Aretha Franklin Makes No Mention Of Halle Berry Starring In Her Biopic!

LISTEN TO WHAT WENDY SAYS ABOUT WHO SHOULD PLAY ARETHA:


Somebody must have finally told Aretha Franklin how ridiculous it was for her to suggest that Halle Berry portray her in a biopic. First of all, Aretha Franklin is not biracial. And to my knowledge, Halle Berry is no singer. So, the folks that she mentioned on "The View" today made sense. Aretha Franklin said that the casting directors are looking at Fantasia & Jennifer Hudson to play the Queen of Soul on film. But, the really interesting news was that Ms. Franklin is considering Patina Miller for the role at Whoopi Goldberg's behest.

Here's more on Patina Miller(pictured above) from The Philadelphia Tribune :

"Miller has stepped into the shoes of Whoopi Goldberg, who originated the role of nightclub-singer-turned-nun Deloris Van Cartier in the hit 1992 film. She’s the only cast member from the London production to make the switch and so has had to welcome all new actors, a new director, a tweaked script and new songs.

“I’m doing an entirely new show,” she says. “I know this character in and out, so no matter what changes in the show, I know my character’s journey. I know who she is because I’ve lived with her for three years now.”

Goldberg, a producer of the musical, draws on heaven-and-hell imagery to describe her star, who was nominated for an Olivier Award for the role in London: “Patina sings like an angel and works like a devil. She’s fantastic.”

Miller took roundabout path to Broadway and might even have gotten there faster without “Sister Act.” She had been part of workshops for “The Book of Mormon” and “American Idiot” before she left for London, and had to leave the juicy role of Dionne — who sings the opening lines of “Aquarius” — in the Public Theater’s production of “Hair” before it transferred to Broadway.

Even so, Miller has no regrets. Unlike those other roles, her part in “Sister Act” is a star-maker. “If I’m going to do it, I want to do it big,” she says. “What I get to do with this character is really everything. It’s a fleshed-out character. I get to be funny. I get to be serious. I get to lead a show.”

Miller, who graduated with a musical theatre degree from Carnegie Mellon University, says she and her siblings memorized both “Sister Act” movies — the 1992 original and the 1993 sequel with Lauryn Hill — while growing up in Pageland, S.C.

“We would play it and rewind it until we knew all the words — one and two,” Miller says, laughing. She even sang Hill’s version of “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” from the sequel as her solo in a seventh-grade talent show.

“From then I was known as the girl with the big voice,” she says.

Years later, she got Goldberg’s personal approval to play the lead in the “Sister Act” musical. Miller says she was nervous when she met her childhood idol — but equally scared about trying to replace her.

“It was the only thing I was nervous about when I first started. I told Whoopi. I was like, ‘My biggest fear is that people come expecting you and I’m not you.’ She told me, ‘You’re not me. You have an opportunity to create a role for a new stage. Do it your way. It’s your moment. Own it.’”

The critics in London mostly agreed that Miller had owned it, with The Telegraph hailing her “funky, spunky stage presence and great comic timing” and The Times calling her “the show’s great plus.” (END OF EXCERPT) Read the article in its entirety here.

Where Is The Black Community In My Children's School?

I live in Alameda,Ca. My African-American son & daughter attend a "multi-cultural" school in a suburban area.There are more Asians & Whites at his elementary than any other racial group. The parents of these children are building relationships with one another. The Latinos have built their own community & there is a strong Russian community as well. Each ethnicity has their own clique.

But, those of African descent really don't communicate well with each other. There seems to be no desire on the parent's part to forge relationships with one another. When I have tried to have a conversation with another black parent, it seems forced. I get the succinct feeling that they don't want to be bothered with me. It's really disheartening.

My socio-economic situation is not good. I am a stay-at-home mom with a husband who provides the family's income. But, I am not on welfare or any other type of government assistance. And I am not "ghetto." Unfortunately, I have found out that people assume that all black folks are ghetto leeches. I even heard one Black Muslim kid tell some other black children that he wasn't going to fight with them because they were "ghetto kids." He said that he was just there to get his education. Where's the sense of community in that assertion?

This boy could not have been more than 7 or 8 yrs. old. Obviously, his Black Muslim father put those thoughts in his head. He is telling his son to view other black kids as "ghetto kids." This was very revealing to me. It confirmed my suspicions.The reason why some blacks move to Alameda is to get away from Oakland or other places that they deem as being "ghetto." And these particular black parents view every black parent that they see in a negative light. Even if they are the ones who are really acting "ghetto."

The national narrative regarding the education of African-American kids is contributing to this disassociation. As soon as my son entered school, I was asked by a group of African-American & Hispanic parents to attend a meeting. What was this meeting about,you ask? Well, they wanted to discuss the fact that Blacks & Latinos are falling behind Asians & Whites in school. As a result of this ongoing national discussion, too many African-American parents make the assumption that you(a black parent) have children who aren't succeeding in school.

So,they go out of their way to ingratiate themselves into the Asian & White parental alliances that have formed at my children's school. They feel like these are the successful folks that they want to emulate. For example, one high yellow black woman that wears heavy make-up & a wig everyday told me that the whites in Alameda don't like anything that is "Afro-centric." Since I wear both natural hairstyles & weaves, I felt that she was referring to me when she made that ridiculous comment.

I converse with her daily because our kids are best friends.But,she acts distant.This woman told me that she doesn't do play-dates or socialize with other parents outside of the school. Okay,that's her prerogative. Then, I found out that she was going out of her way to facilitate a play-date with a little white girl that her daughter was really fond of. And this woman stresses the fact that she is a mixed-race woman from Louisiana. I knew that she was snubbing my daughter because she is black.That hurt my feelings because this woman truly believes that playing with white children is the best thing for her daughter.

Especially since I have an extremely gifted daughter & son.Our children's friendship has been more beneficial for her daughter than it has been for mine.This woman's daughter is falling behind while my daughter has excelled tremendously.My daughter helps her child with her classwork because it is difficult for her. Why is she shunning me? It's not because I am a bad mother. It's because I am a black mother.

My African-American fifth-grader is advanced in science & his math is not far behind. Where's the press on that?!! You hear all the time that African-American kids are lagging behind in these areas. My kids are not! But,that is not the case for a lot of black children at this particular school.And because the parents of these kids don't want to associate with each other,it's hard to figure out why that is so we can help these children out.

I don't want to shun those parents who have less successful kids than mine. I actually want to help in any way that I can. But, instead of coming together on this issue, these parents have chosen to put up a barrier between themselves & other blacks.

I have tried to build a relationship with an African parent who also happens to be my neighbor. Her first-grader is doing miserably in school. The school has suggested that he be retained & assessed by a psychiatrist. She blames the school solely. Even though the curriculum is better than a lot of other schools, she says that the school is racist & terrible. Keep in mind the fact that both of my children are continuously excelling at this same school.

But,according to her, I tortured my son by keeping him in that school when he had problems in the first grade. If I would have blamed the school instead of stepping up to the plate, I don't think that he would be successful today. The school is not there to raise your kids. You must instill values in them & educate them yourself. You send them to school to complement the work that you are doing at home. And if you are working with them diligently at home, their school work will reflect that.

If your child is not doing well because you aren't putting forth the extra effort to help them, how is moving to another school going to solve that problem? It's not.Your child's school record will follow them wherever they go. That is what they will initially be judged by.But, instead of accepting that fact, this woman doesn't want to admit that she may be the reason why her son is failing. Whenever I offer her pointers, she ignores what I am saying. And she blames everyone but herself!

I want to share my success story with other black parents. Especially those who have kids that are failing. But, the few women that I offered advice to have taken it the wrong way. They are so competitive that they look at advice as bragging. I want to help other black parents, but I don't want to be attacked by them for doing so. Black people need to learn how to look out for each other. Until we do that, we will continue to have individual success stories instead of communal ones. I want to uplift more black kids than just my own. But I can't be the only black parent looking out for the best interest of our black kids. We are in a community of failure, whether you like it or not. What do I mean by that?

Well, it has been accepted as fact that a whole community of Blacks & Hispanics are failing miserably in school. Why are you fighting so hard to disassociate yourselves from the community of children who are failing? A lot of Hispanics have formed their own communities. What about the African-Americans? When will we come together as a whole? I'm sure that we all share a common goal. We want to change that narrative about our kids. But, if you aren't sharing both stories of success & failure with one another while looking for solutions,the narrative will never change. First, it starts with you taking responsibility for the mistakes that you may be making as a parent.

Do you fit the negative stereotype of a black parent? Are you working with your kids at home & giving them the tools that they need to survive in a racist society? You better be. Because it has already been decided that your child is at risk simply because he is African-American. All of the news reports that cite these racist surveys are setting your children up for failure.

It is up to you as a parent to do everything in your power to prove that narrative to be inaccurate. All African-American children are not failing. Only some are.But,unfortunately,blacks are considered to be a monolithic race. We are not being judged individually.We must tear down this community of failure & replace it with communal success.

But for starters,you can't say a school is terrible if you aren't doing the best job as a parent.The aforementioned African parent who blames the school system gets her child to school late almost daily. Even though we live right down the street from the school, this lady always claims that she overslept. No matter what school she transfers her son to, she still has to be punctual.

And she doesn't know how to approach her son's white teacher. Whenever she has an issue with her son's teacher, she yells at the lady while class is in session. And then she calls the lady racist because the teacher told her that her behavior was unacceptable.In reality, the way that she dealt with her son's teacher took me aback,whether she was being racist or not. Even if you feel disrespected, you must behave in a respectable manner at all times.

My African neighbor may be rude, but it is true that racism rears its ugly head in Alameda. Sometimes it is overt,but more often than not it is subliminal.Our school needs their welcoming committee to be more diverse because right now it is mostly white & Asian. A couple of the white parents have reached out to African-Americans about joining this committee. One of them was very diplomatic about it & the other one was brutally direct about why she felt that I in particular should join this committee.

This white lady,who is a Texan, told me that I was "intelligent & African-American." She said that the welcoming committee could use an African-American parent like me.This conversation took place while I was talking with my African neighbor outside of the school. The Texan parent totally ignored the African parent,as if to insinuate that she was unintelligent. It was obvious to me that the lady was trying to insult the African parent who is late every day because she told me that I represent a parent who is "on the ball." And she never invited my neighbor to join the welcoming committee.

After the lady left, my African neighbor turned on me. She told me that I should have stood up to the Texan because she had insulted me by saying that I was an intelligent African-American. I know that this lady is harboring racist feelings by some of the things that she has said to me in the past. But, why would I feel insulted by what she said when it was really directed at the African woman. Shouldn't she have spoken up for herself by saying that she was intelligent as well? We are all grown folks.

This African woman makes snide remarks about both my kids & I. That's one of the reasons that I have decided to keep my distance from her. Whenever I try to have an in-depth conversation with her, I come away from it feeling insulted. There are many times that I should have stood up to her. So, her attack on me pissed me off. Especially since I understand the real reason behind her vehement anger towards this white woman.

I have been neighbors with this Eritrean woman for almost six years. She has snubbed me for the majority of that time. When we did start to socialize with each other,one of the first things that she told me is that our apartment building is sticking all the blacks together in one unit. That is not true because I was surrounded by whites when I first moved here. And even if that were the case, I love being around black people so I never would have noticed that. Obviously, this bothers her because she has commented on living around blacks numerous times.That can be perceived as being racist as well.

The real reason she was mad at that white woman is because she was excluded from the conversation. After trying her damnedest to fit in with the whites in Alameda, they are approaching me instead of her. And it is simply because I validate myself by being there for my children. I'm not spending my time trying to impress the suburban folks in Alameda by putting my son on a soccer team. My life is designed around the education of my kids,which is why I barely update this blog. This is something that I feel passionate about & I needed to vent.

Stop seeking the approval of the master. Leave that slave/colonial mentality behind once & for all. Because it's a form of mental slavery. Too many of us are seeking validation from whites instead of seeking validation from ourselves.The only person who needs to approve of you is yourself. Basically, know your own self-worth.

I didn't need this white woman to tell me that I am an involved African -American parent who is intelligent to boot.In fact, I pulled her to the side & let her know that she offended my neighbor when she said that. And she assured me that she was not being racist. This lady told me that I was more knowledgeable about issues of the day because I keep myself informed. She told me that she just watches NPR from time to time.According to her, that is why she's pushing for me to be on this committee.

Then she proceeded to tell me that she knows that there is white trash,too. And she also told me that too many rich white folks hire nannies instead of raising their kids themselves. Then, she said that as a Christian she believes that you should love your neighbor, but only from a distance if they are of bad character. I think that she was insinuating that my neighbor is low-class. And from the way that she has presented herself at school, I could not argue with that.

There are a lot of stupid white parents who aren't involved in their kid's education as well. That is not an exclusively black issue. And when their kids screw up, they want to blame the teacher instead of looking inwards. A lot of people don't want to admit that their kids have any flaws because they know that your children are a reflection of you.

I validate myself by giving up a career to raise two,black academically & socially successful kids. I know that any thing that I take on will be achieved. But, I had to look at how I could improve my parenting skills in order to make that happen. And my husband is contributing to their scholastic achievements by allowing me to focus on their schooling instead of trying to juggle both a career and motherhood. It's extremely hard to be a black parent because everyone perceives you as being a failure. So,by default,your kids will be failures,too. It's not about pleasing whites & gaining acceptance from them. What is it about? Making a world where being black affords you the same opportunities & advantages that being white does.

Blacks need to learn how to help & accept each other. No more judging one another & putting each other down. We need to band together as a community here in Alameda. You can't move away from being a person of African descent. The stereotypes about blacks exist here in Alameda. Not just in the South.

If you have grown weary of being viewed negatively just because you're black, uplift every black person as a whole. Help us dispel these stereotypes instead of purporting them.It's okay to want to diversify as long as you know how to unify. Let's rally around our black youth. But,building a black community is so hard when every black person you meet is trying their best to identify with whites.As a black parent who as been successful thus far, how can I pass tips on to other parents who seem to dismiss what I have to say because I am not a suburban, white soccer mom? How do you build a community with those who have no desire to do so?

Hispanics & Blacks Are Literally Killing Each Other For A Piece Of The American Dream!

God, I wish I didn't have to write about racial issues in the 21st century. But,alas,these problems still persist. It is the 150th anniversary of The Civil War & the focus is on how relations are between blacks & whites. Instead, we should be talking about how blacks(and Hispanics,for that matter) are still regarded as less than. In Los Angeles,killing a black person is actually a status symbol amongst many who are in Latino gangs.

And this racial animosity between Blacks & Latinos is widespread. In New York, racial issues have bubbled up to the surface. Reports of African-Americans attacking Mexicans have become more prevalent there. What is going on? Both Hispanics & Blacks are still at the bottom of the ladder in America.

Shouldn't we be focused on changing that horrible reality instead of attacking each other for the crumbs that are being thrown our way? Why are we not collaborating with each other, Blacks & Browns?! We should be lifting our communities up,not dragging them down!

The respect for those of African or Hispanic descent is still sorely lacking in today's world. Just take the brutal murder of James Shamp as an example if you don't believe me.

No one should be attacked because of their skin color. The tensions between races must cease. Let the violence decrease & the peace increase.

Here's more from The Los Angeles Times:

"A little more than a year after the racially motivated killing ofJames Shamp, a 48-year-old black man, the prosecution of his killers appears to be drawing to a close.

Last week, Richard Bordelon, 22, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, one count each of attempted robbery and conspiracy to commit murder, as well as admitting to special-circumstance allegations of drive-by murder, racial killing and that he was an active gang member at the time of the offense, according to Deputy Dist. Atty. Daniel Akemon of the Hardcore Gang Division.

The defendant confessed that the victim was killed because he was African American, officials with the district attorney's office said. Los Angeles police sources said the case was part of a larger series of incidents in which Latino gang members in the West Valley threatened blacks and sprayed racist graffiti.

At Bordelon’s March 24 appearance, Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Martin Herscovitz sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole, plus 47 years to life. The judge also ordered Bordelon to pay $14,386 in restitution for burial expenses and mental-health costs incurred by the victim’s family.

According to police, Shamp, a husband and father of two, was taking out the trash at his job in Winnetka on Dec. 22, 2008, when a car carrying Latino gang members pulled up. A group of men approached him and shot him in the chest. Friends heard the shots and ran outside, where they found Shamp lying face down. He was taken to the hospital, where he later died from his injuries."(END OF EXCERPT) Read the rest here.

Vybz Kartel Isn't The Only One With A Skin Bleaching Issue!

Vybz Kartel is a hardcore gangster style Jamaican DJ. So, I was surprised to learn that he wants to be lighter. He defended the use of skin bleach by pointing out that no one makes a fuss when a person seeks darker skin by getting a tan. Mr. Kartel says that he has the right to alter the color of his skin.

Unfortunately, this is a world-wide epidemic. Jamaica is in the spotlight as of late. But, the desire to have the fairest skin of all has been happening in Asia, Africa, Europe,etc... I wish that were not the case in the 21st century. I love my dark,velvety skin. You couldn't pay me to lighten my skin.

Here's more on this topic from The New Black Magazine:

"Skin-whitening or skin-bleaching is a practice whereby women - and some men - use various forms of skin-whitening products in order to make their skin appear as white as possible.

As an anti-aging therapy, skin-whitening promises to "restore" as well as to"transform" the aging skins of women and make them smooth, wrinkle-free-younger-looking. In this context, the natural aging process is systematically framed as a pathological condition which must be interrupted through measures such as "elective surgery" and or by bleaching out the signs of aging such as "age spots."

In this way, in the case of white women, skin-whitening is presented as a legitimate intervention designed to 'cure' and mitigate the disease of aging. Skin-whitening as a biomedical intervention is predicated on the pathologization of the natural aging processes in all women, white women in particular.

At least in the United States, racially white eastern and southern European women have used skin-whitening in order to appear as 'white' as their 'Anglo-Saxon' "native" white sisters. In the United States, women of colour also have practiced skin-whitening.

Many of the early skin-bleaching commodities such as Nodinalina skin bleaching cream, a product which has been in the US market since 1889, contained 10 per cent ammoniated mercury. Mercury is a highly toxic agent with serious health implications. According to Kathy Peiss , in 1930, a single survey found advertising for 232 different brand names of skin-bleaching creams promoted in mainstream magazines to mainly white women consumers in the United States.

If dark-skinned eastern and southern Europeans can "pass" for white with a little help from skin-bleaching creams, those with sufficiently light skin tones but who are legally categorized as racially black by their invisible " one drop" of "black blood", could also "pass" for white as well. The "appearance of whiteness" is the key to accessing the exclusive cultural and economic privileges whiteness accrues.

The fear of the infiltration of "invisible' blackness has fuelled both the marketing strategies of industry and the anxieties of white women that they may not appear "white enough". (END OF EXCERPT) Read the rest here.