Woman Studying to Become one of the First Black Woman Rabbis…

While Hillary is fighting to become the first woman president, Tamar Manasseh is fighting just as hard to break another barrier for her race and her sex. She is studying to become one of the nations first black female Rabbis.

Young Black and Hispanic Couple fight over toddler’s gang affiliation….

Here’s a sad commentary on the state of today’s family…Denver’s Channel 7 News reports the story of a young hispanic man and black woman who had a fight over what gang their 4 year old son should belong to. Maybe they should have just had a shootout to decide…

Roland Martin on why Barack should have been in Memphis on Friday…

Roland Martin gives a very well articulated opinion on why Obama should have been in Memphis for the 40th Anniversary of King’s assassination, and as I have written before, I do not agree with this idea, but he has some very solid points…

I thought Obama should have been in Memphis because the nation’s attention was focused on that day, and not Indiana, where he was. Had Obama been there he could have used the opportunity to further present himself in the image of King, someone who wasn’t willing to shy away from the tough fights and stay focused on his work in the pulpit. To have Obama stand on that balcony would have meant that they may have killed the dreamer, but a potential Obama presidency represented the continuing of that dream. Had Obama been there he could have used the moment to make plain to America that King was not just a black man fighting for black rights, but someone who ended up freeing white Americans from their own racial prisons and forced them to truly embrace the U.S. Constitution they so dearly loved. Had Obama been there he could have met with the 18 black sanitation workers who are still on the job in Memphis because they don’t have any city pensions. Yes, those men must still work because the racism in 1968 continues to affect their lives in 2008.

My only issue with his argument is that earlier in the article he talks about not getting stuck in the past, but then he talks about Barack painting himself in the image of King. We have to understand that Barack has a different mission than King right now. His mission is a political one, not one primarily of Social Justice. We have to understand that once he becomes President, a title he will never lose, we will have a very powerful force for social justice in the future. However, right now he may have to limit his calls for Social Justice, in order to ultimately win the war. King understood this when he led his “symbolic” march to the Selma bridge on March 9th 1965, but did not try to cross and complete his march to the capital. You see, a southern judge who was somewhat sympathetic to their cause, blocked the march for that particular day, and King did not want to defy the court order and lose the Judge’s possible support in the future. King understood that sometimes you have to live to fight another day, and on March 25th 1965, he got his victory, crossing that bridge, and continuing on to the capital Montgomery under Federal protection.

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Barack’s Not in Memphis, and I can’t say I Blame Him…

As Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and several other black luminaries gather today in Memphis to commerate the 40th Anniversary of MLK’s assassination, two of the three people still vying for the opportunity to be President will be there, but not the two you would expect. That’s because Hillary Clinton and John McCain will be marching with Al Sharpton today, but the African-American Candidate, Barack Obama, who gave a speech at King’s old church on Martin Luther King’s Birthday by the way, will not. At first I was a little bothered by that, just like when he did not attend Tavis Smiley’s “Black State of the Union” Broadcast, but after a little introspection, I said to myself, you know what? He is right not to go.

Why you ask? Well, because he would have to answer too many questions. Questions that he shouldn’t have to answer. Can you imagine what our friends at the Fox Network would do if they got a hold of some video with Barack and Al Sharpton? The Rev. Wright Marathon that they showed 24 hours a day would pale in comparison to the Al Sharpton sequel. No one holds White People’s feet to the fire more than Al, and any association between Sharpton and Obama would spark a disinformation campaign that would end up with Obama as a card-carrying member of the Black Panthers. Do you remember what people said when Farrakhan endorsed Obama? Well let me tell you, for a certain segment of the population, Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are just as much the “jew-hating” “Anti-Americans” that Farrakhan is. The sad part is, that FOX network’s own Sean Hannity, John McCain, and Hillary Clinton will be there and no one will question their patriotism, or call them a racist. As a matter of fact, they will be praised for “remembering” Martin Luther King’s legacy, and “Building Bridges” with the black community. Why don’t they have to answer the same questions that Barack would if he showed up? Do you think that Barack should have gone to Memphis? Speak Out!

Poll Watch: 3/4 of Americans Think we are Ready for a Black President…

The results of a new CNN/Essence poll were released today,

and one of the questions that they asked was “Do you think America is ready for a Black President?” As far as I am concerned, the results were quite positive, with 76% of those polled responding in the affirmative. (That’s an increase of 14 points from a poll taken in December 2006) While this poll doesn’t give us the percentage of individuals who say they would vote for a black president themselves, a number that I would really be interested in seeing, it is good to see that more people see it as possible.

Right now, in the major presidential “On Deck” positions, which I would designate as a State Governor, U.S. Senator, or Vice-President, there are only three African-Americans, one Senator, who is Barack Obama of Illinois, and two Governors, Deval Patrick of Masschusetts, and David Paterson of New York, who gained his post via a scandal. So because we have so few people in positions that traditionally win the White House, the fact that we even have a Black candidate with a real chance to win the Presidential nomination and quite possibly the Presidency, is remarkable.

The reason I mention that, is because there is no doubt that the Obama campaign has given people a new attitude towards the prospect of a black president, even in the black community. When Barack’s campaign first began, a good amount of African-Americans would not even allow themselves to think about him winning, for fear of another letdown in a series of seemingly perpetual disappointments. However, when he won the Iowa contest, and several others following that one, people started to believe, and the possibility of what many wanted all along seemed to be more tangible. I know that an Obama in the White House would not solve all the issues of race in this country, in fact like Rep. Cleaver said, it may create new ones, but it’s something that I think we are definitely ready for, for a whole host of reasons.

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MLK, and Nappy Headed Hoes..

 

Take heart, Mr. Spitzer, If Don Imus can get his job back after calling our sisters “Hoes”, then maybe you can get your job back after calling a Hoe…don’t laugh now, It could happen! Probably not as fast as it happened for Imus, but it could happen. Did you know that tomorrow will make it a year since Don Imus called the Rutgers Women’s basketball team “nappy-headed hos” on his radio show? Ironically, it also coincides with the 40th anniversary of the MLK assassination. At the time, it was decried as such a travesty,that he was fired by CBS, and all of his big time sponsors started dropping his show. I heard a lot of people talk about how he may never work on radio again, and the huge price that he was paying since he just signed a 10-million dollar per year contract extenstion.

But as usual it looks like the joke was on us…no sooner than Imus was fired, it seems like WABC was knocking down his door offering him a new radio contract, and Imus’ punishment amounted to no more than a eight month vacation. When it was officially announced in December that Imus was going back on the air, the WABC radio president was even quoted as saying “He is rested, fired up, and ready to do great radio.” Not too long after that, his big sponsors like Bigelow Tea and Net Jet started signing back on, taking him off the proverbial “naughty chair” and allowing him to come out and play again.

I know that people deserve a second chance, I mean hell, even that pitbull in a suit Al Sharpton said so, but I bet he didn’t expect for him to be back on the air just months later. So what did it all mean? He claims that his meeting with the Rutgers Ladies (during which he made an apology) was a “Life Changing” experience, but he also said at the time that “he was fighting for his life” since he lost his job. So did he really change in eight months? Did the attitude that allowed him to say those words and think it was funny magically disappear in that short period of time? Did his time in the “Time Out” corner, really show him the error of his ways? Maybe, but just like my two year old after time out, it’s probably only a matter of time before he gets caught with his hands in the cookie jar again…

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Mugabe making power play in Zimbabwe…

 

Just as I suspected, It looks like “President” Mugabe is not ready to give up his power, election loss or not. According to a report from the AP, Mugabe ordered a raid on the opposition party’s offices in Harare today, ransacking the hotel rooms that they were using. According to the staff at another hotel where the foreign press was staying, several members of the press were rounded up and taken away. Even though I admit that I don’t know anything about the opposition party and wether they would be any better that the current regime, I was hopeful that Zimbabwe would be able to have meaningful elections and that the wishes of the people would be respected. This crackdown however cast many doubts on that type of resolution, with the only hope being that Mugabe caves in to the pressures of the international community. Doubtful…

MSNBC’s Chris Matthews asks: Does Obama connect with “Regular People” or just African Americans and College Grads?

During last night’s edition of “Hardball” (Apr.1st) Chris Matthews asked his guest the following:

“Let me ask you about how he — how’s he connect with regular people? Does he? Or does he only appeal to people who come from the African-American community and from the people who have college or advanced degrees?”

At the beginning of the show he teased his Obama segement by saying the following:

“[C]an Obama woo more regular voters — you know, the ones who actually do know how to bowl?”

The night before he had this to say:

“[T]his gets very ethnic, but the fact that he’s good at basketball doesn’t surprise anybody, but the fact that he’s that terrible at bowling does make you wonder.”

What makes me wonder, is how he equates the sport of bowling with “regular people.” I guess that “regular people” don’t play basketball either…I also wonder if he is going to ask Barack about bowling tonight when he appears on his show? Hmmm…

Reference: MediaMatters (Includes video of the broadcast quoted)

Clinton camp continues the “Wright-Wash”

MSNBC is reporting that Harold Ickes, a Senior Aide to the Clinton campaign has admitted to pushing the Jeremiah Wright issue with undecided superdelegates. While it probably would be naive to think that they wouldn’t, it just lends more creditability to the idea that the Clinton backers are waging their own version of the GOP’s old “Southern Strategy.” I just hope that the superdelegates see through this and realize that the Wright issue will not be very valuable to the GOP, due to Obama’s skillful handling of the issue. Unfortunately, we can’t say the same about Hillary and her “Sniper Fire” story.

Reference: MSNBC

Black Congressman Downplays Obama’s Speaking Ability..but says he’ll win..

In a radio interview given to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Missouri Rep. Emanuel Cleaver downplayed Barack Obama’s speaking ability, saying that compared to other African-American public speakers “he may not even measure up.” He told the interviewer that White Voters are drawn to Obama because they like the idea of a black man who “is articulate”, and they feel that by supporting him they can get the uncomfortable conversation of race off the table. Here’s a quote from Cleaver:

“I think for many white Americans, they are looking at Barack Obama and saying ‘This is our chance to demonstrate that we have been able to get this boogeyman called race behind us,’” Cleaver said. “And so they are going to vote for him, whether he has credentials or not, whether he has any experience — I think all that’s out the window.”

He went on to say that electing Obama as president would most likely harm efforts to stop racial injustice, because it would allow White people to dismiss racial concerns. He also said, despite being a Clinton supporter, that he would be surprised if Obama lost the election. Do you think that a President Obama would allow White People to dismiss the remaining racial concerns in America? Speak out!

Reference: AP