Politics | [fung'ke] [blak] [chik]™

Black In America 24-7

Posted under: politics

Last night my phone and text messages were ringing off the hook, everyone was telling me to watch CNN’s, “Black in America”. Needless to say, I could only stomach about 20 minutes of the program. I understand what CNN was trying to attempt to accomplish, but it failed miserably. Where they attempted to have a ground breaking series, all it did was give CNN a much needed ratings boost.

This show was definitely for the ‘non-black’ population. It didn’t even tie in the fact that for centuries there has always been white priviledge in our society. GASP. Who would have thunk it? It did nothing to hold white people accountable for the issues that black people face today. From the slave trade (how could anyone forget that), to the crack epidemic of the 80’s. Yes black people should be held accountable for their own actions, but there is always a cause/effect to every issue.

Needless to say, I’m glad I only wasted 20 minutes of my evening watching it. Besides, I’m “Black in America” 24/7.

For those who watched the show, feel free to share your opinion.

The Historically Black Elementary School System

Posted under: family, politics

As I was growing up, my siblings and I always lived in pretty diverse neighborhoods. Whether it was in NY or NJ, there always seemed to be a mix of white/black/asian/latino people. I appreciated the fact that early on in my life I was exposed to various cultures and languages. My best friend, who is Colombian, taught me my first Spanish curse words when I was a kid. Another friend of mine, had me saying ’sak passe’ in her native Creole language. Lunch time at my school in highschool was a smorgasborg of international cuisines. We would have everything from Spanish dishes to Indian dishes. Not to say everything was this great Rainbow Coalition Utopian society, because there were still small cliques here and there, but everyone seemed to get along and respect each others differences.

I always wanted my son to have a similiar experience while he was in school. I wanted him to be able to make friends with people from varied backgrounds and learn to appreciate differences as well. So before he entered kindergarten I found the perfect area in Maryland and Columbia, MD, is about as diverse as you can get. I definitely enjoyed living in Columbia. The school he attended was excellent and the extracurricular activities were endless. My son loved going to school every morning, he would literally cry if he had to stay home for any reason. He had friends from every background you could possibly imagine. His best friend was Philip, a Chinese kid who had only been in the U.S. for two years, and although his english was not the best, they communicated and played well together. Their friendship reminded me of my friendship with my best friend when she first arrived in the U.S. from Cali, Colombia.

We stayed in Columbia for about 3 1/2 years. I felt that I was growing out of my townhouse and I needed more space. So I eventually started looking for a single family. Now the downside of Columbia, is the price of realestate. If you weren’t able to spend upwards of 800k, then trying to find a nice sized single family house was close to impossible. I realized I would have to broaden my search area, which led me to where I am now, a town in Prince Georges County, Maryland.

I love the neighborhood I’m in. It’s quiet, comprised of single family homes built in the 80’s and most of the people are long time residents. There’s privacy and unlike my townhouse, I don’t have to worry about nosey neighbors.

But unfortunately, that is not enough to keep me here.

So long Prince Georges County, for the sake of my son’s education, back to Howard County I go.

If there was ever a public school system that could be referred to as a “Historically Black Elementary School”, several of them would be in Prince Georges County. Now, I’m in no way saying that anything related to being “Historically Black” i.e, HBCUs, are negative, but when a county as rich as Prince Georges County, cannot provide a half decent education to the children of the county, that is when I have a problem. I’m not sure where the disconnect begins with PG County Schools, but they are doing a disservice to the children of the county. What is also disheartening is that these schools are primarily composed of black children.

The stories my son has brought home this past year were unbelievable. From students sexually harrassing each other (this is an elementary school from k-5), to the lunch monitors referring to kids as ‘idiots’, to a student telling the principal a strange man was in the courtyard and the principal not doing anything; the list goes on!

My son has gone from a student who was excited about attending school everyday, to a kid who has used every excuse in the book to not attend. The only positive is that although he hates the environment, his grades have not suffered, mainly because I do my part once he leaves the classroom. I’m not sure about any other parents in the county who send their kids to public schools, but I refuse to fail my son or allow him to fail at the hands of an inept educational system, so as of this upcoming school year, I refuse to have him attend school in this county.

I truly believe that a student can receive a great education from a public school system, but that school system has to have the means in providing a sound academic environment, and unfortuantely the proof is in the test scores that Prince Georges County’s school system has continued to fail it’s students. Maybe someone should remind them that a mind is truly a terrible thing to waste, especially the minds of young black children who are already becoming so disenfranchised at an early age.

I Got A Six Shooter & A Horse Named Trigger

Posted under: law, politics

All of my life I’ve had a fascination with guns. I used to follow my uncles to the range and sit there with sheer fascination. Every time a gun would go off, it would send goosebumps through my body. Back then, I knew when I got older I wanted a job where I’d be able to use weapons, responsibly. I think I was the only little girl who had dreams of being a detective or sharp shooter. Go figure. Instead of Barbie dolls, I had G.I. Joe toys and toy guns. I never bothered to play with my younger sisters, but my younger brother and I got along because we were always playing cops & robbers or some sort of make believe army game.

Fast forward 20-something years later.

No, I’m not in Law Enforcement or the military, but I still have a secret love of weapons. Only a few people in my family know about it, I hardly ever mention it to friends. One of my best friends in the area is on the SWAT Team for the Secret Service and when he found out about my shooting skills a few years ago, he couldn’t believe it. I happened to tag along with him to target practice one day, and asked if I could give it a ‘try’, unbeknownst to him I wasn’t an amateur.

From that day on, I’ve had a new range partner. On my 30th birthday he gave me and nice shiney new toy (pictured above). Needless to say, minus the day I gave birth to my son, that was one of the most happiest days of my life.

There is always going to be the argument over the right to bear arms. What people fail to realize is that a gun is an inanimate object. It’s the person behind the gun that pulls the trigger to kill someone. If the gun is just laying there, chances are it’s not going to cause any one harm.

For the record, I am not a member of the NRA. Just a responsible and licensed gun owner. Most people who are licensed gun owners don’t even own one out of the sheer aspect of possibly shooting a would be intruder, but for the sport of it. Chances are, if I owned a motorcycle, the chances of me killing myself or someone else with it is greater.

Of course there are criminals out there with access to fire arms. But, there are also the criminals masquerading around in police uniforms who have access to them as well. I’m not sure which is the lesser evil. But if there’s a chance that I can protect myself from either of them, I’m willing to take it.

Whitey vs Cunt

Posted under: politics

So Michelle Obama allegedly used the term, ‘whitey’, and McCain allegedly has called his wife a ‘cunt’. I really see how ‘whitey’ can really make white people feel bad. After all of those years of oppression, slavery, the racism that was directed towards them, et. al, no one deserves to be referred to as ‘whitey’ (insert sarcasm).

Cunt, hmmm…for some reason that term really pisses a woman off, especially white women. Personally, I hate the word. It spews nastiness. I’m not sure what type of man would even refer to his wife as such a term. I could just see it now, McCain and his short little arms must have been pushed to the edge, his face turned red, and the only word he could think of to call his wife when she probably upset him was, “cunt”. Verbally abusive much?

So we’ve already had a philanderer, Bill Clinton, in office, so now why not someone who verbally abuses his wife. Maybe, McCain still has some PTSD (post traumatic stress syndrome) issues from back in the day. Or maybe, just maybe, that’s just a term of endearment in the McCain household, “Hey cunt, where’s my breakfast?”.

As usual, people tend to get caught using language behind closed doors, that they’ll never suspect will bite them in the ass later. Personally, I’d prefer to be called a ‘whitey’, than a ‘cunt’ by a verbally abusive husband.

No Child Left Behind: Color Consciousness in Adopting

Posted under: family, law, politics

In 6th grade I had a very close friend named Parminder, I think we both got along because we were quiet and kept to ourselves. The one thing that always intrigued me about Parminder, was the contrast between her skin tone and hair. She had the blackest hair I had ever seen, and her skin was the color of copper. It was rare occurance for Parminder and I to see each other outside of school, but one day she invited me over to her house. When I walked into her house, I expected to see parents that looked just like her, but I saw two very blond hair and blue eyed people and that’s when it dawned on me that Parminder was adopted. Being the nosey kid I was, when I asked her about it, she told me she was from India and was adopted when she was 2 yrs old. I didn’t think anything about it until I was listening to the news these past couple of days.

In recent news, The Multi-Ethnic Placement Act (MEPA) has been questioned in regards to transracial adopting practices and procedures. Basically the MEPA prohibits race from being considered a factor in most decisions about adoption from foster care. Whether you’re black or white, you’ll go through the same adoption training as someone who wants to adopt a child from their own race. Statistics show that there is a larger number of minority children in the foster care system compared to white children.

Personally, I believe that it shouldn’t matter who adopts these children, as long as they’re given a chance to get out of the ’system’, but I do feel that if a white couple does venture out to adopt a minority child, there should be some type of ‘ethnic’ & cultural sensitivity training involved. I think these children should be able to live in an environment that provides the child an opportunity to participate in positive experiences with their culture, religion, and language. A child should be able to interact with parents who have an understanding what it feels like for the child to look different from their parent and also to have a parent that has knowledge of special dietary, skin, hair, and health care needs. Although there are private organizations who take part in similiar trainings, I think this should be mandatory and State funded initiatives.

One incident in particular that I remember was how Parminder would always lotion herself up through out the day at school and she would never want to play outside when it was really sunny. When I asked her why, she always said she didn’t want to become darker and since the lotion was white, she would hope that it would change her to a lighter color, so that she could match her family. When I look back at the years of friendship I had with Parminder, I can see where her parents failed her. She wasn’t taught anything about her Indian culture, she thought because her skin was darker than her parents and sibilings that something was wrong. It wasn’t until we attended college at Rutgers University, which has a large Indian population, that she was able to learn and appreciate her culture and embrace it.

50 Shots vs Unpaid Taxes

Posted under: law, politics

Ladies and gentleman, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that the American legal system has proven once again to be one of the biggest jokes in history. I’m pretty sure other countries have had a good laugh at us in regards to last weeks most popular court verdicts.

First we have Wesley Snipes standing before the courts in Florida, with $5 million dollars in hand, as a good faith gesture for his delinquent tax bill.

Now, let me be the first to say, I AM NOT A FAN of Mr. Snipes and I also believe that if I have to pay taxes, so should he. Every time I see the amount of taxes taken out of my paycheck I want to cringe, but it’s one of those necessary evils that the government will not let go and never will.

In any event, Wesley Snipes received the maximum sentence that the courts could impose on him, which was 36 months. Even with the money presented to the courts, he wasn’t able to buy his way out of the sentencing. Of course, he was made an example of. In the eyes of the court he purposefully evaded paying Uncle Sam, and on top of being famous and *gasp* dare I say, ‘black’, what else did you expect?

But on the flip side, you have the Sean Bell case. I waited on CNN’s website practically all day to read what I expected to be a guilty verdict across the board. But of course, the scales of justice were not balanced as usual.

I was shocked to say the least. I was more pissed than anything. I could feel my face turning red and a wave of nausea hit me. Fifty shots were being justified. Witnesses were not credible to the judge because of their own backgrounds.

I’ve never been the one to label police officers as ‘pigs’, even after my own questionable traffic stops and tickets that I eventually went to court for and had them tossed out. But after reading the verdict, the only word that I could think of was ‘pigs’.

I’ve always tried to instill in my son and nephew that police officers are there to help, but now what do I tell them? In writing this, I remember a time a few months ago the three of use were at Popeyes restaurant in Laurel, on Rt. 198 (the Anne Arundel section of Laurel). There were three uniformed officers sitting there having lunch and my son looks over to them and waves. To my astonishment, not one of the police officers offered a wave back. I looked at them and gave them one of the most evil glares I could muster and they knew the reason why. Before we left, I approached the female officer and asked her if it would have been so hard to return a wave to a kid. She looked at me as if I was crazy and then I walked away.

So this week in American History, we’ve learned that if you don’t pay your taxes, you go to jail, but, if you’re protected by the shield of blue and you shoot a man 50times you’re allowed to roam the streets freely. It definitely puts a different spin on the whole “Protect & Serve” motto.

As a sidenote, I happened to be flicking through cable channels Friday evening and came across BET’s 106 & Park. The show included a few journalists and was centered around the Sean Bell verdict. I came in on the tail end of a phone call with Mos Def, but of course at the height of his ‘call for community action’ and not for people to take this verdict lightly, his call was disconnected. Tsk, tsk on BET. I’m quite sure the call was disconnected on purpose. Also, may I offer a bigger “TSK TSK & FUCK YOU” to BET in regards to the disclaimer I noticed at the end of the show, “The views expressed on today’s show were not those of BET”, is how it went. Now, I remember why I stopped watching that channel years ago.

WWB(Walking While Black)- Mumia Abu Jamal’s reaction to the verdict:
http://www.zshare.net/audio/111246732c5d053c/

I Am Not Color Blind

Posted under: me, politics

It’s funny how alot of people nowadays claim to be ‘color blind’. I always hear cliches thrown around about how ‘love sees no color’, ‘everyone is created equal’ and the like. Well let me be the first to admit, that no, I am not color blind. The color lines for me were clearly defined at a very young age. If we lived in a utopian society, of course those cliches or sayings would ring true, but unfortunately that is not the case.

If I was color blind, I wouldn’t notice the looks I receive by other men and women, when I’m out with my friend Jeff, who happens to be white, and we’re playfully holding hands.

If I was colorblind, I wouldn’t notice how certain schools in the Maryland school system with a larger number of black students have some of the lowest test scores in the state.

If I was colorblind, I’d actually would believe that there’s no such thing as “Racial Profiling” and I could look pass the fact that my friends who drove down from New Jersey, weren’t only pulled over because they were black and driving a pretty expensive car, but I’d actually believe the excuse the cop used, “Ma’am, your license plate isn’t visible”. I guess that little speckle of dirt that was on a bright yellow NJ plate really caused him some problems.

If I was color blind, I wouldn’t notice that on a recent trip to Atlanta, as I was checking in to my 5 star hotel, that the customer service I received from the front desk attendants, who happened to be black as well, was garbage in comparison to the customer service that the 3 three white men in suits who followed behind me received, along with their complimentary limo ride around Buckhead, which no one made mention to me.

If I was color blind, I wouldn’t take notice on the fact that I’ve lived in my current house since August, but my neighbors haven’t as much as raised the heads to acknowledge my existence even when I speak to them, but when my grandmother visited a few months ago and they noticed she was ‘one of them’, they were all to eager to help her out in my yard.

So, my question is, do I need to get rid of the color I have, in order to be ‘color blind’? Because it definitely seems that the majority of the people I know who are always hollering that they’re colorblind tend to lack melanin and would never have issues like the ones I pointed out about. Ponderous indeed.

Emily King- Color Blind