Amazingly I came across a poem with relation to my own character. This poem took the place of tape that kept my eyes open. Poems of this sort included common sense, connection, and teach a life lesson within it. Don't get caught up in love and misunderstanding what’s really important.
Place yourself in a situation where you have the choices of either love or success. Its common sense that you choice your success in life. Rather than love because love can get you killed success will help you build. Reed shows you the consequence of your decisions either if their stupid or smart.
Ishmael expresses the thoughts and decisions of many teenagers like myself. In my life it seems like I’ve always chosen girls over my school work. My grandmother always tells me to leave them “whores” alone but I never listen. This poem brought my attention of what she means when she tells me that. I think I’ll listen from now on.
Some poems teaches many lessons but I think this one relates to teenagers and they should read and keep in mind when it comes down to that decision making progress. When he says “if I had a nickel for every woman who rejected me in life I would be the head of the world bank” that line right there made me a little cautious because what’s the point of having riches if you have no one to share it with, but that’s just me.
In conclusion, Ishmael reed possibly changed my life by writing this poem.
I’m a poet myself and he not only made a change in my thoughts but he also taught me to write more about life because they make a greater impact. After reading this poem, school has become my number one priority, my family come in second, and my love life come in third.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Reflection on NHD
The reason that I was interested in doing the Black Mafia for my NHD Project was because the Black Mafia was from my neighborhood. My family also knew a lot of the Black Mafia members; it’s surprising though because I couldn’t get anyone that was in the Black Mafia to conduct an interview with me. This was because they were ashamed of what they did and they were scared as well. Before I started doing research I already knew some things about the Black Mafia, all I knew was that they terrorized my neighborhood, and gave no mercy.
The most important resource that I used had to be the book that was written by Sean Patrick Griffin called Black Brothers Inc. Sean Patrick Griffin, a former Philadelphia cop turned academic, reveals how the gang was founded in 1968 by the hulking Sam Christian, who gathered around him a ferocious crew of gunmen. They ruthlessly eliminated rivals and were soon carrying out "hits" for the Black Muslims, who ultimately controlled political and street power in many neighborhoods. Another source that I used was Bet’s American Gangster, a documentary that was done about the Black Mafia. The problems about this topic were that I didn’t have a lot of sources to begin with, but the resources that I did have were used wisely.
The reason that I chose to do a documentary was because I’m very good with computers and I thought it would be kind of fun to create a documentary for the first time. In my past I created exhibits and they didn’t look very good. If I chose to do a paper I would have been to stressed. To create my documentary I used clips from bet’s American Gangster: Black Mafia and used videos from Getty Images. At the time when I was almost done my documentary my entire documentary got deleted, but I didn’t quit I restarted my whole documentary and it came out better than it was before.
This year’s theme was “Conflict and Compromise” and it wasn’t very hard for me to connect my topic to the theme. Philadelphia's 'Black Mafia' was a self-named, finite group of individuals who organized crime in predominantly African-American sections of the city beginning in the late 1960s. The group began as an extortion-centered organization and opted sometime in late 1970 or early 1971 to become, in essence, the extortion arm of the Black Muslims. Several spectacular crimes contributed to its growing reputation for violence. The Black Mafia was changing though especially after its leaders Ronald Harvey and Sam Christian were arrested. On December 31st 1973 the mob decided to celebrate with its very own New Year’s Ball. Soon after this event this organization was giving themselves a new meaning and a new name. so after this adoption of new meaning and new name, they weren’t actually causing the murders they were stopping them.Creating this project was an honor and has went down as one of the greatest projects that I have ever created.
The most important resource that I used had to be the book that was written by Sean Patrick Griffin called Black Brothers Inc. Sean Patrick Griffin, a former Philadelphia cop turned academic, reveals how the gang was founded in 1968 by the hulking Sam Christian, who gathered around him a ferocious crew of gunmen. They ruthlessly eliminated rivals and were soon carrying out "hits" for the Black Muslims, who ultimately controlled political and street power in many neighborhoods. Another source that I used was Bet’s American Gangster, a documentary that was done about the Black Mafia. The problems about this topic were that I didn’t have a lot of sources to begin with, but the resources that I did have were used wisely.
The reason that I chose to do a documentary was because I’m very good with computers and I thought it would be kind of fun to create a documentary for the first time. In my past I created exhibits and they didn’t look very good. If I chose to do a paper I would have been to stressed. To create my documentary I used clips from bet’s American Gangster: Black Mafia and used videos from Getty Images. At the time when I was almost done my documentary my entire documentary got deleted, but I didn’t quit I restarted my whole documentary and it came out better than it was before.
This year’s theme was “Conflict and Compromise” and it wasn’t very hard for me to connect my topic to the theme. Philadelphia's 'Black Mafia' was a self-named, finite group of individuals who organized crime in predominantly African-American sections of the city beginning in the late 1960s. The group began as an extortion-centered organization and opted sometime in late 1970 or early 1971 to become, in essence, the extortion arm of the Black Muslims. Several spectacular crimes contributed to its growing reputation for violence. The Black Mafia was changing though especially after its leaders Ronald Harvey and Sam Christian were arrested. On December 31st 1973 the mob decided to celebrate with its very own New Year’s Ball. Soon after this event this organization was giving themselves a new meaning and a new name. so after this adoption of new meaning and new name, they weren’t actually causing the murders they were stopping them.Creating this project was an honor and has went down as one of the greatest projects that I have ever created.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Maya Angelou
Born as Marguerite Ann Johnson, April 4, 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri. Maya Angelou is an American poet, memoirist, actress and an important figure in the American Civil Rights Movement.In 2001 she was named one of the 30 most powerful women in America by Ladies Home Journal.Maya Angelou is known for her series of six autobiographies, starting with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, (1969) which was nominated for a National Book Award and called her magnum opus. Her volume of poetry, Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'Fore I Die (1971) was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.daughter of Bailey,a doorkeeper and naval dietician, and Vivian, a nurse and realtor ( maiden name, Baxter) Johnson.Maya's brother Baily Jr. gave her the nickname Maya and she got her last name from a divorced husband Tosh Angelou.Angelou is hailed as one of the great voices of contemporary black literature and as a remarkable Renaissance woman. She began producing books after some notable friends, including author James Baldwin, heard Angelou's stories of her childhood spent shuttling between rural, segregated Stamps, Arkansas, where her devout grandmother ran a general store, and St. Louis, Missouri, where her worldly, glamorous mother lived. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, a chronicle of her life up to age sixteen (and ending with the birth of her son, Guy) was published in 1970 with great critical and commercial success. Although many of the stories in the book are grim, as in the author's revelation that she was raped at age eight by her mother's boyfriend, the volume also recounts the self-awakening of the young Angelou. "Her genius as a writer is her ability to recapture the texture of the way of life in the texture of its idioms, its idiosyncratic vocabulary and especially in its process of image-making," reports Sidonie Ann Smith in Southern Humanities Review.Angelou also taught modern dance at Habima Theatre, Tel Aviv, Israel, and the Rome Opera House, Rome, Italy. Appeared in Porgy and Bess on twenty-two-nation tour sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, 1954-55; appeared in Off-Broadway plays Calypso Heatwave, 1957, and The Blacks, 1960; produced and performed in Cabaret for Freedom, with Godfrey Cambridge, Off-Broadway, 1960; University of Ghana, Institute of African Studies, Legon-Accra, Ghana, assistant administrator of School of Music and Drama, 1963-66; appeared in Mother Courage at University of Ghana, 1964, and in Meda in Hollywood, 1966; made Broadway debut in Look Away, 1973; directed film All Day Long, 1974; directed her play And Still I Rise in California, 1976; directed Errol John's Moon on a Rainbow Shawl in London, England, 1988; appeared in film Roots, 1977. Television narrator, interviewer, and host for Afro-American specials and theatre series, 1972. Lecturer at University of California, Los Angeles, 1966; writer in residence at University of Kansas, 1970; distinguished visiting professor at Wake Forest University, 1974, Wichita State University, 1974, and California State University, Sacramento, 1974; professor at Wake Forest University, 1981--. Northern coordinator of Southern Christian Leadership Conference, 1959-60; appointed member of American Revolution Bicentennial Council by President Gerald R. Ford, 1975-76; member of National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year. Now at the age of 79 Ms.Angelou is now making special apperences at african-american events, the latest event was the groundbreaking of the African Burial Ground on October 5, 2007.
Friday, January 11, 2008
my thoughts on porn
Some people say pornography is the use of the human body to sexually arouse the viewer,if this is a good thing i totally disagree. I disagree Because the human body is not supposed to be used in any way, because when we use a person, we are reducing his or her dignity from that of a person to that of an object. Just think about it, If a person regularly used pornography, he would be so “sexually charged” up (laugh out loud) that he would need to release it somewhere. First, it would be masturbation, but because these feelings of pleasure lead to addiction, and addiction is a progressive disease, more is required than before to obtain the same sexual high previously experienced. The person would therefore seek out more thrilling ventures to meet his need for sexual pleasure. Hopefully it won't lead to raping someone.
Friday, November 2, 2007
Thursday, November 1, 2007
pog 2
Does an ordinary,everyday citizen not have freedom of speech?,does an everyday citizen
have the right to testify in a court case at the supreme court,and last but not least,does every citizen
have the right to write a bill and have it go through the process to be either vetoed or passed.Well the
answer to these random questions are all answered in the U.S. Constitution.The Answers are yes.The
problem is, is that some of these rights were disrespected by President Marcus Young.
Amendment 1, in the U.S. Constitution, clearly states that every citizen has freedom of sp-
-eech and of the Press.So that means that weither you like it or not I'm going to say what I have to say
to get my point across. But that right did not stop President Young from ripping up protest signs,
threatening protesters, and stabbing a member of the congress because he disagreed with the iDeal
society. But these criminal actions did not get him impeached even though the congress and the citizens
tried so hard to have this accomplished. Ms. Sharde Miller had to be the most determined citizen to have
President Young impeached. The reason for this hostility is because Ms. Miller was one of the citizens
that was protesting about the iDeal society,her and the President had a few harsh words for each other
that day but the words that had Ms.Miller arrested were threats. The fued got so out of hand that these
two enimies had to go all the way to the supreme court to have this fued solved. The Supreme court
ruled in favor of Sharde Milller.
U.S. Citizens protested about the iChip being mandatory and to permanently stop the production
of the iChip. The U.S. Citizens got there point across to the H.O.R and they did not like the manditory rule.
so the president change the rule to only 18 and over citizens are allowed to get it if they want to. President
Young agreed to change the rule because he knew if the ideal society was going to be in effect,the bill had
to go through the H.O.R according to Article 1,section 7.In the end the H.O.R wrote a bill to ban the iChip and
President Young signed it because the citizens pretty much hated him at this point,so he wanted to redeem
himself so he passed the bill.Later on in the year President Young got his revenge against one of the H.O.R
members.
The attack on one of the H.O.R members made President Young look even worst during his trial
against Sharde Miller in 2007. H.O.R member Hassaan Cooper testified against Young because of the attack.
H.O.R member Naasir Williams also testified against Young because of the attack.The relationship that Williams
has with the attack is that he was also involved.He was the one who defended Cooper, after he was stabbed in
the shoulder Williams stabbed Young,but then was arrested by Young's sercurity.Young was very angry about
these testimonies,but he couldn't argue about them testifying because of Article 3 of the U.S. Constitution.
In Conclusion, every citizen should have the right to write a bill and have it go through the process
to be either vetoed or passed.If an everyday citizen wants to protest they have the right to according to
Amendment1.Now even the President Young is still the President he has learned to respect and not violate
or abuse these rights.
have the right to testify in a court case at the supreme court,and last but not least,does every citizen
have the right to write a bill and have it go through the process to be either vetoed or passed.Well the
answer to these random questions are all answered in the U.S. Constitution.The Answers are yes.The
problem is, is that some of these rights were disrespected by President Marcus Young.
Amendment 1, in the U.S. Constitution, clearly states that every citizen has freedom of sp-
-eech and of the Press.So that means that weither you like it or not I'm going to say what I have to say
to get my point across. But that right did not stop President Young from ripping up protest signs,
threatening protesters, and stabbing a member of the congress because he disagreed with the iDeal
society. But these criminal actions did not get him impeached even though the congress and the citizens
tried so hard to have this accomplished. Ms. Sharde Miller had to be the most determined citizen to have
President Young impeached. The reason for this hostility is because Ms. Miller was one of the citizens
that was protesting about the iDeal society,her and the President had a few harsh words for each other
that day but the words that had Ms.Miller arrested were threats. The fued got so out of hand that these
two enimies had to go all the way to the supreme court to have this fued solved. The Supreme court
ruled in favor of Sharde Milller.
U.S. Citizens protested about the iChip being mandatory and to permanently stop the production
of the iChip. The U.S. Citizens got there point across to the H.O.R and they did not like the manditory rule.
so the president change the rule to only 18 and over citizens are allowed to get it if they want to. President
Young agreed to change the rule because he knew if the ideal society was going to be in effect,the bill had
to go through the H.O.R according to Article 1,section 7.In the end the H.O.R wrote a bill to ban the iChip and
President Young signed it because the citizens pretty much hated him at this point,so he wanted to redeem
himself so he passed the bill.Later on in the year President Young got his revenge against one of the H.O.R
members.
The attack on one of the H.O.R members made President Young look even worst during his trial
against Sharde Miller in 2007. H.O.R member Hassaan Cooper testified against Young because of the attack.
H.O.R member Naasir Williams also testified against Young because of the attack.The relationship that Williams
has with the attack is that he was also involved.He was the one who defended Cooper, after he was stabbed in
the shoulder Williams stabbed Young,but then was arrested by Young's sercurity.Young was very angry about
these testimonies,but he couldn't argue about them testifying because of Article 3 of the U.S. Constitution.
In Conclusion, every citizen should have the right to write a bill and have it go through the process
to be either vetoed or passed.If an everyday citizen wants to protest they have the right to according to
Amendment1.Now even the President Young is still the President he has learned to respect and not violate
or abuse these rights.
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