Saturday, December 6, 2008
Odetta Was Known As "The Voice Of The Civil Rights Movement"! May She Rest In Peace!
This first video contains an interview with Odetta where she discusses her impact on the civil rights era as an activist.She was also a wonderful singer with a rich,deep baritone voice that was quite emotive. Odetta is singing,in the second video,on "The Johnny Cash Show". Her voice is absolutely breathtaking.Odetta moved on to a better place on Tuesday before she got to fulfill one final dream. Her final wish was to sing at Barack Obama's inauguration on Jan 20. Here's an excerpt from an obituary that was published in the NY Times:
"Odetta, the singer whose resonant voice wove together the strongest songs of American folk music and the civil rights movement, died on Tuesday in Manhattan. She was 77.
The cause was heart disease, her manager, Doug Yeager, said.
Odetta, who lived in Upper Manhattan, had been admitted to Lenox Hill Hospital three weeks ago with a number of ailments, including kidney trouble, Mr. Yeager said. In her last days, he said, she had been hoping to sing at the presidential inauguration for Barack Obama."(END OF EXCERPT)Read the entire obituary here:http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/03/arts/music/03odetta.html?_r=1&hp
Friday, December 5, 2008
White Teacher Binds The Hands & Feet Of Two Black Students During A Lesson On Slavery!
There are all kinds of children's books that show the tools that were implemented to bind slaves during the slavery era. Why would this white woman find it necessary to have her students act this out in her class? Couldn't she just have shown them "Roots"? How insensitive to think that this would be an appropriate way to demonstrate what slaves went through! I mean, these are probably the actual descendants of slaves! You can't imagine the pain that many people feel even discussing slavery. It is a very,very sensitive issue. I think this teacher needs racial sensitivity classes because she does not recognize the error in her method of teaching. Here's more from The NY Daily News:
"A suburban middle school teacher who bound the hands and feet of two black girls, then made them crawl under desks representing slave ships, has sparked outrage by one of the girl's mother and the local NAACP chapter.
While one student volunteered for the Nov. 18 lesson on slavery in America, seventh-grader Gabrielle Shand, 13, did not.
When she got home that day, her mother Christine Shand, 41, said her daughter burst into tears.
"My daughter didn't volunteer for this. My daughter was embarrassed. She's extremely uncomfortable," Shand said.
Eileen Bernstein, social studies teacher at the Haverstraw Middle School in Rockland County, and the school's principal and superintendent have apologized to the girl and her mother, but Shand believes they are upset about her daughter's reaction, not with the lesson itself.
Bernstein, who is white, said that she had done the lesson before, Shand said.
"Are you telling me when you do a section on the Holocaust, it's okay to simulate an oven and have a grandchild of someone who was a survivor just get in the oven?" asked Wilbur Aldridge, head of the local NAACP chapter. "That makes so sense."Northern Rockland School District Superintendent Brian Monahan said he was having "conversations with our staff on how to deliver effective lessons."
"We encourage our teachers to deliver the curriculum in a variety of ways, to go beyond just reading the textbook," he said. "But this obviously went wrong because the student was upset."
Monahan refused to say what, if any, measures were taken against Bernstein, but she was still working today. The school district said Bernstein was not available for comment."(END OF EXCERPT) Read the whole article here:http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2008/12/05/2008-12-05_new_york_teacher_binds_black_students_du.html
"A suburban middle school teacher who bound the hands and feet of two black girls, then made them crawl under desks representing slave ships, has sparked outrage by one of the girl's mother and the local NAACP chapter.
While one student volunteered for the Nov. 18 lesson on slavery in America, seventh-grader Gabrielle Shand, 13, did not.
When she got home that day, her mother Christine Shand, 41, said her daughter burst into tears.
"My daughter didn't volunteer for this. My daughter was embarrassed. She's extremely uncomfortable," Shand said.
Eileen Bernstein, social studies teacher at the Haverstraw Middle School in Rockland County, and the school's principal and superintendent have apologized to the girl and her mother, but Shand believes they are upset about her daughter's reaction, not with the lesson itself.
Bernstein, who is white, said that she had done the lesson before, Shand said.
"Are you telling me when you do a section on the Holocaust, it's okay to simulate an oven and have a grandchild of someone who was a survivor just get in the oven?" asked Wilbur Aldridge, head of the local NAACP chapter. "That makes so sense."Northern Rockland School District Superintendent Brian Monahan said he was having "conversations with our staff on how to deliver effective lessons."
"We encourage our teachers to deliver the curriculum in a variety of ways, to go beyond just reading the textbook," he said. "But this obviously went wrong because the student was upset."
Monahan refused to say what, if any, measures were taken against Bernstein, but she was still working today. The school district said Bernstein was not available for comment."(END OF EXCERPT) Read the whole article here:http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2008/12/05/2008-12-05_new_york_teacher_binds_black_students_du.html
Persons Who Has Issues: Justice Clarence Thomas
There is a whole chapter in the book "Sellout" ,by Randall Jackson, that is devoted to Clarence Thomas. He is known as the modern version of an "Uncle Tom"! With his opposition to affirmative action, after he himself benefited from it, many in the black community find him to be a polarizing figure. Now, he has referred this bogus case that challenges Barack Obama's citizenship to the high court. Here's more from Politico.com:
"The U.S. Supreme Court will decide Friday whether to take up a case over president-elect Barack Obama’s citizenship — one of a few around the country seeking to nullify his election, but this one has an interesting lineage. It was referred to the high court by Justice Clarence Thomas, the court’s only African-American justice.
Maybe Thomas is just returning the favor — putting through a case that questions whether Obama should be president, after Obama said he wouldn't have picked Thomas for the high court."(END OF EXCERPT) Read the rest here:
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1208/16225.html
The first video shows where Obama said that he was not a "strong legal thinker" & he "disagrees with the way he interprets the Constitution. The second video is a clip from 60 Minutes which attempts to portray him in a positive light. I think this guy is in complete denial. What do you think? Is he a hypocrite or a "race traitor" as some have suggested?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)