Oh the things, I haven't forgotten at all...

For starters, I do remember the days when I was younger and saw acceptance from others due to my earlier struggles with my weight.  However, when one comes to terms to understand yourself from your race (and for some their ethnicity), it gets even more complicated when you add sexuality to the mix.  My sexuality has been more of non-factor for me because I have never really allowed it to be placed at the forefront of my personal identity.  On the other hand, when one does began to interact with their peers and form relationships, it does become a kind come into play along with the other aforementioned characteristics such as race, ethnicity, height, and body type (weight).

Anyways, to get to the point.  I came across this article from GMFA, a UK-based organization that promotes positive and good health practices for gay, bisexual, and queer males.  The article is very true and quite on point of some of the things many non-white but particularly black gay and bisexual males have to deal with when they are on their journal of self acceptance and confidence.  This interesting segment of the article stuck out to me:

As a 17-year-old, seeing the “no Blacks, no Asians” statement displayed on a profile would sadden me, but that was nothing compared with getting those remarks back as a response after I had broken the ice in a direct message. Rejection is always worse when you are not expecting it, and people can react to sexual racism in various different ways. Ten years ago it would have made me angry and I would have instantly questioned how the rest of the world was viewing me, but these days, I really don’t give a damn about the thoughts of people who are clearly incapable of at displaying common decency. My school days, when I would attempt to ‘fit in’ with the majority, are long gone, and I am not going to spend my time worrying about the sexual preferences of a bunch of morons! 

Honestly, that is my journey to now went except I was 19 versus 17.  At the point and time now, I am confident in myself and don't care for anyone regardless of race if they aren't attracted to me.   However, I do still sigh for many SGL of color that seek companionship with those that maybe white face rejection for their race.  I have said time and time again, that exclusively seeking any group is going to be recipe for constant rejection, but with time I have found myself desiring a long term relationship and companionship with another black male.  It's not to say I cannot be with somebody that isn't a non-black male, but the truth is the likelihood is very high considering how so often sexual racism and fetishization plays a heavy role in interracial interactions still on a same-gender loving (SGL) relationships.

At the moment, I have been happily dating someone new for 6+ months and yeah it is a black guy, but I still to remember those days of the past when this was one of my challenges of personal growth.

Things I don't miss about the Chattahoochee Valley...this incident reminds me why

Things like this idiotic child.

He is obviously a product of this environment.  Where blacks and whites intergrating into a social setting is this particular area is damn near impossible.

Anyways, 17-year-old Derek Shrout wrote in a journal that he left at school wanted to commit a violent act against a number of students that attended Russell County High School in Seale, Alabama.  Shrout also proclaimed himself a "white supremacist" wanted to kill numerous black students and 1 assumed gay student.  He plead not guilty at his pending charges.  His parents bonded him out at $75,000 soon as his court arraignment was over.  (Probably for his safety known this locale is in the middle of the Black Belt, and loaded with more blacks behind bars than whites whom have nothing else left to lose knowing this about that idiot...) 

The killing thing is that some of his classmates noticed a change in his behavior in the past few months.  Shorout went from a being a teen dedicated to the JROTC to a one that congregated and focused around others with white power oriented activities even doing the Nazi salute and chant.  He apparently is a military brat and relocated with his family from Kansas to Alabama in the past year.

I'm not surprsed at his fellow (white) classmates being so non-chalant about his views on non-whites and other societal minorities.  However, what is more embarrassing is the black male student in 1st link being dumbfounded at this possibly happening at Russell County High School.  I wasn't that naive in at that age...SMH

Oh course, the media (WTVM/Columbus) doing their job of speaking to familiars to this loon.  His mother was saying "he is a good boy" (cue eye roll).  However, I thank Gawker for this article because it spells it out in long form why the US media does such dubious things for only white males when everybody else is assumed to be guilty-as-charged.

Oops! Did he say that one aloud?

I think it high past time for somebody to have said this one aloud considering why 99% of most mass shootings are perpetuated by what white males.  If everyone else is being profiled and suspected of "being up to no good" then what is good for the goose is good for the gander as well on these methods of criminal profiling.  Kudos to Salon contributor and social commentator, David Sirota, for saying this one aloud.

The irony is as some commentators on my buddy V's blog is that "why is that it had to take a white guy to point this one out?"  It's troubling that the obvious is avoided until someone of that demographic group is said about most white males.  Sorry, but white males tend to be perpetrators of a lot of things in the modern western society and one of them is mass violence.

Well, there is some truth to this, but a lot more misconceptions to this

I just read the article by Josh Kraushaar in the National Journal discussing the diversity problem associated with the Democratic Party.  While there is some truth to this notion because I've been saying this for a while now that there is a humongous problem within the DNC that involving viable black politicos whom are electable to pluralistic, statewide offices such as the U.S. Senate and governorships.  I've said time, time, and time again that there needs to be more pluralistic candidates promoted to candidacy for statewide offices across the South, but there is those whom are vehemently against this.  Yet, some blacks do wonder why the lack of viable black candidates continues persist in the South. 

On the other hand, there is way more young and non-white voters willing to vote for Democrats over Republicans.  The reasoning is quite obvious T.E.A. twits, Dixiecrats, anti-progressive stance will likely be the Republicans undoing. 

Now, the elections of Bobby Jindal, Nikki Haley (ironically both Indian Americans) to the governorships of Louisiana and South Carolina respectively is impressive.  However, notice they aren't electing any blacks or Meso-American Hispanics to the statewide offices because they know it won't fly in the South.  The few blacks elected in the South are always in majority white districts and extremely socially conservative, i.e. Allen West of Florida and Tim Scott of South Carolina.  This individuals aren't reflective of a "pluralistic" candidate rather an anti-thesis of pluralism because they have subjectively refuted an inclusive platform that is very reflective of their congressional districts.  This alone shows anyone with a strong critical analysis skill will notice about this situation of "diversity" in the Republican party.  It also will come back to haunt the GOP because most non-whites see through the overt non-inclusive nature of the current Republican party. 

The obvious racial problems still occurring in this nation

We live in a society where aversive bias still lives and thrives.  It was clear with the way some political pundits this evening wanted to declare that the "sweeping" losses for some Democratic politicos was the result of poor leadership from the President [Obama].  However, it is far from the contrary.  We still live in a society where many white Americans have yet to gotten over their issues of race at all and where there are forces at work that are destroying any chance of economic recovery.  Economics doesn't tell the full story behind what is really going on.  I'll mostly focus on the South since I know this region all too well.

In the South, a region that by default been one where there are clearly 2 categories of citizenry, poor and wealthy.  The middle class didn't exist in the South until the mid-20th century due to the invention of electricity (thanks to the New Deal programs of Tennessee Valley Authority and the creation of electric cooperatives).  It brought modernization and vast amounts of projects that brought employment for many following the Great Depression.  However, the middle class in the South has always been an anomaly.  Then you throw in the additional variable of race, where mostly poor and middle class whites would allow themselves to be manipulated (and to the day still do) by wealthier whites to hate and commit acts of oppression against people of color (non-whites).  This led to a stratification of economics on racial terms and beacon an on-going problem where many white Southerners doesn't like (whether overtly or covertly) non-white Southerners as neighbors, coworkers, or even as fellow citizens.  This rule of mindset shows itself in the way Southern states, more predominately in rural, less economically empowered regions, there will be an immediate backlash or outright rejection of the election of any form of leadership that isn't white or displays WASP values.  Interestingly enough, blacks haven't shown such bias against white leadership in areas where they are reside in large numbers.

However, as the past has shown that there are some neophytes within black political circles in the South whom will exercise some form of reverse racial bias against black politicos and even some progressive whites to win political races in majority black districts.  This has occurred multiple times the major Southern cities in Birmingham, Atlanta, Memphis, and New Orleans.  What is more is alarming is that state Democratic parties has given the nod-and-wink to instants where this occurred to in statewide offices.  This year alone in the states of Alabama and Georgia, the state Democratic leaders along with the black leaders have thrown strong and populist black gubernatorial candidates under the bus for white males with electability issues.  In the case of Alabama on the basis of his (Artur Davis') vote on the health care reform legislation in Congress, and the case of Georgia because the state party leadership felt that the former governor (Roy Barnes) was more electable to rural whites over his opponent (Thurbert Baker).

In the congressional races of candidates like Terri Sewell, the issues amongst black leaders with her more progressive, egalitarian style of campaigning because she was woeing the white and LGBT vote of Alabama's 7th congressional district.  Her candidacy unnerved the same forces that have been working behind the scenes  that has maintained power in Birmingham and Montgomery with Alabama Black Caucus in the state legislature.  On the other hand, the power-tripping and egotistical actions of Georgia congressman Sanford Bishop with him being one of the 3 black congressional reps implicated in giving scholarships allocated for citizens of their district for their own family or kin.  This along with the by-default racially bias mindset of the 2nd congressional district of Georgia may have cost him his seat to a white Republican, whom has a horrible track history in the Georgia General Assembly.

Racially omission has played a key role in the race between Alabama's 2nd congressional district representative, Bobby Bright and Montgomery council member Martha Roby.  There has literally been a painting and campaigning of white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant values over the more racially diverse district, which includes the majority black city of Montgomery.  The race itself is an example of this issue where there is nothing being offered by either candidate for the districts 25+% black constituency.    

In conclusion, this whole political overview shows what is going on in our society involving politics and race along with economics.  It's just a microcosm of what is going on nationwide in other major areas like the Midwest, Northeast, and the West Coast where there are bubbles of racial and ethnic diversity.

Ok, time for another lesson in race discussions...

I'm honestly dumbfounded and disgusted by the inert actions of the folks in the White House (I vindicated Obama from this drama because of he would get implicated for playing favorites by the right and aversive racists) involving all this associated with race.  I can't get my mind wrapped around the notion that so many of these predominately white male individuals in the White House will do anything to including warning Obama that if he touches this he will lose moderate, working-class whites.  However, this discussion needs to occur, SERIOUSLY.

OK, last week Shirley Sherrod was thrown under the bus by the paranoid USDA secretary, Tim Vilscak, and then the NAACP went into panic mode as well.  Then we can even go back to my personal rants on how black Democrats in Congress such as Michigan's own John Conyers throwing ACORN under the bus last year after the foolishness that was pedaled from those doctored footage.  And let's not forget the Van Jones' castration of last December, where he was allowed to be tarred and featured by so-called liberals and black Democrats.  I'm just frustrated by those latter two events as much if not more than the Sherrod situation because at least those with sense came to her defense. 

The whole discussion of race, is a social concept created by white elites in this nation from the 1600s during the post-indentured servitude era of the Colonial America.  This was a response to white elites making note of who often black and white former indentured servants were suffering from common afflictions of lack of access to economic improvement, so they used the all encompassing term "white" as one to describe anyone whom was of fair complexion regardless of ancestry.  Also the usage of how fear of blacks being "savages" and "thieves" whom will do anything to get a one up on impoverish and working-class whites as a weapon to create a divide between the two groups.  This still continues to this very day between impoverish and working-class black and white Americans.

Class is also thrown in as a weapon to impede the growth of both groups but race is also an extra trick to ensure the lack of access from anything will not be there for blacks at all.  Ultimate, the two concepts are connected in many ways, but the discussion of how race is used as an extra spin on things is just icing on the cake. Race is an institutionalized affliction that impedes the empowerment of blacks as well as aforementioned groups of whites (along with other non-white groups), but the division amongst all is just disheartening. 

This is where President Obama needs to come in and attempt to discuss this openly discuss this issue.  Race along with the usage of class needs to be addressed to all.  Many of the those within the "Angry White People Coalition" aren't impoverish or working-class rather clearly economically stable middle-to-upper class whites whom just seem to have a racial bone to pick with Obama.  They are beyond hope and pointless to address in Obama's case.  Whereas, those like the Spooners, whom affirmed Sherrod's story, are the ones whom should be reached by such discussion.  They know that most non-whites aren't against them, but the way those like Andrew Breitbart, Tucker Carson, and the sycophancy of misinformation at FOX News will do anything to create such a wedge so there isn't any commonality between any groups...

Thoughts on the "Great Division" proposed for Fulton County (Georgia)

I've been wondering and contemplating about this topic for months now.  For the life of me, I still don't fully understand the fundamental logic behind the desire to create or recreate the 160th county in Georgia, Milton County. 

Now for those that don't know, Milton County used to exist until 1932 when the Great Depression forced the county dissolve and merge into Fulton County.  The original boundaries of it was pretty much all of northern Fulton County from the Chattahoochee River and northward with the exception of a triangular shaped strip of land stretching from original Roswell land area including downtown to Chattahoochee River was originally apart of Cobb County.  Also Fulton County obtained the land north of present-day Dunwoody Club Road to the Chattahoochee from DeKalb County whose northern border was originally the river as well.  Regardless, the original Milton County went broke because of the disaster number of season of cotton harvest due to boll weevil devastating the crop.  However, the recent push as early as 2006 after a spring of municipal incorporation of Sandy Springs, John's Creek, Milton, and Mountain Park in northern Fulton County, the overwhelmingly Republican Georgia General Assembly delegation has pushed to sever Fulton County.  Interestingly enough, the "new" Milton County would include Sandy Springs, which was originally a part of the original Fulton County.  But, the recently-incorporated Sandy Springs is majority white (77% to be exact) and very Republican.  The 2010 general session of the General Assembly, the newly appointed House Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones has been pushing this HARD to secede northern portions from the rest of Fulton County.

The real question is it racially motivated?  Could very well be...  According to the 2000 Census data, the majority of the municipalities and former CDPs (that's census-designated places for those who don't know the statistical lingo) in northern Fulton County were on average 75% white and no more than 25% non-white.  It seems like a case where racial identity and partisanship politics meets and becomes quite ambiguous in definition.  The argument has been for years according to some is that the current Fulton County government is "too bloated and ineffective in providing services".  On the other hand, the proponents of keeping the now 1 million + inhabitant Fulton County unified hasn't really helped themselves with the site http://www.onefulton.org, but they do have some points as well.  The northern communities were given in recent years 3 new libraries from the Atlanta-Fulton County Library System with state of the art facilities and resources; whereas, the communities in the southern portions of the county aside from the locations in Buckhead and main branch in downtown Atlanta itself are still half-assed at best.

Now, this is my opinion on this since I have lived in another ineffective urban county, Jefferson County.  The efforts by the Republican delegation in the Georgia General Assembly is aversively bias in intent because they don't want to deal with the overwhelmingly non-white and politically different demographic groups of the rest of the county.  It is ineffectively pointless to secede from Fulton County when you could just write legislation to reform the county government to fix whatever issues ails the communities.  However, I've come to the conclusion this is another case where some socially conservative whites will walk and run around the main point here and that is "they don't want to be involved in anything where they feel they can't control or orchestrate on their grounds".  It's a shame that some whites will think this way and act that they should just sever an urban county because it doesn't represent them directly or politically, and you don't see too many non-whites or social progressives attempt to enact an usurp of power or government when we don't control things.  It's quite self-destructive and leads to further strife between the socially conservative whites against non-white and other non-WASP demographic groups in Metro Atlanta.  Nevertheless, it just shows that Atlanta is just as screwed up as Birmingham in a more ways than none.

Oh brother, Mississippi is still doing this...

On Tuesday, Senior Judge Tom S. Lee serving in the U.S. District Court of Southern Mississippi had to issue an order requiring that Walthall County in Southwestern Mississippi to desegregate their school district.  Apparently, school officials were allowing a large chunk of the white students to transfer to a majority white set of schools while depleting any sense of diversity in the reminder of the county schools, which are majority black. 

WASHINGTON – A federal court has ordered the Walthall County, Miss., School District to eliminate policies that have resulted in significant racial segregation among students in the school district, the Justice Department today announced.

The United States filed a motion on Dec. 21, 2009, in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi arguing that the Walthall School District is in flagrant violation of a prior court order from 1970, the Equal Protection Clause and Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"More than 55 years after Brown v. Board of Education, it is unacceptable for school districts to act in a way that encourages or tolerates the resegregation of public schools," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. "We will take action so that school districts subject to federal desegregation orders comply with their obligation to eliminate vestiges of separate black and white schools."

According to the motion, the district's practice of permitting hundreds of students – the vast majority whom are white – to attend schools outside their assigned residential attendance zone without restriction prompted a disproportionate number of white students to attend a single school in the district, leaving a number of other schools disproportionately black.

Indeed, evidence in the case suggested that the community regarded certain schools in the district as "white schools" or "black schools." The United States also asserted that officials in certain district schools grouped, or "clustered," white students together in particular classrooms, resulting in large numbers of all-black classes at every grade level in those schools.

The order issued today by the court requires the district to modify its transfer policy to permit students to transfer to a school outside their residential zone only if the student can demonstrate a compelling justification for the transfer. The court further ordered the district to implement protocols to ensure that students within district schools will hereafter be assigned to classrooms in a manner that will not lead to segregation.

The enforcement of the Equal Protection Clause and Title IV in school districts is a top priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

According to the Washington Post:

For years, the local school board has permitted hundreds of white students to transfer from its Tylertown schools, which are about 75 percent African American and serve about 1,700 students, to another school, the Salem Attendance Center, which is about 66 percent white and serves about 577 students in grades K-12. The schools are about 10 miles apart.

Salem became "a racially identifiable white school while the student enrollment of the Tylertown schools has become predominantly black" because of the transfers, U.S. officials alleged in December, based on data from the 2007-08 school year, according to Lee's order.

At the same time in Tylertown four K-12 schools, "District administrators group, or 'cluster,' disproportionate numbers of white students into designated classrooms . . . resulting in significant numbers of segregated, all-black classrooms at each grade level," the judge wrote, summarizing the Justice Department lawyers' case.

So the clustering of white students in majority white school and the cluster of black students in other school, huh?  Well, Mississippi Department of Education have a lot of explaining to do considering they likely knew of this when they did their annual enrollment and demographic profiles of each schools in each school district.  Considering this is the notorious for being still practically "Indentured Servitude Country" aka Southwestern Mississippi, I just not surprised that is occurred here at all.  This is portion of Mississippi that is still stuck in the early 20th century in so many ways more than one can explain.  Mississippi is making a name for itself this year and it's only been 4 months in; first, with the prom fiasco in Itawamba County and now this ignorance.  WOW, WOW, WOW! 

Georgia's 1st black female and youngest chief justice is being considered for departing U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens

While I was under the weather for the last few days (literally after I returned from Atlanta), Leah Ward Sears, Georgia's 1st black and youngest chief justice name has popped up on the list of names to replace John Paul Stevens on the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS).  According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Sears' name now is among more than half a dozen candidates being considered by the president to replace Justice John Paul Stevens, who is retiring this summer.

Well, this is an interesting series of developments involving the foolishness that has been pedaled by Senatorial Republicans at the idea of President Obama appointing another justice to the SCOTUS like Alabama's very own junior senator Jeff Sessions (backwoods, aversive racist asshole).  According to the Mobile Press-Register, Session released a long, yet convoluted statement commending and condemning President Obama if even thinks about attempting to nominate anything other than a social conservative to the post currently held by the clearly liberal John Paul Stevens.  This excerpt is so tale-telling about the double standard that Sessions along with the majority of the Senatorial Republicans on this process:

Justice Stevens' approaching retirement sets in motion an important constitutional process to nominate and confirm the next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. In exercising its 'advise and consent' role, the Senate must act on behalf of the American people to carefully scrutinize the nominee's qualifications, prior speeches and writings, and record. Senate hearings are the public's best opportunity to become involved in this process, and it is critical that the Judiciary Committee conduct a fair and thorough evaluation of whomever President Obama nominates for this extraordinary lifetime appointment.

We know from the nomination of Justice Sotomayor last spring that the public is rightly concerned about the future of our judiciary. The product of her confirmation hearing was a near-universal rejection of President Obama's empathy standard, the flawed notion that judges should allow personal feelings, political opinions, and social views to guide judicial decision-making. Senators on both sides of the aisle--and the nominee herself--disavowed the president's standard because it lies contrary to the traditional role of a judge in our legal system. Such an approach opens the door to an anti-democratic abuse of power where unaccountable federal judges set national policy according to their own views and political agendas. That approach is deeply unpopular with the American people, and any nominee who subscribes to it should expect bipartisan opposition.

The courtroom is a place reserved for the search for truth and the fair adjudication of disputes, free from politics. The American people want judges of the utmost integrity who have demonstrated a commitment to the Constitution and a willingness to impartially apply the law to the facts to reach a just outcome, without regard to the parties involved. There is a growing movement that is calling for more fidelity to our constitutional order, not less.

This idiot is telling me that he made sure that Roberts and Alito were properly vetted in the Senatorial approval process?  That one is HIGHLY DOUBTFUL considering how bias on opinions Alito clearly is on rulings moreso than any other justice on the SCOTUS.  I hope that Obama nominates Sears for the SCOTUS since it would bring another open-minded moderate with progressive leanings and bonus of this one would a black female.  On the flip side, according to the Washington Post, Sears is friends with current sitting justice Clarence Thomas, so it would be interesting to see if he will do some backdoor campaigning in her favor. 

This is going to be a three-ring-circus and the Senatorial Republicans of the socially conservative and hyper-partisan ilk are just going to make this one so more dubious and annoying...

HUH?

Again Virginia's socially conservative Republican governor Bob McConnell has made an ass of himself and the Commonwealth of Virginia this time with the proclamation of April as Confederacy History Month.  This idiot is a simple as an Easy-Bake Oven, and had the audacity to deliberately omit the acknowledgment of the enslavement of black Americans and the ramifications. Interestingly, McConnell unlike his Democratic predecessors, feels that this proclamation will help with the state's tourism involving the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War...

Interestingly, Virginia's first black governor and the first one of a Southern state L. Douglas Wilder, who refused to endorse that Democratic pushover in last year's gubernatorial race and tacitly endorsed McConnell, spoke out against this proclamation.  According to the Washington Post, Wilder called it "mind-boggling to say the least" and "Confederate history is full of many things that unfortunately are not put forth in a proclamation of this kind nor are they things that anyone wants to celebrate. It's one thing to sound a cause of rallying a base. But it's quite another to distort history." Also Shelia Johnson, BET founder Bob Johnson's ex-wife, who also endorsed McConnell called him out as well.  Now Johnson had endorsed McConnell because he was for "job, jobs, jobs" according to her advertised endorsement from last year's campaign.  Also word on the street is that heifer was also looking for a nod-and-wink from McConnell and the mostly Republican Virginia General Assembly over tax incentives for a real estate venture she was attempting to construct in Northern Virginia. (Too little, too late Johnson and we all know you have something against anybody that isn't black and wealthy as yourself).  McConnell half-assed attempted to apologize for the omission of slavery, but will keep the proclamation to appease the idiots.

The idiocy continues although it wasn't as highly publicized Alabama's socially conservative buffoon governor Bob Riley did the same thing on March 22nd.  I've yet to understand what is the purpose of these Southern Republican governors attempting to appease the lowest common denominator of their populous hoping to buy some political cool points and capital along the way.  Whereas, these idiotic gestures are solidifying their dissonance with non-white Southerners particularly blacks and to a certain extent young, educated whites.  Funny when they have the Southern Republican Leadership Conference this weekend in New Orleans hoping to strategize and reclaim a majority in Washington and in their individual Southern state capitals. 

I can't even step away and go to Atlanta for a few days without having more stupidity and racial omission at its very worst going on...

I want some people to STFU on this whole Obama Census form crap!

Over the New York Times story discussing how Barack Obama filled out on the race identification section of the U.S. Census form for himself.  REALITY CHECK: if Barack Obama was an average citizen that was seen on the streets or (God forbid) pulled over for an offense by law enforcement do you realize that his race would be identified as a black male.  Yeah, he was raised by his clearly white mother along with his second generation Irish American maternal grandparents, but he said in his own autobiographical story that he has come to identify himself as an 'African American' or in my terms, black.  It's not that hard to understand that since the one-drop rule has been enforced in most social circles of our society in this nation since the times of slavery that if a person appears have more physical traits uncommon to most white Americans then they are considered 'non-white'.  This following quote by a commentator on The Huffington Post sums it up quite eloquently:

Most people do not consider biracial black/whites to be white 9.5/10 no matter what. If Barack Obama was some hustler in Chicago, or a janitor in Idaho no one would look at him and say "Oh, he's half white so he really could be white". That just doesn't happen. Like he's said in his books, Obama has always been treated and regarded as a Black man.

The only time anyone wanted to seriously talk up his "White" side was when it looked like he was about to become President and afterwards. Just like South Koreans wanted to claim Hines Ward 'after' he became MVP. In lesser circumstances these men would be considered (and treated) as black period.

Obama's white side never helped him catch cabs. It never stopped many whites from calling him an affirmative action candidate. His white side didn't stop Glenn Beck from saying he has a deep seated hatred of white people. His white side didn't help him in the Louis Gates incident last year when whites freaked out after he said police officers acted stupidly (which they did). His white side hasn't helped convince ignorant masses that our Democratically elected president is a legal citizen of the US.

He can identify as he likes and he identifies as Af-American. I'm not sure why some whites are getting upset over a societal norm that they created, promoted, and complacently live by everyday.

The fact that some whites want to claim Barack Obama as a member of the in-group when many doesn't even consider their own biracial or multiracial relatives as 'white' although their blood says A LOT of the trivialized mindset of a number of individuals in that demographic group.  It's quite simple, the man sees himself as black and if you don't respect then that is your problem.  However, don't conveniently consider a person a part of a demographic group when otherwise other individuals who have more apparent traits associated with being white are denied instantly because of their lack of prominence or achievements.  It's hypocritical and very evident of the apparent sift and dissidence in our society when it comes to concepts of race identification and white privilege.  (I'll leave that to the blog Stuff White People Do to discuss since it's entirely dedicated to such topics). 

I guess Michael Steele has finally read the memo

That memo is if you're black then your ass is always on the line...


He addressed that very factoid on ABC's Good Morning America this morning when asked about the controversy that I intentionally neglected to cover of the past week involving the Republican National Convention (because controversy and the RNC or social conservatives are as common as people farting and belching, so Google it if you want to know it was).  However, silly ole Steele finally realize those white guys and (white women) in the RNC doesn't have much patience for his black ass or any of his antics, but he's not stepping down. (Obviously because the paycheck, perks, and speaking engagements along those financial benefits from them are too good to relinquish without being officially forced out).

Here's a quote from his interview:

"The honest answer is, 'yes,' Barack Obama has a slimmer margin. A lot of folks do. It's a different role for me to play and others to play and that's just the reality of it. But you take that as part of the nature of it....  My view on politics is much more grassroots oriented, it's not old boy network oriented, so I tend to, you know, come at it a little bit stronger, a little bit more street-wise, if you will. That's rubbed some feathers the wrong way"

It's ironic yet rather potent how he now wants to acknowledge what most black professionals deal with daily in prominent position although the U.S. alleges it is post-racial since the election of Barack Obama as president.  Well, it's not and until that time comes, you got be assertive and call it like you see and experience.

The brazen lies and intentional omission of the obvious

After reading this idiotic article on Real Clear Politics about how "liberals doesn't white politics" by David Paul Kuhn.  The amount of foolishness spewed by this guy is AMAZING to even somebody with a social psychology background as myself.  He attempted to brush over how although there has been some incidents of racial bias and what not, the TEA party movement isn't about race or ethnic bias.

Disregard centuries of furious debate over the role of government. Disregard the Great Recession, historic economic anxiety, this hyper-partisan era, or the comparable vitriol Bill Clinton knew. Disregard white working class skepticism of liberalism since the Great Society, when liberal policy became less concerned with them. Disregard the average man today who sees rich guys and poor guys getting the big breaks from big government. No, Rich explains, it's all about whites who want to "take our country back" from a black president.

What then shall we make of Howard Dean? Over and over, fiery Dean railed during the 2004 campaign, "It's time to take our country back!"

This is the argument that suffices for logic. Rich tosses out the most loaded charge in American life, racism, without evidence. All he has are anecdotes of angry white activists. So he stereotypes. It's like a white person who watches a black criminal on the local news and draws racist generalizations.

Clearly, some Tea Party activists are driven by racial animus. We read it in the signs. Dale Robertson, Teaparty.org founder, held up a sign last year that read, "Congress = Slaveowner, Taxpayer = Niggar." Recently, in an ugly scene near the Capitol, some Tea Party protesters reportedly hurled racist epithets at members of the Congressional Black Caucus (including civil rights hero John Lewis). But it's the generalizations that are absurd and self-defeating.

Yeah, only a fool would believe that one, Kuhn.  He conveniently forgot how some spewed the word "nigger" to Georgia Congressman John Lewis and spat on Missouri Congressman Emmanuel Cleaver on the weekend in which healthcare reform has passed.   Let's keep it real, some of those who originally wanted start the TEA party movement might have objectively wanted it to remain racially ambiguous, but let's face the facts.  First, the movement is still over 90% white and the few non-whites involved are negligible since they are as entertainment for the crowd like Jerome Lewis.  The twisted irony of how they conveniently formed after a black president was elected and a Democratic-majority of Congress occur isn't a coincidence.

White politics exists, and most politic experts such as such as myself are well-informed of this, but most of it involves the omission of the social ailments of non-whites and usually rails upon how white males are "mistreated" by the changing American society.  Hell, you and those like you should take a note from your predecessors handbook and was told to non-whites, "either get with the program or get lost".  If you can't keep up with the economy and increasingly diverse nation then you need to evolve and change so you can survive rather than using rhetoric like "taking our country back".  Notice non-whites have never said such things because they don't believe in owing this country rather just being citizens that contribute to the place as most productive members of a society.  This article posted by David Seaton on Talking Points Memo explains exactly what has been occurring best.  If you are using that type of rhetoric that lets us all know that the problem with white politics is it's about ownership and possessiveness in a patriarchal sense rather than being just a productive contributing member of society.

IT IS WHAT IT IS, AND DON'T BE MAD THAT EVERYBODY HAS CLOCKED YOU AND THOSE THAT ARE THINKING LIKE YOURSELF!

A little reality check...

I was doing my usual blog stroll and came across this lovely post on Left in Alabama and boy was it quite a doozy!  Gotta give it up to the non-native, but person with Alabama connections calling it like he sees it.  However, he was only half-right because there is some major political strength behind Artur Davis' campaign here in Alabama.  The problem is only timing, which is going to play a major part in the gubernatorial election.

Harry Reid and the unspoken things that some people think...

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know US Senator and Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said something that a number of us black folks realize about Barack Obama and other educated black folks.  Also he touched upon the imagery of what some people think about lighter toned, educated, and/or well-spoken blacks.  It's ashame that we still live in a world where some whites and blacks think that if you are lighter means better, but if you are light-toned, educated, and well-spoken then you are "acceptable".  I'm dumbfounded yet not really surprised at all this.  Now, Al Sharpton and Congressional Black Caucus supporting him

In related news, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele needs to STFU.  He is claiming that if it was somebody white and Republican then the DNC would be calling for their head.  There are even claims that these remarks are as bad as the remarks former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott said about how good of a guy that Strom Thurmond was.  That is true, but you are the token negro of the RNC/GOP and they are plotting your demise at this very moment.  Let's not forget about "Y'all come.  I got the fried chicken and potato salad" comments in the interview with the young male asking about inclusion of non-whites into the GOP.  You are the same fool who wrote a book and touring for it, but had to start canceling appearances and interviews because they are back in the shed grinding and sharpening the axe for your ass.  Simpleton.

Democrats and Republicans are both parties with racist, racially bias, and racially aversive individuals with more hang ups than phone operator, but let's be real.  The Republicans have a way more racially aversive platform overall than the more inclusive platform of the Democrats.  As an Independent, I will vote for a candidate of either party as long as they have a proper and productive and progressive platform, but the Republican party is a joke these days regulated to the South and exurban areas.  

Ignorance all around the way...

Racial Fatigue and why some want to say bitch and moan about the facts of society inequities for people of color

In nation where racial inequities are still prevalent even more with the high unemployment rates amongst people of color, but since the election of the current president Barack Obama, there seems to be more white Americans want to deny the existence of these inequities.

Now, I live in Birmingham, which is in Alabama and the heart of the Deep South, a region where race and ethnicity has always played a major role in the social landscape.  However, I know that the root of a number of our nation's issues lays with the generational views and level of cultural understanding of American whites on their understanding socioeconomic disparities between people of color and themselves.

I regularly read newspapers like the Birmingham News, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and the Washington Post where I've seen comments from people who are clearly white degrading blacks who are attempting to better themselves by saying how sick of hearing about the economic disparities that exist.  I've seen many want to denote who if southern states weren't home to so many blacks the issues such education rankings would be higher along with lower rates of poverty, single-parent households, median income, etc.  These comments alone give one a little incite on the mindset of some white Americans and how they feel about particularly black Americans as well as Latin Americans.  Both groups have been subject to social inequities and faced racism of the overt kind in the past, but the institutionalize and covert kind of modern times.

One thing that baffles me is how some whites will say "I have a black friend", "my son/daughter is married to a black...", or "my grandchild/nephew/niece is half black...", "I've had dated/married to a black..." as if having a black person in your life will via osmosis give you an profound incite of the issues, inequities, mindset, problems, and the culture of black Americans.  It doesn't because one has to either witness and have a direct and profound understanding to empathize issues that black people involving socioeconomic inequities.  Most whites still doesn't understand them because they either brush over the concepts assuming they understand it, just pretend like it doesn't exist, or become full of guilt commonly known as 'white guilt' over these issues.  None of the reactions are rational to understanding the issues facing people of color. Also many white assume that since we have a black president along with highly successful people like Oprah Winfrey and Bob Johnson that suddenly blacks have overcame these issues.  Here are the facts, most blacks are still more likely to face unemployment, i.e., 'last to be hired and first to be fired', grow up in a lower income to borderline impoverish households, lack the access to adequate education resources, face racial profiling, incarceration, and lack access to indignant health care.  These things are true regardless if they grow up in a single-parent household or grew up in the core of an urban area, suburbs, or rural areas.

The solution to this should be that the government still need programs in available for people of color and lower income residents to obtain their basic necessities such as educational grants for collegiate education and health care facilities.  I know there are a number of issues that can be discussed about about things such as nutritional habits, discussion of sexual behaviors, and rearing of children.  However, most of these things can be traced to the economic and education disparities because most parents have to work more than one job to support their household, thus taking away precious time from instilling values while rearing their children.  If we can fix these basic issues then people of color would likely have more resolutions to the social issues.

Uh, ok...

Dutch model, Lara Stone, is the photographed on the cover and as the main spread of the Vogue Paris, the French-version the US-based fashion magazine Vogue in black face.  Well, it kind of reminds me of the incident that occurred in Australia last week on the "Hey, Hey, It's Saturday" show where there were some returning contestants from 25 years ago doing an act where they were "honoring" the Jackson 5 in blackface.

Bad timing and just tacky.  Sigh!  If you to pay a tribute to the black image, have the decency to just get a black model for this because blackface is offensive.  Why, why, why, some people don't get this is beyond me....

Interesting. there's 2 GLBT events going on this weekend in Atlanta and New Orleans both are examples of the factionalism of the GLBTs

Well, this weekend (or should I say since Wednesday) there has been the annual Southern Decadence in New Orleans where mostly white gay, bisexual, and transgenders have flocked.  Whereas, since Thursday in Atlanta there is Atlanta Black Gay Pride this weekend as well.  Both events are large well-known GLBTs pride festivities, but the kicker is that Southern Decadence is well-known for catering primarily for white gay, bisexual, and transgender people with controversial entertainers like Shirley Q. Liquor, who is known for their racially-degradating statements about black females.   On the other hand, the Atlanta Black Gay Pride is more or less black-oriented with events and parties as such. 

This brings me to the problems associated with the GLBT community when it comes to race.  Most black GLBTs tend to feel unwelcomed at the mainstream events like Southern Decadence or the regional gay pride events in their cities because of the fact if you look at the imagery and things promoted it seems to be aimed towards primarily white GLBTs over any other group.  I've heard the argument a number of times, "Yeah, but white gay and lesbians are more out about sexuality" or "white people make up the majority of the  population".  Yeah, the same is true about Canada, but you don't see them constantly pushing the idea of "white image" without any form of diversity of ethnicities including black, Latinos, or Asians.  Just Google the 2009 San Francisco Pride week controversy with the "unofficial pride guide" book and its lack of diversity. 

Well, I'll also scratch the surface for time purposes on how so many non-white GLBTs have faced rejection from gay clubs and events because of their skin color or ethnicity.  Along with the sexual fetishization that occurs with so many white GLBTs on the idea of cultural tourism where they just want to be with someone sexual because of their ethnicity.  Also lack of outreach of GLBT oriented organizations reaching out to  GLBT of color when it comes to the STI crisis including HIV and AIDS.  You rarely see predominately-white GLBT orgs go into poor neighborhoods advocating economic justice, but wants the support of the poor and people of color.  Support is a two-way street and one must put in their work if they want support in return rather than expect support.  Yeah, the GLBT community is a mess when it comes to interaction of races and ethnicities. 

However, the point of this post is that as long as Southern Decadence wants to allow entertainers like Shirley Q. Liquor to perform degradating blacks then what do you expect?  Many black GLBTs have this cautious disposition to enter a space where it is predominately white (outside of their work environment) because of the fact that there is this racialization notion that exists.  It would be cool to one day see that, but there are some serious things that need to occur with both white and non-white GLBTS when it comes to race and ethnicity.  You can't just judge and presume anything about an individual because of their phenotypical appearance rather get to know them and judge them for who they are.  In meanwhile, Atlanta Black Gay Pride will continue to be its own separate thing where black GLBTs and their admirers will gather while the Southern Decadence will be where mostly white GLBTs and their admirers in New Orleans.

Atlanta mayoral race have turned out to be no different than Birmingham's 2007 mayoral race

Well, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution spilled the "tea" on what's really been going on with their upcoming mayoral races and it has boiled down to that's right "race".  Well, last week a memo was issued by the Black Leadership Forum (BLF) calling for the black electorate of Atlanta to vote for a black mayor to so that they can have the "black agenda" fulfilled.  This interesting and inciteful editorial in the AJC calling the memo "bigoted", it seem that the race has turned into a "race" race.   The memo said that “the developers have an agenda, downtown business has an agenda, the gays have an agenda, the Hispanics have an agenda."  Well, this has turned this pretty low-key mayoral race into a campaign in which incumbent mayor Shirley Franklin to denounce this memo.  There are current 3 key candidates in the race at the moment, the current Atlanta City Council President Lisa Borders, Atlanta City Councilwoman Mary Norwood, and Georgia State Legislator Kasim Reed.  The memo specifically endorsed Borders; however, Borders and Reeds issued statements denouncing the memo and saying the race should be based on race.  Norwood just said via her spokesperson the people would judge her based on her platform.  Oh yeah, Norwood is white.

LOL, this is a H.A.M. because today 2 Clark Atlanta professors, William Boone and Keith Jennings, have come out admitting ownership of the memo and denial of it being racist. Also Aaron Turpeau, a longtime political insider and consultant, is the only member of BLF who has been identified. He has acknowledged the memo and said it's part of the group’s efforts to establish a “black agenda”.  Boone and Jennings admitted they had written the memo, but they say that it wasn't to support anything other than addressing black issues so voters would come out for the run-off.  However, this may backfire and cause a higher turnout of whites.  Atlanta might just have it first white mayor in nearly 40 years.

Borders has been endorsed by former Atlanta mayor and UN Ambassador Andrew Young and is very popular amongst the city young black professionals (who are quite active in city politics).  However, Norwood is very popular with the gay community in Atlanta proper (which is predominately white) also those in the law enforcement and fire protections officials.  However, she doesn't really have much popularity with the black electorate.  Now other large majority black cities have voted for white mayors in the past, so black folks aren't that racially-based on voting.  On the other hand, a number of times there are situations where white mayors in certain black cities where done primarily with votes from whites rather than blacks.  It's a Catch-22, but one can see that we have some serious racial polarization that is going down in the ATL.

IMO, it sounds like Birmingham in 2007 all over again, but this is the supposedly very socially progressive metropolis to our east in neighboring Georgia. Yeah, Birmingham isn't alone on this at all like some people would love to believe. I feel that yeah there should be a viable candidate who cares about all citizens in Atlanta, but should it just be a "token" white or black candidate because of their phenotype, HELL NO!  However, you know there is more foolishness to this than I care to want to uncover here because I have no  dog in this fight.  Nevertheless, it is pretty damn interesting when Atlanta, "the city too busy to hate" apparently it's not too busy to discriminate or be prejudice on either end of the racial pendulum...

Obviously she's not that bright or just too damn cliche'

1st-Term Kansas Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins has well put it out there the Republican party is looking for a "Great White Hope" during a town hall forum on August 19 in Hiawatha, Kansas.  Her district is the 2nd Congressional District in Kansas which demographically speaking according to the 2000 Census it is 89% white. However, somebody apparently videotaped her when she was talking about it how Washington has such great young white Republicans like Congressman Eric Canton (R-VA).  Now she did do some damage wasn't address the President because she didn't realize what was implying when she said it.  Sure you don't, lady...  However, in July you voted for a resolution that explained the history of the phrase.  Here is some of the language from the resolution:

"The phrase "great white hope" is frequently tied to racist attitudes permeating the United States when heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson fought in the early 1900s. Reaction to the first black man to reign as champion was intense enough to build support for a campaign to find a white fighter capable of reclaiming the title from Johnson."

Now she wants to backpedal away from her comment and say she is "sorry", but what are you sorry about Congresswoman Jenkins?  I mean you had a Freudian slip saying that you want to see some white candidate come from the midst and hopefully careen into the political scene taking down Barack Obama in the 2012 Presidential Election.  I mean it's not like some folks don't realize that there is a faction of disgruntle white Americans that doesn't like the idea having a black President.  I know you are not that dense to not realize what was meant by that phrase after you voted for it.. Geez just own and claim it and keep it moving.