Some Folklore For You: Kirikou and the Sorceress

In the last entry was videos of Dr. John H. Clarke and there is a segment that he was talking about folklore. Here is a video of an African Folklore. It is very good and hows a powerful story and message to it. Pay very close attention to the characters and find out there significance. It is very interesting because the folklore still rings true today. Enjoy.

Dr. John Henrik Clarke - The African Mind

Some people need to hear this. Some from the Home World (Africa)and others from Diaspora. We need to get back to who we are. We need to play OUR game and not someone else's. This is how we regain our Identity, our culture, a sense of who we are as a people, as a nation, and how we can continue into the future as a people and nation. Dr. Clarke makes some great points in this series and what I like is that he's just not talking to or about black folk in America, but everybody. This goes for those in Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, everybody lol. So neither any of us can look down on one another or think one is superior to the other because we all are in the same boat. Enjoy.

Dr. John H. Clarke on the Booker T. Washington Era

In college we would cover the Great Debate between DuBois and Washington. We would take a long time debating who was right and who had the better the solution. I would think DuBois was right and then i would think later on maybe Washington was right. But I never really got into the Age that both of them lived in. Why did white folks side with Washington? Was he really an Uncle Tom? Was the Atlanta Compromise really a compromise? Did he have a secret agenda? I would ask these questions to myself over and over again. So, I'm glad my mentor Dr. John Henrik Clarke discusses this and much more. Enjoy. (sidenote: I like how he explains the relationship of DuBois and Washington. DuBois and Washington, difference in opinions, DuBois and Garvey, now that's a fight and my money is on Garvey to win lol.)

Legacy

How many of us think of our legacy that we will pass on to our children and to the world? I like this video because it addresses this. We create these generational curses and that has become a part of our legacy, but it doesn't have to be. We write our own legacies our legacies down write us. Think about this for yourselves and your children. Be the writer of your own book, and therefore create your own legacy. Come on Dr. Voddie, tell em! lol

Stop Snitchin?: Malcolm X a true G

We as black folk always talk about stop snitching. When I look at this video, it makes me more proud of them man that has influence me since I was a kid. Before him it was always Martin Luther King Jr. and JFK and RFK. However when I got into him I saw myself in him. I think that the realest G's I have seen where Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm x (more so Malcolm for me). Anytime you can tell the government to go fuck yourself and not be afraid of your own death that's GANGSTA. This is why I love King's Last Speech and why i love Malcolm X. But what about us? We talk about not snitching on those that don't give a damn about us and harm our communities. It's the hood code you don't snitch. So we allow criminals to run free because we are too chicken shit to put them in jail. Of course the cops don't make it any better, when they are not the epitome of upstanding citizenship and morality. We are are own worst enemy. But this video says alot, that even though he was on bad terms with the nation he could've talked but he didn't. Malcolm even knew they hustle and used it against them. Think of all the leaders that would talk to the Feds and other agencies to bring that other black groups and leaders (Marcus Garvey is a good example see documentary in the February slot), but he wouldn't do it. That's outstanding, he may have once talked about other leaders but he wouldn't work with the enemy to get them out of the way. How many would do the same for him? Here we go snitchin to the cops on ourselves and others, but when do we unite against our common enemy and tell them I will not help you bring down my people or any black organization that strives for the betterment of my community and people. More importantly how many of us are willing to die for our beliefs? Malcolm and Martin was. I don't know about others, but I am trying to understand this so I can be able to no fear my death or those killing me because of what I believe in or stand for. After watching this video alot of people that use the stop snitching theme to harbor criminals and people that harm others and their own community should be ashamed. You got to admire him, that was a true man. We should learn from this and strive to be better.

A message to the thugs and thugettes

This brother hit the nail on the head. I admit I do use slang. However, I know when and when not to use it. People would say to me how are you a scholar and you talk like that? What these people don't understand is that when I am in an "informal gathering" of course I'm going to use slang. When I am in a "formal" gathering I know better than to use it. I do understand what he is saying, because writing slang will cripple you from using proper grammar and English. People know the meaning of certain words and know the history of that word. I do understand what he's saying about sagging because try running when shots are fired and your sagging, you're SOL. Besides my father told me when saggin was just starting, Men wear belts. Now i wear belts, i do sag a little because 1. I'm short and 2. It gives my thighs more space. However I don't go all the way down to my ass, my jeans stop at the lower part of my waist line. I was told some of these things when I was young so I can feel him because now that I'm older I don't need to do all of those things. I don't even wear earrings anymore, because I grew out of all of that. We have alot of people stuck in the kiddy mindset of life and they need to grow up. So Grow the fuck up! You can't be 16 all your life and why would you? Act your age and not your shoe size. And quit being a slave to Capitalism. I bet you want to know where I got that phrase from? Like he said Read a book, it's called "Losing the Race" by John H. McWhorter. I can go all day nameing off books lol.