Tuesday, August 9, 2005

NewBlackMan News and Notes, Volume One

I Bling Because I’m Happy

Just as TD Jakes and the crew descended on the ATL for this year’s Megafest, Marc Lamont Hill dropped a brilliant critique of the New Black Church. Reminds me a few years ago when I saw a commercial for one of Jakes’ spiritual cruises and the images seemed reminiscent of Jigga’s “Big Pimpin’” video.


Race Gender and the Wedding Crashers

My girl Debra Dickerson has an interesting piece on the race and gender politics missing from the Wedding Crashers. Some deeply personal stuff here about some black women coming to terms with their self-worth in a society that so-often deems them unworthy and renders them invisible. There’s a more personal backdrop to Debra’s essay that she doesn’t discuss, though hopefully one day she will write about.


Pimps and Mo’ Pimps

Esther Iverem, founder and editor of SeeingBlack.com has a 2-fer this month on Pimpology. “Over Powered By Pimps” is Esther’s take on Hustle and Flow, but it’s her smart retro read of Purple Rain Pimpology that got me locked in. BTW SeeingBlack.com is black-owned, black operated and a great monthly site.


The Economy of Parenting

Jabari Asim, one of my favorite writers and favorite people, has a nice piece on parenting up at The Washington Post, where he’s a weekly columnist and senior editor of Book World.


Voting Rights Act at 40

Rev. Jesse Jackson and Barbara Arnwine, executive director of The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, put the RIGHT on blast in a conversation with NPR’s Ed Gordon about the renewal of the Voting Rights Act in 2007. This is the Rev. Jackson that I’d like hear more often.


Both Sides of the Surface (BSOTS) Podcast

Jason Randall Smith is a fine poet—his poem >“A Lesson in Deterioration” opens my book >Soul Babies. But Jason is a spinner at heart; Hear his first podcast. Dwight Trible and The Life Force Trio make an appearance towards the end.


Nick Cannon (again) or the beauty of blogging

Annette John-Hall did a piece in the Philadelphia Inquirer
on Nick Cannon’s “Can I Live?”. I’m quoted in the piece, though it’s not anything I didn’t say in my blog entry on June 27, 2005 about Cannon’s song. But that’s the point—homegirl called me for an interview about her story because she read my blog entry. Cool.

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