Sandy Banks asks: Who Gets to Define Motherhood?

"Lazhanae was the third of nine children of 33-year-old Shamana Johnson, a single mother who had served time in prison and had a history of substance abuse..."

(originally posted 10/20/09) Dear friends,

What makes a goood mother? Is it her mental stability? If that is the case, then there are few good mothers or fathers out here. After all, ours is not a very sane society. Consequently, perhaps, it is instructive for us to consider developing genuine communities in America. Presently, there are none.

In any case, on the link below, the very special Sandy Banks of the Los Angeles Times gives us a great deal about which to think.

One Love,
G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-banks17-2009oct17,0,2924863.column Read full post

Equality and Sameness are two different entities

Dear friends, 

 Are men more physically-capable than women?. Look. Lisa Leslie, for example, can beat just about anybody, male or female, pro, amateur, or street - in a game of basketball. Okay? Moreover, please do not make a claim to someone else’s ability, as if it belongs to you - like "men jump higher than women". That type of talk reminds me of a guy who walks down the street with a growling dog on a leash,while maintaining a scowl on his own face, as if he is a mean, bad dude. In other words, he is playing off of the dog’s ferocity, as if that disposition is natural to him. However, in reality, if you see that same cat without the dog, his whole personality is different. Right?

Moreover, the argument that men are stronger, or faster, or whatever, than women is silly, since people are not talking insects. That is, we perform to whatever level, in various activities, based upon the interactions that we as individuals have with other people and things. Otherwise, one would not even be able to speak a language, much less communicate his or her inner feelings, or reveal his or her powers - and weaknesses.

 So, folks, please teach your daughters and grand-daughters that they are equals of ALL people, regardless of societal constructs like “gender” and “race”. However, when I say “equal”, I do not mean “same”. These two concepts are often intermingled, in order to make it appear as if they have some similar quality. They do not. As a matter of fact, the idea that equality means sameness is precisely the argument/excuse for systems of exploitation and oppression like sexism and racism. 

 G. Djata Bumpus Read full post

A Father's Message to Male Urban Youth – Raising your daughter(s) in a “non-sexual” way (originally posted 9/26/09)

“Recent news about actress Mackenzie Phillips’ “consensual” sexual relationship with her now deceased father..,”

Hey baby brothers,

Recent news about actress Mackenzie Phillips’ “consensual” sexual relationship with her now deceased father, John Phillips, a legendary singer of North American folk music during, mostly, the 1960s, has brought the issue of incest out into the open, in the same way that a pre-teen child porn “star” named Brooke Shields did in the Hollywood production “Pretty Baby”, back in 1977 (when child pornography was still legal), with her portrayal of a 12 years-old prostitute that included fully frontal and rear view nudity as well as sexual scenes and dialogue which revealed the ubiquitous existence of the child pornography market. Both of these abuses (incest and child pornography) are largely the result of Male Supremacy (euphemistically-called “sexism”). However, there is something dubious going on here as well, since Brooke Shields was, allegedly, being exploited, by her mother – not her father.

Also, there is both the story and trial of R&B singer R. Kelly who had sex with a pair of females that included a mother and her 13 years-old daughter (which, aside from Kelly, was, obviously, about drugs/money/cheap pleasure for the mother too).

First of all, young fellows, your child is not your property. Moreover, as opposed to a son, for the female child it can be extra detrimental to both her mental and physical well-being, if the father sees her as his property, because he may very well use his daughter as a surrogate wife whenever he is not getting along well with the latter. Even worse, as his “property”, like a dog or a cat, he may then treat his female offspring anyway that he chooses, feeling justified in doing so. Besides, except for spending money on their clothes, because clothes for girls are often more expensive than they are for boys, generally-speaking, I followed the belief, “Whatever I do with my son, I do with my daughters. Whatever I don’t do with my son, I don’t do with my daughters.”

In any case, I grew up, during the 1950s and 1960s, in a household that consisted of a single mother who had six sons – no daughters. Nevertheless, as a little boy, I would hear stories about brothers doing what I considered sexual things with their sisters. It sounded strange to me, since my brothers and I never desired, much less experienced, any kind of sexual contact with each other. In fact, as the child of a highly religious “West Indian” woman, to this day, I really cannot recall ever wanting or having to see a single one of my brothers nude, nor they me (and our ages now range from 52 to 62 years-old). Therefore, the very thought of incest is incredibly strange to me.

Still, I must recall an incident that happened, in 1985, soon after the birth of my second daughter (who is the youngest of my three children). At the time, my then young family was still living in Philly.

At any rate, I was invited by a female Jewish friend (who was a local college professor) to the bas mitzvah for her 13 years-old daughter. After the events of the afternoon at my friend’s synagogue, about a dozen of us (mostly her relatives) ended up at the home of my here-to-mentioned friend’s brother.

Everyone was gathered in the living room. I sat in a chair across from her brother, a middle-aged man, as he sat with his legs stretched out on his couch, while his teenage daughter sat on the opposite end of the same couch with her feet and legs relaxed on top of her father’s lap. Meanwhile, as he was the host and doing much of the talking, I sat there cringing for the next couple of hours of the visit as this “father” carefully and constantly massaged his daughter’s bare feet, while, simultaneously, running his fingers through her toes the entire time. Again, this was a young woman of maybe 18 years, not an infant or toddler. No one else was saying anything about it, so I just figured that it was a cultural thing and, perhaps, customary for Jewish men to caress their daughters in such a way, regardless of their ages.

Still, it was making me sick. Moreover, I told myself that neither my oldest daughter who was four years-old at the time, nor my youngest who had been born only two months earlier would ever experience such a, perhaps seemingly, innocent-to- some, “violation” when she reaches the age of the aforementioned teenager.

By the way, after that afternoon/early evening, I never saw either the brother again or his daughter. And, as far as my friend, unfortunately, events lead us to disconnect, soon after that day, mostly due to our different directions involving family and life. So I have no idea about what ever happened to her then teenage niece, as far as how the young woman’s life went as an older adult. Yet, I am sure that her relationships with men must have been made quite difficult.

Of course, before little girls become teens, the problems start for them with many of their own fathers. I cannot imagine that it is intended by these Dads. Still, at least for me, I never ever held either one of my daughters even on my lap, after she was around two years-old or so, because I did not want them to think that it was okay for them to sit on a male’s lap, until they were mature enough to relate to a male in an erotic way. Strangely enough, until he was at the age where he was ready for high school, I did not stop kissing my son (the oldest) on the side of his mouth when bidding him farewell for a trip or something. However, I deliberately stopped kissing each of my daughters altogether before either was even in the first grade. I always thought of that man on the couch.

Too often when couples break up, men who have developed far too intimate relationships with their daughter(s) find themselves, perhaps unwittingly, like John Phillips, engaging in unthinkable behavior with their daughters that should only be done with one’s wife or mate. There are plenty of boys and men in this world who can be intimate with your daughter(s). Leave that to those fellows. All you need to be is their father – the man who protects, provides for, and guides them. Your intimacy with your daughter(s) should only be intellectual (i.e., within the context of sharing ideas). It should never be either emotional or physical.

Finally, let your daughter(s) feel safe when she/they think of you. Let her/them feel safe, whenever she is/they are with you. Let her/them feel safe to say anything that is on her/their mind(s) to you. - free from any physical or emotional dominance, or sexual vulgarity by you. Again, please let your daughter(s) experience touching, kissing, and other forms of intimacy somewhere else. Besides, intimacy and sex are not necessarily related to one another. As well, there are, literally, billion of boys and men from whom females have to choose for intimate contact as they grow up. Your female offspring (or male ones, for that matter), should have no reason to be either emotionally or physically intimate with you. For that, they just do not need you. Moreover, as her/their father, and for the sake of your daughter(s), you must find a way, through your own personality, life experiences, and beliefs to never allow yourself to be that “intimate” person. PERIOD!!!

Until next time. Peace.

G. Djata Bumpus Read full post

Charles "Chicken wing" Ramsay tells it all!

"Something's wrong, when a little pretty white girl runs into a Black man's arms....Dead give away." - Charles Rarmsay

Dear friends,

By now, everyone in this country knows the name Charles Ramsay. He is called a "hero" for hid rescue of some females who were trapped in a house in Cleveland, Ohio.

. However, in explaining why he knew "something was wrong", Charles Ramsay told the reporter, ""Something's wrong, when a little pretty white girl runs into a Black man's arms....Dead give away....Either she's homeless or she got problems...That's the only reason that she would run to a Black man.".. Huh? What would he have done, if it was a Black woman then? Ignored her?.

Of course, throughout the video on the link below, he sounds like he went to super-buffoon Steve Harvey's School of Diction. Why do I feel so sick in the stomach? Please check out the brief video below. Be close to the bathroom. 

G. Djata Bumpus
http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/155228/interview_with_amanda_berrys_rescuer Read full post

Short video with Dr. Finkelstein comfronting Crocodile Tears

Dear friends,

"...too many Jews who blame Nazis for atrocities against Jews on the one hand, but ignore the atrocities that Israeli Jews have committed against Palestinians and other Arabs.",  

Dr. Finkelstein's comments, on the links below, in a short video, to a silly, boo-hooing girl are more important to me than Wikileaks material, because they destroy the fraudulent position of too many Jews who blame Nazis for atrocities against Jews on the one hand, but ignore the atrocities that Israeli Jews have committed against Palestinians nd other Arabs. 

 G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNQSV3BBtZ4 Read full post

Short Bio of me from a local Newspaper

Dear friends, On the link below is a short bio of me that was done by a local newspaper, the Daily Hampshire Gazette. Cheers! G. Djata Bumpus http://www.gazettenet.com/artsentertainment/hampshirelife/5327945-95/id-gary-djata-bumpus Read full post

Horrific abortions in Philly and Black communities all over the USA

Dear friends,

The current murder trial of Kermit Gosnell shows how the genocidal tendencies of White Supremacy work in many ways, including using our own for the tasks.

Gosnell was like all of the "abortion" doctors, in those days. For example, in 1970, the Black Panther Party bought a small house on Winthrop St. in the Roxbury section of Boston, that had belonged to a Jewish physician/butcher. In the basement, where, ultimately, we would store our newspapers, there were many strange-looking instruments, made of crude iron, mostly, that were used for the procedures. 

I remember that abortions at that time were $250. Moreover, the Boston Police Department and local newspaper people knew all about the Winthrop Street "clinic", but the patients were Black - just like in Philly with Gosnell.

Please view the link below. Cheers!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2ngslwnr8M Read full post

Assata Shakur has something to say

“People get used to anything. The less you think about your oppression, the more your tolerance for it grows. After a while, people just think oppression is the normal state of things. But to become free, you have to be acutely aware of being a slave.”
― Assata Shakur, Assata: An Autobiography



Dear friends,

On the video below, you will hear Assata Shakur, a brave warrior, talk about her/our plight as the victims of an organized minority. 

One Love!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BKnJT-ne62k#! Read full post

A Great Gift for Everyone!

http://bookstore.authorhouse.com/Products/SKU-000494533/The-Voice-of-a-Panther.aspx

Read full post

Short video of former Black Panther chair Elaine Brown on Cointelpro, the Crips and Bloods, and more...(first posted on 8/9/10)

"Nevertheless, after listening to Elaine speak on this video, I can tell you, confidently, that she is the exact same honest, knowledgeable, energetic, and no-nonsense but warm person now that she was 40 years ago when I first met her."

Dear friends,

This video features one of my old Panther comrades. Her name is Elaine Brown. While she was a West Coast Panther, she came through New Haven, CT., during Bobby Seale’s trial, a couple of times, when I was stationed there.

Nevertheless, after listening to Elaine speak on this video, I can tell you, confidently, that she is the exact same honest, knowledgeable, energetic, and no-nonsense but warm person now that she was 40 years ago when I first met her.

Additionally, while I remember her as a very slightly-built woman back then, she had a beautiful and incredibly powerful voice, and was a heck of a piano player – and songwriter.

In any case, on the link below, Elaine talks about, not just some Black Panther Party history, but she also gets into how gangs like the Crips and Bloods evolved and why they have taken different courses than the ones that they had initially professed to be taking. Of course, as Elaine points out, the “market” is responsible for this turn of events.

Moreover, that’s why it’s so important that we, as parents and other elders, take the reins of our present culture and provide our youth with both an historical and social conscience, and set the example for young people, by informing identity through recognition of the connection between generations and defining human life in a meaningful way (as opposed to basing who they are upon silly claims regarding with whom they are allegedly having sex, or what "gang colors" they're wearing). That way, our society will benefit from the "leadership" of our youth. As well, the "market" will then be a function of the values of the society and not vice versa, as it now stands.

All power to the People!!!
G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roGNxckardg Read full post

A video of former Black Panther leader Elaine Brown on being "free"

"...another short video of Elaine Brown doing her life's work as a genuine, consistent, decades-long freedom fighter."






Dear friends,

On the link below is another short video of Elaine Brown doing her life's work as a genuine, consistent, decades-long freedom fighter. While I've not seen her in over 40 years, to me, she will always remain my comrade.

Enjoy!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8F7X8nW2mc&NR=1&feature=endscreen Read full post

Male Supremacy rules - in Nigeria/Africa too

"Why are males, of all ages, so insecure that they need to get their self-worth at the expense of females, of all ages?"

Dear friends,

On the link below is a 25 minutes-long video about human trafficking in the nation that has the world's largest Black population, Nigeria (Brazil is 2nd, the US is 3rd). The real problem, even more so than White Supremacy, is: Male Supremacy. It fosters both economic, physical, and emotional violence against females, literally, every second, of every minute, of every day. Moreover, it is a far bigger issue than " The Economy", Nuclear war, or Global warming.

Let's stop it! Why are males, of all ages, so insecure that they need to get their self-worth at the expense of females, of all ages?

G. Djata Bumpus
http://saharareporters.com/video/video-human-trafficking-prostitution-and-organized-crime-nigeria-nigerian-connection-film-part Read full post

Will Climate Change lead Lower-middle class Women into prostitution?

"Climate change will lead poor women to opt for "sex work, transactional sex, and early marriage" warns a resolution proposed last week in Congress."

Dear friends,

There is hardly enough data, empirically or otherwise, for responsible scientists to draw some of the conclusions that the useless mainstream government- and corporate-controlled mainstream media are constantly presenting.

The article on the link below begins, "Climate change will lead poor women to opt for "sex work, transactional sex, and early marriage" warns a resolution proposed last week in Congress."  Do men get into sex work and sexual transactions, especially when times are hard?

And why not talk about Male Supremacy and how in the United States, for example, no woman has yet to be POTUS, even though that has happened and is happening in some of the other countries in the world? The best country in the world. God's country. Right. And while some Democrats grandstand about more women being involved in decision-making, Barack Obama, in spite of promises and rap, still has very few women in his cabinet.

Finally, at least to me, the problem should be solved at its origin/root. Recognition of how climate change will be extra destructive to females calls for an end to the systematic oppression and exploitation of all females, Male Supremacy, euphemistically called Sexism For it provides males access to the most of everything, even though, most often, women carry the burden of rearing humankind's children. And all of this is specifically based on gender. Now, let's watch and listen to what these corrupt federal politicians mentioned above do about that.

One Love!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20130429_Dems__Climate_change_may_lead_poor_to_sex_work.html Read full post

Another superb interview/discussion w/legendary jazz leader NIcki Mathis

"Try to perform with musicians who will also listen to you, know your song's story, and allow you to tell it your way."



Djata: NIcki, exactly what distinguishes jazz singers from other music genres like opera, rhythm and blues, country, and so forth?

NIcki: For me, jazz is in the moment, kind of evolving as it is delivered - free, or at least it's supposed to be; I believe opera is entirely structured, as in note for note the way someone wrote it & doesn't allow for individually inspired changes; rhythm and blues have what it suggests, a different rhythm, and blues, a sort of a wailing of despair, and can be sassy; country, I don't know much about, but I enjoy Willie Nelson, and think he's pretty hip & jazzy at times, and look what Gladys Knight did to Neither One of Us. I think the difference in each is time and feel...soul?

Djata: Do you think that any particular phrasing or texture of a song’s interpretation is gender specific?

NIcki: No. I read that Luther Vandross was inspired by Dionne Warwick; Frank Sinatra's phrasing was inspired by a black female singer who's name escapes me at the moment…

Djata interrupts, “Josephone Baker?”…NIcki: No, but she was one of Josephine's peers, & not Bricktop. I remember now. Her name was Mable Mercer‏. She was famous in France for many years before she came back to the states, in the late Seventies. She was still thrilling NYC audiences with her delivery from her chair/throne.

Djata: In terms of relating with other musicians, both male and female, in creating music, what is the history of female jazz singers as either members with or leaders of orchestras and groups of whatever size?

NIcki: ...History of female jazz singers? time doesn't permit me to begin to express, but let's just say they were involved every step of the way, but hardly mentioned/recalled - while their male counterparts are. Who knows that in the beginning, Lucile Armstrong played in the band with Louis, and later encouraged him to go out on his own?

Djata: NIcki, is there anything that you would like to say to young females who may be entertaining the idea of being a jazz singer?

NIcki: The same thing Eric Dolphy said to me: Sing everyday. I would add, sing everything, jazz, rhythm and blues, opera, country. . . be conscious of the story you're telling, and listen to yourself. Try to perform with musicians who will also listen to you, know your song's story, and allow you to tell it your way.

please stay tuned… Read full post

Happy Birthday, Ella!!!

Dear friends,

Need I say more? Enjoy!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbL9vr4Q2LU Read full post

Memories of the Boston Marathon and Other Bombings by Melvin W. Smith

Dear friends,

With the permission of the author, I am posting, with great honor, this brilliant and concise essay below, in its entirety. 

One Love!

G. Djata Bumpus
****************************************

MWS Journal

22-April-2013

Memories of The Boston Marathon and Other Bombings
by Melvin W. Smith

  

The best commentary that I have encountered about the terrible ending of the race last Monday in Boston is written by one of my favorite sports writers, Dave Zirin. His piece, “The Boston Marathon: All My Tears, All My Love,” in The Nation magazine* reminded me of the special essence that the Marathon has come to represent: a promotion of international community, municipal pride, and determined individual human struggle which has become far more inclusive through the years.  Indeed, a matter of special attention and pride for me since 1988 is that the vast majority of front runners and winners have been African.

As an unofficial photographer at the Boston Marathon many years ago (1977 or 78, as I recall) I managed throughout the day to view the Marathon at various points along the route by riding a bicycle through the city, sometimes seeing the same runners at different locations as they progressed toward the finish.  I remember one runner, most of all—obviously not a serious competitor for top honors, but a celebrant of dashing style—who wore a bison headdress in the likeness of a Native American Blackfoot, perhaps, of the Great Plains region more than a century earlier.  Did he wear it for the entire race?  I don’t know, but I know that I saw him more than once during the day, as I was hard pressed on the bike to get ahead of the runners, if only slightly.  (Of course, I had to ride somewhat roundabout, not on as straight a course as the runners ran.)  A few times, after I had reached another spot with a good view of the passing racers, the bison-head guy would come striding by . . . again.  I took lots of photos that day, but almost all of the pictures—slides, negatives (the various formats of that time) and prints— have been lost.  This was my first and only attendance at the Marathon .  Although I have watched live TV coverage and news accounts of later marathons, the memory and some of the feel of that first one remain.

I agree with Zirin about the special meaning of the Boston Marathon, and I understand his lamenting the scarring of it by the street bomb attack.  He is also correct in citing other, more uplifting history and essence of the Marathon .  However, as our sympathy is extended to the injured and to the survivors of the dead, we are mindful of the real new world that has been created by the undue greed, hate, violence and militarism of the West—the empire of Europe and North America, today led by USA.  Thus, we should mourn also for the bomb victims—many by drone missiles—in Somalia, Yemen and other human locales targeted by our own nation’s leaders.

Is the US public now faced with the increased prospect blowback?  Are chickens coming home to roost?  Or, are the masters of the empire attempting to instigate fear among the public for the purpose of more easily implementing their agenda of achieving the declared Full Spectrum Dominance worldwide?  Please observe, in this context, the US increased acts of “humanitarian intervention” and military encroachment, especially in Africa (via NATO and AFRICOM, including the invasion and regime change in Libya), the deadly meddling in Syria , and the steady clamor to launch new wars on defiant nations such as Iran and North Korea .

The axiom “Might Makes Right” appears to be an all-American (rather, all-USA) slogan today. Aside from a theoretical appeal to “justice, US citizens largely learn to admire and respect the rule of crude power.  Thus, the largest military machine in human history goes unchecked, even in the face of claims about national budgetary shortages, fiscal cliffs, and such.  When the money is tight (having been stolen and either secreted away or squandered by Wall Street’s big-time gamblers, for example) the immediate solution posed is always to cut social services, especially those services available to the masses, including public education.  The cries of balancing the budget never, ever point to the segment of the federal budget devoted to war-readiness and war-making—the so-called defense budget— as an obvious source of funds to be diverted toward peaceful social maintenance and development.  No, no, no, the patriot-citizens object. Any such suggestion is entirely off the table (again), because the so-called Defense budget is sacred in this USA.

The vast, obscene wealth devoted to US war-making also includes non-budgeted covert projects like CIA.  Furthermore, private industrial enterprises like Lockheed Martin and Boeingare engaged in major Defense contracts, all of which comprise a significant contribution to the US economy.  The industrial might of the US is one of the central factors in its superiority in armaments.  US factories and laboratories produce every type of weapon and combat supply known to humankind, and these are produced in super-enormous quantities.  US stockpiles of weapons become a liability to their investors unless they are consumed somehow.  The capitalist system actually depends on high levels of consumption (demand) in order to satisfy its products (supply).  Supply and demand, right?  Thus, along with the supposed geopolitical gains and psychological uplift for a supposed “ American Way of Life,” the weapons must be used on somebody.  Consumed, you know.  Now, let’s see; who’s next?

The USA , indeed, is a war monger nation.  My God, what would happen to us if Peace should break out? some citizen-patriots have been suspected of thinking.  According to the objective conditions of US culture and economy, Peace cannot be afforded.  Accordingly, if we citizen-patriots cannot afford to make Peace (as in “The path to Peace is peace!”), then probably we do not deserve peace.  There will be a reckoning.  Blowback is to be expected.

Nevertheless, as the American Dream bubble bursts, we must continue to advocate for one human family—as from within my own pan-African perspective—striving together toward solutions for all.  We should not allow fear to break the celebrations of such.  I agree, again, with Dave Zirin that the Boston Marathon not be characterized by this recent dreadful incident, but I insist on demanding of fellow US citizens and our governments a genuine effort toward peace outside of the official rituals of sport and entertainment.  A rejection of militarism and imperialism is required.  Can we attempt to do it?  If we can, will we? 

                                                                                    --Melmanjaro

                                                           

*Also see Dave Zirin’s discussion at DemocracyNow! Tues. April 16, 2013.

Read full post

Dr. Ndibe briefly comments on the shaky murders of "terrorists in Nigeria (originally posted on 3/5/10)

"But Al Jazeera’s videos show soldiers and police sweeping through charred and still smoldering cities to arbitrarily round up targets. These “suspects,” some of them deformed men on crutches, were then ordered to lie face down and shot at close range. "

"Murder most foul"
by Okey Ndibe

Horror, that’s the word that came to mind as I watched Al Jazeera’s video documentation of Nigerian soldiers and police executing innocent civilians last year in the name of fighting Boko Haram. Last July and August, hundreds of Nigerians died in a fierce battle between the militant group, which denounced all western influences as corrupting, and Nigerian government forces. But Al Jazeera’s videos show soldiers and police sweeping through charred and still smoldering cities to arbitrarily round up targets. These “suspects,” some of them deformed men on crutches, were then ordered to lie face down and shot at close range.

Those who made a gruesome sport of killing their fellows should be identified and prosecuted. Any nation that would treat its citizens as if they were lower than cattle sows the seeds of its own destruction. Those who excuse the bestial extra-judicial execution on the grounds that the victims were rabid Boko Haram attack dogs are off the mark. For one, the soldiers and police had no way of proving who was Boko Haram or who wasn’t. Besides, a state that authorizes summary execution has cast itself as a jungle, not a community of humans.

At any rate, if Nigeria must adopt executions without trial, why not start with the politicians whose mindless looting creates hopelessness and fertilizes groups like Boko Haram? Read full post

Why won't the US government ratify the International Equal Rights Amendment Treaty?

The seven UN member states that have not ratified or acceded to the convention are Iran, Palau, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Tonga, and the United States."

Dear friends,  
For all of the publicity that so many women in our society receive, from Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton to Beyonce and Kim Kardashian, why is it that neither the Equal Rights Amendment in this country or its international version have yet to be ratified? After all, as was done at the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, most advanced countries in the world, through the United Nations, have agreed upon giving all citizens equal rights, regardless of "gender". Still, the non-compliance list reveals: The seven UN member states that have not ratified or acceded to the convention are Iran, Palau, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Tonga, and the United States. 

I mean, nations that share in their absolute refusal to recognize females as equal citizens, much less beings, would not seem to include a country like ours that loves to spout brave words about "freedom and democracy". Moreover, Male Supremacy, euphemistically called sexism, rules, even in the countries that have signed the treaty mentioned above. People can talk about White Supremacy, euphemistically called racism, all day. However, to talk about Male Supremacy is a no-no. Even in places where racism isn't the problem, Male Supremacy remains. 

Worse yet, just as most non-Europeans have internalized racism or White Supremacy, and, therefore, contribute to its proliferation through practices of self-hatred towards each other, all females, regardless of culture or skin color, have internalized the oppression and exploitation of sexism or Male Supremacy, as they too contribute to its proliferation via the self-hatred that exists between females. Consequently, neither Michelle Obama nor Hillary Clinton would ever dare mention the term Male Supremacy to their husbands - or in public. Think about it! 

G. Djata Bumpus 

Read full post

Four Women

Dear friends, 

 In 1916 four women--who were formely enslaved--gathered at a reunion in Washington, DC. All were centenarians. Annie Parram, 104; Anna Angales, 105; Elizabeth Berkeley, 125; and Sadie Thompson 110. From the National Photo Company Collection. 

 One Love! 

 G. Djata Bumpus Read full post

Jen Armstrong on Obama's latest faux pas

Dear Friends, 

Okay, on the link below, my longtime friend, award-winning journalist Jen Armstrong of the Philadelphia Daily News, is the older version of Dr. Namandje Bumpus, when it comes to rightfully denouncing men objectifying women.. Still, I look forward to the day when that same protest, regarding the objectification of women, is directed towards men who either put on a wig and dress or have some scumbag surgeon make them a vagina, and then those same aforementioned men call themselves "women". .Ya dig?.

Cheers!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/jenice_armstrong/20130407_Pretty_dumb_comment__Mr__Prez.html

Read full post

What's the next step for Black Journalism and NABJ? (originally posted 8/8/11)

“Why is it that we shoud concentrate our writing on the experiences of African American people?”

Dear friends.

For a number of years, there’s been a lot of talk about the demise of Black journalism. The conference of NABJ (National Association of Black Journalists) that was held in Philadelphia last week shows that there is still an opportunity for African American writers in the government- and corporate-controlled media to move something forward. But about what should they write?

It’s interesting that the term journalist is bound to language or words. And as my old friend and colleague Professor Emeka Nwadiora of Temple University has insisted, “Language is thought”.

Of course, the words that we use not only represent our ideas or thoughts, but they also serve, for example, to establish purposive and legally-binding relationships (like two people saying, “I do.” at a marriage ceremony, for instance.)

Now, each cultural group develops its own language, based upon the real experiences of that particular group. For African Americans, our thoughts have been centered around a people who have been and still are attacked as a “marked” group, by another body of people of, mostly, European descent, who mean-spiritedly call themselves “white” in order to form an artificial “majority” group.

Yet, if these same European Americans called themselves by their cultural names - e.g., Italian American, Irish American, and so forth, African Americans wouldn’t be seen as such a marked group or “minority”.

Nevertheless, especially since the end of the North American Civil War, the newfound freedom of our African ancestors has led us to continue to fight for genuine liberation. The battle has taken basically two different forms. They are: 1) Resistance. 2) Accommodation.

Beginning in the 1950s, the latter of the two became acceptable to the artificial majority’s government- and corporate-controlled media, but, unfortunately, that “accommodating” Civil Rights Movement is now being used to represent all of the battles of African Americans in the history of this country. They are even calling a great warrior like Malcolm X a civil rights leader.

Even worse, due to the racist arrogance of the aforementioned artificial majority, a White Supremacist Movement called the Gay Rights Movement (as if anyone can claim such a staunch “identity” with something as precarious, if not frivolous, as the human sexual appetite) is now being clumped in with the African American Civil Rights Movement
(which itself only represented about 15 years of our centuries-long struggle for equality, dignity, and justice.) Huh? How do you place the centuries-long struggle of African American people in the same category as preponderantly European American men, claiming to be a “minority”, who, based upon power and sexual greed, identify themselves by their genitals, as they pierce other men’s anuses with their erections? “What’s Love Got To Do With It?” (where’s Tina Turner when you need her?)

Meanwhile, beginning with slave revolts on enslavers' ships, on the Atlantic Ocean, that caused the creation of maroon societies like the country of Surinam on the northern border of South America, to the slave revolts on the Southern plantations of North America led by folks with names like Gabriel Prosser, Denmark Vesey, and Nat Turner, to name a few, to a warrior queen named Harriet Tubman, to tens of thousands of African American warriors who fought with guns and helped end slavery, as well as, later, another warrior queen named Ida B. Wells, to Marcus Garvey’s “Back to Africa" Movement, and the Honorable Elijah Muhammad’s Nation of Islam, to the Republic of New Africa, and the Black Panther Party, along with many, many more “resisters” of the Black Liberation Movement that began when the very first African was brought to these shores, not when Martin King became the voice of “civil rights”, there has continued to be a part of Our Movement that has been based upon a well-deserved hostility and resentment to our oppression.

During the past 50 years, there have been Black journalists who have worked solely for the government- and corporate-controlled media. However, the majority of Black journalists have worked for publications like Ebony Magazine, and nationally-distributed newspapers like Muhammad Speaks (followed by The Final Call) and the now defunct Black Panther. There have also been and are national, regional, and local publications that have featured the wisdom and work of Black journalists who have really tried to – and still do - inform and inspire African American people.

So where is the National Association of Black Journalists, as all this has been occurring? Why, they had a LOVE Party and a golf tournament in Philly. That’s very informative. On top of that, Eric Holder, Obama's chief Tom in law enforcement, gave a speech. That's crazy! This is the same Obama administration that boycotted the Durban Review Conference on Racism, but Holder can come and glad hand in Philly at the NABJ conference. Go figure.

Actually, NABJ grew out of the Black Consciousness Movement (@1965-85) – NOT the Civil Rights Movement that died with King. At any rate, we should never expect very much from mainstream media people, African American or European American.

To be sure, some will argue: Well, the market controls everything...We have to keep our jobs.

If that’s the case, then Black journalists, especially in the age of the Internet, may consider creating a market for African Americans that is based upon us controlling our own process of social reproduction or political economy, as opposed to allowing, as Professor Lloyd Hogan has said, “alien marauders” to continue controlling that aforesaid process, while oppressing and exploiting us.

Most of all, Black journalists, as a whole, must begin to inform and inspire African American people, by emphasizing the beauty that we have created and can continue making, as we begin to develop loving and prosperous communities that are filled with educated, industrious people.

“Liberation!” - Dr. Barbara Love

G. Djata Bumpus Read full post

Chinua Achebe - a literary titan - has passed

"I met him, back in the late-Eighties, right before he had an horrific car accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. He was a professor at the University of Massachusetts then."

Dear friends,

The great Chinua Achebe passed yesterday.

I met him, back in the late-Eighties, right before he had an horrific car accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. He was a professor at the University of Massachusetts then.

It was during that time that he brought a then fairly young Nigerian writer/scholar named Okey Ndibe to America, for the purpose of the latter becoming Editor of an international, progressive magazine that changed names a few times, before becoming African World magazine@1995. I was one of several progressive intellectuals who, occasionally, had pieces published in that now-defunct, albeit important, periodical.

However, my lifelong friendship with one of Chinua's prize student, the aforementioned Dr. Okey Ndibe of Brown University, is still going strong more than two decades later.

Finally, my condolences go out to our beloved Chinua Achebe's family, and the Ndibe family (which includes his wife, Professor Sheri Ndibe, and their three wonderful progeny/my boxing students Chibu, Chiamaka, and Chidibe).

One Love!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/22/world/obit-chinua-achebe/index.html Read full post

Looking back at the great Phyllis Hyman - a video interview

Dear friends,

She needs needs neither an introduction or comments. Here, o the link below, she raps with Arsenio Hall. Cheers!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwHjp5gruQE Read full post

NCTV interviews Djata Bumpus about Pioneer Valley Boxing School

Dear friends,

On the link below is a half-hour video, taped on September 10th, 2012, regarding my boxing school. I'm very happy with the way that it came out, except for one little mistake that I made, when I referred to Howard McCall, brother of the great Philly trainer Quinzell McCall,  as the two-time state boxing coach, when I meant to say two-time state boxing commissioner (of PA). Otherwise, please check it out! Cheers!

G. Djata Bumpus

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJw_lFS9dK0&feature=share&fb_source=message

Read full post

Organized Aghani women resisting Oppression and Exploitation!!! (originally posted 9/29/10)

" RAWA is the oldest political/social organization of Afghan women struggling for peace, freedom, democracy and women's rights in fundamentalism-blighted Afghanistan since 1977..."

Dear friends,

Here's the Website of a serious women's movement that has been going on in Afghanistan for some time. It is very exciting!!!! Please check out this link. One Love! http://www.rawa.org/index.php

G. Djata Bumpus Read full post

Looking back at the late great Fatimah Ali on "For Colored Girls" who need work

"...at least in this country, Black actors, male and female, generally-speaking, do not practice creating art that is both functional and liberating..."


(originally posted 11/17/10)
Dear friends,

While I still don’t plan to see it any more than I would want to see “The Ku Klux Klan cheerleaders go to Hollywood”, Tyler Perry’s latest effort to outdo himself as the King Coon of Black cinema has, apparently, had some success. The sad part is: because, at least in this country, Black actors, both male and female, generally-speaking, do not practice creating art that is both functional and liberating, the insatiably greedy market has found a niche for them to embrace that allows such actors and actresses to work at their crafts without dignity, while, simultaneously, being well-compensated.

Of course, I don’t know whether or not Perry even admits to an attempt at creating art. Still, I wonder why he doesn’t take advantage of his ability to reach so many loyal supporters and do a film about Ida B. Wells or former Panther chief Elaine Brown, for example, where his aforementioned supporters can learn some practical ways to gain the respect and dignity that they so obviously crave.

Moreover, the idea that people cannot entertain themselves by pro-actively exercising their inner powers like both physical and mental energy, concentration, memory, and persistence, to name a few, and, instead passively sit, listen, and watch thoughtless plays and movies only magnifies their individual frustrations of feeling so powerless and helpless in this lonely experience called human life.

Worse yet, attempts to find union with others in order to relieve themselves of their anxieties about feeling separate and lonesome, unfortunately, makes, in this case, some females cling to each other under a veil of sentimentality. In the process, they commiserate with each other about how “men” treat them, as if all women are models of moral rectitude. Yet, as long as the market determines the meaning of “value” in our society, as opposed to vice versa, Tyler Perry and the “actors” he employs will persist.

In any case, on the link below, I am honored to share a piece that came out a few years ago, regarding Tyler Perry’s new movie “For Colored Girls”. Thoughtful, but entertaining, it was written by a dear friend of mine from the Philadelphia Daily News, the late, great Fatimah Ali. Enjoy!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20101109_Fatimah_Ali__In__For_Colored_Girls___cast_trumps_the_grim_material.html Read full post

Stop the Violence!!!...How much are you like your neighbor?

"He did a whole lot of wrong stuff," said William Harris, a retired construction foreman who has lived on 81st Street for more than 40 years. "But this murder stuff really surprised me…If the accusations are true, Harris may be left wondering not just what that says about his neighbor but what it says about the moral compass of his neighborhood.” - Sandy Banks


Dear friends,

In our efforts to develop loving and prosperous communities, it is easy to point fingers at people who behave in unthinkable ways. Yet, what does that say about us as individuals, in any particular neighborhood, if we live and associate with the same people who we denounce, without taking pro-active, positive steps to help create an environment where we live that encourages social interactions between members of the community that are based upon respect, trust, kindness, and honesty?

Still, from random killings to domestic violence to sexual harassment of all kinds - to various forms of robbery, assault, and deception - to forced prostitution, violence against females - regardless of their ages, skin colors, or social statuses - is the world’s biggest problem. Period! It, literally, affects not only half of the population in the US, but, as well, an equal amount of humankind worldwide. Moreover, it is the most immediate threat to our survival as a species than even the suicidal “nuclear proliferation” of all developed countries combined, or the current so-called “world economic crisis”.

In any case, on the link below, a few years ago, Sandy Banks of the Los Angeles Times delivered, in her usual thought-provoking manner, a piece that, aqt least to me, entices us to confront our own inadequacies and insecurities about being good neighbors. Cheers!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-banks-20100710,0,5099090,full.column Read full post

Male Supremacy rules in Nigeria/Africa too!!!

"Why are males, of all ages, so insecure that they need to get their self-worth at the expense of females, of all ages?"

Dear friends,

On the link below is a 25 minutes-long video about human trafficking in the nation that has the world's largest Black population, Nigeria (Brazil is 2nd, the US is 3rd). The real problem, even more so than White Supremacy, is: Male Supremacy. It fosters both economic, physical, and emotional violence against females, literally, every second, of every minute, of every day.

Let's stop it! Why are males, of all ages, so insecure that they need to get their self-worth at the expense of females, of all ages?

G. Djata Bumpus
http://saharareporters.com/video/video-human-trafficking-prostitution-and-organized-crime-nigeria-nigerian-connection-film-part Read full post

Wisdom of a Female Scientist about Violence against Women

“Instead of women, including myself. focusing on our chances, or lack thereof, of getting married we need to actively combat the objectification of women... “Dr. Namandje Ne'fertiti Bumpus

Dear friends,

About three years ago, I read a piece by a dear friend, award-winning journalist Jenice Armstrong of the Philadelphia Daily News. In her article, Jen talked about the difficulties of, particularly, middle-aged professional African American women finding a suitable mate once they have passed 40 years of age .

One of my daughters, Namandje, a medical scientist and college professor at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, has just reached thirty-two years-old, but she has spoken with me about the here-to-mentioned stats before.

Therefore, when I read Jen's piece, I forwarded it to her for comments. Her response showed that she had more concern for the recently (2010) murdered grad student from Yale, Annie Le, and how that incident relates to male/female relationships generally. Namandje's response appears below.

Stop the Violence!!!

G. Djata Bumpus ***********************************************

Hey Dad,

The Yale graduate student murder is the issue that is most on my mind. A young woman and young pharmacologist was strangled in a lab she was working in doing her thesis research perhaps by a man that worked with her and was interested in her. She had done research at the NIH (National Institute of Health) and was now a student at Yale.

Yale has a very well-respected pharmacology graduate program so we are talking about a serious graduate student that was serious about developing her science. She wanted to become a professor in academia, when statistics show that many women for whatever reason (family commitments, etc.) choose not to go that route. This hits close to home for me.

The lab for people that are dedicated to our craft is not the same as the average person's workplace. We live in the lab mentally and even physically in a way. We dream about experiments and wake up to write down what we were thinking and run into lab to test it the next day. Many of us spend more time there than we do at home. The fact that a woman could be victimized and murdered in that setting is very troubling. Women cannot walk down the street at night, or sleep in their home alone or even work in a lab in broad daylight alone apparently without having to think about the fact that they might be attacked by a violent predator.

Instead of women, including myself. focusing on our chances, or lack thereof, of getting married we need to actively combat the objectification of women. Once this happens the definitions of men and women and our places in society can evolve to a place that does not depend on women being lesser which currently in many ways they do. Perhaps then we will all approach looking for and entering into a life partnership in a more productive and intellectual manner.

Namandje Read full post

African American Teenage Girls Need Our Support Too

"Parents themselves must have a meaningful way to look at life, other than collecting trinkets and baubles, because your children are watching you!"

Dear friends,


Last year (2012), six beautiful African American teenage girls (I wonder if anyone ever has called them beautiful, because of their darker complexions) attacked a middle-aged, mentally-challenged woman (who I'm presuming is African American), in Chester, PA recently.

For all of the emphasis on "Black males", who do people think bear the latter, through pregnancy?. Yep!. Females.

Therefore, at least to me, it is time for African American people to STOP placing so much emphasis on our male youths only.. After all, to continue concentrating on their male counterparts only, furthers male promotion of, as well as, female submission to, Male Supremacy, no matter how well-intentioned the efforts in favor of emphasizing on males is.

Moreover, it is the responsibility of ALL parents, African American or otherwise, to give their children direction and guidance that is based upon informing identity through the connection between generations, along with their true historical and cultural experiences, so that the "market" doesn't suck our youth into all of the nonsense that has culture being defined outside of generational processes (genuine culture), with nonsense about "gang" culture, "gay" culture, "youth" culture, and all other such idiocy!.

Parents themselves must have a meaningful way to look at life, other than collecting trinkets and baubles, because your children are watching you!

One Love!

G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20120930_Six_teens_charged_in_brutal_Chester_beating.html
Read full post

So Long - Mama Africa (originally posted 11/14/08)

Mariam Makeba aka "Mama Africa" (1932 - 2008)






Dear friends,

Almost forty years ago, I had both the pleasure and honor of meeting Mariam Makeba. At the time, she was married to Stokely Carmichael (later known as Kwame Ture). Stokely was the chief icon of the Black Consciousness Movement. Mariam was a celebrated singer and activist in her own right. The two had married not quite two years earlier.

They had been living in Africa, while Stokely studied under Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the former president of Ghana and the main proponent of the concept of Pan Africanism at the time. On this, his first trip back to the States, word got out to activists in Boston's Black community that Stokely was coming through Logan Airport. In a hurry, a group of us, which included some Black college students from Northeastern University, were able to get a hall for him to speak and an honorarium. We then set out to get an audience. It wasn't difficult, considering Stokely's stature. The place was packed, by the scheduled time for Stokely to speak. This all happened in a matter of five or six hours, as I remember.

The last time that I ever saw Mariam Makeba was when we bid the couple farewell in the parking lot behind the building in which Stokely spoke. The two were arm-in-arm, smiling, beneath an umbrella, as the weather had become drizzly. I will always remember that hectic but incredibly positive experience.

On the link below, is a piece that I saw on the Website of WDAS radio in Philadelphia that gives a short biography of Mariam's life. Her spirit will live on in many.

One Love,
G. Djata Bumpus
http://www.wdasfm.com/cc-common/news/sections/newsarticle.html?feed=104659?feed=104653&article=4561480 Read full post

Wisdom of a Female Scientist about Violence against Women

Instead of women, including myself. focusing on our chances, or lack thereof, of getting married we need to actively combat the objectification of women... Dr. Namandje Ne'fertiti Bumpus
(Originally posted 3/20/11) 

 Dear friends, 

Last year, I read a piece by a dear friend, award-winning journalist Jenice Armstrong of the Philadelphia Daily News. In her article, Jen talked about the difficulties of, particularly, middle-aged professional African American women finding a suitable mate once they have passed 40 years of age . One of my daughters, Namandje, a medical scientist and college professor at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, has just reached thirty years-old, but she has spoken with me about the here-to-mentioned stats before. Therefore, when I read Jen's piece, I forwarded it to her for comments. Her response showed that she had more concern for the recently (2010) murdered grad student from Yale, Annie Le, and how that incident relates to male/female relationships generally. Namandje's response appears below. 

 Stop the Violence!!! 

 G. Djata Bumpus 

********************************************* 

 Hey Dad, The Yale graduate student murder is the issue that is most on my mind. A young woman and young pharmacologist was strangled in a lab she was working in doing her thesis research perhaps by a man that worked with her and was interested in her. She had done research at the NIH (National Institute of Health) and was now a student at Yale. 

 Yale has a very well-respected pharmacology graduate program so we are talking about a serious graduate student that was serious about developing her science. She wanted to become a professor in academia, when statistics show that many women for whatever reason (family commitments, etc.) choose not to go that route. This hits close to home for me. 

 The lab for people that are dedicated to our craft is not the same as the average person's workplace. We live in the lab mentally and even physically in a way. We dream about experiments and wake up to write down what we were thinking and run into lab to test it the next day. Many of us spend more time there than we do at home. 

 The fact that a woman could be victimized and murdered in that setting is very troubling. Women cannot walk down the street at night, or sleep in their home alone or even work in a lab in broad daylight alone apparently without having to think about the fact that they might be attacked by a violent predator. Instead of women, including myself. focusing on our chances, or lack thereof, of getting married we need to actively combat the objectification of women. Once this happens the definitions of men and women and our places in society can evolve to a place that does not depend on women being lesser which currently in many ways they do. Perhaps then we will all approach looking for and entering into a life partnership in a more productive and intellectual manner. 

 Namandje Read full post

Videos of Malcolm, Martin, and James

"Considering the recent cartoon that was deliberately posted during Black History Month by the New York Post (in 2009), the series of videos here seem quite timely..."

Dear friends,

Considering the fact that America is still wrought with economic and social problems, regardless of the president's skin color, is Black Nationalism still an answer to the woes of Black people? Below is a link with videos of and about Malcolm X, including interviews with Dr. Martin Luther King and James Baldwin.

One Love,
G. Djata Bumpus
Videos of and about Malcolm X, including interviews with Dr. Martin Luther King and James Baldwin Read full post

"Ebony Woman" by Nicki Mathis - a poem

"I wrote this in 1986, as a tribute to Black Women"





"EBONY WOMAN"
by Nicki Mathis

Beautiful are your eyes
Strong, creative, and tender
are your hands
Spiritual is the heart
of my Black sisters

Your eyes are the eyes of the world
Sparkling in the sunlight
Glowing in the moonlight
Girl, I see you dancing in the twilight

Your hands are the hands that weave
webs of life's mysteries
Place me in your stories
Taste the nectar of your love
Bear the fruit of your trees

Sing a song of love and praise
Your adventurous spirit is ageless
You leave me more than misty haze
For my song of love and praise
You foretell all the mazes
To make my life's mirror
So much clearer

I told you about my first love affair
This time before I wake
Listen to my dreamlife without care
And my last heartbreak

My courageous sisters
You cheered me on
You ran this race before me
You taught the lesson so well
You left a priceless legacy
You loved the world enough to tell
All the time you showed me
I can choose not to fail

Now it’s your brilliance
That I bask in
You breathe the breath of life
And it’s I who’s asking
To see the mold that you’re casting
It’s everlasting, everlasting, everlasting

And ever beautiful
You’re the richest of all my treasures
Or how else can I measure
What my life is meant to be
You have made me see
The Universe in me

So I sing my love song to you
I need to be with you girl
I’m so lost without you, and you, and you
My mother you are beautiful
Sister you are beautiful
My love and my friend
You are beautiful Read full post