Volume 4 Issue 13…Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race… April 6, 2001

Note: The DISH is based on themes from T.H.I.N.C. (Teaching Humanity In New Consciousness): The Chrysalis of Evolution. According to the President's Initiative on Race, "The issues that this book brings to the forefront are important in our efforts to achieve the goals set forth by the President for the Initiative. This work will serve as a solid resource for us as we begin to examine these critical issues." For your copy of T.H.I.N.C., The DISH or to submit comments, contact ICIM, Inc. at (404) 244-6023. The DISH © 2001

A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE

by Crystal Cartier

Ponder... ponder ... world of wonder

Things are rarely what they seem.

But, if... we learn to handle life

It doesn't have to be so mean.

Life is a never-ending story of struggle and intrigue

Death is a metamorphosis

Our souls emerge on gossamer "wings"

Disappointment is always certain

There's no such thing as a "Final Curtain"

History goes 'round and round

It winds uphill, around and down

Gravity enslaves us all

Before we walk, we fall and crawl

Before we run, we need confidence

Before we "fly," we need commonsense

Before we love, we have to share

To share, we have to learn to care

We have to suffer to appreciate "joy"

We have to cry... build and destroy

We have to experience shame and pain

You cannot grow and remain the same

Change is the fuel that makes us grow

We reap the fruits of what we sow

We must tolerate the loads we bear

Few believe that life is "fair"

Your Perspective determines what you see

Glass half full.. Glass half empty

We learn to love... We learn to hate

Sit on the "fence" and open "gates"

We manipulate... We learn to pry

We live to learn... We're born to die

I want to live… not merely survive

Nowhere to run... Nowhere to hide

Make the changes you can make

If not, learn to tolerate your fate

How you choose to live can give you satisfaction

Enjoy today without over reaction

Survival is life's prime directive

But, life is a matter of... perspective

About Me: I'm the songwriter that sued Michael Jackson for copyright infringement on the song "Dangerous." For more, see www.cdbaby.com/ccartier. I learned the hard way that copyright laws mean nothing unless you are rich and powerful. I perform my work locally in Denver sometimes. Last year, I performed in Baltimore at the Street Folks Poetry Slam where I received the Most Prolific Writer for 2000 Award.

April is poetry month, and spoken word is America's hottest art/entertainment venue. Who would have ever thought poetry, which is the root of spoken word, would become so popular? Its popularity can be seen in the trend in spoken word venues across the country, where audiences pay to perform. Internationally, people are engaging in a conscious dialogue on the condition of humanity. As part of this Dialogue Among Civilizations through Poetry, Yohannes Sharriff Smith will host a reading on Wednesday, April 18^th. Poets performing that night will have the opportunity to include their works in an international anthology. Kick off poetry month in style, add your voice to the dialogue, call Yohannes at 404-896-4260 or email him at icim@bellsouth.net to sign up now. For more information on this international effort, check out www.dialoguepoetry.org.

by Tim Wise

Two more children are dead; thirteen are injured; and another "nice" community is scratching its blonde scalp, utterly perplexed as to how a school shooting like the one in Santee, California could happen. After all, as the Mayor of the town said on CNN: "We're a solid town, a good town, with good kids, a good church-going town...an All-American town."

White people live in a state of self-delusion. We think danger is black, brown and poor, and if we can just move far enough away from "those people" in the cities, and find an "all-American town," we'll be safe, because "things like this just don't happen here." Well, "here" is about the only place these kinds of things do happen. Oh sure, there's violence in urban schools. But mass murder; wholesale slaughter; take-a-gun-and-see-how-many-you can-kill kinda craziness seems unique to the "safe" places: white suburbs and rural communities.

And yet the FBI insists there is no "profile" of a school shooter. Come again? White boy after white boy after white boy use classmates for target practice, and yet there is no profile? Imagine if all these killers had been black: would we hesitate to put a racial face on the perpetrators? Doubtful.

Indeed, if any black child--especially in the white suburbs of Littleton, or Santee--had openly discussed murdering fellow students, as happened at Columbine and Santana High, you can bet somebody would have turned them in and the cops would have beat a path to their door. But when whites discuss murderous intentions, our assumptions of what danger looks like lead us to ignore them. How long will it take for us to realize that this false sense of security--fed by media representations of crime and violence that portray both as the province of those who are anything but white like us--is getting people killed?

Better listen up white folks: our children are no better than anyone else, and sometimes they're worse. For example, according to the Centers for Disease Control, and National Institutes on Drug Abuse, it is our children who are most likely to use drugs. Whites in high school are seven times more likely than blacks to have used cocaine; eight times more likely to have smoked crack; and there are more white high schoolers who have used crystal methamphetamine than black students who smoke cigarettes.

Additionally, white youth are 34% more likely to sell drugs than their black counterparts, twice as likely to binge drink, and nearly twice as likely to drive drunk. And white males are twice as likely as black males to bring a weapon to school.

A few years ago, U.S. News ran a story entitled: "A Shocking look at blacks and crime." Yet no news outlet discusses the "shocking" whiteness of these shoot-em-ups. Indeed, whenever commentators discuss similarities in these crimes, they mention that the shooters were boys who got picked on, but never do they seem to notice a certain melanin deficiency. Color-blind, I guess.

I'd like to think that after these shootings folks might abandon racial stereotypes of deviance and dysfunction. But I know better, because the ones hitting snooze on this particular alarm are my own people--and I know their blindness like the back of my hand.

About Me: Tim is on the Advisory Board of the Race Relations Institute at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, and he is a full-time anti-racism activist, lecturer and writer. Contact Tim Wise at tjwise@mindspring.com

DISHing It Up Hot!

by Dot

When a topic is entertained in academia, the lay community should pay close attention, because conclusions about it can define public policy. Alarm bells should go off any time members of academia buy ad space in campus newspapers to push their views. Recently, reparations for American slave descendants garnered this level of academic attention.

Normally, academicians with something to say that can be defended discuss it in the classroom, put it in books and hold seminars and invite critical review. Buying newspaper ads is more than unusual; it is bizarre.

Buying newspaper ads to push an elitist view is also the act of hypocritical cowardice. Such cowards lie with a straight face every time they call America a great democracy. In reality, they relish the fact that it is a republic established on white supremacy. Of course, one would expect these hypocrites to oppose reparations for slavery and support institutionalized racism.

by John Burl Smith

Run Children Run: April is poetry month and The DISH gives mad props to the Atlanta Vibe for its entrepreneurial spirit and love of spoken word. After publishing T.H.I.N.C. (Teaching Humanity In New Consciousness): The Chrysalis of Evolution in 1997, Yohannes found performance opportunities for young black artists in Atlanta very limited. Beginning in spots like The Pattie Hut, Planet Earth, Level 2, Mekka, and Shark Bar, "Open Mic" audiences were limited to performers and students. Moreover, these venues were dependent on lounge and bar owners, who exploited poets by making them pay to perform.

Looking to develop an economic base for their art, a group of young visionaries believed spoken word was a genre that could be expanded and elevated to increase performance opportunities. Essentially, they saw using spoken word as an educational tool to bring performing arts to the community and build an audience for their craft. Embracing Yohannes's self-publishing approach, poets realized the necessity of self-promotion. By the time J B published "Broken Spoken Words" in early 1998, Vibe performers were fusing hip-hop with stage production techniques and producing shows featuring artists performing their work.

In the spring of 1999, We One wrote, directed and played a leading role in the Vibe's first dramatic production utilizing the hip hop motif called "You're Tripping." We One's bold effort expanded performance parameter and rekindled serious consideration of the need for a community theater. The ATL Vibe's unique development has occurred without expertise or resource help from the professional arts community. The willingness of these artists to cooperate and collaborate to produce opportunities for all is the source of the Vibe's resilience.

Jon Goode's CD Vibe Sessions featuring local spoken word artists released in July 2000 was a first. His groundbreaking work gave life to an expiring poetry scene. However, the Atlanta Black Arts Festival relegated local artists to bar venues and outdoor stages preferring to headline poets from out of town. Adding insult to injury, Yin Yang's closing in September reinforced the impression the Vibe had crashed and burned on takeoff. Convalescing, while remaining dependent on lounges and bars, which undercut the growth of spoken word audiences and performance opportunities, the Vibe continued to struggle.

Like a Phoenix up from its ashes, 2001 has changed the orphaning of spoken word with the closing of venues in bars. The Ausar Auset Temple in the West End 840 Ralph David Abernathy Rd. is now under the ownership of AHOP (African House of Poetry). It has established itself as a community education and resource center. Yohannes and AHOP have teamed up to advance the need for a community theater for black artists in Atlanta. Now filling the void left by Yin Yang, AHOP presents ESP (Experimental Spoken-word Performances) Wednesday nights @ 8:00. Hosted by Yohannes, ESP nurtures cutting edge spoken word experimentation in Atlanta. Run Children Run poetry month 2001 finds the ATL Vibe with lots of venues and a variety of performances on tap for its growing audience. Come out and enjoy Atlanta's flame throwing up-front-in-your-face mad bombers of truth dropping explosive knowledge educating the masses. John 2001

Disgruntled wants to know: President-selected George W. Bush, Jr. promised to appoint judges to the courts that strictly interpret the Constitution. Eliminating the American Bar Association (ABA) from the judicial selection process keeps Bush on target to stacking the court with social conservatives. Will American media examine the far-reaching implications of a judicial system with Bush's perspective?

Disgruntled says: Granted, there are those among us, who call themselves African Americans, who do not want reparations. Some, like Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, will argue against reparations for slave descendants. They should receive an exemption. However, their perspective on this subject should not be the only viewpoint to receive exposure. Indeed, if America applies at home the standards for reparations used in the international arena, then every effort will be made to make her slave descendants whole.

Disgruntled feels: Like every week since Bush's inauguration, some conservative group alleged last week and mainstream media dutifully reported that a statewide count of votes showed George W. Bush, Jr. won Florida. These after-the-fact declarations ignore all the prima facie evidence, which points to a stolen election.

At the March 31, 2001 town hall meeting/congressional hearing at McNair High School in DeKalb County called by U.S. Representatives Cynthia McKinney and John Lewis, witnesses were sworn in before giving their testimony. During the town hall meeting session, several panelists spoke about Election 2000 and the upcoming redistricting challenges. Panelists included representatives from Senator Cleland and Governor Roy Barnes' offices, as well as Secretary of State Cathy Cox and other local elected officials.

There were plenty of recommendations from funding for better equipment and voter education programs to increasing the number of polling places and extending the amount of time in which citizens can vote. Someone suggested weekend voting to help working Americans. Though not highlighted at the meeting, one recommendation was to make voter registration a rite of passage for high school juniors and seniors eighteen years old or older. But, like all other recommendations, this suggestion, if implemented, offers only superficial change, as long as an elite group, such as the Electoral College, Supreme Court or a legislative body, can trump the vote.

Representing the BATT-PAC, Dot Smith testified to the need for reform that goes beyond voting equipment, chad-challenged ballots and other problems experienced during Election 2000 to the broader implications of the Supreme Court's decision in Bush v. Gore. Because the Supreme Court or a state legislature can decide who is president and by-pass votes cast by citizens in a presidential election, reform is needed. Currently, America is a republic. If this nation is to become a democracy, all votes must be counted. BATT-PAC recommended fundamental reform in the form of a constitutional amendment to repeal Article 1 Section 2 to abolish the Electoral College and give America one-person, one-vote equality under the law.

Dr. David Bositis with the Center for Political and Economic Studies was a panelist at Saturday's town hall meeting/congressional hearing. He spoke on the issue of redistricting. He was the only speaker to mention racism and the need to change the law, although he was not specific about which laws he would recommend changing, nor did he address institutionalized racism.

After the meeting, I sought to engage him on the subject to see if our studies of politics, law and economics have led to similar conclusions about institutionalized racism and the Constitution. Dr. Bositis saw me coming and turned his back. Unaccustomed to such rude behavior, the implications of his action did not initially register as impolite. In retrospect, turning one's back on another in public is a cut direct.

But, initially, the breach of etiquette did not register. Rather than see what he did as dismissive, I told myself, 'he did not see me coming.' I am myopic; maybe he is too, I thought. I surmised he just appeared to be looking my way, but did not clearly see me trying to make eye contact. You see we both wear glasses.

When I finally reached his side, the good doctor tried to engage someone else in conversation. But, that person was in the middle of a discussion with someone else. The doctor could only get their attention with another rude move. Determined to get an intellectual perspective on my doctoral thesis, I said, "Hi! My name is Dot Smith, and I would like to ask a few questions about law and racism." Turning when I spoke, he resisted the urge to be more crude and responded, "I'm here to talk about redistricting. I'm just a working stiff." End of discussion, I turned and walked away.

As I left the dais, I thought to myself, "Coward!" When you get right down to it, what Rosa Parks did took a degree of courage most of us simply do not possess. We are just 'working stiffs.' In other words, we are afraid to speak for fear of losing our jobs. To Dr. Bositis and other cowards in academia, I say blah! Blah! Blah! It is a waste of resources to educate a coward!

The Dark Knight-Batman/White Ninja/Zorro had a violent disagreement with his sidekick, Boy Wonder, his brother Ty. When the battle ended and both sides had moved to neutral corners, the Dark One/Ninja/Zorro said, "I am injured. That is all I can say."

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