Showing posts with label african americans. Show all posts
Showing posts with label african americans. Show all posts

Saturday, September 4, 2010

Tom Joyner Wants to Help HBCUs

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University 

Radio show host Tom Joyner has decided to start making investments in the educational arena. Joyner has announced that he will help found a company designed to support Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in their quest to create online and distance learning programs.
Joyner's foundation has donated quite a bit of money to HBCUs. He is also a proud advocate for these campuses, which have struggled a great deal during the recent recession. Taping into additional revenue provided through online programs would provide a much needed boost for many black colleges and universities.

 

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Friday, September 3, 2010

Black Males Dying in Detroit at Alarming Rates

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University – Scholarship in Action 

African American males in Detroit between the ages of 15 and 24 are dying at a rate that is roughly seven times higher than the rest of the Detroit population. If they were dying at the same rate as everyone else, there would be one death every three weeks. Instead, there are two black men dying every single week.
This has set off alarm bells within the Detroit Police Department, which has taken heavy criticism for its policing of the black community. Their most recent embarrassment was the shooting of seven-year old Aiyana Jones during a police raid. But the Chief of Police, Ralph Godbee Jr., is concerned about black men killing one another.

 

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Monday, July 26, 2010

The Latest from Dr. Boyce – 7/26/10


Brought to you by The Great Black Speakers Bureau, the #1 Black Speakers Bureau in the world.  To join the Your Black World Coalition, please visit YourBlackWorld.com.

Hey peeps,

if you'd like to contribute to the cost of sending Asha Castleberry, one of our representatives, on a humanitarian mission to Haiti, please click here.  Any support would be greatly appreciated, and I really want to see Asha make this trip.  The world has forgotten about the suffering of Haiti since they are no longer in the media, but be clear - the suffering continues.

Beyond that, I just went to get a passport and driver's permit for my daughter the other day.  I believe that all of our children need passports so they can see the world and broaden their horizons.  One of my kids just got back from France, and I can see how her perspective has changed already.  My little girl is starting college this fall, so we are both excited.  The primary lessons I gave to her are the following: 

1) Avoid the culture of rampant alcoholism and irresponsible sexual choices that exist on many campuses. Everything must be done in moderation (although I make it clear that she has a right to make her own decisions - I am not a helicopter parent).

2) Study 4 - 6 hours per day, just like a part-time job. I am not sending my child to college to be average, and neither should any of us.  If kids can work 8 hours a day at McDonald's, they can study four hours a day.

3) Visit your professors at least once a week.  They need to know your face, since this influences your grades and also makes a difference in the quality of letters they write for you later on.

4) Study in a quiet place with no distractions so you can get your work done.  Studying in a dorm room with the TV on means that you'll waste time and not be able to have any fun because you'll need twice as much work to get half as much done.

5) Have a blast - college is the most fun you'll have in your life.  College is about much more than just studying. But by having a proper balance, the fun can really begin once your educated and doing well financially.  I didn't really start having fun until I had a little money in my pocket and saw the benefits of a good educational foundation.

I explained to her that most college professors automatically give you a "B" for simply doing what you are told.  To get an "A," you just have to do a little bit more.  The key word that she and I remember is "consistency."  Students who cram and wait to the last minute always end up stressed out with a poor performance.  Those who study consistently typically dominate the rest of the class.  That was the only reason I was able to do so well in college, since I was nobody's Rhodes Scholar in high school!
I thought I would share some of the info I give to my daughter so you can share it with your kids.  After teaching at the college level for the past 17 years, I've concluded that it's just a hustle with a simple formula.  If George Bush can graduate from Harvard, then all of our kids can be outstanding scholars.  Push your kids to be the best, and to take the word "me" out of "mediocrity." If you want to read more, please feel free to get the discounted version of my book, "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about College."

Sincerely,

Dr. Boyce

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The Latest from Dr. Boyce Watkins on AOL Black Voices

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Alabama Coach Calls Sports Agents "Pimps": No, He's the Real Pimp

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Former NBA Player Lorenzen Wright Has Gone Missing

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Dr. Boyce Video -- S. Tia Brown and I Talk Financial Lovemaking

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Undocumented Workers Leaving Arizona: Good for Black Folks?

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Obama's Approval Rating on Economy Drops: Why Is That?

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Reggie Bush USC Debacle is About NCAA Exploitation

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Dr. Boyce Video -- Madam Prezident - The Dopest Black Poet in America

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President Obama Says Vilsack Jumped the Gun on Shirley Sherrod

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Dr. Boyce Video -- Black Filmmakers Dorian Chandler and Keisha Dutes

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Dr. Boyce Video -- Black Female Athletes Excel in the Ivy Leagues

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Barack Obama Celebrates Victory on Financial Reform

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CBC Gets Involved With Shirley Sherrod Firing

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Black Candidate Puts 'Not the White Man's B*tch' on Ballot Description


Dr. Boyce on TheLoop21.com
"Boyce Watkins"



What Does It Mean to be a "Sellout"?

by Dr. Boyce Watkins

What does it mean to be a sellout?  Most of us grew up on this term, but I would be willing to bet that most of us don’t know what the word actually means.   Back in the 1980s, the term “sellout” applied to someone who was all too quick to give up his blackness in exchange for a seat at the white man’s table.  It could also relate to someone willing to do nearly anything to earn a buck.

Obviously, being a sellout means that you’ve sold something.  But that’s not an entirely accurate definition, since we all sell something at some point.  Most of us have been in situations where we wanted to take a stand on an issue, but simply decided to choose our battles in order to protect our opportunities.  That doesn’t necessarily make you weak, but there is a thin line between selling something and selling out completely.

So, perhaps the term “sellout” means selling something of tremendous value in exchange for greater opportunity or financial prosperity.  Can we agree on this definition?  Good, now lets’ get to the nitty-gritty.

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Monday, June 21, 2010

The Latest from Dr. Boyce on AOL - 6/21/10

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Son of Dallas Police Chief Suspected in Killing a Cop

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Is Obama's Mortgage Modification Program Failing?

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Michael Jackson's Estate Earned $783 Million Since His Death

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Will Tiger Woods' Video Game Sell Like it Did in the Past?

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Hallmark Greeting Card Gets Accused of Corporate Racism

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How to Save Your Money: 5 Steps to Getting it Right

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Financial Lovemaking: AOL BV Poll Results on Black Women, Dating

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Black Businesswoman Danielle Douglas and Dr. Boyce Talk Business

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Tiger Woods Sex Scandals Cost Him $25 Million in Endorsements

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Black Scholar: Black Athletes Exploited Physically, Intellectually by NCAA

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Dr. Boyce and Lady Drama Discuss Wendy Williams, Hip-Hop and More

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Foreclosure Epidemic Hits Minority Communities Hardest

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Black Republican: King's Statement About Obama Favoring Blacks Was Right

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The Black Church Keeps Black Women Single and Lonely?

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Parliament-Funkadelic Guitarist Garry Shider Dies




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Saturday, June 19, 2010

The NCAA is In Need of Serious Reform

Dr. Boyce Watkins - The Institute of Black Public Policy

I wrote about a new book regarding the NCAA’s alleged exploitation of black athletes, written by University of Georgia Professor Billy Hawkins. In his recently-released book, “The New Plantation,” Hawkins goes out of his way to help us understand that the method by which the NCAA does business is not much different from the mindset of plantation owners of the old south.

The analogies used by Professor Hawkins are thought-provoking and appear to be alarmist at first glance. After all, citizens are commonly comparing nearly every modern-day injustice to slavery in order to make a dramatic point. But in this case, the analogies are appropriate, in large part because slavery is not a dichotomy. Instead, it is actually a continuum, with complete freedom on one end and total servitude on the other. One could even argue that slaves themselves were not completely devoid of freedom, since they could have always chosen to run away, buy their freedom, maim themselves or even commit suicide as a way to escape their condition. The point of this very grim example is not to say that slavery was not entirely horrific; rather, it is to say that something does not have to be entirely horrific to be compared to slavery.

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Monday, June 14, 2010

Why Are Women Excluded from Hip Hop?

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

I met spoken-word hip hop artist Shanelle Walker when I went to give a speech atKentucky State University. Shanelle sent me a video of a rhyme she recited in honor of President Barack Obama. I was instantly floored by the performance, since I found her to be an incredibly powerful artist.
But Shanelle's performance led me to consider broader concerns, such as why there are so few women in the hip-hop industry. I remain confused that women are not given a chance to shine in a field dominated by men. While hip-hop has historically been the channel designed to give a voice to urban America, women have been effectively left out. While I've certainly spoken my piece on how hip hop needs to change, here are some reasons I believe women are missing:
1) The hypermasculinity of hip-hop: By becoming so masculine and sexualized, the music doesn't give women opportunities that don't involve a G-string. I look forward to the day when the culture is not driven by who gets shot the most and who does the best job of proving that he's a goon. That might actually lead to better music, since right now, many hip-hop artists come off like World Wrestling Entertainment characters. It's O.K. for an artist to also be a human-being.

 

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Friday, June 11, 2010

THE INSTITUTE OF THE BLACK WORLD PRESENTS THE FIRST MEETING OF THE SHIRLEY CHISHOLM PRESIDENTIAL ACCOUNTABILITY COMMISSION

                                                                                                FRIDAY JUNE 18, 2010

Black America: The Economic State of Emergency

Rayburn House Office Building ROOM 2237

12:30 PM – 1:00 PM Opening Ceremony

Welcome-Rick Adams* , Chair of the IBW Board of Directors and Convener for the Commission
Overview and Introduction of the Shirley Chisholm Presidential Accountability Commission Members Dr. Ron Daniels*, President of IBW
Opening remarks-Dr. Elsie Scott* President Congressional Black Caucus Foundation

                               Greetings- Hon. John Conyers*, Member of Congress

                               Greetings-Hon Barbara Lee*, Member of Congress
                               Citation in Memory of Shirley Chisholm-

1- 2:30 PM Public Panel One: The Human Face of the Economic Crisis

Moderator- Attorney Nkechi Taifa*-Senior Policy Analyst, Open Society Foundation, Washington, DC

                                    Mr. Walter Fields* -Executive Editor, North Star News, Newark, New Jersey

Dedrick Muhammad*- Senior Organizer and Research Associate for the Program on Inequality and the Common Good, Institute for Policy Studies, Washington, DC

Ms. Faye Moore*- President, Social Services Employees Union Local 371, New York, New York

‎
2:30- 4 PM Public Panel Two: Legislative and Policy Solutions to the Economic Crisis

Moderator- Dr. Duchess Harris*- Associate Professor, American Studies, Macalester College, St. Paul, MN
Dr Ron Walters*- Pre-eminent political scientist, author, distinguished leadership scholar, College Park, MD
Dr. Julianne Malveaux*- President, Bennett College for Women, economist, author, commentator, Founder & Thought Leader of Last Word Productions, Inc, Bennett College, Greensboro, NC
Erica L. Williams*- Deputy Director for Progress 2050, Center for American Progress, Washington DC

4 PM Closing Remarks

(The people with a (*) by their name are confirmed.)

Rick Adams, Chair Institute of the Black World (IBW)

                                  Convener, Chisholm Presidential Commission  Contact: 412-580-8084

Dr. Ron Daniels, Founder, Institute of the Black World (IBW)

President of IBW., Contact 718-533-1624




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Thursday, June 10, 2010

Dr. Boyce Watkins: Talib Kweli Weighs in on Slim Thug's Remarks about Black Women

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

A note to Slim Thug: You probably just need to be quiet for a while. It's not to say thatyour comments about black women were outside your rights to freedom of speech, but if you keep dissing the audience most likely to go out and buy your records, you are probably going to end up in the same poorhouse as MC Hammer. Don't get me wrong, black men love your music (at least I do), but the bottom line is that brothers don't buy albums, books, or anything else put up for sale. But when black women turn on you, it's a wrap son. Settle down and go back to the studio; it's good for your financial health.
I wrote yesterday about the comments made by Slim Thug regarding how he perceives white women to be a better dating choice than black women, as well asColumbia Professor Marc Lamont Hill'sresponse to Slim Thug's words. It seems that the debate has taken a life of it's own, now that rapper Talib Kweli has joined the conversation. In a recent essay he wrote for Vibe Magazine, Talib Kweli was ever the diplomatic artist, as he showed respect for Slim Thug, but also expressed his own concerns for his colleague's remarks about black women:

Click to read.

To read more about the debate regarding Slim Thug’s comments about black women, click here.




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Monday, May 24, 2010

Dr. Julianne Malveaux on Financial Reform

Financial Reform-The Devil's In The Details

By Julianne Malveaux

Late last week, the United States Senate passed a financial reform bill by a vote of 59-39. Two Democrats crossed party lines, as did four Republicans to come up with the result. Now, the House, which has already passed financial reform legislation, and the Senate, will have to reconcile their versions of the bill. Now is the time for consumer advocates and others to counter the aggressive lobbying that will be done by banks and the auto industry to minimize the effects of legislation. This may also be an opportunity for the Congressional Black Caucus to raise its voice on the side of the many consumers who have been damaged by this financial crisis. While legislation is not meant to look backwards, but instead forward to prevent future crises, the CBC are among those who advocate for the least and the left out. Their perspective on financial regulation is badly needed.

The House would create a consumer protection agency that is freestanding; the Senate would house the agency inside the Federal Reserve Bank. In some ways having the Fed run consumer protection is like having the fox patrol the chicken coop. Isn't this the same Fed that was part and parcel of the 2008 financial meltdown, the same Fed (then led by Alan Greenspan) that turned a blind eye to predatory and sub-prime lending and the market distortions that emerged from the packaging of substandard loan paper? The Federal Reserve theoretically already deals with regulation around credit cards and mortgages and to date they've not done a good job. What will change when they now have a consumer protection agency? Hearings, anyone?

The House would exempt auto dealers from regulation, but the Senate would not. Why should auto dealers get a special break? Some say that we need people to buy autos to stimulate economic recovery. Shouldn't they buy autos on fair terms? The lobbyists are lining up to make the case for auto dealers, but who is lining up for consumers? This financial regulation reform makes it clear that the people have little power to affect legislation when lobbyists are involved. Too many are so happy that this financial reform legislation has been passed in both houses that they won't look closely at the details or at reconciliation.

If we looked closely enough we might find that payday lenders, you know those folks who charge interest rates that veer into the triple digits, were able to stop a proposed provision of financial reform that would limit the number of payday loans (so called because you are borrowing against your paycheck) one individual could get. The payday loan industry ran an astroturf campaign to stop a provision North Carolina Senator Kay Hagan introduced to limit payday loans to six (!) at a time. Consumers are worse off because the Hagan provisions were not included in the legislation.

Indeed, the final version of this legislation may be ready by the end of June. The House and the Senate aren't too far apart on their provisions, which makes reconciliation easy. But neither the House nor the Senate has gone far enough in regulating derivatives, though both require derivatives to be traded publicly, and to be collateralized. This will stop the speculative nature of derivates, except for the fact that the House provides lots of exemptions to derivative clearinghouse rules. Washington Senator Maria Cantwell (D) opposed Senate legislation because she said it had too many loopholes for derivative trading.

Banks got off easy in this legislation. They are still allowed to do proprietary trading, or to speculate with their own money. But their money is really shareholder money, so who protects the shareholder? Indeed, banking lobbies are likely to tweak the compromise legislation so that financial reform regulations are less onerous to banks. Yet less onerous regulation is what caused the financial services industry to seek a $700 billion bailout from the federal government.

Congress will be rushing to get back to their districts this summer, what with contentious mid-term elections to deal with in November. We can't let their haste weaken legislation that is already far from ideal. Most Republicans have opposed financial reform regulations on the grounds that this legislation simply expands the role of government and increases the size of the bureaucracy. The Obama Administration will have to take a forceful role in ensuring that the haste to pass financial reform regulations does not gloss over important details. And, most importantly, consumer protection must be a cornerstone of this legislation. Both the House and Senate bills are a step in the right direction. Still, the devil is really in the details on financial reform legislation, and negotiations that take place in this next month will be critical to the success of meaningful financial reform.

 

Dr. Julianne Malveaux is an economist, author and commentator, and the Founder & Thought Leader of Last Word Productions, Inc., a multimedia production company.

Last Word Productions, Inc. is a multimedia production company that serves as a vehicle for the work and products of Dr. Julianne Malveaux. For the last 10 years the company has centered its efforts on Dr. Malveaux's public speaking appearances, her work as a broadcast and print journalist, and also as an author. Currently, Julianne Malveaux is President of Bennett College For Women in Greensboro, North Carolina.

To find more of Dr. Julianne Malveaux's columns, work and appearances please visit:

www.juliannemalveaux.com

# # #




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Friday, May 21, 2010

The Latest from Dr. Boyce, AOL and MSNBC - 5/21/10


Brought to you by The Great Black Speakers Bureau, the #1 Black Speakers Bureau in the world.  To join the Your Black World Coalition, please visit YourBlackWorld.com


Dr. Boyce on MSNBC: Good ol fashioned Kentucky Racism of Rand Paul and the Tea Partiers - Click to watch

From the Kirwan Institute for the study of race and ethnicity - The Ohio State University

Before you convict Lawrence Taylor for rape, consider this

Before you convict Lawrence Taylor for rape, consider this

As the father of three girls, I am not interested in defending a standard racist, statutory rapist, child molester or sexual predator.  I don’t even like fellow college professors who think it’s O.K. to sleep with their students (I lost respect for a colleague over a case like this a few...

MAY 21ST, 2010 | AFRICAN AMERICANS, FEATURED | READ MORE


Dr. Boyce on MSNBC's TheGrio.com

Would Rand Paul roll back the Civil Rights Act?

I don't dislike Rand Paul, the Republican candidate for Kentucky's U.S. Senate seat. He claims to believe in freedom, and he's from Kentucky, just like me. But growing up under the fist of Kentucky racism affected me, and Rand Paul reminds me of the men and women who hurt me the most.

Paul is a member of the Tea Party and a political star. He mobilized more Republican voters for his primary than any candidate in the history of Kentucky, and he may even one day challenge Mitch McConnell for the Senate Republican leadership. His views are fresh and new, in a subtly racist sort of way, and he's a perfect fit for the anti-Obama climate that has led to our nation's racial roaches coming out of the closet.

Paul took some heat for comments he made about the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which is politically sacred ground that even his fellow Republicans won't touch. The firestorm started when Paul said that it should be ok for restaurant owners to discriminate if they choose to do so. In other words, if Woolworth's had not wanted Dr. King at their lunch counter, they should have been allowed to turn him away. But he then went on to say that any business receiving federal funding should not be allowed to engage in discrimination, that Martin Luther King is one of his heroes, and that he understands the fact that racism in America has become systematic.

Click to read more.

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Dr. Julianne Malveaux Questions the Elena Kagan Nomination

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Black Women Feel Replaced by Elena Kagan on the Supreme Court

Black Leaders Dance Around Kagan

My Photo

by Faye Anderson

It’s Election Day in Pennsylvania, where voters will decide whether Democrat-turned-Republican-turned Democrat Sen. Arlen Specter stays or, as expected, gets the boot.

Specter’s primary opponent, Rep. Joe Sestak, hammered him for voting against Elena Kagan’s nomination as Solicitor General of the United States.

In a floor speech on March 19, 2009, Specter said:

I have gone to really great lengths to find out about Dean Kagan’s approach to the law and approach to the job of Solicitor General and to get some of her ideas on the law because she’s in a critical public policy making position… We had an extensive hearing where I questioned her at some length. Written questions were submitted and she responded to them. I was not satisfied with the answers which were given and when her name came before the Committee, I passed.

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