I never realized what assimilation was or is. I never gave a thought about genocide or Manifest Destiny and I thought the holocaust only pertained to what Hitler did to the Jewish people. And it didn’t matter to me, because I never gave a thought about it. I was busy living life as I knew how, a Lakota woman. I was raised in our traditional ways but never taught all those things until I was older. I just thought life was about being traditional, with our ceremonies, songs, traditions, and ways. Sure, I went to a Christian church with my friends, went to Vacation Bible School for a popsicle, and I tested out other religions as if dipping my toes in cold lake water, but I never felt right about it. I didn’t feel wrong about it, I just felt as if it wasn’t my thing. And I made my way back to who I was and who I knew myself and my people to be. Lakota. That is where I belonged and where I feel centered.

The first time I realized that a child raised without their culture and forced into another way of life develops a huge hole in their soul was in college. I read an essay by a Vietnamese American student. She was adopted as a baby, from Vietnam, by white parents here in America. She was given a good life, she was raised with little blonde brothers and sisters and she had a suburban sounding name like Caitlyn or something. She did everything right and everything she was supposed to do in life, plus she won a scholarship to a college away from her family. It was her first time on her own and she discovered herself questioning who she was. She was drawn to other Asians and began hanging out with them. She learned of their likes, dislikes, cultures, foods, and she felt “at home and at peace.” Many of them were also adoptees, taken from their families and countries and grew up American. They were drawn to each other to fill a need in their souls. Yet she felt this with a great deal of guilt towards her American family. She loved her adopted family but felt at home, finally, with her friends, who in turn felt the same.

That is the first time I realized how taking the culture away from someone can be somewhat traumatic or really traumatic. How lost it makes that person feel. As I grew older and started seeing cases of this same thing happening with my own Native people and it was shocking. I remember the first time, was when I met a lady in her twenties. I saw her at the casino we both worked at and asked her what tribe she was from. She became angry and said “The lady that gave birth to me was from so and so reservation but I’m white. I grew up white. I was raised white, so don’t ever ask me that again.”

All I could say was “Whoa.” I stood there shocked. I never in my life met another Indian who hated being Indian, and she had to nerve to say she was white, when she was a few shades from midnight? That’s when someone told me she was raised in a foster home, who eventually adopted her.

I began then to understand what it meant to be assimilated and colonized. I began reading of our history and how children were taken by the US government from Native families once they were put on reservations. Children were forcefully taken out of their homes at the age of 5 and put in residential schools until the age of 18. They made handcuffs so small to detain these children. They were beaten for speaking their language, hair was cut, and all for the purpose of “Kill The Indian, Save The Man.”

This generation was our grandparents and great grandparents, who suffered physical, sexual,and emotional abuse in the residential schools. They were never given the chance to heal because these stories were never told. They were kept on the down low by the Catholic church and the government who ran the residential schools. Many of these boarding schools who are now in operation are now making monetary payments, now wanting to hear the stories of abuse and now trying to make amends. After a few were hit with class action lawsuits.

The next generations, also suffered and still suffer. By the foster care systems. Children were taken from their homes and given to white foster families to raise. The families receiving funding for every foster child, would often take on many foster children. The state holds the households they take the children from to the standards set by white society. Without ever listening to how we set family structures, how we take care of our own, or how we live with our traditions, they set everything up to fit a mold, that they live by.

Based on a 1976 study by the Association on American Indian Affairs found that 25 to 35% of all Indian children were being placed in out-of-home care. (Eighty-five percent of those children were being placed in non-Indian homes or institutions.) Congress then passed the Indian Child Welfare Act (25 U.S.C. § 1901) in 1978 in order to keep American Indian Children with American Indian families.

However, this is not being followed in South Dakota. Why? Because South Dakota has a dirty little secret. According to a wonderful and very thorough investigation by National Public Radio that inspired me to find my brother who was lost for 21 years due to failure of the fact that DSS didn’t follow ICWA regulations and place him with family. I was 19 years old when he was taken from his mother. I was employed and had my own place and he was 8 years old. When I asked them why they didn’t ask me, all they said was sorry and also ,sorry we can’t help you find him now. That is when I began to search for him and I also began to investigate why so many of our Indian children in South Dakota are taken from their homes and placed in Non-Native homes, this is when I found their dirty little secret.

South Dakota’s Department of Social Services receives money for Native children they take custody of. They receive more money than the non-Native children they take from their homes. Native children in South Dakota make up 15% of all the children of South Dakota, yet over half the children placed in foster care are Native. And only 13% of those children are placed in Native foster homes. While Native foster home sit empty for months. South Dakota removes children from their homes at a rate 3 time higher than any other state. But according to state figures, less than 12 percent of the children in foster care in South Dakota have been actually physically or sexually abused in their own homes. That’s less than the national average.

I still didn’t get to the dirty little secret yet. South Dakota, years ago, designated all Native children as “special needs.” Which means every Indian child in every school benefits that school with more funding and it also means that every Indian child taken from their home by DSS benefits South Dakota more than non-Native children. And although the state says they match all the money coming in from the feds dollar for dollar, the match is not exact. According

to records from 2010, the feds reimbursed the state three quarters for what it spent on the children they removed from their homes. There is also an adoption incentive program nobody hears about. The federal government gives the states $4,000 for each child who is placed into adoption from foster care. That amount is $12,000 for “special needs” children. And of course over half the children removed from homes in South Dakota are Indian children, who, you guessed it, are designated by the state as “special needs” just for being American Indian. The state has made almost a million dollars in the last ten years off of our most precious resource. Our children. They moved us to dry, barren lands that cannot be farmed, the took the gold and every resource from the lands they stole. And now they are after our children.

Why is this not making a splash? Why is it not news? Especially , in South Dakota? Because they will go to any length to cover up what they do to take our children away. Even as our children are being violated in the homes they are placed in. Here is one case that will blow anyone’s mind and still has yet to reach the media in South Dakota.

Former assistant state attorney Brandon Taliaferro and court appointed child advocate Shirley Schwab go to trial tomorrow, January 7, 2013 for crimes they didn’t commit. Mr. Taliaferro and Ms. Schwab have been indicted by SD Attorney General Martin Jackley with witness tampering and disclosure of confidential, Department of Social Services information. They are being accused of these crimes for encouraging two teenage Lakota foster girls to tell the truth about being molested by their non-Native foster parent, who is now serving a 15 year prison sentence for rape of a child under 10.

According to the Daily Kos: Mr. Taliaferro and Ms. Schwab now assert that South Dakota is engaged in a criminal conspiracy to discriminate against Lakota foster children and their mothers, fathers, grandparents and relatives. “It is financially beneficial for the DSS to remove American Indian children from their homes and place them in [white] foster homes,” said Attorney Taliaferro to the Aberdeen News on December 19, 2011. “[Had I followed] the orders of [my boss with respect to the Mette investigation, it] would have required [me] to violate the law, and ethical rules that govern attorney conduct.” Mr. Taliaferro asserts that in 2011 he refused to participate in “a cover-up of misconduct” by the DSS.

The charges are believed to be a direct response to Mr. Taliaferro and Ms. Scwab for criticizing the state’s payroll during the NPR investigation. According to reporter Stephanie Woodard in her article for 100 Reporters “Rough Justice In Indian Child Welfare” where two state Department of Criminal Investigation agents are seen on a Youtube video planning the cover-up by the state against Mr. Taliaferro and Ms. Schwab. They are unaware, that though they are off camera, they left their microphones on.

This is all dirty, low down, Gestapo like tactics used by the Department of Social Services . And it shows how far the state will bend, how low they will go, to keep the millions of dollars they have coming in by stealing yet again from the Indigenous people of this land. Instead they don’t take from the land, they take from the womb.

They won’t get away with this much longer. Something has to be done.

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After reading this, you may ask: How can a mother stand there and let a man do such a thing to her child? Well, the answer is easy: The Bible teaches women to “submit” to their husbands. Additionally, it also says, “Spare the rod, spoil the child.” That said, isn’t it easy to understand why something like this actually happened in our much touted civilized society?

After all, isn’t it telling that when they found 7-year-old Roderick Arrington unresponsive after being beaten to near death a day earlier for not reading the Bible, instead of dialing 911, they called their pastor? My guess is that this was all God’s will as well, right? Yep, Jesus loves the little children of the world; yep, even the ones who are physically abused that are raised by parents who love him.

LAS VEGAS (KSNV MyNews3) — Markiece and Dina Palmer are accused in the murder of Dina Palmer’s 7-year-old son, who police say died from injuries consistent with child abuse.

It’s a heartbreaking story that’s left so many people asking the question. When the Palmers found second-grader Roderick Arringtonin the morning, the couple says he was unresponsive.

However, they told police they didn’t call 911 first. Instead they called a pastor.

Dina Palmer: Mother of Roderick Arrington

[...] Pastor Kenneth Hollingsworth says he’s as shocked as anyone that Markiece Palmer chose to call him before first-responders.

Metro police said they believe Roderick Arrington was abused at Markiece and Dina Palmer’s home near Decatur and Desert Inn.

Palmer admitted to hitting his stepson on multiple occasions in front of the boy’s mother.

He told police that’s how he would discipline the second-grader.

In the police report, detectives say they found a broken broom stick, belts, cords, spatulas and clothing — all with blood on them.

Roderick was taken to a hospital on Thursday and died a day later. (source)

Now, I’m not opposed to spanking my kids: and, I’ll be the first to admit that. No, you’ll get no argument from me when it comes to corporal punishment as a form of discipline. And I say that having been on the receiving end of more than a few as a child myself. However, whether deserved or not (yes mom, the jury is still out on a few of those). It’s very hard for me to rationalize inflicting the abuse to a child, for lying about reading the Bible. Having said that, I won’t be surprised if Roderick’s mother, Dina Palmer, is also a victim of religious-sanctioned physical and mentalabuse as well.

The arrest report details the child’s injuries, including open abrasions on his buttocks, severe bruising to his thighs, marks and bruises on his back and shoulders and evidence of previous beatings.

Markiece Palmer told police he and Dina Palmer spanked the child November 27th, because he lied about reading a Bible verse. Markiece Palmer said Roderick was spanked again the next day for not finishing his homework. In the arrest report, Markiece Palmer said the boy balled up his fists and “ran at him”. That resulted in Markiece shaking the child. He also told police Roderick slipped at the bottom of the stairs and hit his head on a table and the floor. (source)

Check out the following video:

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I’m not sure if I totally agree with Bob Costas on last night’s now “controversial” halftime commentary on the Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher’s murder-suicide. However, I would say that he has a point when speaking to the culture of violence fostered by gun ownership or gun possession. Unfortunately, there are many who disagree, and I see this as part of the problem. So much so that there’s no cry for gun control when the principal parties involved in any violent crime like Jovan Belcher and Kassandra Perkins are people of color.

Yes, guns don’t kill; and yes, it is people with guns who kill. However, the truth is, gun ownership or possession in some cases are in fact not used as a tool of last resort when it comes to conflict resolution. Like I said in a recent post: Gun violence is as American as hot dogs and apple pie.

The post Jason Belcher Murder-Suicide, Bob Costas, & Gun Control appeared first on Madness & Reality.

There is something sick and perverse about George Zimmerman selling autographs to raise money for the cost of his upcoming trial. What this says about Zimmerman or willing participants of such a sordid transaction, I’m not sure. But hopefully, it doesn’t reflect the insidiously pervasive direction of larger society. The last thing we need are twisted individuals receiving stars on Hollywood Boulevard for murders in spite of how justified they may be deemed in a court of law.

Speaking of which, by now, hopefully you’ve heard about yet another senseless murder of yet another 17-year-old black male at the hands of a “responsible” law-abiding white gun owner . I wrote about my initial feelings with regard to the lack of national outrage yesterday. But ironically, as I punch keystrokes, I can hear my man Rev. Al Sharpton speaking (very loudly as always on Politics Nation) about the incident itself. Ask any black person: When it goes down, you want Al on your side.

I take some comfort in knowing that if anybody is on the case to give it the national coverage it deserves — unlike the Daniel Adkins case — it is the good brother, Rev. Al Sharpton. Let’s just say that I can sleep a little better tonight knowing that the brother is watching this one very closely.

Having said that, check out what the shooter, 45-year-old Michael Dunn’s attorney is saying:

Now, for the first time, we’re hearing Dunn’s side of the story, from his attorney Robin Lemonidis. She said, “They were blasting some rap music. And he said he rolled down his window, pulled up on the passenger side, and rolled down his window and asked, would you mind turning that down? And said it very politely.”

The attorney says the teenager in the front seat turned down the radio. But then she says her client heard the teens cussing at him, making threats. She says Dunn rolled down his window and said, “He said excuse me, are you talking to me?”

At that point, she says one of the teenagers told Dunn he was dead. “And that’s when the guy in the back seat raised the barrel of a shotgun over the rim of the window,” said Lemonidis. “At that point, he just snapped into self protection mode.”

Dunn’s attorney claims that’s when her client reached for a gun he had in the glove compartment of his car, loaded it, and fired. “Firing at the car, because they’re showing him a gun, and he can’t see their hands,” she said. “And he doesn’t know. They’re about to blast him in the face with a shotgun, as far as he knows.”

Sounds reasonable, right? I mean, if someone gets a bit upset and refuses to acquiesce my request to turn down loud aggravating hippity hop music, and points a shotgun in my direction after exchanging pleasantries (remember this?). Yes, like me, you too would feel threatened and feel the need to protect your life by using the necessary deadly force it requires, right? Because of course, everybody knows how rap music if played loudly, gives black teens super human strength known to rival that of the Hulk. There’s only one problem, however, there was no guns recovered from the car.

How’s that for being a “responsible” legal gun owner?

So yeah, as Michael Dunn’s attorney says, this case is nothing like the Trayvon Martin case. You hear that? This guy isn’t the obvious racist many perceive George Zimmerman to be. Nope, according to his attorney, he is no “vigilante,” Unlike Zimmerman, he was fearful for his life, And listening to her in the video above, if I was a white man, I’d be afraid too. Again, forget the fact that there was no gun, the fact that there was more than one scary black teen in a car with tinted windows, clearly means there had to be a gun involved somewhere — after all, the music was loud.

As a matter of fact, supposedly Dunn’s attorney also stated that police didn’t find a gun because police didn’t look hard enough. Yep, no need to even plant a gun; nope, the kids were black and the windows were tinted;yep, there had to be a gun in that car. Hell, if the cops looked hard enough, I’m sure they’d also find empty KFC fried chicken boxes,empty malt liquor bottles, and a watermelon-chitlin juice mix on the upholstery. After all, the four occupants of the SUV were all black, no? Not that it should matter; but, I’m just sayin’.

“There are no comparisons to the Trayvon Martin situation,” said Robin Lemonidis, Dunn’s attorney. “He is devastated and horrified by the death of the teen.”

Yep, he was so devastated that he drove off, and slept knowing that a black kid was dead…

Listen, I could go on and on about how this is yet another example of how the negative stereotypes of black people in general, and black males in particular often lead to grave consequences. Yes, we’ve been down this road before on numerous occasions. Instead, I’ll close by saying that other than the obvious, what’s overlooked is how the culture of violence in America facilitates a mindset that’s foreign to the concept of proper conflict resolution. After all, America has taught us that if there’s a problem with someone or something the best way to deal with it, clearly, is to kill it.

Don’t blame the NRA, folks; nope, in American culture the bad guy always wears black.

The post Attorney: Jordan Davis Killer Michael Dunn is no George Zimmerman – But is He? appeared first on Madness & Reality.

It has almost been one year since the death of Trayvon Martin at the hands of George Zimmerman. You remember that case, don’t you? You now, the black teen armed with Skittles and Ice Tea who was gunned down by an over-zealous neighborhood watch captain for wearing a hoodie and looking suspiciously black? Yeah, I’m only asking because the media hype surrounding the case has all but died down — at least to me it has. I mean, it’s not like anyone on is talking about it.

Well, no need for me to restart that debate; heck, I’m still a supporter of the now infamous “Stand Your Ground” laws across the country; and no, I’m not a card-carrying member of the NRA, nor am I one of these lunatic right-wing lunatics. Simply put, I do believe that if my life is threatened and I’m in imminent danger, I have the right to defend myself without having to retreat as the law allows. Having said that, it’s going to be hard to convince me that the law is designed to kill innocent black people. But just in case you might, check out the following story from Florida.

This via jacksonville.com:

17-Year-Old Jordan Russell Davis

Michael David Dunn will be brought from Brevard County to Jacksonville after entering a not-guilty plea to charges of murder and attempted murder in the Friday shooting death of a 17-year-old student at a Jacksonville gas station.

Dunn, 45, of Satellite Beach, waived extradition and should be en route back to Jacksonville before Thursday to face charges in the death of Jordan Russell Davis, according to Lt. Tod Goodyear, the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office spokesman.

A gun collector in Jacksonville for his son’s wedding, Dunn told police he felt “threatened” after an argument with the Wolfson High student over loud music coming from a sports-utility vehicle parked next to him at the Gate station at 8251 Southside Blvd. Davis was in the back seat when “there were words exchanged,” followed by gunfire at 7:40 p.m., said Jacksonville homicide Lt. Rob Schoonover.

“Our suspect produced a weapon and started firing into the vehicle. Our victim was shot a couple of times,” Schoonover said. “ … They were listening to the music. It was loud; they [other teens] admitted that. But I mean that is not a reason for someone to open fire on them.”

[...] Davis family members couldn’t be reached for comment. They requested that the school district and Wolfson employees not speak to the news media, according to school system spokeswoman Jill Johnson.

Dunn lives in an oceanfront townhome in Satellite Beach. He is listed on his LinkedIn web page as vice president of software development since 2004 at Dunn and Dunn Data Systems in Fort Pierce.

Schoonover said Dunn and his girlfriend were next to the red SUV containing Davis and three of his friends. Dunn’s girlfriend was inside when Dunn and Davis exchanged words. Shots were fired, leaving Davis hit and eight or nine bullet holes in the SUV, Schoonover said.

The couple drove off after Dunn told her he had “fired at these kids,” Schoonover said. They went to their hotel, then returned to Brevard County when they learned what had happened from local news.

Witnesses gave police Dunn’s license plate number, which led police to his home. Schoonover said Dunn was planning to turn himself in when he was arrested.

Oh, so another black kid gets killed in Florida by a non-black man and not n’aan black person is protesting? Nope, nobody is holding press conferences? Nobody is asking President Obama questions about the case? Hell, nobody is even calling the shooter in this case racist? Shit, where is Sean Hannity and the New Black Panther Party on this one? I mean, unlike the Zimmerman case, this sounds like a serious disregard for black life. Hell, how else can unloading a clip into the backseat of an SUV with kids be characterized if the occupants happen to be black.

But hey, maybe we can do something like a million booming system procession instead of a million hoodie march in protest of the senseless murder of Jordan Russell Davis. Not that playing music too loud is worth dying over; but, maybe it’s the only way we can gain attention and maybe even some justice. Not that this homicide was racially motivated as far as the evidence shows — which is a good thing if you ask me — but let’s hope it stays that way. Really, there’s no need for more talk of race riots in small Florida towns, or any town in America for that matter.

But hey, that’s just me. According to Dunn, Davis had a gun so he shot him to protect himself. Kind of hard to believe his story when you consider that he drove off without as much as making a report to local police. But beyond that, no gun was recovered at the scene by local law enforcement.

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A black mother of two who died in Hurricane Sandy was refused help by a Staten Island resident. Having seen for myself the look of desperation on the faces of people only hours removed from Hurricane Katrina when it hit New Orléans in 2005. The following story of how a mother lost her two children after seeking help to escape the ravaging storm conditions doesn’t sit well with me. It reminds me of the countless stories of death and survival recounted by victims of Hurricane Katrina in the days and months after the storm.

This from CNN.com:

(Staten Island, NY) Police in Staten Island, New York have found the bodies of two brothers, Brandon and Connor Moore, swept out of their mother’s arms by floodwaters during Superstorm Sandy. The grim discovery was made this morning by NYPD divers in a marsh.

Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro says the boys, ages 4 and 2, were found “maybe a block or two from where [their mother] lost them.” The parents were there when police found the boys.

According to police, the boys’ mother, Glenda, stopped at a man’s house after her SUV hit a hole during the storm.

She begged for help and asked to come inside, but that man said no.

Soon after, the mother and her two children were hit by a massive wall of water.

The mother desperately tried to hold onto them, but the force of the water was too much.

Her two boys were carried away in the deadly floodwaters.

Somehow the mother managed to survive.

CNN’s Gary Tuchman talked with Alan, the man believed to have rejected her plea for help. He’s telling a much different story.

The mother of the two children, Glenda Moore, was black. Now I’m not going to go as far as to say that there was a racial component to this story since Alvin — the man who refused to help — was white. However, after watching the following video, it’s pretty obvious that race mattered.

After the boys disappeared, Mrs Moore knocked on a nearby door for help but was told: ‘I don’t know you. I’m not going to help you.’

Mrs Moore then tried another neighbor near her Staten Island home, but when she rang the bell they turned off the lights and refused to answer.

As the storm raged around her, the nurse took shelter in a doorstep, screaming and staring at the waters which had just snatched away her children.

Twelve hours later, at dawn when the weather calmed down, she found the strength to walk down the street and flag down a passing police car to raise the alarm. (source)

Watch the following to understand:

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I like Dr. Boyce Watkins — yes, I really do. It is for that reason only that he isn’t this week’s recipient of my Slave-Catcher of the Week award. Not that what he said in a piece over at Kulture Kritic isn’t slave catcher behavior. But after thinking long and hard, truth is, the last few strands of respect that I have for him as the “People’s Scholar” just won’t allow me to go there. Having said that, the good doctor has been treading the fine line that is black intelligentsia and fuckery to my disappointment, for quite some time. And the last thing I’d hate to do is to finally write him off as one of those Negroes that I refuse to fuck with anymore because of his ill-formed misguided opinions.

To be frank, Dr. Watkins has been on some bullshit.

I don’t know what’s happening with the brother, but I hate to start believing what I wrote about him recently. That is, I hate to believe that much of his screed of late is motivated by a need to feel relevant. You know, with the likes of Cornel West, Tavis Smiley, and even Melissa Harris-Perry getting some shine, I’d hate to think that my man is feeling left out like the kid who never got picked on the basketball court. Even worse, I’d hate to think that the good doctor is putting out much of what he wrote recently for page views for any one of the many sites upon which he leaves his internet footprint. Yes, I’d hate to think that I’m being bamboozled. And, I especially feel the way I do because Boyce has been putting in work in the black community for quite some time. But, after reading the following, what am I to think? Not trying to be judgemental, but dude’s trippin’.

As we approach the 2012 presidential election, I quietly ask myself: Regardless of who is elected, is black unemployment going to dip below 10% over the next four years? Is the prison industrial complex going to get any smaller? Are black teens going to continue to die from guns being made available on every corner in our communities?

Then, I realize that when we fight to keep “our guy” in office, we’re kind of like prostitutes trying to keep their pimp out of jail. The hookers know that the pimp isn’t going to make their lives any better, but his incarceration might possibly make it worse.

I would not go to the extreme of agreeing with WEB Dubois, who once said that he was not going to vote, since neither party cares very much for the African American community. But I am certainly in favor of African Americans being as selfish as every politician in Washington who simply does what’s best for him or her, without any regard whatsoever for the needs of the African American community. The fact is that you should care about them about as much as they care about you, end of story.

Whew! I’m so glad he’s not going the W.E.B. DuBois route of telling black folks not to vote. I am because if I recall corrently, DuBois in his infamous passage even noted that in voting for third-party candidates, he often voted against his own self-interest as a black man. But Bouyce is right, no matter who we vote for in Novemeber, there’s not much that will change overnight as far as black unemployment, the prison industrial complex, or even the long-standing problem that is black on black crime and violence. The problem I have with this melancholy self-defeatist position, is that no one presidency can, has, or will ever fix these issues. Indeed these are issues that negatively impact the black community. However, let’s stop it with the bullshit fantasy that this was all supposed to change with the swearing in of America’s first African-American president.

Yep, because Mitt Romney’s policies are best, right Boyce?

There is nothing wrong with supporting third party candidates, since most of us can agree that the two party system simply isn’t working. What offends me most is the determination with which the Democratic Party relies on fear and seeks to undermine individual freedom when it comes to how we vote. The fear is driven by reminding you that if you don’t give them your vote, horrible things are going to happen to you. Their subjugation of freedom comes from the fact that they are seriously threatened by the notion of anyone telling black people to think for themselves. They are accustomed to doing the thinking for us.

Negro, please!!

I’ll admit that, while I like Barack Obama and hope that he wins the election, I find myself unable to be as excited about this election as some of my friends. In fact, it’s downright depressing. I’m sad to look around me and see a world where anyone who doesn’t want to line up and have Barack Obama’s baby is somehow defined to be a traitor. It is also a world where anyone who tells our politicians to help battle against the diseases of poverty, violence, inequality and mass incarceration is told that they are peeing on the Negro Juneteenth Political Parade. No one wants to hear about black people who are suffering, since we’ve been trained to believe that a certain segment of our community just doesn’t deserve any better.

I am firmly against the consumption of alcohol, but this election is driving me to drink. To know that your vote isn’t going to have much of an impact on those you love is, admittedly, downright devastating. Perhaps it’s time that we demand something more, for our politicians have us bamboozled.

Boyce is right — the politics of fear is very powerful. However, the politics of fear isn’t one-sided — no, the fear mongering Boyce speaks of isn’t exclusive to Democrats. As a mater of fact, the very third-party candidates he suggests supporting employ the very tactic of fear mongering themselves. Shit, fear will always be a [art of our politics for as long as heaven is used as a better option than hell. The bottom line is that as long as the political narrative is dominated by the plutocratic power structure as it always has, things will never change. And there’s nothing wrong with being idealistic; but, if Boyce is going to be borderline suicidal and depressed about voting or the election cycle, then he might as well kill himself. I’m just sayin’, does he get this depressed about every presidential election? Shit, I’m only asking because, well, the two-party system has been around a long time. I mean, it’s not like the system or the problems affecting black folks have popped up overnight, no?

OK, so I’m not advocating that he ends his life. However, I am suggesting that he gets his shit together and stop feeding our people the slow poison that he has been serving up lately. You see, this isn’t about Barack Obama being black. This is about an ethnic group of people with a long history of marginalization exercising the right to vote after years of struggle. More importantly, this is about the very group of black people Boyce claims to love, mobilizing, and being a part of the democratic process. What pisses me off about Boyce’s tripe, is that he’s projecting the idea that voting is the end all be all to our struggle for equality. Quite naturally it’s easy for one to be depressed if everything was to be solved by simply casting a vote. But, that’s not how it works.

Listen, voting is important; yes, it is. However, as the late Howard Zinn said: Democracy is what happens between elections. Democracy doesn’t stop at the ballot box; no, it doesn’t. Democracy is us continually speaking truth to power and organizing ourselves so as to influence change. Yes, we have to become the change we believe in. Yes, it sounds cliché as hell, but it’s the truth. And believe it or not, Dr. Boyce Watkins knows this. How do I know that he does? Well, if he didn’t, he would have never started the program Building Outstanding Men and Boys (BOMB). If he didn’t, he wouldn’t traverse the country promoting his family empowerment series that targets the parents of young black males. That said, surely Boyce believes in himself as being a person being able to affect change. It’s just sad that he too is an infected crab in the bucket of black academia starving for relevance. I don’t know what’s up with this brother, but either he stops listening to that Emo Hip Hop (yeah dude, Drake sucks) or refrain from writing stuff to be published on the internet after having a fight with his baby momma. Seriously, get it together, Boyce — this ain’t you. Sheesh!!

Seriously Boyce, you’re better than this….

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Not to belabor a point, but let’s follow-up on what I wrote yesterday in response to Richard Mourdock’s ridiculous comment. Yes, let’s take another look at the idea that a woman becoming pregnant as a consequence of being raped needs to succumb to “God’s will,” and as such, should not be allowed to legally have an abortion. As I noted yesterday, there are many who support this Mourdock’s stated opinion; and, many are coming to his defense. That said, in an attempt to make the idea of a woman being raped all the more real, let’s meet 37-year-old, Tiana Stevens.

I came across Stevens’ story via News One. The article they did was heart wrenching, but it could not have come at a better time. I say that because as my wife and I discussed, it’s easy for people and politicians like Mourdock to discuss rape and incest without having been victimized themselves; or, without have any close and personal experience with anyone who has actually been through such a horrific experience. But, with women being sexually assaulted every 45 seconds here in the United States; and, with 1 in 15 sexual assaults resulting in pregnancy, rape is very real, folks.

So yes, let’s take a look at one woman’s story. That’s right, meet Tiara Stevens, a rape survivor and single mother to her son who also happens to be her brother. Yep, Tiara was sexually assaulted by her father repeatedly when she was 12-years-old, and gave birth to, well, her brother.

Would you really be willing to go through it?

Unfortunately for Tiara, she didn’t have that option. As she stated in the video above, she had no idea she was pregnant until the baby was born. But I have to wonder, what if she knew? What if she knew she was pregnant, would she want to willingly go through a pregnancy and deliver a child fathered by her father at 13-years-old? I think we can all agree that at that age, life is pretty much complicated as is. Why then would a young woman want to burden herself with the emotional scar of giving birth to her father’s child? Should she too in her not-yet-formed adult mind accept her circumstance as “God’s will,” and her child as a “gift” from God? As a parent, can you honestly say that it would be?

Do you really believe hat?

Tiara Stevens was raped by father when she was 12-years-old and became pregnant — yeah, God gave her the gift of a bouncing baby boy. What’s really awesome, is that she didn’t have an abortion and gave birth to her brother… eww… who quite naturally has a host of medical problems and is blind.

Having said that, I wonder how many of you “believers” are still of the opinion that a woman (or girl) conceiving a child when raped is still a “gift” from God.? I’m only asking because if this is a blessing, then maybe abortion should be illegal and not an option for women who through no fault of their own, are victimized…. oops, I meant blessed by God. I mean, am I wrong, or am I wrong? Oh well, you can watch Tiara’s full interview below. Yep, pay attention to the part where she said her father found out she was pregnant when the baby kicked while he was having sex with her.

The post Single-Mom Confuses Son as Brother Years After Dad Impregnates Her appeared first on Madness & Reality.

So, Richard Mourdock says God uses the uterus of pregnant rape victims as gift wrapping. As such, abortions should be illegal for women who become pregnant as a result of a non-consensual sexual encounter. And why? Because said pregnancy is a gift, and intended by God acording to the Indiana GOP Senate hopeful currently running for office.

Oh well, so much for the idea that it’s the thought that counts.

What’s up with Republicans running for office making ridiculous statements, and then in defense of said dumb shit, they then say that their words were taken out of context? Or, as in the case of Indiana’s Tea Party darling Richard Murdock, his words are being “twisted,” to mean something different than intended.

I realize that “context is everything,” when communicating. However, I’m a strong proponent for saying what you mean, meaning what you say and standing behind your words. Maybe it’s just me, but to do so says a lot about one’s character. Especially when thoughts and ideas are communicated from a position of power, to the powerless in our society. It might be a novel idea, but language and communication is important. It’s also especially important when running for office.

But don’t tell that to Mourdock who after Indiana’s Senate race debate last night, has found himself in hot water for making the following statement on victims of rape being allowed to have abortions: “I’ve struggled with it myself for a long time, but I came to realize that life is that gift from god. And even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen.” Here’s what Murdock offered as an explanation of what he actually meant:

God creates life, and that was my point. God does not want rape, and by no means was I suggesting that he does. Rape is a horrible thing, and for anyone to twist my words otherwise is absurd and sick.

Personally, I think you have to be a sick individual to justify rape. And as is the case with Mourdock’s statement, using “God” to justify rape speaks loudly to the issue of male privilege, patriarchy, and the all out insanity that is the marriage of religion and politics often seen on our political right. Case in point, check out the following defense of Mourdock’s comment from my friend David N. Bass over at The American Spectator – I found the following to be interesting:

It’s easy to be perturbed by Indiana Senate candidate Richard Mourdock’s comments on rape, abortion, and God’s will. But a little context here is important.

One, it’s important to understand what Murdock actually meant. He wasn’t saying that the criminal, immoral act of rape carries the approval of God. Rather, Murdock said that life — that is, the unborn child — produced by the horrible act of rape is still precious to God. The two are quite distinct. Of course, I have no delusion that media outlets will get this right. If they do, it will be buried deep in the story.

Two, many Republican candidates have inarticulately expressed their views on economic and foreign policy concerns. The most damaging part of this presidential campaign for Mitt Romney was his “47 percent” remark. Admittedly, it was said in private and not during a televised debate, but it was both unwise and damaging. Conservatives hoping to see a change in the Oval Office should be just as willing to forgive Murdock as they were willing to forgive Romney.

Three, the pro-life issue isn’t a liability for Republicans. Democrats’ pro-abortion extremism — defined as abortion on demand, without restrictions, up to the point of birth (and after) — appeals to their base, and their base only. Republicans’ pro-life instincts appeal to their base and a growing number of moderates who truly want abortion to be rare. Far more Americans today identify as pro-life than pro-choice. Republicans are winning on this issue, and must take a principled stand.

Fourth, I agree that Republicans need to be more careful of “inartfully” (to borrow a phrase) articulating their views on the sanctity of unborn life. Don’t give the media or your opponent anything to run with. But the same holds true for their economic views. It’s easy for a wrongly phrased answer to come across as plutocratic and dismissive of the legitimate needs of the poor and the welfare of the middle class— and, in our current economic situation, that type of gaffe is far more damaging to one’s electoral hopes than misspeaking on a social issue that most voters are ignoring right now.

Yep, typical right-wing commentator response: “Our guy’s words are being misrepresented by the media who fails to provide proper context.” Maybe I’m wrong, or maybe it’s just the secularist in me oozing out; however, there is no other way to explain Mourdock’s comment as being what it was. His comment wasn’t “inartful,” it was downright ridiculous — becoming pregnant as a result of non-consensual sex is not a gift from God. No, it’s called being a victim of rape. It’s called being forced to have sex, and a woman not having the choice to protect herself from pregnancy.

If God is a God of love, I doubt seriously whether he, she, or it would use rape as a method of conception for a woman. But then again, maybe rape is one of God’s many mysterious ways.

That said, why should a woman be “forced” to accept an unwanted pregnancy because God, Jesus, or whomever you choose to believe in decided to slide down a chimney bearing the “gift” of life? Belief aside, is it too much to be human and give a victim of rape the option to legally terminate a pregnancy? See, that’s the problem: You can’t argue or debate belief. Nope, because belief is just that: belief. And thankfully there’s this awesome thing called Separation of Church and State that protects individuals from any one God’s plan or rules being imposed on the entire population.

In response to Mourdock’s comment, a childhood friend of mine on Facebook asked: “Who are these crazy men?” My response to her, was that “these men,” are believers. Unfortunately for her and all the women across the country, they’re also believers employ religious dogma to justify control of the female body. Which is interesting since God gave the world the gift of his son through Mary, a virgin. But yet if a woman becomes pregnant because of an act non-consensual sex, she should take comfort in knowing that this was God’s will. Yeah, in spite of how unpleasant experience of being raped, the bright side is that God chose her uterus as the gift wrapping.

Yep, rape victims should be honored; you know, just like the descendants of African slaves.

For men like Mourdock — and the countless number of people who may agree with him — it’s as though God gave men dominion over everything in the land just as he “allegedly” gave Adam. And what better way to impose one’s belief than to be in a position of power within government, right?

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So, what do you do if you’re a Republican with a deep-seated hatred of President Barack Obama? Well, if you’re 47-year-old Charlene Idelle Hunziker, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, you get drunk in public and tell patrons at P.F. Chang’s just how you feel about him. But you don’t stop there; oh no you don’t.

Upon acting like an ass and embarrassing yourself, you proceed to resist arrest; because, for some strange reason you have it made up in your head, that being a Republican protects you from sitting in a jail cell. Yep, it’s in the Constitution.

Check this out:

Diners at a West Des Moines restaurant ran into two things that don’t mix – alcohol and politics – not long before President Barack Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney meet in their second presidential debate.

After an encounter that neither candidate likely approved, Charlene Idelle Hunziker, 47, of Council Bluffs was charged with public intoxication and harassment of public officials.

Authorities were called to P.F. Chang’s China Bistro at Jordan Creek Town Center about 3:45 p.m. Friday after restaurant employees tried to eject Hunziker for upsetting other diners with her political rant, according to a report on file at the West Des Moines Police Department.

Officer Chris Morgan said in his report that when he arrived, Hunziker reportedly yelled at him and said he didn’t need to be there because “she was a Republican.”

Hunziker reportedly refused a sobriety test and admitted to having consumed alcohol, but insisted she was not drunk, according to the report.

A witness reportedly told Morgan that Hunziker was drunk and had been bothering other customers with her opinions about the previous night’s presidential debate, her support for Romney and her belief that “Obama had ruined this country and … Muslims were causing America all these problems.”

Now mind you, this all happened after the first presidential debate where Romney was proclaimed the winner. Having said that, I wonder what she did for a repeat performance after the second debate after Obama whipped Romney’s behind like a runaway slave? Hopefully she didn’t leave a Swastika on an Obama campaign office. You know, stupid pranks that nobody ever arrests a Republican for?

The woman’s daughter proclaimed her mother “an embarrassment” and walked out of the restaurant, the witness said. When restaurant employees asked Hunziker to leave, she “got in the employees’ face and told them that she had rights and was refusing to leave.”

After the woman told Morgan she was a Republican, he told her that he couldn’t just leave – a statement she reportedly argued, according to the officer’s narrative of the encounter. The report said Hunziker kicked, screamed and struggled as Morgan and a backup officer tried to handcuff her and place her in the squad car.

En route to the police station, where she was booked before being transported to the Polk County Jail, Hunziker reportedly said that “she was doing this because she was a good mother.”

Yeah, this isn’t what “good mothers,” do; this is what crazy right-wing knuckle-draggers do every damn day. But what do I know, right? After all, I was a product of a single-parent home by a woman who drove a Cadillac and bought crack cocaine with her food stamps because she was black, right?

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