mrDaveyd | Hip-Hop and Politics

If You Think Halloween Is Scary Wait Till Tomorrow When Food Stamps Are Cut

October 31, 2013 By mrDaveyd

Today is Halloween and there’s no doubt that folks will be buzzing about all the insensitive folks running around wearing Blackface or dressed as Trayvon Martin.

Others will be buzzing about Kanye West talking about the Obamas and how Kim is finer than Michele….

The big buzz here in the Bay Area is the woman driving her car and getting a ticket for wearing Google Glass..

All these things have their place in conversation, but the really scary thing this Halloween is House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and the push he and others made to make sure the Food Stamp program (SNAP) is gutted… If you think Halloween is scary wait until tomorrow (November 1st) when SNAP cuts kick in and tens of millions of folks find themselves seriously economically upended..

What’s scary is knowing that 75-80% of the new jobs added over the past 5 years are 7.25 hour jobs with the largest population of unemployed and underemployed being folks in their 40s and 50s .. Meaning that many lost their jobs in the 2008 economic melt down after working 15-20 years and never could get back in the market place…Those who have are now working at those low wage jobs taking care of kids and elderly parents with many on food stamps…

Eric Cantor

What’s scary is Cantor pushing a bill that would require folks to be enrolled in a job finding program for 20 hours a week in order to get Food stamps when many of those programs throughout various states have been cut or closed completely. In addition many of the people on food stamps work.. They simply do not make enough to cover cost for food.. But his flawed narrative appeal to those who have stereotyped those receiving help..

Even more frightening are the numbers of Democrats who have jumped into the fray and support the madness including democratic leader Debbie Wasserman Schultz out of Florida who said the Dems aren’t opposed to SNAP cuts.. Here in Cali Senator Dianne Feinstein voted for the Senate version of a Farm Bill which will cut 4 billion from SNAP….Topping all this off, many of the folks who voted to gut Food Stamps are getting subsidies for themselves and people in their district via agricultural subsidies..

While all this happening we have Big Banks successfully moving to not only write a bill but get it passed through Congress to free them of the modest restrictions placed on them under Dodd-Frank Act.. In short they will be free to do what they were doing in terms of investing money prior to the 08 crash..

Lastly we should pay attention to the public-private policies that are happening and the sway corporations have on law enforcement.. yesterday the Coast Guard was called to investigate a ‘mysterious’ barge out on SF Bay… Its owned by Google and no one knows whats on that barge.. The Coast Guard was made to sign a non disclosure contract.. I kid you not.. I’ll let you reflect on that for a bit…That’s pretty damn profound..

Here’s a few links to read up on all this..

1-http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/09/19/house-gop-food-stamp-cuts/2839343/

2-http://billmoyers.com/2013/09/20/some-congressional-food-stamp-critics-have-their-own-safety-net/

3-http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/10/30/house-passes-bill-on-derivatives/?_r=0

4-http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/10/30/coast-guard-visits-mysterious-google-barge/3318347/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEZ2vuWJaeI

Filed Under: 2013 Daily News Tagged With: Eric Cantor, food stampst, Halloween, Poverty

Meet the Deputy (Erick Gelhaus) Who Shot 13 Year Old Andy Lopez

October 30, 2013 By mrDaveyd

Erick Gelhaus

For those who don’t know the sheriff deputy who shot and killed 13-year-old Andy Lopez in Santa Rosa California has been identified as Erick Gelhaus…. He’s a 24 year veteran of the force, a firearms instructor, an Iraq War vet and writer for several gun publications..Recently some folks in folks following the case came across his photo bucket page and saw this bumper sticker …

Ya gotta wonder what his mindset is overall.. because this bumper sticker doesn’t advocate coexistence.. It advocates intolerance..

A few other things to think about..lets not delude ourselves and act like 13-year-old Andy Lopez was trying to scare anyone especially an officer. He wasn’t trying to take them out with a pellet gun nor was he playing toy soldier..Folks in the area said he had on earphones when he to his friend’s house when police came up behind him..

The officers were not there engaging Andy Lopez because neighbors were scared or reported a man with a gun.. It was 3pm in the afternoon, he was going to a friend’s house leaving a field that many use to shoot pellet guns.. There was nothing usual about his actions. There was no reports of a robberies and the police were not looking for a suspect who fit Andy Lopez’s description..

The police shot 13-year-old Andy Lopez within 10 seconds of coming upon him, meaning that they may have at 2 or 3 times at most, he turns around to see who is yelling and gets blasted 7x. If he was wearing headphones as reported or simply didn’t hear or understand which was a possibility because the neighborhood is mostly Latino, the police should’ve approached this differently?

What remains in question is whether or not Andy even knew it was police officers yelling at him.. Did they say ‘This is the Police drop your gun and put your hands up? or did they say ‘Drop your weapon’? Deputy Gelhaus claims he doesn’t remember if heidentified himself as the police. His partner was still in the car when the shots were fired. He doesn’t indicate that they had identified themselves.

One has to wonder why they didn’t take more time to access the situation. Why was Andy shot so quickly? Within the 10 seconds of seeing Andy Lopez did these deputies have enough time to determine whether or not this was a kid and not a grown man ‘brandishing’ an assault rifle??

One would think officers are trained know all these different scenarios. One would hope that in an area where kids do carry pellet guns that they would know better upon encountering a 13-year-old. What we are being told to believe is that a 13-year-old boy pointed his gun at the police..In other words, he heard the police turned around and said ‘f– it lemme point my gun at you‘.. That makes no sense whatsoever..Deputy Gelhaus with all his 24 years of firearms training couldn’t tell this was a pellet gun or that Andy wasn’t ‘aiming at him when he turned around?

It’s also wrong to presume that at 13 year old would automatically know to be extra cautious around cops i.e . not making sudden moves or making sure his toy gun was pointed down etc.. As adults we know this.. But for many, especially if they haven’t encountered been apprehended or detained, they might know, or they might be hella nervous.. Police are trained to deal with those situations and should know how to put a kid at ease..Safety first, not killing first..

Filed Under: 2013 Daily News Tagged With: Andy Lopez, Erik Gelhaus, Santa Rosa

3 Dope Songs and an Interview from Soul Legend Lee Fields

October 29, 2013 By mrDaveyd

Lee Fields

This is our recent Hard Knock Radio interview with soul music legend Lee Fields. With a career spanning 43 years, releases on twelve different record labels, and having toured the world over with his raucous-yet-tender voice, it’s mind-blowing that the music he’s making today with Brooklyn’s own Truth & Soul Records is the best of his career.He’s been described as a ‘Throwback done right’.. Here’s a brief run down via his bio…

Renowned throughout the global funk community, Lee Fields has poured grunts and screams over dozens of funk and soul hits since the early 1970s. Some of his best known hits include such 45 rpm classics as She’s A Lovemaker, The Bull Is Coming and The Funky Screw, as well as his much sought after Let’s Talk It Over LP which draws four digit bids from collectors worldwide.

There aren’t too many artists making soul music today who had a release in 1969, back when R&B was first beginning to give the drummer some. Lee Fields, however, is one such artist–or maybe he’s better labeled a phenomenon. Since the late sixties, the North Carolina native has amassed a prolific catalog of albums and has toured and played with such legends as Kool and the Gang, Sammy Gordon and the Hip-Huggers, O.V Wright, Darrell Banks, and Little Royal.

“In a curious case of musical evolution, the older Fields becomes, the closer he gets to perfecting the sound of soul that he grew up with as a young man,” so said music writer, scholar, and DJ Oliver Wang about Fields in a piece for NPR in July 2009. The latest LP from Lee Fields and The Expressions, titled Faithful Man, is the next step towards this perfection. A step that may find Fields, The Expressions, and Truth & Soul as a label, finally being bestowed the contemporary soul music crown.

Check out our interview Below

————————————————————

3 Dope Songs From Lee Fields

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0izlYypNyu0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxWmxVwOK8Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3rIA-BCZ0E

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Filed Under: 3 Dope songs, Hard Knock Radio Intv

Trayvon Martin Blackface Costumes Are As American As Cherry Pie & Lynchings

October 28, 2013 By mrDaveyd

The photos circulating of white folks dressed as Trayvon Martin for Halloween complete w/ blackface, bloodied hoodie and a bullet hole is just as offensive as the Harriet Tubman sex tape video that a number of folks tried to defend talking about its ‘just comedy‘ and ‘free speech‘…

Folks should clearly understand, we as Black folks, are not the only ones who will do shocking, distasteful things and defend it as humor and free speech..Apparently all sorts of white folks are doing the same except they are hitting on a basic building block of this country which is Black death and Black misery is funny and entertaining..

This is a country where many would routinely hold lynching parties complete with little kids cheesing for the cameras as ‘strange fruit‘ would dangle from the trees. We’ve all seen the post cards… (For those who don’t know, they actually made post cards of these gruesome hangings)

For those who wanna act like such activities were in the distant past, all you have to do is look at what took place in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.. There is a documentary that was played during the International Katrina Tribunals a year after, that showed white residents living in the Algiers sections of New Orleans, bragging and laughing about how they had been ‘pheasant hunting‘. Some of the folks pictured were firemen… These residents were determined not to have any Black folks come through their neighborhood which was situated on high ground and they formed hunting parties and went out shooting Black folks..

This was not 1920s during the Red summers where race riots (massacres) jumped off and Black folks were being attacked and slaughtered wholesale.. and Blackface/ Vaudeville shows already 50 years old were at their height and would last another 30 or 40 years.. making it the biggest form of entertainment in this country ever.

This was not the 1930 and 40s when Billie Holiday was singing Strange Fruit.

This was not the 1950s when Emmet Till was killed…or the 1960s when Freedom Riders and Black Panthers were being shot, Malcolm and Martin were killed or when racist police in LA were patrolling with the goal of keeping Blacks contained in the Watts section. They would routinely go into Watts and hem up Black folks in a practice they dubbed ‘duck hunting‘.

The pheasant hunting (code word for shooting Blacks took place in 2005.. This took place in 2005 in a city that was damn near 80% Black in the middle of a disaster of epic proportions. It shocked everyone who saw this during the tribunal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5r1X_G7cWak

I mention all this because throughout the decades, there has never really been a commitment to change our collective ways… Lynching parties of the past have given way to celebrations of Black death and misery in rap songs, World Star Hip Hop videos and marathon showings of Cop/Prison shows that draw huge ratings for the Discovery Channel, History Channel and MSNBC to name a few..

Black life isn’t seen as life in the minds of many. Black life is not seen as something sacred to be protected and upheld, even amongst ourselves. It’s seen as something that’s disposable and useful for making a profit.. We saw this when Russell Simmons and Dreamworks got together and made a Harriet Tubman sex tape anticipating that it would be the appropriate jump off to a new video company. The Black comedians featured in the film, not only graciously thanked Russell, but they aggressively promoted and defended the piece..

We just saw pictures circulating around the internet of a young sister for a Halloween costume, put a noose around her neck, hold a bucket of cotton while her white friends held the noose…They all found it to be funny.

What I’m describing is not limited to a few ‘idiots’..We had famous TV stars like Julie Hough put on Black face.. We had a sitting NY Assemblyman named Dov Hikind not only wear wear Blackface to a party this year but he actually defended it.. You can read about HERE

Last year we had the head of social media for the Israeli Army wearing mud on his face talking about he was going ‘Obama style‘. He got upset when folks called him out on it claiming he wasn’t a racist.. You can read about that HERE

We have all sorts of costume and ‘ghetto‘ theme parties taken place over the country and not just on Halloween where white folks wear Blackface or don Klan Attire, or pretend to be people of another ethnicity. One college that stood out earlier this year was Auburn, University in Alabama..You can read about that HERE while you peep the picture below from one of their theme parties.

By pointing out the complicity or the laughter of a few Black folks in some of these incidents, I’m not suggesting that they somehow gave white folks permission to go HAM on us. This has been going on for more than a century. The history and legacy of Blackface Minstrel shows was it was the nations most popular institution that was rooted in white folks dressing up as enslaved Blacks, making fun of them.. and it evolved from there and remained popular as evident by this routine shown below done in the 1950s.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_swtbIi2F0

Maybe one can simply say its all a big joke and keep it moving, but obviously it isn’t, not when we see post after post of white folks dressed up like Trayvon and folks seriously upset about it. The question is what should we be doing?

You can’t fight everyone, you can’t shame everyone and you can’t control folks from trying to get notoriety in a world that rewards it and its obtainable via the internet and social media…

As simplistic as this may sound, I said it before and I’ll say it again.. our first step is Don’t lose sight of your humanity.. Continuously reaffirm your humanity and try not to dehumanize others..Fellas we can start with the way we engage the women around us.. Are they bitches and hos or mothers, daughters and wives?

Second, lets not allow our death and misery to be other people’s entertainment.. I think this is what comedian Dave Chapelle was getting at when he left that 50 million dollar deal he was offered at Comedy Central.. And while Chapelle was trying to address the ill-timed laughter, we should keep in mind, not all entertainment is comedy..It is also those reality prison shows.. It is the local news that wants to lead off each night with a story of Black criminality while completely ignoring Black excellence.

It’s not enough to simply turn off the TV.. Many of us have the TVs off. Our challenge is millions of folks watch and then engage you based upon stereotypes and BS depictions that a handful of people are controlling..Those depictions may influence a cop, or loan officer at a bank or the person sitting before when you go to a job interview .. The bottom line is a variety of strategies need to be developed on dealing with this..

Third, know that we are in a culture war, an ideological war and spiritual war and what some are resorting to is designed to crush your spirit and dampen your morale..There is a fear of a Blackening and Browning planet and so many are go full tilt in trying marginalize us..

Find ways to protect your heart, Find ways to heal from your own grief and trauma and learn to see these attacks for what they are and react accordingly.. Sometimes you can shut shyt down, other times, you have to brush it off and see the weakness behind the attacks and deal with it another time and way..

Protect our kids from all this madness and make sure they know they are beautiful, great and special.. Reaffirm life and uplift the children that are around you so that generations coming behind us are of strong minds and equipped to rebuff any nonsense that comes their way..

Filed Under: 2013 Daily News Tagged With: Blackface, Halloween, lynchings, Trayvon Martin

Hip Hop Chess Teams w/ A Plus, Rakaa Iriscience & Sunspot Jonz for New Album

October 28, 2013 By mrDaveyd

Adisa Banjoko

San Jose, CA -Props to longtime journalist, emcee and martial arts expert Adisa Banjoko and The Hip-Hop Chess Federation (HHCF) . Last week they released a mixtape album called Street Games Vol. 1 will be available for FREE download on November 15th 2013 at www.hiphopchessfederation.org. The album highlights the connections between music, chess and martial arts and their connections to unity, strategy and nonviolence.

Featured on the album is A Plus from Hieroglyphics who hosts the mixtape while DJ Rob Flow oversees the production. Additional production was provided by Ronnie Lee of the Seven Trees Music Center in San Jose as well as contributions by Mike Relm and Rhapsodist.

Rakaa Iriscience of Dilated Peoples, Sunspot Jonz of Living Legends, Zumbi of Zion I, Black Knights, Quadir Lateef, Jasiri X, Asheru (Boondocks Theme Song), Tajai from Hieroglyphics are all featured on this HHCF compilation.

Additional wisdom illustrating the power of chess, martial arts and Hip-Hop are given by authors Jeff Chang and Dr. Joe Schloss, Jiu Jitsu master Ryron Gracie and Women’s chess Grandmaster Jennifer Shahade.

Adisa Banjoko, Founder of the HHCF noted “ Street Games Vol. 1 was made with no budget. All of the rappers, engineers and producers gave their time and their art to make this compilation possible. This is a project done funded with love only. Neither the HHCF nor any of the artists involved will profit from the project.

This compilation is a testament to the power of art over aggression. In it we illustrate life strategies through chess, illustrate triumph of patience through the pain and a showcase a wisdom beyond war. We are thankful to all the artists, martial artists and educators who helped bring this idea to reality. It was orchestrated with the hope that teens and young adults trapped in American urban war zones will be inspired to actualize their potential.”

It is 100% curse free which making it an ideal teaching tool for urban education programs.

Below is a cut from Kalhi with Introduction by Ryron Gracie called Technical Flow.. Its accompanied by an essay of the same title written by Adisa

For many years people have discussed the connections between chess and martial arts. I’ve been a casual student of chess and jiu jitsu for a while and I have seen many overlapping themes. My earliest memory of the correlation is watching Rickson and Royler Gracie play chess before one of Rickson’s matches in the movie Choke. In recent years we have seen the emergence of the Checkmat team (known for being very aggressive and strategic in competition) and recently an instagram photo of champions Roger and Kyra Gracie playing chess in their gi’s popped up on the net. If that was not enough, jiu jitsu clothing brand CTRL Industries has dropped a limited edition set of gi’s named after chess pieces. “The Rook” and “The Knight” have gained a lot of internet buzz among jiu jitsu players online. Little by little the connections seem deeper and more authentic.

Read the rest of A Technical Flow HERE

Sunspot Jonz

Rapper Sunspot Jonez who is featured on track called 64 Squares in a Cipher with Raka Iriscience and Zumbi disses recently released killer of Michael Jackson, Dr Conrad Murray

“Chess moves
What the best do
I jump kick
Side flip
Check you
Like ya names Conrad Murray
Not true to the code
How ya Lose ya common sense
When it comes to the dough
Never do that
Like bust a wack rap”

Sunspot Jonz of Living Legends Disses Conrad Murray in first verse

Below is an essay accompanying 64 Squares in the Cipher

Rakaa and Gumby

“I don’t play either side or the king, I play God / Heavenly wars played out on hand carved boards / Rakaa’s many moves ahead, learned to sacrifice to win / Angels share the tables with the ones that lived a life of sin.” – Rakaa Iriscience

People close to me know that my chess-playing skills are nowhere near that of a master. My friend once rightly joked “You are easily the worst chess player to ever make the cover of Chess Life magazine.” He’s right though. My game is at the level of a guy who likes chess, but never really pursued it on a competitive level. My addiction to the game came from the philosophy I got from the outcomes of the games I played and watched. That, and the fun I have irrespective of the outcome.

For some intermediate and advanced chess players this seems to be a source of deep frustration. No matter what I do, or the members of this organization there is constant complaining about my rating, or the ratings of the rappers, MMA fighters or jiu jitsu players who support HHCF. I think the thing many of the chess players from this group lack is a greater understanding of the game on a social and cultural level.

They are so obsessed with the game they love that they see any attempt to “alter” its true nature as an offense to something they are deeply passionate about and skilled at playing. In their obsession however, they miss the cultural essence of chess on a global scale. The international appeal of HHCF confuses so many “serious” chess players. So let me share my vision more fully for those unclear on thee concept. Let me also say that I realize this is not an easy concept to grasp and I don’t fault anyone for not knowing the converging histories of Hip-Hop, chess and martial arts in America. But I lived this, with millions of other people, so, I know its real and I have seen the fusion enlighten and inspire.

I think I saw something that said a little more than half a billion humans can play chess around the world. Now sit back and think to yourself, “How many of those people are active competitors who plan on become masters?” The answer after a few seconds should be a resounding “Almost none!” People love the game of chess because its fun.

The games you play with your brother before leaving to school. The game your grandmother won that made you cry when you were 9. One night my wife and I were given a free weekend at a lavish hotel in the silicon valley. We were going to go to a restaurant, hit the club and stay out till dawn. That is what we initially told ourselves. We spent hours of it sitting in a hot tub locked in 23-hour chess battle on the 64 squares. The water got cold. We took the game to the main room and stayed up till after 1am trying to win—that’s the chess I’m about. That’s the chess this planet enjoys. So few can remember if granny was breaking out the Kings Indian on them. Nobody remembers if they used the Sicilian Dragon on their opponent in that lunch hour. They just remember the fun. The purity of the fun and personal connectivity in that moment means more than any sheet of algebraic notation.

At the same time, let me say without reservation that if it were not for those that seek to take chess to the highest heights from a competitive and academic perspective, the casual players of the world would have nothing to aspire towards. Players like Magnus Carlsen, Viswanathan Anand, Jennifer Shahade, Irina Krush, Yasser Seirawan and Maurice Ashley are the living cornerstones we stand upon even when we don’t know it. They must all be properly acknowledged for what they have achieved. It is no small thing.

Nevertheless, I’ve played games with Hip-Hop stars Casual, RZA, Traxamillion, Amir Sulaiman I will never forget (I often came up short). One time Big Rich and Balance brought some husky Russian dude to play me at a restaurant. It was electric. This summer I played an amazing game with a young San Jose rapper named Society. It was such a positionally close game II named that match The Battle of Tai Chi. Our positions were so mutually intense and the pressure so high, we were both sweating and thinking and rethinking our moves. It was like a match between Tai Chi warriors in a Jet Li film.

The HHCF tournament at Rock The Bells ended with a street dude from Compton challenging a classically trained player who had just ethered everybody and the dude from Compton won. Off the hook. You can’t make these things up. It’s real life, its real chess and just because the players or fans can’t list the name of every opening or endgame strategy does not make it less legitimate.

Jahi credit (BFresh Photography)

At Hiero Day 2013 in Oakland, HHCF had a table of chessboards set up right next to the All Tribes Zulu Nation booth. After Ronnie Lee and I set up the tables, we just walked away and it automatically was packed with players. Boyfriends lost to their girlfriends, strangers clashed leaving fallen opponents lost in mental anguish and some just passed by to learn the game. I played nasty battle with rapper/educator Jahi. We had been trying to catch up to one another for years (life gets in the way, things fall apart) but on this day we vowed to play. It was stressful for both of us.

Crowds swelled to get a peek at the tactical exchange. When it was over, we were all laughing and talking about opportunities taken, missed and lost. Then an Ethiopian college girl walked up and asked me how much it cost to play. I’m like, “Chess is free.” She just nodded and pointed as if to say “Move then.” I knew she was a killer from her question. She came after me like the blood of Queen Nzinga pulsed in her veins. I was a goner for sure. Then, daybreak! A missed opportunity to check me put me in a position where I had to check her repeatedly into a mate or perish. I pulled it off, but my mind was jello after. I needed a sandwich and some ice tea to recover from those matches.Whoever said chess is only a game for your brain, surely lied. Your whole body feels the stress.

I saw rap producer Ronnie Lee go head to head with some Latino street dude just as my game ended. Ronnie is a way stronger player than I am. This dude came in and started throwing pieces at Ronnie so hard (it was his last game of the day) and Ronnie was positionally on the ropes. Slowly though, the guys aggression caused him to poke holes in his own structure trying to eat Ronnies pieces. I saw him snatch a piece of Ronnies with a grin that soon dropped his jaw. The guys knight was now too far away to protect his king. He knew Ronnie was going to ride his castes down the H file and end it. He shook his head, laid his kind down. “Good game, man” he said with a smile and shook Ronnies hand. That’s the chess we seek to promote. That human chess.

Observing the landscape of the jiu jitsu and in the Hip-Hop world, I find people of similar mind states. They are so in love with the purity of jiu jitsu, Rap or b-boying that they cannot see the connections to chess and respect it lightly because of a line from RZA or Jay Z or 50 Cent. I have said from the beginning that this organization is not for everyone. Not from a place of arrogance or exclusion, but, from a place of intellectual insight. The self-discovery that comes from playing chess, listening to Rap music and training in jiu jitsu and studying the philosophies from those paths has already altered how we see ourselves, humanity and art. Who knows what this fusion will unveil to us through consistent exchanges of intellectual, artistic and physical improvements?

You gotta have an open mind to roll with HHCF. If you are locking into the path of the 64 squares only- the HHCF may not for you. If your love for the gentle art or MMA is too narrow to see anything else- I encourage you to keep walking. If you are all about your rap ciphers but you can’t see past the 5 elements of Hip-Hop- HHCF might not be your thing. We are an organization of people who know they are not one trick pony’s. We know that we are all connected.

This fusion of art and logic, of mental and physical combat was meant to unite people within. Then that unity should flow outward their local and global community. It was meant to unify the minds of young boys and girls to inspire them. We hope to enable them to be able to manifest whatever vision of themselves resonates within their heart. That is it. So if you want to know who the members of the HHCF are- look out your window. Now look in the mirror. Welcome to the HHCF. For more information on what we do and how we do it, visit . Educators who would like an HHCF branch in your area please email contact@hiphopchessfederation.org

Filed Under: 2013 Daily News Tagged With: 64 Squares ina Cipher, adisa Banjoko, Hip-Hop Chess Federation, Rakaa Iriscience, Sunspot Jonz

What’s a Jigga to Do? To Barney or not Barney?

October 25, 2013 By mrDaveyd

At the height of his career actor, singer Harry Belafonte had a variety show which was exploding in the ratings.. He was bringing on all sorts of guests and making things pop..There was one problem, TV stations in the South disliked the fact that he had racially mixed cast.. The networks stepped to Harry and told him he could continue the show, but he needed to tone things down and make some adjustments and they would give him the World.. Belafonte turned down the offer and quit the show the next week..

This would not be the first time Belafonte would walk away from something so tempting and potentially lucrative from the world of Art and Entertainment..He did this on several occasions.

Fast forward to 2013.. We have a high-end department store named Barneys New York with a reputation for humiliating its African-American customers even as African-American celebrities who are crossed over pop icons, make the store a desirable place.

The latest incident where a 19-year-old young man was arrested after buying a belt has led to calls of boycott and punishment for the store. Caught in the middle is rap star Jay Z who has lucrative deal with Barneys New York which includes a clothing and jewelry line..Up to now Jigga has remained silent as calls for him to end his relationship with the store grow louder with each passing day..

Now the rubber in many ways is meeting the road and question becomes What’s a Jigga to do? Keep the money and make his presence felt and influence from the inside? Or does he pull the plug and make a public statement that racial discrimination will not be tolerated by entities he’s involved in no matter what the cost? Is this about Jigga? The community or is this case of we got bigger fish to fry?

Back in the days, James Brown did a song called ‘America is My Home‘ where he gave props to the US and said it was the best country on earth.. Problem was it came in the aftermath of the riots in Watts, Malcolm had been killed and the Black Power Movement was emerging.. Folks stepped to Brown and dissed the song, SNCC leader H Rap Brown had a meeting with J Brown about the song and pushed him to do something grand..

James Brown

Brown responded to the pressure and produced the anthem ‘Say it Loud I’m Black and I’m Proud’.. Almost overnight Brown lost radio airplay and concert dates, because his crossover audience perceived him as a racist for doing the song..

He definitely took some financial hits, but the community loved him for it.. What’s a Jigga to do? What would James do? What would Belafonte do? Will his charitable presence be enough to turn the tide?

Filed Under: 2013 Daily News Tagged With: Barneys New York, Harry Belafonte, James brown, Jay-Z

The Bay Area is Bracing for Urban Shield as SWAT Teams & Weapons Contractors Come to Oakland

October 24, 2013 By mrDaveyd

With the tragic death of 13-year-old Andy Lopez by Santa Rosa sheriff deputies, fresh on our minds, many in the Bay Area are upset and beyond anxious about this weekends Urban Shield gathering.. For those who are unaware, The Department of Homeland Security, SWAT teams from all over the state and country and other Law Enforcement outfits will be descending upon Oakland to host a weapons show and hold an urban war game competition..

The conference and events surrounding it are sponsored by weapons manufacturers with very little money going back to the community where some of these exercises will take place. In fact Oakland City Council members were unaware this was taking place, while officials in surrounding more affluent cities have been pushing this left and right..

Here’s a brief break down of Urban Shield as more than 30 different organizations have banded together to push back. There are local newspaper articles talking about how the police are bracing for protests. Organizers noted that the Bay Area was chosen because of its high level of aggressive protests and dense population.

This year’s Urban Shield activities are kicking off on the second anniversary of Occupy Oakland when Iraq War vet Scott Olson was shot by police a protest..Some law enforcement folks note that it was training received at Urban Sheild that prepared police for Occupy protests. If that’s not enough in addition to all the SWAT teams and weapons manufacturers, former police Chief Bill Bratton and now consultant to OPD will be here as well. Here’s a brief rundown of whats happening courtesy of Facing Urban Shield

There will be huge protests throughout the day in front of Oakland Marriot which is blocks away from Occupy Oakland‘s old site.. We give you the full run down with local activist in our Hard Knock Radio interview which is linked below..

What is Urban Shield?

From October 25th-28th, 2013 in Oakland, California, Urban Shield — a trade show and training exercise for SWAT teams and police agencies — will bring local, national and international law enforcement agencies together with “defense industry contractors” to provide training and introduce new weapons to police and security companies.

We know what this really means: more police and state repression, more tragedy and more death – since these weapons are used primarily against our communities. Over 30 local Oakland groups have formed an action network to express our opposition to the militarization of police and corporate complicity in it.

It Doesn’t Work

Urban Shield arises out of the incorrect assumption that suppression methods, such as the Wars on Drugs and Terror, as well as profiling tactics such as gang injunctions reduce violence in our communities. In fact, the opposite is true. The militarization of police and increased use of suppression tactics in schools, prisons, at the border, in our streets and against our youth are counterproductive to community well-being. Spending billions of dollars to militarize police agencies is deeply misguided.

We Need Alternatives to Policing

Instead of pouring resources into the militarization of police, we need to promote a culture of peace and health, and not one of more violence, war, poverty and incarceration. That is why over 20 groups in the Bay Area oppose Urban Shield and seek to hold our local government accountable for the massive waste of resources on policies and practices that do nothing to sustain our dreams or wellbeing. We want to send a clear message to repression profiteers and police that they must be directly accountable to the communities they now patrol. Instead of militarization, invest in life.

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HKR-Urban Shield Comes to Oakland _10-23-2013

Filed Under: 2013 Daily News Tagged With: Faciong Urban shield, hard Knock radio, Occupy Oakland, Police, Urban Shield

There was No Excuse for the Police to Shoot 13 Year Old Andy Lopez

October 24, 2013 By mrDaveyd

As you read this story check out yesterday’s Flashpoints radio show on KPFA that gives up to the minute details as to what went down with the killing of Andy Lopezmany of the reporters from our station live up in Sonoma County and are very familiar with the community.. http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/96473

RIP Andy Lopez

The death of 13-year-old Andy Lopez at the hands of sheriff deputies in Santa Rosa should not be treated as something that is routine, even though death at the hands of the police in Black and Brown communities happens far too often…

The death of Andy Lopez should not be excused because he was carrying what police described as a realistic looking toy gun…In an age where we have hundreds of video games, reality shows, HD movies etc, realism in toys is a fact of life and police officers are well paid and have extensive training to 1-know the difference and 2-deal with that reality..

In other words, lets not get it twisted and start thinking that Black and Brown kids are the only ones with toy guns.. White kids have them as well. White kids run around with fake toy guns, paint ball guns and even real guns and don’t get shot by police who ‘feared for their lives’..

The faces of grieving white moms are not splattered across our TV sets because law enforcement shot their sons..Its always Black and Brown.. Contrast the shooting death of 13-year-old Andy Lopez who shot no one and had a toy gun with that of James Holmes the man who shot up a theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 and injuring 70… Even though there was concern he had explosive attached to him, he was APPREHENDED without incident.. He wasn’t blown away… We can cite dozens of examples where police manage to disarm ARMED people..

Why are they able to do this? Because they are trained. They practice and practice reacting to all sorts of hair-raising scenarios. They train so that when they come across a 13-year-old with a fake gun, they don’t panic and start shooting..

But in the case of 13-year-old Andy Lopez, we are told he refused to put down the gun after police asked him twice. Are we to believe that he wanted to be shot? Was this 13-year-old doing death by suicide? Are we to believe he thought he could spook the police by pointing a fake gun at them? Was he a criminal on the run facing a 3rd strike and this was his last desperate stand? Why does a 13-year-old point a gun at well-trained better armed police?? It makes no damn sense.

Witnesses in Santa Rosa are noting the gun had an orange tip on it indicating it was a toy and that no one had called the police to complain.. More deatils on this case are emerging as we speak..

**Additional details to this tragedy.. Andy Lopez was shot in an open field where local kids go to play and do target practice with BB guns. He also had headphones on.. He was shot as he was turning around and then shot several more times as he on the ground. Police handcuffed before giving him CPR..more details to come..****

Sadly Andy Lopez joins a long line of victims killed by police who thought the folks they shot had a gun..We can look at actor Anthony Lee who was shot to death at a Halloween Party several years ago for holding a toy gun..Police shot through a window 9 times without warning when he raised up his gun. They ignored white guests dressed as cops who were standing nearby. You can read that HERE.

Earlier this year police in San Jose had to pay nearly 5 million dollars to Javier Gonzales-Guerrero who was also at a Halloween Party when he was shot. In Guerrero’s case he had fallen asleep holding his fake gun which was part of his costume. Police approached him woke him up, ignored his pleas not to shoot and shot him 20 times.. He was left with bullets in his spine.. You can Read about that HERE

Not sure what it’s going to take for this to cease..But obviously there are far too many trigger happy cops.. There are far too many instances where they life is not valued and they see an enemy or an animal and not a son, daughter and fellow human being.. There was no excuse to shoot Andy Lopez.

There is a Facebook support page for Andy Lopez ..You can access it HERE

Our heartfelt condolences to the family. We can only imagine what they are going through and how they are feeling..

photo; Tess Unger

Filed Under: 2013 Daily News Tagged With: Andy Lopez, Anthony Lee, Javier Gonzales-Guerrero, Santa Rosa Police

The Racism of Barneys New York, Privatized NYPD and a Kid Named Trayon Christian

October 24, 2013 By mrDaveyd

Trayon Christian

A few days ago 19-year-old Trayon Christian was arrested for buying a $300 designer belt..It was a belt he saw being worn by rapper Julez Santana in a video. Trayon who works a part-time job, saved up for 6 months to get enough money to purchase the belt.

A clerk inside a high-end retail store Barneys New York, holding a George Zimmerman type mindset felt that Trayon was ‘suspicious‘ and that he ‘was up to no good‘ because he was purchasing such an expensive belt at such a young age. The clerk felt, Trayon was committing fraud and called the police after swiping the card.

Trayon did nothing wrong, and even worse, never knew he was under suspicion by the clerk. Within minutes plain clothes officers showed up and arrested Trayon accusing him of fraud, even after he showed his receipt and credit card. Police simply didn’t believe everything was on the up and up, handcuffed Trayon and took him to jail…

Folks reading this should stop for a minute a reflect. You make a purchase, have a receipt, use your own hard-earned money and you go to jail.. Here’s a few things here for folks to think about:

First, if you go to Barneys New York twitter page here’s the description for their store. They describe the type of person who they want to come to their store…

One might conclude, that ‘the nice person’ and ‘work hard rule’ doesn’t apply to young Black men shopping in that store. Folks may wanna call Barneys New York and ask them to clarify their policies 1.888.222.7639, especially since the store is denying they did anything wrong. Ask them what will trigger a phone call to the cops after you make a purchase?

Wiz Khalifa was mistreated when he shopped at Barneys New York

Second, folks should keep in mind this is not the first time Barneys New York has pulled this crap. This is the same store where clerks snubbed and followed rapper Wiz Khalifa around the even though he shelled out 16 thousand dollars for purchases. This happened 2 years ago. You can check out that story HERE.

This leads to the question as to whether or not celebrities and rappers who frequent the store or name check it in songs and videos will pull their support? We know that Jay Z is scheduled to partner up with Barneys New York, will this incident lead to him reconsidering?

Third, It’s remarkable how quickly police showed up to arrest this young man. They came in force and in plain clothes, noting the connection between Big Business and police who do their bidding…Trayon Christian was going to be seen in the wrong from jump when NYPD is working in concert with a big companies. Who are they really protecting and serving?

We saw this during Occupy Wall Street, when NYPD was privatized wound up working on behest of big banks who were being protested. This is a program called Paid Detail where officers in 2011 made 11 million dollars working for private companies. You can read about it HERE. Meanwhile there are folks in other parts of the city who will have problems, call the police and they not show up.

Barneys New York CEO Mark Lee

Trayon was arrested and brought to jail and kept for several hours.. The police checked out his story by calling the bank and then let him go. Disgusted with his mistreatment he promptly returned the belt, got his money back and vowed never to shop there again. He is now suing both Barneys New York and NYPD. However, one wonders if they would’ve shown and made arrests if Trayon called to complain about being racially profiled by store clerks? Folks should think about that for a minute.

Since this story has gotten out, many are expressing outrage with NYPD and Barney New York as they should.. Others are upset with Trayon and openly asking; why a 19-year-old college student holding a part-time job would buy a $300 belt.. They are mocking him saying he was foolish and overtly materialistic.

The irony is some people raising this issue and looking down their noses at Trayon have iPhones 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 and every model iPad that’s ever come out. In addition, they are paying anywhere from $125-200 a month in telecom bills that limit the amount of bandwidth you can use all so they can to keep them running, but we’re pointing fingers at dude for getting a belt? We should be pointing fingers at the CEO of Barneys New York Mark Lee for having jacked up policies

Some who are upset with Trayon have closets full of Jordans, Kanyes, Lebrons and any number of basketball shoes named after athletes. They just don’t have one pair, they have several in all sorts of different colors, with price tags ranging from $150- $200 a pop..But they’re mad at homeboy for buying a belt?

Some who are criticizing Trayon for buying a $300 belt are wearing $800 shoes

Some of the women criticizing Trayon for buying this belt have several pair of Loubatin shoes that start at $600 a pair. They’ll look scornfully at any sister who walks in the room wearing knockoffs accusing her of being ‘cheap’. We wont even get into a discussion about all the Coach, Louis Vuitton and other expensive handbags and purses that run into the hundreds and even the thousands that folks own.

Can we talk about expensive hair pieces that some are wearing and how much they cost compared to that belt? We all saw the Chris Rock movie ‘Good Hair’ and saw there’s good number of folks shelling out rent money to get weaves..

Here’s my point, this young brother, Trayon had the good sense after being humiliated to launch a lawsuit against those who dissed him.. He didn’t spend 300.00 bucks.. He got his money back and may make 10 times that when all is said and done…

In the meantime we have all sorts of iPhones, ipads and other expensive gadgets from a companies that not only exploit their overseas workforce, but also uses material from the Congo where millions have been killed and millions have been raped to make sure they have precious metals like coltan used for those iphones..What lawsuit have we launched? What boycott are we leading? When did we return our gadgets and call for companies to put an end to the exploitation, murder, rape and pillaging of our people?

Workers routinely die in overseas factories where expensive goods are made

We have basketball shoes that cost damn near pennies to make in places like Bangladesh where people die routinely by the hundreds because of horrid and dangerous factory conditions..The shoes are marked up 500% and we not only pay for them, but sometimes we’ll rob and kill others for them..What lawsuits have we launched at these companies exploiting 3rd world folks who look like us?

When some basketball stars tried to introduce a less expensive show to the market and kept it Black owned.. We scoffed and laughed and said in order to be down we must floss and rejected the less expensive brands.

With respect to the expensive purses, handbags and hair, we have long known that there’s been a strong undercurrent of intolerance by people offering up those goods.. Many of y’all reading this have been followed dissed and had noses turned up at stores where you brought those fancy handbags. Heck, Oprah was dissed trying to purchase an expensive purse. Yet we still buy these bags with no lawsuits.. Even Oprah didn’t sue

Need we talk about the irony of buying hair that gets marked up to outrageous prices from a country where they have a caste system to this day. People holding our complexion are called ‘untouchables‘ and deemed the lowest of the low..

But as long as the hair looks good, what do we care? As long as the shoes look nice what do we care? As long as that iphone works what do we care? Props to Trayon for taking a stand, when will the rest of us?

written by -Davey D-

Filed Under: 2013 Daily News Tagged With: Barney New York, Racial profiling, Trayon Christian, Wiz Khalifa

3 Dope Songs from Soul Singer Charles Bradley aka the Screaming Eagle

October 23, 2013 By mrDaveyd

Charles Bradley aka the Screaming Eagle

Charles Bradley aka the Screaming Eagle of Soul is someone who we should all know. Born in Gainesville, Florida and raised in Brooklyn, NY, his music is infectious, filled with emotion and takes you back to the hey day of James Brown and raw 60s soul. His lack of exposure makes you wonder what’s wrong with the current crop of music taste makers and record selectors who somehow have avoided highlighting this man’s musical offerings..

Bradley never had an easy go of it.. His mother bounced out on him when he was 8 years old which led to him being shipped off to Brooklyn to live with his grandmother. Sadly she lived in extreme poverty which meant that Bradley’s room was in the basement on a dirt floor. He eventually ran away, roaming the streets during the day and sleeping on subways at night..

3 events helped change Bradley’s life for the better. The first came in 1962 when he first saw James Brown aka Soul Brother Number 1. Bradley came back inspired and tried to imitate Brown, both in his singing style and showmanship. Many said that Bradley looked like James which led to him working as a James Brown impersonator fat nightclubs under the name Black Velvet

The second event was him joining the Job Corps and him moving to Ben Harbor, Maine, where he worked as a cook. It was there he formed his first band, overcame his stage fright and started to hone his skills. Unfortunately key members of the band were drafted off to fight in Vietnam War. The band never regrouped.

Bradley struggled for a long time, working odd jobs, and performing sporadically as Black Velvet.. He was homeless for a period had to deal with the tragic murder of his brother and almost died himself when he was accidentally given penicillin which he was allergic to.. Bradley eventually moved out west… During one of his Black Velvet performances in 2002, he caught the attention of Gabriel Roth who was the co-founder of Daptone Records… The rest they say is history..

Bradley was introduced to members of the then emerging Brooklyn based Menahan Street Band. He came to a few of their rehearsals, left an indelible impression and started doing some song writing for them and cutting a number of singles. This led to his first album ‘No Time For Dreaming’ which many consider a soul classic released in 2011. His second album Victim of Love came out earlier this year. A documentary on Bradley life was released last year at SXSW to rave reviews called Soul of America.

Below are 3 Dope Songs From Charles Bradley..

Charles Bradley The World Is Going Up in Flames

This song was first released in 2007. Several years later a video was done for the song after it was including on Bradley’s debut album No Time for Dreaming. This video led to him having a documentary done on his life. There’s no denying the passion and the James brown influence on this song as he brings to life the challenges many are facing in this world.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moiUyFQQE-0

Charles Bradley Stay Away

This song is a soulful cover of a popular song from the rock band Nirvana. You can peep the original Nirvana song HERE Bradley and the Menahan Street Band completely flip and give a soulful Hip Hop flavor. It’s my favorite song by Bradley.

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

Charles Bradley Golden Rule

This is another dope song from Charles Bradley that’s laced with social political content.. I wish they did a video for it, but this live version done at SXSW is dope on its own..

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

Charles Bradley Strictly For You

This is another song and video highlighting the diversity and range of Charles Bradley.. He can be energetic, funky and dynamic one minute or thoughtful and soulful the next.

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

Filed Under: 2013 Daily News, 3 Dope songs Tagged With: 3 Dope Songs, Charles Bradley, Daptone records, Menahan Street Band, Screaming eagle of Soul, Stay Away, The World Is Going Up in Flames

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