 |
| JAMES BALDWIN |
In a few weeks I'll be in San Francisco...following in Baldwin's footsteps.
Listen to his comments at the end of this clip. Prophetic? Yes, it's Baldwin at his best.
E-NOTES: WHEN THE NEWS IS NOT ENOUGH. THE BLOG OF E. ETHELBERT MILLER
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
On May 20, 2011, E. Ethelbert Miller read as part of The Loft Literary Center's Mentor Series. The Loft Mentor Series in Poetry and Creative Prose offers ...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2JSpqBvfcw
Brazilian writer, painter, scholar and politician.
An outspoken Civil Rights leader on behalf of Black Brazilians.
I have a copy of his MIXTURE OR MASSACRE? ESSAYS IN THE GENOCIDE OF A BLACK PEOPLE.
This book was published by the Puerto Rican Studies and Research Center, SUNY Buffalo.
Abdias do Nascimento Dies at 97 - NYTimes.com
----------------------------------------
Breaking News Alert: Cellphones are possibly carcinogenic to human's, agency says
May 31, 2011 12:50:36 PM
----------------------------------------
An international panel of experts says cellphones are possibly carcinogenic to humans after reviewing details from dozens of published studies.
The statement was issued in Lyon, France, on Tuesday by the International Agency for Research on Cancer after a weeklong meeting of experts. They reviewed possible links between cancer and the type of electromagnetic radiation found in cellphones, microwaves and radar.
The agency is the cancer arm of the World Health Organization and the assessment now goes to WHO and national health agencies for possible guidance on cellphone use.
The group classified cellphones in category 2B, meaning they are possibly carcinogenic to humans. Other substances in that category include the pesticide DDT and gasoline engine exhaust.
Breaking News Alert: Cellphones are possibly carcinogenic to human's, agency says
May 31, 2011 12:50:36 PM
----------------------------------------
An international panel of experts says cellphones are possibly carcinogenic to humans after reviewing details from dozens of published studies.
The statement was issued in Lyon, France, on Tuesday by the International Agency for Research on Cancer after a weeklong meeting of experts. They reviewed possible links between cancer and the type of electromagnetic radiation found in cellphones, microwaves and radar.
The agency is the cancer arm of the World Health Organization and the assessment now goes to WHO and national health agencies for possible guidance on cellphone use.
The group classified cellphones in category 2B, meaning they are possibly carcinogenic to humans. Other substances in that category include the pesticide DDT and gasoline engine exhaust.
CAN YOU HELP?
BELOW IS A LETTER FROM MY SON. I DECIDED TO HELP HIM. I WOULD LIKE TO PUT TOGETHER A COLLECTION OF AUTOGRAPHED BOOKS FROM MY FRIENDS WHO ARE WRITERS. YES, YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE. :-) LET ME KNOW IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO DONATE ONE OF YOUR TITLES. I CAN BE REACHED AT: emiller698@aol.com. If you would like to make a donation in another way, contact my son directly. See below for contact information.
Dear Friends and Family:
Widener University Men’s Basketball Program is hosting it’s first annual Beef and Beer Fundraiser in hope of raising proceeds to help fund our upcoming trip to California next season. Widener is coming off a record of (13 -13) and hopes to rebound after successfully claiming three Commonwealth Championships in the past five years.
Widener University understands the importance in which the community, administration, alumni and parent involvement lead to the further success of our program. Your support and backing has opened up doors for our student athletes that otherwise would not be available.
On Saturday, September 10, 2011, Widener University will host our first annual Beef and Beer in which we will be auctioning off items. Our goal is to continue to ride the wave of success that we have been so blessed to achieve. You or your company may participate by donating gift certificates, unique opportunities, items to be sold at the Auction, or by contributing cash and/or services to produce the event.
Please help us make this year’s first annual beef and beer auction a success. We cannot achieve our goals without your support. If you have any questions about how you can support our efforts, please contact me. Thank you for your kind consideration.
Sincerely,
Nyere Miller
Widener University
Assistant Coach
(215) 850-4944
WHAT WAS THIS REALLY ABOUT?
Local Crime/Safety News Alert: Redskins' Albert Haynesworth settles Va. assault charge
May 31, 2011 10:21:44 AM
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An assault charge against Washington Redskins lineman Albert Haynesworth was dismissed Tuesday morning under a Virginia law which allows for a defendant to make "accord and satisfaction" with the victim.
Under Virginia law, misdemeanor cases may be dismissed if the complaining witness has reached an agreement with the defendant not to press charges.
Local Crime/Safety News Alert: Redskins' Albert Haynesworth settles Va. assault charge
May 31, 2011 10:21:44 AM
----------------------------------------
An assault charge against Washington Redskins lineman Albert Haynesworth was dismissed Tuesday morning under a Virginia law which allows for a defendant to make "accord and satisfaction" with the victim.
Under Virginia law, misdemeanor cases may be dismissed if the complaining witness has reached an agreement with the defendant not to press charges.
Readers and Riders: Metro Poetry Series with Knowledge Commons DC
This June experience the spoken word in a context often defined by silence. Knowledge Commons DC is hosting readings by local poets on the last car of various metro trains at 4 o’clock on all four Sundays in June.
Knowledge Commons DC (KCDC) is a collaborative creative project instigated by local artists and organizations who believe in the idea that we can and should share our knowledge and experiences with each other in the public spaces that are available to us. KCDC’s first session will run from June 2nd to June 30th, 2011 in locations throughout the city.
Join us for readings and workshops by Buck downs (June 5th), Suzanne Zweizig (June 12th), Deborah Agar, (June 19th), and Joseph Ross (June 26th). RSVP for metro line at knowledgecommonsdc.org.
Monday, May 30, 2011
How long can one milk a cow? Being a farmer I have no idea. But how long is the media going to push Sarah Palin on us? This is as bad as the Fred Thompson joke a couple of years ago. Even the Trump nonsense didn't last long. Why does the media keep launching political balloons with silly faces on them?
Do you really think Palin would be a better president than Obama? Who would be in her cabinet? Who would she select to be on the Supreme Court? How would she handle the Middle East? These are all serious questions. Does Sarah Palin know any black people? Has this woman ever been to Harlem? I've been to Alaska. OK- now a serious question. Is Sarah Palin bringing back busing?
Gil Scott-Heron April 1, 1949 - May 27, 2011 Gil Scott-Heron <http://www.youtube.com/artist/Gil_Scott-Heron?feature=watch_video_title> - The Military & The Monetary - Work For Peace http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPqpV9olIlw&feature=related ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gil Scott-Heron <http://www.youtube.com/artist/Gil_Scott-Heron?feature=watch_video_title> - The Revolution Will Not Be Televised - Full Band Version http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGaoXAwl9kw&feature=related ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gil Scott-Heron - The Bottle http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b2F-XX0Ol0&feature=related - Wonderful Video with this Fantastic Song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRJIBQrnIHY&feature=related - Far Better Audio, No Video ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gil Scott Heron, Johannesburg - Live http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wglq9xFk1Qc ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gil Scott Heron "Winter In America" - Live http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGlRsjHTkbs&feature=related ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gil Scott Heron - Is That Jazz - Live http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32uw7UzZpYA&feature=related ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gil-Scott Heron "The Military & The Monetary" - Live Spoken Word http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VP830OFrAso&feature=related ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Gil_Scott-Heron
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Saturday, May 28, 2011
There is nothing worse than watching movies that attempt to examine the Black Power Movement. On screen all the afros look fake. NIGHT CATCHES US is a movie that attempts to explain the past a bit too much. The Black Panther Party is reduced down to a black power fist and a beret. Do we need more? Fred Hampton's ghost is alive in this movie. In NIGHT CATCHES US everyone seems to be staring when they have nothing to say. The love story in the film does not conjure up Angela Davis and George Jackson. The Philadelphia Police Department is presented as corrupt including the black guy with a badge. Every child in this movie appears to be someone's niece or nephew forced into work. Catch some - lose some. This movie fails with the written script. Anthony Mackie and Kerry Washington have memorable sex. A salute to Cleaver's P-Power no doubt. I could go with more moans in place of some of the soundtrack. I return the DVD next week to the public library. Power to the People!
There are five Gil Scott-Heron records in my collection. I guess this is the work that shaped my appreciation of his vision and voice. I purchased them in the following order:
Pieces of A Man
Free Will
Real Eyes
Reflections
Moving Target
I hope in a few days the radio stations around the country will play "Your Daddy Loves You." This is a song for Father's Day. A song of confession...
Pieces of A Man
Free Will
Real Eyes
Reflections
Moving Target
I hope in a few days the radio stations around the country will play "Your Daddy Loves You." This is a song for Father's Day. A song of confession...
 |
| GIL SCOTT-HERON |
I will miss this brother's voice. Thanks to Sandra Beasley, I was able to see him at Blues Alley several months ago. We had a chance to chat. I remember(decades ago) hanging out with him one day near Dupont Circle. Every word out of his mouth was a poem. Gil was a combination of wit and genius. Talented and maybe cursed. I would like to believe he was never reduced to "pieces of a man." Where would all the black poets be today if not for Gil? He was not a last poet but someone who came before. If there is Spoken Word today - it's because in many ways he spoke the first word. I hope the complete life of Gil Scott-Heron will be televised. There is much we can learn from it.
Friday, May 27, 2011
HERE IS A LINK TO MY UPCOMING READING IN THE BAY AREA:
http://www.moadsf.org/visit/calendar.html?year=2011&month=6#day-29
RASIKA
I had dinner last night at Rasika (located at 633 D Street, NW). If you like Indian food, I highly recommend this place: www.rasikarestaurant.com
I had dinner last night at Rasika (located at 633 D Street, NW). If you like Indian food, I highly recommend this place: www.rasikarestaurant.com
Quote of the Day
"...but I feel that the core tenets of journalism are not going to change: tell the truth, the truth takes time, ask great questions and listen hard for the answers. Be skeptical, be curious, be accurate, be responsible, be passionate. And know the worst thing you can be in journalism is wrong."
-Iris Krasnow, professor at American University
"...but I feel that the core tenets of journalism are not going to change: tell the truth, the truth takes time, ask great questions and listen hard for the answers. Be skeptical, be curious, be accurate, be responsible, be passionate. And know the worst thing you can be in journalism is wrong."
-Iris Krasnow, professor at American University
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MATERIAL GIRLS EXHIBITION INTRIGUES, AMAZES AND INSPIRES
AT REGINALD F. LEWIS MUSEUM
May 12, 2011 (BALTIMORE, MD) — Outside the front entrance of the museum sits Vortex, a large-sized piece of art made of volcanic stone, concrete, steel and smalti glass, by artist Martha Jackson Jarvis. This amazing sculpture is representative of the three-dimensional works in the Material Girls: Contemporary Black Women Artists exhibition at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum on view until October 16. Larger than life, eco-friendly, non-traditional and intriguing describe the works of eight women artists who shaped 38 artistic creations using a myriad of media. The artists use beads, glass, plastic combs, rubber tires, human hair, stone and more to produce innovative creations that amaze and intrigue.
Works on view range from intimate, handcrafted beadwork to oversized sculptures made of industrial materials weighing over 1,000 pounds. A new addition to the exhibition is a touch panel that allows visitors to touch and feel some of the materials used in the exhibition.
Material Girls celebrates the traditions of skill, innovation and creativity practiced by black women, both past and present. Visitors of all ages will appreciate how artists can transform humble materials into magical sculptures. With many of the artists using recycled materials, the exhibition also reveals inventive ways to be environmentally responsible.
Democracy Talks - Listen Up!
Michael Winship, Truthout: "If you don't buy 'Bill Moyers Journal: The Conversation Continues,' borrow it from the nearest local library (although please keep in mind, we are the sole support of a community of endangered pundits hiding in the swamplands of lower Manhattan. The choice is yours). Published by The New Press, the book is a collection of interviews augmented with new introductions and updates, a compilation of some of the best and most interesting conversations conducted during Moyers' PBS series from 2007-2010, as put together by Moyers and the production team. But more than that, 'Bill Moyers Journal: The Conversation Continues' functions as an informative and essential primer in contemporary American politics, society and literature, presented with a progressive point of view, yet covering the waterfront of ideas and opinions."
Read the Article
Michael Winship, Truthout: "If you don't buy 'Bill Moyers Journal: The Conversation Continues,' borrow it from the nearest local library (although please keep in mind, we are the sole support of a community of endangered pundits hiding in the swamplands of lower Manhattan. The choice is yours). Published by The New Press, the book is a collection of interviews augmented with new introductions and updates, a compilation of some of the best and most interesting conversations conducted during Moyers' PBS series from 2007-2010, as put together by Moyers and the production team. But more than that, 'Bill Moyers Journal: The Conversation Continues' functions as an informative and essential primer in contemporary American politics, society and literature, presented with a progressive point of view, yet covering the waterfront of ideas and opinions."
Read the Article
Rumi’s Heavenly Music
rumi could not
separate himself
from the clouds, or the
words from the Qur’an
or the music Allah put
in his soul to sing,
it was in those long
afternoons
as he heard this music
that he was enchanted
wrote long, sang even longer
into the evening, wherein
others marveled
because he’d left his body,
let his soul soar
into the heavenly notes he
heard
put them as much as he might
on to parchment, into memory
so that others might share,
and as time has gone on,
there the music has expanded
further into the universe
so that now
all may hear it
not just those
who were close by
under the tree
listening to his singing
c: sam hamod, 5.26.11
Sam Hamod sent me the above poem yesterday. Rumi Lives!
 |
| RUMI |
Tricycle Daily Dharma
-Ezra Bayda, "Bursting the Bubble of Fear"
Awaken Aspiration
When the clarity of practice becomes obscured by the dark and swirling energy of emotional distress, it is useful to have some clear and concise reminders to bring us back to reality. The first reminder is to awaken aspiration. On an elementary level, to awaken aspiration means simply that we remember to practice. Once we remember to practice, to awaken aspiration means that we see our particular distress as our path. Instead of seeing our distress as the enemy, as something to get rid of; instead of giving it juice by solidifying the thoughts around it into the heaviness and drama of "me," we learn to view distress as our opportunity to see and to open.-Ezra Bayda, "Bursting the Bubble of Fear"
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Twitter note from Dolan at IPS:  |
| MALCOLM X |
http://blip.tv/your-black-world-tv/malcolm-x-debates-the-history-of-america-5179729
TUNISIAN REVOLUTION DID NOT COME OUT OF NOWHERE Sadri Khiari Béatrice Hibou speaks to France-based Tunisian dissident and intellectual Sadri Khiari about the roots of the Tunisian revolution and why no-one saw it coming. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/73574
WAITING FOR HIROSHIMA?
Spent Nuclear Fuel Pools in the U.S.: Reducing the Deadly Risks of Storage
http://www.ips-dc.org/reports/spent_nuclear_fuel_pools_in_the_us_reducing_the_deadly_risks_of_storage/
http://www.ips-dc.org/reports/spent_nuclear_fuel_pools_in_the_us_reducing_the_deadly_risks_of_storage/
Fact Sheet: Spent Nuclear Fuel Pools in the U.S.
http://www.ips-dc.org/files/3202/IPS-RA-Report-FactSheet-web.pdf
http://www.ips-dc.org/files/3202/IPS-RA-Report-FactSheet-web.pdf
Evacuation Zones for Nuclear Reactors (Physicians for Social Responsibility)
http://www.psr.org/resources/evacuation-zone-nuclear-reactors.html
http://www.psr.org/resources/evacuation-zone-nuclear-reactors.html
Washington Arts | The Kojo Nnamdi Show
Also with us in studio is E. Ethelbert Miller. He's a literary activist and board chair of the Institute for Policy Studies, a progressive think-thank. ...
thekojonnamdishow.org/shows/2011-05-23/...arts/transcript
Also with us in studio is E. Ethelbert Miller. He's a literary activist and board chair of the Institute for Policy Studies, a progressive think-thank. ...
thekojonnamdishow.org/shows/2011-05-23/...arts/transcript
The Nuclear Disaster That Could Destroy Japan
Hirose Takashi, The Asia-Pacific Journal: "The nuclear power plants in Japan are aging rapidly; like cyborgs, they are barely kept in operation by a continuous replacement of parts. And now that Japan has entered a period of earthquake activity and a major accident could happen at any time, the people live in constant state of anxiety. Seismologists and geologists agree that, after some fifty years of seismic inactivity, with the 1995 Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake (Southern Hyogo Prefecture Earthquake), the country has entered a period of seismic activity."
Read the Article
Hirose Takashi, The Asia-Pacific Journal: "The nuclear power plants in Japan are aging rapidly; like cyborgs, they are barely kept in operation by a continuous replacement of parts. And now that Japan has entered a period of earthquake activity and a major accident could happen at any time, the people live in constant state of anxiety. Seismologists and geologists agree that, after some fifty years of seismic inactivity, with the 1995 Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake (Southern Hyogo Prefecture Earthquake), the country has entered a period of seismic activity."
Read the Article
FOR HARRIET TUBMAN:
FYI
Friday June 3 rd. Dr. Cheryl LaRoche will kick off the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Conference at noon as keynote speaker at Chesapeake College in Cambridge, MD. The website is www.tubmanugrr.net.
E-TIME:
Much to do today. It looks like an email day in the morning. Over a hundred to respond to. A couple of manuscripts to read. Books to blurb. A stack of magazines to read and digest before the night comes. Too many things on the home desk. The E-Channel is going well. Will forward a series of questions to Charles Johnson later today. We are almost at the halfway mark of year long interview project. I've yet to really tackle his novel MIDDLE PASSAGE. I'll do that over the summer. I have about four movies I want to watch. They are sitting next to this computer. Where is the popcorn and the love in the dark?
Much to do today. It looks like an email day in the morning. Over a hundred to respond to. A couple of manuscripts to read. Books to blurb. A stack of magazines to read and digest before the night comes. Too many things on the home desk. The E-Channel is going well. Will forward a series of questions to Charles Johnson later today. We are almost at the halfway mark of year long interview project. I've yet to really tackle his novel MIDDLE PASSAGE. I'll do that over the summer. I have about four movies I want to watch. They are sitting next to this computer. Where is the popcorn and the love in the dark?
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Wednesday, May 25, 2011 -- 6:07 PM EDT
-----
Senate Rejects House G.O.P. Medicare Plan by 57-40 Vote
The Democratic-led Senate on Wednesday rejected a Republican plan to overhaul
Medicare, defeating it by a 57-40 vote, with five Republicans breaking with
their party to vote against the proposal
The New York Times
Wednesday, May 25, 2011 -- 6:07 PM EDT
-----
Senate Rejects House G.O.P. Medicare Plan by 57-40 Vote
The Democratic-led Senate on Wednesday rejected a Republican plan to overhaul
Medicare, defeating it by a 57-40 vote, with five Republicans breaking with
their party to vote against the proposal
http://ethelbert-miller.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
NATURE KNOWS NO COLORLINE.
One's life and welfare can change in a minute.
One day you're looking at the news, the next day YOU are the news.
All your possessions can vanish without warning.
You thank God if you survive, but you keep wondering what kind of God keeps handing out the Blue Books. It's not that the world didn't end last week - it just that The Rapture was not for you. You're left behind until October 21st - with more destruction on the way. Oh, and God tells you that the next time you see him - you better run.
One's life and welfare can change in a minute.
One day you're looking at the news, the next day YOU are the news.
All your possessions can vanish without warning.
You thank God if you survive, but you keep wondering what kind of God keeps handing out the Blue Books. It's not that the world didn't end last week - it just that The Rapture was not for you. You're left behind until October 21st - with more destruction on the way. Oh, and God tells you that the next time you see him - you better run.
 |
| THE HOUSE OF BERT AFTER LAST NIGHT |
CULTURAL NEWS:
Arts Club of Washingtons quirky downtown haven of clubby culture survives the ages (May 20, 2011).
Arts Club of Washingtons quirky downtown haven of clubby culture survives the ages (May 20, 2011).
My Father As Prophet
(for Egberto Miller)
He did not speak
often. I only heard
him when he spoke.
My fear of him
rewarded my silence.
His love was a gentle
terror. Out of respect
I was always good.
The fierce light in his
eyes a reminder that
my life would never
succumb to darkness.
- E. Ethelbert Miller
My father would have been 96 years old on May 20th.
(for Egberto Miller)
He did not speak
often. I only heard
him when he spoke.
My fear of him
rewarded my silence.
His love was a gentle
terror. Out of respect
I was always good.
The fierce light in his
eyes a reminder that
my life would never
succumb to darkness.
- E. Ethelbert Miller
My father would have been 96 years old on May 20th.
 |
| EGBERTO MILLER |
Monday, May 23, 2011
Psychology Today Posts Article Claiming Black Women Are Less Attractive
Psychology Today recently posted a controversial article on their site titled: “Why Are Black Women Less Physically Attractive Than Other Women?”
Read More
 |
| KEVIN SIMMONDS |
http://www.lambdaliterary.org/features/05/19/in-every-city-and-town-singing-whitman%E2%80%99s-and-our-america/
It should be obvious to the public by now that someone has broken into Skynet. Who forgot to destroy the files? Now all our "Little" Terminators are at risk.
Actress Jane Seymour Claims Arnold Schwarzenegger Has Two Other Love Children | PopEater.com
TOP NEWS
Obama Presses Israel to Make 'Hard Choices'
By HELENE COOPER
The president, speaking to the nation's foremost pro-Israel lobbying group, repeated his call for Palestinian statehood based on Israel's pre-1967 borders adjusted for land swaps.
 |
| ANYA ACHTENBERG |
Here is a note Anya sent me last night. She is staying with a friend in St. Paul.
"All those beautiful trees uprooted. My house damaged but basically sound. But my street is devastated, and many streets all around this way. I am safe and grateful."
So maybe we did miss The Rapture. Are we the ones who have been left behind?
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Artists for the Climate 2011 - a set on Flickr
Attendees heard the poetry of E. Ethelbert Miller, described by the Washington Post as "generous, loving, youthful, soft-spoken, outspoken, curious, ...
www.flickr.com/photos/.../sets/72157626401440605/
Attendees heard the poetry of E. Ethelbert Miller, described by the Washington Post as "generous, loving, youthful, soft-spoken, outspoken, curious, ...
www.flickr.com/photos/.../sets/72157626401440605/
 | ||
| MILES DAVIS |
Thursday, May 26, in East Saint Love: City Hosts 85th Birthday Party (With a Cake) For Miles Dewey Davis III, Famous Native Son An 85th Birthday Party will be held for Miles Dewey Davis III on Thursday, May 26, at 12:00 noon in the Council Chambers of the East St. Louis (Illinois) Municipal Bldg, 301 River Park Drive. The free family event will include a “likeness”-adorned cake; jazz by Reginald Thomas and the 85th Birthday Jazz Ensemble; “Milestone: The Birth of an Ancestor,” a poetic elegy/multimodal exhibit by ESL poet laureate Eugene B. Redmond (and Soular Systems Ensemble); and reminiscences by Miles’ high school classmates and childhood friends. Davis (1926-1991), the city’s most famous Native Son, was born in Alton (IL) and raised in East St. Louis (from age one). He graduated from Lincoln Senior High School in 1944 and joined classmate/ pianist Eugene Haynes at New York’s Julliard School of Music. A trumpeter, composer, and true “original,” this “all blues” master was revered internationally for being in the avant-garde of musical directions and cultural tastes—a pace-setter stylistically and artistically. His father, Dr. Miles Dewey Davis Sr., practiced dentistry in ESL for several decades and was active in politics and civil rights. He also owned a farm in nearby Millstadt (IL) where he raised prize-winning hogs and horses. When ESL dedicated the Miles Dewey Davis III Elementary School in 1982, Miles and then-wife Cicely Tyson were in attendance, as was Miles’ high school teacher Elwood Buchanan. Other area tributes have included ESL Riverfront festivals and bouquets of poetry—often appearing with photographs of Davis—in Drumvoices Revue, a multicultural journal co-published by SIUE and the EBR Writers Club. Thursday’s tribute to Davis continues a yearlong event-rich celebration of his 85th Birthday, ESL’s Sesquicentennial Year (150th), the 25th Birthday of the EBR Writers Club, the 20th Anniversary of Drumvoices Revue, and other “family” traditions/celebrations with dates ending in “1” or “6.” Sponsors include the Sesquicentennial Planning Committee, SIUE, the City of ESL, Black River Writers Press, and Drumvoices Revue. For more information, call Lauren Parks at 618 482- 6601 (lparks@cesl.us) or E. B. Redmond at 618 650-3991 (eredmon@siue.edu).