“Aint no love, in the heart of the city.” - Bobby “Blue” Bland
At the time of this posting, the 13th day of 2012 is yet to be over but the murder count in the city of New Orleans is already at 11, which amounts to almost 1 dead body per day as the result of an unjustified killing. Now while these killings have been in residential areas and not the spots where tourists flock to, one can only imagine what kind of effect this would have on a city who’s economy is largely dependent upon tourism should the crime and murder continue at this alarming rate. Most of the commentary from the peanut gallery which consists of the frequent posters to Nola.com make the comparison of the potential of New Orleans of the 2010’s to be the same as Detroit of the 1980’s and 90’s after the decline of the domestic automobile industry. My first and last time in Detroit was in 2008 and I have seen a Mecca of many Southern-bred families in search of a better life as a shadow of its former self, first-hand. If many predict that New Orleans would experience a modern-day decline similar to Detroit, I can only shed a tear and pledge myself to trying to do what is necessary to prevent that, hoping to inspire others to do the same. The problem I see with New Orleans is more of a double-edged sword between the police department and the community at-large, and to be honest they both can use some help.
Aside from the fact that I have many friends both close and of the acquaintance variety who are police, I treat most of them with a separation from their personal and professional lives and still stand firm on the claim that I don’t trust police. This is attributed to both incidents in my own personal and professional life in addition to several incidents of corruption, mishandling of cases, and the revolving doors of the Orleans Parish Prison. At the same token, I can sit here and say that this line of thinking is not the fault of the average NOPD patrolman. I give NOPD Superintendent Ronal Serpas credit for being second in charge during the murder decline of the late 90’s under the watch of Richard Pennington, but some people are better suited for being the man next to the man. Serpas has started a new trend of publicizing the criminal records of murder victims I guess in an attempt to make the average law-abiding citizen feel like they are safe from the bedlam that has become the streets of New Orleans, but I see a problem with that. For one, one victim had a lone 15-year old conviction for solicitation, a time period that even the majority of the legal community would consider to be a bit excessive. Secondly, this line of thinking leads way to the philosophy that time only changes, people never do. While I never considered the average law-enforcement agent to be a proponent of rehabilitation, sometimes it makes others feel good when you can see that despite the actions of the members of society, there is still some good in the human race that shines through over all. Serpas also has used most of his limited resources (not his fault) to focus on keeping order in these tourist destinations, remarking that we have the best police force at crowd control in the nation, which I agree with, but if you cant control the members of the community, then what?
Then, there are those average police that I spoke of earlier. A few officers them have taken their thoughts to Facebook and Twitter, some pointing out the community’s fault in all of this, which I will get into later in this posting, and others adopting a “ready for war” attitude. In fact, this post was inspired by a twitter rant of my own in which I criticized the latter line of thinking because of the fact that most criminals have no rules. Gone are the days of thugs who consider themselves gangsters and gentlemen, with a regard for family and a respect for innocent life. I doubt that anything that 12 yr old did in her short life resulted in her untimely demise, but maybe Serpas found out she was in a fight in pre-school so that lets him sleep better at night. A friend of mine remarked a similar sentiment by quoting a line from the movie Die Hard; “you’re a policeman…there are RULES for policemen.” True the police may have the bigger squad, but for the most part, they don’t have the artillery to be ready for war with most of these “big fish” out here, as evidenced by the finding of two grenades in the car that was tied to the home shooting and subsequent shootout with police on yesterday. These same thugs who have no regard for the life of children damn sure don’t care about the life of a cop, or that of their families who don’t wear a badge. Nevermind the fact that these are people out here trying to make a way in the world, faced with a low-paying position as compared with those similarly situated in other muncipalities around the nation, with a community that doesn’t give two fucks about them, doesn’t respect their authority for the most part, has no appreciation for them putting their lives at risk on a daily basis, and won’t help them do their job out of fear or just a nonchalant attitude about things that don’t directly affect them. Many of us hate the places in which we are employed and merely go to work and collect a check doing the minimum required to get by, but when police do this, what are we left with, one word; ANARCHY! Put yourself in their shoes for one second, how would you feel if your job required you to take a bullet for someone that didn’t like you, I bet you would think twice before acting too. In most instances, its not them being scared, its just that they too have families who expect them home at the end of their shift. And please don’t give me the rhetoric about police corruption, because although I don’t think the ENTIRE police force of our beloved city is on the “up and up,:” I do believe that the good far outweighs the bad. There are bad members of every profession, and I don’t believe that all of society is inherently evil.
Lastly, the community as a whole has to realize that we are responsible for these kinds of people taking over our streets. Maybe if the parents of New Orleans spent more time actually trying to be a mentor, positive reinforcement, or authority to their children as opposed to a schoolhouse chum, their kids would respect them more. But when I think about it, many of these same parents who choose to be a buddy rather than a driving force in a child’s life don’t have much to put on display that should garner the respect they deserve as a parent. Just because someone makes a baby doesn’t give them the ability to be a good parent, and just because your parents sucked, doesn’t mean that you have to travel down the same road. WAKE UP PEOPLE, IT’S TIME TO BUCK THESE NEGATIVE TRENDS THAT HAVE INFLUENCED OUR SOCIETY FOR FAR TOO LONG!!! In my opinion, being a parent is about trying to make your kids better than you are, that’s called progress because when you know better, you do better. With that being said, I have long heard the tired pleas of the community to outlaw guns, but ask yourself this question, how many murders do you think are committed with lawfully carried and registered firearms? Im pretty sure that number, if it is larger than zero, is a miniscule percentage as compared to the opposite end of the spectrum. So if we outlaw guns and the only people who carry guns are those who obtain them illegally and our law-enforcement agencies, you honestly think it would be safer than with our 2nd Amendment right to bear arms TO PROTECT OURSELVES???
So does the New Orleans community suffer from ignorance or stupidity? Being stupid is when your actions are so because you don’t know any better, but when you know better and you still choose not to utilize that knowledge, then you my friend, are ignorant. We are too encompassed in minding our own damn business that we no longer care about the city as a whole, just our own little space. We let rappers determine how we live our lives, and use fictional lyrics as inspiration to real life. The whole “Stop Snitching” campaign that took flight a few years ago was even misguided. Stop snitching is not a cry for you to shut up, it’s telling those of you who get caught to “take your lick,” rather than drag others down with you, not to mind your business. Besides, if one of those same innocent bystanders who got killed was a close relative or a child of yours and a friend had information about who pulled the trigger would you encourage that friend to come forward to the authorities in order to apprehend those responsible, or would you remind him that “snitches get stitches,” or whatever other ignorance that you let rappers talk you into. But I guess that wouldn’t be considered snitching because it was YOUR family. Well I have news for you, EVERY MURDER VICTIM IS A PART OF SOMEONE’S FAMILY! We really have to do better individually to live better as a whole! I don’t think that sending in the National Guard would help out much because if you did your research, you would find that martial law is a helluva lot more flawed than our imperfect system of due process.
In closing, I would like to thank the unbiased, honorable men and women of the New Orleans Police Department for their day to day duty of protecting and serving this city, even those who society has written off a long time ago. Your efforts go under appreciated and often unnoticed, but things have no choice but to get better, because as Frank Ocean said;” I still believe in man/
A wise one asked me why/Cause I just don't believe we're wicked/I know that we sin but I do believe we try,” but our efforts may be for naught when “aint no love in the heart of the city, and aint no love in the heart of town.” Peace and Love, New Orleans, PLEASE STOP THE KILLING!
Friday, January 13, 2012
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Bending The Rules For Profit...The American Dream
Initially I refrained from commenting on the hazing situation at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU) and members of its famed "Marching 100" marching band, but I just can't let this one ride. Recently, after the Florida Classic football game between FAMU and Bethune-Cookman University, a yearly hazing ritual claimed the life of Mr. Robert Champion, a drum-major at FAMU. The reasons why I didn't want to comment largely had to do with factual accounts I had been given of how HBCU bands operate in addition to my own experiences and views on hazing/pledging, but I've just had enough of the commentary from the peanut gallery. I am actually troubled in writing this because as a self-proclaimed "bandhead," the contents of this post may come off as blasphemous, but as an attorney, I am inclined to ask for impartiality and equal treatment that I know will not happen.
While I have not and will not ever believe that the price of admission in a prestigious organization should ever be someone's life, there is a price to be paid that keeps the exclusivity of the organization. I have argued that despite the announcement that FAMU has indefinitely suspended the band program, the Marching 100 would get a much tamer sentence than any Greek-lettered society if faced with the same circumstances. In fact, deaths of pledges have occurred in both Kappa Alpha Psi (1994) and Alpha Kappa Alpha (2003) both of which resulted in the charters for the chapters at those schools being retired and a year-long moratorium against new membership. Another hazing incident occurring at FAMU among members of the Alpha Xi chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi in 2009 resulted in the chapter being suspended by the university until 2013 despite no serious injuries and most importantly no deaths. In bringing these facts up in a post within a Facebook group with members of both the Southern University and FAMU student body and alumni I was told that the same standard that Greeks are held to should not apply to the band, and the only reason I could see as to why this would hold salt was the all mighty dollar.
Like Greeks, band members are required to maintain a certain GPA to be active within the organization, and most colleges and universities require members both current and perspective to sign statements displaying a knowledge of both the illegality of hazing and the consequences that both those who participate in as well as consent to these activities could be subjected to. As a result, the person who initially told me that the band and Greeks are not the same retorted that band is a school-sponsored activity that represents the university and that the equivalent of the impartiality and fairness that I wanted to see would be to suspend the Penn State football team in light of the Sandusky child molestation scandal. I wholeheartedly disagreed and challenged the same individual to put his blatant favoritism to the side and see that this is the equivalent of a Greek hazing event and in no way related to the Penn State incident, a sentiment echoed by ESPN's Jemele Hill in a recent article written for ESPN.com.
Greeks have to get permission from the school to function on campus and you had better believe that when the organizations do well that the university takes credit just as they bear the brunt when hazing allegations such as the aforementioned ones cast the institution's student body in a negative light. The main difference is that unlike with the band the university does not receive a payday from it's Greeks. For example, FAMU just signed a contract in which the university is set to receive $850,000 to play THE Ohio State University, which I'm sure the Marching 100 and their repore among sports fans around the world was a part of the reasoning behind such a large sum to play a team they have no chance in hell or competing with. Also, this is not a case of the band director of the Marching 100 killing a student in a hazing ritual so the counter point of its similarity to Penn State is irrelevant.
My main point is that while Mr. Champion has paid the ultimate price, the subsequent expulsion and readmittance of accused hazers, firing of band staff, and indefinite suspension of the band is by no means fair. Had this been Greeks, the accused would have been arrested and charged with murder, the chapter's charter revoked permanently, and a lawsuit filed (even though that part is sure to come). Hill said it best, the only plausible solution would be a 5 year suspension of the Marching 100 and I could not agree with her more. And for those of you who know of my love for Southern's Human Jukebox, I would be looking for the same had a member of Southern's band died after a post Bayou Classic hazing ritual. But mark my words, that will not come to fruition as bending the rules in favor of profit is exactly what Anerica was founded upon. Please keep the family of Mr. Robert Champion in your prayers...
While I have not and will not ever believe that the price of admission in a prestigious organization should ever be someone's life, there is a price to be paid that keeps the exclusivity of the organization. I have argued that despite the announcement that FAMU has indefinitely suspended the band program, the Marching 100 would get a much tamer sentence than any Greek-lettered society if faced with the same circumstances. In fact, deaths of pledges have occurred in both Kappa Alpha Psi (1994) and Alpha Kappa Alpha (2003) both of which resulted in the charters for the chapters at those schools being retired and a year-long moratorium against new membership. Another hazing incident occurring at FAMU among members of the Alpha Xi chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi in 2009 resulted in the chapter being suspended by the university until 2013 despite no serious injuries and most importantly no deaths. In bringing these facts up in a post within a Facebook group with members of both the Southern University and FAMU student body and alumni I was told that the same standard that Greeks are held to should not apply to the band, and the only reason I could see as to why this would hold salt was the all mighty dollar.
Like Greeks, band members are required to maintain a certain GPA to be active within the organization, and most colleges and universities require members both current and perspective to sign statements displaying a knowledge of both the illegality of hazing and the consequences that both those who participate in as well as consent to these activities could be subjected to. As a result, the person who initially told me that the band and Greeks are not the same retorted that band is a school-sponsored activity that represents the university and that the equivalent of the impartiality and fairness that I wanted to see would be to suspend the Penn State football team in light of the Sandusky child molestation scandal. I wholeheartedly disagreed and challenged the same individual to put his blatant favoritism to the side and see that this is the equivalent of a Greek hazing event and in no way related to the Penn State incident, a sentiment echoed by ESPN's Jemele Hill in a recent article written for ESPN.com.
Greeks have to get permission from the school to function on campus and you had better believe that when the organizations do well that the university takes credit just as they bear the brunt when hazing allegations such as the aforementioned ones cast the institution's student body in a negative light. The main difference is that unlike with the band the university does not receive a payday from it's Greeks. For example, FAMU just signed a contract in which the university is set to receive $850,000 to play THE Ohio State University, which I'm sure the Marching 100 and their repore among sports fans around the world was a part of the reasoning behind such a large sum to play a team they have no chance in hell or competing with. Also, this is not a case of the band director of the Marching 100 killing a student in a hazing ritual so the counter point of its similarity to Penn State is irrelevant.
My main point is that while Mr. Champion has paid the ultimate price, the subsequent expulsion and readmittance of accused hazers, firing of band staff, and indefinite suspension of the band is by no means fair. Had this been Greeks, the accused would have been arrested and charged with murder, the chapter's charter revoked permanently, and a lawsuit filed (even though that part is sure to come). Hill said it best, the only plausible solution would be a 5 year suspension of the Marching 100 and I could not agree with her more. And for those of you who know of my love for Southern's Human Jukebox, I would be looking for the same had a member of Southern's band died after a post Bayou Classic hazing ritual. But mark my words, that will not come to fruition as bending the rules in favor of profit is exactly what Anerica was founded upon. Please keep the family of Mr. Robert Champion in your prayers...
Friday, September 30, 2011
So Now You're a Lwayer...Funny, I Didn't Even Know You Had a JD
On September 21, 2011, after an appeals process that lasted close to 22 years, Troy Davis was executed in Georgia. The last few months leading up to his execution, Davis had become a household name with his plight for freedom becoming a media, social, and political frenzy alleging racism and the unfairness of the legal system as Davis, who is black, was convicted of the murder of a white police officer. My problem with this whole ordeal is that the majority of Davis’ supporters, while having good intentions, lacked no real knowledge of the legal system, and frankly I’m getting tired of folks asking my opinion on the matter and most of the inane commentary I have seen on the issue so I’ve decided to add my $19.11….
INSIDE INFORMATION....Since being licensed by the State Bar of Texas in 2009, the majority of my practice has been in Criminal Defense which is kind of tricky with some of my personal thoughts regarding criminals and the death penalty. Personally, I believe in the biblical code of Hammurabi (an eye for an eye…) and fail to grasp how a person would rather spend the rest of their life in jail as opposed to ending it all swiftly. From what I’ve heard, life in prison isn’t really life at all. I do , however, realize that a death sentence or life imprisonment is unfair for a crime one did not commit, so spare me that rhetoric.
Which brings me back to Troy Davis, a man who was convicted based upon nothing but eyewitness testimony, no gun, no DNA, only what other people “claim” they saw and a “possible” ballistics match. This is hardly enough to sentence someone to death in my opinion, but that’s about as far as I’ll take this as a political fight. I have often told people that in spite of the fact that the legal system is not perfect, it is far better than what goes on in most of the world and that I have to believe in it or my profession is a joke and a waste of time and energy. Why do you think attorneys practice, because we attempt to perfect an ever-changing field. After reading close to 500 pages from both sides of the spectrum I’ll give you all my opinion regarding the case.
From the initial evidence presented at trial, the state did put on a case well enough to sustain a conviction. Whether it was strong enough for a death sentence is debatable from both ends, but I feel as though they did their job and had I been on that jury then I would have convicted him as well. Then as quickly as 3 yrs after the initial trial come allegations of coercion by the investigators, recantations, and a plethora of “new evidence” that has been said to exonerate Davis. Therein lies the problem that most attorneys know come with recantations; if a person has already admitted to lying under oath it’s hard to ever trust them again. Most cross-examinations conducted with witnesses who recant often have the following question asked; “So were you lying then, or are you lying now?” Either way the damage to the testimony is irreversible and usually all of it becomes stricken from the record. So of the nine testifying witnesses, seven recanted, and even if they’re testimony was stricken as untrustworthy, that still leaves two eyewitnesses with unchanged stories. But, from court-records that I’ve read (reading is fundamental people, and LEXIS is a powerful tool), what the media labels as a recantation has little probative value in declaring Davis innocent as certain elements still stick in favor of the state’s case.
This brings me to my next issue, which is standard of proof. In order to get a new trial, you have to prove misconduct that would have resulted in a different outcome at the trial court level had it not been introduced. Which calls into question something all of you newly appointed, non-barred, JD-lacking “lawyers” (since yall have all this expertise) should be familiar with; standard of proof. A mere allegation of misconduct is simply not enough to have a meritorious claim. Think Denzel in “Training Day” (It’s not what you know, it’s what you can prove). And since all the witnesses who allege they were forced into a statement or signed a statement without reading it have no proof supporting that claim, they are dismissed as inadmissible hearsay. I have two problems with this; first of all, while I undoubtedly believe that police misconduct would be hard to uncover, think of the damage to the legal system if we let people just throw out accusations with no proof otherwise. To some it may be a bit contradictory given the nature of this case, but I stated earlier that I believe that the evidence presented was convincing enough to get a conviction, not enough to kill the man, but again that’s just my opinion. Secondly, did I or did I not say that reading is fundamental. Why in the hell would you sign something that you didn’t read? Your signature is what makes the document valid, so I can’t envision why you wouldn’t read it before signing it. Now for the witness who couldn’t read, I would suggest you had someone read it to you, and if you didn’t trust those people, then have several people read it to you. So I agree with the courts logic that this standard had not been met. As far as the actual innocence claim made at the appellate level, there is no exonerating evidence presented here, only enough to cause doubt, doubt that should have been raised at the trial court level. But no one sees it that way, no one ever does. You got forced into a statement cause you just wanted to be left alone, or because you were nervous about your own legal troubles, or you were scared that something would happen to you or your family, or you just don’t trust police. Yeah, I’ve heard all those before, and at the end of the day, no one ever blames these people. Well, I do, and I will continue to do so.
So for all of you that signed the petition to get Troy Davis clemency, bought the “I am Troy Davis” shirt, and posted on FB and twitter regarding his “murder,” just know that Troy Davis was not murdered, it was a suicide because those same ones who may have been influenced or were afraid to come forward but are all Troy Davis are the ones responsible for his death. Please stop jumping on the bandwagon of Mr. Davis, Duane Buck and every other black man who is facing a death sentence, because ultimately if you weren’t there, then you don’t know what happened. True racism still exists in society, but everything is not racially motivated. Furthermore, if you don’t have a legal education, then you wouldn’t understand the rhetoric upon which these cases are judged. Go read a book or something. I’ve prayed for Mr. Davis and have made peace with the fact that he is either in Heaven reaping the rewards of being wrongfully accused and paying the ultimate price for it, or in hell for stringing you all along with him, only God knows the true outcome. Stop complaining when the outcome isn’t in your favor, do your best to fix the system, cooperate in investigations, and ALWAYS tell the truth. If you fail to do that, then you are to blame for everything as well…may Troy Davis rest in peace!
INSIDE INFORMATION....Since being licensed by the State Bar of Texas in 2009, the majority of my practice has been in Criminal Defense which is kind of tricky with some of my personal thoughts regarding criminals and the death penalty. Personally, I believe in the biblical code of Hammurabi (an eye for an eye…) and fail to grasp how a person would rather spend the rest of their life in jail as opposed to ending it all swiftly. From what I’ve heard, life in prison isn’t really life at all. I do , however, realize that a death sentence or life imprisonment is unfair for a crime one did not commit, so spare me that rhetoric.
Which brings me back to Troy Davis, a man who was convicted based upon nothing but eyewitness testimony, no gun, no DNA, only what other people “claim” they saw and a “possible” ballistics match. This is hardly enough to sentence someone to death in my opinion, but that’s about as far as I’ll take this as a political fight. I have often told people that in spite of the fact that the legal system is not perfect, it is far better than what goes on in most of the world and that I have to believe in it or my profession is a joke and a waste of time and energy. Why do you think attorneys practice, because we attempt to perfect an ever-changing field. After reading close to 500 pages from both sides of the spectrum I’ll give you all my opinion regarding the case.
From the initial evidence presented at trial, the state did put on a case well enough to sustain a conviction. Whether it was strong enough for a death sentence is debatable from both ends, but I feel as though they did their job and had I been on that jury then I would have convicted him as well. Then as quickly as 3 yrs after the initial trial come allegations of coercion by the investigators, recantations, and a plethora of “new evidence” that has been said to exonerate Davis. Therein lies the problem that most attorneys know come with recantations; if a person has already admitted to lying under oath it’s hard to ever trust them again. Most cross-examinations conducted with witnesses who recant often have the following question asked; “So were you lying then, or are you lying now?” Either way the damage to the testimony is irreversible and usually all of it becomes stricken from the record. So of the nine testifying witnesses, seven recanted, and even if they’re testimony was stricken as untrustworthy, that still leaves two eyewitnesses with unchanged stories. But, from court-records that I’ve read (reading is fundamental people, and LEXIS is a powerful tool), what the media labels as a recantation has little probative value in declaring Davis innocent as certain elements still stick in favor of the state’s case.
This brings me to my next issue, which is standard of proof. In order to get a new trial, you have to prove misconduct that would have resulted in a different outcome at the trial court level had it not been introduced. Which calls into question something all of you newly appointed, non-barred, JD-lacking “lawyers” (since yall have all this expertise) should be familiar with; standard of proof. A mere allegation of misconduct is simply not enough to have a meritorious claim. Think Denzel in “Training Day” (It’s not what you know, it’s what you can prove). And since all the witnesses who allege they were forced into a statement or signed a statement without reading it have no proof supporting that claim, they are dismissed as inadmissible hearsay. I have two problems with this; first of all, while I undoubtedly believe that police misconduct would be hard to uncover, think of the damage to the legal system if we let people just throw out accusations with no proof otherwise. To some it may be a bit contradictory given the nature of this case, but I stated earlier that I believe that the evidence presented was convincing enough to get a conviction, not enough to kill the man, but again that’s just my opinion. Secondly, did I or did I not say that reading is fundamental. Why in the hell would you sign something that you didn’t read? Your signature is what makes the document valid, so I can’t envision why you wouldn’t read it before signing it. Now for the witness who couldn’t read, I would suggest you had someone read it to you, and if you didn’t trust those people, then have several people read it to you. So I agree with the courts logic that this standard had not been met. As far as the actual innocence claim made at the appellate level, there is no exonerating evidence presented here, only enough to cause doubt, doubt that should have been raised at the trial court level. But no one sees it that way, no one ever does. You got forced into a statement cause you just wanted to be left alone, or because you were nervous about your own legal troubles, or you were scared that something would happen to you or your family, or you just don’t trust police. Yeah, I’ve heard all those before, and at the end of the day, no one ever blames these people. Well, I do, and I will continue to do so.
So for all of you that signed the petition to get Troy Davis clemency, bought the “I am Troy Davis” shirt, and posted on FB and twitter regarding his “murder,” just know that Troy Davis was not murdered, it was a suicide because those same ones who may have been influenced or were afraid to come forward but are all Troy Davis are the ones responsible for his death. Please stop jumping on the bandwagon of Mr. Davis, Duane Buck and every other black man who is facing a death sentence, because ultimately if you weren’t there, then you don’t know what happened. True racism still exists in society, but everything is not racially motivated. Furthermore, if you don’t have a legal education, then you wouldn’t understand the rhetoric upon which these cases are judged. Go read a book or something. I’ve prayed for Mr. Davis and have made peace with the fact that he is either in Heaven reaping the rewards of being wrongfully accused and paying the ultimate price for it, or in hell for stringing you all along with him, only God knows the true outcome. Stop complaining when the outcome isn’t in your favor, do your best to fix the system, cooperate in investigations, and ALWAYS tell the truth. If you fail to do that, then you are to blame for everything as well…may Troy Davis rest in peace!
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
You Think You Know...
“Everybody wants to be a nigger, but nobody wants to be a nigger” – Paul Mooney
Recently, there has been a buzz in the hip-hop community regarding the White Girl Mob, Kreayshawn and V-Nasty, and their use of the word “nigga.” At first, I just dismissed it as ignorance and let these women make it, but its just going viral between their continued exploitation and the responses to this topic increasing daily, I just had to say my own piece regarding this because its starting to bother me.
Yes, I do use the word “nigga” on a daily basis, and unlike most people in modern American society, I refuse to put the blame on the hip-hop culture for my usage of that word as part of my everyday vernacular. I guess I can blame my parents for teaching me the lost art of accountability, but I digress. I can’t tell you when or why the word “nigger” became offensive because from researching the term it’s actually a derivative for words associated with the color black. However, I do know that from slavery times up to recent years, the word has become offensive to Black culture. (I don’t really like to use the word African-American because I’ve never been to Africa and other races besides black people, can be African-American.) Since this word is offensive to me when spoken by a white person, any time that I hear it being used by one of those persons, I instantly become enraged. At the same time, I have a similar feeling when a black person uses the word to describe a white person. Why, you may ask? Because my use of the word as either “nigger” or “nigga” is my way of making it my own and destroying the negative connotation associated with it. I think that’s why it was originally used in the hip-hop community to make a word originally used to degrade us as a source of empowerment, but I could be fishing. And even though the word has lost its luster when spoken among other blacks, any white person that I consider a friend, would lose that status if they ever told me about “real nigga shit,” or said “nigga please,” hell they might even be greeted with a fist to the face, but that’s just me, take it how you want.
Then there’s this V-Nasty character, whom I had never heard of until she got on World Star freestyling with heavy usage of “nigga,” like most rappers. From a lyrical standpoint, the chick is trash, seriously. Her whole flow is garbage, I’m not even a rapper and I would eat her alive. So I initially though that her usage of nigga was her way of gaining notoriety, or trying to be “different,” in a world where everyone is trying to do something new. But since she had me lost, I just shook my head and wished I could have my 2 minutes or so of my life back. But I guess I was one of the less vocal viewers of the video because within a week, there were a few videos up on Youtube and World Star criticizing V-Nasty with a resounding “how dare she?” So much so, that Andy Milonakas (who in the hell remembers him), released a video stating that the freestyle was done at his home and that people need to stop prejudging V-Nasty because she’s down for the “hood” and would step up if anybody infiltrated it and used “nigga” in a derogatory manner to any of its residents. Really, Andy, really?! Let me ask you this then, if something went down in the “hood,” and the police in Oakland were called in, I seriously doubt that V-Nasty would be first among those questioned. Maybe the police was a bad example because given the fact that V-Nasty has a criminal record, so I’ll just go with the general public. This question is coming from an attorney who has dreadlocks that go down his back, the same one that has been repeatedly prejudiced in the courtroom being told that “offense reports can only be requested by attorneys” or “are you looking for your lawyer?” All this when I’m dressed to kill, smelling nice, and speaking proper English as best I can with my New Orleans accent, lol. I know what its like to be prejudged, and the Lower 9 is about as hood as it gets, so please miss me with that bullshit.
Another video I saw by someone who’s name I forget places the blame on Black America for the existence of V-Nasty and the White Girl Mob. They discussed how its stupid for Blacks to be okay with the White emulation of the hip-hop culture as far as the music and style of dress, but not the vocabulary. Another white friend of mine, who proudly maintains that she is white and chooses not to forget it posed the question of how I would feel if encountered daily with a forbidden word. I don’t have an answer to that, but I blame V-Nasty’s “friends” for not slapping her in the mouth when she first uttered that phrase. In attending a majority white high school I dreaded the idea of ever being called a “nigger” or being one of my white friend’s “nigga,” because my reaction would have gotten me expelled from school. Thankfully, I’ve never had to deal with that to my face, I don’t really care too much about what people do in their own homes. But the video went on further to discuss how white women such as V-Nasty and Kreayshawn (is that her government name, seriously?) fool many black men into thinking that they are down for the cause but will become turncoats or turn into “Beckys” when things get hot and will prolly leave that black man for the next one they can sink their claws into if he goes to jail.
Does any member of the White Girl Mob truly know what its like to be Black in America? Do they realize that we have to be exceptional just to be considered normal? And to further hinder us we got idiots like Mr. Fab stating that V-Nasty is one of us and she’s real because she “mobs” harder than most “niggas” and she has just served time for armed robbery. Let’s get this straight, so serving time makes you a “nigga” and gives you the right to use that word in everyday conversation? You sound stupid, *Ed Lover voice* “C’mon Son!” That’s about as bad as the white historian who said on BBC that the London riots were caused by white people seeking to emulate hip-hop culture. Ise Lyfe even went on to counter Mr. Fab’s statements and the White Girl Mob by making the obvious connections to a lynch mob and the KKK. But I know his words prolly fell on def ears especially in society where we name our children hoping that they won’t fall into the trap of being stereotyped as being black when their resume is reviewed but have white girls named Kreayshawn. That’s about as bad as all the –ishas –nettas and –quans put together.
I for one have always said that desegregation killed the HBCU and that it hindered us in many ways, but I do agree that it is something that needed to be done when “separate but equal” was only true in word not deed. But then again, I am the same one who has a problem with white members of the Divine 9 greek organizations because of the conditions that led a number of these organizations to be founded. I think that one has an apparent advantage being born white in America, but it seems like some don’t see it that way and want to be black. Can’t we have anything to ourselves these days? I think Nas said it best when he said. “They like to strangle niggers, blaming niggers, shooting niggers, hanging niggers, still you wanna be a nigger too?.” Yall think yall know, but you truly have NO IDEA…
Recently, there has been a buzz in the hip-hop community regarding the White Girl Mob, Kreayshawn and V-Nasty, and their use of the word “nigga.” At first, I just dismissed it as ignorance and let these women make it, but its just going viral between their continued exploitation and the responses to this topic increasing daily, I just had to say my own piece regarding this because its starting to bother me.
Yes, I do use the word “nigga” on a daily basis, and unlike most people in modern American society, I refuse to put the blame on the hip-hop culture for my usage of that word as part of my everyday vernacular. I guess I can blame my parents for teaching me the lost art of accountability, but I digress. I can’t tell you when or why the word “nigger” became offensive because from researching the term it’s actually a derivative for words associated with the color black. However, I do know that from slavery times up to recent years, the word has become offensive to Black culture. (I don’t really like to use the word African-American because I’ve never been to Africa and other races besides black people, can be African-American.) Since this word is offensive to me when spoken by a white person, any time that I hear it being used by one of those persons, I instantly become enraged. At the same time, I have a similar feeling when a black person uses the word to describe a white person. Why, you may ask? Because my use of the word as either “nigger” or “nigga” is my way of making it my own and destroying the negative connotation associated with it. I think that’s why it was originally used in the hip-hop community to make a word originally used to degrade us as a source of empowerment, but I could be fishing. And even though the word has lost its luster when spoken among other blacks, any white person that I consider a friend, would lose that status if they ever told me about “real nigga shit,” or said “nigga please,” hell they might even be greeted with a fist to the face, but that’s just me, take it how you want.
Then there’s this V-Nasty character, whom I had never heard of until she got on World Star freestyling with heavy usage of “nigga,” like most rappers. From a lyrical standpoint, the chick is trash, seriously. Her whole flow is garbage, I’m not even a rapper and I would eat her alive. So I initially though that her usage of nigga was her way of gaining notoriety, or trying to be “different,” in a world where everyone is trying to do something new. But since she had me lost, I just shook my head and wished I could have my 2 minutes or so of my life back. But I guess I was one of the less vocal viewers of the video because within a week, there were a few videos up on Youtube and World Star criticizing V-Nasty with a resounding “how dare she?” So much so, that Andy Milonakas (who in the hell remembers him), released a video stating that the freestyle was done at his home and that people need to stop prejudging V-Nasty because she’s down for the “hood” and would step up if anybody infiltrated it and used “nigga” in a derogatory manner to any of its residents. Really, Andy, really?! Let me ask you this then, if something went down in the “hood,” and the police in Oakland were called in, I seriously doubt that V-Nasty would be first among those questioned. Maybe the police was a bad example because given the fact that V-Nasty has a criminal record, so I’ll just go with the general public. This question is coming from an attorney who has dreadlocks that go down his back, the same one that has been repeatedly prejudiced in the courtroom being told that “offense reports can only be requested by attorneys” or “are you looking for your lawyer?” All this when I’m dressed to kill, smelling nice, and speaking proper English as best I can with my New Orleans accent, lol. I know what its like to be prejudged, and the Lower 9 is about as hood as it gets, so please miss me with that bullshit.
Another video I saw by someone who’s name I forget places the blame on Black America for the existence of V-Nasty and the White Girl Mob. They discussed how its stupid for Blacks to be okay with the White emulation of the hip-hop culture as far as the music and style of dress, but not the vocabulary. Another white friend of mine, who proudly maintains that she is white and chooses not to forget it posed the question of how I would feel if encountered daily with a forbidden word. I don’t have an answer to that, but I blame V-Nasty’s “friends” for not slapping her in the mouth when she first uttered that phrase. In attending a majority white high school I dreaded the idea of ever being called a “nigger” or being one of my white friend’s “nigga,” because my reaction would have gotten me expelled from school. Thankfully, I’ve never had to deal with that to my face, I don’t really care too much about what people do in their own homes. But the video went on further to discuss how white women such as V-Nasty and Kreayshawn (is that her government name, seriously?) fool many black men into thinking that they are down for the cause but will become turncoats or turn into “Beckys” when things get hot and will prolly leave that black man for the next one they can sink their claws into if he goes to jail.
Does any member of the White Girl Mob truly know what its like to be Black in America? Do they realize that we have to be exceptional just to be considered normal? And to further hinder us we got idiots like Mr. Fab stating that V-Nasty is one of us and she’s real because she “mobs” harder than most “niggas” and she has just served time for armed robbery. Let’s get this straight, so serving time makes you a “nigga” and gives you the right to use that word in everyday conversation? You sound stupid, *Ed Lover voice* “C’mon Son!” That’s about as bad as the white historian who said on BBC that the London riots were caused by white people seeking to emulate hip-hop culture. Ise Lyfe even went on to counter Mr. Fab’s statements and the White Girl Mob by making the obvious connections to a lynch mob and the KKK. But I know his words prolly fell on def ears especially in society where we name our children hoping that they won’t fall into the trap of being stereotyped as being black when their resume is reviewed but have white girls named Kreayshawn. That’s about as bad as all the –ishas –nettas and –quans put together.
I for one have always said that desegregation killed the HBCU and that it hindered us in many ways, but I do agree that it is something that needed to be done when “separate but equal” was only true in word not deed. But then again, I am the same one who has a problem with white members of the Divine 9 greek organizations because of the conditions that led a number of these organizations to be founded. I think that one has an apparent advantage being born white in America, but it seems like some don’t see it that way and want to be black. Can’t we have anything to ourselves these days? I think Nas said it best when he said. “They like to strangle niggers, blaming niggers, shooting niggers, hanging niggers, still you wanna be a nigger too?.” Yall think yall know, but you truly have NO IDEA…
Friday, June 17, 2011
To The Love of My Life
To The Love of My Life:
I’ve written other letters address to the “love of my life,” not being truthful to them, you, or myself and for that, I’m sorry. I tend to feel like I’m not worth the air that I breathe so frequently that I just laugh, drink, and smoke more frequently to forget. I’m not sure what kind of man I’ll become, but I’m damn sure not proud of the man that I am. Yet and still, that’s just me being complicated. You are my world, the reason why I grind, the reason why I hustle, the reason why I hope and pray for better days. While part of me thinks that the world would be better without me, I know that you wouldn’t, and that keeps me here. You don’t judge me based upon my failures, love me without limitation, and l hang on to my every word with adoring eyes. That’s the joy I get from fatherhood…
I’ve written other letters address to the “love of my life,” not being truthful to them, you, or myself and for that, I’m sorry. I tend to feel like I’m not worth the air that I breathe so frequently that I just laugh, drink, and smoke more frequently to forget. I’m not sure what kind of man I’ll become, but I’m damn sure not proud of the man that I am. Yet and still, that’s just me being complicated. You are my world, the reason why I grind, the reason why I hustle, the reason why I hope and pray for better days. While part of me thinks that the world would be better without me, I know that you wouldn’t, and that keeps me here. You don’t judge me based upon my failures, love me without limitation, and l hang on to my every word with adoring eyes. That’s the joy I get from fatherhood…
Thursday, May 5, 2011
The Last Straw Pt. 2
Some time ago, I wrote a note that emphasized how I felt about the proposed SUNO/UNO merger that didn’t really get into too many details but just provided a brief synopsis of what I read in the media coupled with my own thoughts. Since that posting, the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education has responded to that proposed merger echoing many of my same sentiments. I wont bother posting the entire response, but you can read it here; http://www.scribd.com/doc/49543283/NAFEO-Responds-to-Proposed-SUNO-UNO-Merger. Now what I didn’t know is that Jindal has been exploring the option of this merger since 2009 when he first convened his Higher Education committee. According to the NAFEO letter, the original proposal for that merger was rejected because of the large differences in the enrollment, admissions standards, classroom size, and student bodies of the two institutions. But I guess Bobby Jindal is hardheaded and had to continue pressing for this.
As of May 4th, the House Committee has voted 10-5 to move forward with the merger of SUNO and UNO and SUNO has released a statement about its commencement exercises. This Saturday, SUNO will graduate 442 students, but according to the graduation rate guideline outlined by Jindal’s committee, only 14 of those count toward the graduation rate. So I’m wondering how can you say that an institution is failing if its boasting of 442 graduates? SUNO’s Chancellor, Victor Ukpolo, Ph.D., issued the following statement; “In keeping with our previous open-access mission, many of our students take longer to graduate, in some cases seven, eight years or more. Most of our student body is comprised of working adults, ages 25 and older, and many of them pursue their studies on a part-time basis. Prior to Fall 2010 we were still an open admissions institution, a designation which mandated us to admit practically anyone who wanted to pursue a college education,” Most of this I detailed in the first note about this merger as to why I don’t believe that Jindal has the right rhetoric to detail why SUNO is “failing.” Now UNO is a completely different story and I don’t have the facts on that one, I only talk what I know.
But all this may be for naught, because now that the House has voted to move forward, who knows where/when/how this will end. But I do know that SUBR has reason to fear and that worries me...
As of May 4th, the House Committee has voted 10-5 to move forward with the merger of SUNO and UNO and SUNO has released a statement about its commencement exercises. This Saturday, SUNO will graduate 442 students, but according to the graduation rate guideline outlined by Jindal’s committee, only 14 of those count toward the graduation rate. So I’m wondering how can you say that an institution is failing if its boasting of 442 graduates? SUNO’s Chancellor, Victor Ukpolo, Ph.D., issued the following statement; “In keeping with our previous open-access mission, many of our students take longer to graduate, in some cases seven, eight years or more. Most of our student body is comprised of working adults, ages 25 and older, and many of them pursue their studies on a part-time basis. Prior to Fall 2010 we were still an open admissions institution, a designation which mandated us to admit practically anyone who wanted to pursue a college education,” Most of this I detailed in the first note about this merger as to why I don’t believe that Jindal has the right rhetoric to detail why SUNO is “failing.” Now UNO is a completely different story and I don’t have the facts on that one, I only talk what I know.
But all this may be for naught, because now that the House has voted to move forward, who knows where/when/how this will end. But I do know that SUBR has reason to fear and that worries me...
Friday, April 22, 2011
Fee Fie Fo Figga...
…Boy, I hate a nigga.
DISCLAIMER: For those of you who are upset with the usage of “nigger,” “nigga,” and anyother derivative of the “n-bomb” please stop reading now, this isn’t really one of my posts for commentary or to foster discussion, it’s more of a rant. While your feedback is always appreciated, this is just to let me get this off my chest.
Earlier today I was in the barbershop with my father and was just listening to standard barbershop dialect and then the awesome feat that is niggardry arose out of the conversation. I know there are many definitions of the word “nigga,” but for the purposes of this posting we’ll just go with a lazy and shiftless negro. Well the first piece of the conversation that bothered me arose out of discussions on the BP settlement. One of the customers in the shop was talking about his attempts to become a plaintiff in the legal matters with BP but the frustration that he was having because of the requirements. His first point was why should this law firm require him to provide proof of income? He then compounded that point with stating that his income fluctuates so why should his income of last year be measured as his loss point. I just shook my head and chuckled inside. After Katrina, niggas fell under the belief that the government and these multi-million dollar corporations just have money to give out for nothing. First of all, I’m under the belief that unless your profession is actually in the gulf (i.e. fishermen), or you operate a hotel, resort, or something that is directly in the tourism industry, you didn’t really suffer a loss. Like, I’ll be the first to blow the “bullshit whistle” when it comes down to people trying to get over, on anyone, so with that being said, how can you justify your rental property as being tourism related when the minimum lease you’ll allow someone to sign is 3 months? Secondly, if these people are giving you money, don’t you think you should have to justify this to them and what other way than by your income? And because your income fluctuates nothing says that absent the Deep Water Horizon explosion, you would make more money, you could actually make less. Please, miss me with all that…
The second thing that pissed me off was a discussion about child support and how ALL (not many, but as the barber said “all them heauxs”) women manipulate the system for child support and its all a plan designed to “keep the black man down.” (the #1 nigga catch phrase) How can you say this as a man, and even moreso as a father. Now in some instances, I will admit that child support of such an astronomical amount is not needed, but its kind of like a double edged sword because I see the point of the law, YOUR children are YOUR responsibility, and if you were still with the mother, the child would probably get much more than 20% of your check. Which shows the ignorance of that statement, I know of a few mothers who have shot themselves in the foot by putting their child’s father on child support out of spite, and now they get only what the court requires be given unless it’s a holiday, birthday, or the beginning of school. But then again, niggas don’t read or learn so they probably wouldn’t know that. Miss me with that too…\
Finally, the last commentary that the niggardry arose on was Obama. These jackasses said that Obama aint doing his job because he’s not catering to Black America. Well, hello?! I said for the longest how white people should be happy that Obama is the president because he is half white, and half African, two groups that stereotypically don’t like blacks. Also, keep in mind that Black Americans no longer make up the majority minority in the nation so catering to Black America wont get you reelected, that’s for damn sure. To compare Obama with Bush is totally redundant because Bush is white and his daddy was President. I just cant fathom how niggas come up with the kind of shit that comes out of their mouth. Chris Rock said it best; “fee fi fo figga…boy I hate a nigga.”
DISCLAIMER: For those of you who are upset with the usage of “nigger,” “nigga,” and anyother derivative of the “n-bomb” please stop reading now, this isn’t really one of my posts for commentary or to foster discussion, it’s more of a rant. While your feedback is always appreciated, this is just to let me get this off my chest.
Earlier today I was in the barbershop with my father and was just listening to standard barbershop dialect and then the awesome feat that is niggardry arose out of the conversation. I know there are many definitions of the word “nigga,” but for the purposes of this posting we’ll just go with a lazy and shiftless negro. Well the first piece of the conversation that bothered me arose out of discussions on the BP settlement. One of the customers in the shop was talking about his attempts to become a plaintiff in the legal matters with BP but the frustration that he was having because of the requirements. His first point was why should this law firm require him to provide proof of income? He then compounded that point with stating that his income fluctuates so why should his income of last year be measured as his loss point. I just shook my head and chuckled inside. After Katrina, niggas fell under the belief that the government and these multi-million dollar corporations just have money to give out for nothing. First of all, I’m under the belief that unless your profession is actually in the gulf (i.e. fishermen), or you operate a hotel, resort, or something that is directly in the tourism industry, you didn’t really suffer a loss. Like, I’ll be the first to blow the “bullshit whistle” when it comes down to people trying to get over, on anyone, so with that being said, how can you justify your rental property as being tourism related when the minimum lease you’ll allow someone to sign is 3 months? Secondly, if these people are giving you money, don’t you think you should have to justify this to them and what other way than by your income? And because your income fluctuates nothing says that absent the Deep Water Horizon explosion, you would make more money, you could actually make less. Please, miss me with all that…
The second thing that pissed me off was a discussion about child support and how ALL (not many, but as the barber said “all them heauxs”) women manipulate the system for child support and its all a plan designed to “keep the black man down.” (the #1 nigga catch phrase) How can you say this as a man, and even moreso as a father. Now in some instances, I will admit that child support of such an astronomical amount is not needed, but its kind of like a double edged sword because I see the point of the law, YOUR children are YOUR responsibility, and if you were still with the mother, the child would probably get much more than 20% of your check. Which shows the ignorance of that statement, I know of a few mothers who have shot themselves in the foot by putting their child’s father on child support out of spite, and now they get only what the court requires be given unless it’s a holiday, birthday, or the beginning of school. But then again, niggas don’t read or learn so they probably wouldn’t know that. Miss me with that too…\
Finally, the last commentary that the niggardry arose on was Obama. These jackasses said that Obama aint doing his job because he’s not catering to Black America. Well, hello?! I said for the longest how white people should be happy that Obama is the president because he is half white, and half African, two groups that stereotypically don’t like blacks. Also, keep in mind that Black Americans no longer make up the majority minority in the nation so catering to Black America wont get you reelected, that’s for damn sure. To compare Obama with Bush is totally redundant because Bush is white and his daddy was President. I just cant fathom how niggas come up with the kind of shit that comes out of their mouth. Chris Rock said it best; “fee fi fo figga…boy I hate a nigga.”
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