Learning from Conscious Living

GAY CELEBRITIES WHO WE LOVE!

Critique on White Privilege, Part I

     The most alarming defect of American democracy is that moderation of the majority becomes ideologically foreign and practically undesirable. Democracy in this form does nothing to abate white privilege, which at its meekest, takes insufferably large measures to hog the limelight of mass media. Sadly, the smaller groups of the United States have become too accustomed to depending on white privilege. The absence of a separate and continuous nationalistic thread substantiates this claim that the perpetuation of white power and privilege is highly favorable even for the masses of men and women who hold self-affirming beliefs that they are distinctively different.

The dependence on white power and representation in all forms and extensions of entertainment, politics, education, business, television, music (less so), and even pornography must be confronted by an equally opposing set of beliefs and forms that asserts self-actualization, that raises the position of those autonomous agents, and provides means to sustain this campaign.

The perverse pervasiveness of white privilege, I understand, is hardly comprehensible even to a critical eye, yet its manifestations confront us daily. I note especially in the media. The representation of smaller groups is hardly a social value beyond the tokening of Black sidekicks, Brown house servants, and Asian place fillers. There is no genuine effort to empower minorities with the same level of advantage. The Great Emancipator Marcus Garvey put it best. “Reason dictates that the masses of the white race will never stand by the ascendancy of an opposite minority group to the favored positions in a government (based on) the will of the majority.” I desperately desire that this endeavor and the many to follow may plant the seeds of rebellion. Lord knows we need it!

Is There Anything Oprah Won't Conquer?

            Oprah has ventured into a new form of entertainment and education. For those who have been living in a cave for the past few years, Oprah signed a $55 million deal with XM Satellite to have a station called Oprah and Friends. To be sure, she will not really appear on any of the programs except for the show with Gayle, nevertheless she will make available some of her best mentors in physical, spiritial, and psychological development. Dr Oz will be on once a week I believe.  He's a down-to-earth doctor from Columbia University who makes sense of all the complicated. information out there on taking care of your body. He truly inspired me some months back by sharing what types of foods we should steer away from. High Fructose Corn Syrup. Enriched Flour. Sugar. Trans Fat.

            These things are found in so many of the things that we eat. I was having muffins with my partner, Kevin, and noticed that the muffin mix had enriched flour. Dr Oz explains enriched flour as a process where companies take all the good stuff like vitamins and such out of the product, then they attempt to put some of it back it. It's just not good for you. Also, I have learned to stay away from none-whole grains. I appreciate that Oprah really cares for her viewers.  I know some people may have their problems with her. I often hear from African Americans that she is phony and "white", but frankly Oprah is Oprah. Oprah knows that she is African American. She is proud of that. You need only think about her Legends' Weekend to know this. What Oprah is not willing to be is weighed down by the burden of being Black. In this way, she runs contrary to mainstream Black thought, which places a premium on victimization. Indeed, she is a model for progress. If only Blacks could have the gull to think of themselves as self-sufficient agents, that would understand Oprah.       

             Nate Berkus is also among Oprah's Friends. I remember when he lost his partner in the tsunami in Southeast Asia. He'll be teaching folks how to design their homes as a reflection of themselves. Though the idea of interior design on the radio sounds a bit strange, it certainly has a chance.

The Museum is Coming! The Museum is Coming!

While I was overjoyed  with the announcement that the National Museum for African American History and Culture is just a few years away, I can't but to think how this museum might be a redundant and superficial interpretation of African American history. Too often I see that we (Blacks and Whites alike) cast a shallow net when  engaging in African American history.

Recipe for a Fine History
1 cup of King
1/2 cup of Parks
1/3 cup of Jackson
generous sprinkle of Douglas and Truth
dash of DuBois
pinch of Washington

It's always the same figures. King. Parks. Jackson. Douglas. Truth. A lil bit of DuBois. A lil bit of Washington. Of course, White people tend to treat our history a little differently that we do. They tend to praise Coltrane, Davis, (Dinah) Washington, Fitzgerald. So, am I to expect the museum to regurgitate these same names and same stories? I do believe that I should expect these names, but with the vast space and interaction that a museum can offer, it's almost axiomatic to say that they won't dig more deeply in what is a rich and informative history. I doubt it will go really deep. I doubt it will tell the story of the Black community on the Eastern Shore of Virginia who enjoyed a somewhat tranquil and autonomous living in the US's early colonial history. I doubt it will tell the story of bastard children who were the result of Black women being rape by their white masters. I doubt it will tell the story of free slaves in the antebellum period who managed to make a living for themselves in the South. I doubt it will tell the story about Blacks connection to Africa.

I doubt many things about this museum,...

but no doubt I can still hope. 

Best of Olympus Fashion Week (So Far)

The Best and Worst of Olympus Fashion Week 

                                                   

                       September 8th-16th

 

The Worst of the Worst

Credits: http://www.olympusfashionweek.com/