So Martin Luther King Jr. Took A Bullet For This?

No seriously, I have no fucking words other than I miss BET UnCut at 2am; but not so much the preacherman who came on at 3am when it went off the air. All jokes aside, it's kinda hard for me to go in on the following video when "Rump Shaker" was once my shit at a party. Not to mention I never missed an opportunity to yell "Doody Brown," or, "Heyyyy, we want some pussy," when I was in college getting drunk and hoping that some slightly inebriated co-ed would have sex with me. I'm pretty sure you too had your share debauchery to the tunes the young people love and enjoy, no? C'mon, I know I'm not alone.

Negroes, Nike, & Niggerization: Corporate America Wins While Black People Lose

"Yeah, Money... it's definitely the shoes!"

 Maybe it was the time I went back to school shopping with my dad when I was 14yrs old that I learned the commercialism as far as tennis shoes would have no importance in my life. Yeah, that was the time at Kohl's that I debated with my father just how important it was for me to own the Ralph Sampson signature pair of Pumas as opposed to the no-named pair of Brooks he wanted to buy me at the time. Frustrated by my antics and show of selfishness, my father made me leave the store and sit in the car. My younger brothers got Nike while I got, well, not even the pair of Brooks.

I think it was at that point that I learned something valuable: shut up while in stores shopping with dad. Which eventually lead to me not giving a damn about purchasing the hottest tennis shoe of the month ever; and to this day, I am the same way. So when I saw the following video of black folks acting the damn fool at a Houston mall on Christmas Eve when the new Air Jordans were released, I was thankful that my father did what he did while I was at the tender age of fourteen:

If You Smile When You Say the Word "Nigger"... You Might be Racist

My man PunkJohnnyCash of Gonzo Times shared the following video with me a couple of days ago. Since then, I've watched it at least ten times, and I gotta admit, I'm still a bit confused about it.

Sorry, but when Papa Smurf dressed in a Harley Davidson t-shirt breaks it down and mentions, "my daddy always said nigger," I seriously gotta question the true intent of the message. No old-ass white guy from the south is gonna convince me that the word is not exclusively used to reference to black people.

The real irony here, is that this message was brought to you by the good Christian folks of doveworld.org. You know, the same people who on September 11th, 2010, will be sponsoring a "Burn A Koran Day," at their church in Gainesville, FL? Yeah I know, there's no double standard there at all; Jesus never said "Love thy neighbor's Qu'ran as you love your bible thyself," right?

I dunno, but maybe I'm buggin'; seeing white folks smile as they say the word was a bit uncomfortable. Well, maybe not uncomfortable, but rather telling that the "niggerization" in America has yet to be passe.

"The fundamental irony of American history is that we follow the better angels of our nature when we honestly and compassionately confront the devilish realities we would like to ignore or deny. The founding of this most American of periodicals was motivated, in part, by a courageous resistance against the American institution of white- supremacist slavery. We must never forget that when this grand intellectual forum was established, the precious U.S. Constitution was, in practice, a pro-slavery document. To put it clearly yet crudely, the deep democratization of America was pitted against the ugly niggerization in America.

Democratization is the best of the American idea—in principle and practice. The sublime notion that each and every ordinary person has a dignity that warrants his or her voice being heard in shaping the destiny of society remains a revolutionary force in the 21st century—in the face of the power of autocratic empires, plutocratic states, and xenophobic communities. Niggerization is neither simply the dishonoring and devaluing of black people nor solely the economic exploitation and political disenfranchisement of them. It is also the wholesale attempt to impede democratization—to turn potential citizens into intimidated, fearful, and helpless subjects.

Since the ugly events of 9/11, we have witnessed the attempt of the Bush administration—with elites in support and populists complacent—to promote the niggerization of the American people. Like the myopic white greed, fear, and hatred that fueled the niggerization of black people, right-wing greed, fear, and hatred have made all of us feel intimidated, fearful, and helpless in the face of the terrorist attacks. And, as in the 19th century, we’ve almost lost our democracy.

The future of the American idea—both then and now, here and abroad—depends on the vision, courage, and determination of decent and compassionate people to engage in Socratic questioning of the powers that be, to take the risk of prophetic witness, and to preserve a hope for democratization. Our nation and world now have the blues, so we must learn from our blues people—from the grand examples of Frederick Douglass, Martin Luther King Jr., Fannie Lou Hamer, Myles Horton, and Muriel Rukeyser. The American practice of niggerization must die for the American idea of democratization to live—yet again." - Dr. Cornel West (source)

Which brings me to the Socratic question(s):

1) Why is it that "certain people" always reference black comedians, rappers, or black people period, and not the guy at the Klan rally when trying to make a point on the use of the word?

2) How come nobody ever says: "I think if the Klansman can say the word 'nigger' while speaking publicly at one of their rallies on Main St., then I should be able to use the word without fear of retribution or ridicule?" Wasn't the "standard" set by White Supremacists?

3) Can black people be "racist" when the longtime fostered cultural hegemony continues to leaves them collectively powerless relative to the non-minority group?

4) Does being a "nigger" require one to be, "looking like a fool wit yo' pants on the ground.."?

Talk to me people...

Racism is Finally Over, But...

Black people, listen, I got an idea. How about we all have a meeting, preferably in February when it's the only time of the year that we're prideful, to discuss just how "we" use the word nigger. Yeah I know that subject comes up every week, and yes I know unlike me, some of you are sick of it.

But I think it's a conversation that should be had; because quite frankly, if it's up to us to end racism, shouldn't we at least take the first step in removing the word from our vocabulary? I mean, us saying it has to be the obvious reason that "silent nigger" exists. See, that's what we have to talk about, folks.

You see, there's verbal nigger, and then there's silent nigger. Most of you are concerned about verbal nigger, or the verbalization of the word. Then there's silent nigger which is the something simple like, I dunno, getting pulled over by the cops for driving 5 miles below the speed limit being in the "wrong place".

Silent nigger is the inherent systematic racism that plagues black folks and other people of color. Silent nigger has prisons across the country chock full of black folks. Silent nigger is the reason some of you pay higher interest rates on your mortgages and loans than do white folks with lower credit scores.

Silent nigger was the trigger for housing bubble...

Silent nigger is the very reason there was need for the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1968. A landmark piece of legislature championing the cause of equality, and the protection of the rights of minorities.

So you see, while some of youse people are concerned about black folks employing verbal nigger, silent nigger has, is, and continues to kick us in the proverbial black ass.

Dr. Laura Shlessinger Needs to Embrace Her Inner Cracker

A few weeks ago, in commenting on the late George Steinbrenner on his show, Rush Limbaugh said: "That Cracker made a lot of African-Americans millionaires." For me, I thought his use of the word Cracker was a sure sign that we've come full circle and yes we were indeed finally coming to terms with, and fully embracing our post-racialness. I suddenly felt the need to question the use of the word Cracker. I mean Rush said it, so it has to be culturally acceptable, right?

I mean, now that it was out there, and coming from the mouth of a white man often accused of being racist by black folks, surely it would be OK, for black folks to start throwing it around freely without fear of repercussion. Now all of a sudden, black folks would be confronted with the dilemma of whether to drop the "er" at the end of the word, and replace it with an "a" was my thought. Gotta take the sting out of the word; nobody else can do that better than black folks; we're post-racial, right?

But then in steps Dr. Laura Schlessinger like gravity to pull my hopeful-but-deluded-nigger-ass back down to earth. Surely you know the story by now. Black caller married to a white man calls the white and ultra conservative version of Dr. Phil with a vagina, seeking advice on a racial issue. A call which became a train-wreck with the good doctor using the word nigger faster than the speed of a locomotive in six minutes.

So tell us how you felt about that RiPPa!

I'll be honest and not NAACP you, her using the word didn't offend me one bit. Actually, after I first heard the audio I thought... eh, it could have been worse - she could have called Jade (the lady who called in) a nigger, but she didn't. She used it in a specific context so as to make a point. Not a smart move, but I understood what she was saying. However, what totally fucked up my world was when she used the term "Black Think" as she sermonized the caller.

BREAKING: Barack Obama was an extra in the 'Whoomp There It Is' video?

OK, look, check it, we got some serious shit to talk about today, folks. Yeah, forget the oil spill, forget the two wars we're involved, forget the economy, unemployment and all that other shit that's just not as important as what the hell we gotta talk about today. And you know what? I have to tip my hat to non other than one of my fellow Tennessee Tea Party people for pointing this out. Rumor has it, that Barack Obama was an extra in the 'Whoomp There It Is' music video.

OK, look, I know it sounds crazy, but dammit I need Barack Obama to step up and tell the truth about this. He needs to come out and repudiate, denounce, regurgitate, or whatever that shit he does is called like he did with Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Damn right he does! He does because I'm a bit bothered by the idea that some guy from the music video from one of the songs I can't stand is occupying the White House. Now as a Hip Hop head I'd like to think my president has a lil bit of swag in him. But, er, um, not 1993 Tag Team swag.

It's bad enough considering how I laid into Michael Savage in my last post for asserting that Obama represents and is the epitome of Hip Hop culture and its dumbing down and niggerization effect on America. Yep, it's bad that I went there on Savage yesterday, only to be met with this shit. Checkout the following video from the 1993 annoying smash hit from the group Tag Team - pay attention to the 1:01 mark of the video below: