Happy Holidays to all my single, childless, living-too-far-away-from-family-for a visit folks!

After having a conversation with one of my Aunts last night, sobering reality decided to stop tapping me on my shoulder for attention. Instead, it sucker-punched me and knocked me on my behind. Another holiday season and I have no one special (in the amorous/romantic way) to spend it with. It gets particularly rough for me this time of year because I sincerely want to be in a relationship, but as many of you don't know (or you might), gay men can sometimes become weird creatures when approached about the subject of commitment.

I have been single for 7 years now and I'm starting to feel it. I have been on several dates with several different men and none have had that "spark". I am either more interested in them than they are in me or vice versa. Not willing to compromise my principles, I have resolved that I will probably be alone for the rest of my life. That prospect didn't seem so real until last night. My Aunt is in her 50's and has never been married. She is well-educated, well-off (although she started a second career to avoid boredom), and retired at a very young age. She has a sharp mind, is attractive, and is comfortable in her skin but she's single. As we talked at length last night, she reminded me that her rearing compels her to want to be married or at least in a LTR. Mine, too. I want to share my life with someone who complements who I am.

I don't have a litany of requirements, no idealized type, and no deal-breakers (except for marriage or someone who is already in a relationship). So why am I single? Wish I knew the answers. Part of the reason I think, is my inability to become vulnerable to people early on so they can get to the real me. I mean, let me be clear, I don't hide my personality behind a facade, but I also keep my innermost feelings guarded. Emotional hurt is very real and quite painful. The other reason is that I haven't met a man that I have very much in common with.

The one person who I do have so much in common with and we complement each other so well is one of my very best friends... a heterosexual woman! We even jokingly call each other husband and wife and our mutual friends agree. In fact, at my family reunion last month, some of my cousins (who apparently don't know that I'm homosexual) asked me when were we going to get married. I laughed, she laughed, but my cousins didn't get it. So I love her with the same love I would have for a man, but she and I could never be intimate (which is one of the ways love is expressed) because I am simply not stimulated by women.

It's also interesting to note that I have a number of friends who are in the same category as I am and while they are single, they aren't lonely. They at least appear to be happy with who they are at this point in their life and I admire them for it.

So, to all of my fellow single folks out there gay, straight, or other, I wish you wonderful holiday greetings and I hope 2008 brings you all that you want, including that special someone to love. In the meantime, continue loving yourself and if you're in the DC area, I'll be preparing a feast for people like us to have someone to spend Xmas with. You may email for an invite if you'd like to come.

I think I'm in the process of OPTING OUT!!!

Happy Friday people. How goes everything? I hope that this holiday season finds you well and in the highest of spirits. I know all too well the dangers of being depressed during the holiday season and they even have a name for it now --- Seasonal Affective Disorder or S.A.D, for short. Coinkidink? I think not, but I digress.

I write today as a means of vetting out the answers to some of my life's most pressing questions. For example, my first question is What can black people do as a collective to make themselves better? I know plenty of answers to that question and I'm trying to save them for discussion next year as I hop to actually redesign the blog, since I actually have a readership now! Thanks ya'll! Anyhoo, my next question is, Aside from racism what is the biggest problem facing our community? Sadly (and not S.A.D.ly) it has to be complete and utter ignorance, coupled with "conscientious stupidity". I went to YouTube for this gem of a video called NIGGA day. GASP!!! Yes, even after I thought the NIGGA was dead, turns out this NIGGA has pulled a Jesus on us and rose from the dead to be celebrated in Barnseville, GA. This video is not safe for work.



Yes, it seems that this NIGGA is still partying and getting his groove on and the masses (particularly the white ones) are LOVING it! I mean really, I don't know what Dr. Mike's purpose is for creating his videos (he is the YouTube videographer), but I thank him for making me aware. Get into the fact that the name of the day could actually be the BLACK HERITAGE FESTIVAL or the Black Arts Festival [although no arts or artists seem to be present and not to be confused with the NATIONAL BLACK ARTS FESTIVAL in Atlanta] or the Emancipation Day (like Juneteenth in Texas), but everyone has chosen to adopt the moniker "NIGGA DAY". Has a nice ring to it, ya think?

Now there are some problems with the good doctor's approach because he didn't ask any WHITE people, or Hispanic people, or Asian people, etc. what day was being celebrated(I need to know). Maybe he did that with good reason and I am hoping he'll respond to my email so that I may ask him. However, whether or not any of the other races would call the festival NIGGA DAY is probably irrelevant. It would simply demonstrate that the word is so casually used by blacks, that NO ONE sees a problem with it. This video was high coonin' at best and a painful lesson in self-hatred at worst.

Having said that, I think it's time that we opt out of what the conventional definition of blackness means(no I don't know, it's one of those intangible things that everyone knows, but can't adequately describe... like umami). It's time for us to shape our identities for ourselves and to really unmask the crap that we've put up with, created, and caused over the last few decades. This goes way beyond WEB DuBois' duplicity of consciousness philosophy. When I have some answers for how we can do this, I'll start posting my OTHER questions.

Peace,
Shane

Community Activists to protest serial pedophile R. Kelly at the Church Owned L.A. Forum on Friday!!!

All,

I just received word that a group of protesters lead by Najee Ali and Islamic H.O.P.E will be greeting serial pedophile and child rapist, R. Kelly at his December 14th concert at the L.A Forum. Now here's the kicker: Guess who owns that venue now? Resident false prophet, pastor, and child molestation promulgator, Kenneth C. Ulmer! Yes, it appears that the good Bishop is all about giving Mr. Kelly space and forgiveness to find some more unwitting pre-teen and teenage girls to degrade and piss on.

Now I expect the justice system to drag it's feet when it comes to protecting the lives of black women, but the black church? Nearly 85% of all black church parishioners are women; I hope this sends a message to the members of this mega church. If it doesn't, lemme make it plain for you: Kenneth Ulmer is just as guilty as R. Kelly. By allowing Kelly to perform, Ulmer implies that it's okay to molest and degrade young girls as long as Jesus can be invoked to bail you out and bide you some time to molest again.

Here's the info about the protest.

Good Luck and I'll be there with you in spirit!!!

P.S. Where was Islamic H.O.P.E during the fallout from Dunbar Village?

Mike Vick... A lesson in Stupidity and hypocrisy and black people cannibalizing each other

This will be the first and LAST post I dedicate to the fallen NFL Star. Later today Mike will be sentenced in the State of VA, up to 5 YEARS in Federal prison for his involvement in a highly publicized dog-fighting case. I am not a Vick supporter, sympathizer, nor do I have any empathy for him and his situation. However, I think it's important to understand how Mike's stupidity is a minor distraction from what's really playing out in front of us. How is it possible to be able to hunt and kill animals for sport LEGALLY? Is there a difference between me shooting a deer and hacking it to pieces simply for the hell of it--and-- what Mike did? Story here.

I would deem both of the actions as inhumane treatment towards animals. Having said that, I am also confronted by my own hypocrisy though; I eat meat... I like to fish... I wear leather, shearling, wool, etc. Why am I not being brought up on charges of being an accomplice to or financial supporter of animal cruelty? I've seen the PETA videos about how animals are processed for food and clothes (and I am in no way a supporter); should we be as outraged as we are about animal fighting?


I won't get into the black-white racial dynamics affecting Mike's fate; his wealth alone (or so everyone thought) was supposed to be enough to elevate his class mentality and insulate him from thuggery. Unfortunately, it did not and now he has to pay. What I am more interested in (not as much as I am confused) is how Mike's black lawyers sold a brotha "up the river". How could any GOOD defense attorney allow their client to enter into a plea agreement without first being assured that the client would escape STATE charges? Unless these charlatans MEANT to screw Mike without vaseline, I would deem them incompetent counsel. In any case, Mike's stupidity got the best of him and that false bravado exhibited in May during multiple interviews may come back to bite him in the ass later today. The Judge in this case has nearly sole discretion in determining Mike's fate; I hope he sees that and sentences Mike fairly.

46 percent of BLACK GAY MEN LIVING WITH HIV

Yep... you guessed it right. 1 out of every 2 black gay men are living with HIV. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in ATL, the newest figures are actually much higher than previously thought. What's even more alarming is that there doesn't seem to be much difference in the sexual practices of white gay men vs. black gay men... black gay men just seem to be getting infected more.

*SIGH*

Read more about the study here.

Jason Whitlock on the Black KKK

Yes, it's true. If you haven't already read Jason Whitlock's article about Sean Taylor's senseless death, you can do so by clicking here. Now, when I read the title of the article, I thought to myself, ooooh... yet another black person trying to go all Bill Cosby on poor folks! The article was actually quite good and I'm not even a fan of Mr. Whitlock.

I won't insult anyone's intelligence by paraphrasing the article. It needs to be read by everyone and I think Jason makes some very salient points.

I've been busy offline, but I'll be getting this little blog of mine together and updating more frequently.

DC HANDGUN BAN TO BE DECIDED BY HIGH COURT

Happy soon to be Indigenous People's Massacre day AKA Thanksgiving. Well one of my greatest fears have been realized today (as I surmised it would happen) as the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments next year regarding DC's ban on handguns. I can only imagine what the ruling will be and which justice (if not more than one) will write the majority opinion for this case. My money will be on Scalia, Thomas, or Roberts although Kennedy may be the dark horse if the ban is overturned. Should the court uphold the ban then my money would be on Souter to write the majority opinion (he'll probably author the dissent as well).

DC Mayor Adrian Fenty is taking a huge gamble with this one and it will more than likely blow up in his face. Knowing this, I have to say, Mayor Fenty... you've got cajones; I just hope they are big enough to avoid a full castration by the highest court in the land. You had better hope that the justices realize that gun violence in the District has risen steadily since last year and that homicide levels have reached '06's annual total already.

The handgun ban has been widely criticized as ineffective because MD an VA still allow individuals the right to bear arms. Thus, this decision will have far reaching implications and effects on gun legislation all over the country.

Read the full story here.

From USAToday Editorial

Downward mobility trend threatens black middle class

In the upper echelons of society, these are halcyon days for African-American achievement. Never before have so many blacks reached the highest levels of government, business, media, entertainment and sports.

At the same time, however, the success of people such as Condoleezza Rice, Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Denzel Washington and Tiger Woods has masked a troubling trend.

Reports last week from the Pew Research Center documented extensive downward mobility among the sons and daughters of the black middle class: 45% of black children from those families end up "near poor," Pew reported. The comparable number for white families is 16%.

It would be hard to overstate the significance for blacks or for society generally. It means that the expansion of the black middle class — the key to attaining racial equality since legal barriers were removed 40 years ago — is in jeopardy.

On a personal level, it gives blacks reason to doubt the assumption that America is a place where each generation will surpass the previous one.

African-Americans sense this slippage. Pew pollsters sampling black America found the greatest level of pessimism since 1983. Just one in five says things are better now than they were five years ago. Looking ahead, fewer than half say they think life for blacks will get better.

The causes are complex and interlinked, but several bear closer scrutiny:

* Family formation. The biggest driver of rising income and living standards of American families over the past several decades is the two-paycheck family. Too few African-Americans benefit from that trend: The percentage of married blacks in their 30s plunged from 68% in 1969 to 42% in 1998. (Whites have also experienced a decline in marriage rates across generations, but from considerably higher starting points.)

Moreover, nearly 70% of black babies are born out of wedlock, up from about 25% in the mid-1960s. Any discussion of the class divide that ignores family factors ignores a root cause.

* Gender. Discussing trends in black America also requires separating men and women. From 1974 to 2004, the median income fell 12% for black men while rising 75% for the women. One partial explanation is that twice as many black women as men graduate from college.

Those stark male-female income trends affect family formation: A high-earning woman has little incentive to marry a low-earning man. This suggests sharpening the focus on the plight of African-American boys, particularly those growing up without father figures or positive male role models.

* Education. Achieving middle class status is no guarantee that children will start achieving in school. Studies of well-integrated, middle-class school districts, such as Shaker Heights outside Cleveland, show that parents and teachers have lower expectations of minority students. When that happens, few black students end up being challenged in the advanced classes.

Turning this around is possible. In recent years several middle-class school districts have succeeded in pulling more black students into advanced classes. Overall, however, progress is too slow.

A second problem arises in low-income neighborhoods where teachers devote virtually all their attention to low-performing students, leaving brighter children — those most capable of high achievement later in life — unchallenged. Correcting that requires teacher training and adjustment of academic goals.

* Discrimination. Blacks and whites have sharply different perceptions about the persistence of racial discrimination in U.S. society, Pew found. About two-thirds of blacks say blacks often or almost always face discrimination when applying for a job, renting an apartment or buying a house. By contrast, large majorities of whites believe blacks rarely face bias in these situations. Majorities of both races, however, believe that blacks who don't get ahead have mainly themselves, not discrimination, to blame.

The common thread in determining upward mobility is what social researchers call "stickiness," the social glue that keeps families intact and financially prosperous. Important parts of the formula include health care, good neighborhoods, property ownership, marriage, strong school expectations, saving habits and inherited wealth.

Just as all Americans can take pride in the nation's racial progress and in the achievements of people like Oprah and Tiger, all Americans have a stake in reversing the alarming slide in the black middle class.

The link for this editorial is here.

SILENCE is NOT GOLDEN... Next Steps

(Photo courtesy of USA Today's H. Darr Bieser)

Well, here we are. In a week's time we managed to go from humble bloggers in a tightly-knit virtual community to becoming the authors of a "new roots" movement. We withstood some initial criticisms, had the authenticity of our "blackness" and our loyalty to Black Unity questioned. We also came together as five powerful individuals to be a voice for the marginalized and we were able to get our message out. We have created a sense of awareness about a particular situation, that without the blogosphere, would have gone completely unnoticed. I want to take this opportunity to thank Gina at What About Our Daughters? and Symphony at Essential Presence for being committed enough to keep Dunbar Village in the front of our minds. Had I not stumbled upon the Dunbar Village Story after surfing the web for another story, I'd have never known. I want to also thank Vicki, Robyn, Asantewaa, and Grace for enduring the brisk and windy morning to be out there with me. Finally, I'd like to thank everyone else for your kind words, phone calls and support. This was a phenomenal experience and I won't forget about it... ever.

People Still Don't Know

What I found quite disturbing was the fact that people still didn't know about Dunbar Village; after this weekend, I am not surprised. There were throngs of people shouting "No Justice, No Peace!", but after attempting to engage some people there about WHY they were marching I received several rambling responses with nothing significant enough to post here. At that point point I had to ask myself, Shane, why are you here? I had answers and I was glad that I did. I still believe that black "leaders" are a mess and that they should be challenged on their rhetoric and race-baiting. I also believe that many of the non-black social justice organizations are committed to causes that offer a direct benefit to marginalized white people as long as they aren't poor. The take home here is that if you are poor and black, you are not worthy enough to be supported by organizations that were founded to be a voice for you. If you are poor and white with may have some chance of getting your problems redressed and that may be intrinsically linked to the fact that you are white. However, if you are poor, black, and not of American nationality, you have a snowball's chance in hell of being helped. Sad, but true. Isn't democracy a wonderful thing?

Me, as the counter-revolutionary (according to an email I got and another post on a different blog I read) and my Jena 6 stand

Now, what the hell does this mean? I decided that speaking against the mind-numbing, ineffective, showbiz civil rights -dog-and-pony-show marches was important because the REAL work isn't being done. Truth be told, Mainstream media loves controversy because controversy makes for great stories and great stories sell papers and drive web traffic. I don't think that Ms. Bello or Mr. Page had those things in mind when they decided to interview me. I think they were attempting to provide an antithetical point of view, since apparently only they realize that black americans aren't a monolithic group of people. Is it possible for black people to publicly disagree with each other and the black race survive? WEB DuBois and Booker T, Martin (at first) and Malcolm, Shelby Steele and Julian Bond, all have had their share of disagreements and black people have still survived.

I read a comment about my counter demonstration being counter productive and that what I did was counter-revolutinary. So Al and Jesse are revolutionaries? How so when their collective silence is so easily bought and they both lack morals and personal integrity? Do you people who deem yourselves as Super-blacks have any idea WHY Jesse and All command the type of attention they do? Manistream media (read controlled by the white majority) loves these two incompetent Civil Rights Era rejects and YOU listen to them. So if you're so revolutionary and deep, why are you taking your cues from white people, if you believe that Jesse and Al are the defenders against racism?

I never slammed the Jena 6 protests, but I never supported them. I do question how ANYONE finds it rational to support 6 criminals in training (yep, I said it) for beating up a white kid 3 MONTHS AFTER the noose hangings. How does one find it okay to support a teenager with four juvenile convictions as a victim? Where were his parents and what were they doing while this child was out commiting crimes? So yeah, I have a problem when Al and Jesse, as well as other social justice "leaders" blur moral imperatives to support people who are clearly NOT circumspect enough to defend the theory that they've been discriminated against. How can we be so outraged at noose hangings or other forms of symbolic hatred, but we can be so cavalier about black people killing, raping, and robbing each other? I know that white-on white (WOW) violence exists and I know that racism exists, but racism and WOW didn't mug me, 2 black men and 4 black teenage girls did. Racism and WOW didn't commit the Dunbar Village Rape; 10 black teenagers did. I digress though... Moving ON!

For Dunbar and Others

I can keep asking questions but if black leaders still choose to ignore me or to never answer then I have to get over it and move on. The real work begins now and that is where my focus will be for the next few months. The response to Dunbar must come from the residents who live there. You must know that you have the right to hold your government agencies accountable for the series of security breaches and failures that have turned your community into a hell-hole.

You must SPEAK OUT. You must come to the table and if you can't find a seat to sit down, you must MAKE ONE. I can do what I can to assist, but this is not my movement. It's inherently yours because you have to live there and no matter what your particular situation is you have the right to a decent community. You have the right to unbiased and professional police protection. You have the right to a structurally sound, mold free, pest free, and secure living facility.

Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. They cannot retaliate against you for wanting them to do their jobs and if they tell you otherwise, send them my way. Again, this was an enlightening and life-changing experience for me and I am looking forward to the future. My hope is that this conversation continues and transforms into action plans that address the needs of all marginalized people without regard to their race, gender, nationality, class, or socio-economic status.


I struggle with you,
Shane

Update coming!

All,

I will make tomorrow my blogging update day. Between working two jobs and trying to rest I had to take today to recuperate from the past week.

Regards,

BLKSeaGoat

SILENCE IS NOT GOLDEN

SILENCE IS NOT GOLDEN

Date: Friday, November 16, 2007

Time: 11:15 am EST

Place: National Archives Building Sidewalk between

7^th and 9^th Streets, NW

700 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Contact: Shane Johnson, 404.246.2677

Purpose: Counter-protest to Al Sharpton Rally

Housekeeping:

Please meet at the Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter Metro Station (Green Line) at 11:15am. I will be wearing a red hooded sweatshirt with INSPI(RED) written across the back. I will also have signs, placards, brochures and a megaphone. Contact me at sbjatlanta@yahoo.com if you get lost or need directions. I am encouraging people NOT to drive.

Staging Location:

We have a permit for the sidewalk in front of the National Archives Building with is across the street from the Justice Department. We will be as close to 9^th street and Penn Ave. NW as possible. We will assemble between 11:30am and 11:45 am. I would like for us to be in position no later than 11:55am. We will disperse by 2:30 pm.

Please dress in warm clothes and layer your outfits. I expect the weather to be cool. Please also bring an umbrella or rain slicker.

Talking points:

I am not a fan of telling people what to do, but this is about DUNBAR VILLAGE and Black leaders' silence about black on black crime, especially when the victims are black women. Please keep your statements to the media in context, let’s remember why we are doing this.

Behavior:

This a peaceable assembly. Please respect yourselves and respect others.

Finally, YOU make all of this happen. Thank you for all of your hard work and your commitment.

LET THE PANDERING AND COMPROMISING BEGIN!!!

It's official!! Reverend Al and some of the Civil Rights establishment have heard our cries! .............NOT! If anything, they are trying to avoid some shame and embarrassment for being called out on their indifference, ineptitude, silence, and apathy. Thanks to Gina at WAOD, people are starting to understand that this is a SERIOUS faux pas for our black "leaders". In an attempt to keep me and my supporters from unleashing a counter demonstration, I have been receiving emails reminding me that we must remain "united". I'll be posting the emails and my responses here, so I'll keep this message brief.

It's sad that we have to SHAME people into being accountable, but hey, if it works and the desired results are achieved, why knock it? One more thing, to my haters, I am in this for the long haul... get your daggers ready and keep them ready.

Greetings Shane,

First allow me apologize for offending you and/or your service to the community. Please know that was not my intent. Thank you on behalf of my children for your courageous efforts and diligence.

You are correct, I am not a mental health professional and I have not experienced the burden of psychotropic drugs. What happened in Dunbar was to say the least horrific and it is happening globally to women, children, and babies (18mths in the Congo). I am not convinced that these youth are sociopaths because there are youth nationally and globally who are committing the same acts of violence and in some cases worse. So do we label them, and drug them, and remove them from society? How do we prevent the violence, sustain peace, and provide the basic human needs in the community? Peacebuilding seeks to analyze and then address violence. If you would like to speak further, I would enjoy sharing some additional tools with you for your advocacy toolbox and learning more about your service. If not, I wish you peace and blessings on your journey for justice.

Jacqueline

On 11/14/07, SB Johnson <sbjatlanta@yahoo.com> wrote:

Jacqueline,

I'm not sure why I was copied on your email, but since I was included I'll take the liberty to respond. I read your email with great interest and I still for the life of me have no idea what it is that you are talking about. How does peacebuilding stop teenage sociopaths from victimizing yet another human being? I want you to actually READ about Dunbar Village. I want you to read the affidavits and the grand jury testimony. This woman was sodomized and tortured. How does transformative therapy work to rehabilitate a sociopath? Are you a patient of transformative therapy? Are you currently taking any type alternative mood regulators?

I'm sorry but your response, while very philosophical, is completely irrelevant to what happened at Dunbar VILLAGE. aGAIN read ABOUT THE CRIME.

Yours in the struggle,
Shane

P.S. I don't live in Dunbar, but I've been advocating on behalf of these people since July of 2007. What have you done?

----- Original Message ----
From: Jacqueline Roebuck Sakho < contactjrsakho@gmail.com>
To: Alfia Johnson <nomadicgriot@hotmail.com>
Cc: ru4justice@juno.com; sbjatlanta@yahoo.com
Sent: Wednesday, November 14, 2007 6:55:12 PM
Subject: Re: FW: Counter protest to Rev. Al Sharpton's rally on Fri. Nov. 16. :(

Greetings Alfia,

Thank you for this valuable information. I was not aware of this horrifically violent incident. We must be very careful and empathic with this issue. A violent harm has happened to the entire community. See as we discussed in Busboy, we the community of Africans that are the descendants of slaves are suffering from intergenerational trauma and systemic injustice and oppression. Our current organizations and leaders are not properly trained in strategic peacebuilding, the operative word here is "strategic". These are the skills that are going to be effective for the 21st century. Marching and protesting may get some attention if the mainstream media grants it worthy; however, the attention has the potential to cause more harm to that community. The Dunbar Village Community will be left alone without healing or support and the organizers and organizations will go home or back to their comfort zones. We must ask, what is the root? Let's organize some peacebuilding workshops. Let's get our mental health professionals trained in transformative trauma healing. Let's get our social scientist and theorist trained in conflict transformation. This is a plan for saving our daughters and sons. Remember...Ubuntu. If you haven't heard of this term, it's an African philosophy that originates from one of the Bantu dialects of Africa, and is pronounced
as uu-Boon-too.

Sister Roxy Allen writes this about Ubuntu:

It is a traditional African philosophy that offers us an understanding
of ourselves in relation with the world. According to Ubuntu, there
exists a common bond between us all and it is through this bond,
through our interaction with our fellow human beings, that we discover
our own human qualities. Or as the Zulus would say, "Umuntu Ngumuntu
Ngabantu", which means that a person is a person through other
persons. We affirm our humanity when we acknowledge that of others.

Feel free to pass this on to your communities and networks.

Peace and Blessings,

Jacqueline

Rose,

Thank you for your email, but I can't help but wonder WHY NOW wants to get involved at this point. Your organization is yet another example of how social justices organizations (whose premise is to be a voice for the marginalized) has failed to be a voice for Dunbar. I don't think that you've gotten the point about the counter protest so I'll make it plain for you. NOW should be a shamed of themselves for being particularly silent on this issue. I also would like to point out that it's very rare that NOW takes the lead on anything that DOESN'T adversely affect white women. This is the reason Alice Walker (whose quote you use in your signature) has never supported NOW and the idea of feminism because of the selective exclusion of the needs of black women and women of color.

Now, if you believe that NOW is firmly committed to organizing some action on behalf of the woman who was raped at Dunbar Village, as well as the women who continue to be victimized (and everyone else), then I would be willing to have a conference call with you this morning. As far as what I'd like to see happen at Dunbar and how NOW and others can be involved in that process, I think we can proceed in the following manner:

• Statements from the Presidents of ALL sponsoring social justice organizations acknowledging the Dunbar Village Tragedy and how they Failed to respond quickly, for immediate release
  
• Advertisement of the Victim's assistance fund on their respective websites (the victim and her son need monetary support for therapy and medical costs) for immediate release
  
• Follow-up and updates on the progress of the trials of the 4 defendants in custody to be published on their respective websites to be published by 12/28/2007
  
• An Open letter signed by each organization demanding the Resignation of the Mayor, Housing Authority Director, and Chief of Police of West Palm Peach, to be drafted, signed, and published by 11/30/2007
  
• Use of field organizers to assist Dunbar residents with filing HUD complaints
• Use of field organizers to lobby for the dissolution of the West Palm Beach Housing Authority and takeover by the Federal Government or State

I am not sure that another march will change anything for the victim and her son, but will probably be a meaningful and symbolic way to support the residents of Dunbar Village whom the mayor of West Palm Beach has forgotten. The deplorable conditions, escalating crime, lack of police presence and protection have all equally contributed to a cadre of catastrophic failures that resulted in a brutal gang rape and torture. Please contact me immediately if you wish to to have this meeting.

Regards,
Shane

----- Original Message ----
From: Rose Afriyie
To: sbjatlanta@yahoo.com
Sent: Wednesday, November 14, 2007 4:07:30 PM
Subject: Meeting with Al Sharpton

Hello Shane,

First, I want to commend you for taking exceptional leadership on this important issue. My name is Rose Afriyie and I am a field organizer for the National Organization for Women, headquartered in Washington , DC . I hope this communication finds you well. I was writing to you because I am interested in holding a meeting to see if a compromise can be made so that we can all march unified at noon this Friday. I wanted to see if you and your co-organizers were open to a closed dialogue on your needs and concerns in scheduling a march for the woman in Dunbar with the organizers of the march for justice. Please call or e-mail with your thoughts on what a meeting would look like and what could be addressed so that we can all proceed in unity to demand justice for both men and women of color.

Dr. Holness,

He's had several opportunities since it happened in June 2007. Perhaps his schedule was too full marching for juvenile delinquents, sex offenders, and over-indulged but incredibly stupid, super-rich athletes.

----- Original Message ----
From: "Holness, E. Gail Anderson"
To: SB Johnson
Sent: Wednesday, November 14, 2007 3:40:01 PM
Subject: RE: March on Washington

Shane,

Apparently, this issue is deeper with you and Rev. Sharpton than I surmised; perhaps he is the best person to defend himself on this issue.

Dr. E. Gail Anderson Holness

Special Assistant to the President

Office of the President

University of the District of Columbia

Building 38 Suite A-O3

4200 Connecticut Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20008

202 274-6098 office

202 409-0105 mobile

2022 274-6033 fax

EHolness@udc.edu

---

From: SB Johnson [mailto:sbjatlanta@yahoo.com]
Sent: Wednesday, November 14, 2007 3:36 PM
To: Holness, E. Gail Anderson
Subject: Re: March on Washington

Dr. Holness,

Thank you for your email. Why hasn't he published this statement on his website? Why (if in fact it actually happened) did it take so long? Why hasn't Dunbar received the same time and attention that the Jena 6 or Genarlow Wilson did? You can remain united with him as much as you want, but as I and others like me have discovered, Rev. Sharpton speaks only for certain people. Any instance of injustice regardless of who the victim and perpetrators are warrants public action, but the Dunbar Village incident received none. Your silence implies that you condone what happened. Your silence implies that black women don't matter, especially when their abusers and victimizers are black men. Al Sharpton is NOT above criticism and it's high time that these self-appointed and self-absorbed black leaders are called out on their apathy and immoral indifference. Publish the transcripts of the lecture and I will post them on my blog ONLY if Rev. Sharpton specifically mentioned the Dunbar tragedy. You can read more about Dunbar Village here.

Regards,
Shane

----- Original Message ----
From: "Holness, E. Gail Anderson"
To: sbjatlanta@yahoo.com
Sent: Wednesday, November 14, 2007 3:24:23 PM
Subject: March on Washington

Shane,

Greeting,

Rev. Sharpton has been speaking about this issue to clergy and others since being in Washington , DC over the past week. As a matter of fact Rev. Sharpton spoke about this very issue yesterday to our students at our Distinguished Lecture Series at the University of District of Columbia . We must remain united in our efforts to eradiate injustices in our society and the March on Washington is our vehicle.

Dr. E. Gail Anderson Holness

Special Assistant to the President

Office of the President

University of the District of Columbia

Building 38 Suite A-O3

4200 Connecticut Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20008

202 274-6098 office

202 409-0105 mobile

2022 274-6033 fax

EHolness@udc.edu

PERMIT FOR COUNTER PROTEST GRANTED - WILL YOU JOIN ME?

I will compose the Logistics and Instructional plans and try to have them published by this afternoon. The important news here is that the PERMIT WAS APPROVED!!!! Let's be ready to BE A VOICE for DUNBAR!!! AL SHARPTON'S SILENCE WILL NOT PROTECT HIM!!!

SILENCE IS NOT GOLDEN - COUNTER PROTEST OF AL SHARPTON

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

COUNTER PROTESTERS TO GREET SHARPTON FRIDAY AT DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

WASHINGTON, D.C.-November 13, 2007- When Rev. Al Sharpton descends on the Department of Justice headquarters on Friday, November 16, 2007, he'll be greeted by counter protesters asking why he and other African American leaders have refused to publicly comment on a horrific crime against humanity committed against a Black woman and her child in a housing project called Dunbar Village located in West Palm Beach, FL.

The Dunbar Village tragedy is the horrific story of the brutal gang rape, sodomy, and torture of a 35 year old black Haitian immigrant and her 12 year old son. 10 black teens forced their way into the victim's home at a public housing complex in West Palm Beach, Florida. The mother was forced to perform fellatio on her own son at gunpoint. The teens then cut and stabbed the mother and her son, poured cleaning solvent on their skin and in their eyes, and would have set them both on fire, but as one teen suspect reported, no one in the gang had matches. Currently, only four suspects are in custody. During the 3 hour rape and torture, not a single neighbor called 911.

The counter protest is being organized by Shane Johnson after he read about the crime on the blog, What About Our Daughters? "How is it possible that practically every social justice organization from the ACLU to the NAACP to the SCLC knows something about Dunbar Village but refuses to speak out about it?", asks, Shane Johnson who is a blogger and the author of Black Sapience…My .02 (http://blacksapience.blogspot.com). Johnson adds, "This protest is not to request that Sharpton and his allies march in West Palm Beach, but simply an inquiry regarding Rev. Sharpton's peculiar silence on this issue."

For over three months, Gina McCauley, who created the blog, What About Our Daughters? (http://whataboutourdaughters.blogspot.com) has been asking why prominent African Americans have failed to make any public comment about the Dunbar Village crime. She posted the names and contact information of prominent African Americans and organizations on her blog and despite numerous calls, emails and letters from readers, not a single person on the list has issued a public comment on the crime. She describes their refusal to publicly comment "Immoral Indifference." "It is the height of hypocrisy that Black leaders have remained silent for so long about the Dunbar Village Rape tragedy. Black leaders remain silent about victims of Black on Black crime." McCauley noted on her blog that several prominent African American issued statements on the humane treatment of animals during the controversy surrounding Michael Vick. "We can get a statement about dogs, but not about two human beings."

Tanisha Mathis, who operates the website Essential Presence (http://essentialpresence.blogspot.com) adds, "African Americans are falsely led to believe the mainstream is not sensitive to their issues but its proven repeatedly that it is, in fact, Black leaders and Black news entities that are the most silent in regards to crimes against Blacks like the Dunbar Village gang rape." McCauley and Mathis have both blogged tirelessly about the Dunbar village case and have produced online videos in an effort to increase awareness of the crime. To date, their videos have been viewed almost 100,000 times. Mathis' video was featured on the local news in West Palm Beach, and Mathis has toured Dunbar village at the behest of local leaders.

The counter protesters will meet Rev. Al Sharpton and his supporters in Washington, DC at the Justice Department on Friday, November 16, 2007. "This type of crime happened on our watch and our "leaders" are still silent. They are silent because they are indifferent. Their indifference is immoral." McCauley says.

“This protest is a call to arms for anyone who cares about black women. This was a crime against humanity and I am surprised at the level of apathy and lack of outrage from our self-appointed black leaders.” adds Johnson.

For more information, contact Shane Johnson at 404.246.2677 or sbjatlanta@yahoo.com

JOIN ME!!! LET'S BE THE VOICE FOR DUNBAR VILLAGE!!!

All,

I had an amazing experience last night on the Black Women's Roundtable podcast sponsored by Gina at What About Our Daughters - Defunding the War on Black Women and Attorneymom at Character Corner. We discussed many different subjects but perhaps the most important agenda item for me was to talk about counter demonstrating the Washington D.C. March on Hate Crimes. For many of you who still are unaware, a horrific gang rape and torture style attack were carried out on a Black mother and a pre-teen son by a group of 10 teenage boys, now known as the Dunbar Village Tragedy. Gina McCauley at WAOD and Symphony of Essential Presence have been covering this story rather tenaciously. Collectively, they have been asking for the past 4 months, "Why are Black "Leaders" SILENT about Dunbar Village"? Please read about this vile and disgusting attack, as well as all updates regarding Dunbar Village here.


In an effort to bring more light to this story and to confront black "leaders" about their peculiar silence regarding this case, particularly Al Sharpton, it became clear to me that we can organize a counter protest to the Hate Crimes March in DC on November 16, 2007 from 12 noon - 2:00pm at the Department of Justice. If Sharpton, King III, and to others can take to the streets to chide the Federal Government for inaction on investigating and actively prosecuting hate crimes, surely we can criticize the good Reverend and his colleagues, for the very same thing. As Gina would put it, "Let's call people out for the Immoral Indifference".


Let me be clear, this is NOT an attempt to get Mr. Sharpton (OR HIS ILK) to advocate for Dunbar Village and others; clearly we have taken on the onus of advocating for them. I merely want ACKNOWLEDGEMENT from Mr. Shaprton (whose presence alone commands national media attention... good or bad) that this kind of sadistic, calculated, weaponized, form of rape and torture will not be tolerated! To quote the esteemed writer/scholar/activist/feminist Audre Lorde, "[our] silence will not protect [us]." I am tired, angry, and ready to accept this moral call-to-arms, if you will, to place the same premium on black womanhood as society places on white womanhood. Will you join me and others as we organize ourselves to challenge the collective conscience of the black community and America as a whole? Put your outrage, disgust, and disappointment to action! If you can be there, JOIN ME!!!

LOGISITICS:

WHAT: SILENCE is NOT GOLDEN!!!

WHERE: United States Department of Justice
950 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, NW
WASHINGTON, D.C.

WHEN: Friday, November 16, 2007 from 12:00 noon - 2:00p.m

WHO: ANYONE WHO CARES ABOUT BLACK WOMEN!

CONTACT: Shane (Sayeed aka BLKSeaGoat) at sbjatlanta@yahoo.com, 24 hrs/7 days a week.

As soon as I get the permit approval, I will email all interested persons with a meeting location, agenda, and staging time. I will hand deliver the National Park Service form on Tuesday, November13. In the event that I DON'T receive permit approval, I am COMMITTED to being there.

Yours in solidarity,

Sayeed aka BLKSeaGoat

How Wealthy Black Children Suffer From Identity POLITICS - Part 1

This past weekend I attended a restaurant opening with a girlfriend of mine who comes from "the Gold Coast" of Washington, DC. For those of you who are unaware of what I'm referring to, the Gold Coast represents neighborhoods that have become enclaves for the upper echelons of black families to insulate themselves from the rest of us. They are wealthy, powerful, and influential. The progeny of these families are divided into two schools: Old Money and New Money. Typically, the old money blacks are even more exclusive than the Gold Coast Families and in order to enter such circles of black elitism would take an act of God. Even then, unless you show up with Jesus to an induction ceremony, don't hold your breath for that invitation to Jack and Jill or the Links.

Now, I have always been fascinated with black american classicism because I came from a consistently middle class family. We are not poor, but we are also not rich. We are well educated, attended the best schools, and worked for practically everything we have. We were indoctrinated with a certain value system, identity, and moral fiber. Some of us have strayed away from some of the ways of our rearing, but the fundamental things remain the same. This seems to be a pretty common thread in Black Middle Class families. We also have a strong sense of pride in being black americans and we often honor and venerate our ancestors and other great blacks as well. All of my neighborhood and child hood friends are college educated and most have advanced or terminal degrees (this is an important part that will be more thoroughly discussed later).

From my observations of my friend and her Gold Coast friends (as well as other Gold Coasters in other parts of the country), I found them to be particularly entertaining. These were the creme de la creme of blackness (in their own minds) and they made sure I knew it. They spoke of ski trips to Vail, vacation homes in Jackson Hole, Obnoxious parties, and patent excess. I saw a young lady with a 62,000.00 Louis Vuitton "patch" bag (only a few dozen or so have been made), Men with 10,000.00 dollar custom suits, and several magnums of LR Cristal, Grand Cru Bollinger, and Veuve. It was absolutely amazing! Hell, I think I saw every major runway designer's collections at this party. We get to a part where my girlfriend formally introduces me to people and she tries to play up my "pedigree" to make sure that I was accepted by her group. As I started to shake hands and engage people in conversation, I made it clear that I was not like them. Nonetheless, they seemed cordial and we began to converse about many things but they steered the conversation topics.

When it became my turn to segue into something different I started talking about identity politics. I made a statement to the affect that many wealthy blacks have a tendency to validate themselves through their ability to imitate "white" folk... badly. In this particular case I

WHITE RACISM KNOWS NO BOUNDS... WHITE, GAY, FOLKS DOWNPLAY CLINTON'S TIES TO ANTI-GAY PASTORS, BUT CRUCIFY OBAMA

UPDATE: I have a copy of the letter I sent to the Washington Blade about my posting on the McClurkin/Obama mess: Wanna heah it, heah it go:

Criticism of Obama event reveals ignorance about gospel music

Re: “Obama stands by ‘ex-gay’ minister despite protests” (news, Oct. 26)

I am a gay African-American male who is out, proud and politically active. I wonder how many of the people quoted in this story have ever been to a gospel concert, a black church or know anything about gospel music.

Frankly, I wonder how many of the interviewees were black, given the level of ignorance expressed in all of the story’s quotes. I also wonder how many African-American gays are driving the protests regarding Barack Obama’s pick for this concert series/outreach event. To think that Obama picked Donnie McClurkin as a “headliner” for a gospel concert because of his views on homosexuality is pure ignorance. McClurkin is a very famous and successful gospel artist with a huge fan base. Gospel music, at its most basic form, is an expression of healing through hope.

This event was designed to be an outreach event for Obama to convey his message of change and hope to the black church. What’s wrong with that? There are different sectors of the electorate that as a politician, Obama must appeal to in order to wage a successful campaign as a presidential candidate. Hillary Clinton has done it, John Edwards has done it, and so has Bill Richardson; Obama is no different.

What I find offensive is the fact that HRC President Joe Solmonese was consulted by Obama about an event that Solmonese probably wouldn’t even attend, nor would any of HRC’s wealthy white donors. Just because someone supports your campaign and chooses to work to see your vision come to fruition, does not imply that you agree with everything a supporter believes in.

S JOHNSON
Washington

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack! Okay so I won't bore you all of the gory details, but I'll post the story here.

Just one week after criticizing Sen. Barack Obama’s ties to an “ex-gay” minister, supporters of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) are downplaying her connection to anti-gay figures.

Obama was assailed last week for allowing gospel singer Donnie McClurkin to appear at a South Carolina campaign event, but the endorsement of Clinton by at least two anti-gay black ministers has so far not generated similar outrage.

“I don’t know if that’s the same as, ‘Here’s a microphone — you can speak for my campaign,’” said Ryan Wilson of the South Carolina Gay & Lesbian Pride Movement.

Some of Clinton’s gay supporters, along with unaligned gays such as Wilson, said they’re generally unconcerned that anti-gay ministers Bishop Eddie Long and Rev. Harold Mayberry are supporting the campaign.

Long’s New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in suburban Atlanta once marched against gay marriage and hosts an “ex-gay” ministry. Mayberry has preached against homosexuality to his First African Methodist Episcopal Church in Oakland, Calif.

In interviews this week, Wilson and others said they were not concerned that Clinton had accepted a $1,000 donation from Long or that she recently thanked Mayberry for “fighting for civil rights and equality,” because she has not allowed either minister to speak for the campaign.

“There is a very big difference,” said Peter Rosenstein, a Washington political activist who is on Clinton’s gay steering committee. “This doesn’t impact at all what I think about Sen. Clinton’s campaign.”

Alvin McEwen, 36, a gay man who led an opposition vigil Sunday outside Obama’s campaign event in South Carolina, agreed.

He said “there’s a whole big difference” between Clinton accepting a $1,000 donation from Long and Obama allowing a man who espouses “ugly things about gays and lesbians” to speak during a campaign event.

“I would say the Obama campaign crossed a line,” McEwen said. “They touted this man as speaking for the campaign.”

McEwen has not said which candidate he supports.

A spokesperson for the Clinton campaign said the candidate “has been very clear” that she supports policies that advance equality for gay Americans.

“But in campaigns, you can never expect all your supporters to agree with you 100 percent of the time,” said Jin Chon. “Hillary Clinton is a leader who will bring together people with differing opinions and have an honest and open dialogue to find common ground.”

Brad Luna, a Human Rights Campaign spokesperson, said the organization had no plans to issue a statement regarding Clinton’s ties to Long and Mayberry.

He said the Obama campaign’s decision to let an “anti-gay reverend” headline a campaign event was “a unique situation,” but that HRC’s advice to Obama stands for Clinton, fellow candidate Sen. John Edwards and others.

“If it’s Sen. Clinton or Sen. Obama or Sen. Edwards or whoever,” he said, “we would encourage them to seek out places to have discussions among their campaign supporters and try to bridge the gap between religious leaders who might not be as good on these issues as we’d like and their GLBT
supporters.”

Obama’s campaign last week indicated it would do that, but declined to pull McClurkin, a Pentecostal minister, from the event. Campaign officials instead added to the event Rev. Andy Sidden, a gay United Church of Christ minister.

Sidden, who offered the campaign event’s opening prayer, said he did not cross paths with McClurkin.

“I have yet to actually meet him,” Sidden told the Blade. “We were kept apart — or at least we were apart. And I wouldn’t know him if I saw him.”
McClurkin claims to be “ex-gay.” According to HRC, McClurkin in 2003 accused gay Americans of “trying to kill our children” and in 2002 called homosexuality a “curse.”

When he took the stage Sunday, McClurkin said, “I’m going to say something that’s going to get me in trouble,” and in his ensuing comments noted that “God delivered me from homosexuality.”

The unsolicited comments were not well received. Jim Pickett, a longtime Obama supporter and advocacy director at the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, said he was “annoyed” by McClurkin’s remarks.

“That sits pretty badly with me,” he said. “There was no point-counterpoint. He made those statements. He had the bully pulpit. There was no dialogue.”
Sidden said he was not given an opportunity to take the stage with — or to respond to — McClurkin. Sidden noted that if he had met McClurkin, he would have encouraged him to “love himself just the way God made him.”

“I believe that homosexuality is a gift from God,” Sidden said, “as is heterosexuality.”

See what I mean about white gay folks? HYPOCRITES!!!

Wear RED... 10/31 the last day of Domestic Violence Awareness Month! This is dedicated to WOMEN.

Today is October 31, 2007. October, for many people who aren't aware, is Domestic Violence Awareness month. To read more about the commemoration please visit WAOD here. I am against domestic violence against any person regardless of their gender. However, since this month specifically addresses violence against women, I will observe this new custom. I will add another layer of specificity though; the focus of this posting will be black women. In the memory of black women who have remained silent while being victimized by, died from, survived domestic violence this poem by Laini Mataka of Washington, DC is for you.

T H E S T R O N G B L A C K W O M A N IS D E A D!

The strong black woman is dead
The strong black woman is dead...on August 15, 1999 at 11:15 p.m. while struggling with the reality of being a human instead of a myth, the strong black woman passed away.

Medical sources say she died of natural causes, but those who knew her know she died from being silent when she should have been screaming, smiling when she should have been raging, from being sick and not wanting anyone to know because her pain might inconvenience them.

She died from an overdose of other people clinging to her when she didn't have enough energy for herself. She died from loving men who didn't love themselves, and only offer her a crippled reflection. She died from raising children alone and for not being able to do a complete job. She died from the lies her grandmother told her mother, and her mother told her about life, men and racism.

She died from being sexually abused as a child and having to take that truth everywhere she went, everyday of her life, exchanging the humiliation for guilt and back again.

She died from being battered by someone who claimed to love her. And she allowed the battering to go on, to show she loved him too.

She died from asphyxiation, coughing up blood from secrets she kept trying to burn away instead of allowing herself the kind of nervous breakdown she was entitled to, but only white girls could afford.

She died from being responsible, because she was the last rung on the ladder and there was no one under her she could dump on. The strong black woman is dead.

She died from the multiple births of her children she never really wanted, but was forced to have by the strangling morality of those around her. She died from being a mother at 15, a grandmother at 30 and an ancestor at 45.

She died from being dragged down and sat upon by un-evolved women posing as sisters. She died from pretending the life she was living was a Kodak moment instead of a 20th century, post slavery nightmare!

She died from tolerating Mr. pitiful just to have a man around the house. She died from lack of orgasms because she never learned what made her body happy and no one took the time to teach her, and sometimes when she found arms that were tender, she died because they belonged to the same gender.

She died from sacrificing herself for everybody and everything when what she really wanted to do was be a singer, a dancer, or some magnificent other.

She died from lies of omission because she didn't want to bring the black man down, she died from race memories of being snatched and raped, snatched and sold and snatched and bred, snatched and whipped and snatched and worked to death.

She died from tributes from her counterparts who should have been matching her efforts instead of showering her with dead words and empty songs, she died from myths that would not allow her to show weakness without being chastised by the lazy and the hazy.

She died from hiding her real feelings until they became hard and bitter enough to invade her womb and breast like angry tumors. She died from always lifting something from heavy boxes to refrigerators.

The strong black woman is dead.

She died from the punishments received from being honest about life, racism and men. She died from being called a bit-h for being verbal, a dyke for being assertive and a ***** for picking her own lovers. She died from never being enough of what men wanted, or being too much for the men she wanted.

She died from being too black and died again for not being black enough. She died from castration every time somebody thought of her as only a woman, or less than a man.

She died from being mis-informed about her mind, her body and the extent of her royal capabilities.

She died from knees pressed to close together because respect was never part of the foreplay that was being shoved at her.

She died from loneliness in birthing rooms and loneliness in abortion centers, she died of shock in courtrooms where she sat, alone, watching her children being legally lynched.

She died in bathrooms with her veins busting open with self-hatred and neglect. She died in her mind, fighting life, racism, and men while her body was carted away and stashed in a human warehouse for the spiritually mutilated, and sometimes when she refused to die, when she just refused to give in, she was killed by the lethal images of blonde hair, blue eyes and flat butts, rejected by the O.J.'s, the Quincy's and the Poitiers.

Sometimes, she was stomped to death by racism and sexism, executed by hi-tech ignorance while she carried the family in her belly, the community on her head, and the race on her back!

The strong silent, talking black woman is dead!!!!!!!!! Or is she still alive and kicking???????????? I know I'm still here.

I will be adding the names of DV victims to the end of this post and in the comments section to venerate them. I encourage you to do the same.

You've been tagged

I've been tagged by AttorneyMom at Character Corner. Please follow the rules of this game to the best of your ability.

The rules of the game are:

A). Link to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog...

B). Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself...

C). Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs...

D). Let each person know that they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Facts About BLKSeaGoat:


1) I am trying to lose 30 pounds by next late spring for the start of the summer travel season (Just need to tighten my abs and tone up a little more... I'm back on the market and I'll be in Miami at that time).

2) I love to cook and I am considered a culinary master...even by my brother who went to Johnson and Wales!!!

3) Although half of my lineage includes black spanish folks, I speak no spanish.

4) I have been single for 7 years and I believe monogamy is a Western Philosophical construct.

5) The day I was born several hundred people were injured and a few dozen killed during a freak accident on the NY Subway system.

6) Although I've been told I would make a wonderful father, I do not want children... ever.

7) I have an extremely awful temper, but rarely get angry enough for anyone to ever see what I'm capable of (Trust me on this one... you don't want to know).

I am tagging DJ Black Adam, Attorneymom, Gem2001, shecodes, brotherkomrade, johnny, antonio.

Self-Determination is a RIGHT...Let folks have it!

Hey my peoples! Today is Monday and I'm feeling a little...MEH. As luck would have it, I received a wonderful telephone call from a good friend of mine who is finishing up a research fellowship that's also a part of her dissertation (She's always been great at killing two birds with one stone). Today we talked about our mutual experiences in working with the less fortunate and how our ideologies, as they relate to race, class, and poverty have changed. She is a kick ass clinical social worker who is graduating this May with a Ph.D in Clinical Psychology. I am social worker functionally, but I lack the academic training to possess authentic credentials. Suffice it to say, we have markedly different approaches when it comes to working with clients, but we hold some of the same fundamental beliefs. Chief among those beliefs is that clients have a right to self-determination; that is, they should be allowed to make decision for themselves even if those decisions are to their detriment.

It's quite difficult to watch someone you've been working with for years regress back to the original state in which you first encountered them. Frankly, it's the pits. I am so tired of working my ass off to get people to a certain point in their lives only to be disappointed by them. This level of direct service is the most unrewarding, unkind, and thankless kind of work. I rarely ever have clients who continue to grow after we mutually agree to limit our contact with each other. Instead, I find myself going into crackhouses, heroin alleys, or the sex worker strolls to physically pull them up and out, to get them back into treatment or stable housing. When I do have a client who bucks the trend, they seldom live long enough to enjoy the accoutrements of their newly found independence from drugs and the poverty mindset (which is markedly different from poverty). See, my goal for most of my clients is to show them a different way to compensate for many of the things they see as shortcomings in their lives. We accomplish this by meeting clients where they are and by creating treatment plans that emphasize a client's strengths. We then create S.M.A.R.T. objectives or incremental action steps to achieve the goals of the treatment plan. Sometimes the plans work for a spell; most of the time, they don't.

I'm ambivalent, because many times I find myself judging them. I chide them for being lazy and complacent or for using illness and addiction to abrogate them from personal responsibility. I find myself being the polemicist, wanting to arrest the disciplines of abnormal psychology and psychiatry for providing people with a cadre of disorders to again, escape responsibility. Conversely, I find myself trying to be the understanding social worker, attempting to explain away bad choices as personality disorders or the direct result of drug addictions. What I'm learning now though, is that people definitely have the right to self determination. I should not expect less of them than they expect of themselves. I am learning that it's okay to be a help as long as I don't become an enabler. Most importantly, I am learning not to be married to people's outcomes; it's their life to make. I can only provide good advice (based on what information I have) and have a reasonable expectation that at some point people will have enough self-determination to expect more of themselves---and work toward achieving all that life has for them.