You are here: Home / Archives for mrDaveyd

This is Beyond Sports: A Conversation w/ Chuck D & Dave Zirin on the Fight in Arizona

May 12, 2010 By

http://edgeofsports.com/2010-05-11-531/index.html
“This is Beyond Sports” Chuck D on the fight in Arizona

By Dave Zirin

Dave Zirin & Chuck D

Chuck D. The Hard Rhymer. The man on the mic for the most politically
explosive hip-hop group in history, Public Enemy. With albums like “It
Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back,” “Fear of a Black Planet,”
and anthems like “Fight the Power” and “Bring the Noise” along with
the breathtaking production of the Bomb Squad, PE created a standard
of politics and art. Perhaps their most controversial track was “By
the Time I Get to Arizona” (1991) about seeking revenge against
Arizona political officials for refusing to recognize Dr. Martin
Luther King’s birthday [Lyrics include: ‘Cause my money’s spent on The
goddamn rent/Neither party is mine not the Jackass or the elephant.]
Today, in the wake of Arizona’s draconian anti-immigration Senate Bill
1070, “By the Time I Get to Arizona” has been remixed and revived by
DJ Spooky. Chuck D also recorded his own track several months before
the bill was passed called “Tear Down That Wall.”  I spoke to Chuck
about the music and the nexus between immigration politics and sports.

DZ: Why did you choose to record “Tear Down this Wall?”

Chuck D: I had done “Tear Down this Wall” four or five months ago
because I heard a professor who works with my wife here on the West
Coast speak in a speech about the multi-billion dollar dividing wall
between the U.S. and Mexico, so, therefore, I based “Tear Down that
Wall” on the policy of the United States border patrol in the states
of Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas. I just wanted to put a
twist of irony on it saying if Ronald Reagan back in 1988 had told Mr.
Gorbachev to tear down that wall separating the world from countries
of capitalism and communism, we have a billion dollar wall right here
in our hemisphere that exists that needs to have a bunch of questions
raised. Questions like: “What the Hell?” I wrote the song about five
months ago and I did it coincidently, with all that’s brewing in the
state of Arizona. Immigration laws and racial profiling is happening
right here and I think the border situation, not only with the U.S.
and Mexico but the U.S. and Canada, on both sides is just out of
control. It’s crazy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJKuJ_uVffU

DZ: You did “Tear Down This Wall,” we have the DJ Spooky remix of “By
the Time I Get to Arizona,” and with your wife, Dr. Gaye Theresa
Johnson, you wrote a syndicated column on SB 1070. What’s the response
been to you being so out front on this issue?

Chuck D: Well the response is the usual, but I make it a habit not to
look at any blogs, because I think the font of a computer gives as
much credence to ignorance as it does to somebody who makes sense. So
I try not to read those responses, because anybody can respond
quickly. Back when people had to write letters it took an effort,
especially if someone didn’t have decent penmanship and handwriting. I
try not to look at the responses. I try to do the right thing. I tell
you this much, there is a rap contingent, a hip-hop contingent from
Phoenix, who did a remake of “By the Time I Get to Arizona.” I think
that needs to be recognized because these are young people. The song
is about eight minutes long. There’s about 12 MCs on it, and they are
putting it down. They are talking about how ridiculous this law is.
They are speaking out against it and they are putting all the facts on
the table, and they need to be acknowledged and highlighted. There is
a stereotype about young people and young MCs [being apolitical]. They
break it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Web707z2oB0

DZ: It’s remarkable how the original “By the Time I Get to Arizona”
has been resurrected from the early 90’s now that the struggle has
picked up. Did you hear former NBA player Chris Webber before the
Suns/Spurs game say, “Its like PE said ‘By the Time I get to
Arizona.’”?

Chuck D: [laughs] My Dad told me about that, You know Chris Webber is
the man. I wasn’t tuned into TNT at that particular time.

DZ: He said more than that.  He said, “Public Enemy said it a long
time ago. ‘By the Time I Get to Arizona.’ I’m not surprised. They
didn’t even want there to be a Martin Luther King Day when John McCain
was in [office.]. So if you follow history you know that this is part
of Arizona politics.’” So he brought it all together with Public Enemy
at the center of it.

Chuck D: Unfortunately when it comes to culture, the speed of
technology and news today makes things out of sight, out of mind.
While these situations [the MLK fight and the immigration fights] are
different, the politics of both things stay around like a stain….
Once again Arizona has put themselves into this mix. I don’t know what
the hell was on Gov. Jan Brewer’s mind or what contingent is behind
her, but, you know, to make a decision like this and to be told to
ignore the people who have been in this area on this earth the longest
period of time. It just kind of resonates with me as being crazy.

DZ: Do you support an athletic or artistic boycott of Arizona until
this gets settled?

Chuck D: Dave, you know I do.  Artists and musicians can say we’re
going to play Texas, El Paso, New Mexico, Albuquerque, and we gotta
play L.A. But we’ll skip Phoenix, Flagstaff, Tucson and the like. But
you know what this is really a challenge for: that’s Major League
Baseball. You’ve got nearly a third of the players that are Latino. If
they don’t stand up to this bill, they will actually be validating the
divide amongst Latinos [between documented and undocumented
immigrants].

At the same time they’ll also be lining themselves right
into the stereotype of what an athlete is if they don’t speak out: a
high priced slave that doesn’t say anything. And to me it’s beyond
just boycotting the All-Star game. What are those Latino players on
the Diamondbacks going to do? What are the players going to say who go
into Arizona to play against the Diamondbacks? What are they going to
say and what are they going to do? Major League Baseball has to step
up.

The NBA has very few players of Latino descent and [the Suns] are
saying something. But Major League Baseball, if they don’t say
anything, it’s crazy. The owners, the team, the league, and especially
the players, whether they come from the Dominican Republic, whether
they come from Venezuela, whether they come from Puerto Rico, they
better step up. If they don’t step up, the music industry, at least
from my area, we’re going to clown them.

For us to speak out against
this law, and basketball stepping up, and Major League Baseball not
stepping up at all?! Come on now, give me a break. And I know a lot of
the cats they live in the Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico or
whatever, there’s like a trillion years difference between them and
their high salaries and the average people living in the streets. They
might build themselves a castle with a militia to protect them, but
this is the time to unite yourself with the people and at least live
in the legacy that [Major League Hall of Famer] Roberto Clemente set
of uniting people just to protect against the nonsense that the other
side can come up with. They need to know that it’s going to spread if
they don’t come up and say something about it.

DZ: Any final thoughts? Perhaps about Major League Baseball pulling
the All Star Game out of Phoenix?

Chuck D: At the end of the day man, sports is really not that
important compared to people living their everyday lives. Say you have
a Major League player, and he happens to play for another team, or he
happens to play for the Diamondbacks and he gets pulled over because
people think he’s an illegal immigrant. Then all of a sudden that’s
when the “ish” finally hits the fan? Come on. This is beyond sports.
We want athletes to speak up because they have advantages. They have
everyday coverage. They’re covered by a person that has a mic and a
camera in their face, and this is the time to step up. Major League
Baseball pulling the All-Star game out of Arizona should be the least
of it.

[Dave Zirin is the author of the forthcoming “Bad Sports: How Owners
are Ruining the Games we Love” (Scribner) Receive his column every
week by emailing dave@edgeofsports.com. Contact him at
edgeofsports@gmail.com.]

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Drill Baby Drill-Would It be Socialism if We ‘Bail Out’ Those Impacted by this BP Disaster?

May 11, 2010 By

Watching this Gulf Oil spill and realizing that when everything is said and done,  the economy and the ecology of the Gulf Coast states are gonna be ruined for years. It’s been 21 years since the Exxon Valdez spill in Prince William Sound up in Alaska and we are still finding contaminated water, so you can only imagine what’s gonna happen here. After all, with the Valdez spill everything was concentrated in one spot. Here with the BP spill its spread over a larger area.

21 years after the Valdez spill, much of the wildlife including, Harlequin Ducks, Sea Otters, Clams and Pacific Herrings have not returned. So as I’m watching this black gooey oil wash up on the shores of Louisiana and Alabama, I’m recalling that the Gulf of Mexico is one of the most fertile fishing grounds in the world and already there is ban on fishing in large parts where the oil has leaked. Its hard not to think about radio host Rush Limbaugh on the air spewing pure ignorance by telling everyone to not worry about the spill. He said we should ‘let the ocean work it out’ and if a few ducks get hurt, then too bad because people are taking a hit as well…

I guess its pretty easy to be so cavalier in the face of an environmental disaster of this magnitude when you make millions of dollars and have the luxury of bouncing out to another state or country when things get too heated. If by chance a guy like Rush has to stick around he has more than enough money to buy what ever scarce supplies of food that’s around. His economic reality is not the same as the millions who will most be effected by this oil spill.. Here’s talk show host Ed Shultz giving a run down of ridiculiness of Limbaugh’s remarks..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzSLBweCgiI

Is it 'socialism' if we go to help those impacted by this oil spill?

The people who are likely to be most affected by this disaster are poor folks who are barely making it. It’s important to keep in mind that many of the Gulf Coast states are among the poorest in the country. What many may find to be a bit ironic is how many of these poor folks have allowed themselves to be seduced by corporate backed, rich media turds like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Michael Savage to name a few, who have railed about the ‘evils of socialism‘ and the ‘redistribution of wealth‘. This has resulted in lots of people who don’t have a whole lot of wealth running around holding signs protesting that President Obama is a socialist and how we here in America don’t need like Cuba or China.’.

Certainly, y’all remember the healthcare debates and Tea Party rallies with all those signs?  I’m wondering if all those sign waving folks who are angry and fearful of socialism, tax payer supported bailouts and wealth re-distribution will turn down any sort of financial help being offered by the government in the wake of this oil disaster? If they were upset when tax dollars went to bailout the banks and auto industry, will they be mad if tax dollars are used to bail them out of this ecological disaster?

Is it fair to point out that many of these Tea Party types impacted by this oil spill are also the same folks who told us that they don’t want the government in their business. You’ve heard the rhetoric. The aforementioned corporate backed media personalities have railed and frightened people into demanding that the government NOT put restrictions on big business. They’re the ones that sat up there yelling ‘Drill Baby Drill‘ and were in lock step with politicians like Michael Steele, Sarah Palin, Rudy Guiliani and Newt Gingrich who first uttered the refrain. Y’all remember this right?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRtuKGS-QXU&feature=related

These folks said they didn’t want any government regulation and the end result was a company like BP having one of the worse safety records in the industry. I’m wondering if Gulf State Tea Partiers realize or even care that BP spent millions lobbying politicians so they didn’t have to comply with strict safety standards … The government stayed away, and these idiots went and ruined the ecology and economy of an already fragile system.. People can check out this interview and news story.. http://www.democracynow.org/2010/5/5/bp_funnels_millions_into_lobbying_to.

With all this in mind, should we be helping people who have ferociously campaigned and done everything in their power to shun government help and involvement? If Socialism was bad last summer during the healthcare debates when people were bum-rushing townhall meetings, shouldn’t it be bad a year later even as we are opening the coffers to help victims of this Gulf Oil Spill?  The humanity in me says help these people anyway. That’s what someone with any sense of humanity would do. However, should we be reminding folks that the help being offered is what they have campaigned against?

Many who live in these impacted regions are quick to point out that America is a Christian nation and thus it would be Christ-like to help those who are without..My question is a year from now will those folks who getting helped be running with ‘I hate Socialism’ signs?  If we are using tax payer money to bail them out from the Drill Baby Drill policies they supported is that a form of socialism? Should we be like Marie-Thérese from way back in the days during the French revolution and tell people suffering in the Gulf ‘Let them eat cake’? Should we insist that people own up to their words? Should we demand that those politicians who who pushed hard to eliminate government oversight take care of this situation sans our tax dollars and will the  people in those regions be satisfied?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pZtCzGbsfU

As we close out, it would be wrong for me not ask ‘Where’s PETA in all this? Forget about some actress wearing a fur to an award show,  wildlife was and is being slaughtered in the Gulf thanks to this BP Spill… I would expect to see them picketing the homes of BP officials alerting us to the fact that their corporate negligence led this environmental disaster. Next time anyone sees one of their members them ask if they’ll be hitting up these major killers of wildlife?  Until then ask yourself. should be ‘bailing out’ victims of this BP environmental disaster-after all we wouldn’t to force any sort of socialist action on them…

Something to Ponder..

Davey D

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner


Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

President Obama Goes In on Ipods & Ipads-Says Don’t Let Them Get You Caught Up

May 10, 2010 By

President Obama said something very interesting this weekend when speaking at Hampton University. Yes he told the graduates that the world they are entering is gonna be rough. I mean he didn’t just come out and say it, but he was pretty much saying ‘Good luck on getting a job folks..‘

That in itself is worth noting, especially since he has those Goldman Sachs people around him who pretty much ripped us off and pushed us in the direction of economic enslavement.

But the thing that caught me was this quote

“You’re coming of age in a 24/7 media environment that bombards us with all kinds of content and exposes us to all kinds of arguments, some of which don’t always rank all that high on the truth meter. With iPods and iPads and Xboxes and PlayStations, — none of which I know how to work — information becomes a distraction, a diversion, a form of entertainment, rather than a tool of empowerment, rather than the means of emancipation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rB0Paw-bNSg

That quote is rich and is something I think we need to pay attention to… Working in commercial radio there’ a few tricks I’ve seen pulled program directors who wished to move an audience in a particular direction. They would simply burn you out on a song a genre. The burn out would come by over exposing something or by playing something which was obviously below the standards desired by the audience..

When I read President Obama‘s quote I kept thinking about how I’m starting to hear people say they are burnt out over all the information they can get.. They complain about Information overload. This is compounded by the fact that we now have several generations of people who only want 30 second soundbites. We’re a headline news society that has allowed us to become ‘instant experts’ on topics which we are unwilling to follow-up on..The information is disposable. Tiger Woods having multiple affairs holds the same value as a natural disaster

If you don’t believe me, ask how many of us have followed up on the situation in Haiti? Do any of us even care about what’s going on? Would your interest be peaked if we started to hear new reports on the country? My guess is many would not be interested. I recall hearing folks complaining that all this information on Haiti was too much. People were looking for escapes. The news coming out of it was cheapened by network news outlets who tried to find ways to neatly package it.

They wanted a villain, a hero, some controversy and nice ending which in reality has yet to come for the millions still sleeping in tents and barely surviving.  But as far as the average person here.. We had a villain-Mother nature..and later  so-called looters’. Our  hero was Wyclef and all the celebrities who raised money.. later they tried to make Bill Clinton and George Bush heroes. The nice ending was we raised money and now its time to go on to the next.

The gadgets we have allow us that luxury and at a day and time where critical thinking is not be taught especially in the areas of media, after we tire of a story we push a button to distract and entertain ourselves even with the most horrific news.

Another case in point, many of us were fascinated with the size of the tornados in Mississippi the other week than we were concerned about the people killed by them. Between heated debates on immigration, the gulf coast oil spill, attempted bomb plots in Times Square and drama around financial reform, many of us have no more room to take in and react to the news about the devastating floods in Nashville. We’ve had too much information. We were so full on the neat little news packages we come to consume, by the time we surfed around to get info on the floods, it was only to be entertained. The devastation had not moved us to action or to even think critically and connect the dots to larger issues be it global warming, poverty or faulty infrastructure..

In any case I think Obama was on point with his remarks..I took from it he was saying do something with that information other then ‘be right in an on line debate’ or  treat it like a perverse form of entertainment. I also took from it not to get so caught up we stop actually engaging folks and tackling important issues at hand. In short don’t let iphones and ipads become the new television and rendering us to be new age couch potatoes

Something to ponder.. And just so you know today in Haiti they are having a protest in Port Au Prince around who gets to run the government.

Here’s the link to an article I read that has a nice take on Obama’s remarks

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/obamas-information-distraction-riff-a-real-issue/34220

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Stormy Weather-We Remember the Great Lena Horne-Will You?

May 10, 2010 By

This has been a rough start to this year.. We’ve lost some legends… Guru, Dorothy Height, Benjamin Hooks..

The passing of Lena Horne is without a doubt is the end of a legend. Yes she lived a long a fruitful life…But sadly there are so many of us who step on stages all around the world and will not know her. Not only is she not known, she won’t even get a shout out..Don’t believe me?.. Check to see what your favorite radio station does this morning. Will they simply read the AP headlines and then jump into their tired old banter and contests or will they pull out a few songs and take some phone calls from elders in the community who clearly understood why Lena Horn was such a source of pride? Will they at least play her signature song ‘Stormy Weather’?

In the age of ‘branding’ and ‘market penetration’ where our most visible and popular entertainers will remain ‘safely silent’ in the wake of even the most pressing issues confronting us, Lena was one to give up the money and not perform at spots where our people were left out..

“I was always battling the system to try to get to be with my people. Finally, I wouldn’t work for places that kept us out … it was a damn fight everywhere I was, every place I worked, in New York, in Hollywood, all over the world,” she is quoted as saying.

How many of us would stop selling our souls to do right by the people who have less?  This was Lena Horne, hopefully all of us whether we are on stage or not allow a part of her to be manifested through us in the work we do..

-Davey D-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCG3kJtQBKo&a=CfVxg-oWYZA&playnext_from=ML

Lena Horne Dead: Singer Dies At 92

by VERENA DOBNIK
NEW YORK — Lena Horne, the enchanting jazz singer and actress who reviled the bigotry that allowed her to entertain white audiences but not socialize with them, slowing her rise to Broadway superstardom, died Sunday. She was 92.
Horne died at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, according to hospital spokeswoman Gloria Chin. Chin would not release any other details.
Horne, whose striking beauty and magnetic sex appeal often overshadowed her sultry voice, was remarkably candid about the underlying reason for her success.
“I was unique in that I was a kind of black that white people could accept,” she once said. “I was their daydream. I had the worst kind of acceptance because it was never for how great I was or what I contributed. It was because of the way I looked.”
In the 1940s, she was one of the first black performers hired to sing with a major white band, the first to play the Copacabana nightclub and among a handful with a Hollywood contract.
In 1943, MGM Studios loaned her to 20th Century-Fox to play the role of Selina Rogers in the all-black movie musical “Stormy Weather.” Her rendition of the title song became a major hit and her signature piece.
On screen, on records and in nightclubs and concert halls, Horne was at home vocally with a wide musical range, from blues and jazz to the sophistication of Rodgers and Hart in songs like “The Lady Is a Tramp” and “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered.”
In her first big Broadway success, as the star of “Jamaica” in 1957, reviewer Richard Watts Jr. called her “one of the incomparable performers of our time.” Songwriter Buddy de Sylva dubbed her “the best female singer of songs.”
But Horne was perpetually frustrated with the public humiliation of racism.

“I was always battling the system to try to get to be with my people. Finally, I wouldn’t work for places that kept us out … it was a damn fight everywhere I was, every place I worked, in New York, in Hollywood, all over the world,” she said in Brian Lanker’s book “I Dream a World: Portraits of Black Women Who Changed America.”

While at MGM, she starred in the all-black “Cabin in the Sky,” in 1943, but in most of her other movies, she appeared only in musical numbers that could be cut in the racially insensitive South without affecting the story. These included “I Dood It,” a Red Skelton comedy, “Thousands Cheer” and “Swing Fever,” all in 1943; “Broadway Rhythm” in 1944; and “Ziegfeld Follies” in 1946.

“Metro’s cowardice deprived the musical of one of the great singing actresses,” film historian John Kobal wrote.

Early in her career Horne cultivated an aloof style out of self-preservation, becoming “a woman the audience can’t reach and therefore can’t hurt” she once said.

Later she embraced activism, breaking loose as a voice for civil rights and as an artist. In the last decades of her life, she rode a new wave of popularity as a revered icon of American popular music.

Her 1981 one-woman Broadway show, “Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music,” won a special Tony Award. In it, the 64-year-old singer used two renditions – one straight and the other gut-wrenching – of “Stormy Weather” to give audiences a glimpse of the spiritual odyssey of her five-decade career.

A sometimes savage critic, John Simon, wrote that she was “ageless. … tempered like steel, baked like clay, annealed like glass; life has chiseled, burnished, refined her.”

When Halle Berry became the first black woman to win the best actress Oscar in 2002, she sobbed: “This moment is for Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne, Diahann Carroll. … It’s for every nameless, faceless woman of color who now has a chance because this door tonight has been opened.”

Lena Mary Calhoun Horne, the great-granddaughter of a freed slave, was born in Brooklyn June 30, 1917, to a leading family in the black bourgeoisie. Her daughter, Gail Lumet Buckley, wrote in her 1986 book “The Hornes: An American Family” that among their relatives was a college girlfriend of W.E.B. Du Bois and a black adviser to Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Dropping out of school at 16 to support her ailing mother, Horne joined the chorus line at the Cotton Club, the fabled Harlem night spot where the entertainers were black and the clientele white.

She left the club in 1935 to tour with Noble Sissle’s orchestra, billed as Helena Horne, the name she continued using when she joined Charlie Barnet’s white orchestra in 1940.

A movie offer from MGM came when she headlined a show at the Little Troc nightclub with the Katherine Dunham dancers in 1942.

Her success led some blacks to accuse Horne of trying to “pass” in a white world with her light complexion. Max Factor even developed an “Egyptian” makeup shade especially for the budding actress while she was at MGM.

But in his book “Gotta Sing Gotta Dance: A Pictorial History of Film Musicals,” Kobal wrote that she refused to go along with the studio’s efforts to portray her as an exotic Latin American.

“I don’t have to be an imitation of a white woman that Hollywood sort of hoped I’d become,” Horne once said. “I’m me, and I’m like nobody else.”

Horne was only 2 when her grandmother, a prominent member of the Urban League and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, enrolled her in the NAACP. But she avoided activism until 1945 when she was entertaining at an Army base and saw German prisoners of war sitting up front while black American soldiers were consigned to the rear.

That pivotal moment channeled her anger into something useful.

She got involved in various social and political organizations and – along with her friendship with Paul Robeson – got her name onto blacklists during the red-hunting McCarthy era.

By the 1960s, Horne was one of the most visible celebrities in the civil rights movement, once throwing a lamp at a customer who made a racial slur in a Beverly Hills restaurant and in 1963 joining 250,000 others in the March on Washington when Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech. Horne also spoke at a rally that same year with another civil rights leader, Medgar Evers, just days before his assassination.

It was also in the mid-’60s that she put out an autobiography, “Lena,” with author Richard Schickel.

The next decade brought her first to a low point, then to a fresh burst of artistry.

She had married MGM music director Lennie Hayton, a white man, in Paris in 1947 after her first overseas engagements in France and England. An earlier marriage to Louis J. Jones had ended in divorce in 1944 after producing daughter Gail and a son, Teddy.

In the 2009 biography “Stormy Weather,” author James Gavin recounts that when Horne was asked by a lover why she’d married a white man, she replied: “To get even with him.”

Her father, her son and her husband, Hayton, all died in 1970-71, and the grief-stricken singer secluded herself, refusing to perform or even see anyone but her closest friends. One of them, comedian Alan King, took months persuading her to return to the stage, with results that surprised her.

“I looked out and saw a family of brothers and sisters,” she said. “It was a long time, but when it came I truly began to live.”

And she discovered that time had mellowed her bitterness.

“I wouldn’t trade my life for anything,” she said, “because being black made me understand.”

original story: http://huff.to/9X1IFs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCvqTRHGIrg&feature=related

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Life style articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , ,

Seattle Officer Kicks & Hurls Racial Epithets at Innocent Man-Is This What’s In store for Arizona?

May 9, 2010 By

As I watched this video of a young Latino brother being detained and kicked in the head while a white officer makes hurls some sort of racial epithet at him, the first thing that came to mind is what may be in store for all those folks in Arizona who may find themselves in similar situations…It’s one thing when an elderly person is pulled over, but when young teenagers are stopped and detained in way too many instances the cops go off.. For those apologist and disbelievers who think what I’m saying is far fetched..I invite them to look at the policies that started under LA police chief William H Parker where he recruited officers from the South who held racist attitudes and made it a point to make sure officers engaged young Black and Brown folks by age 15 to make sure they understood the police were the ones in charge.

Those policies continued under police Chief Daryl Gates who passed away two weeks ago. Both Gates and Parker are seen as iconic and many departments adapted their policing policies.  How this relates to this Seattle situation is that what is shown on this video is outrageous to some but all too familiar to folks in the hood, many who can tell you horror stories of being roughed up by police at young ages. We see this here in the video where the man in question is innocent and yet offered no apology or medical attention.  What’s gonna happen with detainees in Arizona?

The other thing that was disturbing was seeing a Black and woman office on the scene doing nothing. The woman officer actually partakes in the brutality. The Black officer doesn’t do anything. It would be interesting to see what he and other officers reported. Did they note the abuse or lie in their reports? Should there be some sort of law on the books to make it a crime if an officer sees another officer commit a crime and not say anything?  In any case many of us fought to have more women and people of color on the force thinking they would bring a sensitivity and attitude that would help change entrenched cultural practices… Not seeing those two officers intervene makes you wonder if all those efforts were wasted..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g1uvG5WoX0

Seattle Detective Apologizes for Racial Epithet

http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/seattle-detective-shandy-cobane-apologizes-for-racial-epithet-beating/19469856?ncid=webmaildl1

(May 8) — A Seattle police officer offered a tearful apology after being caught on camera kicking an innocent man and using a racial epithet.
The video shows a group of officers standing around three men who are lying on the ground. Seattle Police Detective Shandy Cobane shouts, “I’m going to beat the [expletive] Mexican [expletive] out of you homey! You feel me?”

Cobane later kicks the man in the head and another cop kicks him in the hand.

The detective sobbed as he gave a news conference on Friday to apologize to the Latino community, his colleagues and the city of Seattle, The Seattle Times reported.

“I know my words cut deep and were very hurtful,” Cobane said. “Please know that I am truly, truly sorry.”

The video was shot by a freelance videographer at around 2 a.m. on April 17.

The incident in question took place as officers were investigating an armed robbery in Seattle’s Westlake neighborhood. The 911 call reporting the crime had described the suspects as Hispanic

The man attacked was not involved in the robbery. After officers let him go, the freelance videographer asked the unidentified man why he had been beaten.

“I don’t know. They knocked me down and kicked me in the head,” he responded.

Cobane and another officer have been placed on administrative leave. The city’s police department is carrying out an internal investigation, according to the Times.

Seattle police learned of the event a few days after the incident, and launched the investigation soon after, according to the AP.

Cobane, a 15-year veteran of the police force, said he never imagined he would “do anything to bring such notoriety to my department. Sadly, I did.”

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles Tagged With: , ,

Un-American America (Why Fear-Mongering is So Damn Frightening)

May 7, 2010 By

Freelance Journalist Nida Khan

We are living in precarious and dangerous times.  The economy remains unstable, joblessness is continuously skyrocketing, development is stagnant and unpredictable circumstances around the world are exacerbating the fears of many.  But what is also quietly bubbling underneath the surface is a far more treacherous and detrimental push for a shift in American psychology that in effect undermines the core principles upon which this great nation was founded.  It is the concerted, conscious effort to stoke the qualms of many with a great divide that is once again pitting ‘us’ against ‘them’.  Except this time, the ‘them’ could virtually be you, me or any one who slightly looks as if he/she doesn’t belong.

For the past few days, we have been inundated with images of the now infamous failed Times Square car bomb suspect, Faisal Shahzad.  What began as a thorough search for the person or persons involved in this foiled attempt has culminated into a drastic transformation in dialogue that is establishing dangerous precedent for many to be presumed guilty on the basis of their national origin, familial ancestry or travel records.

Faisal Shahzad

When authorities first released footage of an initial suspect over the weekend, the vast majority of broadcasters and reporters stayed clear of mentioning this man’s race.  Save for a few exceptions, the bulk of coverage on all three major networks – conservative Fox News, more liberal MSNBC and ‘fair and balanced’ CNN –  weren’t focusing on this man’s Whiteness, but rather leading with copy like ‘officials are seeking a middle-aged man seen here’ or ‘they are searching for a man in his 40’s’.  Fast-forward to Mr. Shahzad and all you see blaring across your TV screen is this man’s ethnicity and ties to another land far far away off in the distance somewhere.  But it isn’t only Pakistanis or Pakistani Americans that should be deeply concerned about this troubling imaging and change in verbiage.

This past month, Governor Jan Brewer of Arizona signed the most controversial immigration bill in our country’s history.  Literally institutionalizing and justifying racial profiling, this SB 1070 legislation transferred immense authority into the hands of local police that are often-times notorious for their biased behavior and poor judgment (one needs to only look at NJ were racial profiling was found even at the state police level).  But what is even more troubling than the potential backlash against all minorities in Arizona, is the ripple effects this is having across the nation.  Several other states are already pursuing their own versions of immigration ‘reform’ which amount to nothing more than criminalizing and dehumanizing certain groups of people.  The politicians and pundits that are pushing this anti-immigrant message need to be reminded of the intricate benefits that immigrants from all over the world have bestowed upon the United States and the plethora of ways in which they continue to do so.  If the backers of this SB 1070 wanted to be truly honest, they might as well say ‘if you’re not White, show me proof you belong here’ – because that’s literally what this bill means.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8EKhl4-bCA&feature=player_embedded

Everyone is familiar with the inscription on our symbolic emblem of freedom, the statue of liberty, that reads in part:  “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free”.  But ask yourselves, how did we go from that optimistic, inclusive message to one filled with fear mongering, division and a sense of entitlement?  If you are Brown, Black or tan in Arizona, who’s to say your family members weren’t here before the area even received statehood in 1912?  And as some on the right push for all Pakistanis and all Muslims – whether citizens or not – to be monitored and watched, they are in fact turning back the clock on decades of progress.

If they espouse that we ‘end political correctness’ by questioning everyone who ‘doesn’t look like us’, what is to become of our inalienable rights that led the vast majority here in the first place? For those who do not see the ominous bias in our mainstream press when it comes to coverage of others versus coverage of so-called natives, just watch and observe over the coming days, weeks and months as Shahzad’s background is probed and dissected.  But unlike when Timothy McVeigh slaughtered scores and injured hundreds, the focus won’t be on his own troubled life (which includes the recent loss of his home and other economic troubles), but it will instead be on any ties to extremist elements.

Was isn't Joseph Stack considered a terrorist even though he flew his plane into an IRS building?

Now in no way am I condoning his behavior or stating that he didn’t have ties to any groups in Pakistan, but what I am doing is reminding people that when Joseph Stacks flew a plane into an IRS building less than three months ago and killed an African American man, he was not labeled a terrorist.  And yet this foiled attempt in Times Square, where nothing thankfully happened, will almost certainly create a backlash for Pakistanis, Muslims or anyone that resembles them.

As the jargon gains momentum with talk of homegrown terrorists and the cells within, we have to wonder, are we at stake here to slowly lose all of our basic fundamental civil liberties?  There is now even talk from politicians like Senator Joe Lieberman pushing for legislation that would strip anyone accused of terrorism of his/her citizenship.  But if terror and terrorism are terms used at our own discretion, do we now hold the power to determine one’s allegiance, patriotism or love of country?  If we can now be stopped in Arizona simply for jay walking and asked to ‘produce our papers’, isn’t that creating and justifying bigotry and racism?  Are these consistent regressive maneuvers a reaction to an ever-unstable economic future?  Or is it something more nefarious at play?  When did the United States of America became a land of ‘us’ verses everyone else?

These are indeed volatile times, and we should all be very, very afraid.

written by Nida Khan

Nida Khan is an independent journalist and producer working in both print and radio.  She is currently a news correspondent with WRKS 98.7 Kiss FM NY, and is a member of the production team of Rev. Al Sharpton’s nationally syndicated broadcast, ‘Keeping it Real’.  Nida previously served as the Editor-in-Chief of elan:  The Guide to Global Muslim Culture, and has contributed pieces for such diverse outlets as the Associated Press, Alternet.org, DUB Magazine, Lifetimetv.com, The Source Magazine, The Women’s Media Center and more.  hit her up at

twitter.com/NidaKhanNY

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Will The Youth Vote Trump Tea Party In Midterm Elections?

May 7, 2010 By

by Bakari Kitwana

One of the most important unasked questions this midterm election year is this: “Will the youth vote be a factor in 2010?” Given the actual impact of the youth vote in 2008, it’s a far more important question than the ones daily raised by the media manufactured so-called Tea Party Movement–despite the latter’s success at striking fear in the hearts of incumbents.

The Tea Party murmuring is hardly a movement. It has not a single political victory to speak of. Not so easy to dismiss are young voters who two years ago turned out in record numbers to vote in the presidential election. Two-thirds of the 23 million voters 18-29 who voted for president in 2008, voted for Barack Obama.

“The election of Barack Obama was a major electoral politics victory for the youth vote,” says Angela Woodson who co-chaired the 2004 National Hip-Hop Political Convention, which brought together 4000 young voters from across the US. “But it doesn’t help the president to move their agenda if he isn’t backed by a strong legislative body with the same vision.”

The primary races unfolding this spring and summer (Ohio, Indiana and North Carolina had theirs this week) will lay the groundwork for important midterm elections this November. Both will determine if President Barack Obama can move forward effectively with his change agenda or if young voters will see common sense policies that they voted for in 2008 erupt into ugly, year-long knock down, drag out debates–the ways healthcare and economic reform have.

Over the last year and a half, young voters have for the most part remained on the sidelines of mainstream political debates. And a Gallup poll last week found that young voters are less enthusiastic about voting in midterm elections than older voters.

Is the youth vote simply elated by what it achieved in 2008 or exhausted from the effort?

Biko Baker

Rob Biko Baker, Executive Director of the League of Young Voters Education Fund, an organization that has been mobilizing young voters since 2003 says it’s neither.

“Community institutions and capacity have been weakened by the economy, says Baker. But I don’t think that youth have been quiet. The mainstream media just isn’t focusing on their activism.”

When the Chris Brown and Rihanna incident pushed dating violence into the media spotlight early last year, young voters missed an opportunity to translate their newly won political leverage into much needed dating violence reform. Young voters were mostly silent on the healthcare debate. They were even quieter on student loan reform. Both were signed into law despite lackluster support from the youth voting bloc.

However, Baker points to other issues where youth have taken the lead, such as activism around immigration (in Arizona) and police brutality (Oscar Grant in Oakland).

“Young people are engaged in these issues and extremely present in on-line advocacy,” says Biko, pointing to a recent survey that found that African Americans were more likely to be on Twitter. “But despite their sophistication, we need to identify a tangible agenda around which to heighten that engagement.”

Already this year, the country has witnessed the white backlash against Obama under the auspices of a Tea Party Movement, the rising conservative state’s rights agenda in the form of Arizona immigrant laws and Texas textbook reform, and the even more extreme antigovernment militias threatening violence to thwart an inevitably more inclusive America. With important congressional, senate and governor races approaching, all three may be tangible catalysts for youth electoral politics engagement.

Given the significant number of independent voters in their ranks (42 percent of college students and 35 percent of African Americans under 30 are independent), such a turning point will require young voters to rethink their independent status in the primary in order to assure the most viable candidates are on the ballot on November 2.

Young voters need to understand that the primary structure was created for the two-party system,” says Woodson, the former director of Outreach for Faith-based and Community Initiatives for the Ohio governor’s office, who now heads the consulting firm Gelic Group. “In order to use the same aggressiveness for midterm elections that they did during the presidential race, the youth vote has to learn how to play the independent game and switch parties when it makes sense.”

Such thinking is not unprecedented. During the 2008 Democratic Primary Election, Republicans crossed over and voted for the Democrat they believed to be the easier opponent for their Republican contender, then switched back to “Republican” for the general election. It made concrete political sense and is well within the rules.

The question is, will young voters abandon their fierce independent convictions in the short term to advance their long-term goals?

If they can do this, then they are closer to building a movement than so-called Tea Party supporters can imagine.

Bakari Kitwana is CEO of Rap Sessions, Editor at Large of NewsOne.com and author of the forthcoming Hip-Hop Activism in the Obama Era. (Third World Press, 2010)

original story: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bakari-kitwana/will-the-youth-vote-trump_b_566478.html

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Arizona Rappers Unite and Deliver a Hard Hitting Blow to Immigration Bill

May 6, 2010 By

This is what True Hip Hop is all about.. I was very excited to see this..It apparently didn’t require a whole lot of red tape… Just folks coming together and spitting truth to power. Big shout out to the following Arizona artists… DJ John Blaze, Tajji Sharp, Yung Face, Mr. Miranda, Ocean, Da’aron Anthony, Atllas, Chino D, Nyhtee, Pennywise, Rich Rico, and Da Beast. Enjoy this video- for the new song ‘Back to Arizona-Rappers Protest Immigration Bill

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Web707z2oB0

Return to davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

 

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Trae tha Truth Stands Up and Sues Radio One & KBXX the Boxx in Houston

May 6, 2010 By

Trae the Truth deserves major props for doing what far too many rappers won’t do. He was willing to stand up and smash on a local radio station that decided to ban his music over some petty nonsense. He filed a lawsuit against Radio One‘s KBXX the Box in Houston. Trae unlike many artists is clear in his thinking. He’s a strong community activist who’s netted proclamations from city officials and he’s easily one of the most popular artists in H-Town.. He knows that the airwaves belong to the public, and they are leased to corporations. In return a radio station at its core is supposed to serve the public good. What has been ALLOWED to happen over the years are a handful of people getting into ‘Gate Keeper’ positions and playing ‘God’ with people’s careers.

We see them charging people or demanding special favors for airplay. Many artists are required to do ‘free shows’. Why do you think every station around the country has a Summer Jam, Winter Jam, Spring Bash etc? The artists do these shows for free and the stations make millions.

Some stations make people pay them just to have their material listened to.. Not played on the air-just listened to..

Some artists are asked to pay for station vehicle wraps, purchase jackets for the street team. Some would pay for special fly aways and trips to award shows. I recall sitting in meetings where one of my  old bosses would go down the list of what was needed and put a note next to each item as to which record label/ artist would be paying for things. The list goes on.

Over the years there have been  a number of artists finding themselves at odds with radio giants who have been approached and asked to join a lawsuit or even testify before Congress or the FCC about unscrupulous radio practices, but many fearing a career ending backlash by the radio’s parent company refused. Most have been content to bite their tongue and remain silent which in turn has emboldened many of these station owners and personnel.

If folks ever wanna see a tough talking so-called gangsta, balling out of control rapper get reduced to a hat in hand subservient type of character straight outta the old Jim Crow era, show up when they go to some of these commercial outlets seeking airplay. To see what some are willing to do or put up with for airplay will make you cry. Its can be pretty sad.

Fortunately Trae is not one of those artists. He’s ready to put the serious smash on a radio network that’s notorious for hitting artists up.. and we applaud him..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4V4m-nXwa9s

Below is Trae’s press release and below that is the article in the Houston Chronicle..

Houston Rapper Trae Tha Truth files lawsuit against Radio One

http://austinsurreal.blogspot.com/2010/05/just-got-this-press-release-houston.html

Houston, TX – Houston rapper Trae Tha Truth (aka Frasier Thompson) will be holding a press conference at 9:00 AM on Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at the Harris County Civil Courthouse to announce the filing of a lawsuit in the 189th District Court of Harris County Texas, 201 Caroline, 12th Floor, Houston, Texas, against Radio One, which owns and operates Houston radio Station 97.9 KBXX, The Box.

The civil case alleges a consistent pattern of business disparagement, conspiracy and tortious interference. Defendants include Radio One, the radio station’s general manager Doug Abernathy, program manager Terri Thomas and morning show radio personality Nnete Inyangumia. Trae decided to file the lawsuit after the radio station officially banned his music from receiving airplay, and then began to interfere in his relationships with other music industry professionals. Radio One is the seventh largest radio broadcasting company in the country, and is the largest one targeting African-American audiences in the U.S. The Box is the only hip hop radio station in Houston.

The suit, which will be filed by Houston attorney ç., alleges that Trae was the subject of a radio ban after Nnete falsely accused Trae during an on-air interview of causing the violence which occurred at public festival which he sponsored. Ironically, Trae has arguably been the most active Houston rap artist when it comes to serving the local community. In 2008, Trae was honored by Houston Mayor Bill White and Council Member Peter Brown with his own “Trae Day” in honor of his outstanding community service.

After Nnete had made the disparaging remark about Trae on the radio, he later released a “mix tape” that had a humorous lyric about Nnette’s weight.

Trae notes, “I would not have filed a lawsuit, but when other people started being hurt by this ban, I knew I had to stand up.” The suit also alleges that a radio station staff member was suspended for a week and a half without pay for making a mixtape outside of work that had Trae’s music in it. The employee, in fear of losing his job, and the ability to feed his family, had to end his relationship with Trae. Another alleged incident occurred when rapper 6tre Gangsta, an artist signed to Battery/Sony Records, asked Trae to be on his new single. However when KBXX found out about the song, they notified Trae that the song would be banned. This resulted in the record community scrapping both the song and the music video that had been slated for BET.

Even Haitian earthquake victims lost out, due to the station refusing to advertise Trae’s appearance at a benefit fundraiser. Other alleged incidents are listed in the lawsuit, the most recent being the firing of the “Kracker Nuttz,” an on air DJ tandem, for their accidentally playing a song on the air by Chamillionaire, which they did not realize had Trae on one of its verses. Ironically, the “Kracker Nuttz”, who were 12-year veterans of the station, had the Number One rated radio show there.

Click HERE to see more photos from Trae tha Truth Press Conference courtesy of Matt Sonzala and Austinsurreal

Rap-A-Lot Records CEO, James Prince states, “I had been excited about being involved with the next Trae album, but with this ban taking place, not only in his home town, but likely also in the second best place for airplay, which is Dallas, it would be impossible to promote the album. This ban is sabotaging his career, because those cities are the foundation for breaking his records.” Prince adds, “Having run a record label for over twenty years, I’ve never seen anything like this.”

Says Trae, “I just could not let any more people suffer and be punished by the radio station over this ridiculous vendetta.”

Trae’s attorney Warren Fitzgerald Jr. comments, “We believe that the defendants have gone beyond the parameters of legally sanctioned activity in first banning Trae’s music, then going so far as to intentionally interfere with his business relationships and thus destroy his career. I find this behavior repulsive, especially for a radio station that daily champions itself as music artists “best friend.”

Trae is suing for general damages to his reputation, character, standing in the community, mental suffering, loss of professional opportunities, performance revenue, record royalties and other damages.

Judge Randy Williams issued a restraining order prohibiting the radio station from destroying any evidence, including memoranda or emails surrounding the ban on Trae’s music.

A preliminary hearing is set for May 14, 2010 at 1:30 pm.

X X X

Guess I gotta roll to Houston in the morning…

—————————————————

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JB6byAEoOg8&feature=player_embedded

Houston rapper Trae: “You can’t ban the truth”

http://blogs.chron.com/peep/2010/05/houston_rapper_trae_you_cant_b.html

Trae addressing reporters at press conference about lawsuit

Houston rapper Trae Tha Truth filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Radio One, which owns 97.9 FM (KBXX The Box), citing “a consistent pattern of business disparagement, conspiracy and tortious interference.”

“I’m not only doing this for me. I’m doing this so that our futures and others can have a fair chance,” Trae said during a Wednesday morning press conference on the steps of the Harris County Civil Courthouse downtown.

“I need to do the right thing. I need to stand up. I also work hard for this community — very hard. You can’t ban the truth.”

Trae (whose real name is Frasier Thompson III) and attorney Warren Fitzgerald, Jr. allege that 97.9 FM banned the rapper’s music after he was involved in an on-air altercation with Madd Hatta Morning Show DJ Nnete Inyangumia. During a 2009 radio interview, Trae says Inyangumia falsely accused him of inciting violence at a festival celebrating “Trae Day.” The rapper, whose real name is Frasier Thompson III, was honored July 24, 2008 by Mayor Bill White and the Houston City Council for his community work.

Trae then mentioned Inyangumia’s weight in a mixtape, which is when he says the ban was put into effect.

“It’s personal, and it’s not business. There’s no reason to ban his music. His music is no more or no less violent than any other music that’s being played on the radio station” Fitzgerald said.

“We know for sure that people are being intimidated, people are being retaliated against for their involvement with him.”

Also named in the suit are general manager Doug Abernathy and program manager Terri Thomas. The suit alleges a staff member was suspended for making a mixtape featuring Trae and that popular on-air trio the Kracker Nuttz was recently fired after playing a song that featured Trae.

“Seems strange to say, but things for us at the station hadn’t been the same (or at least what it used to be) for a very long time,” the Kracker Nuttz wrote in a recent blog post. The group was at the courthouse Wednesday to show their support for Trae.

Houston rapper TroubleSum called the situation “preposterous.”

“As an artist, you vent through your music. We get caught up in our emotions, and we’ll write about it,” she said. “(Inyangumia) used her platform to voice her concerns and her opinions about Trae. He did the same thing in return.

“Things were said. Let’s move on. It’s ridiculous.”

Trae is suing for general damages to his reputation, character, standing in the community, mental suffering, loss of professional opportunities, performance revenue and record royalties. A temporary restraining order has been issued prohibiting 97.9 FM from destroying any evidence, including memoranda or emails relating to the ban. A hearing is scheduled for May 14.

Derick Muhammad of the Millions More Movement Ministry of Justice says they are “exploring” boycotts of the radio station and its advertisers. Matt Sonzala, a longtime champion of Texas rap and hip-hop who runs the popular Austin Surreal blog, called Trae “one of the more straight dudes in this scene – for real.”

“We believe that the airwaves are sacred and that nobody should have the power or the authority to use the airwaves against an individual to settle a personal vendetta,” Muhammad said.

“It’s a way bigger picture than (my music). I’m kind of looking at myself to be a sacrifice right now,” Trae said. “My son raps. Other people’s sons rap and sing. This can happen to anybody.”

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News Tagged With: , , , ,

Just Cause You Wave the American Flag Doesn’t Mean You Have a Lock on Patriotism-(American Flag vs Cinco De Mayo)

May 6, 2010 By

***Here’s a few updates on the Live Oak High-Morgan Hill Cinco De Mayo vs the American Flag Controversy…as we noted this is now a national story with folks from all sides using it to push their political agenda.. Thus far there have been deaths threats issued at the principal. Unfortunately these so-called ‘Patriotic Americans’ have been calling the wrong school.. The principal of Live Oak High School in Santa Cruz has been getting the business as opposed to the principal in Morgan Hill. The ACLU announced that the principal overstepped his bounds.. Wonder why its not overstepping when the prevent kids from wearing red or blue because of gang problems..?

Second, a few folks tried to make this seem like no big deal. Well it was.. Police are at the campus in force as this incident upset Brown students to the point they walked out of class in protest. Parents and students have noted the five white boys were being inciteful and apparently it worked. They are being depicted as victims when in fact they were agitators and have a history of of trying to get under people’s skin. Sadly in the backdrop of this was 15 students showing up in neighboring Pioneer high school in San Jose wearing Border Patrol uniforms and students in Napa High in the Northbay burning the Mexican flag…As I mentioned before why couldn’t these bozos allow their fellow ‘American’ students a day to celebrate their heritage?

Yesterday I sent out a number of tweets wondering when we would have some sort of galvanizing story that would divert our attention from things like the Big Oil Spill which is gonna ruin the eco system in the Gulf region for years. Some joked that the attempted car bomb in Times Square was the distraction.. Others thought it might be another celebrity scandal. We’ll fret no more, we found it.

It’s the story of 5 white students who decided to ‘innocently‘ show up to their high school in Morgan Hill which is here in the Bay Area on Cinco De Mayo wearing the American flag on all their clothing. The way the narrative is being presented was they came to school wearing  red, white and blue clothing and were sent home by the ‘evil’ school administrators after they refused to turn their shirts inside out.. The news showed an angry Latina demanding an apology for the boys coming to school wearing American flags. Angry white parents are shown saying there’s no way in hell they’ll apologize. It’s the perfect narrative for a sensational, ‘distracting story’ that is the lead story here in the Bay and throughout the state. It plays to the angry Tea Party types who are fuming and asking  ‘What happened to American pride’?

In very predictable fashion all the news stations are urging folks to go to their message boards which are already filled up.  News cameras are all down at this Bay Area High school seeking comment. The story is starting to go National.. Give it a day or so.. You’ll see it..And soon they will be trying to tie this into the immigration story.

What’s not being talked about is why did 5 guys on Cinco de Mayo suddenly show up to school wearing t-shirts, jackets, shorts, tennis shoes, hats, headbands etc with the American Flag? It’s not like all 5 dress that way everyday.. It’s not like they showed wearing flags in unison on St Patrick’s Day, Columbus Day or Chinese New Year. The truth is they were trying to pick a fight and make some sort of racially tinged statement. The immigration story has been in the air and to be quite blunt it appears they wanted to prick the skins of their Brown classmates who in case people forgot are also American.. But as the one sista explained, this was Mexican Heritage Day this was their day to share culture and traditions and help folks more acclimated to their backgrounds. But in a world that has been encouraging intolerance, these yahoos showed up being disrespectful accompanied by parents stating ‘they’re American and just wanted to express themselves’

Newsflash-I’m American and so are your Mexican classmates who were celebrating a day dedicated to their heritage. Just because you wear a flag doesn’t give a lock on ‘love for the country’. All of us can say the Pledge of Allegiance. All of us can sing the Star Spangled Banner..All of us have American Pride.  But not all of us know the true meaning behind Cinco De Mayo. Most think its a holiday for drinking. An opportunity to learn was lost by this show of so called ‘patriotism’.

What they were doing had nothing to do with American pride. It had everything to do with asserting dominance to an under representated group, shitting on their day and suggesting that they were somehow not American.

Something to Ponder

Davey D

Morgan Hill Students Stir Cinco De Mayo Controversy

http://www.ktvu.com/news/23470391/detail.html

MORGAN HILL, Calif. — Five students at a South Bay high school stirred up some controversy Wednesday for wearing t-shirts depicting red, white and blue American flags on Cinco de Mayo.

School officials at Live Oak High in Morgan Hill told the students they had to go home if they wouldn’t turn the shirts inside out.

One of the students said it appeared school administrators were worried the patriotic shirts could trigger fights.

Some students at Live Oak High in Morgan Hill said others were planning to come to school Thursday wearing red, white and blue.

Four of the five students who wore American flags or patriotic colors on campus walked into a meeting with the superintendent of the Morgan Hill unified school district Wednesday night.

They were facing unexcused absences because they chose to go home early rather than take off what they were wearing.

“We knew it was Cinco de Mayo. But we just came to show our flag,” said student Dominic Maciel. “We didn’t mean anything by it. We didn’t want to start anything. Nothing like that.”

Student Anthony Caravalho was also sent home for not turning his shirt inside out.

“They said we had to wear our t-shirts inside out and then we could go back to class and we said no,” said Caravalho. “It would be disrespectful to the flag by hiding it.”

Daniel Galli, another student who was reprimanded for wearing a US flag, described what he was told by school administration.

“He said ‘If you wear it on any other day, it’s fine; but just because it’s today you can’t wear it,’” Galli said. “His exact words.”

Galli said he was told it was inappropriate to wear the shirt because “it’s supposed to be a Mexican Day and we were supposed to honor them.”

The boys said it was unfair because some students were wearing Mexican colors Wednesday.

“We’re not mad that they wore their stuff,” said student Galli. “But we’re mad that we were asked to change our stuff, but they could still wear their stuff.”

Caravalho also felt the action was unfair.

“I would have taken my stuff off if they had taken their stuff off too,” he said.

Some Mexican-American students KTVU spoke with said they thought wearing red, white and blue on Cinco de Mayo was disrespectful.

“It’s just kinda disrespectful that they would do that on this day,” said student Victoria Wright. “I mean, we don’t go around on 4th of July wearing red white and green and saying ‘Viva Mexico,’ because that’s disrespectful.”

One student showed us a Mexican flag belt buckle he wore Wednesday. He disagreed with the way the American flag-wearing kids were treated.

“I think it was kind of going overboard with the suspension, but it’s also kind of disrespectful because it’s our day,” said student Sal Orona.

Dominic Maciel said his father is of Mexican descent.

“I have no problem with them wearing their Mexican stuff, their Mexican flags,” said Maciel. “I just thought I’d show my pride. American pride.”

The school district Wednesday issued a statement which read: “The district does not concur with the Live Oak High School administration’s interpretation of either board or district policy related to these actions.”

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News Tagged With: , , , , , ,
« Previous Page
Next Page »