Work Is Never Done, Obama Tells Class – NYTimes.com.

Click the link below to view the full story from NYTimes.com:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/14/us/politics/14obama.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

My commentary on this topic:  This was a fantastic speech. I thought I was graduating again!  If you get to view the full video, I know you will be just as inspired as I am, to not just sit back on your current achievements and keep striving to do more.

photo from NYTimes.com, President Obama at Arizona State University

Why Are Black Folks Leaving San Fran?.

Click the link below to view the full story from TheRoot.com:

http://www.theroot.com/views/why-are-black-folks-leaving-san-francisco

My commentary on this topic: If ever there were a time to begin another serious discussion about the need for reparations it is now.  If I’m not mistaken, wasn’t there a time when the American Government used to set aside land for White soldiers who came home from the war so that they could build a house, and get a leg up on building a life for their families?
Well, it’s time to dust off the books and re-examine that sort of policy again.  I mean, isn’t that how this separation in class got set up in the first place?  America is the land of the “hook up”.  The whole notion of the “suburbs” was a hook up, all suburban land was set aside to create the sprawl that we now see happening even further and further out, even into the rural areas surrounding most major large cities.  The more sprawl, the more those left in the inner concentric circles, aka, “the inner city” get left behind. Then when you have cities like San Francisco or a Harlem, in states like CA or NY, the likeliehood, to me anyway, is that those places that Black folks once lived comfortably, will then be up for sale without any say so from the people that already live there, because those who live outside of the established Black communities, decide what industries will be hot, who will recieve the education for such industries, and who will then live and operate these industries and usually, as in the case of San Fran, with technology, or even in the case of real estate, as in DC and in Harlem, the real estate power brokers, decide when and where land will be used and for what.  In my opinion, this is part of the reason we have the subprime/foreclosure fiasco that we have now.

Again, reparations needs to be discussed again and not just handing out land, but handing it out in a structured manner. Yes, certain income levels need to be met, certain programs need to be set up, certain criteria need to be met, but the goal would be for those who are not in the power player seats who still control most of the land, most of the industries, etc. If something like reparations is not re-visited, we will continue to create an even wider divide between the haves and the have nots and Black folks will continue to make up a large portion of the have nots.

Photo from The Root.com, San Francisco.

Bloomberg and Black Independent Alliance Pave Road To Empowerment – The Daily Voice – Black America’s Daily News Source.

Click the link below to to view the full story from The Daily Voice:

http://thedailyvoice.com/voice/2009/05/bloomberg-and-black-independen-001857.php

No offense to Bristol, because I do think it’s good to send messages about abstinence and safe sex to teenagers, however, Bristol’s experience, I’m assuming, (making an educated guess), is not the typical “teen mother” experience, just like the delusional Octomom, Nadya Suleman, is not your typical “single mother” and neither should be put up on a pedastal as representatives of the typical experience.

I’m annoyed because Bristol and the folks who have annointed her a spokesperson for this particular organization seem to think that they are introducing a brand new phenomenon to us, as if teen pregnancy has not been around for decades. And the face of teen mother hood is usually not a white girl who’s mother is the governor of a state, who’s bills are paid for, who’s expenses are covered (by the Alaskan taxpayers, which takes someone living off of the state to a whole other level, LOL), etc. Bristol is not your typical teen mother, she’s educated, will more than likely go on straight to college and will probably end up not really struggling for anything. She won’t be on welfare, she won’t be on a bus dragging her stroller by herself, she won’t struggle with how she will pay for daycare for her child, nor will she more than likely, have to question how she’s going to get along in her day to day life with her baby because, unlike many teen mothers, or single mothers for that matter, she has a family with clout and with money.

In fact, for the appearance that Palin made for this organization to speak about abstinence, they didn’t pay her a “paycheck”, but they did pay for her expenses to travel to and from the occasion. Now, how many teen mothers do you know who got it like that? I have never known one. Now, I’m not a mother, but I’m thinking I can take an educated guess that all of what I’m assuming about Palin and her single mother experience will be true. She will be alright.

I think that Bristol and Nadya provide a false sense of what the face of single motherhood is and it’s so interesting, as I have said before, that when these white “celebrity” teenagers become pregnant (i.e., Britney Spears little sister,can’t remember her name), or when someone as nuts as Suleman has 8 babies, all of a sudden it’s something that the news wants to become concerned about, yet the coverage usually turns from that of concern to creating this glamourous image of their lives, creating hype that around these not so typical teen/single mothers. Nadya Suleman pretty much has her own reality show when in REALITY, children’s services need to roll up in there and take those kids because she STILL has NO JOB and no means by which to take care of her 14 children, but SOMEHOW, has managed to maintain a lifestyle that creates a false reality for not only Suleman, but for other girls and women who see fiasco that she has made of motherhood.

And, how quickly the larger community forgets about the many, many, not so well off, poor and poverty stricken teen moms, who are often Black and Latino, who have fought the good fight, BY THEMSELVES, with no TV cameras around, with no extra help, with no spokesperson stipend, scraping by to make a life for themselves, often with no support from family and friends, who have been making it for years, proving to themselves and everyone who doubted them, that they can make it. What about them, where is their 15 minutes of fame?

And just like many of us “regular” folks, Bristol Palin’s boyfriend, Levi, left her hanging, as many young teenage boys and grown a*s men often do when faced with the notion of being a father before they are ready. So, if a celebrity’s boyfriend leaves her, imagine what women who are struggling as single mothers feel like when their boyfriend leaves them? There are no spokesperson spots to fall back on, there are no expenses paid, there are no cameras around to document your life, no sponsors, nothing!

And even after I said all of this, with all of my criticism, I suppose there can be some good, some silver lining, that comes from Bristol Palin being out there speaking out about abstinence and/or life as a teen mother and discouraging other girls from following in her path, especially in 2009, while we are in the middle of a recession. I really hope that other organizations who are spreading a message about abstinence and family, will target their messages to the “typical” teenagers and loose some of the glamour and pretty much keep it real with these girls. If they don’t their message will be lost for sure.

The Caucus – Obama Agenda Could Rest on Link to Economic Crisis – NYTimes.com

Click here to view the full story from NYTimes.com:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/04/us/politics/04caucus.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

photo from NYTimes.com, Rahm Emanuel, White House Chief of Staff

Justice Dept. Seeks Equity in Sentences for Cocaine – NYTimes.com.

Click the link below to view the full story from NYTimes.com:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/30/us/30cocaine.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

My commentary on this topic:

Very good and interesting article. I knew the drug sentencing for powder vs. crack cocaine were different, however, I never knew the actual amount a person had to have, 50 grams (crack) vs. 5,000 grams (powder); that’s a ridiculous disparity.

I have my many theories about why this happens, but read for yourself and form your own opinion.

A few of my theories are, crack is cheaper and the folks selling it (mostly in the African American neighborhoods) can make more money from it and I don’t think that sat well with others in the 80s, Crack is a “street” drug and powder is an “at home”, “party”, or “behind closed doors” drug and most crack incidents are handled in the street and may result in more violence, whereas powder is kept behind the scenes although violence and abuse still takes place, we don’t see it, therefore the public makes an assumption that there is less violence, or that somehow Black people using crack are more violent than the White people who are using cocaine in powder form. Lastly, I think that the organized crime organizations have a lot to do with the focus on the streets, these “street pharmacists” had started cutting into their funds from selling drugs on the streets in a lot of major cities and I really believe they helped steer law enforcement to crack down on the Black community.

All in all, the drug sentencing should be equal, so whether they increase the powder cocaine possession to 10 years to equal that of crack cocaine possession or the other way around, it all needs to be equal because essentially it’s the same drugs.  Also, what does one get for possession or sale of heroine, a drug that was more prominent in several communities way before crack hit the scene.  I would love to know the answer to that.

photo from NYTimes.com

First 100 Days Celebration – Change Is Now – Video Viewing Party

Join Ivy Writer Media & Stratus Digital Marketing in this one of a kind, online video viewing party, in honor of President Barack Obama’s 100th day in Office on April 28, 2009.

The President has been hard at work, taking us from “Yes We Can” to “Change Is Now” , putting his campaign promises into action!  It’s going to take more time, after all he does have four years to put all of his goals and vision into place, so let’s be patient.

Let’s back him up and continue to show our support  by hanging in there with him through the ups and downs of this recession and by continuing to be inspired by his message of change as he moves our country forward.

And what better person to lead the charge than the legendary Stevie Wonder with his new single, “All About The Love Again”, from the Change Is Now CD from Hidden Beach Recordings.  For the first time ever, Stevie Wonder departs from his label, Motown Records, to assist in this commemorative project, and offers viewers a fun, animated, refreshing, and reflective video.  You can get your copy of the Change Is Now CD at http://www.hiddenbeach.com/changeisnow

CHANGE IS NOW: Stevie Wonder – All About The Love Again

Visit Hidden Beach:  http://www.hiddenbeach.com/changeisnow

Visit Ivy Writer Media:  http://www.ivywritermedia.com

Visit Stratus Digital Marketing:  http://www.stratusdigitalmusic.com

Can Alabama Spark a Democratic Revival in the South? – TIME.

Click the link below to view the full story from Time.com:

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1893149,00.html?iid=tsmodule

photo from Time.com, Rep. Artur Davis, D-Ala

Our Towns – In Rockland County, a Clash Over Governance of Public Schools – NYTimes.com.

Click the link below to view the full story from NYTimes.com:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/26/nyregion/26towns.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

My commentary on this topic: I think this is a very interesting and insightful article.  It really makes you think about the power structure of our neighborhoods and our education systems, even the school boards, that are supposed to be run and administered by the people who represent the public school system, not by people who don’t even send their children to the public school system.

photo from NYTimes.com, a multicultural neighborhood in Rockland County, questions around fair representation on the public school board

College-Educated Blacks Hardest Hit By Unemployment | NewsOne.

Click the link below to view the full story from  NewsOne.com:

http://newsone.blackplanet.com/nation/among-college-educated-african-americans-hardest-hit-by-unemployment/

Hollaback! News: Economy; Educated African Americans Hit Hard By Unemployment