fem.men.ist

Shit MANarchists Say

2012-01-26T16:10:00.000-08:00

hilarious! the mega-meme manifests as an insider scoop on some Occupy Oakland / Decolonize Oakland activist politics... sigh....

"racism and sexism are just like, byproducts of capitalism, so if you just focus on capitalism, it will take care of that shit for you...."

Jay-Z Drops The B-Word After Having A Daughter. Yay! And....?

2012-01-17T19:09:00.000-08:00

i am glad that Jay-Z is quite literally taking this baby step towards accountability, and i'm sure this will have some ripple in hip hop community around fatherhood/manhood and misogyny... but he's gonna also have to swear not to have scantilly clad women depicted as brainless objects decorating his videos as well, and use his influence to send healthy messages to our children. his daughter may not hear him say b, but can still learn that she is supposed to be an object for male pleasure, and that her appearance is more important than her soul and intellect from his videos.

I also wonder what Beyoncé thinks about the fact that for however long as she and Jay-Z have been married, it took the birth of their daughter for him to make this step. What does that make her?

Tricia Rose breaks it down for really real, in a commentary in the Guardian.

Sean Carter, who performs under the name Jay-Z, has apparently vowed never again to use the word bitch in the wake of the birth of his daughter, Blue Ivy Carter. And while I celebrate and congratulate his new fatherhood, this vow didn't impress me.

It doesn't begin to address his role in contributing to and profiting from the global power of a hyper-sexist brand of hip-hop masculinity. I need to hear quite a bit more about how he feels about this legacy and its impact on millions of black girls and boys before getting all teary-eyed.

Sure, hip-hop didn't invent sexism, nor has it been the only musical genre to profit from promoting it. The vast territory that is popular music is a treasure trove of sexist ideas and images. And it is also true that racist, rightwing critics have targeted hip-hop as a way to continue the demonisation of black men while remaining silent on countless other sexist images, sounds and stories that define US culture.

also, Lisa Belkin from the Huffington Post brilliantly explores how "Jay-Z is not the first man to realize he has been a misogynistic jerk only after he has a daughter", chronicling stuff like male CEOs who decide to close the gap between higher paid male employees and female employees by a few more fractions of a percentage. She hilariously starts out her piece asking the question: "Ladies, do you feel more respected this morning?"

Well, i'm glad that at least its starting some good dialogue.

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Update: Jay-Z says to New York Daily News "that poem and that story are fake." The UK Star editors however stick to their story saying that "It is not made up or fictitious at all. We bought the interview from a reporter in the U.S. who conducted the interview with Beyonce before the birth." The Huffington Post reports.

Wonder if an iota of introspection occurred with this very influential couple around this rumor. Best celebrity hoax ever. I'm still glad that it started some good dialogue.

Homophobic Men Are Most Aroused By Gay Male Porn

2011-12-07T12:46:00.000-08:00

WOW. Sooooo... its been quite some time since i've blogged. Won't get into all the ways i have been using my energy otherwise... but i came across this gem, and it just made my day, i and i knew i had to post it here!! Science is amazing sometimes. I feel like it affirms what a lot of us knew already.

Heterosexual men with the most anti-gay attitudes, when asked, reported not being sexually aroused by gay male sex videos. But, their penises reported otherwise.

Homophobic men were the most sexually aroused by gay male sex acts.

Amazing. Insightful. Hilarious. And sad at the same time. It's not even a new study (1996). But now its official... Homophobia Is Gay.

Erykah Badu Breaks Down "Window Seat".

2011-07-10T19:30:00.000-07:00

like, REALLY breaks it down. Definition of raw and real.

“the nudity scares the nation as a whole.... but what i really learned was that when it was packaged the way i was, no high heeled shoes or long hair, spinnin around a pole or poppin it... people have a hard time processing it when its not packaged for the consumption of male entertainment. So they don’t know what to do with it, or how to place it or what to say. Because surely, a woman couldn’t be intelligent enough to be making a point. (smiles)”

"UNDEFEATED": The Oakland Sister Council's Zine Release Event Models Radical, Resilient, Creative Sisterhood.

2011-04-29T12:35:00.000-07:00

Watch this.... and prepare to be moved, angered, inspired.

The Oakland Sister Council was formed initially in response to a charismatic, attractive, unconsciously counter-organizing man who was targeting women of color in progressive/activist communities. His manipulative behavior traumatized powerful, community-conscious women, broke trust, and left some organizations trying to figure out how to recover, as he continued to build bigger, more influential networks springboarded off the shoulders of these women. Instead of being silenced and shamed, these women banded together to spit fire in the face of patriarchy and misogyny that DOES happen in progressive/activist communities. Don't mess with organizers y'all!!

i am proud to be an ally of the Oakland Sister Circle (i just wish i had been in town to dj pro-bono for em!!) , and i invite other men of color in our communities to step up, and not look the other way when one of our brothers is causing harm. Radical sisterhood is one part of the equation to rise against patriarchy and misogyny, but it is of the utmost importance than we as men pull our weight as allies, and dismantle bullshit from our end as well. i, other men, and the sister circle continue to toil at co-creating restorative justice, and how we as men can be optimal allies without taking over the movement.

this is a model for ending all oppressions.

check out their online zine and resourceful website. it ranges from sharing powerful visual art, spoken word, links to models of community accountability in POC progressive movements, brother Kiwi reppin for the male allies, talkin about love, solidarity and workin on our shit!, and firey, playful "you know what i'm talkin about" satire around the "Anatomy Of A Macktivist" ie, an activist who uses his alleged progressive/feminist stance to "mack" on women, be deceptive and get dates... which is kinda worse than straight up misogynists who have never heard of bell hooks. Feel me?

All this and more, check it out!! http://oaklandsistercircle.org/

Love & Solidarity to the Oakland Sister Circle!

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For Boyfriends Who Love Doing Makeup

2011-04-21T12:16:00.000-07:00

For Boyfriends Who Love Doing Makeup - COLORLINES

i love this! especially how this sweetly doting brotha exhibits fairly traditional masculinity but is proud to be doing make-up for his girlfriend. i was taking notes :) Got this one from Colorlines, a gem!

Please Donate To The 6th Annual San Francisco Walk Against Rape, Even $5 - $10 Makes A Difference

2011-04-20T09:30:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

Hope this reaches you doing well. On April 30th (two weeks away!) i will be proud to be doing my 4th year participating in the San Francisco Walk Against Rape, and i am thankful for all of the support to this cause so many of you have given. Rape impacts me through the lives of many people i love, so for me, this is an act of love, and one way i can contribute to dismantling patriarchy. Every year it is profoundly powerful and beautiful. I encourage others to walk, even if you don't fundraise.

This year, my goal is $1,500, and i would love your support helping me reach it. I'm asking for just $5 - $10 today, just so more people can be involved in supporting this. Know that $60 = a one hour shift on the 24-hour rape crisis hotline, so even $10 could provide a crucial 10 minutes in someone's life.

If you can give more than $5 - $10, please consider sponsoring a one hour hotline shift for $60, or donating $120 to sponsor a rape prevention/healthy dating presentation for teens (important work!).

To support these and other services, and to help build healthy communities free of sexual assault, please click here to make a donation.

http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/richard-wright-1/6th-annual-walk-against-rape

For more info about the walk, the movement, SFWAR's services and more, click here: http://www.sfwar.org/

Together we can help get survivors crucial services and help dismantle rape culture. Thank you for your time.

blessings,
richard
http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/richard-wright-1/6th-annual-walk-against-rape

Dear Woman: An Apology & Pledge From ConsciousMen

2011-04-14T11:53:00.000-07:00

Have y'all seen this yet...??

Cons/critiques: REALLY wish it had more a diverse representation of men. Like, really.
Sometimes i felt a little twingey about the essentialist declarations of what the "feminine" realm and ""masculine" realm are.
Although i *very* much value these men bringing spirit and psyche into the discussion... i fear that they will lose the men who really need to hear this message, that it will be discounted as hippie ramblings or something.
i don't agree that submitting this apology means that "the past should be forgotten".

Pros/critiques: Wow. Besides alla that, its kinda beautiful in a really powerful way. i am impressed by how thorough this MANifesto is. it covers commerce, trafficking, religion, government, war, spirit, the human psyche and soooo much more. clearly, a lot of thought and strong intention went into this. its pretty inspirational, and for all of my con/critiques, i am glad that something like this representing actively non-patriarchal men and masculinities is out there. my very good female friend who sent this to me said she was moved to tears, so just even the healing that happens there also means a lot.

what do you think?

Empowering Women Of Color Conference 2011 @ Berkeley This Saturday

2011-02-18T16:22:00.000-08:00

Click here to register for the 26th Empowering Women Of Color Conference that will be held on the Berkeley Campus this Saturday. I will speaking on the Male Feminist Of Color panel @ 10:30am, but wow... SOOO many other amazing workshops/presentations to check out! birthing justice, building community for WOC's in predominantly white academic institutions, community accountability strategies (i would be at this one if i wasn't doing a panel at the same time!!) healthy relationships, capoeria, dance, yoga, dj classes for women... and much more. Peep the grid below to see what's up, and more details on are the website. Looking forward to building with some cool brothas, and building community in a larger context as well.

A Cisgender (Non-Transgender) Privilege Checklist

2011-02-08T15:57:00.000-08:00

I found this deeply insightful checklist at Queers United... it has given me much pause, given me much to think about. I have thought about some of these privileges i have, but many i have not thought about in depth, or at all. All of the ones listed are deep reality checks, but the one that my eye stayed on for a long time was number 27:

27. At my funeral, it is unlikely that my family would present me crossdressed against my living wishes.

Wow. The notion of such disrespect, such refusal by close, supposedly "loved ones" to essentially really see someone, was really impactful. And the point of privilege is driven home... i will never have to worry about this.

Patriarchal notions of gender as static are really archaic. And harmful. To everyone.

Sending love and strength to my trans fam, stay up y'all.

Peep the rest of the list here.

The Men's Story Project: Tonight

2010-11-17T16:18:00.000-08:00

Men's stories? Isn't that uh, already kinda the standard, one might ask. The Men's Story Project is ongoing and evolving show has a different agenda. Peep this multidisciplinary event that explores male strength, manhood and masculinity in ways that are rarely modeled. Topics include creation of a historic gang truce; friendship between men; homophobia and pride; gender identity; forgiveness; images of African American masculinity; men's public restroom rituals; healing from partner violence and sexual assault; relationships with fathers and other family members; disability & sexuality and much more. Last show... tonite!

http://www.mensstoryproject.org/

"My Son Is Gay. Or He's Not."

2010-11-04T17:29:00.000-07:00

Amazing blogpost written by Nerdy Apple Bottom, documenting all of the issues that arose because her 5 year-old son dressed up as Daphne from Scooby Doo for Halloween. If you've ever doubted that love is revolutionary, read the account of a mother who loves bravely and fearlessly. A must read!

Astronomical Kid "Stop Lookin At My Moms!"

2010-10-15T17:20:00.000-07:00

"don't hiss at her, don't kiss at her... stop lookin at my moms!" love this kid!

Usher's New Song "Lay You Down": New Date Rape Anthem?

2010-10-13T11:05:00.000-07:00

hello everyone, its been a looooong time. Been going through many changes. Will be stepping back up more with blog duties. Apologies for the hiatus, though apparently i needed to step back and grow some more before writing more.

This new Usher song was brought to my attention, so i YouTubed it, and was slapped in the face by these lyrics:

"i'll show you what love is if you let me lay you down... you ain't goin nowhere, nowhere, nowhere girl, not until you let me lay you down"

"i'll make your body come to me, pull you back when you try to run baby"

what?

I am furious, saddened, and frustrated with all the patriarchal elements that come together and make it permissible to put this kind of message out there. Whether Usher's intentions are consciously aligned with the danger of this message, no one can say, but for sure... this is a song about a man disregarding a woman's clear message of non-consent, and forcing her into a sexual situation against her will, under the guise of "love". This is a song about a man who has decided that because his "love" is so sublime, he has made the decision for both people involved around what has to go down. This is a song about rape.

I have already seen a man react defensively to this notion, minimizing the impact of the content of this song. I am hoping that some men will be able to speak to this non-defensively as well. This is a seductive song, done by a talented and loved man to a catchy beat. That makes this song very powerful. It glamorizes this behavior. Our young boys take this in, want to be cool, and if they are straight, want to be loved by girls.

As a young boy, i was one of the "sensitive" ones who had crushes that often never materialized into anything more than jokes and longing looks. My female friends assured me that i was special, and that someone would be lucky to have me. I imagined that i had so much love to give. I imagine some other young boy going through a similar situation, body wracked by hormones, longing for connection with one of his crushes... a boy who may be inspired to step up his "game" when he sees how a respected "pro" does it. And of course I fear the impact this may have on our girls too, as this glamorizes them being targets for unwanted attention and straight up sexual violence. Not only girls, but women, as it isn't just pubescent boys and girls influenced by this song. And for that matter, women are perps against other women too- but lets not get it twisted, cuz as serious as woman-to-woman abuse is, the stats of man-to-woman abuse is just waaaaay more off the charts.

Some may still dispute, saying that its ridiculous to say that "this song will make people go out and rape". In a rape culture (a culture that portrays sexual violence as sexy, permissible, and sometimes even funny) we are bombarded with messages that glamorize rape, and turn girls and women into objects for male gratification. It is more accurate to say that I fear the impact this song will have as another contribution to an already huge, toxic stockpile of images and messages that either subtly, or outrightly condone rape.

I am sure that any man who has a daughter (or wants to) would get chills at the idea of some young man taking her out on a date, then putting the powerlock on the car doors while crooning "you ain't going nowhere, nowhere..."

Our boys need messages around healthy dating and healthy loving. About respecting the autonomy and humanity of others. Girls do too. And boys especially need messages that manhood does not rest on ones ability to use aggressive physical force. Being a good nurturing father, creatively expressive, in touch with ones feelings and unashamed to express them, and having courage to speak up when something not wrong is going down (especially if all the other boys are going in on something not cool) are just some positive examples of expressing manhood.

I don't have a solution around the whole issue of this song being out there. I am not convinced boycotting is the answer, seeing how that hasn't been so effective with dancehall artists around homophobia. I am wondering what could really cause lasting change. At this point, my fantasy is that Usher would have a televised forum where we talk about this is in a workshop around masculinity, responsibility, gendered violence and sexism, and that after a transformative event, Usher changes the words to something like "we can go anywhere, anywhere, anywhere as long as you want to" or something. What ideas do you have?

On This Last Day Of Women's Herstory Month...

2010-03-31T12:08:00.000-07:00

hello all! its been a minute. been the busiest i've maybe ever been, building, building, building. Its a good thing.

I kept coming across things i wanted to post, and i knew i wanted to post at least some of em before the month was over. Of course, awareness of gender continues throughout the year, but i wanted to share some thoughts and salutes... so here are several items of interest:

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Please Sponsor Me In The San Francisco Walk Against Rape!

This will be my 3rd year of walking the San Francisco Walk Against Rape, and each year folks have just floored me with how generous they are, and how passionate they are about this cause. I'm hoping that you can donate anything at all towards supporting essential services for survivors in San Francisco's only community run crisis center. Click here to go to my fundraising page. Click here for reports from previous walks. It has always been a powerful and beautiful experience. Thanks in advance for any support!

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Only The Congolese Will Initiate And Bring Change To The D.R. Congo

a sobering message from the women of DRC; a powerful stance on their humanity, and being tired of being seen as victims by the world, as opposed to being seen as some of the strongest and most resilient women in the world. They also state that if things are gonna change, its gonna have to be on their terms, not the terms of well intentioned people who are not from DRC. Real talk.

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The Crunk Feminist Collective: Where Crunk Meets Conscious And Feminism Meets Cool

Just wanted to shout out this hot new blog! Nuff props. If I may share some of their mission statement:

The Crunk Feminist Collective (CFC) will create a space of support and camaraderie for hip hop generation feminists of color, queer and straight, in the academy and without, by building a rhetorical community, in which we can discuss our ideas, express our crunk feminist selves, fellowship with one another, debate and challenge one another, and support each other, as we struggle together to articulate our feminist goals, ideas, visions, and dreams in ways that are both personally and professionally beneficial.

The CFC aims to articulate a crunk feminist consciousness for women and men of color, who came of age in the Hip Hop Generation, by creating a community of scholars-activists from varied professions, who share our intellectual work in online blog communities, at conferences, through activist organizations, and in print publications and who share our commitment to nurturing and sustaining one another through progressive feminist visions. This collective is a forum where we seek to speak our own truths, and to both magnify and encourage the feminist credos that shape and inform our lives and that we use to engage and transform our world. Crunk Feminism is the animating principle of our collective work together and derives from our commitment to feminist principles and politics, and also from our unapologetic embrace of those new cultural resources, which provide or offer the potential for resistance. Crunk(ness) is our mode of resistance that finds its particular expression in the rhetorical, cultural, and intellectual practices of a contemporary generation.

And then they go even deeper into the paradigm of "crunk(ness)" and how it relates to a revolutionary platform when combined with a feminist lens. It's off the hook. Peep the rest of the mission statement, the blog, and GET YOUR MIND RIGHT!

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Erykah Badu's "Window Seat" Video

***If video is removed, go to Erykah's official site to view!

Sooo... maybe if you've been busy spring cleaning under a rock lately, then perhaps you haven't heard about this new Erykah video that is making huge waves on the internets. People love it. People hate it. It's known as the video where Erykah gets nekkid at the site of JFK's assassination. I am one of the people who love it, and see this as a timeless, provocative, thought provoking work of art. If you haven't seen it, check it out and then read on....

A lot of people are not happy about the combination of nudity and the JFK thing. Or just the nudity. And why JFK, people might ask? Why not MLK, or X? Who knows... to broaden audience? To not ruffle the feathers of people in the black community who would already disapprove of the video? Simply because its a more scenic location? Or because its her home town? Who knows.

I will cut and paste what i said on The Root about this video, where images of Venus Hottentot and Aunt Jemima were raised, as well as seeing the liberation that Erykah is evoking:

i am definitely hearing all of the perceptions and views on this video. my feeling is that this may be the first video where a black woman's body is shown in a way that causes people to think about deep issues, our own shine, how much we may repress of ourselves so we don't get "assassinated" in literal or virtual ways. Those deep issues gave rise to this post and thread! In my opinion, this was a huge depart from just being another dime a dozen portrayal of the black woman's body as a hypersexualized object for mass consumption by men. I have not looked at those videos and thought of deep messages around liberation, evolution, body image, and more.

in truth, Erykah probably knows that a segment of our population will "assassinate" her for "revealing herself". I feel that she is clear that she is of divinity (as all of us are) and that her body is not something to be ashamed of. I thought this was a very meaningful video that resonated with even me as a black man, and how much psychological armor i must wear to walk through the world. I will never know the black female experience, but i imagine that she was speaking about disrobing of the black female version of that armor, and getting free, evolving.

There is also a good short commentary on this video on NPR.

Go on Erykah. I'll be picking up that album soon.

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...And One More Music Selection: Janet Jackson "Nasty", The Classic Dancefloor Filling Anti-Harassment Anthem

Do you remember when you first heard "Nasty" and it was the rawest, edgiest, crunkest beat you had ever heard? Wanted to close out with this 80's gem, where Janet was bringin the fierceness, making anti-harassment cool, asserting strong boundaries without apology, all while rockin the then groundbreaking Paula Abdul choreography (she is in the video too!). Enjoy the memories!
Her name ain't baby y'all....

...feels good to have finally made a post. May all the revolutionary seeds that people planted this month come to glorious fruition this spring! Heartful salute to all the moms, sistas, women and girls. Bless up

MAAAN UP! Presents A Community Forum on Street Harassment / Screening of "BACK UP! Concrete Diaries"

2010-02-22T12:15:00.000-08:00

BACK UP! concrete diaries from Nijla Mumin on Vimeo.

MAAAN UP! Presents: a community screening of BACK UP! Concrete Diaries, a documentary on street harassment from the perspective of sistas

This is a free event. All are welcome. please come out with your lovers, family, colleagues and community members, and watch Nijla Mumin & co-director Monique Hazeur's impactful and extremely relevant work-in-progress. Q&A with the filmmaker follows, donations accepted in support of the completion of this film. We would also love to see men and boys representing at this event!

BACK UP! Concrete Diaries
This Wednesday, 6-8:30pm
500 William Street,
corner of William and Telegraph @ 20th
free admission, seating for 30.
small snacks and beverages will be available.

looking forward to connecting around this issue, and pleasse forward this to your community! Bless up

***PS: extra prize for women who bring a man or boy with them!!

MAAAN UP! is the Men of African Ancestry Action Network for Unlearning Patriarchy. We hold spaces for men of African ancestry to process issues of black masculinity and its intersections with patriarchy, and seek multivariate strategies to be allies to women and girls.

Video Perspective Of The Richmond Peace March For Rape Survivors

2010-01-23T15:37:00.000-08:00

hello everyone.... wow, its been a minute. i got REALLY caught up in the demands of grad school, i'm just kinda re-emerging now. Happy New Year y'all!! Thought i'd post some stuff before the next term starts!! Also, i do want to share some of the stuff i've been learning too, i think that is necessary part of the process, ie, getting access to information and democratizing it, sharing it. I found some very interesting articles while doing research where the search keywords were masculinity, empathy and harassment.

San Francisco based filmmaker Aleada Minton, put together a video of short interviews and perspectives of the Richmond Rally that happened in November 2009 (i also blogged about it here, and here). I am glad that this rally has been documented in so many mediums. Thank you for your work Aleada! Check it out.

International Day For The Elimination Of Violence Towards Women And Girls

2009-11-25T20:13:00.000-08:00

This statement was released today by Ms. Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, the executive director of the United Nations Population Fund:

Every day, women and girls are subject to domestic violence, exploitation, sexual violence, trafficking, honour crimes, harmful traditional practices, such as bride burning and early marriages, and other forms of violence against their bodies, minds and human dignity.

As many as one in three women has been beaten, coerced into sex, or abused in some other way.

In the 16 days leading up to Human Rights Day and every day, let us come together to demand an end to the most pervasive yet least reported human rights abuse in the world.

Let us all take a stand and say loud and clear ‘No to violence against women’.

In this demand, we are joined by a new network of men leaders led by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as part of the United Nations UNite Campaign to end violence against girls and women. I welcome their leadership and commitment to actively engage men and boys in the cause to end impunity, promote justice and human rights, and end widespread violence against girls and women.

Whether they are policy makers, community or religious leaders, fathers or husbands, uncles, brothers or young boys, they can all do their part to eliminate all forms of violence against women.

Real talk. What I want to know is... how can i be down with the mens at the UN?!? So great to see male responsibility and alliance happening at this level. I found this to be very hope inspiring. And UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon himself is quoted to say:

I call on men and boys everywhere to join us. Break the silence. When you witness violence against women and girls, do not sit back. Act. Advocate. Unite to change the practices and attitudes that incite, perpetrate and condone this violence. Violence against women and girls will not be eradicated until all of us – men and boys - refuse to tolerate it.

I. Am. Loving. This.

Real talk, real manhood going on here.

Also click here to follow how 16 days of "artivism" will be transpiring in the Bay Area, starting today (sorry i didn't post this earlier, grad school is needin much attention!)

I'm excited about this news. THIS is something I am giving thanks for this holiday. Very appropriate considering this holiday is founded on violence and genocide... so its fitting for a movement to now form to actively work to undo "the most pervasive yet least reported human rights abuse in the world". Sometimes I think we actually are evolving...

10 Year-Old Boy Won't Stand For The Pledge Of Allegiance Until No More Discrimination Against Gays.

2009-11-19T10:26:00.000-08:00

ok, this kid is officially the hero of the month.

I find this to be so relevant to my more recent posts about the recent sexual assault in Richmond, because so many boys watched a gang rape occur, and some have reported being scared to have done anything about it, because of peer pressure (One did also try to help her as well, and is now dealing with being labelled a "snitch"). Here, Will Phillips, a 10 year-old 5th grader boy who is taking on tons of homophobic teasing, but remaining firm in his stance. You have to check this kid out too, he's pretty serious and "adult intellectual", to a point where its kinda cute and funny (hope this kid actually finds time to play and be a kid too!!). But he broke it down, he doesn't want to stand to honor the pledge of allegiance until there is really "liberty and justice for all." He even states that there "really isn't liberty and justice for all, gays and lesbians can't marry, and there's still a lot of racism and sexism in the world. yeah." WHATTT?!? I hope that this catches on, wanna see whole classrooms refusing to stand. I'm personally glad I went to high school in Jamaica and never had to be stand to honor "liberty and justice for all" in a country rife with various institutionalized oppressions.

I wonder if Universal Studios is just waiting for Will to grow up and become a lawyer so that they can jump on the movie rights. And i don't think Will will have to worry about getting into a law school either.

Photo Essay On The Richmond Peace Rally For Rape Survivors

2009-11-11T19:14:00.000-08:00

Oakland photographer Bethanie Hines did a powerful, moving and beautiful capture of the rally Saturday. It really vividly depicts the passion, unity, hope, strength and power of community. I will post some pictures here, but for the full glory, please click here for the complete gallery.

Bethanie Hines 2009 (c)

Be A Part Of The Movement Towards A Rape Free Future: Catalyst For Change Tonite @ 6:30pm

2009-11-09T16:10:00.000-08:00

This is the only picture i took with my cellphone at the Richmond Peace Rally that happened on Saturday. These boys are carrying signs that say "No Rape" and are also promoting Love. And they recieved soooo much love for being there, and indeed this should be positively reinforced.

This is the kind of future we need to invest in.

It was good to see over 200 folks show up to say no to rape and help strategize and build. The press was there too. The mayor of Richmond came and said some for real real stuff about institutionalized sexism, racism and poverty, and that this is larger than Richmond. The organizers Elecia & Kiki also held it down, two sistas representing as strong and vocal survivors, and affirming that it only takes a couple of willful individuals to make rallies like this happen. One youngblood highschool brotha got on the mic and spat a rhyme smashin on the boys who just watched the gang rape. I was also proud to represent on the mic alongside other men speaking out against violence against women and girls. And we need to see still more men out here, Male Responsibility is at the core of this. Our granddaughters will ask where we were when the movement to end the Longest War was going on. Time to step up, time to redefine Man Up. Like the man who brought his sons to the rally.

Tonight, there is another chance to build and strategize with community. A Community Forum called Catalyst For Change is happening at the Women Of Color Resource Center, 1611 Telegraph Street in Oakland. Its free (donations happily accepted), and children friendly. 6:30. Click here for details.

Please forward this permalink to folks, especially men.

Prayers continue for the evolution of humanity...

Will Be Speaking Today On KPFA 94.1 FM With Byron Hurt & Weyland Southon About The Richmond Gang Rape, Male Responsibility, And More. 4pm.

2009-11-03T09:18:00.000-08:00

(***please see link for archived KPFA recording. Our segment starts at the 26 min mark. Available until Nov. 17th. http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/55809 )

Most people who live in the bay are reeling from a very recent heartbreaking and horrendous case where a 15 year old girl was gang raped after a school dance at Richmond High. 10 boys assaulted this young woman while another 10 boys watched, laughed and took pictures. So far, 7 boys have been arrested, but that offers me little consolation.

This event has broken so many of our hearts. And many of us are not content to just be sad about it and then go on with our day. Something is happening. I have always been trying to galvanize men of color around these issues, and all of a sudden, quality men are responding to the call, knowing that something has to be done, and that it is time to step up. At a meeting I had yesterday, one brotha said that even though events like this happen all the time, for some reason this hit like "The 9/11 for people of color".

I invite you to tune in today at 4pm to Weyland Southon's show Hard Knock Radio on KPFA 94.1 FM where an ongoing conversation has been going on with the brothas about rape, male responsibility, sexism and more. I was on with Byron Hurt, an incredible anti-sexist activist / film maker brotha who made "Hip Hop: Beyond Beats And Rhymes" which is an iconic documentary about masculinity, misogyny and homophobia in hip hop. Since the inception of this blog, i have featured video clips of this and other works of his in the right hand margin. It was an honor to be on the same show with him, and to build alliance with people like this.

If you miss the show, it will be archived online. And there are great shows that have already passed that have dealt with this subject.

I am glad to see men stepping up, and that I am not the only one who sees that it is imperative for us to Man Up in this way, right now. This should not be the inheritance of our daughters. We must be able to say that we did SOMETHING about it. We should want to do this. For the humanity of our sons too.

There used to be a time when black bodies would swing from trees while white folks sat underneath it and merrily had picnics. Talk about a toxic bystander culture. Well, thanks to the work of white people of conscience and a lot of struggle from black folks, this is no longer a cultural norm. Men need to step up NOW, to do the work required to move towards making rape and violence towards women something that is no longer a cultural norm. We need to connect with men and boys on this. Model compassion, vulnerability, respect as strengths. Model intervening in street harassment, critiquing sexism in everyday life in their presence. And so much more. I also recommend the book "Transforming A Rape Culture", which is a text book i chose for one of my classes. And for sure, i'm waaaaaaay behind in schoolwork cuz i have chosen to actually "do" work on these issues instead of "study" them. It feels like the thing to do. But i still hope i can finish this term!! Wish me luck people....

Giving thanks to the men of conscience who are steppin up. Sending prayers of healing and light to the humanity of everyone involved in this rape case. And their poor parents.

The brothas gonna work it out....

**March For Peace this Saturday November 7th, 11-2pm. Richmond High School, 1250 23rd St.

BACK UP! Concrete Diaries: Sistas Speaking On Street Harassment.

2009-10-19T15:23:00.000-07:00

BACK UP! concrete diaries from Nijla Mumin on Vimeo.

Here is a clip from a full feature length film in the making, please support this film! Educators... screen this in your classrooms! Click into the vimeo link for more info.

And to men, please take the responsibility to talk to boys and other men. Make interventions on street harassment even when you might not feel safe. Can't we afford a moment of "not feeling so safe" if sistas walk this on the daily?? And you KNOW you wouldn't want to see your sister, momma, auntie or girlfriend treated like this, so where is the disconnect? Really gonna be researching this dynamic so i can move forward with some salient strategies.

This entitlement thing to the space of other girls and women is just wack, wrong, and juvenille. Guys, it is time to Back Up and Man Up.

(For a previous post on street harassment, see: Not So Nice Outside: Street Harassment Is The Rage This Season. )

A Personal Update... From A Human Scientist In The Making

2009-09-18T14:19:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Wassup. Like my "about me" blurb has been saying for some months, i've been going through some changes. All very much about growth, but it has still been challenging to shed skin. But i'm beginning to see shiny new skin for sure. And i'm thankful. I’m probably going to be posting even less, but for good reasons.

This week I started my new grad school program at a distance learning graduate school called Saybrook. I am pursuing a Masters degree in Human Science. I was really challenged with choosing this field, because although it speaks to me (with courses like Social Systems Transformation Theory, Intervention In Human Services & Community Development, and various other courses that look at race, class, gender, immigration, global issues, and basically figuring out how to create healthier new social constructs to counteract the oppressive ones. After all... social constructs are constructed by people! Ok, long parenthetical statement there)...Although HS really speaks to me, I was continually haunted by the notion that i would not be able to create a living for myself with this degree. Should I just get a Psychology degree, since i have so much experience there? But i want to work with communities, not just the individual. And Human Science has a psychological approach as well as a social justice approach. The social justice approach was really lacking for me in my previous Expressive Arts Therapy MA program, but at Saybrook- there’s even a course called Expressive Arts For Social Change! Perfect.

I also plan to do an independent study on Black Feminist Masculinities while i am at Saybrook, as well as take courses that would help me specialize in doing Expressive Arts centered therapy with couples and polyamorous folks. Excitement!!

I feel great about my choice. Ever since I was young, I had a fascination with the idea of being a “scientist”. The archetype of the eccentric scientist that appears in so many children's books and movies really appealed to me from early on, and i remember playing with a chemistry set and microscope with glee. I only recently realized that i will be able to call myself a scientist after i finish this program! Instead of turning chemicals from green to blue and looking at a butterfly wing under a microscope, i will be breaking down paradigms and social constructs down to their most fundamental elements, scrutinizing them with a critical lens, and reconstituting them into something that can help communities, and honors humanity, healing and justice. The science of what creates a change agent and paradigm shifts. Yes. This is what I want to be doing.

So yessss.... although i am sure that i will be finding amazing stuff through HS research that i can post here once in awhile, I will probably not be as active as i once was (i was posting almost twice a day when i started, almost 2 years ago!). I am considering this to be a move intended to deepen good work around issues of healing and social justice. In the meantime, I encourage folks to scroll down, and also to look through the links right here on the right for some of my fave posts/discussions, and also to peep the links to other really good feminist identified sites.

I am thankful to every single person who has read, skimmed, lurked and commented on this site, and passed it on to others... as well as those bloggers, colleges, women’s interest sites and others who have linked and recommended me as well! I am aware and respect that not every woman necessarily wants or needs a male ally or for a man to identify as feminist, so i definitely appreciate those of you who find what i do to be of worth. This site is for brothers too, I am still looking for y’all man!! We got a lot to ground and talk about. I know hetero brothers who are conflicted, trying to find love... but how can you truly love someone you don’t respect, someone you think is not equal to you? This is only a little piece of the healing I am talking about that men need to do. I am convinced that the path of the male feminist is a path of healing and justice for all.

Aiight? Till soon y’all, bless up!!

~richard

The Vibe Lounge Closes: Community Organizer Robbie Clark Speaks On The Importance Of Queer Black Spaces

2009-08-26T10:34:00.000-07:00

Community Organizer Robbie Clark talks about the importance of queer black space. Clark shares valuable insights on Oakland's Vibe Lounge closing in the historic context of the displacement of queer and poor communities. Also lays ground work for a call to action; toward building queer community with unity and power? Perhaps.

Raw, unedited footage shot by filmmaker Oriana Bolden from the last night at The Vibe Lounge. 8/16/09. Oakland, CA.

Interview: Robbie Clark
D.P./Producer: Oriana Bolden
Executive Producers: Susanne Borman and Lori Dynes

Feminist Sci-Fi Flick "Born In Flames" Screening Tonight @ The Golden Bridge Lofts, Oakland

2009-08-20T12:59:00.000-07:00

A black lesbian forms alliances with Riot Grrls, The Black Power Movement and other women to form the Women's Army, sparking the revolution to topple patriarchy. WHATTT?!?! Lizzie Borden's "Born In Flames" is a must see. Its got raw late 70's early 80's flavor, plus faux-documentary, quasi-psychedelic DIY editing style... and has a conclusion that is jaw dropping. Peep the clip below to catch the vibe....

TONITE! 8pm! The Last Of The Afrofuture Series!

Third Root Productions (W. Kamau Bell Curve) in collaboration with The Loft Project (New Life, The Diva & the Dj) present

Third Root Art House Film Series:

Black Science Fiction: The Afrofuture is Now!

Thursday, Aug 20th. - "Born in Flames" 1984. (directed by Lizzie Borden, starring Honey and Flo Kennedy)

seating at 7:30, show is 8-9:30pm (later on double feature nights), $5-$10 admission. Popcorn, munchies, soda, beer and wine available.

What:
Third Root Art House Film Series& Discussion: Black Science Fiction: The Afrofuture is Now!

Where:
Golden Bridge Lofts
http://www.sohoinoakland.com/
330 13th Street at Webster
Oakland, CA 94612

When:
Third Thursdays June, 18, July 16th, August 20th. 8-10:30pm

ADVANCE TICKETS
https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/69399
Limited Tickets will also be available at the door.

for more information
thirdrootproductions@gmail.com
thirdrootproductions.wordpress.com

I Identify As A Feminist, Hilarity Ensues. (And An Early Review Of "Black Male Outsider")

2009-08-18T11:43:00.000-07:00

Last week, while taking a break from unpacking boxes in my new apartment, I walked down to Lake Merritt to read some more of Gary L. Lemons' "Black Male Outsider", a book that i've only read 20 something pages of but has really been blowing my mind. More about that later. I see a colleague running around the lake, and he is running with a woman friend. He recognizes me, and they slow to a stop to take a break, panting through introductions and stretching. My colleague starts talking shop, and the dark glasses wearing woman looks down and asks "what are you reading?" I show her. She reads the title, and then the subtitle: "Teaching As A Pro-Feminist Man." Her eyebrows arch skyward, and she lets out a hearty laugh, repeating the subtitle as if it were punchline from a good joke, with extra enunciation of the word feminist, to accentuate the absurdity of the "joke". I calmly smile and say "yes, i write a feminist blog." She looks back down at the book, her expression partly hidden by her glasses. She reads the back a bit, nodding slowly, saying nothing. What is she thinking? Meanwhile, I don't think my male colleague actually caught any of this, he was ranting about something unfortunate that happened at work. At some point, they decide their break was long enough. We smile and say good byes and good to meet yous. I watch them run away... and I am left with the impression that somehow, the idea of being a black man who identifies as feminist... is funny. Hilarious. Farcical. Something that comes on after Tyler Perry's House Of (Dire) Pain with a laugh track that comes on while the main character does an action for gender equality and justice.

I think about the reactions I would have had if the woman had been black. If she had been white. She was a mixed race woman, probably in her mid 20's, and I personally don't know if she identifies as a woman of color. I wonder how i could have handled it differently. I wonder if she left still thinking it was funny, or if it left some other impression. I wonder how i could have brought my male colleague into this surprising and short moment. But most of all, I ponder that for this woman, somehow my maleness and/or blackness makes the idea of me being feminist kinda ridiculous.

Would love to hear thoughts on this! And to be clear, though this left me feeling a little bit shaken, confused and minimized, i don't perceive this action as a mindful attack, or even something that i should judge this woman about. It brings up larger questions for me besides this woman's experience. If anything, I appreciate the opportunity to think about what this incident raised for me.

SO YES. The book!

It is a memoir and scholarly treatise that is speaking very very deeply to me (yes!! you understand me!! i nod my head so much while reading this) and like i said, i haven't gotten too far. I appreciate that he entitles the book "Black Male Outsider" because he has chosen to mindfully stand outside of the prescribed roles of heterosexism and patriarchal masculinity. Which definitely holds one up to public scrutiny and suspicion. How on point that I receive laughter for identifying with this book! Black Male Outsider indeed. Here are some of my favorite quotes so far:

"...Black Male Outsider functions as a pedagogical autobiography of black male liberation. With unbridled candor, it lays bare my yearning to be free from years of internalized wounds of white supremacist thinking and patriarchal masculinity. At risk of sounding overly dramatic, I am no longer afraid to admit that embracing black feminist thought was a life saving action for me." -xvi

"The more i scraped through the thickly layered, crusted-over pain of past boyhood hurts and heteronormative notions of masculinity attached to feelings of racial inferiority, the clearer I began to see the work in this memoir as spiritually grounded."-xix

"We promote the belief that all men should be in perpetual process of soul work toward the rejection of white supremacist patriarchy." -xix

And there is much more, with references to bell hooks, Aaronette White, Manning Marable, Patricia Hill Collins, W.EB. Dubois, Alice Walker, Marlon Riggs, Audre Lorde and more. Click to Feminist Review for a full review from someone who has read more than i have!

I do really love that Lemons speaks of this path as being spiritually grounded. This is spirit work, this is heart work. Love is a large motivational factor for me doing this work, as most of the people in my life are female, people i love. There are also many LGBTQ folks in my life who i love. It has become hard for me to reconcile saying that i love people while turning away when oppression is a daily experience for the people i say i love. It is a path of self-respect as well, when considering that latter notion. And also self-love, as Lemons demonstrates with the willingness to plumb into and heal the tender and exploited parts of himself that were warped by patriarchy. This is work I also continue to lovingly do. Among many other things, this path is a spiritual path of revolutionary love.

Who do you love?

How To Continue Supporting The Richmond Lesbian Survivor

2009-07-27T13:30:00.000-07:00

Hey people, its been a minute. Going thru many many changes (like so many others right now) and I have not been able to blog as often as i'd like. I'm thankful that the winds of change have been mostly gentle around really significant events, and am holding the intention that it remain so (and also for all y'all going thru it too!)

When we hear about stories like the ordeal that the Richmond Lesbian (aka JD) went through, it also gives us perspective around our own viccisitudes, struggles, and quest for healing. JD was sexually assaulted and beaten by 4 young men on her way home from work on December 13, 2008. An outpouring of support resulted, which i blogged about. And the truth is, JD is still in need of multiple forms of support. This should not be a surprise. Her friend has a blog that is a call for continued support, and i hope that people will be moved to help out someone else in need.

Some powerful words from the blog entiled "We're Here For You" (**trigger warning, paints picture of JD's violent ordeal)

Close your eyes, imagine being on a street, in what many people would consider a dangerous neighborhood, at ten o'clock at night, imagine that you are there in the middle of December, and that you are naked. Imagine how vulnerable and frightening it would be. Now imagine that blood oozes from wounds on your head, that you are cut and bruised from head to toe, and you are shaking uncontrollably from much more than the winter cold. Imagine a fear so violent and so overwhelming that it is literally shaking your entire body in it's fury. For JD, imagination isn't required to conjure up this image, she has her memories, because she lived it. I try not to think about the half hour which came before this, when coming home from one of her two jobs, JD came upon four men breaking into a car on her street. Before she even knew what was happening they attacked her, striking her with such force on the back of her head that her skull was split. They thought she was a man, and they intended to rob her, but when they realized that she was a woman, a lesbian, the assault took an entirely different turn. They began beating and sexually assaulting her in the back of her own car, taunting her when she pleaded for them to stop. When one of the men saw some people walking up the street, they quickly shoved her into the car, and drove to an abandoned apartment building, where they continued to rape, and beat her. The entire time the assault took place they hurled insults about her femaleness, and about her sexuality, they were clearly offended by her being a lesbian, and it was their intention to make her pay for that offense.

No one deserves having their humanity assaulted in this way. I imagine that the path of survivorship and healing for this woman is just beginning. It is good to see that she obviously has a dedicated support system around her. I encourage people to visit the blog to see how they can help, there is a drive to just help her make this month's rent at this point.

Wishing her and all survivors of sexual violence healing and light, and also wishing healing, light and an evolving sense of empathy to the fractured people who perpetrate these acts. May the winds of change also blow gently on JD as she moves through this.

India Decriminalizes Gay Sex

2009-07-02T10:54:00.000-07:00

YES! An archaic and oppressive law leftover from British colonial rule finally falls in India. I can only hope and pray that this indicates a domino effect for other former British colonies! If you grew up with Ovaltine, Enid Blyton, tea, marmalade, and your parents remember when money was shillings, you mus know is you mi chattin to! Heh. This is great news people, this will be a huge step for human rights. In places where old colonial "buggery" laws still exist (like Jamaica), violence towards LGBTQ folks are not only "justified" by interpretations of religious text (religious text that usually also recommends stoning adulterers to death. Not seeing that so much.), but also are given more cultural legitimacy when the law says same-sex sexual activity is illegal. At some point, it becomes forgotten that these were not our laws, and it becomes ingested along with other toxic, community fracturing and disenfranchizing elements of colonialism. I blogged more about Jamaica and historical factors that contribute to our brand of homophobia here.

This is amazing news, it gives me hope for more change on a global level! The Huffington Post reports:

In what many are calling "India's Stonewall", the New Delhi High Court on Thursday decriminalized homosexual intercourse between consenting adults, by striking down section 377 of the Indian Penal Code. This law labels gay sex to be an "unnatural offense", punishable with up to ten years in prison.
Drafted in 1860, this Colonial-era law was brought into effect by the British, and was in line with similar anti-homosexuality legislation passed in England at the time. In the past decade, gay rights activists and lawyers have strived hard to abrogate Section 377, calling it "inhuman", and as the Naz Foundation, which filed the petition to abolition 377 in 2001 argued, a violation of constitutional rights to privacy and equality.

Amazing. May the decolonization process continue for all former colonies, more power, more power! And may other straight allies also step up to these useless and hateful laws, so our LGBTQ brothers and sisters don'thave to do this alone!

Heh... I suspect that some of my more recently reconnected Jamaican friends via facebook must be like "Woy... Richard really serious bout dis ting!"

Sweet. I leave you with a suggestion. I highly recommend watching Deepa Mehta's "Fire" with friends to celebrate this victory, and stimulate discussion. Peep the trailer! Bless up

Last Post For Pride Month: Young Lesbian Of Color Teaches School District A Lesson In Human Rights.

2009-06-30T10:15:00.000-07:00

This was one of my fave stories from last month! I thought it would be a good post to close out Pride month. Rochelle Hamilton, like so many LGBTQ folks (or anyone who doesn't fit prescribed notions of gender whatever their sexuality) was going thru a living hell at school. Her TEACHERS were perpetrators of hate against her. Ugh. The ACLU reports:

For Rochelle Hamilton, starting high school was the beginning of relentless harassment from teachers and school staff because she’s openly gay. One teacher told her, "You're going to hell. This is a sin." Another said, "What's wrong with you? What are you, a man or a woman?" After months of asking the school and the district to intervene—to no avail—Rochelle and her mom reached out to the ACLU for help. Together, we took on the school district—and won.

YES! Love it. Triumph of the human spirit. I'm waiting for the made for tv movie to come out. Alicia Keys could play the main role :)

Be sure to read the rest of the article, and there is also a video clip that has interviews with Rochelle Hamilton and her mom. By the way, they what they won was 1) new anti-discrimination laws in the district 2) mandatory anti-harrassment training around sexuality and gender identity for ALL students and teachers in the district... and 3) Rochelle got 25K.

Reaffirms my faith in justice and humanity!

First and foremost, Happy Pride to my LGBTQ peoples! And to everyone else i say... whoever you love, if this story makes you proud that we can work together to uplift each other and respect the humanity of our children and community members... Happy Pride.
.

San Francisco Pride: Party Or Police State?

2009-06-29T17:19:00.000-07:00

Wow. Check out the Nobody Passes blog an expose on how SF Pride has been getting more steadily corporate and militarized by an aggressive hetero presence. Its very well written, and you can practically see the eye-rolls in the colorfully frank piece. I heard glowing reports from people who went to the Dyke March in Dolores Park (a lot of whom are still glowing from the hot sun), but who went to Pink Saturday?

here's a quote from the blog:

Get this: the security staff yells at us that we need to form separate lines for “men” and “women”-- I kid you not! Binary gender lines at a queer event in San Francisco, organized by a bunch of queens who dress as nuns. The security staff is frisking people and making people throw away water bottles, asking us if we have any drugs or sharp objects -- wait, I thought this was a public street, I didn’t realize we were visiting our friends in the tank at 850 Bryant.

this other example of over-policing is of note:

But there’s more -- just as Hilary and I are trying to make our way through the crowds to get to one of the exit checkpoints, we spot a few friends, and guess what? This year, the Dyke March got stopped at 17th and Sanchez, stopped by the line of straight male security guards who demanded that all the dykes walk single-file through the frisking station. That’s right -- on the one day of the year when dykes actually flood the Castro, it’s important to make sure there’s extra security! Outsourced security, no doubt.

Yikes.

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Melissa Roxas' Abduction & Torture Only Makes Her A Stronger Ally To Freedom.

2009-06-24T09:32:00.000-07:00

Several posts back I blogged about the abduction and surface of Fil-Am activist Melissa Roxas who was doing work in the Philippines. After missing for 6 days, she was returned to her family. She now reports that she was tortured, and that although torture is a mechanism used to break spirit and silence dissension, more than ever, she values the fight for human rights and freedom. In her own words:

When my own experience of abduction and torture ended and I was reunited with my family it was not a second birth for me, I realized that it is a continuing journey for the search for truth and justice. Repressive governments and military use torture as a form of control, to instill fear in people in debilitating ways, so they stay quiet and lose their light inside. But I realized no amount of pain or suffering or fear can stop that earth in me to keep rising. Instead it gave birth to new births. My experience has convinced me even more of the value of freedom and justice and the importance of fighting for and upholding the principles of human rights and human dignity.

This woman has such a strong fire blazing in her heart. I'm glad she is on our side. Welcome home Melissa.

You can read more of her inspiring words here.

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Reportback From the 2009 SFWAR Walk Against Rape.

2009-06-11T12:59:00.000-07:00

don’t be scared, don’t be quiet
affected by rape? join the riot!

That was one of the many chants we shouted as we walked through the streets of San Francisco on April 25th. The vibe is becoming familiar, and I continue to be re-inspired to do this important walk, do fundraising, and be visible as a male ally and a brotha around these issues.

I am really so thankful for the people who supported my efforts by giving to the San Francisco Women Against Rape. Because of y’all, I suspect i must have been at least one of the top ten fundraisers for the event. Friends, family and people of conscience altogether donated $1312.00 (and counting, my fundraising page is open until September), nearly double what i raised last year. And this is during a recession too! Hats off to folks, for real. And it is good to know that all of that will be going towards helping women in crisis get the services they need.

Being a male ally of color went to a new level this time (finally). Last year, I put out the call to men of color to walk with me. Long story short, i walked alone. I put out the call again this year-- a friend nearly flew up from Jamaica!! But funds were not really flowing, so instead we are starting convos around creating something similar in Jamaica. But one man did respond to my call, Ramesh. I had never met Ramesh in person before, but we had been emailing each other and other men around forming men’s groups. Among other things, Ramesh does work with Narika, an organization that is a resource for South Asian women dealing with domestic violence and abuse.

The walk itself was powerful and beautiful, but the piece around connecting with other men of color in this context was the crux of this for me.

The Walk Against Rape was scheduled to meet at Justin Herman Plaza at 10am. I had anticipated a chilly San Francisco day, but it was sunny and beautiful, and i found myself stripping off layers within minutes of arriving at the check-in point. Ramesh and I didn’t have much trouble identifying each other that Saturday morning, two brown guys in their 30’s amongst mostly younger women. I was pleased to see a large Asian /Pacific Islander presence. The largest male presence was definitely East Asian youth. I saw several black men, and some of us smiled and did the brotha nod of acknowledgement. I found myself taking pictures of them later, wanting to document their presence. I saw various photographer lenses sway my direction as well.

Ramesh and I hit it off really well. I found myself smiling more and more as i realized i was looking into another brown male face and speaking about our lives, our passions, and feminist activism. Yay!!

Our first interesting exchange (one that challenged me) was when Ramesh suggested we talk to women of color to see what they wanted from male allies of color. I found myself hesitating, and some of it was shyness... but there was something else. I brought it up. One of my concerns around building a male ally presence at this rally, was about us even unconsciously taking up too much space. Ramesh nodded. He rehashed the approach and question for me, and though i forget how it was all modified, I felt more comfortable with it. It didn’t feel as much like it could be taken as “hi, educate us now!”, and definitely left the option for people not to respond if they weren’t feelin it.

I am glad we made that compromise.

We approached some young sistas wearing USF hoodies, politely introduced ourselves, and asked briefly if they had any thoughts they would like to share around what they would like to see male allies of color doing. The conversation started slowly, then built momentum. The young women said that they want men to be visible and present at events like this, like how we are. They also said that they want us to talk to other men about these issues. And we learned that there had recently been 4 rapes at USF by one man, and that the whole school was going through shock and trauma because of that. We talked about there needing to be more education around sexual assault, because college campuses have such horrible track records with rape, something that definitely isn’t advertised in the admissions office. One young woman said that since its a Jesuit school, there is more of a moralist approach to these issues, and not so much breaking it down into a need for education around these issues, or framing it as a violent manifestation of patriarchy. After maybe 10 minutes, we thanked them for their time and conversation, wished them a good day, and went on our way.

I started to think more about what being active meant, and how to find out what being a good ally meant without exhausting people... how to actually do the opposite, and give energy through active listening and acknowledgement. I’m still thinking about that.

4 other South Asian men from Narika, friends of Ramesh soon joined us. 5 brown dudes reppin at the SFWAR walk! Woo hoo! It felt good to finally be at this walk, talking to other men of color about anti-sexism work. We shook hands, and our eyes met in recognition of this reality.

Lisa Thomas-Odeyemo, the Director of Counseling of SFWAR stepped up to address the walkers with a bullhorn (pictured at the top). This has become a ritual that i look forward to. Not only does she facilitate us in grounding & stretching, to get in our bodies and feel powerful in our purpose, but she evokes the long lines of ancestors that are behind us all, leading us here to this space at this time. Grounding this in the spirit of ancestors is an important piece for me. Soooo many ancestors were dehumanized and raped during slavery, and so many others were raped in older patriarchal systems. By husbands. Fellow schoolmates. Policemen. Soldiers. Prison Guards. Gay Bashers. Relatives. Long legacies of sexual assault as a mechanism of control that are not only from older patriarchal systems, but are more than alive today. We acknowledge. And we make our bodies walking shrines of remembrance and resistance.

We take to the streets, with purposeful fire in our eyes, and chants in our throats. A truck drives with us, playing live samba drums, layers of polyrhythms bounce of the alleys made by the tall buildings of Downtown San Francisco. The sun is high, and people are smiling and chanting. It’s a gorgeous walk, and we stretch for maybe two blocks, easily fillling up one side of the street. Cars drive by on the other side, honking horns in support, which always raises a big roaring cheer from the crowd. Me and Ramesh joke that if you are having a bad day, you can just drive past the rally and beep, and then hundreds of people will cheer at you! But on the real, the love was in the air, and it was a revolutionary love to be shared.

Ramesh continued to engage other walkers on their thoughts around the rally. They were mostly male youth, and even a police officer. I took the opportunity to connect with the other Narika men.

When we reach Dolores Park, the finish line was apparent, an arch of balloons blowing in the wind. The energy of the walkers picked up, and the cheers got louder in call and response style for the final stretch:

Tell Me What Community Looks Like?!
THIS IS WHAT COMMUNITY LOOKS LIKE! 
Tell Me What An Activist Looks Like?! 
THIS IS WHAT AN ACTIVIST LOOKS LIKE! 
Tell Me What A Survivor Looks Like?!
THIS IS WHAT A SURVIVOR LOOKS LIKE!
Tell Me What An Ally Looks Like?! 
THIS IS WHAT AN ALLY LOOKS LIKE!
 Tell Me What Community Looks Like?!
THIS IS WHAT COMMUNITY LOOKS LIKE!

We are received by a smiling, standing ovation of park goers, supporters and organizers. The sense of arrival and triumph is buzzing in the air. Some walkers are received with hugs and kisses. Me and the Narika men go to sit in a circle on the grass to brainstorm over ideas for future meetings.

Afterwards, we go looking for some food, and then i see my honey! Yay. I’m glad we can sit together and watch the upcoming performances. At some point, a female emcee steps up to the mic, and she shares heartbreaking stories of her own sexual abuse, and stories from her community. She also shared that a law was being introduced in Afghanistan that would legalize raping one’s wife under the law (which has since met much internal resistance, and will not pass). She went on to inform us about being in mutual alliance and support with Denim Day in Italy, a day that was created when a judge ruled that a woman could not have been raped because her jeans were too tight to come off without consent. Vomit. Also evoked was the disgusting case in the Philippines where US military officer Daniel Smith was arrested for raping a 22 year old Filipina, but then was whisked away by a US Embassy and acquitted. Outrageous. My pal Kiwi reports and blogs. Having illustrated the global impact of a rape culture, the emcee brought it back home and acknowledged the USF community for what they were going through, which inspired thankful cheers from the USF camp.

The featured acts were all very powerful, but a few really stood out to me. Imani’s Dream, a youth dance troupe from Oakland kicked it off, and brought magic. It was so good to see little black boys and girls in this space, dancing and embodying resistance to predatory masculinity and sexual assault- as well as have a real good time! They were beautiful. Oakland Represent!!

Staceyann Chin also read from her memoirs, her new book “The Other Side Of Paradise”. Wow. Staceyann is a powerful Jamaican lesbian spoken word artist, i blogged a great clip of her performing “Feminist Or Womanist” here around a year ago. It was great to see her again on the SFWAR stage. After some funny and facetious questioning of what’s up with the cold weather (she didn’t have a jacket! ahh! It was sunny but breezy for sure) she went into her fierce spoken word. And... she rocked it.

And on the real... her book is amazing. As a Jamaican, it consider it to be one of the most important works of literature to come from our own. It is well written, at times funny and shining with unmistakable Jamaican wit, but mostly just taking you on the challenging journey of a little girl from country who strove assert her humanity. It is a perspective that is important for all to read, dealing with gender, class, sexuality, and religion in ways that are rarely discussed in the larger Jamaican community. I wish it were prescribed reading in school. But I was more than pleased to see that it got good reviews in The Gleaner, Jamaica’s premiere newspaper! I don’t think I can really explain just how amazing that is.

So that is the reportback. Sorry it took so long to write it! And thank you again to everyone who supported in cash, words or spirit. And if you know some men of color who REALLY should be walking with me next year, well, let me know :) Bless up

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No Ass At All

2009-06-04T12:04:00.000-07:00

Love it. Aisha Tyler does what can be considered a response to Sir Mix A Lot's "Baby Got Back", but instead, Tyler creates a hilarious anthem for women who have smaller booties, while weaving in interesting themes of identity, race and body image.

Ahh, you didn't want Sir Mix A Lot's anaconda anyway.

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I'm SOOO Happy To Have Some Good News... Melissa Roxas Has Been Returned To Her Family.

2009-05-25T00:55:00.000-07:00

Whew. Giving much thanks for real. Still waiting for her comrades to come home as well, but this is amazing, faith renewing news.

Details at the Bulatlat site.

Surface Filipino-American Activist Melissa Roxas And Comrades Now!

2009-05-24T13:07:00.000-07:00

Bloggers, activists, people of conscience (and influence) please repost far and wide! My friend Kiwi has posted on his blog about his missing friend, Melissa Roxas. May the doors open to her safe return, as well as the other FilAm activists.

BAYAN-USA, an alliance of 14 Filipino American organizations and chapter of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan Philippines), is calling on President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, the Department of National Defense, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines to immediately surface Melissa Roxas, an American citizen of Filipino descent who was abducted in the Philippines on May 19. BAYAN-USA also urgently calls on our representatives in the U.S. Congress to act quickly to ensure the safe return of Roxas.

Roxas is a well-known Filipino American activist, who served as the first Regional Coordinator of BAYAN-USA in Los Angeles and co-founded the cultural organization Habi Arts. Roxas is an active human rights advocate and was instrumental in organizing a BAYAN-USA contingent that participated in the International Solidarity Mission in 2005, an international fact finding mission that called attention to the escalating human rights violations in the Philippines. Roxas went to the Philippines in 2007 to pursue human rights work, where she became a full time volunteer health worker. She was abducted on May 19, 2009 at approximately 1:30 PM in Sitio Bagong Sikat, Barangay kapanikian, La Paz, Tarlac. She was with two other volunteers, Juanito Carabeo and John Edward Handoc.

Based on reports filed by the human rights group KARAPATAN and the La Paz police, Roxas and her companions were taken by at least 8 armed, hooded men riding two motorcycles and a Besta van without any license plate numbers. There has been no word on the whereabouts and condition of Roxas and her companions since the abduction. The circumstances of Roxas’ abduction typify the abductions and enforced disappearances of over 200 innocent civilians, allegedly last seen in the hands of suspected state security forces.

To report leads, or to connect for action contact:

Kuusela Hilo
BAYAN-USA Vice Chair
vicechair@bayanusa.org

Rhonda Ramiro
BAYAN-USA Secretary General
secgen@bayanusa.org

Also please take a moment to sign this petiton.

and Kiwi, if you need a dj for a consciousness raising / action / event, holla.

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YES MEANS YES! Readings on Female Sexual Power & A World Without Rape, This Saturday 7:30pm @ Pegasus Books Berkeley

2009-05-06T11:19:00.000-07:00

Please support your local indie bookstore, and a revolutionary new anthology that is being read this Saturday at Pegasus in Berkeley! The book is called Yes Means Yes! Visions Of Female Sexual Power & A World Without Rape. A group of feminist writers came together to update the 1970's anti-rape slogan "No Means No" into a new paradigm that affirms female sexuality and power, while creating space for new visions of ending a rape culture. The Pegasus site has a great synopsis:

In this groundbreaking new look at rape edited by writers and activists Jaclyn Freidman and Jessica Valenti, the way we view rape in our culture is finally dismantled and replaced with a genuine understanding and respect for female sexual pleasure. Feminist, political, and activist writers alike present their ideas for a paradigm shift from the “No Means No” model—an approach that while necessary for where we were in 1974, needs an overhaul today. Yes Means Yes brings to the table a dazzling variety of perspectives and experiences focused on the theory that educating all people to value female sexuality and pleasure leads to viewing women differently, and ending rape. Yes Means Yes aims to have radical and far-reaching effects: from teaching men to treat women as collaborators and not conquests, encouraging men and women that women can enjoy sex instead of being shamed for it, and ultimately, that our children can inherit a world where rape is rare and swiftly punished. With commentary on public sex education, pornography, and mass media, Yes Means Yes is a powerful and revolutionary anthology.

I just bought this book yesterday, I am looking forward to getting schooled. For a peek into some of the writing, click to "The Not Rape Epidemic" written by blogger Latoya Peterson and shared on Racialiscious. They have trigger warnings there, and i would repeat them. This really is probably not something to read at work. It goes through some really graphic experiences before mapping out some of the visions for ending rape. Whew. I got work to do with my mens!!

Also coming soon is my reportback on the SFWAR Walk Against Rape, i'm still writing that one. And i love that people are still donating even though the walk is done for this year. I set my donations page so that people can keep donating until September sometime.

I won't be able to go to the reading because of work, but if you go, let us know what you thought! And you can buy the book through the Pegasus link, and here is a Powell's link. Forget Amazon, they are officially wack.

Laters

Time: Saturday, May 9, 2009 7:30 p.m.
Location: Pegasus Books Downtown, 2349 Shattuck Avenue
Title of Event: Feminist writers read from Yes Means Yes: Visions of Female Sexual Power and a World Without Rape

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Kenyan Women Join Forces To Ban Sex With Husbands In The Name Of Peace And National Unity.

2009-04-30T09:57:00.000-07:00

Awesome. In a modern day, real life Lysistrata re-enactment, Kenyan women are coming together with a plan to withhold sex from husbands for a higher political cause. Ida Odinga and Lucy Kibaki (pictured here) are being urged to join the campaign, they are respectively the wives of the PM and the President. President Kibaki and PM Odinga have been in a political squabble for sometime now, and the nation fears violent political unrest. The movement hopes to get the two leaders to make up and prioritize unity. According to CNN, Ida Odinga supports the campaign "100%"

BBC goes on to report:

Women's activist groups in Kenya have slapped their partners with a week-long sex ban in protest over the infighting plaguing the national unity government.
The Women's Development Organisation coalition said they would also pay prostitutes to join their strike.
Patricia Nyaundi, executive director of the Federation of Women Lawyers (Fida), one of the organisations in the campaign, said they hoped the seven-day sex ban would force the squabbling rivals to make up.

She said the campaign would start from her bedroom and that emissaries had been sent to the two leaders' wives, Ida Odinga and Lucy Kibaki, urging them to join in and lead from the front.
"Great decisions are made during pillow talk, so we are asking the two ladies at that intimate moment to ask their husbands: 'Darling can you do something for Kenya?'"

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Angie Zapata's Killer Convicted On All Charges, Making Him The 1st Person Convicted For Hate Crime Against TG.

2009-04-22T15:56:00.000-07:00

18 year old Angie Zapata was found beaten to death in her Colorado apartment in July 2008. People have been rallying for justice since.

This news just came in today, i quote from 9news Colorado:

The jury found 32-year-old Allen Andrade guilty of both first-degree murder and of a bias motivated crime or hate crime. It is believed to be the first conviction in state history for a hate crime against a transgender person.

I'm not sure if this sets a nationwide precedent, but i wouldn't be surprised.

As always, I have complex feelings around the failings of our (in)justice system, a system that does not rehabilitate, a system where big wigs make bank from imprisoning humans, a system rife with oppression... but i do hope that the friends and family of Angie Zapata find some redemption in this historical ruling, and i hope that this sends a message to people inclined to violence that you can't get away with hurting transgendered folks.

Rest In Peace Angie Zapata.

(click for tribute page, hear from her family, get educated on TG issues)

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San Francisco Walk Against Rape This Saturday- and i'm $78 away from my fundraising goal of $1000!

2009-04-20T12:51:00.000-07:00

Thank you everyone who has been sooooo generous to this cause. I also wanna give thanks and props to those who are doing the work with offenders, and those who mentor young men around non-violent ways to embody masculinity.

And I can't front, I am EXCITED!! I am just $78 away from my goal of $1000- AND my annual call for men of color to walk with me has been answered. Yay! Together, we plan to model that men of color ARE visible, active, caring allies to women, and not just people to be profiled as perpetrators.

I invite you to even contribute $5... every little bit helps a woman get crucial services at SF's only community run rape crisis center. If 8 people give $10, that's it, we are GOOD! Though if you click into the link and see that we busted the 1K, don't let that stop you either! :)

http://www.firstgiving.com/richardwright1

you can also just click the widget at the right.

Again, thanks for your support and readership, and thank you SFWAR. lets do this!!

have a great weekend :)

~richard

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The Men's Story Project: Building Strength, Creating Peace. April 25-26.

2009-04-15T08:35:00.000-07:00

Bay Area! These are different"his-stories" being told here, these stories model ways men should be talking, issues we should be examining. Don't miss the newest edition of:

The Men's Story Project
Building Strength, Creating Peace

UCB Multicultural Center
Sat. April 25, Sun April 26
Doors 7 PM; performance 7:30
$10-12 @ door only

The Men's Story Project is a new performance and dialogue project exploring social ideas about masculinity. Described by audiences as "groundbreaking" and "something that needs to keep on happening," the April UCB presentations will highlight 15 Bay Area artists, activists, and first-time presenters, ages 20-60, sharing true stories about their lives through slam poetry, monologues, music and dance.

The stories address subjects including: platonic love between men; disability and sexuality; men's restroom rituals; machismo in Latino culture; images of African American masculinity; an Oakland activist's refusal to continue intergenerational patterns of violence; challenging racism; being African American and gay; intergenerational support between men; responding to domestic violence; cancer and wholeness; gender identity; family relationships; personal strength; and gratitude to lifelong mentors.

Presenters: L. Abdul-Kenyatta; Michael Katz; Jeff Pollett; Amir Rabiyah; Joshua Safran; Jake Tobias; Aqeela Sherrills (Community Self-Determination Institute, Reverence Movement); Clover Mathis (formerly of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater); Leroy F. Moore, Jr. (Sins Invalid); Galen Peterson (Art in Action & Silence the Violence); Folawole Oyinlola (San Francisco Ballet); Abe Becker, Matt Blesse, Charles Ekabhumi Ellik, Stephen Meads & Terry Taplin (Berkeley, SF and Youth Speaks slam poetry championship teams).

www.mensstoryproject.org

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to 11 year old Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover, who hung himself after daily anti-gay bullying

2009-04-10T17:42:00.000-07:00

i am going to attempt to put words
to the unspeakably tragic.

my heart, mind & soul
sinks, fumbles,
shakes in denial

and i never knew you.

so many children
know the agony
of the constricting prison of
"masculinity"
or
"femininity"

and still other children
who don't even know themselves yet
patrol the borders of that prison
with adolescent cruelty

your world must have been so painful
so claustrophobic
to choose constricting your own breath
as a means of escape

carl

may your spirit rest
and your story teach us
that homophobia hurts everyone
constricts us all
whether you are gay
or people just decide you are.

may your spirit rest
may your family know peace
may justice and empathy evolve hand in hand.

you are beautiful.

~rmw 4/10/09

*for the article in GLSEN click here.

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The Power Of Women & Words: Art Exhibit, Film and Writing Workshop This Saturday

2009-04-09T11:12:00.000-07:00

The Power Of Women & Words: Art Exhibit, Film and Writing Workshop

Saturday, April 11th, 2009
Doors Open - 12:30pm
Film - 1pm
Writing Workshop - 3pm

Refreshments Provided!
Sliding Scale $5 - $15

Berkeley College Auditorium
2050 Center Street, Berkeley CA 94704
(one block from Downtown Berkeley BART station)

Art Exhibit: Art of women facing and overcoming violence by local and international artists.
Film Showing: "What I Want My Words To Do To You".
Writing Workshop: Workshop lead by BCC writing teachers Sharon Coleman & Robyn Brooks.

Fundraising event benefitting organizations working to stop violence against women.
All proceeds go to Amnesty International and the V-Day Organization.

to my future son

2009-04-08T15:17:00.000-07:00

a tight poem from poet & good friend Kenji Liu on masculinity. Be sure to peep the rest of his insightful gems at parami10. He and some friends are doing a Poem A Day exercise for April, some really good stuff is comin up. Also look out for his chapbook "You Left Without Your Shoes" coming out on Finishing Line Press. Respect!

to my future son

inside concrete, men spin and flex
like WWF wrestlers, hollow and fearsome

and always performing. son, you do not have
to empty yourself like them, fists squeezed

so tightly your tenderness becomes
a sickness, constricted and hard

in your liver. this is the price
of manhood, to be a stone quivering

inside an egg. you will be told
to choose from a stir fried lineup

of kung fu gangsters, dumb-asses and
anti-sexy uncle tongs. these are men

made from the politics of other men
who only worship themselves.

if you choose manhood, many
will reward you, but really, who wants

to be a plastic action figure, muscular
yet with only one move: a head slam?

-Reposted by permission of the author Kenji Liu. This poem is protected under the “Attribution Non-Commercial No Derrivatives” license, view at: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/

Michelle Obama Shines & Inspires Young Girls Of Color In England.

2009-04-06T09:56:00.000-07:00

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Great words to deliver to young, mostly brown girls. This is a moving clip. It becomes clear why Michelle Obama is enjoying higher approval ratings than Barack Obama in England right now.

"Cosmopolitan" Institute Completes Decades-Long Study On How To Please Your Man

2009-04-01T10:40:00.000-07:00

Finally. I've been waiting for them to finish this up already.

'Cosmopolitan' Institute Completes Decades-Long Study On How To Please Your Man

Reprise: Haiku Tribute To Ancestral Queens Of Liberation

2009-03-31T01:59:00.000-07:00

i posted this in September, but wanted to repost in honor of Women's History Month and ancestors.

Though of course the master plan is to keep bringin' it no matter what month it is... like these women did. Nuff respect.

Ashé

Nanny of Maroons
Jamaica’s warrior queen
spirit of the hills

Harriet Tubman
forged freedom in the crossroads
mystic eyes guide souls

Please Sponsor Me In The SFWAR Walk Against Rape.

2009-03-30T11:49:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!

Wassup, hope that spring is waking you up in good ways. On Saturday, April 25th, I am participating in the San Francisco Walk Against Rape, and would love your help in supporting San Francisco's only community based rape crisis center, SFWAR (San Francisco Women Against Rape).

As some of you know, i did this walk last year with the goal to raise $250 (i blogged the reportback here). Because of y'all, i raised $700!! So this year, i'm raising the bar accordingly- my new goal is $1000.

If 40 people on this list donate $25 each, or if you ask your workplace to collectively donate, i will definitely be able to reach my goal, and you would be helping women get crucial services. Of course, ANY donation is so appreciated. I have a fundraising website up, and it is really fast, easy and secure to donate through. It is also the most efficient way to support my fundraising efforts. You can also track the progress of my fundraising there.

I am also putting a call out to men of color who will walk with me, and model that we are visible, actively caring men who care about women's lives. So many of us are profiled as being the perpetrators, not allies. I invite men of color to walk with me and defy this image together.

Please forward this to those who you think would want to help out. Thank you for your time and support! Bless up

~richard
(to donate, click here.)

ps for more details: http://www.sfwar.org/walk/theevent.html

Active Spirit: End Violence Towards Women! A Community Healing Circle, This Sunday.

2009-03-26T10:03:00.000-07:00

Active Spirit: End Violence Towards Women! Community Healing Circle

The legacy of abuse and oppression against girls and women worldwide is staggering. Come join with us as we stand in circle sending collective healing, justice, light, love and positive change to those who have been victims and survivors of violence and abuse.

This is a call to be active not only in our day to day lives, but on the level of spirit.

Let us be and create the change we want to see in the world! Come together and send transformative healing energy to those in need.

All Are Welcome. Instruments Are Welcome And Encouraged.

Sunday, March 29th, 3:30pm
Lake Merritt Gazebo, Oakland
(Take the Bellevue park entrance off of Grand to the Garden Center,
also accessed lakeside after Fairyland, by lake fountain)

Facilitated by

Rashidah (Spirits Of Our Ancestors)

Richard Omo Esu (Active Spirit)

Black Women In Obama Administration Form Tight Sistahood

2009-03-24T10:17:00.000-07:00

A good article from The Washington Post. Not only are Black women filling important positions in the Obama Administration, but these women are also coming together to form close personal and professional relationships. Sistahood on Capitol Hill! Krissah Thompson reports:

Like two old girlfriends catching up, they ignored onlookers, hugged and laughed.

Donna Brazile, the political strategist and Washington veteran, peppered Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson with questions.

"How are the kids?" "Have you contacted the church? I don't go every Sunday but they know me."

Before she left, Jackson had an open invitation to Brazile's place for home-cooked red beans and rice, served up every Monday night.

"The sisterhood in this town, there's deep history here," Jackson said.

The "Obama women" -- as African American women who've taken big jobs in his administration have been nicknamed -- mark another step in the long journey of black women from outsiders to gatekeepers in political Washington. They have quietly entered their jobs with little attention paid to the fact that they are the largest contingent of high-ranking black women to work for a president.

Many are firsts -- as in the first black woman to run the Domestic Policy Council, the first black EPA chief and the first black woman to be deputy chief of staff. Last week, Obama tapped Margaret (Peggy) Hamburg to lead the Food and Drug Administration. If confirmed, Hamburg -- who is biracial (her mother is African American, her father Jewish) -- will also be a first.

Seven of about three dozen senior positions on President Obama's team are filled by African American women. Veterans in town see them as part of the steady evolution of power for black women, not only in the White House but also across the country -- in the business world, in academia, in policy circles.

So this is what a post-Condi era starts to look like. So far, I think I like.

FLY GIRLS! B-Boys Beware: Revenge Of The Super Female Rappers

2009-03-23T12:11:00.000-07:00

Soul Jazz Records must have collectively done something really right in a past lifetime. They ALWAYS come out with the most amazing compilations, whether its Studio One dub, rocksteady, dancehall, soul, electro, new wave, Nuyorican classics, dubstep, post-punk, Brazilian music, jazz, hip hop, Osunlade or something else... its always quality. And now, they drop the FLY GIRLS! comp. wow.

This compilation really takes it back to the beginning, anthologizing important names and songs that are usually understated in a male dominated field. It includes Nikki Giovanni's original "Ego Trippin'" as a prototype of female pre-rap/spoken word. Well deserved, insightful props. Props that Blackalicious had the vision to acknowledge when they brought this track back full circle on their album "Nia", where Nikki Giovanni recites "Ego Trippin'" over proper hip hop beats (peep the sweet YouTube tribute!). Also included are popular tracks from Queen Latifah ("Ladies First") and Missy Elliot ("The Rain"), as well as solid tracks from MC Lyte and Bahamadia. JJ Fad represents too, with a cool track that is NOT "Supersonic"! Sweet Tee is on the bill too, and i was and am definitely a fan. She was riding the James Brown and Funkadelic sampled beats like nobody's business. There is even a tip of the hat to the "Roxanne Wars" of the 80's, with a Roxanne Shanté track up in there too.

It is my hope that this is a beginning of a series... I suspect it has to be, since there are glaring omissions on this album (no Lauren Hill, Salt and Pepa or Ladybug Mecca). But in true Soul Jazz Records stylee, what is lacking is made up for with gems that maybe you never heard of, or some you forgot. I'm just recognizing Camille Yarbrough's "Take Yo' Praise" as the original sample from Fatboy Slim's "Praise You (Like I Should)". I'm also feeling Lady B's "To The Beat", which i don't remember, but it takes me straight back to the funky "Rapper's Delight" era... just listening to it transports me back to the 70's riding a banana seat bicycle in purple cordoroys. Sweet! Mad props to all the fly girls for sure. Peep the link for a listen, enjoy!

Iceland Breaks Global Barrier By Electing Openly Lesbian Prime Minister.

2009-03-20T11:02:00.000-07:00

Ok Iceland, you got some fierce examples of womanhood reppin you on an international stage! First Bjork, now Johanna Sigurdardottir. This appointment apparently went down in February, i'm just catching up now. BBC reports:

Johanna Sigurdardottir, named as Iceland's prime minister on Sunday, is the first openly lesbian head of government in Europe, if not the world - at least in modern times.

The 66-year-old's appointment as an interim leader, until elections in May, is seen by many as a milestone for the gay and lesbian movement.

Up until now, if a gay man or woman has been prime minister, they have done their best to conceal the fact.

In Iceland itself, however, the new prime minister's sexual orientation appears to be causing less excitement than it is abroad.

I like the fact that its not really a big deal in Iceland itself. And i'm feelin this trend where world leaders are beginning to look like and represent those who are usually oppressed in those countries. Though I really have no idea how oppressed LGBTQ folks are in Iceland. Seems to be pretty chill there... no pun intended...

USA To Finally Sign UN Gay Rights Declaration

2009-03-18T11:01:00.000-07:00

I can't wait to see the run down of Obama's first 100 days, and how it compares to other US Presidents. AP reports:

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration will endorse a U.N. declaration calling for the worldwide decriminalization of homosexuality that then-President George W. Bush had refused to sign, The Associated Press has learned.
U.S. officials said Tuesday they had notified the declaration's French sponsors that the administration wants to be added as a supporter. The Bush administration was criticized in December when it was the only western government that refused to sign on.
The move was made after an interagency review of the Bush administration's position on the nonbinding document, which was signed by all 27 European Union members as well as Japan, Australia, Mexico and three dozen other countries, the officials said.

This is exactly the kind of strategy I was hoping Obama was going for. Handing meaningless symbols to the homophobe Christian fundamentalist right (Rick Warren speaking at the Inauguration) while planning to make REAL change for the people. Ever so slowly, this country is evolving out of a medieval state of being. From closing Guantanamo Bay, to affirming the human rights of LGTBTQ fam... Its been getting sunnier up in here. Giving Thanks. May the positive momentum continue.

Obama Establishes White House Council On Women And Girls. And a Word To The "Left".

2009-03-12T13:24:00.000-07:00

Thank you, yet AGAIN Feministing! Obama has created a council to address issues of women and girls, and signed an act to deal with the economic disparities between men and women (i've never heard a president admit that women make 78 cents to every dollar men make). Peep the great speech above.

As with most of Obama's announcements and signed acts, I am jazzed to hear the news, and incredulous that a president of this country is saying and doing these things. Simultaneously I am remaining grounded, hopeful, and waiting to see what develops. I have to say, i know the man isn't perfect, isn't a savior, isn't very pro-Palestine, and definitely isn't an anti-capitalist revolutionary. But so far, considering the state of things that was left for Obama- i DO wish that some of us on the disgruntled left could take a moment to take in the good that is being attempted, and help rally behind it instead of grumbling and predicting doom and failure. At the same time we definitely should keep a critical lens intact, and keep working on the grassroots level, building from the people up. AND if dude is trying to break down one of the oldest manifestations of institutionalized sexism... lets get on board!!

Linda Burnham puts it even better, in what may become the quintessential article on the Obama era, and how it relates to the responsibility/orientation of the left. It also addressed my frustration around the nihilism of the (understandably) anti-capitalist left, in comparison with the starry-eyed Obama-as-infallible-savior heads, and other subgroups inbetween. It also puts out a solid game plan of what we gotta do. Please read.

Forward!!

5 Myths About Domestic Violence: Rihanna and Chris Brown

2009-03-11T13:42:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the heads up Feministing. A couple weeks ago, R&B pop star Chris Brown choked, bit and beat his girlfriend, R&B pop star Rihanna to the point of filling her mouth with her own blood. Shocking photos of her battered face have circulated the world. (i figure you don't need to see it here).Well intentioned people are stepping up to rightfully denounce this behavior. And Newsweek just floored me with a really insightful article about the myths that a lot of us are perpetuating while trying to "use this case as something the educate kids with". Chris Brown carries/carried a lot of cool cred with kids, so it is definitely important to be clear to them that this is a toxic, unacceptable expression of masculinity. Also being clear about our inherent sexism while discussing this is also very important.

Here is an excerpt of myth number 1:

Myth No. 1: It was a domestic argument, and she provoked him
We need to remember that any discussion of domestic violence should not revolve around what the couple may have been arguing about, or as one CNN anchor put it: "the incident that sparked the fight." Nor should we be using the word "provoked" when describing this case, as in the Associated Press account that said the "argument" was "provoked" by Rihanna's "discovery of a text message from another woman." Domestic violence has to do with, well, physical violence, not arguments. There isn't a verbal argument that should "spark" or "provoke" an attack of the kind that leaves one person with wounds that require medical attention.

And an excerpt of myth number 3:

Myth No. 3: People make mistakes. Give the guy a break
When singer Kanye West talked about the Rihanna-Brown case with his VH1 audience recently, he asked: "Can't we give Chris a break? ... I know I make mistakes in life." Kanye's not the only one saying this kind of thing, so let's get something straight: People leave the oven on or fry turkeys in the garage and burn their house down. One may even accidentally step on the gas instead of the brake and run over the family cat. Mistakes resulting in tragic consequences happen all the time. But one cannot mistakenly beat someone up. You do not accidentally give someone black eyes, a broken nose and a split lip.

Kanye?!? C'mon now. I'm almost more disappointed in him than Chris Brown.

Newsweek however, stealthly extorts kudos from my unsuspecting person. Props.

Obama Creates New Foriegn Policy Position To Address International Women's Issues.

2009-03-10T16:23:00.000-07:00

Unprecedented! I'm feelin this a lot. I don't know much about Melanne Verveer, the woman he picked for this new position, but if she is as wise a choice as Obama picking Van Jones for the White House Council On Green Jobs, then.... the possibilities for positive change just got a bit more awesome. Just gotta get this through the Senate now.

Nice unveiling for Women's History Month, Bams. Hope we can talk about the women in DRC soon. More details about the appointment here.

Happy Women's History Month y'all!

International Women's Day: End Violence Against Women. And Please Sign Petition To President Obama.

2009-03-09T18:56:00.000-07:00

(picture courtesy of http://www.unicefusa.org/hidden/women-of-drc.html Roger LeMoyne. Photo of women in the Democratic Republic of Congo awaiting emergency medical treatment at the overwhelmed Panzi Hospital)

A week ago, a female friend shared an experience that left me unable to sleep that night. My friend (who I’ll refer to as K) was awoken in her hotel room by the weight of a man on top of her, and a hand covering her mouth. K survived this rape attempt by screaming and alerting people, and by kicking him off. This happened a couple months ago, and K is thankful that the assault did not progress into an even more invasive nightmare. Understandably, K is still actively recovering from this trauma, the trauma of being assaulted when safety was assumed and she was most vulnerable. She has only recently gotten to place where the wind blowing a curtain in her house does not send somatic alerts through her body. And she is clear that she kicked ass. When she shares this story with women, she is usually met with empathy and support. And everytime... K receives another story of survival.

I too am thankful that the assault was not worse. As a part of my spiritual practice, I always ask for protection of my loved ones, family and community, and also more specifically for protection of female bodied people who i am connected to. I will never know the fear that is a part of growing up female around possibly being raped. I know that boys and men can be raped too, and that many male bodied people are carrying scars of sexual abuse. I also know that the numbers of boys and men who are survivors are significantly smaller than survivors who are girls and women- and for the most part, we don’t go through life with the ever looming spectre of possibly being sexually assaulted.

Yesterday was International Women’s Day. The main theme for this year is “Women and and men united to end violence against women and girls.” What can men do? We can model for other boys and men what a mature, non-oppressive man is like. We can support institutions and support healthy, feminist masculinities, and not support institutions that support more oppressive masculinities. There are also organizations like Men Can Stop Rape and Men Against Sexual Violence that do good work. Supporting organizations like San Francisco Women Against Rape, and other support services for rape survivors is another thing that anyone can do.

Those are some ideas for the local level (please add more!). As for the global level, that is something we are all going to have to brainstorm and pool resources over.

My sleepless night replaying K’s experience over and over again sent me into a downwards spiral, agonizing over the larger picture of the global reality of violence against women. Recently another female friend of mine sent me the link for a New York Times article entitled The Invisible War. I thought it was an aptly named phrase for the violence against women here at home, where the battlefields are usually secluded away from the public eye, and court systems do not make things easy for survivors. But this article was referring to the shockingly underreported state of women in the Democratic Republic of Congo (yet another elucidating article labels the relative media and activist silence a “Grotesque Indifference”). In the DRC, rape has become the main weapon of war. Rape of hundreds of thousands of girls and women. Hundreds of thousands. Hundreds daily. Control over the mining of tin, coltan, and other materials fuel this war, as the DRC is the largest producer of most of these materials. These ores are responsible for making our cellphones, laptops, and other electronic gadgets, which no one needs to be informed has an incredible global demand. Militias fight to gain control of the mines, and use rape as a way to psychologically, spiritually, culturally- violently traumatize and dysfunctionalize whole communities. It is staggering to the soul to read the accounts.

I am going to place a boundary for protocol here regarding discussion of this painful subject. Understandably, this is horrific and enraging. However, i must emphasize that any comment which uses the words “savage” “animal” or “barbarian” to describe the marauding soldiers will be deleted. This is not in defense of the soldiers. These words are steeped in a historically racist lens. Yes, the acts are monstrous, horrible, sick, unspeakable, effed up, wrong, hateful, a sin, crimes against humanity and tons of other descriptors. If we could stick to this type of languaging, I would appreciate it. Because the news does not report the Israel army as being savage barbaric animals for burning civilians with phosphorous, or even the soldiers who were in the Serbian rape camps as such. But most articles around the crisis in the DRC use the word “savage” in the first paragraph. Including NPR.

In Aaronette M. White’s book “Ain’t I A Feminist” (reviewed on my blog here), White refers to Sojourner Truth as a pioneer of Black Feminism (and a role model for Black Feminist men), because she was able to have an “intersectional outlook on race and gender” (pg. 13) and she refused to prioritize the advancement of Black men at the exclusion of Black women. I am hoping that the readers of this blog can also hold an intersectional perspective where we can speak of the rights of women without devolving into racist dialogue. I am hoping we can all move together, and not make one form of oppression more acceptable than the other.

So what can we do about women in the Congo? As we all know, President Barack Obama has a full plate, but a part of his platform is to Fight Gender Violence Abroad. Let us remind him of this pledge, and SIGN THIS PETITION. We can also do our part by not caving in to buy every single new permutation of the cell phone. We live in a time where new models of phones are showcased and given names like new models of cars. Me, i have a BlackBerry. I think that’s fancy enough. Adopting a green stance and a culture of re-use also helps. Some of us have a couple of cell phones lying around. Those can be recycled, and materials can go back into the industry without depending on “blood ores”. Click here for electronic recycle depots near you. And click the link for Green For All clips, focusing on green job initiatives that are creating new opportunities for fighting poverty, environmental racism, and by association, the very issues being discussed here. It becomes clearer to me that Green Jobs can be anti-oppression.

These are all strategies within the context of living under capitalism. Clearly, the horrible crisis in the DRC is one of the ugliest symptoms of capitalism. I contribute to capitalism and I am in it, but i am also aware that capitalism is rooted in causing harm to oppressed people. In the case of DRC, war, patriarchy and capitalism come together to create a living hell for women.

I pray for human evolution, humanity and healing. It is my hope that whoever you are, whatever faith you belong to, you can still send prayers, light and love to the DRC. And also send some to women and girls that you know, if only in the spirit of International Women’s Day. Much gratitude, respect and love to all the women and girls in my life who contributed to me being the man i am today.

Revolutionary Love,
Richard

random fem.men.isms

2009-03-02T08:47:00.000-08:00

Lately, the hits on my blog have been going off the map again. Hits from all over the world. And when i track a good portion of them, its a lot of folks doing a google image search for the iconic picture above, which is featured in my post Nostalgia For The Gender Fluid 80's. It turns out that my blog comes up in the top 4 google image search options from simply typing "Grace Jones."

I must confess, Grace Jones is probably the only entertainer whose boots i would kiss if she asked me to. I believe that she is one of the most important women to come out of Jamaica, whilst being a fierce culture onto herself. The diva of divas.

And if you DON'T know, she has a new album out. Its called Hurricane, and it has collaborations with Sly and Robbie, Tony Allen (Fela's drummer), Brian Eno and Tricky. Miss Jones reports loving Massive Attack, and you can hear it. Rootsy Sly and Robbie riddims move through cryptic neo-dubby sounds, rock, soulful ballads, moody electronica and dancehall referencing tunes like "This Is" which kicks off the album with her declaration "This is my voice, my weapon of choice."

If you are looking for something new and interesting, i would highly recommend the latest works of the 60 year old (fabulous looking!) Jamaican preacher's daughter. I love the pics in the album too!

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While we are paying homage to and supporting strong Jamaican women- please support my amazing sister! She is making moves to cause much needed change in Florida (and you KNOW we need more progressives in office in FL!), and also stands to be the only non-white person to ever be on the Sunrise Commission. Elections are March 10th, its the home stretch. Please forward info about her to anyone you know in Florida, and contribute if you can! Thank you! More about her: http://www.votewrightmuir.com/

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Prop 8 reaches the Supreme Court AGAIN. The verdict will be given March 5th, this Thursday. Luckily, Gov. Shwarzenegger can't vote to disenfranchize folks this time cuz of some legal loophole (Its a "resolution". Why its being voted on at all tho..) The National Center Of Lesbian Rights has an ongoing online rally that everyone can join. Support the overturning of Prop 8!

Also of note in this struggle for equality is that the NAACP has issued statements in support of overturning Prop 8. Yay! Maybe its just me, but i get really happy when big black organizations endorse gay rights. Lets smash stereotypes together, shall we?? Ain't nobody free till we are all free, and NAACP is talking the talk. If you are so inclined, you can thank the NAACP on their Facebook fan page. Looks like they have been getting a lot of love :)

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Following that, i thought i'd close out this posting potpourri with the acceptance speech from Sean Penn for Best Actor in "Milk". To date, this is the only bit of the Grammy's i've seen, which i am pretty fine with :) I hope all the Grace Jones fans stumbling onto this blog appreciate these other fem.men.isms!

Oscar Grant's 23rd Birthday is Today. A Tribute And Reportback Of When The Mesherle Verdict Dropped.

2009-02-27T10:48:00.000-08:00

Today, Oscar Grant III would have been 23 years old if his life had not been needlessly stripped away by another man who is but a small cog in a large machine of institutional oppression. Today, I will light a candle for the evolution of justice and humanity, and healing.

As promised, I will share another perspective of living in Downtown Oakland which has become the heart of the outcry against these issues. This is an account of January 30th, 2009, the day when Mesherle was released on bail for murder.

January 30th, Oakland.

I’m on the phone with my mom in Florida, having a conversation about her not so successful trip to see Obama’s inauguration. I get a text from a friend who went to the Mesherle trial, it simply says: “Cop released on bail. Protest on court house steps now.”

My heart sinks, i am distracted, my attention leaving the conversation and going to the sound of helicopters and sirens. I can also sense the outrage in the air. I start to feel nauseous. I don’t have words yet. But before i can say what’s up, my mom cheerfully says loving nice-talking-to-yous, i-love-yous and good-byes. I say them back and hang up.

The nausea starts to burn me up. i feel dizzy. i text back Jen Mei to say i am leaving my apartment for the protest. She sends back updates of where the protest is moving to. I leave, feeling the rage bubbling up. I call the Breakroom, the cafe where i spin sometimes, tell them the news. I advise them to shut down, lock up and go home. They do. I hate to be alarmist, but i feel that there are people who are probably going to act out their rage on a more physically destructive level than i will. On one level, i envy those who may find some catharsis with the sound of smashing glass. I peep my head into Red Door Cafe and tell Ahmed to lock up too. He is just now hearing the news from me. I see his heart sink too, and him shake his head.

Owners of small businesses are hastily nailing up wood board over their store windows. Those who had not boarded up their stores posted paper flyers, calling for justice for Oscar Grant and featuring images of him. These flyers were usually placed right smack in the center of the store window. They were signs of support, but also hopeful talismans of protection. I was immediately transported back to living in New York City when the planes crashed into the World Trade Center buildings, and how Muslim and Sikh business were targeted and smashed up. The U.S. flag became the symbol that meant “don’t hurt me, i’m American too.” I remember getting into a Sikh’s taxi and counting 5 U.S. flags within the interior of the car alone. More flag stickers were on both bumpers and windows.

I continue down 14th street towards City Hall, where i see a group of protestors in the intersection of 14th and Broadway. On my way, I walk up to the Joyce Gordon Gallery. Joyce is outside with her chic artsy elder self, stylish black glasses framing her dark brown face, her signature short curly white fro shining. We both greet each other, shaking our heads. We comment that this verdict may as well mean “I hate Oakland. We vote to destroy it.” Concerned youth have given her an Oscar Grant III poster to hang in her large picture glass gallery window. She has positioned herself outside, at once checking the scene and protecting her gallery. Staff from Awaken Cafe walk over to talk to Joyce, asking for her thoughts around staying or locking up and going. I bid my farewells, and continue towards the crowd.

There are maybe 50, 75 people. Traffic has been stopped, and a brotha in his 30’s maybe is on top of a AC Transit Bus with a bullhorn, saying that it doesn’t matter if the person who was murdered was Black, Asian, Latino, whoever... the killing has to stop. The chant of No Justice, No Peace rises, signs depicting Oscar Grant and other black men who have lost their lives to police bullets in the back, and other senseless police brutalities. I see Navina and her sis. We are happy to see each other but sad look is exchanged. We hug. A brotha hands me a sign, and we all start walking down Broadway chanting “Whose Streets? OUR Streets!” It did feel powerful to be walking in the middle of the street in broad daylight with impassioned people. The streets were ours.

We reach the Oakland Police Station at Broadway and 7th Street, and converge on it. Several riot cops are standing there in line, blocking the front door. We swell around them, and the chants change to No Justice, No Peace, Fuck The Police! One dreadlocked brotha with dark glasses steps up to the line of cops, and with a bullhorn in their faces, charges them as being complicit, mindless tools of oppression that are lacking humanity. The flow of eloquent rage smoothly blends back into chants of No Justice, No Peace! Fuck The Police!

Our crowd begins to spread out, re-taking over the street intersection in front of OPD. Signs calling for the imprisonment of racist killer cops are raised in the air, pumping up and down in rhythm with chants. Traffic comes to a stop, and the crowd walks between cars, chanting. An SUV in traffic turns out to be an undercover cop car, and someone close by notices- and smashes the car window. My gut tightened, as i felt calm also instinctively wash over me. Its about to go down. In real time, i don’t have time to process all of this, because as soon as the sound of glass reached me, 2 seconds later, several cops poured out of the vehicle like angry and scared clowns. They each had arm loads of something. In a frantic dance, they all swung their hands out, and little black round objects flew in all directions. Everything goes slow motion, and i eye the location of where each little black object landed, and slowly back away, breathing deep, the calm overpowering the frenzy in my head and gut. Very loud explosions like staccato gunshots fill the air, and i see smoke. The protesting crowd seems to evaporate, clearing the intersection. The smoke clears (it wasn’t tear gas), and i see protestors on each of the four corners, and we seem thinner now. Someone is shouting for us not to disperse, to stay together. My adrenaline is somehow feeding my calm, making me buzz with an even, hyper-alertness. I see an abandoned bicycle in still in the street, and i pull it to the corner and rest it on a lightpost. I also see one of the concussion/smoke grenades in the street, unexploded. I use the zoom on my camera to take a picture without getting too close.

I point it out to people so they can stay clear. “Is it live?” One man asks. I decide that it is, and say yes. Another man walks over to pick it up to take it out from under the path of the now cautiously moving traffic. I lower my sign to shield my eyes in case it explodes and tell him to be careful. The idea of throwing it back into the cops occurs to me, but I am glad that he just disposes of it (in a gutter i think). I see a young white woman with short, curly dirty blonde hair and glasses move closer to the lightpost where I am. I ask her if the bike is hers, she says yes and slowly picks it up. She seems to be in some kind of adrenaline high as well. We stand on the corner and watch the protestors start to regroup a block further uptown.

“Can I walk with you?” She asks. “I feel safer just walking with someone.”
I tell her she most definitely can.
We start walking uptown on the Broadway sidewalk, me holding my sign, she walking her bike. An older black woman with braids up in a bun stops us, looking concerned.
“Did anyone get hurt? I heard something that sounded like gunshots.”
We let her know that they were just loud smoke grenades, and about the police vehicle with the smashed window. I flip through my digital camera pics and show her the grenade. She tsk tsks and shakes her head. She looks at us through dark shades and tells us that she has seen a lot, been through the sixties. She spoke of channeling this energy into the power of the pen, making sure that local representatives, the police stations and newspapers were contacted. She was glad that the Chief Of Police resigned. She also spoke about how the Oakland Police Department imports cops from Russia because no one wants to work here. The result being having cops who are not acquainted with, and unexperienced with connecting with diverse Oakland populations. The woman was a big advocate for police reform through recruiting people from the neighborhoods they will police. Cops who know kids by name cause they see them at church. We nodded, and conversed in agreement.

After a brief moment we exchanged smiles, thank yous, be carefuls and good byes. The young woman and I continued walking uptown. I know i have to head home soon. I see a chicken wire fence near a bus stop, and i take time to slide the post of my sign through the links so that it is high up, defiantly calling for justice against killer cops. When I am finished, a brother with a wool skully hat steps towards me from the bus stop, and says to me real close in my ear:
“People are excited about Obama. And that’s a good thing. But we need to be writing Feinstein about this stuff. She’ll fix things.”
I smell cigarettes and scented oils. He pulls back and looks me in the eye.
“Feinstein” He reiterates, giving me two thumbs up. I nod and smile, thank him and keep moving.

My bicycle friend is bending over helping a homeless man whose shopping cart of possessions has fallen over. Full plastic bags, clothes and other items are all over the sidewalk. Green eyes look up at me, and my bicycle friend says:
“I’m going to help this man for a minute. Could you walk with my bike and i’ll catch up with you in a minute?”
I say yes, and take the bike calmly, as if (white) people I just met ask me to walk away with their bike all the time. I walk slowly with the bike, and realize that i am unconsciously walking slow to make clear that i am not going to quickly jump on the bike and speed away. I break into a more normal stride, clear that all that isn’t necessary. I also feel touched by this genuine exchange that is happening.

I reach the corner of 14th and Broadway, and police are shooing people away. Wtf? I pretend not to see them, and lean the bike against the lightpost, pretending to be tying my shoelace or something. My ruse seems to invisibilize me, and practically everyone else is shooed away. My bicycle friend walks up and thanks me, looking around at the cops. I tell her that the cops are dispersing people, but i’m just like whatever. Still, i gotta head home. She thanks me again, and takes her bike. I ask her what her name is, she says Tonya. I formally introduce myself. She asks if i want a ride home on the seat while she pedals standing up. I laugh graciously, and say i’m ok, touching her shoulder in thanks. She smiles and rides off.

The cops are now doing the cop parade thing in the middle of the street, walking a dozen cops across. It looks so fascist. I see a friend, a sista i am going to refer to as B, who is shaking her head at the cops.
“They got all the twist ties hanging from their belts, they are just ready to start mass arrests. Look at em.”
Indeed, the cops look like they have a mission. We are behind them, watching them process up 14th street towards Lake Merritt.
B looks exasperated.

“What’s it gonna take? Do I have to join the police force and start killing white people? Or other cops?”

Another sista walking by hears B, and reacts by covering her mouth and saying a long “OOOOOOOOOOO!” The sound evokes approval of daring schoolyard antics, or hitting someone’s weakness right on the money when doing the dozens. Essentially... B said it.
Said the “unspeakable”, the idea of white communities being subjected to the same loss, the same needless suffering, the same injustice, the "same" oppression. The question resounded in my head. What would it really take for police reform?

I think of B’s words as I turn the key to my front door. Once inside, I can see from my window that cops were amassing on Harrison. I get a text from Kenji, it says that the cops are doing mass arrests on Harrison and 14th. B was right.

I am left with questions.

The last protest, protestors smashed up corporate stores instead of mom and pops places. Wells Fargo was the first to go down. What is the next step?

Politics of riots aside, another question burns uncomfortably in me. Where are the riots for Annette Garcia? Are there lower levels of outrage when women of color get shot in the back and killed by cops?

In a time of financial crisis, the OPD has tons of positions available. What can be done about deadly combinations of recession, capitalism, oppression, and the exaltation of legalized, primarily male violence?

The last question is around justice and healing.

In 2006, Charles Carl Roberts IV put an Amish schoolhouse under seige, and shot and killed 5 schoolgirls (ages 6 through 13) before killing himself . The response of the Amish community to this harrowing tragedy made the news, because it was unlike many responses usually seen. The outpouring of compassion directed to the Amish families, such as a fund for the affected families was refused... unless the family of the shooter was also given funds to help them recover from their loss as well. Family members of the murdered girls went to the wife and children of the shooter and comforted them. About 30 members of the Amish community attended Roberts' funeral, and Marie Roberts, the widow of the killer, was one of the few outsiders invited to the funeral of one of the victims. Marie Roberts wrote an open letter to her Amish neighbors thanking them for their forgiveness, grace, and mercy. She wrote, "Your love for our family has helped to provide the healing we so desperately need. Gifts you've given have touched our hearts in a way no words can describe. Your compassion has reached beyond our family, beyond our community, and is changing our world, and for this we sincerely thank you."

Will justice be served by putting anyone through the twisted, unjust, capitalist monster that is the prison industrial system? Will healing and reform occur that way? I do want justice, but i don’t think we have a very real and functioning justice system. Of course, a part of me wants Mesherle with all his white privilege and guilt to experience what men who look like me are forced through all the time. I want an example to be made, a sign to humanity impaired, racist white cops that its no longer open season on black men. An example that signals the crumbling of the racist foundations of an institution. And at the very least, a mechanism that protects our communities from trigger-happy cops.

But perhaps, there are other ways towards healing and justice. Ways that we have yet to create. Ways that leave the family destroying eye-for-an-eye ways behind. Ways that truly rehabilitate and cause real change. Ways that others may have pointed a compassionate finger towards.

I’m open to suggestions.

BLACK LOVE in PUBLIC! 12 Noon, This Saturday in SF

2009-02-26T10:02:00.000-08:00

see. think. dance. has been committed to a concept called The Intimacy Project. And now see. think. dance. is bringing the beginning of a Love Movement y'all. I can't think of a more perfect and beautiful way to conclude Black History Month. On a personal tip I'm also feelin the synchronicity of this event,not only because this Saturday would have been my dad's 77th birthday (Lloyd I. Wright, rest his soul) but also because i just blogged about there needing to be more body positive spaces in public. In short... imma be there for sure. Please fwd this out to the bay area brothas and sistas who you know would want to be a part of such an event, or even just wanna witness it... Lets get our BLIP on!! :)

Location to be announced. Facebook link: BLACK LOVE in PUBLIC

see. think. dance.

The Intimacy Project presents
BLACK LOVE in PUBLIC
a mass demonstration of affection
Saturday :: Feb. 28 :: 12pm - 1pm ::
Location TBA

PHOTO: Bethanie Hines, PHOTO DESIGN: Keira Chang

BLACK LOVE in PUBLIC
a mass demonstration of affection

Saturday - February 28 - 2009
12pm - 1pm
San Francisco, CA (exact location TBA)

For ONE hour on ONE day, The Intimacy Project calls upon Black folks in the Bay Area to SHOW their love for one another.

This is an OPPORTUNITY to CLAIM SPACE...
In a city that is slowly rendering Blackness invisible.
In a time that fails to support us as emotional beings.

This is an EXAMPLE to OURSELVES + to OTHERS...
That Black folks are capable of deep + sustained affection towards each other.
That we are able to heal wounds, old + new, starting with the simple act of TOUCH.

To RSVP/ participate/ engage/ question :::
via email intimacy@seethinkdance.com
via Facebook BLACK LOVE in PUBLIC

The Intimacy Project is...

an ongoing collaboration between artists/educators who draw creative inspiration from their connection to the African continent and are deeply invested in social change through the re-integration of the mind and the body.

By examining the barriers to intimacy amongst those who were once property, The Intimacy Project invokes the historical legacy of slavery on Black minds and bodies as a departure point to uncover solutions for greater honesty and communication across age, gender, class and race.

Sex Positivity: Carnivals of Culture, Puritanism, Oppression and Body Positive Spaces.

2009-02-23T09:10:00.000-08:00

Hello? Anybody there? Sorry, its been a couple weeks since i last posted! But the truth can now be told... i was back in Jamaica with my honey, having a sweet time being very offline. Very sweet time. I still have tactile memories of our sunbaked, suntan-oil slicked bodies holding each other in the ocean, kissing while waves pushed us together. mmmmm!!! (to the family and friends i didn't get to see this time around, beg yu give me a bly, soon come back! this was a strickly honeytime flex...)

while in Jamaica, my partner commented on something that i wasn't really able to see as someone who grew up in the culture. The fact that most adults we talked to (age 30's through young 40's middle class Jamaicans, decent percentage of Catholic upbringing, living at least outwardly heteroexual lives) seem very comfortable talking about sex/sexuality. And with people they have just met. I'm not talking about come-ons, just casual matter-of-fact convo that involves sex in ways that people in the States may involve an anecdote from work, or relating a story of some old friend they just ran into. My sweetie pointed out several examples: A female friend of mine casually shares about her masturbation habits in the first 30 minutes of meeting said sweetie. A male friend recalls performance anxiety in first sexual encounters during a conversation on high school. At dinner in a fancy-ish restaurant, a pregnant female friend reports how her husband woefully strokes her breast with longing, because he knows from experience that her breast will no longer be "his" when the baby is born. Still another woman my honey just met shares how she feels that her sex life has gotten better and better with marriage.

Its only when this is pointed out to me, that i see the pattern. The gf then says with a "i shoulda had a V8" kinda lightbulb realization, "Of course. Its not about Jamaicans. Its about US. The U.S. is a puritanical culture!" It was a great conversation.

And it left me thinking. Thinking about how dominating culture-centric the U.S. is, establishing a standard by which people are determined to be "hypersexual" or... whatever the antonym of "hypersexual" is. Usually, people of color and LGBTQ folks are stigmatized as "hypersexual", while this sexuality is coveted, obsessed about, and fetishized.

Of course, there is a spectrum of appropriateness in every culture, and right now in Jamaica the Broadacasting Commission is banning the radio airplay of sexually explicit songs, a move inspired by the relatively new dancehall phenomenon of "daggering". Daggering is a style of dance typified by simulations of hard banging, rough sex. One of the signature songs, "Hundred Stab" challenges men to pound into a woman 100 hundred times in under 60 seconds. There is an added "extreme sport" factor where a man may jump from a chair or speaker box onto a woman being (consensually!!) held like a net, aiming his groin at hers. Or a woman may run full tilt across a room to jump onto a man. People definitely leave dances with smiles and bruises! This video and this video will elucidate. Whew!!

But again, levels of "appropriateness" are relative. Displays of homosexual activity is definitely staunchly oppressed, and amorousness between same sex couples could be life threatening. Also many members of the dancehall community are not happy about the stigma being placed on the good time they are having, especially since this is near Jamaican carnival time, where the soca/calypso community parades half-naked in the street, emanating rhythmic rapture and beaming with sexuality (see pic above). The dancehall community asks, why is this ok, and our dancing is not? Class and color raises tensions, as dancehall has roots in dark skinned, working class people, and the carnival community has roots in "brown" middle class people. Issues of what is ok to model for children also raise heated debates, with class structured values bouncing back and forth.

Jamaican culture clashes aside, if we look at the picture above, an ironic fact may come to mind. I cannot think of a national cultural event in the United States that echoes this level of costumery, body/sexuality celebration and dance (besides other isolated Brazilian and Caribbean Carnival celebrations here). The closest that would seem to come to this, is Gay Pride. I believe this is ironic for many reasons, but also because here, it is puritanical and heterosexist oppression that has created the need for a space that asserts humanity, and celebrates the body, love and sexuality. Sure, us straight folks have the privilege to walk down the street holding hands, and be amorous in public without fear of harm (perhaps race might complicate that, but mostly, its a pretty assured straight privilege), and the media floods us all with normalizing images of heterosex and affirms its naturality.... But there is not really a national event where heteros- or better yet- EVERYONE regardless of genders and sexualities, can just walk down the street, sun on our skin, revelling in our beautiful bodies, dancing and getting hot and happy with other hot and happy people. One woman i know who does the Jamaican carnival in "full" costume reported having a rapturous experience... dancing down the street, being transported by calypso and soca polyrhythms, feeling free in her body and soul, and looking around and seeing her closest friends also enraptured. A powerful moment of being sublimely and utterly present opened up... and with it came the realization, the message to mark this moment as the happiest moment in her life. Tears streamed down her face, and the ecstacy raised her even higher.

So what do we need here? A Pan-Gendered, Pan-Sexual, Sex Positive Parade? I'll DJ!! When not dancing my half nekkid butt off. The event would need to have a catchier name though, methinks. The Carnival of Body Liberation!! Hee. I'm open to suggestions.

In conclusion, to me the phrase "Sex Positivity" has a new emphasis. It is a phrase that symbolizes the conscious maintenance of natural and healthy body/sexuality self-image in a dominating culture that is oppressive to bodies and sexuality in specific, historically and culturally defined ways.

Hmmm. Maybe the Carnival Of Everyone-Is-A-Juicy-Hottie? Still needs a little fine tuning... ;)

.

Men's Story Project Screening @ SF Independent Film Festival

2009-02-02T18:10:00.000-08:00

If you missed the Men's Story Project last year (which I almost performed in, and also glowingly reviewed in this blog... this is some serious ish people!), you now have a chance to watch it, either in San Francisco (Roxie) or Berkeley (Shattuck Cinema). Screen dates are February 8th, 10th and 22nd. Click here for schedule and venue details.

....................................................................................

Filmed at La Peña Cultural Center in Berkeley with a standing-room-only audience, this film shows the powerful debut presentation of the Men's Story Project - a new performance/dialogue project examining social ideas about masculinity for the purpose of social change.

Described by audience members as "groundbreaking," "transformative," and "something that needs to keep on happening," this performance highlights 16 Bay Area artists, activists, and first-time presenters, ages 22-60, sharing stories about their lives through slam poetry, monologues, music and dance.

The stories address subjects including platonic love between men; images of African American masculinity; religion, homophobia and HIV/AIDS; disability and sexuality; testicular cancer and wholeness; men's public restroom rituals; an Oakland activist's refusal to continue intergenerational patterns of violence; spirituality inside San Quentin; transgender identity and gender fluidity; relationships with fathers and other family members; and gratitude to lifelong mentors.

Presenters include Robert Haaland, the first transgender candidate elected to SF public office; Leroy Moore of Sins Invalid; Galen Peterson of Oakland's Art in Action; and members of the Berkeley and SF slam poetry championship teams.

www.mensstoryproject.org

Another Senseless Police Execution: Annette Garcia, Mother Of 3, Shot In The Back And Killed By Police In Her Driveway.

2009-01-27T11:21:00.000-08:00

Sigh. This is really a horrible story, guaranteed to have you shake your head and be like wtf. There is zero coverage of this in mainstream media. Only Indymedia, which covers the story and the candlelight vigil/protests that ensued (more pics at the Indymedia link). The other main source is CAPE (Coalition Against Police Executions) who issued updates on the situation:

Annette Garcia, a Brown Beret de Aztlan member
and a mother of three children, was shot in the
back Wednesday evening by a Riverside County
Sheriffs deputy. The name of the shooter has not
been released but according to the Riverside
County Sheriff's Perris Station, the deputy has
been placed on "paid" administrative leave pending an investigation.

The call was made due to a domestic dispute. The
police started shooting from a block away, and was in NO DANGER.

The deputy arrived by himself at a home at the
16900 block of Lake Mathews Drive and shot at
Annette Garcia six times while she was walking
away. She was distressed, carrying a knife while
walking AWAY FROM THE OFFICER. The officer began
to shoot from behind, at which point, Annette
Garcia started running for safety to her home.
Five of the shots missed but one hit Annette
Garcia in the back. She bled to death in front of her children.

The 29 year old mother was rushed to the
Riverside County Regional Medical Center in
Moreno Valley but was pronounced dead on arrival.

What words are there for this? When a woman of color is gunned down in her own driveway after needing HELP from police? Does this happen in Orange County? And where is the coverage? This happened almost a week ago! Do riots need to happen for this to gain attention? ie, minimize the murderous actions of police and emphasize the rage of targeted communities? At this point, I am considering that the mainstream media is fearful of feeding the momentum of the national and internationally growing police accountability/anti-police brutality movement. The silence of the media makes them complicit with the travesty. I encourage people to inquire of the main news machines why this story is not being covered, and insist that it gets coverage before another community explodes in outrage.

New York Times: News Dept. nytnews@nytimes.com
SF Chronicle: chroniclewatch@sfchronicle.com
LA Times
Washington Post
CNN: News Tips

I have been lagging with my own reportback from the 2nd Oscar Grant Protest, which was really beautiful and powerful. The peaceful part that never got reported anyway. Apologies. More to come. Praying for healing and justice.

Electra Feels Good To Peaches Thinkin' Triple X: Women In Electro Music

2009-01-23T11:01:00.000-08:00

Besides blogging, one of my larger passions is deejaying. I've been deejaying since 1985, me and my now brother-in-law David started learning together in Jamaica, which became the foundation of Ambassador Soundsystem. And in case you didn't know this about Jamaicans... we LOVED to boogie! And when i say boogie, i mean we were poppin and lockin and breakin, had battle crews and taggers and the whole nine. Shoo, a yardie named Kool Herc started this whole hip hop game, let us not forget! Nuff respek...

Speaking of forgetting... i have been haunted by an obscure song for decades. I would sing what i could remember to other deejays, and a faint light might sparkle in their eye, but no one could tell me what this song was. My most vivid memory of this song was either the 1982 or 1983 Campion High School Barbecue in Kingston (high school barbecues were a big big ting back then!!) and a popping and locking electric boogie duo performed on stage to this song. It was an amazing performance, i remember them creating invisible obstacles for them to pop lock and shiver through. My own "boogie tag" was "Shiver" for a minute cause i used to pass the wave with visibly vibrating limbs. I think i still can too... aw yeah! :)

I finally found the elusive song accidentally on an old school house and electro compilation online just a couple weeks ago (its called Chicago Boogie - its dope!!), and there it was, Electra "Feels Good" (1982). I immediately wrote my bredda-in-law and other members of Ambassadors, i had finally found this song that had stumped us! And i have to say, i love YouTube, they have more old school gems up there than mp3 sites! (full song above). I was also inspired to blog about this through stumbling onto the Cocoa Luv Chronicles blog... she is also a dj, and puts up clips of old school jams.

Listening to the Electra song, I was transported back to pre-teen memories, and i just love it! However, I was also amused at how dated the lyrical content seemed. Electra is singing about doing all these exercise routines, but not for herself. She makes it crystal clear that she is only doing this to please her lover. Although she never says her lover is male, its till sounds loaded when she sings "all for you! just you! bending and stretching for you, just you." I guess at least she says all the the working out "feels good" to her. But it made me think about the evolution of women in electro music, and how there seemed to be a trajectory of lyrics moving from a more self-sacrificing womanhood to a more aggressive and assertive expression of femininity.

To be clear, I am not referring to electronic music in totality, just the sub-genre of electro music, which is typified by the synth drum sounds of the Roland TR-808 module that came out in 1980. The sounds on this drum machine are distinct, especially in the way they do not sound like real drums. The TR-808 also influenced techno along with the TR-909. Early electro had its foundations in the sounds of Kraftwerk, Afrika Bambatta's "Planet Rock", and Classic pre-Detroit Techno tracks like Cybotron's "Clear". The minimal synthetic electronic sound evoked the robotic emulations that electric boogie and popping and locking were.

In terms of electronic music, women like Wendy Carlos and Laurie Anderson have long been pushing the experimental electronic envelope, and the Bay Area's own Miya Masaoka has been rockin the laser koto for decades, in tandem with performance art works involving insects, the body, and commentary on race and gender. In terms of women and electro, the earliest my own dj library and research can come up with is Electra's "Feels Good" and Berlin's "The Metro" (awesome song! somewhat tortured video, themes around finally leaving a problematic relationship... whew! peep the link). From there, Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam did their electro meets freestyle thing with hits like "I Wonder If I Take You Home." (1984), (wow... i'm sorry, i forgot how fine Lisa Lisa was. She was foine! Heh. You gotta peep the hairstyles in this video too!) Here, Lisa Lisa sings openly about her sexuality ("because i need you tonight") while questioning if the dude will stick around afterwards. We are moving away from more tortured relationship dynamics slowly :) JJ Fad brought it back to the Afrika Bambatta hip hop/electro roots with "Supersonic" (1988) . They are having a blast! And this is pure, feel good, shining female hip hop bravado. They are Supersonic, what more do you need? At this point, the whole Miami Bass phenomenon definitely took the electro thang and ran with it. You can still hear electro influence in South Side Hip Hop. Electro-funk took off much earlier in 1980 with acts like Zapp & Roger, and Midnight Star (Freak-A-Zoid! live!) who took the vocoder elements of Kraftwerk and fused it with raw funk, programmed beats and bubbling synth basslines. No one would guess how abused the vocoder would become through the 2000's in contemporary hip hop and r&b. Please issue cease and desist orders to T-Pain and Kanye West.

Back to the the Clan Of Electra... Mad props gotta go to Missy Elliot too! When she dropped "Lose Control", she brought it full circle back to original electro, by revamping Cybotron's "Clear." And no doubt, Missy ain't got time to worry about half-steppin knucklehead lovers, she is "clear"ly too busy being awesome. Get your back off the wall. Miss Demeanor said so.

Missy Elliot "Lose Control"

Finally, the new school queens of Electro (or electroclash, which has more roots in the fusion of new wave and electro- like Berlin "The Metro") are acts like Ladytron and Peaches. And whoooo.... Peaches? Here, fierce and assertive womanhood is unapologetic and on your face. No that's not a typo :) I think this a good place to complete the timeline of women in electro, and the widening continuum of expression of female power that was portrayed. There are more videos on Peaches' website, but i just have to embed the YouTube fake video of "AA XXX" just cuz its one of my fave Peaches songs. (below. mp3 listen link for AA XXX here.)

I await commentary and theorizing around what the cybernetic combination of warmblooded women and cold bleeping machinery can mean or symbolize. Cylons!! (tip of the hat to BSG fans :)

Peaches "Double A Triple X" (strong language may not be appropriate for minors)

ps: wanna dig deeper? are you like... what is the difference between electro, techno and house? peep the helpful, interactive, irreverent and mostly accurate Ishkur's Guide To Electronic Music.

This What A Feminist Looks Like! Commemorative Obama Issue of Ms. Magazine

2009-01-16T10:31:00.001-08:00

Wow. Can't wait to pick up this one! I'm super curious! (Thanks for the heads up Leslie!)

Have people seen what Obama has stated on his transition site, under "agenda" and "women"? Its pretty extensive. And not only helpful on a domestic level, but globally. Also well done are what he has under "agenda" and "civil rights". There he states his platform of support for the LGBTQ community. All looking good for starters! I have been saying that Obama's picking of Rick Warren may be an indication of his political strategies to come, handing symbols to the right, while actually pushing through legislation that is pro-people. I feel like the right has done this to marginalized people forever- name a street after MLK, then actually do nothing for black people. Don't be suprised if Obama names a street after Rush Limbaugh, and then do real ish for the people on the under... it might get him a second term!

Needless to say, about the whole Rick Warren thing... I am now relieved to hear that Obama has appointed The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, an openly gay bishop, to kick off the inaguration. And apparently this wasn't a response to the outrage, it was already in the plans. Interesting timing though!! Again, as I have said before, I am so psyched about this positive and powerful image of black masculinity that is now centerstage. Straight Black Man as a communicator, family man, president, feminist, and straight ally. Loving it!!

Imma look for that copy of Ms. this weekend...

(ps reportback from 2nd Oscar Grant Rally still comin!!)

OSCAR GRANT'S KILLER COP ARRESTED IN NEVADA!!

2009-01-14T09:04:00.000-08:00

Heartening news in the SFGate about the killer ex-cop who seemed to be on the run! Thank you Nevada for taking action where BART was not!! The family lawyer Burris also commented:

"If it's true, the family is delighted, and it will really help with the healing process," Burris said. "This is also very important for the community. This had to occur; it was almost a no-brainer. I think the district attorney ought to be commended for moving (the case) expeditiously."

The rally is still scheduled for today at 4pm, in fact it looks like i might dj a bit at the beginning. I am super interested to feel the vibe at this gathering given this great news. May Justice continue along this path!

Rally for Justice for Oscar Grant
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
4:00pm - 7:00pm
Oakland City Hall
1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza
Oakland, CA

This One Goes Out To The Boys On The Double Dutch Team

2009-01-13T18:12:00.000-08:00

Hey peeps, wassup. I've been blogging about super intense stuff lately, I felt the need to take it down just a notch. I found this clip on Feministe, and it definitely spoke to me. Its about a little black boy who joins a double dutch team (traditionally a "girls game"). He is teased and bullied, but is also skilled and happy, doing what he loves. Even moms was like hell no at first, but she comes around. Kudos to gender outlaws and supportive allies!

I am of the belief that rigid gender roles hurts everyone. The socially acceptable boxes of "masculinity" and "femininity" are tiny, suffocating, and often make soulfully taxing demands (ie, boys can't have feelings besides anger, girls should take care of others before themselves). So I find this to be a story of triumph. I wish that my sister, when she was a pre-teen got this kind of support from her school. In those days, she was a tomboy who could kick a ball better than most. And she would play football with the boys all the time (soccer to most people in the US, not Jamaica tho!!), some boys didn't even realize they were playing against a girl cuz she was rockin a short fro like a lot of the boys. But when it came to inter-school competitions, she was not allowed to be on the team. Sigh. Effed up. When we moved to the US, my sis was on a high school all-girls team though, and she excelled. But I am sure the exclusion that she experienced earlier stayed with her.

This one goes out to the boys on the double dutch team, the girls playing rough and tumble, everyone in between living their lives, and gender outlaws everywhere. May we all let the fire in our chests burn bright, and may these silly boxes just fade away already. Bless up!

12-Year old African American Girl, Dymond Milburn, Beaten By Police. And More Accounts Of State Funded Predators With Guns.

2009-01-12T09:54:00.000-08:00

Outrage around the state funded murder of Oscar Grant III has gone beyond the Bay Area, and has also given more visibility to the reality of cops acting in arrogant, excessive, racist and often deadly ways to the people they are supposed to be protecting. (*for a heartful reportback on the Oscar Grant Protests/Riots, please see my previous post.)

I just found out from What About Our Daughters? via Erik Pukinskis' blog about this outrageous case in Galveston, Texas, where plain clothes cops looking for a white sex worker, identified a 12 year old black girl as their target, dragged her off of her stoop, gagged and beat her, shouting that she is "a prostitute". wtf. Her father was also arrested for trying to protect his daughter from maniacs is suits trying to drag his 12 year old daughter away while beating her and calling her a prostitute.

Dymond Milburn, from Galveston, Texas, was grabbed by three plain-clothed police officers out the front of her house and told, “You’re a prostitute. You’re coming with me”, according to the lawsuit. After struggling with the men and screaming, “Daddy, Daddy, Daddy”, the girl had her mouth covered and was struck in the face and throat, leaving her with black eyes and throat and ear drum injuries, her lawyer said.

The officers had been called to the area in relation to three white prostitutes nearby.

Dymond’s house was two blocks from the area the policemen were told to go to, and, as an African American 12-year-old girl, she did not fit the physical description of the suspects.

However, the officers reportedly believed she was a prostitute because of the “tight shorts” she was wearing. Three weeks later, police went to Dymond’s school and arrested her for assaulting a public servant. Her father was also arrested. SOURCE

Insanity. And effed up for so many reasons. This is such a scary case of gendered profiling, where a 12 year old girl wearing "tight shorts" can get beaten by cops?!? It is also a disturbing account of how police treat sex workers. As if it would have been "ok" otherwise. And of course, it is frothing at the mouth rabid racism, to target a young black girl chillin on her stoop whilst looking for a white suspect-- and then have the audacity to go and arrest the girl and her father 3 weeks later for defending themselves from pathological power tripping morons.

Wish I could say that that was the last story, but there is more. On New Year's Eve in LA, Michael Cho was shot 10 times and killed while wielding a tire iron a good distance from the police. Why the cops chose to use lethal measures? Sounds like more racism and effed up aggro crap to me.

On New Year’s Eve, La Habra police shot and killed Michael Cho in a strip mall parking lot when he allegedly threatened officers with a tire iron.

The killing of the UCLA graduate and artist has set off criticism of police not heard in Southern California’s Korean American community since the 1992 Los Angeles riots, when shop owners complained that officers never showed up to stop looters, and they picked up guns to defend their stores.

This time, community leaders say La Habra police were too quick on the trigger when responding to a vandalism call.

“We haven’t seen this expression of shock, disbelief and sadness in the community before,” said Richard Choi Bertsch, of the Orange County Korean American Coalition. “All of the first-generation parents are saying, ‘This could’ve been my kid.’ ” Charles Kim, a La Habra resident and past national president of the Korean American Coalition, said that “the community’s mind is pretty much set that the police overreacted.”

The shooting has been widely followed in the Korean-language media. Korea Times reporter John Lee called it “one of the biggest stories” and said every new development is reported “as soon as it comes in.”
“There was some anger. People posed challenging questions and wanted to know why police didn’t use nonlethal force,” Kennedy said. “They wanted to know why the young man was shot so many times, and how would [Kies] feel if it had been his son.” SOURCE

Meanwhile in Greece, people rioted for over a week because of the police shooting of 15 year old Alexandros Grigoropoulos. The latter link leads to a site that was organizing an international response. One blogger on the last thread even said that protestors in Greece are also in solidarity with Oakland.

What this says to me is that outrage around these events can be channeled into an international forum and response. Around the world, the urgent need for police reform and accountability is in the spotlight. In these times when Israeli military has slaughtered 900 Palestinian civilians, is using illegal incendiary chemical weapons like white phosphorous, and is thwarting medical supplies reaching the Gaza strip (go Green Party Candidate Cynthia McKinney!!)... Clearly there is a lot of consciousness and outrage around state funded and validated, occupying militarized forces wreaking havoc in marginalized communities. It was good to see people at the Oscar Grant Protest drawing lines between Gaza and Oakland, and indeed, solidarity is needed. (For more info about the Gaza situation... its all about Al-Jazeera people!)

Wanna close out this post with something I excerpted from an anonymous letter called "Don't Mourn, Organize". Personally, i think both are important things to do, but I hear the emphasis on not remaining inactive. This is in response to Oscar Grant III, Rest In Peace. And may he definitely rest in Justice too.

The first thing we can do is to boycott BART. They said it will take two weeks to ‘get back to’ us around their internal investigation; therefore, we should take two weeks to get back to them. BOYCOT BART FOR THE NEXT TWO WEEKS!
Demand BART, as part of a community restitution, help fund community based healing centers that focus on grief counseling, conflict resolution and restorative justice. Despite police brutality, much of the murder in Oakland is either black on black or brown on brown crime. We need healing around all of this.
Organize city wide to begin to address local problems, form work cooperatives, and establish training programs in safe new technologies for employment and community development.
Be safe and savvy. In this day of face recognition technology, young protesters should cover their faces. Law enforcement run photographs through DMV records and attempt to round people up. They may get charges but police then use that information as leverage to ‘turn’ young people into informants and spies.
Beware of agent provocateurs. We learned in the 60s and 70s that often the one suggesting the most extreme acts of violence were actual police disguised as protesters to initiate acts that will get people in trouble so that the movement gets bogged down in legal troubles.
Link up struggles. What is the relationship between Oscar Grant’s murder and the teenager killed by police in Athens, Greece? They are very similar and the response was similar because the capitalist, military style police strategy is the same. What is the relationship of Oakland’ struggle to Chiapas, Mexico, Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil? Are delegates representing Oscar Grant’s anti-police brutality movement going to the World Social Forum to explain to the progressive world their/our plight?
Devise culturally sensitive training classes developed by professionals and the community to help eradicate racist assumptions, class stereotypes and immigrant fear among all police agencies in the Bay area. It should be mandatory for all law enforcement.
Get involved with something now. Even though our new president’s focus is on re-stabilizing American capitalism, he was a community organizer and has encouraged everyone to ratchet up their social commitments and work in their communities. That dove tails perfectly with Oakland’s effort to become a ‘Model City’ and the call to participate. We must revive Oakland’s radical and progressive spirit. It is here, as evidenced by the face that Alameda County gave Obama his highest vote percentage in the nation, 79%. It is time this social awareness pay dividends to people directly represented by them doing something for themselves.

Rally for Justice for Oscar Grant
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
4:00pm - 7:00pm
Oakland City Hall
1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza
Oakland, CA

Reportback From The Oscar Grant Protests/Riots.

2009-01-08T11:20:00.001-08:00

Wednesday, Jan 7th. Oscar Grant Protest/Riots, Downtown Oakland

(This post contains some strong language and imagery of violence. May not be appropriate for minors.)

The news about how Oscar Grant was killed by the police weighed heavily on me, and the video footage looped in my head.

after wheeling my records home from my gig, i wash my face and call a taxi. i walk outside to wait, and the sky is buzzing with helicopters. (at 10:33pm, it still is... i can see searchlights crawl over the Tribune building) my head is turned skyward, approximating the helicopters to be somewhere by the lake. maybe by International.

an older black man stops and says
"They protestin' Oscar Grant you know."
i tell him that's where i want to go.
he says
"This ain't nothin new you know, cops killing black people.
They usually say that the man was resisting arrest or sumpn.
This one just got caught."
I nod in agreement.

The taxi pulls up, i recognize the driver from lifts to dj gigs. i greet him and smile, and then look upwards. looking back at him, i say "could you follow the helicopters?"
and we're off.
for a moment i enjoy the fact that i just asked a taxi to follow helicopters.
we talk, he shares his outrage, shakes his head in grief. soon, we are at a police blockade, and i can see the crowd swelling behind them. we pull over, i pay and tip the driver.
he looks me in the eyes.
"Thank you. Be safe."
"You too."

I walk past the blockade without interference.
i approach the crowd
they are chanting

WE 
ARE
 ALL
 OSCAR  GRANT

i join in.

and i light my white seven day candle
in its glass sleeve.

soon, i see people i know.

there are smiles and hugs,
and also shaking of heads.

There are Korean drummers beating out poongmul rhythms, lots of bicyclists, huge banners indicting killer cops, bullhorns shouting chants of No Justice, No Peace.

i notice that the crowd is mixed, but with a lot of white folks.

some young white kids are in full black with hoodies and bandanas covering their faces.
One is carrying a black flag.

Black Bloc. "Anarchists."

They keep trying to set fire to stuff, and others keep trying to put em out.

i feel anger because i know that the media will racialize the unrest to not look like these suburbanites who use protests as an excuse to smash stuff. Not very radical seeming to me.

We converge on the BART Police station.
A police car is in the middle of the road.
The chants turn into

No Justice No Peace, Fuck The Police!

Some of us look at each other, not chanting.

Then the rocks started being thrown.

And then someone was jumping on the police car.

And then a dumpster was on fire.

And then the dumpster was pushed towards the now rocking police car, as people attempted to turn it over.

I am starting to buzz with adrenaline. I reach for my face towel, awaiting what had to be inevitable. I looked around to see if i could see them-

There they were. Riot cops blocking off one street walking towards the intersection.

I started backing away, and seconds later came the tear gas.

I only smelled a little of it thanks to my towel, and i was far enough for it not to get in my eyes.

I am still holding my candle.
I am the only one holding a candle.
I feel strangely out of place
and also that this is the most important place for me to be
with a lone candle.

even police have been smiling and nodding at me.
somehow, this candle has transformed me from being
a racially profiled target
into the one person that maybe they aren't so worried about.

more kids show up, i am also no longer sure who is genuinely angry, and who is just ready to wreck shit.

trash cans are pulled into the road, cars are now being walked and stomped on.

as a protestor, and not a rioter, i figure its now time to go home.

i text friends letting them know they can come over if things get hectic. I text other friends to let them know that Downtown Oakland is going crazy.

i am stopped by an older black man on the way home. His name is Charles DuBois. We talk about grassroots movements, Obama, and politicization of youth, his amber brown eyes lit by my candle. People walk by, smile and salute us.

When i get home, i am on edge. I can't sit still. The outside sounds of copters, sirens and breaking glass permeate my apartment. I feel stir crazy, unsettled, unfinished. I have to get out again. In my head I imagine friends and family thinking I am crazy. I drink water, and text Mahfam and Kendal to let them know that i am heading out again.
I pick my candle back up and head into the night.

There are police blockades everywhere now.

i try to meet up with folks, but things are looking hectic. My candle still seems to encase me in a cocoon of light that police and others smile at.

a sista around my age stops me, says she recognizes me from earlier on in the protest. she thanks me for walking with a candle, and keeping alive what this should really be about. I thank her as well.

I head down 14th street towards Webster... and that's as far as i get. A couple blocks further down, the crowd looms, and its a riot crowd. i can smell something burning, and Broadway is obscured with smoke that could be the source of the smell, or tear gas. A metal hulk slowly rolls out of a backlit cloud of smoke. it is a paramilitary tank with a mounted water cannon. Is this my neighborhood?

I rest my back against a corner streetlight, and watch, the candle flame flickering slightly under my face. neighbors from my building join me, we stand there and take in the mayhem that our block has become.

there are more people of color now. young kids of various backgrounds are smashing cars, and at least one car is burning. Store windows are getting smashed now too. At first i thought black kids were targeting Korean stores, but then an African hair braiding store got smashed. Later, friends would tell me that they saw the immigrant African family in the store, asking why, why, why? Another friend said that an older Asian man-- on crutches no less-- pleaded with rioting youth not to smash his car up. But they did. Right in front of him. And i saw a middle aged Asian woman running, screaming because her bag had been snatched. I shouted for people to leave her alone, but i had no idea where her assailants were.

This was officially out of control.

Then the crowd started running full tilt up the street towards me. Some people look terrified, but most actually were smiling, looking at each other like "awww shit! hee!" I know you aren't supposed to run in situations like this, but i really didn't feel like getting hosed, gassed or rubber bulleted. Or hanging out with rioters. So i kept close to the buildings, and jogged back towards my house. A thrown bottle broke on the wall near my knee.

I get to my stoop, and see other neighbors. One woman, a mother of two, comes out in her pajamas, asking what is going on. The tank rolls by. she is incredulous. I ask if she knew about Oscar Grant. She didn't. I tell her that an unarmed black man was handcuffed, put on his stomach, and then was shot in the back and killed by a cop. Her eyes widen, her jaw drops in horror. She says with a Philippine trill on her tongue, "No wonder they are so angry!"

The helicopters are everywhere, their buzzing drone bouncing off buildings and rolling down the canyons of streets. searchlights lit up windows and intersections.

Somebody walks by my stoop, looks at us and says what sounds like "The mayor is coming around the corner."

Wha?

It seems that the crowd and riot cops have moved on, so i walk from my stoop to Harrison and 14th, and lean against that lightpost.

Coming up 14th, is indeed Mayor Dellums. He is surrounded by an anxious looking suited entourage and media. He himself looks distraught. He sees me. He looks at my candle. And he simply reaches out and holds my arm for a second, and then he and the entourage keep moving.

It occurs to me that cops are probably not going to tear gas, hose, or rubber bullet the mayor. And now i run into Newman, who is also curious to see where this mayoral train is heading. We fall in step behind the entourage.

The mayor stops on 14th and Madison and starts talking to people and press. Madison is absolutely lit up with rotating police lights. I can't hear what Dellums is saying, but he seems to be unintentionally pissing people off.
"Be patient?? Be patient?? Be patient while they keep killing us??" One sista shouts.

At some point, we are completely encircled by riot cops, but they are a decent distance away from us. Everyone is ignoring them, and focusing on the mayor. A paramilitary tank rolls up. A brotha shouts "Oh look, democracy has arrived!"

The mayor breaks the circle, walking towards the tank. Riot police scurry and reposition themselves. Dellums talks to an officer. Moments later, the tank and riot police dissolve back into the troubled night. Dellums announces on a bullhorn that he has asked them to leave. He is drowned out by people demanding the release of arrested supporters, reform of Oakland police, and streams of curses that basically refer to him as an @%#* Uncle Tom and worse. Whew. Though I must say, I am curious as to what he is going to do and say besides wave some cops away.

So yeah, at this point I think i'm about ready to head back home now. I see friends Bea and Inez, and tell them that I have seen enough for tonight, and that i'm going home. A young sista overhears me, and says with a half joking voice "you should give me your candle then." I turn and look at her.
"Do you really want my candle?" I can see that she has been crying all night.
"Yeah."
"Blessings." I reach out and give it to her, and she looks into my eyes and smiles in a way that warmed my whole soul.

I watch her walk away, see how she now looks transformed, serene and angelic in that candlelight. I understand a bit more why people smiled at me. She and the flickering candle disappear in the crowd.

I walk home, the idea of the candle continuing on in the streets touching me deeply.

When i get inside, I don't feel unsettled anymore.

Just the need to write.

.......................................................................

This just in:

Rally for Justice for Oscar Grant
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
4:00pm - 7:00pm
Oakland City Hall
1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza
Oakland, CA

Some Love For A Revolutionary Diva: Eartha Kitt

2009-01-02T08:50:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everyone! May this year bring healing, love, positive manifestation and justice to our communities! I'm actually gonna take a short break from blogging until after the 10th, but after being inspired by Feministing's tribute to Eartha Kitt, i decided i should at least leave y'all with that. Gotta say, i searched YouTube for a better clip, but the one Feministing picked is definitely the one that shows her to be the provacateur that she was! Not only was she a reknowned singer, actress (Catwoman!! grrrrowl!!) and dancer, but she also raised eyebrows and consciousness when she protested the Vietnam War at a posh White House dinner. To quote The Nation:

"You send the best of this country off to be shot and maimed," the singer told the First Lady and the 50 other women at the luncheon. "They rebel in the street. They don't want to go to school because they're going to be snatched off from their mothers to be shot in Vietnam."

The First Lady reportedly burst into tears.

The president was furious.

Kitt was blacklisted. She was investigated by the FBI and CIA, and ended up on the "Enemies List" of Johnson's successor, Richard Nixon.

Hats off to Eartha Kitt! She was reportedly an advocate for inner city youth as well. At the age of 81, she died on December 25th 2008, after establishing herself as a unique, colorful, truth-talking, provacative cultural icon, which was not easy for a black woman in her day. May her legacy influence us in this new year to be creative, have fun, be fabulous, live outside the box, and take action! Rest in Peace and Fabulousness Eartha Kitt, and have a glorious 2009 everyone!

Rudolph and all of Santa's Reindeer Are Female.

2008-12-25T00:29:00.000-08:00

Yes. Its true. Its been deeply researched based on the antler shedding habits of reindeer in the arctic regions. And research shows that the probability of Rudolph, or any of the 9 reindeer being male is tiny, bordering on impossible. Why this has been hidden from the childrens i don't know.

Candlelight Vigil For Richmond Lesbian Survivor.

2008-12-24T09:03:00.000-08:00

With the support of Hand to Hand Martial Arts, there is a candlelight vigil Saturday, 12/27 on the 1500 block of Visalia in Richmond, 9:30-10pm. it will be a vigil in peace and witness against hatred and violence. thank you to Tina D'Elia and CUAV for their support as well.

in case you don't know what i'm talking about, here's the article: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/12/21/BAV714SBA1.DTL

here's the vigil information:

Date: Saturday, December 27, 2008
Time: 9:30pm - 10:00pm
Location: 1500 Visalia Street, Richmond CA

carpool, bring a candle, and forward to friends

greet 2009 standing up in peace for our loved ones in our communities.

..............................................................

ps: this just in, a fundraiser for raising the $10,000 reward to even more for info leading to the arrest of the 4 perpetrators is being planned.

praying for healing and justice, richard

Well, Obama May Be Getting Desired Results From Picking Rick Warren.

2008-12-19T10:51:00.000-08:00

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Wow. If you haven't heard about this yet, peep the clip above.

Words/feelings that came to mind when I heard about Obama picking the conservative, anti-gay, pro-life Reverend Rick Warren to deliver the inaugural prayer... disappointed, aghast, sputtering with "oh hell no", feeling for people who already felt hurt by Prop 8... and also still hanging on to tenuous strands of hope. My hope, feeling (and prayer) is that Obama is very seriously front-ending coddling the disgruntled right. On the real, progressives should probably brace ourselves for more moments where we are gonna squirm uncomfortably as Obama goes about being the "uniter". Considering the historical emotional reception of a US President into office, I believe he is also really leaning hard on his kudo points so he can throw the right some symbolic bones. And when it comes to it, that's all it is. Symbolic. I mean, I would prefer Rick Warren to deliver the address than to be appointed to Supreme Court. But it still hurts. And not only the LGBTQ community, and advocates for the reproductive rights of women, but black folks and other folks of color are also like "What??"

But you know what? The tactic is working. Chillingly. On Pam's House Blend, Pam blogs:

How's the whole fundie outreach thing going, Team Obama? Look at who's giving you praise for giving Rick Warren the mic at the inaugural -- Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, the man who paid former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke $82,500 for his mailing list.

Whew. So uh... yeah. Basically... people, i know this feels effed up to most of us, and that this may feel like a betrayal of all the votes, support, money, kudo points and prayer we gave him. But I urge people to hang on to hope while Obama placates the crazy citizens of this country. All I know is we on the left got a loooooong progressive laundry list for Mr. Prez when he's done fundie flirting!

Sex Positivity: A Review Of "The Crash Pad" and A Critique of Queer Porn vs. Straight Porn.

2008-12-15T13:57:00.000-08:00

*various links in this post lead to material only for people over 18 years of age. If you are under 18, read but don't click please! And there are other great things to read on this blog :)

Let the parade of Sex Positivity continue!

So on our last trip to Good Vibrations (think you are due for a trip yerself :) my honey picked up some queer porn. It’s called “The Crash Pad.”

I actually know a couple folks in the movie she got, one of them being my friend Jiz Lee, and her awesome partner Shawn (pictured above). This movie now lives at my honey’s house, but I am super glad we got to watch it together! This was unlike any porn watching experience I have had. Dare I say, it was a corrective experience.

I just have to say, this movie has won several awards, including the Feminist Porn Award (another place feminists butt heads!). And it really was not only hot, but super refreshing. The plot was simple but titilating, and will leave you wanting the key to the mythical San Francisco “Crash Pad”. The featured players are hot, with real women's bodies. Different sizes and shapes, no fake boobs. And there is real chemistry on the screen; there are at least two featured couples who are partners in real life. You can feel it. And they talk about it in the special features. What else was refreshing... oh yes, the lighting wasn’t garish and clinical. And whoa... it took me a second to realize... it actually has *good* music! The background tunes range from ambient textures to sexy beats, and you aren’t beaten over the head with it.

Before going more into the movie itself, I wanna more delve into what was so corrective for me. The big differences for me, watching this versus straight porn, go straight into issues of race and gender. It was soooo great to see a movie that was mostly female bodied people of color/mixed race, and for that to not be marketed in a derogatory way. If one wants to see straight porn with women of color, then you usually have to get something that has no qualms about exoticizing women of color in really disgusting and objectifying ways, with titles like “Big Black B****** Who Crave Your Blah Blah Blah” “Geishas Who Blah Blah Blah” "Hot Blooded Latinas Who...." you catch my drift. Well... none of that oppressive racist and sexist crap is in here. I’ll be honest, the last time i tried to watch straight porn was over a year ago, and it just really traumatized me. I managed to find a dvd that had women of color of various ethnicities featuring in it (i have blocked out the name of it) and when i turned it on... each 22 year old looking woman was with a middle-aged, unattractive white man. It was like having a promo for sex tourism of my sistas thrown in my face. I kept flipping ahead to another scene, hoping it would get better, and it would get worse. The white men would get older and creepier, and sometimes there would be more than one on each young brown woman. A brown woman with a welcoming smile directed to men that i’m sorry, she really couldn’t have wanted to have hard penetrative sex with unless she was getting paid. I was nauseous. Effing gross!!! This was clearly not going to win a Feminist Porn Award anytime soon.

That experience broke through my last filter... i had long ago learned that if i am gonna watch straight porn, i am better off turning down the volume (which blots out the dumb music and the really super racist and sexist slurs and comments that get thrown around) and putting on my own music. But those images just fried me. It was such a graphic allegory of oppression to me.

“The Crash Pad” by contrast, had no slurs being hurled, and you knew that the women were *really enjoying themselves*. Which makes a world of a difference. You could feel the hot chemistry as they kissed* (no kissing in straight porn!! what kind of dysfunctional crap is this?!?), feel the intimacy in their eye gazes, witness the women giving each other real pleasure, and the hot build up of women having real, volcanic, orgasms. In this movie my pal Jiz Lee pretty literally exploded onto the queer porn scene with an ejaculation scene that is jaw dropping. It won her and her partner Shawn the Hottest Dyke Sex Scene of 2006. And i gotta say, i feel like i’m a pretty adventurous and open guy when it coms to sexploration, but wow.... Jiz and Shawn make me feel hella vanilla!!! Amazing, y’all. Hats off!!

Jiz also goes into her own critique of queer vs. straight porn in her Babeland: Babe Of The Month Interview:

Why do you see queer made porn as being different from other “lesbian” porn?

The term “Lesbian” is an interesting genre, often appropriated by the adult industry for the male gaze. Thus, it is equivalent to “Girl/Girl” pornography and the sexual acts you’ll see are pretty limited. Queer porn more accurately reflects the sexual identity of many of us in the queer community because the sex acts and gender expressions of the talent portrayed in these films are not held to the ideals of the assumed straight male consumer. It is made (directed, filmed, produced, cast, promoted, etc…) by queer-identified folks for the viewing pleasure of other queers. The sex is unapologeticly passionate, something that puts it closer allined with “gay porn”.

Jiz also goes into sharing that "Crash Pad" has a special place in her heart :)

"Crash Pad" also features a refreshing range of gender for people with female bodies. From the high heeled and glitter made up femme, to hot faux hawked and shaved headed wrestling bois (again, see picture above :). This was also a pleasant shift from straight porn, where women can only inhabit a small box of femininity... the high-femme.

It was great to experience this movie, full of hot kissing, sucking, double penetration strap-on action and more. As a hetero-dude, this felt like porn therapy for me! To watch an adult film that wasn’t pitched to me in this narrow, oppressive, dysfunctional way... was really a corrective experience. This was made for primarly for queer folks to enjoy... and maybe its queer for me as a straight person to appreciate this in a heartfully refreshing way... but it left me wondering if other straight-identified men would have a similar experience. To see that kissing is sexy, that listening to each others bodies and eye contact is sexy. To see that women are beautiful, fierce and sexy in their real bodies, and alla that can have a beautiful diversity of expression. Because you know, we don’t get those messages much. I’m sure that there are more progressive adult films marketed to straight folks out there, but i can’t say i’ve come across any good ones.

Jiz has linked this post to the movie reviews, and has stated that s/he feels that my post speaks to some of her mission; which is to humanize queerness and queer sex. In this regard, Jiz sees this work as activism, and I consider Jiz to be one of the Bay Area's premiere sex positive activists.

For now, i’ll just be happy with my corrective experience, and wait til somebody tells me about some hot, feminist, anti-racist, multi-ethnic, pan-sexual porn, perhaps a bit more marketed to straight dudes.... Won’t hold my breath though! And for you bi-curious ladies and queer porn fans out there... this is the naughty stocking stuffer to get!! Available for rental and purchase at Good Vibrations, and you can order it online through Toys Of Babeland. Also look out for Jiz and Shawn's soon to be released film "Champion".... click the link for the teaser trailer (ages 18 and over only people!) and just peep the high production quality, hotness and emotionality people. Its gonna be hot! Something to keep you warm over the holidays...

PS: don't forget to peep the new link list of Sex Positive Goodness!

Bringing The Sex-Positive Feminism! And Links For Sex-Positive Goodness!

2008-12-09T15:56:00.000-08:00

when i speak of the erotic, i speak of it as an assertion of the lifeforce of women; of the creative energy empowered, the knowledge and use of which we are now reclaiming in our language, our history, our dancing, our loving, our work, our lives. ~audre lorde

Mostly re-inspired by connecting with the folks at the Good Vibrations blog, I have realized that this blog is missing something. Something i can’t believe i haven’t properly emphasized before. Sex-positive links and posts! I mean, I have a couple links in the blogroll and stuff, and write about sexuality and gender... but haven’t been really getting into the juicy fun stuff :)

and before jumping straight into the hotness, just a bit more heady talk. As a feminist-identified hetero bio male individual, i feel i should qualify what sex positive feminism means to me. First of all, what it *doesn’t* mean to me is that there is a binary where if you don’t identify as a sex positive feminist, then you are a repressed body-phobic wet blanket. Not trying to frame stuff like that. Second of all, there is a radical left feminist theory that all sex is rape, because we haven’t consented to live under patriarchy, and a manifestation of living under patriarchy is eroticizing power dynamics in constructions of gender(anyone have a citation for that? can't find it). I would say sex positive feminism is further right of that, but still on the “left” (what is right wing feminism, one might ask? Sarah Palin apparently!!) Sex positive feminism affirms autonomy of our bodies and consensual pleasure. It also moves away from shame-based ideas around sexuality and bodies that come from institutionalized sexism, religion, culture, etc. In the context of women's bodies, which have been under fire in various ways under patriarchy, Sex-positive feminism strikes me as a movement to reclaim the body.

Personally, i have various intersections with sex-positive feminism. I would say that one of the ways i manifest that is to eroticize communication, respect, balance of power and safety in romantic relationships. Deep and honest communication is just sexy. It has also been affirmed to me that it is sexy for a man to ask if he may enter a woman, even if its the umpteenth gazillion time they have had sex. This speaks to the piece on eroticizing respect and communication. But grounded in real loving respect for a woman and her body, not just saying stuff cuz it sounds hot. Going deeper into communication, i would say that deliberately placing oneself in a space of emotional vulnerability with a lover creates a space where one’s partner can also feel safe to share and be vulnerable. By being a man willing to make myself emotionally vulnerable to a woman, i see this as not only a loving act, but a re-balancing of gendered roles. It is one way to live everyday as a man committed to these issues. It really shouldn’t be like that as far as i’m concerned, that just being a emotionally communicative man becomes *gasp* bordering on radical, but hey. Just to be clear, i’m not lobbying for cookies here, just sayin’!!

Deep mutual communication leads to deeper intimacy and trust. Deeper intimacy and trust leads to safety. And once both people (or more for that matter) feel safety, then the boundaries of consensual sexual exploration may be able to expand deliciously. Respect becomes an operative word here as well, in tandem with the trust. For example, a sex-positive feminist woman should feel free to be lead around on a leash by a man at a sex-party if she wants to, especially if she has the trust and respect of that man, AND most importantly, if that is her CHOICE for how she wants to be pleased. Obviously, a woman can do what-freakin-ever she wants to do with her body, i am just getting at the thing that a woman and a man could act out this scene and still both define themselves as feminists. This is of course where feminists can butt heads, and very understandably so.

*I've recenty had a very strong reaction to this scenario, which is understandable. I don't wish to upset more women, so I will try to be clearer. I want to stress that i am not saying that women need to be on leashes by men in order to find healing or mutual respect. My focus for this post is on women's choice, pleasure and healing, and finding partners that can aid in that journey in consensual ways. Trust becomes paramount, because there are some acts that simply require it in order for it to not be traumatizing. My focus is not on men finding women who will play out potentially degrading roles for male pleasure. A tamer example might be: If a woman wants to be gruffly held down by her partner and penetrated with hard and fast rhythms, that is her choice for how she wants to be pleased, and in my opinion does not make her any less of a feminist.

My honey also added that although not everyone may know themselves well enough to know whether they are in fact reproducing patriarchal toxicity from sexual power play, it is also not accurate to generalize that all sexual power play is inherently oppressive.

I believe that playing with power and gendered roles in consensual, pre-negotiated and varying ways can be hot, radical, body reclaiming and healing. Because being “top/dominant” in a consensual loving scene doesn’t have to mean reproducing tropes of real oppression. Oppression doesn’t respect, love and pre-negotiate consensual arrangements. In BDSM circles, it is said that the “bottom/submissive” has the most power because the scene can only go as far as they allow it to go anyways.

Women are tethered by patriarchy. In the real world, there are many oppressive situations where women do not have choice. For some women, I can imagine that it can be healing to metaphorically simulate a situation where there is an illusion of powerlessness during sex play... but in fact, the woman still is in control, and can control the outcome. There is Choice.

I also believe that sex-positive feminism literally becomes about being the loving change we want to see in the world. If we can work through issues of power, oppression and love in our most intimate and loving relationships, then we are building progressive community, and really becoming the loving, liberating revolution that is needed. And i am talking about something with a lot more intention than the sexual revolutions of the 60's. I am talking about a sweet union of Love and Justice.

Well that’s some food for thought, enough honey to spread liberally before diving in. I was also going to review this movie that my friend is in, but i think that deserves a post all by itself. But be sure to check out the new sex-positive links in the right margin, which include Black Erotica, a radical manifesto for a poly-revolution, The Center For Sex Positive Culture, Babeland Toys, Feminist BDSM, my friend Jiz Lee’s site, and more!

Hope that this has been stimulating... holla!

Oakland Community Forum On Marriage Equality: After Prop 8, What Next? TOMORROW!

2008-12-09T12:12:00.000-08:00

come thru and represent Oaktown!

After Prop 8....What Next?
Attend the Oakland Marriage Equality Community Forum

Let's seize this opportunity to create community.

Let's heal together.

Let's advance our marriage equality movement at the grassroots level.

Let's transform homophobia, racism and other oppressions.

Let's convert our frustration with Prop 8 into a positive force.

Wed. Dec 10, 2008
6–9pm (6-7pm potluck; 7-9 forum)
Intertribal Friendship House 523 International Blvd
Oakland 94606

RSVP at http://activelyout.com/activeEvents/events/10528 or (415) 621-2493 x372

Wheelchair accessible

For more information e-mail ca-alameda@marriageequality.org

Sponsoring Organizations: ACLU-NC, activelyOUT, And Marriage for All, API Equality, Asian Pacific Islander Family Pride, Bay Area American Indian Two Spirits, Calafia, COLAGE, Color of Equality, Marriage Equality USA, Network for Religion & Justice for Asian Pacific Islander Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender People (NRJ-API-LGBT), National Black Justice Coalition, Oakland Rainbow Chamber of Commerce and Labor, Our Family Coalition, Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), San Francisco LGBT Pride Committee, Sistahs Steppin' in Pride, Social Life Productions

Ain't I A Feminist? Aaronette M. White's Study Of Black Feminist Masculinities.

2008-12-05T10:11:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone, sorry for the lapse in time since my last post, its been a bit hectic! But I wanted to be sure to read enough of this amazing new book (dare I say, my new sacred text??) by Aaronette M. White, "Ain't I A Feminist? African American Men Speak Out on Fatherhood, Friendship, Forgiveness and Freedom." (link gives excerpts from book)

In this book, AMW questions whether men can be feminists at all in her chapter "From Healthy Doubt to Critical Acceptance", she documents the role of Black men in feminist movements hundreds of years ago, quoting Fredrick Douglass saying "I am a radical woman suffrage man." She calls Black feminist men the "Sons Of Sojourner Truth" since Truth refused to prioritize issues of race over issues of gender. In the biographical sketches that AMW has collected of Black men who self identify as feminist, profeminist, antisexist or womanist, all of the men interviewed exemplify this intersectional approach to multiple systems of oppression in our communities. These men talk about the events that became the turning points towards this way of being and thinking, and both AMW and these men share visions of fatherhood, romantic and platonic relationships, and a truly holistic movement for Black liberation and healing. I'm telling you, this is THE BOOK!! I would even recommend this for people who aren't black folks... just because templates for dismantling patriarchy in our communities are here.

Allow me to have AMW and the men speak for themselves:

"What can be learned about feminist Black men's definitions and practices of manhood that would challenge institutional inequities, while contributing to the viability of African American communities and the construction of a humane and just society?" -AMW, pg.2

“Black feminism is frequently misunderstood. It may help to note what it is not. Adding the adjective “Black” to the term feminism does not mean that it is White feminism donned in blackface, for Black women only, or Black people only. Rather, there is more than one kind of feminism because culture, class, sexuality and a host of other experiential factors shape feminist perspectives. Thus. Black feminist thought, as used here, does not assume an essence of Blackness; instead it understands “Black” as a construct that reflects the intersection of a variety of institutional power relations. Black feminist thought has historically emphasized the intersection of race, class and gender, highlighting how African American women and other social groups are positioned within unjust power relations.” -AMW, pg.6

“What can feminist Black men’s narratives teach us about how to raise boys? How do we recognize feminist Black masculinities and support the different versions of it when we them, in the interest of broad social change? What are the public policy implications of their feminist activism?” -AMW, pg.11

“Men have to take responsibility to educate their kids and other men about sexism in the same way that White people have to take responsibility to educate their kids and other White people about racism.” - Jake, social justice activist, pg. 24

“When you become antisexist, you are perceived by others as a defector. Men don’t trust you, and a lot of women don’t trust you either.” -Bruce, Co-ordinator of program for men who batter women, pg. 17

“My experiences as a Black gay man have been at the heart of the anti-sexist work i do.... One of the messages that men get growing up is that the worst thing in the world for a man to be is gay, and to be gay is to be interpreted as being like a woman. People think, “Oh you’re gay so you must want to be a woman” or “You’re a fag because you are acting like a woman.” To come to grips with being gay has meant, for me, coming to grips with negative attitudes that men have about women and to realize that there is nothing awful about being a woman! I mean, tell me, what is so awful about a man being like a woman? So, addressing these woman-hating attitudes is at the heart of my work with men.” - Rex, Social Worker, pg. 27

“I grew up in a family where I saw a lot of violence meted out by my father to my mother. I hated how my father treated my mother. But I had to learn that if you’re not actively involved in unlearning behavior that you hate, you may find yourself repeating what you hate. I know what I am talking about because I became a batterer just like my father. I owe a lot to my ex-wife because she showed me pretty dramatically that being a batterer was not the thing for me to be. She shot me. If that doesn’t get your attention, nothing will.” - Soyinka, Labor Unionist, pg. 28

“In traditional Christian patriarchal culture, God is always male; and in traditional Christian White supremacist culture, God is always a white male. So, my struggle has been- over the course of my life- to remove the Whiteness of God’s image, then- over the course of my feminist life- remove the maleness from God’s image.” -Alan, Pentecostal Minister, pg. 34

Black men who are cognizant of the particular predicament of Black women, as persons who experience both racism and sexism, tend to prioritize race issues over gender issues and argue that Black women should do the same (likewise, liberal White feminist women often expect Black women to rank gender issues over race issues when the interests of both collide) -AMW, pg. 43

Men, primarily, teach boys and men to be violent. Regardless of how badly a father treats his child or the child’s mother, he also teaches, by example, a shameless way of being in the world; his actions say to the boy, “You, too, can behave as I do when you become a man.” Too often, “what fathers pass on to their children is their own unacknowledged pain, and in instances of violence, a male sense of entitlement to inflict pain on others.” -AMW, pg. 48

Boys who show the worst psychological development are not always those without fathers but, often, those with abusive or neglectful fathers.... Current research suggests that the key factor in a boy’s healthy relationship to his father is affection, not some essential, yet vague, role modeling of a particular concept of masculinity. - AMW, pg. 53

....when Black men truly see their fate as linked to that of Black women, they move from sympathy to genuine empathy. In this context, empathy is like the African proverb “I am because we are.” -AMW, pg. 39

...And there are so many other insights to be offered, some of which you can read at the link above. My only criticism, which she acknowledges, is that all of the 20 black men featured are middle class and fairly highly educated. I look forward to any updated work she does.

For those of you who celebrate Xmas (and also those who don't), I would suggest getting this book at Powell's or Amazon for a black boy or man in your life.

Thoughts? Bless up!

From 50 Cent to Obama: Change And Representations Of Black Masculinty.

2008-11-21T10:41:00.000-08:00

"I will listen to you, especially when we disagree." - Barack Obama, Acceptance Speech Nov. 4th 2008

That quote alone toppled a whole reigning archetype of masculinity in the United States. "I will LISTEN to you, ESPECIALLY when we disagree?" This is a refreshing new model of masculine strength, after 8 years of "smoke em out of their holes" trigger happy cowboy/global gangsta rhetoric. The Cowboy archetype does not listen. Is not that skilled in communication period. Power is inherent through whiteness, maleness, access to money, government and tons and tons of weapons. The Cowboy is also the Playground Bully who teases and disrespects men who try to use reason instead of global bully measures. But now enter Barack Obama, whose unfolding archetype of a more balanced, communicative man (to the point of getting really close to people who opposed him, and appointing some to his cabinet!) And Cowboys now see the world shower him with adoration they know they would never receive. Its almost like the looped message we got from so many sweet (albeit heteronormative and problematically gendered in some ways) romantic comedies of the 80's: Beautiful and thoughtful girl is with the jock bully for the dance, but realizes that she really wants to be with the communicative nerd. An allegory for the rise of the outcast.

And the outcast has risen. Barack Hussein Obama, mixed race son of a Kenyan Muslim man and White American Christian woman, born in Hawaii, schooled in Indonesia... 44th President of the United States. History has yet to show the ripples that his appointment caused in the psyche of people of African descent around the world, to see one of our own, historically oppressed people in the most powerful office on the planet. I remember hearing so many fatalist conversations on street corners, brothas sucking their teeth, "They can't let him win. He can't win." And they spoke to something a lot of us felt. But i wish i could have been in their shoes, to experience what may have blossomed in their chests when the news came on November 4th. I was of course busy with my own "blossoming", elated beyond belief, jumping up and down. But i had a positive outlook from jump. And it was great to have that positive stance affirmed :)

In one swoop, there is new cred for black masculinity and strength. We have so many expressions of masculinity (as I explored in my post Nostalgia For The Gender Fluid 80's,) from jheri curls to dread locks and baldheads, from Prince, Earth, Wind and Fire, to Chuck D and Easy E. But after Easy E, it seemed that the only model of black masculinity that was perpetuated in the media was the gangsta. You know, like don't smile when someone is taking your picture, be hard. The ubiquity of these monolithic images is absorbed by all, to the point where a black man who doesn't embody that swagger and hardness may not be perceived by some people to be "really black" or "really a man".

And truly, Obama's blackness (or African American-ness, more specifically) is in question, since he is of immigrant African descent, and bi-racial. And also because he exudes Harvard and Columbia, not West Oakland or South Bronx. This dynamic and others are brilliantly critiqued and parodied in David Alan Grier's hilarious and insightful skit "Is Racism Dead?" Obama finds some solidarity amongst black men of similar masculinity... and the question as to whether racism died with Obama's appointment, is umm, dealt with appropriately :)

At the top of this post is a short documentary by African American anti-sexist activist and filmmaker Byron Hurt, a film called Barack & Curtis: Manhood, Power & Respect. Here the comparision of 50 Cent and Obama is delved into deeply, and how these expressions of black masculinity shift in the mass mind and the black community. Mad props to Byron and his work, he is definitely an inspiration to me.

I am glad that my young nephews are growing up with this new media expression of black masculinity. I am thankful to have balance restored in so many ways, including how black men are portrayed in the media. This is indeed one of the many positive manifestations of the momentum of Change. May Obama be blessed with at least two terms of exemplifying that a man can have access to aggressive power with out relying on that to express oneself, that a man can be communicative and be powerful, that a hetero man can believe in gay rights, that a black man can restore pride to a whole country. Ashé.

Transgender Day Of Remembrance

2008-11-20T18:05:00.000-08:00

Today is the Transgender Day Of Remembrance. This comes at a time when Duanna Johnson's murder should be present in our minds. Statistics tell that at least one transgendered person is murdered every month, often with no justice served. Duanna Johnson's death has also ignited the progressive people of color LGBT blogosphere, since the video taped police brutality leading up to the death of a black transwoman seems to be taking a back seat to the marriage equality agenda. Which in some ways, with no disrespect to Duanna Johnson, i feel is understandable considering the momentum and magnitude of these historical elections, and the millions of people disenfranchized by Prop 8. But issues of class, gender and most definitely race further embroil tensions, even as memes in the news still perpetuate the idea that black people magically voted in Prop 8 while being only 6 percent of the electorate (new studies show age to be a more predicatble factor in who voted yes on 8... lets not start hatin' on the grannies now people...). For some, it would seem that marriage equality is not the priority when people's lives are in danger. Which is also, very understandable.

Alameda County Joins Growing Lawsuit Against Prop 8

2008-11-19T09:43:00.000-08:00

Good News!! reposted from Chris Metinko's article in the Oakand Tribune:

The Alameda County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday agreed to join San Francisco and Los Angeles counties in a lawsuit asking the state's high court to void Proposition 8 on the grounds that voters did not have the authority to make, what they claim, is a revision to the state's constitution.
Prop. 8, which passed with 52 percent of the vote earlier this month, overturned the state's Supreme Court's decision in the spring which legalized gay marriage. The measure changes the constitution to limit marriage to that only between a man and a woman.
The suit, which also has been joined by Santa Clara County, claims any measure is not merely an amendment to the state's constitution, but rather a major revision and should therefore have had to pass through the state Assembly and Senate before going to the voters this November.

Its going down y'all.