I think the rich are too rich and the poor are too poor. I don’t think the black people are going to rise at all; I think most of them are going to die. I think the rich will eventually have to cave in too, because the economic situation around the world is not gonna tolerate the United States being on top forever. - Nina Simone

Just My Thoughts

As the days turn and the clock spins I wonder what’s the struggle

What’s the plight for black men?

Are we to to fade off, lost in the abyss?

Or rise strong like our ancestors did

Kings or Pharaohs

On TV sometimes we act like the emperor with no clothes

Ashamed

Never

More like excited

Cause damn are we clever

I walk into a classroom

Black as ever

My skin I can’t hide from

My struggles … CAN Rise from

I read the papers

See the news

It looks like I’m on the losing team

5 blacks shot last night

Over shoes that we use for hoop dreams

I want to be like Malcolm

No dead that I am Malcolm

The Resurrection of such

He was just a man and I refuse to give up

So I travel this earth ready for our rebirth

Black men the sleeping giant

At times we are both David and Goliath

So turn the TV off, turn the radio down

Black Men …. The Kings of this Nation

OUR TIME IS NOW!

You want to repackage Dr. King, make him some quiet loving guy with an Olive Branch in his hand, no, that was not Dr. King. I knew Dr. King, he spoke out against the injustices of America, and that’s why he died, because THEY decided that he had to be killed.- Fathe Pfleger

At the risk of sounding ridiculous, let me say that the true revolutionary is guided by feelings of love. -Che Guevara

Jay-Z and Beyonce aren’t the only ones who celebrated their nuptials this past weekend. I want to send a warm welcome to Mr. & Mrs. Elvin Fulton III who tied the knot in a private ceremony this past Friday evening. Let’s continue to celebrate the black family, and a beautiful union of two people who love each other.

Women, if the soul of the nation is to be saved, I believe that you must become its soul.- Coretta Scott King

Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase. - Martin Luther King Jr.

If you are not familiar, I encourage you to get FAMILIAR with Avenue Report; the young professional man of color’s guide to business, health, fashion, music, and politics. I currently write a column for this Lifestyle magazine which specifically serves men of color. The column is titled “Real Talk” and it seeks to address an array of issues that affect our people and solutions on how to deal with fighting stereotypes, crime in our neighborhoods, and the stresses of growing up in a single parent home among other things. Please check below for an excerpt of Real Talk in this upcoming issue. For more information on how to subscribe and become a part of the AR Family, feel free to check out http://www.avenuereport.com

START SNITCHING

We see it glorified in old mob flicks, rap records hail it as the sin of all sins; the number one code of the streets; “don’t snitch”. LOYALTY, I understand the concept very well, but when does it border stupidity and become a cause in fact of the violence and destruction of our neighborhoods. The “Stop Snitching Campaign” was subliminally etched into our minds long before the celebrated t-shirts with stop signs and the word snitching embedded within. Well please forgive me, for I am about to break the ultimate code of honor, I’m about to become the rat of all rats, because my charge for us as a community is to… “START SNITCHING”.

There, I said it, START SNITCHING, start snitching if you want your children to live to see past their elementary school graduation. Start Snitching if you want to stop living in fear as you walk to the corner store. This is heavy, because as a people we have a strong distrust for law enforcement. I mean, why wouldn’t we, after seeing many of our leaders crippled by this system of American Justice. We vividly remember news clips of the Civil Rights Era, watching police officers brutally attack people of color with water hoses and K-9 dogs? Many of us can attest to the “random” car stops, the harassment and brutality that our people face on a daily basis from those who are supposed to protect and serve. Yet I still say START SNITCHING, far too many of our children are becoming victims in the crossfire of drug wars, domestic disputes and other various forms of crime that begat violence.

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Today we are blessed with not one but three photos of our fallen hero Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his beautiful family. We often only see Dr. King through the lens of the transcendent leader; these photos allow us to see the softer, more gentle side of our hero. A dutiful husband, and caring father; these photo’s capture MLK in his sincerest joy, family time!

I’m so disturbed when my women students behave as though they can only read women, or black students behave as though they can only read blacks, or white students behave as though they can only identify with a white writer. - Bell Hooks