Creating Mychal Bell

There have been many who have commented on Mychal Bells past offenses saying they are the reason why he's still in Jail. But what are the circumstances that led to Bell's behavior? Bell lives in a town so entrenched in its racist views that it's unable to comprehend that it has a problem let alone admit it. In interview after interview the town folks repeatedly denied that the town was racist, but action after action stated the opposite.What sort of town has a tree that only whites can sit under? And blacks have to ask permission? And when they are granted permission it's telegraphed out so that in the morning there are nooses underneath the tree
In Oakland, CA nooses would not be perceived as a childhood prank, but a racist action.What sort of town has a school superintendent that reduces an expulsion to a simple suspension trivializing the matter as a prank (maybe from his perspective it was a prank but he's not Black)The sheriff warned the black student that there would be serious consequences for expressing there displeasure with there second class treatment as humans and there were.How much rage must there be in Bell and his Black peers and where did it come from? Let me take a guess, the very racism that is in the air. Now instead of addressing the issues that led to the behavior, its better to believe that locking Bell away will resolve the matter. The march yesterday was to say “Enough! We will not endure racist behavior and be punished for expressing out dissatisfaction”
Authorities in Alexandria, Louisiana, (an hour away from Jena) arrested two people after nooses were seen hanging from the back of a red pickup Thursday night, the city's mayor told CNN.
Alexandria is less than an hour away from Jena, Louisiana, and was a staging area Thursday for protesters who went to the smaller town to demonstrate against the treatment of six black teens known as the "Jena 6" in racially charged incidents.
Police say the 18-year-old driver of the truck was charged with driving while intoxicated and inciting to riot and also may be charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor -- the 16-year-old passenger.
I find myself enfuriated from this racist act and I’m thousands of miles away, I can only imagine how African Americans living there must feel

Artists Band Together For 'Jena 6' Benefit

Hillary Crosley, N.Y.
Nick Cannon, Lloyd, Baby Boy, Sean P, Twista, Tank, Jagged Edge, Killer Mike, Bobby Brown, DTP's Small World and Hurricane Chris will perform at the "Jena 6 Empowerment Concert," to be held Sept. 29 in Birmingham, Ala.

The event aims to raise national awareness of incidents that have occurred over the past year in and around a Jena, La., high school, involving violence between African-American and white students.

"What's happening to the Jena 6 is not an isolated incident -- it could happen to any of us," says Baby Boy. "We are asking men of all persuasions to stand on the front line with our young people and send a message demanding accountability of law enforcement officials and the judicial system."

In conjunction with the concert, Cannon and Danity Kane's Aubrey will host a Sept. 28 peace rally at Birmingham's Parker High School.

In related news, David Bowie today donated $10,000 to a legal defense fund for the African-American teens. The donation was announced by the NAACP, which is organizing protesters in advance of tomorrow's sentencing.
Commenting on his donation, David Bowie said: "There is clearly a separate and unequal judicial process going on in the town of Jena. A donation to the Jena Six Legal Defence Fund is my small gesture indicating my belief that a wrongful charge and sentence should be prevented."

Too Hot for HBO

Mos Def & Cornel West had one of the most honest and open discussion on race, religion, war ever to be seen on television in a long time So much so that it appears HBO refuses to show it On Demand (actually viewing the episode before and after
Offensive, Profanity laced and obnoxious, but brutally honest, our leaders could learn something from this discussion

By the Seat of their Pants

At a time when Billions are going into senseless war, and schools are being cut and the idea of Amercian Dream is becoming more of a dream than a reality and young African Americans need only to look at the Jena 5 and Katrina a year later to see what their prospects in America will be There are groups who are so offended by baggy pants that they would fine unemployed undereducated teens up to $500 for wearing their pants sagging
Talk about misplaced priorities

Read the article by Associated press writer Matthew Verrinder

Proposals to ban saggy pants are starting to ride up in several places. At extreme end, wearing pants low enough to show boxers or bare buttocks in one small Louisiana town means six months in jail and a $500 fine. A crackdown also is being pushed in Atlanta. And in Trenton, getting caught with your pants down may soon result in not only a fine, but a city worker assessing where your life is headed.
"Are they employed? Do they have a high school diploma? It's a wonderful way to redirect at that point," said Trenton Councilwoman Annette Lartigue, who is drafting a law to outlaw saggy pants. "The message is clear: We don't want to see your backside."
The bare-your-britches fashion is believed to have started in prisons, where inmates aren't given belts with their baggy uniform pants to prevent hangings and beatings. By the late 80s, the trend had made it to gangster rap videos, then went on to skateboarders in the suburbs and high school hallways.
"For young people, it's a form of rebellion and identity," Adrian "Easy A.D." Harris, 43, a founding member of the Bronx's legendary rap group Cold Crush Brothers. "The young people think it's fashionable. They don't think it's negative."
But for those who want to stop them see it as an indecent, sloppy trend that is a bad influence on children.
"It has the potential to catch on with elementary school kids, and we want to stop it before it gets there," said C.T. Martin, an Atlanta councilman. "Teachers have raised questions about what a distraction it is."
In Atlanta, a law has been introduced to ban sagging and punishment could include small fines or community work — but no jail time, Martin said.
The penalty is stiffer in Delcambre, La., where in June the town council passed an ordinance that carries a fine of up to $500 or six months in jail for exposing underwear in public. Several other municipalities and parish governments in Louisiana have enacted similar laws in recent months.
At Trenton hip-hop clothing store Razor Sharp Clothing Shop 4 Ballers, shopper Mark Wise, 30, said his jeans sag for practical reasons.
"The reason I don't wear tight pants is because it's easier to get money out of my pocket this way," Wise said. "It's just more comfortable."
Shop owner Mack Murray said Trenton's proposed ordinance unfairly targets blacks.
"Are they going to go after construction workers and plumbers, because their pants sag, too?" Murray asked. "They're stereotyping us."
The American Civil Liberties Union agrees.
"In Atlanta, we see this as racial profiling," said Benetta Standly, statewide organizer for the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia. "It's going to target African-American male youths. There's a fear with people associating the way you dress with crimes being committed."

Jena 6 Charges Reduced

HOUSTON - Ruling in a racially charged case that has drawn scrutiny from national civil rights leaders, a judge in the small central Louisiana town of Jena on Tuesday partially vacated the conviction of a black teenager accused in the beating of a white student while the district attorney reduced attempted murder charges against two other black co-defendants.

Judge J.P. Mauffray threw out a conspiracy conviction against Mychal Bell, granting a defense motion that Bell's June trial was improperly held in adult court and should instead have been conducted as a juvenile proceeding.

But Mauffray let stand Bell's conviction on aggravated second-degree battery, for which the 17-year-old faces up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced Sept. 20. On that date, thousands of demonstrators from across the nation are planning to descend on the town of 3,000 to protest the prosecution of Bell and five other black youths who have come to be called the "Jena 6." the months since the Tribune first reported the Jena story in May, civil rights groups, including the NAACP, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Congressional Black Caucus, have all criticized what they assert is the uneven application of justice in the mostly white town.

The six black youths were all initially charged with attempted second-degree murder after an incident in December at the local high school in which a white student was attacked and knocked unconscious after an alleged taunt by him.

That altercation capped months of violent racial unrest between blacks and whites throughout the town that was triggered in September 2006, when three white students hung nooses from a shade tree in the high school courtyard in a warning aimed at discouraging blacks from sitting there.

The white youths received brief suspensions after the Jena school superintendent termed the incident an "adolescent prank," which in turn angered black students and parents who saw the nooses as a hate crime because of the history of lynchings in the Old South.

In the racially tense months that followed the noose incident, other white youths implicated in attacks on blacks were charged with misdemeanors or not at all, while the black youths in the school beating incident were charged with felonies.

"The court of public opinion is starting to coalesce rapidly around the defense of these kids," said Alan Bean, director of Friends of Justice, a Texas-based civil rights group that has closely followed the Jena case. "Not that anybody justifies what these kids did, but they see that what's happening to them isn't fair and the district attorney and the school superintendent really created the situation that led to this."

Bell, a state-ranked high school football star who was 16 at the time of the attack, is the only one of the six defendants who has so far gone to trial. On the eve of his trial, District Atty. Reed Walters abruptly reduced the attempted-murder charge to aggravated second-degree battery; on Tuesday, Walters similarly reduced the charges against defendants Carwin Jones and Theo Shaw, whose trials are set for January.

Bell's new defense attorneys said they plan further appeals before the Sept. 20 sentencing hearing in a bid to get his remaining conviction vacated.

"Basically, we are knocking things out one piece at a time," said Louis Scott, the lead defense attorney. "We are going to try to knock the rest of it out soon."

Venus Loves U But Not Like She Loves Her Guitar

Another great podcast click here to hear

Cows with Guns

Hip Hop Supports the Jenna 6

A delegation from the Hip Hop activist community will serve as Ambassadors for Common Peace at the September 20th, 2007 protest rally of the Jena 6 trial in Jena, Louisiana. Mr. J. Michael Carr Jr. of the Fathers for the Future Foundation (FFF) and Troy Nkrumah of the National Hip Hop Political Convention (NHHPC) will lead a delegation of young people to Jena to monitor, mediate, and demonstrate for the justice of the six young youth who are on trial and unless justice is served could spend the decades in prison. This delegation will also include over 10 young lawyers from around the country who will work as legal observers to ensure that the constitutional rights of the demonstrators are not violated by law enforcement.

Invited by the "Friends of Justice", the actual organization to first break the Jena 6 story to the Chicago Tribune and BBC in December 2006, the Ambassadors For Common Peace will work to promote civility and goodwill at the mobilization in Jena, LA. It is the belief of the Hip Hop community that this is one of the most salient racial trials since the Rodney King verdict in 1992 and has the potential to repeat the disastrous outcome if justice is not met for the defendants. This one trail has the potential to set back race relations and delegitimize the current strides made in the fight for racial justice, thus furthering the heightened racial tensions.

Just as with the 1964 deaths of the three civil rights workers in Neshoba County, Mississippi, the six black youth facing attempted murder and aggravated assault charges in Jena, Louisiana are bringing the national climate of racial injustice to another tipping point. The hip hop generation has taken a stand to voice their objection to the circumstances around this trial, because the impact will have such long term ramifications on American society, thus silence is not an option.

The Ambassadors For Common Peace understand that it is the proclivity of both sides to interpret the case based on their own perceptions; however, we would like to state that it is our intention and objective to remain true to the philosophy of nonviolent direct action. Therefore, our focus is to be advocates for a peaceful, but vocal demonstration and to discourage those who seek to agitate through the call for violence at the September 20th rally. We encourage all who are concerned with this matter to come out and participate in a safe, constitutional and effective mobilization for the justice for the Jena 6. for more info click here

Talking to Yourself

THE SECRET OF SELF TALK by Steven Gilman

What is self talk? Something we all do. You are telling yourself things all the time, and your unconscious mind is listening without arguing.What you tell yourself affects the quality of your life, and your abilities as well. Don't you think you should pay more attention to that internal dialog?
What are you primarily using, positive self-talk or negative self-talk? Look at the example below of some of the things that positive and negative people say. Notice the difference, because when you do, you'll start to understand how "mere words" can affect your life.
Examples Of Negative Self Talk
Negative self talk often involves explaining bad things by internalizing them ("There I go again."). It treats bad things as permanent ("It's always the same."). It generalizes ("Work sucks."). When explaining good things, negative people often externalize them ("That was just lucky."). They consider them temporary ("That went well THIS TIME."). They see them only in a specific context ("Well at least that part went right."). Some more examples of negative self talk:
"I always screw up when I meet someone new."
"This is fun for now."
"This place is great, not like mine."
"Well, at least THAT meeting went okay, I guess."
"I picked the wrong lane like I always do."
"This nice weather can't last."
Examples Of Positive Self Talk
Positive self-talk explains bad things by externalizing them ("The weather stopped the picnic."). It considers them temporary ("Those were a few tough hours."). It sees them as isolated ("Well, THAT part didn't work out, but..."). When positive people explain good things, they internalize them ("My life is going great!"). They consider them as more or less permanent changes ("Now I've got the hang of this."). They generalize from them ("This job is really working out well."). Some more examples of positive self-talk:
"I did well on that test."
"I like the way things are going at work."
"This could be a great business to be in."
"That problem was just due to technical problems."
"It was rough, but only for an hour or two."
"It rained, but the trip was fun."
You don't have to believe that your self talk makes a difference. If you are just willing to watch, you will see the evidence for yourself. Explain things to yourself in a positive constructive way, and you'll see a difference in your attitude today. Make positive self talk a habit and you'll see a difference in your life.
Steve Gillman writes on many topics including brainpower, weight loss, meditation, habits of mind, creative problem solving, generating luck and anything related to self improvement. Learn more and get FREE e-courses at http://www.selfimprovementnow.com/

Veunus puts the Icing on the Cake

Enjoy Click Here

Defining What You Sand For

Its good to see that for many the ban on the "N" word was not just a publicity stunt

Eddie Griffin dissed and embarrassed after using N word

Al Sharpton got a laugh at Eddie Griffin but it was for opposite what Griffin thought was funny. If comedian Eddie Griffin didn’t know the N-word was banned and buried, he found out when the publisher of Black Enterprise magazine pulled the plug on his raunchy standup routine and had him thrown off the stage.

Griffin, who headlined a soldout show at Black Enterprise’s 14th annual Golf and Tennis Challenge in Miami on Friday, was about 10 minutes into his N-word-laced act when publisher Earl Graves turned off the mike.

Minutes later, Graves appeared onstage with a cord and plug in one hand and a working microphone in the other. He told the audience at the posh Doral Golf Resort that Griffin’s microphone had been turned off because he repeatedly used the N-word.This was a big event and others are beginning to take notice, the n word ban is serious in professional circles.For Griffin to be bounced in front of everybody sent a message.

Graves, a prominent businessman whose Labor Day weekend event attracts corporate sponsors like Aetna, Pepsi and FedEx, got a standing ovation. He said Griffin, 39, would be paid.

Attendees said Griffin - who has appeared in “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo,” “Undercover Brother” and “Scary Movie 3″ - sauntered onto the stage smoking a cigarette. He yelled “F— y’all!” before walking off, they said.

“We at Black Enterprise will not allow our culture to go backward,” Graves said. “Black Enterprise stands for decency, black culture and dignity.”

The NAACP held a public “burial” for the racial slur during its annual convention in Detroit in July.

Griffin’s publicist, Jeff Abraham, declined comment.

'Satchel Paige: Striking Out Jim Crow

A Review of 'Satchel Paige: Striking Out Jim Crow' May 28, 2007
Having had too little time to devote to novels the past few weeks, I've been bingeing on graphic novels -- short ones. While eating a bowl of cereal Sunday morning I read Satchel Paige: Striking Out Jim Crow by James Sturm and Rich Tommaso (Hyperion, 2007). Already I'm itching for December to arrive, bringing this book with it. That's how anxious I am to put it in the hands of all customers at or over the age of 10. Contrary to what its title might suggest, this graphic novel is not so much about Satchel Paige as it is about the miserably harsh conditions of life for blacks living under the divisive Jim Crow laws of the American South. Narrating the story is Emmet Wilson, a fictional Alabama sharecropper who once scored a run against the legendary pitcher of the Negro Leagues. Permanently benched due to injury, he now picks cotton under the watchful eye of two vindictive white landowners who would just as soon root for a team called the "Yankees" as show any kindness toward him and his son. Much of the plot hinges on the tension that builds along the racial divide in Emmet's town, but its black and white residents do share one thing in common: an awestruck regard for the pitching talents of Satchel Paige. It's his eventual appearance on their hometown field that brings this story to a heady climax and a powerful conclusion.
Satchel Paige: Striking Out Jim Crow is the second book Hyperion has published in collaboration with the Center for Cartoon Studies. Their first joint venture, Houdini, The Handcuff King by Jason Lutes and Nick Bertozzi, was an entertaining and interesting look at one particular stunt in the life of the world's most famous escapologist. I enjoyed Houdini, but not half as much as Satchel Paige. Sturm and Tomasso's collaboration is the real thing: a compelling narrative, a strong voice, solid illustrations, and the perfect pacing to move the story along but keep you, in places, on the edge of your seat. At less than 100 pages, it's a short read, but in the time it'll take you to complete it you'll feel the range and strength of emotions it would take most prose writers twice as long to convey. The last four pages of the book offer detailed notes on what's contained in the story's panels, helping to account for some of the real-world events that informed this story's fictional one.
I love this book. I love its deeply human message and I love the window on American history that Sturm and Tommaso are opening for their readers. Through it we see just how much the sport of baseball and one of its stars meant to a generation of blacks who were barely allowed to play the game of life, let alone win at it.
Posted by Alison Morris on May 28, 2007

The Brand Called You

Big companies understand the importance of brands. Today, in the Age of the Individual, you have to be your own brand. Here's what it takes to be the CEO of Me Inc.

From: Issue 10 August 1997 Page 83 By: Tom Peters
It's a new brand world.
That cross-trainer you're wearing -- one look at the distinctive swoosh on the side tells everyone who's got you branded. That coffee travel mug you're carrying -- ah, you're a Starbucks woman! Your T-shirt with the distinctive Champion "C" on the sleeve, the blue jeans with the prominent Levi's rivets, the watch with the hey-this-certifies-I-made-it icon on the face, your fountain pen with the maker's symbol crafted into the end ...
You're branded, branded, branded, branded.
It's time for me -- and you -- to take a lesson from the big brands, a lesson that's true for anyone who's interested in what it takes to stand out and prosper in the new world of work.
Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You.
It's that simple -- and that hard. And that inescapable.
Behemoth companies may take turns buying each other or acquiring every hot startup that catches their eye -- mergers in 1996 set records. Hollywood may be interested in only blockbusters and book publishers may want to put out only guaranteed best-sellers. But don't be fooled by all the frenzy at the humongous end of the size spectrum.
The real action is at the other end: the main chance is becoming a free agent in an economy of free agents, looking to have the best season you can imagine in your field, looking to do your best work and chalk up a remarkable track record, and looking to establish your own micro equivalent of the Nike swoosh. Because if you do, you'll not only reach out toward every opportunity within arm's (or laptop's) length, you'll not only make a noteworthy contribution to your team's success -- you'll also put yourself in a great bargaining position for next season's free-agency market.
The good news -- and it is largely good news -- is that everyone has a chance to stand out. Everyone has a chance to learn, improve, and build up their skills. Everyone has a chance to be a brand worthy of remark.
Who understands this fundamental principle? The big companies do. They've come a long way in a short time: it was just over four years ago, April 2, 1993 to be precise, when Philip Morris cut the price of Marlboro cigarettes by 40 cents a pack. That was on a Friday. On Monday, the stock market value of packaged goods companies fell by $25 billion. Everybody agreed: brands were doomed.
Today brands are everything, and all kinds of products and services -- from accounting firms to sneaker makers to restaurants -- are figuring out how to transcend the narrow boundaries of their categories and become a brand surrounded by a Tommy Hilfiger-like buzz.

You're every bit as much a brand as Nike, Coke, Pepsi, or the Body Shop. To start thinking like your own favorite brand manager, ask yourself the same question the brand managers at Nike, Coke, Pepsi, or the Body Shop ask themselves: What is it that my product or service does that makes it different? Give yourself the traditional 15-words-or-less contest challenge. Take the time to write down your answer. And then take the time to read it. Several times.
If your answer wouldn't light up the eyes of a prospective client or command a vote of confidence from a satisfied past client, or -- worst of all -- if it doesn't grab you, then you've got a big problem. It's time to give some serious thought and even more serious effort to imagining and developing yourself as a brand.
Start by identifying the qualities or characteristics that make you distinctive from your competitors -- or your colleagues. What have you done lately -- this week -- to make yourself stand out? What would your colleagues or your customers say is your greatest and clearest strength? Your most noteworthy (as in, worthy of note) personal trait?
For full article click here

BET Must do Better

Don't know what to make of Reginald Hudlin of BET seems like since he came on board the network has pulled out all stops to contribute to the degradation of African Americans After vowing to clean up BET’s image the network is now airing Hot Ghetto Mess a show that depicts African Americans in just about every negative way possible while claiming that these images will basically shame people into changing for the better. He tries the same approach to reading and also fails (Hey Reggie what happen to all that pro-black talk you espoused before you could do something about it ?)

"Brownie Law"

John Edwards, who launched his presidential bid from New Orleans earlier this year, said he would revamp Washington's federal emergency bureaucracy by placing a "disaster czar" in the White House.

Mr Edwards also pledged that as president he would push through a "Brownie law" – a sardonic reference to Michael Brown, who was head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency when the storm hit. At the time, Mr Bush told the Fema director: "You're doing a heck of a job, Brownie."

Mr Edwards's proposed law would aim to ensure that political appointees to federal agencies are qualified to do the job. Mr Brown had previously been commissioner for the International Arabian Horse Association.

Both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, the Democratic frontrunners, issued similar criticisms and plans on their visits to New Orleans. Mike Huckabee, who surprised many by coming second to Mitt Romney in the Iowa Republican straw poll and who is the former governor of Arkansas, which took 75,000 evacuees, also blasted the Bush administration. He said: "We came to believe Fema stood for 'Forget expecting meaningful answers'."

Click here for Anger & Sadness Marks 2 Anniversary

Obama's Plan for New Orleans

With the 2 year anniversary of the worst man made disaster in U.S. history and a testament to the Bush administration incompetence Barrack Obama outlined a plan he said would help restore the region by:

_providing grants for community policing in New Orleans, which has struggled with violence since Katrina;

_offering incentives such as loan forgiveness programs to try to attract doctors and college students;

_ensuring displaced residents who want to return have a place to stay;

_creating a national catastrophic insurance reserve, which he said would help homeowners struggling with their premiums.

At least two other leading Democratic candidates, Hillary Rodham Clinton and John Edwards, also have outlined rebuilding plans and touched on similar themes.

"Part of the problem, I'll be honest with you, I just don't think there is a sense of urgency in the White House, where the president is cracking the whip, day in, day out, and saying, 'Why is it that we're not getting this done?'" Obama said.

"I mean, you think about the amount of attention that's been devoted to Iraq. 'All hands on deck.' I don't get that same sense that there's a focus on getting this work done," Obama said.

What Actually Makes Young Adults Happy

“They’re my foundation,” says Kristiana St. John, 17, a high-school student from Queens in New York. “My mom tells me that even if I do something stupid, she’s still going to love me no matter what. Just knowing that makes me feel very happy and blessed.”

Other results are more disconcerting. While most young people are happy overall with the way their lives are going, there are racial differences: The poll shows whites to be happier, across economic categories, than blacks and Hispanics. A lot of young people feel stress, particularly those from the middle class, and females more than males.

You might think money would be clearly tied to a general sense of happiness. But almost no one said “money” when asked what makes them happy, though people with the highest family incomes are generally happier with life. However, having highly educated parents is a stronger predictor of happiness than income.

And sex? Yes, we were getting to that. Being sexually active actually leads to less happiness among 13-17 year olds, according to the survey. If you’re 18 to 24, sex might lead to more happiness in the moment, but not in general.

From the body to the soul: Close to half say religion and spirituality are very important. And more than half say they believe there is a higher power that has an influence over things that make them happy. Beyond religion, simply belonging to an organized religious group makes people happier.

And parents, here’s some more for you: Most young people in school say it makes them happy. Overwhelmingly, young people think marriage would make them happy and want to be married some day. Most also want to have kids.

Finally, when asked to name their heroes, nearly half of respondents mentioned one or both of their parents. The winner, by a nose: Mom.

Happiness is ...
“...two kinds of ice cream,” according to the song from “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.” John Lennon, more darkly, described it as a warm gun. A much more typical description comes from Stacy Rosales, a 23-year-old recent college graduate, who calls it “just a general stress-free feeling where I’m not really worried about anything. THAT makes me happy.”

For Chad Fiedler, 17, it’s “just waking up in the morning and looking forward to what I’m going to be doing that day.” And for Eoshe Roland, a 14-year-old from Nashville, it’s “playing trumpet in my school band.”

However you express, define or feel it, 65 percent of those surveyed say they’re happy with the way things are going for them right now.



Updated: 5:39 a.m. PT Aug 20, 2007
NEW YORK - So you’re between the ages of 13 and 24. What makes you happy? A worried, weary parent might imagine the answer to sound something like this: Sex, drugs, a little rock ‘n’ roll. Maybe some cash, or at least the car keys.

Turns out the real answer is quite different. Spending time with family was the top answer to that open-ended question, according to an extensive survey — more than 100 questions asked of 1,280 people ages 13-24 — conducted by The Associated Press and MTV on the nature of happiness among America’s young people.

Next was spending time with friends, followed by time with a significant other. And even better for parents: Nearly three-quarters of young people say their relationship with their parents makes them happy.


We are family
When asked what one thing makes them most happy, 20 percent mentioned spending time with family — more than anything else. About three-quarters — 73 percent — said their relationship with their parents makes them happy. After family, it was relationships with friends that people mentioned most.

“It’s good news to hear young people being realistic about what really makes them happy,” says psychologist Jean Twenge, author of “Generation Me” and a professor at San Diego State University. “Research has shown us that relationships are the single greatest source of happiness.”

Also confirming existing research, Twenge says, is the finding that children of divorced parents are somewhat less likely to be happy. Among 13-17 year olds, 64 percent of those with parents still together said they wake up happy, compared to 47 percent of those with divorced parents.

Venus on Another Level

Click here & Enjoy

Malcolm X Still Relevant

His words on self reliance still stand
The Democrats are Dixicrats Click Here

Dr. Asa Grant Hilliard III

Noted Afrocentric scholar passes in Egypt


By Valencia Mohammed and Bunnie Jackson Ransom
AFRO Staff Writer/Contributing Writer

Dr. Asa Grant Hilliard III, world renowned Pan-Africanist educator, historian, and psychologist, passed from this life on Aug. 13, in Cairo, Egypt. Dr. Hilliard was in Egypt to deliver a keynote lecture at the annual conference of the Association for the Study of Classical African Civilization (ASCAC), an organization he helped found. Hilliard was also lecturing for a study trip led by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright of Chicago.

According to family members, the cause of death is attributed to complications from malaria. It is believed that Hilliard may have contacted the disease while in Ghana. However, he did not show deadly signs of the illness until reaching Aswan, Egypt. On tour with Hilliard were other great scholars such as Dr. Ben Jochanan, Dr. Leonard Jeffries, Hanibal Afrik, Dr. Na'im Akbar, Dr. Wade Nobles, James Smalls, Conrad Worrill, Dr. Annette Kashif, Ife Carruthers and others.

Hilliard spent more than 30 years leading study groups to Egypt and Ghana, as part of his mission to teach true history of Africa and the African Diaspora.

"Dr. Hilliard was in his favorite place, with his favorite person —— our mother —— when he died," said his daughter, Robi Hilliard Herron.

Hilliard was married for nearly 50 years to the Patsy Jo Hilliard, former mayor of East Point, Ga.

Born in Galveston, Texas on Aug. 22, 1933, to Asa G. Hilliard, II and Dr. Lois O. Williams, Hilliard received a bachelor's degree from the University of Denver in 1955. He later received his master's in counseling (1961) and doctoral degree in educational psychology (1963) from the University of Denver.

"I am a teacher, psychologist and a historian. As such, I am interested in the aims, the methods and the content of the socialization process that we ought to have in place to create wholeness among our people."
~Dr. Asa Hilliard.

At the time of his death, Dr. Hilliard was the Fuller E. Calloway Professor of Urban Education at Georgia State University in Atlanta where he held joint appointments in the Department of Educational Policy Studies and the Department of Educational Psychology and Special Education.

As a distinguished consultant, Hilliard has worked with many of the leading school districts, publishers, public advocacy organizations, universities, government agencies and private corporations on valid assessment, African content in curriculum, teacher training, and public policy.

Several of his programs in pluralistic curriculum, assessment, and valid teaching have become national models. Dr. Hilliard designed the approach and selected the essays that appeared in The Portland Baseline Essays (Portland, Ore.) which represent the first time that a comprehensive global and longitudinal view of people of African ancestry has been presented in a curriculum.

"There is no educational scholar who has impacted the way we educate young people more than Dr. Asa Hilliard. He has been a great warrior," said Dr. Molefi Kete Asante, author of The History of Africa. Asa was a multidisciplinary and multitalented intellectual. He has inspired generations to see ancient Egypt as the classical civilization of the Black World. He has championed the integrity of African culture and demonstrated that nothing could be greater for us than our own commitment to historical understanding and experiences."

In 2001, Hilliard was installed as development chief for Mankranso, Ghana, and given the name Nana Baffour Amankwatia II, which means "generous one." Hilliard co-chaired the first national conference on the Infusion of African and African-American Content in the School Curriculum in Atlanta. Dr. Hilliard was a founding member and first vice president of the Association for the Study of Classical African Civilizations and a founding member of the National Black Child Development Institute. Dr. Hilliard was also a key advisor for the African Education for Every African Child Conference, held in Mali and sponsored by the government of Mali.

Hilliard has authored more than a thousand publications including journal articles, magazine articles, special reports, chapters in books, and books.

"Anybody who is sad about his passing should remember [that] my father was a freedom fighter. Please carry on his legacy," said his son Michael Hakim Hilliard.

Dr. Hilliard is survived by his wife, Patsy Jo Hilliard and four children: Asa G. Hilliard IV, Robi Hilliard Herron, Dr. Patricia Hilliard-Nunn and Michael Hakim Hilliard and seven grandchildren.

Dr. Hilliard will lay in state on Aug. 22 at the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel in Atlanta, Ga., followed by funeral services on Aug. 23.

For a selected bibliographyy click here