Not So Fast Professor Gates - by Henry Duncan

Reparations has been debated since the 1800’s. Yet the 40 acres and a mule has never been delivered. For some reason, Professor Henry Louis Gates has taken on this issue in his op-ed article in the New York Times entitled Ending The Slavery Blame Game. In this article, Prof. Gates argues that, since African monarchs sold their slaves to Europeans, that Europe
and Africa share responsibility for slavery. Obviously this claim has sparked much controversy. You can start with the letters in response to the article. Eric Foner, a professor of history at Columbia University, who states that “reparations are unworkable” does refute a point that Gates presents in his article.

In the article, Gates states:
Advocates of reparations for the descendants of those slaves generally ignore this untidy problem of the significant role that Africans played in the trade, choosing to believe the romanticized version that our ancestors were all kidnapped unawares by evil white men, like Kunta Kinte was in “Roots.” The truth, however, is much more complex: slavery was a business, highly organized and lucrative for European buyers and African sellers alike.

1 of 30 (National Poetry Month)

1 of 30. You give the title/subject and I'll write the poem. This is for Nicholas who told me to write on: Hunger.



Ain't nothing lighthearted about K dot P dot
so please see me not
with them LOL's and LMAO's
we out for them pesos
won't be spending mine on no yeyo
or no Jose Cuervo
probably cop some rice, that new Badu
and some lit writ by Plato
do my part for my compadres
hustle hard on holidays

Africa Is The Future: Part 2 (Continued from The Seed)

I often think about what other countries think about the images they see of Black people in the media. I'm always most concerned with how this image is taken by our brothers and sisters in Africa. Just as Blacks are given a false image of Africa, I think Africans are given a false image of Black people. Just as a European or Asian may look at Blacks with a sense of disgust, I think this is true for some Africans also. This sense of disgust helps contribute to a disconnect that already exists between the two cultures due to the the negative images many Blacks hold towards Africans.

The Historical Significance of Haiti

We all know of the recent earthquake that has devastated the country of Haiti. I don’t know if you have donated your money or time to help in the relief efforts, but in the spirit of Black history month I thought you should know about the historical significance of Haiti. Haiti is the only country in the world to gain it’s independence as a result of a slave revolt. From the early small rebellions lead by the likes of Dutty Boukman in 1780 that lead to the larger and successful revolt lead by Toussaint L'Ouverture and finished by Jean-Jacques Dessalines. The slave revolts in Haiti inspired many of the slave revolts in America such as the revolt led by Nat Turner. The link between the Black people in the United States and the people of Haiti is undeniable. Their ancestors are the same as ours. The only difference between us and them is our former slave masters. Our slave masters spoke english so we spoke english and have english names. Their slave masters spoke French so they speak French and have French names. So make no mistake, those are literally our brothers and sisters dying down there. Keep that in mind as you consider making your charitable contributions.

Were We Expecting Too Much? A year for the Black President

I remember how excited the Black community was a year ago when Barack Obama was elected president of the United States. True, it was a historic moment when you consider the racial history of America. True, he's a much better president than Bush but I can't help but notice that Black people lately aren't rooting for President Obama as much as we were before he was elected. Has he let us down? Were we expecting too much? Was it all just hype?


Many of the problems in the African American community are issues that must be dealt with on the ground level. I remember last year when Obama stated that he can reform the education system but he can't wake up and take our children to school. However, when Obama was elected we acted as if all of our problems had been solved. We acted as if he was Superman and that he'd fix every problem in the African American community.

The Black Candle & M.K. Asante Jr.

When I was 12 years old my family celebrated Kwanzaa for the first time. I believe we celebrated the holiday for about 3 or 4 years and we haven't really celebrated Kwanzaa since then. As a child I really enjoyed celebrating the holiday because it always brought my family closer together. Where Christmas was one special day for the family, Kwanzaa was a week long celebration that wasn't related to any religion. Instead, the holiday was special to us because it's a holiday that grew directly out of the African American community.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the celebration:

"Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Karenga, professor of Africana Studies at California State University, Long Beach, author and scholar-activist who stresses the indispensable need to preserve, continually revitalize and promote African American culture.

Technology: Friend or Foe to Hip-Hop

Technology has given many artists a chance at stardom. Artists that would usually confined to regional success are now have the opportunity to get on the on the national stage. Now people can express their opinions on hip-hop blogs and stream studio sessions live over the internet, so if major labels choose to ignore you, now you can create your own following through Facebook, Myspace, Twitter and other networking sites. In addition, if you can create a substantial following, then you have more leverage when negotiating with labels. When artists like Ludacris, Lil’ Flip, and Master P and No Limit, and Bryan “Baby” Williams and