Troy

It always about class. The race BS was all about dividing the oppressed people. Greed. This is why our university system is so *ucked up when it comes to serving anyone who is not rich.

Well you are indeed the better man

National Book Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Ibram X. Kendi (How to Be an Antiracist, Antiracist Baby) returns with a new picture book that serves as a modern bedtime classic. As children all over the world get ready for bed, the moon watches over them. The moon knows that when we sleep, we dream. And when we dream, we imagine what is possible and what the world can be. With dynamic, imaginative art and poetic prose, Goodnight Racism delivers important messages about antiracism, justice, and equality in an easy-to-read format that empowers readers both big and small. Goodnight Racism gives children the language to dream of a better world and is the perfect book to add to their social justice toolkit. Buy Now ▶ AALBC Book Reviews Miss Chloe: A Literary Friendship with Toni Morrison by A.J. Verdelle “Miss Chloe is an important book, dealing with the friendship of A. J. Verdelle and Toni Morrison. It's about the close bond between them as women, writers, and creative artists. …it's also a clinic about creative writing, publishing, and inspiration.” —Robert Fleming, AALBC Book Review and Author of Evil Never Sleeps Verdelle describes Toni Morrison aka Chloe A. Wofford, the wise, reflective woman from the small town of Lorain, Ohio. She had been a faithful reader of Morrison’s complex, enlightening novels, notably The Bluest Eye and Beloved, so the inevitable meeting occurred at a church function in Boston. Her rendition of the meeting with the legendary author is priceless and the rest is history. More ▶ Noteworthy New Books She Memes Well: Essays by Quinta Brunson From comedian Quinta Brunson (creator and star of Abbott Elementary) comes a deeply personal and funny collection of essays about trying to make it when you’re struggling, the importance of staying true to your roots, and how she’s redefined humor online. Quinta Brunson is a master at breaking the internet. Before having any traditional background in media, her humorous videos were the first to go viral on Instagram’s platform. From there, Brunson’s wryly observant POV helped cement her status in the comedy world at large, with roles on HBO, Netflix, ABC, Adult Swim, BuzzFeed, the CW, and Comedy Central. Now, Brunson is bringing her comedic chops to the page in She Memes Well, an earnest, laugh-out-loud collection about this unusual road to notoriety. More ▶ Game: An Autobiography by Grant Hill Grant Hill always had game. His choice of college was a subject of national interest, and his arrival at Duke University cemented the program’s arrival at the top. In his freshman year, he led the team to its first NCAA championship and three championship appearances in four years. His Duke career produced some of the most iconic moments in college basketball history, and Coach K proved to be a lifelong mentor. Later, as one of the NBA’s best players and a new face of the Detroit Pistons franchise, Hill was the first person with the potential to give Michael Jordan a run for his money, not just as a player but as a brand. His $45 million rookie contract was almost the least of it. He turned down Nike for Fila, and soon Method Man and Tupac Shakur were wearing his shoes. More ▶ Under the Skin: The Hidden Toll of Racism on American Lives and on the Health of Our Nation by Linda Villarosa In 2018, Linda Villarosa’s New York Times Magazine article on maternal and infant mortality among black mothers and babies in America caused an awakening. Hundreds of studies had previously established a link between racial discrimination and the health of Black Americans, with little progress toward solutions. But Villarosa’s article exposing that a Black woman with a college education is as likely to die or nearly die in childbirth as a white woman with an eighth-grade education made racial disparities in health care impossible to ignore. Now, in Under the Skin, Linda Villarosa lays bare the forces in the American healthcare system and in American society that cause Black people to “live sicker and die quicker” compared to their white counterparts. More ▶ Carl Weber’s Kingpins: Brooklyn by Brandie Davis In the Eighties and Nineties, Wesley Evans, better known as Ruby, was Brooklyn’s wealthiest, longest-reigning kingpin. Accomplishing all it took to make history, including rubbing elbows with celebrities and expanding his businesses out of state, he avoided all the bounties put on his head and NYPD’s handcuffs. Ruby set the bar in Brooklyn, and when he finally became a legit family man, he left behind rules that would ensure not only success but also humility, for the kings who would follow him. What happens when these rules are not followed… More ▶ Dele Weds Destiny by Tomi Obaro “Fast-paced, glamorous, and bursting with emotion…. The bonds between women—as friends, and across the generations—are the jewels that make this story shine.” —Tayari Jones, author of An American Marriage The story of three once-inseparable college friends in Nigeria who reunite for the first time in thirty years at a lavish wedding in Lagos for one of their daughters—a sparkling debut novel about mothers and daughters, culture and class, sex and love, and the extraordinary resilience of female friendship. More ▶ Troy Johnson Appeared on Black Authors Matter TV Black Authors Matter TV Black Authors Matter TV is a weekly, live-streamed program where authors, publishers, bookstore owners, book club facilitators, book marketers, and other movers and shakers in the African-American literature arena are interviewed. BAM TV is live-streamed every Tuesday on the National Black Book Festival's Facebook page from 7 to 9 pm CST. On May 24, 2022, Troy Johnson, Brandon Massey, and Mary Monroe appeared on the Black Authors Matter TV podcast. Listen Now ▶ Dear Reader, Your support is crucial to helping us improve AALBC..com. Your paid subscriptions, book purchases, suggestions, engagement on the site, social sharing, advertisements, and feedback help support AALBC’s mission of celebrating Black culture through books. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This message is sponsored by Kokila. Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated email. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – June 28, 2022 - Issue #362

Throwing up my hands, completely exasperated.

This is what I mean by troll-like behavior. Now you accuse me of lying -- an unfounded accusation that you throw out there just to be a pain or for fun. I have not idea what motivates and informs your statements particularly as they relate to me, but they are often not intended to advance dialogue or to learn anything... Trolling

Thanks Denise we go way back

I believe @Stefan is right, and I also believe @ProfD offers the right remedy. Some of Uncle Ruckus' (Greg's) points might sound reasonable to an uninformed, or a person who wants to marginalize Black people. Most of us already know most murder are intraracial that is people are most likely to be killed by someone of their own so called race (as illustrated by the stat Mel shared). However, it is only in the Black community to we have to constantly read about "Black -on-Black" crime. There is never any hand wringing over "white-on-white crime" -- which actually accounts for most of the murders in the US (2017 data)

Exactly!

Uncle Ruckus, seek help.

good point one i had never considered. Someone without a historical perspective now telling people to read. Hitler did not pop up in a vacuum; he emerged because of an environment you obviously know little about, so you are incapable of drawing parallels to today and comprehending Mel’s point.

I wish the 'right-to-lifers" would be willing to exert the same energy and passion to preserving the lives of those who have actually been born. Support for quality universal health care would be a good start. To answer your question directly, anything that is bad for American people in general is almost always worse for Black people in particular. That said, this decision transcends race. It effects everyone.

Excellent observation. I guess AALBC is doing something right; it is deemed significant enough to be a target of racist trolls.

I was unaware that Gillum was photographed passed out on a yacht. Maybe he was just sleeping... Who was he with that would betray him in such a fashion. I guess he though he was with friends. This must be so embarrassing to Gillum and his family. I dunno, maybe Greg is right about us These screen shots are from a collage out created from images they have pulled from websites. This is directly from their search engine results page. Now if I put these photos on my site Google would prevent me from serving their ads my my page. They once banner an entire website of mine from serving ads for just a handful of photos. I guess since I'm not serving Google ads I don't have to worry about it -- for now

Wait, what/ Are you saying the good white people of America committed crimes, in a well organized fashion no less? Do you think @Greg's head will explode with this revelation?

Google Ads Has anyone noticed that the Google ads are gone? If found them increasingly intrusive and irritating. I've also reduced the number ads running throughout the rest of the site. My Google ad revenue is down substantially, but it is worth it, at least for now. Basically, I let Google put ads anywhere they wanted and they really took advantage of the site. They would have full screen ads pop up as you went from one page to the next, The would out two or three ads (often the same ones) right in the middle text you are trying to read. If I put ads on my site, the way Google inserted them, Google would bury their search results, for providing a bad experience to visitors. Amazon Links For several years now I have been anti-Amazon going as far as dropping virtually all links to Amazon's site. However, I have decided to link to Amazon's Kindle store to sell ebooks. I used an alternative vendor to sell eBooks, but the problem is no one buys ebooks from the vendor's site. Amazon has created an effective monopoly on eBooks. So rather than not sell eBooks I have decided to just link to where people will go anyway. I actually don't like this, but it is a pragmatic decision that I hope I do not end up regretting. I really have no choice today if I want to profit off the sale of eBooks. As always, I'm open to comments.

.... so George and Breanna brought their brutal murders on themselves Uncle Ruckus? You believe they deserved to be slain? The fact that the white men you worship put Floyd's murderer in prison. Why do you think they did that? Like most trolls you are not interested in learning and you are obviously not going to convert anyone here to your world view. What motives you is beyond me, but I've lost my curiosity.

Uncle Ruckus, "historically" is a word you should remove from your vocabulary. You've demonstrated history is not part of your repertoire. When massa let Black women, he raped to birth more slaves, eat pig intestines, snout, feet, and tails, he was being a better provider than her enslaved mate, right?

That is hyperbolic. I'm not going to address that question. Ask me a legitimate question, that is based upon reality Yes, because you are asserting something as fact, but can't support it with anything other than your imagination. Stefan there is nothing you can write that can tick me off. Do you believe everyone who disagrees with you must be ticked off by you? You proved the obvious -- way to go dude! The only one you need to convince is Greg (i.e. Uncle Ruckus). Look up strawman argument. Mustering these up is your strength.

Ok Stefan as i previously wrote the last time you made this claim. You exhibited, continue to exhibit troll like behavior. For example making claims of me that are demonstrably untrue. For example, I have problem with people sharing memes I’ve done it myself. Simply sharing a name die not make a troll.

I’m not sure what you mean by this statement @Stefan I’ve labeled @Greg as a troll, Uncle Ruckus really, but people don’t really seem to mind Is I’ve taken no action. Uncle Ruckus has the impact of providing the white racist talking points helping us understand their thinking.

come on man, I’m not trying to “defend” trump. That is in your imagination. What i reject is your blanket condemnation of all Republicans. As if they all worship trump. As if trump was actually a true conservative. @Pioneer1 that is because Del will occasionally agree with us, but he never agrees with you

Interesting.

Not surprisingly, wrong again: His Name Is George Floyd: One Man’s Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice by Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa ADD TO CART Publication Date: May 17, 2022 List Price: $30.00 Format: Hardcover, 432 pages Classification: Nonfiction ISBN13: 9780593490617 Imprint: Viking Publisher: Penguin Random House Parent Company: Bertelsmann Borrow from Library Read Our Review of His Name Is George Floyd: One Man’s Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice Read an Excerpt from His Name Is George Floyd: One Man’s Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice

Read the work of James Cone. https://aalbc.com/books/bookinfo.php?isbn13=9781626983083

In The Lightmaker's Manifesto, Karen Walrond helps us name the skills, values, and actions that bring us joy; identify the causes that spark our empathy and concern; and then put it all together to change the world. Creative and practical exercises, including journaling, daily intention-setting, and mindful self-compassion, are complemented by lively conversations with activists and thought leaders such as Valarie Kaur, Brené Brown, Tarana Burke, and Zuri Adele. With stories from around the world and wisdom from those leading movements for change, Walrond beckons readers toward lives of integrity, advocacy, conviction, and joy. Buy Now ▶ AALBC Book Reviews His Name Is George Floyd: One Man’s Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice by Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa The book’s authors, Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa, both respected political journalists for The Washington Post, reveal the grim, deeply personal account of the man whose martyrdom triggered a global response to this nation’s racism. While many youths have embraced the symbol of Floyd, very few people recognized the commonality of this man with so many black males in our community. In so many ways, George Perry Floyd Jr. was an everyman through towns and cities containing men of color. These newspaper scribes want to give the full measure of Floyd’s life, warts and all. They speak candidly about Floyd’s colorful father. The elder George Floyd was a professional musician, playing guitar for the Chocolate Buttermilk Band, a funk group that backed James Brown, Teddy Pendergrass, and other R&B bands. More ▶ Read an Excerpt ▶ The New Age of Empire: How Racism and Colonialism Still Rule the World by Kehinde Andrews This is an updated version of, Kehinde Andrews, seminal book, which has shaken up academia and historians in Europe and the Caribbean with its penetrating analysis. Historian Robin D, G Kelley called the book “a provocation,” and adds: “…we are still living this imperial nightmare, still reaping consequences of contemporary racialized violence and exploitation. The lesson: no freedom under racism, no future under capitalism, no justice without decolonization.” It’s very timely that the book opens with the 2020 George Floyd killing and the huge protest of resistance that followed the police murder. The British critic terms the Floyd killing as “the straw that broke the camel’s back, coming so close on the heels of the lynching of Ahmaud Arbery and state-sanctioned murder of Breonna Taylor.” He mentions the killing as one of the most significant events to rock the foundations of racism, genocide, colonialism, and imperialism. More ▶ Book Excerpts The Sun Does Shine (Young Readers Edition) by Anthony Ray Hinton, with Lara Love Hardin and Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich The Sun Does Shine is an extraordinary testament to the power of hope sustained through the darkest times, now adapted for younger readers, with a revised foreword by Just Mercy author Bryan Stevenson. In 1985, Anthony Ray Hinton was arrested and charged with two counts of capital murder in Alabama. Stunned, confused, and only 29 years old, Hinton knew that it was a case of mistaken identity and believed that the truth would prove his innocence and ultimately set him free. Read an Excerpt ▶ Will by Will Smith I’ve always thought of myself as a coward. Most of my memories of my childhood involve me being afraid in some way-afraid of other kids, afraid of being hurt or embarrassed, afraid of being seen as weak. But mostly, I was afraid of my father. When I was nine years old, I watched my father punch my mother in the side of her head so hard that she collapsed. I saw her spit blood. That moment in that bedroom, probably more than any other moment in my life, has defined who I am today. Within everything that I have done since then—the awards and accolades, the spotlights and the attention, the characters and the laughs—there has been a subtle string of apologies to my mother for my inaction that day. For failing her in that moment. For failing to stand up to my father. For being a coward. Read the Rest of Chapter One ▶ Unbossed: How Black Girls Are Leading the Way by Khristi Lauren Adams From Khristi Lauren Adams, author of the celebrated Parable of the Brown Girl, comes Unbossed, a hopeful and riveting inquiry into the lives of eight young Black women who are agitating for change and imagining a better world. Offering practical lessons in leadership, resilience, empathy, and tenacity from a group of young leaders of color who are often neglected, Unbossed includes profiles of Jaychele Nicole Schenck, Ssanyu Lukoma, Tyah-Amoy Roberts, Grace Callwood, Hannah Lucas, Amara Ifeji, Stephanie Younger, and Kynnedy Smith. Read an Excerpt ▶ How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi “What is your definition of a Christian?” Dad asked in his deeply earnest way. Cone looked at Dad with equal seriousness and responded: “A Christian is one who is striving for liberation.” James Cone’s working definition of a Christian described a Christianity of the enslaved, not the Christianity of the slaveholders. Receiving this definition was a revelatory moment in Dad’s life. Ma had her own similar revelation in her Black student union—that Christianity was about struggle and liberation. My parents now had, separately, arrived at a creed with which to shape their lives, to be the type of Christians that Jesus the revolutionary inspired them to be. This new definition of a word that they’d already chosen as their core identity naturally transformed them. Read the Rest of Chapter One ▶ Dear Troy, George Floyd’s, tragic murder, just over 2 years ago, has had the most profound impact on the Black book ecosystem than any event I have witnessed in the past 25 years. Our country was forced to reckon with its legacy of brutality leveled against Black people and how it impacts everyone today. This resulted in a huge surge of interest in books on racism. Led by Ibram X. Kendi’s How to Be an Antiracist, book buyers intentionally purchased these books from Black-owned bookstores. This support, during the pandemic, was a tremendous windfall for many stores. Today there are more Black-owned bookstores than ever before. We recognize the importance of our bookstores; the challenge will be continuing to support them. Troy, your support is crucial to helping us celebrate our triumphs over tremendous obstacles, through books. Your paid subscriptions, book purchases, suggestions, engagement on the site, social sharing, advertisements, and feedback — all actions are crucial. No matter how trivial you may feel your actions might be, collectively they matter a great deal. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This message is sponsored by Broadleaf Books an imprint of 1517 Media. Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated email. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – June 21, 2022 - Issue #361