Rihanna Who? Chris Brown's Mommy Would Rather Cry For Her Son's Loss of Income Instead!

Now you KNOW I had to discuss the Chris Brown interview that aired last night. The fact Chris Brown and his momma Joyce Hawkins (along with his lawyer thrown in for good measure) appeared on Larry King spoke volumes. This is part of the "Don't Believe What Your Eyes Are Showing You" Tour. Or as Khadija, blog host of Muslim Bushido so aptly wrote about recently: The Mass Gaslighting of African American Women.

We are being pressured to have a pity party for a felon and:

• Ignore the fact this is a grown man over the age of 18.
• Ignore the fact he beat and threatened to kill a woman.
• Ignore the fact the police report states he was a serial abuser.

He claimed to "love" Rihanna. He talked about how difficult this "situation" is. Boo Hoo. He said he couldn't "remember" punching, kicking, biting a woman with one hand, seeing blood splatter the dashboard all while driving a car with the other hand. That's a skill set! Someone from his record label likely screamed at him how that's serial killer talk. So he tried to amend what he STATED VERY PLAINLY by claiming he "misspoke". Which is PR talk for Cover Your A**. See what had happened was/I meant to say.. Give me a break.

We don't remember things that have no meaning to us. So his beating a woman to a bloody pulp was so far down on his list of priorities he couldn't even recall that he'd done it. It had happened so many times before that he couldn't recall that one particular act of violation. He had dance routines he could think of first but using his fist to communicate his inadequacies..nope!

Read the police report for yourself.

I was waiting for a litany of excuses. I was waiting for the "but what about blah blah who did blah blah". The same variation of "my baby isn't a criminal". Mind you this "baby" is a grown man! That doesn't stop these women from ignoring the crimes their sons have committed and declaring them "victims". Victims of what I don't know. Being held responsible is a foreign concept to some people no matter what the price.

Just ask Nathan Walker's mommy. Just ask William Balfour's. Just ask the one who's going to cry for "Jesus" and say you need to "forgive" the next miscreant that shoots at, rapes or steals from you or your child. Ok I'll bite: what about OJ, R Kelly, Miles Davis...and let me tell you the list could go on and on.....and on and on. This history of abuse from black men against black women has always been there to view for those who decided to look and SEE it! It's time to take a stand against this blanket knee-jerk criminal amnesty being given to men who have no REGRETS, haven't CHANGED one iota and have no plans for making amends.

*In case the above video doesn't play I've enclosed a Showbiz Tonight segment about the interview.

Abortion: Why Not Talking About It Lets the Terrorists Win

You know I give out a weekly "Award of Shame" and it's serious but I try to present it while being tongue-in-cheek. Yesterday's went to "White Men Howling At the Moon". Apparently some of them feel their death grip on power slipping and they must maintain control - or else. Historically we've seen what those with power will do to maintain order and exert control over others. We saw the emergence of the Klu Klux Klan after the period of forced enslavement ended. We see the continued rage-a-thon by the Republicans against the current Democratic President that is being supported by corporate media.

Now we have the murder of Dr. George Tiller, an OB/GYN in Witchita who was shot to death while at church. Let's chew on that one for a minute. The man was at church and murdered by another (white) man who didn't like the fact that amongst all of the services he provided, one of them was pregnancy termination.  Abortions are a controversial subject to be sure. I do believe that if men could get pregnant all the fighting over reproductive choices would not be an issue. Let's get to nitty gritty, shall we? Personal feelings and religious dogma aside this has always been about control over what a woman (or girl) can and can NOT do with her own body. 

From having sex to engaging in sex work, laws and religion interpreted by men from a male perspective for the benefit of men have usually ruled the day. Women who were independent thinkers have been branded witches. The role of women who were early followers of Christ have been downplayed by those interpreting the Bible. The Inquisition focused on courtesans. The Pope wanted Queen Elizabeth I assassinated.  Women don't get pregnant by themselves but they bear the burden of living with whatever consequences occur. 

In a perfect world there'd be no need for abortions. Women wouldn't be raped, molested or abused either. Governments - esp the United States would actually put their money where they claim their values are and provide top-notch (free or low cost) health care, child care and paid time off for both parents. Housing wouldn't cost some people 2/3s of their income. We wouldn't have to work 50+ hours just to try to make ends meat. Now I'm certain in this capitalistic, material-possession obsessed country living below one's means has a profound effect on the self-esteem of many. Yet why allow companies to keep putting out new shiny unaffordable objects every six months?

The President made a statement about how "acts of violence" don't resolve the "difficult issue of abortion", but this is about domestic terrorism! Health care providers should never have to be forced to decide whether to assist others when their own personal safety is at stake be it from a war-torn area, to a lower-income neighborhood to gender-based services. Obama needs to make it clear these acts will not be tolerated in this country anymore. 

Dr. Tiller had been under constant threat, his clinic bombed and he'd been previously shot! Operation Rescue - which should be classified a terrorist organization - posted Dr. Tiller's home address and church. Yet he still provided care. Please tell me why law enforcement doesn't take it up a notch or three when such an act of violence occurs? It may be about a medical facility today but will be about a power plant tomorrow if they don't learn to respond to these attacks appropriately. 

Where's a woman to go if providers refuse services out of fear of retribution and violence? Or refuse them for "religious" purposes? It isn't going to stop the need for such services. I realize many are opposed to abortion - even those that have them - but this is not the time to stay in your protective bubble. Just like the rise of degradation in music that has specifically denigrated Black women, the tide will keep rising until it reaches your door. Living your life of quiet dignity does nothing to help those exposed to the harshness of reality or a less sheltered and protected existence. When we allow bad things to go unchecked we are in fact contributing towards the demise of the greater society as a whole. 

Again personal beliefs and religion aside we have the (concept of) separation of church and state for a reason. We who have been marginalized in some way must take special heed to not turn on others lest we wind up in an even worse predicament than before. Those of us who know better must not shut our doors and stick fingers in our ears until "it all goes away". That's about recognizing how the actions of militant groups, to television commentators making up controversies, to how the "entertainment" industry reinforces a gutter mentality is a threat to our greater society as a whole. That's not focusing on negativity - it's a reality check. We have to see these actions as another battle in a very long war being waged in this country. If successful it will spread to other things that some of us hold dear. By then it will be too late. We'll have no one else to blame but ourselves if we stood by watching passively as the world crashed around our feet.