Various media outlets have been a-buzz as of late with regards to the Maureen Dowd's New York Times Op-Ed piece published this past weekend. She dared to pen what many in the black and white community have long whispered in hushed conversations and discussed around private family dining tables. The recent backlash against the Obama administration goes beyond fears of big government and Wall Street bailouts. It is inextricably entrenched in racism.

It has been apparent since Obama first declared his interest in the presidency that fringe conservative groups have expressed their displeasure with the prospects of black presidency. However, when we all held hands that January morning, singing Kumbaaya to in honor of the the Obama inauguration, many thought race relations in the United States had turned for the better. Apparently not, for matters have only gone worse for all the world to behold.

Under the guise of rejecting health care reform (I mean, honestly folks, why are vast numbers of "working stiffs" in support of health execs in the first place....) and protecting kids from Obama's stay-in-school propaganda, reaks the stench of racism. With statements such as, "I'm taking back my country," and war cries reminiscent of our secessionist past, it is hard to imagine that so-called activists gathered at the US Capitol this weekend were indeed color-blind. Posters such as that to the right, only serves to confirms this.

The latest slate of events proves that the myth of a post-racial America can, for now, be laid to rest. Several in the media and elsewhere, have literally spent the last few months walking on egg-shells so as to avoid the accusation of pulling out the "race card." I honestly believe that the majority of Americans do not subscribe to such beliefs. However, the existence of such radicals who bear signs stating, "We came unarmed, this time," proves that marginalized groups in America must still remain on alert.

yesterday, i read this incredibly interesting article on theRoot regarding Rev. Jesse Jackson's desire to castrate (yes, castrate) Barack Obama for not paying more attention to the needs of African Americans in the US. I would encourage you to take a few minutes to read the article. But in case you're short of few minutes, the author, Jack White, sees an Obama presidency as a major victory for members of the African diasposra, not only in the US, but globally. White contends that just like the rest of America, blacks especially, do not know what to do with an African American presidency. In essence, they have spent so much time fighting for a cause,that they, including Jesse Jackson, have no idea how to handle victory. (Or rather, Jackson, like the honourable Rev. Jeremiah Wright, is a victim of the "Jealous Negro Syndrome.")

I (and I am sure the author of the article, too) realizes that an Obama presidency is not the end all of race relations issues - but it is definitely a huge move forward for blacks in America and the rest of the United States. But when we finally do get to that blessed day where "...little black boys and little black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and little white girls..." - what will we do with it? Before answering that, what does that blessed day even look like?

As I was going over the comments from my last post, StandTall reminded me of the sort of jaded-ness that Nigerians at home and abroad have of October 1. Its been almost 48 years since that October 1st victory and it we have not yet been able to handle its aftermath. Its seems like our forefathers failed to adequately prepare for this victory. Its the same type of mistake that Bush made of the Iraq invasion and the mistake that we sometimes make in our own personal lives when we spend years struggling towards a goal and fail to plan the next step. What does our own victory look like and how do we prepare for it?

I definitely think that Nigeria is on the road (very slowly, though) to improving itself in several different arenas - politics, health, business, etc.
We have a achieved democracy (or some version thereof)...now what?
We have passed a National Health Bill...now what?
Constant electricity is slated to come in 2011...then what?
If these are some of the victories we have achieved or are looking forward to, what's next on the agenda? What does our Nigeria's victory look like and how do we prepare for it?

Sometimes I wonder if the fact that we don't know what our victory looks like hints at our deeper personal and national expectations.

so, I got tired of seeing the image below of the Ghana Black Stars fan whenever I visited my blog and thought that it is high time I put up another post. since this is the month of love and US black history month - i would like to speak to a topic that has affected american black females for centuries and as i am starting to witness, african females as well.

last night, after simultaneously studying and keeping my eye out for the wisconsin and hawaii primaries (more of the latter than the former), I caught the last half or so of BET's "25 Events that (mis)shaped Black America." Under normal circumstances, I would not be caught dead watching late night BET, but my brother was watching it, the show seemed to have some usefulness, and I am a big Michael Eric Dyson fan.

One of the (mis)shaping events that caught my attention was the the hyper-sexualization of the black female or the misogyny of the black female as portrayed by hip-hop. First, I found it interesting that BET should admit that the negative effects of the portrayal of african american females as b****es and hos since they are one of the major exporters of these images. But I started to think that the hypersexualization of the black female is not limited to hip-hop music as well.

Earlier in the week (or maybe last week), I was put off a bit by cover story on the BBC news website, "Ivory Coast's 'big-bottom' Craze." Initially, my annoyance stemmed from the fact there are other more pressing concerns in Ivory Coast other than bum and breast enhancement creams and some song's tribute to big bottoms. But after this BET special, I began to wonder whether the African continent also exports this idea of a hypersexualized black female thru its music in similar ways to Nelly and Ludacris. Granted the history of the black female in the US, especially in light of forced sexual relations with white slavers and the simultaneous systemic emasculization of American black men during slavery stands in stark contrast to the situation on the continent (or I may be wrong here)...but how different is Meiway's call to shake our lolo's from Baby Huey's insistence that the bum should be popped, locked, then dropped? The videos are strikingly similar. I also wonder, is this an anomaly amongst blacks - I mean, are there other people groups that dissect and exploit intimate parts of the black female physique in order to sell records or initiate dance crazes? Africans have also had their own share of exploiting female sexuality by colonial masters (remember Hottentot Venus).

Of course, before I close, I must admit, that although I hate the images of half-naked black women on BET and Awilo's soft porn music videos, I can't help but play some of these catchy tunes on my iPod during a workout. I'm a huge fan of soukous music - HUGE. Additionally, I never leave the house without making sure that my jeans properly "fit" and accentuate what needs to be accentuated. I have struggled alot with the issues I just raised - especially the added dimension of African music turning towards lurid depictions of black women. A part of me says, its just music - not only that, but it's music with an irresistible beat that I cannot find in other genres. And perhaps, in some cases, there is a genuine appreciation for the black female physique. But then another part of me, the one that started this post, wonders if I am contributing to the degradation of black women by espousing any such music. I am slowly leaning towards the latter....

I would really really really like to get your opinions on this topic (also, let me know if I should clarify a bit). Let me know if you think it is "just music" or whether we have allowed the hypersexualization of black women to go too far or whether I have approached this topic incorrectly in comparing the African American situation with that of the continent.

I know it's been long since I last posted but for a number of reasons over the holidays I took a mental, physical and otherwise break from everything. I think I am sort of back into the swing of things, school, blogging (maybe) etc.

So over the course of this semester I will be writing on health disparities in cardiovascular disease outcomes, particularly amongst black immigrants to the US and the influence of acculturation on health (I know, that was a mouthful). Some of the things I have come across is that relatively few people care about the health of black immigrants (seeing that I can't find that much on it) and that studies of black immigrants and their health could have some potential for addressing the health of African Americans.
In the course of digging through the literature for information on acculturation and African immigrants (I had to dig very deeply), I came across the African American Acculturation Scale, (AAAS) which I wanted to ignore at first, but sat down and thought about it for a while, especially in light of my own experiences.

I think of myself as a lot of different things, being a first generation American to African immigrants. In the United States, I identify myself as African American, not only in a literal sense, but also partaking in the African American culture which over the past 400 years has come to mean so many different things. I think the African American culture is one of the most diverse, seeing that it comprises of people like me, biracial people, and those who's roots can be traced all the way back to the trans-Atlantic slave trade. It took me a long time to realize this, especially while attending a predominantly black high school where most were from similar backgrounds and found it necessary to to categorize who was "black enough" and who talked or acted like white people. Needless to say, my accent and my inability to rattle off rap lyrics from the top of my head placed me in the latter category. Fortunately, there was a growing silent majority of "blacks" and "whites" at my high school who felt that the definition of blackness is quite flexible.

Apparently in academia, the definition of blackness is not as expansive as I and some of my high school mates believed. According to the AAAS, blackness can be measured in your thoughts toward traditional African American foods, willingness to date outside of your race, and political affiliations. Yes, I sort of see the rationale behind looking at these social and cultural aspects of race in order to determine willingness to engage in certain health practices. But there is a part of me that shudders at the thought of determining who's a traditional African American and who is not. And honestly, I think its somewhat outdated. It almost reminds me of a comment a teacher of mine made when I was in high school in which she wanted to find out if my family was "tribal." (yeah, she actually seriously asked me that - I was too stunned to give her a smart answer like if her family still lived in caves or waved the Confederate flag in front of their house or something like that).

Anyway, those are my initial thoughts on the subject, they may change over time or maybe I might find myself challenging these notions in a more public forum (meaning, beyond my blog).
Thoughts?