Harvard Professor Gates Plans To Meet With Officer Again Over Beers

 

 

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The officer who arrested a top African-American professor said talks over beers Thursday evening at the White House were productive and the two men plan to meet again.

Sgt. James Crowley and Henry Louis Gates Jr. sat around a patio table with President Obama and Vice President Biden, drank beer, munched on snacks and talked about the arrest that has sparked debate about racial profiling and police procedures.

"It was a private discussion. It was a frank discussion," Crowley said of the meeting, but would not divulge specifics except to say that no one apologized.

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CNN, Watkins: Chris Brown is Not a Monster

Click the image to watch the video.  In this clip, Dr. Boyce Watkins appears on CNN to say that “Chris Brown is not a monster”. 

Technorati Tags: boyce watkins,chris brown,chris brown and rihanna,black news,african american news,black celebrities,african american celebrities

Barack Obama Pitches Economic Plan Tonight

President Barack Obama takes center stage on Tuesday to try to sell the American people on his broader agenda for jolting the United States out of deep recession and confronting long-term economic challenges.

Riding high in opinion polls, Obama will deliver a State of the Union-style address at 9 p.m. EST in his first appearance before a joint session of Congress since he took office five weeks ago.

The primetime speech, the opening act on Capitol Hill for any new president, comes in a pivotal week for Obama. He will roll out his firstbudget proposal on Thursday against a backdrop of growing public anxiety over the worst economic crisis in decades.

In a stark reminder of how grim the situation has become, Wall Street slumped to a 12-year low on Monday as investors worried about the government nationalizing ailing major banks, a prospect the White House tried to play down.

 

Click to read.

Technorati Tags: barack obama,black news,african american news,black politics,african american politics

Black Relationships Gone Bad: Husbands on the Downlow

By Syreeta L. McNeal, CPA, JD

Recently, New York Knick’s basketball player, Eddy Curry, a married father of several kids, received notice of a sexual-harassment lawsuit by his former limo driver, Kuchinsky. Kuchinsky is alleging that Curry tried to solicit gay sexual activity from him while working as a 24/7 chauffer for the NBA hoop star and his family.[1] With the national press coverage of this story, I am reminded of the movie,Cover, which explored the current situation that appears to be facing many black families. Cover is a film about a devoted, churchgoing wife, and mother whose faith is shattered when she discovers that her husband is living a secret double life.[2] Also, there is a 30-minute internet movie, Results, which tackles the same type of betrayal and shows how the couple tackles it in the span of one night.[3] So, as it relates to married men who happen to cheat on their spouse on thedown low, I ask, what’s love got to do with it? I understand the question is paying tribute to the hit single by Tina Turner. However, I think people should explore the reasons why married men choose to cheat on the down low and should a wife, who takes a vow of fidelity with her husband, continue in the relationship after discovering the betrayal.

People might ask why a lawyer would write an article on a social topic such as married men who cheat on the down low. Well, a lawyer is considered an attorney and counselor at law. When a wife chooses to get a divorce due to infidelity from their husbands cheating on the down low, it is important for lawyers to understand the origin of the relationship and what caused the heartache to their client so that they can effectively provide legal advice and counseling for their client. In a majority of states, infidelity is just one factor in how marital property is divided between former married couples. Even though a wife might want her husband, who cheated on the down low, to get nothing and pay dearly for the betrayal, the courts in a majority of states will not find fault (e.g. infidelity) a determining factor in the division of marital property. Therefore, it behooves the lawyer to try other methods of counseling to explain the law to jilted married clients.

This article will analyze the meaning of love, the reasons why people get married, and what actions people should take to minimize the potential of being married to men who cheat on the down low.

Meaning of Love

Love has many meanings. Webster dictionary defines Love as a strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties (e.g. maternal love for a child).[4] Also, love is an attraction based on sexual desires (e.g. affection and tenderness felt by lovers).[5] Love is also an affection based on admiration, benevolence, or common interests (e.g. love for old schoolmates).[6] Also, love is a warm attachment, enthusiasm, or devotion (e.g. love of the sea).[7] Love can also be used as a term of endearment.[8] Love is also the unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another.[9] Love is a sexual embrace.[10] In all, love embraces a form that is erotic, romantic, familial, platonic, and religious.

Similar to Webster dictionary, Christianity embraces four forms of love: Agapē, Philia, Eros, and Storge.[11] Agapē means charitable, selfless, altruistic, and unconditional.[12] It is parental love seen as creating goodness in the world.[13] It is the way God is seen to love humanity and it is seen as the kind of love that Christians aspire to have for others.[14] Philia is defined as the human response to something that is found to be delightful.[15] Also, it is known as "brotherly love".[16] Eros is defined as sexual love.[17] Storge is defined as the needy child-to-parent love.[18]

One thing that is fascinating is the explanation of what Eros is. Eros is a very passionate love, with sensual desire and longing.[19] In the classical world, the phenomenon of love was generally understood as a kind of madness or, as the Greeks put it, theia mania ("madness from the gods").[20] This love passion is best illustrated by a scheme involving “love arrows” or “love darts.”[21] The source of the arrows is said to be the image of the beautiful love object itself.[22] If the arrows arrive at the lover’s eyes, they would then travel to and ‘pierce’ and ‘wound’ his or her heart and overwhelm him/her with desire and longing.[23] This creates an image of an “arrow’s wound” where an oxymoron of pleasure and pain is created.[24]

As illustrated above, love has different meanings. Saying “I love you” to a person can mean a variety of things. The issue for married couples who are dealing with husbands who cheat on the down low isnot whether they love their wives. The issue is what type of love does husbands who cheat on the down low have for their wives. In my opinion, this is the heart of the conflict that exists between married couples who have husbands who cheat on the down low. Next, it is important to understand why people marry.

Why People Marry

Marriage is a social, religious, spiritual or legal union of individuals.[25] People marry for many reasons, but usually they marry for one or more of the following reasons:[26]
· legal, social, and economic stability;
· the formation of a family unit;
· procreation and the education and nurturing of children;
· legitimizing sexual relations;
· public declaration of love; or
· to obtain citizenship

In almost all Protestant forms of Christianity, they hold marriage to be ordained by God for the union between a man and a woman.[27]They see the primary purpose of this union to be to glorify God by demonstrating his love to the world.[28] Other secondary purposes of marriage include intimate companionship, rearing children and mutual support for both husband and wife to fulfill their life callings.[29]

Like love, people marry for a variety of reasons. What is extremely interesting is that when protestant Christians marry their primary purpose is for the union to glorify God. One example of the betrayal for protestant Christians is when married men cheat on the down low. This action is not one that glorifies God especially when the bible states that men (or women) who practice homosexuality will not inherit the kingdom of God.[30] So, the conflict exists and men and women need to be aware of who their partners are before entering into marriage.

The Reality of the Conflict of Down Low Activity with Marriage

Some married men who cheat on the down low believe that down low activity is similar when men cheat with other women. I beg to differ. As these movies illustrate, a woman cannot compete with a man sexually. Women and men are not equal in physical form. Men and women have different sexual features and different purposes of use for these features. I equate the differences between men and women similar to placing pieces of a jigsaw puzzle together. Do like parts unite or do opposite pieces fit together?

If a married man cheats on the down low, they have a sexual attraction for another man. Sorry ladies. Physically, there is nothing you can do, except do a sex change, to sexually fulfill a man who wants to sleep with other men. A married man might love his wife, but the sexual love a wife is craving from her husband does not exist the way she wants or believes it should exist especially if this type of infidelity occurs after the coupled exchanged wedding vows to be married. There are always signs of men who have a sexual attraction for another man. However, you have to open your eyes and find out who your spouse truly is before you enter into marriage.

Attributes of Counseling Before Marriage

One way to discover whether your significant partner is ready to be married is to participate in marriage counseling. In essence, you are treating your marriage as a long term investment and gathering as much information about your spouse before you enter into marriage. As illustrated above, love has many meanings and people marry for different reasons. Just because someone says “I love you” is not all you need to know to venture into marriage. What a man and woman need to find out from each other is what type of love exists and is it reciprocally felt. If your potential spouse only feels an admiration for you and you feel romantic love for that person, then you need to find this out before you venture into marriage and not get married to the person. Also, what are the reasons why the man and woman are getting married and is it reciprocal. If your potential spouse wants to get married to obtain citizenship and you want to get married public declaration of love, then you need to find this out before you venture into marriage and not get married to this person.

Ideally, married couples expect their spouses to solely want them only. They believe their spouse will be the complement human being to help fulfill their needs mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally. No one is perfect, but the union of a man and woman is expected to be one that works to perfection as seen in God’s light. When married men cheat on the down low, there is an erotic and sexual attraction for people of the same sex that their wife can’t fulfill. A potential spouse needs to know this before hand and not marry the individual especially if they seek their spouse to solely want them only.

Effective marriage counseling will be able to discover the compatibility of the couple. Marriage counseling should emphasize substance over form. The counseling should explore the type of love that exists and if it is reciprocally felt. Also, marriage counseling should explore the reasons why each person wants to marry and whether it is reciprocal. Furthermore, there is nothing wrong with doing an extensive background check on people before getting married. When you choose to marry someone, you are making a societal and private contract that this individual is someone you will honor and cherish, to have and to hold, until death do you part. With any type of long term investment, you need to know what you are getting into. This is not to say that marriages will not have problems, but if you choose someone to be married to you, you are making a long term investment in that individual expecting that the good will outweigh the bad. Know what you are getting into so you canminimize suffering betrayals like having married men cheat on the down low.

Legal Disclaimer: This site provides information about the law designed to keep readers informed of pertinent legal matters affecting the African-American community. But legal information is not the same as legal advice -- the application of law to an individual's specific circumstances. Although we go to great lengths to make sure our information is accurate and useful, we recommend you consult a lawyer in your specific location if you want professional assurance that our information, and your interpretation of it, is appropriate to your particular situation.

[1]http://www.nypost.com/seven/01132009/news/regionalnews/knick_gets_called_for_sex_foul_149982.htm
[2] http://www.coverthemovie.com/
[3] http://www.imdb.com/video/wab/vi3195994137/
[4] http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Love
[5] Id.
[6] Id.
[7] Id.
[8] Id.
[9] Id.
[10] Id.
[11] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_(religious_views)
[12] Id.
[13] Id.
[14] Id.
[15] Id.
[16] Id.
[17] Id.
[18] Id.
[19] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eros_(love)
[20] Id.
[21] Id.
[22] Id.
[23] Id.
[24] Id.
[25] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriage
[26] Id.
[27] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_views_of_marriage
[28] Id.
[29] Id.
[30] 1 Corinthians 6:9

Technorati Tags: black relationships,african american love,african american relationships,on the down low,black men in america,black love,black men,black women,african american men,african american women

Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson Says Without Slavery, WE would be Stuck in Africa!

Juan Williams v. Dr Boyce Watkins on CNN, Fox

by Dr. Boyce Watkins

http://www.boycewatkins.net/

A friend (Valencia Roner) called me one night to ask if I watch "The O'Reilly Factor." I said "No, I don't watch silly, racist television programs." She then informed me that I might want to watch this particular episode. Why? Because I was the topic of conversation ... for the entire show.

I set the DVR and went to sleep. I woke up the next morning to watch what had been recorded. Valencia was right. They were showing images of my CNN appearances, and playing my comments repeatedly, like Sports Center Highlights.

I've never seen so many guests asked to comment about someone else's comments. The kicker was watching Juan Williams and Bill O'Reilly congratulate each other like brothers for allegedly winning the "smear campaign" placed upon them by CNN.

I listened to O'Reilly tell the world that CNN, MSNBC, The New York Times, Mediamatters.org and other news organizations were all corrupt, but not him. Williams even wrote a piece about me in Time Magazine, in addition to making several radio and TV appearances to complain about my words.
Juan Williams

During the show, I honestly thought Williams was going to cry. This brought back memories, since I remember making a lot of conservatives cry in college. My mother said I shouldn't make grown men cry, and I felt bad. I was asked on CNN (and other shows) about Bill O'Reilly's racist remarks about Sylvia's, a black restaurant in Harlem.

In his comments, O'Reilly said that he could not get over the fact that the people were civil and well-behaved. He commended black people for finally learning to "think for themselves" and was relieved that there was no one in the restaurant saying "mf-er I want more ice tea." (Good thing no one was really thirsty!). O'Reilly tried to argue that his comments were meant to compliment the black community. He said that they were meant to defy stereotypes. As humbly and naive as a school girl, he argued that he was only intending to shed light on how racial stereotypes are bad for our society. Like the movie "Transformers", "America's Educated Redneck", Bill O'Reilly had morphed himself into Martin Luther King Jr.

On CNN, I essentially explained that anyone who thought Bill O'Reilly was suddenly a reformed racist who'd seen the light has been getting high with Bobby and Whitney too long. I've been on this man's show before, and he has consistently demeaned, degraded and devalued everything about black culture he could get his hands on (remember when he said that the Katrina victims would not have been stranded on rooftops if they'd chosen to get an education?) I also mentioned that I was unimpressed with Juan Williams' agreement and defense of O'Reilly.

Seeing Williams sitting there congratulating O'Reilly for his bigotry reminded me of the Negro in the white suit defending "massa" at all costs. His attitudes were consistent with his latest and most terrible book, which does nothing but blast black culture and black people, as if we are the sole causes of socioeconomic inequality. Therefore, I could only use terms I felt appropriate. I defined Williams as "The Happy Negro". On CNN, I compared O'Reilly's use of Williams to Hugh Hefner hiring a stripper to tell him that he's not a sexist. Williams was irate after hearing my words. In other words, "The Happy Negro" was no longer happy. I am not sure how smart or dumb Williams is (I have 3 times more education than him, but I guess he is of at least average intelligence). I hope he has enough sense to know that he is being used by a man who has consistently and reliably shown himself to be an enemy of black people.

I have, through my books "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about College" and "What if George Bush were a Black Man?" consistently attacked problems in the black community. I have spoken to millions of African-Americans about the value of getting an education and managing their money. I support the black family and even proposed to my future spouse in front of millions of people, in order to give black men the courage to express love for our beautiful black women. I wish I could tell you how many times I argued with CNN producers to cover the Jena 6 story long before it was popular to do so.

So, everything that Juan Williams might say about advancing the community has been consistently on my radar screen. But here is where we differ. I am very hard on the black community about improving our plight. But I am also man enough to challenge the white community, the media, universities, corporations and other American institutions for their role in creating racial inequality. Racism is a disease that lies within the fabric of nearly every American institution. So, any conversation about racial inequality that does not include White America's flaws and roles in the process is ridiculous, misguided and counter productive. In mathematics, I learned that you cannot solve a problem without working with both sides of the equation. The functions and systems of that equation are at least as important as the individual parameters.

In other words, the systems in America play a powerful role in the creation of incentives, opportunities and outcomes of the individual. If a young lady is sexually molested by her father and grows up to become a prostitute, any weak man can say "Miss, your life is in shambles because you're choosing to be a whore." This might even be an obvious point, but it will also continue to erode her self-esteem and ignore the critical half of the equation. It takes a stronger man to first challenge the young lady, and then go inside the home and confront her father for what he has done to create the problem. There is no denying that her father should pay for his daughter's counseling, apologize, get psychiatric help, be made aware of and told to cease his present abusive actions and face punishment for what he has done. He cannot expect that his family will be peaceful as long as he has not acknowledged his role in the creation of his family's devastation. At that point, you also teach the daughter personal responsibility, and how to move beyond the past and toward the future. Why won't many men do this? Because the daughter is an easy target, and her father might kick you in the ass.

That is why many black conservatives won't challenge white America to have personal responsibility for their role in racism, for this is biting the hand that feeds them (how long would Juan be on the Fox News payroll if he were to tell White America that their institutions and attitudes are a large cause of racial inequality? Contrary to O'Reilly's indication, I am not compensated by CNN or any other networks for what I say). It also feeds directly into white supremacy to say "The black community is in shambles because black people are making bad choices. The 400 years of oppression have nothing to do with the last 30 years of expression." Hence, we have Bill O'Reilly getting his rear-end rubbed by Juan Williams, as they both agree that the little girl is nothing but a whore.

O'Reilly claimed that Rev. Jesse Jackson (another guest on the show) was appalled by what I said about Williams, but of course he could not validate his claims on camera. I got a call the very next morning from Jackson's daughter Santita and received no indication of disapproval from the Jackson family. I am sure that if they had disagreed, they would have told me personally. Santita is a good friend and straight shooter.

Williams, for some reason, thinks that he is contributing to the advancement of black people by teaming up with a proven racist who has KKK members and Neo-Nazis watching his show (you should see the language used in my hate mail). A man who has a problem with President Bush would not team up with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to go after Bush. No matter how valid his arguments might be, the fact is that such actions amount to TREASON and are ultimately destructive.

Having a black face does not mean you care about the black race. Clarence Thomas taught us that. Hence, at the end of the day, I still call Juan Williams the "Happy Negro".

I stand by my remarks and might even put it on a t-shirt. From the response I've gotten so far, I wouldn't be the only one wearing it.

Black in America: Black Soldier Murdered - Military Closes Case Early

This is the story of Lavena Johnson, a soldier who was murdered under questionable circumstances. The military won't investigate further, but her parents feel they are covering things up.

Black Commentary: Dr Boyce Watkins Speaks on Racism in Media

Dr. Boyce Watkins

www.BoyceWatkins.net

www.yourblackworld.com

In its worst scandal yet, Fox News has been found to have doctored pictures of its guests to make them look worse. I wasn't surprised by the scandal, since I recall having a bunch of my friends call to ask where they found that crazy-looking picture of me when Bill O'Reilly blasted me on his show for several days, calling for me to be fired from Syracuse University.

In many cases, the teeth of the guests were yellowed, foreheads made longer, eyes darkened or ears widened. In my case, my forehead was stretched upward and to the right, and other clips were shown (with no audio) to make me look like an "angry black man". This made it easier for Syracuse alumni to think that I was an evil black man, even though most of my critics have never seen me speak or read my writing. It's made worse by the fact that black men do not have the same right to be angry that others have, so the stigma of the "angry black man" keeps many African American males from advancing in predominantly white institutions. I accept that, which is why I've never cared about promotions, organizational politics or professional advancement very much. Such carrots may appear librerating and uplifting, but they can also be oppressive and enslaving. It is important to feel good about who you are without needing someone from the outside to tell you that.

I am not sure how any group of credible journalists would resort to the tactics of Fox News. Fox is not even a meaningful representation of alternative viewpoints. They are more like The Jerry Springer Show than anything else. Fortunately, their viewership is declining during this election year, as a reflection of the fact that the American public is becoming well-aware of their racism.

Let's make a quick list of just a few of Fox's screwups over the past year:

1) "Mistakenly" referring to Obama as "Osama", and also working to detect a possible Muslim background, as if being Muslim were criminal and unAmerican.

2) Calling Michelle Obama Barack's "baby mama", when they would never do any such thing to John McCain's wife (or his mistress).

3) Joking about how it would be a good thing for Barack Obama to be assassinated.

4) Bill O'Reilly's statement that he might want to have a "lynching party" on Michelle Obama for her words (Click here to see what a real lynching party actually looks like).

There's more, but I'll stop for now. I think you get the point. If you don't get the point and somehow still consider Fox News to be a serious journalistic entity, then I encourage you to take a few classes in Black History to learn that this sort of terrorism on people of color is nothing new to the world. Fox is simply continuing the same traditions that led to lynchings, the mob mentality and cultural dominance exerted by some Americans who still do not believe in the ideals of freedom and equality.

A list of Fox News corporate sponsors and producers is here if you want to send them emails, faxes, letters or phone messages. Please sign our petition and encourage your friends to do the same.

By the way - thank you for your excellent perspectives on the Obama campaign. I read them all and will add some of these thoughts to my notes as I head to NYC for the BET shoot this weekend. If you have anything else to say, please share it on the blog (not in an email reply, since it is getting tough to make sure all the messages are read).

Sincerely,

Boyce Watkins

www.BoyceWatkins.net

www.yourblackworld.com

Black Leaders coming hard after Fox News for their Racism

African Americans are coming hard at Fox News for their racism. Black people are no longer standing for their horrible words and the ways they are attacking Senator Barack Obama.