Cornel West and Tavis Smiley Stroke Themselves While Discussing Backlash on Obama Critique [VIDEO]

Soulclap to RiPPa for pointing us to this video. This video follows the Truthdig diatribe in which Dr. Cornel West called President Obama a 'Black puppet' and a 'Black mascot'. West also claimed that President Obama as a 'certain fear of free Black men'.  Tavis Smiley decided to use his PBS show to give Dr. Cornel West a chance to dig out from the hole that he dug for himself in the earlier interview with Chris Hedges.

Watch the full episode. See more Tavis Smiley.

Personally, I feel that West and Smiley are still suffering from bad feelings because they aren't in Obama's inner circle. I truly feel that West harbors a grudge because he didn't get an invitation to the 2008 inauguration. The Boston Globe agrees that West went too far. What is your take on Cornell West and Tavis Smiley?

Would America Have Been America Without Her Negro People?

"Would America have been America without her Negro people?" asked famous scholar W.E.B. Du Bois.   Our recent celebration of Indepenence Day reinforced the need for us to continually look back and honor everyone who took part in her creation.

Walmart Stores, Inc. Regional General Manager David Gose, Cincinnati Museum Center President and CEO Douglass McDonald, exhibition presenter Tavis Smiley and Arts and Exhibitions International Senior Vice President Mark Lach stand in front of a specially decorated Metro bus to celebrate the opening of America I AM: The African American Imprint at Cincinnati Museum Center.

Tavis Smiley brought America I AM: The African American Imprint to the Cincinnati Museum Center so that we might explore the many ways that African Americans helped develop the United States.

This 15,000 square-foot exhibition is divided into 12 galleries that house an assembly of over 200 artifacts representing nearly 500 years of American history. Travel through time on a journey from struggle to triumph to experience how African Americans throughout history have shaped us as Americans today.

America I AM is a four-year traveling museum that has allowed people from all over the United Stated to leave their own video "imprints" through one of the exhibit's interactive pieces. This piece will continue to grow as the exhibit travels from city to city, and has potential to become the largest recorded oral history project in the U.S.

Don't miss the chance to not only learn the history of a highly influential group of people, but to become a part of history yourself. America I AM is now open at the Cincinnati Museum Center. Click here for ticket and time details.

America I AM: The African American Imprint

I truly appreciated Tavis Smiley back in the day when he was engaged in a series of forums branded as 'Blacks in Technology'. However, his recent tantrums against POTUS have caused me (and most of Black America) to be disappointed in Tavis.

However, even a person with questionable political antennae can do good things. I think that the creation of the America I AM museum exhibit is a positive addition to Tavis' resume.

This traveling museum exhibit celebrate nearly 500 years of African American contributions to the nation through artifacts, documents, multimedia, photos and music. In fact, some have called it 'the largest and most comprehensive exhibition of African American history ever created.'.

I am pleased to note that the America I AM exhibit is coming to the Cincinnati Museum Center in June 2010 for about 6-7 months. Cincinnati isn't your usual suspect for things that uplift Black culture ... however, when someone does good ... it should be acknowledged. Kudos to the leaders of the Cincinnati Museum Center for getting this exhibit to our town!

America I AM is a four-year touring exhibit that premiered in Philadelphia last year. It is currently in Los Angeles CA. The exhibit endeavors to bring together Americans of all cultures, ages, and backgrounds to celebrate and further understand the indelible African American imprint on this country.

The exhibit is HUGE ... containing twelve galleries encompassing over 15,000 square feet. It takes visitors through a journey that spans nearly five (5) centuries of American history ... there has never been a culture and history exhibition as complete and impactful.

My understanding is that Tavis Smiley used his brand and contacts to obtain over 250 rarely toured artifacts from over 70 contributors from across the globe. The exhibition will include the doors to the Cape Coast Castle in Ghana (Doors of No Return), Alex Haley’s typewriter used to write Roots, personal Koran of Malcolm X, the door key and stool from the Birmingham jail cell that held Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., sports memorabilia from Michael Jordan and Arthur Ashe, Muhammad Ali’s robe, a personal loan of Prince's guitar, and much more.

The Cincinnati Museum Center is going to take advantage of this national exhibit to present its internationally significant collection of J.P. Ball photographs -- the largest collection of his works in the world. For those villagers that don't know ... J.P. Ball was a free Black man who settled in Cincinnati in the mid-19th century. An entrepreneur, abolitionist and photographer, Ball was a careful observer and recorder of key transformations of his time.

Anyhow, I hope that the Cincinnati community -- of all races, but particularly African Americans -- support the America I AM exhibit when it gets here in a few weeks. This exhibit can have a positive impact on our community life -- from economics to self-image to youth and community development to social progress to spirituality.

Have you seen the America I Am exhibit yet? Do you plan to do so over the course of its 4-year run?

This Week in Blackness: Michael Eric Dyson Should Shut Up

Elon James White jumps all over Michael Eric Dyson's comment that Barack Obama "...runs from race like a Blackman runs from a cop".

Professor Dyson is the headliner for this week's episode, however, Elon drops a dime on a number of others including Pat Buchanan, Tavis Smiley, R. Kelly and Rod Blagojevich.

I encourage all villagers to take a few moments to enjoy the latest weekly (hopefully!) rant from Elon!



Did you enjoy it? What was your favorite part of this week's video?

Tavis Smiley Quits on the State of the Black Union

I am glad to see that the annual State of the Black Union (SOBU) conference put together by Tavis Smiley over the past 10 years is over. [SOURCE]

I enjoyed it ... as I did the commentary of Tavis Smiley during the early years. In fact, I worked with Mr. Smiley on a similiar effort, Blacks In Technology, back in the day when I was national president-elect of an organization of Black IT professionals.

SOBU had some remarkable moments, including a rant by civil rights activist Dick Gregory. However, the entire conference ... and Mr. Smiley's reputation began to tank when he started pouting about the fact that Barack Obama wouldn't attend the 2008 SOBU.

It seems that Tavis Smiley has been criticizing Barack Obama on every television appearance since then. Obama was cool enough to appear by videoconference at the SOBU conference held last year.

Anyhow, Smiley apparently plans to spend more time in 2010 publishing the memoirs of R. Kelly.

Seriously?!?

Anyone willing to dig into the sewer of R. Kelly's mind is no longer worthy of serious consideration as an activist or journalist. I suppose that Smiley will continue to be a highly-paid speaker on the circuit of Black conferences, banquets and such. It just seems that he no longer as the respect of the Black community.

What are your thoughts about the end of the State of the Black Union conference? What are your thoughts about Tavis Smiley's future as an activist in the Black community?

Is Faye Anderson the New Tavis Smiley?

Tom Joyner Morning Show is auditioning seven guest commentators to replace commentator Tavis Smiley. One of the finalists is an AfroSpear colleague, Faye Anderson. Faye is a powerful blogger, and public policy and new media consultant.

Faye's audition takes place on the Tuesday, July 15 @ 8:10 AM. I encourage all villagers to share some love in the comments section for Faye!

Tavis Smiley Pouts About Barack Obama Scheduling Decision

I am a long-time admirer of Tavis Smiley. As national BDPA president I worked like heck to get him on board as a keynote speaker for our annual conference. I wasn't able to make it happen, but, I did serve as a speaker at a Blacks In Technology conference he hosted down in Atlanta, GA a few years ago. I'm glad that he was guest speaker for group of IT executives earlier this month. I supported him last year when he put the Republican candidates on notice for ignoring the presidential debate focused on Black issues. However, Tavis is on the wrong side of history at this moment in time.

Tavis hosts an annual Black Think Tank. He wants the four remaining presidential candidates to attend his forum on February 23 in New Orleans, LA. It turns out that Barack Obama declined the invitation in favor of intense campaigning in Texas and Ohio. I'm uncertain why Smiley is so publically critical of Obama's decision to focus on winning these critical primaries. Why would Smiley turn down offer for Michelle Obama to be at the Black Think Tank?

Early in the campaign, Obama participated in Tavis Smiley's CNN Presidential Debates, appeared before the National Association of Black Journalists, as well as before the Trotter Group, the NAACP and the National Urban League. Heck, he was a guest speaker on Smiley's television show a few months ago.

Tavis Smiley says otherwise, however, I think that he makes this into a big issue is ego. He wants to ride on the wave of Obama popularity to pump up volume on his annual Think Tank forum. It's obvious from the recent numbers of African American voters favoring Obama in recent elections that he doesn't need Tavis' event to reach out to Black folks.

Tavis Smiley should go back to the basics. I think that the brother should do his thing to uplift our people without tearing down our presidential candidate. Get over yourself brotha!

Villagers, what do you think about this Smiley v. Obama uproar?