#RickRoss&RapeLyrics

Hey everybody!! I know it's been awhile since I have given a post.  But I had to come back because these artists are showing out!! This month has been the month of crazy lyrics from main stream artists.  First, we had Beyonce telling all artists to Bow Down, B!tch3$ and after she was just telling the girls last year that "Girls Run the World".  Well, Keisha Cole was not having it and tweeted about the situation, which caused an uproar in the Twittersphere.  My review of "Bow Down": Garbage, plain and simple.

Source: www.medievalbeatz.com

But I'm not here to discuss my dislike for Beyonce's new single but to put Mr. Double Ds himself, Rick Ross, on blast for his latest lyrics.  On his newest single, U.O.E.N.O, Rick Ross raps:

“Put molly all in her champagne/She ain’t even know it/I took her home and I enjoyed that/She ain’t even know it.”

 Yes... you read correctly.  Rick Ross is rapping about date rape.  When Rick Ross was asked in an interview about the lyric, he said that it was a "misunderstanding" but yet he didn't explain what the lyric was suppose to mean.  Then he goes on to say that women are queens and the hip hop community doesn't condone that type of behavior (probably was told by his record label to do some clean up). 

My main thing is this: how are we suppose to interpret that lyric?  You drugged her drink and went back to the house and played Monopoly?  Rick Ross, please save that lame excuse of "misunderstanding" for your impressionable fans.  Now, even though some young, stupid person is going to hear this lyric and thinks that it is cool to drug females' drinks, I do not believe that everybody is going to start putting mollys in people's drink.  But when you take something that is very serious and rap about it like it's nothing you are doing something dangerous: normalizing it.  As a society, we should never get to the point that we become desensitized to the seriousness of rape.  We need to understand that rape has lasting effects on it's victims.  Many victims show their strength when they speak up about their situation.  We do not need rappers trivializing their unfortunate situation. 

Give me your feedback on the song.  Remember to follow me on Twitter, @EbonyMarieRe

 

#RockTheRedPump

Rocking my red flats!!

Hey everybody!! Right now in the U.S., African American and Hispanic women account for 80 percent of AIDS cases. This is remarkable considering the fact that they represent less than one fourth of the women population in the U.S.  Women make up half of the adults living with HIV worldwide.  Even though these facts are alarming, I do not want to spend the rest of this post throwing out facts and statistics about HIV/AIDS.  But I would rather talk about how important it is we take of ourselves.

Ladies, we are something else.  Even if we have the flu we must continue to work, do chores, take care of husbands, pay bills, and whatever else.  We do not stop.  This is why it is so important that we take care of precious bodies. 

One way to take care of ourselves is by knowing our status.  If you are sexually active, do not be afraid to get tested.  Knowing your status can be life saving.  Knowing your partner's status can also save your life.  If your partner is not willing to get tested or show you proof of their test then don't let them touch the goods.  Go to http://hivtest.cdc.gov/ to find a HIV testing location near you.

Wrap it up.  I know you all remember the BET commercials telling you to "wrap it up".  As corny as this commercial became it's message was clear: put a condom on!  The average price of a box of condoms is $6.00.  I understand that in this economy that might seem a little steep but compared to cost of medications for AIDS and the stress from having a non-curable disease $6.00 is not bad.  Remember, your life is priceless.  Men love to say they cannot feel anything when wearing a condom.  But let homeboy know that if he doesn't want to wear a condom then he can have fun feeling the inside of his hand.

Educate yourself.  When AIDS first hit the scene there were a lot of misconceptions.  Let's be clear, this is not a gay, black, white, or Hispanic disease.  Anybody can contract AIDS.  This disease does not discriminate.  We know how to protect ourselves from AIDS; we have to be willing to put that education in action.  Also, by educating ourselves we will not stigmatize those with the disease.  AIDS is not a bad person's disease or contagious. 

Do not be afraid to have conversations with your friends, daughters, cousins, and nieces about AIDS.  Emphasize the importance of protecting their bodies from the disease and how to treat others that have the disease.  Let's teach our young girls to value their bodies.  Teach them to stand firm in protecting their bodies. 

Thank you for reading this post and if you didn't get anything else out of this post please get this: Know your status! 

#ReallySVU?

Hey everybody!! The last few days I have been able to catch up on shows that I missed throughout the week.  One of the shows that I got caught up on was Law & Order:SVU.  Usually, I am on the edge of my seat watching this show but this episode I had to side eye it with all the energy I could muster up in my soul. 

I am aware that the Law & Order series get their scripts from real newspaper headlines, but not only was this episode obvious taken from the real life situation of pop stars Rihanna and Chris Brown and my I add, poorly written. 

First let's talk about the slang.  Beef cookie?  Is this what the youth are saying?  And what exactly is a "beef cookie"?  Oh, let's not forget the golden line "Get me my jew" where Caleb Bryant (the faux Chris Brown) is referring to his lawyer.  I do not have my own personal lawyer but I was not aware that that was the slang term for them.  Dear writers of SVU, please hang with black youth the next time you are going to write dialogue for them.  Yours truly, EBONY Eyes.

Besides the horrendous slang, the plot follows the Rihanna/Chris Brown antics to a tee: Micha (the faux Rihanna) going back to the abusive boyfriend, Micha and Caleb disregarding the restraining order, Caleb making a public apology for his actions to save his representation.  But then the story has Caleb (the faux Chris Brown) killing people!! I get this is a dramatic show but taking a real story and portraying the main character (who is representing a real well-known person) as a murder is pushing it a bit much, right?

I get it, SVU. You are trying to teach young women what happens when you stay in an abusive relationship.  I get it and I respect it.  But having Caleb kill Brass (the faux Jay-Z) is really reaching.  I will also admit that Chris Brown has not done a good job of ridding himself of a violent image but SVU had Caleb Bryant tattooing Micha's beaten face on his lower stomach.  Do the writers always let their imaginations run wild when they use these real headlines?  I just want to know. 

Besides this copy-cat storyline being 4 years too late, it was an interesting episode.  With the very dramatic storyline and poorly written script, it still provided an important lesson:  if you are in an abusive relationship get out as soon as you can. And I strongly agree with that lesson.  No woman deserves to be beaten and men should pay for their actions regardless of their social status. 

Stay tuned for a special post that should be up on Sunday!! Follow me on Twitter @EbonyMarieRe!!

#MyMomIsBlackHistory

Hey everybody!! And welcome to the last Black History Month spotlight of 2013.  I have enjoyed bringing bits of Black History to you all this past few weeks.  I hope that maybe I taught you something new. 

For my last spotlight I want to highlight my mom.  In some of my past posts you might have heard me talk about my mom having cancer.  Even though her condition has gotten worse in the last few months, she has lived courageously with her cancer.  If I can have  a fourth of the strength she possesses, I will be able to do anything.

Exnor Marie Read (she goes by Marie) was born September 27, 1948 in Memphis, TN.  She was born into a world where everything was segregated: schools, bathrooms, bus seating, water fountains, parks, and so on and so forth.  For us born years later, this was abnormal but for my mom this was the only world she knew.  At the age of 6, my mom was called a nigger by a streetcar repairman because she was looking at him.  When this happen there was no Jessie Jackson or Al Sharpton to protest this happening.  Nope, she had to live with it.  Even though she lived in a time where racial  tensions were high, she did not hold any harsh feelings towards any race or raise her children to only think that our race was superior.  Marie would make friends of all races. 

Later on as child, my mom would go on to live with her teachers because of my grandma's mental illness.  Her foster mothers were not very supportive or nurturing towards her.  Whenever she wanted to do anything, her foster mothers would down play it.  Even when my mom tried to get involved in social justice her foster mothers vetoed it.  Marie wanted to do a sit-in with her fellow students.  She rushed home from work to get all her chores done before she asked for permission.  Her foster mothers refused to let her go (But after seeing how the folks were treated at the sit-in, she wasn't all that disappointed that she didn't go).

Only my mom would think it would be a good
idea to smoke with her oxygen tank.

After high school, she would have my older sister and three years later my older brother.  And then 17 years later, me.  She would join the military, become a nurses aid, work in a Chinese restaurant (I told you she made friends of all races) and later run her own business.  Despite not always having loving guardians, she gave nothing but love to her children.  She would raise three beautiful, independent children all by herself.  She would make friends all over Jacksonville, AR with her wit and humor.  And even with living with cancer, she would impress family, friends, doctors, and nurses with her strength.  I love my mom for every lesson she taught me.  I think about her and pray for her daily.  I will never be able to repay her for what she did for me but I can at least share with others how awesome my mom is!!

#Oscars2013

Hey everybody!! Today I am bringing you my review of the Academy Awards.  This year's award show was hosted by Seth MacFarlane (creator of Family Guy).  If you have ever seen the show, you know that Seth is not the most family-friendly guy.  ABC certainly took a risk having him host the show.  Even though there were moments that reminded you of an episode of Family Guy (the Boob song), the FCC will not have write ABC any pricey fines. 

Was it just me or did the opener go a little long?  Usually, the host comes out in the beginning and tell a couple of jokes, take some shots at the audience and that's cool.  But I felt like Seth's part went a little long.  It was a cool concept (William Shaftner coming from the future to tell Seth how he was going to do as a host)  but went a little long for me.  Also, the Chris/Rihanna joke?  4 years too late. 

As I do with all my award review posts, I will just hit some highlights:

Cartoons I've Seen Won: Even though I watch the Oscars every year, I do not always get to see the movies nominated.  This year I saw both the winners of the Best Animated Short and Best Animated Movie: Paperman and Brave, respectively.  Paperman is a cute short about a guy finding girl.  Brave is about a girl who does not want to be a princess.  This is very different from previous Disney movies.  It not my fav Disney film but congrats on the win.

Best Actress: Best actress was competitive this year.  You had the oldest woman to be nominated and the youngest lady to be nominated.  You also had someone nominated who was in a movie that you do not expect to be nominated for an Oscar.  I was rooting for Quvenzhane Wallis (not only because she is black but also because she is crazy talented) but I had a feeling they would not give it to her.  But I have no problem with Jennifer Lawrence winning.  She seems like a cool chick.

My SISTAH and 1ST CUZ showed out: Anybody that knows me knows I was waiting for my SISTAH to perform... and she did not leave me disappointed.   Effie White, I mean , Jennifer Hudson, showed us why she won the Oscar back in 2007.  I felt that pain that Curtis caused her through my television screen.  Some people say she is loud but I say she sings with her whole mind, body, and soul.  She might be loud but you will never doubt that she is singing live.

My SISTAH recieved a standing ovation

 



Also my first cuz, Adele, won an Oscar and performed.  I am not a huge fan of Skyfall but I love to hear her voice (another artist you do not doubt about singing live).  I loved her sultry look while performing Skyfall.  She is pure talent, not relying on over sexualized clothes or stripper moves on stage.  Nope, just pure talent. 

Lastly, the show was soooooooooo long! But I guess that is the complaint every year.  Seth, overall, did an okay job.  As far as I am concerned, if it was for the musical tribute, this show would have been hella boring.  Basically, it was an okay award show.

Stay tuned for the last Black History Month spotlight!



 

#BlackerTheBerry

Hey everybody!! And welcome to the third installment of my Black History Month spotlight.  This week's spotlight is actually on an particular issue in the black community. 

This particular issue has come to the surface again thanks to a casting director.  A biopic of Nina Simone, jazz singer and activist, has started production.  And the actress playing her will be...wait for it...Zoe Saldana.  Now you might not think anything of it until you realize that the real Nina Simone is...wait for it... a dark skin woman.  This has caused some uproar in the black community.  The main question being asked is why didn't they just hire a dark skin actress?  Viola Davis, Angela Bassett, India Arie, Jennifer Hudson.  According to those close to her, Ms. Simone said before she died that she wanted Whoopie Goldberg to play her in her biopic. 

Really Hollywood? Were all the dark actresses busy?



Now I have nothing against Zoe Saldana and I usually do not get caught up in race wars concerning movies but I have to say that I am none too happy about this choice myself. Dang, Hollywood, you keeping dark skin roles away from dark skin women too!! This is just outrageous!! Especially since in this case the lead role, Nina Simone, was proud of her dark skin and kinky fro.  Hollywood has a long history of not being too fond of dark meat.  When you see dark skin women on screen they are playing maids, prostitutes, and very seldom the love interest.  Hollywood has helped form the idea that darker woman are at the bottom of the beauty totem pole.  And this leads to my next point.

We must stop looking to the media to find pride in our dark skin.  As a chocolate baby growing up, I do not remember seeing many women on TV that looked like me.  Princess Tiana was not even a thought.  I grew up with Belle, Areial, and Pocahontas was the closest thing to a black Disney princess.  It would not be until Moesha and Parkers premiered that I would see women the same shade as me.  Luckily, I had a mother that told me regularly that I was beautiful.  I had to make myself believe that my dark skin was just as pretty as fair skin (not always so easy when most of the women in your family are light skin). 

Now I do not think anything of it.  I love my Hershey Kiss skin.  I wear bright colors to highlight it. I am no longer afraid of lip sticks on my dark skin.  I love how my name even means dark.  Whatever your shade, embrace it and love it! And Hollywood, do better.  What's next? Beyonce playing Harriet Tubman.

#MosaicTemplarsOfAmerica

Hey everybody!!!  This week's Black History Month spotlight is on Mosaic Templars of America.  At this point you might be wondering who or what is the Mosaic Templars of America.  Well, for those of you who live near Little Rock, Arkansas are living next to a priceless piece of history.



Mosaic Templars Headquarters, circa 1924 Source: Encyclopedia of Arkansas

Picture it, post-Emancipation Proclamation, black people are free from slavery but life is still hard.  Jim Crow laws are put in place to keep whites and blacks separate in all aspects of life: schools, restaurants, buses, etc.  Black people decide to open their own businesses in the 9th St. area of Little Rock, which becomes a city within a city.  This becomes the social and economic boom of the black community.  Something else comes from this booming area: the Mosaic Templars of America, a fraternal organization offering aid to black families. 



Source: Mosaic Templars Building Preservation
Society

This organization was founded during a time when both black and whites were joining fraternal organizations for insurance and camaraderie. Since white fraternal organizations would not issue charters to black groups, some created their own.  And this is how Mosaic Templars of America (MTA) came about.  The MTA, who get it's name from the biblical character Moses, was created by two former slaves,  John Edward Bush and Chester W. Keatts.  During a time when white insurers refused to treat black customers fairly, MTA assisted with illness, death, and burial insurance.  The MTA not only provided insurance but included a building and loan association, the Mosaic State Hospital, and the Mosaic Guide newspaper.

9th Street circa 1941 Source: Mosaic Templars Building Preservation
Society

As stated before this was a area of black businesses.  One could look down 9th Street and see barbershops, restaurants, hotels, dentists, and physician offices all owned by black people.  This area also offered a night life for the black community.  During the Great Depression, there was a decline in businesses but there was some growth during the 1940's and 1950's.  Due to urban renewal and construction in the 1960's, there was, yet again, a decline in businesses in the 9th street area. 



It is hard to believe how much history there is in this area.  If you want to learn more, take a visit to the Mosaic Templars Center on the corner of Broadway and 9th in Little Rock.  The admission is free and you will not be disappointed.