So I was poking around itunes and this group called the Foreign Exchange popped up as something I should check out… and I did and was pleasantly surprise on how absolutely fresh this album is. Leave it all Behind, brings funk, soul, R&B and a bit of electronic all together in a sultry album about love heartbreak and everything in between. If you need a personal soundtrack of love and love loss, this is sure hit.

–

Other classics to check out:

Theses have been out awhile but if you haven’t,  checked the out:

Radiohead – The King of Limbs

Esperanza Spalding – Chamber Music Society

Little Dragon – Ritual Reunion

Kanye West & Jay Z – Watch the Throne

By Thembisa Mshaka

An offensive, incendiary ad went up in Manhattan this week targeting the wombs of Black women. I was not alone in my anger at the ad; media personality and recording artist Free shared my upset. She invited me to provide some analysis on the ad to take the discussion on twitter beyond the emotional reactions the ad sparked. Below is what she posted at Freesworld.com. I’d love to get your thoughts here as well.

Here’s the ad:

No, your eyes do not deceive you.

****

Free,

I have been in advertising and marketing communications for over 12 years. As a writer of numerous campaigns across categories from pro-social to entertainment, I understand the impact words and images are designed to make in the form of advertising. I want to examine all that is wrong with this ad:

Copy: “The most dangerous place for an African-American is in the womb.” The headline is designed to grab your attention. It certainly does that—but it also maligns African American expectant mothers and infers that the Black female body is toxic and to be feared, when in fact the womb is the seminal, most natural place in the world for any child of any mother. Now Black women’s wombs are more dangerous than urban streets, than corrupt police, than semi-automatic weapons, than drugs?! The headline seems to work counter to the overall message, which is that they want to prevent abortions. If that’s so, then what’s so scary about a pregnant Black woman? Ohhh, the fact that she might be in control of her own reproductive system; that she would make an informed choice of her own volition. Now I get it.

Imagery: Instead of seeing a mature pregnant woman, or even an infant, we are presented with an adorable young African-American girl who looks to be under the age of 8. What is this ad’s image saying? That the child is also dangerous as the outcome of a Black woman giving birth? That she is the owner of the dangerous womb and sexually active, (which objectifies and sexualizes her in a way that is totally inappropriate)? Or is it intended to make a woman considering terminating a pregnancy rethink it if she sees a cute little girl that her embryo could become? In my view, this cute girl is meant to make me look and say “awww, how cute!” and then read the whole ad. Any answer occurs for me as a ploy. More abuse of the black female image.

But what if this woman was raped? What if her pregnancy is the result of incest? What if the condom just broke, or she’s simply not prepared emotionally or financially to bring a child into the world? What if the embryo has genetic abnormalities the mother is not able or willing to manage? Much more goes into this decision than interest groups and politicians tend to admit or accept.

A woman’s right to choose is under a full-blown assault in America right now. From talk of overturning Roe v. Wade, to Republicans trying to redefine “rape” in legislation to the Senate voting to de-fund Planned Parenthood, the pendulum is dangerously close to swinging back to hangers in dark alleys or interstate drives in the dead of night for illegal procedures. Instead of offensive and insensitive ads for shock value, why wouldn’t ThatsAbortion.com share options for pregnant women that involve going full term? Present the option of surrogacy, or offering the child for adoption instead of vilifying the same womb that creates life. Or, sing the praises of abstinence or safe sex. All that is too complicated; it’s easier to slap a nasty headline on a sweet image and generate some buzz. If women of color are terminating at disproportionate rates, a closer look at all the factors that contribute to this should be examined. All women deserve to know what those factors are.

ThatsAbortion.com gets an Ad FAIL from me for race-baiting with their advertising.

Thembisa S. Mshaka, Promax Gold and Telly award-winning advertising and media executive and author, Put Your Dreams First, Handle Your [entertainment] Business (Business Plus/GCP, 2009)

The theme for Black History Month 2011, as suggested by the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History, is “African Americans and the Civil War.” Noted artist Charles Bibbs has created a series of posters on this theme including one of Harriet Tubman.

Black Women for Wellness is delighted with the inclusion of Harriet Tubman as she is a leading icon of the Civil War and with African American history but also because it offers an opportunity to add dimension her life and work.

Tubman richly deserves recognition for all her exploits during this era. As a Conductor on the Underground Railroad, she is remembered as leading enslaved Blacks to freedom, including forcing the more timid ones to carry on with the journey or face death for turning back; a spy for the Union Army, gathering intelligence from plantations and escaped slaves on the positions and movements of Confederate troops; or leading a group of scouts as part of a raid on the Combahee River to remove torpedoes, destroy railroads and bridges and cut off supplies to Confederate troops in South Carolina.

The role of warrior is but one dimension of “General” Harriet Tubman.

The “General” had another side: health care provider and advocate.
As part of her duties for the Union Army, Tubman was sent to care for members of the 54th Massachusetts Volunteers after their assault of Fort Wagner in South Carolina in 1863 (the film “Glory” starring Denzel Washington was based on these troops).

Tubman told Sarah Hopkins Bradford, her first biographer, “ … every morning, I’d get a big chunk of ice, put it in a basin, fill it with water, then I’d take a sponge and begin. First man I’d come to, I’d thrash away the flies, and they’d rise … like bees round a hive. Then I’d begin to bathe the wounds and by the time I’d bathed off three or four … [the water] would be as red as clear blood. Then I’d go and get more ice … and by the time I got to the next ones, the flies would be round the first ones black and thick as ever.”

Tubman was known during this time as a most effective herbalist, having cured dysentery in an area of Florida where several members of a Union Army regiment were “dying off like sheep.” Her herbal remedy cured the surgeon in charge and the remaining soldiers who had been stricken.

Later, toward the end of the war, Tubman would travel to Virginia to labor in hospitals operated by the government for Black soldiers, and on to Washington, DC to give testimony to the War Department on the conditions the patients were being treated under.

In the remaining years of her life, Harriet Tubman used her home as a shelter for “aged and indigent colored people.”

The event called Live at the Pagoda, started by two very cool cats Thomas Aguilar and Michael Grammar who make up Ungrammar have featured artists as vibrant as Bilal(if you have never caught one of his live shows put that on your to do list IMMEDIATELY), as eclectic as Little Dragon and Electric Wire Hustle and a whole slew of artist in between. On Friday it featured two beautiful artists that I wasn’t up on. Hailing from Oakland was Mara Hruby, whose rendition of Al Green’s “Simply Beautiful”, was pretty NASTY( in a good way) she also had one of my FAVORITE musicians in the Bay backing her Nate Mercereau of the PARK!! Pairing up with Mara was Andy Allo from LA by way of Bamenda,Cameroon. Her ease with the crowd made her set pretty enjoyable not to mention her whole set was FEEL GOOD MUSIC the whole way through. Keeping the energy moving forward was my main man Cory aka DJ the C.M.E. Not only is he one of my closest friends but he has been honing his skills under the tutelage of the Bay Area’s own Sake1derful. If you missed it you missed it but do yourself a favor and add these folks on Facebook so you can keep yourself in the loop. Live at the Pagoda

By Jan Robinson Flint- ED of Black Women for Wellness

Black Women for Wellness joined with others nationally and locally this week to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a holiday that marks an important milestones in our African American’s experience.  While we are encouraged by the strides that have been made to unify and heal our communities, we must point out a racist and divisive campaign that objectifies Black children, charges Black women with genocide and utilizes Black men as pawns in a political play for power that has been brought to our city by The Radiance Foundation and Issue4life.

Along King Boulevard where this year’s parade took route, and where our community – politicians, elected officials, grassroots leadership and everyday regular folk – gathered to celebrate the life of Rev. King, were billboards with the message “Black Children An Endangered Species’, and the face of a beautiful African American child accompanying this dangerous message.

This message is dangerous because it belies its true purpose:  to gather anti-abortion support in the African American community. Los Angeles is the latest stop in this campaign; billboards have been posted in Atlanta, GA, Milwaukee, WI, Florida and Illinois.

African American/Black children are not comparable to bald eagles, blue whales, California condors and other animals on the endangered species list. A society that does not value the lives of Black children, women and men is the greatest threat to our community.  Substandard housing, unchecked police power that murders with impunity and jails with gusto, disparities in health care, pay, life expectancy, and more.  These are the true threats to the survival of healthy, stable Black families and communities.

Martin Luther King Jr. believed that health care was a basic human right. The Radiance Foundation, by insinuating that Black women bear the blame for genocide through abortion, makes it plain that their focus is not human rights but the subjugation of Black women’s autonomy over their bodies.

It is reprehensible that someone would use Black children as a tool to attack Black women for political purposes.

Black women stand at the intersection of racism and sexism in this country and we face the pain of living at this crossroads everyday.  It is demonstrated by our health status, we suffer from some of the highest health disparities in Los Angeles County.

Rather than allow outside agitators to barge in and try to divide us by scape-goating Black women for political gain, Black women’s organizations and our allies must come together to find solutions to ending the health disparities and crises we face.

Trust Black women: if anyone feels the sharp pain of infant and maternal mortality in our community – it is our mothers, grandmothers, aunties, and sisters.

Trust Black women: if anyone feels the sharp pain of husbands, sons, brothers lost to gang violence, police brutality and murder in our community – it is our mothers, grandmothers, aunties, and sisters.

Trust Black women: if anyone feels the sharp pain of dreams and hopes deferred, dried up and festered because of poverty, miseducation, hopelessness and despair, it is us.

While we bask in the glow of our country celebrating Dr. King and while you still have your favorite Dr King quote on your Facebook page, please recognize there are organizations and people that would attempt to control women and who would destroy our families in a heartbeat; organizations that have the audacity to attempt to link their agenda with the philosophy of Dr. King by placing billboards along the parade route celebrating him and the movement from which he sprang.  These billboards dehumanize Black children and charge Black women with genocide – something Dr. King would never, ever stand for.

I look forward to the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Parade in Los Angeles, the children, high school bands, local personalities and line dancing seniors ….it is a heart-warming and powerful way to convey to our children and to ourselves who the Black community is in LA and what we stand for.  It is a reminder of how far we have come and that we have not yet arrived.  It is a chance for those we share this road with to come together and celebrate the milestones on this journey, and that we are a powerful, visionary people.

“Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable … It comes only through the tireless efforts and passionate concern of dedicated individuals … This is no time for apathy nor complacency. This is a time for vigorous and positive action.”  Dr. Martin Luther King Jr

What does this moment ask of you, and what does it ask of me?

1.      Gather more information at Trust Black Women see our website atwww.trustblackwomencalifornia.org

2.      Write something, say something. Yes blog, twitter, facebook and put our technology prowess to use.

3.      Talk to your friends and neighbors. People might not have noticed, may be understandably confused and a few words from you can help explain how these got here, and the ulterior motives of the sponsoring foundations.

From the chicago sun times website

In the words of Princeton Professor Cornel West, it was about “a black face in a high place.”

President Obama was the target of slings and arrows Saturday from some of the nation’s most quoted African-American leaders — but, they said repeatedly, it was all done “in love.”

The rollicking “black agenda” debate at Chicago State University focused on African-American concerns, including jobs and education — and whether Obama is doing enough. Organized by talk show host Tavis Smiley, it was part revival and all theater.

“I’m very proud,” Minister Louis Farrakhan said with timing that drew laughter, “that a black man sits in the White” — he paused — “House.”

But Obama received mass support from African-American voters, the Nation of Islam leader said, and “we have a right to expect something of the brother.”

Georgetown Professor Michael Eric Dyson likened Obama to Jackie Robinson, who broke the color line in baseball. Robinson may not have been the most gifted black ballplayer of all time, Dyson said, but his temperament enabled him to withstand racist abuse. Then, superstar Willie Mays followed.

As for Obama, Dyson said: “I’m waiting for Willie Mays to come behind him.”

At one point, Farrakhan, who has been accused of being anti-Semitic, said Obama is not loved in Israel because of his “chutzpah.”

“That’s a Jewish term that meant testicular fortitude,” Farrakhan said.

Then Bennett College President Julianne Malveaux urged him not to “genderize.”

So Dyson suggested the term “ovarian audacity” — to laughter.

West, who jumped up often to hug the 11 other panelists, said Obama has surrounded himself with too many people from Wall Street.

“You can bail banks out,” Malveaux said, “But you can’t put people back to work.”

“Too many of us are just happy to have a black president,” said Michael Fauntroy, an assistant professor at George Mason University.

“The black agenda is the humane agenda,” said the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

Several times, panelists said the Obama administration has been more active on Mideast politics and Latino and gay concerns than on issues that specifically affect African Americans.

But after the criticism and jokes, the participants seemed to scale back the rhetoric, saying they appreciate Obama’s challenges.

Farrakhan said he was saddened by “demonizing” of Obama, including renderings of the president with a Hitler mustache, and of Michelle Obama, “the most beautiful black woman to be by his side,” as a monkey. “Oh, man,” he said, trailing off.

After discussing fears of an assassination attempt on Obama, Farrakhan said, “We need to pray for the brother and his family, and warn America: Leave that brother alone.”

“We love you,” Dyson said, speaking of Obama. “We just want some love back.”

Some black leaders have accused Smiley of Obama-bashing. He said Saturday’s event was scheduled before anyone knew it would come on the eve of a key congressional vote on Obama’s health-care reform bill.

http://afroamhistory.about.com/od/tthomasfortun1/a/bio_fortune_t.htm

Well it’s that time of year again, when everyone is looking for ways to keep in shape and get it right and tight for the summer. However if you live in one of the northern parts of the country like I do, trying to find your way to the gym in snow is not looking too good. Luckily I’ve found several tips to keep you in shape without leaving your couch/bed or well warmth. With all health advice, if you have any health issues you should consult your doctor before trying any of these exercises. Also if hurts ( not just kind of burns but actually hurt, and or head spinning) stop and talk to your health care provider, there might be something else pretty serious going on.

Upper Body

1)  Push Up

There is two way to do this using your couch…

1) Face towards your couch and put hands at slightly shoulder length a part on the edge of the seat of your couch. Do not lock your elbows.  Align your feet about shoulder length apart from one another. Your body should be in a slanted line shape. Hold in those abs and butt while you bend your arms at the elbow bringing your chest to the couch. Do this about 10 times and take a 45 second rest and repeat whole process 3 times.

2) Reverse push up

Sit at the end of your couch and put your arms down on each side of you at the edge. Scoot a bit off the couch so your butt and hips are hanging off the side. Use your arms to lower your body towards the floor and bring it back up to your starting position.

3)  Leg lifts

Lay on your couch on your back so your are complete flat. Put your hands behind your head and hold your legs straight out. Slight lift your legs off the couch so that your lower leg knees and half way up your thigh is off the couch. Hold this position for 5 seconds and then bring you legs slowly down back to the couch. Remember to use your abs as you lift and lower your legs. Repeat 10 times

4) Reverse Crunches

Lay on your back length wise of your couch. Sit up so that your back is at a 90 degree angle with your feet straight in front of you. Take your feet lay them flat on the couch, so that you are in a cannonball shape.  Once in this position, put your hands on your chest or head, and lean back to about a 45 degree angle hold for 2 second and then come back to your starting position. Remember to hold you stomach in and use your ab muscles to go back and forth

Let’s not forget that six months ago no one expected us to have gotten this far toward reform in the first place. The insurance companies claimed that offering health care -in any form- to those with pre-existing conditions, removing caps on coverage and covering preventive care would bankrupt their industry and further devastate our ailing economy. If they succeed in assassinating any form of the public option, they are agreeing that covering these conditions is not only doable, but is preferable to competing with a government plan crafted for these purposes alone.

President Obama can’t propose using reconciliation, which was repeatedly used by the Republican majority to pass the Bush tax cuts, because he also promised during the campaign to change the dangerous trajectory of our political discourse from the destructive, decisive, hyper partisan path we’ve been on since the Reagan Administration.

Governor Dean and many of the progressives in the House now want to scrap the progress we’ve made thus far to start from scratch in hopes that this will give way to a public health care plan. Following this plan will send Congress home for winter recess having been defeated once again by the partisanship that the American people voted to end with the election of President Obama and allow the opponents of reform to develop a strategy to derail any chance of providing care to those who need it most.

Since the focus of the right has been concentrated on opposing any type of public option, dropping these provisions will defuse the basis for their argument against reform and open the pathway for our president to deliver health care reform covering millions of uninsured Americans during the first year of his term, provide political cover for moderate democrats up for reelection in purple districts and allow us to move on to dealing with other drastically important national priorities. The public option may be the best way to achieve comprehensive reform, but we can’t let the opportunity to deliver reform die with it.