jr - Blogs - TheBlackList Pub2024-03-29T14:25:16Zhttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/jrBeginners Learn To Buy and Sell Stocks with FLip That Stockhttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/beginners-learn-to-buy-and-sell-stocks-with-flip-that-stock2017-10-02T18:00:26.000Z2017-10-02T18:00:26.000ZLeShelle, host of MinorityReporthttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/LeShellehostofMinorityReport<div><p><a href="https://www.minorityreporttvshow.com/single-post/2017/10/02/Beginners-Learn-To-Buy-and-Sell-Stocks-with-FLip-That-Stock" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}3828598748,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="600" class="align-full" alt="3828598748?profile=original" /></a></p><p>Less than a month ago, an article was released stating by 2053, "Black households will have a median wealth of zero." In other words: half the population have less, the other half have more. Those people who have more are typically white people. If you don't see that as a problem, we probably shouldn't be friends. If you aren't willing to do anything about it, don't even acknowledge me when you see me in the streets. Word.</p><p>Wealth inequity is not a new phenomenon. Not only is it not new; the repercussions and consequences of failing to create generational wealth can impact your family for generations. <a href="https://www.minorityreporttvshow.com/single-post/2017/10/02/Beginners-Learn-To-Buy-and-Sell-Stocks-with-FLip-That-Stock" target="_blank">Read more...</a></p></div>China-Africa cooperation as seen by African youth *https://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/china-africa-cooperation-seen-by-african-2017-04-25T13:30:00.000Z2017-04-25T13:30:00.000ZBasilio Muhatehttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/BasilioMuhate<div><p style="text-align:center;"><span lang="en" xml:lang="en"><span><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}3828594707,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-full" src="{{#staticFileLink}}3828594707,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="480" alt="3828594707?profile=original" /></a></span></span></p><p><span id="result_box" lang="en" xml:lang="en"><span>* <strong>Edmundo Galiza Matos Junior</strong>, speaking on behalf of Africa at the opening of the First Asia-Africa Youth Festival, Beijing</span></span></p><p></p><p>Distinct leaders of the People's Republic of China, young Asians, Africans and our host China</p><p>Ladies and gentlemen</p><ol><li>We Fit it to honor to proceed with a speech in representation of all the young Africans, invited by our country friend and brother, China and we thank you, but above all hope to renew our laces of brotherhood here;</li><li>Let me start by making a historical, social and political framing of our wonderful continent, Africa;</li><li>The north of Africa is the oldest region of the world. The Egyptian civilization blossomed and was interrelated with most of the cultural areas of the Mediterranean world.</li><li>During the fifteen century, exploring Europeans of Portugal, Spain, France, England and the Netherlands had arrived in Africa and had initiated the trade of slaves.</li><li>Our ancestors were used to develop the occident as slaves. The first scientific trips to Africa accomplished by Charles-Jacques Poncet in the Abissínia; James Bruce, looking for the place where the Nile was born; Friedrich Konrad travelling in the Libyan desert on camel; Henry Morton Stanley and David Livingstone in the basin of Congo, had opened the doors for the division of a continent that destroyed and modified the social, economic structures, religious politics and of the majority of the territory of black Africa.</li><li>The colonies that had started its independence process after World War II and concluded in 1960 (nineteen sixty) up to 1975 (nineteen seventy five) had faced serious problems of national integration;</li><li>Africa registers poverty levels, however has a fast growth of the population better than the food levels that it must produce.</li><li>We are a continent of 54 countries that has gained its political independence , but we are not totally independent under the economical point of view because we have 21 of the 31 poorest countries of the world that face malnutrition, illiteracy and low quality of life.</li><li>However, we are rich and our wealth during many years, has served the colonialists and in some cases even racist regimes, as it was the case of Apartheid.</li><li>Africa is the continent that lives pursued by stigma of sub development. It is seen as the region of the world victim of wars, genocides, epidemics, that even with the help and partnerships of the Occident, we have not succeeded, persisting in the cycle of poverty and sub development. For Africa, China appears as an alternative to the relations with the traditional donors and the possibility to opt to another source of external aid.</li><li> Africa is rich in terms of ethnic, cultural, mineral, social diversity and politics. We have extensive fertile lands for agriculture, we house huge amounts of the most looked after minerals, we have huge amounts of potential young people that need to be capacitated, we have many rivers and lakes that can be used to mitigated the extensive power shortage that many African countries face in this case china is the right partner to continue developing electricity projects.</li><li>In Africa great thinkers and leaders of this world have emerged, from <strong>Samora Machel, Nelson Mandela, Agostinho Neto, Kwame Nkrumah, Jomo Kenyata, Ahmed Sekou, Haile Selassie, Eduardo Mondlane, Ahmed Bem Bena, Josiah Tongogara, Mwalimumu Julius Nyerere, Leopold Senghor</strong> and many more that this venue does not have time for us to mention.</li><li>To all those and the excessively anonimous ones that fought, and fight for our free Africa, to our Chinese brother that even far away from us contributed to the liberation of Africa namely ……….. we want to use this opportunity to say thank you.</li><li>Our hope, as African, is to see our continent prospering day-after day because we believe in a cooperation based on friendship and respect between the People, with mutual advantages;</li><li>We believe in the reinforcement of the relations between China and Africa because the capital that China has to invest and the technology it has, needs raw materials to support its industry, to feed its population, and to continue to increase its volumes of export to conquer the international markets.</li><li>Africa is in honest growth. We have raw materials and we need infrastructures and technology that China possesses for its exploration that implies the continuity and increase of investments.</li><li>In the context of my country, Mozambique, for example, president <strong>Xi Jinping</strong> and president <a href="http://www.presidencia.gov.mz" target="_blank">Filipe Nyusi</a> have signed an important agreement of global strategic partnership, thus joining efforts for the development of Perola do Indico, as we call #<strong>Mozambique</strong>.</li><li>Recently I passed through Luanda and saw the big city of Quilamba, result of efforts of the Chinese Goverment and 10 thousand Chinese workers who gave the Angolan people quality habitation. This is not only seen in this country we have many examples trough out Africa where we have seen and continue seeing the work that the Chinese constructs are doing in Africa just to mention a few</li><li>The commercial and enterprenual involvement of the Chinese people in the sectors of construction, agriculture, the extraction of natural resources helps our people to counterbalance the strong dependence on the traditional donors therefore reducing our debts, in offers of donations and concession of preferential loans, in technical empowerment and the supply of low cost construction. The volume of the aid that the expansion of trade with Chinese investments makes our economies grow and this result in the well-being of our people, particularly of the young people, US.</li><li>The aims contained in the new strategic partnership of China that are in the “Public Politics of China for Africa” and made public in the Beijing Forum for Cooperation China – Africa of 2006, discloses a different approach to that of the old colonies that explored mother Africa. Namely the acquisition of energy and raw material that will support the Chinese economy, cultivate the political support, consolidate the role of China in the international organizations.</li><li>As young africans, we understand that it is important to increase the economic and political interaction with the African continent and we request to our leaders a bigger dynamism in the relations that result in concrete politics and action plans for a better Chinese-African cooperation.</li><li>We young Africans believe the strategic partnership with China, will take us from being exporters of raw materials to exporters of finished products;</li><li>We young Africans believe in a model of commercial and enterprise partnerships that will promote private-private business relations, that we will not allways depend on endorsement of Governments and States;</li><li>We young Africans believe that the Chinese investment in Africa - whenever possible in partnerships with the locals -, in the production and transformation of natural resources, for export of product, half finished goods to the Chinese market and global market, that this will result in work for young Africans.<p></p><p></p></li><li>It is our understanding, that this is one of the forms that China will promote a sustainable development of young Africans.</li><li> As young, we manifest our satisfaction for the investment of China in public infrastructures and the direct establishment of the Chinese commercial banks in African countries;</li><li>This partnership promotes the desired competition in the financial sector, handspike the Chinese private investment in Africa and to commercial cooperation with China includes the facilitation of imports of Chinese technologies and goods.</li><li>We young Africans believe that cooperation in the field of the culture, arts and sport has a great impact in biggest approach between the people. The Chinese culture and art are object of great circular admiration in Africa. The increase of Martial Arts Schools, for example is a form to develop cooperation and friendship between our people;</li><li> When cooperating with Africa, we understand that China must bet in a transparent and inclusive model, where the chances created by this cooperation are divulged for all, without any type of discrimination no favors and all benefit to the young Africans above all.</li><li> To finish, allow me on behalf of all Africans, to leave a word of gratitude to Comrade President Xi Jiping, to the Communist Party of China, to the leaders of the Youth Party, to the teenagers of China in particular and to all our brothers and sisters of China.</li><li> Thank you very much and we hope this reunion does not end this year let us receive you next year in Africa</li></ol><p></p><p>Thank you</p><p>Edmundo Galiza Matos Junior</p><p>MP of Mozambique</p></div>April 27th is the 130th Anniversary of the Birth of Hubert Henry Harrison (1883-1927) Extraordinary Harlem-Based Intellectual and Activisthttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/april-27th-is-the-130th-anniversary-of-the-birth-of-hubert-henry2013-04-26T15:45:00.000Z2013-04-26T15:45:00.000ZJeffrey B. Perryhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/JeffreyBPerry<div><p style="text-align:center;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">April 27th is the 130th Anniversary of the Birth of Hubert Henry Harrison (1883-1927)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Extraordinary Harlem-Based Intellectual and Activist</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Hubert Henry Harrison (1883-1927) is one of the truly important figures of early twentieth-century America. A brilliant writer, orator, educator, critic, and political activist, he was described by the historian Joel A. Rogers, in "World’s Great Men of Color" as “the foremost Afro-American intellect of his time.” Rogers adds that “No one worked more seriously and indefatigably to enlighten” others and “none of the Afro-American leaders of his time had a saner and more effective program.” Labor and civil rights leader A. Philip Randolph described Harrison as “the father of Harlem Radicalism.” Harrison’s friend and pallbearer, Arthur Schomburg, fully aware of his popularity, eulogized to the thousands attending Harrison’s Harlem funeral that he was also “ahead of his time.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Born in St. Croix, Danish West Indies, in 1883, to a Bajan mother and a Crucian father, Harrison arrived in New York as a seventeen-year-old orphan in 1900. He made his mark in the United States by struggling against class and race oppression, by helping to create a remarkably rich and vibrant intellectual life among African Americans, and by working for the enlightened development of the lives of “the common people.” He consistently emphasized the need for working class people to develop class-consciousness; for “Negroes” to develop race consciousness, self-reliance, and self-respect; and for all those he reached to challenge white supremacy and develop modern, scientific, critical, and independent thought as a means toward liberation.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">A self-described “radical internationalist,” Harrison was extremely well versed in history and events in Africa, Asia, the Mideast, the Americas, and Europe. More than any other political leader of his era, he combined class-consciousness and anti-white supremacist race consciousness in a coherent political radicalism. He opposed capitalism and maintained that white supremacy was central to capitalist rule in the United States. He emphasized that “politically, the Negro is the touchstone of the modern democratic idea”; that “as long as the Color Line exists, all the perfumed protestations of Democracy on the part of the white race” were “downright lying”; that “the cant of ‘Democracy’” was “intended as dust in the eyes of white voters”; and that true democracy and equality for “Negroes” implied “a revolution . . . startling even to think of.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Working from this theoretical framework, he was active with a wide variety of movements and organizations and played signal roles in the development of what were, up to that time, the largest class radical movement (socialism) and the largest race radical movement (the “New Negro”/Garvey movement) in U.S. history. His ideas on the centrality of the struggle against white supremacy anticipated the profound transformative power of the Civil Rights/Black Liberation struggles of the 1960s and his thoughts on “democracy in America” offer penetrating insights on the limitations and potential of America in the twenty-first century.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Harrison served as the foremost Black organizer, agitator, and theoretician in the Socialist Party of New York during its 1912 heyday; he founded the first organization (the Liberty League) and the first newspaper ("The Voice") of the militant, World War I-era “New Negro” movement; and he served as the editor of the Negro World and principal radical influence on the Garvey movement during its radical high point in 1920. His views on race and class profoundly influenced a generation of “New Negro” militants including the class radical A. Philip Randolph and the race radical Marcus Garvey. Considered more race conscious than Randolph and more class conscious than Garvey, Harrison is the key link in the ideological unity of the two great trends of the Black Liberation Movement--the labor and civil rights trend associated with Martin Luther King, Jr., and the race and nationalist trend associated with Malcolm X. (Randolph and Garvey were, respectively, the direct links to King marching on Washington, with Randolph at his side, and to Malcolm, whose parents were involved with the Garvey movement, speaking militantly and proudly on street corners in Harlem.)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Harrison was not only a political radical, however. Rogers described him as an “Intellectual Giant and Free-Lance Educator,” whose contributions were wide-ranging, innovative, and influential. He was an immensely skilled and popular orator and educator who spoke and/or read six languages; a highly praised journalist, critic, and book reviewer (reportedly the first regular Black book reviewer "in Negro newspaperdom"); a pioneer Black activist in the freethought and birth control movements; a bibliophile and library builder and popularizer who helped develop the 135th Street Public Library into what became known as the internationally famous Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture; a pioneer Black lecturer for the New York City Board of Education, and one of its foremost orators).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">April 27th is the 130th anniversary of the birth of Hubert Henry Harrison -- there is much to learn from the life and work of this extraordinary intellectual and activist.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Helvetica;">Dr. Jeffrey B. Perry</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.jeffreybperry.net" target="_blank">http://www.jeffreybperry.net</a></p><p> </p></div>Rainbow Push Coalition 15th Annual Wall Street Project Opens in New York January 25-27https://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/rainbow-push-coalition-15th-annual-wall-street2012-01-24T22:30:00.000Z2012-01-24T22:30:00.000ZGloria Dulan-Wilsonhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/GloriaDulanWilson<div><p>By Gloria Dulan-Wilson ~</p><p><br /> It's hard to believe that fifteen years have passed since the First Wall Street Project opened in New York City. It was 1997, at at that time we actually were on Wall Street, with many of the events happening either in board rooms, on the trading room floors, or at the World Trade Center.<br /> <br /> I can remember sitting in the top of the World Trade Center at one of the luncheons, in a facility where the ceilings were arched, and so low that you had to bend to be in there, and you could not see the speakers because the columns blocked your view.<br /> <br /> They've come a long way from those early days of trying to make Black people more financially literate, investment action oriented, and move away from the mentality of a consumer to that of a producer. It's important that I say this, and that you grasp this and how significant it is that Rev. Jackson saw, and understood early on - before the economic downturn, before the mortgage crises, before the rampant foreclosures - he understood the devastation of not having economic parity for Black people -whether here in the US, or Africa, the Caribbean, or anywhere else we reside.<br /> <br /> His mission has been to provide us with as much education, exposure, opportunity and understanding of what Wall Street was about, and what it meant to us, who had been psychologically, physically, emotionally and economically kept out of the loop. The realm of investment, the marketplace, and the high stakes of finance had been relegated to the realm of whites and high rolling Blacks, the few who were allowed behind the "green" door. The rest of us were either part of conspicuous consumption, or the welfare state (at least that is where we were pushed).<br /> <br /> When Rev. Jackson first enunciated plans to study Wall Street as a means of breaking down the next barrier of racism, many of his peers in the "movement" thought he had lost it. Others thought he had joined the ranks of the "capitalist pigs." Interesting, since we all need and want money how many of us tried to pick the idea apart as though it was some kind of pariah.<br /> <br /> However, we who have given up more free labor on this planet than any other group of people in the world, and have not been compensated for our efforts - for the blood, sweat, tears and lives that went into building this nation - including the hallowed hall of Wall Street, Dow Jones, Broad Street and the other denizens of the almighty dollar. We, more than anyone, need to learn to work smarter, not harder, how to invest in growth funds, how to plan for longevity and retirement, how to make wise deals and purchases. When you think about it, the investment they made in bringing us here from Africa has paid off for everyone but us - big time.<br /> <br /> Now it's time to learn how not to make the mistakes that the "smartest guys in the house" made, which caused the economic mess we're in right now, while at the same time begin to develop our own autonomous investment and banking systems, as have other groups, so that we too can underwrite our children's education, purchase our own homes, build quality communities - in other words, call the shots.<br /> <br /> The most interesting thing about this is the irony that we live in New York City, the financial capital of the world. Yet we know nothing about it. The major industries in New York are FIRE - Finance, Insurance, Real Estate - yet they are not taught in any of our schools in a meaningful way. Neither we nor our children have ever been exposed to the inner workings of Wall Street. We know it's there, but except for the few Black proteges, we are more likely to see African Americans as security guards and custodians, than having a pivotal role in the high end banking, finance and investment arenas. The schools in New York may teach you how to count money, but they don't teach you how to use, invest, expand it. Why is that?<br /> <br /> Last year, the Rainbow Push Coalition quietly celebrated its 40th Anniversary on December 25, 2011. The great thing is that they are as relevant and active today as they were when they were first formed. In October 2011, Reverend Jesse Jackson, Sr. celebrated his 70th Birthday anniversary. And like these stellar programs he's created, he keeps getting better with age. There are few out there who can match his stride, his energy and his dedication to Black people. In celebrating these milestones, we are all winners as well, because he has taken the time to provide us with a blue print that we can follow out of this mess we're in - if we would but follow it (see gloriadulanwilson.blogspot.com - January 15, 2011).<br /> <br /> The theme of the 2012 Wall Street Project is <span style="font-style:italic;">"Bringing Everyone to the Table."</span> The Economic Summit this year will be lead by Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. and Terry J. Lundgren, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Macy's Inc. It will feature such panels as: Wall Street Project Career Development; Retooling and Retraining Break Out Sessions; The Women's Luncheon; The Minister's Prayer Breakfast and Roundtable. Among the presenters will be John Grant, Author, Career Coach and Speaker; Staci Grant, President C&G Enterprises; Pat Thomas Motivational Speaker and career coach. There will be other speakers and surprise guests as the conference gets underway.<br /> <br /> Rev. Jackson indicated, in a recent teleconference, that the possibility of putting together a mutual bank or credit union similar to the Black United Fund of New York, to make it possible for Black investors to underwrite their own programs, has been a consideration for quite some time. "I am quite familiar with the program and the principles established by the late Walter Bremond, and think it would be a powerful tool for Black Economic Development. It would be an natural resource builder for programs that are underserved or poorly underwritten by mainstream finance or charitable organizations." New York's Black United Fund, which was established by Kermit Eady, at its zenith raised more than $111 million a year, which was then put back into the Black community in the form of affordable housing, business incubator programs, scholarships, and business start up loans. (Many will remember it was destroyed by then persecutor Elliot Spitzer in his bid for the gubernatorial nomination - but that's another story for another day).<br /> <br /> The most salient points of Rev. Jackson's teleconference was the fact that South Carolina continues to be the bastion of racism and abuse, despite the progress made under Dr. King to destroy many of the negative institutions. The new version of the prison industrial complex is proliferating there, where factories are actually being established within the prison walls, and those who are incarcerated are forced to work for pennies a day. Apparently there are also investors who are underwriting this heinous program in order to save money. If not curtailed, it will be a means of undermining President Obama's move to bring businesses home to make jobs available for Americans who have been out of work since the onset of the economic downturn. How to handle this will be one of the main focal points of this year's Wall Street Project.<br /> <br /> Also of concern are our voting rights, which are being target of attack in South Carolina and Arizona. Republicans are pushing these laws in states across the country claiming they are needed to "deter voting fraud", but offer no evidence of its existence. In fact, the laws will disproportionately impact African Americans, Latinos and poor people — who are less likely to have a driver’s license. In South Carolina, the Dept. Of Justice concluded minority voters would be 20 percent more likely to be disenfranchised than white voters (excerpted from Rev. Jackson's weekly report).<br /> <br /> He will also focus on foreclosures, building and developing decent affordable housing, home ownership, and quality of life issues. Stated Reverend Jackson: "Banks got bailed out; people got locked out." Millions of homes have been lost from the Black community - the largest land grab rip off in history. His 2011 panel dealt with more humane ways to help families in distress than the methods used by recalcitrant banks and lending institutions, who claim to not want their homes, but proceed to foreclose and take them anyway. This year's housing panel is set to take it to the next level. If you happen to have been a victim of these scams, you'll want to be there as well.<br /> <br /> If you haven't attended any of the Wall Street Projects over the past 15 years, make this the time that you break that pattern. Make a paradigm shift. There are a great many contacts to be made, a lot to be learned - networking with peers, as well as establishing new contacts, and expanding those you already have. Come for the seminars - they're priceless! Your input is as valuable as the panel of experts sitting on the dias. With so many opportunities for innovation, you may well walk away with a solution to problems you considered impossible; or you just might make a connection that you thought not possible.<br /> <br /> And lest you thought he has overlooked brothers and sisters in Africa, he's just returned from Johannesburg and Bloemfontein South Africa to join other leaders across the globe in paying tribute to the ANC and the people of South Africa. "This is not just an ANC celebration, but one for the entire continent and, indeed, for peace and freedom loving people around the globe. I look forward to giving a report to the American public upon my return," he stated.<br /> <br /> Make no mistake about it, Reverend Jackson is “Bringing Everyone to the Table” in a way that has never been done before. We can be either at the table or on the sideline. As President Barack Obama said (sang) at the Apollo: "Let's Stay Together!" It's the only way we'll survive. It's the only way we will win. It's the only way we'll Succeed.<br /> <br /> Here's a little history for those who are not familiar with how the organization began: In 1966, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. appointed Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. to serve as the first director of Operation Breadbasket in Chicago, IL. In 1971, three years after King's assassination in Memphis, TN, Rev. Jackson founded Operation P.U.S.H (People United to Save Humanity in Chicago to continue Dr. King's mission. In 1972, the idea of the "Black Expo" (Black Business Exposition) was developed to "expose" African-American businesses.<br /> <br /> In 1984, the National Rainbow Coalition was formed in Washington, DC following Reverend Jackson's first presidential campaign. Rainbow's focus was to unite progressive people, historically locked out of the mainstream of American politics, into a "coalition of conscience," dedicated to making America more inclusive. The Rainbow PUSH Coalition is a progressive organization protecting, defending and expanding civil rights to improve economic and educational opportunity. The organization is headquarted in Chicago, IL at 930 E 50th St., can be reached by calling (773) 373-3366.<br /> <br /> For information on this years 15th Annual Rainbow PUSH Wall Street Project, visit <a href="http://www.rainbowpush.org">www.rainbowpush.org</a>. Rainbow PUSH Coalition ✆ publicservices@rainbowpush.org via bounce.bluestatedigital.com <span style="font-weight:bold;">The 15th Annual Rainbow PUSH Wall Street Project is being held on January 25 to the 27, and the Sheraton Towers Hotel, 53rd Street and 7th Avenue, New York, New York. See you there.</span><br /> <br /> Stay Blessed &<br /> ECLECTICALLY BLACK<br /> Gloria Dulan-Wilson</p></div>A Liberal Dose of Confusionhttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/a-liberal-dose-of-confusion2012-01-23T02:05:17.000Z2012-01-23T02:05:17.000ZRaynard Jacksonhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/RaynardJackson<div><p><b>January 19, 2012</b></p><p></p><p><b>Raynard Jackson</b></p><p> As America celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. ‘s birthday this week and is getting ready to celebrate Black History Month in February, I have reflected on the state of liberalism and its impact on the Black community and have concluded that I am very confused!</p><p>What am I confused about? Before Obama’s election as president, no one thought we would ever see a Black person elected president because of racism.</p><p>Since Obama has been elected president, can one reasonably postulate that racism has become less of an issue? If the answer is no, then how do you explain Obama’s election? Remember, conventional wisdom was that America was too racist and would never elect a Black president (and remember, whites are still a majority of the electorate, so therefore, there were a lot of whites who voted for Obama). </p><p>If the answer is yes, then why do liberals constantly blame the plight of Blacks on racism? You can’t have it both ways. </p><p>So, whites are too racist to care about the plight of Blacks, but no longer too racist to vote for a Black candidate for president?</p><p>Is it white America’s fault that they helped elect a Black president that took almost two years before he met with the Congressional Black Caucus (despite meeting with gay and Hispanic groups sooner and more frequently); is it white America’s fault that they helped elect a Black president who told the CBC last September to “stop complaining” [about him not doing anything for the Black community]; is it white America’s fault that they helped elect a Black president who has fewer Blacks in his administration than George W. Bush?</p><p>Congressman Emmanuel Cleaver (from Kansas City, MO and Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus) famously said last year, “if Obama was white, we would be marching on the White House.” Cleaver was making reference to Obama not paying attention to the Black community.</p><p>Here you have the first Black president of the U.S. who is doing everything in his power to ignore the very community that gave him 96% of their vote. And people like Cleaver are giving Obama a pass simply because he Black?</p><p>Why was there no outcry from the NAACP, the Urban League, Al Sharpton, or Jesse Jackson about Cleaver’s racist comment? So, it’s racist when a white person in power ignores the Black community, but it’s ok if a Black person in power does the same thing?</p><p>King fought and died for the principles he believed in. King constantly criticized both Kennedy brothers over civil rights; he constantly criticized Johnson over Vietnam. I can’t imagine King giving Obama a pass simply because he was Black. His moral compass would not have allowed him to remain silent.</p><p>Cleaver, and those who think like him, does a great disservice to everything that King stood for.</p><p>There are more Black elected officials than ever before, but the pathologies in our community are getting worse (unemployment, crime, teenage pregnancy, etc.).</p><p>Who is to blame for this? White folks? Devall Patrick, the Black governor of Massachusetts, has not improved the plight of Blacks in his state. David Dinkins (New York), Tom Bradley (Los Angeles), Coleman Young (Detroit), all former mayors, never improved the plight of Blacks in their cities with their liberal policies. Was that because of racism also? The two exceptions to this were former mayor of Atlanta, Maynard Jackson and former mayor of Washington, DC, Marion Barry. Why were they so different than the other Black mayors?</p><p>They focused on increasing Black entrepreneurship by increasing more opportunities for private sector and government contracting. These two mayors created many Black millionaires, who created jobs, and hired people who paid taxes and helped to create stable communities. </p><p>So, on the one hand, Blacks said America would never elect a Black because of racism. Blacks then turn around and say Obama can’t do anything to specifically address the needs in the Black community because of racism (meaning white racist will accuse Obama of being partial to Blacks). </p><p>I am confused! </p><p><i>Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a D.C.-public relations/government affairs firm. He is also a contributing editor for ExcellStyle Magazine (</i><a href="http://www.excellstyle.com/"><i>www.excellstyle.com</i></a><i>), Freedom’s Journal Magazine (</i><a href="http://www.freedomsjournal.net/"><i>www.freedomsjournal.net</i></a><i>), and U.S. Africa Magazine (</i><a href="http://www.usafricaonline.com/"><i>www.usafricaonline.com</i></a><i>).</i></p></div>Response To Dr. Boyce Watkins Post On Noted Black Leaders Asking If King Memorial Is Symbol Versus Substancehttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/response-to-dr-boyce-watkins-post-on-noted-black-leaders-asking2011-09-12T14:32:55.000Z2011-09-12T14:32:55.000ZMark S. Allenhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/MarkSAllen<div><div class="yiv616438880postbody"><div align="center"><div><font size="3"><em>The Rev. Al Sharpton calls Mark Allen "One of Chicago's legendary <span class="yiv616438880IL_AD" id="yiv616438880IL_AD7"><u><font color="#009900">political activists</font></u></span>"</em></font></div><div><p align="center" class="yiv616438880MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;"><span style="font-family:'sans-serif';font-size:13.5pt;"><span class="yiv616438880messageBody"> </span></span></p></div></div></div><div align="center" style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:14pt;"><strong><font size="4"><em>MARK S. ALLEN, <span class="yiv616438880IL_AD" id="yiv616438880IL_AD3"><u><font color="#009900">Daily News</font></u></span> Blog/Commentary</em></font></strong></div><div align="center" style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:14pt;"><em>AND THE <span class="yiv616438880IL_AD" id="yiv616438880IL_AD12"><u><font color="#009900">ORDINARY PEOPLE</font></u></span> SAID</em></div><div align="center" style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:14pt;"><em><a target="_blank" href="http://www.chicagonow.com/"><font color="#0000FF"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1310507602_0">www.chicagonow.com</span></font></a></em></div><div align="center" style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:14pt;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1309465154_0"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1309903766_1"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1310507602_1" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1311342949_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1311894645_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1311927177_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1311929052_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1312139363_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1312147525_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1312404108_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1313530144_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1313979913_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1314137728_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1314490730_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1314832818_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1314863908_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1315674105_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1315832169_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1315837722_0" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;">773-392-0165</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Response to Dr. Boyce Watkins post:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">DR KING MEMORIAL DEDICATION NOW SET FOR OCTOBER 16th, BUT THE QUESTION OF IT'S SYMBOLISM OR SUBSTANCES RESTS TOTALLY IN THE HAND OF OUR COLLECTIVE NATIONAL BLACK LEADERSHIP<br /><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><div class="yiv616438880post"><p>Dr. Boyce Watkins released one his news blogs on the announcement of the new dedication date for The Dr. King Memorial is set for October 16th, and Watkins also mentions that many of our national Black leaders have questioned whether this memorial represents more of symbolism than the substance of Dr. King's work while he was alive.</p><p> </p><p>The question of whether the new Dr. King Memorial proves to be more "symbolism" than "substance" is in the hands of the national Black leadership and others who themselves seem to be stuck in what Dr. King called the "paralysis of analysis" versus actually DOING the organizing campaigns and direct actions needed to bring about the "substance" that our national Black leaders say they are concerned about. If our collective Black leadership continues on this path of "analysis" versus organizing and actions of "substance the they would have contributed themselves to this current focus on Dr. King Memorial and legacy being more of symbolism than of substance.</p><p> </p><p>Let me suggest yet again that those of us who say we are concerned about this memorial being one of substance than symbolism the we should use this moment with all of the national and international media focus to challenge the Black and poor communities to immediately go back into organizing and action to their local communities and specifically re-activate Dr. King's War On Poverty and specifically start implementing his last community economic campaign that could immediately transform our Black and poor communities and start with our OWN resources to create many of the much needed businesses and jobs within our own communities.</p><p> </p><p>Can you imagine what would happen if the millions of people who are watching these Dr. King tributes paid tribute to Dr. King by doing what Dr. King said in telling Blacks and poor communities to economically boycott and corporation that tried to exist in these communities that did not have financial benefits agreements with the local businesses and community development organizations within those communities?</p><p> </p><p>And what would happen if those same millions of people in Black and poor communities would follow Dr. King's program that called for Black and poor people to use their own consumer power to keep more of that money invested in their own financial institutions and used to create and sustain their own local businesses, institutions and jobs? And all of this also during this 90th Year anniversary of the Race Riots of the original Black <span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1315832169_1" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1315837722_1" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;">Wall Street</span></span> District of <span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1315832169_2" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1315837722_2" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;">Tulsa Oklahoma</span></span> where Black people decided to use their own resources to grow and market their own food, they made and marketed their own clothes and built their own housing and created a self contained majority Black community, and cant we educate our people now at this moment that if Black people did it before that we have more than enough resources and consumer power do do it again?</p><p> </p><p>The upcoming Congressional Black Caucus weekend, the new dedication date in October and on gives our collective Black leadership a unique opportunity for our national Black leadership to display the "operational unity" and a renewed economic revival campaign across the majority Black and poor communities in the name of Dr. King's last economic programs that if implemented would indeed make this Dr. King memorial and legacy talk one of substance versus symbolism. Now if this is too had for our collective Black leadership to do at this moment then it is their fault if this King memorial stands as one of symbolism rather than substance.</p><p> </p><p>I am suggesting that The Congressional Black Caucus Legislative Weekend kicks off their national campaign to re-establish Dr. King's Poor People's Campaign and reestablishing his Operation Breadbasket Economic Program; the the next measuring date of that strategy can be ignited is at Rev. Al Sharpton's national jobs rally in <span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1315832169_3" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1315837722_3" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;">DC</span></span>; then the next organizing campaign strengthened at the new dedication date of October 16th, the 16th year anniversary of The Million Man March, where Minister Farrakhan can also challenge a million Black men to join the economic revival of Dr. King's Economic Program, and that mobilization can continue on to the 2nd Annual National Black Wall Street <span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1315832169_4" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1315837722_4" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;">USA</span></span> Convention October 21-23 in Gary <span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1315832169_5" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1315837722_5" style="border-bottom:#366388 2px dotted;">Indiana</span></span>, and we continue report that progress on January 15th, 2012 as you know there will yet another major ceremony on Dr. King's actually birthday and national holiday.</p><p>Symbolism versus substance rests solely on our national Black leadership. Is it too hard for this operational unity to take place for substance in the name Dr. King to occur or will our national Black leadership just contribute to the symbolism themselves?</p><p> </p><p>Mark S. Allen</p><p>Veteran Black Political Activist</p><p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.blackwallstreetdistrict.com/"><span class="yiv616438880yshortcuts" id="yiv616438880lw_1315832169_6">www.blackwallstreetdistrict.com</span></a></p></div></div></div>Dr. King Memorial Full Of Symbolism And No Substancehttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/dr-king-memorial-full-of-symbolism-and-no-substance2011-08-28T00:25:06.000Z2011-08-28T00:25:06.000ZMark S. Allenhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/MarkSAllen<div><div class="yiv710924770postbody"><div align="center"><div><font size="3"><em>The Rev. Al Sharpton calls Mark Allen "One of Chicago's legendary <span id="yiv710924770IL_AD7" class="yiv710924770IL_AD"><u><font color="#009900">political activists</font></u></span>"</em></font></div><div><p style="text-align:center;" class="yiv710924770MsoNormal" align="center"><span style="font-family:'sans-serif';font-size:13.5pt;"><span class="yiv710924770messageBody"> </span></span></p></div></div></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:12pt;"><div style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:12pt;"><div style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:12pt;"><div style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:10pt;"><div style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:12pt;"><div style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:14pt;" align="center"><strong><font size="4"><em>MARK S. ALLEN, <span id="yiv710924770IL_AD3" class="yiv710924770IL_AD"><u><font color="#009900">Daily News</font></u></span> Blog/Commentary</em></font></strong></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:14pt;" align="center"><em>AND THE <span id="yiv710924770IL_AD12" class="yiv710924770IL_AD"><u><font color="#009900">ORDINARY PEOPLE</font></u></span> SAID</em></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:14pt;" align="center"><em><a title="http://www.chicagonow.com/" target="_blank" href="http://www.chicagonow.com/"><font color="#0000FF"><span id="yiv710924770lw_1310507602_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts">www.chicagonow.com</span></font></a></em></div><div style="font-family:'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif;font-size:14pt;" align="center"><span id="yiv710924770lw_1309465154_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span id="yiv710924770lw_1309903766_1" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" id="yiv710924770lw_1310507602_1" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" id="yiv710924770lw_1311342949_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" id="yiv710924770lw_1311894645_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" id="yiv710924770lw_1311927177_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" id="yiv710924770lw_1311929052_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" id="yiv710924770lw_1312139363_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" id="yiv710924770lw_1312147525_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" id="yiv710924770lw_1312404108_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" id="yiv710924770lw_1313530144_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" id="yiv710924770lw_1313979913_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" id="yiv710924770lw_1314137728_0" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1314490730_0">773-392-0165</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"> <font size="5"><br style="font-weight:bold;" /></font></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><div style="text-align:center;"><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><font size="5"><span style="font-weight:bold;">DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING MEMORIAL FULL OF SYMBOLISM AND NO SUBSTANCE WHICH MAKES ME SAD AND MAD !!</span></font></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br /><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br /><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align:center;" class="yiv710924770post-content"><p>At this point the Dr. King memorial is being positioned as the biggest symbol with no substance to the real legacy of Dr. King. Forty eight (48) years after this speech and the movement that followed was supposed to end with with poor communities even more poorer and more desperate than they were then. That movement then was not supposed to end up 48 years later with historic 20-40% unemployment in majority Black communities.</p><p> </p><p>Forty eight (48) years later our major civil rights and social service organizations no longer have full time political education staff and year round civic education programming to keep their poor constituencies connected to the electoral processes.</p><p> </p><p>And with the historic desperate economic conditions facing poor communities, I just knew that this Dr. King Memorial dedication weekend with the word watching would be the ideal weekend for our collective leaders to use this major media event to re-launch the very programs that Dr. King supported while he was alive that could actually turn around the poor economic conditions and historic lack of jobs in Black and poor communities. HAVENT HEARD A WORD!! So exactly what are we celebrating and dedicating ourselves to if the celebration of the symbolic monument is not connected to the actual substance of the last campaigns that Dr. King was working on while he was alive.?</p><p> </p><p>The speech was not even called the "I Have A Dream" speech, but the world have been made to know of the speech as the symbolism of a "dream" versus the "substance" of Dr. King's speech that Black and poor communities had been given a bad check - "a check that has come back marked insufficient funds." And to remedy that Dr. King was establishing a "Poor People's Campaign" designed with a national economic empowerment program called Operation Breadbasket designed to lift poor people up from their desperate economic conditions.</p><p> </p><p>Dr. King designed strategic direct action campaigns within poor communities and at corporate targets who would not make real community reinvestment and benefit agreements in the poor communities that they located.</p><p>Its absolutely makes me sad and mad that Dr. King's memorial activities being reported by national media full of the "I Have A Dream" symbolism, but absolutely no reporting on the very programs that if followed could bring real remedy to the very poor communities represented the organizations and officials gathered in <span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1314490730_1">DC</span> to celebrate the monument symbol.</p><p> </p><p>President Obama who symbolically says he is proud to be a beneficiary of the King legacy while at the same time being challenged by Black elected officials and other poor people's advocates for his administrations lack of a poor people's agenda. Who would argue with President Obama if he used this opportunity to challenge all of those who are paying symbolic tribute to commit themselves to the substance renewing Dr. King's Poor People's Campaign?</p></div><div style="text-align:center;"></div></div><div style="text-align:center;"><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;background:transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"><span style="border-bottom:2px dotted #366388;" class="yiv710924770yshortcuts"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div></div></div></div><div style="text-align:center;"></div></div>The State Of The Dreamhttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/the-state-of-the-dream2011-08-26T16:40:42.000Z2011-08-26T16:40:42.000ZRaynard Jacksonhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/RaynardJackson<div><p><b>August 25, 2011</b><b> </b></p><p><b> </b> </p><p><a href="http://www.google.com/imgres?q=photos+of+martin+luther+king&hl=en&sa=X&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7SKPB_en&biw=800&bih=399&tbm=isch&tbnid=i7utYVkhen0EhM:&imgrefurl=http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?GRid=582&page=gr&docid=M4FdUKmKLoPo2M&w=250&h=276&ei=KKRXTrPzMsHC0AGsnu2eDA&zoom=1"></a></p><p><b>Raynard Jackson</b></p><p><b> </b></p><p>With all the attention being focused on the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. this week, I have been pondering what he would have to say about the state of his legacy. In the immortal words of Lionel Richie (former lead singer of the Commodores):</p><p> </p><p>“I may be just a foolish dreamer but I don’t care</p><p>Cause I know my happiness is waiting out there somewhere</p><p class="verse">I'm searching for that silver lining</p><p class="verse">Horizons that I've never seen</p><p class="verse">Oh I'd like to take just a moment and dream my dream</p><p>Oooh, dream my dream” (from the song Zoom1977).</p><p class="verse">I can imagine King looking down from on high and observing the state of his dream:</p><p class="verse">What the hell has become of my dream?</p><p class="verse">Nothing is what it really seems.</p><p class="verse">My people have been emancipated, but yet are not free,</p><p class="verse">Just look at the high rate of poverty.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">My people have better education,</p><p class="verse">But they also exhibit less dedication.</p><p class="verse">Their thirst for material possessions,</p><p class="verse">Seems to be their only obsession.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">The Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial Project,</p><p class="verse">Let the record show I totally object.</p><p class="verse">To spend $ 120 million and to what end?</p><p class="verse">That’s not what the dream was about my friend.</p><p> </p><p>Lei Yixin, the sculptor that was chosen,</p><p>When I found out, my mouth was frozen.</p><p>A man from China where there are no human rights,</p><p>You can believe I would have put up a big fight!</p><p> </p><p>$ 800,000 to my family for the use of my name,</p><p>Yolanda, Marty, Dexter, and Bernice what a shame.</p><p>Yeah, I know there is money in intellectual property,</p><p>But, my dream was always more towards the heavenly.</p><p> </p><p>A German to build a memorial to the Holocaust?</p><p>The Jewish community would have been at a loss.</p><p>But my people gave the work to a non American,</p><p>This oddity I really can’t understand.</p><p> </p><p class="verse"> You couldn’t have chosen someone like the sculptor Ed Dwight?</p><p class="verse">Afterall, the U.S. Air Force trusted him to take planes into flight.</p><p class="verse">A Black man trained as a sculptor, aviator and an aeronautical engineer,</p><p class="verse">His choice should have been crystal clear.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">Getting the raw materials from a foreign land,</p><p class="verse">To build the platform on which I stand.</p><p class="verse">From China of all places, a repressive regime,</p><p class="verse">This choice makes me want to scream!</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">Temporary workers from China you brought to this land,</p><p class="verse">What, there were no American workers skilled with their hands?</p><p class="verse">No doubt this was all about cheap wages,</p><p class="verse">This has been man’s downfall throughout the ages.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">Oh, and what’s this I hear about the granite brought in from China?</p><p class="verse">You couldn’t find any in North Carolina?</p><p class="verse">Has my dream really come down to this?</p><p class="verse">I thought by now there would be a new twist.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">When I left earth to take my rest,</p><p class="verse">I thought my people could pass the test.</p><p class="verse">Now, as I look down on this situation,</p><p class="verse">I wish I could have one more incarnation.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">But, who am I to question what God has started?</p><p class="verse">Maybe that’s why I am a member of the dearly departed.</p><p class="verse">I now wish I could have one more run,</p><p class="verse">But my fate was tied to the barrel of a gun.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">So, as I leave you with these final words,</p><p class="verse">I hope the true meaning of my vision is what you heard.</p><p class="verse">I am not allowed to come back and continue the fight,</p><p class="verse">So, please try to get my dream right.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">I will pray that God will open your eyes,</p><p class="verse">Because what I see is a stunning surprise.</p><p class="verse">The dream was not about the money spent,</p><p class="verse">But helping those who could barely pay their rent.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">Yes, it’s true that the dream was for all of mankind,</p><p class="verse">But, what I see you doing is not what I had in mind.</p><p class="verse">My dream was not about the color of the skin,</p><p class="verse">But, tell me where does the Black man fit in?</p><p class="verse"> </p><p class="verse">But, giving contracts to those from a foreign nation,</p><p class="verse">Was not part of my dream of emancipation?</p><p class="verse">Everything for this project could have come from within</p><p class="verse">Please understand what I am saying to you my friend.</p><p class="verse"> </p><p><i>Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a D.C.-public relations/government affairs firm. He is also a contributing editor for ExcellStyle Magazine (</i><a href="http://www.excellstyle.com/">www.excellstyle.com</a><i>) & USAfrica Magazine (<a href="http://www.USAfricaonline.com">www.USAfricaonline.com</a>). </i></p></div>Un-"Common" Thoughtshttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/uncommon-thoughts2011-05-12T06:24:42.000Z2011-05-12T06:24:42.000ZRaynard Jacksonhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/RaynardJackson<div><p><b>May 12, 2011</b></p><p><b> </b></p><p><b>Raynard Jackson</b></p><p><b> </b></p><p>Last night Michelle Obama hosted an “Evening of Poetry” at the White House. She invited an eclectic group of poets to recite their poetry. But, Fox News and right wing radio has singled out one performer—the Grammy award winning rapper Common—to be on the receiving end of their ire.</p><p> </p><p>I don’t listen to his music, but from talking with friends who know him, he seems to be a nice enough guy and is very talented! But, he has one song about shooting a policeman, therefore conservative media objected to him being invited to the White House. </p><p> </p><p>These conservatives are now making the argument, that since Common was invited to the White House, President and Ms. Obama, must agree with his lyrics. Anyone with a brain knows this is idiotic, but welcome to the world of right wing media.</p><p> </p><p>The Obama’s have a right to invite whomever they choose to the White House. </p><p> </p><p>You can’t take a single or few events in a person’s life and let that be the definitive narrative of his life. For example, Michael Vick should not have his whole life defined by his run it with the law if he continues to exemplify the level of maturity he has in the past year. We all make mistakes. </p><p> </p><p>Common, born Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr., hails from Chicago, IL. He had a middle class upbringing and attended Florida A & M University where he studied business. He has earned two Grammys (best R & B song in 2003 for “Love of My Life and best rap performance by a duo or group in 2007 for “Southside”).</p><p> </p><p>Though an unabashed liberal, he has dedicated himself to trying to make a positive difference in the lives of the youth. For this, he should be commended!</p><p> </p><p>What I find amazing about right wing media is they seem to be for free speech—as long as they agree with what you are saying.</p><p> </p><p>If they were consistent with their feigned outrage over Common, then I could accept their views. But, I find their outrage very inconsistent and very selective. They make it seem as though Obama is the only president to associate with an entertainer who have expressed some controversial things. </p><p> </p><p>Where was their outrage over former president Ronald Reagan’s tribute to Bruce Springsteen?</p><p> </p><p>On September 19, 1984, Reagan was at a campaign stop in Hammonton, New Jersey and he said, “America’s future rests in a thousand dreams inside your hearts…it rests in the message of hope in songs so many young Americans admire…New Jersey’s own Bruce Springsteen.” Springsteen is best known for his monster hit song “Born in the U.S.A.” But, on this same album is a song titled “Working On The Highway.” The song is about a man who has sex with an underage girl and is subsequently arrested by the police and convicted in a court of law. Here are a few of the words: </p><p>“I saved up my money and I put it all away<br />I went to see her daddy but we didn't have much to say<br />"Son can't you see that she's just a little girl<br />She don't know nothing about this cruel cruel world"<br /><br />We lit out down to Florida we got along all right<br />One day her brothers came and got her and they took me in a black and white (<i>police car</i>)<br />The prosecutor kept the promise that he made on that day<br />And the judge got mad and he put me straight away<br />I wake up every morning to the work bell clang (<i>jail</i>)<br />Me and the warden go swinging on the Charlotte County road gang<br /><br />Working on the highway...</p><p> </p><p>President Nixon invited racist Elvis Presley to the White House. Presley spent a lifetime letting people know how he felt about Blacks!</p><p> </p><p>President Carter invited the legendary group, Crosby, Stills, & Nash to visit him in the White House. According to their own biography, “One of us, and I will not say who, lit a joint in the Oval Office just to be able to say he’d done it, you know?”</p><p> </p><p>The other irony is that a lot of these same conservatives claim very publically their friendship to entertainers whose lyrics are no different than those they criticize Common for.</p><p> </p><p>Sarah Palin is a huge fan of rocker, Ted Nugent. Here are the words to one of his songs, “Wang Dang Sweet Poontang.” </p><p> </p><p>That Nadine, what a teenage queen…She lookin' so clean, especi'lly down in between…She's so sweet when she yanks on my meat.” Is this the type of “family values” Palin has in mind?</p><p> </p><p>Last year Elton John was reportedly paid $1 million to perform at Rush Limbaugh’s wedding reception. John is the same person who referred to Christians as “Jesus Freaks” in his hit song “Tiny Dancer.”</p><p> </p><p>When right wing media begin to show their moral outrage evenly, then and only then, can I support their feigned righteous indignation. But, until then, they should remain quiet and focus on the more pressing issues facing our country.</p><p> </p><p>They should also show some respect for the office of the president. This should be a common courtesy!</p><p> </p><p><i>Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a D.C.-public relations/government affairs firm. He is also a contributing editor for ExcellStyle Magazine (</i><a href="http://www.excellstyle.com/">www.excellstyle.com</a><i>) & U.S. Africa Magazine (<a href="http://www.usafricaonline.com">www.usafricaonline.com</a>). </i></p></div>The Root Of The Problem Is “The Root”https://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/the-root-of-the-problem-is-the2011-03-03T05:02:06.000Z2011-03-03T05:02:06.000ZRaynard Jacksonhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/RaynardJackson<div><p><b>March 3, 2011</b><b> </b></p><p><b> </b> </p><p><b> </b><b> </b></p><p><b>Raynard Jackson</b></p><p> </p><p>In agriculture, if the root of the plant goes bad, so goes the rest of the plant. Above the ground, the plant may be very beautiful, but internally it is dying.</p><p> </p><p>This reminds me of “The Root” online magazine (<a href="http://www.theroot.com/">www.theroot.com</a>). According to their website: “The Root is a daily online magazine that provides thought-provoking commentary on today's news from a variety of black perspectives.” They are owned and published by the Washington Post Newsweek Interactive.</p><p> </p><p>The Root was launched on January 28<sup>th</sup>, 2008. According to media accounts, “The Root” was created by Donald Graham, Chairman of The Washington Post Company and Henry Louis Gates Jr., the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor at Harvard and Director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. Gates went on to say, “it will feature penetrating, lively commentary on political, social and cultural issues, and will showcase the breadth and depth of viewpoints currently shaping black culture.”</p><p> </p><p>Lynette Clemetson, one of the original editors, was quoted in several newspaper articles, “The Root' resists the notion that there is--or ever was--such a thing as a monolithic black community. The Web site will be a forum for true conversation, celebrating the rich mix of voices, issues and points of view that bring nuance and complexity to the black experience. And while the site is committed to topics of special interest to blacks, it is a destination for anyone interested in the dynamic link between history and our collective future.”</p><p> </p><p>Oh, really? Would to God that Gates and Clemetson really meant what they said above. “The Root” was founded by liberals/Democrats (Donald Graham and the Washington Post are well known for their very liberal slant; and Gates comes from the same mold.). Neither the founding management nor the current management has any known conservatives/Republicans in its employ.</p><p> </p><p>“The Root” has done the same thing that Blacks have so often accused whites of doing—putting all liberals in management, but printing a few editorials from conservative/Republicans who are Black. Then they say, “see, we have diversity!”</p><p>But everyone in news knows that the power lies with the editors (executive, managing, assignment), not with the writers. These editors not only decide what subjects are written about, but also, how the final story is presented to the public. So, if the management all comes from the same bias, where is the diversity of thought and opinion?</p><p> </p><p>So Mr. Gates states, “it [The Root] will feature penetrating, lively commentary on political, social and cultural issues, and will showcase the breadth and depth of viewpoints currently shaping black culture.” Is this what he had in mind when he and management created a section with the title, “The Blackest White Folks We Know” (<a href="http://www.theroot.com/multimedia/blackest-white-folks-we-know">http://www.theroot.com/multimedia/blackest-white-folks-we-know</a>)? Are you kidding me? Is this Gates’ definition of “penetrating’? I am thoroughly embarrassed that an esteemed academic like Gates would perpetuate the foolishness that we have accused whites of doing. What next? The “Whitest Black Man?”</p><p> </p><p>According to Ms. Clemetson, “The Root' resists the notion that there is--or ever was--such a thing as a monolithic black community.” Is this what management had in mind when they created a section with the title, “The Black Folks We’d Remove From Black History?” (<a href="http://www.theroot.com/multimedia/black-folks-wed-remove-black-history">http://www.theroot.com/multimedia/black-folks-wed-remove-black-history</a>). Who is the “we?” Who decided who would be on the list and who wouldn’t? I find their comments about Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas reprehensible.</p><p> </p><p>The most painful thing is that these two sections are in the top three sections visited on the site. Am I the only one that is embarrassed by this section of the site? Am I the only one who is willing to publically criticize management for this hypocrisy? </p><p> </p><p>Remember, these sections are not in the opinion section. This content is solely that of management. It is quite obvious that management is very liberal in its bias.</p><p> </p><p>How can we, in the Black community, complain about how others portray us and then we do the same thing we have accused them of doing—namely, using the basest of all stereotypes, stymie content that management disagrees with, and have absolutely no diversity within management. Shouldn’t Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton demand diversity from the Washington Post? When will they begin the picketing?</p><p> </p><p>The site looks good, it’s very appealing to the eye, and does have some very good articles and commentary. But, like dying vegetation, when you begin to look at the roots, you find “The Root” is the problem.</p><p> </p><p><i>Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a D.C.-public relations/government affairs firm. He is also a contributing editor for ExcellStyle Magazine (</i><a href="http://www.excellstyle.com/"><i>www.excellstyle.com</i></a><i>) & U.S. Africa Magazine (<a href="http://www.usafricaonline.com">www.usafricaonline.com</a>). </i></p></div>Another Year That The Substance of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King's Lifes Work And Legacy Weakened With Commercialism and Symbolismhttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/another-year-that-the2011-01-18T08:57:26.000Z2011-01-18T08:57:26.000ZMark S. Allenhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/MarkSAllen<div><h1 class="entry-title">Another Year That The Substance of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King's Lifes Work And Legacy Weakened With Commercialism and Symbolism</h1><div class="entry-header pkg"><div class="entry-meta"><div class="userpic pkg"><a><img src="http://www.chicagonow.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-static/support/assets_c/userpics/userpic-23645-100x100.png" alt="user-pic" width="24" height="24" /></a></div><span class="vcard author"><a class="fn url" href="http://www.chicagonow.com/profiles/Marksallen">Marksallen</a></span> on <abbr class="published" title="2011-01-18T02:14:39-06:00">01.18.11 at 2:14 AM</abbr> | <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/and-the-ordinary-people-said/2011/01/another-year-that-the-substance-of-rev-dr-martin-luther-kings-lifes-work-and-legacy-weakened-with-celebrations-of-symbolism.html#comments" class="comment">no comments</a> |</div><div class="about-the-blogger pkg"><div class="userpic-large pkg"><div class="userpic pkg"><a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/profiles/Marksallen"><img src="http://www.chicagonow.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-static/support/assets_c/userpics/userpic-23645-100x100.png" alt="user-pic" width="62" height="62" /></a></div></div><div class="blogger-info"><span class="vcard author"><a class="fn url" href="http://www.chicagonow.com/profiles/Marksallen">Marksallen</a></span><p class="short-bio">One of the first community organizers to work with Barack Obama in Chicago for over 20 years. Now Associate Editor of The South Street Journal Newspaper and 37 year activist/journalist, recently selected as 2010 Who's Who In Black Chicago. 312-624-8351 or 773-392-0165</p><div class="follow-blogger"><span>Follow on:</span></div></div></div><div style="display:block;float:left;margin-left:0pt;" id="share-tools-wrapper" class="pkg horizontal-share"><h3 id="share-tools-title">Share</h3><div id="share-tools" class="clearfix pkg"><ul><li><a href="http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chicagonow.com%2Fblogs%2Fand-the-ordinary-people-said%2F2011%2F01%2Fanother-year-that-the-substance-of-rev-dr-martin-luther-kings-lifes-work-and-legacy-weakened-with-celebrations-of-symbolism.html&t=Another%20Year%20That%20The%20Substance%20of%20Rev.%20Dr.%20Martin%20Luther%20King%27s%20Lifes%20Work%20And%20Legacy%20Weakened%20With%20Celebrations%20of%20Symbolism" title="Share on Facebook" class="smedia facebook"><img alt="Share on Facebook" src="http://www.chicagonow.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-static/addons/ChicagoNow.pack/images/facebook.png" /><span id="facebook-share"></span></a><div class="count">Facebook (0)</div></li><li><a title="Tweet this story" class="smedia twitter"><img alt="Tweet this story" src="http://www.chicagonow.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-static/addons/ChicagoNow.pack/images/twitter.png" /><span id="tweetmeme-share"></span></a><div class="count">Retweet (0)</div></li><li><a href="http://digg.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chicagonow.com%2Fblogs%2Fand-the-ordinary-people-said%2F2011%2F01%2Fanother-year-that-the-substance-of-rev-dr-martin-luther-kings-lifes-work-and-legacy-weakened-with-celebrations-of-symbolism.html&title=Another%20Year%20That%20The%20Substance%20of%20Rev.%20Dr.%20Martin%20Luther%20King%27s%20Lifes%20Work%20And%20Legacy%20Weakened%20With%20Celebrations%20of%20Symbolism" title="Digg this story" class="smedia digg"><img alt="Digg this story" src="http://www.chicagonow.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-static/addons/ChicagoNow.pack/images/digg.png" /><span id="digg-share"></span></a><div class="count">Digg (0)</div></li><li><a href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chicagonow.com%2Fblogs%2Fand-the-ordinary-people-said%2F2011%2F01%2Fanother-year-that-the-substance-of-rev-dr-martin-luther-kings-lifes-work-and-legacy-weakened-with-celebrations-of-symbolism.html&title=Another%20Year%20That%20The%20Substance%20of%20Rev.%20Dr.%20Martin%20Luther%20King%27s%20Lifes%20Work%20And%20Legacy%20Weakened%20With%20Celebrations%20of%20Symbolism" title="Stumble this entry" class="smedia stumbleupon"><img alt="Stumble this entry" src="http://www.chicagonow.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-static/addons/ChicagoNow.pack/images/stumble.png" /><span id="stumbleupon-share"></span></a><div class="count">Stumble</div></li></ul></div></div></div><div class="entry-content">After watching this weekends activities and coverage of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday and national holiday, it was absolutely painful to watch all the coverage of commercial business sales, socials, parties, and the overriding theme that celebrating Rev. Dr. King were through symbolic public service projects versus a national day for voter registration or current direct action campaign on todays issues as Rev. Dr. King was best known for during his own lifes work. Rev. Dr. King's life was his non violent direct action to change social, public and political policies, versus community service projects. <br /><br />Many of our OWN Black leaders, public, elected and civic officials, progressive thinkers and writers are responsible for the wrong image, positioning and direction of Rev. Dr. King's legacy and we collectively watch mainstream media and others consistently re-write and weaken the substance of legacy of Rev. Dr. King.<br /><br />We have allowed Rev. Dr. King's annual birthday and national holiday legacy to be defined much weaker than what Dr. King's life work actually represented. The accomplishments in Rev. Dr. King's life were designated because of his community organizing around issues that were met with direct action political organizing and yet now we have come to celebrate his birthday and life with commercial business sales, parties, local community service projects and so many things other than his direct action political and economic empowerment organizing.<br /><br />As a former national staff member to the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr, he and other former staff and other key supporters of Rev. Dr. King taught me and other next generation civil rights leaders how Rev. Dr. King's last birthday on earth was spent organizing a direct action political campaign for jobs for poor people, and while it is fresh in your mind, how much coverage did you see this weekend of local events replicating his march for jobs for poor people? Chicago and Illinois witnessed the largest loss of poor people's jobs on Dr. Kings birthday and the mainstream media as well as many Black and progressive media paid almost NO ATTENTION to a "next generation" of civil rights leaders leading two days of poor people's marches and press conference on Illinois' Governor Pat Quinn to save the remaining thousands of poor people in Chicago and Illinois from this massive job layoff from The "Put Illinois To Work Program" on King's birthday!!<br /><br />Now lets also look at Rev. Dr. King's other final acts of his life that was also ignored on his birthday and national holiday. After achieving the political victories of the Voting Rights Act, Public Accommodations Bills and other political victories, Rev. Dr. King began to shift his focus to grassroots economic empowerment, starting with his new national headquarters in 1966 he started in Chicago called Operation Breadbasket designed to start a national campaign of consumer education to build Black businesses and keeping access to capital in Black and poor communities, and yet during this past week how many economic empowerment activities were highlighted to reflect todays commitment to Dr. King's last organizing projects of Operation Breadbasket??<br /><br />Once again in Chicago for example, the former Drexel and Independence Banks, two major financial institutions once owned by former SCLC staff and supporters of Dr. King were recently bought by Shorebank and then taken over by Urban Partnership Banks and then announced that they would be closing in the very core communities that Dr. King's organization worked while in Chicago and again, the local demonstrations to save those institutions were ignored by mainstream as well as most Black press and leaders as well.<br /><br />I heard some comments this weekend from DR. Vincent Harding, a former speechwriter and confidante for Rev. Dr. King say to the St. Sabina crowd that King must NOT be celebrated for his "dreams" but for the work of his direct ACTIONS, but while thousands of those in the audience cheered that statement, it is not what we witnessed during this weekends King commemorations. The direct action organizing events in honor of Rev. Dr. King we all but ignored or reported in favor of the direction of people to celebrate with a community service project.<br /><br />A lot of Black leaders and our Black and progressive thinkers and writers have to look within as to how we have allowed Rev. Dr. King's legacy to be re-defined and weakened each year right before our eyes, and apparently with our consent.</div><div class="entry-footer pkg"><p>Tagged <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/tags/Dr.+King">Dr. King</a>, <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/tags/Dr.+King+Commemorations">Dr. King Commemorations</a>, <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/tags/Dr.+King+Legacy">Dr. King Legacy</a>, <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/tags/Dr.+Vincent+Harding">Dr. Vincent Harding</a>, <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/tags/Operation+Breabasket">Operation Breabasket</a>, <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/tags/Rev.+Jesse+L.+Jackson">Rev. Jesse L. Jackson</a>, <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/tags/SCLC+Chicago+Headquarters">SCLC Chicago Headquarters</a>, <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/tags/Saint+Sabina">Saint Sabina</a></p></div><div style="overflow:hidden;color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-align:left;text-decoration:none;border:medium none;"><br />Read more: <a style="color:#003399;" href="http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/and-the-ordinary-people-said/2011/01/another-year-that-the-substance-of-rev-dr-martin-luther-kings-lifes-work-and-legacy-weakened-with-celebrations-of-symbolism.html#ixzz1BNJPmxl2">http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/and-the-ordinary-people-said/2011/01/another-year-that-the-substance-of-rev-dr-martin-luther-kings-lifes-work-and-legacy-weakened-with-celebrations-of-symbolism.html#ixzz1BNJPmxl2</a></div></div>