Tuesday's News

We as black people may live across the continents, but we are on people. African unity is important to embrace. That is why I have no problems with people advancing black African global unity socially, politically, economically, and romantically (as there is an increase of couples between Africans and African Americans. Black Love is so beautiful. :) ). That's fine. Some want to promote business development plans among Africans throughout the Earth. Now, any economic enterprises in Africa should never mimic or imitate neo-colonialism, imperialism, or predatory, parasitic capitalism at all. True economic development in Africa is based on meeting the needs and concerns of the masses of the people. The vast resources found in Africa (from cobalt to other minerals) belong to all of the people of Africa not the multinational corporations of the world (and not the 1 percent especially). What is called socialism today has been practiced by the peoples of Africa for thousands of years. The concepts of socialism or any other economic philosophy based on cooperation among communities is nothing new. Nothing is new under the sun. We need a transformation in society. We see how imperialism, capitalism, racism, and militarized are intricately interconnected. I believe that people have the right to vote and that people should be REGISTERED to vote, but why would we want to do the same thing over and over again and get the same result. In my opinion, we should mostly focus on state and local elections, because they have a much more direct effect on us. I won't be a Republican (or a Tea Party person, because of my political views. People know my political views), but we should be more politically independent. I have no issue with additional grassroots community organization including community based PROGRAMS and other solutions to help Brothers and Sisters. Our black communities deserve respect and empowerment.


There is a massive obstruction of justice in Ferguson. Justice for Michael Brown has been delayed so far. St. Louis County officials are not doing all that they can to promote real justice. Michael Brown was gunned down by police officer Darren Wilson. We know what the crime is. The assailant admitted that he killed Michael Brown. Not to mention that the victim was unarmed and witnesses say that Brown had his hands in the air when he was shot. There is more than enough evidence to arrest and indict Darren Wilson. Probable cause can cause people to be arrested and that is enough to arrest a police officer. Prosecuting Attorney Robert P. McCulloch said that when the grand jury convenes to consider the case, he would take the unusual step of not recommending a specific charge. Instead, McCulloch says, he will present all the evidence gathered about the shooting--and let the grand jury decide whether any charges should be forthcoming. There must be at least nine of the 12 members of the grand jury to vote in favor of an indictment in order for an indictment to take place. We know that the city of Ferguson is mostly black, but there are only 3 black people on the panel. The grand jury must decide on January 7 as a means to decide whether to charge Wilson or not. McCulloch to not recommend specific charges is unusual. All in all, says DEFENSE LAWYER and St. Louis University law professor Susan McGraugh, McCulloch may be looking for "cover," which he can "get by sharing the responsibility with the grand jury...So when the public reacts to what does or does not happen, they can go back to the fact that the grand jury played a large role in the decision. They can say, 'We let these jurors, who are your peers, hear what witnesses had to say. This was their decision.'" McCulloch is known for scant interest in prosecuting cases involving fatal shootings by the police. In one case, police shot two Black men 21 times while they sat in their car during a botched drug bust. One of the men wasn't even a suspect. Even so, the grand jury refused to indict--and McCulloch agreed with the decision, calling the dead men "bums" and refusing to release surveillance tape of the shooting. Police claimed the men had tried to avoid arrest by driving their car toward officers--however, it later turned out that cops lied and the car hadn't moved. So, Bob McCulloch is part of the St. Louis injustice system.


We all remember looking at the Cosby Show when we were young. I was in elementary school during the last season of the Cosby show. It not only presented grace, black culture, and the strength of family in general on television. The show certainly inspired people irrespective of race or class. Black people are diverse. The classic show showed great music, and it had universal appeal. In the final analysis, to be black is to be human and the Cosby show represented the greatness of the human experience. Phylicia Rashad has been a class act for decades. She is a great Sister, a role model, and a legend. :) The Cosby Show set such a standard that no future family sitcom show will be like the Cosby Show. The Cosby Show is very special since the family danced to music, Bill Cosby ran track on the show, and their relatives had fun. The show showed the wide spectrum of human emotions from humor, joy, sadness, anger, and to happiness. It touched not only on middle class issues, but on apartheid, music, peer pressure, and other themes that people go through universally. There is only one Clair Huxtable and Heathcliff Huxtable. That is a great list about excellent TV moms and dads Sister. Esther Role and John Amos have incredible talent too. The Cosby Show and Good Times show different sides to the black experience (based on class, etc.), but they were unified in the love of family, the love of humanity, and the resiliency of the black family experience in general. We are a resilient people. We survived centuries of the Maafa, slavery, Jim Crow, etc. So, we will survive. Bill Cosby ironically was raised poor, but grew up into a wealthier life. So, he knew about the struggles of people. He knew how the poor lived, how the middle class lived, etc. Therefore, he created the Cosby Show as a means for people to break down the faulty biases that some had of black family life. Many people of numerous colors saw how a black family has the same issues, strengths, problems, and joy as any other family. Bill Cosby is a genius in how to tap into human social interactions as a means to make his show very valuable and very insightful. Esther Role and John Amos reminded people of strong fathers and strong mothers in poorer communities nationwide too. Goodtimes documented the truth that just because someone is poor, doesn’t mean that they are criminal, deceptive, or abrasive. Decent people exist across classes. I am also glad that both shows presented to the world how strong and important the FAMILY UNIT is. The Cosby Show did not show every aspect of black life, but it did accurately depict a certain segment of black life. The Cosby Show is very popular. There are many of its episodes shown on Centric.

During the era of Jesus Christ was one of the most controversial eras of the Middle East. The Parthian and Roman Empires governed Mesopotamia, Iran, etc. The Arabian Kingdoms grew in size plus power and they traded with the black African peoples of Nubia and the Kingdom of Axum. The Jewish people were not only found in Judaea (or Israel today), but they existed in Africa, Asia, and Europe by the time of Augustus. Yeshua was a revolutionary rabbi who taught love, peace, and that the Kingdom of God was at hand. To Christians, he is the Messiah (the Son of God). To Muslims, he was a great prophet. To those who followed Judaism, he was a leader, but not the Messiah. Yet, Yeshua was a person who will be very famous and debated long after 33 A.D. I believe that Yeshua is the Messiah and the Son of God. Rebellions existed in Israel when Jewish people rebelled against Roman Empire tyranny. I do believe that the “angry black woman” label has been used by some to degrade black women. Just because a black woman is strong, intelligent, confident, and upright, doesn’t mean that she is angry. The author of the NY Times piece can indeed fairly critique the show without using the angry black woman motif. That is my view. Shonda Rhimes is a very talented person and people have the right to agree with her or not. Also, another point is to be made. We need more fair shows about our people. Too many shows today present black people either in a negative light, objects for exploitation, or in the form of caricatures. It is very rare in our generation to see shows that presents black people in general as thoughtful, intelligent, moral, caring, sharing, and competent human beings. We need more shows that show black men and black women caring for each other, loving each other, and respecting each other. Yet, that is too taboo for some to embrace unfortunately. We need more shows like the Cosby Show, A Different World, Hangin with Mr. Cooper, Roc, Moesha, Parent Hood, etc.


The truth about this issue is known in plain fashion. Roland Martin is right on this issue. It is obvious that Enough is Enough. If a man or anyone sees a woman or female being mistreated, then that person has the right to speak up about it and stand up for black females. We see the truth in plain view. We should always view a black woman being mistreated as equivalent to someone mistreating our mothers. We won't stand for anyone being disrespectful to our mothers and we should never stand for any other Sister being mistreated either. There has been less coverage (shown by the media) about black women being missing than white women being missing. Black women day by day do suffer discrimination, pay inequalities, sexual harassment, and other injustices. No one should ignore this issue or minimize how black women have suffered not only in America but worldwide. There must be a revolutionary change in the world. Black men suffer in society too in real life, but this story is about society’s treatment of black women. Domestic violence is a global epidemic. No one can be a revolutionary and support domestic violence. You can’t love black women if you call black women out of their names, slander black women, and believe in perverted, false stereotypes about black women. Since, we are one people; we can’t be free totally unless black women are liberated too. Black men should do more to not only defend black women, but fight back against the evils that harm both black men and black women. No gender should be mistreated at all. There is no way that we can have justice unless black women have justice too. The family of Michael Brown deserves all of the support in the world. Their courage and their motivating words of fighting for justice should inspire us all. If they want to push for body cameras for cops, then that is their right as concerned citizens who want a change in society. There is nothing wrong with body cameras on cops at all. Freedom loving people globally support the legitimate efforts of the Michael Brown family completely. Yes, WE WILL NOT BE SILENT.


By Timothy