and I am still down here in D.C. hanging out at this NOI Summit. I went to dinner earlier in DuPont Circle with the folks from the conference, but I rolled early and came back here to my hotel (Lola you have got to get some new wheels :). So anyway, I just left the bar with my man "Rock" from African American Political Pundit, and my man Andres Duque from Blabeando. The bartender, Juan, was doing mad magic tricks and keeping me laughing my ass off.
Now for a quick update on the conference: I have to give my man "Rock" and all the other bloggers of color who were present their propers for stepping up to the plate and addressing the digital divide. Of course some people didn't want to hear it, but the truth hurts. Personally, you all know where I stand, I really could give a fuck whether I get linked by a Wal-Mart blog or not, but I want honesty in the debate, and that's what we were all (At least us black folks present) trying to achieve. But I don't want to act like some of our white progressive friends weren't trying to reach out, because they did. But you know how human nature is, it's always the bad shit that sticks out.
For instance, AA Pundit tried to explain the seriousness of this Hillary "O" man shit, and it seemed like no one wanted to hear it. Like what's the point of all this Net roots, progressive online networking, and activism if a constituency that consistently gives you 90% of their vote is about to go away and never come back? Memo to all you folks out there who consider yourselves democrats; you better start paying attention to this shit because the anger is real. Some of us that were here this weekend tried to tell you but you didn't listen. I think you will live to regret it. I think black folks are ready to have that discussion with the rethugs about making a switch. So Hillary, be very careful.
And speaking of the folks that were here: I met Brandon from Superspade , and he is a good brother. I also met my man Kevin Myles from the Wichita NAACP. Thanks for the knowledge about Wichita my brotha, I never would have known. You all have got it going on out there. I also saw my man Barantunde from Jack& Jill politics, my girl from Pam's House Blend, and the sister from Anderson@ Large. All good people from what I could tell, and all doing the blogging thing and representing to the fullest. Oh, and I will be damn if Gabrielle from Color of Change isn't a dead ringer for Adrian Grenier (Vince) from Entourage. Man you better start using that shit. And you live in Cali too? Sheeeet.
In the AM, I am heading back up to Killadelph. The organizer's did a nice job with this conference, and some of the folks that came here did so with an open mind. As for some of the others.....well, my grandmama used to say that if you can't say anything nice about someone you shouldn't say anything at all. So.......
Saturday, March 15, 2008
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27 comments:
Curious that people didn't want to listen to you talk about black anger at Hill... these white bloggers seem like prime Obama supporters with an axe to grind against Hill's antics... Lord knows I am.
She's rending this party apart.
That's very disappointing that no one wants to deal with the racism that exists. What the hell are they waiting for? Are they pulling the Bush doctrine, which is leave it for the next generation behind them to deal with?
That's not the leadership I'm looking for out of the progressive blogosphere. For those who did try to reach out and mend fences, props to all of you.
Maybe this is an opportunity to make a break and progress without these people holding us back? Just a thought.
BTW, your Eagles picked up Dan Klecko to play fullback. Nice job there.
Thanks for keeping us up-to-date!
As for folks not wanting to hear about reaction to Billary's antics, oh well. It'll be to the democratic party's detriment. It reminds me of something I've heard and read from white anti-racist activist Tim Wise. He says, that when talking about prejudice, white privilege and institutional racism, he says nothing that colored folk haven't been saying...it's just that a few white people actually sit up and listen, because he's white like they are. Apparently when we colored folk have anything to say about it, we get written off as "angry negroes" complaining, despite us being so "lucky" an all.
Field after getting that Jena 6 movement going by blogging I think they better recognize. There's power behind those keyboards.
Thanks for the update, field.
I'm sure you and the brotha from AAPP did your best...Proud of the black and conscience bloggers I read.
Glad to hear that you were representing, FN! I recognize more than a few of those names you listed, and I respect them all.
Well, FN, you can try and be the canary in the mine. They ignore you at their peril.
I remember when we tried to tell them about the Dogwhistle - it was in our ' imagination' ....until it wound up in the NYTimes, then suddenly...OMG, it's a REAL issue.
They will learn too late..once again...
FN: Here is someone who gets it. http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/03/do-you-understand-what-youve-d.php
Unfortunately many of the commentators did not. I personally don't know if I will go as far as going rethug. I was thinking about parking in Independent land and loitering with intent. Let somebody come court me correctly - know what I'm saying?
I'm an independent, and I hate to say this but no one really courts you in Indy Land. It's as if you don't exist.
On the other hand, the amount of junk mail I receive from candidates is decreased by at least 75% and I don't receive a single Robocall so there's a few benefits to being an Independent.
ac,
That TPM post was a great find. Thanks for the link.
Field,
I've written to Howard Dean.
Politely, but in no uncertain terms, I told the DNC Chairman do not cave-in to the powerful Clinton machine and give the Borg Queen a redo in Michigan and Florida.
If a redo results in the Borg Queen having a delegate leg-up on Barack Obama, he (and the rest of the Dumbos) can expect a backlash from angry, disenfranchised Obama supporters that will make Chicago circa' 1968 look like a Tupperware party by comparison. In other words, the Borg Queen may win the battle but she will lose the war.
Obama supporters will either:
1. sit out the election and not vote
2. vote for John McCain
The Borg Queen will not be the next president. No way, no how. It ain't going to happen.
That sounds like a great conference and a viable inter-community alternative to the utterly inviable Yearly Whitosphere, about which we have all heard far too much.
Anyway, AAPP tried to get me into the conference on a conference call via ooVoo, but I was sorry that I just had too much going on.
I'm glad you got to meet so many good people.
I think you're right that white folks don't understand how furious and potentially disillusioned Black people are feeling. But the emergence of The Petition shows that a lot of Blacks are determined to either vote for Barack in November or not vote at all.
Until the Ice Queen lost her f**ing mind around the time of the Iowa Caucuses and Billary & Co. utterly abandoned Black people, along with any semblance of a conscience, I was supporting Hillary.
But it's a sign of the times that two of the founding members of the African Americans for Hillary Facebook group, Rodney Ghoulston and myself, have now signed The Petition demanding that Clinton concede defeat and support the Democratic ticket.
I accept credit for editing out the part of the original petition that demanded that Hillary not be offered the vice presidential spot, [and be branded on her ass with a hot poker :) ] I still think that a combined ticket that brings together those Democrats with a conscience and those without may be the only way to have any chance of winning against John Sidney McCain, III in November.
Francis, you know what's funny, I was sitting at a table with two Kossacks [sp] at a breakout session, and AAP and i were talking ab out you and they were sooooo pissed. With one dude the anger was so real that thought he was going to let the North Philly come outr of me:)And yes we did try to get you on conference call. But your logo(blackosphere v.whitosphere)was featured front and center. You had some folks shook fam., and that's what's up.
christopher,I love your passion for the "O" man, and I am sure these obamaholics appreciate it too. BTW, Andre Duque is a Gay Latino blogger doing his thing in the NY. He is good people. (And don't ask me to tell you if he was cute or not :)
robster,Klecko was a nice pickup, but I really want a playmaker. Someone that can stretch the field and pose a threat on kick and punt returns...stop it robster you are getting me in football mode again ansd it ain't even summer yet :)
rikyrah,you are right, as is usually the case with the dumbocrats, by the time they learn we will be gone.
"these white bloggers seem like prime Obama supporters with an axe to grind against Hill's antics... Lord knows I am."
jimbo, you are right, but that CAR as Francis calls it, can be so strong sometimes.
jjbrock, if we had 100 Jena six cases they wouldn't learn.
Macdaddy we try bra, we try.
Living so close to DC, I regret missing out on this conference. Maybe next year. I really don't want to vote for Hillary at all come November if she is the Democratic nominee. And voting for a Republican candidate who will allow corporate greed to prosper for another four years is not an option as well.
Not voting at all isn't really an answer either. There are local elections and referendum questions on the ballot. We've got to vote for our house of representatives, senators, members of the state legislature, county executives, board of education members, local dog catcher, etc. You get the idea; if we stay at home, we lose locally. So, I was wondering whether I could write in a name for the presidential election part of the ballot as a form of protest and then complete the rest of the ballot electronically.
If Hillary gets the nomination I will not only vote for McCain, but campaign for him in Northern Virginia against that dried up power slut.
:-)
aziza:
You can vote for Nader.
But please vote, you are right. Vote in the local and state elections.
If more people voted, instead of staying home, we would able to call the candidate on that crap if they say they have won by a landslide. Just think if that other 54% had just voted their conscience I think it would have gotten the parties attention and it may just have skewed the electoral college in some states.
I'm in terested in what Mr. Myles from Wichita had to say that impressed you so much. I live in Wichita myself, and a few things stand out about it:
(a) Very few people know who Kevin Myles IS
(b) Even less of us understand what is going on around us, or care
(c) I talk to many of us, and we do a LOT of talk, but very little actual effort is put into action
I'm not trying to down or hate on Mr. Myles. I am saying that from the ground-level where I'm looking, all too many of us in Wichita are non-readers, could care less about issues that affect us now or in the future, and are content with the status quo.
I work with people that had NEVER HEARD of Obama or McCain, and didn't know Clinton was a senator. 99% of them have never read your website ( I have sent many of my friends your link) and view computers as "white folks stuff."
Unless maybe he sees something I don't, we have vastly differing views of wichita.
You-all think Hillary as a white, liberal from wealthy white NYC burbs. She not. She be from Arkansas and a flack for the old Sam-run Walmart. Blacks were the servers at dinner, not the guests. Bill brought that to the table, but well after she was an "adult".
Mold
I will NEVER vote for the ICE Queen. She split the party in half, she's going to split the country in half. She will throw every fellow Democrat under the bus to get the nomination if she had too. That's not a sign of a good leader. Every Rethuglican are going to come out in droves against her.
robster,Klecko was a nice pickup, but I really want a playmaker. Someone that can stretch the field and pose a threat on kick and punt returns.
Yeah. Decent inside-the-tackles fullbacks are a dime-a-dozen, and not going to differentiate the Eagles from the rest of the division. I was born in Killa-D, and have always loved the Eagles. They really need a big-time playmaker WR for the D-man to throw to.
Hey, you gon' buy me a new car, Field? If not then...hehehe.
L
She be from Arkansas and a flack for the old Sam-run Walmart.
The Borg Queen hails from an upper middle class suburban family of Chicago Republicans.
She met Billary while they were in college and once she got a taste of his slip rick, followed him down yonder to Arkansas.
Shoot, I hate the Borg Queen but even I can't fault her for following Bill's M.C. to the country.
The Borg Queen is a Republican. I wish someone would shove her to the other side of the aisle where she belongs.
Field, I'm sorry but I'm estatic that the Raiders may get DeAngelo Hall from the Falcons. I gotta have something else to look forward to this summer than three wins a year.
"I gotta have something else to look forward to this summer than three wins a year."
Tell Al to sell the team.
Pam at Houseblend is one of my blogging heroes. I remember when she was punching out the daily posts all by herself, & every step up to greater recognition was more than earned, because she remained so resolutely independent. Kind of like you, Field.
Ron in Kansas. I have never been to Wichita, but if Af Am's make up 12% of the population and yet have so many people in leadership positions such as police chief Mayor,etc.I think that speaks volumes for black involvement in your city.
I don't know how many people know Mr. Myles but from the small time I spent with him he seemed to be a good man. His heart is certainly in the right place.
But give me specifics as to why you don't think Wichita has progressed as it should. And maybe I can contact Kevin and he will address them for you.
bob, thanks for the kind words.
Not a problem sir.
We may have all these people in leadership positions, but it was done just to keep that 12% quiet. Look beyond those few positions, and see how many of our faces you find. I work for the City, and I hear the things said about our mayor, chief, etc.., that a LOT of folks don't. The majority of thought among non-whites is that " you have all the top leadership positions, why aren't your people satisfied?"(a direct quote) There is STILL racial profiling in the PD (been stopped for DWB myself), and outside of the PR view, very few of us are in leadership positions, despite our credentials and/or education. I have personally NEVER seen the mayor in my area, and I work for him. There was a serious outpouring of happiness that our previous City Manager quit (who was black) and so many accusations that he "only appointed blacks" that you got tired of reading it. Within the same city government, there a SERIOUS undercurrent of racism (again, I work there so I see it every day)that manifests itself in a sometimes blatant way. (BTW, dont waste your time with EEO)
Most of our people seem QUITE content to use the tried and true "well, there ain't nothing I can do" phrase, and won't even try. There's entirely too much of an acceptance of the status quo, too much of the wannabe "hip-hop gansta" culture, and not NEARLY enough "get an education and a job" emphasis. And it's not just firected at blacks; around here, any color other than white is considered "colored", and therefore less deserving of the same rights and opportunities.
I don't doubt Myle's heart may be in the right place. But maybe he needs to get out and talk to the people at street level sometimes, and hear what we have to say. There is the speech from the local businesses and corporations to "embrace diversity", but it's all talk. I have a college degree (Graduated with honors), a wife with a couple of degrees, friends with the same, multitudes of experience that we all picked up in the military and civil service world, and we make less money than the regular white HS grad. Again, I see that often.
What we need here is someone to address the issues in the open. We know there is a race problem in Wichita, but no one ever wants to bring it into the open and deal with it. I see so many blacks out of work, faced with little or no prospects, less choices, and a system of government that seems damned determined to not address it in any fashion.
Lack of educational opportunities needs to be addressed, as does the double-standard in employment opportunities. Lets address the inequalities in home ownership and unfair lending practices. Again, lived through it.
As I write, in my mind I can see the things that I know need help, but like any issue near-and-dear to one's heart, it often becomes difficult to articulate.
Those of us who do read your site think you have a sharp eye on what's going on in this country that affects us, and are avid readers. As my wife is from Philadelphia (Mt. Airy) and I'm sure I spelled it wrong, she's a big fan.
I hope I answered a few of your questions, but if not, let me know and I'll try and get a better handle on the specifics.
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