What Will We Do
caring
They Gave It Power
This is a reminder that during the month of June we will examine African American Art. This figure is referred to as Nkisi Nkondi. It was believed to be a spiritual image with empowered medicinal and magical ingredients. Nails were one of the first commodities Africans began to make trades with Europeans.
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Happy Birthday Breonna Taylor
Breonna Taylor was an African American woman who was a first responder. She was killed March 13, 2020 when officers executed a search warrant in her home.
This is Worth your Time
I don’t really like true stories in tv or movies because the endings are seldom the way I want them to end. But sometimes the actor leading the show is pretty compelling.
Fell in love with Martin Freeman as Watson in Sherlock so I had to at least check out this new series, Confession. It tells the story of Detective Superintendent Stephen Fulcher as he looks for a missing young woman. Confronted with the killer, Fulcher has to make a decision that haunts him the rest of his life.
The Brits really understand short term attention because my favorite series have about 5 episodes. So does this one. Confession is a little confusing as it uses flash backs trying to explain the circumstances for several individuals. But it is thought provoking.
I have to fight the urge to want Freeman to be the character I had come to know him as, Watson. There were times I wanted him to fight back or have all the right answers. I had to let it go. I had to recognize his purpose in this story.
Actresses Siobhan Finneran and Imelda Staunton carry the weight of this series and it is refreshing. They each play a mother of a missing girl and take the viewer on an interesting ride. I saw portions of myself in each of these mothers. These actresses told a compelling story.
I recommend this series for those who like to binge over a couple of days. It is British, well written and told.
Let This Motivate You
With the Pandemic and recent killings of African Americans by police in the United States it is easy to become depressed or seek move away from this type of news. Folks want to avoid talking about it or watch something to take their minds off of it.
Resist the urge to ignore this. Now is the time to have a conversation about how you feel about injustice. It is also time to learn more about these things and how they impact you.
Art has been a great expression of how some people are dealing with unjust situations. I have found comfort in how artists use their creative minds especially to express their pain and fear and translate it onto a canvas.
George Floyd was an African American man who was arrested by Minneapolis Police on Monday, May 25. This situation was video taped by people who watched four police officers hold Floyd down. One officer had his knee on Floyd’s neck which restricted his breathing. Floyd died.
After the world watched this man die on the internet and television as the video was replayed, grief and angry filled the nation as we were faced with the chickens coming home to roost. Since then riots broke out around the city, with even a police department building being burned down.
Over the last couple of months life has become very precious as we have watched the numbers of people dying of the pandemic climb to 100,000. Yet this singular death of one man by a police officer has been the proverbial straw.
I have seen people who have been quiet during other situations like this speak loud and often. I have seen people throw themselves in between police and people they are pursuing.
If we are going to stop this, everyone has to do their part. You have to figure out where you belong and go to it. But everyone has to be a part of this if we are going to stop this. We are going to stop this.
Art of the Month
Self Confidence
Awake
Keep up with what is going on around your surroundings
Who Is Your Favorite Bond
Listen to our podcast.
TV Talk With The Sistas
In this podcast, two sisters chat about iconic television shows and their impact on the African American and American culture.
Episode One
The Sistas examine the 1970s hit Sanford and Son starring Redd Foxx and the British murder mystery series, Midsomer Murders.
Episode Two
The Girls focus on the Netflix series The Crown and the 1980s crime drama In the Heat of the Night. They find similar qualities in the way they tell their stories.
Episode Three
The Girls focus on the 1980s Norman Lear sitcom The Jeffersons and the Netflix limited series Self Made: The Madam CJ Walker Story. They examine the impact of these stories on African American culture.
Episode Four
The Sistas talk about the James Bond,007 franchise and the impact they think it has had on society and culture. These two Bond lovers go toe to toe over who is the best Bond. They also introduce you to their rating system
Listen up…TV Talk With the Sistas Episode 4
They Made Brown Beautiful
My Thesis examines how African American beauty was marginalized through laws over hundreds of years. The story examines some moments in time that left a mark in history on my people. These marks shaped what we think is beautiful and continues to limit us today.
Dark skin was not attractive and over the years we have tried to convince them to lighten their skin if they want to be. In 1910s and 20s, women like Nina Mae McKinney could not play mammy roles because of her light skin and European features. She was a talented singer and dancer who scored so big the all African American movie Hallelujah (1929) that she became the first African American to be signed to a 5 year movie deal.
With this deal, she was limited to playing maids and servants. She knew she would never make it as a star being a maid so she moved to France, which welcomed her with open arms.
Nina Mae McKinney is a woman who used her talent despite what others thought. Her beauty is not only in how she looks but in how she lived. She didn’t let them stifle her talent.
The only role models little African American girls saw on the big screen in the United States were maids and servants for many decades. Generations grew up thinking beauty was for fair skinned and Flaxen hair as one author put it. We didn’t think brown skin and kinky hair had much value.
But times are changing. My new book More Than A Color will tell the story.
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