10th National Black Writers' Conference
Thursday, March 25- Sunday, March 28, 2010
To Register Now Online, Visit: http://www.aalbc.com/
E-NOTES: WHEN THE NEWS IS NOT ENOUGH. THE BLOG OF E. ETHELBERT MILLER
Thursday, September 17, 2009
BLACK LIKE ME?
Howard University Community:
Tune in to a special edition of the Tavis Smiley Show public radio Sunday, September 20, to hear Greg Carr, chair of Howard University’s Afro American Studies; William S. Tod, chair of Princeton University’s Center for African-American Studies; Elizabeth Alexander, chair of Yale University’s African-American Studies, Tricia Rose, chair of Brown University’s Department of Africana Studies, and regular Tavis Smiley Show commentator Eddie Glaude discuss the importance and growth of Black Studies programs as they celebrate their 40th year in existence.
Sociologist Nathan Hare was given the task and opportunity by San Francisco State to create and coordinate the first “Black Studies” department and in 1969, the department officially opened its doors, offering an educational option to ending racial stereotypes, by exposing students of all colors to the vast historical, cultural and theological aspects of African Americans.Now, 40 years later, Black Studies departments are the norm on campuses across the country, yet the questions have grown louder as to the continued relevance of what some call “segregated studies” at taxpayer expense.
The show features a conversation with distinguished scholars of African American studies to remember the 40-year journey and chart the collective paths into the future.
Washington, D.C.,WETA-FM (90.9), Sunday, 1 p.m.Princess Anne, Md.: WESM-FM (91.3), Sunday, 12 p.m.Baltimore, Md.: WEAA-FM (88.9), Sunday, 9 p.m., WYPR-FM (88.1), Sunday, 6 p.m.Hagerstown, Md., WETH-FM (89.1), Sunday, 7 p.m.
For more information, or to check your local listings for broadcast times visit www.tavistalks.com.
Howard University Community:
Tune in to a special edition of the Tavis Smiley Show public radio Sunday, September 20, to hear Greg Carr, chair of Howard University’s Afro American Studies; William S. Tod, chair of Princeton University’s Center for African-American Studies; Elizabeth Alexander, chair of Yale University’s African-American Studies, Tricia Rose, chair of Brown University’s Department of Africana Studies, and regular Tavis Smiley Show commentator Eddie Glaude discuss the importance and growth of Black Studies programs as they celebrate their 40th year in existence.
Sociologist Nathan Hare was given the task and opportunity by San Francisco State to create and coordinate the first “Black Studies” department and in 1969, the department officially opened its doors, offering an educational option to ending racial stereotypes, by exposing students of all colors to the vast historical, cultural and theological aspects of African Americans.Now, 40 years later, Black Studies departments are the norm on campuses across the country, yet the questions have grown louder as to the continued relevance of what some call “segregated studies” at taxpayer expense.
The show features a conversation with distinguished scholars of African American studies to remember the 40-year journey and chart the collective paths into the future.
Washington, D.C.,WETA-FM (90.9), Sunday, 1 p.m.Princess Anne, Md.: WESM-FM (91.3), Sunday, 12 p.m.Baltimore, Md.: WEAA-FM (88.9), Sunday, 9 p.m., WYPR-FM (88.1), Sunday, 6 p.m.Hagerstown, Md., WETH-FM (89.1), Sunday, 7 p.m.
For more information, or to check your local listings for broadcast times visit www.tavistalks.com.
RACE TODAY AND RACE TOMORROW
There is a story about Race back on the front-page of The New York Times today. No surprise.
We tend to fall into the media "trap" stories about the need to move beyond race. We seem to be a nation with the measles. If only we could change our seat and move beyond the sickness. The problem is that we tend to think of race - especially when it comes to black people as being negative. The word race is always associated with the word problem. Maybe that's the problem.
I don't want to move beyond race. Where would I go? I checked my ticket and it says black. That's my destination. I'm happy with it. I didn't buy a ticket to move beyond who I am. I am not a problem. Are you?
We seem so surprise by all the racial stuff in the air these days. Why? There were racists in the United States before Obama was elected president. Do you think they simply disappeared or moved beyond being racists? No, they are still here and they are not going anywhere. On page 18 of today's Times there is a small article about the beating of a black female Army reservist outside a restaurant in Morrow, Georgia. She was attacked by a white man back on September 9th who punched and kicked her while yelling racial slurs. Was this a teachable moment?
Yes, and there will be more.
Meanwhile racists love to code their language. They love playing offense and defining the terms. Sometimes their lack of education gets in the way. So now we have Obama being presented in posters as if he was Hitler. If that is the case, how are white skinheads going to display their swastikas? If Obama is now Hitler who are they?
There is a story about Race back on the front-page of The New York Times today. No surprise.
We tend to fall into the media "trap" stories about the need to move beyond race. We seem to be a nation with the measles. If only we could change our seat and move beyond the sickness. The problem is that we tend to think of race - especially when it comes to black people as being negative. The word race is always associated with the word problem. Maybe that's the problem.
I don't want to move beyond race. Where would I go? I checked my ticket and it says black. That's my destination. I'm happy with it. I didn't buy a ticket to move beyond who I am. I am not a problem. Are you?
We seem so surprise by all the racial stuff in the air these days. Why? There were racists in the United States before Obama was elected president. Do you think they simply disappeared or moved beyond being racists? No, they are still here and they are not going anywhere. On page 18 of today's Times there is a small article about the beating of a black female Army reservist outside a restaurant in Morrow, Georgia. She was attacked by a white man back on September 9th who punched and kicked her while yelling racial slurs. Was this a teachable moment?
Yes, and there will be more.
Meanwhile racists love to code their language. They love playing offense and defining the terms. Sometimes their lack of education gets in the way. So now we have Obama being presented in posters as if he was Hitler. If that is the case, how are white skinheads going to display their swastikas? If Obama is now Hitler who are they?
Quote of the Day:
This summer could come to be known as the summer when baby boomers began to turn to the obituary pages first, to face not merely their own mortality or ponder their legacies, but to witness the passing of legends who defined them as a tribe, bequeathing through music, culture, news and politics a kind of generational badge that has begun to fray.
- Sarah Kershaw, The New York Times, September 17, 2009
This summer could come to be known as the summer when baby boomers began to turn to the obituary pages first, to face not merely their own mortality or ponder their legacies, but to witness the passing of legends who defined them as a tribe, bequeathing through music, culture, news and politics a kind of generational badge that has begun to fray.
- Sarah Kershaw, The New York Times, September 17, 2009
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
NEXT STOP: Immigration.
I've been telling folks that the battle around immigration next year could turn ugly. I'm happy to read the essay below because it explains what I thought about Wilson's reasons for yelling. South Carolina has an immigration problem. Wilson is probably trying to win votes. Give this guy a Kanye West award.
I've been telling folks that the battle around immigration next year could turn ugly. I'm happy to read the essay below because it explains what I thought about Wilson's reasons for yelling. South Carolina has an immigration problem. Wilson is probably trying to win votes. Give this guy a Kanye West award.
Lurching on immigration
by Ruben Navarrette Jr.
SAN DIEGO — President Obama has already made three big errors where the issues of health care and illegal immigration intersect, and we're still in the early innings.
Error No. 1: Obama and his advisers should have listened to immigration reform activists who suggested the White House should tackle immigration before health care. Otherwise, the activists warned, concerns that illegal immigrants would get benefits could trip up the health care effort.
One of the narratives pushed by immigration restrictionists is that of immigrants as takers. They say illegal immigrants come here to get on welfare, flood the schools, and soak up medical care. Comically, they also spin a contradictory narrative — that illegal immigrants take jobs from U.S. workers, their kids don't stay in school, and they all have communicable diseases because they don't visit doctors.
But this administration has a steep learning curve on immigration. It's no wonder why. White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, while serving in Congress, declared the issue the new "third rail" in politics and tried to protect conservative Democrats from having to cast tough and no-win votes on proposed legislation to legalize those already here. For whatever reason, the White House decided to take on health care reform this year, and push immigration reform back to next year. And the activists were right about illegal immigration tripping up health care reform.
Error No. 2: Obama's next mistake was putting into his recent congressional address the now-famous line insisting that it simply isn't true illegal immigrants would receive benefits under the health care reform measures currently being debated. If Obama hadn't gone down that road and made such a claim, Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., wouldn't have felt compelled to respond with a forceful but tacky: "You lie!"
This isn't to excuse Wilson, who was out of line and who apologized. It's only to say that Obama made a conscious decision to include that language, when he could have left it out. Had he done that, Wilson wouldn't have had his 15 minutes.
So who is right? Here's the most honest answer: It's hard to say. Democrats are correct that most of the reform bills in Congress say that illegal immigrants are not eligible for benefits. But Republicans are also correct that there is no provision for verifying citizenship since Democrats killed those amendments. So we couldn't be sure who is getting what.
By the way, this is a perfect illustration of one of the things that always make an appearance in the immigration debate: Republican hypocrisy. Most GOP members of Congress hold strong pro-business views, and solicit campaign contributions through members of the business community. In a state such as South Carolina, where illegal immigration has climbed in the last 15 years, it's a safe bet that many businesses, especially those in agriculture, rely on illegal immigrant labor to make a profit. Then they turn around and use that revenue to buy influence from Republican members of Congress who, to please their other constituents, publicly rail against illegal immigration. That way, everybody wins.
Error No. 3: Due to Wilson's outburst, the White House has been bullied into lurching to the right just to quell the criticism over whether illegal immigrants will get health coverage.
White House spokesman Reid Cherlin recently said that the president's plan would bar illegal immigrants from purchasing health coverage through an insurance exchange and require verification of immigration status. Illegal immigrants could still purchase health insurance through the private market. Yet, the White House acknowledges that private plans will probably shrink if a public option is created.
The most humanitarian thing the administration is prepared to do is to continue requiring hospitals to provide emergency care to illegal immigrants at taxpayer expense, which is the law anyway, and reimburse hospitals for that cost.
That's great. Emergency care is among the most expensive, and it would be so much cheaper to focus on prevention over treatment and pay for doctor visits as opposed to hospital stays. Obama knows this, but he's too terrified of the public backlash to inject common sense into this discussion.
Don't look now, but the president's leadership skills are looking a bit sickly.
VIVA OTERO:
Today it was wonderful seeing my friend Maria Otero sworn in as Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs. It's a huge responsibility. Almost everyone attending the ceremony was from Bolivia and a member of Maria's family. Much clapping and hugs. Maria was looking stunning and her speech was an outline of how things are changing under Obama and Clinton.
I was very impressed by the comments made by Senator Robert Menendez. It's a new day and hopefully our world will become better when it comes to uplifting those in need. It was funny to be in the same room with Hillary Clinton. It was the first time seeing her in person. She has a good sense of humor and made everyone in the room feel at home. I looked around the room and only saw a couple of people I knew. As the program ended, Maria passed and gave me a warm hug and kiss. I'm so very happy for her.
Tricycle's Daily Dharma
Standing in Line
As an experiment, the next time you are doing an errand, stuck in traffic, or standing in line at the supermarket, instead of being preoccupied with where you’re going or what needs to be done, take a moment to simply send loving wishes to all those around you. Often, there is an immediate and very remarkable shift as we feel more connected and present.
- Joseph Goldstein, from “Triumph of the Heart,” Tricycle, Spring 2008
THE LITTLE e-NOTE: The 1 Question Interview.
Ms.Wissal Al-Allaq, literary translator living in Abu Dhabi.
Question: How difficult has it been translating African American poetry into Arabic?
Poetry is poetry, in any language or any race. The themes differ, the styles & techniques differ, and the vocab differs, true. But, then again so do all these aspects from one poet to another.
My experience has been subjective. I enjoyed translating your poems thoroughly, even the challenges that faced me, every little hiccup I had on the way. I'm not saying that to pay you any compliments, I'm saying this because I breathed & lived & danced with your poems. I read them over & over, for many years. They are no stranger to me, nor am I to them. Courting them was the easy part, laying them down on paper was a totally different story. Trying to put those concentrated images in a language that worships elaboration is no easy task.
The major difficulty, however; lies in the cultural differences between African American & Arabic poetry. Our experiences are different, therefore; when a subtle image indicates something, probably the average African American individual would be able to figure it out, but we will never manage without help; either from the writer or by doing research, to solve those day to day riddles. At the end of the day, I'm very proud of your/my work.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
LIT NEWS:
The Writer’s Center Announces Spring/Summer Emerging Writer Fellows in Fiction, Nonfiction, and Poetry
Fellows to Headline Story/Stereo Events at The Writer’s Center
BETHESDA, MD (September 15, 2008)—The Writer's Center is pleased to announce the recipients of Spring/Summer 2010 Emerging Writer Fellowships. The Emerging Writer Fellowships are awarded to writers who have published up to 2 book-length works of prose and up to three book-length works of poetry. During the application process, The Writer's Center received 85 submissions from emerging writers in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. There were eight recipients. (Complete author bios and links included below.) They will headline, with musical guests to be determined, our upcoming Story/Stereo events:
Friday, February 19
Steve Fellner (nonfiction)
Marianne Villanueva (fiction)
Friday, March 19
Kathleen Flenniken (poetry)
Anthony Varallo (fiction)
Thursday, May 20
William Archila (poetry)
Josh Weil (fiction)
Thursday, June 17
Nicole Cooley (poetry)
Dawn Potter (nonfiction)
The selection committee included writer Ken Ackerman and former book publisher and NEH administrator Margot Backas, who represented our Board of Directors; Shannon O'Neill, a literary agent; poets Anne Harding Woodsworth and Judith Harris, who represented our corps of workshop leaders; and aspiring writers Melissa Wyse and Jamie White, who represented our membership.
From the judges:
Because the competition this year was so strong, selecting winners of the Emerging Writer fellowships was especially enjoyable and very hard work. To rise above the rest, each recipient had to demonstrate a unique voice, a combination of skill, content, and passion that made them stand out. These are talented people with bright futures in the world of letters.
—Ken Ackerman, board member and author of Boss Tweed and Young J Edgar
The winners of the emerging writer fellowships each had their own distinct and arresting voice. Much of the work was edgy, original, and often quite daring, without being gratuitous.
—Shannon O’Neill, workshop leader and literary agent
The Recipients:
FICTION
Marianne Villanueva, author of Mayor of the Roses
Marianne Villanueva, a former Stegner Fellow in Creative Writing at Stanford, has been writing and publishing stories about the Philippines and Filipino Americans since the mid 1980s. Her critically acclaimed first collection of short fiction, Ginseng and Other Tales from Manila (Calyx Books 1991) was short–listed for the Philippines’ National Book Award. Her work has been widely anthologized. Her story, “Silence,” first published in the Threepenny Review, was short–listed for the 2000 O. Henry Literature Prize, and “The Hand” was awarded first prize in Juked’s 2007 fiction contest. She has edited an anthology of Filipina women’s writings, Going Home to a Landscape, which was selected as a Notable Book by the prestigious Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize. She currently teaches writing and literature at Foothill College and Notre Dame de Namur University. Born and raised in Manila, she now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. Read an interview with Marianne Villanueva here: http://www.writelit.com/interview-with-marianne-villanueva
Anthony Varallo, author of Out LoudAnthony Varallo earned his MFA from the University of Iowa/Iowa Writers' Workshop and his Ph.D. in English and Creative Writing from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He joined the College of Charleston in 2005, where he teaches courses in creative writing and composition and serves as fiction editor for Crazyhorse. He has published two collections of short stories, Out Loud, winner of the 2008 Drue Heinz Literature Prize (University of Pittsburgh Press), and This Day in History, winner of the 2005 John Simmons Short Fiction Award (University of Iowa Press). Read about Anthony Varallo winning the Drue Heinz Literature Prize here: http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A53363
Josh Weil, author of The New ValleyJosh Weil is the author of the novella collection The New Valley (Grove Press, 2009), a New York Times Editors Choice. His fiction has been published in Granta, New England Review, American Short Fiction, and Narrative; he has written non-fiction for The New York Times, Granta, and Poets & Writers. Since earning his MFA from Columbia University, he has received a Fulbright grant, fellowships to the Bread Loaf and Sewanee Writers’ Conferences, and the Dana Award in Portfolio. As the 2009 Tickner Fellow, he is the writer-in-residence at Gilman School in Baltimore, where he is at work on a novel. Read a review of The New Valley in The New York Times here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/books/review/Doerr-t.html
POETRY
Nicole Cooley, author of The Afflicted GirlsNicole Cooley grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana. She received her BA from Brown University, her MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and her PhD from Emory University. Her first book of poetry, Resurrection, won the 1995 Walt Whitman Award and was published by LSU Press in 1996. Her second book of poetry, The Afflicted Girls, about the Salem witch trials of 1692, appeared with LSU Press in April 2004 and was chosen as one of the best poetry books of the year by Library Journal. She also published a novel, Judy Garland, Ginger Love, with Regan Books/Harper Collins (1998). Her third book of poetry, Breach, a collection of poems about Hurricane Katrina and the Gulf Coast, is forthcoming from LSU Press. Nicole Cooley discusses Hurricane Katrina on Pen America’s blog: http://penamerica.blogspot.com/2009/08/guest-post-nicole-cooley-on-hurricane.html
William Archila, author of The Art of ExileWilliam Archila was born in Santa Ana, El Salvador in 1968. At the age of twelve, he fled a civil war that tore his country apart and immigrated to the United States in 1980. He eventually became an English teacher and earned his MFA in poetry from the University of Oregon. His poems have appeared in Agni, Blue Mesa Review, Crab Orchard Review, The Georgia Review, The Los Angeles Review, Notre Dame Review, Poetry International, Poetry Daily, and elsewhere. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife. Read a review of The Art of Exile here: http://recently-banned-literature.blogspot.com/2009/05/william-archila-art-of-exile.html
Kathleen Flenniken, author of FamousKathleen Flenniken’s first book, Famous (University of Nebraska Press, 2006), won the Prairie Schooner Book Prize in Poetry and was named a 2007 Notable Book by the American Library Association. Her poems have appeared in Poetry Daily, Poetry, and The Iowa Review. Flenniken is a recipient of an NEA Fellowship and an Artist Trust grant for her second manuscript, Atomic City. She teaches with Writers in the Schools in Seattle and other arts agencies, and is an editor with Floating Bridge Press, a non-profit poetry press. Visit Kathleen Flenniken’s Web site: http://www.kathleenflenniken.com/
NONFICTION
Steve Fellner, author of All Screwed UpSteve Fellner is the author of a poetry collection (Marsh Hawk Press) and a memoir, All Screwed Up (Benu Press). He currently teaches at SUNY Brockport. Visit Steve Fellner’s blog here: http://pansypoetics.blogspot.com/
Dawn Potter, author of Tracing Paradise: Two Years in Harmony with John MiltonDawn Potter is associate director of the Frost Place Conference on Poetry and Teaching, held each summer at Robert Frost's home in Franconia, New Hampshire. She has won writing fellowships from the Elizabeth George Foundation and the Maine Arts Commission. In addition to Tracing Paradise: Two Years in Harmony with John Milton, her memoir about copying out all of Paradise Lost word for word while living in the Maine woods, she has just released her second poetry collection, How the Crimes Happened. New poems and essays appear in the Sewanee Review, the Threepenny Review, Prairie Schooner, and many other journals. She serves on the Beloit Poetry Journal's editorial board and works frequently with both K-12 students and adult writers. Dawn lives in Harmony, Maine, with photographer Thomas Birtwistle and their two sons. Visit Dawn Potter’s blog here: http://dlpotter.blogspot.com/
About The Writer’s Center:
The Writer’s Center assists students of all ages, backgrounds and skill levels in the cultivation, creation, publication, presentation, and dissemination of literary work. As an independent literary organization with a global reach, The Writer’s Center represents a broad and dynamic community of writers. Writing is interdisciplinary and unique among the arts for its ability to touch on all aspects of the human experience. Among the oldest and premier institutions of its kind, The Writer’s Center’s enduring philosophy is that the craft of writing enriches lives and open doors to knowledge and understanding. The Writer’s Center is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax deductible. A copy of our current financial statement is available upon request.
The Writer’s Center Announces Spring/Summer Emerging Writer Fellows in Fiction, Nonfiction, and Poetry
Fellows to Headline Story/Stereo Events at The Writer’s Center
BETHESDA, MD (September 15, 2008)—The Writer's Center is pleased to announce the recipients of Spring/Summer 2010 Emerging Writer Fellowships. The Emerging Writer Fellowships are awarded to writers who have published up to 2 book-length works of prose and up to three book-length works of poetry. During the application process, The Writer's Center received 85 submissions from emerging writers in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. There were eight recipients. (Complete author bios and links included below.) They will headline, with musical guests to be determined, our upcoming Story/Stereo events:
Friday, February 19
Steve Fellner (nonfiction)
Marianne Villanueva (fiction)
Friday, March 19
Kathleen Flenniken (poetry)
Anthony Varallo (fiction)
Thursday, May 20
William Archila (poetry)
Josh Weil (fiction)
Thursday, June 17
Nicole Cooley (poetry)
Dawn Potter (nonfiction)
The selection committee included writer Ken Ackerman and former book publisher and NEH administrator Margot Backas, who represented our Board of Directors; Shannon O'Neill, a literary agent; poets Anne Harding Woodsworth and Judith Harris, who represented our corps of workshop leaders; and aspiring writers Melissa Wyse and Jamie White, who represented our membership.
From the judges:
Because the competition this year was so strong, selecting winners of the Emerging Writer fellowships was especially enjoyable and very hard work. To rise above the rest, each recipient had to demonstrate a unique voice, a combination of skill, content, and passion that made them stand out. These are talented people with bright futures in the world of letters.
—Ken Ackerman, board member and author of Boss Tweed and Young J Edgar
The winners of the emerging writer fellowships each had their own distinct and arresting voice. Much of the work was edgy, original, and often quite daring, without being gratuitous.
—Shannon O’Neill, workshop leader and literary agent
The Recipients:
FICTION
Marianne Villanueva, author of Mayor of the Roses
Marianne Villanueva, a former Stegner Fellow in Creative Writing at Stanford, has been writing and publishing stories about the Philippines and Filipino Americans since the mid 1980s. Her critically acclaimed first collection of short fiction, Ginseng and Other Tales from Manila (Calyx Books 1991) was short–listed for the Philippines’ National Book Award. Her work has been widely anthologized. Her story, “Silence,” first published in the Threepenny Review, was short–listed for the 2000 O. Henry Literature Prize, and “The Hand” was awarded first prize in Juked’s 2007 fiction contest. She has edited an anthology of Filipina women’s writings, Going Home to a Landscape, which was selected as a Notable Book by the prestigious Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize. She currently teaches writing and literature at Foothill College and Notre Dame de Namur University. Born and raised in Manila, she now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. Read an interview with Marianne Villanueva here: http://www.writelit.com/interview-with-marianne-villanueva
Anthony Varallo, author of Out LoudAnthony Varallo earned his MFA from the University of Iowa/Iowa Writers' Workshop and his Ph.D. in English and Creative Writing from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He joined the College of Charleston in 2005, where he teaches courses in creative writing and composition and serves as fiction editor for Crazyhorse. He has published two collections of short stories, Out Loud, winner of the 2008 Drue Heinz Literature Prize (University of Pittsburgh Press), and This Day in History, winner of the 2005 John Simmons Short Fiction Award (University of Iowa Press). Read about Anthony Varallo winning the Drue Heinz Literature Prize here: http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A53363
Josh Weil, author of The New ValleyJosh Weil is the author of the novella collection The New Valley (Grove Press, 2009), a New York Times Editors Choice. His fiction has been published in Granta, New England Review, American Short Fiction, and Narrative; he has written non-fiction for The New York Times, Granta, and Poets & Writers. Since earning his MFA from Columbia University, he has received a Fulbright grant, fellowships to the Bread Loaf and Sewanee Writers’ Conferences, and the Dana Award in Portfolio. As the 2009 Tickner Fellow, he is the writer-in-residence at Gilman School in Baltimore, where he is at work on a novel. Read a review of The New Valley in The New York Times here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/books/review/Doerr-t.html
POETRY
Nicole Cooley, author of The Afflicted GirlsNicole Cooley grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana. She received her BA from Brown University, her MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and her PhD from Emory University. Her first book of poetry, Resurrection, won the 1995 Walt Whitman Award and was published by LSU Press in 1996. Her second book of poetry, The Afflicted Girls, about the Salem witch trials of 1692, appeared with LSU Press in April 2004 and was chosen as one of the best poetry books of the year by Library Journal. She also published a novel, Judy Garland, Ginger Love, with Regan Books/Harper Collins (1998). Her third book of poetry, Breach, a collection of poems about Hurricane Katrina and the Gulf Coast, is forthcoming from LSU Press. Nicole Cooley discusses Hurricane Katrina on Pen America’s blog: http://penamerica.blogspot.com/2009/08/guest-post-nicole-cooley-on-hurricane.html
William Archila, author of The Art of ExileWilliam Archila was born in Santa Ana, El Salvador in 1968. At the age of twelve, he fled a civil war that tore his country apart and immigrated to the United States in 1980. He eventually became an English teacher and earned his MFA in poetry from the University of Oregon. His poems have appeared in Agni, Blue Mesa Review, Crab Orchard Review, The Georgia Review, The Los Angeles Review, Notre Dame Review, Poetry International, Poetry Daily, and elsewhere. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife. Read a review of The Art of Exile here: http://recently-banned-literature.blogspot.com/2009/05/william-archila-art-of-exile.html
Kathleen Flenniken, author of FamousKathleen Flenniken’s first book, Famous (University of Nebraska Press, 2006), won the Prairie Schooner Book Prize in Poetry and was named a 2007 Notable Book by the American Library Association. Her poems have appeared in Poetry Daily, Poetry, and The Iowa Review. Flenniken is a recipient of an NEA Fellowship and an Artist Trust grant for her second manuscript, Atomic City. She teaches with Writers in the Schools in Seattle and other arts agencies, and is an editor with Floating Bridge Press, a non-profit poetry press. Visit Kathleen Flenniken’s Web site: http://www.kathleenflenniken.com/
NONFICTION
Steve Fellner, author of All Screwed UpSteve Fellner is the author of a poetry collection (Marsh Hawk Press) and a memoir, All Screwed Up (Benu Press). He currently teaches at SUNY Brockport. Visit Steve Fellner’s blog here: http://pansypoetics.blogspot.com/
Dawn Potter, author of Tracing Paradise: Two Years in Harmony with John MiltonDawn Potter is associate director of the Frost Place Conference on Poetry and Teaching, held each summer at Robert Frost's home in Franconia, New Hampshire. She has won writing fellowships from the Elizabeth George Foundation and the Maine Arts Commission. In addition to Tracing Paradise: Two Years in Harmony with John Milton, her memoir about copying out all of Paradise Lost word for word while living in the Maine woods, she has just released her second poetry collection, How the Crimes Happened. New poems and essays appear in the Sewanee Review, the Threepenny Review, Prairie Schooner, and many other journals. She serves on the Beloit Poetry Journal's editorial board and works frequently with both K-12 students and adult writers. Dawn lives in Harmony, Maine, with photographer Thomas Birtwistle and their two sons. Visit Dawn Potter’s blog here: http://dlpotter.blogspot.com/
About The Writer’s Center:
The Writer’s Center assists students of all ages, backgrounds and skill levels in the cultivation, creation, publication, presentation, and dissemination of literary work. As an independent literary organization with a global reach, The Writer’s Center represents a broad and dynamic community of writers. Writing is interdisciplinary and unique among the arts for its ability to touch on all aspects of the human experience. Among the oldest and premier institutions of its kind, The Writer’s Center’s enduring philosophy is that the craft of writing enriches lives and open doors to knowledge and understanding. The Writer’s Center is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax deductible. A copy of our current financial statement is available upon request.
THE NFL:
Well I guess Tom Brady is back. The guy is the best in the NFL. I was following last night's game (against those Bills) online. Every comeback is amazing. New England just needs a stronger defense. Either Pittsburgh, New England or Baltimore will win the Superbowl this year. Of course we have to wait a few more games to see which teams will be cursed by injuries. Stay tuned. In Washington - Campbell looks like soup gone cold. If the Skins lose to the Rams there might have to be a quick QB change. Campbell seems a tad slow making decisions at time. I've been saying this for too long. I'll just punt for now and keep my mouth shut.
VOCABULARY BUILDING:
The word the last few months has been transparency. People in administration love to use it. If you see this word in any memo (at work) find some tissue for the BS. Transparency is a veil with sunglasses. The most transparent thing these days is the apology. Checkout Kanye West on the Jay Leno Show last night. It was an Oprah moment after Oprah. Transparency only works if there is something you want to see on the other side. We like this word right now because it's an outgrowth of reality television and the general reduction of privacy in our lives. We want to see everything and know everything. Be a fool or racist and the crowd demands an apology. Crying is good for effect - but remember keep your tears clear so that we can see through them too. We want people to remain children because we don't want to grow-up. Jay Leno asked Kanye West about how his mother would feel about him. It was another "boy" moment. West reminded me of so many young black men behind bars. They sit looking down at the floor as if they fail to realize the hell they are already in. But maybe Serena Williams speaks for all of us - the oppressed and the wretched of the earth. Yes, read race here. Was that a Fanon moment at the U.S. Open? The threat of violence in order to be purified and made clean, clear, and even transparent? When people are confronted with the unknown - transparency can be a temporary comfort blanket. A way of looking beyond fear. Without the apology we have to deal with the anger and the violence.
Jim Wilson refused to apologize "in public" because it would be a loss of white power. His supporters are aware of this. Notice how he apologized in private to the president. How transparent are things you cannot even see?
The word the last few months has been transparency. People in administration love to use it. If you see this word in any memo (at work) find some tissue for the BS. Transparency is a veil with sunglasses. The most transparent thing these days is the apology. Checkout Kanye West on the Jay Leno Show last night. It was an Oprah moment after Oprah. Transparency only works if there is something you want to see on the other side. We like this word right now because it's an outgrowth of reality television and the general reduction of privacy in our lives. We want to see everything and know everything. Be a fool or racist and the crowd demands an apology. Crying is good for effect - but remember keep your tears clear so that we can see through them too. We want people to remain children because we don't want to grow-up. Jay Leno asked Kanye West about how his mother would feel about him. It was another "boy" moment. West reminded me of so many young black men behind bars. They sit looking down at the floor as if they fail to realize the hell they are already in. But maybe Serena Williams speaks for all of us - the oppressed and the wretched of the earth. Yes, read race here. Was that a Fanon moment at the U.S. Open? The threat of violence in order to be purified and made clean, clear, and even transparent? When people are confronted with the unknown - transparency can be a temporary comfort blanket. A way of looking beyond fear. Without the apology we have to deal with the anger and the violence.
Jim Wilson refused to apologize "in public" because it would be a loss of white power. His supporters are aware of this. Notice how he apologized in private to the president. How transparent are things you cannot even see?
Monday, September 14, 2009
Tricycle's Daily Dharma
Wake Up the Universe
In meditation we seem to be sitting by ourselves, but we do not sit just for ourselves. By focusing our attention on the breath, the body, thoughts, feelings, and sensations, or any other facet of our experience in meditation, we become more mindful—not mindless—through the transformative power of moment-to-moment alertness and presence of mind. Instead of absentmindedly stumbling through life like sleepwalkers, we can use contemplative practice to achieve extraordinary insight into ourselves and the world in which we live; to inhabit and appreciate more fully the here and now; to free our minds and open our hearts, and to relax into our natural state. The cultivation of mindfulness helps us wake up to things as they are rather than as we would like them to be. And as we wake up to truth, to reality, we become a force for universal awakening, working with what actually is, not delusive fictions.
–Lama Surya Das, from “Why Sit?” in the Fall 2002 edition of Tricycle
NOT ON CRAIGSLIST
In The New York Times today on page A7 there is a small article about Osama bin Laden issuing a new audio message. Remember when his tapes made the headlines? This last message came a few days after the anniversary of the September 11th attacks of 2001. Nearly 3000 Americans died on that day. Strange how bin Laden is still around recording tapes. It's like the guy is playing Vegas every year. Maybe keeping bin Laden out of the headlines is way of ignoring the failure of American policy in Afghanistan. As the Obama Administration goes deeper into war one wonders if the objective in Afghanistan is to catch or kill bin Laden or is it nation building and improving living conditions in that nation. Until we know what we're doing - it makes no sense to commit more American troops. At the same time to slip backwards into a role of isolationism is not an option. The Obama Administration has some major decisions to make. Health care might be easy to solve - wars are easy to start but difficult to end.
In The New York Times today on page A7 there is a small article about Osama bin Laden issuing a new audio message. Remember when his tapes made the headlines? This last message came a few days after the anniversary of the September 11th attacks of 2001. Nearly 3000 Americans died on that day. Strange how bin Laden is still around recording tapes. It's like the guy is playing Vegas every year. Maybe keeping bin Laden out of the headlines is way of ignoring the failure of American policy in Afghanistan. As the Obama Administration goes deeper into war one wonders if the objective in Afghanistan is to catch or kill bin Laden or is it nation building and improving living conditions in that nation. Until we know what we're doing - it makes no sense to commit more American troops. At the same time to slip backwards into a role of isolationism is not an option. The Obama Administration has some major decisions to make. Health care might be easy to solve - wars are easy to start but difficult to end.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
FROM MICHON BOSTON'S BLOG:
THE TEA BAGGER 9/12 DEMONSTRATION AT THE CAPITOL
I wonder if Wednesday was just a warm up act on Rep. Wilson’s part, because today the anti-reform, anti-big government, anti-tax, anti-anti folks were having a tea party demonstration on the south lawn of the U.S. Capitol. The Washington Post reports tens of thousands of them. Well, guess what? This blogger was there! so I can give you the scoop.
My family and I joined a small coalition consisting of pro-health care reform supporters. The sign I held read “People of Faith for Health Care Reform”. Yeah, we got heckled, people took our pictures with the cell phone cameras, but I would say their taunts were nothing compared to my junior high school classmates.
Lots of flag carrying, of course, flag jackets, flag signs and signs reading “Obama the Czar of Healthcare” or something else. I don’t know a lot about Russian history, but what I do know is that the Czar of Russia was deposed and executed during the 1917 Russian Revolution ultimately leading to the formation of the Communist state known then as the USSR. So if Obama is “the Czar,” who are the “real Communists” in this scenario?
In terms of numbers, conservative lawmakers will be encouraged by what the Washington Post reports. But what you won’t read is the demographic make up. I would estimate that 99.5% of the crowd was caucasian or white. I counted maybe 7 persons of color other than white. 95 percent were over the age of 40. Median age, maybe 51 - 54 - the bridge years. Makes an interesting picture. Read what you want into it. I’m just sayin’.
I had a chat with one of the marchers who decided to start a conversation. Our dialogue was civil, but rallies and marches are not the places to change hearts and minds. For me, these encounters are for information gathering, and it’s always interesting to find where you fall on the same page. What I don’t find acceptable are attitudes of “I got mine, what’s wrong with you or these people” and starting each sentence with “I’m afraid.” Decisions made from fear often than not turn out to be bad and disastrous decisions, and are usually misinformed decisions. Our marcher insisted reform means “govenrment takeover” and she likes the broken system we already have with private insurance administrators — not doctors — calling the shots. She compared our healthcare to car insurance. You use it when you have an accident. Use the clinic (if you have one) for all the other stuff and pay. “Well, I’m not a car,” I said. Cars can also be replaced.
One piece of information I will take away is that our marcher doesn’t like being called a “tea bagger” and she informed us that their meetings look nothing like what we’ve seen on television. Here’s where we fall on the same page. We both agree, television news is not helping any of us with their “infotainment” angles. So I’m happy to oblige and not name call.
WHAT'S THE WORD? JOE (hannesburg)?
Maureen Dowd's essay in the New York Times was priceless. But let's check the Fox. I watched Chris Mathews interview Joe (Wilson) the Congressman this morning. Mathews made reference to Dowd's comments and shared them with Wilson. This is what was quoted:
Wilson clearly did not like being lectured and even rebuked by the brainy black president presiding over the majestic chamber.
Once again Fox was tinkering. Here is the full paragraph of what Dowd said:
The congressman, we learned, belonged to the Sons of Confederate Veterans, led a 2000 campaign to keep the Confederate flag waving above South Carolina's state Capitol and denounced as a "smear" the true claim of a black woman that she was the daughter of Strom Thurmond, the '48 segregationist candidate for president. Wilson clearly did not like being lectured and even rebuked by the brainy black president presiding over the majestic chamber.
Notice how we might view Wilson in a different light if Dowd's complete paragraph is shared with us. But of course Fox is not going to present their news this way.
Dowd makes a statement in her essay that we should all paste on the fridge:
Some people just can't believe a black man is president and will never accept it.
Take a look at the posters that were carried by people protesting Obama's health plan yesterday. Here is one: Hey Obama. Here's a tip for you - keep the change.
This is nothing but calling Obama a boy. I expect to see the N-Word in a few posters by 2012.
Of course the people carrying the signs will deny that it's racist, or that they are racists. They will apologize and pass their sickness to someone else.
I think South Carolina Congressman Jim Clyburn said it best - and he is quoted in the Dowd article. You really can't extend an olive branch to some of these Right Wing groups. Americans need to be strong when it comes to protecting our nation's values. We can't let a few people hijack our flag, history, or the founding documents we hold dear.
Finally, there has to be something behind Wilson's outburst in Congress. Why is he so afraid of issues of immigration and health care? What's going on in South Carolina? More and more, the news coming from folks associated with SC reminds me of the old South Africa these days. What would Bishop Tutu do?
PASS THE SARAH PALIN GLASSES, PLEASE or keep me in a dark room. Are there blues singers in Alaska?
Another Tyler Perry movie is out. I can do without this all by myself. I cringe wondering what will happen to For Colored Girls which he plans to put out. Who will hang me out the window before I go see it? Maybe the reason we don't see too many black people at the town meetings "yelling" about health care is because we are in movie theaters watching the next Perry movie. Perry in the air is the state of the race. Madea rules. We still love to see black men dress up as black women. Why? Flip Wilson come back and explain this to me.
Money is being made and it's all entertainment - Right? What if slavery came back disguised as a pill? Would we place it on our tongues? Do we really want to know what freedom tastes like? Will all the film reviewers step forward.
THE E MAG
Treve de blues
- Leon Damas
Compassion is my art
- Grace A. Ali
God makes stars. It's up to producers to find them
- Samuel Goldwyn
WELCOME TO THE E MAG, AN INTRODUCTION INTO THE WORDS OF OTHERS. TODAY MY GUEST IS
CAMILLE T. DUNGY.
DUNGY:
Where I’ve lived and where I’m living: a place’s storms keep me up nights
It’s
In the coming months I’ll publish two new books. Each was a product of the places I lived as they came together. I wrote Suck on the Marrow (due January 2010) during my final four years living in
Suck on the Marrow, helped me grasp the history of a place I couldn’t deny.
I grew more aware of landscape, conscious of the history attached to each tree limb, each river, each cycle of rainfall and drought. When I came back to
Starting in January 2010, I will begin touring the country doing group and individual readings from both Black Nature and Suck on the Marrow. Perhaps I’ll visit a school or bookstore or venue near you (I’m still booking dates, so feel free to contact me if you would like me to be a part of your reading series). I know that I will take notes as I travel the country. The electrical storms of each new state, the joys or fears that come with rain, the greenness of trees and dryness of grasses, long-standing puddles and drawn-down reservoirs: I will absorb these details and hope that after each downpour new poems will grow.
Camille T. Dungy is author of What to Eat, What to Drink, What to Leave for Poison (Red Hen Press, 2006) and Suck on the Marrow (Red Hen Press, January 2010). She is editor of Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry (UGA, December 2009), and co-editor of From the Fishouse: An Anthology of Poems that Sing, Rhyme, Resound, Syncopate, Alliterate, and Just Plain Sound Great (Persea, April 2009). Dungy has received fellowships from organizations including the National Endowment for the Arts, the Virginia Commission for the Arts, Cave Canem, the Dana Award, and Bread Loaf. She is associate professor of Creative Writing at
Saturday, September 12, 2009
CAMPS? Or is that just smoke in the distance?
It was always difficult for me to understand how the Japanese could be placed in camps in the US during WWII. Yet the recent town meetings, the talk shows, the political nonsense spreading worse than Swine Flu, is amazing. It's deadly. It's just a matter of time before people become reckless and more bad behavior is rewarded with a late apology and t-shirts. When did our politics become a video game? It's not that our nation is moving to the Right, it's more that we find the Right wing entertaining like old time lynchings. How many decent folks surrounded a burning corpse and then went home and tucked their kids into beds? Fear is a mistress and she seduces us all. If you want to know where America is heading, follow the tracks of my tears.
A man walks down the street
It's a street in a strange world
Maybe it's the Third World
Maybe it's his first time around
He doesn't speak the language
He holds no currency
He is a foreign man
He is surrounded by the sound
The sound
Cattle in the marketplace
Scatterlings and orphanages
He looks around, around
He sees angels in the architecture
Spinning in infinity
He says Amen! and Hallelujah!
- Paul Simon, Lyrics from You Can Call Me Al
MySpace Music profile for Jessica Care Moore. Download Jessica Care Moore ... The Alphabet Verses The Ghetto, and the forthcoming, God is Not an American. ...
www.myspace.com/jessicacaremoore
An interview with Jessica follows:
Jessica Care Moore Interviewwww.myspace.com/jessicacaremoore
An interview with Jessica follows:
Do you have a favorite poem in your new book "God Is Not An American"?
Some of my favorites are:
"even the light skinned girls are sick of the light skinned girls (for dream hampton)"
"black/south/africa"
"dhs office trip #7"
What is the meaning behind the title?
I came up with the title while I was writing the poem. To me it is my most mature writing. It is very unapologetically political.
After 9/11 I wanted to do a book that focused on my experiences outside the country and how people took me and how traveling shaped my vision. The title is also a metaphor for the wars and the way we blow up children. We are supposed to be this country of humanitarians but we destroy people in the name of oil. God is not an American or anything else. People have lost what God is supposed to mean.
Where can I purchase the book?
At my website: http://mooreblackpress.com/ or at some of the events where I will be performing.
What cities are you performing next?
SEPT 8 - Detroit, MI - "God is Not an American" Book Release Party - 10pm -
5E Gallery, 2125 Michigan Avenue. Jam Session! Performance and Book
Signing 10pm FREE!
Books on sale: $20.00
SEPT 26 - Washington, DC - Panel and Book Signing - Congressional Black Caucus Weekend 1PM.
(teen girls and education. poetry performance) -
SEPT 26- New York - Host of 2010: The Hip Hop Experiment featuring pianist Marc Cary - Harlem Stage 8PM
SEPT 27- Baltimore, MD - Baltimore Book Festival
SEPT 29- Baltimore, MD - Urban Organic, Feature Performance, Book Signing
OCT 2 - St. Louis, MO- Keynote Performance- MUSEUM OF MISSOURI
OCT 9 - Grinnell, IA- Solo Performance - Grinnell College
OCT 11- Cincinnati, OH - 7-11pm "God is Not an American" Book
Release Party - Phat Daddy's 7655 Reading Rd. 45237 jessica Care
Moore Live!! Book signing follows performance.
OCT 15 - Columbia, MO- Keynote Speaker/ Performance - University of Missouri
POETRY: BEND IT WITH BECKER.
Fall Poetry Events 2009
Sunday, September 13 (6 pm) 15th Anniversary Celebration of the Iota
Poetry Series, hosted by Miles David Moore. Readers include Anne Becker,
Pam Blehert, JoAnne Growney, Michael Gushue, A.M. Juster, Greg McBride,
Jean Nordhaus, Dan Vera, Kathi Wolfe and Katherine Young. Iota Club &
Café, 2832 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA.
Monday, September 21 (7:30-9:30pm) Monthly session of the Writing a
Village poetry workshop, led by Anne Becker, poet laureate of Takoma
Park. “Comrades of the word” near and far, of all levels of experience
are welcome to join. Bring a poem and ten copies to share with the
group. Workshop is free but please email Anne Becker:
annebecker@bodywriting.org if you plan to attend. If you have questions
call (301) 270-8037. Please note that the sessions will all be on the
third Monday of the month. Other dates are Oct.19, Nov. 16, & Dec. 21.
Takoma Park Community Center, 7500 Maple Ave., Takoma Park, MD 20912.
Sunday, October 4 (3-6 pm) Anne Becker’s workshop “Writing the Body,”
for those with experience of life-threatening or chronic illness as
patient, caregiver or family member begins. Other dates in this session:
Oct. 18, Nov. 1 & 15, & Dec. 6. Fee: $240. For more information or to
register contact annebecker@bodywriting.org or call (301) 270-8037.
TODAY:
Book Discussion: The 5th Inning
Saturday, September 12 4pm – BUSBOYS AND POETS/5TH AND K Street, NW
(Cullen Room) - Page Burners Book Club discussion. Club members will discuss The 5th Inning, by E.Ethelbert Miller. For more information please contact: Lorenita Lucas at LLtexas@aol.com
Guests
ANOTHER INNING WITH FRIENDS:
Book Discussion: The 5th Inning
Saturday, September 12 4pm – BUSBOYS AND POETS/5TH AND K Street, NW
(Cullen Room) - Page Burners Book Club discussion. Club members will discuss The 5th Inning, by E.Ethelbert Miller. For more information please contact: Lorenita Lucas at LLtexas@aol.com
Guests
Tricycle's Daily Dharma
Focus Your Lens
Action isn't a burden to be hoisted up and lugged around on our shoulders. It is something we are. The work we have to do can be seen as a kind of coming alive. More than some moral imperative, it's an awakening to our true nature, a releasing of our gifts. This flow-through of energy and ideas is at every moment directed by our choice. That's our role in it. We're like a lens that can focus, or a gate that can direct this flow through by schooling our intention. In each moment we can give it direction.
–Joanna Macy, from “Schooling Our Intention,” Tricycle, Winter 1993
Friday, September 11, 2009
THE LITTLE e-NOTE: The 1 Question Interview
Edwidge Danticat, novelist
Question: Who are some of the important women in Haitian history?
Among the first people murdered on our island was Anacaona. She was a Taïno, Arawak, poet, dancer, carver, merchant and painter. She ruled over the western part of an island so lush and green that the Taïnos called it Ayiti, land on high. When the Spaniards came from across the seas to look for gold, Anacaona was one of their victims. She was hanged and her region pillaged, but we speak her name still today because she was strong and she was gifted, talented and brave. When I was writing a young adult book about her, I was driving in Haiti when suddenly the car I was riding in broke down in front of the Anacaona police station in Léogane, part of the region where she was a ruler. Yes, I told myself. Anacaona is still with us today, every day. There are many very important and powerful Haitian women, but if I had to choose just one I’d pick Anacaona, our Eve, the mother of all Hispaniola heroines. Her name carries both the splendor and agony of a past that both haunts and strengthens so many women, and men of our island today.
Joe Media:
From Joe the Plum to Joe the Congress guy it seems like identity politics has gone white or a lighter shade of pale. We dodged a tennis ball with Oudin's defeat.Can you imagine the nonsense that might have errupted if she had to play Serena? This is all media created.Joe Wilson yells at Obama -in Iraq the journalist who threw his shoes at Bush will be released from prison. He served nine months behind bars. But the guy is coming out to mucho gifts.Folks want to give him a new home and a bride.All for throwing shoes at Bush.Is it possible I can make money with a t-shirt that says "Republican Virgins for Wilson in 2010?
From Joe the Plum to Joe the Congress guy it seems like identity politics has gone white or a lighter shade of pale. We dodged a tennis ball with Oudin's defeat.Can you imagine the nonsense that might have errupted if she had to play Serena? This is all media created.Joe Wilson yells at Obama -in Iraq the journalist who threw his shoes at Bush will be released from prison. He served nine months behind bars. But the guy is coming out to mucho gifts.Folks want to give him a new home and a bride.All for throwing shoes at Bush.Is it possible I can make money with a t-shirt that says "Republican Virgins for Wilson in 2010?
Thursday, September 10, 2009
SAY IT AIN'T SO JOE:
Well, there was Republican Joe Wilson (South Carolina) thinking he was in a town meeting and not Congress last night. Where was Aretha Franklin to hit him with her hat? R.E.S.P.E.C.T. It's become very obvious that some people no longer "respect" the office of the presidency because Obama is black. Let's not try to hide this fact. We need to be very open about this. Yes, last night was a teachable moment. How do we expect our citizens to behave if our representatives can't? Oh, and the apology comes too late. The china in the kitchen is broken. You can't fix it. Look for more people to show disrespect for the office. Keep in mind that last night it wasn't an outside "heckler" with an offensive t-shirt yelling at the president. It was one of our own representatives. Can you imagine someone in the Black Caucus yelling out in Congress that Ronald Reagan lies? No, you can't. If that person did something like that they would be whispering to OJ through the bars. Again and again we see race "haunting" American behavior. Sooner or later the media will find a "Great White Hope" and maybe all will be well again in America. Right? No, that's only going to happen if you want to return to the fairytale land of the past. America is moving out of childhood and adolescence. The adult America is a multicultural nation. It's one nation under a groove. It's a place that can hold multitudes and contradictions. We must be civil and tolerant of our many differences. We must be respectful of our government, our founding documents, and this system we hold dear. If we fail to do this, then we will be forced to search Joe Wilson when he enters the halls of Congress. Zero tolerance is the only way we can prevent Obama from being physically attacked in the future or having something thrown at him. Yes, it was "liar, liar, last night. I hope it won't be the N-word in the morning.
Well, there was Republican Joe Wilson (South Carolina) thinking he was in a town meeting and not Congress last night. Where was Aretha Franklin to hit him with her hat? R.E.S.P.E.C.T. It's become very obvious that some people no longer "respect" the office of the presidency because Obama is black. Let's not try to hide this fact. We need to be very open about this. Yes, last night was a teachable moment. How do we expect our citizens to behave if our representatives can't? Oh, and the apology comes too late. The china in the kitchen is broken. You can't fix it. Look for more people to show disrespect for the office. Keep in mind that last night it wasn't an outside "heckler" with an offensive t-shirt yelling at the president. It was one of our own representatives. Can you imagine someone in the Black Caucus yelling out in Congress that Ronald Reagan lies? No, you can't. If that person did something like that they would be whispering to OJ through the bars. Again and again we see race "haunting" American behavior. Sooner or later the media will find a "Great White Hope" and maybe all will be well again in America. Right? No, that's only going to happen if you want to return to the fairytale land of the past. America is moving out of childhood and adolescence. The adult America is a multicultural nation. It's one nation under a groove. It's a place that can hold multitudes and contradictions. We must be civil and tolerant of our many differences. We must be respectful of our government, our founding documents, and this system we hold dear. If we fail to do this, then we will be forced to search Joe Wilson when he enters the halls of Congress. Zero tolerance is the only way we can prevent Obama from being physically attacked in the future or having something thrown at him. Yes, it was "liar, liar, last night. I hope it won't be the N-word in the morning.
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
ANOTHER INNING WITH FRIENDS:
Book Discussion: The 5th Inning
Saturday, September 12 4pm – BUSBOYS AND POETS/5TH AND K Street, NW
(Cullen Room) - Page Burners Book Club discussion. Club members will discuss The 5th Inning, by E.Ethelbert Miller. For more information please contact: Lorenita Lucas at LLtexas@aol.com
Guests
THE MARC STEINER SHOW:
COMING UP TODAY!
In the first hour of today's show we'll speak with Dwayne Betts, who at age sixteen began an eight year prison sentence in an adult facility. His memoir, A Question of Freedom, discusses coming of age in prison and how the justice system fails youth in this country.
Later in the 5pm hour we'll be joined by the director and actors from the play The Mercy Seat, which opens at the Strand Theater this weekend. The play looks at the September 11th attacks from the perspective of a worker at the World Trade Center who was away with his mistress when the towers fell.
Then at 6pm join us for the second installment in our Voices From the Archives Series. This hour we feature legendary musicians Doc Watson and Jean Ritchie as we look at the tradition of American folk and blues music.
COMING UP THURSDAY!
We'll talk with the makers of FRESH, a documentary that explores the environmental and ethical consequences of an industrialized food system.
Author and biologist Carol Yoon joins us to discuss her new book, Naming Nature, which explores how we classify life forms on this planet and the difference between scientific and common names for animals.
And we'll analyze and discuss President Obama's much-anticipated healthcare address to Congress. Make sure to call in to share your thoughts on his speech!
INTERN FOR THE MARC STEINER SHOW!The Marc Steiner Show needs interns! We're looking for motivated individuals who are interested in current events and learning how to run a show behind the scenes. You must be available at least once a week for a shift of four hours minimum. Please email justin@steinershow.org with a letter and resume to be considered!
Listen from 5-7pm on WEAA 88.9FM or online at http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1102698680565&s=2417&e=001MIIImkoAtJdUK5b-_244LV-Gi5m5jCD18Ubn6jDF18giJusn7t3inMS7GXorZV3UhXfzTVtV4c39JVJuBUZ1pY-k8Tl6KFtR8c33439eH34=. All shows are also available as podcasts at http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1102698680565&s=2417&e=001MIIImkoAtJfdJY6MHqjueLLAcMCBxrLCucdDk6wuIjqzd28b2nqUfKp40puneSLkjkH3XV-4uS5U_wi0qGKHzIzvAkcXPI7rhd6G-zT86823ys6IuptPSA==.
Later in the 5pm hour we'll be joined by the director and actors from the play The Mercy Seat, which opens at the Strand Theater this weekend. The play looks at the September 11th attacks from the perspective of a worker at the World Trade Center who was away with his mistress when the towers fell.
Then at 6pm join us for the second installment in our Voices From the Archives Series. This hour we feature legendary musicians Doc Watson and Jean Ritchie as we look at the tradition of American folk and blues music.
COMING UP THURSDAY!
We'll talk with the makers of FRESH, a documentary that explores the environmental and ethical consequences of an industrialized food system.
Author and biologist Carol Yoon joins us to discuss her new book, Naming Nature, which explores how we classify life forms on this planet and the difference between scientific and common names for animals.
And we'll analyze and discuss President Obama's much-anticipated healthcare address to Congress. Make sure to call in to share your thoughts on his speech!
INTERN FOR THE MARC STEINER SHOW!The Marc Steiner Show needs interns! We're looking for motivated individuals who are interested in current events and learning how to run a show behind the scenes. You must be available at least once a week for a shift of four hours minimum. Please email justin@steinershow.org with a letter and resume to be considered!
Listen from 5-7pm on WEAA 88.9FM or online at http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1102698680565&s=2417&e=001MIIImkoAtJdUK5b-_244LV-Gi5m5jCD18Ubn6jDF18giJusn7t3inMS7GXorZV3UhXfzTVtV4c39JVJuBUZ1pY-k8Tl6KFtR8c33439eH34=. All shows are also available as podcasts at http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1102698680565&s=2417&e=001MIIImkoAtJfdJY6MHqjueLLAcMCBxrLCucdDk6wuIjqzd28b2nqUfKp40puneSLkjkH3XV-4uS5U_wi0qGKHzIzvAkcXPI7rhd6G-zT86823ys6IuptPSA==.
POETRY: UPCOMING READING: WEAVER AND MILLER
Event: Discussion/Poetry Readings by poets Afaa Michael Weaver & E ...
Discussion/Poetry Readings by poets Afaa Michael Weaver & E. Ethelbert Miller. (Lecture/Discussion). NEA & University of Pittsburgh Press will co-sponsor.
Discussion/Poetry Readings by poets Afaa Michael Weaver & E. Ethelbert Miller. (Lecture/Discussion). NEA & University of Pittsburgh Press will co-sponsor.