Dot's Information Service Hotline

Volume 2 Issue 27 …Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race…July 16, 1999

Kudos to Luttrell Sprewell for his performance under tremendous pressure. On and off the basketball court, Sprewell has shown himself to be an intelligent man, who is proud to be black. Spree's show of pride is helping to spawn a natural hair comeback. Sporting braids throughout the rebirth of his highly publicized career, Sprewell's stylish dos are inspiring others to explore natural hair art. Spree earns The DISH Kudo of the Week for spearheading this cultural revolution.

Spree's hairstyle makes him a positive hair role model for the black child; it provides a level of self-pride too often missing among the images of black men projected in mainstream media. To be truly free, self-pride is an important ingredient. Kudos to Spree for injecting some of this crucial element. A force to be reckoned with on the court, he provides an alternative to being bald, dying, frying or weaving. Spree is giving us a stellar performance on the artistic possibilities of natural African hair. Well-done Spree! Kudos & Blahs

Disgruntled wants to know: If Congress allows banks, insurance and brokerage firms to mingle, will that expose the economy to irrational exuberance?

Disgruntled feels: the vibes you send.

Disgruntled says: It is blatant hypocrisy for the INS to harass day laborers in Cobb County, while ignoring the illegal workers in other Georgia industries. Disgruntled

President Clinton's cross-country trek to highlight persistent pockets of poverty shows his need for a legacy greater than his tawdry tryst with Monica Lewinsky. Though aimed at eradicating poverty, Clinton's proposed measure is more of the same old remedies, which focus on business tax credits and incentives. If adopted, Clinton's proposals will expand the federal bureaucracy and put more in the hands of the "connected" haves than in the pockets of "disconnected" have-nots he professes to aid.

Ironically, while the president talked about creating jobs and opportunities for disadvantaged Americans, legal and illegal aliens spill across the boarder taking jobs the media claim Americans do not want or are unqualified to fill. Most illegal workers expand the pool of cheap unskilled labor, driving down wages and fueling economic expansion. Businesses benefit from cheap labor, especially in Georgia's agriculture, carpet and poultry industries. To aid industrial exploitation, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) ignores or relaxes immigration law enforcement. At the same time, it stringently enforces its laws to appease residents of an upscale Cobb County neighborhood. Their complaints of loitering and littering by day laborers congregating nearby led the INS to round-up illegal aliens. Were Clinton to address this double standard in INS enforcement and illegal workers in Georgia, he would probably ignore INS and give a tax credit to the entrepreneur who erected a tent to shelter day laborers in the event of rain. Offering coffee and donuts, he plans to charge day laborers $3.00 per day for tent rent and refreshments. This is the American way. Tax credits and incentives for him will not eradicate poverty or salvage Clinton's legacy, which was DOA when he dropped the dialogue on race, the only issue that can savage his presidency. Phantom Scribblers

by John Burl Smith

A myth disproven (AJC 6-25-99) describes how, even after long held beliefs are proven false, they still govern actions. Specifically, white Georgians believe "metro Atlanta sucks up an unfair portion of state tax dollars, including transportation money." Responding to this belief, Georgia's legislators added a provision to prevent "the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA) from funneling still more money to Atlanta." Legislators demanded a formula to allocate transportation money among the state's 11 congressional districts. Passed over Gov. Roy Barnes' objection, legislators insisted the measure necessary to insure equality and fairness.

To everyone's surprise, the formula gives Atlanta $220 million more than it presently receives. The formula revealed "other regions of the state, particularly rural areas, have often gotten more transportation money than their population or contributions to the state gasoline tax would justify." Obviously, Atlanta has been robbed of revenues it rightfully deserved.

Faster than Union troops torching Atlanta, the Governor and legislators are backing away from needed equality and fairness. Demanding the formula's rescission, Barnes thinks giving Atlanta its fair share of tax revenue would discriminate against rural counties accustomed to getting extra money. Atlanta's legislators point to "the years rural areas got more money than they deserved, depriving Atlanta of its rightful share of taxes." Supporting Barnes and his Cobb cronies, the AJC labeled black legislators unreasonable for objecting to such blatant racism.

Myths maintain racism. Institutionalized racism systematically deprives blacks of their rights and give whites unfair advantages. Rather than pursuing justice and equality, Barnes continues to govern as though the myth is real. (See Essays by John B. Smith for more on sprawl, transportation and institutionalized racism)

The Dark Knight-Batman/White Ninja/Zorro played with his loyal sidekick. Meanwhile, the television played without an audience. Asked who watched it, the Dark One replied, "The invisible man is watching." More Comments from the Batcave.

Uneven Playing Fields!

The astonishing careers of two gifted individuals personify individual effort. Appreciating their performances magnifies their challenge. Fields of competition determine not only requisite conditions, but experience required. Uneven playing fields exemplify Willie Howard Mays, Jr. and Henry "Hank" Aaron's careers.

Though competing surfaces were similar for all players, the development opportunities and treatment accorded white and black players were decidedly different. Advantages given whites learning to play the game compared to blacks tilted the playing field. Economic incentives and national recognition heaped on less-talented white players were denied Hank and Willie.

Unlike Jackie Robinson, who gained relative acceptance playing at UCLA, Hank and Willie emerged from poor southern backgrounds. Slavery and segregation permitted only a survival mentality. Sports did not feed a family. Consequently, playing ball came after all else was done. Starting out in pastures or on dirt roads, without real baseballs, bats or gloves, "Hammering Hank" and the "Say Hey Kid" mastered the skills.

Slavery and segregation systematically taught blacks they were inferior. Hank and Willie overcame fears about opposing white men, seared into their subconscious by lynchings and cross burnings. Such symbols terrorized blacks and subjected Hank and Willie to unspoken and unwritten rules favoring white men.

Surpassing those advantage favored, these titans stepped onto an uneven playing field determined to be the best. Their amazing performances lifted them far above Babe Ruth, Micky Mantle and Joe DiMaggio, players who performed free of psychological baggage carried by Hank and Willie.

Reflecting a tremendous personal pride, Hank and Willie showed they were not just as good, but the best on any surface! Taking the field under adverse conditions, they reduced the gradient for those following.

Excerpts from a sharecropping contract. "November 1, 1872 agreement between William Easley of 1^st part and Frank Richardson of second part. Whereas William Easley has leant Frank Richardson a portion of his farm situated in Boone County, MO on the following condition that Frank Richardson is to tend in corn thirty-five acres more or less and Frank Richardson is to furnish one hand a boy by the name of Ben who is to work and make a full hand on the farm. Frank Richardson is to tend his crop in the best condition that is to say the ground is to be cultivated in due time; William Easley of the 1^st part is to furnish a team and feed for the same and give Frank Richardson one half of the corn raised after it is put in pens giving Easley choice of pens..Easley is to have ½ of all that is raised in the garden, half of the chickens and other poultry raised. Frank Richardson binds himself to take good care of the stock furnished by Easley. Richardson is to clean out a Branch running diagonal across the cornfield, to clean all the fence corners on said farm or part of the farm that is tended by Richardson, haul to and cut all the firewood for Easley wherever he may want the wood hauled, Richardson is to (sprant?) all of ground tended by him in corn and agrees to commence the farm on the 1^st day of November 1872 and stay until November 1^st 1873. Richardson is to make rails for Easley at one dollar per 100 and do outside work at 75 cents per day...." Veasley@aol.com Bits of Black History

by Chezon

If you still have it, read the manual to your cell phone. It should contain a warning about the use of the cell phone at gas stations. In case you do not know, an incident occurred in which a driver suffered burns and his car severely damaged when gasoline fumes ignited an explosion while he was talking on his mobile phone standing near the attendant who was pumping the gas. All the electronic devices in gas stations are protected with explosive containment devices; cell phones are not.

READ YOUR HANDBOOK! Mobile phone makers, Motorola, Ericsson and Nokia, all print cautions in their user handbooks warning against the use of mobile phones in "gas stations, fuel storage sites, and chemical factories." Exxon has begun placing "warning stickers" at its gasoline stations. The threat mobile phones poses to gas stations and their users is primarily the result of their ability to produce sparks that can be generated by the high-powered battery inside the phone. poeticallychezon@yahoo.com Hoodnotes

by Dot Smith

Compassionate conservatism is an oxymoron; it's the new buzz phrase that identifies the Neo-Republican Party philosophy, ala presidential front-runner George Bush, Jr.

The Republican Party's image, which can be characterized as insensitive and unresponsive to the needs of the poor and minorities, is well-deserved. Prognostications are its negative image spells disaster in future elections. Coined to cover-up this character flaw, compassionate conservatism says clearly the Party needs the votes of blacks, women, Hispanics and other minorities to form the kind of coalitions that can win elections.

What does compassionate conservatism mean? Who knows? When we do find out, compassionate conservatism may prove less palatable than its defunct predecessor, the Contract with America, ala former speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich. As a phrase to describe a political philosophy, compassionate conservatism may resonant well with talking heads and image-makers, but without action, it is a tough sell in the skeptical American heartland.

Those of us possessing average intelligence understand the meaning of compassionate. Webster defines it as sympathetic; to be compassionate is to show mercy. Texas governor Bush's unwavering support of capital punishment and his application of it, rules out the adjective in describing his actions. Like his daddy's "read my lips, no new taxes," the governor's defining philosophy is suspect. Read his lips on compassionate conservatism, but remember Karla Faye Tucker's face as she spoke of rehabilitation and redemption. No mercy is a hallmark of Bush's brief telecast political career. Mercy's absence in his actions makes his compassionate conservatism a morally bankrupt philosophy. If the media ever pin him down and ask some tough questions, all will know his words are empty. (Chastising Karla Faye, The DISH Vol. 1 No 2) DISHing It Up Hot!

by Yohannes Sharriff Smith

Running on empty in the dirty south. Busses move

As maggots through the inner city rush hour hustle.

Under pressure, quick! Click! Anger! I am bullet

Pulling out the chamber. Bulls Eye! (Uuufff!)

I hurt something awful like broken backs.

Ghetto middle passage neo-slave lashes scare my eyes.

My mis-educated mind struggles to reconcile

The double-think between the American dream

And the poverty I see, live, eat, shit, and breathe.

Checking the mirror for the police overseers

Pull you over for no reason and beat cha.

No need to believe the imagery; I bleed my reality.

As I ride, run home to the hungry streets of Memphis.

Welcome to da Ghetto...Welcome to Riverside...

My flesh is of this suffering,

Dripping from the gutters as heavenly nectar.

Soul stirring pain rains over the rotting wood leaning

From too many years of not enough love.

Off white like awfully unlawfully white

Mississippi cotton fields; we bleed into the soil.

And when the wind is quiet,

You can hear flowers sing our song. REVOLUTION!

In the silence after, the strobing overseer illumination

Produces an eerie hypnotic effect.

Bright flashes in my eyes.

Blink...The bright street life reflecting mysteries...

My stories... missed stories... off handcuffs.

In the distance the faint sound of trumpets.

The Blues of Beale still play,

But to survive it needs a white face.

The Blues still play in the songs of babies,

Surviving on refinery smoke.

Mike almost died behind bars from diabetes.

He was denied medical treatment, but he was lucky.

Two weeks after release, he was left for dead

With a bullet in his head. "Isn't it ironic?

Don't you think?"...There's something wrong

With the same face that shined

And played happy spring games

Now fades in a winter too early. A bitter frost.

Lines...step on a crack...Nursery rhymes...

Step on a crack lines dig well worn grooves

Into hard Black faces. Welcome home...

Welcome to Da Ghetto...Welcome to Riverside... More Intuit's Vibe

Yohannes Sharriff Smith hosts Spoken Word at Soul Vegetarian, as Righteous Vibes presents another Saturday night live with resident DJ Jamal Ahmad (WCLK). On Saturday July 24^th, join Yohannes for food for the body and soul. Don't miss this opportunity to experience the vibe at Soul Vegetarian, 879 Ralph Abernathy. Doors open at 9PM. Make your Saturday night out a cut above the routine; make it special at Soul Vegetarian in the vibe with Yohannes.

If you have not voted in the Times poll for person of the century, please click on this link and cast your ballot. Http://cgi.pathfinder.com/time/time100/poc/century.html. At one point in the polling, Adolf Hitler held the frontrunner's position ahead of Einstein, Mother Teresa, King and Kennedy for the distinction of being the most important person of this century.

For a white girl, Hillary Rodham Clinton really knows how to dance. Moving just close enough to relax, yet far enough away to avoid innuendoes. You go girl! Fastmoves@worldnet.att.net

Thank you for the wholesome meals The DISH provides. At first, I did not want to be exposed to what the newsletter said about race and people like me. Now, I look forward to its delicious meals, which I share with friends and family. Email: gloriajhr@hotmail.com

Mailbox Commentary

 Back   ||  ICIM Home   ||  THINC  ||  The DISH || 1999 Issues