Cornel West Criticizes Tyler Perry

I get torn to pieces when I "lovingly critique" Brother Tyler, so I will keep my mouth shut and let Dr. West speak for me.

Street Fight

Last night, at the Houston Museum of African American Culture, I was privileged to attend a screening of the film "Street Fight", which shows the necessary but nasty battle between Councilman Cory Booker and Incumbent Mayor Sharpe James. In the film, young Cory Booker tries to win the hearts, minds, and votes of Newark voters in the 2002 Mayoral Race. It was not an easy battle to say the least. Booker had to fight against dirty machine politics from the James camp. They said he wasn't black enough. They said he was a golden boy-outsider-carpetbagger that wanted to wave his Ivy league education around to poor people. In the end, the voters' voices were heard. Only one candidate could emerge from a modern day political "Street Fight".

After the film, there was a Q & A session moderated by the world renowned, Brother Jesse Muhammad, who is a blogger, staff writer for the Final Call newspaper, motivational speaker, and political community activist. You can catch up with him via his great blog,  http://jessemuhammad.blogs.finalcall.com/ or via Twitter @brotherjesse.

Brother Jesse led the discussion on a few questions:

1. What could Cory Booker have done differently?
2. What lessons did both candidates learn?
3. Should we have a responsibility to groom our future political leaders?
4. Has politics gotten cleaner or dirtier?

Answer those questions after you view the film. I would love to discuss your point of view and mine in the comments section.

So without further adieu, I give you "Street Fight" in many parts......................................

Meeting Dr. West

Yeah, that's me. And yes, that's my hero Dr.Cornel West. No, I didn't photoshop this. It was hard to get a picture with him and so I had to sneak behind him and get some random guy to snap the picture. Don't judge me.

I met Dr. West at a luncheon on MLK Day in Port Arthur, TX. The event was hosted by the MLK Support Group in Port Arthur led by the legendary and courageous Hargie Fay Savoy, whom you see with Dr. West in the picture.

I was invited by Ms. Savoy's daughter, Jacky, who m was a gracious host. We had never met, but through a mutual Facebook connection, we hooked up. I would like to thank her for that. I told y'all favor is all over my life! Hearing West speak was everything I expected and more. Honestly, he didn't say anything new to my ears because I have listened to all his lectures and speeches given for the last 3 years. He still spoke with so much power and greatness. The majority African American crowd hung on to his every word except when he slid in a quick jab at President Obama. Black folk love Obama, Dr. West. You might get cut talking about Barack. They might even cut your hair. And it needs to be cut immediately.

When I got close to him his bodyguard nudged me back. I asked him to take a picture of me and Dr. West. He gave me that "negro please" look. So finally I pushed through fat people, old people, and children to get my chance to talk to the freest black man in America. I extended my hand to the brother and he reached out and we shared a hug and I thanked him for changing my life and to continue to carry the legacy of Martin King. The brother looked me in the eyes and said "Thank you my brother. You stay strong." That was all I needed to hear to continue my fight to change lives and the struggle against injustice in any form. 

Meeting West was cool and I embraced the moment. At my high school commencement, Andy Young gave the keynote. Afterwards, I approached him and told him how ugly his tie was. I didn't understand who he was at the time. I wish I could have that day back. me and my damn mouth! I didn't screw this up with Dr. West. I enjoyed seeing/hearing him speak. I told my brother that this was a step toward me keynoting luncheons one day. Greatness is on the horizon. Thank you for reading!

Success vs. Greatness

I have watched this clip probably about 100 times, but it's so powerful I chose to share it with you. Many of us don't understand the fundamental difference between success and greatness. To understand that is crucial in shaping and forming the human being you decide to be. Enjoy and leave a comment. Then afterwards, I would ask you to read the essay by Tennessee Williams called "The Catastrophe of Success". I have posted it below. It will really enrich your soul. Thank you for visiting.
You can find this video in its entirety @: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7883355051687073820&q=cornel+west&hl=en#

"SHE"

She has a passion for life. She listens to my rhetoric on life and philosophical pontification as I listen to her beliefs. She is a prisoner of hope, fanatic of fairness, and an extremist of love. She understands what love is and what it is to love. She understands what it is to be human. She understands what it means to be a featherless two-legged linguistically conscious creature born between urine and feces, stank and stench. She knows that she is a funky saint. She is trying to figure out how to purposefully utilize the time and space we occupy between womb and tomb. She prepares herself for death by living an examined, transparent life. She drapes herself in class, sophistication, grace, integrity, honesty, compassion, pride, and humility. She appreciates the Arts and what it means to be an artist. She appreciates the life of the mind and what academia has to offer. She waits for no Man; she's self sufficient. She enjoys debate ranging from Bush Tax Cuts to the greatness of Lil' Wayne's album, "The Carter 2". We agree to disagree. So beautiful. She pursues truth and paideia. Her paideia has a purpose which gives her life more purpose. She knows what she wants from life and what she doesn't. She loves herself. She respects herself and demands the same from others. She has standards. A library/bookstore excites her as much as rocking on the front row of a Lauryn Hill concert. She embraces her people which are all people. She administers the laxative of love to help cure society of a bad case of moral constipation. She is amazing. She is outstanding. She blows me away. She doesn't exist.

Ode to Malcolm

          There have been 7 great males that have influenced and still influence my life in a major way (Bill Jones, Jesus, Muhammad, Gandhi, Malcolm, Martin, and Cornel West). These men have changed the world as we know it, and the least I can do as a student of truth is to absorb as much as possible from these prophetic servants. But on this day, February 21, 2010, one of those men stand out to me because he touched my life in such a glorious way. He helped shape the foundation of who I am today and will be in the future. He told me who I was and more importantly, who and what I was not. He gave me tremendous pride and confidence, he helped me with my homework and writing assignments; he showed me what evolution was all about. I never met this man. Never dined with him or ever heard him speak. The day I read his autobiography, I was around 16 or 17 and it changed the landscape of my life tremendously. So on this enlightening day, February 21, 45 years after his untimely assassination, we honor El Hajj Malik Shabazz (Malcolm X) for his massive contributions on my life thus far.

          Did Malcolm have an impact on my spiritual life? Well I'm from a small, narrow-minded city called Jackson, MS. So as you know, in the rural south, if you're not Christian, you're going to hell and there is also no respect for other religions. Everything was Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, and more Jesus. As a bright kid, I questioned everything, in respect to the Socratic method of questioning. When I stumbled across "The Autobiography of Malcolm X", I was about 16 and knew nothing of Islam or Muslims. My only narrow view was that they wore bow ties and peddled the freshest fruit on the corner of our inner cities. My schools didn't talk about Malcolm, nor did my parents. Everything regarding black history was surrounded around MLK and this passive image the media had created along with the "I Have a Dream" speech. By that juncture in my life, I was fed up with Martin and I longed for something with a little edge. "Who was this Malcolm X guy that people wanna sweep under the rug?" were my thoughts. I read his book and got as much understanding from it that a naive, southern black kid could get from it at that time. The story made me want to find out what Islam was all about. If it changed this man so drastically from his wicked past, what could it do for me? After much study, I was ready to convert to Islam, all because of Malcolm, but amid so much criticism and ridicule in my family and community, I was afraid. Later I got the guts to convert and it was a beneficial decision. I found a small pocket of Muslim brothers and sisters and we gathered in an office building as a mosque and my relationship with God (Allah) grew in levels. The Imam was a former NOI member who told me the stories of how they impacted the black communities they lived in and also the hate they endured. He talked about the profitable businesses they ran and so forth. I would sit and absorb wisdom from this respected elder. He encouraged me to stay in school and better myself, something my own family failed to do. He told me the old adage "opportunity costs". I love that brother for that. Being a part of that mosque taught me tremendous discipline. It takes discipline to acknowledge God 5 times a day in a uniform fashion, reciting "The Opening" each time. It takes discipline to stop eating pork when its 80% of your diet. It takes discipline to give up alcohol at the age of 22, and that task I had a great deal of trouble with. Those were the most loving, non-judgmental religious affiliated people I had ever met. No longer did I make the racist 9/11 anti-Muslim jokes. True Islam is a beautiful religion and way of life and I love and adore all my Islamic brothers and sisters all over the globe. All of that never would have happened if I never picked up Malcolm's book. For helping me to find spiritual clarity, I thank you Brother Malcolm.

          Now if you have ever read or listened to any of Malcolm's speeches, you would be astonished to know that he never earned one single collegiate credit. Later on, he lectured at many institutions of higher learning and starred on many panels, but he was never a student. Malcolm's oratory was so polished and fine and he enunciated his words so precise and possessed a special knack for wordplay, but you could still hear the hustler in his delivery. He never lost his everyday connection with the streets; the people he called "those stuck the deepest in the mud". When I found out this fiery speaker was educated in the school of hard knocks and studied the dictionary back to front while incarcerated, I figured a free black student could do the same or better. I began to feverishly study the English dictionary. If you ask any of my classmates from my years at the Piney Woods School, they would tell you that whenever they saw me, I had a bible and dictionary. I would challenge my peers to pick any word in the dictionary and I would know the meaning and word origin. No lie. I would be right 80% of the time. I almost never misspell words. Many times I have been accused of being an elitist because of how I speak. I would search far and wide to provide a defense to their accusation and now I've found that answer. It is all Malcolm's fault. He inspired me to want to improve my vocabulary and my diction by way of his real example.

          Malcolm also gave me confidence. There was no better person to play him in the movie "X" than Denzel. Denzel's natural walk displays immense swagger, which was a carbon copy of the real Malcolm. For me growing up in a racist MS, Malcolm's voice saying "hold your head up high and to be proud of who you are" was something young black males needed. He provided that bravado for me. He told me to love the women/children and protect them. He taught me never to fear any man or any obstacle. His story taught me to seek the truth, no matter who criticizes or how you may look to the natural world. Malcolm taught me to always seek God. Malcolm taught me to love myself in the midst of racism that wanted me to hate myself and who I am. I used to be ashamed of my course hair and wide nose, but when Malcolm finished with me, I was almost arrogant.

          Malcolm is to the thugs and underprivileged what MLK is to the Rhodes Scholar. With most black people being poor and our men being hustlers and ex-cons, his story was a real story that spoke to to that hollow space of hope inside them. His story said that one can overcome no father, racism, drug use, imprisonment, and hate from your fellow brother(all of which our men still endure). His story said that black men can have a genuine relationship with God. His story bled with evolution. His downfall was that he felt he owed his life to the Hon. Elijah Muhammad and therefore never questioning the teachings of his teacher. That is the worst attribute of a teacher/pupil relationship. But Malcolm always sought truth and what is right and truth showed him he had been teaching hate, all within his genuine message of love. A flawed man he was. How real is that? Malcolm was real. That's all we ever asked for, reality. Thank you Brother Malcolm for keeping it real. We love you. We miss you. Salaam Alaikum.

"Harry Reid is Ignorant; Just Like You."

Sen. Harry Reid said President Obama didn't speak with a "negro dialect". What exactly is a "negro dialect"? Is there a Caucasian dialect? Somebody explain this to me. Personally, to distinguish a dialect to a particular race is ridiculously asinine and further exposes the ignorance of our country when it comes to the "elephant in the room" called race relations. We all learn the same English language last I heard. Reid apologized for his remarks, but now we know his train of thought and possibly other white Americans. Our President accepted his apology. He says Reid is a fair and decent man and if you look at his voting record, he has done more for the plight of blacks than many black elected officials. So let’s not be cliche' and call this man a racist and condemn him. He may not be a racist, but he's awfully ignorant for thinking as such. But he's not the only one! There are a host of Negroes that cast aside their fellow Negroes for speaking proper and orthodox English language. Now isn't that ignorance as well? So let this be a "teachable moment" in this country. Instead of blowing up and playing the race card, let’s work together to rid ALL communities of ignorance regarding other communities. We all are responsible for this incident, whether you will admit it or not. It’s a mixture of the old white supremacist imperialistic elitist mindset showing (and probably unconsciously) and the crab in a bucket effect with African Americans. I respect Michael Eric Dyson's opinion wholeheartedly as a free thinker, but I disagree with his attack on the President's involvement in race relations. Hello? If you haven’t noticed, this man is the leader of the free world!! He can’t do it all himself!! It starts at the grassroots level. In the churches, at the schools, at home, in the community centers, at the mosque, the synagogue, at the workplace. We need foot soldiers for justice and equality at the lowest level. The old adage is "Think globally, but act locally." What are YOU doing in your local community to prevent these types of happenings? Prevention is better than the cure! Every American is responsible for diluting these negative stereotypes! Every American! Whether blue, black, pink, green, or white!! Brotherhood has no color attached to it! Justice has no hue connected with it! Ignorance is a disease as well as an injustice! Gandhi reminds us to be the change we want to see in the world. There are a lot of changes to be made; we've just got to have the courage to open our eyes. Peace and Love.

Authentic Love: Agape and Eros

"Love never claims, it ever gives." Gandhi.



The central staple of our lives should be love. Not money. Not success. The funny thing about that is if we begin to really "love our neighbors, as we love ourselves", then all these other goals and destinations that we seek, will all fall into place. But when I converse with the everyday people about everyday issues such as love, we find that we really don't know what true love is and if we cant distinguish authentic love from fool's gold, then we most certainly don't know how to apply love to our lives and the lives of others. The great C.S. Lewis tells us about 4 types of love (affection or storge, philos or friendship, Eros or romantic love, agape or unconditional love)in his writing, "The Four Loves". We will touch on only two.



Now lets differentiate Eros and agape because these are so misunderstood by the masses. When we talk about Eros, we move into a realm of passionate and romantic feeling for another person. Our boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands, wives, domestic partners, summer flings, mistresses, etc fall under the category of those affected by erotic love. We see this type of love come and go in our courtships simply because it derives from an impulsive, beast-like place in us that attaches itself to the status or current condition of that relationship. Once Eros burns itself out, most times there is nothing left between the two persons and disdain creeps in and sometimes hate. That is what we want to call conditional love. When the happy and jovial conditions no longer exist, Eros love falls apart.



Agape love is a horse of a different color. I get real excited when i talk about agape! What is agape? Martin said this: "Agape is disinterested love.....Agape does not begin by discriminating worthy or unworthy people, or any qualities people possess. It begins by loving others for their sakes.....Therefore, agape makes no distinction between friend or enemy; it is directed toward both." Agape is true love at its simplest and most basic level, however it seems so hard for people to fathom and also apply this. Agape is the purest sense of unconditional love. What examples of unconditional love can we draw from? There are so many! We can look at the life of Jesus. He loved no matter who you were, where you were from, and what wrong you may have done to him or anybody else. We can look at the life of Gandhi. He fought the injustices of the British Empire through nonviolence while still loving them, despite the atrocities he and his people encountered. We can draw from the prophet Muhammad and his struggle to endure religious persecution by his own people, but still taught love regardless of the situation. Mandela fought the evils of Apartheid because he loved himself, his people, and he still loved his enemies and didn't harbor an attitude of hatred. Martin Luther King taught America to continue to love and bless those who curse you. Those are a few examples we can mimic in our quest to be better humans by loving unconditionally. So what you and this brother or sister have differences of opinion. So what you disagree on religion. So what he or she broke your heart. So what. So what. So what. Paul, one the greatest(if not the greatest) Christian writers, tell us this regarding love: "Love is patient, love is kind. it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not rejoice in evil, but rejoices in truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." Now if we are realists, and we should be, we understand that nobody is perfect. Humans will always fall short, but in our mission to be God-like, we must continue to love one another. We must love even more within difficult and adverse times. So if a relationship crumbles don't say "He/She doesn't love me anymore!" That's not true. Maybe your Eros has faded, but agape should still be there. Don't say "I hate my mother/father/friend/brother/relative! They always let me down!" Love them despite their shortcomings, for love is and has been the unifying force of the world over many years. Erotic love is nice to encounter, but if agape is not the foundation of any relationship, whether it be erotic or platonic, your setting yourself up for failure. peace.


"When I speak of love, I am speaking of that force which all the great religions have seen as the supreme unifying principle of life. Love is the key that unlocks the door which leads to ultimate reality." MLK.

"We are obliged to love one another. We are not strictly bound to "like" one another." Thomas Merton.

"Love..... is the Law of our Being" Gandhi

"Love never claims, it ever gives." Gandhi