TO BE OR NOT TO BE -

TO BE OR NOT TO BE -

What - a literary snob? Honestly, I can be as compassionate as the next person, but something wrenches my gut when I'm watching some otherwise credible person speaking earnestly on TV and suddenly out of her/his mouth pops what I call a slimy 'word gripe!'

The latest one - on the show "The Doctors," she's explaining how one relaxes: "...so you just lay down..." AWK! - as soon as she uttered that 'lay-lie' twistup I felt my stomach lurch - I kid you not! Then, in a rare moment of self-analysis, I pondered over why such a mistake would elicit such a response - but it does.

I actually groan aloud when they yelled "CONGRADULATIONS!" - there's no 'd' in 'Congratulations!' (But even Obama with all of his couth and charisma and education, unfortunately, puts a 'd' in that word!) AWK! and don't forget TV's GawkShow Hosts Jerry Springer and Maury Povich with their "Congradulations." DOUBLE AWK

Then, the pseudo-fastidious primly prate - "...the book's entitled ...anthropomorphically granting the inanimate pages some weird level of huemanity - like it's owed something! No, Fool, the book is titled."

And when some primetime prig comes out with "...they left my wife and I..." NO! They left "...my wife and me...!"

I'm in a good mood, so I'll forgive WBAI's Hugh Hamilton, who usually speaks pristine English, his "dezisions" for now.

But what about those sappy faces blithely spouting off about "this documenary?" - totally obliterating the 't!' I can't stand it! Then, a few days ago some popsie blathered on with "...definilly..."! I do believe she meant
"definitely." What the deuce are they teaching in those schools?

Well, if I hear one more person talking about a famous individual as 'a renown' person, I will hit somebody until they learn the correct "renowned!"

What about those TV ads using "less" instead of 'fewer?' "Less commercials, less dollars!" OWITCH! And one which actually gives me a fierce headache - "a free gift!" PLEASE!

Some of the most unfavorites! - TV's Marvel Scott's "A sad tragedy;" No bumble, not both - a tragedy is sad! - those verbose politicians; "...well, I will, in the future...I have, in the past...I am, currently" What's wrong with the past/future/present tenses? - or will relying on accuracy force them to keep their patter down?!!!

And how does this one grab you - "...a man was fatally killed..." eh? Perhaps after he was "verbally speaking"... or "seeing visually...?" This insanity is truly escalating though ( not "excalating!") -
escapades" - NOT "excapades" and February's coming up - (NOT "Febuary" thank you) and please, it's 'library,' NOT "liberry!"

And WBAI Radio, Ayo Harrington, it's not "documenary," it's 'documentary!' (I should think that's 'elementary,' not "elemenary")

It's not "chu" it's 'you,' - not "govenor" but 'governor' not "electorial" or "mayorial" but 'electoral' and 'mayoral!' It's not "hopefully" it's 'I hope!'

Finally (but, believe it - the list goes on) we'll end with one of the most offensive-'cause-it's-so-wrong - "irregardless" instead of 'regardless!'

Oh, and one apparently not wrong but too long, unnecessary and pretentious: "disenfranchisement" instead of 'disfranchisement!'

Now let me go work off the irritation I've dredged up listing so many of my 'word gripes!' More later - and there are more!

AFFIRMING THY BLACK AFRICAN ANCESTORS

AFFIRMING THY BLACK AFRICAN ANCESTORS
"Teach The Youth The Truth"

Far be it from me to say, "You really missed it!" - but if you and your family weren't basking in the vivid ancestral atmosphere at the Brownsville Heritage House recently at the Warrioress Jean Wilkins Dember MHS 19th Annual "AFRICANS UNITED FOR SANITY NOW!" Commemoration ceremony - you really did miss it!

One walks in to the Brownsville Heritage House, is cordially and with true African hospitality and warmth, greeted by Sister Queen Patricia Deans, Director/Curator, and is immediately positively overwhelmed by the sheer number of variegated displays, paintings, photographs, crests, drawings and artifacts reflecting the glorious activists, notaries, martyrs, diplomats, politicians, writers, historians, philosophers, warriors and Black African ancestors, among too many others to herein awesomely describe.

As we sat, almost stupefied amidst such ancestral splendor, listening to Sister Jean Dember's soul-stirring presentation on Black Panthers activism, it was as if someone had opened up the tops of our heads as the atmosphere and information about our Black African selves flooded in - creating new synapses in our Blackness-starved brains. I was fervently grateful that my own son (and accompanying invited-by-me guests) was aslo breathing in the soul/psyche-enriching experience: you can't buy such vital encounters!

And, as if being flooded with the thought-provoking regalia of the museum and the enriching information by Mrs. Dember were not stimulating enough, when she presented and described the incredibly delicious completely vegetarian delicacies for us (to first taste and ) then to devour, we could hardly express our delight and gratitude for her obvious care and preparation (she and her supportive husband Clarence had driven in to Brooklyn's Mother Gaston Boulevard all the way from West Babylon, Long Island!) for this project.

One is struck not only by the number of interesting artifacts but also by the prose describing them and especially the evocative messages emitted by various 'Oh-so-conscious' artists: for instance, the stark hand-drawing of an obviously-anguished Black man's muscled back, with a loaded slave ship as his spine! (My entire psyche shuddered in the shock of sudden recognition as I saw it!) (Talk about on-the-spot much-needed psychological/psychiatric counseling for us Blackfolk!) Dr. Joy deGruy's description of Post Slavery Traumatic Disorder immediately was called to mind - along with the admonitions of Dr. Frances Cress Welsing about Black male jeopardy in this hostile-to-color country.

Can I also share with you the consciousness-smacking start I got when I beheld the Michael Jackson "Afro-ed Michael" montage of multi-photo-ed headshots of him before he straightened his hair? (What creative-thinking brain could dream up something like that?)

Another amazing display of Black African creativity was the painstakingly-laid out church scene where the artist used specially-treated ordinary brown cardboard material (which most people discard) to fashion singers, spires, seats and statuary, all somehow commanding onlookers to stare continuously wondering how he did it. I found myself returning and returning to 'see what I hadn't seen before' - not wanting to miss any part of it.

So, if you've ever longed for the opportunity to invest in providing your children/family/relatives/loved ones the experience of 'a quintessential showering in a Black African milieu,' - a kind of healing 'steeping in BlackAfricanness' - do not hesitate to take them to the Brownsville Heritage House (even though you did miss the AFRICANS UNITED FOR SANITY NOW! unique event, you can still enjoy memorable times at the Brownsville museum - well-named "Heritage" House!) (718) 385 1111

[Teachers, take your students here!]

This article comes in the spirit of: www.racismtest.org [posted on www.Discussrace.com]

Just How Hurtful Is This 'Color' Thing

Just How Hurtful Is This 'Color' Thing?

Well, guest testimony on the recent "Tyra Show" revealed that people in Chatanooga, Tennessee tried to run down two young Black girls "...because of their color..." Another guest, saying he was 'Black and Mexican' (illustrating the colorism involved in calling some folk by national origin but calling people of color - a color) and that he doesn't like Mexicans (himself). How truly hurtful are both incidents!

Further injury, of course, is Tyra's use of glaringly counterproductive rhetoric (probably stemming from her middle-white-American producers' usage): non-meaning phrases like "bi-racial," "interracial," "race," "raceS,"** "mixed-multi-racial," - all muddying an otherwise educative program on color - not 'race' Tyra! (**There is only one hueman race)

It's obviously way past time for a national debate on racist/colorist language usage; the sooner the better, so that influential folk like Tyra and others don't continue to perpetuate the untreated racism/colorism which so pitifully still rends the fabric of our society.

It is obvious also, despite admitted progress in some areas, that this country remains a 'hostile-to-color' place; examples of this abound and no more illustrative of this ignorance were the statements of many of Tyra's studio guests - like the white mother of two brown children who said, incredibly, that "I don't see color" - and I'm sure she had not a clue that she was therein denying the hueman worth of her own offspring!

Again, like the white mother of a dear friend of mine who told her beautiful Black son, "I hate you!" I can hardly think of a more hurtful situation than a mother actually forswearing the issue from her own body.

I can personally attest to the unfortunate and preventable hurtfulness which is, apparently, inescapably, unavoidably attached to people of color, worldwide, by the way. As the daughter of a Black father and a white mother who has had 'color-buffeting treatment' by multi-colored, miseducated people all my life, when I heard Tyra introduce the misled and obviously - U.S.A.-miseducated filmmaker of "Bi-Racial - Not Black, Dammit!" - I nearly had a blue cat! Give me a freakin' break!

Because of the monstrous miseducation systems - in the entire world, Victoria, not just in the U.S.A.! - which evidently refuses to teach its multi-colored hapless students about themselves - every single one of 'em descendants of the originating Black Afriicans - there still exists, again, worldwide, crass ignorance of self, viciousness (including color-based murders - especially by those suburdd-dwelling cops) toward 'others,' and everyday delivery of color-bigoted hurt.

Isn't it time to acknowledge, address and heal this hurt?

Sure! REMEDY: Start by administering to everyone, the www.racismtest.org* - and when dysfunctional responses to differences in color and culture are revealed, let that individual be referred to Ethnotherapy Counseling until she or he can THINK STRAIGHT about color and culture!

This remedy should be adopted by schools, universities, seminaries, business places, the military, government offices, political campaign organizations, medical institutions, courts systems, prisons - anywhere where hueman beings are making decisions about others.

Bumps,Lumps & Clumps:

Bumps,Lumps & Clumps:

Watch Yer Moles!

For years I've wondered about the purpose of moles. (Everything's on the Internet: wait a minute, lemme' go 'google' "moles" - be right back)

Okay, I got "Molesafe," explaining about clusters of melanin-producing cells and scary items about melanoma. Some of the other 'google' sites were about furry little borers. (Is this why they call spies "moles?")

As a nurse, I've notice that liness of moles on lots of people's bodies (including mine) run down what's called "the milk lines," down the sides of the face, neck, down the trunk, and into the groin.

And as I get older, the durn mole numbers increase. I got brown ones, (light, medium and dark) red ones (gazillions of the lil' buggers!), flat ones (usually grey!), bumpy ones, round ones, clustered ones - and they're all pesky!

I'm told if they're itchy, hie off to yer Dermatologist: Hey! Millions of folk in the U.S.A. don't have medical coverage! Quick, Mr. President: - give those people medical coverage!

Anyhow, since I've attained he privilege of being 'an Elder,' I've consulted my Dermatologist and had several of the 'in-an-uncomfy-place' pesky protuberances surgically-removed - no biggie; the devilish things are sent to a lab to determine if they're malignant; I'm only on tenterhooks for a week or so - until I get the good news that they're 'benign.'

I have observed others with all sortsa' moles - and I know we Blacks (and other people of color) get black, red & brown moles and I've even grown a coupla' what look like white moles...but do white people grow white moles? (I know they grow brown/black/red ones - does his mean they have 'Black' in 'em? Oh, Yeah, of course they do! ALL huemans are 'of Black African ancestry! Nearly forgot that.)

So, Holy Mole-y! I guess all a' we huemans gotta' WATCH our moles! What a thing! Worldwide mole-estation (pardon). I don't mean to make a mountain (of woe) outta' a mole hill! But I can't stop thinking that it's possible/probable that the pollution we huemans are sifting through the air, water, foodstuff (and cell phone and other EMF waves!) contributes to our steadily-escalating personal production of those little pesky pop-ups. UGH!

We're manufacturing moles up da' wazoo! I wonder if folk who live in (nearly) unspoiled pristine areas of the world (any left?) find fewer moles?

In the meanwhile, every time I have an itch, I'm poring over my body saying, "Oh, Lord! Is that another one of those "out-damn-spot!" multiple, multidimensional,multifarious, multitudinous, myriad melanin lumps?

Talk about lifes 'vicissitudes!' HALP!