Obama's Warning to the Civil Rights Industrial Complex Will Go Largely Ignored

When the "First Black President" spoke to the oldest Civil Rights organization many saw this as a culmination of a "dream" and the struggle of millions of our formerly enslaved ancestors who "overcame". Cue the orchestra for this tender moment... 

Pause.

Ok I'm over it. Utter hogwash! 

Sorry but this isn't going to be a feel-good post about the merging of ideals within the "black community". Excuse me while I hurl. Obama is a fence-sitter on many significant issues regarding LGBT rights depending on which way his political career may go. He's a conflicted participant trying to hold another huge entity of dead ideals (that would be the CRIC TM WAOD) responsible for having an enforceable code of ethics. Well welcome to 2009 because we're not in 1959, 1969 and we're certainly not in 1999.  

First of all the "black community" is gasping its last few breaths for the collective of blacks who consider themselves part of something when joined strictly by race and a history of oppression by whites. They ignore seeking justice across the board, equality for black women and do not support LGBT rights as an whole. Just like the NAACP. Of course they're forgetting one thing: black people are also LGBT, living in black residential neighborhoods and often are doubly oppressed. Black female LGBTs including trans women have it the worst of course. They're raising children alone, face job discrimination as well as the extra threat of physical violence.

This is why I always discuss LGBT issues on this blog. Few blacks do because it's "controversial" or they have to face the mighty Wall of Hypocrisy from other blacks who want to use religion as the "Shield of Ironic Condemnation" that is only reserved for those sinners. Meanwhile the behavior of the masses reflects no discipline or standards. Don't you dare talk about their choices! Hence the 80% OOW birth rate, the lack of marriage and the perpetual joblessness amongst other things.

Khadija, blog host of Muslim Bushido broke it down on her post, The End of the Road for African-Americans, Part I about how the infrastructure in the "black community" doesn't support ONE THING. There is no independent economy, no group accountability and no social/political governance. So tell me what exactly is the NAACP good for? It's symbolism pure and simple. They're not the only do-nothing organization but they're the most readily thought-of. I don't see them as a benign stallworth of an era that has since passed. I think their purpose is to serve as an obstruction for any real progress. There's far too much money passing hands and zero transparency. Like BET, they are not a FRIEND TO BLACK PEOPLE!

They have a history of putting white people in charge or black men who give lots of speeches, pontificate on occasion and leave in a cloud of controversy over sexual misconduct. So far their current President Ben Jealous seems to be scandal-free (so far) but I'm not certain what he actually does. His prior work with Amnesty Int'l and career in social justice suggests he may have in fact been able to make some significant changes but with Julian Bond pulling the strings and a 64-member board of redirectionists holding the the purse I'm not expecting much. He may be infinitely qualified but he is a (token) symbol of of superficiality by a dead organization. They wanted their own bi-racial man who claims black heritage with a beautiful lawyer wife. Done and done. How juvenile can they be? 

I can't think of one initiative in recent memory these CRIC organizations have actually done to build an infrastructure that would support a community. That's for those still holding onto the idea there is one or one can be rebuilt. What have they done to lower the unemployment rate for blacks? They don't teach domination tactics. They can't get black men to accept responsibility for their children or to graduate college for goodness sake! They have got the "hand held out" beggar pose down to a tee. I wonder what the operating budget would be like if the white patronage went elsewhere? What investments do they have? I know that other blacks give money and time as well, largely African-American women doing the "save all of our people" dance - SOLO - as usual. If only they would pause, turn of the music and walk away the NAACP and others would have a whiplash-inducing about-face and suddenly find an agenda of relevance. We don't hold them accountable so they will remain ineffective.

Now there's word that the NAACP wants to stop focusing solely on black men feeling the butt end of white oppression and include other "people of color". We already know they don't do major campaigns that are for the benefit of black women. Well if those other POCs want to give money and time the way AA women do more power to them. It would give these women free time to find something else to do. If it's just lip service forget it! Including other groups who if the shoe was on the other foot are not seeking alliances with AAs is just further proof of their insanity. They already do as little as possible. Next they're going to open the bank for business and tell a select few to just come on in and take other people's money. 

In fact in The End of the Road for African-Americans Part 2, Khadija discusses material from the 2006 Harvest Institute Report, where Bob Law states:

Rather than demonstrate that leadership by leading their own people to the necessary levels of self-sufficiency and competitiveness, these leaders have abandoned the critical issues facing Black people and have begun to chase an ambiguous romanticized notion of alliances with other groups without any demonstration or even an explanation as to how these alliances will actually empower Black people.  ** I had to come back to add this portion. Sometimes when ppl are in agreement it isn't about cheering them on to gain favor but it's synchronicity.

When the black community collapses under the bloat of its uselessness I sincerely hope these organizations: NAACP, Urban League, National Urban Network, blah blah blah are the first ones to go. Color of Change is right up there following the same failed model. Quite frankly the CRIC deserves a swift demise. As well as the Black Church. They have been a HUGE disservice to the very people they claim to be helping. Like that wanna-be organization Raising Him Alone which is another Trojan Horse of the deathstyles of the supa fly (that would be us, er other blacks) I have zero sympathy for the confused and unfocused non-leadership. 

I'd love to see some of these other orgs like National Council of  Negro Women step up to the plate. Perusing their websites and objectives they are so woefully behind the times I don't even know where to begin. I see lots of ideas but I don't see a radical attempt at dismantling the sources. I'm certain many will disagree with me and if you want to take up that cause of getting the CRIC to "act right" feel free to do so. We see how successful that's been with regards to black men. I say it's time for all people of consciousness (compassion and common sense) to just LEAVE. Let them fix their internal squabbles, power plays and apathy on their own. Then they can prove their loyalty and relevancy. Of course that isn't going to happen and we'll be better off just focusing on our own needs, forming alliances with those prepared and able to be fully functioning partners. 

To all the naysayers: PROVE ME WRONG! Haha. I'd love to see you try.

*******

P.S. I read Raymond Leon Roker's piece in Huffington Post, NAACP vs. Gay Marriage. The timing was excellent as I was working on my response to Obama's speech. Thanks for the inspiration. It's also nice to see a black man defend LGBT rights and be so (fair) idealistic. Reading the comments it's the usual yada yada yada (nonsense). What do you think? 

Deploying A Little Negro Spirit: The Responsibility of the (Sometimes) Buying Public

So this was supposed to be the end of my series of cultural abandonment and appropriation but I think it bears continuing even as I expand the way it has been framed thus far.

I've had some very good conversations in real life and online from a variety of people (notably a majority of Black women) who are tired of seeing our sisters being dragged through the mud. We want to hold others accountable for spreading the virus but it starts with us. It begins with looking in the mirror at what we support and why we choose it.

I went to a meet and greet session with music artist Ben Harper yesterday (I'll have photos on my Flickr account shortly). Now quite a few people may not know who he is (or like his style of music) but that's because many of us aren't seeking out music that isn't played on terrestrial radio. Artists that don't fit into the R&B/Hip-Hop radio format of today may be ignored by the average listener. They're missing out on a lot of great music. Or at least missing out on hearing diverse styles. 

During our time with him he mentioned how he has never stopped seeking out ways to improve his musicianship (he plays guitar, piano and dabbles with other instruments). He also practices regularly. He talked about his exposure to a variety of genres thanks to his parents and grandparents being open-minded about what they played. He also discussed early hip-hop songs that blew him away. The difference of course is that he actually reads and plays music and isn't dependent on knob-fiddling to produce a sound. 

He doesn't need to reach back two decades ago for a great song to sample to center his songs around. Now one could argue that learning to use an MPC is a skill, that mixing is a skill but to what end?  Truth be told even the great DJs have seen the emergence of what I call the "CD Players", who don't even bother sequencing a song properly and just hit the start button and cue up songs on a laptop. I've been to many clubs where it's some variation of Top 40 boredom. 

Some of these lauded "music" makers have even been exposed as having used preloaded music for their "hits".

We as consumers have gotten so used to listening to watered-down music we wouldn't know quality if it bit us on the...If we demand more from music artists things will change. If we raise the bar for what we deem quality we will see an immediate improvement. The market will have to meet our needs instead of the other way around.

Deploying A Little Negro Spirit: When Black Artists Flip the Script

In the third installment of of my series exploring music and cultural appropriation - and abandonment - we will focus on Black artists who aren't necessarily doing what some consider "Black" music. That assessment in and of itself is problematic because of the ramifications of an audience that has acquiesced its legacy to others. The dictionary explanation for acquiesce is: to accept, comply, or submit tacitly or passively.  

I believe this is a problem particular to African-Americans (as I'm defining those descendants from the enslaved/indentured people who built the United States and is still owed a debt that has yet to be paid). Far too many AAs are stuck on a very narrow road of "Blackness" whereby you must comply with an extremely limited expression lest you have your Black card revoked.  Again it goes back to not knowing who you are and letting others define your identity, being afraid to step outside parameters, being closed-off and xenophobic or being filled with so much shame that you don't want to be around anyone who looks like or reminds you of....you. It's a mess isn't it? 

It can also manifest itself by following a strict rigidity surrounding gender roles, sexual orientation, dating choices and trying to overcompensate whenever someone is critical. Confident people can withstand scrutiny and handle opposing viewpoints. People who own their values and belief systems have studied numerous options and settled on what works best for them, accepting the legitimacy of others who do the same but choose differently. One's self-esteem is not based on designer....anything. I'll get back to the subject at hand but this was a necessary intro to continuing this conversation.

There's been a shift in music - and all media - where things of substance have given way to the foolish. It's actually worse than that. The norm has become what was once the fringe and it was allowed to occur in part because so many ran away from their Blackness. Now we don't recognize it unless it comes to us as a mask, a shell of our former selves passed along like a prize won at the fair but owned by no one. 

So we'll exclusively celebrate a white or Latino or any other artist for doing an imitation instead of one of us being ourselves. Added to that the dysfunction we sold as our authentic selves that feeds into the racism and sexism of those that will continue to support the efforts (filth) of our betrayers. What I refer to as WEEDS. We validate and somebody else benefits financially.

It was never a coincidence to me that R&B stations of the day refused to play Tracy Chapman and Lenny Kravitz or Joan Armatrading and others that put out an excellent body of work but had to go elsewhere for acknowledgment. They were trying to police a narrow definition of "soul" music but would never hesitate to play certain white artists like George Michael and others. Madonna's first song broke on Black radio. Despite the racial segregation of radio eventually the formats had to be loosened due to the power of green. Even Kiss got radio airplay back in the 70's with the song "Beth" and we all know they're a rock group.

Anyway, I've highlighted posts in previous blog entries featuring Black female artists from around the world who were doing their own thing. So let's revisit them and some others.

Natalie is a San Francisco-based singer who decided to perform Korean pop songs with a soulfulness instead of trying to break into an over-saturated market where's there's a glut of (unappreciated) African-American female singers. The market can support them but will we?

You know Raphael but he's doing a "'60's theme" album right so where's all the Amy Winehouse-style media scrutiny and accolades? 

Aside from my suspicions about how a female artist would fare on Def Jam I think we should support artists who aren't actively engaging in foolishness. Janelle Monae has seemed to fare well at Bad Boy so perhaps a few exceptions are possible.

More British artists on the move. 

Noisettes

Had to throw in some flash back videos: SWV & Brownstone. Just to remember what we had and what we allowed to go away. It's what we can get back if we decide it's important enough.

There's numerous artists in music, painting, journalists, every medium that we should be looking for and supporting. This is not meant to be a definitive list by any means. Just an example of what doing a quick search can yield. Even someone signed to a major label could be easily missed. Taste is somewhat subjective but you know it's a matter of appreciating what we have before it's permanently gone.

So who are some of the creative forces that move you?