Speak Up!
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It may be less “sensational” than the Imus/Rutgers controversy, but Slate.com recently addressed the fact that Regent University, a staunchly conservative law school in Virginia, has become an unpreceded feeder school to the White House - http://www.slate.com/id/2163601/nav/tap2/. Article is especially fascinating because it reveals the fact that many of the hirings are driven not by “merit” but by connection - ironic for many reasons, not the least of which is the conservative position on Affirmative Action.
April 9th, 2007 at 11:49 am -Thanks for the heads up! I will read it tonite.
April 9th, 2007 at 1:10 pm -“Education, the Key to Prosperity.”
When are, we, as a people, going to start working with our youth to eliminate the lies that are fed to them by the media that prevent them from achieving to their fullest potential? When are we, going to stand up and fight the idea, pervasive in our youth, that if you are excelling in school, in advanced classes and dominating (academically) you classmates, you are “acting white”. This idea is absurd! Throughout history, we have pushed education when it was forbidden upon pain of death! Even during Jim Crow, we created over 150 colleges to serves our children when the mainstream ones refused to let us in. When mainstream businesses refused our money, we became entrepreneurs and set up thriving districts such as Little Hayti in Durham, North Carolina and Black Wall Street in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This all happened, because we educated ourselves, either formally or informally!!
Now, after our people fought to open doors to the mainstream of American intellectual life, a thief come in the night to steal the victory and perseverance from our kids; the idea that academic excellence is “acting white”, our ridicule of our brothers and sisters who strive for educational and professional excellence. As they go forward in their academic accomplishments, we have Black idiots taunting them with the label “acting white.” Do not confuse professionalism or academic excellence with “acting white.” One has nothing in the world to do with the other. In fact, those Black folks who do not encourage nor support their fellow Black students or Black businesses are actually the ones “acting white.” They also act white when they do not sound their objections or defend against other races that denigrate their Black brothers and sisters, or when they mistreat their own Black people with the same lies, injustice and incorrectness as white supremacist do. Those who are accusing other of “Acting white,” are simply being niggerish, or, put a better way “stupid”, themselves!
I issue a challenge to everyone! Check you state’s, your individual district’s, your child’s school’s status on proficiency tests. You will see a great gap in the performance of black and white students. Check the ACT, SAT, AP, and other tests. With affirmative action about to go off into history and the standards rising, we must reaffirm our intellectual tradition. Start reading (newspaper, books, magazines, etc., use the public library, etc.). As a special treat, give your kids gifts certificates for bookstores. Take your children to museums, galleries, parks, etc. We must challenge the idea promulgated through BET and throughout history that all we do is play sports and rap!!
View my sites at: http://www.geocities.com/jvbzook, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Afro-American_Intellectual_Association/, http://groups.msn.com/BlackIntelligence, http://jvb1.tripod.com.
Or email me at
February 14th, 2008 at 7:09 am -Jeffrey_V_Brown@hotmail.com
Thomas Sowell points out that black academic achievement was improving every year until about 1964 when it stagnated and actually fell. Alarmed at what she saw, Gwendolyn Brooks wrote her poetic indictment of black anti-intellectualism “We Real Cool” in 1966.
When my children were very young, I told them that every hour hitting the books now would pay off in money and opportunity. I told them that the secret to success was that you had to “dare to be square”.
It doesn’t matter what color you are; it’s the same secret for everyone.
May 30th, 2008 at 11:52 pm -