Troy

I consider how the information one has to determine ones intelligence. Do you believe every Ph.D is "smarter" than you

Three years, for shit white boys do every day of the week! They get golden parachutes, bailed out, and even elected to the white house. They are going to put this woman in prison and take all of her stuff! I'm not saying people who take advantage of the public trust should not get punished but why do we always crucify Black people and elevate white men? The over policing and hyper-incineration effects Black people at all levels.

@Walkman93, sounds like the guy was more knowledgeable than you about a money management, but does that mean he is smarter than you? If you manage to become the Nick Fury, I suspect you be the smartest of the bunch.

Just finished Where the Crawdad's Sing. Picked it up in the 50% off bin at an airport bookstore. It was a decent story, perfect formula for a movie; story about love with a white female lead who over comes adversity dealt by several abusive white men, strong peripheral Black characters, beautiful setting. Good ending. The cover is not right given the story.

This has been true most of the time we have been on these shores. I thought in the age of the World Wide Web that this would change. However as the control of the web increasingly falls under the control of Facebook, Google, and Amazon we have actually reversed many of the gains we have made both on the web and off We don't even have the platforms to make truth plain to the masses. This is indeed horrible. It will get worse before it gets better.

My understanding is that the copies currently for sale, as new, on Amazon are bootlegged versions. This was told to me by a prominent figure in publishing.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 08, 2020 MEDIA CONTACTS: April R. Silver and Lea Byrd for the Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College, CUNY pr@akilaworksongs.com | lea@akilaworksongs.com (718) 756-8501 (office) | (917) 319-5449 (mobile) THE 15th NATIONAL BLACK WRITERS (VIRTUAL) CONFERENCE TO EXPLORE INTERSECTIONS OF BLACK THEATER, FILM AND CULTURE Dominique Morisseau, Woodie King Jr., Carl Clay, Voza Rivers, Stanley Nelson, Richard Wesley, Talib Kweli, jessica CARE moore, and others Brooklyn, New York --- The Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York (CBL) and presenting partner AKILA WORKSONGS announced that the 15th National Black Writers Conference (NBWC2020) will be held virtually, from Wednesday, November 11 to Saturday, November 14, 2020. The Conference was rescheduled from its annually-held Spring dates because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ever so timely, this year’s theme, Activism, Identity, and Race: Playwrights and Screenwriters at the Crossroads, is a new focus for the Conference that boldly affirms and celebrates the ways that Black playwrights and screenwriters expand society’s understanding of Black life and the human experience. CBL will also honor luminaries Carl Clay, Dominique Morisseau, Stanley Nelson, Voza Rivers, and Richard Wesley during its virtual NBWC Awards and Tribute Program on Saturday, November 14, 2020. Other Conference highlights include roundtable conversations, panel discussions, a town hall, film screenings, author readings, writing and playwrighting talkshops, a local vendor marketplace and much more. The four-day virtual gathering will bring together students, writers, artists, activists, scholars, literary professionals, theater and film giants and other literature enthusiasts from near and far. The aim is to explore the challenges, rewards and impact of working within the Black film and theater industries. Discussions will examine the ways that race, identity, politics and popular culture shape the production of plays, films and television shows. Over the years, NBWC has attracted national and international audiences from states such as California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia; and from file:///C:/Users/troy/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image002.jpgcountries in the Caribbean, Europe and Africa. Its roundtables, panels and town halls are known for their informative and high-spirited content. NBWC2020 BACKGROUND AND THEME Over the last decade, there has been an increase in the writing and works by Black playwrights, screenwriters and scriptwriters. These writers, so often at a crossroads, are focused on breaking new ground; creating bold new work in theater, film, and television; and expanding the narrative of the Black experience in America and throughout the African Diaspora. Professor of English and NBWC Director Dr. Brenda M. Greene offers this insight: “Black screenwriters and playwrights are changing the ‘master narratives’ in Black theater and film. In a culture that is driven and shaped by race, class, politics and the media, they are the documentarians, creative writers and artists who are providing a Black gaze and a critical lens from which to view the lives of Black people. They are debunking stereotypes, uncovering assumptions and making visible what has been invisible and silenced. They are raising the consciousness of our nation by using their pens as instruments to critique the social and political climate in our nation. This Conference will provide a way to create community conversations that will engage Black playwrights, screenwriters, literary professionals and the public in discussions on new directions and the evolving narratives in Black film and theater.” The idea to focus on Black screenwriters and playwrights was that of April R. Silver, head of the presenting partner entity AKILA WORKSONGS. She explains: “Truthfully, the Black Panther film prompted all of this. After experiencing the phenomenal impact that it had on the hearts and minds of people all over the world, I felt compelled to talk with Dr. Greene. I had envisioned CBL helping to unpack what we were experiencing from the film: a reminder of what it feels like to be free. Enslavement and oppressive realities have been put upon us for hundreds of years, but at our core we are free human beings. Our artists, those with unchained spirits, know this. Those artists who write the plays, novels, poems and scripts remind us to reclaim our birthright to be free human beings, no matter what. And to be clear, the community would not have the opportunity to highlight these playwrights and screenwriters if it was not for Dr. Greene’s understanding and appreciation of our need to write the plays and films that communicate these truths.” Each day will feature a variety of film screenings, panel discussions, author readings, workshops and more. More details, including time, location, updated participants and participant biographies, are located online at www.centerforblackliterature.org. NBWC2020 SPONSORS AND PARTNERS § African American Literature Book Club (AALBC.com) § African Voices/Reel Sisters § Amazon Literary Partnership § BK Reader § Brooklyn Literary Council § Brooklyn Public Library § Cave Canem Foundation § Community Council for Medgar Evers College § ConEdison § CUNY Office of Collaborative Programs § GR Taylor Media, Inc. § ImageNation Sōl Cinema Café § Institute for Research on the African Diaspora in the Americas & the Caribbean § Just Us Books Inc. § Medgar Evers College English Department § Medgar Evers College School of Professional and Community Development § New York City Council Brooklyn Delegation § New-York Historical Society § Office of Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams § Office of City Council Member Inez Barron, 42nd District § Office of City Council Member Laurie A. Cumbo, 35th District § Personalized Skincare by Marcia § Poets & Writers § RestorationART at Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corp. § Samuel French, A Concord Theatrical Company § Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture § Sister’s Uptown Bookstore & Cultural Center AKILA WORKSONGS is the presenting partner for the 15th National Black Writers Conference. THE MISSION OF THE CENTER FOR BLACK LITERATURE The mission of the Center for Black Literature is to expand, broaden and enrich the public’s knowledge and aesthetic appreciation of the value of Black literature. Through a series of programs that build an audience for the reading, discussion and critical analysis of contemporary Black literature and that serve as a forum for the research and study of Black literature, the Center convenes and supports various literary programs and events such as author readings and book signings, writing workshops, panel discussions, conferences and symposia. It is the only center devoted to this in the country. CONTACT US For additional information and registration details, contact CBL at (718) 804-8883 or via email: writers@mec.cuny.edu. Request for interviews are directed to April R. Silver or Lea Byrd at pr@akilaworksongs.com, or (718) 756-8501 (office), or @akilaworksongs (Twitter). # # #

Here is the simple version Sonia: over the years I've described how Amazon has exerted increasing control over Black books. In fact, I helped facilitate this by providing buy links to Amazon's site for years. In recent years, I've noticed Black indie authors increasingly giving Amazon the exclusive right to sell their books. This means as a bookseller I cannot sell these author's books unless I send them to Amazon, (something I refuse to do today). This has not been a big loss as these are always indie authors whose books are not typically in high demand. Now The Isis Papers is a 15-time AALBC Bestselling book. I can't tell you how many copies I've sold through Amazon. Now that I sell books directly. I'm unable to buy new copies to resell. If someone knows a wholeseller or distributor who has a copies I can buy; I'm all ears. I can try to figure out who is providing copies to Amazon, but I don't have time to play detective for one book. If anything, classic titles like The Isis Papers should only be available from Black booksellers. Today we have to go to the richest white man to buy this book...

I think you are right @richardmurray.

I simply can not obtain copies of Dr. Frances Cress Welsing's book, The ISIS Papers: The Keys to the Colors. The only place I can buy it is on amazon. Yes, amazon wins again. I know I sound like a broken record, but Amazon owns the Black Book ecosystem -- end of story. We have freely given it to them. Frankly, it is nauseating. We have to wrest back control of our books.

This book was hard to get but is back in stock now The Mamba Mentality: How I Play by Kobe Bryant

The Stax Museum was alright. It was interesting to see the location, sort of like the Motown museum a much smaller house than you might imagine. Memphis probably would have been a better location -- they have a large Black population, but i guess the folks in Nashville were the ones who pulled it off.

I would check it out, but I would not travel there for the sole purpose of visiting that one museum. Sure it matters where it is located, that will determine how much it is visited, how much it was costs to maintain, etc. I visited the Stax museum in Memphis but i also visted the Lauraine Motel, hung out on Beale street, stayed at the Peabody, and ate plenty of ribs (i even visted Graceland while i was there). But I would never have gone there just to visit Stax. Thanks for the info @Maurice. I was unaware of the museum and have joined their mailing list. How did you kearn about it?

@richardmurray she means this tag at the top of the post.

Right now I only have one set of a three book series of Tonya Bolden’s Powerful Series: Buy all three books get 10% off, free shipping, no sales tax*: ONLY ONE LEFT! First is her Civil War novel, Crossing Ebenezer Creek; followed by, Inventing Victoria, set during Reconstruction and the rise of Jim Crow; the third novel is Saving Savannah, the story of a steely young woman desperate for her past not to define her future. I posted this deal on social media before posting it here -- I'm slipping! In fact, I should have only posted it here and on the “Book Alley” discussion forum on Lip Stick Alley.

Barbara Elaine Smith, died of complications from early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, on February 22, 2020, at her home on Long Island. February 22, 2020. Smith pubbed several books, mostly notably, and this moment, Before I Forget, which details her battle against Alzheimer's. She published several books I've been to her restaurants in the NYC's Theater District, DC's Union Station, and the one in Sag Harbor,LI. She would greet you with a smile and treat you warmly, like a friend. May she R.I.P.

@Pioneer1 yeah I'm sure some people metabolize liquor and weed differently. I honestly I don't believe anyone "needs" either, and many of us would do much better by abstaining. I keep liquor, beer, and wine -- mostly for entertaining. I do drink wine on my own. If I ever drink too much it is with friends. 🙂 I have not brought any weed since the 80s when you could just by it in the store, in NYC, like a loaf of bread. The last time I scored some bud was when one of my home girls gave me some medicinal bud. I made brownies -- they were banging. What I would like to try is a hallucinogen I hear the experience is spirtual 🙂 All the Black people in jail for nonviolent drug crimes should be released and paid restitution from the profits from "legal" marijuana sales.

I dunno @Mel Hopkins. Try asking @Wendy Jones. After I perform the next upgrade I'll take a look and get back to you if you do not learn before then.

A few Black owned dispensaries do not make up for the damages that has already been, and continues to be, done. @Pioneer1 you be pleased to know most of the Black women involved in the cannabis indurstry profiled in the article @Stefan shared are "lightskinded." 😉 Al Harrington says at least 70% of professional athletes and owners use marijuana. I have nothing against ganja, but I think too many of us invest too much energy and time in getting high.

Oh, OK. I actually do not know what happens on the old network stations as I only watch them if I'm visting someone and they have it on. But I'm not surprised as media platforms compete for eyeballs it is a race for the bottom.

THE MIS-EDUCATION OF THE NEGRO by, the father of Black History Month, Carter G. Woodson. The edition AALBC sells is the ONLY one published in partnership with the organization Woodson founded, the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH). Mis-Education is the #3 all-time bestselling book on AALBC. The copies I sell also sport the AALBC Bestseller Seal.

I'm unfamiliar with this spelling, where does it come from?

Polygamy will probably be legalized. It is kind of hard to justify stopping consenting adults ftom doing what they want to do. Now the legalization of multiperson marriages will pose a problem for all the systems out there designed to handle marriages bewteen two people. Then again, I see questionnaires with 10 options for gender... i guess they'll figure it out. @Kareem you'd consider Utah? Is cheap land the draw?

@Valerie J Lewis Coleman this is an important topic. topic.we can collaborate on some level. Reach out when you get a second troy@aalbc.com