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Vol. 11 Issue 17…Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race…April 27, 2008
Intuit's Vibe
A Dream Deferred
By Langston Hughes
What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
Like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
The Dream Reborn Conference
By John Burl Smith
This year, the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights unveiled a new cutting edge
initiative: Green For All. The new advocacy organization is committed to
building an inclusive green economy that will lift millions of people out of
poverty. The 40th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr. was chosen for a conference in Memphis to debut the initiative during the
"King Week" commemoration April 4, 2008.
The conference signified a vow
that this time the Dream will not die. Green for All will uplift both people
and the planet. In its first step to make good on that vow, Green for All
brought more than 1,000 people to Memphis to declare the "Dream
REBORN;" the first "green" summit to honor Dr. King and
explicitly link his vision of justice to the emerging green economy. For attendees,
it was a life-altering experience.
Conventional wisdom always assumed that such summits would be 90 percent white
and overwhelmingly affluent. It was further believed that no "green
conference" could attract people of color or other low-income citizens of the
planet. A finger in the eyes of those doubters, more than 70 percent of the
1,200 attendees were people of color and half the attendees qualified for some
level of "scholarship," which allowed young people with moderate
incomes to attend the three-day event.
With that being the case, this conference didn't just look different, it was. There were prayers, choirs, poetry, speeches and drummers on the main stage. It exuded passion, reminiscent of a civil rights rally. More than an environmental conference, the audience cheered, chanted, shouted and even sobbed, reflecting the reverence shared for our planet.
The other major difference between this and other such conferences was few attendees lingered in hallways chatting, socializing and trading business cards. Instead, the panels, workshops and sessions were crammed, as bodies covered every bit of floor space and standing room along walls - hungry to learn how to make their neighborhoods and cities bloom green with prosperity.
During the nights, rather than
bar-hopping, these hip hoppers packed the main hall as slam poets grabbed the
mic, dance music blared and laughter from this odd mix of humanity filled the
sidewalks and streets around the conference center. Other than at a church
revival, civil right veterans in attendance, who wept openly, said they had
never seen so many white and people of color laughing, crying and hugging at a
single gathering.
Synonymous to April 4, 1968, something powerful shifted on April 4, 2008. Dr.
King has been gone longer than he walked with us. Since his passing, two
generations of adults, plus a rising batch of teenagers are now re-imagining
his Dream to build the new century. And, through the "Dream Reborn,"
they see a critical mass forming that will build Green for All as the new
economic reality. (Source: Reflections on the Dream Reborn by Van Jones http://ellabakercenter.org)
The Victorian Age (1837 - 1901)
Queen Victoria's reign was the longest in British history, and depending on
whether you were among the haves or have-nots, it was an age of feast or
famine. Those at the top believed that the cultural, political, economic,
industrial and scientific achievements during her reign were remarkable.
However, those on the bottom, as personified by Charles Dickens, saw her reign
through eyes like Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Philip Pirrip and debtors
locked away in Marshalsea Prison. Caught in the throes of the Industrial
Revolution, Victorian London was the world's largest and most spectacular city.
While reaping those benefits, the city's poor and children paid the price in
misery, poverty and neglect.
Astride this period, Charles John
Huffam Dickens was born on February 7, 1812 in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England.
The foremost English novelist of the Victorian era, Dickens stood in relief
reflecting the harsh reality of the forgotten poor and disadvantaged at the
heart of the Victorian empire. Almost from the very beginning, Dickens life
mirrored his times. His father John and the family, except for Charles, were
imprisoned for debts in Marshalsea Prison. Only twelve, Dickens was forced to
work in a shoe blacking factory to help support the family. The harsh drudgery,
long hours and little pay left an indelible mark on him. Dickens' experiences
found expression in his many short stories, plays and novels.
Introduced to the world of the working poor where child labor was a mainstay,
Dickens witnessed Victorian society's abandonment of orphaned children.
Attacking Victorian England's desire for world domination at the expense of
people at the bottom living in squalor and filth, Dickens stories described
London's cesspool. Thousands of chimneys belched smoke and soot. Raw sewage
flowed in gutters that emptied into the Thames, which was the city's main
source of drinking water. Tainted with sewage, the drinking water spawned
sickness and disease.
The Victorians answer to dealing with the poor and indigent was Poor Laws. Victorians believed that poverty was largely the result of fecklessness, immorality, idleness and drunkenness. Also, they felt welfare merely encouraged these vices while discouraging self-improvement and honest labor. Coupled with the Industrial Revolution, a rising population, urbanization and the need for cheap labor, Victorians turned to the workhouse system.
Workhouses were little more than prisons for the poor. Civil liberties were denied; families were separated, and human dignity destroyed. These workhouses, the mainstay of so-called poor relief during the Victorian era, were places of dread to the laboring and indigent poor.
A prolific author, Dickens'
novels were social commentaries that highlighted workhouse abuses. He was a
fierce critic of poverty and social stratification of Victorian society.
Dickens's second novel, Oliver Twist (1839), shocked readers with its images of
poverty and crime. Through the character Nancy, the tragic prostitute, Dickens
"humanized" such women for the reading public. Victorians regarded
such women as inherently immoral, but to Dickens, they were casualties of
Victorian class warfare and its economic system.
Dickens provided elaborate expansive critiques of the Victorian institutional
apparatus: the interminable lawsuits of the Court of Chancery that destroyed
people's lives, the inefficient, corrupt patent offices and the unregulated
market speculators. Using his remarkable skills and mastery of prose, Dickens
created unique characters that depicted the social classes, carefully
describing their mores and values to paint realistic portraits of Victorian
society. (Sources: www.online-literature.com,
www.fidnet.com and http://en.wikipedia.org)
What is the Green Economy all
About?
By John Burl Smith
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens begins, "It was the best
of time. It was the worst of times." Today, we live in a time not unlike
those characterized in Dickens stories. This is a time when "the
Market" is free, but the people are not. It is a time of global warming and
global war, a time of mass incarceration of people, and mass extinction of
species, a time of "no rules" for the rich, and "no rights"
for the poor, a time when courts give evictions and convictions to those on the
bottom, and a time of increasing profits for the few and decreasing options for
the many, observed Van Jones.
The Dickensian lament begs the question, "What can the poor and powerless
do to change this reality?" Forty years ago Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
offered the "Poor People's Campaign," but he was killed by a
government hired assassin and that dream has festered. Now, a new visionary is
on the horizon: Van Jones, co-founder of the Ella Baker Center for Human
Rights. He has devised a new strategy -- Green for All. This new green approach
is a way for the United States (US) to retool its economy and reverse its
economic decline, while having a beneficial impact on global warming.
Throwbacks to the Victorian era, George W. Bush and the GOP have pursued a
"head-in-the-sand" approach to pollution, poverty and the destruction
of the environment. Moreover, their headlong rush to globalize the world's
economy has made capital and industry mobile, freeing them to move to where
they pay the lowest wages, yet reap the highest profits. Simultaneously,
workers and local businesses lose jobs and markets as the US economy stagnates.
Pushed to the brink, ordinary Americans are in dire straits, drowning in red
ink.
Clinging to credit cards to stay afloat, most are rethinking consumerism,
seeking healthier choices for their families, bemoaning oil prices and worrying
about the climate crisis. Reflective of the Dickensian era, this gloom and doom
accrue to the greed of the Karl Roves and Dick Cheneys, who believe tax cuts
and deregulation will give the GOP control of US politics for decades to come.
Those who value living beings over dead products embrace Dr. King's dream. They
are working for equal protection and equal opportunity through a green economy.
Billions of dollars are pouring into solar, wind, recycling, filtration
systems, alternatives to fossil fuel, organic agriculture and other clean
industries. These are just a few examples of current technologies driving the
green economy. Embracing this new environment friendly approach will generate
thousands of business opportunities and millions of new jobs. We must guarantee
equal opportunity and insist that the coming "green wave" is truly a
tide that lifts all boats.
This new "green" vision must have a zero tolerance for discrimination
and racism. Low-income communities which were locked out of the pollution-based
economy must be locked into the clean green economy. The motto for these
communities and especially for our children must be "green jobs, not
jails." Groups such as -- US Green Building Council, Rainforest Action
Network, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, Indigenous Environmental
Network, National Indian Justice Center, Food First, Miami Workers Center, and
Green Worker Cooperatives -- are visionaries out front, pushing the green
change the US must make in order to develop a sustainable living eco-economy,
if our grandchildren are to have any hope for the future. Charles Dickens tales
showed the world how an uncaring and unfeeling society can implode. The choice
is to follow Van Jones' lead or continue to follow Bush's disastrous and greedy
leadership. We must "GO GREEN."
News You Use
By John Burl Smith
Thousands of young people from around the world converged on Atlanta, Georgia
last week (4/17-19/08) to compete in the "Superbowl" of robotics.
FIRST Robotics Championship was founded in 1989 by Dean Kamen. "Our
mission is to inspire young people to be science and technology leaders. Our
mentor-based programs build science, engineering and technology skills. They
inspire innovation, and build self-confidence, communication and
leadership." Based in Manchester, NH, the not-for-profit public charity
designs innovative programs that motivate young people to pursue education and
career opportunities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
FIRST envisions a world where
science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming
science and technology heroes. The 2008 FIRST Championship offered three
separate robotics competitions for the ultimate mind challenge. Held at the
Georgia Dome, the event included the FIRST Robotics Competition Championship,
the FIRST Tech Challenge World Championship, and the FIRST LEGO League World
Festival. The event encompassed 6 playing fields, where 10,410 students from 25
countries, 344 teams from 8,600 high schools, faced off with 525 robots, for
the top spot in the three championships.
For this reporter which team won took a backseat to watching this amazing
gathering of young humanity. It was truly awe inspiring, getting caught up in
their enthusiasm, energy, commitment and esprit de corps. Originally thinking
robotics was basically a "white boy" thing, I was never so wrong
about anything! The multi-racial make-up of most teams was a real surprise;
moreover, it was not a "guy" thing either. Ladies were in the house
big time.
There were the X-cats, Team 191 from Joseph C. Wilson Magnet High School,
Rochester, NY, a former champion. Then, there was the 322, Fire (Flint Inspires
Real Engineers) Team, which represented 4 Academy, Flint Central, Northwestern,
Northern and Whittier Classic. A standout team for me was the Knights from
Saginaw, Michigan, which boasted three beautiful sisters headed to medical
school. They were involved in robotics for the experience and opportunity it
afforded them.
However, my sentimental favorites were the teams from South Africa sponsored by
Sunil Geness of the SAP corporation. He brought 15 teams including a 9-10 year
old squad. Sunil said, "These are the children of apartheid. They have
suffered very much. We must do all we can to show them that opportunities are
open to them now."
Interviewing black participants made me think about the black kid just two
blocks away in South Atlanta, who had no idea this event was taking place, let
alone the access to an opportunity to compete. They were not here because they
were shut out, but because nobody cared. Next year, blacks shouldn't be caught
on the outside totally unaware of this opportunity on the inside. Georgia Tech
offered $9.8 million in scholarships to participants. For information on
forming and/or sponsoring robotics teams, go to www.usfirst.org/who/content.aspx?id.
DISHing It Up Hot!
On Keys!
By Dot
In the May issue of Blender
magazine, Grammy-winner Alicia Keys revealed her take on the role of gangsta
rap and the East-West feud that claimed the lives of Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac
Shakur. According to Keys, "the man" created gangsta rap to convince
blacks to kill each other, a sort of self-inflicted genocide. And, the rivalry
between black brothers was fueled by the media and government to prevent the
emergence of another great black leader.
Keys believes that had Black Panther leader Huey Newton had the resources black
musicians enjoy today, black power would be global. She has vowed to do her
part by producing a more conscious product. In some quarters, her declaration
was greeted as good news, even though mainstream media relegated her comments
to the trash heap of conspiracy theories. However, for those who think there is
not a grain of truth in Keys take on the situation, look at who benefits from
gangsta rap and who suffers as it belittles and degrades black society.
The few black artists that are supposedly getting rich on the genre have only
“bling" to show for their effort. The man - the real beneficiary - the
small group of white men that control the music industry - makes mad cheddar,
as my grandson would say, off our collective misery. And, regardless of where
you stand on Keys' comments, the genre has rained down a ton of pain for blacks
across this country.
While the man gets wealthy, we get that abomination known as "the
sag," which I contribute to gangsta rap. And, the good Lord knows our
young men making that fashion statement scream stuck on stupid. Likewise for
the rest of that violent, sexist gangsta crap that does not reflect what the
vast majority of black folks are all about.
I wish Keys the best in delivering a bit of consciousness in her music; it is
sorely needed. Perhaps, a positive message in her music that exudes black pride
will make our young men feel they no longer need to show the world their boxers
and backside.
Disgruntled wants to know: The United
States today, with all its excesses, tremendous wealth amidst mounting poverty,
a widening gap between the haves and the have-nots, an ever increasing lack of
concern for children, the school to prison industrial complex, which consumes
children on one side while war kills them on the other, is not unlike the
Victorian era. Led by George W. Bush, whose mind-set breeds misery, poverty and
war, and without a Charles Dickens to prick its conscience and reflect its
hypocrisy, what will pull the US back from the brink?
Disgruntled
says: On Tuesday, April 22, the world celebrated Earth Day, which began during
the administration of President John F. Kennedy during the 1960's. The idea of
the day has certainly evolved over the intervening years. Some people see it as
too commercial, sort of like Christmas in America. Others believe not nearly
enough is being done to save the planet. Then, there are those in the middle,
the vast majority that seem oblivious. Concerned about the cost of food and
fuel, these people are too absorbed in the rising cost of everyday survival to
concern themselves with the perils facing our planet. That is unfortunate,
since the survival of the humans depends on maintaining a livable environment
on this sphere. We should all be going green and doing things to make this
planet our Garden of Eden.
Disgruntled
feels: Genocidal! During the final days of apartheid, only the USA and
Israel supported the racist regime of South Africa; the rest of the world
condemned its policies and demanded freedom and justice of the black majority
population. Today, Israel holds the Palestinians in the same kind of contempt
and subjects them to a similar fate as black South Africans endured under
apartheid. Unlike the international outcry against apartheid, the world seems
to have abandoned Palestinians to the sorry state of Native Americans as the
genocidal policies of Israel drive them to the brink of extinction.
Mailbox: E-Mails, Faxes and
Phone Calls
Email www.nytimes.com...3
Detectives Acquitted in Bell Shooting...By Michael Wilson...Three detectives
were found not guilty Friday morning on all charges in the shooting death of
Sean Bell, who died in a hail of 50 police bullets outside a club in Jamaica,
Queens. Justice Arthur J. Cooperman, who delivered the verdict, said many of
the prosecution's witnesses, including Mr. Bell's friends and the two wounded
victims, were simply not believable. "At times, the testimony of those
witnesses just didn't make sense," he said. His verdict prompted several
supporters of Mr. Bell to storm out of the courtroom, and screams could be
heard in the hallway moments later. The three detectives-- Gescard F. Isnora,
Michael Oliver and Marc Cooper-- were escorted out of a side doorway. Outside,
a crowd gathered behind police barricades, occasionally shouting, amid a
veritable sea of police officers.
Email www.legitgov.org...Disapproval of Bush
breaks record...Bush has set a record he'd presumably prefer to avoid: the
highest disapproval rating of any president in the 70-year history of the
Gallup Poll. In a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll taken Friday through Sunday, 28% of
Americans approve of the job Bush is doing; 69% disapprove.
Email www.consortiumnews.com ...US News
Media's Latest Disgrace...By Robert Parry...After prying loose 8,000 pages of
Pentagon documents, the New York Times has proven what should have been obvious
years ago: the Bush administration manipulated public opinion on the Iraq War,
in part, by funneling propaganda through former senior military officers who
served as expert analysts on TV news shows. In 2002-03, these military analysts
were ubiquitous on TV justifying the Iraq invasion, and most have remained
supportive of the war in the five years since. The Times investigation showed
that the analysts were being briefed by the Pentagon on what to say and had
undisclosed conflicts of interest via military contracts.
Email www.citylimits.org ...Would 125th St.
Rezoning Mean a Dream Deferred? ...It's almost decision time for City
Planning's Harlem vision, which is causing high anxiety. By Kate Pastor...By
the end of this month, City Council will decide whether to approve a rezoning
of Harlem's main commercial thoroughfare that many consider not just another
contentious land use matter, but a judgment that could forever alter the
historic home of the African diaspora. Because Harlem is widely regarded as the
irreplaceable wellspring of black American culture, there is a painful sense
among people who oppose a rezoning of the 125th Street corridor - which
includes 124th and 126th Streets between Broadway and Second Avenue - that the
changes touted by the Department of City Planning as a way to make it a more
"vibrant commercial corridor" actually represent a threat not only to
longtime residents, but also to a touchstone for people of African descent the
world over.
Email http://abclocal.go.com -- A student
faces disciplinary action after two people threw green whipped cream pies at
New York Times columnist and author Thomas L. Friedman as he began an Earth Day
speech at Brown University. A video of the Tuesday incident posted on
YouTube.com shows Friedman telling the audience, "It's great to be back
here at Brown," shortly before Margaree Little, a senior English
literature major, and an unidentified man storm the stage. Friedman managed to
avoid most of the cream, although his shirt and the back of his head were
splattered and he appears to slip on cream on the stage. He left the stage to
clean himself off before resuming his speech. He said Friday he was not
pressing charges.
Email www.washingtonpost.com...Israelis
Claim Secret Agreement With U.S. Americans Insist No Deal Made on Settlement
Growth...By Glenn Kessler...As peace negotiations have stepped up in recent
months, so has the pace of settlement construction, infuriating Palestinian
officials, and Washington has taken no punitive action against Israel for its
settlement efforts. Israeli officials say they have clear guidance from Bush
administration officials to continue building settlements, as long as it meets
carefully negotiated criteria, even though those understandings appear to
contradict U.S. policy.