“I watched this video and the verdict is in…The woman, the single mother of FIVE children, is dead WRONG!”

http://liberalvideo.com/2013/11/23/new-video-in-new-mexico-minivan-shooting/


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4Clb962o2I

First of all, I would like to start off by saying that police shooting at a vehicle filled with a mother and underage children is completely out of order and the cop who did the shooting and claiming to be only shooting at the tires (liked that made shooting at the vehicle filled with children any better) needs his ass handed to him on a hot, flaming platter. He should be fired and charged with attempted murder. The policemen who busted out the damn windows creating further trauma in the little children need their asses kicked in an ally as well as in court. This experience has definitely taught these black children that police have no love or patience for them and anyone who looks like them. This experience, in my opinion, should have also taught the children that their mother is somewhat irresponsible, selfish, and really did not have their best interests at heart on this particular day. I am so glad that the young black man did not get beaten or even killed because of his mother’s negligence.

 

Ok. Many of you are wondering why I am saying this. Here it goes. As a long time counselor, therapist and even mentor to young people, I have always preached and taught prevention. I have taught young people the importance of staying away from drugs because of the negative consequences of using drugs. I have taught many in counseling groups over the years how to avoid psychotic episodes in their lives by simply taking their medications as prescribed along with exercise, relaxation, and eating healthy.  Our parents have even taught us prevention when they would say things like, “A hard head makes for a soft behind.” Or “If you don’t start nothing, it won’t be nothing.” 

The woman, Oriana Ferrell of Memphis, TN. (my hometown) was completely the cause of the entire melee’ that occurred on that day. All she had to do to prevent the cops from busting out the windows of her car, shooting at the car, and possibly getting her son 14 year old son murdered was to just give the officer her driver’s license and car insurance after being pulled over for allegedly speeding. If she did not possess either of the items he requested, all she had to do was sign the ticket and keep it moving. I think that’s how most of us would have handled the situation instead of becoming argumentative with the cop because of possibly “riding dirty” and then pulling off. What kind of sense did that make? Then, when the cop catches up to her, she still had no intentions of complying with anything the cop had asked her to do. It is because of her immature and resistant behavior that her son risked his life (in his mind) to protect his mother, when it should have been her protecting her children by handing over the damn license and insurance at the first stop and not driving off, which created in the cop’s mind, the ultimate suspicion. I am not even going to ask why the hell her son’s hair was green.

However, I will ask these questions. What in the hell is she doing with five children and no man in sight? Why do so many Black women have so many children and then want to be given a special status in society? When she mentioned in the video that she was a single mother of five children, was that her attempt to gain sympathy from the public? Where was the father or fathers of these children? Why wasn’t there another adult on this trip with them? Was she running away from an abusive relationship? What in the hell was all of that stuff tied to the roof of the van? The report stated that there were drugs found in the vehicle. Hmmm, I guess the cops have already begun to put together their justification for their criminal and thuggish behavior with the shooting and the busting out of the windows. Hmmm, maybe there was a roach in the ash tray that she had finished the night before and she forgot to dump out the ash tray before the trip. I know many of you are looking at this as a case lased with racial overtones. You are very correct in doing so. The easy part is to view this case as a racial issue because it probably is. As intelligent people who are supposed to be aware of living in America and having a clear understanding of the history of America her relationship with all people of color, but especially black people, we should not be surprised by the behavior of the cops. Cops have never liked Black people. It will never change. Still, with this historical knowledge there is a way in which one should conduct themselves whenever coming in contact with the police. So please join me in not just looking at this case as just a racial issue, but also as a case of child endangerment on the part of the mother.

The mother (although FINE as hell) was dead wrong. Her actions on that day were reckless and thoughtless. Her actions created this avalanche of danger and trauma for her children. I wish she had practiced some preventive measures on that day because now her children will need extensive counseling to help move past this experience. Her son will have a hate for the police that will not work well for him in the long run. Meaning, he may continue to grow up thinking that in order to combat the next police officer whom he feels is disrespecting him; he will need to only sharpen his boxing skills, which will not be a good idea if he values living. To combat the cops in the future whom he may feel behave the same way as the ones on the day he and his family members were stopped for allegedly speeding, I would advise this young man to first go to counseling for anger resolution therapy and trauma. Next, I would advise him go to the gym to sharpen his boxing skills and maintain good health. Finally, I would advise this young man to go to law school and become a constitutional lawyer and ultimately become a judge who presides over cases involving police brutality and other cases involving the police mistreating the people.  

 

I feel most sorry for the children in this case for the simple fact that children don’t ask to come here and they definitely can’t choose their parents. I wish the mother well in a possible pursuit of legal satisfaction. I hate that any of this happen. However, if it were not for the mother not utilizing common sense and acting as a MOTHER with young children in the vehicle to protect, I don’t think the situation would have gone that far. Instead of choosing to use preventive measures, Oriana Ferrell, in my opinion, chose to look out for her own interests which could have ended up with much dire consequences.

 

 

The Best Man HOLIDAY: My movie review.

I went to the movies this weekend to check out this flick. However, please allow me to vent a little before I go into my movie review. First of all, when in the movie theater, stay wake! I literally sat through 20 minutes of someone snoring during the last 30 minutes of the movie. The person snored like he/she had not had any sleep since the 1800’s.  I mean damn! It was like I was in a different movie theater watching a different movie called, “12 Years A Snorer!” Look. If the 10:15pm movie showing is past your bedtime, make sure you get a ticket for the 12 noon showing of the movie or at the very least the 6:45pm movie showing. Next, scoot over God-dammit! Ok. I was a little long in the concession line. The people taking the order were as slow as a turtle pissing! This is why I and many others entered into theater 17 as the movie reviews were playing. I mean, people were saving seats for two and three people and pretending not to see you when you were suffering with anxiety trying not to look too uncool trying to get to a seat the damn dark! Scoot over God-dammit! Everybody can’t sit close to the edge of the rows to get the edge on the other movie goers when the movie is over. Also, why in the hell don’t people fill out the entire rows in the theaters? Meaning, people sit in groups of four and five, filling up both ends of the row, with two or three seats in the dead middle left open. WTF!? Fill in all of the damn seats so the end seats can be for those of us who may come in during the previews because of the slow ass workers at the concession stands!!! Anyway, I am done with this. I just had to share this little tidbit. LOL!

 

Ok, now on to my review of the movie. Overall, I loved the movie. I thought the writing was good. The cinematography was of great quality. The writer and director of the movie, Malcolm D. Lee, did an excellent job with the development of the characters from the first movie. I loved the way he brought all of their lives full circle in this second installment of the franchise. I laughed at the punch lines. I wiped away tears as I witnessed the character, Mia, battle cancer and even when her husband, Lance, physically broke down in deep sadness and in disbelief of his wife’s death at the burial site. I loved the way Anthony Hamilton and Marsha Ambrosius did a slow re-make of the Stevie Wonder classic, “Always” at the funeral. This part of the movie where Mia struggled with cancer struck a personal chord with me because my favorite aunt died of pancreatic cancer three years ago. She went through a very similar experience during her battle with cancer. Mia even looked like my aunt as she laid in the bed sick from her illness. My family and I just like Mia’s friends in the movie, stayed with my aunt during her final days. The pain they felt as they witnessed her struggling to hold on was very familiar to me. I would not wish this experience on any one.

 

However, even though I said that I loved the movie overall, I do have some analytical criticisms. The movie was not perfect. It has some flaws. Everyone who knows me knows that I have never been one to follow the crowd. They know that I can’t just been herded like a mindless sheep. They know that I have never been one to just allow my brain just shut off because I am being entertained by a movie of any kind. I watched this movie with the same analytical and critical brain as I did with the movies, “12 Years A Slave” and “Lee Daniel’s-The Butler.” A few things stood out for me in this movie. The night before I went to see the movie, I read an article regarding the movie in this month’s Jet Magazine. In the movie, it mentioned how writer and director, Malcolm D. Lee, had to convince the Hollywood movie studio executives that this movie was worth funding. Hmmm, so when I went to see the movie, I waited to see what convinced the Hollywood studio executives to finance this movie. This is the same thing I wondered to myself when I noticed all of the slavery themed movies that have been brought to the big screen this year. I knew something had to be sacrificed, compromised or a particular message to black people had to be slipped into the movie in oder to make Hollywood happy and feel comfortable about financing a movie with an all black leading cast. Well, it was the same message that appeared in “Lee Daniel’s-The Butler,” “12 Years A Slave,” The TV show, “Scandal,” and quite possibly in “DJango Unchained.” Those of you who went to the theaters to see "DJango will have to let me know if this message is in the movie. Based on what I have heard and read about that particular movie, the message is the same. The message being, the white man is the savior, not all white people are bad, and the promotion of interracial love between Blacks and whites. Funny. You never see these messages being promoted to Jews in films about Jews when it comes to the current and historical enemy of their people, the Nazis or even today's Nazi skinheads. Anyway, Jordan, the strong, independent, career driven Black woman ends up with the white man in the movie as the only man who she finally realizes she loves. Shocking! LMAO!


The message to this group of particular Black women is that your Black man in no way can measure up to you and your success. You are way too tough for him to handle. You are too strong for him. There is no way any man can handle you unless he is white.  Next, to top off this little “get together” the writer of the movie tried to make it seem as if Jordan was not digging her white boyfriend in that way. A dying Mia had to impart some wisdom regarding finding love as she lay dying. She said, “Jordan, be open minded and be open to love!" It is amazing that we can’t be this wise when it comes to finding love with each other in the black community. I’m just saying. The total disrespect of the Black man and Black marriage and commitment came when the ex-stripper, Candie, literally lusted out loud after the only white man in the movie, who happened to be Jordan’s boyfriend. Mind you. Candie is married to Julian, the college brotha who took her nasty ass out of the strip club and tried to make a legitimate woman out of her. This bitch was so horrible in her “Scandal-ous” lust for this white man that she made sexual comments about the white man right in front of her husband. So much that he actually heard her. Total disrespect! She did it throughout the entire movie!


Of course, the N-Word was tossed around a few times in the movie by Terrance Howard’s character. I did not see the need for it because this certainly was not a movie about slavery. Finally, the issue of Black women and hair crossed my mind. Yes. Mia was dying of cancer. To bring the point home, she removed her hair hat during a heated argument with her husband Lance which revealed her natural hair that had fallen out to that of a very low length. I thought to myself during this scene in the movie, “So, will it have be cancer that will allow Black women to feel good about wearing their natural hair without the weave, chemical relaxers, and transsexual looking hair hats?” Chris Rock’s movie/documentary, “Good Hair,” which showed black women where their hair weave comes from and how the chemicals used in perm relaxers ate through aluminum cans in a lab did not seem to create any fear in the majority of black women.

 

Of course, I am not wishing cancer on Black women to get them to love their natural selves. I will let God continue to work on them. It is definitely, in my opinion, an issue that black women who wear weaves, perms and hair hats will have to work out with their Higher Power. So, this is the end of my review of the movie, “The Best Man-Holiday.” I just wish WE will get to the point of funding our OWN movies and TV shows so that we don’t have to continue to make others happy and comfortable in order to get a movie about us or at least marketed to us financed and distributed to television and to movie theaters.

“Hey, What’s with all of the movies about slavery?”

Last night, I went to the movies to see the period flick “12 Years A Slave.” This movie is being reported as a true story based on the autobiographical book of the same name which was written by Solomon Northup in 1853. The book is based on Solomon Northrup’s actual account of what he went through as a free black man living in the north that was kidnapped by white hunters and re-sold back into slavery to white “slavers” who ran “slave farms” in the south. Before this movie, I went to see “Lee Daniel’s-The Butler.” This movie has a black slave farm theme in it as well. There was another movie released this year with a slavery theme to it, but with a comedic twist called “Django Unchained.” Needless to say, I did not waste my time or my money going to see that crap. I agreed with Spike Lee when he stated his reasoning for not supporting this particular film which was, “There was nothing funny about slavery.”

I am not writing to give a play by play account of what I saw in the two movies that featured slavery themes that I did go to see at the theaters. I am writing to take a critical and analytical look at why “Hollyweird” has all of a sudden taken an interest in putting these movies out there. I will say this about the movie “12 Years a Slave” in that it is not a movie about slavery. It is a movie about one free man’s experience on a slave farm. You see. Solomon was a free Negro living a middle class life with his family in Washington DC without a care in the world about what was going on with Blacks in the south or anywhere else for that matter. His world was rocked simply because he naively trusted these two white men who flattered him with compliments and convinced him to leave his home in DC to go off with them to work in a circus type set-up to play his violin for some extra money. They paid him very well. He even went so far as to drink and have dinner with these two shady white men after work one evening. This is when they poisoned his wine. When he woke up, which appeared to be days later, he awoke to ragged clothes and locks and chains in a dark enclosed dungeon in the middle of nowhere.

The movie is graphic and very reminiscent of how most Blacks act today in society. The movie reminds you of what Blacks today do to survive under white rule today. The plantation scenes are very telling. All I can say is Black people are in dead last today because we refuse to read the history of our TRUE relationship with the white man. By the way, to all you African Americans out there, they enslaved Africans. It is the African who was colonized and made into the Nigger. The word Nigger was used so much, I thought there were rappers in the building. The word baboon was even used in one of the scenes in the movie. On the plantation is where the African was force fed the myths about Christianity and a so called Jesus Christ. It was on the plantation where the African had drummed into his psyche that the White race is superior. The enslaved Africans were also conditioned to believe that as long you obeyed your master, you shall live long and when you die you shall receive a reward in paradise and get the chance to sit next to some lord and savior. In the movie, after a whole week of picking cotton, chopping sugar cane, and getting ass whippings, the plantation owner had church on the lawn with his family and with all of the kidnapped Africans where he read from the Bible about obeying your master and working hard.

I mentioned that it was Africans who were kidnapped and brought to the plantations because many of us today seem to believe that we are descendants of a country called Black. WE are descendants of enslaved Africans from Africa. Of course, over the years to help forget this harsh reality, we call ourselves Negros, African-Americans or Blacks. Again, the white man did not go to a country nor a continent called Black and kidnap Africans. They went to Africa, a people with a culture, an identity. On the plantation, the enslaved Africans were not often referred to as Africans. They were often referred to as “my property” boy, gal, wench, Nigger and the Blacks! In the movie, “Lee Daniel’s-The Butler,” the first 15 minutes of the movie showed a female mulatto slave farm worker (the butler’s mother) get raped violently and her husband (the butler’s father) get shot in the head at point blank range by the son of the plantation (slave farm) owner and killed for attempting to stand up to him for he had just done to his wife. Again, this act was further conditioning the Blacks to never stand up to a white man.

I know I went there anyway with a little play by play action, but I guess I could not help myself. One would think that this sudden barrage of slavery themed movies this year would be laced with good intentions. One would even think that “Whorelywood” has taken an interest in making sure that Blacks today really learn some valuable American History in an effort to show how Blacks have come such a long way despite or in the midst of such adversity. Yeah right! Keep dreaming. The strategy of any prison today or any plantation back them was not to give the key to your freedom. You have to break out own by force your or create your own key to get away. Many Black people felt some type of justice after they left the movie theaters after having watched the movie “Django Unchained.” Many Blacks left the movie theaters feeling upset with the Black Panthers when they left the movie theaters after having watched “Lee Daniel’s-The Butler.” Blacks left the movie theater I was in last night in tears and feeling grateful to a White man who mailed a letter for Soloman, which led to his rescue from the slave farm.

 

However, I left the movie theater feeling the same way as always. These movies are created to gauge where we are in our desire to escape white rule and thinking like slaves and become the proud Africans we once were. These movies are created and widely distributed to allow us to do what Facebook, online blogs, Twitter, etc. allows us to do, which is to be angry in silence. History has taught us all that revolutionary fighting is not done at home behind a computer screen or sitting with your date at the movies. It is fought in the streets. After three slavery themed movies this year, it is safe to say that Blacks in America are safe in their fear and ignorance. The white man is still safe in his supremacy. Still, I would advise parents to take their children see “12 Years A Slave” and “Lee Daniel’s-The Butler,” There is something in these movies that just might spark something in the youth that has totally been missed on the old folks like me. For it will be the youth who shall spark the necessary revolution that will bring about the much prayed about equality and independence that the adult Blacks in this generation have failed to acquire.

 

“An Open Letter to the current Grambling State University Students and GSU Alumni”

Hello Students:

My name is Rico Rivers and I am a two time graduate of Grambling State University. I graduated in the summer of 1994 with two bachelor degrees and an associate degree (psychology and criminal justice). I graduated two years after that with a master degree in social work. I have worked for the past 17 years in my chosen profession of social work as a mental health therapist and a substance abuse counselor. I have loved every minute of the work that I have done as a social worker over the years and as I head into my 18^th year as a social worker in 2014, I have no regrets to report at this time for choosing this field of work. Well, it is more like the profession chose me. Social workers are advocates. Social workers tend to speak up for the voiceless. We often times take an unpopular stance for those who can’t stand up for themselves at that moment. However, after taking such unpopular stances, we stick around to teach those without a voice or with sturdy legs to stand on their own two feet and how to speak up for themselves with a mighty roar. We often do this for less pay than teachers, but with the same self-less love and caring for our fellow man and fellow woman.

I know you are probably wondering, “What is this guy talking about?” Where is here going with this story?” Well, I am writing to share with you just how proud of you I am for the recent stand that was taken on the campus of my beloved GSU. I was excited to know that there are still students at GSU today with guts to stand up against the current administration for what you all believe are inadequacies at the university. I was most excited and surprised to learn that the recent protests at the university were sparked by members of the football team. Do you all know how big that was? The football team has never been known or seen as an entity on campus that stood up for anything. You know, like the SGA and the fraternities and sororities on campus. So, when I read where the football team took a stand against being treated like crap as it relates to traveling to away games and having to utilize a subpar practice facility with mold and peeling floors, I was like, “Yeah!” “There you go!” “You don’t have to take any of that!”

 

The boycott that members of the football team participated in naturally inspired other students to stand up and point out other issues at the university that need to be fixed. Trust me. I know that there are plenty of other “black-eyes” at the university that needed some attention. Contrary to what some of my fellow alumni may think or even believe, a good student protest is always good for any university. It reminds the administration of who the bosses really are on campus. It reminds them of just how powerful young people can be when they come together to do something to make much needed change not only in our society, but on a college campus as well. Yes, students. You are the bosses. Your tuition makes this true. If it were not for students bringing in their private money, student loans, outside scholarships, and pell grant money to pay tuition, the university would not exist.

I preached this reality for four years straight (1992-1996) when I was a student activist on at the university. I stood up and I spoke out against a lot of issues at the university at that time. I wrote my own campus newsletter entitled, “IN MY OPINION” by Rico Rivers that exposed a lot of the covered up dirt and the shined a light on the bad behavior and crooked practices in the administration as well as within the student body at that time. I guess you can say that I was like Geraldo Rivera on campus. I got the story and I told it unapologetically. However, for three two of those four years, I practically stood alone. In 1995, I became a part of a group of other like-minded students on campus and we called ourselves the Unity Committee. As a committee, we exposed the horrible conditions in the Cafeteria on campus. We took video footage of a dead mouse behind the ovens that cooked our food and a couple of flies in a huge pot of corn that was to be served on the following day for lunch. As the bosses of the university, you all have the power to make as many changes as needed as long as you stick together.

If you feel that the current President of the university is not functioning at a level that you deem acceptable, you can change this. If you believe that Grambling should be shown more respect by the current governor of Louisiana and that horrible board of trustees, regents, or whatever they are called now by way of funding for the university, you can change this. If you believe that the teaching staff can use some major improvement at the university, you can change this. If you believe that there are some buildings on campus that need major improving, you can change this. I say this because we were able to make some changes back in the day without Facebook, Twitter, Insta-gram and with very few students standing with us. In the current days of social media and Youtube, you have already shown just how powerful your movement can be. Moreover, the changes that we made back then and the changes that you will make today will benefit all those who are currently students at the university as well as those who will become students long after your class has graduated.

There are members of the current alumni who believe that the football team reacted emotionally and recklessly. Some even went on to insult the football team by stating that the team was not “smart enough” to organize this boycott on their own. These alumni even believe that the football team was somehow being controlled like puppets with the strings being pulled by someone who is actually the mastermind behind the boycott. I don’t’ share this theory. As one who has actually stood up and protested not only on Grambling’s campus, but in the community in my hometown of Memphis, TN, I think the football team and the members of the general student population stood up on their own out of a need for change.

There are members of the alumni who believe that the students could be harming their academic and professional futures for participating in the recent boycott and protests. Well, as I have stated, I protested my ass off and pissed a lot of people off for speaking my mind and taking a stand at the university. My professional career has been just fine. As a matter of fact, it’s getting even better as we enter 2014. I am so glad that Dr. King wasn’t a coward. I am so Glad Malcolm X. was not a coward. I am so glad that Harriet Tubman wasn’t a coward. I am so glad that Ida B. Wells wasn’t a coward. I am so glad that Jesus was not a coward. Students, when actual leaders take a stand, the cowards sit back and watch what happens and make comments, but never join in the fight. Yet, these same cowards get to benefit off of your activism.

I was hoping the boycott would have lasted the rest of the school year. The boycott of the Jackson State University game was good. However, boycotting the homecoming game this weekend and the upcoming Bayou Classic would really send the message of changes that needed to be made at the university can longer be ignored. Sadly, too many in the alumni seem to be more concerned about being able to pull off their pre-planned alumni parties and benefits galas as scheduled than the importance of the well-being of the current students. Everybody seems to be crying about money that the university is either losing or could be losing because of the football team refusing to play (which is chump change) compared to what the university can actually lose should students ever band together and they ALL withdraw from the university at once.

 

Trust me. There are at least 100 other HBCUs and hundreds of other actually well-funded white institutions of higher learning that the students can transfer to continue their academic endeavors and sports endeavors. Personally, I would not want to see this happen at Grambling State University, but the way the funding is being cut by this current governor of Louisiana, finding a new head coach for the football team will be least of the university’s worries. By the way, I have few questions. Why is the President of GSU so old? What century did the search committee leap back into to find this guy? Next, why in the hell was Doug Williams being paid $250,000 a year? Does the athletic program even generate that much money? Why is there special nine member group of GSU alumni trying to recruit Southern University old left overs? That former coach at Southern University is older than the current president at GSU. When did we ever as a university need to stoop to the level of digging through Southern University’s left overs for anything? Who are these nine idiots?

Finally, I want to say this about the letter that was written by Jackson State University and the lawsuit they are threatening to bring against Grambling. Nah. Who cares? They suck for doing that. Anyway, students at GSU, I think you all did a great thing in boycotting, protesting and getting your voices heard. However, I was disappointed to read on the news website (alldigitocracy.org) about the two week suspension from The Gramblinite of opinion page editor, Kimberly Monroe, for organizing a student rally on campus. I am sure that she will be fine. I was also disappointed to read on the same website where online editor, David Lankster Sr., was fired from the Gramblinite after having tweeted statements from anonymous sources and photos of dilapidated facilities on campus. These are some of the pitfalls that come along with taking a stand. You lose some things, but you gain a lot more in return. The university attempted on at least two occasions to kick me out me. Still, I am so glad that there are students on campus like these two young people and the members of the football team who believe in standing up for what they believe. I hope this is not over. Still, enjoy the rest of the semester and the rest of your lives knowing that you stood up to make a difference in your life as well as in the lives of others.

 

To my fellow alumni who do not agree with the boycott and protest on campus, don’t criticize, belittle and insult our proven future leaders. Let’s support them. Let’s show them that we care more about their safety and wellbeing at the university than about what other people who are not Gramblinites have to say about this situation. Let’s show them that we care more about our beloved Grambling being treated the way it should be treated with regards to the memory of one of the most noted Gramblinites in history next to the founder, Charles P. Adams, Coach Eddie Robinson than making sure a football game is played at homecoming and at the Bayou Classic for the sake  of getting our drunken party on and reuniting with old cliques from our past days at the university.

 

 

 

 

Let's Say No to Single Motherhood in Black America in 2014!!

I think a battery of psychological exams should be given to EVERY female who DECIDES to become a single mother knowing that she can't afford a baby. I think these tests should be mandatory for any single/never married woman who decides to get pregnant without a good paying job, an education, transportation, health insurance, stable housing, and a plan in place for child care that she can afford with her own money. I think that she should be given a battery of psychological tests to see if she is even sane and emotionally stable enough to be a decent mother to an innocent child who did not ask to be brought here. I think that since she decided against getting married first to a good man, a good provider, and most importantly to a man who loves and adores her, she should foot the bills herself. These tests should be made mandatory only if this single/never married female decides to apply for public assistance programs such as welfare, food stamps, WIC and any other public assistance program that are funded by tax payer dollars because now she realizes that she needs money and lots of it to properly provide for and rear a child. This voluntary single motherhood stuff has to stop. It has caused so much emotional and psychological damage in the Black community. Our children are suffering emotionally and mentally because of these irresponsible decisions to have children out of wedlock. Look. If you are a single woman who has never been married, DO NOT HAVE ANY children that you can't afford should the single man YOU CHOSE to get you pregnant over a getting a husband runs off.


Sadly, this current court system with the whole child support nonsense, has done nothing but enable this irresponsible decision making in too many women today! Unfortunately, too many of these women are Black. The acceptance of bad and irresponsible behavior in any form in our community has to stop! Ladies, stop choosing baby daddies and start choosing husbands! No matter how you try to spin this, it is YOU who can stop this horrible phenomenon of unjustified child support payments being made to single women who decide to become burdens on tax payer dollars. GET A HUSBAND and do like you’re supposed to do and become a wife before you bring an innocent child into your life.


Don’t get me wrong. I don’t have anything against women who were made single mothers because of a divorce or the death of her husband. Even then, in the case of a divorce, she is really not a single mother, per say. However, I do have a serious problem with children being born to single/never married women. It is a FACT that does not have to make herself a single mother. It’s a choice that too many Black women are making and black teen females are being allowed and it needs to stop! A child deserves better! It’s not necessary in these days and times. You see, there was a period in this country where some women (mainly Black women) were not as privileged to the knowledge of birth the few birth control options back then. Hell, even if they had the knowledge of the few birth control options, they simply did not have the money (like so many do today) to take advantage of unwanted and unplanned pregnancies during those days.
However, nowadays, there are just too many forms of FREE and very low cost birth control out here in society that are available to every woman who wants them. There is even a pill that will end a possible pregnancy for up to three days after she decided to have unprotected sex with a man that is not her husband. Boyfriends don’t count.


Please, don’t ask me this stupid question, “Well, what about the single man? Why can’t he practice safe sex?” Look, stupid! He can practice safe or unsafe sex all he wants. He doesn’t have to practice safe sex. What’s it to you? You just need to protect yourself regardless of what he is or isn’t doing sexually when he is not your husband. Unfortunately, these days a lot of married women have to protect themselves from many of these cheating husbands. However, in the single life, getting sex has never been in the man’s control unless it is by force (rape). If a single/never married female is volunteering to be naked and laying on the bed, couch, or across the backseat of his or her car with her legs opened or bent over grabbing her ankles with him standing behind her ready for action and she never tells him to put on a condom, that’s all on her. Ladies, you are supposed to be the protector of your body, your life! You don’t ever rely on a horny man to consider the protection of your life when it comes to sex. Hell! The red flag should immediately go up when you see that he has no problem going up in you without a condom if he just met you.



I know that what I am saying upsets people. Cool. I am bracing myself for the nasty and negative backlash. I’m use to it. However, I hope that you get so upset that you join me in this mission to change the screwed up thinking of too many men and women in the black community. White racism can take a back seat because what we are doing to ourselves and our children is making racism look non-existent. I am bracing myself for the comments that will say that I am attacking women, that I am bashing the black woman. Trust me. No one bashes Black women more than other Black women. So, to the self-proclaimed psychologists who instead of addressing what this article is really talking about and actually doing something about it (which is correcting bad behavior and poor decision making when it comes to most Black women/females today and this reckless procreation) don’t waste your words or your breath on me. Join me in correcting this behavior that has obviously gone on either unnoticed or purposefully IGNORED in the black community when it comes to the many females who behave the way that I have described.



You can help me in this mission, crusade or whatever you want to call it by spreading the word about how too many Black women’s poor decision making has contributed to the breakdown of the black community and the Black family. The shit needs to stop! We all seem not to have a problem with calling BLACK MEN on their shit. Believe me. It has become designer to name all of the stupid and irresponsible shit that Black men do, but it has never dawned on any us of that Black women have all but surpassed Black men in making dumb decisions and being irresponsible especially when it comes to their bodies and this reckless procreation that's been going on for too long. Hey, am I the only one who sees this? Oh yeah, for those you who will accuse me of pointing out the problem, but not delivering a solution, you obviously did not read this entire article. The solution and the revolution is us!

An Open Letter to Tavis Smiley

Dear Tavis Smiley:

This letter is long overdue. I want to say that I have been an admirer of you and what you have stood for in the Black community for as long as I can remember. I was a huge admirer of the annual State of the Black Union Addresses in which you created as a venue to get our voices and issues heard nationally and politically. On that show, you created a forum/platform that showcased African-centered scholars and Black political elite who otherwise were rarely, if ever featured in mainstream media outlets. I want to say that I have always appreciated your outspokenness and your willingness to speak the truth to us, whether we liked it or not. You always understood that WE NEEDED IT!  I appreciate you being the exact image of a strong, intelligent, dignified, educated, articulate, business owning Black man that so many Black women all over the country instill in their sons to be like as they grow into men.

I want to also say thank you for continuing to be a leader and not a follower. I am very disappointed at the negative reactions/retaliations you have received for merely doing what is supposed to be done with any elected political official and this includes president of the United States, which is to present your community and/or political itemized agenda.  Since Obama has been president, the Jewish community, the Hispanic/Latino community, and the Homosexual community have all done just this and without any negative backlash. The president heard their agenda and he acted on them. However, when you and Dr. West attempted to push one of the late Dr. Martin Luther King’s agenda concerning the poor in our nation, you both received ugly and unwarranted backlash from the Black community at large as well as from some of the same so-called Civil Rights leaders who were regulars at you union addresses.

I was really bothered by the way you unceremoniously left the Tom Joyner Morning Show. I hated hearing about the negative backlash you received on that show all because many of his listeners felt that you were not being fair to the president because you offered him the very same challenges that those previously mentioned racial/ethnic groups offered him. I want to say that I believe in what you are doing. I am disappointed in the hypocrisy and what appears to be this purposeful choice in the black community to treat the president like a beloved celebrity instead of the President of the United States.

I will close by saying keep up the good work. You were there helping, encouraging, and educating in the black community long before this president and you will be here long after this presidency is over.  Thank you for not saying, “To hell with this!”  If you have, I don't blame you.

A longtime admirer and supporter.

Sincerely,

 

Marico Rivers, MSW-LCDC

I HAVE A RAP MUSIC REQUEST - 2013

In light of the 50^th Anniversary of the March on Washington, DC, I just have to send an open letter to make a rap music request to Urban-Rap/ Hip-Hop Dee-Jays, Rap Radio Station Owners, and Radio Stations with a rap format/playlist.


To Whom It May Concern:

I have a request. I have listened to particular rap songs that are in constant rotation at your radio station (s) for a while now and I would like to make a rap music request if I may. Your current rap music rotation has become very stale over the years. Since we are now living in the days where “equality for all” has been placed at the top of everyone’s political, sexual, and racial agenda, I think my request should be a simple one to take into consideration. I am always hearing rap songs that contain violence aimed at African-Americans and racial slurs like Nigger/Nigga being spewed all over your airwaves morning, noon, and night in the city where I currently reside. My song request is simple. My song request is all about equality and/or equal treatment for all racial and ethnic groups in this country.

 Would you mind playing rap songs and/or RnB songs that contain guest appearances by rappers on them that violently attack Jews, Whites, Hispanics/Latinos, Native Americans, Asians, Italians, and Homosexuals? I am kind of burned out on Nigger this and Nigga that. I would love to hear something new like, “Faggot this or Faggot that. How about “Kyke this or Kyke that? Maybe a song or two that promotes selling drugs and/or shooting and robbing people of other races and ethnicities. How about a song that spews other hateful and racist words like, Spik, Faggots, Wet-Back, Chinks, Slant-eyed Gook, “Crackers,” and W.O.Ps.?   

I am pretty sure that you have songs like this lying around somewhere at the radio station. You just have to because it would be the equal and fair thing to do, right? Maybe the first place in the station where you can look is under the pile of music CDs with a note attached to it that reads, “Songs that should never be played for fear of offending and degrading any racial and ethnic group that’s not African-American.” I just know that you and/or your rap station are not about being biased in your playlist. I just know that you and/or your rap station (s) are incapable of promoting inequality on any level. I guess what I am trying to say is that I would like to hear more diversity in your playlist. I would like to hear more of a variety of racial/ethnic attacks being played at the rap station. You seem to be very comfortable with playing songs or at least allowing rap songs to be played at the station (s) that contain lyrics that violently attack Black people and refer to them by racial slurs. You also appear to be very open to playing rap songs that use derogatory and demeaning adjectives to describe the female gender within that particular race.

I will be listening for my song request on the air.

Sincerely,

Rico Rivers

Rico Rivers

Dallas, TX

972-854-9497

 

THE TRUTH HURTS !!!

I am sure that many of you have heard this statement. I recently posted this statement on my Face Book status a few days ago. The responses were positive. However, the responses were few. Whenever I have posted an article on my blog or Facebook page that touched too closely to home as it related to some form of “what we should and/or what need to do as a race in this country” to gain independence or hell, at least to clean up our own communities, I rarely get responses. I am not going to surmise tonight why the low response occurs, but I do have my suspicions. Personally, I know that the truth does in fact hurt when something about me is said or is written that is actually true. Thankfully, most truthful things that are said about me have been positive things said about me and even to me. However, I don’t shut down when the truth that’s spoken about me is not so positive. If I am being an asshole and I know this, and the person in front me not only knows it, but tells me, I may not admit it to be true out loud, but I do know that the person telling me this has just spoken the truth.

 
I shared this because I want all of us to know that none of us is above having the truth spoken about us as a group or as individuals. The truth is, many of us in the black community are purposefully playing games when it comes to walking the path of freedom and independence. We are hiding behind the Bible, social organizations, our social and economic statuses, the walls of our suburban neighborhoods, multiculturalism, diversity, individual interests and just plain ole fear of being independent from this white supremacist culture and system. It is the truth. “Niggas are scared of Revolution!” I want to end this article by sharing some truth to why Black people in America will never be respected by whites and any other racial and ethnic groups in this country. Ok. Are you ready? Here is goes.

 
The main reason that Blacks in this country will never be respected by this government is because Blacks have never fought (in an actual war) in this country against the white man for their freedom. Again, blacks in this country have never fought (in an actual war) against the white man for their freedom. Everyone that the white man has fought a bloody war with, this country respects them. Not only does this country respect them, but the once former opponents in war are thriving immensely in this country, while black people are being treated like step children, like chumps politically, economically, and educationally. Let me give you some examples of what I am saying. Ok. The Native Americans fought to the very last breath with the white man's army for their right to human existence when the first presidents of this country waged bloody war on them in an effort to take their land. The white man even broke treaties to get these peoples’ land. The Native Americans were not having it. They did not take his attacks lying down or praying for him. The Native America men, women, and the children used every tomahawk, every bow and arrow, and every fire lit torch to kill as many white soldiers as they could  before finally succumbing to the many cannons, guns and ammunition that the American soldiers had in their possession.

They have been wiped out, but their current descendants are presently protected by Indian laws today and they have casinos that provide them with independent revenue in order to sustain and maintain what is left of their culture. Next, you have the Mexicans. The Mexicans fought to the death to keep the American white man from taking the Alamo. The American soldiers lost a lot of men and suffered many other casualties in that war. Today, the Mexican community has the ability to bring this current government to its knees should it decide to make a wrong move as it relates to immigration laws. Next, you have the Japanese that who kicked American white men’s’ ass at Pearl Harbor with their Kamikaze fighter pilots who dove their fighter planes loaded with explosives into naval ships killing a lot of naval soldiers. Yes. The United States won WWII, but today, the country of Japan and Japanese citizens living in this country are not “messed with” by this country. The Vietnamese people gave the American soldiers pure hell during the Vietnam War. Many of those guys that came home from the war that this country did not win, came home with mental illnesses and overcome with drug addiction.  Today, the there are many Vietnamese citizens in this country who are not “messed with” by this government.

Did you all know that people who are from Iran and Iraq live in this country? They are living and thriving peacefully in various neighborhoods across the country. The Iran/Iraq war was a huge blow to this country. This country did not win that war either. Soldiers returned to this soil with PTSD and various forms of cancer as a result of the bio chemical agents they were exposed to while fighting the people over there. You see. It’s like a kid at school being bullied. The bully only begins to respect to the smaller kid he is bullying when the kid being bullied jumps up and smacks the shit out of that bully. He may get his ass kicked. He may not. The point is, the kid being bullied finally stood up to his bully. Blacks have fought in major wars with the American bully with hopes of gaining the respect and favor of this American bully, but have yet to literally smack the shit out of this American bully in order to gain respect.

 

No. The Civil Rights Movement was not a war. Blacks got their asses bloodied and killed because they had no arms and refused to bears against their white attackers. This country did not come to respect Black people because of  a bunch of Negroes begging, pleading, and praying for integration. If you noticed, none of the other groups even thought about integrating as a strategies. Their strategy was to kill or be killed in a time of war. As a result, the white man  today watches his step when it comes to these other racial/ethnic groups that forced him to put up or shut up in the past. This means that black people will have to love, respect, and value themselves in order to gain the respect of the bully.  Hell, even homosexuals in the country have gained the respect of this country and they never even raised a hand in war with this country. All they have done is become successful in making all us feel badly about calling them faggots. Nobody feels badly about calling Black people Niggers. SMDH! Look. I am not saying pick up arms and start killing white folks. What I am saying, we need to get our own house in order (our children, our communities, our families, our economics) and become a strong, unified people, then we will be in a position to demand respect and fight for what's ours in this country with a unified and loud voice like the other groups.

Yes. It’s true.  The truth hurts and it’s scary, but this is only way we will get the respect that other people have actually earned it by not being afraid of this American bully.

“An Open Letter To Black Men, Black Boys”

I hope this letter reaches the people whom I am writing. I invite you, the reader, to help me share this letter with as many Black men, Black boys as you can. The Trayvon Martin murder and joke of a trial has created a much needed movement to rescue and save you, us. There are people (of all racial and ethnic backgrounds) all across this country participating in marches, community meetings, think tanks, and political forums trying to bring about more protection for the Black male. There are Black men and Black women especially losing friends, risking their lives to stand up for you. There are people, including myself, volunteering to make you and your existence top priority in this country. Personally, it is my job to speak up for you because I am a Black man living in this country and I, too, can fall victim at the hands of a George Zimmerman type in this country or at the hands of a self-hating Black person who readily participates in the genocide of Black on Black crime. 

So, I need your help in this movement. I need you to be a positive and willing participant in this movement. I need the parents of these black boys to be positive and willing participants in this movement to rescue and save Black boys/ Black men. I need you (the men and the boys)  to work hard at changing the negative behaviors and senseless actions that too many of you are currently involved in so the work that is presently being done by so many people right now and on your behalf is not being done in vain.  Black men, Black Boys I need you to drop out of the gangs. Get as far away from a gang as you can. I need you to stop killing other Black men, Black boys. I need you to stop getting these damn tattoos. I need you to stop getting women pregnant who you are not married to. I need you to go to school. It doesn't matter to me. It can be a university, a community college or even a trade/techincal school as long as you go to school!  

 

I need you to get back into school if you dropped out to pursue the street life. I need to you pick more positive music to listen to and produce. I need to you to be there for the children you have helped to create in this society. I need to go to counseling to help bring about a change in which you currently express your anger. I need you to get a mental health assessment for any possible mental illness that may have gone undiagnosed for far too long, which could be the cause of many of the bad choices you have been making in your life. I need you to stop smoking weed and using other drugs as a way of  trying to medicate what hurts you on the inside. I need you to stop using your “hood” environment as an excuse to fail and to hurt others. The quote ”Hurt people, hurt people” is very true.

I need you to learn to use/speak correct English. You can learn to do this by going to school or going to your local library and reading books for free. Malcolm X did it in prison by reading the entire dictionary from the letter A to the letter Z. You can also learn to speak better by hanging around people who speak correct English. I need you pull your damn pants up. I need you stop putting videos of yourselves on World Star Hip-Hip and You Tube acting a damn fool by fighting or getting your penis sucked by some self-hating female. I need you to stop applauding celebrities who behave badly on television, in their music, and in their music videos. I need you to stop pushing/promoting the “thug” mentality within your own community. This is not who you are. This who white supremacists want and need you to be in order for them to justify killing you.  I need you to stop believing that creating bastard children and shooting other Black men, Black boys makes you a man. I need you read up on your Black history, your Black legacy so you can learn about who you are as a Black man. I am a firm believer in when a man learns who he is, he then knows whose he is.  I need you to either create or join an existing men’s group in your community whereby you can meet with other Black men and boys and have a discussion about surviving in America, respecting each other, and making an Atonement for the way we have treated each other.

 

I need you seek out actual men in the community and ask if they would mentor you and show you how to grow to be a man with dignity, character, and morals if you don’t have a father or positive men in your family to show you the way. I need you to want to be alive. I need you to want to grow up and grow old with your families. I need you want to do your part in making this movement a successful one. I need you to understand that as I am I writing this letter, I am writing it from my heart, which has cause tears to form in my eyes as I struggle to type this letter, this plea, to you. I need you. I need you. Damn, I need you to help me, to help us, help you.

The Trayvon Martin Trial Ends in a "Not Guilty" verdict. And??? PART TWO

There were quite a few points that I felt needed to be shared in Part I of this topic, but failed to mention them. However, in this second part of my thoughts concerning the Trayvon Martin murder and trial, I will cleanse my mind of every thought (up to this point) that I have as it relates to the trial and the “not guilty” verdict. I ended the last article with suggestions of how we can begin the process of getting to the people that we (Black people) need to become or even return to in order to continue to live and survive in this current reality. In the last article I alluded to a certain group of people who I identified as being double agents for white supremacy. These people are for real. On the plantation during slavery, when a revolt was being planned by disgruntled slaves, Sambo would sit in on the secret meetings only to run back and tell the plantation owner what was being said in the back slave quarters. Next, there was the plantation bred preacher (the origin of the American Black preacher) who was used to teach other slaves about what the plantation owner referred to as a heaven after death. The plantation bred preacher was a trusted slave. He preached sermons under the thumb of the plantation owner about how ole massa was not so bad and how ole massa did not know what he was doing as he went about his day being cruel and merciless to the enslaved Afrikans. The enslaved Afrikans were trained to pray for ole massa and his evil ways instead of killing that son-of-a bitch and leaving that plantation. The plantation preacher’s job was to indoctrinate the slaves into accepting mal-treatment as a way of living like Jesus with hopes of dying like Jesus and going on to a heaven beyond the clouds.

The Negro preacher, since the days of slavery, is always given marching orders by the racist system to soothe and drown out any anger feelings or any plans of rebellion against the unfair and unjust system. For his valiant deed, the Negro preacher is rewarded financially by way of 501 (c) 3 non-profit status attached to their churches, which has included millions of dollars of interest free loans to build even bigger churches to indoctrinate more un-knowing Black people. The Negro preacher is now joined by legions of other people who feel authorized to soothe and destroy the fight in African Americans today. These people come in the form of some of your “friends” (so-called liberal whites) and so-called educated Negroes with good jobs that live in the suburbs, who actually believe that racism is not a big deal these days. The nerve of these folks is astounding. They want to say that this situation is not a racial issue. These same people want to insult the Black community by stating “Well, the case was lost not because of race, but because the prosecution failed to prove its case in court.” First of all, Black people are not stupid. Many watched the case from the beginning to the end. The prosecution did not prosecute the case as if they wanted to win. They prosecuted the case to shut some people up. Hell, I could have prosecuted that case and won! Many (across racial lines) also witnessed that this case was a farce from the beginning.

I want to know this. Why in the hell wasn’t there a Black person on the prosecution team? It was Johnnie Cochran who brought the heat in the O.J. Simpson trial, which ultimately got O.J. a verdict of “not guilty.” Where was the Johnnie Cochran for the prosecution? Why wasn’t there a Black presence on that prosecution team? I am of the belief that the prosecution and the defense team were both against the Martin family. I believe that the Martin family along with so many Black people tried so hard not be seen as “racial” that they allowed this all-white prosecution team to take advantage of for fear of being labeled race baiters. As a result of not being true to themselves and calling a spade a spade, the Martin family ultimately gave that trial away. Also, these agents of white supremacy, which includes these educated Negroes who feel the need to point out that this trial is not about race because George Zimmerman is Hispanic and not White.

Well smart-asses, let me educate you all on some things. George Zimmerman is what Mexicans call a coconut (Brown on the outside, but White on the inside, meaning in their brains). This is very similar to what the Black community refers to as Oreos. Oreo African-Americans are Black on the outside, but very white on the inside. George Zimmerman, who is of mixed racial background, lived and thought as a privileged white man. His father (a Jew-ish White man) was a judge/magistrate and his mother (a Hispanic) both reportedly has connections to the courts in Sanford, Florida as well. His negative and hateful attitude about Blacks and according to the 911 operator call, Black males, is shaped by his belief in him being a privileged Whiteman and not a Mexican/Hispanic. He is to Blacks what America is to Blacks. So, in his Americanized mind he was indeed stopping a Nigger who he believed had no business in a neighborhood where good and decent white folks live.

 

So, what do we do now as a community? Do we continue to cuss and fuss on Twitter and Facebook? Do we organize and make a plan to protect the lives of other Black children from white vigilantes? Will we finally put together a plan to stop the violence where we live? Do we organize in our local communities to put in place political leadership that will not sell us out? Do we put together a plan to start calling out the racial sell-outs in the community? Will we finally take a page from the playbook of survival and protection of a one’s people from Jews, Hispanics, Homosexuals, Asians, and other groups who don’t allow their children to be attacked at will because of their race and sexual orientation? Now is a good time to jump on these plans. I believe that God (The Creator) has sent the Black race/community far too many warners and has sacrificed too many good people over the years in an effort to get the message through our thick heads that WE need to do for self. Nobody is coming from any clouds to save Black people. God is certainly not coming and a Jesus figure is certainly not coming back from beyond any grave to rescue any damn body.

Speaking of rescuing a group of people, my friend and fellow Grambling alum, Janet Parker, put this on my mind.  Aren’t you all tired if whites always coming to our rescue as if God never gave us a brain to do for ourselves?  I mean, damn throughout history somebody white has had to hold our hands and rescue us from this hateful system! I know this sounds crazy to be rescued by the very people who created this hell on earth for Blacks because of the color of our skin and our genetic make-up. Whites held our hands in getting off the plantation (that they created and benefitted from) and assisted Harriet Tubman in hiding escaped slaves on their way through the Underground Railroad as they made their way to freedom in the north. Whites held our hands during the civil rights movement as we fought for rights under the very system they benefitted from because they were white. White law-school student students currently spend hours researching the unlawful convictions of Black men and eventually get them released after finding out that these Black men were wrongfully convicted. Why are white people still doing for us what we should be doing for ourselves? Why are whites still rescuing blacks in 2013? That damn trial was supposed to have had some Blacks on the jury and on the damn prosecution team!

 

Look. We have plenty of money (1 trillion dollars spent annually). We have access to all types of educational tools and educational institutions in this country. I wish we accessed Black colleges more, but that is another article. The one thing that we lack is unity. WE need to unify. We need to educate ourselves about who we are and accept it. WE are a people from a strong nation of people. We need to teach our children about the reality of white racism not only in America, but all over the world. Finally, please stop fooling yourself that prayer answers all things. This is not true. Action, money, and a little prayer answer all things in this reality.

 

The Trayvon Martin Trial Ends in a "Not Guilty" verdict. And???

Last night, after I heard about George Zimmerman being found not guilty by a jury of his white and Hispanic peers, I just took a seat in my living room and turned on the television hoping to find an episode of Family Guy. You see. I was not shocked nor was I surprised by the verdict. However, I will admit to feeling just a little stupid and even upset at myself for what I term as behaving insanely. In the field of drug addiction, the word insane means to do the same stupid thing over and over again with the expectation of a different outcome or result. I say that I behaved insanely because I know better than to believe that this American justice system would somehow not show her wicked ass in this trial. My insanity became clear when I allowed myself to actually feel a little sense of hope concerning this trial. When the verdict came in, I felt stupid. Never again. Never again will I allow myself to think that America actually gives a damn about Black people and especially Black males. So, after I could not find a Family Guy on television, I logged on to Facebook to read some of the responses that were flooding the site.

I read where people were, “deeply saddened,” “heartbroken,” “outraged,” and even elated that the trial was over and that the verdict was in because the trial had gotten on their nerves and people’s reactions to the trial had gotten on their nerves. So, I decided to wait until the bulk of the emotional outbursts were coming closer to an end before posting my thoughts. I found myself chuckling at the posts where the writer shares how they had to explain their anger to their white friends. Really? So, are saying that your white friends are only your friends when you both pretend that racism is not real in America? Wow, I wonder if the Black folks who are married to whites and other ethnicities other than Black, had to explain their anger or aroused emotions over this trial and the murder of the Black child to their spouses. LOL! Amazing! I am proud to say that I don’t ever have to explain my anger to anybody white or otherwise because I decided a long time ago never to drink of the interracial or multicultural kool-aid. Then again, to each his own.  I don’t have any white friends. What in the hell could we possibly have in common? I mean seriously? What? However, I do have white and Hispanic co-workers. We are very cool and professional at work. Period. You know what? I have had to ask myself that same question about a lot of black folks today.

Anyway, the Trayvon Martin murder and the Trayvon Martin murder trial should be the wake-up call to Black America, but I don’t think so. We are too deep in denial about racism. Too many of us are too deeply rooted into religion and in our own individuality. We have long sense lost any sense of the collectiveness that got us through JIM CROW (systematic discrimination) and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950's and 1960's. We traded US in for a suburban living, white acceptance, the attitude of elitism, materialism, and we can’t seem to dig ourselves out of the depths of the disease called “Illusion of Inclusion.” As a result, our children are being slaughtered systematically. Many of us have even bought into this sick notion of blaming Black people for white racism. Really? One Black blogger on Facebook even suggested that Trayvon was killed because of other Black males sagging their pants. I kid you not! He says that because they were stereotyped, he was looked at as if he was one of them. I have been reading where so Blacks are going from being upset at the injustice of the murder and the verdict rendered to turning inward on each other or better yet, the Black community as a whole. I mean, there are Black people on Facebook literally blaming the black community for being preyed upon in this country. Here is the kicker. Since the beginning of the trial, little hints and statements about a riot possibly breaking out were tossed about should the jury not return a guilty verdict. Ok. The verdict is out. There is no riot. There isn't going to be any riotiing in the the streets. There is not going to be a  riot because we have Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram now as places to go to vent our frustrations with this unjust system. There was also talk of a race war if the verdict came back not guilty. Look. Black people are too divided to be in a race war with whites. Hell, we would have to kill a lot of each other before we even got a chance to kill a white person. Finally, Blacks will lose in a race war with whites in this country because we don’t own a military or a god-damn missile. All we seem to own are car notes, Gucci purses/belts, and a damn Bible.

In closing, this part is for all of the geniuses (double agents) on the internet who have been conveniently popping up and Blogs where Blacks have been expressing their anger and disgust over the verdict. I find it very interesting that whenever there is talk of some type of retaliation or even real emotions being expressed about how fucked up America behaves towards Blacks in this country some white person or “educated Negro” pops up on the post with this bullshit about all of us being human beings and racism existing in all races. As of yesterday, these mutha-fuckas have become experts on the law and have been trying to re-define racism. Now all of sudden the murder of Trayvon Martin and the trial are not about race, but about what the prosecution could not prove in court during the trial. All of a sudden Blacks are now being told to look at this blatant racially laced situation as a systematic boo-boo. Man, GTFOH with that bullshit!

As one who has done the research on racism and white supremacy, I know exactly what the hell racism/white supremacy is, how it works, and its agenda. I don’t need a purposefully watered down version from any double agent of this system. I am able to remain focused because I don’t have church or a religion fucking my brain up with a lot of bullshit that continues to keep Blacks systematically and mentally enslaved in this country and around the world. I thank God (The Creator) every day for leading me out of the church and religion and pointing me towards the library at age 13. If anyone of you bastards comes on my post with that shit, you are going to get cussed the fucked out and fucking deleted off my post and if you are a part of my friends list, deleted off of there too.

I can’t finished this article without leaving you with at least four books that will begin the process of us loving us again, therefore protecting ourselves and our children from attacks from people who look like us as well as those who don’t look like us. As a matter of fact, I would like to challenge you to utilize these sure fire suggestions that will help create the unity that our people so desperate need if we are going to continue to try to live peacefully in this reality not just with other races (particularly-white folks) but also with each other. The first thing that has to be done is the withdrawal membership from all churches and religions. Next, get rid of that damn Bible! Next, denounce and withdraw from all social organization (frats, sororities, lodges, etc.) All of these groups and beliefs segregate the black community. Next, any moneys given to these groups and institutions should now be given directly to non-profits that support HBCUs and the revitalization efforts of poor and urban communities where Blacks live. Also, send your children to Black colleges! There are more things that can be done, but I think this will do for now. In the mean-time, here are the four book suggestions that I mentioned earlier. You are more than welcomed to read others, but please start with these four first.

Mis-Education of the Negro – Dr. Carter G. Woodson

Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome- Dr. Joy Leary

Black Labor/White Wealth- Dr. Claud Anderson

They came before Columbus – Dr. Ivan Van Sertima