Black is Still the New Black

BY JASON STONE

For over centuries, blacks in America were treated as nothing more than that of cattle. We were never seen as equals to that of the early whites.

Individuals like Frederick Douglas, W.E.B Du Bois, James Baldwin, James Brown, George Washington Carver, Harriet Tubman, Jesse Owens, and Josephine Baker were some of the early blacks in American history who broke down racial barriers in their respective works.

BLACK AND PROUD

Thank You Peter Voci and the rest of my NYIT family

I took a lot of pride in doing this project. I feel like this was part of my life’s mission to bring awareness to as many people as I can about black exellece. In times where we as a people are constantly mistreated, incarerated and left unheard, it is important that we continue to display the resilience that makes us impossible to defeat. Black doesn’t die.

Jason Stone

ALL original artwork done by me.

Black is Still the New Black CONTENTS 1. Maya Angelou - Still I Rise 10 2. Jimi Hendrix - Experience This 18 3. Muhammad Ali - A Man With Wings 26 4. Malcom X - Prince of Harlem 34 5. Jackie Robinson - 42 40 6. Michael Jackson - Invincible 46 7. Jean Michel Basquiat - I’m not an Artist 54

8. Spike Lee - A Spike Lee Joint 62 9. Oprah - Queen of all Media 68 10. Kanye West - So Help Me God 76 11. Michelle Obama - Leading by Example 84 12. Barack Obama- Change the World 90

To Talitha, Beverly, Mike, & Katarina

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MAYA AN G E LOU

STILL I RI S E

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“You may shoot me with your words You may cut me with your eyes You may kill me with your hatefulness But still, like air, I’ll rise.”

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In 2015, its still mind blowing how prophetic words said many years ago,

can be so relevant today. The poem “Still I Rise” was written in 1978 by acclaimed author Maya Angelou, as one of many in a collection of thoughtful, powerful, elegant pieces of literature that helped instill pride, resilience and confidence in many.

“Above all, she was a storyteller — and her greatest stories were true,” president Barack Obama” Maya to me is America’s most iconic woman to ever live. One can trace her mark on the likes of individuals like Oprah, Alicia Keys, civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr., actors like Richard Pryor, Michelle Obama, and many other people of different races and backgrounds. She had a nurturing, stern, loving, and motivational way about her. When you think about all whom she has inspired, it doesn’t come as a surprise. Her story is that of overcoming intense hardships at a young age, determined to becoming a strong woman. Her stature to not just blacks but an entire country gives her a scope of divinity. In an article written by Victoria Brownworth, she says “I rarely heard her speak or give an interview without tears coming to my eyes because she never spoke of easy things, even when she was telling a funny story, which was often, because humor and sadness were of a piece for her both in life and in her writing.”

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Maya Angelou

Power in words, is a common theme that has found its way throughout this book of mine. It’s something I truly admire and I know many others do as well. Sometimes, more often than not, people use their words so poorly. This is true especially for people, especially black people, in high positions whether that be government leaders, civil rights leaders of today, and entertainers. These people technically speaking, have the power to say progressive and thought building things, and normally fall way short. It is for these reasons why Maya has been able even in death, to sustain such a huge impact in this country.

It’s stories like this that only proves her strength was more than just in her poems and other literatures. She was talented, placing her hat in other careers such as movies, television, spoken word, radio, and even social media. It’s why the country has given back to her, in honoring and revering her with numerous awards and even a Presidential Medal of Freedom, which is a pretty big deal. Another title under her belt, teacher. She was once a professor of American Studies at Wake Forest. At the time, she was already an established writer and poet, yet, if you didn’t already know

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who she was, as a student then you was in for a huge surprise. A former student, Rogan Kersh spoke of her glowingly after a semester of going through her lecture.

“A number of us (students) came into class not knowing what to expect.

This was before the web, so it wasn’t like you could look her up to find out more. Her extraordinary presence was both inspiring and kind of surprising. She just filled up the space so remarkably, and by the end of the class we were in love,” says Kersh Here is a woman, with years of knowledge, sharing that knowledge and her philosophies to a group of people. In turn, those students went out in the world with that lasting influence embedded in their minds. Her most important lessons involved determination and perseverance in the face of adversity. That’s the true definition of a teacher, waking up young adults and making conscious professionals out of them

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“She told us in the most powerfully personal terms, again and again, that she had been rebuked, blocked, halted, had messed up herself and fell on her face, but got back up and did extraordinary things. She managed to convey to us both what it meant to be a successful, balanced professional, and then also what it meant to be someone who made a difference in the world. I think all of us left that class far more inspired to contribute, to engage, to make a difference than when we had arrived.”

“You may encounter many defeats but you must not be defeated.”

There were life lessons in every one of her small harmonious sonnets.

Whether it’s the self-loving “Caged Bird” to the women empowerment of “Phenomenal Woman”, her legacy is one of brilliance and excellence at the highest level. Her life and her work will forever be intertwined. Her impact is one that will never be forgotten.

“I learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

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JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE THIS

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If there was ever an enigmatic spirit that I was always fascinated

with, it was that of the legendary musician, guitarist, and singer Jimi Hendrix. There was something about him that drew you in.

His music, felt like you were in another world, or maybe on a trip, with him. Jimi always struck me as the kind of person; you could sit and talk with about life for hours. One question that inevitably would come up would be “Why did you light your guitar on fire?” A better question would probably be “how did you come up with that idea?” There’s a brilliant and artistic intent that might not even need to be explained. It’s just meant to leave you in awe, which it always did.

“Well, I stand up next to a mountain and I chop it down with the edge of my hand.”

This is line, from his song “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)” is by far one of the most vivid and inspiring messages in music I ever heard. I interpreted it as a message of strength, confidence, and awareness of that power within you. There’s no task to tall or too hard that you can’t overcome, even if it’s as daunting as a mountain. That’s the mark of a true artistic genius, where the art does the talking and it’s for you to digest. His innovative mind always left more to be desired.

“Jimi Hendrix’s 18 August 1969 performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the Woodstock Music and Art Fair has been characterized as an expression of transcendent political resistance as well as crude anti-U.S. drivel “

JIMI HENDRIX This could be said for his famous rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” It was one of the most iconic moments in American history.

The things he did to that piece, forever symbolized the state in which America was in at the time. Sonically, it became the anthem of the 1960s and was a metaphor for the psychedelic and edgy frame of mind of young Americans. He was aware of the power in music and used Woodstock as his stage to play his version of “The Star-Spangled Banner” to spark the minds of the American youth. It was how many Americans had identified themselves, rebellious and free-spirited. It was the same way Jimi saw himself. It was what he wanted to share, through music. It’s why the title of his critically acclaimed rock album “Are You Experienced?” was appropriate. Jimi Hendrix was the experience.

“Looking from Europe back across the Atlantic, Hendrix saw his own country anew; he saw a United States torn by racism and war in Vietnam, but also a nation in which music inspired activism. This transnational perspective galvanized a shift in Hendrix’s own artistic consciousness.“ 21

“Are You Experienced?” was appropriate. Jimi Hendrix was the experience.

“Looking from Europe back across the Atlantic, Hendrix saw his own counWtry anew; he saw a United States torn by racism and war in Vietnam, but also a nation in which music inspired activism. This transnational perspective galvanized a shift in Hendrix’s own artistic consciousness.“ I had a professor who was young adult when Jimi was still alive. Plenty of times during his lectures he would reminisce and always drift off into a time where he was young, listening to Jimi’s music and finding inner peace. “It was like being in a zone” He once said. Imagine a whole country like that, even wowing his peers.

“I was like, whoa! Wait a minute; he knows his way around the guitar.

There was hardly anyone in the club, so I’m like, “where is everyone?

They got to see this!” I was getting very emotional just remembering just thinking I was there!” – Paul McCarthy

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“When he was playing, he was super confident, he was in total control, his focus was immaculate.” Linda Keith As mentioned, he was very aware of who he was and his race. He was a proud black man who wanted to express that in the United States while also breaking down the barriers of those who wanted to box him in as just a “black artist.”

“What may come as a surprise to many of his black detractors was that Jimi Hendrix not only knew that he was black, but what that blackness meant in the context of American history.”

In many ways that’s what contributed to the beauty of his character. Jimi didn’t ignore his skin color but he also didn’t let it define him or how he saw people. He believed in one race, the human race. That in itself is a powerful mindset that is missing at the core of America’s race relations. Some have adopted this, some still haven’t.

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“By refusing to be stereotyped for playing his music, Jimi Hendrix symbolizes the contradictions on race and ethnicity that continues to remain a burden to both blacks and whites alike.”

The thing that drove the legend of Jimi Hendrix was his image, when intertwined with his music, left people looking at a genius.

You can see his influence long after he passed. There are artists like Michael Jackson and Prince, for example that absolutely drew inspiration from Jimi. This is because he was original and he took great pride in being original.

“He was very clever. He definitely wanted to look as original as his music was.” Paul Caruso.

Jimi perhaps was the greatest innovator of self-expression. He looked and did the things he wanted to do. This is something you see a lot today with our youth and their creative choices, which lead to successful results. When you believe in yourself, as Jimi displayed, nothing else matters. That is the sign of ultimate self-confidence. When you achieve that you’re not worried or concerned with anyone else’s actions. When “Are You Experienced?” was released, it was the first time the world had seen a black man front a rock band. They introduced visuals and new sounds for the album that put you in “The Experience.” It was something the likes of the world had never seen and drew extreme interest.

There was something spiritually transcendent about Hendrix. He was a modern day marvel whose lasting impact is felt today. He embodied a whole decade almost single-handedly. People old enough to dig back into that memory bank; when they seen him when he was still living almost always go into a euphoric nostalgia when speaking of him and the things his music did for their lives. It’s a gift that’s missing today. The black rock star who’s ability to play a guitar effortlessly, end things in a blaze and kissing the sky, leaving those around him in a buzz.

“Music is a safe, kind of high”

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A MAN WITH WINGS

MUHAMMAD ALI “America tried to assassinate the greats; murder Malcolm, give Cassius the shakes.”

A

line off Jay Z’s Magna Carter Holy Grail, that resonated with me upon thinking about Muhammad Ali one day. The keyword that stuck out to me isn’t what you might think. Instead of dwelling on the word “assassinate” I focused more on “great.” The very beginning of that same song the rapper says “Don’t be good, be great!” Ali was just that in every sense of the word. Ali was truly the first showman in sports.

His influential eloquence, in and out of the ring, was truly inspirational as he was a beacon for self-confidence and believing in you. This was especially important for a black man to say in the United States.

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“To be a great champion, you must believe you are the best. If you’re not, pretend you are” “He who made me is me!”

If I had to name 2 of the most motivational black icons to ever live, one would be Malcolm X and the other would undoubtedly be Ali. He conquered fear, fear of being a black man in America, fears of African American youth in the segregated south, fear of the bright lights of professional sports, and more and channeled it into an incomparable energy. Part of the beauty of Ali was how he mastered the art of outsmarting and outwitting those who challenged him, not just boxers. Often times, during interviews he would flip his intelligence into scathing yet graceful humor.

Once during an interview he was asked if leaving school and having trouble reading he responded “I have a wisdom that can make me talk to you, an educated man, on any subject and if the audience or the people listen, they’ll say I won!”

MUHAMMAD 28

He would later breakdown how when it comes to live, love, compassion and people, he was rich in those aspects of life due to his spiritual and personal knowledge of self. This is an intangible gift you can’t teach in any school. Everyday there are confident black men and women on the rise who at some point in life, came across a Muhammad Ali quote, story, or interview the way I had. More and more young black men and women are getting hungrier for knowledge and valuing themselves more than ever.

These are things you can attribute to Ali through laws of nature.

He influenced many who went onto great things.

“I wrote something once saying words are man’s wealth. His wealth is in his knowledge cause if his wealth was in the bank and not in his knowledge, than he doesn’t possess it cause it’s in the bank.”

Much like Malcolm, Ali’s words were, as he put it, his wealth. They were also his weapons. He loved to be intellectually challenged by white interviewers/journalists who saw him as merely just a silly black man who was full of himself. He sparred with them the same way as he did with his opponents in the ring. By the end of the interview what he prophesized had occurred, the people said he won. This what

ALI 29

interview what he prophesized had occurred, the people said he won. This what was so captivating about Ali. He was an original, alluring and wildly ambitious man, in a time where racial tensions were at their peak.

“In the 1960s and beyond, Ali’s persuasive public performances played a pivotal role in radicalizing the civil rights movement as it evolved into twin forces: Black Power and anti-Vietnam war movements. Ali’s speeches and public antics unite messages of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X, enabling audiences to re-envision historical evidence such as press conferences, speeches, posters, and photographs from the civil rights era.”

Some of the things I took from his life was that he was somewhat of a cross between Malcolm & MLK Jr. It is these kinds of fiery yet elegant and graceful traits are what are missing from today’s athlete. Ali was more than just that, he was a leader of the people, the true definition of a king. Never had there been an athlete who challenged American society. It is what makes Ali, as influential as he was, truly one of a kind.

“The nature of the controversy,” said football great Jim Brown (also the founder of the Black Economic Union), “was that white folks could not stand free black folks. White America could not stand to think that a sports hero that it was allowing to make big dollars would embrace something like the Nation of Islam. But this young man had the courage to stand up like no one else and risk not only his life, but everything else that he had.”

If you asked him, he would downplay his own role in being an important leader for blacks. A testament to just how humble a man he was. Whether he knew or not, Ali’s otherworldly ambitiaon and power warped the experience of being black for millions of people.

“One of the reasons the civil rights movement went forward was that black people were able to overcome their fear. And I honestly believe that, for many black Americans, that came from watching Muhammad Ali. He simply refused to be afraid. And being that way, he gave other people courage.” - Bryant Gumbel

“I had to prove you could be a new kind of black man, I had to show that to the world.”

It’s simply why you can just refer to him as Ali. He was a renaissance black man, giving new life to what it meant to be African American in America. He encouraged people to believe in themselves, raised awareness and instilled in everyone that you can achieve more than what you aspire. American icon is an understatement, in terms of Ali. 31

“Ali didn’t just change the image that African Americans have of themselves. He opened the eyes of a lot of white people to the potential of African Americans; who we are and what we can be.” – Arthur Ashe “I had to prove you could be a new kind of black man, I had to show that to the world.”

It’s simply why you can just refer to him as Ali. He was a renaissance black man, giving new life to what it meant to be African American in America. He encouraged people to believe in themselves, raised awareness and instilled in everyone that you can achieve more than what you aspire. American icon is an understatement, in terms of Ali.

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INTERMISSION

Negus Denotes a KING

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MALCOLM X PRINCE OF HARLEM

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Ever since I was a teen, maybe even before then, I wondered why

Malcolm X never had his own national holiday. I didn’t know a whole lot about him except that he was very meaningful to the black community, so I knew he was important. It was the same narrative that stayed in my mind until I met two people who became my best friends in college. I remember it like it just happened, every year Martin Luther King Jr. Day came around, both would say “MLK? I prefer Malcolm.” I’m giving the more PG version of that statement but you get the point. It’s safe to say, I had a natural interest in Malcolm X. I wanted to know more about him. Unfortunately it wasn’t until recently where it came in full circle, thanks to my girlfriend.

The universe works in mysterious ways. When we started dating summer of 2014, she had already been reading “The Autobiography of Malcolm X.” She spoke glowingly about it for days and cried when it was over; the book ends of course with his death. I seized the moment and took her copy of the book.

I was hooked instantly; it became my Bible. I didn’t want it to end. I took much comfort and inspiration reading this book as I been evolving into a grown black man in America, especially in critical times today where there is a war against the black man. There is very eerie feeling reading a book, about a man who you connect with, in which you know he’s going to be murdered in the end. I knew how my girlfriend felt when it was over; there was a turning, sickly feeling in the pit of my stomach. Reading the book for days and weeks, its like Malcolm is sitting with you, telling you personally about his life. You’re intrigued, pulled in by his intelligence, sometimes aggressive nature and sometimes-calm demeanor. You’re hooked on his knowledge of seemingly everything. Most importantly, the absolute brash truth he spoke about the oppression of blacks in racist America.

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“Malcolm was not a man who believed that the problem of the African Americans would be solved through a peaceful, quiet means and nuances, he believes the problem has graduated through the centuries and has come to a stage when the assertion of African Americans’ existence as humans has to be forcefully done or never. His methods were mainly campaigns and speeches aimed at restoring the dignity of the black man, his confidence in himself and a complete freedom as Americans.�

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MALCOLM X

After reading the book, it all made sense as to why Malcolm X was not revered in the same ways Martin Luther King Jr, was in this country; he was unapologetically black. He was a courageous advocate for blacks, so much that it’s still admirable today. He held white America accountable for their inhumane crimes against blacks, any chance he got. He was not about holding hands and marching while singing in unison “We Shall Overcome, some day” he was empowering blacks to stop looking to integrate with people who look down on them and start looking to build within.

His strong Pan-African philosophy turned white Americans off and even rattled so called black leaders. He blasted into the mainstream public when stormed into police station an April night in 1957; demanding medical assistance for a fellow Nation of Islam member who had just been beaten by cops. He led members of the Nation along with a growing crowd of hundreds and with a hand gesture, the NOI members calmly left the premises. It led to an officer famously stating, “No one man should have all that power.”

Unapologetic and would gladly tell you why his sermons were so full of wrath. Example: In 1963, Malcolm was a guest on a show “City Desk” in Chicago where he was surrounded by old white men who in all reality could not let him speak his truth without getting beyond their own prejudice. One of the men, Len O’Connor asks Malcolm what was his real name to which Malcolm responds “Malcolm X “ which prompts O’Connor to ask if that was his legal name. Malcolm responds “its my legal name” which again prompts O’Connor into asking if he went to court to legalize this.

Malcolm would again responds “I didn’t have to go to court to be called Murphy or Jones or Smith. If a Chinese person were to say his name was Patrick Murphy, you would say he’s insane because Murphy is an Irish name, a name with a white background. A Chinese is a yellow man, he has no connection with the name Murphy. If it doesn’t look proper for a person who is Chinese to be walking around named Murphy or Jones or Johnson, I think it would be just as improper for a black person to have walked around with these names. He [Elijah Muhammad] teaches us that during slavery, the same slave master who owned us put his last name on us to denote that we were his property. So if you see a Negro today named Johnson, if you go back in his history you’ll find that he was once or one of his forefathers was owned by a white man whose name was Johnson” As the Len continues to question Malcolm’s last name, Malcolm continues to drill this same notion right back, rather gracefully.

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It’s this attitude and resilience that led to mainstream America to label him “the angriest Negro in America.” It’s a title he wouldn’t have had any other way. He wasn’t angry for the sake of being angry. His anger was justified. He was the voice of the people. To some degree, his “radical” image helped launch MLK Jr. more in the forefront since he was more for integration for the American Negro.

When I was a kid and even early on in my college years, I was intrigued by my own lack of education on Malcolm. As a grown man now, I look to him as one of my heroes. I can now understand why many adored him.

He’s the people’s champion. Even if he isn’t “nationally” celebrated, he is still loudly commemorated, because he needs to be. “By Any Means Necessary.”

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I was intrigued by my own lack of education on Malcolm. As a grown man now, I look to him as one of my heroes. I can now understand why many adored him. He’s the people’s champion. Even if he isn’t “nationally” celebrated, he is still loudly commemorated, because he needs to be.

“By Any Means Necessary.”

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42 JACKIE ROBINSON

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Sometimes

it’s difficult to wrap my head around the idea that blacks were once not allowed to play professional sports. However, that wasn’t an idea that was just a cold fact. So when Jackie Robinson debuted for Montreal Royals, Brooklyn Dodger’s minor league team, he was carrying the weight of an entire race on his back. Later on April 15, 1947, he would take the field in Brooklyn, officially making him the first black professional major league baseball player. That in itself sounds like you could stop the movie right there. It was there where he flipped an entire nation’s race relations, social landscape, and political ideologies upside down.

“Robinson is more than a baseball icon. He is a symbol of America’s ongoing ambivalence about race” I can be the first to admit that I wasn’t too keen on Jackie Robinson as a whole. He was someone I knew of, just didn’t know too much about. I accepted the fact he was an icon, a black icon, and he is embraced. In my younger years, my knowledge and understanding of him was very similar to how I understood Martin Luther King Jr. This ultimately culminates with how I watched games. It’s easy to watch a baseball or basketball game and be unaware of the past, just cause of the routine and the normality of how professional sports work today. Rarely, do I ever think about when blacks weren’t even allowed on the field! There are plenty of blacks in the MLB, blacks make up a large percentage of the NBA and NFL, and those are the three major sports in the United States. Yet, once every year, I’m reminded of Jackie’s importance when they honor him, when every player wears the number “42.” Former New York Yankee Robinson Cano was named after Jackie and admits to being influenced by him as well. Even then, it took a very disgusting incident to finally gravitate towards Jackie’s legendary life.

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even allowed on the field! There are plenty of blacks in the MLB, blacks make up a large percentage of the NBA and NFL, and those are the three major sports in the United States. Yet, once every year, I’m reminded of Jackie’s importance when they honor him, when every player wears the number “42.” Former New York Yankee Robinson Cano was named after Jackie and admits to being influenced by him as well. Even then, it took a very disgusting incident to finally gravitate towards Jackie’s legendary life.

Back in 2013, the Jackie Robinson statute in Brooklyn was vandalized. The incident took place when racist individuals defaced it with racial slurs, which includes the “N” word. There was even swastikas painted on it as well. It made me ask, why would anyone do such a thing? It was than when it dawned on me how much he meant, to a lot of people, black and white. The craziest part about this is if he were alive today to have seen this, he probably would have demonstrated class in the face of the bigotry that had taken place. Jackie was known for being courageous even in the face of really heated racial tensions early back in his Dodger career. He never backed down and was more prone to take on the problems head on. It would come in play as he soon proved to play an important role in the civil rights movement, almost sparking the entire campaign.

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of really heated racial tensions early back in his Dodger career. He never backed down and was more prone to take on the problems head on. It would come in play as he soon proved to play an important role in the civil rights movement, almost sparking the entire campaign.

“The most important connection between Robinson and American civil rights lies in his support for federal civil rights legislation in the very public life that he led away from the baseball field. Jackie Robinson was never just a baseball player.”

Jackie’s resilient attitude in the face of adversity paved the way for black athletes today to do the same. Anytime I see major stars like LeBron James, Chris Paul, or even an entire team standing up and protesting their racist owner, I can’t help but think that Jackie’s fight impacted them. To be a black public figure and standing up to the system of oppression, in a united way, is incredible. It isn’t something new or reaches the levels to which Jackie had endured, but it says a lot as to what he meant for blacks and Latinos who still today fight for our human rights. The phrase “grace under fire” is very fitting for Jackie. It was said that he was “ The target of racial epithets and flying cleats, of hate letters and death threats, of pitchers throwing at his head and legs, and catchers spitting on his shoes.”

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JACKIE 42 ROBINSON

While he may have always wanted to fight back and his instincts was never to “turn the other cheek�, he practiced admirable self-control, showing the ability to be above ignorance. He was possessed the same fearless characteristics of Martin Luther King Jr., which makes him revered. Many will say Michael Jordan is the greatest African American athlete of all time, but Jackie easily is the most important. That is undisputed.

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Michael Jackson INVINCIBLE

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I always felt as if the title “King of Pop” in reference to

Michael Jackson was an understatement of sorts. Sure, it covered the obvious; he was pop music’s best artist. Yet it felt as if he was just the King, period. Jackson is the greatest entertainer of all time. It’s undisputed in my opinion. As Sylvia Martin puts it “Like Superman, Michael Jackson is an American icon who went global. His ability to fuse together West African, African American, and Anglo-European musical influences as well as choreography styles from the American inner city, Fred Astaire, and French mime Marcel Marecau lent Jackson’s craft a broadly inclusive appeal. “

In other words, he was the man. The parallel between his life and Clark Kent/Superman is actually rather fitting. Like Clark Kent, Jackson off the stage was very mild mannered, gentle, grew up in Middle America, and tried to be as normal as possible. Yet, like Kent who transformed into Superman once he went into the booth, Jackson was a phenomenon on the stage that did everything effortlessly, capturing the attention of everyone around the world. Jackson is and was the kind of man who deserves his own statue, standing somewhere tall in the world. It would symbolize his larger than life persona perfectly.

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Michael’s story plays almost like the greatest scripted movie you’ve ever seen. He and brothers were the original boy band “The Jackson 5” who worked endlessly with their father at the helm. Soon they achieved huge success (also globally) and becoming a staple in the music and entertainment industry. One could say they lived the “American Dream.” It wasn’t until Jackson’s solo effort in 1979 with “Off The Wall” where his career was about to take new life. Over the next sixteen years he dominated the music landscape and pop culture. It was his reign that saw the music video become an intricate companion art piece to a song. The video for “Thriller” arguably is the greatest, most influential music video of all time.

“Thriller sealed MTV’s reputation as a new cultural force; dissolved racial barriers in the station’s treatment of music (though MTV has always denied they existed); revolutionized music video production; spawned the “making of” genre of documentary (“The Making of Filler,” as Landis said at the time); helped create a market for VHS rentals and sales, because fans were desperate to see it when they wanted, rather than at the will of TV stations; and, in 2009, became the first music video to be inducted into the Library of Congress’s National Film Registry.”

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“IF YOU WANNA

MAKE THE WORLD A

BETTER PLACE

TAKE A LOOK AT

YOUR SELF AND MAKE THAT CHANGE” 49

Michael Jackson Soon we would see his influence in the arts of crafting a visual musical masterpiece through the likes of other artists like Beyonce, Kanye West, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga and Katie Perry just to name a few. This is evident in 2010 when Kanye made a short film for his album “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” that saw different, well thought out visuals for every track on the album that told a story. Interestingly enough, West pays homage to Jackson in a brief clip in which parade goers are carrying a huge effigy of Jackson’s head. That album was dedicated to Jackson, as Kanye would state in the linear notes.

While I’m on the topic of Mr. West, he often likes to tell anyone who will listen how much of an influence Jackson had on him. Outside of musically, he was inspired by Jackson’s eccentric fashion style as well. During the album run for “MBDTF” Kanye wore a red jacket, almost reminiscent of the red jacket Jackson wore during the Thriller era. Even the rollout for his albums (more recently) have been very Jackson-like, as they have been promoted in extravagant ways.

Jackson was aware of his influence on popular culture and he often used his star power to promote the pride he felt in being a black man and also his philanthropist ideologies. He used his albums to manipulate the musical barriers that surround race. He subtly reintroduced early African practices and culture through his music, visuals, narrative videos and choreography. One example of this is the video for “Remember The Time” in which was displayed an ancient Egyptian setting. He took black genres such as R&B, jazz, blues, soul, and fuck; and basically incorporated white appropriated rock, bending this into accessible but culturally powerful music. This is largely why today we have so many conscious artists whose mission

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is to promote black accomplishments and eradicate stereotypes. Take rapper Kendrick Lamar’s album “To Pimp A Butterfly” which sonically exposes mainstream audiences to eccentric soul, funk, and spoken word. It was Jackson who was able to do this with ease and bring consciousness to popular music. He was one man whose mission was to unite all races; while globally changing the perception of the black race in the United States.

Through songs like “Black or White”, “Man in the Mirror”, and “They Don’t Care About Us”, he was able to address issues of social injustice, racism, poverty, environmental deterioration and more. Doing this on a large scale helped him connect with people on intense levels emotionally. It is why when he died, there was even a government issued moment of silence. American society knew what we had lost in Jackson; a transformative figure who had a Christ-like larger than life presence.

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INTER MISSION BLACK EMPOWERMENT IS NOT RACISM 53

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I AM AN

ARTIST

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Back in 2013, rapper/entrepreneur Jay Z purchased a painting

for a whopping $4.5 million dollars. The painting was a famous 1982 piece by influential artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. The follow are a bunch of lyrics by Jay Z in which he name drops Basquiat:

“Illest M********** Alive” When I say it then you see, it ain’t only in the music/ Basquiats, Warhols serving as my muses.

Rick Ross’ “3 Kingz” Millions on the wall in all my rooms/ N**** couldn’t f*** with my daughter’s room/ Ni**** couldn’t walk in my daughter’s socks/ Banksy b****, Basquiat.

“Most Kingz” Inspired by Basquiat, my chariot’s on fire/ Everybody took shots, hit my body up, I’m tired.

“Ain’t I” I got Warhol’s on my hall’s walls/ I got Basquiat’s in the lobby of my spot.

“Picasso Baby” Yellow Basquiat in my kitchen corner/ Go ‘head lean on that sh**Blue, you own it.

It ain’t hard to tell, I’m the new Jean-Michel.

“BBC” Versace plates/ Got the Basquiat collab from Versace’s place. .

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Its obvious Basquiat is Jay Z’s favorite artist, but why? Well, for probably the same reasons he is my favorite artist as well as one of the most impactful artists ever. He was a genius. He had his own style. Although its safe to say his reputation for being famous than infamous might have overshadowed his work, but strip away the drugs and the antics and you’ve got one of the most socially aware, prolific artists of all time.

For me, he’s one of the single most important people to ever grace this earth. His meteoric rise to fame was unprecedented. The art he was producing during his peak countered the Bourgeoisie, often unaware, and political world that was the high society art scene back in the 1980s. His style, often very tribal mixed with a child-like innocence, proved to be raw and only elevated the authenticity of the messages the art communicated. Basquiat was very real. His work often explored issues such as poverty, capitalism, racism, classism, drug abuse, death, and self-worthiness. All portrayed in abstract depictions.

“What seem to be the most pervasive throughout his paintings are themes of racial and socioeconomic inequality and the degradation of life that accompanies this. The emphasis on specific visual and textual imagery within and among these paintings coalesces as a marked—and often scathing— social commentary”

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JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT

His work resonated with me so much that I even have a Basquiat painting on my arm of a black king. When I look at it, I am reminded of who I am, where I came from and what cannot be taken away from me. He is an artist whose work stands the test of time because of how relevant one of his paintings becomes to present day America. Take one of his pieces titled “Untitled.” The piece depicts what appears to be a black man surrounded by two uniformed white men, presumably police officers. There is what appears to be a halo over the prisoner’s head. For me, I take it as a clear representation of police brutality with the halo symbolizing the black male’s martyrdom. The black man is another black life abused by the cops, the system, meant to keep the black man oppressed.

It is evident that police discrimination is the theme and the parallels btw the painting and today’s society rings loudly as we have been dealt blow after

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after blow with incidents of police killing black males in recent memory.

Basquiat is prophetically drawing out what we already know and what is to come.

Another one of his pieces titled “Hollywood Africans” seems to cover the undertone that Hollywood and the media has brainwashed and conditioned blacks. Blacks in this country have long been misguided by media propaganda and lack of proper education. This has been an extremely deadly combination in the continued oppression of blacks as a whole in the United States. The painting seems to highlight the materialism forced into the minds of blacks. Forcing African Americans to want to have the “American Dream.” There are many little markings such as stars, the word heroism and gangsterism, movie star prints and more. To me, I viewed it as a real problem that’s been going on with the black community looking towards materialism to “validate” ourselves, instead of looking towards knowledge of self.

“I get my facts from books, stuff on atomizers, the blues, ethyl alcohol, geese in the Egyptian style ... I put what I like from them in my paintings.“

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“Avowed influences for Basquiat also included the work of Picasso, African masks, children’s art, hip-hop and jazz. The outcome itself has been described as a type of visual syncopation, or “eye rap.“ Basquiat once said, “I am not a black artist. I am an artist.” When I see many black, artists, whether male or female, myself included, I always can see the Basquiat influence. I can also see that they too, believe in that statement whether they are consciously aware or not. It’s all in the style, the ways in which he went about his vision left a mark on many artists who look to push social awareness. That was his mission, which is now shared because to be the king of art you’re the king of all professions.

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Often times it is very difficult to fathom the idea of black history and

culture being taught by anybody but black people. In Hollywood, long before more recent times, blacks in film were never the lead story. If they were, it came in the form of Jim Crow characters, Sambo characters, slave/caretaker characters or Blaxploitation. While Blaxploitation was generally meant to explore race relations in America, with most of the stories in poor black neighborhoods, they still often somewhat downplayed many of the problems of the oppressed black American citizen. In comes Spike Lee, whose films engaged the many controversial perspectives, views, social commentary and economical issues of blacks in America.

Spike is heralded as the greatest African American filmmaker of all time. Spike has been great at finding the problem and forcing the issue. Just how important is he? His film “Do the Right Thing” is being taught in schools. Its rather fitting that such a film still resonates today when race relations is increasingly growing with more tension.

The final scene where a white cop is choking out Radio Raheem for seemingly no reason, in front of the entire community is eerily similar to the cop who choked the life out of Eric Garner in front of a crowd as well. More parallels arise when, just as in real life, more focus is aimed on the public reaction than the actual killing. Spike’s character “Mookie” destroys the storefront of Sal’s pizzeria. While in real life, more is made of the “riots” taken place in protest of Garner’s death.

Interestingly enough, that was just one of many topics in that movie and it came towards the end. The movie itself dealt with race within a diverse community who are all prejudice towards each other; whites against blacks, Latinos against Asians, blacks against the Asians, etc.

Sounds pretty familiar. This is just one movie. He has a specific collection of movies, like any true artist, that manages to stand the test of time because, like a true artist, he has taught us and instilled images in our heads that are conversation pieces.

of the “riots” taken place in protest of Garner’s death. Interestingly enough, that was just one of many topics in that movie and it came towards the end. The movie itself dealt with race within a diverse community who are all prejudice towards each other; whites against blacks, Latinos against Asians, blacks against the Asians, etc. Sounds pretty familiar. This is just one movie. He has a specific collection of movies, like any true artist, that manages to stand the test of time because, like a true artist, he has taught us and instilled images in our heads that are conversation pieces.

He was named artistic director of NYU’s graduate film program in 2002. He helped many aspiring filmmakers with their thesis projects and how to get their visions out.

“Just to have him here and working at the school has been phenomenal,” says Patti Pearson, associate director of special projects at NYU. He works with students on thesis films and some post-graduate work. He also advises on faculty hires, and the dean and chairs sometimes consult with him,” Pearson says. “There is still some excitement among undergraduates. Students want to take his class. We get a lot of requests from outside the department.”

“This opportunity has shown me that Spike Lee is a person like you and me,” Mason says. “The only thing that separates people like him is ingenuity and ambition. Spike Lee is one of my favorites because he is so determined to make a good movie. I’m excited about getting up at the crack of dawn and doing my best.”

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“This opportunity has shown me that Spike Lee is a person like you and me,” Mason says. “The only thing that separates people like him is ingenuity and ambition. Spike Lee is one of my favorites because he is so determined to make a good movie. I’m excited about getting up at the crack of dawn and doing my best.”

The keyword in that quote, determined. His ability to shed light on topics that continue to plague the black community is astounding. Take his film “School Daze” which heavily focused on the “Dark Skin versus Light Skin” dispute especially amongst black women. His intent to demonstrate an internal war within the black community helped bring awareness that as a people, we need to fight through hating each other due to media brainwashing of what is beauty.

“Observing that School Daze “confronts a lot of issues that aren’t talked about in the movies these days: not only issues of skin color and hair, but also the emergence of a black class, the purpose of all-black universities in an integrated society, and the sometimes sexist treatment of black women by black men” More and more there are African Americans embracing their heritage and acknowledging the different skin tones that melanin brings.

Spike has created the black aesthetic in cinema that is hardly ever seen.

Many of his films aren’t tailored for a white audience, which is part of the reason why we don’t have many new Spike Lee movies today.

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Spike has created the black aesthetic in cinema that is hardly ever seen.

Many of his films aren’t tailored for a white audience, which is part of the reason why we don’t have many new Spike Lee movies today.

“Lee’s films challenge viewers to engage intellectually with a cinematic “text,” to revel in and deconstruct the complexities of each film’s polyphonic visual and aural fields.“ 66

It’s no surprise that he was campaigned himself (not very smoothly either) to direct the biopic of the “controversial” and complex Malcolm X starring Denzel Washington as the titular figure. That film, just as powerful and intriguing as the man Malcolm himself, gave a new generation at the time a taste of who Malcolm was and his importance to not just black culture but American society as well. It was all a part of Spike’s vision of Malcolm. It’s safe to say had someone else took the director’s chair, the film would have never been the eventual social success it became. It was Spike who reintroduced the passion and flair of Malcolm X in the early 1990s at a time where “Fight The Power” was a theme in the urban community.

“The Washington Post‘s critic called Malcolm X “Spike Lee’s most universally appealing film. An engrossing mosaic of history, myth and sheer conjecture.”

Spike’s role in American history has long been cemented. He challenged how Hollywood views blacks. He made movies for blacks by blacks that brought out multi-dimensional characters who all, in one way or another was fighting an oppressive state due to the American system. He opened up the way for young filmmakers to become ambitious and innovative with their art; it’s more than just a film, it’s a contemporary piece in which a need for education has to be filled through your vision. Just as Oscar Micheaux inspired Lee, one day there will be a young black artist who will read and research a “Spike Lee joint” to school the masses on the black American experience from behind the chair.

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O OPRAH WINFREY QUEEN OF ALL MEDIA

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When one becomes the President of the United States, he is given the titles

“Leader of the free world” even “Most powerful man in the world.” However, there is a woman who is largely considered to be “The most powerful woman in America, in the world” and the proof is almost endless. As the “Queen of all Media”, to many, many women, Oprah Winfey is the highest degree of excellence, self-improvement and spiritual leader to ever live.

Some have even labeled he limitless influence as “The Oprah Effect.” She has had her hand in practically every form of media there is from television, movies, books, magazines, radio and even church. Oprah went from being mere daytime TV talk show host to a global icon. Her influence is often mirrored by her accomplishments. Once she established her brand and company “Harpo Productions” an empire had begun.

“Winfrey has affected the culture and reflected it, Kathryn Lofton says. “After Oprah, first-person narratives have become indispensable products. After Oprah, all purchases seem to hold transforming possibility. After Oprah, celebrity seems more powerful than statesmen or politicians. This is not to say Oprah is responsible for these changes. It is, simply and powerfully, that she is representative of an era.”

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OPRAH WINFREY While many daytime talk shows main focus was to force feed negative images and stories to the public, Oprah strayed and rebelled, doing the opposite. She never got baited into sensationalism. She was for positivity only. She didn’t want to condition you with the ignorance of a typical Jerry Springer show, or the racial stereotypes viewed on The Maury show. Everything for Oprah was about positive reinforcement.

“To combat this stereotype, she made a push to encourage more positive topics of discussion on her show.“ I always remember my mom watching Oprah, everyday. Even on other tv shows, there was occasional Oprah name drops. She was to daytime television what Michael Jordan was to the NBA. There was not a topic she didn’t cover: obesity, race relations, books, taboo topics, her own struggles and childhood. It is her range, knowledge and determination to turn these topics into daily conversation pieces that shaped American culture.

Oprah’s most impactful characteristic was how relatable she was to the everyday woman. This was particularly why she was so lauded. Whenever she opened up, she became one with her audience. She blurred the lines of tv host and journalist. As mentioned, her range in topics helped justify this. She made it no secret about her weight problems early on and learning to embrace exercise. In regards to race, Oprah has made it a point to honor those who took part in the civil rights movement as they played an inspirational role in her life. She even transformed Forsyth County, an area in Georgia in which not one black citizen had lived in 75 years into place where thousands of blacks now call home. This came slowly but surely after she held a show there during her first season. She started a book club where she suggested readings to her fans. That became an incredible success as well.

“Her makeovers are familiar rituals of transformation like those you might find in an evangelical revival. Her Book Club has some similarities to a Bible study, etc.,” Kathryn Lofton adds in the email interview.“ Finally, when she wasn’t giving away cars or making donations, her shows were likened to divine church services. She especially pushed for women to transcend their past struggles and hardships, using those life lessons as therapy on a path to self-improvement. These religious interventions lead to live rejuvenation rituals. This, along with an extremely savvy business mind, lead to her infiltrating the American society from all angles.

“The number of superlatives used to describe Winfrey are enough to demonstrate the extensive influence that she has had on the country and the world.”

The power Oprah was putting on display daily was growing larger and larger.

This soon led to Winfey becoming the first African American billionaire. Think about that. It needs to be repeated: the first African American billionaire, in the world. It’s an unprecedented accomplishment for a woman who grew up in the poverty heavy segregated south.

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“In the realm of popular culture, Oprah Winfrey is one of the most important American cultural phenomena of the second half of the twentieth century, if we measure ‘importance’ by her visibility, the size of the fortune she has managed to amass in one decade, the size of her daily audience, the number of imitations she has generated, the innovativeness of her show, and her impact on various aspects of American culture” That kind of impact on an entire country is like pushing a button. She is a strong black woman with the world in her hands. Her sense of enlightenment in which she constantly shared preached a simple yet so efficient message: believing in yourself and having the right attitude can completely change your situation. It is an ideology that so many people have embraced just as seen through the numbers as her show as one of the highest rated programs of its kind, in history.

Helen S. Garson states: “Oprah’s appeal crosses racial lines everywhere. It seems as if much of the world and all of America recalls something about her, perhaps more than we do of historic figures, current politicians, scholars, artists, or composers” Oprah has been a queen of her land, her American soil. There has never been a woman of her stature and there will be a longtime before the world comes across another “Beautiful One.” By the likes of things, her empire has no end in sight and long after she’s gone, her legacy and

influence will amass already high levels of excellence.

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INTER MISSION WISDOM IS GREATER THAN STRENGTH

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KANYE

W

ES

T

SO HELP ME GOD

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Genius, brash, obnoxious, bril-

liant, innovator, arrogant, and confident are just some of the words I’ve heard associated with the man, Kanye West. It’s been a decade since his debut album, “The College Dropout”, was released. Since then, the world has watched how “no one man should have all that power.” Power in words and actions that have today made him the most polarizing figure in all of music business. His first moment came in 2007 in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, where he very bluntly declared, “George Bush doesn’t care about black people.” He was soon criticized; of course by the American media who would label the moment outrageous, out of line and even an “out there stunt” as a Time magazine writer suggested. Even though the media

tried to paint him as ridiculous, he was applauded in the black community for only telling what at the time was the truth. We would soon find out that this was only the beginning. America in the 2000s, would be getting a taste of how one talented outspoken black man can flip an entire nation on its back, whenever he made his presence known.

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KANYE In many ways, he embodies the traits of what systematic America hates: an intelligent, talented and confident black male. As David Samuels suggested “Kanye’s power resides in his wild creativity and expressiveness, his mastery of form, and his deep and uncompromising attachment to a self-made aesthetic that he expresses through means that are entirely of the moment: rap music, digital downloads, fashion, Twitter, blogs, live streaming video.”

In other words, there is no denying the man’s sheer and unrivaled brilliance. As mentioned already in this very book, each decade had a cultural conqueror, for the last ten or so years, its been West. Whether it’s changing the musical landscape with every release, his sometimes, odd yet fascinating sense of style, to his admirable sense of self and high self-esteem, he captivates the American audience. He is a product of great black parents; Donda West, a renowned scholar and professor and his father Ray West, former Black Panther and photojournalist. Both who instilled in him at a young age that you can do anything and be anything you want.

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WEST

It is easy for me, as a young black man and artist, to find many inspirations from Mr. West. He paved the way for the everyday man to get his foot in the door and not look back. The mark he’s left on the music, fashion and internet has been well documented. To an extent, we have Kanye to thank for a variety of things we have today. Young producers try to recreate his production style, which led to him abandoning it altogether and experimenting with new sounds. Young men tried to dress like him, to the point where today’s high-end fashion trends has been loosely based on Kanye’s always interesting appearance. Even how he navigates and makes use of social media and the internet has been mimicked. All of this speaks to his influence on pop culture.

When he dropped his album “The College Dropout” in 2004, he single-handedly destroyed the stereotypical portrayal of the black man in the music business. At the time, every rapper was of a “gangster” “thug” image. It was no fluke that hip-hop was at it’s peak mainstream wise, so young people, especially blacks, were being conditioned to thinking you have to be a macho, overly aggressive, misogynistic, materialistic, gang-banger to make it. West with his ordinary, college, conscious image seized control of a lane nobody was filling. Its safe to say that he eradicated the negative images the media was putting out of black men in music.

“Nobody can deny that he deserves to be where he’s at right now. Just through hard work. I don’t care how many antics, how many crazy **** he says, nobody can deny him.” (Coodie & Chike)

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EVERYTHING I’M NOT MADE ME EVERYTHING I AM

As a producer, West’s talents are glaringly evident.

His ability to cut up pieces of hits from the past, into contemporary artistic musical cadences that travels mountains across the world is incomparable. As a rapper, especially by comparison to those early on, his lyrics often explored the self-ignorance of valuing meaningless things and often times the black experience of being exposed to oppression and classism in America. As he puts it in “All Falls Down”: “We’re all self-conscious I’m just the first to admit it.” The accompanying video for this song strategically is shown in a perspective where the audience is viewing life through Kanye’s eyes. You are a participant in his world as he raps about self-esteem, material things, and internalized insecurities.

This is a theme that would continue in his music later on in his career. A theme

that sometimes gets lost in transition, as he has become more famous and somewhat concerned about the wrong things.

Or is it really lost? Is he not who he said he was from the start? The everyday guy who will tell you he’s just as guilty for putting value in less meaningful things? The same man, who infamously interrupted Taylor Swift in 2009 during her award speech since he felt she didn’t have the best music video, in an attempt to tell MTV to award blacks who might have been more deserving of the award, will later tell you to respect the artists.

That is the beauty of Kanye West. Even in his most head-scratching moments, there is always a bit of truth. If there wasn’t, nobody would care.

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“Kanye’s emotional landscape may be troubled, but it is also a unified whole, which is the mark of any great artist. He is a petulant, adolescent, blanked-out, pained emotional mess who toggles between songs about walking with Jesus and songs about luxury brand.”

Whether you love or hate Kanye West, his polarizing presence and art leaves you feeling something. That is the ultimate mark of a true innovative genius. His message is simple: believe in yourself and change the world. It’s why when he speaks, the world watches.

“FOR ME GIVING UP IS WAY HARDER THAN TRYING”

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MICHELLE OBAMA LEADING BY EXAMPLE 84

For young black men, Barack Obama’s rise to being the first president of

the United States of America is huge. For young black women, the title of “First Lady” as is accredited to Michelle Obama looms large as well.

Since her husband took office, Michelle has also become a star in her own right. She is an inspiration for many American women, both young and old. At the very core of Michelle Obama, she epitomizes what every woman strives to be and more, considering she probably could have run for a government position if she wanted. Let us not forget, she was an undergrad at Princeton who was interested in social change. She does this while keeping a rather low profile very effortlessly. As said by Prof.

Randall Kennedy: “When [Barack Obama] spoke, people got quiet and listened,” recalls Prof. Randall Kennedy. “Michelle had a more modest, quieter, lower profile.” Barack won election as president of the Law Review. Michelle put her energy into a less glamorous pursuit: recruiting black undergrads to Harvard Law from other schools. For her, politics wasn’t so much about being inspirational as it was being practical—about getting something specific done, says Charles Ogletree, one of her professors.

“She was not trying to get ahead.”

In today’s society, black women in America are constantly trying to fight a never ending a negative propaganda campaign against them. Black women are often stereotyped and represented in the media, music, and literature as angry, bitter, promiscuous and bevy of other negatives. Often times, the representation is rather controversial.

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“In 2008, news coverage of Michelle Obama, wife of then U.S. senator and Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, generated new interest in how African American women are portrayed in the news media. Of particular interest was the label, angry black woman, which news media used to label her following her infamous statement in early 2008 of being proud of her country during a campaign speech for husband, then Illinois Senator and presidential candidate. Soyini (2009) describes the attacks following First Lady Michelle Obama’s remarks about being proud of her country as crazy patriotism, or the unhealthy condition that impairs the ability to both love and critique, to both honor and re-imagine, to both recognize the noble possibilities of this country while interrogating its wrongs. “ Where Michelle comes into play, is that she shatters these perceived notions by being the essence of what makes a strong black woman. So strong, it’s enough to be influential to women of any race and background.

One of her best attributes is the fact she is an advocate for strong families, something that is much needed in the black communities. Barack has stated on numerous occasions “she is the rock and glue that holds the family together. Making the saying “behind every great man is a great woman” fitting in the case of the Obamas. Sharing her husband’s edgy sense of humor, calm and direct manner, she’s been able to carve her own niche while in the public eye, doing some of the same things, socially, that she was doing while she was younger.

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She is a prime advocate of pushing the importance of education. As mentioned she’s an undergraduate hailing from Princeton. She is jump starting her latest effort called “Let Girls Learn” in an attempt for young girls around the world gain access to the proper education everyone deserves. With the emphasis of making sure they stay in school through the teen years and the transition into the work force.

Michelle being at the forefront in the fight against obesity, more importantly child obesity and making healthy nutritional food choices is part of how she does her part as a leader.

Michelle being at the forefront in the fight against obesity, more importantly child obesity and making healthy nutritional food choices is part of how she does her part as a leader.

“Launched in February 2010, the Let’s Move campaign is Michelle Obama’s signature campaign to end childhood obesity in one generation. A high profile campaign such as this will undoubtedly impact the obesity conversation currently taking place in America. The Let’s Move campaign is the first obesity campaign to come out of the White House; knowing if and how the campaign is impacting the conversation will help shape future debate as America continues to grapple with large-scale solutions.”

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1ST LADY MICHELLE OBAMA 88

Its no surprise, whether dealing with the problem of obesity or not, Michelle’s direct approach to pushing a healthier lifestyle has caught on universally with young and old women alike. When you have a woman like Michelle fighting an entire political party on the issue of the nutrition rules in schools; getting the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act passed shows her commitment to reshaping the future of this country for the better.

Most importantly, as a woman, Michelle displays a common trait with the other eleven subjects in this book, an unwavering knowledge of self. As she stood and declared that “Black Girls Rock!” as she did the “Black Girls Rock” annual event this past year, she continues to be a beacon of strength, poise, and the right amount of elegance to women not just in the United States but across the world. When there is a strong black man and an even stronger black woman beside him, something special happens.

People take notice and it provides a vessel of hope and confidence. Barack Obama as a man is ten times greater because he has Michelle Obama, to call his wife, best friend, and “the rock” of his family.

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BARACK

OBAMA

CHANGE THE WORLD 90

Kids are natural dreamers. It is believed that kids are the most honest of peo-

ple because as a child your imagination is at its peak due to not having adult responsibilities to slow down or hinder those dreams. Those dreams for black youth are especially vivid. However, there was a time when if a young black male said he dreamed “of one day being the president of the United States” prior to 2008, he probably was met with reactions ranging from condescending to disbelief to bewilderment. This, at one point was a reality. That is, until Barack Obama became the 44th president of the United States in 2008.

For me, I’ll never forget the moment back that November night seven years ago during my sophomore year at SUNY College at Oneonta. When the results came in, and it was announced, “CNN can now project that Barack Obama, 47 years old, will become the president elect of the United States. Now he will be the first African American president of the United States.”

I would swear it was almost an out of body experience, the wave of pride that came over. To be 20 years old in college and being alive to see a moment most blacks went to the grave waiting for, dreamed of and more was absolutely surreal. Despite the fact that the expectations levels were supremely and utterly unrealistic; you still believed in Barack Obama. He instantly became the symbol for “Hope” and “Change”, the latter in which his campaign was based off.

Perhaps, the most astounding thing about President Obama’s election was that it wasn’t just meaningful to blacks; it was just as meaningful to many whites, to many Latinos, and many more. Obama captured the entire nation. His victory speech was a breathtaking, electrifying, and riveting sermon. It gave others and myself the “this must be what listening to Martin Luther King Jr. was like” in a sense of the passion and energy you felt pouring from the man who stood tall as the most powerful man in the world. All led by one motto “Yes We Can!” It was heard loud and clear

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Obama brought in a new era of American pride that was evident throughout the entire country. It was Obama that introduced the “post racial America” era. His election brought out new, young voters throughout the country.

Many who had been voting for the very first time, myself included. You didn’t care for those who opposed him because his star shined so bright. Here was a man, a black man, becoming the face of the most powerful nation on earth.

He is a family man, intelligent, cool, calm, and collective. One of his best feats, in my opinion, was his very public love for his wife, first lady Michelle Obama and displaying black love. Essentially, Obama’s election became the beacon for a younger, more liberal, more diverse America. As stated here “Indeed, there can be no denying that Barack Hussein Obama was a source of game-changing, spiritual inspiration; no intellectually honest undermining of the powerful influence he exerted on global consciousness; and no obliteration of the fact that, with his ascendance to the Presidency of the most powerful nation on earth, he added a unique and compelling chapter to the epic saga of race relations throughout the globe and did so in a manner that was empowering on individual and communal levels.”

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These are the emotions and feelings many young Americans felt and still feel today. All things considering, especially if you’re a young black male, you believe, more than ever that you can do anything.

Barack’s influence, on many single parent black men and women, to never waver, build your confidence and show your resilience through difficult times rings true more than ever. He has become a trail-blazer amongst the ranks of some of our greatest including Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Frederick Douglas, Harriet Tubman and many more, that you can dare to dream. Every kid now, with the audacity to hope, can dream more than ever, that one day too they can lead the most powerful nation in the world.

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BARACK OBAMA

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Critical Essays on Barack Obama - Melvin B. Rahming First Lady Michelle Obama: Give All Our Girls the Education They Deserve

Reporting Childhood Obesity: An Analysis of How the Let’s Move Campaign Has Impacted Today’s Media Landscape and a National Debate

The Meaning of “Angry Black Woman” in Print Media Coverage of First Lady Michelle Obama

Who Is Michelle Obama?

BY RICHARD WOLFFE

American Mozart- David Samuels The Cultural Impact of Kanye West by Julius Bailey Viewing the World through Oprah’s Eyes: A Framing Analysis of the Spiritual Views of Oprah Winfrey

By Marianne Jeanette Crosby

A farewell to daytime’s No. 1 : By Steve Johnson

The Church of Oprah Winfrey and a Theology of Suffering

By MARK OPPENHEIMER

THE INFLUENCE AND IMPACT OF MALCOM X’ POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY ON THE RACIAL EMANCIPATION OF AFRICAN-AMERICANS AND BEYOND - Jonathan Okeke

The Roots and Routes of Michael Jackson’s Global Identity

by Sylvia J. Martin

The Dichotomies of Michael Jackson | Jeremy Katzenstein Jimi Hendrix Film: Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin’ PSYCHEDELIC CITIZENSHIP: JIMI HENDRIX AS TONE POET

By Mark Clague “This Is America”: Jimi Hendrix’s Star Spangled Banner Journey as Psychedelic Citizenship - MARK CLAGUE The Racialization of Jimi Hendrix Marcus K. Adams Malcolm X’: Spike Lee’s masterpiece turns 20 Opinion by Adam Howard

by Adam Howard The Spike Lee Reader - Paula J. Massood

Spike Lee: Finding the Story and Forcing the Issue Spike Lee Gives Back to the Next Generation of Filmmakers by Dianne Hayes

Jean­Michel Basquiat: An Analysis of Nine Paintings

By Michael Dragovic JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT© IDENTITY AND THE ART OF (DIS)EMPOWERMENT by LOUIS ARMAND

“Cut and Mix”: Jean-Michel Basquiat in Retrospect

by J. Moore Saggese

Once in a while, a book comes along that changes the way we see everything. It helps fuel a culture into leading a new movement. This book educates those who have no idea just how significantly impactful blacks in America have been