained. They hid
      Money in mattresses
      So to sleep on decisions.
      Some of their children
      Were not their children. Some
      Of their parents had no birthdates.
      They could sweat a cold out
      Of you. They’d wake without
      An alarm telling them to.
      Even the short ones reached
      Certain shelves. Even the skinny
      Cooked animals too quick
      To get caught. And I don’t care
      How ugly one of them arrived,
      That one got married
      To somebody fine. They fed
      Families with change and wiped
      Their kitchens clean.
      Then another century came.
      People like me forgot their names.

      Copyright © 2014 by Jericho Brown. Reprinted from Split This Rock’s The Quarry: A Social Justice Poetry Database.

    2. richardmurray

      richardmurray

      lovely share @Mel Hopkins  i saw it on vimeo before i saw you had it in the comments:)  I am one of those northerners that is near completely anti southern in my speech except when i talk fast, i have been told:) 

  4. 598c9028b2425_PhotoFeb11100940PM.jpg.ace9bafac8014f678cbc1cd54eda53ea.jpgToday in "Careful, Or You'll End up in My Novel - I explore the reality behind achieving a Happily Ever After.  Do you Have what it takes to have a lasting relationship?  

    Listen to Episode 2 "Internal Conflict" and let me know what you think.  

  5. "Life is the sum of your choices"

  6. 598c9028b2425_PhotoFeb11100940PM.jpg.ace9bafac8014f678cbc1cd54eda53ea.jpg

    "Careful, Or You'll End Up in My Novel" is a new Podcast/Blog that looks through the prism of imagined stories and fictional characters to help solve real problems in real life.  

    Entry No.2  Bridget's Baby. Daddy's Maybe ponders if black women are unnecessarily hard on themselves, leading to their own peril and unhappiness.

  7. New Find... Dateline: Bronzeville A Runny Walker Mysterycover_13b.jpg?w=901

     

    A history mystery with a twist - 3D  Illustrations from  the Jones Brothers..."  From the Press Release

    "Runny Walker makes his debut in Dateline: Bronzeville, a fast-paced mystery adventure set on the South Side of Chicago in 1940. Dateline: Bronzeville is the first in a series of Runny Walker Mysteries. 

    This remarkable collaboration melds stunningly beautiful original artwork by acclaimed media artist, Philip Mallory Jones with a dynamic ‘ripped from the headlines’ mystery tale by his brother, Donald Brooks Jones. 

    Says Donald, “The inspiration for Dateline: Bronzeville comes from our experience growing up on the South Side of Chicago, listening to the tales told by our parents and elders of the characters they had known, plus extensive research in the African American press of the day.”

    Philip adds, “Dateline: Bronzeville is our celebration of the lore and legends of the now-vanished world known as The Black Metropolis.” 

    Dateline Bronzeville: A Runny Walker Mystery A Picture book for the kid in us all! 

     

  8. #PhilandoCastile  murder trial

    GTY-minnesota-protests-3-jt-170617_4x3_9Most people don't want to hear this but we black people must be better involved with government...A quick search engine query returned that Ramsey county where the murder trial of Philando Castile was held has a diverse population 36% are people of color (and there's a lot of Ethiopians and Somalis immigrants) but low voter turnout...

    If people aren't even voting there's less chance of being called for jury duty. This jury had 1 black American male and 1 Ethiopian-American woman... that's 1 man who may have shared Castile's perspective of what it's like to be a black man in America - the rest of the jury were middle-aged white men and women. While we hope a jury can be impartial at least and empathetic at best when viewing evidence - not everyone shares a perspective that would allow them to view evidence the same way.

    By now we should stop being surprised that the system is failing black people... black people who are not involved in government - at the very least by voting and serving on juries are failing the black community. Let's stop being surprised and get involved; let's teach the next generation how to shape a government that works for them, not against them.

    1. richardmurray

      richardmurray

      I thought juries were chosen, and lawyers battle over who to choose and i find in these cases, a pro system jury is always selected

    2. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      I've served on a jury.  It was  a murder trial.  We acquitted the young (black) man.  Not enough evidence.   When we are present - we are the system.  

    3. richardmurray

      richardmurray

      hmmm good point. 

  9. 593f55851600003a00115d12.jpg

    Photo credit: JOE JONES, NAN MICHIGAN

    Rev. Charles Williams II and NAN Michigan held press conference June 12, 2017 urging Radio One Detroit to Cancel its prospective Sale to Crawford Media

    From Crain's Detroit  - 

    "Radio One Detroit has agreed to sell its WCHB AM 1200 NewsTalk station to Birmingham, Ala.-based Crawford Broadcasting Co. for an undisclosed amount, the radio cluster announced Wednesday.

    The deal, expected to close within 90 days, includes the dial signal and radio tower in Romulus. NewsTalk 1200 airs simultaneously on 99.9 FM, which is owned by Radio One Detroit."

    1. Show previous comments  2 more
    2. richardmurray

      richardmurray

      sometimes people make it too complicated in the usa. asking someone not to go for money in a country founded for money, that is why natives were annihilated, so whites could have free land. money is not merely a system, it is the life's blood of the usa and as such, when people want fiscal choices to not be done, the best solution is a counter deal

    3. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      I have no counter-argument for all that you've written. I wish I did... It would mean we now live in a utopia..

    4. richardmurray

      richardmurray

      I say a monetopia:) 

  10.  

    National Action Network Goes Live!

    A photo fo Impact TV logo Impact TV logo

    National Action Network founded by Reverend Al Sharpton will go live across the nation on Saturday, June 10, 2017 as the newest addition to the growing scheduled line-up on Impact TV. 

    In a press release distributed through PR Newswire, the civil rights leader, Reverend Al Sharpton, is expected to preach from the scriptures, talk about the state of civil rights in the U.S. and bring a message that is intended to lift spirits toward action.  

    National Action Network will broadcast live at 10 AM EDT from House of Justice in Harlem, New York on the 100 percent African American-owned and operated Christian television network founded by Bishop Wayne T. Jackson and Dr.  Beverly Y. Jackson in 2010.   You may recall, Bishop Jackson hosted the then Republican Presidential candidate nominee, Donald J. Trump, for a one-on-one interview that aired on Impact TV last September.

    Impact TV is available on cable & satellite television providers Comcast Xfinity, Dish, DirectTV, Charter Spectrum and Time Warner Spectrum.  Check your local listings for availability

    1. Troy

      Troy

      Here I thought Rev Al, would lose prominence after Obama left office...

      But I was unaware of the 100% Black-owned TV Network.  This is good news.  Hey @harry brown, what do you think of Bishop Wayne T. Jackson?

      Another example of the Black Church positively impact the lives of Black Women and Men.

       

    2. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      @Troy hahaha! I guess you'd have to be a church-goer to believe that one.  The black church is no friend to black women.  Any woman who can't see that is very much brainwashed about  African antiquity and how it relates to spirituality.  Remember the black church arose out of U.S slavery... not from African practices. 

       But here's where I do give  credit to the black church as I do HBCUs - both are a dominate force in black media.   You will find I give a lot space to the black church and its activities -on The LeadStory because  the black church as a medium  is the conscience of Main Stream Media

      By the way, Bishop Jackson is the same man who did a one-on-one interview with 45 when he was a candidate. 

    3. richardmurray

      richardmurray

      good status side dialog

  11. "What's in a Name, N--ger." 

    I'm always amazed when black people say the N-word is a term of endearment or familiarity -yet the conventional spelling is rarely used to indicate this 'truth'. Same with this painting that hangs in Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture. The artist, Barkley Hendricks says he's meant to be provocative but the spelling of the portrait's name "New Orleans Niggah"  reveals otherwise.

     "New Orleans Niggah" by Barkley Hendricks  - oil and acrylic on canvas on loan from the National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center in Wilberforce, Ohio

     img_23601.jpg

    From the placard:

     "There's a saying in the black community: You put it out there and let others deal with it.  The cool realist style of New Orleans Niggah Invites viewers to contemplate how they personally engage issues of identity , black masculinity, racism and the politics of language. This is a portrait of the artist's friend and fellow Yale classmate, art historian Jules Easton Taylor. Instead of identifying Taylor by name or profession, Barkley Hendricks chose to refer to him by a derivation of the explosive racial epithet.  Although used here as term of familiarity and endearment, Hendricks does not ignore the complex history of the word.  Taylor had achieved much professionally, but he would not escape the racism that existed in America at that time. "

  12. image.jpg

    One Night Only | The first Black-owned and operated Chicago theatre to reopen for an outdoor concert.   The Pekin Theatre located in the Bronzeville section of Chicago was first opened by alleged professional gambler, Robert Motts.   The outdoor concert, sponsored Illinois Humanities and Empty Bottle, an Evening at the Pekin Theater will feature ragtime pianist and MacArthur “genius” grantee Reginald Robinson and his band playing music from the Pekin’s active era, which lasted until 1916.  The concert will be held June 17, 2017 @ 7PM

    Source : Timeout Magazine

  13.   wolcottbook.jpg

    "Remaking Respectability - African American Women in Interwar Detroit" Featured in the book by Victoria Wolcott  now available on Kindle "Detroit Housewives Leaque"  and how they helped transform Detroit's  black politics and culture.

    "Don't Buy Where You Can't Work"

    The 3rd Sunday in May is a special day in Black history when we celebrate the founder of the Detroit Housewives League, Fannie Peck.  In 1930s Black women couldn’t afford to stay at home and wait for their husbands. Too many businesses would sell goods and services to Black people but wouldn’t hire them. So in 1930 Detroit women led by Fannie Peck formed a group called the “Detroit Housewives’ League.” It educated women on their buying power and encouraged them to only shop at African-American owned businesses. The group was also initiating big protests and boycotts.

    In 1935 they set a huge packing warehouse on fire protesting against high prices, and later joined thousands of Chicago housewives in a march that shut down the city’s entire meat industry. 

    Go toSource: BlackMattersUS

     

  14. Before digital social networks and social media, I used to keep a scrapbook for all the news stories I found interesting - here's one such article :

    Pioneer Aviator Bessie Coleman in this 1920s photos was the world's first black female aviator. She was licensed in 1921

    img_2102.jpg

    1. Troy

      Troy

      Don't stop. Social media is no substitute for the archiving and sharing of these stories. 

    2. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      Thank you @Troy ! So true! - I'm integrating all my hobbies into my website...while not neglecting the hardcopy!

  15. img_23611-e1495559594353.jpg

    I was on vacation for a week and just like when I left the airlines after 8 years, when I returned I found myself returning to AALBC.com-munity to find my balance. 

    Smithsonian National Museum African American Heritage and Culture

    "Ethiopia"

    W.E.B. Du Bois and James Weldon Johnson commissioned Fuller to create Ethiopia for the Negro Exhibit in the America's Making Exposition in 1921.  An image of the sculpture graced the cover of the exhibit's publication describing it as "A Symbolic Statue of the Emancipation of the Negro Race" Fuller's work links the cultural achievements of ancient Egypt as well as the Ethiopian resistance to colonial rule to a narrative of African American struggle and achievement.

     

  16. In the spirit of our lively forum discussions - from Smithsonian's National Museum of  African American Heritage and Culture

    Language | The Power of Words

    Rapping, Storytelling, Preaching, Signifying, Testifying, Playing the Dozens.

    At Its heart, African American culture is an oral culture. Enslaved blacks combined English with African vocabularies and ways of talking. They created a language that built communities and kept them going. Talking and telling connect people.  New terms and expressions are born, picked up, and spread with each generation.  Some master two languages or dialects - one they speak in their community and mainstream American English. How African Americans speak depends on whom they're speaking to.

    img_2338-e1495475565983.jpg

    img_2339-e1495475648617.jpg

    img_2340-e1495475701995.jpg

     

  17. img_2456-e1495298481588.png

    "Ahh, The Name is Bootsy, Baby"

    Culture Galleries - Smithsonian's  National Museum African American History and Culture"

  18. img_2301.jpg

    Smithsonian's National African American History and Culture Museum...

    1. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      Correction: National Museum African American History and Culture

  19. img_2309.jpg

    img_2301.jpg

    img_2306.jpg

     

    Smithsonian's National Museum African American History & Culture beats expectation! 7 levels of African's American History with new exhibits throughout the year...

  20. img_2309.jpg

    img_2301.jpg

    img_2306.jpg

     

    Smithsonian's National Museum African American History & Culture beats expectation! 7 levels of African's American History with new exhibits throughout the year...

    1. Show previous comments  1 more
    2. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      Yes!  Especially since every 8th grade class in America decided to visit at the same time... lol!  @Troy, it is a fascinating museum -  I hope you plan to visit it over several days as it is nearly impossible to do it in one day.  It's a lot of material to process especially if you have specific interests.. Mine happens to be textile, sewing, jewelry & fashion  design Industry, then cultural activism and entertainment - so my eye always wandered towards those exhibits.  In doing so, I almost missed other aspects of being African in America which were equally if not more important... Thank goodness my mom pointed out those things to me, so I could snap or take a photo. It is a great experience... and clearly important to many Americans because practically all nationalities were represented on the first day I attended... One more suggestion - keep a nearly empty tummy because you'll want to save room for the food in the Sweet Home Cafe  it is DELICIOUS!!!   I never seen so many white folks chow down on fried chicken collards and corn bread!  My mom had the shrimp and grits, I had the grilled barbecue chicken with alabama white sauce, rice and beans w/ pork bits and green beans and potatoes!  I didn't need anything to eat for the rest of the day LOL

    3. Troy

      Troy

      I'll only have a day for the trip planned in July, but I visit DC enough where I can take in more of the museum. I'll save room for the food.

       

    4. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      This is really weird.  This content disappeared from my profile page.  I clicked on my profile and this status was in edit mode.  :o

  21. Acronym of the Day|  FinCen:  Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. (US Department of Treasury)

     

  22. 51-eLhzN1mL._SY346_.jpg

    Angel Rich, founder of DC tech start-up,The Wealth Factory, Inc, and developer of the popular app, Credit Stacker, released "History of Black Dollar", last week.   Rich says The 144 page books answers the question of "why there's a financial gap between black and white America."

    From Amazon.com "reveals significant economic moments in history that have helped shape America - slavery, sharecropping, convict leasing, Little Rock Nine, Black Wall Street, civil rights, the great recession, Black Lives Matter and other important milestones - along with highlighting important figures, some lesser known, that have made these Black, financially historical moments possible through their personal diligent efforts.  This book aims to help older generations remember, while enlightening younger generations on the progression of America and its direct correlation to the support of Black Americans that will inspire both groups to continuing uplifting economic social justice. "

    1. Troy

      Troy

      I wonder if corporate ownership of legislators and the resulting emergence of super-massive corporations who dominate the new tech economy are mentioned.

    2. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      Could be, especially since she's deeply entrenched in that economy. She is in the process of raising capital for her Tech company.

  23. Question:  What is the name of a major film studio (production and film distribution) that has majority African-American/black ownership.  

    Wikipedia defines major film studio is a production and film distributor  that releases a substantial number of films annually and consistently commands a significant share of box office  revenue in a given market. 

    Answer:

    1. Show previous comments  1 more
    2. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      Me neither. But I hope to find evidence of one. I read on blog, code black entertainment might be one.  Tyler Perry Studios would be a contender but it's reported he has a separate distributor.

    3. Troy

      Troy

      I recall some very prominent actor, I wanna say Don Cheadle, said a Black person can not green light a movie, but I don't know enough about the industry to know if this is true or not...

    4. Mel Hopkins

      Mel Hopkins

      So far from what I've learned - he's right.  Without significant distribution it's unlikely that a movie will appear in the theaters..  Just like the internet is facebook and google; major theaters that have a lock on screens  are AMC, Cinemark ,Regal Entertainment  - and I've heard/read these chains don't take a chance on anything that's not a guaranteed blockbuster.  They want to feel seats every weekend.

  24. From The Hollywood Reporter: Ebony Media Operations has signed on with the largest talent agency, WME (William Morris Endeavor), for what appears to be a client/agent relationship. 

    In the partnership, Ebony/Jet is looking "to expand its current print and digital footprint, enhance the brand and utilize  the magazine's over 70 years of archival content." 

    Richard Prince's Journal-isms reports that Ebony Media Operations executives have also let go their top editors which comes right on the heels of freelance writers shaming the 70-year old African-American Lifestyle Magazine for nonpayment using the hashtag #ebonyowes on the social networking site "Twitter". 

    With this new deal with WME, not only will Ebony have access to A-list celebrities, sporting, corporate events, et al they may be in a better position to pay their writers.  But at what cost to its editorial integrity? 



  25. “We have the intention and the power as influencers to drive change where it strikes fear in this system – the revenue stream. We watch 40% more television than any other group of people. 95% of us tune into a radio station at least once a week. We make more trips to the grocery store than any other consumer segment — We spend 1.3 trillion dollars every single year. That’s what Australia spends.” Grace Pearson-McNeil added that “although the buying power of Blacks speak volumes and worthy of pursuit, brands still don’t allocate funds proportionately.”

    http://theleadstory.org/data-scientist-trillions-african-americans-spend-as-much-as-australia/

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