Race

“The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color-line.” -WEB DuBois The uptick in racist remarks and attacks on African Americans and Hispanics has caught the attention of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Color People) who of the America’s oldest civil rights organizations. This week the NAACP delegates passed a...
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The election of Barack Obama has obscured the tragic and ugly side of what is happening in poor and working African America neighborhoods, especially to young black men. As Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow points out, “today an astounding percentage of the African American community is warehoused in prisons or trapped...
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You are my pride and joy And I just love you, little darlin’ Like a baby boy loves his toy You’ve got kisses sweeter than honey And I work seven days a week to give you all my money And that’s why you are my pride and joy And I’m tellin’ the world -Marvin Gaye During the 1960s, it common place to...
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Motown is both a style of music and a label and is now a metaphor for success and excellence. Motown set the standard for popular music, and developed a sound which others musicians and record companies sought to emulate. No other label is more identified with the sound it produced which gives credence to...
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“To take part in the African revolution it is not enough to write a revolutionary song; you must fashion the revolution with the people. And if you fashion it with the people, the songs will come by themselves and of themselves.” Sekou Toure, President Guinea The 1960s freedom struggle was reaffirmation...
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It is indeed a rare and intriguing moment when an artist decides he or she is the instrument of history-making. ” In the closing year of the 1950s, such an artist, Miles Davis, conceived of and produce a masterpiece- Kind of Blue. A moment like this happens only occasionally: Martin Luther King, “I Have...
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Proclamation 8389 – African-American Music Appreciation Month, 2009 June 2, 2009 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation The legacy of African-American composers, singers, songwriters, and musicians is an indelible piece of our Nation’s culture. Generations of African Americans have carried forward the musical traditions of their forebears, blending old styles with innovative...
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Malcolm X and Martin Luther King were the defining figures of the 1960s black freedom struggle. These two towering leaders influence and determine the scope and tone of the civil rights struggle and black power movement. Through their philosophy and leadership, they set the moral and social agenda for much of the second...
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Malcolm X was one of the twentieth century’s most gifted leaders and orators. He used his speeches critique American racism and to reeducate blacks regarding their identity (Africans in Americans), purpose (free themselves from racial oppression) and direction (serve as a revolutionary political and social force capable of building a more humane society). In...
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While Kwame Ture (Stokely Carmichael) is largely credited and associated with popularizing the call for Black Power, Malcolm X is truly the foundational figure for who gave voice and representation to concept and practice of Black Power.  Building on the philosophy of Marcus Garvey and teaching of the Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm outlined contours of...
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