tamara
i philosophize. And play Guitar Hero. Most of the time i do both simultaneously.
Posts by tamara
By tamara
Wednesday, August 25, 2010 at 12:00 pm
For the past couple days the internet has been all keyed up over the DEA’s search for translators to help them decode the intricate and complex language of the drug game. In short, the DEA is looking for, as they call it, Ebonics experts. Wait what? Are we acknowledging the fact that Ebonics is a separate language? Or is this just another cultural disconnect between Black America and America?
When speakers of one dialect can no longer understand the speakers of another dialect, these dialects have effectively become different languages. And since dialects are born through social and or geographical isolation is the DEA saying that Black America has been disconnected from mainstream America for so long that we are speaking a different language and mostly unintelligible language now?
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By tamara
Wednesday, August 18, 2010 at 12:00 pm
This weekend was interesting, to say the least. I spent Sunday at the Texas Gun Show. While I expected strange, maybe even interesting, I was unprepared for some of it. Guns and weapons don’t shake me. On display, they cause no panic. Some of the other things on display however, were enough to make me want to stay in the comfy confines of my little exhibitor booth. It was a joke to me and my coworkers. But when I was forced to leave the booth to forage for food, I ran into something that actually caused a bit of panic in me. At the risk of sounding over dramatic, I wandered through the exhibitor displays and because my eyes were trying hard to soak in everything that was going on around me, I walked right up to a booth selling memorabilia emblazoned with swastikas.
Of course, I relayed this information to the guy working the event with me, and we joked about it, the Confederate flags and the Ronald Reagan “Avenge me!” bumper stickers. At that point, it seemed silly that the sight of a swastika had evoked the type of emotion that it did in me. Then, one of the exhibitors next to me, who had overheard our conversation, decided to try and comfort me.
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By tamara
Wednesday, August 11, 2010 at 12:00 pm
It is no secret that Black men are disproportionately uneducated, unemployed and incarcerated. Articles I’ve read in Noteworthy News and The Black Scholar toss out statistics that say that a six year old Black boy has a one in three chance of going to prison in his lifetime and the unemployment rate among young Black men is forty percent. To understand the issues affecting Black men, we have to understand the life experiences of Black boys which shape the attitudes and behaviors of Black men. These statistics say one thing to me: Black men are becoming more and more disconnected from society each day.
Where does this start? How can we prevent this? Is it a preventable phenomenon?
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By tamara
Wednesday, August 4, 2010 at 12:00 pm
In 1926, Dr. Carter G. Woodson christened the second week in February “Negro History Week”. Dr. Woodson chose the second week in February because two men he considered influential to Black Americans, Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, were born during that week. From there, Negro History Week has expanded and grown into Black History Month. And every year in February, most of America recognizes Black history by studying and honoring the scholars, leaders, innovators and activists that have shaped the very course of the history of Africans in America.
While I appreciate Black History Month, I agree with many others that the Month of August has seen some of the biggest moments in Black history.
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By tamara
Wednesday, July 28, 2010 at 12:00 pm
We make people fill out applications for everything under the sun. School. Jobs. Apartments. Cars. Credit cards. Society places such high value on this imaginary money that we pass around that you can actually be denied credit cards or bank accounts if you have been proven to be irresponsible with it. If you are not qualified, you cannot attend college, get certain jobs, drive certain cars, or live in certain apartments. How completely ass backwards is it that we allow anyone to have a child without first checking that they are qualified mentally and emotionally?
Let me be clear, I’m not advocating that we turn control of our reproductive bodies over to the government or our neighbors. I’m just saying that perhaps there ought to be some kind of system in place to make sure that people understand exactly what they are getting into when they have a child.
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By tamara
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 at 12:00 pm
Assata Shakur, like many of her contemporaries, is a product of her circumstances. As the hopeful and peaceful Civil Rights era gave way to the more ardent struggle for Black empowerment, Shakur was at a critical time in her life. Campuses and cities across the country were struggling with the Vietnam War and the continued struggle for equal rights for Blacks. Like many students, Shakur was riled by the war. She drew a parallel to her personal struggle to reconcile her sense of self with the inferiority forced on her by segregation in the South and culturally insensitive teachers in the North.
Theory without practice is just as incomplete as practice without theory. The two have to go together. I was determined to do both.
–Assata Shakur
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By tamara
Wednesday, July 14, 2010 at 12:00 pm
There is so much wrong with this entire LeBron James fiasco it would take a year to flesh it all out, by which time LeBron may have his first ring (courtesy of Dwyane Wade and the backup dancers down in South Beach). Reactions have been varied, as expected. This decision will affect the NBA game and business. The most interesting conversation to come from this ordeal surrounds Jesse Jackson’s comments which allude to the Plantation Model in sports. All I can say to this is amen.
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By tamara
Wednesday, July 7, 2010 at 12:00 pm
Dear Future Husband,
A while ago, someone told me that the “Daddy’s Girl” stage in life is important because it has an effect on our later mating preferences. That the quality of my relationship with my father will have a bearing on my expectations for you might not be fair so I just want to take a moment to tell you: good luck. We haven’t met yet but when you come along, I’d like you to be well-prepared. I’ve had an amazing example of what it is that a real man does for his family and I won’t accept anything less.
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By tamara
Wednesday, June 30, 2010 at 12:00 pm
Who says the offseason is boring? Tomorrow marks the biggest day in the NBA season thus far (screw the Lakers). Tomorrow, July 1st is the start of the free agency period. You know what that means, all LeBron, all the time. Some of those other guys, some of the time. This free agent class is talent packed but this is also an important for some players and their future money bags.
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First, Rick Ross is making a fool out of us! Anyone that listens to his music is an informant and I don’t want to hear any opinions to the contrary.