Obama Wins Nobel Peace Prize. Really?? Huh???

President Barack Obama has just won the Nobel Peace Prize. The prize is a very and I mean a very distinct honor. Yet I question why did he win? I’m sure many of you may think why would a question like this even exist. I have no doubt that President Obama will go down in history as one of the best Presidents and world leaders, however, we all must be honest and ask ourselves, is he there yet? The answer is a transparent NO! Mr. Obama has only been in office for 10 months; as much as his supporters state it’s too little time to judge him, it’s also too little time to award him.

When I think of Nobel Peace Prize winners I think of Dr. Martin Luther King. We all know King for being the father of civil rights; but when you look at King there is no doubt he was most deserving of this award. For God’s sake he tore down an establishment that not even current Presidents dare to tackle. He was beaten, jailed, demonized and yet kept the struggle for not just African Americans but set the precedent for equality among, race, gender and creed. That’s the stuff of a real King and that’s the stuff Nobel Peace Prize winners are made of.

When it comes to President Obama I have to quote Janet Jackson and say “What have you done for me lately”. Obama hasn’t made any clear efforts to secure world peace, heck he’s considering putting more troops in Afghanistan, hasn’t withdrawn troops in Iraq and let’s not discuss the health care debacle in which the need for bi-partisanship approval seems to supersede the real issue at hand and that’s securing universal health care for everyone. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m still an Obama fan and think he needs time to work on the catastrophic issues that Bush and the right wing put us through. However, he was not deserving of this award. I can name a few others who have done more for peace than Obama. Not to sound catty but look at Wycleff Jean and his efforts with Haiti and other under privileged countries. For the sake of the lengthiness of this article I’ll keep that short. I think a better perspective is to look at Nicholas Kristof’s article in the times this morning http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/. Clearly Obama was way too new and has yet to secure any accomplishments that would garner a Nobel Peace Prize.

When I think of how this vetting went through, I wonder is he being awarded for not succumbing to the tactics of the right wing? Yes it’s been admirable of how our President has kept his cool, yet, are any of us a minorities surprised? Let’s be honest we take Right wing shit everyday. If you work in Corporate America you have so much shit slinged at you there’s is no doubt that you work hard to keep your peace. Is President Obama being awarded for what WE do every single day?!?!!? If that’s the case hell we all need a Nobel Peace Prize.

Another issue I have with this accolade is the prejudicial response from us. As we constantly fight for equality we can not demean ourselves and side with everything that looks Black. Sometimes Black is wrong! Perfect example is the Kanye West incident, some of you stood by him and said he was right when clearly the man was just wrong. He was callous, disrespectful, drunk and arrogant, which is something that we should not condone by anyone. But because Kanyezee is Black it’s a’right! Same thing with this award for Obama; he’s our President, he’s Black and it’s OK. No it’s not!! As we continue to fight for equality we can not act like senseless White people who for years have practiced bigotry. How can we claim something has been wrong all along and we act in the same manner. If we truly want the world to be color blind we too have to act in a colorless manner. I know it’s not easy but think of it this way you can’t sling shit and don’t expect it to come back at you! Again I’m not sure what the criteria is to receive a Nobel Peace Prize but in the words of Ed Lover, C’mon son get the fuck out of here with this bullshit!

Condoleezza Rice – Ain’t It About Time We Give Her The Proper Props

This article is courtesy of Roland Martin. Blacktina usually doesn’t completely post another article, but this was just too compelling to keep to myself.

Sen. Barack Obama has called for a national discussion on race in America, and one of the folks who sure didn’t hold back when asked was Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

In a discussion with the editorial board of the Washington Times on Thursday, Rice called racism a ‘birth defect’ of America , and said that black Americans have loved the nation even when it didn’t love us.

The Times reported:
‘Black Americans were a founding population,’ she said. ‘Africans and Europeans came here and founded this country together – Europeans by choice and Africans in chains. That’s not a very pretty reality of our founding.’

‘As a result, Miss Rice told editors and reporters at The Washington Times, ‘descendants of slaves did not get much of a head start, and I think you continue to see some of the effects of that.’

‘That particular birth defect makes it hard for us to confront it, hard for us to talk about it, and hard for us to realize that it has continuing relevance for who we are today,’ she said.

Rice later said: ‘ America doesn’t have an easy time dealing with race,’ Miss Rice said, adding that members of her family have ‘endured terrible humiliations.’

‘What I would like understood as a black American is that black Americans loved and had faith in this country even when this country didn’t love and have faith in them – and that’s our legacy,’ she said.

Wow, was all I could say to that.

What was even more stunning was the relative lack of coverage on this issue. I was told CNN’s ‘The Situation Room’ did a piece on her comments Friday. But when I surfed the Net to see follow-up stories in other papers, it has pretty much been ignored, except for some briefs.

Why would the mainstream media be so dismissive of Rice’s comments? Imagine if Rev. Al Sharpton or Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. said such a thing. Do you think they would have gotten ripped?

The fact of the matter is that Rice was right on the money with her comments, and should be commended. She spoke honestly and openly about the issue, and deserves credit for speaking the truth.

I just wish my colleagues in the media would do a better job at advancing the issue of race in America and our sordid history.

We went bonkers about the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, but when Rice, the nation’s chief diplomat, spoke truthfully, it barely made a ripple.

Roland S.. Martin, CNN Contributor
www.rolandsmartin.com

Ese Moreno Ain’t So Bad After-all

August 8, 2009 will forever go down in history as the day the United States Supreme Court sworn in the first Hispanic supreme court justice. This historical period in our society is quite profound considering less than 100 years ago we actually had Klans men as Supreme Court justices. In fact many are not aware that the Supreme Court overturned the initial integration doctrine and allowed the Southern states to operate under separate but legal, which we all knew was actually separate and illegal for the unfortunate person of color. Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court Justice, girl you got lots of graves turning (LOL). While we recognize the maturation of unity our nation is experiencing, we should also take into account how two supreme minority classes are actually coming together, I’m talking about Boricuas and Morenos or also known as the Browns and Blacks.

Growing up as a Black Puerto Rican I’ve had my share of racism on both ends. I had Black friends who ridiculed my Salsa music, the gandules (peas) in my rice, my accent, the stereotypical jokes about welfare and tons of kids as well as countless other experiences that I’m failing to mention. I’ve also experienced the ignorance of those who share my ethnicity in thinking that I was a morena, which by the way is a word that closely resembles mono (monkey in Spanish, hmmmm……) and how they went out to degrade me for being a morena. Some of these instances were the cowardly way they would talk about me in Spanish not knowing that I knew the language, tell me I had bad hair, they would say all Black people stink, oh and the best one they weren’t allowed to bring Black people into their house, ya’ll know who you are! But today in the year 2009 I’m beginning to get a different feel from Blacks and Hispanics. The nomination of Sotomayor from an African American President, Barack Obama spoke volumes.

Historically Hispanics tend to associate themselves and maybe its just imaginary but nevertheless they see themselves more in the white arena than the Black arena. Even your dark Hispanics would never admit to being Black or even contain African ancestry. This denouncement of their true ethnicity is not due to poor knowledge but of shame. Hispanics would rather be anything than Black to the point that they wouldn’t even side with an African American. Some may think based on my experiences I’m making this up, but if you recall during the Democratic primary between Barack and Hilary, Hispanics were all over Hilary. Hilary this Hilary that. Shamefully my own mother hated Obama. To quote Ms. Thing “Barack is a Muslim from Africa” She don’t want nobody who grew up in a jungle running the country.” It took all of me not to disrespect my mother. But I realized she was just honestly speaking what most Hispanics thought. Now nearly a year later Obama is like Jesus to her. He’s looked out for her kind more than any other white person ever did. Just take a look at Bush and poor Alberto Gonzalez. The Bush administration made Albertito take the fall for firing those judges. Haven’t heard a peep from Albertito and you won’t either! See that’s not whitey looking out for you.

For years we’ve all known to prosper we must work together, yet we never took the initiative to do so. So busy trying to assimilate and knock each other out as if the white race only has room for a few Black and Hispanic cohorts. But finally one of us took the plunge and what a step it was. A Black president nominates a Puerto Rican from the Bronx and voila for the first time eyes have been opened! Hermanos/Hermanas, Sisters and Brothers we are not enemies we’ve been fighting the same fight for many of years. We were robbed and we built this country. This division between Black and Brown, which coincidentally are related colors in the Crayola box has got to stop and I pray to God we are on our way.

This past Saturday comedian George Lopez announced during his standup on HBO the names of the Senators who opposed Sotomayor, coincidentally they were all white. He urged their constituents not to vote for them again. The roaring applause of the crowd mostly Hispanic was proof enough that “WE” are all finally getting it. Thank you President Obama and Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor for leading the charge on this one. This is a cultural awakening that you both should be extremely proud of!

Cool Colin

Popular radio host turned talk show diva often refers to her preferred celebrities as imaginary relatives. For the first time in my life I’m feeling this imaginary exercise. I hereby appoint Colin Powell as my imaginary Daddy. No disrespect to my real father. He was a wise intelligent, funny and thoughtful man, I couldn’t ask for a better father. Yet if I were able to have a pretend Daddy he would be a mixture of my father and Colin Powell. I’m choosing Mr. Powell because he embodies a man who is with fault and readily admits error but also takes the time to teach others and understand as well as explain his error. Of course I’m talking about his post as Secretary of State and his debacle with the UN and the now fictitious weapons of mass destruction. Any other politician’s career would have been over after this sham. Colin took some time off, regrouped, admitted his errors, taught us why and went on.

During the recent presidential election he supported President Obama although his own party was portraying the candidate as a terrorist and Colin as a traitor. He stood his principles and was able to convey his support for the candidate in a way that was eloquent and meaningful. Once again “Daddy Powell” made me realize how undetected or better yet how unpopular he’s perceived when it comes to black issues, all because we think he may not understand when the irony is Colin understands much more than we give him credit for.

Colin more than many of us have fought many battle grounds both abroad and domestically. Yet he carries a superb air of humanity, dignity and never once have I ever heard condescension. Recently he was asked by Larry King about the “racial” incident surrounding Henry Louis Gates. His remark was mesmerizing and just well dare I say touching. While all the black elite pundits roar about the injustice imposed on Skip; Colin so eloquently “put it down” and truly revealed the real heart of both Skip’s and the officer’s error. As they say in Hollywood, “Roll the tape”.

Colin Powell interview with Larry King

Skipping Through the Battle Gates

The term pick your battles usually is referenced to choosing your causes wisely rather than involving yourself in senseless issues whose maturation will only manifest into infantile results. In laments terms pick your issues wisely, not everything is a battle, sometimes it is what it is! Henry Louis Gates aka Skip Gates (btw – what black man you know is named Skip?, ok let me not digress on this one I could take this to a whole other level ). Personally I’m tired of all the Skip Gates media; one may think that I would be enthralled with all that’s going on, but actually I’m really upset but not for the reasons most would think.

According to Skip and most of the media this is a classic case of white man picking on black man and what makes it worst is this is not your average black man, oh no, it’s a Harvard law professor. On paper and with the quickness it seems like just another case of racist police brutality sprinkled with no matter how successful a black man is he can’t get a break. It’s get no better than this, except it’s not all THIS!!

This particular scenario differs greatly from your normal police brutality. As the story goes Skip Gates came home from a long trip and could not get into his home apparently there was something amiss with the door. He proceeded along with an assistant, man servant whoever it was to pry his door open using his body, not smart for a Harvard professor if you ask me…..I most likely would of called a locksmith or as some reports say the house was previously burglarized, at this point he probably could of called campus police; after-all he is Henry “Skip” Gates, I’m sure they would of came running. While watching this prying door act a concerned citizen exercised her American duty and called the police and reported what she saw as a robbery in progress. An officer responded to the call, however while en-route Skip was able to pry his door open and as well all know was in his residence. This is where it gets interesting. The police officer is under the impression that someone was burglarizing a residence, so when he gets there and see someone there it is rightly his duty to ask for identification to make sure that duh the robber didn’t get in. Skip on the other hand is upset, how dare someone ask him for his ID in his own home. OK, I can feel you on that, but when the officer explained about the door prying etc. Skip should of complied and said OK here it is. Instead Mr. Harvard went on a tangent and started yelling “Racial Profiling” I won’t go into the rest of the story because we all know by now what happened. Skip kept going on, the officer said calm down, Skip didn’t and was arrested. According to the officer it was about disorderly conduct according to Skip it was about racial profiling, hmmmmm…… I have issues with the coupled opinions of this story but I have say I am deeply troubled with Skip’s version.

Racial profiling where do I begin?? To my understanding racial profiling is when law enforcement unfairly targets minorities particularly blacks and hispanics. Perfect examples of racial profiling are:

- DWB (Driving While Black)
- Being followed by a security guard in a department, while your white counterpart is stealing Gucci scarves.
- Police brutality – can someone way Abner Louima, Amadou Diallo and the most famous of them all Rodney King.

I’m sure there are many more examples of profiling but for now these three above will have to do. Getting back to Skip, how in the hell is an officer asking you for ID in your home who he thought was being robbed is a case of racial profiling? As a collective of people who have fought for equality we have no room for anyone nevertheless a scholar like Gates to inappropriately define an action as racial profiling when it clearly was not! Gates and the media are trying to act as if he’s the poster child for racial profiling. Jena 6 now that was racial profiling. Gates that’s just an (and yes I’m going there) an uppity negro who looked at this officer and felt I’m Skip I know your boss and hell no you can’t ask nothing of me. Skip thought his Ivy League world-renowned hanging out with Oprah and the Obamas earned him untouchable status, basically he’s the HNIC. Unfortunately for Gates he learned the hard way that you can’t defy law enforcement. Despite what many of us think most law enforcement officials are here to protect and serve. They honor their badge and some have even given their life for citizens. Disorderly conduct means disrespecting an officer, there has never been room in America for this act, just look at what happens to cop killers. Some critics have suggested that the officer could of let Gates rant and just leave him alone. I question the critics with this, if this had been me or you yelling at an officer and he arrested us for disorderly conduct and disregarded Gates’s act would that have been discrimination, not in the black or white sense but of the elitist kind?? Like Arsenio use to say things that make you go hmmm……….

Sgt. Crowley in my opinion acted in the most appropriate manner. I can only say this from my experience of dealing with a similar situation in my home. Not to along my husband and I were at the local mall and received a call from our alarm company. We immediately went home and actually beat the cops there. The cops arrived shortly after and the first thing they asked us was for our ID. We never once felt threatened, discriminated or violated. It was their job to make sure our premises was secure. He didn’t know us from a hole in the wall and had every right in my home to make sure I was who I said I was. This is called securing the premises. There was nothing racial or unjust with this officer’s actions. And I’m assuming Sgt. Crowley was behaving in the same manner. Unlike my officer, Sgt. Crowley encountered a disrespectful, belligerent human being and for that Gates was arrested not because he was BLACK!

My core issue with this whole Gates racial profiling saga, is that it’s NOT racial profiling; it’s an ivy league African American man who is misinterpreting the term racial profiling for an elitist who just didn’t get his way. To quote the great literary title from Carter G. Woodson, Gates is acting like a “Mis-educated Negro”. For generations our people fought for equality and challenged discriminative practices. We’ve fought many battles and are nowhere near ending the war. We do not have time to baby-sit a fraudulent act of racial profiling. This whole scenario doesn’t deserve media attention; black pundits going off, Roland Martin, Tom Joyner even Barack Obama, come on people pick and choose your battles wisely. Skip may be your boy but I think you all know the differences of racial profiling vs. disorderly conduct. This should NOT be viewed as the new black cause poster child for racial profiling. Talking about media and black pundits I find it ironic that Sharpton and Jesse have barely mumbled a word. These are two activists that give me that love hate feeling, yet they always seem to appear and jump on the Black Attack train. Notice their kind of silent. There aren’t any protests at the Cambridge police dept, no demands for public apologies, pretty quiet and I’m sure it’s not because the Jacksons are keeping them busy. Al and Jesse know real racial profiling and they’re smart enough to know this ain’t it! It’s time the rest of us smarten up and realize not every black and white issue is discrimination. The term race relations means working on both sides, it’s time we as people of color also honor the true meaning. Sometimes a spade is just a spade and nothing more!